From 26-28 March 2024, the Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Mame Mandiaye Niang, conducted an official visit to the Republic of Guinea in the context of the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Prosecutor Karim AA Khan KC and the President of the Republic, General Mamadi Doumbouya, on September 28, 2022 in Conakry. The memorandum commits both Guinea and the ICC Office of the Prosecutor to work actively and collaboratively to further the principle of complementarity and ensure accountability for alleged international crimes committed in Guinea in the context of the 28 September 2009 events at the national stadium in Conakry. Eleven accused have been charged in a domestic trial for alleged crimes committed during the events in which between 156 and 200 people were allegedly killed or disappeared, and at least 109 women were raped or subjected to other forms of sexual violence.
During his meeting with Prime Minister M. Amadou Oury Bah and Minister of Justice and Human Rights M. Yaya Kaïraba Kaba, Deputy Prosecutor Niang expressed his satisfaction with the ongoing trial and Guinea’s clear commitment to bring the alleged perpetrators to justice. “Guinea’s capacity and willingness to hold the perpetrators to account are palpable. Despite the existing challenges – not uncommon to most criminal proceedings in different countries, this commitment represents a strong example of complementarity in practice, with the trial being followed across the world.”
During their exchanges with Deputy Prosecutor Niang, Guinean authorities identified needs for support, including with respect to the investigation and prosecution of gender-based crimes, witnesses’ and victims’ protection and reparations. The Deputy Prosecutor committed to engage further with key actors and partners such as the United Nations Team of Experts on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict, the ICC’s Victims and Witnesses Section and the ICC Trust Fund for Victims with a view to propose an action plan aimed at providing a targeted exchange of expertise and knowledge transfer for the benefit of judicial personnel involved in the ongoing trial and beyond.
During the mission, the President of the Guinean Bar Association, M. Mohamed Souaré Diop, and his team provided to the OTP delegation the perspective of defense lawyers and victims’ representatives on the ongoing proceedings and trial, emphasizing that the trial is on good course despite recurring challenges.
Deputy Prosecutor Niang also engaged with representatives of the diplomatic community, including the European Union and France, civil society and victims of the 28 September 2009 events.
“I greatly appreciated the close and humbling exchange with victims. It brought back into sharp focus the human cost of atrocity crimes. The victims’ physical and mental suffering continues to date. Bringing justice to these women and men, and enabling them to feel safe again are the minimum standards we should hold ourselves up to. The Office, jointly with its partners, will continue to support the national authorities in their endeavor to hold perpetrators accountable and provide meaningful assistance to victims,” Deputy Prosecutor Niang stated.
During his mission, Deputy Prosecutor Niang was accompanied by a delegation of the ICC Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) who provided expertise on victims’ reparations following the joint OTP/TFV technical mission of March 2023. Coll
Join us for this captivating lecture given by Jacqueline Cockburn on ‘Fantasy comes from Ghosts – Gaudi and other Catalan architects’ in the Warenar Cultural Center (Kerkstraat 75, 2242 HE Wassenaar) on Tuesday 9th April 2024 at 20.00 hours, also streamed at home at 20.00 hrs.
Antoni Gaudí is well known and much loved. In this lecture, his work will be explored in detail. It will be shown how he engaged with nature and worked with extraordinary ceramicists, iron workers, tilers, and decorative artists. We will look at his public and private buildings and his relationship with a wealthy and demanding patron. Private, shy and retiring, he was also humorous and witty in his extravagant style.
However, it will also be the aim of this lecture to uncover some of the other architects working in Barcelona over the turn of the twentieth century; Domenech y Muntaner and Puig y Cadafalch. Attention will be paid to several significant and ravishing buildings and some less well-known buildings in Barcelona.
This will be a live lecture with the lecturer physically present in the Warenar theatre. We are hoping that members and guests will take the opportunity to come to the Warenar
About the speaker: Dr Jacqueline Cockburn
Jacqueline is Managing Director of an art tours company, running residential courses in Andalucía, Southern Spain in the art and culture of the region www.artandculturetravel.com Jacqueline is a course director and lecturer at the V&A and also lectures at The Royal Academy, The Art Fund, The London Art History Society and has toured New Zealand and Australia for The Arts Society.
