Simple Solutions

[Nentsia]

Jennifer Ebbesen parked her Jeep near a hospital, or rather a small medical clinic, located in a town called Mtengele. She turned off the radio that was broadcasting a speech made by Sizakele Mageba at a political rally of the Inkulu Freedom Party and its supporters. ''Time has come now, for the IFP and the Niquan people, to save our nation, to cure ourselves, and to purge the system of the thieves, the corruption, the crooks who usurped power. We will make the thieves repay what they took from us. We will make the UDF listen OUR voice for once. We will kick the Oru's who come to steal our women and our jobs. This land is ours!''

The words frightened Jennifer. She could understand the enormous anger among some people in Niqua, who could not find jobs, who could not afford the rents of their homes anymore, whose wives had left them, and whose leaders had for years betrayed them out of corruption. But Sizakele Mageba wasn't trying to take away these frustrations. He was feeding them. Jennifer had a bad feeling about it.

She entered the medical clinic where she stumbled upon a horrifying scene. Two women, both screaming and crying, had brought in a heavily wounded young girl. Jennifer estimated the girl to be not older than 16 years. The local doctor, also a Nylander aid worker, quickly explained the situation to Jennifer. ''They found this girl abbandoned in an alley, dumped like garbage. She was raped by three men. Her boyfriend was murdered... beaten to death.'' The boyfriend was an Oru, whose father was a shopkeeper. The girl was a Niquan girl. Apparently, her brothers and nephews did not accept the relationship. When other members of the community found out they were secretly meeting, they attacked them. A gang of Niquans sent a few guys to ''end this humiliating affair forever''. They beat the boy to death before the girl's eyes, and they then proceeded to rape her.

Jennifer almost vomited upon hearing the guesome details of the story. The girl needed to be taken to a safe house outside the village for her own safety. She had been rejected by her family and her community. She was considered a disgrace to the honor of the local men. If they would hear that she had survived, and received help, they might come down to this clinic to kill her and anyone who had helped her.

The 16-year old girl, despite her wounds, was carried into Jennifer's Jeep. A medical assistant would come with her, with a loaded assault rifle. Before the sun went down, Jennifer found herself driving at top speed through the savannah. Her patient was losing consciousness every few minutes. Her guardian, and armed medic who was just as frightened as Jennifer, scanned the environment for signs of road-blocks or pursuers. Antilopes fled away for the quickly advancing cloud of dust that disturbed the landscape. Jennifer's instinct told her to flee across the border, into territory controlled by the White Batavian government. But if the borders were controlled by Niquan soldiers, they might not let them through with a wounded girl in their car. Jennifer went for it anyway. She had to get this girl out of these lands.

After driving for more than 6 hours, she reached the border. There was a military checkpoint. But thank God, it was the Batavian military that was guarding it: white men in kaki uniforms, wearing big sun-glasses, standing by gates with bright orange flags. For the first time in her life, Jennifer felt somewhat relieved to arrive in the Land of Apartheid. Because Apartheid would offer this rape victim the protection she needed from her own people. At the border, the Jeep was stopped. Two white men wearing military hats stood beside the car with their dogs ready. Another guard told Jennifer to show her papers, and the girl in the back of the Jeep quickly catched his attention. ''What is that...?'' he asked while he was holding Jennifer's passport. The tone of his voice was that of disdain and contempt.

''I hope you are not trying to smuggle a Niqua 'female' into this area. You Nylanders... never really seem to understand the principles of Apartheid.'' Jennifer tried to remain calm.

''This girl has been rejected by her village. She needs medical care, and she needs protection. If she stays on this side of the border, they will find her and kill her sooner or later. I beg you to let us through.''

The officer kept staring at Jennifer for a while through his sunglasses. He was obviously in doubt. Eventually he sighed and looked at the ground. He then lifted his head. ''I'm going to get my car. There is a hospital from here at half an hour. Without my supervision they won't accept her. God expects me to help those in need.''

As Jennifer followed the Batavian officer to a hospital, the rumor already began to spread throughout Niqualand. Radio stations picked up on the news that an ''Oru boy'' had ''defiled a pure Niquan Virgin''. IFP radicals urged their supporters to go to Mtengele and to ''cleanse it'' from the ''Oru Pedophiles'' who were stealing Niquan girls and women. ''Chase them out of this town to prevent Mtengele from becoming another UDF-controlled Oruland.''

The IFP leader, Sizakele Mageba, was nowhere to be heard. He let the fire spread. Before dawn, hundreds of men armed with sticks, knives, rocks and pistols entered the village and together with the locals they set fire to the stores. They burned down the houses of the Oru's. The people were dragged from their homes and beaten to death. Their wives and daughters were raped and murdered. Before Batavian and Niquan troops arrived to restore order in the village, more than 200 people had been killed in the violence. Oru's, alleged UDF members, Tambossan immigrants, Akhadists and Communists had all been targets during that night.

When the first reports arrived at the desk of Batavian Police General Steytler of the disturbances in Niqualand since the election of Sizakele Mageba, he was satisfied with the result. He did not rejoice in the fact itself. But he felt assured that his plan seemed to be working the way he wanted it to. ''The savages are finally turning on each other.'' he grimly remarked to his colleagues. ''All it took was just a little... Push.''