The Translator: A Tribesman’s Memoir of Darfur
The Translator: A Tribesman’s Memoir of Darfur
I am the translator who has taken journalists into dangerous Darfur. It is my intention now to take you there in this book, if you have the courage to come with me.
The young life of Daoud Hari–his friends call him David–has been one of bravery and mesmerizing adventure. He is a living witness to the brutal genocide under way in Darfur.
The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving memoir of how one person has made a difference in the world–an on-the-ground ac
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The Translator,
There are a number of compelling memoirs by Sudanese authors such as They Poured Fire On Us From The Sky (2005), What Is the What (2006), and at least 4 more by or about “The Lost Boys” of southern Sudan. As the conflict has moved north and west, like birds flying before the storm, we are now seeing a new wave of heartbreaking memoirs arriving from the Darfur region. Each story is as unique as the person telling it, and all offer a glimpse into a world few know about because western journalists have so much difficulty working in the country, thus making this first-hand narrative by a native Darfurian a unique and important source.
As a young man Daoud Hari witnessed the destruction of his idyllic rural village by modern Russian-made helicopter gunships and, like the logs of a raft breaking apart in the rapids, he and his family spun off in many harrowing directions. Hari decided early on that he would “use his brains and not a gun to make a better life” for himself. After arriving at a refugee camp in Chad, his skill at languages allowed him to work as a translator and guide for westerners on fact-finding trips across the border into Darfur. On about his 7th trip in August 2006 he became embroiled in an international incident with kidnapped National Geographic journalist Paul Salopek, making headlines around the world. Through the help of friends Hari was able to get out of Sudanese jail and move to the United States, where he now works for SaveDarfur.Org
Hari’s easy to read book is an excellent entry point for learning about the Darfur conflict. A nine-page Appendix called “A Darfur Primer” is, the author says, what any Darfurian in a bar would know about their own history. Hari’s book contains the most complete version yet of Pulitzer-Prize winning Paul Salopek’s 2006 harrowing kidnapping ordeal, taking up nearly the last third of the book; Salopek has not yet published an account, he was severely beaten and almost died (a fate nearly shared by Hari). Hari tells us about the unintended consequences of the Iraq War, saying “Torture was the popular new thing because Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib were everywhere in the news at that time, and crazy men like this were now getting permission to be crazy.” Finally, Hari is perhaps most remarkable for never loosing his humanity despite the horror around him, reminding the reader “loosing a baby is hard. It doesn’t matter where in the world you live for that.” This is a wonderful memoir, intelligent, thrilling, educational, recommend highly.
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|Simple… powerful.. life changing…,
I was hesitant to purchase this book because the writing seemed very simple as I skimmed the book in the bookstore; however, it is this simple prose that empowers the journey you take with the author. From the opening story of his life being saved by a Journalist to the closing account of the torture and eventual freedom granted to him (don’t worry, this doesn’t reveal a surprise ending – after all, he did write the book), you feel that you are being told a story in the simple traditional form of an African tribal legend. Sadly, this is no legend!
When I read about the little girl killed by a soldier in a horrific way, I wept. When I read Daoud’s commentary on why Darfur marriages last so long (they sleep separately), I laughed. What struck me was how much this man and his family has suffered and, yet, he laughs. He can teach us much about suffering and the ability to continue to believe and hope.
The more important part of the stories, however, is the part that should make us scream for change in the way we have dealt with this genocide and others like it. It’s time to take faster action. When we have to wait until there are over 1000 stories to be heard (in order to decide if it is genocide), there’s something VERY wrong with our process.
The author makes you feel like you’ve walked the sandy world in which he grew up. You feel as if you’ve ridden a camel, pushed a Land Rover out of a ditch, survived a beating and crossed borders illegally for the sake of human life. Why? Because he tells the story in very simple English, which makes you feel your hearing about it all from a child’s mind. You connect with the story much as a child envisions she is in a traditional fairy tale. Very powerful!
The author ended his story by saying that he didn’t think he stood a one percent chance of being saved from rearrest and possibly being traded back to the government of Sudan, which would likely kill him. Then he said of those odds, “for me, that was pretty good.” Indeed, he was able to escape to work outside of the country and, among other things, write this book. I think we have to ask ourselves this: Are we going to give better odds to the people of Darfur and other such nations or are we only going to look at “past” holocausts like World War II and give the lip service “never again”?
Yes. This book has changed me.
I cannot recommend this book to you enough.
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|A nicely done personal history of a large, sad tale,
Unfortunately, the only thing that 99.999% of the world associates with the word “Darfur” is death, hate and tragedy. Daoud Hari’s small memoir reminds the reader that Darfur was once home to millions – a place of family, friend, play and work.
That is the strongest asset of this short work – it puts a human face on a large tragedy. Written in simple, elegant English and with a wry sense of humor (“Most people like me, are tall – I am six feet – and are also a little thin because of all the walking, the hard work and the dieting that is one of the many advantages of poverty.”[p. 108]), this book is an extension of Hari’s way of fighting back against the forces that are destroying Darfur. Rather than taking up arms, Hari decided to expose Darfur to the world by escorting journalists from Chad into Darfur in Sudan.
This was not a choice for the faint of heart. Journalists and their guides were considered to be spies by the government of Sudan. Hari and his journalists were exposed to gunfire, captured multiple times and eventually one group was captured, tortured and eventually released through the efforts of former presidential candidate and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.
Before reading the book, I suggest reading “Appendix 1: A Darfur Primer” at the end of the text. It helps give his story some context.
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