Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga have rushed out at the Malawi Police Service officers for rushing out to arrest them, saying by engaging publicly the two were just exposing what for so long has been kept under raps in Malawian society.
Monjeza and Chimbalanga told Zachimalawi they were not remorseful with what they had done, pointing out that heterosexuals engage and marry publicly without much ado from members of the public.
“So what is wrong with us?” queried Chimbalanga, as Monjeza nodded.
“It is how we were born,” said Monjeza.
Subscribe To
Posts
All Comments
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Malawi gays complain of police torture, media, society prejudice
The bail application hearing of two Malawian gays Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza arrested on Monday of holding the first public engagement between members of the same sex ended into a mixture of drama and emotions on Wednesday.
Some single women that stormed the court premises after the bail ruling was shifted for Monday ridiculed the two of staging of such an engagement when there were many single women ‘desperately’ looking for men to no avail.
One emotionally charged woman who identified her self as Memory Chamawa almost went into fits with obscene ridicules to the two saying they needed mental attention.
The two that are awaiting bail ruling in what is expected to be a controversial human rights landmark case have since complained of police torture and prejudice by the media and the general Malawian society.
Tiwonge told the media police at Blantyre police were beating them as if they had done a criminal offence yet they were just trying to open up as gays.
Said Tiwonge; “The police severely beat us as if we had done a criminal offence, they have been ridiculing us as if we are social outcasts and we are now only leaving the challenge to our lawyers”.
Tiwonge, who has been providing for the family since the two started cohabiting six months ago, also blamed the media for the way they were negatively reporting on their affair.
He said some journalists had been coming to them with obvious questions that indicated that they had previously judged them to be in the wrong.
Tiwonge said she saw nothing wrong with the engagement and condemned the media for making her partner Steven to chicken out and announce that he was planning a separation.
“The media are coming to us with condemning questions just as the church is condemning us for coming in the open on our gay status while the truth was that a lot of peole male and female were engaging in same sex affairs in Malawi,” he said.
Noel Supedi of Edgar and David the law firm representing the two said it was unprofessional for the media to put their own emotions in the coverage of the case, as meanwhile his clients were still innocent until proven guilty.
He could however not disclose the defence grounds they have in the case that attracts a 14-year jail term.
Meanwhile the Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) has assured Malawian gays and lesbians that the match planned for Friday will start at the planned time.
Magrim publicist Wongani Phiri said in an interview the Malawian gay and lesbian community was encouraged by the generosity that Edgar and David law consulting firm had shown to represent the two.
He has since appealed to well-wishers to support the two both emotionally and financially.
Some single women that stormed the court premises after the bail ruling was shifted for Monday ridiculed the two of staging of such an engagement when there were many single women ‘desperately’ looking for men to no avail.
One emotionally charged woman who identified her self as Memory Chamawa almost went into fits with obscene ridicules to the two saying they needed mental attention.
The two that are awaiting bail ruling in what is expected to be a controversial human rights landmark case have since complained of police torture and prejudice by the media and the general Malawian society.
Tiwonge told the media police at Blantyre police were beating them as if they had done a criminal offence yet they were just trying to open up as gays.
Said Tiwonge; “The police severely beat us as if we had done a criminal offence, they have been ridiculing us as if we are social outcasts and we are now only leaving the challenge to our lawyers”.
Tiwonge, who has been providing for the family since the two started cohabiting six months ago, also blamed the media for the way they were negatively reporting on their affair.
He said some journalists had been coming to them with obvious questions that indicated that they had previously judged them to be in the wrong.
Tiwonge said she saw nothing wrong with the engagement and condemned the media for making her partner Steven to chicken out and announce that he was planning a separation.
“The media are coming to us with condemning questions just as the church is condemning us for coming in the open on our gay status while the truth was that a lot of peole male and female were engaging in same sex affairs in Malawi,” he said.
Noel Supedi of Edgar and David the law firm representing the two said it was unprofessional for the media to put their own emotions in the coverage of the case, as meanwhile his clients were still innocent until proven guilty.
He could however not disclose the defence grounds they have in the case that attracts a 14-year jail term.
Meanwhile the Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) has assured Malawian gays and lesbians that the match planned for Friday will start at the planned time.
Magrim publicist Wongani Phiri said in an interview the Malawian gay and lesbian community was encouraged by the generosity that Edgar and David law consulting firm had shown to represent the two.
He has since appealed to well-wishers to support the two both emotionally and financially.
Malawian parliamentarian says he is no gay
Ruling Democratic Progressive (DPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Phalombe South, Daveson Nyadani, has denied claims he is gay and was preparing to table a motion that would effectively legalize homosexuality in Malawi.
Nyadani has, however, rushed out at journalists for probing his ‘private life’, saying whatever he does in private is nobody’s concern.
The MP was linked to gay activities while a student at Chancellor College, a constituent college of the University of Malawi, where he later worked in the Publications Department.
Nyadani has presented various papers at international level, exposing the plight of Malawian gays and lesbians in his former capacity as Centre for Development of People (Cedep).
Meanwhile, the Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) has criticized religious leaders in the country for whipping public opinion against gays and lesbians, saying the phenomenon was natural and did not deserve the negative fuss it was getting.
“Even the negative attacks on Nyadani are uncalled for. We now live in a civilised world,” said Wongani Phiri, Magrim publicist.
Wongani said it was sad that people were now resorting to witch-hunting in a bid to show how anti-gay they were.
“You talk of pastors and other ignorant people ganging up against people who don’t bother them when they go about proposing ladies. This slavish behaviour must end,” he said.
Nyadani has, however, rushed out at journalists for probing his ‘private life’, saying whatever he does in private is nobody’s concern.
The MP was linked to gay activities while a student at Chancellor College, a constituent college of the University of Malawi, where he later worked in the Publications Department.
Nyadani has presented various papers at international level, exposing the plight of Malawian gays and lesbians in his former capacity as Centre for Development of People (Cedep).
Meanwhile, the Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) has criticized religious leaders in the country for whipping public opinion against gays and lesbians, saying the phenomenon was natural and did not deserve the negative fuss it was getting.
“Even the negative attacks on Nyadani are uncalled for. We now live in a civilised world,” said Wongani Phiri, Magrim publicist.
Wongani said it was sad that people were now resorting to witch-hunting in a bid to show how anti-gay they were.
“You talk of pastors and other ignorant people ganging up against people who don’t bother them when they go about proposing ladies. This slavish behaviour must end,” he said.
Is President Bingu wa Mutharika dating former minister Calista Chimombo?
The rumour mills are busy, speculating about President Bingu wa Mutharika’s next move on the love scene
And the spotlight is on former Tourism Minister, Calista Chimombo. Chimombo served as Minister during Mutharika’s first term, but lost the position after tumbling in the May 20, 2009 Parliamentary Elections.
Chimombo has recently been seen at public occasions sitting next to the president, or a least at some ear-some distance, prompting media analysts to speculating that love could be on the cards for the flamboyant Malawi leader.
Chimombo was last seen with Mutharika on New Year’s Day, when the President entertained children at Sanjika Palace in Blantyre.
She stood behind the President, a position reserved for security personnel or those worth the President’s trust.
And Chimombo seemed happy, very happy- smiling through and through as the President danced in the midst of jubilant children.
Mutharika has not made any public stand on the issue. But speculation is rife that the two are dating.
Dating?
And the spotlight is on former Tourism Minister, Calista Chimombo. Chimombo served as Minister during Mutharika’s first term, but lost the position after tumbling in the May 20, 2009 Parliamentary Elections.
