00.01.52 | Title - KUITO |
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00.02.12 |
| After three decades of war Kuito is a city in ruins. The sporadic peace from 1994 to today was barely long enough to repair the damage from the last round of shelling. |
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00.02.19 | FELIX |
| My room was over there |
00.02.22 |
| This was once Felix's bedroom. The war has taken all he had and now he needs to rebuild it. |
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00.02.47 | Felix |
| This is the shell of the bomb |
00.02.49 |
| The shell ripped through the ceiling and killed Felix''s family. All over Angola there are new casualties of war. |
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00.03.00 | Celeste |
| Celeste: Many people were wounded. They were taken to the Central Hospital. My mother was hurt but she's better now....although she still complains of chest pains from where the bricks fell on her. Children were hurt too. I have a two year old daughter, her leg was injured, thankfully it is healing well. Int: and when did that happen? Celeste: Excuse me? Int: when did that happen? Celeste: The 25th of December. Int: Christmas day. Celeste: yes. Around 1 o'clock Int: I expect you won't forget that day. Celeste: It would be impossible to forget that day. It has marked me. I lost my nephews, my mother was hurt and she's still frightened. It's impossible to forget. |
00.03.46 |
| The wounded were taken to Kuito's ailing hospital. There have been no doctors here since December. The nurses and paramedics manage as best they can. |
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00.04.01 | Hospital Director, Dr Sabino Salongue |
| Up to 31 December we had treated 498 patients. after that cases would show up sporadically. We have seen over 500 patients during the conflicts.
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00.04.19 |
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| Everyone we treated survived but we couldn't help everyone. The ones we couldn't treat died. It was particularly bad for a time when we didn't receive any blood from the National Board. Many people died simply because we didn't have any blood. Int: How long has the hospital been without doctors? Dr SS: It's been over a month. Int: And you still manage to save lives.? DR SS: yes, we are saving the patients without any problems. |
00.04.44 |
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| Int: who performs surgery? Dr SS: The nurses. I trained a group of them to act as surgical team during the bombings because there were so many patients. We operated all day and night, Int: Did any of you keep a record of how many operations you performed? Dr SS: 110 operations to December 31st |
00.05.17 |
| The macabre parade of patients through these wards is a grim testament to the decades of civil war here. Some 15m landmines have accumulated in Angola's fields and streets. This cheap and indiscriminate weapon has laid waste to thousands of lives.
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00.05.36 |
| On this morning the nurses had to deal with victims of fighting past and present. In theatre one they amputate the mangled leg of a mine victim. In theatre two a young girl undergoes a traumatic operation to remove shrapnel from a bomb attack. |
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00.05.46 |
| Without skilled surgeons, modern medical equipment and drugs the treatment here is rough. |
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00.06.00 |
| Local anaesthetic dulls the pain but not the fear. If they had the drugs patients would not have to remain awake during these horrific operations. As it is nurses must invoke the crudest of methods to complete their work. |
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00.06.15 | Nurse |
| If we had the right facilities we might be able to avoid relying on amputations so much. But now, in these circumstances we can't... and we have to amputate. |
00.06.29 |
| This is the reality of a cruel war where desperate times have led to desperate measures. Poor hygiene and the length of time it takes to get the wounded to hospital often results in gangrene. Amputation is often the only way to save lives. |
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00.06.51 | Patient/nurse |
| Nurse: Are you suffering? Patient: (moans) |
00.07.27 | nurse |
| When she's better we may be able to transfer her to a better hospital. She might be able to go to Germany or somewhere like that |
00.07.37 | Scenes of the wards, flies on man's bandage. | These wards have been home to insurmountable sorrow over the years...home to a generation of casualties of a war that has raged for 30 years. Most Angolans have never known lasting peace. The natural life expectancy here is only 46. Every man woman and child has a horror story of their own. |
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00.07.53 | Boy |
| Boy: I was playing football in the park.. Int: You were playing football in the park? boy: yes. Int: and what happened? Boy: The bomb went off. Int: a bomb? Boy: the shrapnel hit me, I hit the ground, the ball went up and the bomb went off. Int: and it was a piece of shrapnel that cut you, wasn't it? Boy: it was. Int: How old are you? Boy: I am 13, no, 14 years old. Int: You're 14 years old? Boy: yes. |
00.08.21 | Nurse with boy with no penis |
| Nurse: He will recover although the wound will scar. But he will never get his penis back. He's lost his penis. The tube is going straight into the urethra. Int: so he has totally lost his penis? Nurse: Yes..he has. |
00.08.50 | Nurse with blind young girl |
| She caught shrapnel in her face and suffered a fracture. It went in from one side and left by the other side and affected both eyes. She was blinded. |
00.09.09 | Mutilated man |
| In was on 29 December, around 10 am. Int: how did it happen? Man: I remember being hit by shrapnel, I was left like this, the other man died. Int: and when you arrived in hospital, were the doctors here or had they already fled? Man: They weren't here anymore. Int: who treated you?' Man: Who treated me? The hospital nurses. Man: did they treat you well? Man: yes, very well |
00.09.43 |
| Some of these injured are refugees from Cantone on the outskirts of Kuito. They were sheltering in an old school building. It seemed like a safe place to hide but a bomb shattered their best hopes. It exploded right at the school's entrance.