Her specialist field is Spanish Art, but she also lectures on European Art 1790-1950. Her most recent publication is A Taste of Art, London (Unicorn Press 2019). Jacqueline films her lectures and is currently delivering lectures, study days and courses online and live.
The lecture is free of charge for members of the Arts Society. However, non-members are kindly requested to contribute a guest fee of EUR 15 in advance. Secure your spot today! The Warenar doors open at 19.15 hrs.
To register for this lecture, please visit our website at:
Please ensure that you register before Monday, 8 April 2024. The lecture will commence at 20:00 on Tuesday, 9 April. For non-members, the guest fee for attending one lecture is €15. Membership fees for the entire season, which includes access to 8 lectures and other activities, are €75 for individuals and €140 for couples. Half-year memberships are also available at €37.50 for individuals and €70 for couples. Students are eligible for a half-price membership.
The declaration came during a congress of the World Russian People’s Council in which religious, political and cultural figures in the country met at the site of Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a focal point for the Orthodox faith in Russia.
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, also heads the council and is an ally of Putin. He has been criticized for providing a religious justification for the war and failing to unequivocally condemn the killing of people in Ukraine.
In February 2022, Patriarch Kirill said that Ukraine and Belarus were part of “Russian lands” and called the Ukrainians who were defending themselves against Russian aggression as “forces of evil,” pitching the war as a battle for the future of Christianity.
“From a spiritual and moral point of view, the special military operation is a Holy War, in which Russia and its people, are defending the single spiritual space of Holy Russia,” the document released on Wednesday said under the heading “special military operation,” which is the official Kremlin term for the invasion.
It went on to claim that the war had the goal of “protecting the world from the onslaught of globalism and the victory of the West, which has fallen into Satanism.”
Following the war, “the entire territory of modern Ukraine should enter the zone of Russia’s exclusive influence,” it said.
“The possibility of the existence of a Russophobic political regime hostile to Russia and its people on this territory, as well as a political regime controlled from an external center hostile to Russia, should be completely excluded,” it added.
Orthodox church representatives globally, such as the U.S.-based Orthodox Public Affairs Committee (OPAC), have condemned the war. After the start of Putin‘s invasion on February 24, 2022, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) cut ties with the Russian Orthodox Church.
When contacted for comment the UOC referred Newsweek to its media statement in which it said it “dissociates herself from, categorically rejects, and condemns the ideas set out in this document.”
“The assertion that the so-called ‘special military operation’ is a ‘Holy War’ contradicts the basic principles of Christian morality, especially in the light of the armed aggression with the use of violence.
“From the point of view of the Gospel, military actions cannot be justified as ‘holy’, nor can such assertions be made by people who call themselves clerics,” the UOC statement added.
Willy Fautré, who heads the group Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF), told Newsweek that Patriarch Kirill “might have been the only person who had the power to stop President Putin in his war on Ukraine and make history as a peacemaker.”
But the patriarch’s document shows he would go down in history “as an accomplice to war crimes and as the gravedigger of the Russian Orthodox Church.”
Newsweek has contacted the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry for comment.
This month, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, toldNewsweek that where Russia has arrived in Ukraine, “they exterminate all other religions besides the well-controlled and weaponized Russian Orthodox Church.”
“For Russian occupiers, the weaponization of religion is something new, is a neologism,” Shevchuk said. “It is why the Ukrainian government and Ukraine’s religious society is forced to find different ways to protect ourselves from the weaponization of religion.”
The church he heads has full communion with the Vatican and is the second largest in the Catholic faith after the Latin Church. He visited Washington, D.C., this month to describe to U.S. lawmakers, who are weighing the provision of further aid to Kyiv, the extent of destruction of religious buildings caused by the war.
