Thank you very much, sir.
Hello, everybody. It's a pleasure to
be with you warm, wonderful people.
My name is Mr. Cortzen.
I'm a businessman, I'm a diplomat.
I make matches.
Soon I'm going
to the Central African Republic -
- to represent
the interests of Liberia there.
I hope you will pray to God
to watch over me there.
It is a dangerous place, but I will
do my best to accomplish my mission.
Praised be the Lord, and
it's wonderful to be with you today.
I hope to see you again soon.
- Hey, Mads.
- Colin, nice to see you.
- Likewise, likewise.
- Let's go.
- Wow!
- This here...
- This is...
- It's like a castle.
Leave our jackets,
because it's going to be quite hot.
I'd appreciate it if you left your
mobile phone. I'm going to leave mine.
- And your bag. Just leave everything.
- Yes, okay.
I've asked you to leave
your mobile phone and everything -
- because I don't want
this conversation to be recorded.
This conversation that
we're about to have never happened.
I have a good feeling -
- that your interest in the Central
African Republic goes deeper.
I think that your goal is -
- you want to have uncluttered access
with diplomatic credentials -
- in and out
of a diamond-producing zone.
- That as well.
- Okay.
From this point
there's no going back.
Here ends my life
as a Danish journalist.
What awaits me is a life
where I can operate freely -
- beyond all moral boundaries
known to man -
- while still being
a respectable member of society.
A life where I can indulge myself
in secret state affairs -
- enjoy red carpet treatment -
- and travel the world
with a suitcase full of diamonds.
What I'm talking about is, of course,
a life as an African diplomat.
Welcome to the
Central African Republic (CAR).
I'm having sundowners
with a Sudanese diplomat -
- overlooking the capital Bangui.
In my tuxedo pocket is
a diplomatic passport which says -
- I'm the Liberian consul
and ambassador at large to the CAR.
As such, I did my very best
to represent Liberia.
On behalf of Liberia, I'd like
to welcome you all to this soiree.
To be frank with you,
I'm not a very skilled diplomat.
- I'm bad at protocol.
- Mads is not a talented diplomat.
But I'm very good with alcohol,
which I hope you will appreciate.
How did I become a diplomat in the
CAR? The story begins in Portugal.
Here on the outskirts of the town of
Coimbra reside the Evans brothers -
- a second-generation British
diplomatic title brokerage -
- headed by the oldest brother -
- former Royal Marine
commando Colin Evans.
A white European with a reason to
travel back and forth out of Europe -
- to a diamond-producing country
in Africa -
- and back again on a regular basis
with diplomatic credentials -
- is a very, very,
very valuable piece of kit.
And I know exactly how valuable it is.
I could put that up on the brokerage
as a definition.
For a million euros
it would go in a week.
Working as a freelance diplomat -
- Colin Evans inhabits a highly
bizarre unchartered netherworld.
For lots of money
he brokers diplomatic titles -
- between cash-starved,
desperate third world countries -
- and people
who desire to become diplomats.
My concern is this:
If there is any monetary transaction -
- between you and me
or you and the brokerage -
- and you do get involved
in anything that is nefarious -
- it will come back on us badly.
And we're frankly not prepared
to take the risk on that.
But we have a plan.
Not wanting to put my eggs in one
basket, I contacted another broker -
- the Dutchman Willem Tijssen.
He met me in a hotel in Copenhagen
for a quick business lunch.
Did you have a nice flight?
That's great.
- I didn't have to do it myself.
- So it's a success already.
Tijssen represents a brokerage
called Diplomatic Services.
He's the go-to guy
for diplomatic positions -
- from the small, poor
West African country Liberia -
- which has begun recovering
after many years of civil war.
Willem says he works for a secretive,
highly influential power broker -
- in African state affairs
named Dr. Eastman.
I don't know exactly what he's doing.
He has extremely big influence -
- into heads of states.
How mysterious.
I really like the name Dr. Eastman.
It has a spy thriller ring to it.
- A spy! Don't think he is a spy.
- No, no, it's just the name.
He is very close to...
You know, in the world -
- you have the underworld,
the criminals -
- you have the upper world
where we live, business people -
- and the back world, the people
who are very influential -
- who actually most of the time
pull the strings.
Tijssen was sure he could set me up
as a Liberian diplomat to the CAR.
This would cost me $135,000, but
the full package would also include -
- an honorary MBA
from Monrovia University -
- as well as
a Liberian driver's license.
We discussed all the opportunities
I could have as an African diplomat.
You can travel with your suitcase
with $10 million in cash.
I cannot do it. Nobody can.
But a consul
or an ambassador can do that.
If you are going to do
what I think you're going to do...
If you do it the way
we will set you up to do it -
- you have a very high probability
of success.
If you do it any other way -
- the best that you can hope for
is to be arrested and go to jail -
- and lose everything you've got.
That's the best you can hope for.
The worst you can hope for -
- is that you end up dead
in a ditch in Africa.
I'm giving it to you on a plate.
As the name says, the CAR is
situated in the middle of Africa.
It offers itself as a Jurassic Park -
- for people who long for Africa
of the 1970s.
If the Congo was the heart
of darkness, this is the appendix.
Some call it a failed state,
but this would only be true -
- if there at some point had ever
been a functioning state structure.
Instead there's a lawless territory
the size of Texas -
- where a couple of thousand poorly
equipped soldiers try to protect -
- the capital Bangui
from the horrors of the wilderness.
Here, a small political elite
spends most of its time -
- being involved
in criminal activities -
- while waiting for the weekly flight
to Paris, its former colonial master.
Of course, a country such as this
works as a magnet -
- on white men with hidden agendas.
- Wonderful, wonderful.
- I'm a Liberian, Paul.
- So now you're a Liberian?
- Yes, I'm a Liberian.
- You know how to struggle.
- Yes, I've been working a lot on it.
Paul is my charge d'affaires
in Bangui. He is a diplomat fixer.
We share a fascination with
the former Central African tyrant -
- the cannibal Emperor Bokassa
who went mad as a hatter.
Here we're touring the ruins
of Bokassa's jungle castle.
Magnificent.
People in Europe think of Bokassa
as an evil dictator -
- but how is he to people here?
Bokassa as such is very humanist,
because his first goal is -
- to develop the country.
To save the area.
So he used force -
- to remove those
who tried to make an obstacle.
He tried to put them away,
so they say that he killed them.
So with this passport we can go
to the Foreign Ministry to show it -
- and another department
as diplomat.