Chimombo has recently been seen at public occasions sitting next to the president, or a least at some ear-some distance, prompting media analysts to speculating that love could be on the cards for the flamboyant Malawi leader.
Chimombo was last seen with Mutharika on New Year’s Day, when the President entertained children at Sanjika Palace in Blantyre.
She stood behind the President, a position reserved for security personnel or those worth the President’s trust.
And Chimombo seemed happy, very happy- smiling through and through as the President danced in the midst of jubilant children.
Mutharika has not made any public stand on the issue. But speculation is rife that the two are dating.
Dating?
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
No clothes change for suspected gay 'bride' Monjeza in eight days
Police officers at Blantyre Police, where two Malawian gays arrested on December 26, 2009 for staging a public gays' engagement for the first time in Malawi's history are being held, have not allowed the 'bride' Tiwonge Chimbalanga the right to change his clothes.
This has meant Chimbalanga's clothes have begun to smell badly, and this reporter can testify because he sat next to the two suspects, Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza, at the Blantyre Magistrates court when the court denied them bail yesterday.
In addition, the two are apparently loosing weight, and are being tormented by members of the general public every time they appear at the court.
Women, especially, have taken it personally and have been heard to shout, even in court, at Monjeza and Chimbalanga for falling for each other when there were a lot of Malawian women walking single on the streets.
Chimbalanga said he is not happy that he has not been allowed to change his own clothes, saying that showed that Malawi did not respect human rights.
This has meant Chimbalanga's clothes have begun to smell badly, and this reporter can testify because he sat next to the two suspects, Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza, at the Blantyre Magistrates court when the court denied them bail yesterday.
In addition, the two are apparently loosing weight, and are being tormented by members of the general public every time they appear at the court.
Women, especially, have taken it personally and have been heard to shout, even in court, at Monjeza and Chimbalanga for falling for each other when there were a lot of Malawian women walking single on the streets.
Chimbalanga said he is not happy that he has not been allowed to change his own clothes, saying that showed that Malawi did not respect human rights.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Malawian gays denied bail, ridiculed in court, outside
The Blantyre Magistrates Court on Monday refused to grant Malawian gays arrested after staging the country’s first public same-sex engagement bail, bowing to prosecutors demands to give the state more powers to carry out medical examinations, among other factors.
First Grade Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa told crammed court the court wanted to give the state the benefit of the doubt by allowing it 10 more days of investigations, as opposed to the requested 14, allowing prosecutors to carry out a medical examination on Steven Monjeza Soko and Tiwonge Chimbalanga.
State prosecutors say the medical examination is crucial to their circumstantial evidence, but human rights activists have questioned the decision, saying it was tantamount to forcing people to join research initiatives or medical programmes.
Throngs of people sang songs of redicule to Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga in the court, and the two seemed less at ease. The court was supposed to be their place of refuse and shelter from a highly homophobic society.
Both Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) Publicity Secretary, Wongani Phiri, and Centre for Development of People (Cedep) executive director Gift Trapeace have expressed concern over the way Malawians are treating the two.
Women poked fun and ridiculed the two when they were boarding a police vehicle, calling them all sorts of names, including ‘mentally-disturbed devils”.
Phiri says Magrim fears that, with people openly opposing the two including within court premises, they may not be subjected to a fair trial.
However, Malawi’s judiciary has a reputation for fairness and good-dealing with suspects, a development that has at times put it at loggerheads with ruling officials.
Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga’s case has attracted a lot of attention, with people differing in opinions over the prospects of legalizing homosexuality.
Others feel there is no problem with that while the church community has ganged up against such a decision, openly calling for officials to punish the two sternly.
First Grade Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa told crammed court the court wanted to give the state the benefit of the doubt by allowing it 10 more days of investigations, as opposed to the requested 14, allowing prosecutors to carry out a medical examination on Steven Monjeza Soko and Tiwonge Chimbalanga.
State prosecutors say the medical examination is crucial to their circumstantial evidence, but human rights activists have questioned the decision, saying it was tantamount to forcing people to join research initiatives or medical programmes.
Throngs of people sang songs of redicule to Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga in the court, and the two seemed less at ease. The court was supposed to be their place of refuse and shelter from a highly homophobic society.
Both Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) Publicity Secretary, Wongani Phiri, and Centre for Development of People (Cedep) executive director Gift Trapeace have expressed concern over the way Malawians are treating the two.
Women poked fun and ridiculed the two when they were boarding a police vehicle, calling them all sorts of names, including ‘mentally-disturbed devils”.
Phiri says Magrim fears that, with people openly opposing the two including within court premises, they may not be subjected to a fair trial.
However, Malawi’s judiciary has a reputation for fairness and good-dealing with suspects, a development that has at times put it at loggerheads with ruling officials.
Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga’s case has attracted a lot of attention, with people differing in opinions over the prospects of legalizing homosexuality.
Others feel there is no problem with that while the church community has ganged up against such a decision, openly calling for officials to punish the two sternly.
Zambia’s inflation hits single digit
Zambia's inflation has reverted to a single digit bracket, from 11.5% in November to 9.9% in December 2009, latest data from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) has revealed.
The rebound to single digits is the first time in over a year for Africa’s largest copper producer. Industry analysts had anticipated a further decline in Zambia’s inflation but attaining single digits by the fall of 2009 was unexpected. Analysts had banked their projections on unstable micro and macro fundamentals.
According CSO, annual inflation recoiled back into single digits as result of various factors. It said inflation has declined to 9.9% year-on-year in December from 11.5% in November, the first time it has been below 10 percent since March 2008.
"The decline of 1.6 percentage points in annual inflation rate in December 2009 was as a result of the decrease in some food prices," said CSO in its monthly bulletin issued in Lusaka on New Year’s Eve.
Zambia has also recorded a trade surplus of 322.9 billion kwacha in November after a surplus of 299.5 billion kwacha in October.
The country’s major export products in November were from intermediate goods, mainly copper products.
Last November, central bank Governor, Caleb Fundanga, said the country had revised its end-December 2009 annual inflation forecast to 10 percent from the previous figure of 12 percent due mainly to falling food prices.
The rebound to single digits is the first time in over a year for Africa’s largest copper producer. Industry analysts had anticipated a further decline in Zambia’s inflation but attaining single digits by the fall of 2009 was unexpected. Analysts had banked their projections on unstable micro and macro fundamentals.
According CSO, annual inflation recoiled back into single digits as result of various factors. It said inflation has declined to 9.9% year-on-year in December from 11.5% in November, the first time it has been below 10 percent since March 2008.
"The decline of 1.6 percentage points in annual inflation rate in December 2009 was as a result of the decrease in some food prices," said CSO in its monthly bulletin issued in Lusaka on New Year’s Eve.
Zambia has also recorded a trade surplus of 322.9 billion kwacha in November after a surplus of 299.5 billion kwacha in October.
The country’s major export products in November were from intermediate goods, mainly copper products.
Last November, central bank Governor, Caleb Fundanga, said the country had revised its end-December 2009 annual inflation forecast to 10 percent from the previous figure of 12 percent due mainly to falling food prices.
South Africa: Jacob Zuma ties knot
A day long Zulu traditional wedding ceremony is currently underway in South Africa where President Jacob Zuma is to marry Thobeka Madiba. She will be his third wife. Zuma is a Zulu traditionalist who practices polygamy and has married five times. The 68-year-old has 19 children.
The Zulu traditional ceremony will run the whole day in Zuma’s home village and the media have been asked to stay at bay by the office of the president, as the wedding is a private event.
Zuma was previously married to Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, whom he divorced in 1998 and Kate Zuma, who committed suicide in 2000.
