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This is the on-line version of Link, the bimonthly newsletter of Fimcap.
Edition October 2006
[top]Unipe Mkono!
 From 6-26 August, Fimcap organised its 3-yearly world camp in cooperation with Kiro Congo. 40 participants from 16 different countries came together in Lubumbashi to live together under the theme 'unipe mkono', 'hold out your hand to me'.
The first week of the world camp, all participants stayed together to get to know each other and to get to know more about the history, culture and daily life in Congo. The second week the participants stayed alone or in pairs in guest families, to experience life in Congo. During the day, they worked as a volunteer in different social projects. The last week of the camp, we came back together with the whole group to exchange on our experiences and look what we could do with them once we got home, in our own movements.
What are the aims of these encounter?
- The World Camp is an encounter of young people. Interesting cultural and social exchanges between the participants of the different countries are foreseen.
- The World Camp is an encounter of cultures. Activities like songs, dances, games, liturgy are organized as a process of cross-cultural experiences. During the program the participants learn about the reality of Congo and our sister organisation Kiro Congo. Through the living together in the hosting families, they get to know the reality of daily life, and especially the situation of the children.
- The World Camp gives us the concrete occasion to live solidarity. Participants are involved in different projects to let them develop their creative talents and to serve the community they live in.
- The World Camp isn't an isolated event. The participants face situations in which they reflect on the difference of reality and possibilities, the impact it has on personal level and the messages and challenges it contains towards the own youth-organisation.
We also consider this World Camp as an opportunity to establish links with youth work organisations world wide, which may result in concrete partnerships.
- The world camp touches the participants. It wants to be an experience that moves the participants personally. An experience they take back home to their own local/regional organisation and their personal lives. This way we stimulate young people towards international and intercultural open-mindedness.
In this link edition, you can read how these aims were realised, by reading different experiences, feelings, stories...of several participants.
To the organisation team of Kiro Congo, the participants, the guest families, the people working in the project,... and everybody who contributed to this world camp in one way or another: thank you very much for making this world camp a wonderful experience!
Tine Cornillie
Fimcap General Secretary
Interview with César Bamwepela (C.B), National Secretary of Kiro Congo and President of Fimcap-Africa done by Niyongabo Emmanuel (N.E), National leader of Chiro Burundi.
 The third FIMCAP World Camp took place in Congo between the 6 and 26 August 2006. This is an interview about its organisation, participation, problems and expectations.
N.E.: You are the organisers of World Camp together with Fimcap on intercontinental level...how many participants are there?
C.B.: There are 40 participants from all over the world and an organising team. Participants are 4 from Belgium, 1 from Spain, 3 from Switzerland, 1 from Lithuania, 3 from the Netherlands, 1 from Slovakia, 1 from Spain, 1from Denmark, 3 from Italy, 1 from Paraguay, 1 from Philippines, 3 from Ghana, 3 from Burundi, 1 from South Africa, 1 from Botswana, 1 from Uganda, 10 from Congo and 2 from Fimcap.
N.E.: From where did you get the idea of organising a world camp?
C.B.: For 12 years, Chiro Congo has not been present in FIMCAP at international level. In May 2004 our chaplain participated in a meeting organised by Fimcap in Uganda. In July we participated at a meeting in Belgium and at the Fimcap General Assembly in Barcelona in Spain. Organising this camp was a way to participate again in the FIMCAP activities.
 N.E.: Did you have to deal with many problems?
C.B.: Considering our history, problems are seen as normal. We had some doubts. Our country was not the only candidate, as other countries also applied to host the event. We were not sure that we could be chosen. However when we got the positive answer, we started the meetings to get things organised. We wanted to involve all dioceses in the preparation, but the distance between the different dioceses was a hindrance.
A second problem was obtaining visas. We were most worried about people living in Fimcap countries without a Congolese embassy or consulate. They had to get their visa from neighbouring countries.
There were also some people who had problems to get to Lubumbashi. However, in spite of many problems, everybody arrived safely. This showed us how much confidence they had in us. The socio-political situation in Congo was also a concern for us. The situation could have been a serious problem, but we manage to convince people to come over.
N.E.: What are the expectations of the World Camp?
C.B.: We hope that the local population will become more confident, after seeing that we are not left alone. This world camp proved that we can get support. The participants have now a better knowledge of Congo and our lifestyle, our life conditions. Our youth learned that it is necessary to go on trying even if it is hard. Once you start, you go on.
N.E.: What about acquired experiences??
C.B.: For the moment it is too early to talk about results. We can say that intercultural exchanges enrich us a lot. We see that in spite of different languages, it is possible to understand each other. We can also confirm that we have improved our know-how in organising such international activities. Now, we are ready to take up new similar activities.
N.E: Thank you César, I wish you all the best.
