Romania's 'Oprah Winfrey' Uses TV to Shine a Spotlight On Refugees
By Andreea Anca, 5 February 2013Ads by Google
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press release
Bucharest — In the bustling television studio
moments before a live talk show about stress in Romanian society, host
Mbela Nzuzi exudes her usual air of professionalism and warmth, and
shows not a trace of nerves.
The hour-long programme, "Restart Romania," is a doddle for the 36-year-old, who faced tougher challenges starting a new life in Romania after fleeing Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during the dictatorial rule of the late President Mobuto Sese Soko.
Today she is a TV star - dubbed the Oprah Winfrey of Romania - and the only African presenter on local television, whose grasp of the Romanian language has helped to boost her popularity. "I understand people's jokes here, which is very important," she says.
"People feel that I'm one of them, colour and nationality do not really come into question anymore," adds Nzuzi, who fled her home country with her husband in 1997 after he came under attack for his political activities.
The couple were offered a safe haven later the same year by Romania, which only began opening its doors to refugees in 1991 after the fall of the communist regime. There are currently more than 1,000 refugees in Romania, which in 2008 also opened Europe's first emergency transit centre in Timisoara to provide temporary shelter for refugees in urgent need of evacuation from their first asylum countries.
Nzuzi was only 21 years old and lacked a degree and employment experience when she arrived in Bucharest. She had been a housewife in Congo and left her three-year-old daughter at home with relatives. The child is now studying in France.
The hard realities of life as an asylum-seeker in a country so different to hers might have crushed Nzuzi's ambitions. She had to navigate through a web of bureaucracy in a language that was completely alien. She found everything from Romania's culture and cuisine to its freezing winters hard to cope with.
The young woman started singing in an African band named "Gloria," which she and her husband established mainly for the refugee community. They attracted little attention at first, but the breakthrough came in 1999 when UNHCR involved the group in a campaign to increase public awareness about refugees.
Things started to look up. In 2001, Gloria released a first album and the following year Nzuzi became the president of the Refugee Women's Organization in Bucharest. After a series of guest appearances on various television shows, her wit and charm landed her a job in 2005 as a presenter on "Nasul," a famous talk show.
The hour-long programme, "Restart Romania," is a doddle for the 36-year-old, who faced tougher challenges starting a new life in Romania after fleeing Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during the dictatorial rule of the late President Mobuto Sese Soko.
Today she is a TV star - dubbed the Oprah Winfrey of Romania - and the only African presenter on local television, whose grasp of the Romanian language has helped to boost her popularity. "I understand people's jokes here, which is very important," she says.
"People feel that I'm one of them, colour and nationality do not really come into question anymore," adds Nzuzi, who fled her home country with her husband in 1997 after he came under attack for his political activities.
The couple were offered a safe haven later the same year by Romania, which only began opening its doors to refugees in 1991 after the fall of the communist regime. There are currently more than 1,000 refugees in Romania, which in 2008 also opened Europe's first emergency transit centre in Timisoara to provide temporary shelter for refugees in urgent need of evacuation from their first asylum countries.
Nzuzi was only 21 years old and lacked a degree and employment experience when she arrived in Bucharest. She had been a housewife in Congo and left her three-year-old daughter at home with relatives. The child is now studying in France.
The hard realities of life as an asylum-seeker in a country so different to hers might have crushed Nzuzi's ambitions. She had to navigate through a web of bureaucracy in a language that was completely alien. She found everything from Romania's culture and cuisine to its freezing winters hard to cope with.
The young woman started singing in an African band named "Gloria," which she and her husband established mainly for the refugee community. They attracted little attention at first, but the breakthrough came in 1999 when UNHCR involved the group in a campaign to increase public awareness about refugees.
Things started to look up. In 2001, Gloria released a first album and the following year Nzuzi became the president of the Refugee Women's Organization in Bucharest. After a series of guest appearances on various television shows, her wit and charm landed her a job in 2005 as a presenter on "Nasul," a famous talk show.
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