The Zulu traditional ceremony will run the whole day in Zuma’s home village and the media have been asked to stay at bay by the office of the president, as the wedding is a private event.
Zuma was previously married to Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, whom he divorced in 1998 and Kate Zuma, who committed suicide in 2000.
2009: Nine journalists killed in Somalia
The number of journalists killed around the world rose to a record 70 in 2009, largely in part due to a slaughter in the Philippines and Somalia, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said. Somalia was the second most deadly country for journalists with nine media deaths in 2009.
According to the press group, those fighting in Somalia have carried attacks against the Somali press, murdering journalists and seizing news outlets.
On 3rd December, three Somali journalists were killed in same place after suicide bomb hit at a university graduation ceremony in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
Al Arabia camera journalist Hassan Zubeyr Haji and Mohamed Amin Adan shabelle reporter were among those killed in suicide bomb in Mogadishu including a freelancer. More than five other journalists were wounded in the event. The CPJ lists Somalia in 2009 as the seventh most deadly nation in the world for journalists.
A journalist Mohamud Mohamed Yusuf who was working for a local FM called IQK in Mogadishu was killed on 4th July, and in June unknown gunmen shot dead Muktar Mohamed Hirabe, director of Shabelle Media Network, one of the largest media houses in Somalia, while he was walking in the main market Bakara area, insurgent stronghold area. In that event, another Shabelle journalist Ahmed Omar Hashi-Ahmed Tajir was also wounded.
More deaths
The correspondent of Mogadishu based Radio IQK Nur Muse Hussein died in the centre town of Beledweyn, some 300 kilometres (180 miles) north of the capital of war-torn nation in the Horn of Africa as he was reporting the fight between government forces and the insurgents in town in May 26, 2009.
Abdirisak Mohamed Warsame of Radio Shabelle was also shot dead on May 22 during fierce fighting in Mogadishu. On February 2nd, Said Tahlil Ahmed, the director of Horn Afrik Radio, was assassinated in Mogadishu after the killing of another Radio Shabelle journalist Hassan Mayow Hassan on 1st January.
According to the report, the “most shocking statistics” of 2009 was in the Philippines, where around 38 journalists and media staff were killed in cold blood, mostly in a massacre in Maguindanao province on November 23.
In the last three years, most of old Somali journalists fled the country because of attacks and harassment but young journalists have taken over their works.
The young journalists are risking theirs lives and working under dangerous conditions.
Most of the exiled journalists are now living in Kenya, our correspondent said.
Abdirahman Sharif Mohamed, an exiled journalist in Nairobi told Africa News that they need a lot of assistance to survive in Kenya. "Two years in here, Nairobi, we got no aid except refugee status" said Mohamed.
According to the press group, those fighting in Somalia have carried attacks against the Somali press, murdering journalists and seizing news outlets.
On 3rd December, three Somali journalists were killed in same place after suicide bomb hit at a university graduation ceremony in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
Al Arabia camera journalist Hassan Zubeyr Haji and Mohamed Amin Adan shabelle reporter were among those killed in suicide bomb in Mogadishu including a freelancer. More than five other journalists were wounded in the event. The CPJ lists Somalia in 2009 as the seventh most deadly nation in the world for journalists.
A journalist Mohamud Mohamed Yusuf who was working for a local FM called IQK in Mogadishu was killed on 4th July, and in June unknown gunmen shot dead Muktar Mohamed Hirabe, director of Shabelle Media Network, one of the largest media houses in Somalia, while he was walking in the main market Bakara area, insurgent stronghold area. In that event, another Shabelle journalist Ahmed Omar Hashi-Ahmed Tajir was also wounded.
More deaths
The correspondent of Mogadishu based Radio IQK Nur Muse Hussein died in the centre town of Beledweyn, some 300 kilometres (180 miles) north of the capital of war-torn nation in the Horn of Africa as he was reporting the fight between government forces and the insurgents in town in May 26, 2009.
Abdirisak Mohamed Warsame of Radio Shabelle was also shot dead on May 22 during fierce fighting in Mogadishu. On February 2nd, Said Tahlil Ahmed, the director of Horn Afrik Radio, was assassinated in Mogadishu after the killing of another Radio Shabelle journalist Hassan Mayow Hassan on 1st January.
According to the report, the “most shocking statistics” of 2009 was in the Philippines, where around 38 journalists and media staff were killed in cold blood, mostly in a massacre in Maguindanao province on November 23.
In the last three years, most of old Somali journalists fled the country because of attacks and harassment but young journalists have taken over their works.
The young journalists are risking theirs lives and working under dangerous conditions.
Most of the exiled journalists are now living in Kenya, our correspondent said.
Abdirahman Sharif Mohamed, an exiled journalist in Nairobi told Africa News that they need a lot of assistance to survive in Kenya. "Two years in here, Nairobi, we got no aid except refugee status" said Mohamed.
Moroccan Blogger and Internet Cafe Owner jailed
When El Bachir Hazzam circulated information about the heavy handed crackdown on student protests in the village of Taghjijt (200 km south of Agadir) in Morocco he did so with the the intention of letting the Moroccan society know what was going on, this it seems was not the view of the Moroccan autorities who promptly arrested him and the owner of the cyber cafe he used to get online.
Hazzam was arrested on 7th December in relation to the protest but question revealed that the authorities also were interested in a September 2007 article he had written about the legislative process in Morocco. He was given a four month sentence while the cyber cafe owner, Abdullah Boukfou was given a 12 month jail term. Hazzam was charged with ‘?????spreading false information about human rights that undermined the kingdom’s image’ while Boukfou was charged with ‘being in possession of publications that incite racial hatred’.
To say that the charged are superfluous would be an understatement, these are just the cleverest of the what the Moroccan authorities could think of to get a conviction. At CPB we recognize this as a pattern of lies that governments manufacture to silence online dissidents.
Hazzam has indicated that he will be appealing against the sentence and we wish him the best of luck.
Hazzam was arrested on 7th December in relation to the protest but question revealed that the authorities also were interested in a September 2007 article he had written about the legislative process in Morocco. He was given a four month sentence while the cyber cafe owner, Abdullah Boukfou was given a 12 month jail term. Hazzam was charged with ‘?????spreading false information about human rights that undermined the kingdom’s image’ while Boukfou was charged with ‘being in possession of publications that incite racial hatred’.
To say that the charged are superfluous would be an understatement, these are just the cleverest of the what the Moroccan authorities could think of to get a conviction. At CPB we recognize this as a pattern of lies that governments manufacture to silence online dissidents.
Hazzam has indicated that he will be appealing against the sentence and we wish him the best of luck.
Senegal president, Wade, is most traveled worldwide
Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade, has been named "the greatest traveler since Alexander the Great." According to a study by Dakar-based Aid Transparency the West African president beats great leaders of today's generation even when their travel times are combined together.
The report published in a Dakar-based daily - The Kotch - said the time traveled by presidents Carter, Bush - father and son - Clinton, Obama, Sarkozy and Chirac, Helmut Kohl and Angela Merkel, all put together, will not account for half the time that President Wade has spent traveling outside his country, after only nine years as head of state of Senegal.
According to the report, on average the Senegalese president embarked on 37 trips per year representing at least three trips per month. This also translates that he travels outside Senegal every 10 days.
The study which also pointed to France, the United States of America, Switzerland and Saudi Arabia as among countries frequented by the Senegalese president, made a striking contrast with an almost non-existent internal travels by the president.
