KENYA: FREE MEDICAL CAMP BY SALEM MINISTRIES WITHIN SIAYA COUNTY.
By Agwanda Saye
Salem Ministries which is a Kisumu based Christian Ministry will host a free medical camp within Siaya County the birthplace of the USA President Barrack Obama which will be conducted by a group of volunteer nurses from California and Washington Seattle from the United States of America.
The free medical camp will take place at Uhasi in Pala Sub Location
According to the head of Salem Ministries Bishop Pheobe Onyango the free medical camp will take place between 13th and 14th of May this year and will comprise eight people from the US under Unbox Life and together with local nurses and doctors.
“There will be general treatment and the main target will be to try and de worm the children and test and treat malaria” Onyango added.
She added that her organization targets to offer the services to over two thousand people for the two days event.
“We target people from all the Constituencies making Saiya County to come for the free medical camp and we hope that people from Ugenya,Alego,Rarieda,Gem ,Bondo and Ugunja constituencies will attend ,my worry is that the duration might be a challenge but we will try to attend as many as possible “she added.
She however said that should they be overwhelmed by the number of those seeking medical attention then they might be forced to add another day.
“She added that she has followed all the laid down procedures with the authorities in regard to the event saying all the authorities concerned are fully aware of the free medical camp.
Governments urged to support new Action Plan to save a million African child lives every year
From: News Release - African Press Organization (APO)
PRESS RELEASE
· New action plan to eliminate two of the main killer diseases of children in Africa - pneumonia and diarrhoea – launched by the World Health Organisation and UNICEF.
· UN states that universal access to water, sanitation and hygiene in Africa alongside availability of vaccines and treatments, is critical in ending preventable child deaths.
· Ending preventable pneumonia and diarrhoea deaths would save the lives of over 1 million children in Africa every year.
LONDON, United-Kingdom, April 11, 2013/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Today, UNICEF and the WHO have launched a new action plan tackling for the first time two of the three biggest killer diseases of children under five in Africa – pneumonia and diarrhoea. The plan aims to end preventable deaths of children in Africa from these diseases by 2025, which would save over 1 million lives a year.
Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/wateraid.jpg
Nelson Gomonda, WaterAid’s Pan-Africa Programme Manager (http://www.wateraid.org), said:
“This Action Plan is all about doing more of what we already know works: Increasing access to drinking water and adequate sanitation, promoting breast feeding, improving availability of vaccines and making sure that treatment is on hand when children need them.
“It is the responsibility of African Governments to embrace and implement the plan and the cost of inaction and failure will be high and measured in the lives of the continent’s children. With the support and assistance of organisations like WaterAid and donors, we can succeed in ending these preventable deaths.”
Every year in Sub-Saharan Africa over 600,000 children under five die of pneumonia while more than 400,000 die of diarrhoea. Between them, they account for over a quarter (28%) of all the child deaths on the continent.
The Action Plan calls for a substantial shift is in how poverty reduction efforts are coordinated in Africa. Aid programmes need to bring together different areas of work, such as access to drinking water, health and education, to make them more effective.
The new plan calls on governments to prioritise investment in the poorest and least-served population groups. For example, in Africa’s towns and cities, nearly three-quarters (73%) of the richest people enjoy access to adequate sanitation, while for the poorest groups in these areas only 15% have access.
Alongside dozens of development charities, WaterAid has signed a joint statement in support of the new Action Plan that declares:
‘We can save countless lives by using an integrated approach to fighting disease, improving access to proven interventions and by prioritising efforts to reach the poorest and most marginalised children. As the latest data demonstrate, the Global Action Plan on Pneumonia and Diarrhoea provides the most cost-effective approach and will help achieve the greatest impact in reducing child deaths.’
The statement offers recommendations for developing country governments, businesses and donors.
Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of WaterAid.
KENYA: UNCOVERING NEPOTISM ISN’T HATE SPEECH
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Butere Girls High School drama club and the entire school are so disappointed. Their drama, ‘Shackles of Doom’, which depicts unequal distribution of resources and dominance of top positions by main ethnic groups, will not be staged at the national drama festivals, despite topping the western region contest.
The play was stopped by the Drama Committee even after Butere District Education quality assurance officer Isaac Ngaya said he watched the play and found no offending sections that warranted censorship. The claim was that the play contained hate speech and for that matter it was offensive.
The play acted by two girls wondered whether nepotism will really end in Kenya. Even before Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto have not been sworn in their government has been accused of nepotism.
The girls were wondering why in Kenya any leader who comes to power immediately exercises nepotism. Among the most powerful posts have been awarded to Uhuru Kenyatta’s Central and GEMA as well as Ruto’s Rift- Senate Speaker ... Ethuro ... Rift, Nat. Assembly Speaker ... Muturi ... Eastern-the girls were crying and wondering who will represent Western, Northern and Coastal who feel cheated by Rift Valley and Central!
Prime Minister Raila Odinga is not spared either. He made sure his ODM party awarded his elder brother Oburu Odinga by nominating him to parliament after people rejected him during the ODM nominations.
Similar case applies to his sister Ruth Odinga who has been awarded 'deputy governor' even after Kisumu people rejecting her. Ruth had known before general election that she was going to be awarded the post of deputy governor.
Celebrating Valentine's Day a day late with pupils at Shiners Centre in Kisumu town on February 14, 2013, Ruth introduced herself to the pupils and staff as "the Kisumu County Deputy Governor and Raila's sister". She signed the visitors’ book 'Deputy Governor Kisumu County'.
This could imply that even if Raila became the president nepotism was not going to end. Earlier on Raila had been accused for having allegedly favoured his relatives and friends as well as the financial heavyweight Luos in the former cabinet appointment to the grand coalition government.
Dr. Oburu Oginga was appointed an Assistant Minister of Finance. The other centre of controversy was the appointment of Mr. Phillip Onyango Sika as the PS in the Ministry of Metropolitan development. The new PS hails from gem constituency also in Siaya and is the relative of the Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo whose mother is the younger sister of Raila Odinga’s mother.
