Bongo from Congo
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"Bongo from Congo" is the name which then Foreign minister of Norway, previously Prime Minister of Norway and subsequently President of the Storting Thorbjørn Jagland, applied to Gabon's president Omar Bongo when Bongo visited Norway in 2001. Jagland stated on Friday February 2, 2001 in the nationally broadcast television I kveld med Per Ståle on TV 2 that "everybody at the Foreign Department went around saying that 'now you are going to meet with Bongo from Congo'".[1]
Due to Norway's predominantly monocultural past, up until about the 1970s, the commingling of the two words Bongo and Congo would tend to conjure mental imagery of "African savagery", especially in the elder part of the Norwegian population, similar to the English as well as Norwegian use of the word Sambo. Thus, Jagland's reference was perceived as racially insensitive for pandering to such traditional ignorance and bigotry. Consequently the reference by a former prime minister of a foreign dignitary sparked immediate scorn as well as ridicule (of Jagland, not Bongo), especially since this was not the first time[2] Thorbjørn Jagland had made spontaneous comments on various issues which by critics were asserted as sign of poor judgement.
Bongo fra Kongo was later used as the title of a book containing politicians' quotes.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ VG Nett: «Jagland omtalte president som Bongo fra Kongo»
- ^ Hegtun, Halvor. "Han kom igjen, ja, han er her allerede", Aftenposten, 9 May 2004. Retrieved on 2008-03-31. (Norwegian)
- ^ Bongo fra Kongo : gullkorn fra den politiske arena / Leif Magne Lervik (ed.), with illustrations by Roar Hagen ISBN 82-516-1893-2
- Omar Bongo - Trivia from experiencefestival
