Oh, Evison Matafale, Oh!

'The Black Missionaries' glory is premised on the dead.
Their story, too, is one built around the dead.

The Late Evison Matafale: To Be Always Remembered by Malawians


It (the story) is not about all the dead, though; not about all the people who went towards the way of all the earth.
Theirs is a sad story- one about a man who came back to Malawi after a short stint in Zimbabwe, and, then, died before his journey was through.
At 32, the trumpet that his time was nigh blew a bit earlier. That is why, every November 27 of whichever year, Matafale will always die.
His actual death came in 2001. After that, because of the Black Missionaries' zeal, Matafale has died 10 times more. The sort of death that leaves people miring in a pool of 'what-ifs'.
What, for example, if Matafale survived the three days of police custody and sang his way through 2002 to 2011?

What, another example, if Matafale survived the push of colourless breath and lived a little longer for us- our Lake Malawi, Lake Chilwa, Lake Chiuta, Shire and Linthipe Rivers to appreciate?
What if he married in 2006, and left us, at least, two Evison Matafale juniors?
It will never be.
Because the story is sad.
A life story that ends on November 27. 2001. Actually, this (November 27, 2001) is where the story starts; the long tale of Matafale's vision and prophetic mission.
A prophetic mission that has turned Matafale into an endless story. People can choose where to start, or end- but Matafale's story is endless. Just the mention of 'Oh, Matafale, oh' is enough to spur lovers of talent and freedom into some tell-tale mode.

A mode that, always, ends in misery. For the more reason that Matafale's end was sad.
And that, though November 27, 2001 marks the beginning of another story- a story of courage and vision and talent and foresight- this story, too, ends in sadness.
Oh, Matafale, oh!

Of course, Evison Matafale- the man who died, and for whom the living pay homage every year, was a Malawian per excellence, starting from the time he stayed in Lilongwe, and played seek and hide with the likes of Madalitso Kateta and friends.
Matafale is a man who died before his time. A man who was, and is not! To live with us no more.
Kateta will tell you that Matafale was a jolly, good-fella in youth, well before he started teaching at a Secondary School in Lilongwe.
But, with Matafale's life, there simply is no single 'well'. For the more reason that his story is riddled with admiration and awe. All those who hear his story go home in awe, beating their heads was what was meant to be, but, really, never come to be.

Well (this is the other 'well', the second one, because, with Matafale, there is never one 'well'. Just many), Matafale first brushed whisks with that animal called youth in Lilongwe. And, as a nasty, good-fella, Matafale was outgoing in youth, as he stumped his small feet on Lilongwe's unsuspecting dry bushes, killing birds with his mahogany-strong catapult.
Matafale would always tell the likes of Kateta to go in the bush first, and check if it offered any hope for catches.
Any catch. Mouse, Birds.
Oh,fruits were a catch too.
They all, to Matafale, counted.
But Matafale would always tell others to go first. In a way, at that tender age, he was still a 'King'. The sort of jolly-good king he would later become.

There- in the shadows of Mango, paw-paw, pitch, blue-gum, mahogany, and ebony giant trees- passed a tiny king. A would-be-king of Malawi Reggae.
Unfortunately for the trees and the people who saw this young, noisy man walk to towards the next bush with a gang of fellow youths, they could not see this greatness in him.
This greatness was hidden; hidden in that little, childish, bassless voice of his- a voice that was him in youth, but could not be remembered in adulthood.
Instead, the 'lucky' human beings- including his parents and relatives- saw him alongside the other 'little' human beings, human beings whose future they did not know, little kids whose purpose in life they could not fathom, small citizens whose death they could not predict.
That was then- a time that really existed- when Matafale was, put simply, a human being.
What they knew- these people we don't know, these people whose faces we will never know, these people who Matafale knew, but never really knew- was that they would never see him again one day.That is the day of timely death, when, all troubles forgotten, the great and the small, the ruled and the judges above the blueless skies fly.
That, exactly, is what happens in life. You see some people and know you will never plant your eyes on them again. That, where they go, you will never know.

'That is life', so said the people who realized this, and on the strength of the conviction that it was no use giving a damn about this, already already cut the task short for us.
But Matafale would be demanding at times. He would tell the Kateta's to go far afield whenever the fallen Reggae King wanted to bathe in the open. Matafale has swam in Lilongwe's biggest and touted rivers and dams. Because he was a simple man, a man who never assumed to be what he was not. Or, put simply, a man who never wanted to be where he had not arrived.
But he knew where he was going. Because he was a visionary creature. And, kinda, he knew how to get there.
That's how he arrived in our hearts. And conquered our hearts with his sweet music. Before death, brutally, took his frame and soul away. A Malawian no more!
Before Matafale outgrew the bushes and the rivers and the dams and the trees, he was an unheralded young man; a man, perhaps, who had nothing to do with Reggae.
That time, between the 1980s and 2000, Charles Akuline Sinetre was the 'Reggae Ambassador'. He still is.
Charles Akuline Sinetre has always been a man of the people. His music and cham-tale beats have shaken the nation's apprehensive hearts.
Sinetre could give you 'Rock with Me', 'The Sleeping Cat', 'Never throw a stone', and sing about how the sky was blue and the winds forever blowing, and how that (blowing winds and blue skies) made his world (and our world, too) go around.
Sinetre, always high-spirited, would also ask God to bless this world in 'Dalitsani Dziko', telling the nation that time was nigh, time to implore the Lord that on this world his blessings should pour.
The sort of blessings that touch people's heads in form of rain, and sun's sweet rays, and the flavourless less of oxygen that turns our hearts into valleys and mountains in life's little journey called 'being'.
Nisphore Gervasio- now gone, long gone towards the way of all the earth- was a music critic from Kauye Village, Traditional Authority Kamenyagwaza in Dedza between 1990 and 2004. He specialised in Reggae.
Of Sinetre in 1994 he said: "He knows how to experiment with his voice; and knows how to manipulate the bass guitar, to come up with his own kind of raggae- the kind of reggae that cries above the Balaka Reggae beat".
Nisphore Gervasio was right. Charles Sinetre has always been ahead of his game. No wonder, he just returned, a couple of years back, from his music studies in the United Kingdom.
There are no music schools in Malawi. And no infrastructure for music performances.
The French Cultural Centre closed shop in 2010. It's good the Ministry of Sports and Culture bought the place. But it remains closed.
The Ware House Cultural Centre, in down town Blantyre, remains a ramshackle of a building. Fire its warmth destroyed some rains back, and the winds now blow willy-nilly against what used to be the Mighty Ware House. It can no longer house people. the way it used to be.
Performances, be it drama, music, what have you, are done outside. Against the winds, the sun and the skies. Against the wishes of art lovers.
Owners of the place say they can not renovate it without the prior permission of the owners of the place- Central and East African Railways!
Now there is a place in town called Robin's Park. Strategically located near Kwacha International Conference Centre (now MBC TV Headquarters), Robin's Park -owned by Azam Tigers Football Club manager, Robin Alufandika) is already fighting for a place in the books of shame.
Munyaradzi Chidzonga, the Zimbabwean Big Brother Africa representative of yester-years, can attest to this. Two weeks ago, when he came to premier his 'The Gentleman' alongside Malawian beauty queen- the strangely-bodied Faith Chibale- he was welcomed by the sun in the day, and a black-out at night!
Munya later mourned, like a cow deprived of its newly-born: "Owners of this place (Robin's Park) are poor planners. They knew Escom (The Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi- the body that distributes more black outs than power) is unreliable. Yet, they did not prepare a stand-by generator".
It is against this background that Charles Sinetre has shown to be a man ahead of his time; a man who plans before the black out attacks its 'suspecting victims'. He has studied music now, when Malawi has no music schools of repute.
He was the 'Reggae Ambassador' then (and now), well before Malawi could guess that Reggae music would later make Matafale the country's legend.
Charles Sinetre blew the Regae trumpet before Matafale, and stayed faithful to that calling.
No wonder, Sinetre was there in Chileka- when people converged to celebrate Matafale's life- and sang his reggae beats in honour of the fallen Matafale. A man who was, and went before his time.
Apart from Sinetre, we have had this Man-of-all-Time Paul Banda. Paul is, to Malawi, the winds and the sun and the skies. He is everything in music, everything we ever wanted.
His voice makes the strong-hearted wait and listen. His well-composed songs will never be 'eaten' by the memories for a long time to come.
One of the best acts to have come from the legendary-while-alive Paul Banda is that song 'Tonthola'.
The beat start on a mellow note, then, the drums, beaten carefully- as if they were a newly-born son, whose back can be hurt at the slightest exertion of pressure- before the 'go' drum, certifying that the instruments have reached the mouth of an invisible bridge, draws Paul Banda to planned attention.
Paul Banda, mellow as usual, but touched to the bottom of his heart by the plight of our anonymous orphaned child, takes to his self-drawn journey of drawing people's attention to human suffering.
It is not Paul Banda who speaks. Paul Banda is the people's representative, the like of a Member of Parliament. Now, the child-in-the-good-old Paul Banda says, pleadingly:
'Ndikhumbira inu anzanga/Mwana wamasiye ine/ Amayi anandisiya ndikali woyamwa ine/Nawo bambo kumwalira ndikali wam'ng'ono ine/Palibe chondikondwetsa m'dziko laweni lino...'
Paul Banda, touched by the little voice, thunders in the chorus:
'Iwe tonthola kondwa/Chikondi chambuye chilipo/Anakupatsa kholo lachikondi lokoma mtima/ Taonanso abwenzi/ Okongola ulinawo/ Ukakumana ndivuto/Usayese wakutaya/Usuzumire mwanzako/Akuzunzika koposa/Apo iwe m'bale/Umvetse chikondi chambuye..."
That is Paul Banda, the loving man. Always blowing the trumpet of hope. Always reassuring.
'Tonthola', like most of Paul Banda's songs, is a mature piece. In his songs, heavens and earth meet.
Sinetre. Paul. Lucius Banda. MBC Band. Kalimba. Makasu. The late Bright Nkhata. Paul Chaphuka. Paul Chimkwakwa. Robert Fumulani. The Ndikakwera paphiri la Mulanje and Tsoka Liyenda geniuses. Ben Mankhamba. Paul Subiri and Rodrick Valamanja. Vic 'Marley' Kunje, Annie Matumbi (now Maliseni), Young Kay, Diktator, JB, Tay Green. Mirella Nkhoma. Lucius Banda. Mlaka Maliro. Billy Kaunda, Joseph Nkasa. Gift Fumulani. And more.
These have been, to Malawi, what sand is to the ocean. Anchors of our music.
On the list of these 'anchors' Matafale came, to sing with his heart, sharing a message of both warning and hope to Malawi, and the world at large. This message came through a golden message, a voice weighed down by long-suffering.
Let's face it. When Matafale talked of suffering, he had a race in mind- the Black race.

