women-from-chad

"I started singing at a very early age, I never gave up despite all the obstacles I encountered. By the time I reached my teens, I knew I wanted to get out there and perform live, so I started taking drama lessons to overcome my natural shyness. After that, I went on to sing. I used playback at first. But then gradually as I gained more confidence I began to use my real voice. The turning-point came in 2000 when I wrote my first song in English and started performing concerts."

"My career was divided between Germany (Marburg) where my father was studying, Nigeria (Maiduguri) where he was stationed and Chad (N'Djamena). After obtaining my scientific baccalaureate in 1999, I enrolled at the Faculty of Exact and Applied Sciences of Farcha (northern district of N'Djamena) where I studied for 2 years. From 1995 to 1998, I learned the technique of creating comics with Gérard Leclaire at the educational support office. It was there that I perfected my drawing skills. Professionally, I am a secretary at the Graphic Design and Computer Graphics Workshop in N'Djamena. I worked as a receptionist, was active in several associations and finally, I am a caricaturist and editor of the satirical newspaper "Le Miroir". I also work at the Al Mouna Cultural Center as an editor and caricaturist."

"The idea of ​​writing a book is a childhood dream, just to imitate my father who was in the meantime writing his doctoral thesis. For my poetry collection, I first had the idea of ​​trying to write a few poems, like Alphonse de Lamartine or Victor Hugo. After that, I finally discovered in myself the soul of a poet and the passion for writing, which led me to write a lot of poetry. Why not look for a publisher? I said to myself."

"It's obvious that poetry seems difficult for ordinary people. I, in particular, didn't choose poetry objectively. It was rather the choice of my passion."

"At first, it wasn't easy because "Le Manuscrit" only receives texts online. And for that, I had to type the texts. Fortunately, I received help from the graphic design and computer graphics workshop, the director general of the African Intellectual Property Organization, my father, and the historian Akouya Djallah."

"It's a tale that was told to me by my mother, which was also told to her by her mother and so on... the tale tells the story of a girl who went to fetch water alone and met a witch in the forest who transformed her into a supernatural creature. To be able to adapt it to my film "Reine du Guera", I had to reinvent and innovate it"

"I loved watching them on television. It was a world that made me dream. While watching them, I asked myself lots of questions, such as, why didn't the companies that make these films make them about African or Chadian tales? And in the end, I said to myself that if they did it, why not us? Especially since, in their time, they didn't have the privilege of having all these technological tools that are at our disposal today"

"When I heard the news, I was first surprised not because I didn't have confidence in myself, but because I am a perfectionist, when I do a job, I go beyond my limits and with the "Queen of Guera" I always told myself that something was missing. Then, I felt a sense of accomplishment and pride, for my country Chad, because it is above all it that is put forward ", she says before adding, " this accomplishment is not only for me but also for all those who invested in the project."

"The rights of human beings continue to be violated because the perpetrators of the most atrocious acts enjoy total impunity."

"After the presidential elections in May 2001, we wrote a motion of protest against France’s involvement in maintaining “autocratic regimes in Chad” that we intended to submit to the Ambassador in Ndjamena during a peaceful protest in front of the French Embassy. Army units surrounded us and a grenade exploded between my legs."

"Villages were pillaged … people who sought refuge inside churches were burnt, as buildings collapsed under the government’s fire"

"Today, the last pieces were taken away from me, and I no longer sound."

"It's the part of naiveté I have left because I don't have the right to fail. A case like this is, above all, a succession of failures and disillusionments."

"In fact, I continued to attend classes, but through the classroom window, and while answering questions from the teacher I had slapped. A sister, whom I loved very much, said to me: "You're a rebel, a child who became an adult a little too soon. Go, go back to class."

"I am a Protestant raised by Catholic sisters while remaining deeply Protestant. I am the voice of orphans."

"Since I was a child, I have always had a dream: that one day I shall build a big house where all unfortunate people can live and enjoy life."

"At the entrance to the Ministry office, following local traditional etiquette, they took off their shoes before entering the office. Today, they are more self-confident and they know how to negotiate with the mayor and with development partners. They travel abroad and exchange their views with others."

"I have to capitalize information, think about women’s situation and help them in different ways. I wanted Chadian women to be self-dependent and self-confident. My dream was to boast their capabilities in order to achieve their responsibilities and act for peace in the country."

"The National Assembly and the government should pass a law creating a Support Fund for Artistic Creation. Everyone recognizes that there are enormous needs. Unfortunately, there are no resources. And as you know, we have spent ten months receiving a barrage of requests for projects that we are unable to develop because we do not have a penny to provide a little support to these different artists who contact us."

"Understand our pain at being humiliated. To see our country humiliated. Because it is incapable of producing a monitoring report. You don't produce a monitoring report in an office."

"You see how laborious it is to deploy an institutional mission when there are no resources at your disposal. What can you do?"

"(Laughter). The rest of the funds will go to the organizing committee, which has incurred quite a bit of debt to organize this cultural event. We have approached sponsors who have so far not responded favorably, probably due to the economic crisis affecting the country. This is also the reason for the postponement of the concert to July 9, originally scheduled for June 3."

"I am a mother and also a local goodwill ambassador for the FAO. When I was at the National School of Administration and Magistracy (Enam), the theme of my dissertation was "the rights of the Chadian child." This love for children has been close to my heart for a long time. Thus, to make this dream come true, on June 16, 2003, on the occasion of Children's Day, I gave my first concert at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and African Integration to pay tribute to Chadian children. So, I have a sort of "vocation" to help deprived children in general. We all have a responsibility towards children. We must help those who are on the streets to reintegrate into society. Because the child is the father of the man. This is why the theme of my concert is "For a Chad worthy of its children." This project is approved by UNICEF and is non-profit. He's more of a humanitarian. And I'll continue to do it because it's a commitment of mine. A portion of the funds raised at the concert will be donated to UNICEF to support children in difficult situations."

"As I told you, my vacation is not intended to rest, but to carry out a number of projects that are close to my heart. These include, among others, the production of my next album, some of the lyrics of which have already been written. Moreover, during this concert, a song from my 3rd album entitled "Samha" meaning "beautiful woman" will be performed on the occasion. I take this opportunity to inform you that all my songs will be sung to pay tribute first to Chadian women and children. My second short-term project is the creation of my foundation called "FOMOM", Mounira Mitchala Foundation. This foundation will be created to help vulnerable groups, specifically Chadian women and children."

"I was born in 1979 when my country was already at war… It’s 2008 now, and Chad is still at war. I was actually in N’Djamena during a fierce battle in February of this year and I can tell you that war is completely and utterly terrible. I saw it firsthand with my own eyes. It’s only when we get peace in my homeland that we’ll be able to start building for the future."

"Peace and unity are not just vain and empty words for me."

"Women’s rights must be respected and their place should not be in the shadows, but in the light."