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Spammers Latch On To Gay Malawian Couple’s Story

Friday, July 23rd, 2010

OK, I don’t usually pay much attention to spam, but the name on this one jumped out at me:

My dear,

I am Tiwonge Chimbalanga a Malawian gold merchant gay man who was prisoned for 14 years after my marriage in Malawi , I was released from prison with the help of the president Bingu wa Mutharika, US president Obama and UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon.

I ran out of the country as many people was after my life to kill me for been gay in our country, I am now in Ivory Coast where I am taking refuge with my belongings, I have Ten million five hundred thousand united state dollars ($10.500.000) and 150kg of gold which I have deposited in one of the security company here for safe keeping, I want you to help me to relocate to your country with this fund for my life sake, I will offer you 20% of this fund after helping me transfer my belongings to your country and make a way for me to come over and invest it. Pardon me if gay is against your religion and come to my aid.

Yours brother,

Tiwonge Chimbalanga

Kudos for use of a legitimate targeted reference, spammers. Only a few small details out of place. They were imprisoned for 5 months, not 14 years. Tiwonge is now back in his home village, not on the Ivory Coast. And hmmm… don’t you think if he had ” Ten million five hundred thousand united state dollars”, he would have been able to buy a little justice?

OK, OK, so I’m easily amused…

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Malawi: One Half of Gay Couple to Marry a Woman (All Africa)

Wednesday, June 9th, 2010

In a dramatic twist of events, one of the Malawi pardoned gays, Mr Steven Monjeza, has renounced his love for Mr Tiwonge Chimbalanga and opted to marry a woman Ms Dorothy Gulo barely 10 days after being pardoned.

Mr Monjeza 20, together with Mr Chimbalanga were convicted by the Blantyre resident magistrate court in Blantyre of buggery and indecent act and were sentenced to 14 years of hard labour. However President Bingu wa Mutharika pardoned them.

Mr Monjeza said he was no longer interested to be associated in what he called ‘gay trash” accusing ‘hidden hands’ of engineering their marriage. He could not mention the names behind their engagement.

Full Story from All Africa

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ILGA, Amnesty International Release International Reports on GLBTI Rights

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

Two reports released by international human rights defenders have put the spotlight on global GLBTI rights. The Amnesty International Report 2010 and the ILGA 2010 State-Sponsored Homophobia report paint a worsening situation in Africa, and improvements in parts of Asia and the Americas.

Both reports singled out Uganda for its notorious Anti-Homosexuality Bill which aims to criminalise the so-called “promotion” of homosexuality and impose the death penalty in some cases.

Nigeria, which has a similar law before Parliament, was criticised, as was Burundi for criminalising same-sex relations. In Senegal and Cameroon, men faced arbitrary arrest, detention, torture and unfair trials when suspected of being gay. In Malawi, two men were sentenced to 14 years in prison for “indecent practices between males”.

Full Story from SSO

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Malawi: After Release, Couple Separated by Families

Monday, May 31st, 2010

A gay couple freed by presidential pardon in Malawi are living in separate villages amid fears for their safety. Steven Monjeza, 26, and 20-year-old Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, walked free earlier this weekend when President Bingu wa Mutharika lifted their 14-year jail sentence on “humanitarian grounds” after meeting the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon.

But a human rights campaigner in Malawi said the men had not been reunited. “Prison officials told them that they had received instructions from above that they should send them to their respective villages,” Gift Trapence, who heads the Centre for the Development of the People (Cedep), said.

The two were “leading separate lives … they are not staying together and they don’t want to talk about their experience”, he added.

Full Story from The Guardian

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Malawi: Gay Couple Released After Pardon

Monday, May 31st, 2010

A gay Malawian couple sentenced to 14 years in prison were released from jail late on Saturday after a presidential pardon, SAPA news agency reported on Sunday. Malawi’s leader pardoned the couple on humanitarian grounds on Saturday after a meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who applauded the move and urged the country to amend “outdated” laws on homosexuality.

“We were asked to release them immediately,” Prison Service spokesman Evance Phiri was quoted by SAPA as saying.

Steven Monjeza, 26, and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, were arrested after celebrating their engagement in a traditional ceremony in late December.