In the diplomat world they say,
if you're not at the table -
- you're on the menu.
So we have to get to the table.
To the places
where decisions are being made.
Because I don't want to be like
an air guitar diplomat.
You've been working for the Chinese?
They're difficult to cooperate with.
Very difficult.
Tell you what. I think there's a war
going on between the West and China.
It's a cold war, but it is a war, and
the front line is right here in Africa.
Because the Chinese are coming.
They want all the minerals -
- the natural resources.
They have no moral.
- They have no moral! Exactly!
- Now my head is bursting with ideas.
I have so many ideas,
so many visions.
We must work
on the diamond mining.
A diplomat at heart, I wanted to get
as many diamonds as possible.
Diamonds are a popular, secret side
business amongst Bangui diplomats.
Some years ago the Spanish
and Greek consuls were charged -
- with massive tax fraud
with diamonds.
The Spanish consul had to flee at
night assisted by the Italian consul.
Don't touch any weapons.
Don't touch any diamonds.
And don't touch
the employees' women.
- Everything else goes.
- That's the advice I need.
I wanted to follow in their footsteps
with my business partner to be -
- Monsieur Dalkia Gilbert
who came to my hotel late at night.
Also there to greet him
was my secretary Maria.
M. Gilbert, an old,
seasoned diamond miner -
- had been traveling for days
from his mines to meet with me.
Like most of the diamond miners
in Central Africa -
- he'd been close to bankruptcy after
the collapse of the diamond market.
Another problem was his attachment
with the former President Patasse.
He was removed after a coup by the
current president, General Bozize.
Now Gilbert was busy sucking up
to President Bozize -
- who had accepted him as a
candidate for member of parliament.
Gilbert was looking for business
angels from abroad and proposed -
- I should bring him a bulldozer
to assist his men in the mines.
Now he can choose the one he likes.
When he tells me "I like that one,"
I will call Europe -
- and it will be flown into Bangui.
Today, or when
you choose a bulldozer -
- M. Mads will call Europe.
M. Gilbert and I meet
with the lawyer and make a contract.
Let's talk about the contract.
In two weeks, you can have
millions of stones.
Because of the water.
It has rained a lot this year.
- Understand?
- No.
He says that the work
with that mine is so far -
- that as soon as the water is gone,
they'll dig out the bloody diamonds.
He needs about
10m CFA francs in cash.
That could get the diamonds out
of the ground in a few weeks.
I tried to mine some, but I need...
I met with some businessmen today...
I can meet with many others,
but I trust you.
Many businessmen want
to cooperate with him.
- Gentleman deal.
- But he believes in you.
Thank you, M. Gilbert. Now it begins
for real. Business for businessmen.
Of course, diplomats in Africa can
not openly deal with diamonds.
My cover was a plan to open up
a match factory in the CAR.
A brilliant business idea, since the
country is so undeveloped and poor -
- they even have to import eggs.
For this I brought in a match-making
expert from India named Sumeet.
It's not very difficult when
you take a matchbox construction...
A matchbox is very small -
- but the construction of a matchbox
involves a lot of processes.
Making the splints, and then you make
the outer box, the inner box -
- dipping the splints in chemicals...
- A lot of processes.
- That's why we brought you here.
The former Safari Hotel in Bangui is
the best example -
- of how time moves backwards
in the CAR.
Here, in an old recording of
Emperor Bokassa, you see the hotel -
- overlooking the Obangui River
that borders the Congo.
The hotel was known
as "the Jewel of Bokassa".
Since the fall of the crazy emperor,
it's been crumbling to pieces -
- barely holding
its shaky structure together.
In my ambassador suite to be
there used to be a nightclub.
Now it was going to be the
headquarters of a Liberian diplomat.
Did you have this framed down here?
Damn, it's crooked.
I sent out invitations to meet
with my fellow diplomats in Bangui -
- and high-ranking people
from government.
You have your business cards?
As a dedicated diplomat, I didn't
mind filming my meetings in secret.
This comes with the territory.
Hello, Monsieur.
One of my first meetings was -
- with the head of state security
of the Central African Republic.
- A little gin tonic or a vodka tonic?
- Vodka.
Straight?
I'm in charge of all missions -
- regarding
the interior security of the state.
Espionage, counter-espionage,
surveillance and counter-surveillance.
- He's a former Foreign Legionary?
- I served 26 years in the Legion.
He served 26 years
in the Foreign Legion.
The French made me a French national
for services rendered in 1986.
They took away my passport in 2006.
That says it all.
In December 2006 I was indicted
by France for mercenary activities.
France has always considered
the CAR as its savings bank.
They believe that everything
in the ground is theirs.
And no one else's.
It's a bankbook that you don't touch.
It belongs to France and no one else.
That's still the attitude.
In the underground we have copper,
iron, manganese -
- cobalt, uranium, red mercury...
- They have all kinds of minerals.
- We know where it is.
But every time we ask for a grant
or aid to start mining it -
- we encounter problems.
- You're stopped?
- But how? What do they do?
When you want to stop someone
from running -
- you put a stone in their shoe.
If you want to stop a state
from developing...
The resources used to run after the
rebels can't be used for development.
This is Ernesto, my tennis coach.
We're playing a double
against the Indian consul Paul -
- and a man from the French energy
consortium Areva who was in town -
- because the French, now backed
with Chinese money, were ready -
- to explore the legendary uranium
mine at Bakouma close to Bangui.
Emperor Bokassa used to threaten
to sell the uranium to the Chinese -
- whenever he wanted to put
a squeeze on the French.
But now the French and the Chinese
have joined hands at Bakouma.
Paul, the Indian consul,
was almost an exact copy -
- of the man
I was making myself into.
He was also mixing business
and diplomacy in bewildering ways.
Thank you, Paul. Fantastic to win
my first tennis match in the CAR.
To my amazement, he'd also had
plans to open a match factory here.
Start with the matches.
I'm curious why you didn't do it.
I told you it was extremely difficult.
The country is not secure, so...
Everybody's got a gun,
so anything can happen any time.
This country is really complicated.
Be careful.
They'll eat your money and kick you
in the ass, so be careful.
People have lost millions of dollars
over night.
I saw them. They turn up at your
house and hold a gun to your head -
- until you give them all your money.
They say they're acting under orders.
- And they raid your office.
- Who did that happen to?
This has happened to all the diamond
people. They lost all their money.
One company lost 1.5 million dollars
over night.
Don't tell anybody about your plans.
