MAMA BLESSING

(Directed by Roswitha Eshuis, NL/AUT 2008, 40 min., Dutch/English with English subtitles)

Blessing is a young mother who fled Nigeria with her children after being threatened by a Mafioso voodoo sect. She lives illegally in Holland. The children are underfed and ill, and therefore placed in a foster home. There they discover that Blessing’s son Daniel has a serious developmental disorder. As a condition for receiving the necessary care and treatment, he needs to be covered by health insurance. Being illegal Blessing cannot apply for a health insurance. This means that the children need to stay in the foster home. The children are caught up in the wheels of the welfare state, while Blessing is left to her own devices. Bit by bit the children estrange from her. The mother is desperately looking for a way to regain the custody over her own children.

This story portrays a woman living within the margins of society, while trying to remain her dignity. Also it portrays Dutch society, where without a passport a person appears not worth consideration.