Electric Fence Zine: Mauritius

Greetings from Antananarivo. In a bout of spotenaiety, I decided to dely my return to the United States by one week to take a quick trip to Madagascar.

My travel buddy for the next 10 days is ma copine, Christin, a German exchange student. Since this will be the first time either of has had a vacation since moving to the Indian Ocean region, it's kind of like a lune du miel.

Internet is slow and rare to find here in Mada, but I will send updates when I can. Stay tuned!

Labels: adventures, sightseeing, vacances

Posted by east of madagascar at 11:06 PM | Permalink | Comments

Since parting is such sweet sorrow, I decided to say goodbye to the friends I've made here in Mauritius not once but on three separate occassions. On Saturday June 14th, my house was site of first in a series of goodybe parties: une soireee d'au revoir gaie. About 20 gay and lesbian friends from the Collectif Arc en Ciel were in attendance, and we danced the evening away. My ambition going into the evening was to have the island's first house party for homos, and in that respect as well as others it was truly a success. Of my vingtaine esteemed guests, no less than 5 had to be put to bed by friends, and i count myself among them. Thanks to the 6 shots of sambuca flambee that I downed over the course of the evening, most of the party's happenings had to be recounted to me the following day. However, according to all who attended, the party was one of the most enjoyable that they had ever been to.

In a rare triumph of efficient multi-tasking (and inspite of a raging hangover), the day after the party I managed to wake up early and conduct focus groups with 20 Chinese garment workers. Of course that is a gross exaggeration-- my chinese comprehension has declined to such a pitiable state that i reguarly say nihao with the wrong tones. However, I was luckly enough to have the language support from a Chinese-speaking French woman who moved to L'Ile Maurice to be with her husband, a Hindu Mauritian doctor whom she met while doing studies in Beijing.

Goodbye party number two happened this past Thursday. To show my appreciation for their generosity, I treated my entire office to a goodbye lunch featuring all of their favorite things to eat. I presented them with cards as well as a photo album containing pictures from the whole of my senjour a Maurice, including photos from the weddings of two staffers. Suffice it to say, the gift was very well received. The on Saturday 21 July, I had a repeat visit with my workmates from Straconsult. The whole group of them came to my house to join the rest of my Mauritian friends in sending me off at a soriee d'adieu, potluck style. Among the more exciting dishes were soy fish curry (soy is to say fake veg fish), gateaux piment curry, and vegetarian fish prepared with greens stuffed with dahl flour and tamarind, served in a spicy and fragrant tomato sauce.

Sunday was dedicated to yet another goodbye get together.. this time, however, at the Belle Mare plage in the company of all the university students who aided me on my research project. In the 2 months that the group of us has been meeting daily for surveys and interviews, we have become fast friends. Thus, in spite of rainy and all around disagrerable weather, we passed a truly beautiful afternoon together, feasting on heaping plates of vegetable Biryani, dessert, and beer. After 10 straight weeks of mixed methods data collection, as well as 6 months of qualitative research, it felt wonderful celebrating the end of the project.

I summary, although my time in Mauritius has not been easy, preparing to leave has given me time to reflect on all that I have appreciated about the experience. I truly feel lucky to have had the opoprtuntiy to live in a place that is so physically stunning, sociologically unique, and other-worldy. Finalment, there are many things that I will miss, surtout mes amis.

Labels: goodbyes, research, things that make me happy

Posted by east of madagascar at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Comments

This is a true story.

Pictured above: My consent to interview forms after Kiwi bit a large chunk out of the stack.

Not only is Kiwi our fattest, most voracious cat, ss you can see, he's also rather indiscriminate when he has the munchies.

Nevertheless, inspite of Kiwi's interference, my fieldwork got off to a wonderful start this week. On Monday, my 3-person research team visited 3 garment companies and administered 55 surveys today, which is an all time high. Tomorrow we will be traversing l'ile again to carry out 60 more. Thus, after 10 days in the filed, we have completed nearly 200 surveys... leaving 4 weeks to carry out the remaining 500 to 600. Suddenly seems managable.

Returning to the previous thread on crafty cats, check out what Marley, the mother of all our no-longer-very-"wee"-ones succeeded in doing last Sunday.

photo taken around 3pm:


photo taken about 1 hour later:



That's right.. she successfully knocked both cushions off the couch and arranged it so that the second one was stacked perfectly on top of the first.