You're just opening your consulate.
- I mustn't mention my business plans?
- No. It's not the time.
You can talk to the consuls -
- but be careful with
the consul of the Netherlands.
Be careful with Belgium.
With all the Europeans.
Because they report
to the ambassador of France.
And I want to steer clear of France?
The other African consuls are no
problem, but be careful with the rest.
The Central African Republic is
murky waters for white men -
- and the mere sight of a Caucasian
pigment-challenged male in Bangui -
- can ignite wild speculations -
- about mercenaries and plans
to overthrow the president.
A group of Slovakian safari tourists
were arrested and charged -
- with plans to commit a state coup
some months ago.
Therefore, being a traveler in dire
straits, I had to take great care -
- that my travel papers were
in absolute order.
- This is Mr. Cortzen calling.
- Yes. How are you doing?
I'm okay, Willem,
but I just found out...
I've bought the Diplomatic Handbook
for Liberia, and it says -
- that Liberian diplomatic passports
are ECOWAS passports, biometric.
And they're black.
But mine is red and not biometric.
I thought you had a new passport -
- because I didn't unwrap it.
I'm just worried, if someone here sees
my passport and calls Monrovia -
- and asks: "Who is this guy?"
What will they tell them?
They will not phone -
- because who will they phone?
Who the hell will they phone?
To explain why I chose Tijssen
as my diplomatic title broker -
- it's because Colin Evans, my
preferred choice, could not deliver.
Put them in my office.
Tray of tea, something like that.
I'd like a cup of tea.
When I went to see him in Portugal
with my secretary Maria -
- he said he had difficulties
finding a country -
- wanting to establish diplomatic
connections with the CAR.
The major problem with the CAR
at the moment is -
- that those nations that wish
to be associated with them -
- are already represented there
in some form.
And those that aren't don't wish to be.
This was a personal matter
to Colin Evans -
- because he actually works
for the CAR as a diplomat himself.
Here he is in front of a painting
of President Bozize -
- with a suspicious-looking
Asian guy.
It is the forgotten country of Africa.
I know. I work for them.
I also know, if I can say this
in front of you, Maria -
- what a complete pain in the ass
the CAR can be.
I don't go there. I represent them
externally in a number of levels.
But I don't personally go there.
I prefer not to go.
But I think they spend
most of their time here -
- thinking constantly about...
black magic.
They all go to the maribu,
the local wizard -
- to buy magic powder, to make him
do voodoo against other people etc.
And the magic they respect most is
the Pygmies.
Because supposedly they have
the best wizards.
So I think, to give the matches
a unique selling point -
- that they are made by Pygmies. It'll
have an attraction to the Africans.
Not for you and me,
but for the Africans.
Paul, it's not to be racist,
but I have a problem with Asians.
They're always very sneaky,
very greedy.
Difficult to trust.
And they have bad manners.
They want to take everything
for themselves. They're very selfish.
So, I make my proposal
to M. Gilbert.
Then we discuss it, and if he likes it,
we take it to the lawyer tomorrow.
Paul, please translate this.
I understand -
- he likes the small bulldozer, but
he needs a fast cash investment.
So what would he like:
The 10m CFA francs or the bulldozer?
- Do you want the bulldozer or 10m?
- The 10m.
- Perfect, M. Gilbert.
- Thank you.
We're making
a preliminary investment -
- with a man called Gilbert Dalkia.
Do you know him?
Yes.
In your opinion, is it a good idea?
It depends on whether you control
him, or he does as he likes.
How do we control him to avoid
the other thing from happening?
Here, you have to know the relations
people have with one another.
If he thinks you have good relations
with people more powerful than him -
- he will behave. If he thinks the
contrary, you will lose everything.
... we'll end up losing everything.
Hi, Mr. Cortzen from the CAR.
How are you doing?
The diplomatic passport I have now,
can I use that here in the CAR?
Yeah, you can use it.
But I don't have any
accreditation papers with me.
Yeah, I know.
Ah, the envelope shop.
So, Paul, here's 100,000.
It'll make him happy?
Then here's
the envelope of happiness.
Then we go to the meeting
with the secretary of the president.
But I don't give the envelope to him.
- No, then he will feel corrupted.
- I'll make him feel dirty.
But the envelope is for him, yes?
To make him feel happy.
- Let's make some business.
- Yes!
Very, very positive meetings. I really
have a very powerful feeling now.
Now, I really feel like
the black albino.
White on the outside,
but really black inside.
My cover as a diplomat with lofty
plans to open up a match factory -
- brought me in contact with
the most powerful people in Bangui.
- Maybe you and M. Cortzen...
- Of course.
I'll take a photo.
Our last meeting
was also in darkness.
Then suddenly the light came,
and he said to me:
- You even bring on the light.
- "You bring out the light."
I explained to Minister Gaston -
- that I had imported match-making
know-how from India -
- and was busy setting up
a production of matches in Bangui.
I believe in sustainable development
and supporting tribal people -
- so I'd like within this workshop
to employ a Pygmy.
It's necessary to educate men so they
can become productive. Even Pygmies.
He says you're on to something that
matters a lot to him. Personal growth.
And that you educate.
It's important, especially
when it comes to the Pygmies -
- to try to raise the level
of human beings.
I'd be very happy if the minister could
support and help with this endeavor.
I myself live in a village
where the main population is Pygmies.
They're not far from where I live,
so we can easily gain access to them.
If you're interested, we can go visit
the chief of the village.
Meanwhile, a local artist presented
the artwork for the matchboxes.
Wow! This is nice.
So this says: "Le Ambassadeur,
he lights up Africa."
It says that in tribal language.
"Made by the Pygmies."
The Pygmies, how do they look?
- They're small and very black.
- So we have to put black here.
And this is for the workshop to explain
to the Pygmies who the enemy is.
I want to tell them they have
to stop depending -
- on the French and the Chinese
and empower themselves.
The baguette. This is a French man,
and this is a Chinese man.
He knows the Chinese are like that.
He says the hair should be
more French and stand out -
- and the Chinese should look
more Chinese with smaller eyes. Nice!
The only way to become a certified
diamond dealer in the CAR -
- runs through
the Department of Mines in Bangui.
To obtain the government's approval
of my partnership with M. Gilbert -
- I had to sign a standard contract
issued by the Department of Mines.
This contract ensures -
- that if M. Dalkia, the cooperative,
finds diamonds he wants to export -
- they can go out legally.
So I can take stones
with me to Europe.
This paper will be like the
Swiss army knife of contracts.
