Africa de Sud (II) * South Africa (II)

3 Apr. 2009

Dupa 2 saptamani, am intrat mai adanc in universul lingvistic local (dominat de limba engleza, caci eu nu vorbesc nici o alta din cele 11 limbi oficiale ale Africii deSud), dar si in spiritul orasului de la Capul Bunei Sperante. Am gasit cateva versuri care cred ca exprima foarte bine ideea de Africa (traducerea mea):

Africa, nu esti o tara
Esti un concept,
Conturat in fiecare din mintile noastre
Pentru a ne ascunde, fiecare, fricile,
Pentru a ne visa, separat, visele.

(Abioseh Nicol, “Semnificatia Africii”)

In ultimele zile am reusit sa vizitez cateva locuri din Cape Town – dealtfel un oras imens (2455 km2), care ocupa o buna parte din peninsula, cu toate suburbiile, formand o zona metropolitana.
Am fost cu trenul pana la ultima statie de pe coasta Oceanului Indian, la Simon’s Town, ca sa vizitez Plaja cu Bolovani (Boulders Beach) – un loc faimos datorita pinguinilor africani care se aduna aici si totodata o arie protejata. Am mai mers sa fac ceva voluntariat la CDRA, sau Asociatia de Resurse pentru Dezvoltare Comunitara (www.cdra.org.za), care are sediul in cartierul Woodstock, una din zonele multirasiale ale Cape Town-ului (chiar si in perioada de Apartheid). De acolo am mers pana in Observator (si nu ma pot abtine sa nu ma gandesc la Cluj…), care este o zona foarte aglomerata si cam internationala, caci aici stau multi studenti din diverse tari non-africane. De asemenea, sint foarte norocoasa cu gazdele mele, care ma invita mereu cu ele in diversele “miscari” pe care le fac pe-aici. Astfel, o insotesc pe Sue aproape in fiecare din plimbarile zilnice pe munte si am fost cu ei pe una din plajele cele mai frumoase din Muizenberg – un loc renumit pentru numarul mare de surferi care vin aici (si am facut baie in Oceanul Indian, care e si el destul de rece!)

Sint inca socata de cat de puternic se simte, aici, colonialismul si toate manifestarile sale – vizibile sau nu. Multe orase de pe coasta Oceanului Indian vorbesc despre colonistii albi (in special olandezi si britanici), care au incercat sa-si re-creeze propriul univers intr-un loc atat de diferit, fizic si spiritual, de Europa! Ma gandesc aproape neintrerupt la atitudinea pe care trebuie ca au avut-o acesti oameni fata de lumea noua pe care au gasit-o si pe care au distrus-o in mare masura, la cat de devastati in interiorul lor trebuie sa fi fost pentru a fi initiatorii atator acte de cruzime. Nu m-am simtit niciodata, in viata mea, atat de vinovata pentru faptul ca sint alba cum ma simt acum. Mai mult, nu am chestionat niciodata culoarea pielii mele, pana sa vin aici. Desi se spune despre Cape Town si provincia Capului de vest ca sunt locurile cele mai putin africane din Africa de Sud, mi se intampla sa merg cu trenul sau pe strada si sa ma simt nelalocul meu, din cauza faptului ca sint “alba”. Este un sentiment ciudat si neplacut totodata, caci e ca si cand as re-trai intreaga istorie sangeroasa a oprimarii populatiilor locale de negri de catre con-europenii mei albi… Desigur ca lucruri similare s-au intamplat in atatea alte locuri din lume, de-a lungul istoriei (inclusiv in propria mea tara), dar aici parca simt totul mult mai acut decat oriunde altundeva am mai fost (cu exceptia, poate, a Auschwitz-ului).

Pentru o persoana alba, nu este un lucru prea placut sa te plimbi pe strazile unor zone din Cape Town, daca esti sensibil la toate cele de mai sus sau daca ele te ating, cat de putin, in adancul sufletului. Multe parti din oras sint considerate nesigure sau chiar inabordabile pentru albi – si iti dai seama imediat de asta, cum ajungi acolo. Negrii care traiesc in aceste zone sunt in general simpli muncitori mai degraba saraci, care fie si-au parasit satele si modul de viata traditional ca sa-si caute de lucru “in marele oras” (unde nu au suficiente venituri ca sa se intretina si traiesc in conditii foarte precare) sau au fost adusi pentru a lucra in diverse fabrici. In unele cazuri pot fi chiar urmasi de departe ai diverselor populatii autohtone de negri care au fost colonizate aici. Implicit, exista immense frustrari legate de populatia alba, care a introdus si mentine o larga si profunda injustitie sociala intr-un loc unde, prin natura lucrurilor, nu avea nici un drept sa faca asta. O fi “legea junglei” aplicabila si oamenilor, insa pana unde putem impinge sentimental propriei superioritati?
Am sentimentul ca acest oras este un loc al nimanui, “folosit” intr-un mod extrem de interesant (dar nu neaparat egal) de albi si de negri deopotriva. Atmosfera de azi mai pastreaza, oarecum, sentimentul de Apartheid (pe care probabil noi nu-l putem de fapt intelege, caci nu l-am trait); il detectezi rapid, il mirosi cu usurinta, desi nu ti-a fost niciodata cunoscut si, oficial, vremurile acelea s-au incheiat in 1994.
Pentru mai multe informatii (succinte) despre Apartheid puteti intra pe http://www.unmultimedia.org/photo/subjects/apartheid.html

