Tag: GreatLakesNews

Kenyan marries another man in USA

{Mr Gitau lived in Atlanta, Georgia, before moving to California.}

In a trend where Kenyan men are getting married to other men in countries whose laws allow it, a Nakuru man has tied the knot to his American mathematics professor.

Mr Ben Gitau, 33, and Mr Steve Damelin got married at Ann Arbor, Michigan in the US on Saturday afternoon.

Soon after the event, the two were seen at the Square’s gardens kissing and fondling in public as friends and family members cheered.

However, a respected marriage and family counsellor in Kenya immediately criticised the wedding.

Pastor Philip Kitoto, of the International Christian Centre, Nairobi, said: “Culturally and biblically, marriage and sexual relations between people of the same sex is a sin.”

“The Bible is clear that God created us in his image; He created us male and female. Therefore, in the Book of Leviticus 18:22 He warns men: ‘Do not have sex relations with a man as one does with a woman’. God calls this an abomination.”

Mr Kararu Ririe, a close friend of the couple and a confessed gay Kenyan residing in California, tweeted shortly after attending the wedding: “This afternoon I had a chance to congratulate my friend, Ben and his husband, Steve on occasion of their marriage. It is a rare thing to see a Kenyan man so courageous! Congratulations.”

Mr Gitau lived in Atlanta, Georgia, before moving to California.

Pst Kitoto added in his reaction: “For the man and a woman, sex was not only meant for pleasure but also for procreation.

“That is why, in Romans 1:27-32, the Bible tells us that as mankind walked in disobedience to the commands of God, this led to a depraved mind where men lusted after other men and women after their own kind. They not only burned with passion for each other but they also recommended the same practice for others.”

“What we need to understand is that God, in his love for us, still loves the sinner. However, he hates sin. I believe when we turn to him in repentance, he will welcome us back.”

Same-sex marriage was legalised in Michigan last June in a landmark US Supreme Court ruling, which struck down states’ bans on gay or lesbian marriages between two people “as long as they love each other”.

According to a family member who spoke to the Daily Nation on condition of anonymity, Mr Gitau met his ‘fiancé’” in Atlanta, where the latter was a PhD student at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Soon after taking the vows, Mr Gitau posted the following multiple hashtags — some of which are very popular within the gay community in the US — on his Twitter handle and Facebook page: #HappilyMarried #NewlyWed #GayCouple #GayHusbands #2Hubbies #Blessed #JewishHubby #ChristianHubby #Hubby1 #Hubby2 #4Ever1 #InGodsMath #GetItRight #NoWife #ThankYou!”

Mr Damelin is a well-known American scholar and professor of Mathematics.

May 23, 2016
Tanzania:Court of Appeal quashes petition against Jeetu Patel & Co trial

{The Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal lodged by tycoon Jayantkumar Chandubhai Patel and others, seeking to challenge criminal proceedings against the “sharks of corruption”, involving theft of 9.7bn/- from External Payments Arrears (EPA) account at the Bank of Tanzania.}

Following the court’s decision by Patel, alias Jeetu Patel, and his colleagues, Devendra K. Vinobhai Patel, Amit Nandy and Ketan Chohan Pad will have no other option other than going back to the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam to face the criminal charges they had previously tried to avoid.

A five-member panel of the Court of Appeal, comprising Justices January Msoffe, Steven Bwana, Bernard Luanda, Salum Massati and William Mandia, ruled against the four appellants after observing that the appeal they had lodged lacked merits.

In the appeal, the appellants had opposed the judgment of the High Court to dismiss the constitutional petition they filed with a view of discontinuing the criminal proceedings following remarks by the executive chairman of the IPP Group, Mr Reginald Mengi, describing them as “mafisadi papa’ (corruption sharks).

They had contended that the move by Mr Mengi to describe them as kingpins of corruption, statements that were published in newspapers and aired by television and radio stations, infringed the constitutional presumption of innocence as enshrined in the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania.

In the judgment, the justices pointed out that (there were two separate regimes governing the matter, which are civil and criminal before the High Court and Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court, respectively and each has separate procedure of conducting its business to its logical conclusion.

They noted further that the appellants were trying to apply civil platform to nullify the criminal proceedings in the name of enforcing basic rights. “But the appellants did not attempt to say under what provisions of the law they were taking such action”, the ruling stated.

