Salima villagers descend on gays

There was drama Tuesday at Kaphatenga in Salima district when a group of youths descended on two males who kissed each other as they waited for a commuter bus to Nkhotakota, a lakeshore district in Central Malawi.
The two, whose names could not be ascertained as they were whisked away in a Toyota Land cruiser, met their fate at the Salima-Nkhotakota Turn off.
Eye witnesses said one of the men started kissing the other in “broad day light, and this angered people who so them do it. The people, mostly youths, then descended on them and started beating them” because of their action.
“It was strange to us, and we wanted to show them that Malawian culture doesn’t tolerate that nonsense. Actually, these were gays because last month they did the same thing,” said Michael Chalima, a pig meat seller at the Kaphatenga Trading Centre.
As youths showed their orthodox Karate skills, a passer-by surprised them by quickly whisking the two away in his vehicle.
Malawi has come under international scrutiny, especially over gay issues, following the arrest, conviction and subsequent pardon of the country’s first gay couple of Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga.
The two have since separated.