- This paper is like the Swiss army...
- Yes.
This Swiss army knife of contracts
stipulated that I'd oblige myself -
- to pay all M. Gilbert's expenses
for ever.
To avoid this, I went to a law office
recommended by Minister Gaston.
The head of the office, a member
of parliament, would help us make -
- a modified version of the contract.
In short, business was good.
- How long is it to the Pygmies?
- Only 20 minutes.
Is the minister waiting for us? We have
soap and cigarettes for the Pygmies?
Yes, we have soap and cigarettes.
Small, small things.
And the minister...
As we are there -
- he wants to buy some wine
and drinks -
- to make a small celebration
with them, to see them dancing...
- A Pygmy party?
- Pygmies party!
- Did the minister ever meet Bokassa?
- Yes, he imprisoned me.
- Really? He put him in jail.
- He put me in jail. He was a dictator.
- Do the Pygmies live close to here?
- They are at the corner. By the lake.
- Is it their drums I can hear?
- Yes.
They've started to dance -
- and have made the spirit go out
like a whirlwind in the village.
They've made a tornado
by whirling their clothes around.
- Beautiful.
- They'll do it when we arrive.
You will see the Pygmies
in their natural... special power.
- So they'll be very happy? Excited?
- They're always excited.
Very excited indeed.
Since the early morning hours
Minister Gaston had been pouring -
- liters of red wine and African
moonshine into his Pygmies.
Now, the whole tribe,
including the children -
- were in an alcohol-induced
state of trance.
This is what
the NGO people don't understand.
You can really have fun in Africa.
Amidst this, Minister Gaston
made me a proposal I couldn't resist.
The opportunity to meet, face to
face, with the minister of defense -
- the son of the president,
Francis Bozize.
This is the way. If you can
meet the son of the president...
One day the son is on the way
to succeed his father.
He'll become president.
- You'd better prepare some money...
- For the minister?
Like an envelope of happiness?
No problem.
Then the chief of the tribe said they
had selected me a Pygmy assistant.
- He's in the bush.
- What's he doing in the bush?
- They are hunting.
- I see.
Please tell him
I look forward to working with him.
Thank you very much for the dance,
Pygmies. Could you say that?
Thank you for the dance,
wonderful Pygmies.
I'd like to end my speech -
- with a quote from the famous
American general, General Patton.
He said : "If you tell people where
to go without explaining how to do it -
- you'll be amazed at the results."
Thank you very much.
They like the speech? Good.
When they clap and whistle,
they are very happy.
Good speech. It was very strong,
and it touched the heart.
It's important
to touch people's hearts.
Hello, Willem. This is Mads calling.
- Hi, Mads. How are you doing?
- We need to do the following.
I'm really in a messy situation here
because tomorrow -
- I'm meeting with the son of the
president, the minister of defense.
He thinks I'm a Liberian diplomat.
I'm spending millions of francs
on envelopes of happiness for him -
- because he's important for
the facilitation of the match factory.
And you know...
- What did you say, Willem?
- Mads? Hello?
- Hello. Can you hear me?
- I don't hear anything...
Oh. Willem, can you hear me? Willem?
Willem Tijssen could not hear me,
and that was a shame -
- because he hadn't delivered
all the goods I'd paid him for.
Some months ago
he came back to Copenhagen -
- to collect
the first installment, $50,000.
So, greetings from Dr. Eastman.
When you take out that much money,
the bank provides you with this bag.
This is only dollars.
Where are we now in the proceedings?
Well, all preparations are in place.
The whole team over there is
prepared for me to come -
- and then go through the system.
The system requires a lot of attention.
"Going through the system"
was a euphemism -
- for using the money
I'd given him -
- to bribe public officials
in Liberia to prepare for my arrival.
Nothing will be controlled.
You'll be treated as a diplomat.
You don't even have
to go through customs.
In Liberia I did not go through
customs at the airport in Monrovia -
- and was treated as a diplomat.
Maria, please film
the Ministry of Defense.
It's such a beautiful building. I
really like that kind of architecture.
- What's left of it.
- It's very powerful and minimalistic.
What is the standing
of Liberian diplomats in Africa?
There must be a hierarchy.
They'll treat you like you are
a European ambassador in Africa.
They consider you to be,
you know... His Excellence.
That sounds nice.
Willem Tijssen had personally made
25 clients into Liberian diplomats -
- but he was part
of a much larger system.
According to an investigation
made by the Liberian government -
- over 2,500 diplomatic passports
were issued and sold in the 1990s.
Many of the buyers
had criminal records.
The Liberian government claims to
have cleaned up their affairs now.
But mine and Willem Tijssen's
presence in Monrovia -
- seemed to suggest otherwise.
This confirms that the bearer of this
instrument, Mr. Cortzen, has met -
- with the requirements of the Bureau
of Immigration and Naturalization.
And I've received a driver's license.
It says I live on Clay Street
in Monrovia.
After some days at the hotel I was
brought to meet Varney Sherman -
- who is, as they say in Liberia,
The Man.
He's Liberia's leading
corporate lawyer -
- whom Danish shipping giant
Maersk has hired to help them -
- take over
the free port in Monrovia -
- and the chairman of President
Ellen Johnson's Unity Party.
He's not to be messed with,
and I only managed to get away -
- with a few sound recordings
of him done on my cell phone.
Well, we have
this Danish businessman -
- who has an interest in Liberia
and has had it for many years.
We thought it appropriate to apply
for the courtesy and privilege -
- of serving as our honorary consul
in Bangui, CAR. That is our interest.
On the recording Sherman explains
to the minister of foreign affairs -
- that Sherman and I are
the best of friends -
- and he warmly endorses me
as a diplomat for Liberia.
This really impressed the minister.
As I said, Sherman is The Man.
- I will fast track this personally.
- Thank you, sir.
For this service I had
to give Sherman $35,000 -
- as a secret donation to the
upcoming presidential election.
- Did Mr. Sherman get the envelope?
- Mr. Sherman got the envelope.
The minute he got it, he left for
the Foreign Ministry. Immediately.
- He was very happy.
- Good. When he's happy, I'm happy.
I told the minister I'm not too well,
and he should give me all week...
Yes, my friend. Yes, I'm there.
Let me get in the car so we can talk.
Sherman's special assistant
just called me.
- Is there a problem?
- No.
Your letter of appointment must be
signed by the president herself.
But there was a problem. President
Ellen Johnson had left the country -
- so I could no longer get officially
appointed as the consul of Liberia.
