Riots in Matonge and… the indifference of public authority?

Demart, Sarah

doi:10.4000/brussels.1168

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Although some of these Pakistani shop owners were actually born in the DRC (Swyngedouw and Swyngedouw 2009), their knowledge of (or motivation to engage in) non-food African herbal medicine seems limited. They apparently have better access to international trade networks, investment funds, official permits, and qualifications and/or are more willing to engage in obtaining these than native Congolese (Demart 2013b; Hubo 2015; Vandecandelaere 2012). Moreover, the Pakistani traders probably profited from the closure of several Congolese shops after the riots in 2001 and 2012 (Demart 2008; 2013b).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They apparently have better access to international trade networks, investment funds, official permits, and qualifications and/or are more willing to engage in obtaining these than native Congolese (Demart 2013b; Hubo 2015; Vandecandelaere 2012). Moreover, the Pakistani traders probably profited from the closure of several Congolese shops after the riots in 2001 and 2012 (Demart 2008; 2013b). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other hand, Matonge has the reputation as being unsafe. After several street riots in 2001 and in the winter of 2011–2012, problems with drug dealers and gang fights, the neighborhood remains under intensified police control (Demart 2008, 2013b). Apart from an overview of non-timber forest products sold on the French and Belgian markets (Tabuna 1999), no studies in urban ethnobotany exist for the African diaspora in Belgium.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Trade in African Medicinal Plants in Matonge-Ixelles, Brussels (Belgium)

Andel

Fundiko

2016

Econ Bot

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(English)Maintaining cultural identity and preference to treat cultural bound ailments with herbal medicine are motivations for migrants to continue using medicinal plants from their home country after moving to Europe and the USA. As it is generally easier to import exotic food than herbal medicine, migrants often shift to using species that double as food and medicine. This paper focuses on the trade in African medicinal plants in a Congolese neighborhood in Brussels (Belgium). What African medicinal plants are sold in Matonge, where do they come from, and to which extent are they food medicines? Does vendor ethnicity influence the diversity of the herbal medicine sold? We hypothesized that most medicinal plants, traders, and clients in Matonge were of Congolese origin, most plants used medicinally were mainly food crops and that culture-bound illnesses played a prominent role in medicinal plant use. We carried out a market survey in 2014 that involved an inventory of medicinal plants in 19 shops and interviews with 10 clients of African descent, voucher collection and data gathering on vernacular names and uses. We encountered 83 medicinal plant species, of which 71% was primarily used for food. The shredded leaves of Gnetum africanum Welw., Manihot esculenta Crantz, and Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam were among the most frequently sold vegetables with medicinal uses. Cola nuts, shea butter, Aloe vera (L.) Burm.f., and Mondia whitei (Hook.f.). Skeels were the main non-food medicines sold. Women’s health, aphrodisiacs, and rituals were the most important medicinal applications, but culture-bound ailments did not entirely dominate the plant uses. While most clients in Matonge were Congolese, most vendors and plant species were not. The Pakistanis dominated the food trade, and typical Congolese plants were sometimes replaced by West African species, creating confusion in vernacular names. African-managed shops had significantly more species of medicinal plants in stock than shops managed by Pakistanis. Almost all non-food herbal medicine was sold by Africans. Apart from informal shops, non-food herbal medicine was also sold from private homes and by ambulant vendors, probably to reduce costs and escape taxes and control by the authorities. We expect that in the future, increasing rent, strict regulations, and decreasing investments by the Congolese community will force the medicinal plant trade in Matonge to go even more underground.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12231-016-9365-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Trade in African Medicinal Plants in Matonge-Ixelles, Brussels (Belgium)

Andel

Fundiko

2016

Econ Bot

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“…Therefore, it is not surprising that this neighborhood is a place of Black political mobilization (Demart 2013b) and also the location of the two most remarkable explicit imprints of Black presence in Brussels: not only Lumumba Square (see Figure 2.4) but also, about 120 meters from the square, the gigantic reproduction of a Chéri Samba fresco. The original is to be found in the infamous Africa Museum, in the Afropea exhibition room that focuses on the history of the African presence in Belgium.…”

Section: Matonge: Where Black Belgians Meetmentioning

confidence: 98%

Mapping Black Europe

2023

Public History - Angewandte Geschichte

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Black communities have been making major contributions to Europe's social and cultural life and landscapes for centuries. However, their achievements largely remain unrecognized by the dominant societies, as their perspectives are excluded from traditional modes of marking public memory. For the first time in European history, leading Black scholars and activists examine this issue - with first-hand knowledge of the eight European capitals in which they live. Highlighting existing monuments, memorials, and urban markers they discuss collective narratives, outline community action, and introduce people and places relevant to Black European history, which continues to be obscured today.

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“…The audience, the Belgian population, was very receptive to the metaphorical statement. Back in the 1990s, when the gang phenomenon took off in Brussels, Belgian politics towards Congolese migrants was marked by racial prejudice and discrimination (Demart, 2013), and media reports echoed the political viewpoint of Matongé, their neighbourhood, as 'a no-go zone where gangs fight over turf' (Decourty, 2001). Similar statements were made in relation to areas of Caribbean settlement in London -namely, Hackney, Southwark and Lambeth -to the extent that still today such communities are known for their gangs (see Pitts, 2008).…”

Section: The Devices Of Gang Glocalization: Transformative Magic and mentioning

confidence: 99%