Niyongabo Emmanuel
There were three different projects in which world camp participants could work for a week.
Children's holiday camps
 Various parishes in Congo organise camps aimed at keeping children busy during the holiday period. This initiative has several aims: to equip children with basic education in good citizenship and to teach them how to pray.
Participants for each camp are divided according to age and gender. Activities take place between 2 pm and 5 pm and evolve around a chosen theme.
The leaders explain the theme, and organise activities accordingly including theatre, dances, games and handicraft.
Children like these activities when they are well-organised. However it happens that they get easily bored. This may happen when leaders are not good enough in animation or the activity itself is not so good. A good methodology is really necessary to avoid such mishaps.
Some bad practices in some parishes make us understand that: leaders must be of good examples, they must arrive earlier than the children and have various well-planned activities as to attract children's interest and attention.
 If I were to compare Kongo and my country's playgames in the playground, I can conclude that they are very different. And this is normal, because this country's culture, history, housing and other things developed differently, thus activities are influenced accordingly. It was amazing to see, when children crowding in one place to play games, sing songs and dance. Activities always start with a prayer to God so that He blesses the day. Then children group themselves according to gender and age. I visited a different group every day so that I was able to see how leaders work with children. I enjoyed being with the youngest girls' group most. It was unbelievable for me to see 8-9 years old girls running as an adult (like me). I felt very awkward when children laughed and shouted "muzungu, muzungu", whilst I was dancing with them. However I tried to relax and I laugh along with children. I felt so bad on one particular day when I realised I could not help the children in any way. I thought that I was only there for one week. I do
not have so much money to buy food, clothes or toys for all the children. I could just be there and play with them. It was very sad for me to realise that not all the children can have their basic needs. I am very happy that my project was in the playground. Now I know some new games, I am more aware of children's difficult reality in Africa, I know how to play games without good resources.
Inga Kuzmiciova
Street children
 Street children, usually called "shegués" are kids just like other children, although they miss some characteristics children in traditional families would have. There are many reasons which compel children to live in streets: families' financial problems or lack of education. There are also orphans who live in streets as none of their family members feel responsible for their care.
This phenomenon, which exists in the whole Democratic Republic of Congo, made priests and volunteers feel the need to open houses for these destitute youngsters where they can be taken care of. At the same time such houses decrease the number of street children. These houses, hosting young children with different problems, proffer free schooling and instructions of small household tasks.
There are other houses for the care of older children who succeeded in the preparatory examinations for a professional training. Other houses host young people starting a professional training of three years in different sectors like masonry, woodwork, shoe-mending and agriculture. The children work every day and at the end of the week they are given a small amount of money.
At the end of their training, they are given some tools which enable them to set up and settle in their job.
Madimba Yann and Kamina Solange
Kiro Congo
Experience of Valentin Mbanzendore in the project "street children"
 The street doesn't make children, nevertheless in Lubumbashi as in other towns of R.D. Congo, there are children living in streets, even babies.
Every child is member of a family, with parents and the parents' families. Consequently there can never be children without a family. Therefore what is the reason behind this paradox?
We stayed in BAKANJA VILLE - one of the houses belonging to ŒUVRE MAMAN MARGUERITTE (OMM), an organisation which takes care of street children. There we could assimilate as idea why would a child leave one's family to live in the street. Street children are usually found to be destabilised because of the death or divorce of their parents, socio-political conflicts, tensions between family components (mother's or father's side). Other factors can be accusation of sorcery or mere poverty.
BAKANJA VILLE, an OMM house administered by a Salesian community, hosts children living in one of the biggest towns- Katanga. In spite of difficulties, this house aims at reinstating children in their family, in any other foster family or in one of the OMM houses, according to age and aptitudes of the child. This effort followed a social inquiry about parents'/family's situation and a psychological study about children's possibilities of re- integration. OMM has 14 houses and hosts new children every year but unfortunately, the organisation cannot meet all children's needs. We hope that the future government (after the elections) will support this organisation.
Valentin Mbanzendore
Xaveri Burundi
Physically disabled children
The house WOTE PAMOJA hosts physically injured, paralysed and handicap children.
Our task was to massage traumatised limbs and conduct physical exercises for the children. These exercises were done as either manually forced movements or physiotherapy.
Mentally disabled children
I stayed at Balou together with Astrid Sobernheim (Jubla, Switzerland) and Rafaël Singson (Chiro Philippines). Ours was a double project on a site out of town where you find a primary and a secondary school with a boarding school. The fees of those schools are used to support more than hundred mentally disabled people, most of them children, who stay on the same site. Since there were holidays there was no one at school and there were less than twenty disabled children. During the first days we had no idea about what we could do with these children; neither did they know what to do with us. After two rather boring days, we finally had a programme. This is a fragment out of my Worldcamp diary...
