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Weex Dunx |
In wolof, Weex means ‘white’ and Dunx means ‘plucked’. Weex dunx, or ‘plucked white’, means scapegoat. A weex dunx is someone who is blamed for everything—even if they were not there. The name given to the Rural Council President is Mr. Weex Dunx. |
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Nambaradougou |
Nambaradougou means “place of problems” in Mandang—one of the other languages spoken in Eastern Senegal. This is the name I assigned to the Rural Community in which the film takes place. |
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Rural Community |
The Rural Community is the smallest political-administrative jurisdiction in Senegal. A rural Community normally regroups from 50 to 200 villages. |
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Rural Council |
The Rural Council is a body elected by the population of a Rural Community. The candidates are all presented on party lists. The party with the greatest number of votes gets half of the seats on the council and then the remaining seats are divided proportionally among all of the parties that stood for election. Each Rural Council elects a president from among its members. |
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DGL Felo |
DGL Felo was an NGO funded by USAID dedicated to civic education. DGL stands for Democratie et Governance Local—Democracy and Local Governance. This NGO provided training to Rural Councils in Eastern Senegal on their rights and responsibilities as elected authorities. They were included in this play since they were often spoken of by Rural Councilors as their source of information on the rights they were attempting to exercise. |
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Tambacounda |
Tambacounda is the region of Senegal in which this film takes place. The city of Tambacounda is the capital of the Region of Tambacounda. This is where the headquarters of the Regional Forestry Service is located. |
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Koumpentoum |
Koumpentoum is a small town along the road from Tambacounda to Dakar. It is a place where many of the charcoal merchants convene. |
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Sous Prefect |
A Sous Prefect is a central government appointed authority. The Sous Prefect is appointed to the Arrondissement. An Arrondissement is a political-administrative jurisdiction regrouping two to five Rural Communities. The role of the Sous Prefect is to assure that the Rural Councils are following the laws in force. |
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Brigade Chief |
The Forest Service has a Brigade in each Arrondissement. Each Brigade has at least one forester. |