The justices questioned whether the course taken to enforce the appellants’ rights was proper, assuming such basic rights were infringed or whether the application to nullify the criminal proceedings by the way of a civil action was sanctioned by the law.

In their submissions, the appellants, through senior advocates Mabere Nyaucho Marando, Richard Rweyongeza, Mpaya Kamara, Joseph Thadayo and Martin Matunda had relied under Section 4 of the Basic Rights and Duties Enforcement Act to support their position.

“We have shown that civil and criminal cases are two separate and distinct matters altogether. Each has its own procedure and generally even the burden of proof is quite different.

As such, it was not proper to seek redress in the High Court through such a novel method,” the justices said. They said, therefore, that the action taken by the appellants was not sanctioned by section 4 of the Act, as it was not lawfully available.

It reads: “If any person alleges that any of the provisions of section 12 to 29 of the Constitution has been, is being or is likely to be contravened in relation to him, he may, without prejudice to any other action with respect to the same matter that is lawfully available apply to the High Court for redress.”

The justices concluded, “The petition before the High Court was, therefore, misconceived. The same was properly dismissed. That said; the appeal is devoid of merits. The same is dismissed with costs to the respondents.”

Respondents in the matter were Attorney-General (AG) and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who were represented by Principal State Attorneys Edwin Kakolaki and Kasole Sarakikya, while Counsel Michael Ngalo had appeared for Dr Mengi.

The hearing of the cases against the appellants were suspended in 2009 following a request from defence lawyers to halt the trial, pending the outcome of the petition under which Patel and his co-accused persons sought to have the charges against them in the lower court dropped for mistrial.

They have claimed to have been unjustly ‘condemned’ by the IPP Group boss and decided to resort to redress from the highest Court in the land under Articles 13(14), (5) and (6)(b) and (d) of the 1977 Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, as amended from time to time.

May 23, 2016
Burundi parties advised to learn from two world wars

{Parties to the ongoing conflict in Burundi have been warned against fuelling civil war in the country and advised to learn from the two world wars on how such unrest could badly cost a community socially and economically.}

That was stated by Head of the European Union Delegation to Tanzania, Ambassador Roeland Van-De Geer, who was speaking on behalf of the Diplomatic Community during the opening of the Burundi Dialogue Process on Saturday.

“In Europe, we learned the hard way. It took us two world wars to realise the importance of peace and conflicts resolutions,” he recalled. The four-day dialogue sessions are taking place here under the facilitation of former President Benjamin Mkapa.

The original Burundi Peace Accord was notably signed in Arusha during Mr Mkapa’s tenure and supervision alongside former South African President, the late Nelson Mandela. In his comments yesterday, Mr Mkapa pointed out that it was Burundi who held the responsibility of ensuring peace in their country.

“We are all aware that this is a Burundi problem and it can be solved only by the Barundi themselves,” he said, adding that his only role was to facilitate the dialogue and reach an amicable solution.

“My plan in this endeavour is to give ample time and space to all stakeholders to express their views on the way forward and for this reason I have sent invitations to former heads of state and political parties in Burundi, civil society Organisations, faith-based groups, prominent political actors as well as women and youth group,” explained Mr Mkapa.

The dialogue’s opening was also attended by the Special Advisor to the United Nations Secretary General on the Great Lakes, Ambassador Jamal Benomaar, who stated that the UN Security Council was very much concerned on the situation in Burundi.

“The Security Council has given its full support to the East African Community-led meditation efforts under the Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and commended the EAC’s decision to appoint former Tanzanian president to facilitate the process,” he said.

Mr Mkapa had been appointed as facilitator for the Burundi peace talks by the Summit of the East African Heads of State, a regional community, comprising of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi itself.

May 22, 2016
UN: Bus crash in Congo kills at least 37 people, injures 22

{A United Nations-backed radio station in Congo says at least 37 people have been killed and 22 injured in a bus crash.}

Radio Okapi reported Saturday that the bus carrying 70 passengers from Zambia got a flat tire, ran into something and caught fire. The accident Friday occurred in southeast Congo in Sakania territory near the border with Zambia. It said the bus was traveling about 500 kilometers (310 miles) from the Zambian village of Kitwe to Luapula province, using a dirt road that cuts through part of Congo as a shortcut.

Radio Okapi reported that Zambian rescue workers are at the scene and the injured have been evacuated to medical centers.

Many roads in Congo are unpaved and poorly maintained.

May 22, 2016
Uganda:Continue the struggle, Besigye tells Opposition

{The former Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) presidential candidate, Dr Kizza Besigye, who is remanded at Luzira prison on treason charges, has told his party leaders to continue with the fight for rights and freedoms of the oppressed.}

“When I was in Moroto Prison, I found many inmates on remand who have gone for over two years without seeing a judge. Most of them are now busy handling election petitions. Here in Luzira prison, which was built for 600 inmates now accommodates over 1,300 inmates. Go and continue our struggle to free these Ugandans,” Mr Ibrahim Ssemujju, the FDC spokesperson, quoted Dr Besigye as telling party leaders.

Mr Ssemujju together with Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago visited the former presidential candidate in Luzira on Friday morning.
The FDC spokesperson said Dr Besigye was in high spirits.

“Those who think that by jailing him they are going to frustrate him are lying to themselves. This is a man who spent four years in the bush during the war (1981 to 1986). So he is used to harsh and actual conditions. He is recharging. When he eventually comes out, he will continue where he ended,” Mr Ssemujju said.

The genesis
Dr Besigye was arrested on May 11 after a video clip on YouTube circulated on social media showed him being sworn in as President of Uganda.
He was later transferred to Moroto District in the remote Karamoja semi-arid region and charged with treason.

Dr Besigye was on Monday this week transferred to Nakawa in Kampala and charged with treason afresh before being remanded to Luzira prison until June 1 for mention of his case.

The Electoral Commission announced Mr Museveni winner of the February 18 elections with 60 per cent and Dr Besigye as runner up with 35 per cent.
Dr Besigye disputed the results and said the Electoral Commission wrongfully announced President Museveni the winner. Dr Besigye claims he won the elections with 52 per cent.

Meanwhile, Dr Besigye’s wife Winnie Byanyima visited him on Friday evening.
“I am pleased that today I got permission from prisons commissioner to regularly speak to Besigye on phone when I return to work,” she posted on Twitter.

May 22, 2016
Kenya threatens to pull troops out of Somalia

{Much of the funding has been coming from the European Union.}

Kenya may withdraw its troops from Somalia if the international community does not plug funding gaps for the operation, President Uhuru Kenyatta has warned.

At a meeting with envoys from the UN Security Council on Friday, the President told the diplomats that funding cuts to the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) will not be filled by participating countries.

“As one of Amisom’s major troop contributing countries, Kenya is questioning whether it was worth the huge cost. [President] Kenyatta asserted that Amisom was not getting the support it needed in terms of resources and equipment, and argued that the UN needed to take on a much greater role,” the UN Security Council Report, an online bulletin by the Council stated on Friday.

“Referring to the recent cuts in EU support, he said it was not Kenya’s role to close the funding gap and the logical conclusion would be for Kenya to pull out its troops.”

The President also defended the Kenya Defence Forces from accusations by a team of UN investigators that they were engaging in illegal activities.

“Kenyatta also raised the issue of accusations against Kenyan troops being involved in trafficking of charcoal and other goods in Somalia, saying that if people did not appreciate what they were doing, there was no reason for them to stay.”

The diplomats from the UN’s most powerful body met President Kenyatta to discuss the planned repatriation of Somali refugees, regional security and Somalia stabilisation plan.

Egyptian Permanent Representative to the UN and current UNSC President Abedellatif Aboulatta and other envoys were told the international community was doing little.

President Kenyatta was concerned that the world was looking the other way despite Kenya, and other Amisom members sending troops to Somalia.

As part of Amisom, Kenya has 3,664 troops in Sector 2 of the Mission, which is under the African Union, but is technically a UN mission. Kenyan troops are in lower and middle Juba.

Much of the funding has been coming from the European Union. But in January, the EU cut its budget to Amisom by 20 per cent. This means that the European body gives €20 million (Sh224 million) every month up to June.

The money is used to pay stipends to soldiers at $1,028 (Sh103, 828) a month with no other allowances.

REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT

For a KDF soldier, the government then deducts an administration fee of $200 (Sh20,200), meaning every serviceman gets $828 (Sh83,628). But Amisom requires $300 million for its entire military and logistics.

“[President] Kenyatta asked the Council to seriously consider Amisom’s role and whether the mission had the resources to stabilise Somalia,” the report states.

The diplomats from the 15-member Council asked Kenya to rescind the decision to close Dadaab refugee camp, offering instead that the UN holds further discussions on refugee management in the country.

The camp holds 335,000 refugees, mainly Somalis.

“It was stressed that the main issue was not funding, but the presence of terrorist groups in the camps and how to deal with this threat,” the envoys were told when they met later with Interior PS Karanja Kibicho, Foreign Affairs PS Monica Juma and Chief of Defence Forces General Samson Mwathethe at Harambee House.

“There were sections in the Dadaab camp where humanitarians could not enter, and the fundamental issue was therefore how to protect refugees from being appropriated by terrorists.”

Kenya is talking to the Jubaland administration in Somalia over the possible resettlement of refugees.

A parliamentary team is expected in Somalia this week to see if regional administrations would be ready to receive returning refugees.”

May 22, 2016
Tanzania:Ex-Exim official to pay 130m/- fine

{Former official with Exim Bank, Neema Kinabo (30), has been sentenced to pay 130m/- or go to jail for five years for laundering money amounting to 125,885 US dollars deposited with the bank for various tourist services for tour operators in Arusha.}

This follows the decision by Resident Magistrate-in- Charge at the District Court of Arusha, Desdery Kamugisha to convict the ex-Operation Manager with the bank’s Arusha Branch, on her own plea of guilt to the count charged contrary to section 3 (k), 12 (a) and 13 (a) of Money Laundering Act.

Neema, who was facing the charge alongside 14 others who denied involvement when they were brought before the court yesterday, failed to pay the fine and the magistrate ordered him to go to jail to serve the custodian sentence.

The prosecution led by State Attorneys Paul Kadushi and Felix Kwetukia, told the court that on diverse dates between June 1 and December 1, 2012, Neema engaged directly in transactions amounting to 125,855 US dollars.

According to the prosecution, the bank official allegedly authorised withdrawal of the amount from a bank account maintained by one Tumaini Raphael Mwandigo, while she knew the said amount was proceeds of a predicate offence of theft.

The prosecution told the court further that the said amount of money was deposited to the bank by various tour operators as payments for several tourist services offered by Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA).

It was further alleged that the said amount of money forms part of 521,165 US dollars, which was intended to be deposited into a bank account but was diverted into various individual USD bank accounts by the ex-Exim bank staff.

State Attorney Kadushi further disclosed that on diverse dates, the third accused person, being Operations Manager of the bank’s Arusha Branch, while knowing that the money in question was proceeds of a predicate offence of theft, authorised the withdrawal of the money.

The case for the remaining accused persons was adjourned to May 26 and 27 for hearing. They are facing a total counts of 319 relating to conspiracy to commit an offence, money laundering and stealing by servant.

The accused persons are charged with alternative counts of fraudulent accounting by clerk. Other accused persons are Bimal Gondalia, Lilian Mgeye, Livingstone Julius, Joyce Kimaro, Daudi Nhosha, Doroth Chijana, Evance Kashebo, Moses Aloyce, Tuntufye Aggrey, Josephat Neki, Genes Masawe, Christopher Lyimo, Gervas Lubuva and Deusdeith Chacha.

May 22, 2016
DR Congo opposition leader Katumbi flies to SA for medical care

{Moise Katumbi, the opposition presidential hopeful in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has flown to South Africa for medical treatment, his lawyer says, a day after authorities issued an arrest warrant for him.}

He was accused of hiring foreign mercenaries in an alleged plot against the state, which he denies.

Mr Katumbi’s lawyer said he had been in hospital since police had fired tear gas during a protest.

Elections are due in November.

Prosecutors allowed him to travel for treatment on condition that he returned to face the criminal charges against him.

Lawyer Georges Kapiamba said Mr Katumbi was taken to hospital in Lubumbashi, after police fired tear gas at him and his supporters.

The politician was weak but boarded the flight unaided, he added.

Mr Katumbi has condemned the charges against him as an attempt to stall his campaign to replace President Joseph Kabila in November polls.

Mr Kabila, in power since 2001, is nearing the end of his second term and he is constitutionally obliged to step down by December.

But there is growing political tension as it is not clear if he will relinquish power.

Moise Katumbi was governor of the south-eastern Katanga province for almost a decade.

He is a wealthy businessman who has a lot of support in the mineral-rich south-eastern Katanga province, and was at one time an ally of the president,
But in September last year he broke ties with the ruling party when he accused President Kabila of wanting to cling to power.

His popularity is partly down to his job as the president of a great source of Congolese pride – football club TP Mazembe.

They are Africa’s reigning football champions, having won the African Champions League for the fifth time in November.

May 21, 2016
Uganda:Rights body condemns Besigye brutal arrest, wants speedy trial

{ {{Kampala.}} The chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) has called for a fair and speedy trial of Opposition leader, Dr Kizza Besigye, who is currently on remand at Luzira prison on treason charges.}

Mr Medi Kaggwa made the call while addressing the press in Kampala yesterday about the recent human rights concerns in the country.

He also condemned the brutal arrest of Dr Besigye and FDC party supporters by the police and other security agencies in various parts of the country.

Dr Besigye, the runner up in this year’s presidential elections, was on May 11, arrested and taken to Moroto where he was charged with treason and later transferred to Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court in Kampala and charged afresh on Wednesday.
He was remanded to Luzira prison until June 1 for mention of his case. Treason is a capital offence only tried by the High Court and attracts a death sentence on conviction.

“The Uganda Human Rights Commission noted the arrest of Dr Besigye, the former presidential candidate on Wednesday 11, 2016, and his being charged with treason at the Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court. The UHRC consequently calls upon all those concerned to ensure a fair and speedy trial…” Mr Kaggwa said.
On the charge sheet, the prosecution states that Dr Besigye and others still at large between February 20 and May 11 this year in diverse places in Uganda formed an intention to compel by force or constrain the government of Uganda to change its measures or counsels as to the lawfully established methods of acceding to the office of President.

Mr Kaggwa also condemned the beating up of people who were following Dr Besigye recently in the city. People were beaten up by masked men in the presence of police.
Days after the Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura, withdrew his officers from Dr Besigye’s home in Kasangati, Wakiso District, after a siege of over 45 days, masked men were seen randomly beating up people who followed the Opposition leader as he drove through the town to his party headquarters in Najjanankumbi.

Police were present but just looked away as the masked men inflicted mayhem on unarmed civilians.
“Media reports indicate that masked men beat up people in the streets of Kampala on Thursday 14 April, 2016 in the presence of the police without being restrained or arrested. The commission however, noted that the police disowned the masked gangs and said it had commissioned an investigation into the matter,” said Mr Kaggwa.

He added: “The commission notes that the public expects quick investigations whose findings should be made public.”
The UHRC is a government agency mandated to protect and promote human rights in the country.
The commission is also mandated to give guidance on any emerging human rights issues in the country by pointing out human rights violations that require urgent attention.

{{Law says}}

Article 28 (1) of the Constitution demands that in determination of civil obligations or any criminal charge, a person shall be entitled to a fair and speedy public trial before an independent and impartial court or tribunal established by law.

May 21, 2016
UN fails to convince Kenya not to close Dadaab camp

{They offered to discuss ways of improving refugee hostage in the country.}

Kenya will proceed to shut down the Dadaab refugee camp as a matter of national security, United Nations Security Council envoys were told Friday.

President Uhuru Kenyatta told a delegation of diplomats from the UN’s most powerful body, in Nairobi, that the camp, the world’s largest by population, would have to be closed to save the country from security hazards.

The diplomats had arrived in the country just a day after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asked President Kenyatta not to close the camp, and instead offered to discuss how to manage it.

The envoys, led by Egyptian permanent representative to the UN and the council’s president Abedellatif Aboulatta, told President Kenyatta that closing the camp would be counterproductive.

They offered to discuss ways of improving refugee hostage in the country.

Two meetings, one at State House with President Kenyatta and another with senior Interior and Foreign Affairs officials at Harambee House, did not yield results.

Diplomatic sources told the Saturday Nation the government was unyielding, arguing instead that closing the camp would, in fact, push the international community to support Somalia’s stabilisation.

According to sources, Kenya said it saw little international commitment to support Somalia’s rise, which would in effect improve the security of the region.

The President cited lack of investments in military support for work in Somalia as well as reduced funding for African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) as a concern.

The envoys suggested that the AU chips in to fill the gap, but the President told them Amisom is essentially a UN mission which must be supported by the global body.

But of concern to Kenya, sources said on Friday, was that the UN and other donors continued listing Kenya as unsafe yet it carries the burden of hosting refugees.

A statement from State House on Friday, indicated the Dadaab issue had been discussed “at length” but offered no details on the resolutions.

This will be the third time in President Kenyatta’s tenure that a UN High Commission for Refugee boss is coming to Kenya to convince the government against closing Dadaab.

May 21, 2016