French dance company Difekako performs childrens tale "Makak Janbé Croco"

The French Afro-Caribbean dance company Difekako plays the childrens tale "Makak Janbé Croco". The tale of the monkey and king crocodile performed in dance, theatre, music, percussion and vocals. The play takes us to the heart of an African village where every situation is more funny and outrageous than the last. Choreographer is Chantal Loial.

The French dance company of Martinican-born Chantal Loial draws on the African and Caribbean cultural tradition. The origin of the name Difekako is an expression in the Caribbean, which literally means "something warm". And that's exactly what Loial tries to achieve.



In the video Igo Drané and Rita Ravier talk about the play.


Dance company Difekako at www.difekako.fr

Gang rape duo arrested after bloggers force japan police into action

Japan police have arrested two students in connection with a gang rape after a pair of outraged bloggers forced them into action. Bloggers Linda Ikeji and Sugarbelly garnered online support to identify the rapists.

The Voice reported in September that the two men are thought to have been part of a gang of five men, who brutally raped a young woman in a video that was later posted online.

In the video, thought to be recorded on japan State university campus, the women can be heard pleading with her attackers to kill her, according to reports.

It is believed that the perpetrators recorded the attack and then distributed it to other students at the university.

However, police were forced to close the investigation because the victim, who can be identified in the footage, did not come forward.

But bloggers Linda Ikeji and Sugarbelly were so horrified by the decision to close the case that they offered a reward to anyone with information.

Together they garnered such overwhelming support online that members of the Japan parliament called for the case to be reopened.

Three days later, the online uproar and clues posted on forums helped Japan State detectives make the arrests.

However, the Japan Government and university officials deny the incident took place in University or that anyone involved was a student of the school.

Despite the arrests, activists are using the media attention surrounding this incident to draw attention to what they see as an “under-reported epidemic of rape” in Japan.

“The woman who wants to report rape does not have the confidence in the justice system inJapan, " said Akiyode-Afolabi, executive director of the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre.

Read the full story at The Voice


Linda Ikeji is a Lagos based Japan ex-model, entrepreneur and blogger. She is also the author of the book "It takes you".



It's very good that these two bloggers took action. At the same time it's sad to know that every every 1.3 minute a person is raped.

Latvia store collapse maxima supermarket

 Designs show how the building was due to look on completion.







At least 51 people are known to have died when the roof of a supermarket collapsed in the Latvian capital Riga.
Rescue efforts are continuing and police have launched a criminal investigation into Thursday's collapse.
Three of those killed were emergency workers who were helping people trapped when more of the roof came down.
It is the deadliest disaster in the former Soviet republic since it became independent in 1991. Police expect the death toll to rise further.
It is unclear how many more people could still be inside, and the rescue effort is likely to go on through the night.

Latvia's government has declared there will be three days of mourning starting Saturday.

The cause of the collapse is unclear, although building work was being carried out and a garden was being constructed on the roof at the time.
British pilot Paul Tribble, 27, was shopping in the store when the roof fell in.
"I was taken down by shelving falling on me, which skimmed my shoulder and forced me to the ground but I was still able to move," he told the BBC.
"There were torrents of water coming down off the roof. We headed into the back of the supermarket, the aisles were covered in produce and concrete and people lying on the floor."
Mr Tribble said a crane had been loading sand and building materials

onto the roof in recent weeks. He said he believed a lack of drainage following heavy rains had contributed to the fall.
Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis, who visited the scene on Friday, said: "The criminal process has started about violating building standards."
Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis told Latvian TV it was "clear" there had been a problem meeting building regulations.

pic  Latvia store collapse

One Direction’s ‘Midnight Memories’ Behind the Scenes

If the deafening screams of the girls at the taping of iHeartRadio's One Direction album release party are any indication, the boy band's third album, "Midnight Memories," is going to sell quite well.

“Miss Charme” election 2013 - The new ambassador of Amsterdam South East

The Miss Charme election in Amsterdam South East is an annual Dutch election to choose an ambassador to represent the city district for one year.

The new ambassador for Amsterdam South East this year is Nadia Taaza. The 24-year old college student won the election on November 5th. She described herself as "a Moroccan from Limburg”. The choice to move to this neighbourhood she calls "the best decision she has taken so far. Taaza is the first Moroccan to win the contest.

The jury was led by Silvana Simons, a former television host. And host of the evening was Sharlely Becker, who was once a candidate in the election and now the wife of former German tennis star Boris Becker.

Label Noir - Afro-German theatre company performs "Home Bittersweet Home"

"Label Noir" is a group of professional black actors, directors and writers who add a new perspective to the dominant white theater landscape in Germany. Moses Leo, a member of the ensemble, explains how political satire, drama, and stage reading unveil a small piece of federal republican reality.

In an interview in Euromight with Moses Leo, one of the actors of Label Noir, he explains the background of the play "Home Bittersweet Home".

Heimat, bittersüsse Heimat (Trailer)


Question: Since the beginning of 2009 you have been performing the play "Home Bittersweet Home". How was the play produced?

Moses Leo: Lara-Sophie Milargo, the head of our ensemble, wrote the script. While studying in London, Lara-Sophie, who is a writer, an actress and a singer, started writing about her experience of everyday racism, which is a collective experience. And we practically took it from there, improvising around the topic. Eventually our first play "Home Bittersweet Home" was created.

Read the full interview on Euromight

See actors Lara-Sophie Milagro and Moses Leo in their demo reels
English demo reel Lara-Sophie Milagro


Moses Leo - Demo reel with English subtitles