Subscribe To
Posts
All Comments
Friday, June 11, 2010
Please watch this video from Newsy; it's good
http://www.newsy.com/videos/new-jersey-school-under-fire-for-queer-theory-course/
Embarasment to the Malawi government: No chloramphenicol eye ointment in Malawi
Malawi has no chloramphenicol in both all iots public hospitals and Central Medical Stores, suppliers of drugs to public institutions.
The development has forced poor people who visit the referral Kamuzu Central Hospital in the Central region, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Southern region, and Northern region major hospitals to go back home with their eye ailments.
This is a public health risk.
Health Minister, Professor Moses Chirambo, confirmed the news today, saying, however, government would do all it can to procure the drugs.
Meanwhile, private pharmacies are charging K600 per packet of 10 mg/gm, six times as much as the recommended price.
The problem has been there for the past ten months.
The development has forced poor people who visit the referral Kamuzu Central Hospital in the Central region, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Southern region, and Northern region major hospitals to go back home with their eye ailments.
This is a public health risk.
Health Minister, Professor Moses Chirambo, confirmed the news today, saying, however, government would do all it can to procure the drugs.
Meanwhile, private pharmacies are charging K600 per packet of 10 mg/gm, six times as much as the recommended price.
The problem has been there for the past ten months.
Aunt Tiwo takes to TV, but says World Cup will not ease problems
Malawi’s open gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a.k.a Aunt Tiwo has rtevealed that he has spend the past 10 days watching television, as he refocuses his life after being pardoned by President Bingu wa Mutharika.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
Today's Zachimalawi menu
Embarrassment: No chloramphenicol eye ointment in Malawi
Malawi has no chloramphenicol in both all iots public hospitals and Central Medical Stores, suppliers of drugs to public institutions.
The development has forced poor people who visit the referral Kamuzu Central Hospital in the Central region, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Southern region, and Northern region major hospitals to go back home with their eye ailments.
This is a public health risk.
Health Minister, Professor Moses Chirambo, confirmed the news today, saying, however, government would do all it can to procure the drugs.
Meanwhile, private pharmacies are charging K600 per packet of 10 mg/gm, six times as much as the recommended price.
Aunt Tiwo takes to TV, but says World Cup will not ease problems
Malawi’s open gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a.k.a Aunt Tiwo has rtevealed that he has spend the past 10 days watching television, as he refocuses his life after being pardoned by President Bingu wa Mutharika.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
Malawi has no chloramphenicol in both all iots public hospitals and Central Medical Stores, suppliers of drugs to public institutions.
The development has forced poor people who visit the referral Kamuzu Central Hospital in the Central region, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Southern region, and Northern region major hospitals to go back home with their eye ailments.
This is a public health risk.
Health Minister, Professor Moses Chirambo, confirmed the news today, saying, however, government would do all it can to procure the drugs.
Meanwhile, private pharmacies are charging K600 per packet of 10 mg/gm, six times as much as the recommended price.
Aunt Tiwo takes to TV, but says World Cup will not ease problems
Malawi’s open gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a.k.a Aunt Tiwo has rtevealed that he has spend the past 10 days watching television, as he refocuses his life after being pardoned by President Bingu wa Mutharika.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
Aunt Tiwo finds passtime in watching Television, but says World Cup will not ease problems
Malawi’s open gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a.k.a Aunt Tiwo has rtevealed that he has spend the past 10 days watching television, as he refocuses his life after being pardoned by President Bingu wa Mutharika.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
Feedback: Please consider embedding this Newsy.com Video
Richard,
I read your posting about Moscow upholding the gay pride ban. It's such a shame that Russian president acted in defiance of the Russian constitution by denying people the right to protest peacefully.Here is a video I think you might find interesting: http://www.newsy.com/videos/new-jersey-school-under-fire-for-queer-theory-course/ It's a Newsy.com video that analyzes different news media perspectives on the issue of allowing a Catholic college in New Jersey to offer a "Queer Theory" class on the topic of gay marriage. Hopefully, you might consider embedding the video into a posting on your site as people in many nations are still fighting for the same rights.
Newsy.com videos analyze and synthesize news coverage of important global issues from multiple sources. Its unique method of presenting how different media outlets are covering a story provides context to help viewers understand complex global issues.
Please let me know if you decide to post the video or if you have any questions,
LaNita Williams
LaNitaW@yahoo.com
I read your posting about Moscow upholding the gay pride ban. It's such a shame that Russian president acted in defiance of the Russian constitution by denying people the right to protest peacefully.Here is a video I think you might find interesting: http://www.newsy.com/videos/new-jersey-school-under-fire-for-queer-theory-course/ It's a Newsy.com video that analyzes different news media perspectives on the issue of allowing a Catholic college in New Jersey to offer a "Queer Theory" class on the topic of gay marriage. Hopefully, you might consider embedding the video into a posting on your site as people in many nations are still fighting for the same rights.
Newsy.com videos analyze and synthesize news coverage of important global issues from multiple sources. Its unique method of presenting how different media outlets are covering a story provides context to help viewers understand complex global issues.
Please let me know if you decide to post the video or if you have any questions,
LaNita Williams
LaNitaW@yahoo.com
Aunt Tiwo takes to TV, but says World Cup will not ease problems
Malawi’s open gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a.k.a Aunt Tiwo has rtevealed that he has spend the past 10 days watching television, as he refocuses his life after being pardoned by President Bingu wa Mutharika.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
But Chimbalanga was quick to add that, while he plans to watch the 2010 World Cup tournament in South Africa, scheduled for today, he will find no solace in it since “I love netball sop much”.
“The World Cup will do nothing to raise my spirits. I love netball for life. I don’t think anything will change on my part because of the events taking place in South Africa,” said Chimbalanga.
He said he looked forward to getting back into the public arena again, and urged Malawians to be fair with him.
“I urge Malawians to get a life; let us mind our own business, instead of focusing all our attention on me and Steven Monjeza. There is more to life that ‘Aunt Tiwo’. Please,” pleaded Chimbalanga.
Chimbalanga revealed that he now spends most of his time watching television.
“The past five months have been the most difficult in my life; I am trying to relax,” he said.