Critics blamed Raila for having ignored Migori, Rachuonyo, Kisumu and Nandio districts only concentrating with appointment of people from Siaya and Bondo districts.
Even Kenyatta was not spared either. He used nomination slots to nominate his relatives. He paid back his first cousin Beth Mugo with a TNA nomination to the senate after Mugo stepped down in favour of Mike Sonko who was elected Nairobi senator.
One of the adjudicators at the regional level, Prof Christopher Odhiambo of Moi University, said their role is not to censure but to suggest improvements in case a play contains offending information.
The author of the play, Cleophas Malala is a politician and a scriptwriter, but his play has been adjudged to be politically incorrect. Despite the ban, Mr Malala says his plays are motivated by his desire to fight for the rights of the oppressed, especially the marginalized ethnic communities in Kenya.
In the zonal, district and regional competitions the play by Butere Girls emerged the winner despite the fact that someone loyal to the government thinks it has a political twist.
The play was motivated by unequal distribution of resources in the country. The play depicts a film shot in the land of the ‘Kanas’, who refer to themselves as the ‘True Kanas’. Their land is rich in oil, but they are ignorant of the treasure that lies beneath their soil.
Malala cited an audit by the Commission for Integration and National Cohesion (NCIC) on distribution of public appointments which showed glaring inequalities in public jobs.
“I am just replaying what happens in our society and even NCIC knows that, so what is my sin?” Malala wonders.
The fact however, remains that the unequal distribution of wealth has always been a huge problem in Kenya since independence that has plagued society throughout the ages. Even as forms of governments of Kenya have changed, the unequal distribution of wealth has remained a constant.
That is why the Butere girls’ actress were crying wondering who will save Kenya from these evil ills. They were crying because the unequal distribution of wealth makes the living conditions of the less fortunate undesirable, because the upper class is usually concerned about gaining and maintaining their own wealth first and concerned about others second.
The girls were crying because it is difficult for the poor to rise above the poverty level, because they are dependent upon what the upper class deems is a fair wage for producing the goods that they make.
Against the background that Karl Marx saw conflict as necessary and desirable to bring about social change. This social change would then result in the equal distribution of wealth and resources.
After viewing the suffering of the masses, Karl Marx hoped that they would rise up against oppression and bring about a social change where there would be an equal distribution of resources.
The conflict that Marx spoke about was not necessarily violence. Conflict referred to tension, differences in beliefs and values, conflict of interest and competition. These all exist in every society and according to Marx, they are the basis for social change.
The play reminds me of my own play I wrote in early 1990s when I was the Rector of Keserian Juniro Seminary. The play “But Why” was banned by the Kajiado Drama Committee because it was asking why The Central Bank of Kenya had been used to provide liquidity to politically well connected financial institutions such as Trade Bank, Pan African Bank and Exchange Bank.
Such banks were being used to launder the residential campaign money into convertible currencies abroad. In 1992 alone, the Central Bank printed and released for circulation more than 12 billion Kenya shillings.
This was the time 7 billion shillings was used by Kanu as slush fund to manipulate the electoral process according to Finance Magazine, March 31, 1993. It was also the time 500 and 200 notes were printed, YK' 92, used most of 500 notes to campaign for bribery and corruption machinery to make Kanu win the elections.
The printing of 500 notes, 200 and 100 was an addition to 2.35 billion. As of the end of September 1992, the amount of currency in circulation in Kenya was 15.85 billion. It was also during this time that Lake Basin Development Authority had been pushed to near collapse due to general elections.
During that time Kenya had been ranked by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund as the 24th poorest country in the world a gross national product per capita of $370 per year-down from the$400 plus attained by the end of the eighties.
The average annual growth rate per capita had therefore been either zero or negative for the eighties. By the year 2000 Kenyan economy was rated negative 0.3 percent according to East African Standard, June 8, 20001.
This was the lowest ever recorded since the collapse of the shilling in 1993 in the wake of the Goldenberg scandal and paper money and the crisis of the 1990's-instead of answering the question but why the play was banned.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
TOUCHED BY HUMILITY OF POPE FRANCIS I
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 2013
Pope Francis has demonstrated his humility in practice. He has chosen a modest papal ring in silver rather than gold, and one designed decades ago rather than one created specifically for him. It is here that I am touched.
"Ring”, which originally served as both a symbol of the papacy and a seal, is usually cast in gold for successors to St Peter’s chair. “The pope’s decision to renounce precious things and avoid materials such as gold is very much in keeping with his desire to emphasise the religious symbols themselves, not what they are made of.
Pope Francis is already distinguishing himself from his predecessors by shedding embellishments and calling for a “poor Church for the poor.”
It explains why Catholics and the curious flooded St. Peter's Square to greet Pope Francis on the day of the ceremony to officially install him as pope Tuesday. It explains further why he was applauded as he issued an appeal for the protection of the weak, the poor and the world environment.
His homily touched a crowd of up to 200,000 gathered in front of the Vatican: “I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political and social life, and all men and women of goodwill: Let us be protectors of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.”
Pope Francis gave a new example of his preference for simplicity when the Vatican unveiled the symbols of his papacy on Monday. The pope decided to keep the coat of arms and the motto he chose when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires.
Besides this change, Francis chose to keep his old symbols, which allude to the Holy Family and to his membership in the Jesuit order: a sun inscribed with the letters "IHS," a star to represent the Virgin Mary and a nard flower to represent St. Joseph, Jesus' earthly father.
There was a ripple of applause through a packed St. Peter's Square, and tears in the eyes of the some of the faithful, as Francis spoke of humility and the need for advocacy on behalf of the poor – themes he has already established as the hallmarks of his papacy.
