Down with the Dictator

An intense and poignant insight into the disturbing political corruption that perseveres in modern society…

Lydia Besong’s latest play, Down with the Dictator is coming to Greater Manchester following two successful performances as part of the COAST International Festival of Community Theatre.

Set in the Cameroon, Down with the Dictator is a timely piece exploring themes of power, political corruption and censorship in all its absurdity. It delivers a strong and moving account of the impact of dictatorships in the world today and reminds us if the consequences to humanity and the reasons why people all over the world are forced to flee from oppressive regimes.

Down with the Dictator was written by Cameroonian playwright and community activist, Lydia Besong. Lydia and her husband, Bernard Batey are currently fighting a high profile campaign to remain in the UK which has attracted local and national support and has been endorsed by leading writers and actors in the UK including War Horse author Michael Morpurgo, Hanif Kureishi and Monica Ali. 

The play is produced by Afrocats and is supported by Community Arts North West as part of their Exodus Greater Manchester Refugee Arts programme. The play is supported by Arts Council England.

The play is showing THIS SATURDAY 28^th April at the Zion Arts Centre, Hulme, Manchester.

Tickets: £5/£3 concessions

Box office: 0161 232 6089

If you can’t make this showing, come to the Holy Innocent’s Church, Fallowfield, Manchester NEXT SATURDAY 5^th May.

Tickets: £5/£3 concessions

Box office: 0161 234 2987

All performances are followed by a post-show discussion giving audiences the opportunity to discuss the play and related issues with the playwright, cast and others involved in Lydia and Bernard’s campaign.

Return of the CurlyWurly!!!

Post by Toni:

The last week has proven to be one tough week for all of us. We have all encountered personal challenges but have grown from the experience. One of the biggest challenges for me was midweek when I was in town and faced with coffee shops and street corners advertising food left right and centre. I was starving as I hadn’t had a very big lunch and all I wanted was the double chocolate chip muffin in the window of costa coffee, I was ready to pack the whole challenge in there and then! It was then that I realised destitute asylum seekers have no escape like we do, there is no option to just give up. It’s not just a challenge for them, it’s real life.

The hardest part of the week was trying to make boring tinned food exciting and as you can see from previous posts, such as The Grey Dinner, I failed miserably. As Amy already mentioned, we could feel the strain of our diet by the end of the week. Lack of concentration and fatigue featured heavily in work on Thursday and Friday!!

While I am absolutely delighted to be finished the Destitution Challenge, it feels very bitter sweet. As I was chomping on down on copious amounts of CurlyWurlys on Saturday morning I was genuinely upset when I realised that although we are finished, there is no end in sight for destitute asylum seekers. There is no simple solution but it is important for people to be aware that destitution is a massive problem in Greater Manchester and throughout the UK. Our challenge was only a drop in the ocean in comparison to the amount of awareness that needs to be raised in order for pressure to be put on the government and the UKBA to recognise the human rights of destitute asylum seekers.

We have honestly been blown away by the response that we have had from our destitute challenge. What started out as a campaign to raise awareness among our friends and family has resulted in so much more than we ever could have dreamt of. We would like to sincerely thank everyone for reading all our rants and raves over the past week on the blog, hard to believe that we have had over 650 hits.

We haven’t collected sponsorship for our campaign but if anyone would like to donate to Community Arts North West (the organisation we volunteer for – they create access to cultural and arts production for asylum seekers and refugees and other people on the fringes of mainstream society, whilst offering tonnes of other support and training opportunities) or the Boaz Trust, you can here:

http://www.can.uk.com/about_us/about_donation.htm

http://boaztrust.org.uk/get-involved/financial-giving/

Finally! It's Over...

Post by Alejandra:

My favourite crackers and a large mug of cranberry juice was the start of my first day after this looong week; a long, tasteless week! One of my last food disasters was a boiled potato (who could ruin something as easy as to put a potato in boiling water?!) the middle was uncooked so I decided to finish it up in the microwave and of course, I forgot about it, and the outcome was a very soggy potato! I learned that to live this way you need to be really organised and have a very vivid imagination; but most of all I learned that a flavourless world is a sad, moody world for me. I can’t imagine having this sort of food week after week. Sometimes we take things for granted, the opportunity of having a different meal every day, the different condiments we’ve got easy access to. If we are hungry or simply fancy something special we just need to go down to the shop, the possibilities are vast. So I have decided 2 things: to be grateful with every bite I take and to buy a How to Cook for Dummies!

We haven’t collected sponsorship for our campaign but if anyone would like to donate to Community Arts North West (the organisation we volunteer for – they create access to cultural and arts production for asylum seekers and refugees and other people on the fringes of mainstream society, whilst offering tonnes of other support and training opportunities) or the Boaz Trust, you can here:

http://www.can.uk.com/about_us/about_donation.htm

http://boaztrust.org.uk/get-involved/financial-giving/

(You can donate money or alternative gifts like food, toiletries and travel tickets to the Boaz Trust)

First Orders: Crumpets, Fry-up, Pizza, Cake, Alcohol

When Toni and I first decided to do the destitution challenge it was very much said on a whim and because we were a bit obsessed with Twitter at that point, we tweeted about it and after announcing it from the rooftops we felt obliged to carry it out. I am so glad we did though. We have definitely raised awareness of destitute asylum seekers – a lot of people have been commenting on the facts we’ve been writing and asking me things in person (not just “Are you hungry?”), but showing a genuine interest in learning more. We’ve received so much support and interest, on the blog alone we’ve had over 600 hits and hopefully lots more to follow.