Anglican Mainstream's distortions and dishonesty: Call to boycott the Greenbelt festival over Tatchell invite
Call to boycott the Greenbelt festival over Tatchell invite
Hosting Tatchell will put children at risk of child sex abuse, claims Anglican activist
London - 24 May 2010
A leading consultant with Anglican Mainstream, the Church of England's conservative and traditionalist wing, has called for a boycott of the UK's Christian version of Woodstock, the mega Greenbelt arts festival, which takes place in Cheltenham in August.
Dr Lisa Nolland, apparently speaking on behalf of Anglican Mainstream, is calling on Christians to stay away in protest at the decision by the festival organisers to host a speech by gay rights and human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell.
Last year, Anglican Mainstream demanded a boycott of Greenbelt after it invited gay US Bishop, Gene Robinson, as a guest speaker.
According to the Church of England Newspaper, Ms Nolland says that inviting Mr Tatchell will put more children at risk of sexual abuse (see full text below).
"The suggestion that my guest lecture at Greenbelt will leave children vulnerable to sexual abuse is a sordid slur, unworthy of a Christian," said Mr Tatchell, who has previously spoken at Greenbelt and received an overwhelmingly warm and positive reception from the packed out religious audience.
"My Greenbelt talk is not about teen sexuality, sex education or the age of consent. It is about the persecution of gay people in Africa, much of which is being orchestrated by Christian evangelicals who share Anglican Mainstream's fundamentalist interpretation of scripture.
"I will be highlighting rising homophobic victimisation and praising the inspiring defence of gay human rights by African Christian leaders such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Bishop Christopher Senyonjo of Uganda, who has been hounded and cast out by the Anglican Church of Uganda.
"Dr Nolland is bearing false witness. Her claims are partial, selective and distorted. Anglican Mainstream is colluding with her misrepresentations by giving them a platform on its website.
"Does she want me censored and banned by Greenbelt? It seems like an attack on freedom of speech. I am happy to debate with anyone from Anglican Mainstream. I await their invitation.
"Her account of my beliefs and campaigns is one-sided, biased and unbalanced.
"She has ignored totally my human rights work on global poverty, disarmament and anti-racism, and my support for the democratic struggles in Zimbabwe, Burma, Iran, Russia, Balochistan and Uganda. She doesn't mention a word about how I have condemned the persecution of Christians in countries like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and opposed the prosecution of homophobic street preachers like Harry Hammond, Shawn Holes and Dale McApline.
"Lisa Nolland presents a selective and distorted account of my essay on sex education. She has neglected to mention my advocacy of a sexual moral framework of mutual consent, respect and fulfilment, and my proposals to help protect young people against sex abuse.
"I would like to thank Anglican Mainstream for helping stir extra interest in Greenbelt; resulting in more people now planning to attend this year's festival because of the controversy over my invitation," said Mr Tatchell.
Dr Nolland's posting on the Anglican Mainstream website (12 May), reiterates her opposition to Mr Tatchell being an invited speaker at Greenbelt and concludes with this comment:
"Would a committed racist, pimp or Moslem with four wives and twenty-one children be put in the 2010 Greenbelt line-up if their poetry or art was unexcelled or their science was solving the problem of world hunger?"
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/05/12/greenbelt-and-peter-tatchell-an-update-2/
This is what Ms Nolland claims Peter Tatchell is advocating for sex education in schools:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/04/29/ii-open-letter-to-greenbelt-on-its-invitations-to-robinson-and-tatchell/
This is the full account, including the moral perspectives, of what he wrote in his chapter in the book, Teenage Sex - What should schools teach children?:
http://www.petertatchell.net/sex%20education/schoolsex.htm
This is Dr Nolland's version of an interview that Peter Tatchell conducted on under-age sex and child sex abuse:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/04/29/ii-open-letter-to-greenbelt-on-its-invitations-to-robinson-and-tatchell/
This is the full account of Mr Tatchell's interview with 14 year-old Lee. It is not an advocacy or approval of his sexual relationships with older men, but merely a reportage of Lee's perspective:
http://www.petertatchell.net/age%20of%20consent/14%20gay%20boyfriend.htm
More information: Peter Tatchell - 0207 403 1790
News report Church of England Newspaper
By Toby Cohen, 6 May 2010
BOYCOTT GREENBELT if you want to safeguard vulnerable children, said an Anglican Mainstream consultant after her concerns over the presence of Peter Tatchell at this year's festival were ignored.
Dr Lisa Nolland wrote an open letter to the festival organisers complaining about "the further gayification of Greenbelt," following the invitation of the gay rights campaigner, which she saw as compounding damage done by inviting the Bishop of New Hampshire, the Rt Rev Gene Robinson, to speak last year.
Dr Nolland wrote: "We are very concerned and alarmed. We would like to meet with you because we believe this is damaging to both Christian witness and the health of the nation. "Both Gene Robinson and Peter Tatchell are bad news for the church and for Greenbelt. Greenbelt does much that is good and even excellent. Why spoil it with such as this? "In the light of the above, I would very much appreciate an explanation of your invitation to Peter Tatchell for 2010, given your invitation to Gene Robin- son in 2009. "You will recall the specific concerns we raised about ensuring that equal airtime was given to orthodox Christian perspectives. On the face of it seems that our concerns have fallen on deaf ears."
Anglican Mainstream has posted a response from the festival on its website, which reads: "Each year Greenbelt hosts speakers with varying and sometimes contrasting views on a whole range of subjects. At any one time, we also ensure there are a range of lineup items that which they feel comfortable with."
Dr Nolland told The Church of England Newspaper that this statement was disingenuous. Not only did she decry the absence of a speaker who could present "the orthodox Biblical position on sexual ethics," she also suspected that the liberal campaigners were denying the voice of less palatable sexualities who might taint their case.
Dr Nolland said: "If Greenbelt actually wanted to have a really open honest discussion about all this, I'd have a far easier time with it. But instead - they talk about how they include and accept all and all are welcomed etc - that's rub- bish. There are all sorts of orientations out there who say 'look, LGBT people are doing to us what straight people did to them for centuries'.
Once the campaigners are accepted, they will then start leading Christians further astray, Dr Nolland fears. Illustrating how far this could go, she pointed to an interview Mr Tatchell conducted with a 14- year-old boy, 'Lee', who was sexually active with older men from the age of 12 and suggests that we should rethink our attitudes towards paedophilia.