“Let us never forget that authentic power is service,” he said. “Only those who serve with love are able to protect, defining his idea of protection as “respecting each of God’s creatures and respecting the environment in which we live.”
It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about. It means caring for one another in our families: Husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents.
It means building sincere friendships in which we protect one another in trust, respect, and goodness. In the end, everything has been entrusted to our protection, and all of us are responsible for it. Be protectors of God’s gifts!
Pope’s message is that “one should never confuse simplicity and humility with weakness.”
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
MY HOMILY OF FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2013
Fifth Sunday of Lent is the final week prior to Easter. Today I celebrated one mass. The first reading was taken from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, 43:16-21. It talks of God’s promise to restore His people after they have suffered in exile.
The second reading is from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians, 3:8-14, and is a warning to the Philippians about false teachers; Judaizers who would try to hang on to the old ways while at the same time claiming to be Christians.
The Judaizers taught that in order to be a Christian, you first had to be a Jew: to be circumcised and to obey all 613 Old Covenant commandments. This question, whether or not Gentile converts to Christianity must first become full and legal Jews, prompted the Council of Jerusalem.
The Gospel is from St. John, 8:1-11 and is about the woman caught in adultery. God wants to prove to us that all of us are sinners. "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."
When Jesus and the woman were left alone, he looked up and said, "Woman, where are they?" Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”
Specific theme for the Kenya Episcopal Conference Justice and Peace commission Lenten Campaign is the child and the family as the basic unit of society. As the second reading puts it that in Christ there should be no Jew, circumcised, or uncircumcised, in Kenya where tribalism or negative ethnicity as media refer to it nowadays is the order of the day children are faced with lots of challenges as they grow up.
Recently I was challenged by my 11 years old niece when she asked me how comes that Kikuyus do not want other tribes to lead this country, and why specially Luos. That they think they are the only tribe who matter in Kenya as if they own it. No matter how much I tried to convince her that it is not the case she insisted it is.
The question of my niece is the question other children and Kenyans ask about other tribes. It demonstrates how negative ethnicity is tearing Kenya apart. Each tribe in Kenya thinks it is the best.
This is seen specifically when a particular tribe becomes the president. It favours its own tribe mates when it comes to the appointments of key positions in the government since independent. Jomo Kenyatta favoured his tribe mates when he became the president. Daniel arap Moi did the same and now Mwai Kibaki.
This makes tribalism and nepotism to be one of the deadly cancer diseases in Kenya which will take time to heal. Children are growing seeing this and that is why they ask such challenging questions.
Children are aware that this type of bad governance has not only been the main factors hindering Kenya from achieving important development milestones, it is also affecting children emotionally.
Nepotism is the showing of favoritism for relatives or friends based upon that relationship, rather than on an objective evaluation of ability or suitability, for instance by offering employment to a relative, despite the fact that there are others who are better qualified and willing and able to perform the job.
Children need to be told clearly that such type of bad governance and leadership can no longer be entertained in modern society. This can be done in schools and churches. In Kenya this is currently being done in form two through three literature set books, Betrayal in the City, the Caucasian Chalk Circle and the River and the Source.
Betrayal in the City by Francis Imbunga tries to help students understand that power is in the hand of the people and can be used to throw away bad leaders. The play starts by cutting a clear distinction between leaders and the mass.
It opens by showing the life of Nina and Doga who mourn for their lost child, who was killed on an organised demonstration, which was focused on African dictatorship and corruption.
The play portrays Mulili an illiterate soldier who was employed and given high post because the president was his uncle. On the same scene we also meet Jere who is a faithful soldier and he adores African style of life, he and Mulili fell into a fight since they take different courses of reasoning, here Mulili represent the ruling class and its common habits of bulldozing the society.
It demonstrates how the whole country is proven rotten and how harmful speaking the truth is, we see how those dared to open their mouths and the reveal the truth face difficulties, and sometimes going to the extreme of being imprisoned for example Jusper and other prisoners.
Finally some people gather courage and plan a revolution on which now Mulili betrays the president and he realizes how bad he is. It calls for peoples powers to demonstrate against such leadership, to remove them from the office and replace them with leaders who are patriotic-leaders who consider Kenya to equally belong to other Kenyans.
On respect and protection of human life, the Caucasian Chalk Circle fits. This is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. The play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than its natural parents.
To demonstrate that all children are equal, whether boys or girls the River and the Source by Margaret A Ogola fits. The novel tries to convince readers that a home without daughters is like a spring without a source. It kills the culture in some societies that think that only boys are valuable in the home.
It is a sweeping story following the lives of three generations of women, from Akoko, born into a traditional Luo community, to her grandchild Awiti, whose children live into the late twentieth century.
Yet still, far from being the cradle in which the life of an individual is nurtured, family can be a source of personal identity in providing the template of social norms and values that go into shaping the individual’s personality.
These values have been however challenged. This is because traditional family structure has been put under pressure from rapid social change, undergoing erosion, and is generally splitting up to such an extent that it is failing to fulfil its primary role of socialization affected by urbanization and modernization.
Today is not as easy as in the past to provide children with the same amount of care and attention they automatically receive in the extended family set-up. Urbanization and modernization directly cuts across ancestry-based residence and mutual social, spiritual, and economic co-operation.
In the modern era the family has gradually shrunk to become the nuclear family, consisting solely of parents and their children - thus denying many parents the assistance they once received from extended family support networks. As a result, many parents find it increasingly difficult to carry out all their work and family responsibilities.
Due to high cost of living children often have to devote most of their day to helping the family in its income-raising ventures. Even if they should manage to attend school, regularly, eventually, the lack of suitable clothing, footwear, or money to buy the basic school equipment and needs encourages them to drop-out voluntarily.
Yet still, marriage has gradually become the individual's concern rather than a concern of two extended families. The divorce rate has risen sharply. The number of single parent families has increased dramatically despite the fact that for growth and development of a child's personality, it is desirable for both parents.