Put your phone over there, so
if it makes a sound, blame your phone.
I would be serving
as a borderline diplomat -
- until the president would have
the time to appoint me herself.
Late at night I had a crisis meeting
with Willem Tijssen and his team.
The man will leave with a diplomatic
passport, a position and appointment.
The president has become involved.
Now she approves the appointment.
I would like to jump in...
No, no, no, stop!
I feel here myself as an idiot.
Because it's also my reputation,
my name, my everything.
I guaranteed personally to Mr. Cortzen
that he would get his position -
- based on the information I got
and the experience we have.
We never had Sherman involved. Now,
suddenly Big Shot has to be involved.
We always played directly
with the minister.
Correct. You know, at one time
Mr. Willem gave me six persons.
Six persons!
We did four in one single day.
- Six diplomatic appointments?
- Yes. In one single day.
You will get your commission
printed out...
The president herself... The president
herself will put a gown on you.
- Like a cape?
- Of course. A blouse.
So, I have here my proposal
for the contract with M. Gilbert.
M. Gilbert. How are you?
It's been a long time.
You no call me.
Why you didn't call him by phone?
Just to speak with him. You call him.
- I called him? When?
- He said, why you didn't call him?
- Ah, he wants me to call him?
- Yes, he expects your phone call.
The contract overrode the contract
issued by the Department of Mines.
It offered M. Gilbert
an investment of 10m CFA francs -
- in return for a steady flow
of diamonds going my way.
- So he likes it?
- Yes.
- Is it okay?
- But it's not okay.
He read it, but he's not a lawyer.
He has also his advisor.
Even in matters of partnership
I understand a lot of things.
So not to rush,
but to read it and do something.
- Which one is my assistant?
- He is.
- And his name is?
- Albert.
I'm very happy he will be
my Pygmy assistant.
They always come in pairs.
Never alone.
- So I have two Pygmy assistants?
- Okay.
I suggest we go for a little sailing
on the river Obangui.
- Albert and...?
- Bernard.
Mads or M. Cortzen.
Okay, let's go to the boat.
When Bokassa fell,
Dacko was installed by the French -
- and upon their demand Dacko let the
public pillage all that they wanted.
And the French military was
ordered to stand back and watch -
- and only protect the embassy
and the residence.
- So there were riots?
- Everything was broken.
- So the French wanted it to collapse?
- Yes.
But why?
If the country had remained
under the regime of Bokassa -
- today it would
be the Switzerland of Africa.
But instead of exporting raw products,
we'd export manufactured products.
But today, when I speak
to other business diplomats -
- I keep hearing the same story.
The companies trying to establish
themselves quickly flee the country.
The French have given the Central
Africans a very bad habit. Corruption.
When they find
a corrupt minister here -
- he automatically gets visa, passport
and a residence permit in France.
The amount of difficulties facing
a businessman here is beyond belief.
Basic necessities you don't get here.
That's a problem.
In another part of town Sumeet and I
were launching the match workshop.
Nice taping technique.
Today, the Central African Republic
is very dependant -
- on the French and the Chinese.
They have to understand
regarding the French -
- that they pretend to be
your friends, but they aren't really.
Here's the new player, the Chinese.
You don't see them very much
in Bangui, but they are here.
But they are very...
They hide themselves.
The Chinese want diamonds, cobalt -
- titanium, gold, iron ore, everything
they can get their hands on.
You have to stop that, because
your resources are your future.
Now I introduce to you
Sumeet from India.
Matches are very important
for our daily needs.
It's a very basic essential commodity
for a living.
- What is this?
- Wood.
Alright. Do you have wood
in your country?
Too much?
So why don't we make matches here?
- We have no possibilities.
- Why?
With the support of Mads and me,
why can't we make this? We can.
But the security situation in the CAR
was as bad as ever.
Before I came to Bangui, armed UN
forces suddenly pulled out of Birao.
They'd protected the most important
town in the "triangle of death " -
- the area where the CAR borders
with Darfur and Chad.
A few weeks later CAR rebels
attacked and conquered Birao.
This was bound to happen, and it
seemed as if some unknown entity -
- wanted Birao to fall
into the hands of the rebels.
The cousin of President Bozize,
MP Willibona Cocksis, also came -
- to my suite for a confidential talk
about the situation in Birao.
- My card.
- Thank you.
Why is there trouble in Birao?
From time to time there are noises
in Birao because there's oil.
There's oil.
And the powers
who want the oil in Birao -
- they create problems.
The affair of Birao is not
a Central African problem.
- It's the forces behind.
- And who are these forces?
Well, the forces that you know well.
Despite the security situation, I had
to venture in direction of Birao -
- to make sure M. Gilbert did
actually possess a diamond mine.
So I chartered a plane and brought
my business partner with me.
We're going straight to Zako.
It's almost two hours.
Then Bria, 30 minutes, and
from Bria we come back to Bangui.
- What is the security in Zako?
- Oh yes, I must tell you that.
If you go into the bush, you can stay
an hour and a half, two hours.
If anything might happen,
and you're not back -
- we're going to take off
and go to Bria.
If you can finish as soon as possible,
no problem.
There are two French planes.
One in the morning and one at night -
- who fly over
the Central African territory.
French observational
military aircraft.
We've asked for the reports for
three years, but we've never got them.
- Where do they fly to?
- They fly over the territory.
They fly over and take pictures.
They pass with heat
and movement detectors.
They know who are traveling,
but never tell us.
The column that attacked Birao
had 27 vehicles that departed -
- from the interior of Sudan 400 km
away. Three days before the attack.
The French were well aware of it,
but they told us nothing.
The stone in the shoe.
- Hello. How are you?
- How are you?
- M. Gilbert, is he an officer?
- Yes. They all are.
Then we came to the haunted,
blood-soiled diamond fields -
- of the Central African Republic.
Besides the local rebels, the area is
plagued with highway robbers -
- and marauding bands
of killers from the outside.
Therefore, visiting the mines
of my business partner had to be -
- a very quick in and out.
- How long do we have?
- An hour and ten minutes.
- Where's the other guy?
- He's coming.
Let's go.
- What's that?
- The mine.
- There it is. Look.
- Amazing.
There are the diamonds.
I have my teams.
What is the biggest diamond
they've found here?
Like that. It's the site that produces
the biggest diamonds in the CAR.
The biggest diamonds
come out of here.
- I love you... the mine.
- It's beautiful.