Dr Nolland said that attending the festival will leave children more vulnerable to sexual abuse, because of Mr Tatchell's erosion of boundaries, "particularly if they are told we need to question - explore, try this, try that, try 200 things later on, explore your sexuality - that's actually a really bad idea". Mr Tatchell is currently in Australia attending a family funeral, and no one from Greenbelt was available to comment.
Hosting Tatchell will put children at risk of child sex abuse, claims Anglican activist
London - 24 May 2010
A leading consultant with Anglican Mainstream, the Church of England's conservative and traditionalist wing, has called for a boycott of the UK's Christian version of Woodstock, the mega Greenbelt arts festival, which takes place in Cheltenham in August.
Dr Lisa Nolland, apparently speaking on behalf of Anglican Mainstream, is calling on Christians to stay away in protest at the decision by the festival organisers to host a speech by gay rights and human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell.
Last year, Anglican Mainstream demanded a boycott of Greenbelt after it invited gay US Bishop, Gene Robinson, as a guest speaker.
According to the Church of England Newspaper, Ms Nolland says that inviting Mr Tatchell will put more children at risk of sexual abuse (see full text below).
"The suggestion that my guest lecture at Greenbelt will leave children vulnerable to sexual abuse is a sordid slur, unworthy of a Christian," said Mr Tatchell, who has previously spoken at Greenbelt and received an overwhelmingly warm and positive reception from the packed out religious audience.
"My Greenbelt talk is not about teen sexuality, sex education or the age of consent. It is about the persecution of gay people in Africa, much of which is being orchestrated by Christian evangelicals who share Anglican Mainstream's fundamentalist interpretation of scripture.
"I will be highlighting rising homophobic victimisation and praising the inspiring defence of gay human rights by African Christian leaders such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Bishop Christopher Senyonjo of Uganda, who has been hounded and cast out by the Anglican Church of Uganda.
"Dr Nolland is bearing false witness. Her claims are partial, selective and distorted. Anglican Mainstream is colluding with her misrepresentations by giving them a platform on its website.
"Does she want me censored and banned by Greenbelt? It seems like an attack on freedom of speech. I am happy to debate with anyone from Anglican Mainstream. I await their invitation.
"Her account of my beliefs and campaigns is one-sided, biased and unbalanced.
"She has ignored totally my human rights work on global poverty, disarmament and anti-racism, and my support for the democratic struggles in Zimbabwe, Burma, Iran, Russia, Balochistan and Uganda. She doesn't mention a word about how I have condemned the persecution of Christians in countries like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and opposed the prosecution of homophobic street preachers like Harry Hammond, Shawn Holes and Dale McApline.
"Lisa Nolland presents a selective and distorted account of my essay on sex education. She has neglected to mention my advocacy of a sexual moral framework of mutual consent, respect and fulfilment, and my proposals to help protect young people against sex abuse.
"I would like to thank Anglican Mainstream for helping stir extra interest in Greenbelt; resulting in more people now planning to attend this year's festival because of the controversy over my invitation," said Mr Tatchell.
Dr Nolland's posting on the Anglican Mainstream website (12 May), reiterates her opposition to Mr Tatchell being an invited speaker at Greenbelt and concludes with this comment:
"Would a committed racist, pimp or Moslem with four wives and twenty-one children be put in the 2010 Greenbelt line-up if their poetry or art was unexcelled or their science was solving the problem of world hunger?"
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/05/12/greenbelt-and-peter-tatchell-an-update-2/
This is what Ms Nolland claims Peter Tatchell is advocating for sex education in schools:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/04/29/ii-open-letter-to-greenbelt-on-its-invitations-to-robinson-and-tatchell/
This is the full account, including the moral perspectives, of what he wrote in his chapter in the book, Teenage Sex - What should schools teach children?:
http://www.petertatchell.net/sex%20education/schoolsex.htm
This is Dr Nolland's version of an interview that Peter Tatchell conducted on under-age sex and child sex abuse:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/2010/04/29/ii-open-letter-to-greenbelt-on-its-invitations-to-robinson-and-tatchell/
This is the full account of Mr Tatchell's interview with 14 year-old Lee. It is not an advocacy or approval of his sexual relationships with older men, but merely a reportage of Lee's perspective:
http://www.petertatchell.net/age%20of%20consent/14%20gay%20boyfriend.htm
More information: Peter Tatchell - 0207 403 1790
News report Church of England Newspaper
By Toby Cohen, 6 May 2010
BOYCOTT GREENBELT if you want to safeguard vulnerable children, said an Anglican Mainstream consultant after her concerns over the presence of Peter Tatchell at this year's festival were ignored.
Dr Lisa Nolland wrote an open letter to the festival organisers complaining about "the further gayification of Greenbelt," following the invitation of the gay rights campaigner, which she saw as compounding damage done by inviting the Bishop of New Hampshire, the Rt Rev Gene Robinson, to speak last year.
Dr Nolland wrote: "We are very concerned and alarmed. We would like to meet with you because we believe this is damaging to both Christian witness and the health of the nation. "Both Gene Robinson and Peter Tatchell are bad news for the church and for Greenbelt. Greenbelt does much that is good and even excellent. Why spoil it with such as this? "In the light of the above, I would very much appreciate an explanation of your invitation to Peter Tatchell for 2010, given your invitation to Gene Robin- son in 2009. "You will recall the specific concerns we raised about ensuring that equal airtime was given to orthodox Christian perspectives. On the face of it seems that our concerns have fallen on deaf ears."
Anglican Mainstream has posted a response from the festival on its website, which reads: "Each year Greenbelt hosts speakers with varying and sometimes contrasting views on a whole range of subjects. At any one time, we also ensure there are a range of lineup items that which they feel comfortable with."
Dr Nolland told The Church of England Newspaper that this statement was disingenuous. Not only did she decry the absence of a speaker who could present "the orthodox Biblical position on sexual ethics," she also suspected that the liberal campaigners were denying the voice of less palatable sexualities who might taint their case.
Dr Nolland said: "If Greenbelt actually wanted to have a really open honest discussion about all this, I'd have a far easier time with it. But instead - they talk about how they include and accept all and all are welcomed etc - that's rub- bish. There are all sorts of orientations out there who say 'look, LGBT people are doing to us what straight people did to them for centuries'.
