Summary

A middle-aged man with an AK-47 walks beside a river. He sees a fig tree and, stopping, digs a hole in the ground. Into the hole he deposits his rifle. He then tears a strip of bark from the tree and ties it around his waist, forming what he considers a “belt of peace” (4). He continues walking in the direction of his home, resolved to locate his family. He crosses through a field to a tarmac road. From across the road, he hears “the Voice of Truth” (6) booming from the radio of a black Mercedes-Benz car. The Voice of Truth makes a series of announcements about recent affairs in the country, including a recent speech from the country's leader, referred to as His Excellency Ole Excellence.

The man turns his attention from the...