A Double Act

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A Double Act

Posted on: 11-11-2014 by: Rutendo Urenje

A Small Act

On November 7th, 2014, African Peace Journal in conjunction with Jus Humanis screened the Emmy nominated documentary film, A Small Act, at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute here at Lund University in Sweden, where I am a student of Human Rights Law.

It was a grey cloudy November late afternoon in Sweden.

The Jus Humanis students and I had to prepare the Beijing room (where the film was screened) and prepare the fika (Swedish custom eats) for after the screening. The film screening began with “A Double Act”: a presentation of African Peace Journal and Hilde Back Educational Fund.

The presentation involved details of how students could participate and become part of a wide group of world changers. About 34 students and some lecturers and university staff members attended.

The atmosphere was filled with many oohs and ahhs to the heart-touching narrative.

The film brought home much of the theory that education instills as knowledge and made it reality.

It was an emotional screening that left us with courage to enlist to a movement of world changers.

There were few dry eyes.

After the screening some students expressed their desire to visit Hilde Back, in whose honor the Hilde Back Educational Fund was named, the foundation which in turn inspired the film.

If nothing else the film raised consciousness in the minds of the students and helped one to see human rights issues as an assimilation of different issues that can be relieved by one small act.

For me, the film is one of hope. If each of us just acted, one small act could truly make the world a better place. Helping others access the right education can be a perfect place to begin.

A Double Act

The screening of A Small Act by African Peace Journal is what I call “a double act”.

Let me tell you the story:

In the 1960’s in Kenya, two boys from different families were born. One boy was called Chris Mburu and the other boy was called Karim Ajania. Although they did not know each other, their paths were remarkably aligned and it was inevitable that their paths would cross one day.

Both Chris and Karim studied hard at school in Kenya.

Both Chris and Karim won scholarships for their graduate degrees at Harvard University.

Both Chris and Karim became passionate about Human Rights and about Education.

Today, Chris and Karim’s passion for Human Rights is manifested in Chris’s work as a Human Rights Lawyer for the United Nations and Karim’s work as Editor of African Peace Journal.

Today, Chris and Karim’s passion for Education is manifested in Chris’s work as Founder of Hilde Back Educational Fund and Karim’s work as Founder of the educational Pencils for Africa.