Once the campaigners are accepted, they will then start leading Christians further astray, Dr Nolland fears. Illustrating how far this could go, she pointed to an interview Mr Tatchell conducted with a 14- year-old boy, 'Lee', who was sexually active with older men from the age of 12 and suggests that we should rethink our attitudes towards paedophilia.
Dr Nolland said that attending the festival will leave children more vulnerable to sexual abuse, because of Mr Tatchell's erosion of boundaries, "particularly if they are told we need to question - explore, try this, try that, try 200 things later on, explore your sexuality - that's actually a really bad idea". Mr Tatchell is currently in Australia attending a family funeral, and no one from Greenbelt was available to comment.
Swine flu outbreak in Northern Cameroon
An outbreak of the African swine flu has hit the far North Region of Cameroon. A release issued recently by the Senior Divisional Officer of Diamare Division in the Far North Region, Nassiri Paul Bea, warns of the outbreak.
Morocco: Swine flu kills again
Although the release states that the disease has been detected specifically in the Diamare Division, measures have been taken to contain it from spreading to neighbouring regions. To this effect the selling and slaughtering of pigs has been banned, movement of pigs in and out of Diamare Divison has also been prohibited.
Meanwhile, all pigs within the infected zone are expected to be killed.
The decision stresses that these preventive measures shall be lifted 40 days after the disappearance of the last case and disinfection of infected premises and objects.
Morocco: Swine flu kills again
Although the release states that the disease has been detected specifically in the Diamare Division, measures have been taken to contain it from spreading to neighbouring regions. To this effect the selling and slaughtering of pigs has been banned, movement of pigs in and out of Diamare Divison has also been prohibited.
Meanwhile, all pigs within the infected zone are expected to be killed.
The decision stresses that these preventive measures shall be lifted 40 days after the disappearance of the last case and disinfection of infected premises and objects.
The pain of today: Rela life poem for this day
My neck is sending pain to my whole body.
My back is following suit.
Problem is: Can't figure out where the pain is coming from.
The back sings pain,
So, too, the vertebrae column.
My head throbs,
And I can't turn left or right today.
I think life is tough today.
Tomorrow, June 12, 2010,
I will go for X-ray at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital,
One of the major hospitals in Malawi,
That hasn't had Chloramphenicol for five months now.
Hope there is life there,
Hope there is unconditional joy.
Now hope lies in an institution,
That lies empty at times,
Empty of hope that is drugs,
Empty of gladness,
Because of the emptiness of the chests of hope,
The chests of drugs.
Today, I cannot sit for ten minutes,
Neither can I sleep for twenty minutes,
It is all pain inside,
Where can I hide.
The pains are visible outside,
Which tree can I climb,
When there is no tree of joy in Malawi.
I cannot bask in the sun,
Because the sun seems to motivate pain.
Even the shadows bring no recourse
The coldness in them,
Seems to attract the cold within,
And send pain to the brain.
But tomorrow I am going for X-ray,
Perhaps there is life that way,
When today you cannot sleep,
Or bask in the pain.
Pain is a guitar,
It has a chord
A choral chord.
A way,
That sends pain in the sky.
My back is following suit.
Problem is: Can't figure out where the pain is coming from.
The back sings pain,
So, too, the vertebrae column.
My head throbs,
And I can't turn left or right today.
I think life is tough today.
Tomorrow, June 12, 2010,
I will go for X-ray at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital,
One of the major hospitals in Malawi,
That hasn't had Chloramphenicol for five months now.
Hope there is life there,
Hope there is unconditional joy.
Now hope lies in an institution,
That lies empty at times,
Empty of hope that is drugs,
Empty of gladness,
Because of the emptiness of the chests of hope,
The chests of drugs.
Today, I cannot sit for ten minutes,
Neither can I sleep for twenty minutes,
It is all pain inside,
Where can I hide.
The pains are visible outside,
Which tree can I climb,
When there is no tree of joy in Malawi.
I cannot bask in the sun,
Because the sun seems to motivate pain.
Even the shadows bring no recourse
The coldness in them,
Seems to attract the cold within,
And send pain to the brain.
But tomorrow I am going for X-ray,
Perhaps there is life that way,
When today you cannot sleep,
Or bask in the pain.
Pain is a guitar,
It has a chord
A choral chord.
A way,
That sends pain in the sky.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Malawi's behaviour over Taiwan was ill-conceived but development oriented
Yes, who hates development? Raise your hand!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
10 love proposals for Aunt Tiwo
Convicted and pardoned gay, Tiwonge Chimbalanga, popularly known as Aunt Tiwo, is having it all rosy these days.
The popular 'Aunt' has revealed that, so far, 'she' has received 10 love proposals from both local and international courters, adding 'she' was in no hurry.
Chimbalanga this week suffered the heart-breaking nes that Steven Chimbalanga, the man 'she' wanted to share a life-time with, had deserted 'her' for a Mbayani Township woman in Blantyre.
But 'she' has taken it on the chin, expressing hope there are many men out there out seeking for love; the love 'she' also needs.
"I am not worried with Monjeza's decision. Things are not as bad as people want them to be. Actually, ther are men out there who are interested in me and, so far, I have been approached by 10. I am in no hurry," said Aunt Tiwo.
Chimbalanga and Monjeza attracted a 14 year jail term on themselves from the Blantyre Magistrates' Court's Resident Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa.
But President Bingu wa Mutharika pardoned them after pressure from donors like Britain, USA, Turky, European Union and UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, who took t upon himself to announce the pardon in Parliament during a visit last month.
While Monjeza has walked out on Chimbalanga, Aunt Tiwo is hopeful love is in the air.
"Another man will marry me," Chimbalanga said
The popular 'Aunt' has revealed that, so far, 'she' has received 10 love proposals from both local and international courters, adding 'she' was in no hurry.
Chimbalanga this week suffered the heart-breaking nes that Steven Chimbalanga, the man 'she' wanted to share a life-time with, had deserted 'her' for a Mbayani Township woman in Blantyre.
But 'she' has taken it on the chin, expressing hope there are many men out there out seeking for love; the love 'she' also needs.
"I am not worried with Monjeza's decision. Things are not as bad as people want them to be. Actually, ther are men out there who are interested in me and, so far, I have been approached by 10. I am in no hurry," said Aunt Tiwo.