17/08/2006: Today is the first day with a real programme: we are folding air-planes, boats and small fans out of paper, We are even going to colour and paint them. The children are really excited and enthusiastic. Suddenly Madame Maggy (= the responsible of the project) enters, followed by a lady who is well- dressed and with a camera crew. She is a presidential advisor on social affairs and pays a surprise visit to the project. They are lucky that we are working with the children. She'll get a good impression due to us.
Painting is really a challenge: there are about six sets of water paint and about four brushes. Some of the children almost drown their set in the water. The result is horrible, but they really like it.
After lunch we are modelling. Somewhere in the bush, Mister John prepared the clay on top of a rusty construction. I have to acknowledge the superiority of some of the children: the cup I am modelling is really rubbish, compared to their work.
Bruno Pierloot
Chiro Belgium
[top]Host families
 How can you have a real Congolese experience? How can you get in touch with the Congolese culture? You have to live in a family. And this is exactly what we did in the second week of the world camp.
For a whole week, every one of us became part of a new family. We could feel the hospitality from the first moment. We were welcomed like children and after some hours, we already had Congolese parents, brothers and sisters. In all families, the integration took place from the first evening until the moment of saying good-bye.
We collected some ideas to give you an impressions about the experiences we had in our families.
Richard, host family:
Before our guest arrived, we were worried about our living conditions and the tropical diseases. That was the reason why we decided to change our bathroom and put up a mosquito net. Finally, we understood that our worries were not necessary, because our guest adjusted himself to our lifestyle very quickly. At the same time it was quite astonishing for our neighbours to see a white hosted by a black family.
Ado Mwinga, host family:
Personally, I was impressed how quickly our Dutch adapted himself to our big family without almost any pain. We taught our guest some or our customs and he did vice-versa.
Cesar Bamwepela, host family:
At first, I thought it would be quite easy to host a Congolese world camp participant in my family. I imagined it to be easy since we share the same culture. However, I acknowledge that sharing the same culture does not mean that there exist no differences and positive experiences to share.
I also hosted also a European for two days. I live in a popular city (a kind of township) where certain Europeans could never accept to live, not even for an hour. It was a great experience for me and the people in my district: we "broke down a myth".
Jean de Dieu Kafinga, host family:
During Cristianos' stay with our family, we passed memorable moments of cultural experiences and exchange. My family was happy to host a guest who, according to our impressions, accepted to live in particular conditions other than those he is used to in his own culture. This adaptation was for us an important aspect which consolidates international solidarity. In spite of difficulties mainly due to language fluency, communication was quite smooth. Our family got used to live with a foreigner; share his joys and also his pain caused by an accident incurring his leg. We had the advantage to participate in some activities with the children (playing cards, lady game, game of six...). Apart from playing games together, this experience was an opportunity for our family to strengthen our relations. Such harmony made our guest feel more welcoming in our house. We have never been in Italy ourselves, however we learnt a lot about the country; especially about economy, politics and social situation. We also learnt some vocabulary and gestures which accompany the language in his culture. Our guest also talked about favourite Italian dishes. My two daughters (6 and 4 years old) learnt to find Italy's geographic position on the world map.
We felt that our host was an integral part of our family. We did not only discuss Cristiano's country. We shared with him our own country's general situation; the fact that during this period our situation is taking a better orientation.
"To host someone at his place, is hosting an angel from God". This expression became really true, through the fact that we did not care about linguistic and cultural limits. We could feel God's presence in our house, as a result of hosting a stranger. Solidarity has no colour, no limits, and above all... no preferences. It rather brings harmony, creating a lively environment enriched with sharing and exchange. These variables create a bigger international society which accepts difference for a better living.
May such an opportunity as the one we took advantage of, would be offered for everybody. May the world become a village in which the goal to live without any social unrest is attained.
Raphael from the Philippines:
The experience with my guest family was overwhelming. The family was very hospitable and kind. I felt I belonged to that family. They know how to express and show their love to other people. I hope we can see each other again and share with them the true significance of a family. The family experience was one of the highlights of the camp.
Allan from Denmark:
Living with the Congolese family was a really positive experience - an experience during which a few things about African and Congolese culture fell into place for me. The things that impressed me most were the hospitality and the great respect people show when you are a guest in their house. This was somewhat different approach from what I am used to in Denmark. In my country people do not give their guests similar attention.
 During the first week of the camp, we got to know some Congolese alimentary customs in the region. We sustained our knowledge during the stay with families who taught us how to prepare some dishes and eat the Congolese way - using the hand. "Boukari" (cooked dough, done with corn flour) is prepared for every meal. Therefore, for every meal, you have one plate with this "boukari" and another with the rest of the meal. Using your hand, you first take a bit of "boukari", you give it the shape of a little bowl and use it to take a portion of the meal (its more or less the same size as you take when using fork). Rice, manioc and corn are the most popular dishes in the region. Nevertheless, some families also cook European spaghetti or potatoes.
