Shailja Patel

Born in 1979, Monica Arac de Nyeko comes from Kitgum district in northern Uganda. She grew up mostly in Kampala, but attended high school in Gulu, northern Uganda, for some years.

When I read this poem, I think of my friend, Philo Ikonya. Philo is the president of the Kenya Chapter of PEN, the international society of writers dedicated to the promotion of literature and freedom of expression, a lifelong activist, an artist to her fingertips.

It will be Johannesburg next. Or Lagos. Or Nairobi. Any urban centre where the interests of global capital converge, meet local power brokers, to do business.

Darwish's work has particular relevance to our struggles for justice in Africa.