More still, a child whose mother is repudiated by the father, or where life at home becomes intolerable due to threats, quarrels, even physical violence, where a father resorts to drinking heavily to drown his sorrows, or abandon his family altogether because of his inability to meet the family needs, develops psychological problems in empathy with the abandoned mother.
Many of these children end-up in the street to earn a living and to support their mother and siblings. Street-children are becoming of great concern of late. They roam the streets, offering their services as load carriers, ice water vendors, scrap metal sorters, wooden toy makers, peanut, orange and banana sellers. The boys chase cars with their wares - a risky business life.
Adolescent girls drift naturally into early marriage, unplanned teenage pregnancies/abortion, frequent childbearing and a new generation of impoverishment. Others may take up prostitution.
The issue of abandoned babies and infants is gradually becoming a problem in this country and may continue to be worse unless measures are taken to redress the fundamental factor of a supportive family system in the modern society.
We have not even talked about over 50 percent of orphaned children as a result of HIV/Aids; either from their parent(s) dying from it, or abandonment as a result of having it. HIV children need three things: Good nutrition, love, and adequate medical care.
Another big problem with our children is sexual abuse which includes the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in.
Any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct; or the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children.
There is also a problem with emotional abuse, a pattern of behavior that impairs a child’s emotional development or sense of self-worth. This may include constant criticism, threats, or rejection, as well as withholding love, support, or guidance.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
What kills one AFRICAN woman every minute of every single day? / The Most Important “Life” Survey You Will Read
From: News Release - African Press Organization (APO)
[logo image: Mamaye! mothers - babies - alive]
PRESS RELEASE
What kills one AFRICAN woman every minute of every single day? / The Most Important “Life” Survey You Will Read
ACCRA, Ghana, February 18, 2013/ -- The Most Important “Life” Survey You Will Read
Every survey starts with a simple question.
What kills one AFRICAN woman every minute of every single day?
A: AIDS
B: CANCER
NEITHER
THE ANSWER IS?
C: PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH
Somewhere in AFRICA one woman dies every minute of every day from causes related to pregnancy and birth.
The hardest pill to swallow for even the most successful African nations is this: giving life to the continent’s next generation is one of the biggest killers’ of Africa’s women.
More often than not it is preventable: Uncontrolled bleeding, infection, poor medical care and a lack of education still sit at the very heart of this hidden crisis.
Those who survive may still suffer. For every woman who dies during childbirth, it is estimated that another 30 are injured or become sick bringing life to the world. Africa’s poorest are the most vulnerable.
But women themselves are not the only victims. The children left behind are more likely to die simply because they are motherless.
Too many babies also die unnecessarily. In Africa, over a million newborns die each year – that is - nearly four every single minute.
If Africa is to advance, MORE needs to be done. SIGNIFICANTLY more.
Today (18th February 2013), MamaYe (http://www.mamaye.org), a public action campaign to save the lives of mothers and babies will be launched in five countries most affected by the crisis of maternal and newborn mortality: Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Malawi and Tanzania. This is the first part of a continent-wide campaign which will use digital and mobile phone technology to engage ordinary Africans in the most important fight of all – the battle to save our mothers and babies.
Logo MamaYe: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/mamaye.jpg
At its core MamaYe will challenge the status quo – the fatalism of millions of Africans, young and old, who accept the deaths of mothers and babies as “natural” or “God’s will.”
MamaYe is a campaign to both educate and encourage communities to take collective and individual action for pregnant mothers amongst them. It will seek to overcome the ingrained belief that responsibility for maternal and newborn survival rests elsewhere: with ‘the government’ ‘the ministry’ ‘professionals’ ‘the UN’ or foreign donors. For MamaYe the active participation of Africans as a whole is a critical ingredient.
MamaYe believes that technology can educate, motivate and mobilise people to take direct action to respond to the maternal and newborn crisis in Africa.
By 2016, it is projected that there will be one billion mobile phones in Africa. 167,335,676 Internet users. 51,612,460 Facebook subscribers. In Ghana, for example, mobile penetration in the country has reached a record 80% of the country’s population.
MamaYe has been initiated by Evidence for Action which is funded by the UK Department for International Development, and headed up in the five countries by African experts.
Country Director Ghana Professor Richard Adanu, who is also the Dean of the School of Public Health in Accra, said:
“We all have the power and the potential to save the lives of mothers and newborns.
“Men who support their wives to visit ante-natal clinics are helping to save lives. Taxi drivers who volunteer to get women to clinics in time for the birth can do the same. Voluntarily giving blood also saves lives, by helping women who haemorrhage during childbirth.
“Government officials that ensure clinics are well stocked with drugs and other essentials, are nothing less than life-savers. Midwives that respond to a crisis in the middle of the night are maternal survival heroines.
“We can all play our part. Childbirth is not a disease. We have known for decades what it takes to ensure the survival of women and babies in childbirth. But if our mothers are to survive, then the African public must also step up, take responsibility and become more involved and vigilant.
“MamaYe will provide the evidence, information and tools necessary to empower our citizens to demand change.
All it takes to make the change, is YOU. “
Visit http://www.mamaye.org to find out more about making a life-saving change for mothers and babies of Africa. On this website you will find easy to understand evidence, stories of heroes and heroines, commitments made by the Government and different actions you can take for this important cause.
Make your voice heard and demand more, join the MamaYe campaign at:
• http://www.mamaye.org
• http://www.Facebook.com/MamaYeAfrica
• http://www.Twitter.com/MamaYe
Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of MamaYe.