Mon dieu... it's amazing the things you can do without opposable thumbs...

Labels: cats, research

Posted by east of madagascar at 1:19 AM | Permalink | Comments

In just under 5 weeks time, I am moving back home, which is really hard to fathom.

While there are plenty of reasons why I should be ready to leave Mauritius, the prospect of leaving fills me with a certain sadness. For starters, there's the matter of all the things I will be leaving behind.

First and foremost, I will miss my friends. The few close friends that I have made here are really unforgettable. Ranging in age from 18 to 58, my group of friends counts among its members my constant companion Dorian, the researchers at my NGO, the university students aiding me with my project, my wonderful neighbors, a published novelist, a 30 year old doctor who studied at BeiDa, my Muslim friend who takes me out for drinks and dancing every Friday, my posee of a dozen or so gay and lesbian Mauritians (including one Catholic priest-turned LGBT activist) and a small cadre of progressive female lawyers.


Secondly, I will miss the food. As a wheat free vegetarian here in Mauritius, I have feasted like royalty for next to nothing. Vegetarian food is cheap, abundant, and incredibly creative. In fact, I hit up the veg-friendly eatery in Quatre Bornes so often, I have become friends with all of the servers and owners, and on my birthday, they even gave me a present, albeit a strange one.

There is also a robust culture of food vending on the street. My favorite roadside snack is a dish called gateaux piment, which is yellow dal soaked and blended with garlic and green onions and then fried. The final product is this heavenly meat-ball shaped that is typically eaten in chili.

There are also men that cook chinese dimsum and noodles on the road, and that serve roti with rougaille, pea curry, and seasoned spinach offered as toppings.

Apart from friends and food, I have also enjoyed the idiosyncrasies of the island that don't touch on the side of mistreatment of women. For instance, motorcycles are widely popular here, and on a given afternoon you can see "gangs" of motorcyclists idling at stop lights. However, breaking away from the typical dynamic, many of the Island's motorcyclists are men in their 50's, who use their motos as their primary mode of transit/transport/commerce. Thus, its not uncommon to see motorcyclists maneuvering the streets with hulking bags and oblong boxes or large potted house-plants.

And then there's Creole. Creole was initially the bane of my existence because it made communicating in French and English difficult... however, now I see it as a language that has a great deal of integrity at the level of grammar, and one that erases social distance and breeds a certain intimacy.

Finally, I will miss my fabulous rental house, my 6 remaining cats, my yard full of fruit tress, and the windows that look out onto the mountains...

Not to mention my sub-200 rent. Just received my housing offer from my Law School, and it looks as though I will be paying 6 times that amount to live in a studio the size of my current living room. Yay Manhattan prices!

Alas, now that I'm confronting the fact that I am on my way out, I have3 new commitments:
1. A Commitment to visiting all of the tourist attractions I've some how missed out on (MOST, as it turns out)
2. A Commitment to blog with more frequency &
3. A Commitment to send out postcards at long last.

Thus, to my readers:
If any of you would like to receive a post card from Mauritius, write me a comment with your mailing address in the body. All comments will be screened upon receipt to protect your internet anonymity

Labels: goodbyes, things that make me happy

Posted by east of madagascar at 12:33 AM | Permalink | Comments

Wednesday and Thursday evening, I attended a dazzling play called "Ma Ravanne (my drum)"

La Ravanne is a large, flat drum that is used to play sega, Mauritius's national song and dance, and that is featured prominently in the musical traditions of the greater region. Countries where the La Ravanne is popular are also countries where slaves and indentured servants were seized and brought to Mauritius. These include Madagascar, India, and Sri Lanka. Thus, the drum occupies an important place in the patrimony of the Western Portion of the Indian Ocean.

Naturally, when I heard that there was going to be an exposition on La Ravanne, I envisioned a concert of some variety or another. However, to my surprise, "MaRavanne ended up being an experimental play and of the most interesting theatrical experiences I've had.

Foremost, a word about the scene and the players..Ma Ravanne was staged in a room steeped in incense, in a tranche of the floor demarcated by sticks and stones. Further, it was realized of a troupe of 8 extremely good-looking, well-muscled, and scantily clad men (see loincloths) from across the Indian Ocean region, including Mauritius, Madagascar, India, Sri Lanka, Reunion, Seychelles.