The Kyiv-based Institute for Religious Freedom said in February 2023 that the Russian military had destroyed, damaged or looted at least 494 religious buildings, with the figure estimated to be far higher today.
“That is also a challenge for my church, not to become militant,” Shevchuk said, adding that the aim is “not to fall to the same temptation the Russian Orthodox Church fell into and become an instrument of hatred.”
Update 03/30/24, 1 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Willy Fautré and a statement from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
No religion is inherently violent. However, religious ideology is a powerful force. States have been built on the backbone of religions; the highest positions of power have been attained in the name of religion. Thus, it comes as no shock when religion inspires horrific acts of viciousness within its followers. It may not have been intentional, but the disconnect between intention and act has existed since the beginning.
Preserving cultural and religious heritage in countries where that ideology is not in the majority has always been contentious. Babri Mosque, which had been a part of the city of Ayodhya since Emperor Babur, the first Mughal Emperor, seemed to face the fate that every heritage or history had to face when it did not represent the majority. Despite standing tall since 1528, the mosque faced incredible acts of violence when, in 1992, an organised mob of at least 75,000 Hindus stormed it. They used everything at hand, hammers, rods, and shovels, to tear its beautiful architecture to the ground. It must be noted that though Indian authorities were on site, they silently watched. This act of violence was not contained to the mosque itself; several cities witnessed intense Hindu-Muslim riots.
This savagery was not random but a culmination of decades, if not centuries-old, conflict. The mosque was initially constructed in 1528, and there seemed to be no reported instances of discord between 1528 and 1853. The first recorded occurrence of variance was in 1853, ironically the year the British started implementing their “divide and rule” policy in full force. A single Hindu sect claimed that a temple was destroyed during Emperor Babur’s reign to make way for the construction of the Babri mosque. Directed by the Allahabad High Court in 2003, an archaeological survey was conducted to determine whether a Hindu temple existed on the site.
A team headed by an Indo-Japanese company conducted a surface survey using a ground-penetration radar to answer this question. Their conclusion was a controversial one that seemed to be heavily influenced by the demographics of the then 1 billion population, 85 per cent of which was Hindu and only 12 per cent Muslim. They recorded that their survey concluded that there might be remains of what could be construed as a 16th-century Hindu Temple. This report drafted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) remains contested. Several key stakeholders, such as the Sunni Waqf Board, a party to the Ayodhya title dispute case, have labelled it “vague and self-contradictory.”
Ms Varma, a professor of archaeology at Jawaharlal Nehru University, in an interview at the time, detailed why little to no evidence had been found to support the claim made. Instead, she states, remnants of “older mosques” have been found beneath Babri Mosque. She further details how this report never mentions the finding of any temple or its remains, and the three key features it identifies are those standards to the design of a mosque, not a temple.
Despite a highly controversial report, in 2010, a bench of the Allahabad High Court ruled that both communities should share the site. The judgment read that “two-thirds of the 2.77-acre (1.12-hectare) site belongs to Hindu Groups – NirmohiAkhara sect and RamlilaVirajman – and the rest to the Muslim group (Sunni Central Wakf Board, UP).” This solution seemed to be plucked out of the history books as this was precisely what the British did in 1859, which led to the closed site, and several civil suits were filed between 1950 and 1961.
Understanding the legal history behind this conflict is pertinent because it illustrates that it could have quickly been resolved by properly implementing judicial procedures. However, the BhartiyaJanata Party (BJP) saw an opportunity after Hindu far-right groups formed a committee in 1984 to spearhead the construction of a temple. In 1990, BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani led a nationwide campaign to build a temple in the place of the mosque. Though Lal Krishna Advani was arrested, this was the beginning of a deep seethed divide between both communities that exist today.
It must be noted that both these communities seemed to live relatively peacefully pre-colonisation, and even post-1947, the gulf of the divide did not seem so vast. However, it appeared, as is in most cases, that power, not religion, was a driver in the deliberate acts of destruction and desecration of Islamic cultural and religious heritage in India. The BJP capitalised on the simmering tensions between both communities left behind by the British in their attempt to establish control in the sub-continent and campaigned heavily for the building of the temple as a symbol of Hindu heritage.
