Cameroon: first African MP in Canada; On 28 June, Maka Kotto became the first African to be elected to the Canadian House of Commons, on the ticket of the Bloc Quebecois, a party dedicated to Quebec independence. Robin Philpot reports from Montreal

"The representative is powerful," says Maka Kotto, the of recent origin MP for Saint-Lambert in Canada, located just southerly of Montreal, whose black population is les than 3% "It is a type of open-mindedness. I received massive support from French-speaking Quebecois who had rarely at any time ventured beyond Quebec's borders."

All the more significant considering Kotto was born a certain number of 7,500 miles away in Douala, Cameroon, and has lived in Quebec for "only" 15 years. His main political enemy in the constituency, whom he ran against and beat, was born and raised in Saint-Lambert.

Kotto worked as an