Chimbalanga and Monjeza attracted a 14 year jail term on themselves from the Blantyre Magistrates' Court's Resident Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwausiwa.
But President Bingu wa Mutharika pardoned them after pressure from donors like Britain, USA, Turky, European Union and UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, who took t upon himself to announce the pardon in Parliament during a visit last month.
While Monjeza has walked out on Chimbalanga, Aunt Tiwo is hopeful love is in the air.
"Another man will marry me," Chimbalanga said
Steven Monjeza seeks police protection
Steven Monjeza has told Malawi Today and Zachimalawi (www.zachimalawi.blogspot.com) he is tired of men who are pestering him with 'unnecessary calls', and says he is now seeking police protection from harrassment.
Monjeza said about 22 men unidentified men have now been calling him, threatening him with unspecified action.
"All I want is peace. As it is now, I am thinking of approaching the police for protection. I am a Malawian citizen," said Monjeza.
Monjeza said about 22 men unidentified men have now been calling him, threatening him with unspecified action.
"All I want is peace. As it is now, I am thinking of approaching the police for protection. I am a Malawian citizen," said Monjeza.
Another man will marry me, says abandoned gay Tiwonge Chimbalanga
Tiwonge Chimbalanga, still reeling from news that his partner Steven Monjeza has chickened out on him, has taken it on the chin and rested all he aspirations on hope- saying 'she' knows 'she' will find another man.
"I was shocked to learn that Monjeza, whom I have always considered my man, has found a woman. I am also a woman, though. Anyway, I will find another man because life is full of opportunities," said Chimbalanga.
Monjeza announced on Monday he had found 'real' love in Dorothy Gulo, a woman based in Blantyre's Mbayani Township.
Dorothy confirmed: "It is true that we are in love and have been staying together. The man is good. Already, we have had sex twice and he has shown he has the mettle. Let Aunt Tiwo my his own business now," said Dorothy.
Meanwhile, Monjeza was smiling- the sure sign of an excited man.
"I was shocked to learn that Monjeza, whom I have always considered my man, has found a woman. I am also a woman, though. Anyway, I will find another man because life is full of opportunities," said Chimbalanga.
Monjeza announced on Monday he had found 'real' love in Dorothy Gulo, a woman based in Blantyre's Mbayani Township.
Dorothy confirmed: "It is true that we are in love and have been staying together. The man is good. Already, we have had sex twice and he has shown he has the mettle. Let Aunt Tiwo my his own business now," said Dorothy.
Meanwhile, Monjeza was smiling- the sure sign of an excited man.
Life imprisonment for child traffickers
Malawi plans to table legislation that could see child traffickers spending the rest of their life in jail.
This has been disclosed by Minister of Gender, Child and Community Welfare, Patricia Kaliati, in the wake of increased cases of trafficking in the Southern African Development Community member state.
This has been disclosed by Minister of Gender, Child and Community Welfare, Patricia Kaliati, in the wake of increased cases of trafficking in the Southern African Development Community member state.
Moscow court upholds Gay Pride ban
EU, UK and US fail to condemn ban
Russian gays will defy courts and mayor
Activists gather in secret Moscow location
Moscow 28 May 2010
"In a shameless display of feeble deference to the Mayor of Moscow, a court in the Russian capital today upheld Mayor Luzhkov's ban of the fifth attempted Moscow Gay Pride parade. The judge acted in defiance of the Russian constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression and the right to protest.
"This is a sad day for Russian democracy. It is the latest of many suppressions of civil liberties that happen in supposedly democratic Russia. Many other protests are also denied and repressed, not just gay ones. Autocracy rules under President Medvedev," said human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who is in Moscow for the fourth time to support Russian gay rights activists.
"The EU and western embassies are hypocrites. They support Gay Pride events in Poland and Latvia, but not in Russia. The UK and US governments have not protested to the Russian authorities. Their ambassadors to Russia have offered no support to the Moscow Pride organizers. They have ignored suggestions that they host Gay Pride events in their embassy grounds and that they fly the gay rainbow flag on Moscow Pride day, 29 May.
"On the eve of the banned march, activists are arriving in Moscow from all parts of Russia, to join the Saturday parade. We are being billeted in secret locations across the city. To outwit the FSB security services, who have previously tried to locate Gay Pride activists by tracing their mobile phones, we have surrendered our mobiles and been issued with brand new Russian sim cards.
"I am holed up with a group of activists in an apartment in Moscow. We've been asked to remove all badges and ribbons that might identify us as gay or as activists. All the beds and sofas, and much of the floor space, is taken up with activists form far and wide. Everyone is messing in to organize food and household chores.
"We are ready and determined to make a stand for gay rights and the right to protests. The courage and resolve of the Russian LGBT activists is really inspiring. We'll take whatever the authorities, and neoNazis, throw at us. We are hoping for no arrests and no assaults, but we are ready for the worst," said Mr Tatchell.
Russian gays will defy courts and mayor
Activists gather in secret Moscow location
Moscow 28 May 2010
"In a shameless display of feeble deference to the Mayor of Moscow, a court in the Russian capital today upheld Mayor Luzhkov's ban of the fifth attempted Moscow Gay Pride parade. The judge acted in defiance of the Russian constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression and the right to protest.
"This is a sad day for Russian democracy. It is the latest of many suppressions of civil liberties that happen in supposedly democratic Russia. Many other protests are also denied and repressed, not just gay ones. Autocracy rules under President Medvedev," said human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who is in Moscow for the fourth time to support Russian gay rights activists.
"The EU and western embassies are hypocrites. They support Gay Pride events in Poland and Latvia, but not in Russia. The UK and US governments have not protested to the Russian authorities. Their ambassadors to Russia have offered no support to the Moscow Pride organizers. They have ignored suggestions that they host Gay Pride events in their embassy grounds and that they fly the gay rainbow flag on Moscow Pride day, 29 May.
"On the eve of the banned march, activists are arriving in Moscow from all parts of Russia, to join the Saturday parade. We are being billeted in secret locations across the city. To outwit the FSB security services, who have previously tried to locate Gay Pride activists by tracing their mobile phones, we have surrendered our mobiles and been issued with brand new Russian sim cards.
