Bhumi Famine Banquet Questions Plenty

The Zambian ambassador addressed students gathered for a “Famine Banquet” last night on the growing famine problem that plagues the Third World.

About 25 students gathered at Boylston Hall for the event, which was sponsored by Bhumi, an international development awareness group.

“I have never been present at this kind of event, where you actually try to experience what the people go through,” Ambassador Inonge Mbikusita-Lewanika said. “I hope that you can spread this kind of sensitivity not only around the United States but around the globe.”

The event’s seemingly oxymoronic name represented the symbolism of the banquet, according to Bhumi President Clay Pell ’05.

Students who attended drew slips of paper that divided them into three groups meant to mirror world income levels.

Bhumi members read statements about the lifestyle that could be expected at each level of income.

Students received meals that reflected their status, ranging from nutritionally balanced feasts to small portions of rice and beans.

According to the ambassador, HIV/AIDS, a departure from traditional culture, and misapplied foreign aid exacerbate the hunger problem.

Mbikusita-Lewanika said that western attempts to industrialize Africa have resulted in the loss of indigenous mastery of land cultivation, leading to villages that are less able to support themselves in ways they could afford. And Western relief efforts are either too focused on urban areas or mishandled by corrupt governments, and thus fail to alleviate the problems.

To top it off, she said, indebted countries spend funds needed to create educational opportunities that could reduce poverty on repaying their loans.

But the major challenge, as emphasized by both Bhumi organizers and the ambassador, was the threat of HIV/AIDS.

“The best-educated, best employed and, in rural settings, the strongest and most able to cultivate are dying and have been dying,” she said.

The solution, according to Mbikusita-Lewanika, is to work with countries to cooperatively solve their problems, and to eliminate redundancy in foreign relief agencies.

Posters for the event did not explain its format, which Pell said was an intentional move.

Some confusion resulted, reflected in debates on several House e-mail lists condemning the event. But Pell said that the mailing list confusion did not reduce participation in the event.

Most students in attendance had either participated in or heard of similar “banquets” in the past.

Lindsey K. Morse ’05 said that she’d wanted to come and experience this “interesting form of awareness” after hearing about the event.

Donations collected at the door will go to a grass roots food production facility in rural Zambia, Pell said.

—Staff Writer Kate A. Tiskus can be reached at tiskus@fas.harvard.edu.