The sentiment was so strong that although Indian authorities were present on site, they did not bat an eye during the entire affair. Though several prominent, high-ranking leaders were arrested in 1992, in subsequent years, they were acquitted as the power of the BJP was on the rise. In 2020, Lal Krishna Advani was acquitted of all charges due to lack of evidence. He was a former mentor to then Prime Minister NarendraModi.
There is a huge difference between people-centric and state-centric acts of violence, especially against vulnerable minority groups in society. People-centric violence can be curbed and treated with good governance, policymaking, public campaigns, etc. State-centric violence is when the apple is rotten from within, and unless there is a massive overhaul of change, it is proven to be destructive.
The Babri Mosque incident is just a case study of an epidemic that has already consumed most of the Republic of India that still, despite various such incidents, claims to be secular. Instead, it is yet another state suffering from the emergence of the far right. Inflaming communities against one another has been a time-old tradition, especially in post-colonial states. The maintenance of power structures seems to hinge on such tactics, whether it is the Babri Mosque or the Gujrat Massacre. In 2020, when Prime Minister NarendraModi laid the foundation stone of the Ram Temple, he signalled that for him, such state-centric violence was a necessity and that he inadvertently endorsed it (in the name of Hindutva) as it helped maintain his position of power.
Thus, one should condemn all deliberate acts of destruction and cultural and religious heritage desecration. One should especially note and try to correct instances where the state endorses such acts because the people of a state can be appealed to and taught. However, correcting a state and its ideology and mechanisms is nearly impossible.
About the author:
Sheherazade Amin
Sheherazade Amin, is a lawyer who works as a Research Fellow at the Centre of Excellence of International Law, Institute of Strategic Studies, Research Analysis. She previously studied at SOAS, University of London and completed her LL.M at University of California Berkeley.
Life in Gaza is hell, as everyone will agree. The daily images of devastation, dead and hungry children, crying parents, and entire destroyed neighborhoods cannot leave any decent person unfazed. Staff from international organizations, and in particular from the United Nations, are warning of a humanitarian disaster and calling for an immediate ceasefire. The call for the immediate release of hostages is heard less. It seems forgotten, or even condoned, that it was Hamas that deliberately provoked this misery among the residents of Gaza.
Israel and Egypt closed off Gaza’s borders in 2007 after Hamas, an organization known internationally as a terrorist group, took power there. Hamas had as its goal the destruction of Israel and was also a mortal threat to Gaza residents who disagreed with it. Hamas waged a murderous reign of terror in Gaza all this time. There have now been five wars between Hamas and Israel, all in response to unprovoked Hamas attacks on Israel. Hamas has announced that the October 7 action will be repeated over and over again. That means, time after time, there will be counterattacks by Israel, and time after time, the people of Gaza will be the victims. No wonder Israel does not want to stop until Hamas is rendered toothless. No other country would accept such a neighbor, and no other country has proposed an alternative to Israel’s actions.
Whatever the situation becomes on the morning after, Hamas must be disempowered. This is as good for the people of Gaza as it is for the people of Israel. Perhaps Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States should form a transitional government until a working and peaceful Palestinian state is possible.
Hamas must go so that Gazans can live and finally start building a future of peace and prosperity.
Having said that, I don’t understand why Israel doesn’t allow more relief goods in. Yes, it will include dual-use products and perhaps some weaponry. That will make it more difficult for the Israeli military, but the damage Israel now incurs in the court of public opinion and in its ties with its allies is many times greater.
I understand and feel the pain and anger in Israel after the deliberately horrific events on Oct. 7, but starving over two million people is morally and strategically indefensible and goes against everything I know of Jewish tradition and law.