"I am holed up with a group of activists in an apartment in Moscow. We've been asked to remove all badges and ribbons that might identify us as gay or as activists. All the beds and sofas, and much of the floor space, is taken up with activists form far and wide. Everyone is messing in to organize food and household chores.
"We are ready and determined to make a stand for gay rights and the right to protests. The courage and resolve of the Russian LGBT activists is really inspiring. We'll take whatever the authorities, and neoNazis, throw at us. We are hoping for no arrests and no assaults, but we are ready for the worst," said Mr Tatchell.
Israel and Universal Jihad
Today we have a very different issue, not because it deals with Islam and politics, but because it is written by a politician—Vijay Kumar is running for Congress in Tennessees' 5th District. His billboards say "Defeat Universal Jihad". Imagine for a moment, that we had elected officials who actually knew who Mohammed was and what the true nature of jihad is. Instead, we have officials who believe Islam has been maligned and misunderstood and if we are just "nice" enough, they will love us.
Israel is the target of Islam's Universal Jihadists, whether they come from Turkey, Palestine, Lancashire, the United Nations, Maine, or Sweden. Islam's own Syed Qutb said it best: "A Muslim has no nationality except his belief." The exact same statement applies to the allies and supporters of Islam's Universal Jihadists.
That's why all the talk about Gaza and Palestinians and Turkey and "humanitarian aid" is pure fraud and nothing but fraud, all merely part of the Islamic Universal Jihad against Israel and everything it stands for. The Muslims involved in the attacks on Israel—no matter what piece of land they call home—care nothing for manmade geographical boundaries, just as they care nothing for manmade laws, or, for that matter, human life.
What they care about is wiping Israel and everything it stands for off the face of the Earth. That is their goal. The one thing that Israel stands for that drives the Universal Jihadists of the Middle East mad—however short a trip that may be—is the right and freedom of a human being to be something other than Muslim. Universal Jihadists are dedicated to wiping such freedom from the face of the Earth. That's why their overtly stated goal is to destroy Israel and the Jews. It is pure, seething hatred.
The "humanitarian aid" mission these Universal Jihadists and their liberal handmaidens are parading before the world press is nothing but a flotilla of pure, seething hatred, and it is a criminal fraud on Israel and on the world. It is actually a massive propaganda mission whose sole purpose is to smear and defame Israel, and weaken it for future attacks.
For those people of reason in the world who care about facts instead of hysterical Jihadist propaganda, over a million tons of humanitarian supplies have gone into Gaza through Israel in the last 18 months. That's nearly a full ton of supplies for every man, woman, and child in all of Gaza!
So who is lying? The Jihadists and their liberal "friends" fraudulently pretending to be on a "humanitarian aid" mission are lying. That shouldn't be a surprise: Islam demands that Muslims lie to non-Muslims if it benefits Universal Jihad and the Islamic goal of world domination.
Hamas is just one arm of Universal Jihad, and they've sent over 10,000 mortars and rockets into Israel. Why? Pure, seething hatred, that's why.
Israel is completely within its legal rights under international law to have mounted the Gaza blockade, and to have enforced it in international waters by stopping the Jihadist flotilla of pure, seething hatred fraudulently calling itself a "humanitarian aid" mission.
But the Universal Jihadists surrounding Israel on every side care nothing whatsoever about "international law." That, after all, is just more man-made law, and means absolutely nothing to the Jihadists, who honor only the allegedly "divine law" of the Quran and the Sunnah: Shariah law.
Islam's own Syed Qutb said it clearly: "There is only one law which ought to be followed, and that is the Shariah."
Islam's own Syed Qutb also exposed the complete fraud being perpetrated by Hamas and the rest of the Jihadist liars claiming that Gaza, and even Israel, are somehow important for the land to Muslims: "The homeland of the Muslim, in which he lives and which he defends, is not a piece of land; the nationality of the Muslim, by which he is identified, is not the nationality determined by a government." So it's all Jihadist fraud, and nothing but fraud.
The real driving force behind it is the one that has perpetuated 1400 years of the same kind of aggression, invasion, war, terrorism, slaughter, propaganda, and conquest of entire civilizations, such as Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran: it is Universal Jihad, the eternal Islamic quest for complete world domination.
Israel is just the next most important target in this 1400-year war against mankind and civilization.
The "humanitarian aid" mission is a Universal Jihad war flotilla, and it is nothing else. Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi, AKP) is the Turkish headquarters for Universal Jihad. The 10,000 rockets and mortars thrown by Hamas at Israel are missiles of Universal Jihad. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is the American headquarters of Universal Jihad. The Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan flooding the world with heroin (which is only sold to non-Muslims) are doing their part for Universal Jihad. The Iranian madman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for Israel to be "wiped off the face of the map" is the voice of Universal Jihad.
Universal Jihad is not only a declared war on Israel, it is a declared war on the United States and on our Constitution.
And to our eternal shame, our own President, Barack Hussein Obama, is now aiding and abetting Universal Jihad by his words and actions, and has turned his back on Israel.
I support Israel absolutely and unconditionally. I decry and denounce Universal Jihad as the most hateful, destructive, amoral, and vicious assault on mankind and human rights and freedoms that the world has ever known.
Vijay Kumar
Vijay Kumar for Congress
Israel is the target of Islam's Universal Jihadists, whether they come from Turkey, Palestine, Lancashire, the United Nations, Maine, or Sweden. Islam's own Syed Qutb said it best: "A Muslim has no nationality except his belief." The exact same statement applies to the allies and supporters of Islam's Universal Jihadists.
That's why all the talk about Gaza and Palestinians and Turkey and "humanitarian aid" is pure fraud and nothing but fraud, all merely part of the Islamic Universal Jihad against Israel and everything it stands for. The Muslims involved in the attacks on Israel—no matter what piece of land they call home—care nothing for manmade geographical boundaries, just as they care nothing for manmade laws, or, for that matter, human life.
What they care about is wiping Israel and everything it stands for off the face of the Earth. That is their goal. The one thing that Israel stands for that drives the Universal Jihadists of the Middle East mad—however short a trip that may be—is the right and freedom of a human being to be something other than Muslim. Universal Jihadists are dedicated to wiping such freedom from the face of the Earth. That's why their overtly stated goal is to destroy Israel and the Jews. It is pure, seething hatred.
