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One imagines high-court judges drinking whisky during their hours of leisure. Or sitting back, perhaps, on the couch and smoking a well-earned pipe or cigarette while getting lost in the minutiae of a newspaper. Or simply relaxing on a suitably appointed leather couch, the day’s import disappearing into the haze. Unity Dow, however, Botswana’s first female high-court judge, writes novels in her spare time. This is how she downloads the events of the day into that place we call memory. I spoke to her about Screaming of the Innocent, her second novel, which was first published in Australia in 1991 and published in South Africa in 1993.
The book deals with the topic of ritual murder in rural Botswana. What seems to begin as an expression of African realism quickly mutates into a gripping thriller – despite the fact that we learn the identity of the killers in the book’s opening chapters. And while the book works extremely well on that narrative level, its use of strong female characters is just as important, as is its critical stance on power, structure, and government. I spoke to Unity about this powerful book during a brief break from her high court duties.
Peter Machen: How much of Screaming of the Innocent is rooted in your own experience?
Unity Dow: Well, all the time you hear stories about a child disappearing and the suspicions that it was a ritualistic killing. So obviously it’s something that’s in the public domain. In 1994, a particular killing happened in my village that informed me a lot about writing the story. But the story’s not really about any particular case. It’s informed by various cases. And also, as an attorney, I have prosecuted a ritual murder case. So it is something that you know happens.
PM: As the attorney prosecuting the case did you find it quite emotionally difficult?
UD: Murder cases are always difficult,whether or not you are defence counsel, whether or not you are prosecuting counsel, whether or not you're a judge. But the killing of children I find particularly difficult.
And I guess the motive for killing is also difficult to deal with. I mean greed is a very common motive for killing. Love affairs that go bad are very much a motive for killing. But this particular motive – I think it’s very unusual – in that you can’t help but wonder about it. And also, I guess, the method of killing. Most killings are brutal, but they’re final. A shot to the head, or a stabbing, or being run down by a car. But a ritual killing involves actually cutting up pieces of somebody when they’re alive. That is particular to this kind of killing, and that has to be particularly difficult. It makes one shudder just to think about it.
One imagines high-court judges drinking whisky during their hours of leisure. Or sitting back, perhaps, on the couch and smoking a well-earned pipe or cigarette while getting lost in the minutiae of a newspaper. Or simply relaxing on a suitably appointed leather couch, the day’s import disappearing into the haze. Unity Dow, however, Botswana’s first female high-court judge, writes novels in her spare time. This is how she downloads the events of the day into that place we call memory. I spoke to her about Screaming of the Innocent, her second novel, which was first published in Australia in 1991 and published in South Africa in 1993.
The book deals with the topic of ritual murder in rural Botswana. What seems to begin as an expression of African realism quickly mutates into a gripping thriller – despite the fact that we learn the identity of the killers in the book’s opening chapters. And while the book works extremely well on that narrative level, its use of strong female characters is just as important, as is its critical stance on power, structure, and government. I spoke to Unity about this powerful book during a brief break from her high court duties.
Peter Machen: How much of Screaming of the Innocent is rooted in your own experience?
Unity Dow: Well, all the time you hear stories about a child disappearing and the suspicions that it was a ritualistic killing. So obviously it’s something that’s in the public domain. In 1994, a particular killing happened in my village that informed me a lot about writing the story. But the story’s not really about any particular case. It’s informed by various cases. And also, as an attorney, I have prosecuted a ritual murder case. So it is something that you know happens.
PM: As the attorney prosecuting the case did you find it quite emotionally difficult?
UD: Murder cases are always difficult,whether or not you are defence counsel, whether or not you are prosecuting counsel, whether or not you're a judge. But the killing of children I find particularly difficult.
And I guess the motive for killing is also difficult to deal with. I mean greed is a very common motive for killing. Love affairs that go bad are very much a motive for killing. But this particular motive – I think it’s very unusual – in that you can’t help but wonder about it. And also, I guess, the method of killing. Most killings are brutal, but they’re final. A shot to the head, or a stabbing, or being run down by a car. But a ritual killing involves actually cutting up pieces of somebody when they’re alive. That is particular to this kind of killing, and that has to be particularly difficult. It makes one shudder just to think about it.
PM: The book represents Botswana, and possibly also an Africa, where women are beginning to assert their power outside of the framework of men. Do you think that in Africa generally we are moving towards a more equal society in terms of gender?
UD: One hopes so. One hopes so. I mean, no one section of society can be oppressed forever without eventually demanding an equal say. But also, for me, casting the major characters as women represents my own hope for women, or young women,in my own society and the world at large. And so it is both a hope and also, I think, a reflection of what is happening. Women are taking charge more and more, getting involved in making structures, getting involved in areas which were originally the male domain.
