A book about the Republic of Congo
published by Frances Lincoln
By Cassie Knight
Brazzaville Charms is about the Republic of Congo, a country on the mighty River Congo, with its capital Brazzaville facing Kinshasa, in DRC. Brazzaville is an attractive city with leafy avenues and a population of little over a million. The city centre is dominated by the Elf tower, reflecting the domination of oil over the politics and economy of the country.
The Republic of Congo has been periodically wracked by war, and almost entirely held under the grip of strongman President Denis Sassou Nguesso. He has been president since 1997 and also between 1979 and 1992. Brazzaville Charms tells the stories of people who lived through these wars, how they fled their homes, and their courage in negotiating survival in a society split along ethnic lines by its warring leaders.
Brazzaville Charms interweaves descriptions of travel, historical research and interviews. A visit to the southern region of the Pool introduces the story of Matsoua, a visionary messianic leader who started a campaign of non-cooperation against the French authorities in the early twentieth century, and who still inspires a cult following of believers who await his second coming.
A description of the coastal city of Pointe Noire is brought into focus by an analysis of the oil economy and the corruption and secrecy that surrounds huge deals and astronomical debt. Travel to the north brings to life the tropical forests of the Congo Basin and the forest people, the B’aka, whose livelihoods are threatened by the forestry companies which are logging the primary forest which is home to a huge diversity of plants, birds, insects and animals such as the forest elephant and lowland gorillas.
The author interviews former prime minister André Milongo who described how even as head of the transitional government he was unable to get to the bottom of the oil contracts and illicit payments set up between Elf and Sassou. The former head of Elf was jailed for corruption and spoke of the oil company as an extension of the French state, financing covert operations to keep political allies in power. Milongo, who tried to audit the oil sector and clean up government, did not last for long. Knight also speaks to people who live on the coast under the flares that burn off the excess gas which is extracted with the oil. The village has no electricity but the palm trees are covered in a layer of black soot and the fields are polluted.
The north of the country is tropical forest, part of the second largest rainforest in the world after the Amazon. It is only accessible by plane or boat. Flying in provides a magnificent view of the forest canopy, with puffs of cloud and winding rivers, broad and silver in the sun. Occasional logging roads cut through the green and near them the canopy is broken, showing gaps where the tallest and oldest trees have been cut out. Knight talks to a logger who speaks freely of the tricks used to remove more than the quota and to log beyond the boundaries of the concession. On the other side of the coin, indigenous Bak’a people tell of their dispossession from the land and their treatment as slaves to the Bantu.
Throughout the country people talk about their belief in magic and sorcery. Good fortune or success in life is interpreted as successful manipulation of the spirit world to steal the wealth of others. Illness, misfortune or loss is seen to be the work of a sorcerer against you, employed by a jealous colleague or member of the family. Natural events, such as thunder storm or fire, are the expression of unseen forces working for or against you. Pastors make their living by performing exorcisms to remove demons and militia leaders use spells to create shields that protect youths going into battle. The Congo, a country that is stunning both in its beauty and in its levels of corruption, has multiple layers of meaning and many different realities.
Cassie Dummett, née Knight, is an experienced manager in international development and humanitarian response. She lives in London with her family after many years overseas, in Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, India and Bangladesh.
Brazzaville Charms gives a rare insight into the history and culture of the Republic of Congo. It is a first-person account of what it was like to live there, backed up by research into its history and politics, and told through interviews with Congolese people whose stories come alive through its pages.
