kulu's chi ldrenreviews the recently yet, Meekulu's'children' also

instil fear. They are 'mysteriousthings', said to be able to becomeinvisible because they have beenboiled in a pot when crossing the

by Kaleni Hiyalwa

novel, pays tributeimo', the 'stay-'

did not go intounfolds througha,, a young girl

p in the 70s andspread along-

an border. In theing chapter, nine-ia comes hometo find her parentstheir homestead.1976.They are theims in the.village

Ketja's brother andi and Estela. have

,'and for a long timewhat has hap-

is broken. but theririt of her grand-kulu; helps her tofirst few years

but gradually "of normality settles border. The war reaches its climax

for Ketja, Meekulu, and the peopleof Elombe just before the return oftheir'children' for'omahoololo'.independence elections in 1989.

It is not easy for the villagers tomake sense of the bewildering

, changeS brought gbout by the war.Not long after the killing ofKetja's parents, an old man in thevillage, Tatekulu Topi, asks agathering torn between emotionsof rnourning and revenge, "Whatis going on in this, our world? ...Today it is Dila, but tomorrowmaybe one or more of us. Do youhear, all of you? What are wegoing to do about it?" (p.19)

Kaleni Hiyalwa's fictionalaccount of life in the northernNamibian rar ron"'is fascinatingin many different respects. Forone, it is the first piece ofpostcolonial Namibian writing -

her Meekulu arework hard to srow

and the neighboufsthey attend

ja excels at the villagethe tree. As she

the young girl experi-of the normal turbu-

Ketja grows, so does theingly, the 'ovakalimo'

.its black soldiers.'. Army vehicles,

destroy their fields andthe other hand, there

ildren of the forest'.do momufitu'. the

children', Kaleni

hands of the 'white', 'eembulu', the .

. Meekulu and otherthe village support theiheir'childreir', with

fiction or non-fiction - that isentirely devoted to the experiencesof 'ovakalimo', the 'stayers'.'Meekulu's children' is a muchneeded, powerful historical

narrative of those who livedthrough the war in northernNamibia, and who today sooften feel forgotten.

Complefed ten years afterNamibia gained her independ-ence, this new novel no longerbelongs to the orbit of what hasbeen called 'struggle literature'Although the war for liberationis its main theme, it is not astraightforward,'politicallycorrect' account. Rather,'Meekulu's children' shows thepowerful personal and collec-tive development of Ketja andher community, Meekulu, andthe people of Elombe. It is asad tale of grief, but at the sametime one of hope and.turvival.Ketja's story is one of suffer-ing, but also one of resilienceand strength

It is a story told from 'theinside'. Hiyalwa depicts thesympathies most villagers hadwith the fighters, because they arethe people's 'children'. And yet,she also dwells on the ambiguousfeelings arouseid by 'eendume domoinufitu'. It is more than fear ofthe ever-preseht possibility of theBoers' retaliation. Too manythings remain inexplicable. Thepeople of Elombe are caughtbetween feelings owed to oldercultural beliefs and the allegiancesof the war for liberation. The waris mediated through their bodies,fheir souls, and their minds.

Kaleni Hiyalwa's jusr publishednovel is a remarkable 'first' inbeing an imaginary literary ac-count. Unlike earlier women'swriting on the liberation struggle

and information. And

Feeling Yes,Feeling No

Feelilry Yes, Feelittg lVo is a viclco producecl byLi f 'e l ine/Chi lc l l inc of Narnib ia wl- r ic l r a i t t ' ts to ec l r - r ip t l rechi Idren o l 'Southcrn Al ' r - ica.wi th v i ta l I i f 'c sk i I Is .f i rcus i r rg in l rar t icu lar- on ser l ta l i ty cdr :cat ion. Thisrnatcrial has bee n cle vclopecl against t l 'rc backgt'or-rnclthat thc aver i rge agct 01 ' f i rs t t inre scrual in tercoLl rse lsl5 in nrany cor- rnt r ies in or- r r t 'cg ion. one th i ld o1 'b i r thsin Southern Af l - ica a le to g i r ls urrc ler 18, and r r torc at rc llu lore yoLlug pcoplc a lc bc ing in l tc tec l wi th F l lV/A I D S .

Thc I,'eeling Yes, I'.celing lVtt Plogranrnrc tlt'igirlateclin Clanacla ancl l - ras l rccn ac laptct l by Chi ld l inc l i r rNanr ib iun aur l o thcr Afr ican aucl icnccs. A c l t 'nr t ra u 'asc levc lopccl which has a l rcacly bcon pcr l i r rnrcd at t t ta t iy1- l l inra ly sc l rools in Wint lhocl . .- l l l c s t t . ' . ' . ' : r o i l l t e P lo In t t t t t t t ( ' i \erv ic lcr r t : a l ' ter cach per l i r ln tancc. 'Chi lc l l ine has rccot 'decl an i t t -crcusc in t l - rc nunrbel -o l schoolchi lc l rcn cal l ing i t i to LurbLtrdcnfhcmselr res ancl sce k r t t lv icc abt l t t labus i ve s i t ua t i o t t s i n t he i l l i v cs .

'[ 'hc clranra has now beenlecorcled in this lbr-u.part vicleopl'ogranrrc. which teachcschildlcn r.r1' lrritt ' t iu-y scltool agehow to keep tl-rcir bttdies saf'cl 'rom rbuse and disease: toidcnt i t l f 'ee l ings wi th in thcm-sclves and learn how to r lc l t l wi thnegntive f 'eclings and ditf icults i i t u r i i o r t r r r l t i ch r t t i s l t t l i r c t ' i s cto sexLla l abuse and nto lcstut ion.

Part 7 - Feelingsintloduces YES ancl NO t'cel-

ings and encolrra-qes cl-rilclren tosay NO i f they erpet ' ience a NO

Meekutu's children continued

t-eeling. Children are also taught to share theirwith sorreone they trust.

Part 2 - Can I trust a strangerTdeals with scxua[ ztssar-rlt and teaches ways of

avoicling diingcrous situations by usin-g the three"stril lr cer oLrcstiolts".

Paft 3 - Abused by atrusteddcals with tl.ris verv painl'ul sitr-ration. The child

cncor-u'lgecl 1o be asse rtivc and to report thearr ac lu l t they t rust .

Part 4 - HIV(AIDS tr Feelingsdcals with the clangers ancl prccautions of HIV/

AIDS ancl adclresscs ways o1'suppolting those suling f 'nrm the consecluclrccs o1'thc disease.

l 'hc Vic lco is tva i l lb lc l i r r Nl l 75Narnib i l . ' l ' c l +262tr 6 l 226IJ89. I rOl l i ncnan r @) r r rwe b . co tn . t n r

lkln ChildlineBor 5477. E-

Chi lc l -cn in r rccc l o1 'coLrusol ins ancl advice canC'r is is [ - inc. ] 'c l 2 ]212I in Winclhoek.

' l 'hc l ivc t lnurra wi l l cont inr- rc v is i t ing sc l tools . and( ' i r i ic l l inc hopcs to I ' in t i l i rnr l ing to reacl t o t - t t tobcyoncl thc l rorrnc lar- ics o l ' Wir rc lhock.