Contact: Rachel Haynes (for in-country contacts, see below)
Email: info@evidence4action.net
Contacts
Ghana:
Nii Sarpei, Communicatons: n.sarpei@arhr.org.gh
Malawi:
Mwereti Kanjo, Communications: mweretik@gmail.com
Nigeria:
Morooph Babaranti, Communications: m.babaranti@evidence4action.net
Sierra Leone:
Fatou Wurie, Communications: f.wurie@evidence4action.net
Tanzania:
Chiku Lweno-Aboud, Communications: c.lweno-aboud@evidence4action.net
Notes to editors
MamaYe (http://www.mamaye.org) is a campaign initiated by Evidence for Action (E4A), a multi-year programme which aims to improve maternal and newborn survival in sub-Saharan Africa. Funded by the UK Department for International Development, the campaign focuses on using a strategic combination of evidence, advocacy and accountability to save lives in Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.
Web and Social Media
Pan Africa: http://www.mamaye.org | Facebook.com/MamayeAfrica | Twitter.com/MamaYe
Ghana: http://www.mamaye.org.gh | Facebook.com/MamayeGH | Twitter.com/MamayeGH
Malawi: http://www.mamaye.org.mw | Facebook.com/MamaYeMalawi | Twitter.com/MamaYeMW
Nigeria: http://www.mamaye.org.ng | Facebook.com/MamaYeNigeria |Twitter.com/MamaYeNigeria
Sierra Leone: http://www.mamaye.org.sl | Facebook.com/MamaYeSL |Twitter.com/MamaYeSL
Tanzania: http://www.mamaye.or.tz | Facebook.com/MamaYeTZ | Twitter.com/MamaYeTZ
Facts about maternal and newborn mortality in Africa
In sub-Saharan Africa, the lifetime risk of maternal death is 1 in 16, compared with 1 in 2,800 in developed countries.
Those who survive may still suffer. For every woman who dies during childbirth, it is estimated that another 30 are injured or become sick bringing life to the world.
Every day, 444 women die in sub-Saharan Africa due to causes relating to pregnancy and childbirth.
In Africa, over a million newborns die each year.
The newborn mortality rate is 44 deaths per 1000 live births in Africa.
Globally, the countries with the highest rates of newborn mortality are mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. (Source: World Health Organization.)
SOURCE
MamaYe
HOLY FAMILY AND CHALLENGES OF GAY MARRIAGES
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2012
Tomorrow is Sunday December 30, 2012, the feast of Holy Family. Even though one of the primary functions of the family is to produce and reproduce persons biologically, today the church faces challenges on gay families-click here to see The 10 Most Famous Gay Parents And Their Families.
Today the question is not whether homosexuals should adopt children or not, but rather on whether people involved in homosexual or lesbian relationships be allowed to adopt children, or whether children who grow up in single-sex parented homes advantaged or disadvantaged.
These statistics show the tragic consequences of fatherless and single parent homes in the United States: 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes, 85% of all children that exhibit behavioural disorders come from fatherless homes, 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes, 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes, 75% of all adolescent patients in drug abuse centres come from fatherless homes, 85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home.
While this applies to children who grow up in fatherless homes, mothers are equally important in the lives of children and the results of 'motherless' homes are equally tragic. Children, who grow up with two mothers and no father, and those who grow up with two fathers and no mother, will be horribly handicapped in life.
According to Dr Sotirios Sarantakos from Charles Stuart University, Australia, children in normal marriages faired the best, and children in homosexual homes the worst. Children of homosexual couples scored the lowest in language ability, mathematics and sport.
They were more timid, reserved, unwilling to work in a team or talk about home lives and holidays. They felt "uncomfortable when having to work with students of a sex different from the parent they lived with" and were the least sociable.
A study in Family Planning Perspective showed that male homosexuals were at greatly increased risk for alcoholism: "Among men, by far the most important risk group consisted of homosexual and bisexual men, who were more than nine times as likely as heterosexual men to have a history of problem drinking.
The church is opposed to same sex marriages because God's Word is clear that only a man and a woman can enter into marriage, and this is the foundation for the family. Genesis 2:24 reads, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh."
Malachi 2:15 says that God made a man and his wife one because "He seeks godly offspring." For those who stray from the wisdom of God, the results are tragic. These statistics show that homosexual homes are less stable, more unfaithful and relationships are shorter, and there is more drug and alcohol abuse and domestic violence.
As Reuters report, children growing up in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender families are more likely to live in poverty and may be denied legal ties to one of their parents according to report released on Tuesday.
Yet still, the gay issue in the world has become acute. In France, mass demonstrations were held against the government's intention to legalize gay marriage. In Great Britain, the spiritual head of the Anglican Church, Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has resigned. According to local media he left his post because of his inability to cope with homosexuality among the clergy.
In Russia, the Moscow Regional Duma refused to include in the agenda the bill similar to the one recently adopted in St. Petersburg about prohibition of homosexual propaganda to children and adolescents. Allegedly, the document "does not agree" with the federal law.
The primary purpose of the Church in instituting and promoting this feast is to present the Holy Family as the model and exemplar of all Christian families. That is why the Feast of the Holy Family is not just about the Holy Family, but about our own families too. The main purpose of the Feast is to present the Holy Family as the model for all Christian families, and for domestic life in general.
Above all, our family life becomes sanctified when we live the life of the Church within our homes. This is called the "domestic church" or the "church in miniature." St. John Chrysostom urged all Christians to make each home a "family church," and in doing so, we sanctify the family unit.
This is because marriage is too often conceived as the sacrament which unites a man and a woman to form a couple. In reality, marriage establishes a family, and its purpose is to increase the number of the elect, through the bodily and spiritual fecundity of the Christian spouses.
While every marriage intends children, the purpose of every marriage is to establish a Christian family. Yet every Christian family must live in harmony and in prayer, which are the pledges of joy and union.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
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Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
Ending Child Marriage and Meeting the Needs of Married Children
From: Yona Maro
This document, entitled Ending Child Marriage and Meeting the Needs of Married Children, builds upon research into best practices for addressing child marriage.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) seeks to ensure that children are not robbed of their human rights and can live to their full potential.