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00.09.59 |
| A common grave now lies in the backyard. |
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00.10.03 | Bento Uchiwa |
| Bento: the dead were two children and five... Int: five adults? Bento: five adults Int: how did they die? Bento: they died because they were outside. The bomb fell when they were outside. Int: in front of the school? Bento: in front of the school. Int: and those seven people died? Bento: yes. Int: were there any survivors? Bento: yes, there were some. Int: what happened to them? Bento: what happened was that one broke a leg, others got hit in the body. They are in hospital. Int: How many people were hit, do you know? Bento: all together? By this bomb? Int: yes. Bento: seven people died and five were wounded. |
00.10.49 |
| Reports like this are being heard all over the city. On Christmas Eve just one shell killed 13 people who were hiding in this cave next to the river. |
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00.11.00 | Man |
| 8 people were killed immediately. The others went to hospital but only one of them survived. They were buried over there. They were all of the same family. Int: who were they? Man: 2 sisters, a stepmother and five nephews. |
00.11.38 |
| A bomb that kills is no longer news. The victims are buried swiftly and everyone tries not to talk about it. In Kuito nobody is counting the dead anymore. |
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00.11.50 | Interview with Bishop Monsignor José Nambi |
| Bishop: I only know the numbers of deaths reported in official state information. They say that there were 'many' deaths, especially in Kuito. I can't tell you exactly how many civilians died...or soldiers. Nobody knows, it's a secret. The military, both sides, have their secrets. The truth is that many people died. |
00.12.19 | Monsignor José Nambi |
| It was possible for dialogue to exist, for Angolans to solve their problems But now they are talking with guns, the guns are the ones doing the talking. Int: do you believe that the military can come up with a final solution? Bishop: Well, I have my doubts, because war always leaves resentment. |
00.12.42 |
| The return of the war in Kuito has done nothing but to destroy what was already destroyed.
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00.13.12 |
| Kuito became a city of debris along time ago. It is a true memorial to madness. |
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00.13.24 | Gabriel Ernesto |
| This bunker was built in 92 . We put up these sticks and then heaped the soil on top. The cease fire came but I kept the bunker. They said it should come down and I said No!. While Savimbi is in hiding in the bush we cannot pull it down because Savimbi will start war again! |
00.14.14 |
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| Int: How many people fit inside there? GE: 24 adults. Int: 24 people? GE: Adults. We don't count the children Int:: is that so? GE: yes. Int: so there were 24 adults and more inside' GE: more than 10 children. This is what Savimbi does. I don't know what he wants. Int: did you spend many days inside? GE: I don't want to talk about it. I'm tired of this war. This is the fourth time! |
00.14.48 |
| Nobody understands why they keep bombing a town which seems to be of no strategic importance. |
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00.15.00 |
| Since December 1998, Kuito has been cut off by fighting. No food supplies have been able to get through. People are marching in from the villages in search of food and shelter from the fighting. |
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00.15.13 | Displaced man |
| since we arrived we've had nothing to eat. Int: no food? Man: nothing |
00.15.20 | Woman |
| Int: when was the last time your children had meat to eat? Woman: It's been a month, just over a month, since we arrived here. Int: what about in Cunina...are you from Cunina as well? Woman: I am from Catabora. Int: Was life better in Catabora? Woman: No it isn't. There is no one there. Int: yes, but before, was life better? Woman: yes, it was better. We had animals, we had land, it was better. Now this is a misery. |
00.15.50 |
| Hunger is the next big threat for Angolans. Despite disbanding its peacekeeping mission, the UN are fighting to maintain a humanitarian presence. Their aid may prove to be the last lifeline ... a food crisis here is looking imminent. |
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00.16.03 | Woman |
| This is for 8 people. Int: and the rice, how many is it for? Woman: 25. Int: what about dinner? Woman: dinner will be the same. |
00.16.19 |
| The poor and the sick are already succumbing to hunger. Mothers who are too malnourished to breast feed their hungry children bring them to this Feeding Centre. These children are in an advanced state of dehydration and malnutrition.
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00.16.57 |
| There are more people who need help. They camp at the door, waiting for death to make some beds become available. |
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00.17.52 |
| A small measure of corn and wild plants is all most can get to eat. In the markets though you can still get meat, flour and vegetables. But in response to food scarcity...prices have rocketed.
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00.18.11 | Woman in the market |
| Int: how much is a piece of meat? Woman: 1000.
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00.18.17 | Two young women talking |
| We missing loads of things. We don't have oil, don't have food, don't have soap, we need everything! |
00.18.23 | Old woman |
| Int: what do you need? Woman: rice, oil, many things. Soap, rice, Int: did prices increase a lot? Woman: it increased a lot and we still can't get hold of many items. Int: how much was rice? Woman: it cost 600 and now it costs 2300 |
00.18.45 |
| For most people the markets may as well be bare. |
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00.18.53 | Man holding a baby |
| food is so expensive! Int: how often do you eat meat? Man: meat? Meat. That is very difficult |
00.19.04 | Old man |
| a cup of flour in the market and we are lucky. Int: only a cup of flour |
00.19.09 | Man holding baby |
| Just a little one. To feed the whole family. And we need to buy drinks as well, we need more. This daughter of mine, she eats lombi. This leaf, we cut it like this, put it in a pan, boil it, buy two or three tomatoes and cook it that way. Int: what is it? Man: lombi. Int: it tastes like pumpkin? Man: yes, like pumpkin. |
00.20.12 | Man holding baby |
| Gimboa as well, it grows naturally. |
00.20.25 | Older man |
| man: all it needs is rain. Int: and how do you eat that? Man: it is boiled. Int: do you mixed it with anything? Man: yes, with flour or by itself. |
00.20.39 | Man holding baby |
| this is what helped us during the war. |
00.20.41 |
| A common menu to thousands of people, whether they live in the city or whether they have come to the city because they were fleeing the battles that are destroying the whole Bié province. |
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00.20.53 |
| As long as the International Humanitarian Aid Agencies stay away from the conflicts' zones, hunger will haunt these people. |
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00.21.03 |
| Small consignments of flour and rice have just now started to reach Kuito. As yet, this is not food aid. These sacks are destined for Luanda where they will go onto the market.
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00.21.22 |
| For the refugees it's another reason to leave Kuito. Theirs is a constant struggle to escape the shelling and hunger. Everyone here believes it is just a matter of time before bombing begins again. Flights to Luanda are besieged.
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00.21.51 |
| It's a fight for hope. Maybe Luanda will be safer...maybe not. But to try is to fight for survival.
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00.22.05 |
| War is not far, we can hear it dozens of kilometres away. It is still too close for comfort.
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00.22.23 | Caption: December 16, 1998 7 hours of fighting in Kunge, outskirts of Kuito 200 deaths - unofficial account | On December 16, UNITA nearly managed to get into Kuito. They attacked with armoured tanks. Anti-tank mines laid by these men kept them at bay.
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00.22.42 |
| A month later, on January 16, they destroyed more UNITA tanks. The mines are still there should they try again. Another crop of danger sown in the path of soldiers but also civilians. |
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00.22.53 | Man |
| There are still some landmines here |
00.23.06 | Man |
| Int: how many UNITA tanks were destroyed here? Man: three here and three up there. Two I mean. Int: five tanks? Int: How many did they attack with? Man: they attacked us with seven. Int: seven? Man: yes. Int: did you fight a lot? Man: yes, I fought a lot.
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00.23.26 |
| Here in these woods the Kunge battle took place, just 7 kilometres away from the city of Kuito. The advance of UNITA was thwarted and the fighting drifted away from the city. |
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00.24.12 | December 21, 1998 Fighting in Kuquema, 20 km to the south of Kuito and in Celunga, 16 km to the east of Kuito, 70 deaths - unofficial recount | On December 21 fighting was 16 kilometres away from the Kuito. |
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00.24.26 | Caption: December 22, 1998 Fighting in Kunhinga, 30 km to the north of Kuito. 250 deaths - unofficial recount. | On 22 December 1998, in Kunhiga, 30 km from Kuito, hundreds of soldiers from both sides were killed. The hatred is such that nobody even bothers to take useless prisoners... |
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00.24.40 | Group of soldiers (shooting of a prisoner) |
| this guy... what is he doing here? Go, go. |