The authors of the study pointed at the cost involved in such frequency of traveling, citing hiring or maintenance of the aircraft involved, accommodation, catering for the normally larger presidential entourage that is characteristic of African leaders, not to mention the "gifts" that goes with such high profile visits overseas. These, the authors argued, could mean a lot for many lives and families in a poor African country like Senegal.
Aid Transparency is an agency that seeks to protect aid recipients from donors. It also publicizes violations of people's rights to a fair delivery of international development.
The report published in a Dakar-based daily - The Kotch - said the time traveled by presidents Carter, Bush - father and son - Clinton, Obama, Sarkozy and Chirac, Helmut Kohl and Angela Merkel, all put together, will not account for half the time that President Wade has spent traveling outside his country, after only nine years as head of state of Senegal.
According to the report, on average the Senegalese president embarked on 37 trips per year representing at least three trips per month. This also translates that he travels outside Senegal every 10 days.
The study which also pointed to France, the United States of America, Switzerland and Saudi Arabia as among countries frequented by the Senegalese president, made a striking contrast with an almost non-existent internal travels by the president.
The authors of the study pointed at the cost involved in such frequency of traveling, citing hiring or maintenance of the aircraft involved, accommodation, catering for the normally larger presidential entourage that is characteristic of African leaders, not to mention the "gifts" that goes with such high profile visits overseas. These, the authors argued, could mean a lot for many lives and families in a poor African country like Senegal.
Aid Transparency is an agency that seeks to protect aid recipients from donors. It also publicizes violations of people's rights to a fair delivery of international development.
Blantyre Magistrates Court denies gays bail
The Blantyre Magistrates Court on Monday refused to grant Malawian gays arrested after staging the country’s first public same-sex engagement bail, bowing to prosecutors demands to give the state more powers to carry out medical examinations, among other factors.
First Grade Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa told crammed court the court wanted to give the state the benefit of the doubt by allowing it 10 more days of investigations, as opposed to the requested 14, allowing prosecutors to carry out a medical examination on Steven Monjeza Soko and Tiwonge Chimbalanga.
State prosecutors say the medical examination is crucial to their circumstantial evidence, but human rights activists have questioned the decision, saying it was tantamount to forcing people to join research initiatives or medical programmes.
Throngs of people sang songs of redicule to Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga in the court, and the two seemed less at ease. The court was supposed to be their place of refuse and shelter from a highly homophobic society.
Both Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) Publicity Secretary, Wongani Phiri, and Centre for Development of People (Cedep) executive director Gift Trapeace have expressed concern over the way Malawians are treating the two.
Women poked fun and ridiculed the two when they were boarding a police vehicle, calling them all sorts of names, including ‘mentally-disturbed devils”.
Phiri says Magrim fears that, with people openly opposing the two including within court premises, they may not be subjected to a fair trial.
However, Malawi’s judiciary has a reputation for fairness and good-dealing with suspects, a development that has at times put it at loggerheads with ruling officials.
Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga’s case has attracted a lot of attention, with people differing in opinions over the prospects of legalizing homosexuality.
Others feel there is no problem with that while the church community has ganged up against such a decision, openly calling for officials to punish the two sternly.
First Grade Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa told crammed court the court wanted to give the state the benefit of the doubt by allowing it 10 more days of investigations, as opposed to the requested 14, allowing prosecutors to carry out a medical examination on Steven Monjeza Soko and Tiwonge Chimbalanga.
State prosecutors say the medical examination is crucial to their circumstantial evidence, but human rights activists have questioned the decision, saying it was tantamount to forcing people to join research initiatives or medical programmes.
Throngs of people sang songs of redicule to Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga in the court, and the two seemed less at ease. The court was supposed to be their place of refuse and shelter from a highly homophobic society.
Both Malawi Gay Rights Movement (Magrim) Publicity Secretary, Wongani Phiri, and Centre for Development of People (Cedep) executive director Gift Trapeace have expressed concern over the way Malawians are treating the two.
Women poked fun and ridiculed the two when they were boarding a police vehicle, calling them all sorts of names, including ‘mentally-disturbed devils”.
Phiri says Magrim fears that, with people openly opposing the two including within court premises, they may not be subjected to a fair trial.
However, Malawi’s judiciary has a reputation for fairness and good-dealing with suspects, a development that has at times put it at loggerheads with ruling officials.
Monjeza Soko and Chimbalanga’s case has attracted a lot of attention, with people differing in opinions over the prospects of legalizing homosexuality.
Others feel there is no problem with that while the church community has ganged up against such a decision, openly calling for officials to punish the two sternly.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
2009: My experiences as a blogger
Just 10 years ago, online journalism was a secret package alien to Malawi- so secret that not many within the country knew its contents.
Some dark age must surely have been reigning: what with the absence of Malawi’s big media house establishments online! Online media seemed something of impossible remoteness very few- and these were those who had ever been outside the country to such countries as the United Kingdom, USA, Germany, where the online culture was something embedded in their media culture as in stone- could be sure the waves would strike beach anytime soon..
Blogging was thus out of question for a people who had scant information about online media technologies, more so when what those in know valued about modern media was scarcely encouraging.
It was like knowing an art by report, other than experience; by theory other than deeds- a situation tantamount to knowing a man by speech and company, instead of the daily trail of his life.
Then, Malawians living abroad, notably United Kingdom, learnt the art that side of the oceans. These were mostly people with dissenting views and human rights advocates. That was to become part of the beginning of such online publications as Nyasa Times. Others have since joined the bandwagon, one of which being malawionline.net (established as late as March 2009!).
However, some of the country’s founding media establishments were yet to join the bandwagon. A good case in point in Blantyre Newspapers Limited (BNL). BNL is Malawi’s oldest publishing house, and started publishing as early as 1895. Yet, the company still found online publishing more luxurious than habit-forming.
Same with Nation Publications Limited (NPL), the country’s next big print media institution. NPL could, however, be excused for entertaining some vain delays: it only came onto the Malawi media scene in the early 1990s.
This was a time when the winds of democracy were blowing across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member state, and the new entrant- founded by political activist Aleke Kadonaphani Banda – influenced, in a way, the outcome of the elections.
Malawians overwhelmingly voted for multiparty democracy, ending a 31-year iron fist rule of former dictator, Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda.. When people Okayed multiparty democracy in a June 1993 National Referendum, the black curtain hanging over freedom of expression guarantees made by United Nations member states was half-open.
In the country’s 1994 elections, won by former president Bakili Muluzi, the work was complete. 1994 can thus be described as the Genesis of respect for freedom of expression and other human rights freedoms.
Many newspaper publications were to follow; the likes of The Democrat, UDF News, The Democratus, The Enquirer, The Mirror, The Country Register, Pan-African Press Service, Discover Magazine, Fairlane Magazine, Pride Magazine and a host of private radio stations. Whereas Malawi Broadcasting Corporation remained the sole broadcaster since Malawi’s independence from Britain in 1964, the advent of multiparty democracy provided new opportunities for the country’s broadcasting media, with Power 101 FM becoming the first privately registered radio station in 1998.
Now, Malawi has 13 other radio stations including Radio Maria, Radio Islam, Calvary Family Church Radio, Capital FM, Joy FM, MIJ FM, MBC Radio 2 FM, Dzimwe Community Radio, Nkhota-kota Community Radio, ABC Radio, Radio Alinafe, Mzuzu Community Radio among others, and three TV stations in Malawi Television (state-owned), Luntha and AFJ. It must be noted that most radio stations and two TV stations are owned by religious institutions, so the aim is not mainly to disseminate (hard) news related materials but evangelism.
Community radio stations are also becoming part of the norm, as communities realize that they can influence positive change in their areas.
