Black Girl from Pyongyang: In Search of My Identity

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Macias’s book, which follows a Korean-language memoir published in 2013, is an attempt to describe her strange, peripatetic life, and her efforts to better understand her past. Her father was a notorious figure, described as one of the most brutal dictators the African continent has ever seen. Her choice is to leave, and she heads to Spain as she has lost her ability to speak Spanish (this is the language she used with her mother and family - the other is Fang).

The African girl raised by Kim Il-sung - BBC The African girl raised by Kim Il-sung - BBC

He has been compared to Pol Pot because of the violent, unpredictable, and anti-intellectual nature of his government. Spending time in Madrid, Malabo, New York, Seoul and finally London, at every step she had to reckon with others’ perceptions of her adoptive homeland. She interviewed 3,000 witnesses to his regime and concluded that he was not directly responsible for the “heinous” crimes committed during his tenure. During his adolescence, he worked as a servant for some wealthy Spanish settlers, being described as helpful and obedient, which earned him ridicule and mistreatment by other non-Christianized Fang, and showed an inferiority complex with respect to the Spaniards.By the end of his rule, over half of the population had been arrested at least once, or had a relative who had been killed. Being one of very few black people in Pyongyang and living in a strange country taught Ms Macias to see the world differently. I did not understand why I had to live in that boarding school under such strict discipline at only eight years old. Daughter of Francisco Macías, the autocrat who ruled Equatorial Guinea until 1979, she grew up welcomed by another, the Korean Kim Il-sung. In March 2023, Macías released her second memoir, Black Girl from Pyongyang, which was published by Duckworth Publishers.

Monica Macias - London, England, United Kingdom - LinkedIn Monica Macias - London, England, United Kingdom - LinkedIn

At noon on 29 September 1979, the Tribunal delivered its sentences, which were more severe than what the prosecution had requested. We were to be sent to the Mangyŏngdae Revolutionary Boarding School in the eponymous district of Pyongyang, some thirty minutes southwest by car of the city centre. In 2013, Macías gained media attention following the publication of her memoir, I'm Monique from Pyongyang ( Korean: 나는 평양의 모니카입니다), which was written in Korean.That summer, Macías Nguema organised the execution of several members of his own family, leading several members of his inner circle to fear that he was no longer acting rationally. The JMM became increasingly powerful, and its members abused their powers, often drunkenly harassing and imprisoning individuals based on mere suspicions of sympathy for dissident ideas. On 14 July 1972, a presidential decree merged all existing political parties into the United National Party (later the United National Workers' Party), [ citation needed] with Macías Nguema as President for Life of both the nation and the party. She said: ' Although North and South say they want unification, they don't actually know each other as people. The abuse in the prisons was overseen by Teodoro who reportedly enjoyed mocking and torturing the prisoners.

Communism, uprooting and dictatorships: Mónica Macías, the

After assuming the presidency, he made a secret trip to Barcelona and visited a psychiatrist for help.

The deposed ruler and a contingent of loyal forces initially tried to resist the coup upon hearing of it, but his forces eventually abandoned him. She said: 'There are people in North Korea who know that this is not the right way to live," she told Reuters in Seoul. As social media algorithms herd us all into bubbles which “protect” us from the discomfort of differing worldviews, we could all learn a lot from her lifelong quest to challenge her own prejudices. Growing up as a Black girl from Pyongyang In an extract from her memoir, Monica Macias reckons with the realities of moving from West Africa to North Korea under the guardianship of Kim Il-Sung. As a consequence, in the aftermath of decolonisation there were no proper educational institutions in Equatorial Guinea.

Mónica Macías - Wikipedia

According to various sources, anywhere from 20,000 to 80,000 of the roughly 200,000 to 300,000 people living in the country were killed under his regime, with tens of thousands more fleeing the country. Additionally, relations with Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Luis Carrero Blanco had rapidly deteriorated, the coffers of the only two banks in the new country, the Banco Exterior de España and the Banco de Crédito, were emptied (meaning officials could not be paid), the country still lacked a national bank or its own currency (meaning the Spanish peseta had to be used), and according to the transition agreements with Spain, any biennial budgets approved for the territory prior to independence would need to be used, but Spain refused to honor its obligations. Over time Monica adapts, she is in the guardianship of Kim II Sung, who takes a fatherly interest in her life and remains so until she leaves the country. Macías Nguema's regime often imprisoned entire families, including the spouses and children of suspected dissidents.Macías Nguema and six of his co-defendants were sentenced to death and the confiscation of their property; Nguema being sentenced to death "101 times". By 1979, his servants stated that Macías Nguema had become increasingly withdrawn, often spending the time mostly alone at his Mongomo villa.