He felt, strongly, that the black skin has been the subject of a man-hunt for centuries, starting, as it were, from the time innocent human beings- sitting on the verandah of their grass-thatched houses, as cattle, goats, and mice grazed together in the green underground- heard the sound of a gun.
They, being naive to this sound, did follow the sound. It is this animal called curiosity that, sometimes, sends the African to his early grave. 'His' because it is men who follow the danger, the sound, as women prepare Nsima, or sweet beer at home. Of course, after a long day in the field, cultivating the plants of life.
The men, innocent as they were, were caught in their innocence, and ferried across the seas.
The conditions were poor. Ventilation non-existent.
Many died.
Others arrived, weak and lonely and down-trodden, in Europe and the Americas. There, they toiled for no pay.
They were beaten. For no reason at all- except that they were taken from Africa, their mother continent, a continent their planned not to leave, to this very far away land.
So, Matafale- being full of memory, sang in one of his songs:
I stand here/In a black skin/The oppressed skin...
There is pain in this song. But Matafale ends by saying he will still a song of freedom. He called his song about oppression i>'Freedom' /i>.
This is what Matafale did sometimes. His mesages were, at times, ironical. He could say what he did not mean, and mean what he wanted to say!
That is what Matafale also preached in songs such as 'Timba', 'Watsetseleka', Sing a song', and more.
Before Matafale 'went for never' (never to come back), he left Malawi and the world with a song so strong. That beat 'Time Mark', in which he said (and not only likened himself to Daniel) he was 'Prophet Daniel', telling the world as it were- and not as it (the world) wanted things to be.
Of course, music plaudits have lauded that song, and called it all names reserved for master-pieces.
The truth is that 'Time Mark' was done in a hurry, and the instruments override Matafale's voice. The coordination between the drums and key-boards is, to say the least, poor to the bottom of the mud.
It is a song done in a hurry.
So, the 'hit' 'Time Mark' is- contrary to the reasons most people applaud it for- a warning. The poor instruments-and-voice mixing is a warning almost hinging on foresight.
Matafale was delivering a message that his days were nigh.
That is why he was in a hurry. That is why that song has all the hallmarks of an individual about to leave his land for the land commonly hoped for- a land where the grass is green and the sun burns no more.
That is the message Matafale delivered in 'Time Mark'. A good-bye message. The message is not about the September 11, 2001 events in the United States of America, or about terrorism, or prophecy.
It is about Matafale going. Going with a veiled bye. It is a song about a man in a hurry. Just that Matafale did not prepare the journey. That is why his is a sad story.
When he came onto the Malawi music scene, he shook Malawi with 'Watsetsereka'. Then, when the name 'Wailing Brothers' and Evison Matafale meant the same thing: quality music.
Then, just in the nick of time, Matafale jumped ship to form his own 'Black Missionaries' Band. This was not strange. Matafale was always a man on a mission.
I got to know Matafale, at least, some one-and-a-half year before he died.
He could always come to the UDF News (at the United Democratic Front's headquarters in Limbe, Blantyre) and ask for either Richard Chinansi or me.
He always had a message.
He would either say, "'Mr. Richard Chirombo', I have a message. Anthuwa akupanga zopusa kwabasi".
By 'anthuwa', he meant the people in the United Democratic Front regime. 'In fact, 'anthuwa' (these people) included the Late Davis Kapito- former United Democratic Front Governor for the Southern Region. Now gone.
Or he would say: "Chinansi, I want to deliver a message. Someone is not doing his job properly. I will show these people the way". That's how Matafale spoke: he never name-called!
He would say 'people', 'anthuwa', abalewa' alongowa'. Everyone, to him, was a person, human being, brother, sister. Others, in his life, were somebody- never something. He wanted people to do right. He was for the right.
That was Matafale for you. He wanted things to be done well.
In the course of that time, we became friends.
We could meet in Soche East, Blantyre- Matafale always in sandals- and talk about the things Matafale thought were going wrong.
It was through this acquaintance that Richard Chinansi and I came to read that letter Matafale wrote. That latter for which he was to be brutally slain.
Nobody should deny that the Malawi Police Service and former President Bakili Muluzi's government 'killed' Matafale. One day, in a world without handcuffs and power-intoxication, they will answer for their gruesome crime! A crime committed at the time of Malawi's need for talent.
When Matafale died, so many people were angry. One of songs of anger and remorse was played by renowned Disk Jockey, then working for the Mighty 'FM 101 Power', the one-and-only Patrick Kamkwatira.
Kamkwatira, the day after Matafale was murdered by the Bakili Muluzi regime and the non-reformed Malawi Police Service, played Billy Kaunda's song. It is the chorus that captivated the sadness in me:
"...Akhoza kukupha/Mkuyamba kukana/Popeza wakufa sapereka umboni".
It is Billy Kaunda, Member of Parliament in the Ngoni-land of Mzimba- singing. But the anger was Kamkwatira's!
The song, roughly translated, means: 'They will kill you, on the hope that the dead make bad first eye-witnesses'.
You can hummer a man, under the cover of fearsome darkness. If the man dies, he will remain a silent witness who will never speak to jurors and messengers of justice- that is the message Kaunda talks so well about.
Of coarse, the dead will never stand for their own witnesses (in voice). But the conscience of the men involved will always be there, to torment them in times of peace.

Though pathologists and other experts can work on dead bodies to come up with scientific conclusions, the dead humans-no-longer-being will never testify in person, with their own voices. This is so simple to understand. The breath that gives voices having been withdrawn from them- to hope no more, cry no more, pray no more, wish no more, and, the painful end in all this, testify no more!
So, against this barrage of anger Matafale still went, interred in the fertile soils of Chileka.
He lies there, fittingly among the other legends of Robert Fumulani fame.
There, as the people throng Chileka Police Ground once a year, in his honour to dance their sorrows and the sad Matafale memories away. Matafale hears no more, listens no more.

What he does is to testify about the brutality of man. That animal called brutality, an animal that takes away what it never bothered to bring aboard.
Matafale and Matafale and Matafale went. But the people who murdered him did not.
Though they, at times, from pneumonia, high blood pressure and abnormal body-disks' movements suffer- they live on.
Among them are uniform wearers. Among them child bearers.
They eat and dine and wine- on the wings of winds on which Matafale's soul blew away.
Against the green of envy that, out of malice, Matafale's life took.
What remains, after every November 27 show, is a cry: Oh, Matafale, oh!
It means: What, Matafale, did you go!
Perhaps!

Before Gadhafi By the Green-Sword Fell

Malawi's former president, Bakili Muluzi, with the fallen Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi.

Now, Muluzi about Gadhafi can only remember!