Da, Africa de Sud se spune ca este o tara frumoasa si Cape Town e intr-adevar o destinatie turistica minunata, insa mi se pare ca daca vii aici cu simpla intentie de-a vedea atractiile turistice majore, animalele salbatice sau a te bucura de plaja si soare, nu vei intelege cu adevarat spiritul acestor locuri – minunate, dar atat de tulburate in istoria lor. Iar aceasta intelegere este, cred eu, mai putin comfortabila, asadar poate ca multi vizitatori ai acestor locuri nu doresc s-o aiba.

Am mai adaugat poze pe galeria foto de pe Picasa. Nu veti gasi nimic din Woodstock, caci am evitat sa iau cu mine lucruri de valoare acolo. Sper sa va placa si sa reveniti, caci … va urma!

**
These lines come to me so much more in English now, for I have been “exposed” to the English environment of Cape Town and it is so powerful. I have found a set of verses that I believe are very expressive about the idea of Africa:

You are not a country, Africa
You are a concept,
Fashioned in our minds, each to each,
To hide our separate fears,
To dream our separate dreams.

(Abioseh Nicol, “The Meaning of Africa”)

I have only been visiting a few places in Cape Town over the past few days. I have taken the public train to Simon’s Town, the last station along the coast of the Indian Ocean, in order to visit Boulders Beach – a gathering place for penguins and of course, a nature reserve. I went to Woodstock, one of the few multiracial areas of Cape Town (even during Apartheid), where the Community Development Resource Association is located (www.cdra.org.za) and then I also took a short walk through Observatory, a rather busy area with an international flavour, because of the many non-African students who come here for internships or such. I am very lucky to have wonderful hosts who include me in their different movements around the area – so I join Sue on most of her morning hikes on the mountains that stretch along the Cape Peninsula and I have also been with them to one of the nice beaches in Muizenberg – an area particularly attractive to surfers.

It is surprising how impregnated this place is with colonialism and all of its manifestations – physical as well as spiritual. Many small towns along the coast of the Indian Ocean speak about the white settlers (mostly Dutch and British), who came ashore bringing along a whole other universe and initiating some sort of a strange cultural and geographic patchwork. I can’t stop wondering what was the attitude that these people came here with and that allowed for so much destruction and devastation. How devastated could they have been inside that they effected such cruel behaviours upon the new world they found? I’ve never felt so guilty about being a white person as I do now. I have never even questioned the colour of my skin before coming to Africa. They say that Cape Town and the Western Cape are the least African places in South Africa. Still, I walk in the street or take the train and find myself somewhat displaced – or in the wrong place – because of the colour of my skin. It is a terrible feeling, as if I were re-living the entire history of the white oppression of the black peoples here. Of course similar things have happened in so many other places in the world – including my own country – but the spirit of the places here withholds that in a much stronger way than in any other place I have been to (except, probably, Auschwitz).

For a white person, walking alone in the streets of Cape Town is not such a pleasant thing to do, if you are sensitive to all of the above or have the lightest touch of them in your heart. There are many areas of Cape Town that are considered unsafe or even non-walkable for the white and you immediately understand why. The black people living in those areas are mostly low-class workers, poor people who have left their villages and traditional lifestyles to follow the mirage of endless employment in Cape Town, or were brought here to work in various factories or maybe they are even followers of some black African populations that were colonized here. There is consequently a lot of frustration and negativity about the whites. I feel that Cape Town is a place that does not belong to anyone and is “shared” by the black and the white. The current-day atmosphere still keeps the feeling of Apartheid very much alive, even though it officially ended in 1994. There is some succinct information on Apartheid in South Africa on http://www.unmultimedia.org/photo/subjects/apartheid.html

Yes, South Africa is a beautiful country and Cape Town is a wonderful tourist destination, but I guess that coming here with the mere intention to visit a series of tourist attractions or enjoy the sun, the beach or the wildlife does not really allow for a real understanding of this wonderful but troubled place. However, I tend to feel that this understanding is rather uncomfortable, so most of the visitors of Cape Town probably do not want to reach it.

There are some more photos that I have uploaded on my Picasa gallery – however, none from Woodstock, because I avoided taking my camera with me. Hope you’ll enjoy – and there’s more to come!