PM: Do you ever feel a conflict between maintaining traditional structures and at the same time transforming them?
UD: Yes. I think it’s a tension that is always there, that always has to be massaged one way or the other. And sometimes you think part of the good old times go when they shouldn’t have to go, and sometimes part of the bad old times stay when they should have gone a long time ago. So it is a constant struggle, I think, for me, raising my children, the way I live. On the whole, there’s a very constant tension between the old Africa and an Africa that’s changing, and deciding what aspects should be kept.
And people will always demand change. People will always change. You can’t circumscribe people. You can’t tell people that we have to live in the old world. Family structures are changing and therefore the way family members deal with things within those structures are going to change. The cash economy, for example, demands a different kind of living to the cattle economy we had maybe 50 years ago. Change is inevitable.
PM: The book doesn’t paint a very beautiful picture of men – for good reason I think. Do you think that it is in the nature of men to be violent and oppressive, or do you think that the structures of society are to blame?
UD: I think it is in the nature of human beings when there are not enough structures to contain them. I don’t think it is a feature of men at all. I don’t think so. Ithink we will do bad things if there are no rules to govern us. Ihave no doubt that men and women are different. In fact we need to be different if we are to continue to have this very interesting tension that is so important for humankind. But I would be very reluctant to say that men are, by nature, bad.
PM: Don’t worry, I’m not asking you to. (we laugh). To what extent do you think women participate in their own oppression?
UD: We are really the result of our own culture. We don’t exist outside the culture. I raise my voice with my girls and therefore I’m half to blame for how they turn out.
On the other hand, young boys see men treating women badly and they don’t know how else to treat women.Young women see women taking bad treatment and they don’t know how else to respond to boys who treat them badly. So it’s a kind of chicken-and-the-egg situation. I think we are all to blame for the culture we have. Of course half of us don’t have the same power that the other half have. And therefore they should share more of the blame because they have the power to change things.
PM: Do you ever experience aggression, being a particularly strong woman in a particularly strong position?
UD: No, actually not. In terms of aggression towards me, no. Maybe that’s part of the reason that I can write the kinds of books that I write. I don’t know. Or maybe, that would be an indicator of someone who has been through aggression. But no, I’ve lived a fairly tame life.
PM: Well, that’s encouraging. On a different note, do you find it frustrating that your books have been published overseas before in Southern Africa?
UD: Yes, I do actually, I really do.It’s a pity that here in Botswana, the publishing houses really don’t want to publish something if the book is not going to be prescribed as a textbook. It’s a big problem.
PM: And even in South Africa, your books have had to be published in Europe and Australia first.
UD: That’s because my first book was published in Australia first, and my contract said that I would offer my next book to them again. So when Double Story came along and said “we’ll publish your book”, I was really happy about that.
PM: Do you have any advice for young African writers?
UD: Where do I get off giving anybody advice? (laughs)
PM: Because you’ve had experience!
UD: I just really think that there are great stories to come out of Africa, out of the periphery if I can call it that. We’ve had years and years and years – centuries – of good work coming out of the old (European) world. But I think we have a different story to tell – and a different way of telling it.
And I think that great works in the future are going to come from the Third World, you know, from India – we’ve already seen that – from Africa, from voices that have not been heard before.
You know, writing is actually downtime for me. I have this very serious work where I have to make these very serious decisions. And I write to come down. I write, really, just to express myself.
And that’s the precise reason you write. You hope your stories are going to be published, and if they get published, that’s great. And people should be encouraged to write. We need more voices from Africa. And I’m amazed at how many great stories people have. Africa is an amazing mix of people – where they come from, how they got here – there’s always a story.
PM: Almost more than other places, it seems.
UD: If you’re living in, like, Boston, what else can you tell me that nobody’s written about?
PM: I think the same is true of other arts, and especially cinema, where many of the more interesting stories are coming from the Third World. In light of that, do you think that any of your books are going to be made into films?
UD: Actually, I have optioned the rights to Screaming and efforts are being made for that, and also for my first book, Far and Beyon’.
PM: I think Screaming would be a great film, so I hope that happens. Okay – one last question before I let you get on with your day: do you think that projects such as Time of The Writer can really have any dramatic impact on literacy in Southern Africa?
UD: I think so. I grew up thinking that books came from England. I couldn’t imagine the girl next door or the boy next door writing a book. And I think, in efforts like this, we emphasise and validate our work. And create a possible writer somewhere who thinks “they wrote a book. I can write a book”. I think it validates the writers and also encourages literacy. I really do.
