Novelist, philosopher, poet, professor emeritus at the Félix-Houphouët-Boigny University in Abidjan… The Ivorian Tanella Boni is a prolific observer of the reality of her fellow citizens.
Alongside an academic production, she also focuses on current events, as evidenced by her latest novel, Without a word or a handshake (Nimba Editions), which looks back on the toxic waste scandal that shook Côte d’Ivoire in 2006.
What is the first contact with France that you remember?
Tanella Boni It’s not the first contact, because in college at least 90% of my teachers were French, but here is the first memory that comes back to me: I must have been around fifteen when I received a prize in high school, which allowed me to make my first trip to France.
It was my first time on a plane and I arrived in Paris with a number of Africans from Senegal, Madagascar, Niger, Benin – which was Dahomey at the time. We were welcomed by French people, but also by African instructors with whom I have not lost contact since. I speak of this experience, made for each other to meet, because I think that today young people miss it. In fact, it was in France that I opened up to the rest of Africa.
In this just-independent Ivory Coast of the 1960s, how did you view these French people who are still very present?
They were everywhere, but I must say that if I knew France in situ at 15, she was already in my father’s stories during my early childhood. He had fought in the Second World War, had lived in France, had made friends there, had come back with a few habits, such as a taste for wine, and knew how to instill in us the taste for this country by leaving us free to go there. make our own experience.
Côte d’Ivoire and France have a special relationship. How would you describe her today?
Politically, we have the impression that all is well. Emmanuel Macron, his ministers come regularly. It is a country where the French feel good despite the violence from 2002 [après le déclenchement de la rébellion, la France s’interposa entre les deux camps plutôt que de se ranger derrière le président Laurent Gbagbo]then November 2004 [de nombreux intérêts français furent vandalisés après la destruction de l’aviation ivoirienne par l’armée française suite au bombardement de l’enclave française de Bouaké].
However, it seems to me that relations are no longer really what they used to be, for the simple reason that Côte d’Ivoire has turned to other countries such as China, Arab countries, South Korea. France is no longer alone in Côte d’Ivoire.
At a time when there is much talk of challenging French policy in Africa, do you think that Côte d’Ivoire has paved the way for this questioning?
We remember the formula that appeared in 2003-2004: “To each his own French. » Young Patriots [du mouvement de Charles Blé Goudé] then carried out attacks against the French Cultural Center and the Lycée Mermoz in Abidjan. Even if they could be manipulated by the regime, these young people then express a fed up. Today, they no longer seem to be in the same state of mind, or else they don’t manifest it openly.
“The French law on tuition fees has had the effect of a cold shower in Africa”
A distance has set in. We know that if they are asked to choose among foreign countries for their studies, France will no longer necessarily come first. I think the fantasy has shifted, to America and Canada. This was reinforced by the law in France on study costs, which had the effect of a cold shower in Africa. From now on, young Ivorians, even if they are dual nationals, are not sure that they will be able to find their place in France. One can also wonder if France still needs Africans, because there is always a suspicion hanging over them here.
Since coming to power, Emmanuel Macron has said he has tried to renew relations between Africa and France. Do you notice a change?
President Macron is making efforts, for example on the issue of refunds. There are a number of things underway, but I wonder if the French themselves hear it the same way. I believe that they are not ready to renew their gaze, and not only those who are politically at the extremes. Are they ready to change their mindset? Put an end to condescension, to the rejection of the other? We will always say that racism does not exist, but it is in actions, words, attitudes.
However, change must also come from African countries. Are we ready to be responsible for ourselves? Mali, the Central African Republic, Burkina Faso say: “We don’t want the French anymore”, but throw themselves at the same time into the mouth of a bear coming from the great cold. If we no longer want the French, that’s quite commendable, but then we have to give ourselves the means to be fully free. When we feel unwanted in France, we struggle to be truly ourselves.
What actions could breathe new life into this relationship?
First of all, relations have to be balanced and that supposes trusting Africans, deconstructing prejudices. This work must be carried out on both sides. If France brings its language, its culture and values, Africa also has values and knowledge to contribute. Our knowledge and know-how must circulate.
How would you like to see the Franco-African relationship evolve in 2023?
I often talk about education, which obviously involves language. The French language is losing momentum in Africa and perhaps we should take advantage of this development to develop or even resuscitate certain African languages. This would contribute to a rebalancing.
I am in favor of our not allowing our languages to die and that, at the same time, the teaching of good quality French be ensured. Having a strong identity is not synonymous with withdrawal. To be aware of one’s own values is to have a “well-made head” in order to be able to resist the suspicious gaze of the other.
Summary of our series “From Dakar to Djibouti, radioscopy of the Africa-France relationship”