By Charles Ngoma

The case of the gay couple that have decided to co-habit publicly in Malawi is interesting. Homosexuality in Malawi is a criminal offence and so it is in Zambia. Amnesty International publishes a world map where they colour red any country in which there are human rights abuses. Zambia is in red, not because of political prisoners but because it criminalises homosexuality.

Many developed countries no longer consider homosexuality as a criminal offence but consider this as a human rights issue. Africans tend to be conservative and traditional on this matter and many of the readers will find the practice ‘offensive’ and ‘barbaric.’ On top of this, Zambia, has declared itself a ‘christian nation.’ There is no doubt that once this issue is brought up, there will be many who will come up with an arms length of Biblical quotations in support of the ban against the practice.

Let me make it clear from the outset that I have no doubt in my mind that homosexuality is un-natural. Indeed I go further to say that its practice is morally wrong. But, what I question is whether it constitutes a criminal offence. There are at least three main questions that should be considered before an act or practice is made illegal.

First: Is it an offence to persons?
Second: Is it destructive to property?
Third: Is it an offence to the State, i.e. does it interfere with governance?

I may be mistaken, but nearly every good law must fall into one or more of theses categories. There are many things that are morally repugnant but they are not criminal offences because they fall outside these principles. Adultery is morally wrong and illegal and rightly so, because ‘another’ person is offended. So are slander, abortion and murder. Libel is an offence against a person by attacking his character. Theft is illegal too because it concerns property and persons. Treason is offence against the State. There are some illegal practices that one would not classify as immoral. For example, drink-driving and over-speeding, but there is a potential to harm another person.

So, coming back to homosexuality, can it be classified as a criminal offence? The practice is arguably immoral but should the taxpayer’s money be spent on taking these people to court and incarcerating them in prison for something that they have no natural power to overcome on their own and is between mutually consenting adults? Wouldn’t resources be better spent to understand why people come to have this alternative sexual outlook? Homosexual practice is a moral issue that one has to answer to in their heart and before their Maker.

I do not think that the State should get involved in this. It may not be long before Zambia is in the world news again with another ‘comedy of errors’ trial, just like Malawi. In actual fact, it may be that the law enforcers in Zambia are casting a blind eye to this ‘breaking of the law’ going by the Vice President Rt. Hon. G. Kunda S.C.’s statement to the House of Parliament. Homosexual practice is rife in Zambia. Issues of sexual health are not adequately tackled if we hide our heads in the sand and pretend that this does not happen. There may be a case to revisit this archaic colonial law and expunge it from our statutes.

THE National Constitutional Conference (NCC) has rejected articles in the Mung’omba draft Constitution which would subject members of the National Assembly to a recall when they are not performing to the expectations of their electorate.

The conference voted unanimously to have Article 188 and Article 189 deleted as they could promote anarchy in the country.

In the Mung’omba draft Constitution, Article 188 stipulates that the National Assembly may censure a minister by resolution, supported by two-thirds of the votes of all the members of the National Assembly.

And Article 189 specifies that the electorate may recall members of the National Assembly who hold a constitution-based seat in a constituency.

Contributing to the debate, Commissioner Lucy Changwe said the articles, if included in the new Constitution, would be a recipe for power struggles.
Ms Changwe said the process can also have an effect on policy implementation as many programmes can be disrupted.

She said allowing 50 percent of the registered electorate to petition the removal of an MP who fails to perform can also be retrogressive to national development because it will be betraying the majority of the electorate who are not in favour of the petition.

“I am in full support of having these articles deleted completely without making any changes because they are a threat to development,” Ms Changwe said.
She said MPs have a parliamentary code of conduct which regulates them, and there is no need for them to be recalled by the electorate.

Commissioner Daniel Munkombwe said adopting the article will be dangerous for the country because people will start to look for faults just to get rid of certain individuals in Parliament.

Mr Munkombwe said the electoral system provides for MPs to work for five years and that the electorate are there to make choices regarding MPs during an election.

“If an MP does not work according to people’s expectation, the electorate will be free to speak through the ballot paper instead of petitioning their removal before the elections are held,” he said.

Commissioner Benson Chingombe commended the committee members for deciding to do away with the articles, saying they are a threat to democracy.

Mr Chingombe said if the articles were to be adopted, Zambia would be headed for disaster.

Earlier, Commissioner Richard Mwitwa argued that the articles should be included in the national Constitution because this would make MPs accountable to their electorate.

Mr Mwitwa said if Article 189 is reinstated, the electorate will be given power to offer checks and balances.

“As it is now, MPs can choose whether to work for the people or not. I am in support of this article as people will have the authority to remove MPs who don’t perform,” he said.

[Zambia Daily Mail]

The company is providing funding for Stagecoach Driving Instructor Neil Rettie to spend 12 months helping to make driving standards in the African state better as part of Transaid’s Professional Driver Training Project.

Having spent three months in the Lusaka region of Zambia last year during which he trained more than 60 bus and coach drivers, Neil has now set off for a second three-month spell in the country where he will continue to deliver a “Safe and Skilled Driving” course to transport operators.

He will also be working alongside the Zambian Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) to help them develop and implement their curriculum.

Neil said: “I’m looking forward to getting back to Zambia. I’ll be working with some of the same companies as previously as well as some new ones, to try and help improve the driving standards of bus and coach operators.

“I am thoroughly enjoying the challenge and it’s a great opportunity for me to share my skills with others. We received very positive feedback the first time round and all the drivers are very keen to learn and to improve their skills.

“It’s so important to ensure that driving standards are high, not only to protect the drivers and their passengers but also to improve the safety of other road users.”

The aim of the project is to address the huge shortage of skilled drivers through improving driver training and safety standards, in order to reduce the number of road crashes which occur in the Lusaka region.

Road crashes are the third highest cause of premature death in Africa after HIV/AIDS and malaria.

In Zambia, the Road Transport and Safety Agency estimates that road accidents cost the country around £167million each year, which equates to around three percent of Zambia’s GDP.

Many accidents can often be attributed to poor driving skills and poor vehicle maintenance which Transaid’s project is trying to address

[STV]

A Copperbelt based political Sage has called on political parties intending to float presidential candidates next year not to go for upstarts because time for political experiments was long gone.

Mr. Humphrey Ngulube told ZANIS in Ndola yesterday that the 2011 presidential elections should not be peddled by political upstarts because leadership must always have a track record.

He said 2011 was a crucial year as the country will be going to the polls to elect a leadership cadre that should steer the developmental agenda of Zambia from its current stage to a higher one.

Mr. Ngulube said Zambians should be careful with the choice of leaders that will be parading before them for votes and should critically scrutinize each candidate with care.

He said even if Zambians should not be looking for perfection in the human beings that political parties will offer for presidency, they should be looking at a political leadership track record of honesty, integrity, accountability, tolerance, humility, openness and passion to see the country moving forward in unity.

He said leadership was about offering a service to the people and any leader who wanted a position in order to amass wealth; take advantage of the privileges of the position of leadership for personal aggrandizement was seeking a position for wrong reasons.

He said Zambia needed tried and tested political leadership that was driven by the passion and conviction rooted in the spirit of patriotism and national building.

Mr. Ngulube added that there was need to promote unity, respect and the underlying values of “one Zambia one Nation” because time for tribal politics and regional isolation was over.

He also appealed to the Church to pray for the right leadership which should emerge as a result of prayer and much seeking of God about the direction of the nation after 2011.

He said the Church had a critical role to play through preaching love and unity for the nation and praying for God’s direction for the leaders that would be chosen.

ZANIS