PM: Okay, Unity! Thanks so much. It’s been a real pleasure talking to you. I’ll see you at Time of The Writer on Monday.
UD: Thank you.
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
A rich text element can be used with static or dynamic content. For static content, just drop it into any page and begin editing. For dynamic content, add a rich text field to any collection and then connect a rich text element to that field in the settings panel. Voila!
Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
A rich text element can be used with static or dynamic content. For static content, just drop it into any page and begin editing. For dynamic content, add a rich text field to any collection and then connect a rich text element to that field in the settings panel. Voila!
Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
You can contact Peter on hello@talktopeter.com or get in touch on any of the platforms below. If you are having technical difficulties with the site, please send an email to tech@talktopeter.com
A big thank you to Kirsten Machen and Linda Leow for both suggesting, within days of each other, that I start interviewing people again, and also for the numerous feedback requests. Thanks also to Debbie Sykes for some on-point UX suggestions and to Lorna McDowell for the frequent iPhone testing, Mitzi Pedersen for her eagle eyes, and Travis Lyle for always being there with sensible advice. Thanks to Sharlene Versfeld and Nashen Moodley for helping me to get access to so many amazing people over the years, and to Mirah Von Wicht for all the hugs and support. Special thanks to all my past editors, especially Cyril Madlada, for his immediate faith in me, Debbie Reynolds, for some wonderful working years at the Independent on Saturday and for giving me free reign to produce such eclectic content, to Yves Vanderhaeghen at the Weekend Witness for doing likewise, and to David Daley for our sadly brief working relationship at Salon. And, of course, a massive thank you to everyone who has spoken to me over the years. And finally, warm and appreciative thanks to YOU for reading, watching, and listening, and to my mother Astrid Machen for her boundless and endless love and encouragement.
*It would be remiss of me not to thank the hundreds of generous souls who's contribution to Stackoverflow and other forums provided the knowledge I needed to build this site. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. The impulse to share knowledge and solutions is the best thing about the internet.
A big thank you to Kirsten Machen and Linda Leow for both suggesting, within days of each other, that I start interviewing people again, and also for the numerous feedback requests. Thanks also to Debbie Sykes for some on-point UX suggestions and to Lorna McDowell for the frequent iPhone testing. Thanks to Sharlene Versfeld and Nashen Moodley for helping me to get access to so many amazing people over the years, and to Mirah Von Wicht for all the hugs and support. Special thanks to all my past editors, especially Cyril Madlada, for his immediate faith in me, Debbie Reynolds, for some wonderful working years at the Independent on Saturday and for giving me free reign to produce such eclectic content, and to Yves Vanderhaeghen at the Weekend Witness for doing likewise. And, of course, a massive thank you to everyone who has spoken to me over the years. And finally, warm and appreciative thanks to YOU for reading, watching, and listening, and to my mother Astrid Machen for her boundless and endless love and encouragement.
A big thank you to Kirsten Machen and Linda Leow for both suggesting, within days of each other, that I start interviewing people again, and also for the numerous feedback requests. Thanks also to Debbie Sykes for some on-point UX suggestions and to Lorna McDowell for the frequent iPhone testing. Thanks to Sharlene Versfeld and Nashen Moodley for helping me to get access to so many amazing people over the years, and to Mirah Von Wicht for all the hugs and support. Special thanks to all my past editors, especially Cyril Madlada, for his immediate faith in me, Debbie Reynolds, for some wonderful working years at the Independent on Saturday and for giving me free reign to produce such eclectic content, and to Yves Vanderhaeghen at the Weekend Witness for doing likewise. And, of course, a massive thank you to everyone who has spoken to me over the years. And finally, warm and appreciative thanks to YOU for reading, watching, and listening, and to my mother Astrid Machen for her boundless and endless love and encouragement.
A big thank you to Kirsten Machen and Linda Leow for both suggesting, within days of each other, that I start interviewing people again, and also for the numerous feedback requests. Thanks also to Debbie Sykes for some on-point UX suggestions and to Lorna McDowell for the frequent iPhone testing. Thanks to Sharlene Versfeld and Nashen Moodley for helping me to get access to so many amazing people over the years, and to Mirah Von Wicht for all the hugs and support. Special thanks to all my past editors, especially Cyril Madlada, for his immediate faith in me, Debbie Reynolds, for some wonderful working years at the Independent on Saturday and for giving me free reign to produce such eclectic content, and to Yves Vanderhaeghen at the Weekend Witness for doing likewise. And, of course, a massive thank you to everyone who has spoken to me over the years. And finally, warm and appreciative thanks to YOU for reading, watching, and listening, and to my mother Astrid Machen for her boundless and endless love and encouragement.