Here, in these pits, children and
adults employed by M. Gilbert -
- work from dusk to dawn
with hands and shovels -
- under the scrutiny of local
soldiers who might as well be rebels.
- We have to keep track of the time.
- We must be at the plane in 35 mins.
- Let's go greet them.
- Sure.
At the top of the hierarchy are the
Muslim immigrant diamond dealers -
- who work in tandem with
mine owners such as M. Gilbert.
- Gilbert, please?
- Yes, finished.
- How long is the ride to the plane?
- Five or six... maybe ten.
On our way out, minutes before
takeoff, a strange situation erupted.
A young woman who M. Gilbert told
us was his wife was brought out -
- of the headquarters of the
Muslim diamond dealers.
- Don 't force her...
- Nobody's forcing her.
- Leave her alone.
- Open the door!
Open the door!
How can you say we are forcing her?
You want me to leave?
She wants me to go.
Don't do anything shameful
in front of these white men.
- Okay?
- A big diamond.
Beautiful.
- The plane.
- Yes!
He says
that without this girl -
- the business cannot
come up very well.
So this is the girl,
"the wife of chance".
So he's taken this girl to gain an
advantage in the diamond business?
To get more diamonds.
If there's a problem with the girl,
nothing can go very well.
Myself before, when I saw the girl,
I thought it was one of the daughters -
- but she is his wife.
But the Muslims, they are like that.
You see, he's Muslim.
- Gilbert is Muslim?
- Yes.
I didn't know.
- So, can we make matches now?
- We can do it.
- Yes, we can do it.
- Yes, we can.
Why do we use paraffin wax?
Because once we glow this -
- you need the stick to glow further.
So it acts as a fuel for the stick.
You can see the paraffin.
And you glow. See? It's coming down.
All along I knew perfectly well -
- that this match factory
never would come into existence.
Thus I was giving these people
a false sense of hope.
But diplomats do this every day
on a much larger scale -
- all over Africa.
It's part of the game.
90% of the matches sold here
come from Cameroon.
- 90% sold here come from Cameroon.
- Le Boxeur?
The owner of
this manufacturing company is -
- a Lebanese with
a French diplomatic passport.
He also works secretly
for the former French company SITA.
Will he harass me
if I attempt to set up a factory here?
It depends on his resolve.
That depends on
how much you want this.
So this is the envelope of happiness?
Maybe you should have it -
- because
diplomats don't handle money.
That's the most important rule I was
told. Diplomats never handle money.
- Because then I will get dirty.
- Yes, dirty. You are right.
The man I was on my way to meet,
son of the president -
- Jean-Francis Bozize,
is the minister of defense.
Not long ago the leader
of the rebels, Charles Massi -
- was captured
by the Central African army -
- and reputedly brought to a secret
prison in the jungle outside Bangui.
Here, it is claimed,
he was tortured to death.
An accusation which
Jean-Francis Bozize denies as a lie.
But people who are in the know
tell another story.
Charles Massi was a minister of state.
He took advantage of this position -
- to divert state funds to buy weapons
and start a rebellion.
To try to carry out a state coup
aided by France.
- He was asking for it.
- If he disappears, he disappears.
We're not going to cry over him.
- "Bonjour, Excellence?"
- Yes. "Bonjour, Son Excellence."
- "Bonjour, Son Excellence."
- That's right.
I've come to Africa, because Europe
has become old and tired.
His smile, among other things,
tells me that he's someone -
- who moves forward.
A pioneer.
I think the most important thing
to remember about the CAR is -
- that it's a young virgin country
where there's lots of business to do.
You have seen with your eyes
what's going on in the country -
- and how things are going smoothly
in the country.
Soon I'm going back to Liberia to get
my diplomatic accreditation papers.
Hopefully I'll also bring some official
greeting to the government here -
- on behalf of Liberia.
It will be an opening
of a new vision of the future.
- Thank you for coming.
- Thank you.
As I became more visible
on the radar of President Bozize -
- my concern about not having
my paperwork in order increased -
- by the hour.
I was afraid nobody in Liberia
knew about my presence in Bangui.
How fast would I have
my appointment?
- He assumes within a week.
- Within a week.
But nothing happened, and more
phone calls with Tijssen followed.
- Where are you now? In Frankfurt?
- Yes.
- Where are you?
- In Switzerland. I can't talk now.
I take your call,
because you called me several times.
Who said President Johnson have
approved me as the consul?
That came through
the office of Sherman.
- I'm in a pretty desperate situation.
- I take this very seriously.
So do I, Willem.
I've also been awake all night.
I really need closure
on a deal with Liberia.
Let's be serious businessmen
and make this work.
I've sent you and Sherman a picture
of me and Francis Bozize -
- just so Sherman knows
I'm working on a top level now.
Mads, I'm committed to this.
I respect you so much.
As long as my diplomatic
position wasn't in order -
- it would be difficult for me
to transport the diamonds -
- I was working so hard
to get my hands on.
The Cortzen Group will pay
M. Gilbert 10 million CFA francs.
And also there will be
five million for different fees.
- On top of it, five million?
- Yes.
Let me just talk to him in Danish.
You are aware that you have to pay
an additional 5m CFA francs?
- How much is that?
- You agreed on 10m.
Besides that you agreed to pay
an additional 5m CFA francs -
- to help M. Gilbert pay taxes
and additional amounts.
That was supposed to be
included in the 10m.
- How much can we give him?
- I need to look into it.
- I can't answer that off hand.
- We have to close this now.
But it's perfectly mental
to add 5m out of the blue.
I've just been told that
if we'd gone to Zako yesterday -
- we would've got a 27 carat stone
worth 90m.
Me with 5m would give us
the chance of finding a big stone -
- so you should pay me that.
He's just talking bull now.
"We'll find rocks for 80m, blah, blah."
I feel like saying: "Shut your ass. If
you're so rich, pay for it yourself."
It's a load of bullshit, but he wants
10m now, or we don't have a deal.
Normally, if the deal is altered
to such an extent as this -
- you take your time to read and think
it through, before you sign.
I know we're in Africa,
and we have momentum -
- but I'm just saying
I wouldn't sign this if I were you.
But in the end we reached
an agreement -
- and it was time
for midway celebration.
He also kills his
German shepherd dog called Blondie.
But before he kills himself and his
wife, he orders a bottle of champagne.
Before committing suicide
with his wife, he ordered champagne.
That champagne is Moet Chandon. So
when you're drinking Moet Chandon -
- you're tasting what Hitler tasted
right before he killed himself. Cheers.