One of the main problems in Lubumbashi is electricity. Therefore in most houses you find an area at the back where one can cook using coal or wood. One can also note candles and petrol lamps, to avoid darkness in the eventuality of electricity failure.
[top]Housekeeping habits
House chores are usually carried out before lunchtime. Between 6 and 7 o'clock in the morning, mothers and daughters sweep and clean the whole house; wash the clothes and dishes. Sons participate less in the housework. They are responsible for harder work like constructions, cleaning the car or keeping the garden.
 If you are walking along the street (people do not walk as fast as in Europe), you can see a lot of different kind of clothes. Women in Congolese clothes, men in European shirt and trousers, a girl with a pagne, worn in form of a skirt and a t-shirt with some letters on it...
Women change their clothes several times a day. During the morning, they wear simple and practical clothes, but, if they go out, they wear a Congolese or European dress. To make Congolese dresses, women buy pagne from the market, then go to a dress maker who seems the dress according to the style the customer wishes. Normally, the dress is made up of three parts: the skirt, the "libaya" (shirt) and the pagne.
This week, was characterised by visits. We visited neighbours and friends; either to drink a beer together or to spend an afternoon in one's garden. During the rest of the time, we get to know each other's culture.
"I cannot imagine that any one of our guests did not feel as at home...you could see that they were working, singing and playing in their families...yes- a big experience for us."
Janine Sobernheim, Camil Emene
Jubla Switzerland, Xaveri Congo
[top]Life means dancing or dancing means living?
Congolese dance during all of their events. They dance to the rhythm of modern technology (sound machines), to music from traditional instruments or simply any material which can produce sound.
Probably dancing gives them enough energy to face their daily life. It is also a time of relaxation, a time without stress and sad thoughts about sick people.
The Eucharist celebration that lasts for the least two and a half hours goes on without anybody looking tired. During the celebration, people are close to Jesus, celebrating with their whole body, either by dancing, clapping hands or shouting.
Music, songs and dances, most of which is in Kiswahili or French, and sometimes also in English (referring to South Africa) might look like idleness, but the reality is that children, youth, adults and old people (only few of them) all dance together. The people are a community with an own identity, people who love the country God assigned them to, and above all, they all want a better Congo.
We can affirm that the Congolese people live through their music, their suffering, and are happy to dance.
Leonardo Favio Benitez Baez
Paraguay
Back in Italy, I often talk with friends about my stay in Congo. I want to be a witness. World Camp was a very strong and unique experience for me. I think this experience will always guide me to better understand the society I belong to, others belonging to the so-called Third World, and to improve my personality. Now I look at Africa with a new perception. I think of Lubumbashi, the vitality of the town, the difficulty of ruling it. Lubumbashi, the streets, the lorries, open air markets, the broken windows, the haste of some men, their business, young people bargaining in the darkness, shadows and black movements in the obscurity, elegant ladies working in garden and houses, pale youngsters from the Ruashi coming back from the mine on their bikes; the yellow colour of the water canisters, the yellow colour of the sun...and the faces of all of you, friends far away in Africa. You are what Africa now means for me, not anymore a piece of land or a continent..."
Cristiano
 I was a participant during in the World Camp in Lubumbashi, with many other members from FIMCAP coming from various countries. Although unfortunately some organisations could not afford the travel costs, participation fees and costs for the visa of their delegates, there was a good representation. The participants who were lucky to participate were very satisfied. The days were full of activities and there was no waste of time.
I would like to thank the FIMCAP Bureau for the efforts to make this camp possible. It has been an opportunity for us to meet people, to have enriching and fulfilling experiences, make friends and start partnerships.
It has been a great opportunity for us to reinforce the unity among young FIMCAP members. For this I wish to express my gratitude.
I want to congratulate the male and female leaders of Kiro Congo. Everything was really great, the camp war really well organised. Thank you for the enriching projects we visited, they opened our eyes and gave everyone new perspectives. Thank you for the games we played with the children, youth and Kiro people. We were made welcome in the families, to the extent that we could feel like being home. I would like to say thank you to all hosting families. I was very happy with the solidarity within the organisation committee - it was a good experience which we can adopt in our own organisations. Thank you for the welcome and hospitality.
I would like to say thank you to the participants, for their availability to look beyond their national frontiers, to open themselves to the world. The experiences lived here will help you in your own organisations. Start working, the world needs you, your love and your talents need to bloom.
Niyongabo Emmanuel
National leader of Chiro Burundi
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Forty participants took part in World camp 2006, 26 hosting families, 12 social projects. Kiro Congo and Fimcap lived together in Congo for 21 days at the rhythm of world camp realities, which I hope they still live up to.