Marissa Coutinho Samake FIRST LADY IN WAITING... From Goa to Bahrain to the US and now Mali, in West Africa, where her husband Niankoro Yeah Samake is standing for next month's presidential elections. The trajectory of Marissa Coutinho Samake's life has taken her on a journey few could have dreamt of. In the heart of this sub-Saharan country with vast expanses of inhospitable desert overrun by Islamist militants till a few weeks ago, this is perhaps the closest we will get to chasing the dream of a Goan becoming the first lady of a country. With a degree in business management from the US, Marissa has been a huge asset to the Samake campaign. "She is uniquely positioned to advise and support me every step of the way. Her ability to remain neutral and see things from a different perspective is something that I find irreplaceable," Samake says of his "first lady", as he goes into overdrive to a poll that will be as keenly watched in Goa
DEVIKA SEQUEIRA devikaseque...@gmail.com The UN will deploy its third largest peace keeping mission to Mali on Monday, ahead of the July 28 election in the troubled West African nation. Mali has been in turmoil since early 2012, and the ground realities seem to hardly favour a presidential election at this juncture. The bid to bring the African country back to democracy after months of civil conflict that escalated with the threat of northern Mali -- more than half of the country -- falling into the clutches of Islamist militants, is fraught with huge logistical and security challenges. In Kidal, in Mali's vast desert expanses in the north, temperatures had touched a searing 52 degrees Celsius last week, worrying UN officials that sensitive components in their mobile communications systems would melt, news agencies reported. The scorching heat in Kidal is the least of the challenges. Less than two weeks ago, Mali's chief negotiator Tiebile Drame camping out in neighbouring Burkina Faso managed to hammer out a deal with the Tuareg rebels to bring about a ceasefire that will allow Malian troops to return to Kidal. This paves the way for the nation-wide poll that the international community sees as crucial to keeping stability in the region. Taking advantage of the power vacuum in the capital Bamako after the March 2012 military coup in Mali, the nomadic Tuaregs, grouped under the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) had swept across the Saharan desert to create an independent region in north Mali in April last year. They still control the cities of Gao, Auguelhok and Kidal. Confronted with the real threat that the Tuareg rebellion was being hijacked by Al-Qaeda, France, with the help of Chadian forces, launched a military intervention in Mali in January this year at the request of the Malian president, to push back Islamist fighters. Many of them are said to have fallen back into southern Libya. One of Africa's most stable democracies till last year's coup, given its strategic location -- the largely desert country shares borders with Algeria in the north, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Guinea in the south, Senegal and Mauritania in the west, Niger in the east—Mali's return to peace is seen as imperative to stability in the region. A former colony Few people in Goa would have heard of Mali, 9200 km away on another continent. The two couldn't have been more dissimilar. Remote, landlocked, two-thirds of it covered by swathes of desert, Mali, one of the poorest countries in the world, is twice the size of France but so sparsely peopled, that it has a smaller population (just 15 million) than Mumbai. But Mali too was a former outpost of a European country. It gained independence from France a year before the Portuguese departure from Goa in 1961. In this sweltering desert, by a curious twist of fate, the Malian presidential election is possibly the closest we will ever get to chasing the dream of a Goan first lady of a nation. Marissa Coutinho and Niankoro Yeah Samake met at Bringham Young University, Utah, USA where he was pursuing a masters in public policy and she, studying for a business management degree. They married some eight years ago and have two children, Keanen,7, and Carmen,5. What sets Samake apart from the other nominees for the Malian presidency race, is his faith. In a country that is 95 per cent Muslim, the Samakes are the only Mormons. One would imagine that this alone would make the running that much harder. But in 2009 when Yeah Samake ran for mayor of Ouelessebougou, his hometown, he sailed in with a big vote. "Mali is a very open country and freedom of religion is one thing that Malians espouse. Yeah was voted mayor with 86 per cent of the vote. Malians don't care what religion you are, as long as you are a good person and can do good for your country," Marissa Samake told Herald Review. And Samake, 44, has argued that he is not running for president because of his faith, but his faith would help get there. Impressed by the Mormon sense of community building, Samake converted about a decade