Development Partners Give USD 33 million for the Procurement of Essential Medicines for Malawi

Lilongwe, 13th December 2011: The Governments of the United Kingdom, Norway, and Germany are pleased to announce a grant of USD 33 million for emergency procurement of selected essential primary health care medicines and supplies for Malawi to supplement the Government of Malawi’s purchases over a period of 18 months. The project is a result of joint collaboration between the Government of Malawi, the U.S. Government through USAID, and UNICEF.
Of the nearly USD 33 million being made available, the United Kingdom through the Department for International Development (DFID) will contribute about USD 16 million, while Norway and Germany will add USD 10 million and USD 7 million, respectively.
The aim of the grant is to avert shortages of essential drugs over the next 18 months and to ensure that the downward trend in morbidity and mortality among children and pregnant women is maintained. It is also intended to prevent the health gains Malawi has made in recent years from being undermined by the unavailability of essential medicines and supplies in its hospitals and health centres.
“I am pleased that DFID is a partner to this project which will reduce the needless loss of life due to the national shortage of drugs, which I saw for myself during a recent visit to a hospital in Blantyre,” said Sarah Sanyahumbi, DFID Head in Malawi. “There are complex reasons for the lack of drugs – but most of these are solvable. Hence the Government’s and Central Medical Stores’ commitment to improving the national procurement and distribution system is so important.”
Norwegian Ambassador to Malawi Asbjørn Eidhammer said his country’s support to the health sector has been a priority since the Embassy was opened in 1999.
“Norway has been a pool partner to the Health Sector Programme of Work from its beginning in 2004. We had to withhold funding to POW from November 2010. We are pleased that we are now able to redirect our POW funds to directly support emergency procurement of drugs and medical supplies for all Malawians. We are also pleased to see that the Government of Malawi and Central Medical Stores have shown a commitment to improve procurement and logistics.”
The Head of German Development Cooperation, Hanspeter Schwaer added, "The aim of our development cooperation is to sustain and improve the livelihoods of Malawians. With the emergency procurement of drugs, we have acted swiftly on an immediate demand and in order to protect and save lives."
The Minister of Health Hon. Dr. Jean Kalilani expressed her appreciation of the initiative as it would complement the current drug stock that has been under pressure due to the ever-increasing demand for drugs and other supplies in hospitals.
“This is a clear testimony of the good relationship that has existed over the years between the Ministry of Health and its partners. Meanwhile, efforts will now be intensified to strengthen the Central Medical Stores to ensure that the procurement and supply chain management systems are efficient and effective,” she said.
The medicines and supplies under this procurement will, among other interventions, enable health authorities to treat up to 1.5 million episodes of diarrhoea, 1 million episodes of acute respiratory infections, and 264,000 episodes of malaria during the 18 month period. These three diseases, it has to be noted, account for more than half of all child deaths in Malawi. In addition, up to 600,000 pregnant women will be supplied with micronutrient supplements and medication to enable them to have a safer delivery.
By providing medicines and supplies, the grant will free up resources of the Government of Malawi and Central Medical Stores to bolster on-going efforts to reform and strengthen the national supply chain for essential medicines and medical supplies to avoid future shortages of the kind that have been seen in recent months.
Under the collaboration, UNICEF will procure the medicines in two phases, with the first consignment expected in the country in January 2012. USAID through the DELIVER PROJECT will manage in-country storage and distribution of the medicines to as many as 620 hospitals and health centres throughout the country.

The Ministry of Health will approve the distribution plans and the quantities of medicines to be procured and will work closely with District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) and the Christian Health Association of Malawi (CHAM) to establish and maintain a system for monitoring stock levels and promptly addressing any imbalances to avoid stock-outs. The medicines and supplies will be delivered to facilities in the form of standard kits on a monthly basis, so districts will have a role to play in ensuring that stock imbalances are corrected by moving commodities as needed from low-volume to high-volume facilities.

The Central Medical Stores will establish a system for “topping up” medicines in health care facilities that run out of particular commodities and will continue to be the principal supplier of commodities to central and district hospitals. In addition, as the kits will supply only a basic package of essential medicines and supplies, primary health care facilities will continue to order some commodities through the Central Medical Stores.

The Government, through the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, has decided to invest the funds freed up by this project into the Central Medical Stores to support on-going reforms.
The Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Hon. Dr. Ken Lipenga, MP, thanked the cooperating partners for this timely support which will go a long way in assisting the people of Malawi. The Minister said that it was remarkable that despite the economic crisis currently facing the world and in particular the Euro zone, the UK Government, the Government of Federal Republic of Germany and the Royal Norwegian Government had come forward with this generous contribution for the procurement of essential drugs.
“This kind of generosity will not go unnoticed by the people of Malawi,” said Minister Lipenga.
With the grant, all government and most CHAM rural health facilities will receive supplemental stocks of essential medicines and supplies from late January up to mid-2013.

Zomba: The Natural, The Historical, The Beautiful

Nothing feels more natural than being in Zomba, Malawi's former Capital city, first municipality, and colonialist-masters favourite.
For once, there is the natural endowment, the cool breeze that characterise Zomba for most parts of the year, and the crime-free status and more.
That is why tourists, both local and foreign, love to visit Zomba. There, they hop to the famous Chingwe hole on Zomba mountain, the beautiful Lake Chilwa, among others.
Well, the most adventurous even take a boat-ride to Lake Malawi in Mangochi, where they swim in the waters that habour more species of fish than can be found anywhere in the world.
For those who stick to Zomba, wishing to pass their memorable days away in peace, they take to horses' riding at Ku Chawe. There is no need to fear, or shy away from the innocent horses on the basis that 'I have never had a horse-ride before': There are people who will give you a test-ride, otherwise called a guided ride.
It's things like these that make a vist to Zomba a memorable one; one worth taking again, and again, and again, and again.
Well, I had all these experiences recently, when I booked a 'Deluxe' room at Sunbird Ku Chawe for three days on end.
It was a worthwhile trip. The members of staff were friendly, reminiscent of that smile that never departs from the ordinary Malawian's lips.
Whether the weather be cold. Whether it be hot. Even when the days get so hard you 'survive' more than 'live'. The Malawian will always be happy, happy for the Gift of Life.
Now, I remember sitting in the Chingwe Conference Room of SunBird Ku Chawe, and -looking down, upon the world below- I could fathom (though the world could not see me; being, as it were, at that height, a distance so stunningly beautiful you realise the existence of a surpreme being, a being that put all these things together) the trees mingled together in a holy alliance of beauty.
Surely, with the beauty of Zomba the mountain and Zomba the plateau, there is nothing like an 'accident-of-nature' and an 'accident-in-nature'.
This because there is someone who came before accidents, and put all these pieces together.
In Zomba, these pieces are put together to form this natural thing called 'impression'.
This is the impression I got from my four-day stay at Ku Chawe. There, I looked at the lights below, the lights of Zomba City.
A city that will forever remain an integral part of Malawi's history.
Colonialists- that is, the British-left their giant country and came to what was called Nyasaland, the present-day Malawi.They soon fell in love with Zomba and made it the centre of their administration.
On one hand, it is Zomba's European weather they liked; it reminded them of the land they left- in a way abandoned- somewhere beyond the sees.
On the other hand, the friendly people of Zomba made it attractive for them to come (to Zomba) and stay (forever).
But this did not only happen to those who came to Zomba, and came to love it. and came to stay in it, and came to be part of it, and came to commit their future to Zomba and, therefore, Malawi- the land of the Lake of Stars.
Others who went to such districts as Karonga also came to love those parts as well. One of these being former colonial policeman Harold Williams.
Williams came to love Malawi that he made it his adoptive home.
So happy was he with the decision that, tired of the Malawi Congress Party regime, Williams was one of the people who founded the pressure group (later to turn into a political party, and ruling party), The United Democratic Front (UDF).
When the UDF took over the reigns of power in 2004, and lost direction towards 2004- when President Bakili Muluzi wanted to extend his term of office, preferring a Third Term to the Constitutional Two Terms- Williams was there, showing Malawi's leaders that Malawians were fools no more.
Williams was so resilient he was manhandled by overzealous Malawi Police Service officers. But he, kind of, did not give up.
He took the fight to the bitter end.
Until he died during the second half of 2011, living behind a history of someone who came to Malawi, came to love it, and died fighting for the right.
May the Good Soul of Harold Williams Rest In Peace!
I have remembered all this because of Zomba.
Come to Zomba and you will go home refreshed in the mind, and more aware of the Great Designer who lives somewhere above.

To Bingu and His Zealots: Why Grab Land From Orphans?

