Darwin’s Nightmare is a movie about several inhabitants’ version of survival and trying to become successful. The movie takes place in Tanzania. Tanzania is in the eastern part of Africa that is located between Kenya and Mozambique. Presently the population in Tanzania is 51,045,882. In the film, the nickname for Tanzania was “fish country. This is an appropriate name because the region where Tanzania is located has the second largest lake in the world (Agency, 2016). The country is also known for fishing, and agriculture. One of the main sources of income is the fish that is caught by the fishermen, and sold for top dollar to various purchasers. Despite the rich agriculture and fishing that occurs in Tanzania and in eastern Africa, the country is plagued with an abundance -=of health disparities that yield an alarming HIV rate and a vast array of other diseases and conditions that effect all of the general population. In addition to the aforementioned, other contribution to the decline in health and population progression in Tanzania is the lack of employment opportunities for women that stem beyond prostitution. Social issues like the one mentioned before have plagued Africa since the Nixon presidency and the decision was made to limit the support and healthcare to a variety of African communities. These acts have continued to devastate the continent and have limited options for the inhabitants to prosper, and blossom. In Darwin’s Nightmare several Tanzanians that were interviewed and shared their traumatic and brutal stories of their everyday lives in east Africa. The children that were interviewed were barefoot, and most either did not know where their parents were or their parents died from disease door to insufficient healthcare, and the impact that various diseases have had on the Tanzanian population. In this movie review, this writer will discuss the history of Tanzanians political and economical policies that provide a rationale for the country’s current state, how structural adjustment programs have played a vital role in health disparities of Tanzanians and in Africa; and food sovereignty in Tanzania.
History of Tanzania Political and Economical Policies
There have been two main attempts at nationalism for Tanzania. These two attempts are the country’s independence and the Arusha Declaration.
Tanzania Independence
Tanzania is currently a democracy, but before becoming a democracy, Tanzania was the conflict grounds for Tanzanians and Germans that were trying to over rule and conquer the mainland of Tanzania for a variety of reasons. The access to the ports, the rich agriculture, and the power of control. After gaining access to the ports due to an agreement with the sultan of Zanzibar in 1888, various African tribes became enraged with the German’s access to the land and resources. As a result this triggered an uprising that also stemmed from the resistance of new crops such as coffee, sisal, cotton etc. it was not merely the introduction of the crops that angered local tribes, but the coercive nature of the Germans fir the locals to harvest the crops that they were unfamiliar with . The rebellion against German investors was also known as the Maji-Maji rising, fueled the German s to create famine to tame the unruly and hostile natives. It was recorded that approximately 250,000 Africans died from the famine that was imposed under the rule of the German General von Götzen. With the onset of World War I German controlled dwindled which gave the British an open opportunity to occupy the East African territory.
Under the British mandate from 1919 to 1962 the East German territory was renamed Tanganyika, African administration is established, the legislative council is established in Dar es Saleem. The 1950’s was a historical turning point for African participation in legislation and leadership when Julius Nyerere becomes a prominent leader in Tanganyika and also the founder of the “TANU or the Tanganyika African National Union (evolving it from an earlier and defunct Tanganyika African Association)” (Gascoigne, 2001). In 1961, Tanganyika gains its independence. A year later Nyerere is elected president after adopting a republican constitution. In addition, the aforementioned adoption, President Nyerere and the Abeid Karume the president of Zanzibar came to an agreement to establish the Republic of Tanzania. Nyerere became the president, and Kurume became Vice president. This alliance between Nyerere and Kurume became the catalyst to various political doctrines for Tanzania that aimed to ameliorate the living, health, and economic conditions of the country and the natives. Hence, the Independence of Tanzania played a significant role in the formation of political uprising in the country that also promoted economic growth.
Arusha Declaration
The Arusha Declaration is a doctrine that was created by Julius Nyerere in 1967 to promote nationalism and social acceleration that is fueled by the economy. This policy includes the assistance of China and the eastern bloc while continuing to maintain the independence of Tanzania. The Arusha Declaration relies of agriculture as the primary economic force in the nation that also encourages the incorporation of peasant families into villages where they can collaborate and work together to thrive and be more productive. Unfortunately, this attempt fails miserably. This is made apparent in the Darwin Nightmare’s as the film crew travels through eastern Africa and discoveries the gross realism that policies that have been implemented have failed to unite the peasant children into communities where they are cared for in the absence of their parents, or communities where the locals do boost have to steal from the guard, and resale the stolen fish and goods that they confiscate. The unity of the communities could have also helped Tanzanians and other Eastern African communities to develop a more nationalistic based nation that focused on the utilization of the natural resources to boost the economy. Despite Nyerere attempts as self-reliance in Tanzania “Ujamaa faced increasing popular dissatisfaction, and was slowly “abandoned in the 1970s and 1980s”. Nyerere was a respected and inspirational leader but the issues of racism and division among community members prevailed, and the aforementioned ideals were not accepted. Hence, the lacks of political and economic objectives between government and residents have negatively impacted the progress of Tanzania.
How Structural Adjustment Programs have played a Vital Role in Health Disparities of Tanzanians and in Africa
Structural adjustment programs emerged in 1944 when to create an economic order that resulted from World War II. This economic order involved great reductions for some countries education, healthcare, and overall well-being. Africa was one of the countries that were critically impacted by structural adjustment programs. More specifically in eastern Africa, the reduction in healthcare and education resulted in. The structural adjust programs increased the poverty line for many African countries, and. As a result, economic productivity was reduced to the sources that could be controlled. The control of resources in Tanzania and the lack of opportunities for natives to capitalize off of the agriculture and the fishing have contributed to and increase in crime and prostitution by the women, men, and children.