--
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WHY NEW EVANGELIZATION MUST ADDRESS THE REALITY OF SEX ABUSE BY CLERGY
From: People For Peace
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
BY CHRISPIN ONYANGO
NAIROBI-KENYA
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2012
When a Canadian bishop whose diocese was rocked by clerical sex abuse crises told the Synod of Bishops that the new evangelization must address the reality of distrust and disappointment the scandal left in its wake, his pleas were not taken seriously yet this is the emerging problem that must be addressed urgently.
[image]Bishop Brian J. Dunn of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, leaves a meeting of the Synod of Bishops on the new evangelization Tuesday at the Vatican. Dunn told the synod Friday the new evangelization must address the reality of distrust and disappointment caused by the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic church-photo courtesy (CNS/Paul Haring)
With the sex abuse crisis, Catholics have experienced "a great disorientation that leads to forms of distrust of teachings and values that are essential for the followers of Christ," Bishop Brian J. Dunn of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, told the synod Oct. 12, adding that the Catholic Church cannot ignore the need to find a way to "evangelize those who have been deeply hurt by clergy who have been involved in sexual abuse.
At the same time, the church needs to investigate the causes of the sexual abuse crisis and ensure measures are in place to protect children and vulnerable adults.
A perusal of recent books, articles and information from websites, reveal strong and generalized damaging assumptions about priestly celibacy in connection with sexual scandals. The focus is no longer in the West but also in Africa and the rest of the continents.
Sexual abuse in whichever dimension, is a symptom of dangerous sexual perversity and should be strongly condemned. That is why problems of ever sexual abuse by the celibates of the Roman Catholic Church should not be treated in isolation as they might be a sign of deeper problems the church or an individual is unwilling to face.
Generally, sexual abuse is a wide social moral problem not confined to a particular culture or class of people only. Sexual abuses have a long history with diverse global dimensions.
The assumptions about celibacy of the clergy are inexhaustible. Among the assumptions being saturated worldwide are that; Catholic priests, especially in Europe and America are sexual abusers of children and youth. One gets the impression that other Christian churches do not have sexual predators among their clergy or leaders.
The second assumption is that the celibate Roman Catholic Priesthood is non-biblical. However, it is openly debated that the abolition of celibacy or, if it is made optional by the Roman Catholic Church, sexual abuse of children, youth and women would become a thing of the past, both, within the church and society.
However, it is not mentioned anywhere, that priests also can be victims of lustful women and seductive girls. One gets the impression that all young girls and women are innocent, holy and angelic, incapable of sexually molesting and terrorizing priests.
In this case, it is purported that only men are sexual predators. Unfortunately, the mass media and other communication networks give sensational and exaggerated information with sometimes an outright bias; as long as such information is in public demand and interest, instead of being fair, objective and truthful.
I have to admit that there is something odd about the current interest of the mass media with respect to ecclesiastical weaknesses. It is definitely bordering in the frenzy, sensational and alarmist side. The impression is that journalists reporting on clerical abuses are the moral and ethical gurus of the society, its conscience, and prophets of righteousness.
Is it possible that some of these people have a hidden agenda? Are they for example, instigating a laity uprising; a revolution against the clergy? Fortunately, other journalists, information sources, etc. have begun to publish alternative insights on the situation of the church and its ministers since it is not true that all clergy sexually molest children or are involved in sexual abuses of any nature and that also some parents, relatives, doctors, teachers lure unsuspecting children and youth into anti-social immoral practices.
However, sexual scandals that have besieged the Roman Catholic clergy in the West have in one way or the other affected the Catholic Church in Africa. As St. Paul reiterates, “If one part is hurt, all the parts share its pain and vise versa (1 Cor 12:26).
Whoever responds to the call of Christ to serve a Roman Catholic priest, in essence accepts the conditions of living a celibate life from the onset. Osale, E. rightly observes that, “… the success of consecrated celibacy clearly depends on initial conviction and commitment by those who undertake it”.
But, to single out the 1 percent or 2 percent of such cases and publish websites, books describing all Roman Catholic priests, men and women religious as sexual perverts, defiles logic and human decency. This is an outright exaggerated with an open agenda of demoralization. I am not trying to condone sexual abuses of any type.
I admit that even a single priest or man and woman religious who is unfaithful to his/her commitment to God, in the vocation he/she has freely embraced, is quite damaging to the Church’s credibility. But it should be noted that from the bible and two centuries of church history, it is evident that the church is composed of both wheat and destructive weeds.
It is a church of saints and sinners, both living within the very core and bosom of the church. As St. John writes: “I f we say we have no sin we deceive and the truth is not in us….” (1 Jn 1:8-9). This is neither a justification nor a cover up of sin but the point is that the present unfortunate sexual scandals in the Church do not diminish the grace of God in rehabilitating and powerfully using these human earthen vessels in announcing God’s merciful love and forgiveness. And again, Jesus did not love Simon because he was perfect, but because he was so human.
Jesus did not choose Simon Peter to be the one to strengthen others because he was strong on his own, but because through Peter’s weakness, God’s grace could be visible. When we read about the life of Jesus with women, it is no surprise that Jesus loved and respected women.
They were His wonderful friends. He never viewed women as real and present dangers to His celibate state, in spite of the grumbling of the Pharisees and religious leaders of His time (Lk 7:37-43). The Gospel of St. John records an incident of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well near the town of Sychar as follows; “At that moment Jesus’ disciples returned, and they were greatly surprised to find him talking with a woman.
But none of them said to her, what do you want or asked him, why are you talking with her (Jn 4: 27-34). Common sense and my African culture background lead me to think that in both incidents the disciples and other people in the company of Jesus suspected Him and the women to have been sexually attracted to each other.
Their suspicions were totally unfounded. But, modern journalists would have, without thorough investigations, blown the whistle out of proportions, calling them scandalous and within no time, Jesus would have been branded a “womanizer.” Celibate priests as ministers therefore should learn to love and respect women as their special companions in the church’s mission.