- That's good.
- Was it a good speech?
- Very good speech.
- Thank you, Paul.
Hitler has many funny stories.
Like when he removed the features of
ladies and made them into his pillow.
Ah, the pubic hairs?
Of women, he used for a pillow?
- Really?
- Yes.
- Hitler is funny.
- Yes, he is funny.
- He has many stories.
- We should finish the champagne.
- Let me serve you.
- The rest is for M. Gilbert.
I found one stone
that was worth 34 billions -
- and they stole it.
They stole it,
and the issue is at the tribunal.
- Who stole it?
- A company here. Sodiam.
- A company called Zodiac.
- Sodiam... Sodiam!
Sodiam and Catadiam belong to a
Lebanese called Hassan Al-Baqaash -
- who incidentally is registered
on the American list of terrorists.
For supporting Hamas.
Are Gilbert and Sodiam
still collaborating?
- Yes.
- Yes?
But he said, you know, they weren't...
I have the 10m CFA francs here
and some additional euros.
I'm meeting with the president
after this.
He's going to meet the president.
It's an opportunity to introduce you.
- Can I come with him?
- Can he come to the meeting?
- Who?
- Him.
No, it's for the deputies. With this
I can affect the diamond politics.
As a deputy, I can negotiate for him.
If you can mix business and politics,
wonderful things can happen.
I'm getting a diplomatic passport.
- So he will also be a diplomat?
- He's going to get it.
- It's hot.
- Yes, very hot.
- Are you also interested in... gold?
- Yes.
- He also has gold mines?
- He has plenty of gold also.
Even the consul...
M. Gilbert said he was pushing gold
to the Italian consul Giulliani -
- the most senior member
of the consular corps in Bangui.
Maria, can you ask him, when
I have the stones and the papers -
- does he know anybody
trustworthy here -
- who can look at the stones and the
papers to see if everything is okay?
- The value or the estimates...
- The Senegalese consul's brother.
All is fine.
I'm sending the future consul
of Liberia in Bangui over.
Treat him as you would me.
Thank you.
Thank you, Excellence.
Ciao, ciao.
... of the Cortzen Group
10m CFA francs -
- in accordance with the agreement
of preliminary development -
- signed November 21st, 2010.
- Now I'm officially a diamond man.
- Officially. So we can clap maybe?
M. Gilbert left the office in high
spirits with a bag full of my money.
I could not help asking myself if I'd
ever meet my business partner again.
- So, you gave him 15 million?
- Yes.
That's good.
That's really good.
He will be happy, yeah?
He's very happy now,
and I don't see him anymore.
- That's a bad idea?
- Marc is consul of...
Great Britain.
He had a mine. They are closing
the company. They're winding up.
They were working with
the government who was their partner.
75% they got in shares,
and 35% they gave the government.
They're winding up.
They lost their money.
- Everything?
- Yes.
CEO Mads Cortzen calling from
Central Africa for counselor Sherman.
- Yes. How are you doing?
- Quite well, thank you, sir. And you?
I'm good.
So, do you have any news -
- regarding my diplomatic position?
No.
Willem, there are two options.
Either you're playing me,
or they're playing you.
Then they're fooling me.
Willem, I'm running out of patience.
I've been throwing thousands
and thousands of dollars at you.
- Nothing has happened.
- Okay.
Just saying okay is not enough.
I need something more convincing.
What can I say? I'm here
in the middle of a place with people.
What do you want me to do?
Still no sight of M. Gilbert
and the diamonds he'd promised me.
Instead, Paul suddenly showed up
and told me -
- I had to sign the standard contract
from the Department of Mines.
The very reason why I made
my own contract with M. Gilbert.
If I sign that,
then I'm legally bound -
- to pay all M. Gilbert's expenses
for ever.
Did you read the contract?
- No, I don't understand it like that.
- You should read the contract.
Paul, how come... We've made
a contract now with the lawyer -
- with everybody, and now you tell us
we must sign the other contract?
If you present the contract
you have with M. Gilbert -
- they will arrest him and stop you.
- They will arrest him if they see it?
- Yes. It's not legal.
We will not sign anything
we have not understood fully.
I think that Maria
needs to understand -
- that the contract we've signed
with M. Gilbert has to be kept secret.
Because if the government finds out,
they'll probably also come after me.
- Seriously?
- Yes, because of the situation.
To add to the absurdity, I wasn't
even in possession of a copy of the -
- as I was now informed, highly
illegal and confidential contract -
- I had made with M. Gilbert.
So, Paul, can you tell him
I find it -
- very problematic and disturbing
that I don't have the contract?
I've prepared four copies.
One for the notary -
- one for M. Gilbert
and one for the archives.
I still don't... Isn't it possible
to say you'll have the contract today?
- He just needs to make a signature.
- I'll explain it to him again.
There is no problem.
Tell him that.
I've given M. Gilbert 10m CFA francs
and don't even have a signed contract.
For all I know, M. Gilbert could have
left the country now with my money.
You are right.
I don't know why they delay it.
I have a feeling that M. Gilbert and my
lawyer are in a conspiracy against me.
- This is your impression, but...
- Do you share my impression?
I noticed they left in the same car -
- but I haven't
the same understanding.
I can see it. You can see it. Why don't
you say anything about it to me?
- Say what for instance?
- For instance...
"Mr. Cortzen, I have a bad feeling
about the lawyer and M. Gilbert."
- Are you also working for M. Gilbert?
- No.
- Are you working for the minister?
- No.
- As they have the paper...
- Please answer my question.
- Who are you working for?
- We are working with you.
If M. Gilbert is cheating me, I can't
make a match factory in this country.
He's a man of wide experience
in this field -
- and now even he's afraid.
- Why is he afraid?
- Because this work is very delicate.
You can have plenty of diamonds in
your hands. Always think positively.
I try to think positive, Paul,
but I'm getting more and more...
It's also because I have problems with
Monrovia and my accreditation papers.
It's just becoming more and more
difficult for me to work -
- as an African business diplomat.
I feel like everybody's against me.
No, don't feel that. No.
You have to be strong,
or you won't survive in this country.
But my problem is
he's not giving me back the contract.
They're not going
to give you the paperwork.
When you reach the airport, they will
say : "He has diamonds. Arrest him."
They will take everything and say:
"Bye, bye, Mister."
- They also do that do diplomats?
- Everybody.
More problems were coming my way.