All these media developments would have been achieved as early as 1964 to 1980, had it been that the country’s democracy was not botched. The country first had multiparty (read, democratic) elections in 1964 when about four parties contested for the presidency and members of parliament in the elections. However, as was to happen elsewhere in Africa, where Africa’s first generation clung on to power as the West fought the battle against communism, Malawi fell into that age-old trap of power. Too much of it corrupts!
Therefore, Malawi went to the first multiparty polls again in 1994, after the long, lonely journey from 1964, and many print publications and radio stations came onto the scene. The beginning was nowhere insight for online media, what with the first privately owned radio station being registered in 1998!
Things were, however, changing after the country’s second elections in 1999. People begun to talk about vote rigging and other issues too sensitive for the nascent radio stations and newspapers. 31 years on one party regime and no real freedoms had meant that people who were working for state-run media were not journalists. Most of them were party zealots and secondary school teachers.
The in-thing then was to have their news articles pre-written, whereas they would only be required to fill in pre-designed gaps. There was nothing like being enterprising; you were doing what the boss had sketched for you.
There surely was need for new forms of media to accommodate the non-conventional dissenting views. Online publications like Nyasa Times provided the sure answer. It must be noted that most Malawians based abroad frequent Nyasa Times, though some have misforgivings about its values.
People can use any sort of language on Nyasa Times, and most people who comment on various issues use raw, foul language many Malawians loathe. They say Malawi is a God-fearing nation.
This has led many people to be suspicious of online publications, wondering whether the people who run them have any values at all. But for Malawian journalists, the online publications have provided a means of getting their work published in a country where the media industry is still small. This has led to poor perks and very few complain. Why? The long queue waiting for same employment opportunities!
People have come to accept online publications now, and know, more than ever before, that these publications are there to stay. And the country has just now also begun to witness the spiraling on Blogs.
The reasons for the escalation of number of Blogs, and thus Bloggers, are too fold. They either worked for Nyasa Times and Malawionline.net (for those just joining the growing online industry) and never received their promised pay. While employment contracts are signed between the two parties, the two biggest online publications are published by people who live abroad. In addition, online publications such as Nyasa Times are not registered in Malawi, as the law requires, because the owners are afraid of lawsuits due to the unsubstantiative nature of the work they publish and the defamatory nature of their stories.
In the end, the disgruntled contributors consider it better to establish Blogs for the satisfaction aspect of it. They know they will get no, or little money, for their sweat. But they will, at least, be happy and satisfied.
The second reason for the increased number of Blogs is the reason to have an outlet, and this applies to people already working for other media houses- especially state media such as Malawi Television and Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. They will be flaunting contractual obligations if they write for other publications, including those online, so they write for themselves.
However, there is still room for improvement. The country still has few numbers of Bloggers. A March 2009 Development Media Africa (Dema) report on online media in Malawi revealed that the country has less than 7000 Bloggers.
In addition, the Dema report also added, almost embarrassingly, that there are only six (6) people with Flip Video camcorders in Malawi. What is more? Two (2) of these Flip Videos are now out of use (breakdowns) and only four (4) are working!
It further said Malawians have started reading other people’s Blogs the past three years, reading habitually that is. It seems people want to know what is in the mind of others now than ever before.
Talking about by experience as a Blogger, well, I find the work rewarding. At least on the satisfactory level of it. It’s only last month that I monetized my Blog, to get a little something out of it because internet costs in Malawi are exorbitant. That is scarcely strange in a country where only 6 per cent is connected to the National Electricity Grid.
Also, Malawi has less than four internet service providers rendering end-user costs a little out of rich for many people in Malawi. Internet café owners pay something between 500 Euros and 600 Euros for quick internet services- and the ‘quick’ stands for something like two-minutes for you to finally sign in into your email or Blog account when checking mail, surfing or posting materials!
But I am satisfied with the responses I get from people who e-mail me (mtolankhani@gmail.com) from all over the world. I often wonder how they come across my Blog, www.zachimalawi.blogspot.com. Here, I tackle issues I feel are Malawian in nature, or have implications for Malawi.
But I have also landed into trouble for doing just this. I once posted an article about The State House. I posted something about my feelings on the Communication Strategy that was being employed at The State House, the residence of incumbent President, Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika.
The then State House Press Officer (who got the sack, I suspect for adding no value to the State House, a couple of months ago) Mr. Chikumbutso Mtumodzi was victimizing online journalists, me inclusive. In the first place, he engaged media spies who were spying on fellow members of the media. Their task was tom report to State House the names of online journalists, most of them were using pen names, who were writing for online publications including Nyasa Times.
The main target was those writing for Nyasa Times and Blogs perceived pro-opposition. As I am writing, there is a Black Book of journalists perceived anti-government something at The State House, and I am sad that I happen to be there. For what reason I don’t know; I am a humble citizen. But one who will stand for the Constitution of Malawi when times come to choose between individuals and the Constitution. And such times were many in the past six years!
These journalists or Bloggers were then being victimized. The process went like this: The State House Press Officer would invite you to the House whenever the President wanted to have an audience with the country’s journalists. You would have an Invitation Letter like the rest, of course, but Mr. Mtumodzi would be personally there at the gate waiting for you.
He would then single out the Black-Booked journals, all of them unsuspecting, and tell you that you were invited by mistake. The Invitation Letters would then be snatched from you, though they had your names inscribed on them, and given to State media reporters. You would always have seven to 10 state-run media reporters at such functions, with one (or two for the very lucky ones) representative from the other private media houses.
The other strategy would be like this: State House officials would give you Pass IDs during the President’s functions, enabling you to take pictures of the President at close range. The State House Press Officer would then come and snatch them from you, sometimes telling you bluntly: “you don’t write good things about this government. We know you have been sent”!
It is always embarrassing to have your ID or Pass snatched in public. It was one of the government’s strategies to make you mind what you write, and you always had that feeling that if you want to attend a Presidential function and take his photos at close range, you really need to become the ‘good boy’ you deserve!
I can say without fear of contradiction that I have experienced these things, along side ‘open’ Nyasa Times journalist Madalitso Kateta. As a result, Kateta’s Blog (christened willsmadyk) is the epitaph of a ‘good boy’ the world wants him to be.
It is one day, however, I shall live to remember. As Malawians prepared to go the polls on May19, 2009 (to elect a Head of State and Government and 193 members of parliament), I bumped into the State House Press Officer himself in Blantyre City Business District and greeted him. He did not answer.
I did it the second time and he answered. But the answer was clearly a way of brushing you off. He said “I am fine, thank you”! Mr. Mtumodzi was in the company of three City Vehicle Parking Fees collectors I knew. The City collectors work for the City Assembly but also ask for cash if it so happens that a big government official parks by. In that case, they will not even charge any parking fees, but will ask for ‘consideration’ (in terms of cash) from the big government or political gurus.
In Mr. Mtumodzi, they thought they got one such guru. Cash delivered at the fingertips! I am big enough to know that I was not wanted at that place, let alone my greeting, so I went on, on my way.
I met two of the parking fee collectors twenty minutes later, and was puzzled by the question they put across me.
“How do you two co-relate? Mr. Mtumodzi told us that he never wants to come anywhere closer you; let alone being seen with you”!
I told them he thought I wrote badly about government, his government.
That is as far as it can go in Malawi, 15 years down the road, in our second try at multiparty democracy.
It may not be over for me, I think. Mr. Mtumodzi was sacked as State House Press Officer a couple of months ago. Now the State House has no Press Officer, two months down the line.
Now he (Mtumodzi) is the Director of Information in Malawi. He is my Director, and he would surely not be proud to be such. Only that I am yet to meet him in his new appointment.
