About this contest... Please visit these websites www.sokwanele.com/ , www.zimbabwesituation.com www.africantears.netfirms.com/ and familiarize yourself with the situation. Then what I want from you is poetry that will make the WORLD STAND UP AND TAKE NOTICE!!! What is going on there is WRONG! Let’s be a "Voice for the Voiceless"
1st Place 500 points
2nd Place 300 points
3rd Place 200 points
Now for the rules…
1. No sticky caps.
2. Use spell check.
3. If you place, I would like your permission to send it to NETGO so they can read it as well. Of course it will retain your copyright.
4. Please 1 prewrite per person, but you need to still visit one of the websites mentioned and write in the author comments your thoughts on it. I want this to be inspired by what you see.
Have you been touched by what you’ve seen? Want to know more? Please read on then…
“What is the Zimbabwe Situation? Where is it? Why do award-winning poets and authors like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe and musicians/activists such as Bob Geldof and Bono often refer to it in extreme terms? Subscribe with your full name and location to NETGO at songbird@mweb.co.zw to receive daily updates "from the ground" on a country in crisis, where there is no freedom of press, no freedom of association, no freedom of expression...where poets or authors can be imprisoned for using their pen. Learn about this "time-bomb" nation that has just been labeled as "a danger to the peace and stability of the Southern African Region" by the United Nations General Assembly. Maybe you can help...by becoming a "Voice for the Voiceless"
1st Place 500 points
2nd Place 300 points
3rd Place 200 points
Now for the rules…
1. No sticky caps.
2. Use spell check.
3. If you place, I would like your permission to send it to NETGO so they can read it as well. Of course it will retain your copyright.
4. Please 1 prewrite per person, but you need to still visit one of the websites mentioned and write in the author comments your thoughts on it. I want this to be inspired by what you see.
Have you been touched by what you’ve seen? Want to know more? Please read on then…
“What is the Zimbabwe Situation? Where is it? Why do award-winning poets and authors like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe and musicians/activists such as Bob Geldof and Bono often refer to it in extreme terms? Subscribe with your full name and location to NETGO at songbird@mweb.co.zw to receive daily updates "from the ground" on a country in crisis, where there is no freedom of press, no freedom of association, no freedom of expression...where poets or authors can be imprisoned for using their pen. Learn about this "time-bomb" nation that has just been labeled as "a danger to the peace and stability of the Southern African Region" by the United Nations General Assembly. Maybe you can help...by becoming a "Voice for the Voiceless"
Contest is Over
- Contest was judged on January 2, 2006
- Rewards: Gold: 500
- Final notes: This is my first contest, and I must admit it was one of the hardest things to judge. I read an reread everyones entry at least 5 or 6 times and made my choices. I want to, from the bottom of my heart thank each of you for taking the time to enter this contest. I know it may seem like they are only words, but these words reach people. I know most of you I have asked, but I want to formerly ask each of you if you would agree to have your poems submited on the Zimbabwe Situation website a different one each day. They would of course retain your copy right.
Again, thank you all for having it in your heart to speak out!!!
Lots of Love,
Anna
Entries [4]
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there is a price to be payed
to go against the grain• Commented on by judge. -
His rich African voice
filled the room like coffee• Commented on by judge. -
One day, I sat and ate breakfast, I turned on the News to see what was new.
It was SHOCKING!• Commented on by judge. -
The disdain for human life
As they pillage through the camps• Commented on by judge.
Bronze trophy winner
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Comments
1 - 20 of 20
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I would love to read it, and I will stop by you page and look for it. But I the idea behind this contest is to get people to visit this website, and find their inspiration their. Thank You.
Anna -
O this is one for tanzanite - I will send her the link - will see if I can enter too!
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This is a great idea. You're right what is going on there is very wrong, but I do not think the WORLD WILL STAND UP AND TAKE NOTICE! The problem is there is no oil in Zimbabwe, horrible atrocities occur there on a daily basis as well as other countries in Africa. But nonetheless, those atrocities will not force US involvement because our government has nothing to gain. Perhaps, if they discovered oil, gold, or coal, we would send troops. But since Zimbabwe has none of these things, we are content to let them commit genocide and just die off of AIDS. This is truly sad. I wish you good luck, and I hope something can be done.