From local newspapers and friends
in the diplomatic community -
- I was told of the assassination
of the head of state security -
- Guy-Jean Le Foll Yamande.
According to my sources,
Yamande had been lured -
- to the football stadium in Bangui
at night where he was shot dead.
It seemed like a professional job.
The local journalists wrote that
everyone knew who the killers were.
They walked around freely in Bangui
enjoying impunity, the press said -
- implying that he'd been killed by
the very regime he was working for.
Having secret tape recordings with
the former head of state security -
- and not having
full diplomatic immunity -
- I began to fear what would happen
if the government came down on me.
We have contact
with different powerful people.
And you also have contact
with some diplomats.
When you have contact with someone,
they look...
What is this one doing?
What is his business?
You know, Paul,
that also made me very worried.
I spoke to a diplomat here,
and he said:
"Mr. Cortzen, be careful. If you get
this paperwork and these stones -
- somebody here could call the airport
and say, he has diamonds."
That's why everything
should be discreet. Secretly.
If you make too much noise -
- people will notice that
these ones are looking for diamonds.
I had now stopped meeting with other
diplomats and government people.
Instead, I was spending most
of my time in my ambassador suite -
- trying to bond with the only two
people left in Bangui I could trust.
My two Pygmy assistants.
So, I'd like to introduce
Albert and Bernard -
- to an enormous animal
that lives in the sea.
And then one night
there was a knock on the door.
Ah, Gilbert. Good evening.
Hi, Paul.
You take a little bit
on the spoon like this...
- Do you like it? Very special taste.
- It's like something from the sea.
Yes. Can you taste the power in it?
- Just like the egg of fish.
- Yes, it is fish eggs.
- It's good.
- But it's very expensive.
- This one?
- Yes.
This is about 300-400 euros.
- This one?
- Yes. It's the diamonds of the sea.
These are the diamonds -
- that we get yesterday.
And another one
should come tomorrow.
If they see that on him, and he doesn't
have papers, they'll beat him up.
He'll even have to pay
20 or 50 or 100 million.
If you don't have papers -
- they can charge you
more than 50 million.
- So I should be very careful.
- Very careful.
That's what we say:
The issue of diamonds
is very easy and very difficult.
Easy if you have all the right papers.
Then you can do what you want.
- So I'm basically... They fell out.
- Be careful.
- There... You must move your feet.
- It's here.
- There it is. Oh, my God.
- Be careful.
How could it happen?
Are there any more?
Check under your shoes.
Diamonds from a conflict area
without papers are blood diamonds.
And being in possession
of the blood diamonds of M. Gilbert -
- as well as having signed
an illegal contract with him -
- made my need for diplomatic
immunity bigger than ever before.
- Mr. Cortzen, how are you?
- I'm very fine, Mr. Sherman.
I talked to the acting minister,
and it's not possible.
He doesn't have the authority
and cannot do it.
But could I have something which
could give me credibility here.
- I'm dealing with high-ranking...
- No, no, no.
You can't have anything, because...
No, Mr. Cortzen, I won't lie to you.
What about a piece of paper saying
I'm in the process of, you know...
Don't ask me to get you something
that is not normally obtained.
There is nothing called "being
in the process of being appointed. "
You're either appointed or not.
Does M. Gilbert
have something for me today?
M. Gilbert has something for you.
What you need.
- Does he have the papers with them?
- No.
Here, many diplomats,
many businessmen -
- many high people do this business,
but not officially.
They just make the arrangement.
And they put it in a very secret way,
in their body.
But where do I put it on my body?
Put it in a good way.
Put it in your pants.
We will show him. He puts it
like this, and he goes through.
Don't be too much...
scared... chicken.
You're lucky. He's very relaxed
to cooperate with you.
- So I have the right partner.
- It is a matter of being relaxed.
And being very secret and discreet.
How nice. Very beautiful.
- And so many.
- We can find more.
- Thank you, M. Gilbert.
- Give it to Maria, if you're not sure.
No fucking way!
This stops right now.
I cannot take any more of this.
Seriously!
- I was just thinking for the issue...
- No!
- No, no, no!
- What happened from here?
Diamonds thrive on discretion and
secrecy, so let's leave it like that.
But M. Gilbert, my business partner,
was finally elected to parliament -
- where he now serves as
a deputy of the president's party.
Th is will be the beginning of
a new white and black cooperation.
Paul was given 0.5m CFA francs
to incorporate the match factory -
- but has suffered several setbacks
because of malaria.
Bernard and Albert, my two Pygmy
assistants, were given the tools -
- for making matches by hand
and are busy practicing their skills.
Still no arrests have been made
in the case -
- of the assassination of the former
head of state security.
But I've since discovered
that his predecessor -
- another white Frenchman,
was also assassinated with poison -
- two years ago.
And while we're at it -
- Dr. Eastman, the mysterious boss
of Willem Tijssen, is also dead.
According to a letter from Tijssen,
Dr. Eastman died from heart failure -
- while being on a secret mission
in a remote area of Bolivia.
Emperor Bokassa, who personally
took part in killing his own people -
- was recently rehabilitated
post mortem by President Bozize -
- as a way of marking 50 years
of independence from France.
And I? What did I do?
I was finally invited back to
Monrovia for my official appointment.
When I have my vin d'honneur
in Bangui, I will invite you there.
Alright. We will honor the invitation.
We have shaken hands plenty,
but let's do some more.
Dr. Toga McIntosh is the minister
of foreign affairs in Liberia.
After the civil war, a truth and
reconciliation commission report -
- listed 50 Liberians to be banned
for life from holding public office -
- because of their role
during the war.
My new boss, Minister McIntosh,
is on the list. But who cares -
- because President Ellen Johnson
herself is also on that list.
As my friend Mr. Sherman says the
commission's report is irrelevant -
- because it was too ambitious. So
let's just get on with life as it is.
But that is a perfect ending of
the story that I end up becoming...
- The consul for real.
- That is the bottom line.
They say in diplomacy that consuls
are the Cinderellas of diplomacy.
I haven't read that part of the book
yet. I'm learning every day.
- I feel like a Cinderella now.
- Why?
Oh, you mean...
You will go to the party, don't worry.
At midnight you'll have to get back
on time, but you'll go to the party.
Before my coach transforms
into a pumpkin.
Your Excellences, consuls,
ladies and gentlemen.
On behalf of Liberia, I'd like
to welcome you all to this soiree.
Hip hip hurrah!
Hip hip hurrah! Hip hip hurrah!
Paul, also a cheer for the Pygmies.