Crime
Several nonviolent and violent crimes occur in Tanzania. The nonviolent crimes consist of home burglaries, snatch, and grabs of bags, and material items that are typically made by children and young adults. “Most of these snatch-and-grab crimes are committed by unarmed assailants. Assailants tend to operate in small groups where only one person may overtly take part in a mugging” (Information, 2014). In Darwin’s Nightmare the children who roamed the streets were in small groups, and admitted to engaging in any activities that they could in order to survive. None of their parents were thee to support them so they either robbed opthers or looked to the fisherman to learn the trades of the economy in Tanzania. Though there are a majority of nonviolent crimes that occur in Tanzania, there is a high level iof ciminal activities that involve sexual crimes such as rape. These occurrences are not uncommon among prostitutes. Hence, the criminal activity in Tanzania is a survival tactic and response to a political and economic control from outside parties and due to a low level of nationalism.
Prostitution
In Darwin’s nightmare displays how the division in the African American communities result from of political implications attempt and power display the impact that economic dependence and power has on Tanzania. In Tanzania a high percentage of women who work, as sex workers also known as prostitutes and have HIV. In this profession, approximately one-third of the sex workers have HIV. For women in Tanzania prostitution is a common tactic and means of survival. Due to the lack of education and resources that are made to the eastern Africans many women engage in promiscuous act such prostitution. As a result, several fishermen contract HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases from women and sex workers when they sleep with the prostitutes. In the documentary Darwin’s nightmare, Reverend Cleata Kaijage reports the cycle of HIV contraction when married women loose their husbands and their financial report due to HIV. After losing their husbands, they work as prostitutes to earn money to survive, and often the women do not us condoms because they perceive condoms as a sin. This subjects them to HIV and several other sexually transmitted diseases. According to Mwita (2015) “It is mind boggling to plan any incisive intervention in the infections that afflict groups such as prostitutes who have a frightening prevalence of 26 percent), gay men (22.2 percent) and drugs addicts (15 percent)”. Over a quarter of the prostitutes that are sex workers have Aids, which is very alarming and shows how a lack of healthcare and resources that were reduced due to the structural adjustment programs that was historically applied to various African regions.
Food sovereignity
Several contributory factor have played a role in the food sovereignty that is occurring in Tanzania. Some of these factors include scientific rationale such as poor soil, and inclimiate weather; while others include the de-peasantization policy. The de-peasantization policy limits investors accss to lands as a preventive meaure fo displacing peasants from the land that they reside on. On the other hand this policy also limits the amount of jobs that are available to poverty stricken person and keeping them in low, unsanitary and rural areas where they are subject to extracting diseases from unclean environments and unruly living conditions. The food shortage in Tanzania was displayed in Darwin’s Nightmare while natves laid and dies on the streets because they did not have the proper nourishment or the opportuniy to obtain the food necessary to survive. This documentary is a real life example of how poor conditions, food production, and a lack of job opportunity can directly impact the opverall heaqlth and well being of a country that has high potential to be marketable and prosperous. Another jkey component of food sovereignity in Tanzania is the “large investors taking land that is suitable for food production may not necessarily produce food crops.” (Mbunda, 2013). Large businessses may be more interested in capatalizing on the country’s natural resources without creating opportunity for economic growth through reproduction. This further cripples the abioity for displaced and non-displaced natives to work and promote growth in the various village and communities. As a result, the poverty level in Tanzania continues to remain high, and living conditions have not improved. Hence, the food sovereignty in Tanzania has been attributed by large businesses, a lack of education of the natives which limits job opportunities, and agricultural reproduction issues.
Conclusion
There have been two main attempts at nationalism for Tanzania. These two attempts are the country’s independence and the Arusha Declaration. Tanzania is currently a democracy, but before becoming a democracy, Tanzania was the conflict grounds for Tanzanians and Germans that were trying to over rule and conquer the mainland of Tanzania for a variety of reasons. Under the British mandate from 1919 to 1962 the East German territory was renamed Tanganyika. After World War II, Africans became more involved in political rule and decision-making when Julius Nyerere became the prime minister of Tanganyika in 1961. This leadership role helped to develop political alliance and form the Republic of Tanzania after and agreement to promote the county’s growth and maximize the use of the resources to boost the economy and the morale of the natives. The Arusha Declaration is a doctrine that was created by Julius Nyerere in 1967 to promote nationalism and social acceleration that is fueled by the economy. Due to the lack of cohesion and acceptance of the policy, self-reliance and socialism were rejected. Nyerere’s attempts to blossom failed. Hence, the independence of Tanzania and the Arusha Declaration were both attempts to cultivate Tanzania and promote the people and the economy, but due to several factors such as the distrust of the government and a lack of motivation due to high poverty levels this has not been possible. In Darwin’s nightmare the division in the African American communities that are the result of filed political implications attempt and power display the impact that economic dependence and power has on Tanzania. This is exhibited with the level of prostitution that women, men, and children participate in to access means to food and shelter.
References
Agency, C. I. (2016). Tanzania. Retrieved 2016- 1-June from Central Intelligence Agency: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tz.html
Dagne, T. (2011). Tanzania: Background and Current Conditions. Congressional Research Service.
Gascoigne, B. (2001). History of Tanzania. Retrieved 2016 йил 1-June from history World: http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ad23
Information, O. C. (2014). Overall Crime and Safety Situation. Dar es Salaam, TANZANIA: U.S. Embassy Dar es Salaam.
Mbunda, R. (2013). Food Sovereignty: A Critical Dialogue. The Developmental State and Food Sovereignty in Tanzania. New Haven, CT.
MWITA, S. (2015-26-November). Prostitutes in high HIV/ Aids risk conditions. Daily News .