There are children in Mulanje district, children who wish to have been in caring arms, but get the wind instead. The children of Friends of Mulanje Orphans (Fomo).
Their parents, those unforgettable beings, took them this far, and, then, went. There, where people look no back.
Behind- in Mulanje that is- they left something for their children, the children who have found love in Fomo: hopelessness!
At that hour, of hopelessness and gloom, came Mary Woodworth- a British citizen who sends her love from within and (from) across the seas and the blueless skies, to the forgotten children of Mulanje.
Mulanje is not just a district. It is a visible district. So visible, perhaps, because of Mulanje Mountain, where Mulanje Cedar and massifs Malawi glorify. Mulanje mountain is a beacon in the sky.
Mulanje mountain is the pinnacle of visibility, for sure.
But can we say that Mary Woodworth saw Mulanje from the United Kingdom, and, when she looked at the base of Mulanje mountain, saw children wonder about? Uncared for? Unaccounted for. Unknown?
Perhaps?
No, Mary Woodworth is a Malawian- that is, she was born a Malawian. A Malawian from Mulanje.
As a Malawian, she knew about the extended family system, a system so much glorified in Africa. A system worshiped!
In the past, before Westernization took the human being out of the African, there were no orphans in Africa; no vulnerable children.
That was then, when society took care of its people. African society, that is.
But Westernization came, and killed the African conscience.
Then, HIV and AIDS came too- stretching the extended family system beyond limits.
However, both westernization and HIV and AIDS did not come from Africa.
Africa is suffering from problems man-made somewhere.
But some of Africa's problems are man-made!
Need examples?
There are men and women in Malawi, shameless men and women who rule over both the people and the people's poverty. But they also rule over their own fat accounts. Their accounts are full, but their people languish.
Some of these misguided people know that HIV and AIDS is ravaging our souls, but still go on to claim that they have "abolished" HIV and AIDS!
I guess you wouldn't expect a Head of State and Government to say that, but one African leader has actually said this. Search me!
It only shows how detached these people are from reality!
So detached are they that they have started grabbing property from orphans and vulnerable children in Mulanje, the land of the great mountain and massifs.
The people who are doing this, the thieves of orphaned and vulnerable children's property, are cronies of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the party of the President, which President is Bingu wa Mutharika, whose title is DPP President and State President, which State is that of the Republic of Malawi, which Malawi is in Africa, to be precise Southern Africa, which Southern Africa others call Central Africa, the Central Africa that was there before the British called this land Southern Africa, those British folks who live across the great oceans, which oceans never on water go hungry, which water comes from the rains, the rains that fall in the world and Africa, which Africa they colonized, which colonies live no more, because Mulanje Mountain has prevailed!
Well, as Mulanje Mountain, these politicians too have prevailed. Prevailed over innocent, powerless, hungry, starving, clothes-less, shelter-less children. Politicians whose rust for money values no humanity, sees no suffering around. People who wear black jackets, drink decorated water, and go upstairs to down upon all the world.
These politicians- DPP politicians, some DPP politicians- have lost their sense of morality and are grabbing orphans' land in Mulanje.
For once, they have grabbed Fomo land in Mulanje- their, close to their tea plantation- and want to get it for themselves. They think orphans and vulnerable children have no right to own land.
Now, they have grabbed the land, with the blessings of President Bingu wa Mutharika who rules over the land, and makes no qualms about claiming that he is in-charge, and given it to a certain rich man in Mulanje.An equally selfish, gluttonous man who feels satisfied grabbing land from innocent children.
Now, as if that were not enough, they have confiscated Mary Woodworth's British passport! Government seized the passport of the charity volunteer Mary Woodworth, 46, last week.
They have been shamelessly fighting her since last year, when they arrested and accused her of committing a horde of senseless offenses. They included trespass (let's stop here and ask some questions).
Tell me, how can one 'trespass her own land? Eeh? So, if one is not a DPP fanatic, they begin to trespass on their own land? Malawi must surely be in bad hands!
The second charge bordered on conduct likely to cause breach of the peace (another question).
Now, if one is taking care of orphans on her own land, giving the orphans and vulnerable children hope and, therefore, peace, where does the breaching of peace come from?
The other charge is that of theft. Again, how does one steal his own land?
They say she grabbed land from Chitakale Tea Plantations owned by businessman and DPP politician, the filthily-rich Leston Mulli.
No wonder, the Mulanje Magistrates' court discharged her and the five other innocent women whose only crime is to love children left behind by their parents, children forsaken by their relatives, children who can no longer be absorbed by the extended family system.
The one thing about these innocent Mulanje children is that- having been left behind by their parents, for reasons they will never know, for reasons they will never understand, other than their 'time' came, time that came 'too' soon- they are hated so much by the ruling DPP and its cronies they simply have to disappear from the neighbourhood of ruling DPP policians!
But justice will have none of this cruelty. This fat inhumanity! This shameless selfishness.
Surely, Mbona is on Mary Woodworth and these children's side. Surely!
Why, if the question be raised, would people in black suits, with their beards protruding and gathering all the moss around, grab land from little children who have found hope, and are going back to school, eating well, and hoping again; and, then, prosecute their new-found-mum?
That is cruelty beyond measure. Greed larger than the stoutest man's stomach!
Why prosecute Mary Woodworth, who has just been in the country from three weeks now. She needed rest, after a long flight from the United Kingdom. She needed to see the faces of the children she cares for, too. She wanted to hug them, and tell them she counts on them, that they are productive citizens of this country. She wanted to touch their backs, and tell them to hope on, that life is a bag with so many things within.
She expected to receive nothing from the boys- not even to grab their land; she only knew they would smile back, and tell her 'Takulandirani' (we welcome you back).
Of course, she got smiles from the kids- their mum was back.
It is from the government of President Bingu wa Mutharika she got the greatest insult from: court summons.
Mary Woodworth- so loving, so selfless- was was summoned to appear before the Mulanje Magistrates' Court on Wednesday to face six charges.
Private lawyer Frank Mbeta applied to the court that Mary Woodworth should be summoned, and got his bid. The truth is that it is not only Mary Woodworth who has been summoned; it is all the children she looks after.
Not only that. Her passport has been taken by security forces at Mulanje.
All this is questionable because the Supreme Court already ruled that the land belonged to Woodworth and her aunt Lisnet Gremu.
But the government of President Bingu wa Mutharika, knowing that the individual who wanted to grab the land from innocent children and lost- shamefully so (because the courts in Malawi are so independent and make us all proud)- still plotted to take the land from Fomo, woodworth and the innocent children.
It gave the land to Dave Kanyoza, a business associate of Mulli.
It is so simple to 'read' these people. All they want is that Malawians should forget this injustice perpetrated by a selfish state, and that, over time- probably when Mary Woodworth will be dead- the Mullis will still grab the land.
It is a plan so wicked and evil the individuals involved must be worse the Adolf Hitler and other men who will never be forgotten for the atrocities they committed here (on earth).
Now, Woodworth fears for her life. Fortunately, the British Embassy is providing her with consular support and security, to shield her from the fangs of evil, useless, shameless men of the ruling party.
But Woodworth has not given up. Woodworth will not give up. After all, her orphanage reaches out to over 5,000 children. With its 13 centres covering over 80 villages in Mulanje district, a lot of children now have hope, and know that tomorrow is there for them.
Confirmed reports indicate that President Bingu wa Mutharika wants the land in question because he plans to build 'The Malawi Institute of Climatology and Earth Sciences' in 2012. The President promised Mulli the same, and Mulli pledged to donate part of the children's land. The land does not belong to him, it belongs to Mary Woodworth. But Mary Woodworth, be so loving, saw it fit to use it for charitable causes: giving hope to innocent children now orphaned by no want of their own. No cause of their own.
But this government can be so persistently cruel it still wants the land. This is not new. The current administration has been disregarding court decisions because it believes that it will always get its way.
It is a government poor on human rights record, sick at media freedom, and shameless at suppressing dissent.
Intellectual discourse, too, has been up for a beating by President Bingu wa Mutharika's administration. The irony is that all the hullabaloo about 'Academic Freedom' started when this strange man, the so-called Professor Bingu wa Mutharika, was minister responsible for Higher Education.
Already, Peter Mutharika has shown how much he can mess this country up if given a chance.
He failed to resolve the 'Academic Freedom' issue.
And the people spoke in Rumphi Central Constituency in September 2011. There, the ruling DPP lost like a misguided youth.
People wanted to teach the DPP a lesson. A lesson that, even though the late Moses Chirambo was DPP MP for the area, it is not automatic that constituents will always be gullible and vote for failures.
You say the DPP can learn? No.
The land issue in Mulanje gives us insight into this strange stubbornness in the corridors of DPP.
A kind of stubbornness that prompts the President to get his younger brother out of the Education Ministry he so messed up, for that of Minister of Foreign Affairs- apparently to clear Bingu wa Mutharika's mess. A mess born when he deported British Ambassador to Malawi, Fergus Cochraine-Dyet!
But Mutharika, the Peter, has been hitting on rocks. So far, as in the Ministry of Education, his days have been sad and lonely, with no achievements to point at.
But the DPP still does not learn.
That is why it has gone full throttle in its attempts to grab land from innocent, orphaned, and vulnerable children in Mulanje.
Some of the efforts government has made include attempts to resurface thrown-out charges.
Here we go:
Last month, government officials turned the Mulanje Magistrates' Court into a hall of scandal when- on Wednesday, November 30, 2011- they presented charges against Mary Woodworth- which charges were discharged in the year 2010.
This shaming of Malawian courts by the government of Malawi and DPP cronies came to the fore when Woodworth's lawyer, Patric Mpaka, used his legal skills to get the better of opposing lawyers by showing them the anomaly and act of deceit on their part.
In addition, Mpaka told all those who were representing the 'misguided' side that they did not have, and could not provide, a legitimate letter of consent from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
Mpaka did not mince words when he informed the honourable court about the dishonourable act by the dishonourable people representing supposed honourable individuals who are out to grab innocent children's land that the paper-work used to drum the charges against Woodworth were used previously, and duly discharged by the same Magistrate, Tsoka Banda.
Mpaka realized also, after cross-examination, that the DPP issued consent to private practise lawyer, Noel Chalamanda, to prosecute the case scheduled (way back in 2010), and that the case was dismissed due to poor commitment by from the prosecution.
That dismissal gave Woodworth the chance to get a breather and go back to the United Kingdom to fundraise for her charity.
It is on her return that police officers have confiscated her passport and reopened the old case, this time with a different lawyer wearing the unfitting tag of state prosecutor. His name is Frank Pemba.
That is why, in his submission to the court, Mpaka labeled Pemba “an imposter”- especially for his blatant failure to produce produce certified consent from the DPP.
All these efforts, imagine, are aimed at grabbing land from innocent children.
Zachimalawi warns that- when all this is over- there is something that never overs! That is justice!
Let justice prevail. They hopefulness in the children prevail.
Zachimalawi wishes justice well.