In conclusion, the issue of sexual abuse should not be approached in isolation. It is part of a complex or multidimensional social and moral malaise. All social groups mare involved in it in one way or the other.
It is thus wrong to put blanket blame on a particular class: Roman Catholic Priests, for this sexual sickness. At the same time those celibates those celibates who are involved in sexual scandals should know that they are gravely hurting the Body of Christ, the Church and not only violating other people’s dignity but are betraying the trust the Church and the entire society has bestowed on them.
Chrispin Onyango is a theologian seminarian in Langata-he writes on religious, social and moral issues.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Peaceful world is the greatest heritage That this generation can give to the generations To come- All of us have a role.
WORLD: WORKABLE APPROACH REQUIRED TO ERADICATE SEX TRADE
From: Ouko joachim omolo
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2012
Bishop Broderick Pabillo, Auxiliary Bishop of Manila’s approach to new evangelization is not only mission impossible but also calls for yet another workable approach. Pabillo who also serves as chairman of the National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace wants women in Philippines to be given real rights and decent jobs and not prostitution.
Pabillo has not only denounced the United Nations over growing criticisms regarding the international organization's recent report recommending that sex-related jobs be legalized in the Philippines but also stated categorically that prostitution is immoral and must be urgently eradicated in Philippines.
Bishop Pabillo has also rejected the idea that sex workers should be supplied with condoms to help control the spread of HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases, arguing that HIV is still prevalent even in countries where prostitution is legal and using condoms.
According to Pabillo, the only way to eradicate prostitution in Philippines is for the government to focus on behavioral change. He thinks that by educating young people that sex outside marriage was a grave sin and could lead them to hell where there is everlasting fire would help to change their behaviors towards premarital sex.
It is not that sex workers are not aware that sex outside marriage is immoral they enter the industry to support poor parents, themselves, siblings according to recent survey.
According to survey of women working as masseuses indicated that 34 percent of them explained their choice of work as necessary to support poor parents, 8 percent to support siblings and 28 percent to support husbands or boyfriends. More than 20 percent said the job was well paid.
Over 50 percent of the women surveyed in Philippine massage parlors said they carried out their work “with a heavy heart,” and 20 percent said they were “conscience-stricken because they still considered sex with customers a sin.
Philippines is more than 80 percent Catholic and the church leadership thinks that by promoting abstinence young people may be able to adhere to the church’s doctrine for that matter.
Being predominantly catholic country, is why some local authorities, such as the mayor of Manila City, prohibit the distribution of condoms in government health facilities even for the non Catholics.
It is also why in late 2003, President Arroyo was praised by religious conservatives for taking Pesos (P)50 million (U.S.$888,000) from a fund allocated to contraceptive programs under former President Joseph Estrada and awarding the sum to a nongovernmental organization (NGO), Couples for Christ, to teach natural family planning methods.
While bishops in the Philippines have always opposed condoms for moral reasons, more recently some have begun to buttress their moral arguments with claims about the ineffectiveness of condoms.
These include the claim that condoms contain microscopic pores that are permeable by HIV pathogens, a view that is shared by such influential bishops as former archbishop of Manila, Jaime Cardinal Sin, and the head of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for the Family, Alfonso Lopez Trujillo.
It is also why sex workers interviewed by Human Rights Watch said they had been given HIV tests in government clinics without their informed consent – a practice that has been shown to drive people from health and prevention services and increase their risk of infection. Being predominantly catholic country, apart from the church, some local authorities, such as the mayor of Manila City, prohibit the distribution of condoms in government health facilities.
In late 2003, President Arroyo was praised by religious conservatives for taking Pesos (P)50 million (U.S.$888,000) from a fund allocated to contraceptive programs under former President Joseph Estrada and awarding the sum to a nongovernmental organization (NGO), Couples for Christ, to teach natural family planning methods.
While bishops in the Philippines have always opposed condoms for moral reasons, more recently some have begun to buttress their moral arguments with claims about the ineffectiveness of condoms.
These include the claim that condoms contain microscopic pores that are permeable by HIV pathogens, a view that is shared by such influential bishops as former archbishop of Manila, Jaime Cardinal Sin, and the head of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for the Family, Alfonso Lopez Trujillo.
Besides repressing condoms and HIV/Aids information, the Philippines also acts in ways that radically increase the likelihood of a rapid outbreak and spread of HIV/Aids among populations at high risk, particularly sex workers.
Sex workers had been given HIV tests in government clinics without their informed consent – a practice that has been shown to drive people from health and prevention services and increase their risk of infection according to Human Rights Watch.
It is also why police routinely used possession of condoms as evidence to arrest and prosecute prostitution. Prostitutes have plenty of condoms in their bags in any case their clients did not carry them. They use condoms to avoid being infected by HIV viruses that cause Aids.
Most women and men enter sex trade industries due to lack of employment in Philippines, which remains the highest in the country compared with six other Asian countries.
The total number of unemployed persons in the country reached 2.9 million in January 2012 or 7.2 percent of the 40.3 million Filipinos in the labor force according to University of the Philippines economist Benjamin E. Diokno who admits that joblessness is more severe in the Philippines.
Jorge V. Sibal, dean of the University of the Philippines School of Labor and Industrial Relations, attributed the result to the relatively slower economic growth of the country. The country’s GDP gross domestic product is a little bit below the average economic growth in the region. Also, economic growth in the Philippines is much slower compared with the other six countries.
Almost one-third, or 32.8 percent, of the young unemployed Filipinos are high school graduates, 13.8 percent are college undergraduates, and 21 percent are college graduates. This explains why child prostitution is on rise.
In April, of the estimated 62.8 million Filipinos, aged 15 and above, 40.6 million are in the labor force, up slightly from the estimated 39.7 million recorded in April 2011 according to the study made by an international research group.
