Mimo Dia Leydimen, a pan-Africanist activist, humanist, human rights defender and essayist, talks about her love, passion, ambition, thoughts, philosophy and vision of the African continent.
[FOR YOU, THAT’S WHAT AFRICA] is a show by Ze-Africanews.com. It is a series of interviews of African men and women from the continent and the diaspora: journalists, entrepreneurs, artists, writers, opinion leaders, political actors, activists… To tell us their ambition, their African vision of the continent.
The full interview here:
I am Mimo Dia Leydimen
I’m a pan-African activist
Humanist, defender of human rights
I’m an essayist writer
What do you think Africa is?
I’m going to surprise you
For me Africa is not a continent
That’s not true, Africa is not a continent
Africa is a country
We pose most often
This question and the answer is always constant
Africa is not a continent
Africa is a country
Because we’re all black Africans
We have the same cultures
The same traditions, the same values
We are the same people
We have been balcanized
To say that
We are a continent
We are not a continent
We are a country
With values, with principles
For me Africa is a continent
Very, very young, very dynamic
Very very rich, but very impoverished
Very much kept in poverty
Extreme, abyssal by the powers
Colonial, imperialist
French! European! Chinese!
For me, Africa is misery
It’s misery in its depth
But it is a misery imposed
For me Africa is joy
It’s prosperity and it’s a little bit
The Intended Ignorance
For me Africa, this ignorance is wanted
Because Africa has been reshaped
Reshaping to please other peoples
So that we could hold on
In poverty and I believe that
You’re a journalist, you’re a witness
African people read less
Because unfortunately, it’s a truth
Less educated, we tend to copy
What the Arabs do
What white people do
What other peoples do
While other peoples envy us
But in secret
For me Africa, today
It’s the rebirth of his ashes
For me Africa is a continent
Who has been enslaved
Muslim Arab Trafficking 14 Centuries
The slave trade 400 years
Colonization 200 to 300
And today this new form of domination
What we call colonialism
For me Africa is that Africa
Suffering and nothing but suffering
But, you know, we as Africans
This suffering can be fought
Because in suffering
May the truth be born again
it is in suffering that one rebels
And try to change things
For me Africa is hope
It is hope
And I think that message is very clear
For centuries we have been kept
In the abysmal poverty
But that was before
‘Cause today’s day
Sankara had said:
“Kill Sankara and millions of Sankara will be born”
He is right, that is what is being born today
We are revolted people
because we want to be right
To our humble servant Thomas Sankara
And that moment will come
Because Africa is teeming with intellectuals today
We’re not afraid of anyone
We will attack those who get Africa in front
Knowledge versus Knowledge
Not in violence, not in war
Because violence is the weapon of the weak
Africa has suffered this violence
That’s why she’s weak
But we will use knowledge
Sole pledge only guarantee
To set the record straight
To help our people
We are in the process of
A work of awakening consciences
It’s true that right now
We’ll already be dead because
A man’s life is short
But what we have produced
As a writer as an activist
Will remain in place
And our grandchildren will come
See the light we have indicated
And we dare hope at least
That these great-grandsons will get those books back
will read it and understand them
And will walk in the same direction as us
In the same way as
We honored the wishes of Thomas Sankara
Africa is a river of leonine contract
That is to say corruption, bad governance
Facade democracies, wars
that are built back-to-back and connected to
Prefabricated solutions under the nose and beard
Of the damned international community
And when I say international community
I mean France, the United States,
Germany and Great Britain
All these imperialist and colonial powers
And I think that moment will come
And that moment is on the way and he’s gonna hit
And when he hits, he hits everywhere in Africa
Whether you are Peul, Diola, mankagne, bambara
Whether you are Muslim, atheist or Christian
Whether you are black, light or dark skin
The essentials, if you’re black
We’ll show you the way
Development and success
