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Zaire Coping and Hustling
A simple translation of the French term se
débrouiller
(verb; noun form, débrouillardise) might be "to
fend for
oneself," or "to cope," but that literal translation would
need to
be elaborated with the connotations of hustle, know-how,
and the
ability to get by or to get what you want. It may consist
of
knowing how to get a ride on one of the rare commercial
trucks that
still ply the deteriorating roads of the interior and that
furnish
what is often the only passenger service available. It may
involve
knowing which official to bribe in order to get one's
salary
released or knowing which kinship connection to tap in
order to get
a sought-after secondary school slot opened for one's
child or
cousin after enrollment is formally closed. Or
débrouillardise may be demonstrated by the ability
to locate
on the black market drugs needed by a hospitalized family
member or
by paying a hospital or dispensary nurse to "acquire" the
needed
medications from institutional stocks. The term may also
be adapted
to refer to the entire unofficial economy.
The popular admonition that "you need to know how to
cope/hustle" (il faut savoir comment se
débrouiller)
implicitly contradicts official party and state slogans
such as
"servir, oui, se servir, non" (serve yes, serve
oneself,
no). The popular phrase embodies an ideology of aggressive
individualism that contradicts the state-promoted ideology
of
selfless public service.
Data as of December 1993
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