{"id":4028,"date":"2016-07-31T20:12:11","date_gmt":"2016-07-31T19:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tazmpictures.com\/site\/?p=4028"},"modified":"2025-10-16T14:13:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T13:13:42","slug":"children-of-the-street-ampefiloha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tazmpictures.com\/site\/?p=4028","title":{"rendered":"Children of the Street: Ampefiloha"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week I posted<\/a> about a new project Anne and I are involved in – assisting the NGO “Teach for Madagascar”<\/a>\u00a0via a group of street photographers called “Zanaky Ny Lalana”<\/a> (Children of the Street). \u00a0This week we went to another of the ten locations where Malagasy volunteers teach children who don’t have access to other schooling literacy and life skills.<\/p>\n

This week when we showed up, there was a little confusion. \u00a0It seems the organization had worked with parents benefiting from the program to secure the use of a room belonging to the local\u00a0fokontany,<\/em> or neighborhood administration (Madagascar is divided into 17,544 such administrative units) but the arrangement was tense, and it appeared that the\u00a0fokontany<\/em> was reluctant to allow the room to be used for free. \u00a0As a result, that morning, the building had remained locked for an hour after the appointed start time, and by the time the volunteers got the room unlocked, the kids had all gone back home. \u00a0So we had to go find them.<\/p>\n

Wandering around the neighborhood with our cameras, we admittedly became distracted a few times. \u00a0For example, we saw and heard this festive crowd slowly making their way down the main, 4-lane road:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=VlMyt0eD3Go<\/p>\n

Music, dancing, waving sugar cane – what was it all about? \u00a0“Circumcision,” our Malagasy companions told us. \u00a0As it turns out, this is an important rite of passage all over Madagascar, generally irrespective of religion or tribe:<\/p>\n

Malagasy people have a rich culture built around a strong sense of community. A key step in a boy\u2019s life is circumcision, which usually takes place after the age of two. It is just one of many festivals and ceremonies celebrated across Madagascar and each clan marks the occasion in its own unique way.<\/b><\/p>\n

Merina people of the central Antananarivo area take part in a riotous and exciting celebration as boys prepare for their circumcision. The operation is accompanied by a dance portraying a symbolic battle over sugarcane. This ceremony happens every seven years amongst the Merina people and, as you can see, it is a time of great jubilation for all concerned.<\/p>\n

Circumcision is a significant rite of passage in Malagasy culture. In fact, it is so important that a baby who dies before the operation is performed may not be buried in the family tomb.<\/p>\n

After that little diversion, we continued searching, and eventually managed to round them up. \u00a0We found out that the parents didn’t want to use the\u00a0fokonany<\/em> room anymore, so the class returned to its usual open-air location on the grounds of a nearby public university.<\/p>\n

\"Gathering<\/a><\/p>\n

The kids in this group seemed to have a wider age range than those the previous week – and we were told that a number of them were younger siblings. \u00a0The main group was working on reading and spelling longer words, but the instructors also spent some time with the younger kids, showing them how to form basic letters on their individual chalkboards. \u00a0And everyone loved hamming it up for the camera.<\/p>\n

\"Studious\"<\/a>