27 March 2024, Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany: Premier Boris Rhein has emphasized the importance of Franco-German relations for peace and prosperity in Europe. “Germany and France share a close bond of friendship. The cooperation between the two states shows that hereditary enemies can become close friends and that shared values across borders are the foundation for a future of peace and prosperity,” said Rhein on during the inaugural visit of the French ambassador, H. E. François Marie Delattre, in the Hessian State Chancellery. Ambassador Delattre was accompanied by Consul General Dr. Ilde Gorguet.
The conversation discussed, among other things, German-French relations, Hesse’s cooperation with the French partner region Nouvelle-Aquitaine, which has existed since 1995, and the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris. “With no other country is there such close and regular coordination at all levels and policy areas as with France,” said the head of government and added: “If Germany and France are united, so is the European Union. That’s why I expressly welcome the fact that Berlin and Paris have recently moved closer together again. The historic friendship between Germany and France sends a clear signal that Europe stands together even in challenging times.”
19 March 2024, Saarbrücken, Saarland, Germany: The United Kingdom’s Deputy Ambassador Kieran Drake made his inaugural visit to Saarbrücken, capital of the western German federal state of Saarland, accompanied by Nick Russell, UK Consul-General responsible for the federal states of Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse.
Kieran Drake and Nick Russell met Head of the State Chancellery David Lindemann at the State Chancellery for discussions about opportunities for further strengthening the relationship between the UK and Saarland, building on the UK’s position as Saarland’s third largest trading partner.
Mr Drake and Mr Russell visited the Stahl-Holding-Saar steelworks in Dillingen to learn more about the plants transition to producing “Green Steel” from 2028. That transition will rely on hydrogen, with the UK primed to become a major hydrogen exporter to Germany in the coming years.
At the Gemeinschaftsschule Bellevue – Picture courtesy of Gemeinschaftsschule Bellevue.
Finally, Mr Drake and Mr Russell visited the Gemeinschaftsschule Bellevue and spoke to a group of 15-19 year old female students to raise awareness of the UK government’s “Ambassador for a Day” programme. The scheme, which has been running since 2021, sees young women from across Germany spend a day in the British Embassy in Berlin with the Ambassador and senior staff for a day of training, mentoring and workshops.
Kieran Drake has been serving as Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Germany since August 2021. Kieran joined the UK Civil Service in 2005 and has held senior roles in a range of government departments including the Cabinet Office, HM Treasury, and the Department for Exiting the European Union. He holds a MA (Hons) in Geography from Cambridge University.
The Deputy Head of Mission is a senior diplomat and typically a key advisor to the Ambassador or High Commissioner. They represent the UK’s interests in the absence of the Ambassador in the capacity as Chargé d’affaires.
Hannover, Lower Saxony, Germany: Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre will speak at the official HANNOVER MESSE 2024 opening ceremony taking place on Sunday, 21 April 2024. On 22 April, German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz will join Støre to open Norway’s national pavilion and commence the traditional tour of the exhibition halls.
Jan Christian Vestre, Norway’s Minister of Trade and Industry, and Terje Aasland, Norway’s Minister of Energy, will also participate in HANNOVER MESSE. On 22 April, Vestre speaks at the EU conference “Investing in European Industry”, organized by the European Commission. On 23 April, Aasland joins Germany’s vice chancellor Robert Habeck to open the conference “Renewable Dialog – North Sea Energy Hub”. Both Norwegian ministers will also visit exhibiting companies from Norway as well as from other countries. Partner Country Norway
Norway is the partner country of HANNOVER MESSE 2024. Under the theme “Pioneering the Green Industrial Transition”, exhibitors at the Norway Pavilion in Hall 12 present products and solutions ranging from batteries, carbon capture and storage, and energy systems to artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0 and materials technology. Exhibitors at the Norway Pavilion in Hall 13 demonstrate safe solutions for hydrogen generation, transport, storage and distribution. The Norway Pavilion in Hall 12 also features a daily stage program that focuses on topics such as clean energy, green data centers, industrial transformation and offshore wind.