The composition and aesthetics of the cast was interesting for several reasons, not the least of which is the demographics of the audience and their typical reactions to the play. Not only was every gay Mauritian that I know personally in attendance, so were dozens of unattached straight women, and both groups were salivating throughout the production and looked ready to slide out of their seats and puddle onto the floor. One 50 year old friend was so excited by the play that she had it 3 times already, but still had to fan herself when recounting her impressions( "C'était suuuPER! TRES jolie.)"

More pointedly, however, it made interesting use of objectification. For a change, it was mens' bodies that were sensualized and put on display, and by doing so, the play engaged in a discussion of performative masculinity and the male body as both a site of power and a site of fragility.

Beyond its selection of actors & constuming, MaRavanne also made very interesting use of narrative, song and dance. La Ravanne drums were both instruments and props through the production... sometimes even being used to obscure the faces of the actors and strung together depict these somewhat mythical figures. Also played reed pipes, indian string instruments, rainsticks and small percussion instruments.. blending the sound with storytelling and movement.

The play's narrative devices were also fascinating. Lines were delivered in French, Creole, Tamil, Hindi and Malagasy and were scattered among the members of the troupe. There were also many other types of vocalizations.. for instance, chirping, moaning, gasping for air/water. In addition, all took turns entering the center of the stage and dancing.. although here, the performers' movements were a cross between dancing and seizing, they were so frenetic.

One line that served as a refrain was "j'ai soif" (i am thirsty). Another recurring expression was a recitation of the names of prophets from Hinduism and Islam, as well as the phrase "si la lune ne revient pas?" (and if the moon does not return?) My initial reading of the line concerning thirst was that it was a reference to the longing felt by the descendants of slaves and the alcoholism that often helps make their exile bearable. However, a friend's interpretation was that the actors thirsted their ancestors, and that they wanted to imbibe the souls of their antecedents and those departed, as well as drink up their roots and traditions since abandoned.

Although my interpretation is perhaps disappointingly literal, my problem with this evaluation is that thirst does not seen like an apt metaphor to describe the desperation of a slave population secluded on an island. I would imagine that persons brought from Mainland Africa, India or Madagascar by coercion to a place like Mauritius (where you can almost always see the ocean) would result in a feeling of profound seasickness, and perhaps even a sensation of drowning.. having lungs full of water...

Ultimately, going to see "MaRavanne" twice allowed me to have two very different appreciations of the production. This difference in perception is based both on my re-view of the play and the fact that each night i was there, the Director adopted a different approach to introducing the play. For instance, on Wednesday when I saw "MaRavanne" for the first time, the play was staged without much in the way of introduction and audience members were left to deduce meanings themselves. However, during the second staging of the production, the director described in his own words what the play was meant to convey, and asserted that the play was mean to discuss slavery.

This commentary had an interesting impact on my experience, in that I found myself constantly searching for clues and corroboration.

For instance, if the production was indeed was a discussion of slaves and slavery (as opposed to descendants of slaves, for instance) one interesting thing about its staging is that the slavemasters and slaveowners are never depicted. To an extent, the same was true for bondage in general. Throughout the play, the actors move about the stage unbridled, unrestrained. Thus, the fact that the performers are enslaved or captive is never directly implied...

Interestingly, the only thing that suggested the fact of their captivity was the boundless volatility of their emotions. The actors were childlike in certain moments, hysterical at others, combative on certain occasions, and cloying and sensual at other times. There was a certain madness, a certain volatility about it.. It was the range of that one might imagine of someone in solitary confinement... where your lack of agency in the material world forces you to create an emotional life in your head.

Photography was not allowed at the performance, so I unfortunately do not have any images from the performance. However, a parting visual:

The final scene ends with a man with waist-length dreadlocks turning in a circle and beating the La Ravanne with his hair. Absolutely brilliant.

Since then, I can't tell you how much I've been asked whether I play instruments with my hair as well...

Labels: theatre, things that make me happy

Posted by east of madagascar at 11:26 PM | Permalink | Comments

Rainbow Pride Mauritius 2007 was a rousing success, as well as one of the peak experiences of my Fulbright year. For only the second time in history, LGBT persons on the Island got together to assert the fact of their existence.

Alongside the Pride March, there was also a International LGBT Film Fest that was impressive both in terms of the diversity of its selections and the overall quality. From a roster of 20 shorts and 4 feature length films, there were many standouts -- none of which I had ever seen or heard discussion of.