ago. In 2004, after he graduated, he began to run the non-profit Mali Rising Foundation to build schools in Mali. Samake comes from a well-known political family and is said to have a fair chance in Mali's presidential stakes. After a successful fund-raising bid in California last month, he is also believed to be better funded than his opponents. The journey "June 17, 2011 is imprinted in my mind. That day I was getting off a plane from the US to Mali for a journey that we believed would change our lives and the lives of the Malian people. We came with the firm belief that Yeah could be the change that Mali needed. We believed he could be a fresh start for a country that was stuck in a rut of bad leadership and corrupt practices. Who knew where we would be two years later? All we knew was that the journey had begun and was bound to be exciting," Marissa said. The journey is no less exciting for those who watch from the sidelines. -- Review Bureau _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ 'I'm very proud of my Goan heritage and still have my Indian passport' She was born in Bahrain, where her parents Moses and Margaret Coutinho still work and live. But ingrained in her memory are the regular visits to Goa. "I consider Goa very much a part of my heritage. I grew up eating Goan food and listening to Konkani music and tiatrs that my dad was crazy about." The Coutinhos have roots in Cuncolim and Sangolda and still have a house in Parra. Some 9200 km away from "home", it seems but natural that what Marissa Coutinho misses most about her roots are "Konkani music and Goan sausages, especially the ones from Margao". Excerpts from an interview with DEVIKA SEQUEIRA What are the chances that a member of the Mormon faith can become the next president of a country where 95 per cent of the population is Muslim? ----------------------------------------------------------- Mali is a very open country and freedom of religion is one thing that Malians espouse. Even in Ouelessebougou, Yeah was voted Mayor with 86 per cent of the vote. Here, while the majority of the population are Muslim and the culture/traditions are very intertwined with the Muslim faith, there are people of every religious following. Malians don't care what religion you are as long as you are a good person who can do good for your country. I think if Yeah became President that is exactly what people would look for: good, honest leadership. How involved are you in Yeah's political career? ----------------------------------------------------------- I am 100 per cent committed to Yeah's campaign and consider myself very knowledgeable about the situation here in Mali and in America (where we have a following, especially in Utah). I also manage all our volunteers, staff and social media. In Mali, a spouse and family are not as involved publicly as in other Western elections. However, I try and do humanitarian projects when I can. Mali is in a period of need. Everyone is suffering. The economy has plunged. We have projects that provide food to children and train women to become self sufficient. We have a project that distributes rice to families that were unable to buy the staple. In addition, Yeah has continued to encourage international medical groups to continue to visit Mali. What is it like for you, an Indian, to be living in Mali? Have people there even heard about India, leave alone Goa? ----------------------------------------------------------- I am very proud of my Indian heritage and still hold an Indian passport. To be honest, Malians are a very receptive people, but more receptive to Indians. Malians consider Indians to be the symbol of beauty and Bollywood movies are played every Wednesday night. Many Malian men have sung me the song "Kabhi Kabhi" -- and let me tell you, they don't miss a beat or a word. Malians even have French-dubbed Indian series on their national TV ORTM! So Malians are very familiar with India. I have felt nothing but acceptance and love for who I am and my heritage. Do you regret leaving the comfort of a home and life in the US for the turmoil of Mali? ----------------------------------------------------------- I don't feel regret for my choices. I would be lying if I said I did not worry for my family's safety. However, I see how Mali and all Malians are suffering. I believe in what Yeah is doing. I believe he is the chance that Mali can be a great nation one day and have a people that are prosperous. My comforts and my tension are nothing compared with the suffering Malians undergo daily. Imagine not having three meals a day. Imagine not having an education. Imagine becoming a bride when you are 13 years old or working in the fields when you are old enough to walk. Imagine 5 year-old children begging and selling in the street. Yes, these are common things in India, but at least India is developing. I and my children are comparatively blessed. SEND YOU feedback to devikaseque...@gmail.com and goa...@goanet.org Source: Herald, Goa. _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/