The "humanitarian aid" mission these Universal Jihadists and their liberal handmaidens are parading before the world press is nothing but a flotilla of pure, seething hatred, and it is a criminal fraud on Israel and on the world. It is actually a massive propaganda mission whose sole purpose is to smear and defame Israel, and weaken it for future attacks.
For those people of reason in the world who care about facts instead of hysterical Jihadist propaganda, over a million tons of humanitarian supplies have gone into Gaza through Israel in the last 18 months. That's nearly a full ton of supplies for every man, woman, and child in all of Gaza!
So who is lying? The Jihadists and their liberal "friends" fraudulently pretending to be on a "humanitarian aid" mission are lying. That shouldn't be a surprise: Islam demands that Muslims lie to non-Muslims if it benefits Universal Jihad and the Islamic goal of world domination.
Hamas is just one arm of Universal Jihad, and they've sent over 10,000 mortars and rockets into Israel. Why? Pure, seething hatred, that's why.
Israel is completely within its legal rights under international law to have mounted the Gaza blockade, and to have enforced it in international waters by stopping the Jihadist flotilla of pure, seething hatred fraudulently calling itself a "humanitarian aid" mission.
But the Universal Jihadists surrounding Israel on every side care nothing whatsoever about "international law." That, after all, is just more man-made law, and means absolutely nothing to the Jihadists, who honor only the allegedly "divine law" of the Quran and the Sunnah: Shariah law.
Islam's own Syed Qutb said it clearly: "There is only one law which ought to be followed, and that is the Shariah."
Islam's own Syed Qutb also exposed the complete fraud being perpetrated by Hamas and the rest of the Jihadist liars claiming that Gaza, and even Israel, are somehow important for the land to Muslims: "The homeland of the Muslim, in which he lives and which he defends, is not a piece of land; the nationality of the Muslim, by which he is identified, is not the nationality determined by a government." So it's all Jihadist fraud, and nothing but fraud.
The real driving force behind it is the one that has perpetuated 1400 years of the same kind of aggression, invasion, war, terrorism, slaughter, propaganda, and conquest of entire civilizations, such as Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran: it is Universal Jihad, the eternal Islamic quest for complete world domination.
Israel is just the next most important target in this 1400-year war against mankind and civilization.
The "humanitarian aid" mission is a Universal Jihad war flotilla, and it is nothing else. Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi, AKP) is the Turkish headquarters for Universal Jihad. The 10,000 rockets and mortars thrown by Hamas at Israel are missiles of Universal Jihad. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is the American headquarters of Universal Jihad. The Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan flooding the world with heroin (which is only sold to non-Muslims) are doing their part for Universal Jihad. The Iranian madman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for Israel to be "wiped off the face of the map" is the voice of Universal Jihad.
Universal Jihad is not only a declared war on Israel, it is a declared war on the United States and on our Constitution.
And to our eternal shame, our own President, Barack Hussein Obama, is now aiding and abetting Universal Jihad by his words and actions, and has turned his back on Israel.
I support Israel absolutely and unconditionally. I decry and denounce Universal Jihad as the most hateful, destructive, amoral, and vicious assault on mankind and human rights and freedoms that the world has ever known.
Vijay Kumar
Vijay Kumar for Congress
Human Rights Act needs strengthening, not weakening
London - 7 June 2010
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell was a keynote speaker at Salford University's human rights conference on 4 and 5 June 2010, held to mark the first decade of the Human Rights Act.
Other keynote speakers included Supreme Court Justice, Lady Hale; openly gay former High Court judge of Australia, Michael Kirby; and the University of Salford's Chancellor and former Amnesty International Secretary General, Irene Khan.
Peter Tatchell, who is the human rights spokesperson for the Green Party of England and Wales, is urging opposition to Conservative proposals to water-down the Human Rights Act:
"Despite its flaws and limitations, the Human Rights Act is probably the single most important piece of legislation passed by parliament in the last 30 years. It protects the individual against state intrusion and authoritarianism; asserting fundamental freedoms and liberties that a government cannot lawfully suppress," said Mr Tatchell.
"Thanks to the Human Rights Act, many government excesses have been overturned, including the detention of terrorist suspects without charge or trial and infringements on the right to protest and freedom of expression.
"The Human Rights Act has also helped extend LGBT equal rights, such as securing 'nearest relative' status for cohabiting same-sex partners (2002) and giving the surviving partner of a same-sex couple the right to inherit their deceased partner's tenancy (2004).
"The Conservatives have previously criticised the Human Rights Act and suggested that they want to replace it with a watered-down version in the form of a 'British' Bill of Rights.
"Any diminution of fundamental freedoms would be a retrograde step. It would strengthen the power of the state and undermine the rights of the citizen. Far from weakening the protections enshrined in the Human Rights Act, we need to expand and improve them.
"One of the flaws the Human Rights Act is that it embodies all the limitations of the European Convention on Human Rights, which it copies and incorporates into UK law.
"The ECHR was first agreed in 1950, at a time when concepts of human rights were much narrower than now. As a result the ECHR and Human Rights Act include no explicit protection against discrimination on the grounds of disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, medical condition or genetic inheritance.
"Moreover, the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the ECHR do not include economic and social rights, such as the right to a reasonable standard of living, to adequate health-care and education, and to a healthy environment. There is no specific, direct protection against discrimination in employment, housing, education, medical treatment and in the provision of other public services. These deficiencies need remedying in an expanded and strengthened version.
"The Human Rights Act is vulnerable to being overturned. It could be repealed by a simple majority vote in parliament. This is why transforming it into a constitutional protection, which could be abolished or diminished less easily, would provide better safeguards.
"It is time Britain had a written Constitution with a Bill of Rights that includes an extended and strengthened version of the Human Rights Act. If it was part of a new British Constitution, the Human Rights Act could only be amended or repealed by a constitutional amendment. In most countries constitutional amendments require a referendum or agreement by at least two-thirds of MPs. Incorporating the Human Rights Act into a new Constitution and Bill of Rights would therefore be a significant safeguard against tampering and subversion by an authoritarian or populist government," said Mr Tatchell.
Commenting on the conference, Salford University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Martin Hall, said:
"The University has an established reputation for the study of human rights, social justice and security issues which is demonstrated by the extremely prominent speakers we have at this conference.