One of my personal favorites were Innocent, a film revolving around the life of a gay Hong Kongaise teenage whose family abruptly moves to Canada. From there, the movie recounts his experience coming out in a purportedly tolerant society against a backdrop of family turmoil.

Another excellent film was a documentary called Happy Hookers . Happy Hookers tracked the lives of 4 male sex workers in Bombay, India. The men who were featured came from far reaching backgrounds ... one was a farmer who migrated to Bombay to seek out roles in Bollywood films; another was a more middle class man who worked as dancer and lived with his mother, another worked part time as a tailor, and a final was a married Muslim living in a cramped apartment with his parents, wife and children.

Though all engaged in sex work for reasons of economic sustenance, they all professed male attraction and counted among their friends other homosexual men as well as transgendered women. In addition, a few of the men featured were also were members of a NGO set up to advocate on behalf of LGBT Indians. Collectively, gave viewers a unique glimpse of Bombay..

Yet, when the asked whether they practiced safe sex or had heard about HIV or AIDS, all four of them said no. Listening to these confessions was utterly devastating...

The final film of the festival that absolutely floored me was a documentary called
This Way Out, which recounted the stories of 3 LGBT refugees to the United States: a lesbian from Brazil, a gay man Pakistan and a gay man from Kenya. All three petitioned for asylum in the United States after being targeted for violence in their home countries or witnessing other LGBT persons persecuted. The man from Kenya relayed how gay persons were regularly "lynched" .. or rung with a gasoline doused tire and then lit afire. The woman from Brazil relayed stories of lesbians being assassinated in broad day light by gunmen, confided that she had left Brazil after being raped by a colleague determined to "set her straight." After that point, I bawled.

Nevertheless, softening the blow of these more heartrending movies, the Festival also screened several movies that were light-hearted, absurd, and shocking/fantastic. One such film was a 6 minute court métrage turned in Turkey and told the story of a Court Attendant who drove his Emperor wild with desire by washing his feet, clipping his toe nails, and drinking the water. Then in a second short film, the Milkman, the story centers on a 600lb middle aged man and his teenage paramour, who he woos by offering a bottle of milk. At the end of the film we learn that the older man is lactating, and that the milk he serves the other one came from his own breast. The film finally ends with him breastfeeding the younger one.

Talk about shock-value...I for one could hardly beat watching the sequence. However, given the fact that it interrupted an otherwise sobering selection of films, it ended up being a real audience favorite.

One film that was decidedly not an crowd-favorite was Finn's Girl... complained universally about its length (clocked in at 1.5 hours on a day that had been dedicated to short films (courts métrages). However, despite the fact that it was one of the festival's most poorly received films, it was one of my favorite. I for one have never encountered a screenplay quite so dense. Get this: the subject of the film was a butch 40-something OB/GYN named Finn, who worked simultaneously as an abortion provider AND a reproductive technology specialist (delicious) whose life partner was an abortion provider who had died of breast cancer 2 years earlier.

In addition, the protagonist was the caretaker of a surly, ill-tempered, pot-smoking, shoplifting 12 year old who rejected her as her actual parent, seeing her instead as a step parent. Thus, the film was a drama revolving around their family problems, as well as the numerous death threats and assassination attempts that were raining down on the household because of chosen profession. In addition, it was a romantic concerning the Dr's trysts with another doctor at the abortion clinic, and subsequently with a police officer stationed outside her house on 24 detail.

And as if lesbianism, relationship drama, abortion provision, family disintegration, death of a life parter, and pro-life sniper attack weren't sufficient material, the movie ended with the revelation that the Finn's unruly teenager was really her biological daughter, and the first ever child conceived of two mothers/ two eggs.

In the end the film was dense to the point of being totally absurd, but I personally loved how they stacked the platter.

Apart from the film festival, attention was also brought to LGBT issues through awareness raising in the print and broadcast media. On 3 or 4 occasions, members of the Collectif Arc-en-Ciel appeared on radio talk shows to answer questions about homosexuality from callers. Considering that most of the caller's intentions were to verify that the speakers were gay themselves and then voice their resounding disapproval, this was an incredibly incredibly brave.

Alongside the radio blitz, a series of articles on LBGT issues also appeared in the Mauritian Press, on topics as wide ranging as the film fest, activists battles against homophobia, and the existence of bisexuality. I was interviewed as part of the final piece, and if you read if you'd be tricked into thinking I speak French like a member of the Parisian literati.

