Queens of Orango

In southwestern Guinea Bissau there are some islands where a very special people live, the Bissago. What is it that makes them so special? It is not the fact of living in balance and harmony with the spectacular nature that surrounds them, taking from the land or the sea only what they need to survive. Neither is their deep animistic spirituality, which marks their life with rites to acquire the knowledge of their ancestors. What makes them so special is that, in the Bissago society, the woman is the protagonist.

They are the ones who decide how to manage the crops or punish the crimes, they are the priestesses of the temple, those who can communicate with the gods, the forces of nature and the spirits of the deceased. For the Bissago, the woman is feared and respected, since they consider her capable of deciding about life and death.