HANNOVER MESSE
HANNOVER MESSE is the world’s leading trade fair for industrial technology. Its lead theme “Energizing a Sustainable Industry” brings together exhibiting companies from mechanical and electrical engineering, the digital industry and the energy sector to present solutions for the future of manufacturing and energy supply. Leading topics include Industrie 4.0/Manufacturing-X, energy for industry, digitalization/artificial intelligence and machine learning, carbon-neutral production, and hydrogen and fuel cells. Conferences and forums complement the program. The next edition runs from 22 to 26 April 2024 in Hannover, Germany. Norway is Partner Country.
Friday, 22 March 2024, Berlin, Germany: Premier Hendrik Wüst welcomed the ambassadors of the Nordic states accredited in Germany, namely, Susanne Hyldelund (Denmark); Veronika Wand-Danielsson (Sweden); Kai Sauer (Finland); Laila Stenseng (Norway) and María Erla Marelsdóttir (Iceland) for an exchange.
The focus of the conversation was on current political issues such as the Russian attack on Ukraine, the economic situation and the role of industry in the climate-neutral transformation. Opportunities for cooperation between North Rhine-Westphalia and the Nordic states, which as highly industrialized and export-oriented economic regions have many similarities, were also discussed. There is a wide range of potential for closer cooperation, particularly in climate-neutral transformation and fossil-free energy production.
Premier Hendrik Wüst as per statement in its native German text linked below: “The Nordic countries are key players for increasing the speed towards climate neutrality and digitization. We are united by the goal of bringing together a competitive and export-oriented industry with a climate-neutral economy. There are a variety of cooperation opportunities here. The Nordic states are also an important partner in security policy following the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO. In particular, supporting Ukraine after Russia’s brutal attack is of common interest.”
The Nordic countries include the northern European countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. There is a close partnership between the Nordic states, which cover almost 3.5 million square kilometers and have around 26 million inhabitants, particularly due to their historical, cultural and linguistic connections.
Every year on 2 February, Uruguay’s beaches are crowded with people celebrating the birthday of the water goddess Yemanya. She’s from Africa, but the Uruguayans who venerate her are mostly white. Some see in her Mary, the mother of Jesus. A report.
Montevideo, Uruguay – It is late in the evening. I am waist-deep in the Rio de Plata and all around me are white flowers, carnations by the looks of it. Behind me, on the beach, I hear African drumming and singing. On either side and in front of me, I see people in white robes and head coverings launching homemade boats, most no bigger than four shoeboxes glued together. The boats contain fruit, candles, flowers, perfumes and jewellery. There is a strong current, which causes the boats to drift quickly. Some are equipped with decorative lights, so they remain visible for a long time. The people in the white robes are followers of the water goddess Yemanya. The boats with contents and also the white carnations are meant as gifts to her. When the boats have disappeared from sight, the followers slowly return to the beach, solemnly, walking backwards, still facing the sea.
The Ramirez beach is crowded with people. Many of them sit around pits they have dug and in which candles are burning. Most do not seem to be followers of Yemanya. They are wearing casual clothes. But that may be a misunderstanding. In four places, they are lined up in long rows, waiting to get into contact with persons dressed in sacred robes. They appear to be priests or medicine men and women performing some kind of cleansing ritual. They scan with their hands the whole body of those standing before them, from top to bottom and back again. In complete silence. By the looks of it, there is no need to pay. The treatment is free. Meanwhile, there is a lot of drumming and singing. I see a woman spinning wildly on her own axis. This is to get into a trance and become possessed by spirits, I understand later. When it’s my turn as a participatory observer, the priest seems particularly attentive to my belly. For he shakes it a few times with his flat hand.
A young woman I speak to, who describes herself as Catholic, says she offered a carnation to Yemanya. This is because the river goddess reminds her of Mary, the mother of Jesus. She is also the patroness of sailors and fishermen, and a few other nice things, she explains to me. Apart from this, she wants nothing to do with the Umbanda religion. The followers of Yemanya sacrifice animals, and she does not like that. You have to watch out for that. But if you are baptised in the church, you have good protection against that.
