Maravi

LETTERS: Development, MMD Leadership, Prostitution

Africa’s development
By Dennis Limwanya, Nairobi
Wednesday March 14, 2007 [02:00]

The poverty, political wrangles and diseases are some of the factors hampering Africa’s development. They explain why with so much potential in natural resourses and abundant labour, Africa remains the least developed continent on earth. Since Zambia got independence in 1964, one of its major goals has been and still is to eradicate poverty. But where is the evidence of this commitment today? Look at how the prevoius government has messed up the country’s wealth, the mega scandals in which the country has lost billions and billions of kwacha in mysterious circumstances. And Zambia today still continues to grapple with poverty and more children on the street, yet at the same time is bale to pay cabinet ministers and MPs hefty salaries.

While pushing for debt relief for our country makes good sence, the reality remains that the savings will end up in the pockects of a few elite. And poverty, hunger and diseases will continue to ravage the poor - majority wanainchi (citizens) for the years to come. This is further worsened by reliance on imports which also wrecks local industries throwing people out of employment. Well, the World Bank or International Monetary Fund may give our government grants (so they term them) to eradicate poverty and perhaps make economic progress. But this can be hardly achieved with corruption in place. We need slay the dragon of corruption or else we will be building our economy on sand which in no time can be swept away by the waves of the selfish and greedy ministers.

Therefore unless corruption is rooted out, especially in public institutions, poverty will remain unsolvable problem in our country. At times, I sympathise with President Mawanawasa, that despite his efforts in dealing with the corruption pandemic, his ‘indunas’ seem to be letting him down and down. As patriotic Zambians, lets declare corruption our biggest enemy in our midst.



http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=23799

MMD leadership campaigns
By Mike Mulabe, Hong Kong
Wednesday March 14, 2007 [02:00]

I wish to urge the MMD executive committe to put a stop to what seems to be campaigns for the post of president. We have already started reading careless campaign statements from people with big mouths, those that think they know it. Please, the party has just been elected in office and I dont think it is the right time to start cheap campaign gimicks based on character assasination.

The President did not mean people can start campaigning when he stated that he would not support any particular person to succeed him. Why then should some people in the party start talking ill of others. When time comes all members that would meet the requirements to contest the seat will do so. On the contrary, we know these big mouthed people that feel they are indispensble in MMD and think they can easily talk on behalf of the whole province. Please God help us. Do they even know how society rates them to overrate themselves like that. Please keep your big mouths shut, otherwise you will only start building tension in the party you never even helped to build.



http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=23791

Legalise prostitution - it’s useful
By Gunduza Gadama
Wednesday March 14, 2007 [02:00]

There is no doubt that sex is the one subject that particularly sends the blood pressure of our moral police shooting sky-high. Talk about legalising prostitution, and you will see the fiery shots of moral outrage rapidly fired at you as if you have been caught with your pants down, making the Bomb or boiling babies in oil! Merab Kiremire’s condemnation of legalisation calls (The Post, March 10) fits this description.

The question is: Would legalising prostitution encourage young children into sex trade? I doubt it. Legalisation would mean that Parliament would legislate an acceptable minimum age for those to be registered to work as prostitutes; stipulate strict conditions for brothel operators; gazette specific zones where sex work can be conducted, and establish a control system with the mandate to receive and investigate abuses and breaches. Such a regulatory system is currently missing, consequently encouraging the “mushrooming” of 15-year-olds on unsafe streets. As long as prostitution continues to operate under-ground, it will be difficult to monitor and seal such loopholes - a real boon for child traffickers! And by encouraging prohibition, we are encouraging the stigmatisation, discrimination and traumatisation of sex workers, thus bringing into serious doubt our democratic integrity.

It is incorrect to compare sex with violence. Sex between two consenting adults is acceptable. Violence is not, and every modern secular society condemns this practice (though there is some evidence that the Bible condones violence against women). Moreover, it is misleading to attribute prostitution to foreign values. There is some anecdotal evidence suggesting that in the traditional past, some of our own kings maintained a harem of women as part of royal ‘gifts’ for important visitors to the palace. It is still correct, in the modern sense, to regard this practice as prostitution, though there might have been no monetary payment involved, perhaps only in kind.

And, of course, moral condemnation of prostitution is plain hypocritical. In Christian Zambia, we consider it moral to sell cigarettes despite irrefutable medical evidence that smoking kills. We accept as moral beer advertisements despite the many deaths that arise from drunken driving. And government has no moral qualms to collect tax from gun owners despite the harmful uses of firearms. We must remember that care, understanding, love and support should be ingredients of every modern society. Calls for the legalisation of prostitution realistically recognise the fact that, due to deep-rooted social imperfections, sex work cannot be eliminated and that those involved in it deserve our understanding to support them to work in a safe environment that can facilitate the provision of essential social services (safe sex education, condoms, health check-ups, medical treatment, security, etc). Such a support system works well in many of the countries where prostitution is legal.

Prostitution, if well regulated, can be socially beneficial. The brothels and saloons of Paris served as effective conveyors of information for some of the architects of the French Revolution, a historic event that removed an oppressive monarchy and largely influenced the re-affirmation of the values of human liberty, equality and freedom in national constitutions world-wide. We must also consider the fact that consensual and protected sex between a prostitute and a client is a more acceptable alternative for “hard-pressed” men who would, otherwise, be prone to commit rape, incest or child defilement.

In conclusion, Merab quotes results of a study in Zambia which showed poverty as a major influence and that reported most prostitutes being willing to quit if offered alternative sources of income. There is, indeed, some correlation between poverty and prostitution. However, such results should be treated cautiously. Depending on motive (for example, the wish to lure donor funds), research can be formulated in such a way as to produce particular responses to fit a pre-set objective.

Readers must be aware of the recent famous media exposure of South Africa’s ‘Angel of Soweto’ who received millions in donor hand-outs on the pretext of caring for South African ‘desperate orphans’, children purported to have lost their parents to political violence when, in fact, not. Some of the ‘orphans’ were presented before TV cameras, crying hysterically while describing, in gruesome detail, how they saw their parents being ‘murdered’. Strangely, Merab refers to Zambia’s 11 provinces! Where are these 11 provinces? When and who created the two additional provinces?

Labels: LETTERS, MMD

posted by MrK @ 3:53 AM