Poem: The path she took

By Richard Chirombo
In remembrance of the people we never know

I go back where she used to pass,
While sending involuntary tears to wash my heart:
"Oh, Dear, whisper in my ear,
The way it used to be, eh!
Whenever we, in oneness of frame, came here";
But only the winds talk,
As in the sun I walk.

"Just cough then, if me you don't want to see,
I never knew, Dear, that me you hated not double but times-Three:
Okay, at least my ground-thumping hear,
Because you hate me coming nearer,
Though time has washed the sadness clear";
But only the sun beats,
Chopping my heart to bits.

I go on, getting further than nearer
Tears of sleep crushing all the memories so dear,
Knowing that, with her again,we will never come here,
Sweetly afraid of the sun, moon, stars, dictators, autocrats and walking in fear.
Then, when breath united you and me, and love's intoxication drove us silly:
The sun, meanwhile, beats hard against my frame, as the winds in my lungs pass clear,
Because some darkness, riding the cover of time, swept your soul's plate clear.

U.S. Embassy to Commemorate World AIDS Day with Musical Performance

In commemoration of World AIDS Day the United States Embassy presents: “Mau a Malawi: Stories of AIDS”, a musical performance by Fulbright scholar Andrew Finn McGill, Peter Mawanga and the aMaravi Movement on November 30, 2011 at Crossroads Hotel Auditorium from 6:30 p.m.

The musical group fuses traditional African and American music with an acoustic guitar, mangolongondo (marimba) violin and Irish traditional instruments.

The commemoration will be held under the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) theme: "Leading with Science, Uniting for Action." The theme reflects the U.S. commitment to building on recent scientific advances to help move toward the goal of an AIDS-free generation.


The U.S. Embassy will host this event to honor the people in Malawi and around the world who have been impacted by the AIDS epidemic - those who are living with HIV, those we have lost, and the caregivers, families, friends and communities who have provided support.

Bulletin of Christian Persecution October 28 - November 27, 2011

October 28 - November 27, 2011

October 28, 2011
USA (hat tip to AtlasShrugs)
Beirut Arab news agency al Nashra reported on Saturday November 22, that [White House Muslim envoy] Dalia Mogahed has succeeded in canceling a meeting between the Maronite Patriarch of Lebanon and President Barack Obama.

Writing in al Nashra, the reporter said "an unnamed US source told the news agency, that those who sought canceling a visit of (the spiritual head of the Maronite Church) Patriarch Beshara Rahi to the White House are Dalia Mujahid (Mogahed), the highest adviser on Arab and Islamic Affairs in the State Department, who is from Egyptian origins. And that," according to al Nashra, "heeding a request by the higher leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, who consider that US Administration must support the Islamist Sunni current facing the Iranian current in the region."

Egypt
To what extent was Egypt's Maspero massacre, wherein the military literally mowed down Christian Copts protesting the ongoing destruction of their churches, a product of anti-Christian sentiment?

A video of Egypt's Grand Mufti, Sheikh Ali Gomaa (or Gom'a), which began circulating weeks before the massacre, helps elucidate. While holding that Muslims may coexist with Christians (who, as dhimmis, have rights), Gomaa categorized Christians as kuffar - "infidels" - a word that connotes "enemies," "evil-doers," and every bad thing to Muslim ears.

After quoting Quran 5:17, "Infidels are those who declare God is the Christ, [Jesus] son of Mary," he expounded by saying any association between a human and God (in Arabic, shirk) is the greatest sin: "Whoever thinks the Christ is God, or the Son of God, not symbolically - for we are all sons of God - but attributively, has rejected the faith which God requires for salvation," thereby becoming an infidel.

Pakistan
Nothing is known of two Christian brothers from Faisalabad (Punjab) who were seized by the Muslim landowning family that employed them. The two disappeared on 14 September. Since then, "We have no idea where they are, whether they are dead or alive," their mother told AsiaNews.

A money dispute between the two Christian farm workers and their Muslim landlords is at the root of their abduction. Police have not yet opened a First Information Report because one of the landlords is a police officer.

October 29, 2011
France
Muslims attacked Christians attending a Catholic celebration in southern France. The Joyeuse Union Don Bosco takes place in Nîmes, at the Sanctuary of Our Lady the Virgin of Santa Cruz, built by French people repatriated from the Algerian city of Oran following Algerian independence. These people were driven out of the place they grew up in by Muslim aggression. Now they face it in France too!

After a day of welcoming and reunions, around 7 pm, the participants were leaving in their cars and vehicles when "young Arab immigrants" from the city started to throw stones at the vehicles descending from the sanctuary. The local police, whose station is in this area, were immediately notified and the event organisers had to arrange a diversion to another route to protect the occupants of the vehicles from the savage attacks which continued.

October 30, 2011
Egypt
In mid-October Egyptian media published news of an altercation between Muslim and Christian students over a classroom seat at a school in Mallawi, Minya province. The altercation lead to the murder of a Christian student. The media portrayed the incident as non-sectarian. However, Copts Without Borders, a Coptic news website, refuted this version and was first to report that the Christian student was murdered because he was wearing a crucifix.

November 1, 2011
Egypt
Mohammad Amer, a Salafi Sheikh in Damanhur, Egypt, issued a fatwa prohibiting votes for any Christian, secular or liberal candidate, as well as any Muslim candidate who does not pray daily or call for the implementation of Shariah law.

Amer claimed that voting for any such candidate would constitute a grave sin. "I want the voters to vote in favor of the candidates of the Islamic movements and to oppose those who want to separate religion from the state. There is nothing called liberalism in Islam and there is no absolute freedom in our religion," he said to London's Asharq al-Awsat newspaper, defending the move.

Algeria
Five Algerian Christians remained jailed in north-eastern Algeria Tuesday, November 1, after they were reportedly detained this weekend for "worshiping in an unregistered location."

Another Christian, a minor, was released and placed on probation following Saturday's raid in a village near the town of Bougous in north-eastern El Tarf province bordering Tunisia, news reports said.

November 4, 2011
Iran
Government officials in Iran are trying to convince a jailed pastor to return to Islam as he waits for the nation's supreme leader to decide whether he should be executed for converting to Christianity, sources close to the case told FoxNews.com.

Iran's secret service officials recently approached 34-year-old pastor Youcef Nadarkhani at his prison site in Rasht and presented him with a book on Islamic literature, telling him they would be back to discuss the material and hear his opinion, the sources said.

Nadarkhani remains in prison, awaiting a final verdict that has been drawn out and delayed amid heavy and targeted international attention to his case. Iran's judiciary has been caught in a bind, fearing the ultimate decision will have far-reaching political implications.

If Nadarkhani is released, the judiciary risks appearing disrespectful of the tenets of Shariah law. But if he is executed, Iran will face increasing criticism from the international community, which continues to petition for the pastor's release. Update HERE.

November 5, 2011
Egypt
Egypt's Military Prosecutor decided on November 3 to continue the detention of 34 Coptic Christians for another 15 days, pending investigations on charges of inciting violence, carrying arms and insulting the armed forces during the October 9 Maspero Massacre, which claimed the lives of 27 Christians and injured 329. The court session was attended by more than twenty defense lawyers. The case was adjourned to November 18.

According to defense lawyers, most of the detainees were arrested after October 9, and some were not even at the Maspero protest and were just collected from the streets for "being a Christian." Three of them were teens under 16 years old and another had an operation to extract a bullet from his jaw and was chained to his bed in hospital, according to defense lawyer Ibrahim Edward. "After the operation he was sent straight to prison where he cannot eat without feeding tubes, so he lives on juices."

Prominent activist Alaa Abdel-Fatah, who criticized the army for the Maspero Massacre, was arrested on October 30, charged with inciting violence, seizing military equipment, and vandalizing military property. He refused to answer questions from the military prosecutors "in a case where the military is accused of committing a massacre when their APCs ran over peaceful protesters in front of Maspero on Oct. 9," said his lawyer Ahmed Seif Al-Islam, former director of the Hisham Mubarak Law Center.

Nigeria
Islamic militants shouting "Allahu Akbar", or 'Allah is great', carried out coordinated gun and bomb attacks on churches and police stations in northern Nigeria, killing at least 150 people and injuring some 100 others, aid workers and witnesses confirmed Saturday, November 5.

Militant group Boko Haram, or 'Western education is a sin', claimed responsibility for what Nigeria's President leader Goodluck Jonathan described as a "heinous" violence in mainly Damaturu, capital of Yobe state. Confirmation of the attacks Saturday, November 5, came as frightened mourners tried to leave their homes to begin burying their dead. More HERE.

Boko Haram, which seeks strict implementation of Shariah, or Islamic law, across the nation of more than 160 million people, pledged more attacks. More HERE. Update HERE.

November 6, 2011
Kenya
Two people were killed in a suspected al-Shabab attack at a church in an eastern Kenyan town, a police official said Sunday.

Kenyan police chief Leo Nyongesa said that a woman and her two grandchildren were also injured when attackers hurled a grenade at the Pentecostal Church in Garissa late Saturday. Ibrahim Makunyi, the head pastor at the church, said the house near the entrance of the church that belonged to a church elder had been bombed. "One of the dead is a member of the choir, and the other is the son of the church elder," he said. Witness Mary Nginya said that after the explosion she heard attackers say "It is just the beginning," in Swahili.