On the day before the Yemanya celebration, as I enter a lunchroom, I see, on a television that is on there, an interview with a diva-like apparition: a middle-aged African-American woman, in a long white dress, waving herself cool with a white fan. I only catch the last part of the conversation, but I understand from her words that I definitely have to be at Montevideo’s city beach the next day, Playa Ramirez. When I get there, I don’t see her, but her name I have remembered: Susana Andrade. She turns out to be a household name in Uruguay. She owes this mainly to her efforts to emancipate adherents of the Umbanda faith and related religions in the country who have felt ignored and ridiculed for decades. She represents the advocacy group Institución Federada Afroumbandista (IFÁ), of which she is a founder. In 2015, she won a seat in Uruguay’s parliament. This made her the first “afro-umbantista” as well as the first black woman in that seat. Together with her husband, Julio Kronberg, she runs a temple where they practice their faith and work for the community. When I contact her, she is happy to explain to me what the Umbanda religion is about.
Yemanya, Playa Ramirez, Uruguay.
Uruguay has several natural religions that came over via neighbouring Brazil, she says. But its origins lie with the Nigerian Yoruba tribe in Africa. Of the Afro-Brazilian religions, Umbanda is the most influential, both in Brazil and Uruguay. The Umbanists believe that orixás exist. These are a kind of nature spirits you can invoke. Yemanya and Oxalá are the main two. Yemanya, according to Andrade, is “the mother of almost all orixás”. This has to do with her being the goddess of the sea, rivers and streams, and also with the idea that without water there is no life. “Life comes from water. That source of life, that of nature, is what we honour.” Yemanya, Jemanya, or jemaja is a corruption of the expression “Yey Omo Eja”, which means something like “Mother whose children are fish”.
“Yemanya is always there,” Andrade says. “But February 2 is a special day, when we celebrate her birthday. That’s when people all over Uruguay flock to the water. There is talk of half a million, including the people who only come to watch. The background to this happening on 2 February and not any other day is that there was no place for African nature religions in Catholicism. Enslaved Africans had to conform to Catholicism. This created a fusion of orixás and ancestral spirits with Catholic iconography. Yemanya became Mary and Oxalá became God. February 2 in Uruguay is not only the Yemanya celebration. That day is also traditionally celebrated the Catholic feast of the Virgin Mary, or the Virgin of Candelaria. Thus, enslaved people could use the Marian celebration to honour Yemanya.
I noticed on the beach that the vast majority of Umbanists are white. While there are far fewer black people than white people living in Uruguay, Umbanda is an Afro-Brazilian religion. So how can that be? “That could be because historically, white people had more freedom and people with African ancestry were forced to worship the Catholic saints and forget their own faith, for fear of torture or death,” Andrade says.
I tell her about the priests I saw at work on 2 February on Ramirez beach. What were they doing? “What you saw were the fathers and mothers of Afroumbandista,” she says. “They were helping people who came for the reception of ‘charity’ or ‘santiguado’, for the purification of their aura, their etheric body.” She finds the aversion from Christians to Afro-Brazilian religions hard to understand, because evil spirits are not invoked in Umbanda, she says, rather they are exorcised.
A Uruguayan I tell about my adventures on the beach asked me if I thought the cleansing ritual on the beach had brought me something. I replied that I do not know, but in any case I did not detect anything of a change in my mental or physical functioning.
In a little square not far from the beach, I recently noticed a statue. A young woman in a long robe appearing to emerge from an oyster, her arms open, holding in her right hand two seahorses. Full breasts, wide hips. That had to be Yemanya, and indeed she was. Really different from the saintly images of Mary in whom her feminine forms are not really expressed. It is clear to me now: Yemanya is not Mary.
Book by Susana Andrade available on Amazon: MACUMBEROS: Ritos Afroumbandistas para Salud Espiritual, Prosperidad y Bienestar
Susana Andrade on television programme on February 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOZQwOWrVGY
