Don’t let it happen!
The 16 days focus on gender violence and World Aids Day prompted me to submit this prayer, formulated at an HIV/Aids workshop. — Reverend Renate Cochrane, Hout Bay
Thembisa’s Prayer
O God
I am kneeling before you and scream without a voice
You are the only one who can see my heart torn and shred in pieces
You alone can feel my pain.
O Lord
You count my tears and you collect them in your cup.
O Lord
You created me, and when I was born my parents called me Thembisa, meaning promise.
You are my witness; you were present when I gave the promise to my mother at the last moment in her life.
You were present when I wiped the sweat from her forehead while she was dying.
I promised to be an obedient girl, respecting Uncle Josh and his wife as my new parents.
I promised I shall be like a mother to my younger brothers.
I am 15 years old and I have not broken my promise. But I don’t know how long I can go on.
I think of killing myself but when I see my younger brothers, I know I have to live for their sake because of my promise.
O Lord
you know what is happening.
Uncle Josh asks me to bring a glass of water to his bedroom almost every weekend. When I bring the glass he asks for more than water.
I want to scream: NO. My body starts shaking with revulsion. But then I remember my promise that I shall be obedient.
Uncle Josh is good to us. He pays our school fees, and he is kind and generous to my younger brothers.
If I speak out, what will happen to us? Uncle Josh might chase us away.
My aunt looks at me with sad eyes when I go to his bedroom to bring the water. She knows, but she keeps silent.
Last month she took me to the clinic to get the injection that I may not fall pregnant because, she says, the boys in my class may force me to do certain things.
I feel so worthless and dirty. I always wanted to protect my body as the temple of your Spirit. Now I wish I had no body. I begin to hate my body.
Who can I talk to?
I am afraid to talk to Umfundisi because Uncle Josh is on the church council and gives donations.
I am afraid to talk to my teacher because Uncle Josh assists with raising funds for our school.
Uncle Josh is an important and respected man in our community.
When he sees my tearful eyes he explains that I need to bring the water so that he remains strong and can keep working hard to support all of us.
Lord, I have seen my father and my mother dying of the unspeakable illness. I don’t want to die in the same way.
Lord, I am only 15. My teachers praise my work at school. I have dreams, and I want to help my younger brothers. I don’t want to die the slow death of shame.
Lord, please protect me. Don’t let it happen to me. I’ll try to endure the pain until I am old enough to support myself.
Lord, please hear my prayer. See my tears; don’t let it happen to me!
I trust in you alone.
Amen
Terror the big 2010 threat
Most commentators miss the point on South Africa’s readiness to host the World Cup. The biggest threat is not the lack of infrastucture or violent crime, but terror attacks.
The home affairs department is one of the most corrupt and inefficient in government. Many illegal aliens with criminal records from Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia are able to buy fraudulent South African passports for less than R1 000.
The government is aware of the problem but seems unwilling or unable to deal with it.
Some of the terrorists involved in the London underground bombings were travelling on fraudulent South African passports. How many other terrorists have obtained false South African travel documents?
South Africa’s ability to ensure the safety of World Cup players and foreign visitors should raise alarm bells. Germany had specialised police trained in combating terrorism. Our readiness to ward off terror attacks is doubtful. — Jacobus P Heyns, Sandton
Innocent as sinc
Politicians accused of crimes often use the “innocent until proven guilty” phrase like an unassailable fortress that protects them unless they are convicted.
It is an undisputed principle of criminal law, but in the political realm, the opposite should hold.
We should not imprison anyone unless absolutely certain of his or her guilt. But we should be convinced, beyond reasonable doubt, of individuals’ innocence before they occupy high political office — and merely staying out of jail is not sufficient evidence.
This exposes politicians to career damage, but that should be considered part of the job.
The alternative — the presumption of innocence — exposes the country to the risk of having criminals as leaders. — Kyle Mason-Jones
Tik: draw on world expertise
Thanks for publishing Pearlie Joubert’s article on methamphetamine in the Cape Flats (“Tik, tik, tik … tock”, November 24).
Tik use in Cape Town is the tip of the iceberg of a flourishing epidemic that is largely unaddressed by government and public health officials, also involving heroin, Mandrax, cocaine, marijuana and alcohol.
South Africa must develop a strategy to confront substance use as a medical issue first and foremost. We don’t need a “war on drugs” — the punitive approach has been a dismal failure wherever it has been used, though it has crass political appeal and gives the appearance of “doing something”.
Treatment for drug addiction based on sound scientific principles, including treatment for methamphetamine (though difficult), does work. Health officials should seek out the expertise of clinicians and addiction specialists who have dealt with tik for more than a decade in North America and elsewhere.
Other proven interventions for addressing substance abuse don’t seem to be accessible here and must be made widely available, including methadone maintenance therapy, other opiate substitution therapy and needle exchange programmes to prevent the transmission of HIV and hepatitis C.
Finally, tik and heroin have been tightly linked to dramatic and explosive increases in HIV transmission where their use is pervasive.
In the context of our Aids epidemic, the rise in drug use, if it continues unabated, will be throwing petrol on a raging fire. — Gregg Gonsalves, Aids and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa, Cape Town
Gay law no shame
Writing in Kenya’s Standard last week, Kirui Henry Kipkoskei quotes the biblical book of Leviticus to argue that legislation on gays is a shame to South Africa and that Kenyan MPs would never have stooped so low.
It is true that the Civil Unions Bill is not supported by the majority of South Africans, that it runs counter to African cultural norms, and that African leaders like Robert Mugabe and Daniel arap Moi abhor homosexuals.
However, it is far from clear that homosexuality has an exclusively European lineage — otherwise why does the Bible discuss it? Homosexuality is practised (but not spoken openly about) in Africa by African peoples — and those who deny this should provide empirical evidence.
Kipkoskei misses the following:
- Homosexuality is as much a form of self-expression as heterosexuality, and to suppress it is to stifle the freedom of expression enshrined in the constitutions of Zimbabwe, Kenya and other countries.
- Cultures and religions are notoriously intolerant, operating as if they alone possess the truth and showing little respect for other human perspectives and styles of living.
Given that Zimbabwe and Kenya are not constituted as theocracies, it is discriminatory to target homosexuals based on religious beliefs.
In South Africa’s Constitution, homophobia is regarded as discriminatory and unconstitutional.
Suppressing homosexuality is also a denial of the freedom of association. If heterosexuals are allowed to associate with the partners of their choice, why should homosexuals not be accepted and protected legally in exercising the same right?
To argue like Kipkoskei, or the Mugabes and Mois of this world, is to miss the essentials of human liberty and to trample on basic human rights.
It is not unusual for leaders bent on controlling others not to respect their rights. And it is common and easy to dismiss another style of living just because it is different from one’s own.
Africa is notorious for not respecting the dynamics of human society and different perspectives. As a result, ethnic strife and tribal wars, coupled with religious bigotry, are everyday experiences in many African countries.
This could be avoided if people could learn to respect and honour their constitutions and accept the liberties provided for in their laws. — JM Kariuki, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg
Are these our future leaders?
The Young Communist League’s political immaturity was highlighted by its shoddy criticism of the five-year sentence meted out to Kabelo Thibedi, who held a home affairs official hostage.
Every time a court rules in a way it doesn’t like, the league jumps on the populist bandwagon and accuses judges of being racist.
Has it not learnt anything from its sister organisation, Cosas, which paraded Andrew Babeile, a gangster who stabbed a schoolkid, as a hero. The result was the much-publicised escalation of violence in our schools. When for narrow political gain we fail to distinguish criminals from heroes, violence and hooliganism can only spread in our schools.
I am the first to admit that Thibedi’s hooliganism raised the important issue of lack of service delivery, which needs attention. But supporting hooliganism is not an option.
The league should be defending institutions, like the judiciary, which form part of our democratic order. Its attacks on the judiciary just make citizens shudder at the thought that these may be our future leaders.
It is time that the elders in the tripartite alliance brought their youth movements to order. — Chris Swepu, Pretoria
Bigots
If relatives of the 21-year-old woman who has accused ANC chief whip Mbulelo Goniwe of sexual harassment want her to drop the charges and settle the matter in a traditional way (“Goniwe faces five-cow fine”, November 24), the 16 Days of Activism campaign apparently means nothing to the traditional bigots of Pondoland.
I’m a bit ashamed because that is the land of my mother (uMamXesibe). I doubt if she would have agreed with their sentiments and the damage it could cause our collective psyche.
Was this a gimmick by the Pondos to hide the truth from the people? — Mandisi Tyumre, Cape Town
In brief
More than 10 old South African flags were counted in the crowd during South Africa’s rugby game against Ireland. In the match against England, the flag brazenly reared its head again, flashing across TV screens the world over. It was a huge international embarrassment, and offensive to black South Africans who largely fought for the emancipation of all South Africans. — Clement du Plessis, Athlone
If pregnant learners are given “maternity leave”, it is only fair and just, and in line with the constitutional guarantees of equality and non-discrimination, that boy learners be given paternity leave too. — Adam Pike
Pearlie Joubert’s report on PW Botha’s funeral (November 10) was cruel and unbalanced. I was surprised you published it. — Camoria Hugo, Hermanus
In “Forex scam haunts Mugabe” (November 24) you say Grace Mugabe is Mugabe’s first wife, and that she hails from Zimbabwe’s Chikombe district. His first wife, the late Sally Mugabe, was Ghanaian. — Amanda Atwood
Lest we forget, Jake White and his team were masters of the rugby universe two years ago. An interfering and inept administration constantly hobbles the national squad. To restore the Boks to number one, wield the axe at Saru, and appoint administrators who put the coach and players first. — WL Mason, Johannesburg