Full Story from the Vancouver Sun

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UN Chief Calls for Reform of Africa’s Anti-Gay Laws

Sunday, May 30th, 2010

UN chief Ban Ki-moon persuaded Malawi’s president to pardon a gay couple jailed for holding a wedding, but his call to reform anti-gay laws poses a challenge to most of Africa. Ban repeatedly praised President Bingu wa Mutharika for his “courageous” decision to pardon the two men sentenced this month to 14 years’ hard labour after a sodomy conviction over their wedding.

While Mutharika said he would free Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, and his partner 26-year-old partner Steven Monjeza, he also made clear his disapproval.

“Our traditions and culture do not allow gay marriage,” Mutharika said. “In all aspects of reasoning, in all aspects of human understanding, these two gay boys were wrong, totally wrong.” But Ban framed the issue as an international human rights concern, and called for the reform of anti-gay laws not only in Malawi, but “where ever it may exist”.

Full Story from AFP

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Malawi: President Pardons Gay Couple

Saturday, May 29th, 2010

Topped by Joe.My.God:

A gay couple jailed in Malawi after getting engaged have been pardoned by President Bingu Wa Mutharika. Mr Mutharika, speaking as UN chief Ban Ki-moon visited his country, said he had ordered their immediate release.

Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga were given 14-year jail terms earlier this month after being convicted of gross indecency and unnatural acts. The case has sparked international condemnation and a debate about homosexuality in the country.

Mr Ban hailed the president’s decision as “courageous”. “This outdated penal code should be reformed wherever it may exist,” he said. The BBC’s Karen Allen, in Lilongwe, says Mr Ban is trying to put pressure on parliamentarians to reform anti-homosexuality laws that date back to colonial times.

Full Story from BBC News

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Malawi: 14 Year Gay Marriage Sentence Gets Little Press Coverage in Africa

Saturday, May 29th, 2010

The international outcry following the jail sentence handed over to a gay couple in Malawi didn’t receive the same kind of coverage in Africa as it did in the West. For most African media, reflecting public opinion, the maximum sentence is justified.

The guests debating African media coverage of homosexuality are :

Kondwani Munthali in Malawi, news analyst for The Nation.

Sheriff Bojang Jnr. in Senegal, producer & presenter at West Africa Democracy Radio.

Alex Duval-Smith in South Africa , Africa correspondent for a British newspaper, The Observer.

The Nation newspaper in Malawi broke the gay engagement story in December 2009 and closely followed the ensuing upheaval and trial. While the Nation attempts to give a balanced coverage, the newspaper’s “People’s parliament”, a column where Malawian citizens air their views, shows that the public firmly believes the 14-year jail sentence handed over to the two homosexuals is entirely justified. As do the members of Parliament in Malawi, says Kondwani Munthali.

Full Story from RFI

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South Africa: President Rebukes Malawi Over Jailing of Gay Couple

Friday, May 28th, 2010

South African President Jacob Zuma, in a rare rebuke of another African nation, on Thursday condemned a Malawi court’s sentencing of a gay couple to 14 years in jail. The two men were jailed last week for sodomy and indecency, a decision that human-rights groups condemned and the U.S. called “unconscionable.”

The case has highlighted discrimination against homosexuals in Africa. Kenyan police in February halted a gay wedding and arrested several suspected homosexuals.

“We have condemned the action taken to arrest people, in terms of our constitution,” Zuma said, in response to questions in parliament.

Full Story from The Province

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Origins of Homophobia in African Countries

Wednesday, May 26th, 2010

African homophobia does not exist, nor does European homophobia, Asian homophobia or South American homophobia. Acts of homophobia occur in each of these spaces. We must question the idea that homophobia in Africa is unique. And we must understand homophobic acts within their specific local histories as these intersect with broader global histories.

In her recent article on Comment is free, Madeleine Bunting suggests that African homophobia emerges from capitalist-driven religious fundamentalisms, rapid and “chaotic” urbanisation that strains kinship ties, and the emasculation of men due to colonialism and globalisation. These claims are not wrong. They simply lack specificity and can be applied to any space.

How, then, do we account for what appears to be an intensification of homophobia across Africa? Let me offer a tentative answer based on two locations, Kenya and Malawi.

Full Story from The Guardian

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