THE BITE OF THE MANGO - Mariatu Kamara's Book

Mariatu Kamara, author of 'The Bite Of The Mango'

Interviewed by Jim Clancy, CNN's Inside Africa, the Sierra Leonean-born victim of war and author of the book '' The Bite of the Mango,'' Mariatu Kamara, told her horrific ordeal during the ten-year-long brutal war that maimed thousands of civilians in her country.

Mariatu narrates her story. At 12, fleeing from the activities of the rebels, she finds herself in another village. She felt hungry and decided to go to her village to get some food to eat. On the way, she was captured by the rebels, and they amputated both of her wrists. 

For what reason? So that there wouldn't be any hands to vote for the government. But they were wrong ''I still have hands to do whatever I want to do said the courageous woman.

Asked by Jim Clancy why she named her book ''The bite of the mango,'' she explained that after her wrists were cut off, a man came to her aid and offered her a mango to eat. But she felt like a child being fed. Despite the pains and blood gushing out from her wounds, Mariatu held the mango to eat it herself.

At her book launch in the United States of America, the courageous war victim was awarded the ''Voices of Courage Award." She happily interacted and answered questions of people who wanted to know her story and spoke of the meaning of the award to her. 

Her message is ''Never give up in life, no matter the situation. She went on further to say that victims of war and other calamities to keep on pushing until success is achieved.

Mariatu is not only a courageous but strong woman who has brought to the awareness of the world the suffering of war victims globally.

Book available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Bite-Mango-Mariatu-Kamara/dp/1554511585/

Britain's Economic Crisis, will they get out of this disaster?

Beautiful London

Eurozone
Britain is a country known to adhere to special rules, regulations, and principles, to be neutral, conservative, and probably to be unique amongst other advanced countries in the world. The official reasons for staying out of the Eurozone are a good example of what Britain stands for. 

In the first place, Britain should know best, united we stand, divided we fall. There is no way the economy will be successful with its single currency within the Euro currency zones.

From every angle, one could clearly see that the "imperial system of political ideas" in that country has taken its toll on them. In any crisis, people, instead of finding an immediate solution, would rather want someone to blame. 

Britain accused the United States of America of this unprecedented economic setback, failing to realize that the country's economic woes were brewed by internal factors as well. 

Just imagine how advanced auto technology is constantly shaping and changing this world, but Britain is still driving and producing "right-hand steering Vehicles" in Europe. 

The type of vehicles Europeans and Third World Countries don't need. Even if they produce the right form of vehicles for countries that need them, it will still affect them in many ways because countries driving right are more than those driving left.

Teenage Pregnancy

Take, for example, how the economy of a country thrives when teenagers ignore education and choose to be mothers instead? According to statistics, Britain has the highest percentage of teenage pregnancies. Teenage pregnancy has a great effect on the economy of every country. 

A brilliant child who pulls out of school because of pregnancy is a waste of human resources. It's very common to see  British teenagers speaking English but can't write. How can she write an application letter for a job, when she can't correctly spell words his or her own language?

Alcoholism

Alcohol is another factor that has affected the health system of Britain's economy. The passion for alcohol in Britain is beyond cure. There is nothing that the British government can do to prevent or reduce the rate of alcohol consumption in that country, even if the price of drinks is raised. 

Alcohol and drug abuse are some of the factors linked to teenage pregnancy; therefore, the government needs to find solutions to these problems, or else Britain will experience economic depression always no matter how good a politician is.

Discrimination in employment

Employment discrimination is another factor that has worsened Britain's economic crisis. Discrimination in employment takes place in Britain in many ways, against women, religion, race, and color. 

Many qualified professional workers are denied jobs in Britain daily, because of the color of their skin, his or her religion, or their sex. Instead, they employ someone unqualified and lazy, because of the slogan "Our People First." Developments in such circumstances are never achieved or slow because of the inefficiency of production.

Lazy workers call for sick leave, stay at home for long days without working, claiming benefits and other allowances, affecting the hard workers and taxpayers' money. Employment discrimination is somewhat better in London and places with good integration. 

The worst place in the county of Dorset (Poole, Bournemouth, Christchurch), British Blacks and other foreigners are aware of that, which is the reason one can hardly see them in the neighborhoods.

People actually enjoy Britain on a visit, but I'm always sad whenever I'm in that country due to what I see. Almost on every street, I see dozens of "pregnant men." Obesity is taking its toll on the health of the people, but they simply don't care because food is delicious. 

When you talk about fashion, I think the worst-dressed Europeans are the British. When one visits places like Italy, Germany, France, and Belgium, one can see that they dress better than in Britain.

High Transportation cost

The cost of public transport in Britain is higher if compared with its European counterparts. Within the city of London, a short trip by bus costs £2. 

The ticket expires as one alights from the bus. In most of the European countries, for example, in Belgium, a city trip by tram or bus costs one euro twenty cents (from the ticket machine) and one euro fifty cents (from the bus or tram chauffeur). 

The ticket has an hour validity; in this case, one can join more than for four of five teams, depending on the length of the journey, until the ticket expires.

Despite all the harsh taxation systems, property tax, congestion tax and other means of money collection, Britain is a restless country to live in Europe. This is an indication that capitalism has failed in Britain. 

The lazy man wants to live like a rich man and have the same things as the rich man. The crime rate is increasing rapidly in Britain. God help the Scotland Yard. 

Until Britain's economy comes back on the right track, politicians in that country must be serious about finding solutions to the aforementioned problems.

A BELGIAN MURDERS HIS AFRICAN WIFE

Problems in relationships or marriages are very common.



What provoked a Belgian to the extent of killing his Black wife? This was the question on the lips of the African community in Antwerp. The shocking murder of Evelyn Amarim-Vanacker, a 31-year-old mother of two, led to a peaceful demonstration recently.


Evelyn, a native of the Anioma local government in the Delta State of Nigeria, was reported to have been strangled to death by her husband at their home on the 2nd of March 2009. According to sources, the murder took place while the children of the deceased, aged 4 and 1, respectively, were sleeping in one of the rooms upstairs.

After the brutal murder, the husband took the lifeless body of his wife into the boot of his car and drove 100 kilometers to dump the body in an open field by the border between France and Belgium, where the French police discovered the body the next day.

After committing the brutal crime, Mr. Vanacker reported to the Belgian police that his wife was missing. After a heavy interrogation that followed, he broke down and confessed to the killing of his wife. 

The motive behind the murder is not clear, but according to sources, there was no more happiness in the marriage after five years. Constant quarrels and exchanges of words were bringing the marriage almost to its knees when this occurred.

The question is, how would the Belgian police handle this case? Especially in Antwerp, where such cases are not seriously dealt with. This has given license to many Belgians to treat foreigners, especially Africans, the way they like.

Many Africans are angry with the African ambassadors sent overseas. "They don't do anything to protect us; all they care about is corruption and greed. Europeans know that they are weak, so they take advantage of this to kill us," said one Nigerian who spoke to me about the killing of Avelyn.