Another bomb was thrown Saturday at a busy taxi circle frequented by military officers, but it failed to explode, Nyongesa said. More HERE.

November 7, 2011
Afghanistan
The U.S. State Department is reporting that there is not one Christian church or school left in Afghanistan.

The absence of Christian churches and schools exists despite the decade-long war the United States has been fighting against the Taliban and the $440 billion taxpayers have shelled out for the war. According to the department's annual International Religious Freedom Report for July through December of 2010, released just last month, "There is no longer a public Christian church; the courts have not upheld the church's claim to its 99-year lease, and the landowner destroyed the building in March."

November 9, 2011
Pakistan
Text books in Pakistani schools foster prejudice and intolerance of Hindus and Christians, while most teachers view religious minorities as " enemies of Islam", according to a study by a US government commission released on Wednesday. The findings indicate how deeply ingrained hardline Islam is in Pakistan and help explain why militancy is often supported, tolerated or excused in the country.

"Teaching discrimination increases the likelihood that violent religious extremism in Pakistan will continue to grow, weakening religious freedom, national and regional stability, and global security," said Leonard Leo, the chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.

November 10, 2011
Kashmir
Police in India's Kashmir Valley detained and beat converts from Islam and were expected to arrest Christian workers after Muslim leaders alleged that Muslim youth were being "lured" to Christianity.

Police in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley picked up seven converts who were recently baptized in All Saints Church in Srinagar, a local Christian who spoke to the converts after their release on Nov. 2 told Compass. Srinagar is the summer capital of the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir and the main city of the Kashmir Valley.

The source, who requested anonymity, said police beat the converts and asked if Christians had given them money for their conversion. Most of the converts were from Budgam district, about 18 miles from Srinagar, and pastors there fearful of being arrested were in hiding, he added.

November 11, 2011
Indonesia
Religious leaders, Muslim and Christian intellectuals, members of Indonesian civil society have all condemned the behavior of the Mayor of Bogor, Diani Budiarto, who continues to ignore the Constitutional Court's decision authorizing celebrations in the Protestant community of Yasmin Chuch.

For months the Yasmin Church in Bogor, West Java Province, has been the victim of a blatant violation of law, perpetrated by the local mayor Diani Budiarto who, heedless of the dictates of a constitutional court ruling in favor of Christians, prevents the holding of religious services. The building was designed according to the dictates set by law and has the building permit, the IMB "legal document" needed to authorize house churches or places of prayer. Update HERE. (hat tip to JihadWatch)

Novembr 15, 2011
Indonesia
Bogor Christians celebrated Mass at home yesterday. After the ban on meeting at their church, members of the Yasmin Church (KGI) were not allowed to hold their Sunday service in the street.

Despite criticism and international focus on the case, Bogor Mayor Diano Budiarto continues to refuse to bow to public opinion and a court order. In his latest action, he has exceeded his authority and blocked all access roads to the Yasmin Church.

November 17, 2011
Egypt
Hundreds of Coptic Christians marching in Cairo on Thursday came under attack by assailants throwing stones and bottles and 25 people were lightly injured in subsequent clashes, a security official said.
They were marching to demand justice for the Christian victims of a clash with soldiers in October that left at least 25 people dead, most of them Christians.

The official said the Copts were attacked in the northern Shoubra neighbourhood with stones and bottles, and that some among them responded in kind. He said supporters of an Islamist candidate for upcoming parliamentary election joined in the attack on the Copts. An AFP correspondent on the scene said hundreds of riot police were deployed to the area and that the clashes had eventually subsided.

Somalia
One Christian left his native Somalia 10 years ago and another fled as Muslim extremists were bombing his house earlier this year, but both Somali converts from Islam feel they are still in danger in Kenya.

November 21, 2011
Pakistan
A Christian woman, Agnes Bibi was accused of defaming the name of the prophet Muhammad. Arrested for blasphemy, she had the original accusation dismissed and the case against her reduced to a lower charge. This allowed her to apply and get bail.

India
Police in Kashmir arrested Rev Chander Mani Khanna of the All Saints Church after the head of the Kashmir Shariat Court accused the Christian clergyman of converting Muslims in exchange of money. The case began on 8 November when Grand Mufti Bashir-ud-Din summoned him to appear before the court to explain the alleged conversions.

To back his accusation, the Grand Mufti used a video that appeared on YouTube that shows Rev Khanna baptising seven young Muslim men and women. The same video was then linked by other online platforms provoking an avalanche of verbal attacks against the clergyman. More HERE. And HERE.

November 22, 2011
Egypt (hat tip to JihadWatch)
Egypt's highest Islamic legal official denied on Tuesday that minority Christians faced sectarian discrimination and said Islamists would win no more than 20 percent of votes in next week's election.

Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa said Egypt had done its best to abolish discrimination against Copts, who make up 10 percent of Egypt's roughly 80 million population, but a small minority of radical salafist Islamists were causing trouble.

Coptic leaders accuse the army of not protecting them against salafist attacks and cracking down more harshly on their protests than others. About 25 died last month when army trucks charged a mostly Coptic protest in Cairo.

November 23, 2011
Nigeria
A militant group seeking to enforce Sharia, or Islamic law, throughout Nigeria, has shot and killed two children of an ex-terrorist and "murderer" because he converted to Christianity, well-informed missionaries told BosNewsLife.

November 24, 2011
Pakistan
Paul Bhatti, brother of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Catholic minister for religious minorities assassinated on 2 March, confirms the commitment for the "rehabilitation" of the name "Jesus Christ", banned last week along with a thousand words considered "pornographic in nature" or of a confessional nature. In the letter sent Nov. 14 to telephone operators, Garan ordered the installation of communications software to block forbidden words - in Urdu and English - including "naked, gay and ... Jesus Christ."

November 27, 2011
Britain
Nohad Halawi, who worked at Heathrow Airport, is suing her former employers for unfair dismissal, claiming that she and other Christian staff at the airport were victims of systematic harassment because of their religion.

She claims that she was told that she would go to Hell for her religion, that Jews were responsible for the September 11th terror attacks, and that a friend was reduced to tears having been bullied for wearing a cross.

Mrs Halawi, who came to Britain from Lebanon in 1977, worked in the duty-free section as a perfume saleswoman of the airport for 13 years but was dismissed in July. Her case is being supported by the Christian Legal Centre, who say it raises important legal issues and also questions over whether Muslims and Christians are treated differently by employers.

It comes amid growing concern among some Christians that their faith is being marginalised and follows calls from Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, for Christians to be given greater legal protection in the wake of a series of cases where they have been disciplined or dismissed for practising their faith.

Politics of Love

The journey, never started by those taking to the last mile, has predictably been footy. Here a broken foot. There a faded knee.
Just like that.
What do I mean?
Watch this space!

The Many Beautiful Colours of Malawi

UK: Government is failing on HIV

.Pressure on clinics to prescribe cheaper HIV drugs

.HIV prevention education is inadequate

.Public service cuts risk undermining HIV services

.London - 28 November 2011

"The government has dropped the ball on HIV. It is apathetic and complacent. There are no major public HIV prevention campaigns, HIV services and treatments are under threat of cuts and thousands of new HIV infections are being diagnosed every year. The government's HIV strategy is flawed and failing," said Peter Tatchell, a long-time HIV campaigner and AIDS author who is Director of the human rights advocacy organisation, the Peter Tatchell Foundation.

He was commenting in the run up to World AIDS Day, this Thursday, I December.

"London HIV clinics are under pressure to prescribe cheaper HIV drugs, which may not be as effective and may have more severe side effects. This could put at risk the health of some people with HIV. It is evidence of the potentially damaging consequences of public spending cuts and pressure on NHS finances.

"The closure or merger of some local and regional HIV services means that many people with HIV now have to travel longer distances to access good quality care and support. The time and cost involved can act as a disincentive to engagement with HIV services.

"HIV education is woefully inadequate in most schools. Teaching pupils how to roll a condom on a banana is not good enough. Very few students learn how to negotiate safer sex and what to do if a partner refuses to wear a condom. There is no popularisation of less risky alternatives to intercourse, such as oral sex, body rubbing and mutual masturbation. These alternatives should be explained in all secondary schools.

"What safer sex information is taught in schools is wholly oriented to heterosexual pupils. Gay and bisexual students get no specific advice on how to have gay sex safely.

"Many faith schools and independent schools are getting away with neglecting their pupil's HIV education. They put their own dogmas and embarrassment about sexual matters before the health and welfare of young people.

"Frank, detailed and effective HIV awareness and prevention education should be mandatory in all schools from primary level onwards, before pupils become sexually active and adopt unsafe sexual habits.

"The needs of gay and bisexual men continue to be under-resourced. HIV prevention campaigns targeted at men who have sex with men are not working, as evidenced by the number of new HIV infections.

"Access to effective HIV prevention information and to high quality HIV health-care are human rights. They should be available to all," said Mr Tatchell.

Maganizo Mazeze is new Saja boss

The Journalists Union of Malawi (JUMA) is pleased to announce election of its leader, Maganizo Fly Mazeze to the post of president of the Southern Africa Journalists Association (SAJA) at the end of its (SAJA’s) two-day regional congress held in the Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, from 26-27 November, 2011. The conference’s theme was consolidating journalists and media workers’ trade union rights and media freedom agenda in SADC.