The challenge has certainly made me think more about the conditions destitute asylum seekers are living in, and like I said in an earlier post, we’ve had it easy. I can only imagine how hard it must be to feel rejected and lost in a country you barely know whilst coping with issues of poor accommodation, couch surfing, and often, homelessness. Not forgetting the absolute anxiety of returning to your own country for fear of persecution, torture, rape and death. It is sickening that the government does not have any policy for asylum seekers living in destitution and that means of help and support is left to charities who are contending with such difficult funding situations amidst the coalition’s austerity measures.

I wasn’t expecting the challenge to affect me so much personally. I am so impressed by our willpower – so many people offered us free food, whether it was a biscuit, a sip of someone’s drink, a home-cooked meal or free samples at the market, we’ve refused every last bit. The challenge has really made me appreciate food, not only the taste but the value. I’ve felt quite down at times this week due to hunger, lack of tasty and fresh food, lack of protein, fibre, vitamins. My energy levels have plummeted and I’ve found it hard to concentrate on my work, not forgetting the effect on my social life. After realising how much I unnecessarily eat, I will definitely snack less, eat smaller portions, plan my food better and not let things go to waste. Plus I’m not eating pasta for a while!

We may have complained a lot about the food we’ve eaten this week but for £10 a week, charities like the Boaz Trust and the British Red Cross are saving lives and giving destitute asylum seekers that little bit of hope. We haven’t collected sponsorship for our campaign but if anyone would like to donate to Community Arts North West (the organisation we volunteer for – they create access to cultural and arts production for asylum seekers and refugees and other people on the fringes of mainstream society, whilst offering tonnes of other support and training opportunities) or the Boaz Trust, you can here:

http://www.can.uk.com/about_us/about_donation.htm

http://boaztrust.org.uk/get-involved/financial-giving/

(You can donate money or alternative gifts like food, toiletries and travel tickets to the Boaz Trust)

I hope everyone has enjoyed keeping up with our progress and continues to read the blog!

Destitute Lifestyle = Hermit Lifestyle

Breakfast: Tinned mackerel on toast
Lunch: Soup and a PEAR (that made my week)
Dinner: Tinned mackerel pasta (luckily the mackerel came in tomato sauce so the pasta isn't too dry)

This week has brought home how much my life revolves around food and drink, whether it’s cooking a meal with my housemates, catching up with friends over coffee or at the pub, munching sweets at the cinema or going out clubbing. It has been especially lonely in the house because I’ve tended to avoid my housemates when they’re eating (likewise they’ve avoided me because they don’t want to rub their yummy meals in my face) and when we’ve got a lot of uni work on, mealtimes are normally set aside for socialising. My social life this week has without a doubt been hindered by my destitute lifestyle. But tonight, I’m going to bite the bullet and attempt to go to the pub. My friends will be sat there with their fresh, crisp pint and wholesome pub grub; I’ll be sat there with a glass of tap water. At least we can clang our glasses in celebration of the last dwindling hours of the challenge.

Tune in tomorrow and Sunday for our personal reflections on the challenge. Oh, and to find out what we binge on first thing in the morning.

More shocking stats about the British public’s lack of knowledge and awareness…

Today’s Fun Fact: A MORI poll showed that on average, the British public believes that 23% of the world’s refugees and asylum seekers are walking the streets of the UK. That is eight times the actual figure. The UK only hosts 2.5% of the world’s refugees and asylum seekers.

In fact, the world’s poorest countries host the vast majority of the world’s refugees and asylum seekers. Nearly two thirds of all refugees are hosted in the Middle East and Africa.

Source: Mobiles, Money and Mayhem: The Facts and Fibs About Asylum (Refugee Action)

The Grey Dinner

Post by Toni:

Due to the scrummy smell of curry that Amy and I had to put up with in the office all afternoon I was ravenous when I got home from work. After making a B-line to my destitution cupboard I set out to make ‘the Grey Dinner,’ it literally looked like the gruel Oliver Twist was given in the orphanage! I made it with chickpeas, garden peas, tuna, half a mouldy onion (with the mouldy layer peeled off), mushroom soup and rice – you can see the results in the picture! Not-so-lucky me gets to have it again for lunch tomorrow :’( The rest of today’s meals weren’t as grotesque. I didn't have to be in work till half one so had a brunch of beans and 2 slices of toast. Thank God for the two cups of tea that we’re allowed each day, them paired with my chocolate rations is what’s getting me through the days!!

Thankfully the end is in sight. Last day tomorrow. Woo!!

That Curry

Well, our colleagues in the Community Arts North West office really know how to kick us when we’re down. We rocked up to work today with our measly portions of soup while they feasted on Indian takeout together. We then had to put up with the rich smell of spices lingering in the office for the rest of the day. We’ll let them off though – they have been really supportive all week.

As it is International Women’s Day, here’s an interesting article by the Guardian about refugee women working at grassroots level:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/the-womens-blog-with-jane-martinson/2012/mar/08/international-womens-day-migrant-refugee-women?newsfeed=true

And some facts about female destitute asylum seekers:

1/3 of female destitute asylum seekers in the UK indicated that they had been raped in their country of origin before they sought asylum.

1/3 of female destitute asylum seekers have a university degree or equivalent.

78% of female destitute asylum seekers are aged 21-40.

Source: The Destitution Trap: Asylum’s Untold Story (Refugee Action, 2006)