Cde Robert Mugabe has never hidden his dislike for Gays and Lesbians. It has been reported that his anti-gay speeches have given rise to the rape of lesbians and gay male Zimbabweans in what has been described as ‘corrective’ rape. Try to ‘correct’ them into heterosexuality.
The US State Department’s 2009 Human Rights Report for Zimbabwe identified chronic, politically sanctioned anti-gay discrimination, violence, and torture at the hands of Mugabe’s minions, including rape of lesbians and gay men forced into heterosexual acts, with some raped by family members, ostensibly to “cure” them. The NGO, AIDS Free World, reported in December 2009 that the 70 women it surveyed reported being raped on average five times and possibly higher, as the women often became unconscious during the brutal sexual assaults.
I must admit this is the first time I have heard about ‘corrective’ rape taking place in Zimbabwe. Maybe the victims were afraid to come in the open and report these crimes, that is if there is anywhere to report and also if there is anyone who is going to listen to them and do something about it.
The issue of lesbian and gay rights has always been a very sensitive issue in Zimbabwean society and it might be the case in many other communities, all because of culture, tradition and religious beliefs.
But, is it difficult to let everyone be what they want to be or be what they are?
An Epworth family buried an empty coffin after ‘forgetting’ the corpse at home. Family members of the late Tatenda Billy (11) took an empty coffin to Zinyengere Cemetery in Epworth only to discover that they had left the body behind. The Herald reports that the situation became even more bizarre when the deceased’s aunt later carried the corpse on her back to the cemetery two kilometres away from their home.
Mourners who remained behind discovered that the corpse covered with a blanket in a room. The deceased’s mother, Ms Egness Kachingamire, confirmed the incident to the Herald but denied suggestions that witchcraft was involved.
“I can say that we were traumatised by Tatenda’s death and no one thought of informing the police as we were busy trying to come to terms with what had happened. I was even shocked myself when I learnt that the corpse had been left behind,” said a grieving Ms Kachingamire.
Residents in the area suspect that some family members wanted to use the body for ritual purposes. It has been alleged that senior family members ordered all mourners to leave the room in which the boy’s body lay. Residents also alleged that one church member pointed out that the coffin seemed empty, but was told by a family member that the wood used to make it was ‘light material’, adding that the boy was small and therefore did not weigh much.
Zimbabwe’s Information and Publicity Minister, Webster Shamu told parliament that US$10 million is needed to repair equipment at the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings which is now obsolete and in dire need of revamp. “The transmitters have been in operation for about 34 years instead of eight years which has significantly affected transmission. The equipment needs to be revitalised due to old age, almost all the transmitters in the country have outlived their life span and need to be revamped,” he said.
“About US$4 million is required to revive the radio network, while US$5 million is required for our television networks.”
Minister Shamu said he was hopeful the equipment will be revamped before the end of the year. We do hope the government will get the money needed, and that there will be no more misuse of funds.
Through corruption and mismanagement of public funds the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings is in these troubles today, so as many other public corporations in the country. A few years ago money was wasted, relocating to different parts of the country and re-branding radio stations. The money could have been used to buy new equipment.
ZBC also lost a lot of revenue from advertisers when it chose to be a propaganda station, focusing mainly on FREE political broadcasts. (Do you still remember the days of Tava neminda tirambe takashinga)
We hope now they have turned a new leaf and there will be no going back to those corrupt old days. ZBC should be working to bring top quality entertainment to it’s licence paying viewers.
Feel free to share your views by posting your comments.
Zimbabwe has lifted the reporting ban on BBC and CNN allowing the news organisations to report freely from the first time in 8 years. Minister for Media, Information and Publicity, Webster Shamu said the government and the BBC had now “acknowledged the need to put behind us the mutually ruinous relationship of the past”.
In a letter to the BBC, minister Shamu said: “We agreed that whatever communication problems which the BBC and the officials of the Zimbabwe government may have had in the past, the Zimbabwe government never banned the BBC from carrying out lawful activities inside Zimbabwe.
“For the purpose of the record, I restate the main points of our meeting. We acknowledged the need to put behind us the mutually ruinous relationship of the past”.
BBC’s world news editor, Jon Williams said : ” We are pleased we have been able to reach an agreement and we look forward to being able to operate legally in Zimbabwe.”
This is a welcome development in the process of rebuilding Zimbabwe. Media organisation should be able to operate freely and legally without fear of politicians. They have a duty to provide the public with balanced and unbiased information. Exposing all those things our politicians would rather prefer we never get to know about.
It’s a real funny world. A new dress code that requires City Hall staff to wear underwear is being enforced. The City Council of Brooksville, Florida passed the law, 4-1 the only opposition came from the Mayor. The Mayor thinks the law will take away freedom of choice. The city employees must also wear deodorant. Does this mean there are still people who do not wear underwear in America? So, how did they know that some employees are not wearing underwear? But deodorant surely it should not be forced on people. Should be a matter of choice.
The Germany government has pledged 25 million euros in aid to Zimbabwe. German chancellor Angela Merkel said German could provide more support if Zimbabwe undertakes more democratic reforms. Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has been touring Europe and the US looking for donor aid. But as more and more aid keeps coming to Zimbabwe, it’s up to us Zimbabweans to make sure we use it wisely. Make sure we work hard to rebuild the country. There should be a zero tolerance policy to corruption, and only competent people should be in government.
As a tribute to this good dance, I had to share it with you guys. Hope you will all enjoy it, “Uya Kwini ka Rose” comes some of the happiest people in South Africa. I’m Loving it!
Enjoy and don’t forget to let us know what you think about the dance.
Harare – A Zimbabwean soccer player drowned in a crocodile infested river during a ritual to cleanse his team of bad spirits before a match, a state newspaper said on Tuesday. So sad that this footballer lost his life this way. Professional sportsman still believe in Juju? I thought they should know it’s all about talent, training and hard work. Read more about how this guy lost his life.
The Chronicle quoted unnamed sources as saying about 16 players from second division side Midland Portland Cement were told to swim in the Zambezi river in the resort town of Victoria Falls ahead of a soccer match on Sunday.
“The technical team told every player to get into the river so that they could be cleansed of bad spirits,” it said.
The paper quoted local police commander Peter Rodzi as saying that after the swim, the other players had noticed that one of the team was missing.
“The area where the team was swimming is prohibited as the current is strong. The river is also infested with crocodiles and hippos,” said Rodzi.
Belief in the power of spirits is widespread in Zimbabwe and many African countries.
- Reuters
Does Juju work in sports? I find it strange people still believe about juju in sport, I don’t think this works at all. You are welcome to share your views, always interested in what you think.
The Harare Agricultural Show opened in Harare on Monday, under the theme “Let’s Unite the Nation – Grow Food with Determination.” The show runs until Saturday. The 98th edition of the show is said to have attracted a large number of exhibitors, from small-scale to large-scale farmers and small enterprises and individuals to large companies.
The show will be officially opened by President Mugabe on Friday.
Entry Fees:
Adults – $100 Tuesday and Thursday - $200 Wednesday and Saturday
Children – $50, while those in uniform will be allowed in for FREE.
Show organisers said there will be showing movies everyday after 6:30pm as apart of this years entertainment line-up.
The Old Show Days.
What are your memories of the old Harare show days? What did you use to look forward to when going to the agricultural show? Was it the fireworks display on Wednesday and Saturday night? Police and Army displays or Traditional Dances? Or maybe you were one of those who would never seen cattle and other farm animals if there was no agricultural show in Harare?