Mr Mazeze has been elected into the position of the regional umbrella body for media related trade and workers unions for a three-year term. He takes over from Foster Dongozi of Zimbabwe, who has been at the helm of SAJA for the past six years.

In his acceptance speech after being elected, the new SAJA president said the challenges facing the media regarding remuneration and better working conditions in the region were similar. Mr Mazeze pledged that his new executive committee of five members will build on the prevailing successes of the organization to propel SAJA to grow into a forceful and influential regional trade union body. He said SAJA would try to use reason and not confrontation in addressing labour challenges facing the media in Southern Africa.

The JUMA president also said there is need to build the skills and knowledge capacity of unionists to ensure an organized, meaningful and purposeful fight for better working conditions and labour rights for journalists. The election of Mr Mazeze to the regional body will also increase visibility of JUMA activities in the region. For enquiries phone the below number.

Signed

George Mhango

JUMA’s Secretary General

To You, Mummy, I Say...

Rest In Peace.

But the question still lingers in my air today, as I think of your passing on yesterday: Why did it have to be you?

At this time of year?

Why?

I am telling you, mommy, assuring you: I will be there with you, and see you go away, when tomorrow comes in Rumphi.

It is finished.

Kambalu to refer heritage sites’ issue to Law Review

Lilongwe-based artist, Elson Aaron Kambalu, says his battle against
the demolition of heritage sites will not end with the Ministry of
Culture’s U-turn on demolition of the old District Commissioner’s
office in Lilongwe, vowing to submit pragmatic proposals during
Malawi’s next law review exercise.
Kambalu revealed in an interview that he feared for the future of
Malawi’s heritage sites and would not give up the fight until Malawi’s
next law review exercise.
Kambalu said, among other suggestions, he would submit a proposal with
the aim of safeguarding and preserving the Malawi’s heritage sites.
“We must not remember that we have children who may wish to refer back
to things at some point in their life. That is where the issue of
heritages sites, and the important role they play in a nation’s
history, comes in,” said Kambalu.
“Among other things, I plan to submit a proposal that all buildings
built before 1950 should never be demolished, except with a letter and
special permit explicitly written and signed by the minister
responsible for either land or tourism. This will promote
accountability in handling matters pertaining to our heritage sites,”
said Kambalu.
The artist added that the issue of heritage sites went beyond the
scope of the Ministry of Culture. He disclosed, therefore, that his
conservation efforts would also include proposals to review the
country’s land laws.
“I think the Land Act should also be looked into, though I don’t know
what it exactly says on issues related to heritage sites. All these
efforts are part of my heritage sites’ conservation efforts. In fact,
Malawians should be possessive of the handful heritage sites we have.
We have already lost so many treasured sites over the years,” said
Kambalu.
Kambalu gave the example of Dowa district, saying, before Lilongwe
matured into a city, Dowa used to perform similar purposes to people
of both Lilongwe and Dowa. He said trade used to flourish in Dowa in
those days, but nothing has been done to preserve that history.
“So, even Dowa’s legacy should be maintained. We can make some of the
treasured sites in Dowa national property, and benefit a lot by
preserving its culture,” said Kambalu.
Kambalu came into the spotlight for penning the Ministry of Culture
against plans to demolish an old DC’s house in the capital city.
The Ministry has since suspended demolition works at the site.
Meanwhile, particulars of the individual or company involved in the
demolition remain unknown even to Kambalu.
“They hide the name of the individual, or company involved,” Kambalu said.

Oh, You, The Useless Super League of Malawi Officials

The Super League of Malawi (Sulom) is failing to finish a battle it started.
This battle, a war against hooliganism in soccer, started with Mighty Wanderers. That was earlier this year, when Nomads fans went on rampage after questionable referring from some former fisherman who decided to take a go at Malawi's miserable football.
In that game against Red Lions of Zomba, Wanderers could not get the secret to getting beyond the soldiers' defense.
And, as is custom in human affairs, they looked for a scapegoat. That scapegoat, as happens often in Malawi's amateur football, happening to the the former fisherman in uniform.
All hell broke loose. Literally.
It all started when the referee decided against what the Nomads felt was a penalty. Nomads fans started pelting stones on the pitch.
Everyone, including the Zomba-based soldiers, run for dear life!
Malawi National Council of Sports offices had their windows smashed.
The battle went to Masauko Chipembere Highway, where road signs, innocent vehicles were smashed.
In the end, the Nomads received an 18-games' 'Home Ground'-ban that started with one game without supporters in Balaka.
The Nomads have been paying dearly.
But that lesson, it seems, was not enough to cash-trapped, struggling Big Bullets fans.
On Saturday last week, they went on rampage, stoning and the like, at their traditional home, Kamuzu Stadium.
Of course, Bullets are too poor to have a stadium. Let along one as good as the Kamuzu Stadium.
But they stoned, unhappy with referring decisions.
For one hour and fifteen minutes, pl;ay was delayed. The Bullets supporters had invaded the pitch.
The Sulom chairperson only said the Bullets were wrong, and promised to mete punishment.
Up to now, there is nothing.
People are now asking whether these Sulom officials have started condoning violence.
But they are quiet.
That's how useless they can become.
At times.
They are part of Malawi's unproductive soccer story.
A story of sadness and heart-breaks!

Looking for The One Who Said These Words:

"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it
easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the
power they have to change it.Impossible is not a fact. It's an
opinion.Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare.Impossible is
potential. Impossible is temporary.Impossible is
non-existent.Impossible is Nothing."

President Bingu wa Mutharika Here

People said so many things, the time President Bingu wa Mutharika went holidaying in Asia.
Now, he is here.
And the noise-makers are quiet.
Why?

Yebo Gunners!

Swansea 1.
Arsenal 2.

What a good result!

Wanna sleep over it!

Centre for Social Concern: Indifference in midst of biting Cost of Living

Beneath the surface of many of the disturbing moral, political, economic problems now looming is the growing incidence of non-altruistic economic decisions characterised by egocentrism and moral bankruptcy; first, was the RBM’s decision to construct a K43m worth swimming pool, and now it’s the people’s representatives in parliament who on Tuesday 15th unleashed themselves of their political party differences to unanimously endorse a Public Appointments and Declaration of Assets Committee report. If adopted it would warrant a 72% increase on their basic pay, translating into 61% increase on their remuneration package in the midst of the country’s economic turmoil and wide spread poverty that are making it very difficult for most Malawians to meet their basic needs. The foregoing decisions, made by both the RBM and the legislators, are unprecedented to and out of touch with the reality of most Malawians; it is reckless timing and leadership. In the intervening months, the costs of most BNB items have risen markedly, and to the distress of most Malawians, salaries are increasingly failing to keep pace as revealed in the salary survey carried out in July.
In the month of October, the price of maize hit an average of 11.7% increase in the four cities (Mzuzu, Lilongwe, Blantyre and Zomba). Equally the rural areas have been badly hit by the rising prices of maize. The average cost of maize in Chikwawa stood at MK2, 040.00 in October, compared with MK1, 600.00 during the comparable period last year, representing a 22% increase; Kasiya registered an average cost of K1, 625.00 in October compared with K1, 250.00 in the same period last year, representing a 23% increase. The fact that the staple food is recording alarming price increase is indicative of hard times ahead. It also presupposes that low and medium income households can expect the largest fall in their disposable incomes in the months to come and would better prepare for a squeeze in attempts to meet basic needs, the like of which many people might have never witnessed before. It is a wake-up call to government and other stakeholders in people’s livelihoods to monitor the situation closely for timely interventions as the upcoming lean season might be more than what the country might have known in the previous years.
In these trying times the Catholic Social Teaching reminds the nation that “citizens and governments have duties to each other which must be carried out for the common good.” People have the right and the duty to use their public offices to further the common good. The financial institutions, private businesses, and Political Leaders can never give their interests priority over the common good. Subsidiarity as the rule of social organization is, in this case, a nudging reminder that larger government structures have a role when greater social coordination and regulation are necessary for the common good. For instance, considering that salary increases might be a fairy tale for most working Malawians at the moment, the government can contemplate other possible ways of distributive justice such as raising the non-taxable bracket from the current K12, 000 to K25, 000 and add further brackets to ensure that the income taxes are structured in such a way that the tax burden rises as income rises.
In these turbulent times, it is important to remember that people are the source, center, and purpose of all economic and social life and that the purpose of economic production is to serve people in their basic needs, mostly but not all. Accordingly, the CFSC is critical of the excessive economic and social differences among people or groups of people which violate social justice, equity, human dignity, and national peace (such as the looming civil servants strike warned by CSTU- Daily Times 17/11/12). It is also critical of the dangerous lack of balance between the few most affluent Malawians and the desperate masses.

So Much Petrol Now

However, what is not there are two things; one, a commodity, and the other, a human being.

The commodity that is not in Malawi is Diesel.

The individual that is not in Malawi is President Ngwazi Prof. Bingu wa Mutharika- Chitsulo chanjanji, Mose walero, Mapuya Mulupwana, aBingu Akayankhula!