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I think this is a really good topic. poet14
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Wow....this is different......I really like it alot...keep up the awesome work!.....~*DarcyNicole*~
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Bless your soul, what a precious idea, I thank you for sharing, and I hope you get lots of great, caring souls to enter...I'll see what I can do, but I must say, my brain is not all there, but my heart surely is... Much love to you and yours!
-Timothy
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What a unique idea! I have read a couple of the entries and they are heartbreaking. I think you have a wonderful idea.
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great idea for a contest, i am applauding you...when i am done with work i will check out the site.......kudos!
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This is a good idea.
I do not think it will help at all thought, being next door to Zimbabwe, I'm not sure how much gets out in the international media.
Short of Robert Mugabe and his party being removed from rule, nothign will help those people.
Help from international organizations are stonewalled.
Mugabe pulls up his nose at sanctions.
Zimbabwe has nothing important so force will not be used to help the people.
Thats about it.
GOod luck for the contest though -
Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Liberia, dozens of other hellholes you've probably never heard of. Average life expectancy somewhere in the late 20s/low 30s and falling.
Why? Because few people in the bloated west give a flying fuck as long as they can stuff mince pies down their gobs.
And here's a quiz: which Western country gives least per head in terms of its wealth? One guess - answer on a postcard to Mr G.Bush c/o The White House.
Just think: if the money spent on bombing the shit out of Iraq had been spent on Africa................. Or if Robert Mugabe had been targeted instead of Saddam Hussein. But, Mugabe didn't have any Weapons of Mass Destruction. Oops, I forgot, neither did Saddam. But he was sitting on a few million gallons of crude oil. And the Zionists who support the White House don't like Arabs. Mind you, they don't like anyone, even each other.
Happy Christmas.
Edited on Dec 20, 11:50 because ''. -
Great idea for a contest.
If you would like to help in opposing genocide, I have a website against genocide with poems from poets all over the world:
www.voicesforafrica.homestead.com/index.html
Nobody deserves to be wantonly murdered.
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Timothy,
Thank you so much for stopping by and checking it out, even if you do not enter, you are nor more aware than you were before and for that I thank you.
Anna -
ecrivain01 I will check that website out, thank you for stopping by and checking this out!
Anna -
I don't really have time to write anything, but I looked at your author's page and it appears we have a lot in common.
I decided to enter a prewrite.
Edited on Jan 01, 7:40 p.m. because ''. -
Anna, thank you so much for this contest, for the opportunity and awareness! I am grateful for the trophy and the points but more importantly I am grateful for being connected once again to Zimbabwe through NETGO. My heart goes out to Africa. Congratulations to all the winners! Such amazing brave hearts we have in this world. Zayra
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Anna, thank you for awarding my humble piece the silver in this contest that was so inpsiring. An important cause that needs to be attended to...
God Bless You! -
We think this competition was a fantastic idea and are sorry that we learned about it too late otherwise we would have circulated notice via our mailing list, blog and website.
We support civic action, and we want to call attention to what a
good idea this was. We would also like to publish some of the poems featured here.
Please can the authors contact us via our blog or website and let us know if that would be acceptable to them. (The image used on this post, incidentally, is one of ours).
Our website is at www.sokwanele.com
Our blog (where we will initially publish the poems) is at
www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe
Best wishes,
Sokwanele -
Sokwanele, The best way to reach each of the authors is to click on their name directly, and then you can send them your note. I am sure all of them would be happy to have you post their piece as they all seem to be like minded people. I listed your website first at the beginning of this contest as one of the sights I wanted the poets to gain their inspiration to write from. I hope I have not offended by using the photo, I only wanted to raise awareness. I have very near and dear friend that live in Harare.
Sincerely,
Anna -
Eyes in short-term focus
do miss the wider view
Thinking it don't matter
the things we say or do
But like a rope we all are weaved
together in one strand
So in the end success is gained
when we ALL join our hands
Hugs...Eddy -
I wish i had seen this contest before it ended, at least one worthwhile contest here. You have received some excellent poems and did a great job judging.
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