Of course, there are times I like him. I will never forget the time he told Mr. Sam Mpasu, an opposition politician from the United Democratic Front (UDF) that he was not eligible to comment on any issues in Malawi because his (Mpasu’s) son, Joseph, was in prison!
The fact still remains that I get more satisfaction writing what I do on my Blog, and receiving encouraging feedback from all over the world. I have even turned my Blog into a public forum: readers ask me to investigate an issue and report to them through the Blog, or ask many interesting questions they want me to answer.
My Blog is a humanitarian effort; I serve myself, and more over, others.
Some dark age must surely have been reigning: what with the absence of Malawi’s big media house establishments online! Online media seemed something of impossible remoteness very few- and these were those who had ever been outside the country to such countries as the United Kingdom, USA, Germany, where the online culture was something embedded in their media culture as in stone- could be sure the waves would strike beach anytime soon..
Blogging was thus out of question for a people who had scant information about online media technologies, more so when what those in know valued about modern media was scarcely encouraging.
It was like knowing an art by report, other than experience; by theory other than deeds- a situation tantamount to knowing a man by speech and company, instead of the daily trail of his life.
Then, Malawians living abroad, notably United Kingdom, learnt the art that side of the oceans. These were mostly people with dissenting views and human rights advocates. That was to become part of the beginning of such online publications as Nyasa Times. Others have since joined the bandwagon, one of which being malawionline.net (established as late as March 2009!).
However, some of the country’s founding media establishments were yet to join the bandwagon. A good case in point in Blantyre Newspapers Limited (BNL). BNL is Malawi’s oldest publishing house, and started publishing as early as 1895. Yet, the company still found online publishing more luxurious than habit-forming.
Same with Nation Publications Limited (NPL), the country’s next big print media institution. NPL could, however, be excused for entertaining some vain delays: it only came onto the Malawi media scene in the early 1990s.
This was a time when the winds of democracy were blowing across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member state, and the new entrant- founded by political activist Aleke Kadonaphani Banda – influenced, in a way, the outcome of the elections.
Malawians overwhelmingly voted for multiparty democracy, ending a 31-year iron fist rule of former dictator, Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda.. When people Okayed multiparty democracy in a June 1993 National Referendum, the black curtain hanging over freedom of expression guarantees made by United Nations member states was half-open.
In the country’s 1994 elections, won by former president Bakili Muluzi, the work was complete. 1994 can thus be described as the Genesis of respect for freedom of expression and other human rights freedoms.
Many newspaper publications were to follow; the likes of The Democrat, UDF News, The Democratus, The Enquirer, The Mirror, The Country Register, Pan-African Press Service, Discover Magazine, Fairlane Magazine, Pride Magazine and a host of private radio stations. Whereas Malawi Broadcasting Corporation remained the sole broadcaster since Malawi’s independence from Britain in 1964, the advent of multiparty democracy provided new opportunities for the country’s broadcasting media, with Power 101 FM becoming the first privately registered radio station in 1998.
Now, Malawi has 13 other radio stations including Radio Maria, Radio Islam, Calvary Family Church Radio, Capital FM, Joy FM, MIJ FM, MBC Radio 2 FM, Dzimwe Community Radio, Nkhota-kota Community Radio, ABC Radio, Radio Alinafe, Mzuzu Community Radio among others, and three TV stations in Malawi Television (state-owned), Luntha and AFJ. It must be noted that most radio stations and two TV stations are owned by religious institutions, so the aim is not mainly to disseminate (hard) news related materials but evangelism.
Community radio stations are also becoming part of the norm, as communities realize that they can influence positive change in their areas.
All these media developments would have been achieved as early as 1964 to 1980, had it been that the country’s democracy was not botched. The country first had multiparty (read, democratic) elections in 1964 when about four parties contested for the presidency and members of parliament in the elections. However, as was to happen elsewhere in Africa, where Africa’s first generation clung on to power as the West fought the battle against communism, Malawi fell into that age-old trap of power. Too much of it corrupts!
Therefore, Malawi went to the first multiparty polls again in 1994, after the long, lonely journey from 1964, and many print publications and radio stations came onto the scene. The beginning was nowhere insight for online media, what with the first privately owned radio station being registered in 1998!
Things were, however, changing after the country’s second elections in 1999. People begun to talk about vote rigging and other issues too sensitive for the nascent radio stations and newspapers. 31 years on one party regime and no real freedoms had meant that people who were working for state-run media were not journalists. Most of them were party zealots and secondary school teachers.
The in-thing then was to have their news articles pre-written, whereas they would only be required to fill in pre-designed gaps. There was nothing like being enterprising; you were doing what the boss had sketched for you.
There surely was need for new forms of media to accommodate the non-conventional dissenting views. Online publications like Nyasa Times provided the sure answer. It must be noted that most Malawians based abroad frequent Nyasa Times, though some have misforgivings about its values.
People can use any sort of language on Nyasa Times, and most people who comment on various issues use raw, foul language many Malawians loathe. They say Malawi is a God-fearing nation.
This has led many people to be suspicious of online publications, wondering whether the people who run them have any values at all. But for Malawian journalists, the online publications have provided a means of getting their work published in a country where the media industry is still small. This has led to poor perks and very few complain. Why? The long queue waiting for same employment opportunities!
People have come to accept online publications now, and know, more than ever before, that these publications are there to stay. And the country has just now also begun to witness the spiraling on Blogs.
The reasons for the escalation of number of Blogs, and thus Bloggers, are too fold. They either worked for Nyasa Times and Malawionline.net (for those just joining the growing online industry) and never received their promised pay. While employment contracts are signed between the two parties, the two biggest online publications are published by people who live abroad. In addition, online publications such as Nyasa Times are not registered in Malawi, as the law requires, because the owners are afraid of lawsuits due to the unsubstantiative nature of the work they publish and the defamatory nature of their stories.
In the end, the disgruntled contributors consider it better to establish Blogs for the satisfaction aspect of it. They know they will get no, or little money, for their sweat. But they will, at least, be happy and satisfied.
The second reason for the increased number of Blogs is the reason to have an outlet, and this applies to people already working for other media houses- especially state media such as Malawi Television and Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. They will be flaunting contractual obligations if they write for other publications, including those online, so they write for themselves.
However, there is still room for improvement. The country still has few numbers of Bloggers. A March 2009 Development Media Africa (Dema) report on online media in Malawi revealed that the country has less than 7000 Bloggers.
In addition, the Dema report also added, almost embarrassingly, that there are only six (6) people with Flip Video camcorders in Malawi. What is more? Two (2) of these Flip Videos are now out of use (breakdowns) and only four (4) are working!
It further said Malawians have started reading other people’s Blogs the past three years, reading habitually that is. It seems people want to know what is in the mind of others now than ever before.
Talking about by experience as a Blogger, well, I find the work rewarding. At least on the satisfactory level of it. It’s only last month that I monetized my Blog, to get a little something out of it because internet costs in Malawi are exorbitant. That is scarcely strange in a country where only 6 per cent is connected to the National Electricity Grid.
Also, Malawi has less than four internet service providers rendering end-user costs a little out of rich for many people in Malawi. Internet café owners pay something between 500 Euros and 600 Euros for quick internet services- and the ‘quick’ stands for something like two-minutes for you to finally sign in into your email or Blog account when checking mail, surfing or posting materials!
But I am satisfied with the responses I get from people who e-mail me (mtolankhani@gmail.com) from all over the world. I often wonder how they come across my Blog, www.zachimalawi.blogspot.com. Here, I tackle issues I feel are Malawian in nature, or have implications for Malawi.