The efforts of activists did not go unchallenged, however. On the day of the Island's actual Pride March, a coalition calling themselves the "Mauricien Croyants Bibliques" (Mauritian Biblical Believers) staged a counter rally in Quatre Bornes, the town adjacent to the site of the Pride March. Interestingly, in spite of the name, the Biblical Believers parade turned out to be an interfaith assembly of mono-theistic and polytheistic religious adherents, united under a banner of "Non A La Déviance Sexuelle" (No to Sexual Deviance).

Due to the timing of the event, Mauritian newspapers covered the Rainbow Pride March and the Anti-Homosexuality March together using headlines such as "Deux Marches, Deux Causes.


Perhaps a testament to the diversity of the group, one photo showed a Muslim man leading a crowd of sign-waving protesters, while another showed a Hindu man holding a "Homsexuality is Immorality" poster... (talk about uncanny sense of rhyme). Finally, a Creole man was featured holding a placard with the word "Death" written in hand-drawn capital letters.

While homophobia is nothing that I am unused to, what does surprise me is how religious groups in Mauritius seem to operate on grand consensus. Even if Hindus, Christians and Muslims disagree about the identities of the prophets, none question the prominent role that religion plays in every day life here. Take the recent debate surrounding the decriminalization of consensual sodomy. Polemicists emerged from all possible religious orders, unified in their conviction that the state should regulate private liaisons in the interest of "morality."

The fudging of political debate, religious discourse and ethnic-cultural group membership (i.e. Hinduism as an ethnic community and interlinked set of religious practices) also makes homosexuality a highly closeted affair. Despite the fact that persons of South Asian descent constitute 70% of the Islands population, not a single member of the Collectif Arc en Ciel is Hindu or Muslim... seemingly due to the inflexibility of their sending cultures. Case in point, last year when a Hindu Lesbian came out to her family, she was involuntarily committed to a mental institution for an entire month.

Although it's hard to imagine a scenario where Catholics would be the most progressive group in a society, it seems to be the case here. As a group, LGBT Creole s Catholics have much greater visibility.

In the end, having to square off with the religious protesters scared many of the Rainbow marchers away. Although 300 people attended in the Parade, twice that number had been expected, and twice that figure showed up for the Pride Party that took place in a more sequestered location that same evening.

However, for those LGBT activists who were not too daunted by the counter really, the counter protests renewed our sense of purpose.

Naturally, I took lots and lots of photos of the Pride March...
Rainbow Pride Mauritius 2007 Hope that you enjoy!

Labels: festivals, rainbow pride

Posted by east of madagascar at 7:32 PM | Permalink | Comments

Where else in the world can you find this sequence of questions on a nationwide census??

4.1 Have you been to a public beach for purposes other than work during the past 12 months?

4.2 How many times have you been to the beach during the past 12 months?

4.3 For what main purpose do you usually go to the beach?

4.4 What is your favourite beach? (If no favourite beach, the one most recently visited)

4.5 When did you last go there?

4.6 What was your means of transport for going there?

4.7 Where was the vehicle parked?

4.8 (a) At what time did you arrive at the beach?
(b) At what time did you leave the beach?

4.9 How would you describe the following with regards to the beach:
1. Accessibility
2. Shade
3. Parking facilities
4. Quality of sea water
5. Safety at sea
6. Maintenance
7. Kiosk facilities
8. Availability of tap water
9. Toilet facilities
10. Shower facilities
11. Refuse disposal facilities
12. Security on the beach
13. Lighting
14. Availability of leisure activities

4.11 How important are the following factors the choice of a beach?

4.12 Do you consider your favourite beach (or the one most recently visited) as being crowded?

4.13 (a) Are you aware if there are less crowded beaches nearby?
(b) Which is the nearest one you know?

4.14 How would you describe the following with regards to the beach stated in 4.13
(b).
1. Accessibility
2. Shade
3. Parking facilities
4. Quality of sea water
5. Safety at sea
6. Maintenance
7. Kiosk facilities
8. Availability of tap water
9. Toilet facilities
10. Shower facilities
11. Refuse disposal facilities
12. Security on the beach
13. Lighting
14. Availability of leisure activities


That is all.

Labels: things that make me happy

Posted by east of madagascar at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments