‘Joint of Three’, a collaborative poem written and performed by Steve Shema Khalid Maridadi, David Ndagijimana and Alice Linzy Bugingo—the winners of “On the Wings of Technology”, a poetry competition organised by Transpoesis—was on the night of May 17 premiered in Rwanda at Goethe Institut, Kigali. According to Mustapha Kayitare, co-founder of Transpoesis, an organisation that facilitates poetic discourse in the country, the competition happened online due to the Covid-19 lockdown that hindered physical interactions of people, and it targeted poems that advocate for refugees and humanity. He declared that at the end, Transpoesis selected three winners including the most voted poet, the best non-refugee poet with a poem that advocates for refugees, and the best refugee poet with a poem that tackled the same theme. According to him, “Joint of Three” has in 2021 represented Transpoesis at Poetas D’Almas, a poetry and performing arts festival, in Mozambique. He notes that doing projects that advocate for refugees is the organisation’s passion, declaring that they kicked off in 2018 which promoted different young poetic voices from refugee camps. “Children refugees live a tough life, are voiceless and are sometimes seen as problems. So, we do these projects to advocate for them and make them feel that they are also human, and call everyone to fight what makes people flee their home countries,” he says. He also notes that Transpoesis will help promote the competition’s winners and advocate for them so that they can profit from their art. Steve Shema Khalid Maridadi whose poem “Where Do They Belong” was awarded as the best from a non-refugee during the competition, said it was about refugees. He said that his verses in “Joint of Three” speak for the voiceless and advocate for persons with disabilities. “I highlighted that a person might be disabled but also able to do a couple of things that can benefit society,” he says. “Let’s not judge them by who they are. Let’s judge them by giving them a task and see if they can fix it or not. They are able to do tasks in their ways.” Shema was also the director of the “Joint of Three” video, an experience he says was amazing, stating that creating an artistic script and scenery, as well as familiarising himself with fellow poets and actors in a short time, were the reasons. He urges fellow poets to consider making videos for their poems, bearing in mind that it’s needed in today’s digital world, adding that it can also help them reach a larger audience. He plans to make other poems that advocate for the vulnerable and to use his art to express himself in various situations. Alice Linzy Bugingo said her poem “Street Child” portrays the life of a depressed street child and a message that people do not have to make those children feel like they are alone, rather comfort and help them to rehabilitate and leave the streets. “It will be amazing if we no longer see any homeless child on the street. I hope my message reaches everyone in charge,” she says, adding that “On the Wings of Technology” gave her a chance to speak about what society wants to hear. She looks forward to making more poems that touch people’s hearts, hence inspiring and comforting them. David Ndagijimana, also known by his artist name “No Stress Poet”, emerged in the competition as the best refugee poet with his poem “A Camp is A Teacher” which reflects on refugee life. “It basically portrays how refugees who are in different camps around the world live and the struggles they meet,” he says. Ndagijimana also says that whenever he writes about refugee life, he feels liberated and looks forward to making more poems as he thrives.
