“Would you like to have a tea after work at your apartment?”, Arfang asked when I walked past the marketplace on my way to the centre of Ziguinchor. Arfang runs a small coffee stand next to one of the main roads, I often stopped by to buy a coffee but Arfang often gave them away for free, making a small chat to ask how my research was going. I was surprised by his proposal but invited him over. Arfang works close to Landing and Limane’s store and the three men often hang around together during quiet moments. However, I noticed how Arfang would walk back to his stand when I would discuss politics with the other men. 

Over at the apartment, Arfang became more open to discuss his views on the region and politics. Arfang said that he thought that he was in a complicated position to discuss these topics but was interested in them anyway. He was one of the few people at the market who were not originally from the Casamance, being born and having grown up close to the border with Mali. He explained that he ended up in Ziguinchor after he got transferred to work for a chain of petrol stations, saying that they would transfer people to their home regions after completing for training in Dakar. However, Arfang said that the company had enough people to fill all positions in Tambacounda, his home region. He got transferred to Ziguinchor instead, due to the fact that the company did not hire enough people from the area.

I asked him why he would not have considered it, to which he replied that people in other parts of Senegal still talk negatively about the region.

He said that his first months in Ziguinchor were tough, adapting to the new city and having issues with his host family. Arfang said that this made it feel like coming to the Casamance was a mistake, as he very much felt like an outsider and often thought about the stories he heard before, referring to the rebels in the Casamance. 

After about a year in Ziguinchor, Arfang got transferred back to Dakar. However, he said that once he was in Dakar, he started to regret his decision, missing life in Ziguinchor. He managed to get a transfer back but got into an argument with his new boss and got fired, after which he started his own business with the help of locals, including Landing and Limane. I asked him if he felt like he was part of Ziguinchor now or if he still considered himself an outsider. “Everyone is accepted in Ziguinchor. It doesn’t matter what religion you follow, what your origins are or the colour of your skin, everyone can live here”, “Tout le monde est accepté a Ziguinchor. Peu importe ta religion, tes origines ou la couleur de ta peau, tout le monde peut vivre ici”. After a short pause, he added to this that even though he felt accepted in the city, he thought that it was not his role to intervene in the local politics or have a strong opinion about the conflict. From my observations, this also explained why Arfang would distance himself from the group whenever we would discuss politics and preferred to discuss this in a private setting.

“I would never have considered moving here to find work”

“Je n'aurais jamais envisagé de m'installer ici pour trouver du travail”

“People still talk about the rebels, it is not as bad as before but there are still stories”,

“Les gens parlent encore des rebelles ici, c’est n’est pas aussi grave qu’avant mais les histoires restent”.

“If you take the road through the Gambia, there is a risk that the bandits will attack your car. They can hurt you and will rob you of your valuables”

“Si tu emprunte la route qui traverse la Gambie, il y a un risque que les bandits attaquent la voiture. Ils peuvent te blesser et voler tes objets de valeur”

Next: Malick about making a living