National Basketball Club Championship Slated for Friday, November 18

November 15, 2011



The Basketball Association of Malawi (BASMAL) will hold the 2011 National Basketball Club Championship on Friday, November 18th and Saturday, November 19th 2011 at African Bible College in Lilongwe.



Eight teams drawn from all the three zones will participate in the games which will throw off at 10:00 a.m. on Friday culminating into a final at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday.



The eight teams include Mimbulu, Blazers and ABC Lions from the Central Zone Basketball League; Nkhulande and The Rockets from the Northern Zone Basketball League; and Bricks, Magang'a and Crazy Warriors from the Southern Zone Basketball League.



A double knock out format will be used in the championship. There will be a gate fee of K200 for the final game which will be decorated with a three-point shootout and slam dunk contest open to players and fans. There will also be a raffle draw for various prizes and an auction for basketball memorabilia.



High ranking officials from the Ministry of Youth, Malawi National Council of Sports , the Malawi Olympics Committee and the corporate world have been invited to the event.


Mayeso Chirwa
General Secretary
Basmal

Wise Saying:

Yesterday is 'experience, today 'is', and tomorrow is hope- Richard Chirombo, November 14, 2011

Thanks Vince on 'Matchona'!

So, Is This Africa?

Dzilo lapansi...Lozunza ili, lozunza ili!!

Malawi: Going in Circles

Things are getting tough.
Very tough.
Someone, at the mountain he never knew, has lost direction.
No, it was direction- the real direction- he (for he is male) lost at first; now, he has lost even the 'sense' of direction!
Everywhere- in market places, fuel stations, beverage company off-loading and up-loading bays- the one thing that seems to grow is anger.
Queues, too, are getting longer by the day- the queues of impatience.
But, wait a minute, it all started well- this boiling of this pot called Malawi.
Everything was cooking well. The combination was good; this combination of egos that pushed this caravan of dreams.
The people who went to fetch the firewood did it between 1947 and 1958. The likes of Orton Chirwa.
Talk has it that, Chirwa- yes, the proud founder of the African National Congress which later chameleonated into the mighty Malawi Congress Party- knew, when he founded that old party, that fighting the Azungus could not be easy. It needed someone who was 'there; with the Azungus.
It did not matter where: Britain, Germany, Australia, Canada, everywhere- so long as the new leader ate with Azungu, drunk their wine, and escorted their children to school.
Kamuzu, as it were, fell into the equation. And so started the Malawi Congress Party on its mighty journey.
The cookers of this nation had started well. And this was because they fed into the combination of policies, politicians, and national euphoria.
Malawi's first elections in 1964 were democratic.
And all people were made to believe that it would be democracy through out. Wishful thinking!
It did not take long for the country's first political crisis to emerge. And that marked the beginning of Malawi's journey down the slopes.
Democratically, that is.
Ngwazi Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda was a great leader. He did more for Malawi than any of the misguided leaders that have taken over from him.
But, somehow, life had its ups and downs.
Even with Malawi's Second Republic president, Bakili Muluzi, it happened. He started so well.
But ended shamefully on the veranda of greed!
But President Bingu wa Mutharika is the worst of them all.
Look. No fuel.
No forex.
No hope.
No nothing!

I WISH I COULD EXPOUND ON THESE; BUT I AM TIRED. HAVE BEEN TYPING THINGS SINCE MORNING. THE BRAIN IS CLOGGED. BUT THERE IS ALWAYS THIS THING CALLED TOMORROW! A TOMORROW THE 'PEOPLE' DON'T TAKE BECAUSE OF THE OTHER 'TOMORROW' CALLED 'NEXT LIFE1

Obituary - Rose Robertson: 1916-2011

An edited version of this obituary appeared in The Guardian on 27 October 2011
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/oct/26/rose-robertson-obituary


Rose Robertson grew up in working class Deptford, south London, in the 1920s. It was an era when female children were often less favoured, as it was assumed they would never be a breadwinner. Her father, Arthur Laimbeer, a merchant seaman, was absent for much of her childhood and her mother, Rose (nee Crowley), treated her with an inexplicable lifelong disdain, which may have accounted for her later identification with the outsider and downcast. Keen to escape her stifling family life, Robertson twice during her teens ran away from home to join troupes of travelling actors.

She eventually settled into a series of secretarial jobs, most notably with a travel agency in Mayfair. The second world war transformed her routine existence and gave an outlet to her long suppressed adventurous, rebellious spirit.

Robertson was always reluctant to speak about her wartime role, partly out of modesty, partly due to trauma and partly because of what she described as a "sort of brainwashing we were subjected to during training, in order that we would not break under Nazi interrogation." She was referring to her enlistment in the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in 1941. The counter-interrogation training was so severe and successful that for the rest of her life Robertson had great difficulty in talking about her time in SOE. When she was pressed by her family, it provoked extreme mental and physical distress that sometimes lasted for weeks.

According to her account to me, Robertson was parachuted into Nazi-occupied France. She spied on German troop deployments and acted as a courier, liaising between the French Resistance and Allied military HQ in Britain. She was once stopped and quizzed by German soldiers but managed to bluff them. When her network was betrayed, she escaped. But others were captured.

Robertson acted as an informal advisor to the producers of the film Charlotte Gray (2001), about a SOE agent in France. Watching the film bought back painful memories and caused her a temporary breakdown. For many years, she retained her treasured miniature SOE pistol, which she used to hide in her hair to avoid detection during street checks by German troops; only finally surrendering it during a police amnesty in the late 1960s.

I was not able to independently corroborate Robertson's wartime role because many SOE records were destroyed or lost.

However, given her reticence to talk about her war work and her frequent distress when she did, I am inclined to believe her. Loyalty to the code of silence is typical of SOE women agents. Apart from a few like Nancy Wake and Odette Sansom, most stayed true to their oath of secrecy and never told their stories.

After the war, Robertson returned to hum-drum secretarial work for an industrial clothing factory. She eventually married George Robertson, a retired music hall artist, in 1954, and devoted the next decade to her job and bringing up two sons. Rose and George remained happily married until his death in 1984.

Roberston told me that during her wartime work in France an incident occurred which contributed to her later embrace of the gay rights cause. She was billeted with two young male French Resistance agents. One night she entered their room and found them in an embrace. There was mutual embarrassment all round. Not a word was said for three days. Rose knew nothing about homosexuality and was curious. She eventually plucked up the courage to ask them. Both men told stories of family prejudice and rejection. Their story affected her deeply. She was shocked that parents could be so heartless towards their gay children.

But it wasn't until 1965 that she decided to do something about it. That year she took in two young male lodgers who she quickly realised were lovers. Hearing that they, too, had suffered because of their parent's homophobic attitudes, Robertson was eventually prompted to set up Parents Enquiry, Britain's first helpline to advise and support parents and their lesbian, gay and bisexual children, which she ran from her Catford home in south-east London for three decades.

Robertson was soon flooded with over 100 phone calls and letters a week. These came from distressed gay teens, many of whom had self-harmed because of homophobic prejudice, and from parents who were variously bewildered, distraught, angry, guilty, ashamed and hostile towards their children's homosexuality. Often she mediated between parents and kids, nearly always successfully. As a middle aged and thoroughly heterosexual housewife, she was a reassuring figure. Occasionally, she was verbally abused and physically attacked by irate mums and dads. Usually she won them over in the end. She was also targeted by homophobes, with arson attacks on her home, excrement dumped on her doorstep and torrents of abusive phone calls and hate mail.

From the mid 70s onwards, a growing number of referrals came from the police and social services. Authorities who had been wary of supporting gay teenagers, some of whom remained classed as criminals until 2001, were impressed by her family-oriented approach to reconciling gay children with their parents.

Robertson won public support from Marjorie Proops and Claire Rayner, the leading agony aunts of the era. She was a frequent speaker at universities, churches and medical seminars, and was a regular on TV and radio throughout the 1970s and 80s.

During this work, Robertson discovered a natural flair for therapy and soon extended her counselling to all aspects of sexuality and to a wide range of mental and emotional issues. She refused payment, financing her work from her salary and later out of her pension.

Her defiance of convention led Robertson into controversial areas that many established psychotherapists steered clear of, notably psychopathy. She had a track record of moderating the behaviour of psychopathic people, often when orthodox methods had failed.

From her work on psyhcopathy, Robertson came to believe that much irrational behaviour, including some personality disorders and motiveless violence, may stem from emotions absorbed by an embryo before its brain is sufficiently developed. Only a few months ago, she began work on a paper arguing that psychotherapy needed to examine this contentious issue if it was to remain a force for progress.

Robertson continued working until shortly before her death, aged 94. She died peacefully while sleeping.

Her legacy is that she helped thousands of parents and lesbian, gay and bisexual teenagers find understanding, acceptance and reconciliation. Until she began Parents Enquiry, gay children's parents were unrecognised and unsupported. Robertson highlighted a social need. Her pioneering work was replicated by others and it continues today through the services provided by Friends and Families of Lesbians And Gays (FFLAG) and Parents, Friends (& Family) of Lesbians And Gays (PFLAG).

Robertson is survived by her sons Paul and Chris, her grandchildren Claire, Emma and Matthew and two great-grandchildren.

Rose Ellen Robertson, wartime SOE agent, therapist and counsellor to parents and their gay children, born 28 October 1916, died 10 August 10 2011.