But I have also landed into trouble for doing just this. I once posted an article about The State House. I posted something about my feelings on the Communication Strategy that was being employed at The State House, the residence of incumbent President, Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika.
The then State House Press Officer (who got the sack, I suspect for adding no value to the State House, a couple of months ago) Mr. Chikumbutso Mtumodzi was victimizing online journalists, me inclusive. In the first place, he engaged media spies who were spying on fellow members of the media. Their task was tom report to State House the names of online journalists, most of them were using pen names, who were writing for online publications including Nyasa Times.
The main target was those writing for Nyasa Times and Blogs perceived pro-opposition. As I am writing, there is a Black Book of journalists perceived anti-government something at The State House, and I am sad that I happen to be there. For what reason I don’t know; I am a humble citizen. But one who will stand for the Constitution of Malawi when times come to choose between individuals and the Constitution. And such times were many in the past six years!
These journalists or Bloggers were then being victimized. The process went like this: The State House Press Officer would invite you to the House whenever the President wanted to have an audience with the country’s journalists. You would have an Invitation Letter like the rest, of course, but Mr. Mtumodzi would be personally there at the gate waiting for you.
He would then single out the Black-Booked journals, all of them unsuspecting, and tell you that you were invited by mistake. The Invitation Letters would then be snatched from you, though they had your names inscribed on them, and given to State media reporters. You would always have seven to 10 state-run media reporters at such functions, with one (or two for the very lucky ones) representative from the other private media houses.
The other strategy would be like this: State House officials would give you Pass IDs during the President’s functions, enabling you to take pictures of the President at close range. The State House Press Officer would then come and snatch them from you, sometimes telling you bluntly: “you don’t write good things about this government. We know you have been sent”!
It is always embarrassing to have your ID or Pass snatched in public. It was one of the government’s strategies to make you mind what you write, and you always had that feeling that if you want to attend a Presidential function and take his photos at close range, you really need to become the ‘good boy’ you deserve!
I can say without fear of contradiction that I have experienced these things, along side ‘open’ Nyasa Times journalist Madalitso Kateta. As a result, Kateta’s Blog (christened willsmadyk) is the epitaph of a ‘good boy’ the world wants him to be.
It is one day, however, I shall live to remember. As Malawians prepared to go the polls on May19, 2009 (to elect a Head of State and Government and 193 members of parliament), I bumped into the State House Press Officer himself in Blantyre City Business District and greeted him. He did not answer.
I did it the second time and he answered. But the answer was clearly a way of brushing you off. He said “I am fine, thank you”! Mr. Mtumodzi was in the company of three City Vehicle Parking Fees collectors I knew. The City collectors work for the City Assembly but also ask for cash if it so happens that a big government official parks by. In that case, they will not even charge any parking fees, but will ask for ‘consideration’ (in terms of cash) from the big government or political gurus.
In Mr. Mtumodzi, they thought they got one such guru. Cash delivered at the fingertips! I am big enough to know that I was not wanted at that place, let alone my greeting, so I went on, on my way.
I met two of the parking fee collectors twenty minutes later, and was puzzled by the question they put across me.
“How do you two co-relate? Mr. Mtumodzi told us that he never wants to come anywhere closer you; let alone being seen with you”!
I told them he thought I wrote badly about government, his government.
That is as far as it can go in Malawi, 15 years down the road, in our second try at multiparty democracy.
It may not be over for me, I think. Mr. Mtumodzi was sacked as State House Press Officer a couple of months ago. Now the State House has no Press Officer, two months down the line.
Now he (Mtumodzi) is the Director of Information in Malawi. He is my Director, and he would surely not be proud to be such. Only that I am yet to meet him in his new appointment.
Of course, there are times I like him. I will never forget the time he told Mr. Sam Mpasu, an opposition politician from the United Democratic Front (UDF) that he was not eligible to comment on any issues in Malawi because his (Mpasu’s) son, Joseph, was in prison!
The fact still remains that I get more satisfaction writing what I do on my Blog, and receiving encouraging feedback from all over the world. I have even turned my Blog into a public forum: readers ask me to investigate an issue and report to them through the Blog, or ask many interesting questions they want me to answer.
My Blog is a humanitarian effort; I serve myself, and more over, others.
Hw to manage blood sugar while drinking
From the start of December to the first week of the New Year, we often reflect upon what we've endured throughout the course of the previous 11 months - and endure the assault of numerous holiday parties, friendly get-togethers and family gatherings.
Holiday parties are just as big a part of the season as ole' Tannenbaum and partridges in pear trees. And the one thing that makes these seasonal parties such a hit? Alcohol, and lots of it.
Alcohol has long been a staple at holiday parties, from hearty eggnog and spiced cider to neon-colored mixed concoctions and the traditional brewskie. But, with so many alcoholic drinks available and being enjoyed, it can be easy to forget about the effects the drinks are having on your body.
Besides causing the well-known effect of drunkenness, alcohol wreaks havoc upon the body's blood sugar, which can pose serious health problems for someone who lives with diabetes or who takes certain prescription medications.
Alcohol not only lowers blood glucose levels over the long term, but mixed drinks with their high sugar content can cause a sharp spike in blood glucose levels, which can be just as dangerous to a person with diabetes.
Research shows that shortly after drinking (and up to 12 hours later) the body can enter a state of hypoglycemia. For diabetics, the symptoms of hypoglycemia can be nearly identical to that of being drunk - disorientation, sleepiness and dizziness. One of the biggest concerns is that friends and family often are unable to discern the difference between someone who had a little too much to drink and someone who is in a medically dangerous situation. The amount of alcohol a diabetic drinks is important to monitor because, according to the American Diabetes Association, the body needs about one hour to break down a single ounce of alcohol.
Therefore, it's up to the individual to learn how to manage their own blood sugar while drinking.
Contrary to common belief, most diabetics don't need to strictly avoid alcoholic beverages. Today's research indicates that many diabetics can drink a moderate amount of alcohol without risk of compromising their health. That said, there are certain things they need to keep in mind when drinking to keep their blood sugar level in a safe area. Of course, anyone who has diabetes should always consult their doctor before drinking alcohol as they may have specific reasons for avoiding it.
Holiday parties are just as big a part of the season as ole' Tannenbaum and partridges in pear trees. And the one thing that makes these seasonal parties such a hit? Alcohol, and lots of it.
Alcohol has long been a staple at holiday parties, from hearty eggnog and spiced cider to neon-colored mixed concoctions and the traditional brewskie. But, with so many alcoholic drinks available and being enjoyed, it can be easy to forget about the effects the drinks are having on your body.
Besides causing the well-known effect of drunkenness, alcohol wreaks havoc upon the body's blood sugar, which can pose serious health problems for someone who lives with diabetes or who takes certain prescription medications.
Alcohol not only lowers blood glucose levels over the long term, but mixed drinks with their high sugar content can cause a sharp spike in blood glucose levels, which can be just as dangerous to a person with diabetes.
Research shows that shortly after drinking (and up to 12 hours later) the body can enter a state of hypoglycemia. For diabetics, the symptoms of hypoglycemia can be nearly identical to that of being drunk - disorientation, sleepiness and dizziness. One of the biggest concerns is that friends and family often are unable to discern the difference between someone who had a little too much to drink and someone who is in a medically dangerous situation. The amount of alcohol a diabetic drinks is important to monitor because, according to the American Diabetes Association, the body needs about one hour to break down a single ounce of alcohol.
Therefore, it's up to the individual to learn how to manage their own blood sugar while drinking.
