Africa NOW #109

Issued on 31st December, 2017 by Africa Japan Forum (AJF)«Contents»

pp.2-7
Topic: The First TICAD VI Follow-up Ministerial Level Meeting in Mozambique questions
Japanese diplomacy

Since 1993, African civil societies and Japanese NGOs have been thoroughly seeking active involvement by advocacy so as toexpand the participation in the process of Tokyo International Conferences on African Development (TICAD). Nevertheless, atthe First TICAD VI Follow-up Ministerial Level Meeting that took place in Maputo, Mozambique, in August 2017, one of theJapanese NGO members could not participate in the meeting as she had been denied a visa by the government of Mozambique.
Moreover, Moroccan governmental delegates resorted force to block the delegation of Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (RASD),
who were invited by African Union Committee and the Mozambican government, from entering the meeting room. This issue’s
main topic analyses these two unusual occurrences which happened for the first time in the history of TICAD process, and runs
the protest statement by the board members of Japan Citizens’ Network for TICAD against the non-issuance of the visa.
pp.2-4“A NGO member was denied entry by Mozambican government” by SAITO Ryoichiro
Here’s a report on the Mozambican government’s refusal of visa to the NGO member and NGOs’ counteractions for seeking visa issuance. SAITO criticizes the Mozambican government’s decision, and argues this should never happen again.
“Statement to Protest Visa Refusal against a Japanese Civil Society Participant for TICAD
pp.4-5and Demand TICAD Co-Organizers to Ensure Full Participation of Civil Society for TICAD Meetings”
pp.6-7“TICAD at the end of cliff - Western Sahara’s delegation was hampered by Moroccandelegation” by Editor of Africa NOW

It explains how the media of Japan, Mozambique, Morocco, and elsewhere reported Moroccan delegation’s violent
behavior for hindering the delegation of Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic(República Árabe Saharaui Democrática;RASD) from attending the First TICAD VI Follow-up Ministerial Level Meeting, even though RASD was officially invited by the AU and the government of Mozambique. It also emphasizes that it is important for the Japanese government
to address issues on Western Sahara in cooperation with the AU as a co-organizer of TICAD.

“Relationship between Republic of Korea and African countries - Role of Africa Insight” byHeo Steven Sung-Yong (pp.8-11: Japanese version / pp.12-15 English original version)

pp.8-15

Here reflects the presentation of Heo Steven Sung-Yong, the representative of a Korean NGO ‘Africa Insight’. He explains thestructure and problems of the five organizations which support the Korean governmental policy on Africa, and points out theamount of its ODA, trade and investment for Africa is still relatively low. Against this backdrop, he introduces Africa Insight’s rolesand its activities including participation in Seoul Africa Festival, ‘Africa YES’ project to support young entrepreneurs of Kenya, protest against campaigns such as “poverty pornography” which could aggravate racial discrimination and prejudice against Africa.
p.11“Visited Africa Insight” by NAKANO SatoshNAKANO reports about his visit to ‘African Square,’ an African handicrafts shop managed by the NGO ‘Africa Insight’ in Seoul.

“How are someone’s experiences seen?- A film “The Baulkham Hills African Ladies
Troupe” ” by MOZUMI Mamoru

pp.16-17

The documentary movie features four African women who have fled from their own countries (Guinea, Sierra Leone, Eritreaand Kenya) to settle in Austria as refugees or migrants. In the movie, each of the four women talks about her own experiences ofsuffering violence and sexual assaults in her home country, and the process of a theatrical production based on their experiences,in which they took roles, is depicted. How do the audience who saw the movie and their performance feel about their experiences spoken out? Having seen the film, MOZUMI thinks of the possibility that we could hold some link with experiences ofothers in our mind, although he is aware that it would be impossible to have those particular experiences of others as our own.

pp.18-19
AKC relay essay 4; “Hair style trouble’ in our family” by TAMURA Mitsuko
TAMURA Mitsuko, a managing member of African Kids Club (AKC), has a son and two daughters with her Ghanaian husband.
One day, her elder daughter, a junior-high school student, was delighted to have her hair braided at an event of AKC. The following
day, however, she was enforced by her teacher to put down the hair. Tamura made a complaint to the school, asserting that it should
respect various cultural backgrounds as foreign-originated families and children with foreign parents are increasing. However, theschool refused to accept her claim. Reflecting on this experience, she criticizes such attitudes of schools as well as of the Japanese
government which put pressures on foreign people and foreign-mixed children to assimilate to Japanese customs and cultures.
p.19“I love my hair” by HARADA Lylia
HARADA a fifth grader who is a child between a Japanese and a Nigerian, says that she has loved her hair since she met kidsof African Kids Club.
Back coverAttachment

Postscript (‘Hitotsu no musubime to shite’ in Japanese) and record of activities
Africa NOW 1091