"Now, more than ever, issues of social justice and human rights are at the forefront of public interest. In an ever-more cosmopolitan world, challenged by unprecedented issues of security, we need time to reflect on the consequences of legislation and its implementation. This conference is an opportunity to reflect on these questions, on the anniversary of path-breaking legislation," said Professor Hall.
For further information, photographs and videos of the conference contact:
Jamie Brown / Karen Reeves
University of Salford Press and PR Office
0161 295 5370
j.brown@salford.ac.uk / k.j.reeves@salford.ac.uk
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell was a keynote speaker at Salford University's human rights conference on 4 and 5 June 2010, held to mark the first decade of the Human Rights Act.
Other keynote speakers included Supreme Court Justice, Lady Hale; openly gay former High Court judge of Australia, Michael Kirby; and the University of Salford's Chancellor and former Amnesty International Secretary General, Irene Khan.
Peter Tatchell, who is the human rights spokesperson for the Green Party of England and Wales, is urging opposition to Conservative proposals to water-down the Human Rights Act:
"Despite its flaws and limitations, the Human Rights Act is probably the single most important piece of legislation passed by parliament in the last 30 years. It protects the individual against state intrusion and authoritarianism; asserting fundamental freedoms and liberties that a government cannot lawfully suppress," said Mr Tatchell.
"Thanks to the Human Rights Act, many government excesses have been overturned, including the detention of terrorist suspects without charge or trial and infringements on the right to protest and freedom of expression.
"The Human Rights Act has also helped extend LGBT equal rights, such as securing 'nearest relative' status for cohabiting same-sex partners (2002) and giving the surviving partner of a same-sex couple the right to inherit their deceased partner's tenancy (2004).
"The Conservatives have previously criticised the Human Rights Act and suggested that they want to replace it with a watered-down version in the form of a 'British' Bill of Rights.
"Any diminution of fundamental freedoms would be a retrograde step. It would strengthen the power of the state and undermine the rights of the citizen. Far from weakening the protections enshrined in the Human Rights Act, we need to expand and improve them.
"One of the flaws the Human Rights Act is that it embodies all the limitations of the European Convention on Human Rights, which it copies and incorporates into UK law.
"The ECHR was first agreed in 1950, at a time when concepts of human rights were much narrower than now. As a result the ECHR and Human Rights Act include no explicit protection against discrimination on the grounds of disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, medical condition or genetic inheritance.
"Moreover, the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the ECHR do not include economic and social rights, such as the right to a reasonable standard of living, to adequate health-care and education, and to a healthy environment. There is no specific, direct protection against discrimination in employment, housing, education, medical treatment and in the provision of other public services. These deficiencies need remedying in an expanded and strengthened version.
"The Human Rights Act is vulnerable to being overturned. It could be repealed by a simple majority vote in parliament. This is why transforming it into a constitutional protection, which could be abolished or diminished less easily, would provide better safeguards.
"It is time Britain had a written Constitution with a Bill of Rights that includes an extended and strengthened version of the Human Rights Act. If it was part of a new British Constitution, the Human Rights Act could only be amended or repealed by a constitutional amendment. In most countries constitutional amendments require a referendum or agreement by at least two-thirds of MPs. Incorporating the Human Rights Act into a new Constitution and Bill of Rights would therefore be a significant safeguard against tampering and subversion by an authoritarian or populist government," said Mr Tatchell.
Commenting on the conference, Salford University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Martin Hall, said:
"The University has an established reputation for the study of human rights, social justice and security issues which is demonstrated by the extremely prominent speakers we have at this conference.
"Now, more than ever, issues of social justice and human rights are at the forefront of public interest. In an ever-more cosmopolitan world, challenged by unprecedented issues of security, we need time to reflect on the consequences of legislation and its implementation. This conference is an opportunity to reflect on these questions, on the anniversary of path-breaking legislation," said Professor Hall.
For further information, photographs and videos of the conference contact:
Jamie Brown / Karen Reeves
University of Salford Press and PR Office
0161 295 5370
j.brown@salford.ac.uk / k.j.reeves@salford.ac.uk
Monday, June 7, 2010
Kinnah Phiri should resign
Kinnah Phiri has shown the nation his failure-credentials yet again.
Malawi's embarrassing 2-0 loss to the talentless boys of Angola is a latest vindication Phiri must resign.
Kinnah, you have shames us. Hit the road before it's too late.
Hit the road.
And those talentless shadows on the pitch, uuuh! Give them a farm in Neno. They should try farming!!
To them again, those 11 novice soccer boys and their tactless coach, hit the road guys.
You are the shame of our time.
In the civilised world, you don't just take the blame for a loss; you resign.
Shameful boys! So near, yet so far away.
I can't take that; I don't eat 'so near, yet so far away'.
Malawi's embarrassing 2-0 loss to the talentless boys of Angola is a latest vindication Phiri must resign.
Kinnah, you have shames us. Hit the road before it's too late.
Hit the road.
And those talentless shadows on the pitch, uuuh! Give them a farm in Neno. They should try farming!!
To them again, those 11 novice soccer boys and their tactless coach, hit the road guys.
You are the shame of our time.
In the civilised world, you don't just take the blame for a loss; you resign.
Shameful boys! So near, yet so far away.
I can't take that; I don't eat 'so near, yet so far away'.
Egypt denies US journalist entry
An American freelance journalist James Buck has been denied entry to Egypt by authorities. He was briefly detained at the Cairo International Airport when he arrived from Dubai on Friday and put on a return flight to Dubai.
Buck said in a message on his Twitter page that Egyptian authorities gave him no explanation for their decision.
But officials at Cairo airport said Buck's name was on a list of people not allowed into the country for allegedly defaming Egypt's reputation through articles and pictures published about civil unrest in 2008.
Buck was briefly detained in Egypt in 2008 while covering violent workers’ strikes in the northern industrial city of Mahalla el-Kobra.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Buck said in a message on his Twitter page that Egyptian authorities gave him no explanation for their decision.
But officials at Cairo airport said Buck's name was on a list of people not allowed into the country for allegedly defaming Egypt's reputation through articles and pictures published about civil unrest in 2008.
Buck was briefly detained in Egypt in 2008 while covering violent workers’ strikes in the northern industrial city of Mahalla el-Kobra.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)