Contrary to common belief, most diabetics don't need to strictly avoid alcoholic beverages. Today's research indicates that many diabetics can drink a moderate amount of alcohol without risk of compromising their health. That said, there are certain things they need to keep in mind when drinking to keep their blood sugar level in a safe area. Of course, anyone who has diabetes should always consult their doctor before drinking alcohol as they may have specific reasons for avoiding it.
Arrested gays in court Monday
Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga will appear in court Monday, where the Blantyre Magistrates Courts is expected to make a ruling on their bail application.
The two are at Blantyre Police Station, after being arrested monday for what state prosecutors call 'gross indecency".
There have been mixed reactions following their arrest, with people arguing for and against thir conduct on December 26, when the engaged in public along the Chileka Road in Blantyre.
Meanwhile, the two have decried police torture a the hand of Blantyre officers, saying they were being victimised.
The two are at Blantyre Police Station, after being arrested monday for what state prosecutors call 'gross indecency".
There have been mixed reactions following their arrest, with people arguing for and against thir conduct on December 26, when the engaged in public along the Chileka Road in Blantyre.
Meanwhile, the two have decried police torture a the hand of Blantyre officers, saying they were being victimised.
How to Cure a Hangover With Asparagus
The latest hangover remedy is asparagus, researchers say. According to "HealthDay News," asparagus may help protect the liver and ease hangover symptoms.
A "Journal of Food Science" study also revealed that asparagus, a widely consumed vegetable eaten worldwide, has been used for its anti-cancer, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory and diuretic effects.
Asparagus is not only a cure for hangovers, but it's also a beneficial source of folic acid, potassium, fiber, Vitamin B6, Vitamins A and C and thiamin, according to the Michigan Asparagus Advisory Board.
Thankfully, there's a cure for those nauseous, head-pounding mornings. You know, those nights when your stomach is in knots-when you just want to go back to sleep.
The next time you have a hangover, try one (or all, depending on how bad you feel) of these suggestions to help alleviate your hangover.
A "Journal of Food Science" study also revealed that asparagus, a widely consumed vegetable eaten worldwide, has been used for its anti-cancer, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory and diuretic effects.
Asparagus is not only a cure for hangovers, but it's also a beneficial source of folic acid, potassium, fiber, Vitamin B6, Vitamins A and C and thiamin, according to the Michigan Asparagus Advisory Board.
Thankfully, there's a cure for those nauseous, head-pounding mornings. You know, those nights when your stomach is in knots-when you just want to go back to sleep.
The next time you have a hangover, try one (or all, depending on how bad you feel) of these suggestions to help alleviate your hangover.
Arrested gays tortured at Blantyre Police
Blantyre Police officers have been torturing Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, the two Malawian gays arrested for staging a public engagement- the first ever in Malawi's history.
The torture started Monday night for the two, and continued on Tuesday, Zachimalawi can reveal.
"Why torture us instead of just throwing us into a cell? What wrong have we done," queried Chimbalanga.
Police torture is common in Malawian cells, prompting suspects to acknowledge crimes they never committed.
The torture started Monday night for the two, and continued on Tuesday, Zachimalawi can reveal.
"Why torture us instead of just throwing us into a cell? What wrong have we done," queried Chimbalanga.
Police torture is common in Malawian cells, prompting suspects to acknowledge crimes they never committed.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Malawi, Togo game chancelled
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) President, Walter Nyamilandu has for the last minute told Malawian soccer fans that the game between Malawi and Togo has been cancelled. Nyamilandu said the game has been cancelled because they have not received any official confirmation from their opponents.
The flames
"As the situation stands now, we would rather play Kuwait other than hope for a friendly against either Togo or Zambia because up to now there is no confirmation.
"Togo's friendly was subject to their trip to Congo Brazaville where they were scheduled to camp which has not materialized. So, we could not take a gamble because Togo were not forthcoming and instead we will play Kuwait," he said, on speaking to the country's local news paper, Nation Sport.
The game between Togo was scheduled to be played on January 2 after Flames' return from Egypt where they are playing another friendly with Egypt today.
Kuwait is also in Egypt amid preparations for their Asian Cup match against Austria which will take place on January 6.
Meanwhile, Malawian soccer fans are worried since they were preparing to see another top class player, Emanuel Adebayor after they last watched Didier Drogba and Solomon Kalou to name a few.
Malawi is preparing 2010 African of Nations Cup matches that will take place in Angola. They were drawn in Group A with Mali, Angola and Nigeria.
The flames
"As the situation stands now, we would rather play Kuwait other than hope for a friendly against either Togo or Zambia because up to now there is no confirmation.
"Togo's friendly was subject to their trip to Congo Brazaville where they were scheduled to camp which has not materialized. So, we could not take a gamble because Togo were not forthcoming and instead we will play Kuwait," he said, on speaking to the country's local news paper, Nation Sport.
The game between Togo was scheduled to be played on January 2 after Flames' return from Egypt where they are playing another friendly with Egypt today.
Kuwait is also in Egypt amid preparations for their Asian Cup match against Austria which will take place on January 6.
Meanwhile, Malawian soccer fans are worried since they were preparing to see another top class player, Emanuel Adebayor after they last watched Didier Drogba and Solomon Kalou to name a few.
Malawi is preparing 2010 African of Nations Cup matches that will take place in Angola. They were drawn in Group A with Mali, Angola and Nigeria.
Tiwonge Chimbalanga, Steven Monjeza's bail ruling Monday
The Blantyre Magistrates Court has set Monday next week as a date on which to decide whether to give the two arrested gay partners, Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, bail.
The two staged a public gay engagement on Saturday, December 26, 2009- the first of its kind in Malawi.
That led to their arrest on Monday.
Chimbalanga and Monjeza have since been committed to the Chichiri Maximum Prison as they await their bail ruling on Monday.
Edgar and Davis Law Firm is representing them.
The two staged a public gay engagement on Saturday, December 26, 2009- the first of its kind in Malawi.
That led to their arrest on Monday.
Chimbalanga and Monjeza have since been committed to the Chichiri Maximum Prison as they await their bail ruling on Monday.
Edgar and Davis Law Firm is representing them.
Malawi has no respect for human rights, say arrested gays
Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, the two Malawian gays arrested for organising a public gays' engagement on Saturday, have accused Malawian authorities of surpressing human freedoms, citing the arrests as a living example.
Monjeza and Chimbalanga told Zachimalawi yesterday (Tuesday, when Zachimalawi paid them a visit alongside other Malawian journalists, they had gone through hell they no longer believed they were Malawians.
"In fact, we are separating now, having realised that Malawi has no homosexual rights. We are saddened with what has happened to us; all the brutal questioning and the like. God is the best judge," said Chimbalanga, as Monjeza shook his head in disbelief.
The two, however, said they would not change their sexual orientation because of the harassment, but would instead be steadfast in defending their rights.
They have since appealed to well-wishers for financial and legal help, saying this was the requisite time to challenge Malawi's "repressive laws" on homosexuality.
Monjeza and Chimbalanga told Zachimalawi yesterday (Tuesday, when Zachimalawi paid them a visit alongside other Malawian journalists, they had gone through hell they no longer believed they were Malawians.
"In fact, we are separating now, having realised that Malawi has no homosexual rights. We are saddened with what has happened to us; all the brutal questioning and the like. God is the best judge," said Chimbalanga, as Monjeza shook his head in disbelief.
The two, however, said they would not change their sexual orientation because of the harassment, but would instead be steadfast in defending their rights.
They have since appealed to well-wishers for financial and legal help, saying this was the requisite time to challenge Malawi's "repressive laws" on homosexuality.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)