The research group cited the much higher population growth in the Philippines compared to its neighbors as the main cause of the country's high unemployment rate. The Philippines has now a population of almost 100 million.
Another factor that compounds the unemployment problem is the low gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the Philippines, which was only 3.7 percent last year, the lowest in the region. The study said that less economic activities mean less spending by companies and thus making it difficult to create new jobs for the people.
Another criticism aired by some sectors is that the country's education system continues to turn out college graduates whose training and skills are not attuned to the needs of the labor market both at home and abroad.
Against the background that women trafficking is alarming. About 150,000 Filipina women have been trafficked into prostitution in Japan according to recent Press Statement, Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association.
There are 400,000 to 500,000 prostituted persons in the Philippines. Prostituted persons are mainly adult women, but there are also male, transvestite and child prostitutes, both girls and boys with an estimated 9,000 or more children involved in Manila alone.
This is not to mention children on the streets which make up approximately 75 percent of the street children in the Philippines. They work on the streets but do not live there. They generally have a home to return to after working, and some even continue to attend school while working long hours on the streets.
Completely abandoned children have no family ties and are entirely on their own for physical and psychological survival. They make up approximately 5-10 percent of the street children in the Philippines.
This process of predominantly catholic colonizers, it enabled the Church to play a central role in the lives of the people because it touched every aspect of their existence from birth to growth to marriage to adulthood to death. Whether the natives clearly understood the tenets and dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church is of course another matter.
In the course of colonization, the friars constructed opulent Baroque-style church edifices. These structures are still found today everywhere across the country and they symbolize the cultural influence of Spain in Filipino life.
Through these influences, the Church afforded the Filipinos abundant opportunities for both solemn rites and joyous festivities and celebrations known as "fiestas." The services inside the Catholic churches often spilled out into the thoroughfare in the form of colorful and pageant-filled religious processions in which the rich and the poor participated.
This calls for the Catholic Church to change its approach to catechism, especially in Africa where the first white missionaries came to literally buy people to embrace Catholicism.
In Africa white missionaries did not want money from their faithful, instead they supported them, gave them free education, healthcare, built for them churches, schools, hospitals and paid for them school fees for their children.
The white missionaries did not want money from their faithful that is why whether you paid ten cent for sadaka (offertory) they did not mind because they did not want your money. That is why up to now Catholics still pay sadaka ranging from one shilling to 20 shillings at most.
It explains why black missionaries who are taking over from whites get it very difficult to run parishes because majority of their Christians still believe that they should be everything to them just as white missionaries were.
Many Catholics have abandoned Catholicism to other denominations where they think they can get help. Even pastors fight over powers to control finances. It has become a nightmare and a big challenge for churches in Africa and developing worlds.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Peaceful world is the greatest heritage
That this generation can give to the generations
To come- All of us have a role.
CHALLENGES OF THE NEW EVANGELIZATION AND TEENAGE MOTHERHOOD
From: Ouko joachim omolo
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
REGIONAL NEWS TEAM
NAIROBI-KENYA
MONDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2012
Just as Synod bishops are discussing the approach to the new evangelization, in Kenya there is a shocking report that three in every 10 teenage girls are having children. Kenya is among countries with a large number of teenage mothers globally, according to the UN report.
Nearly three in every 10 girls are having babies and disrupting their schooling, the study by the UN’s special envoy for global education, Mr Gordon Brown revealed recently.
Among 25 countries selected for the survey based on mothers under 18 years, Kenya is ranked sixth.
In Philippines where teenage motherhood is also on the rise Episcopal Commission on Youth executive secretary Fr. Conegundo Garganta calls for a renewed sense of values among the young. Fr Garganta believes this can arrest the increasing incidence of teen pregnancies.
At 53 births per 1,000 women aged between 15 and 19, the teenage pregnancy rate in the Philippines is the highest among Asean's six major economies, according to the United Nations Population Fund's 2011 annual report.
Based on data compiled from birth certificates, of the 1.75 million live births in 2009, the latest review year, over 11 percent involved teenaged mothers. The UN Population Fund Agency also found out that teenage pregnancy cases in the country surged by 70 percent in only a decade.
Although according to health experts lack of services and information about adolescent reproductive health are to blame for fuelling the rise of teen pregnancies, in UK where government policies aimed at reducing teenage pregnancies have failed to have any impact, according to a new study.
The study looked at the teenage pregnancy figures between 1969 and 2009. It found that despite the millions of pounds spent in government initiatives over the last four decades, pregnancy rates among teenaged girls aged 13-16, have remained steady, while abortion rates have gone up.
Government policies have tended to focus on providing ever-easier access to contraception, including “emergency birth control,” after sexual encounters which had an even worse rate of success.
In Kenya, besides the pregnancies, the report also has evidence that despite huge efforts and resources spent in HIV awareness campaigns, many teenagers are still engaging in sex.
In Kenya, as in most African countries, 25-year-old men are far more likely to have HIV than 16-year-old adolescent boys. This means that sexual relationships with older partners are particularly dangerous for adolescent girls.
It is equally shocking that teenage pregnancy in Kenya amongst school going girls has become a worrying trend. Young girls drop out of school due to pregnancy and may not continue with their education.
While poverty could be attributed as one of the major causes of teenage pregnancies, most young people trust their peers and are easily influenced to engage in sexual encounters as a way of belong to a group.
While each year worldwide, an estimated 13 million births take place among young women between the ages of 15 to 19, in Kenya every year up to 13,000 girls leave school due to pregnancy.
According to available statistics half of girls in Kenya begin child bearing before age 20 years. About 250,000 girls between ages 15 to 19 procure abortions. Every year Kenyan families lose an estimated 806 million shillings due to school girl drop out.
Besides poverty, lack of a stable family structure may also push the girls to look for security else where and this is when they get lured in relationships which have devastating effects on their lives.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Peaceful world is the greatest heritage
That this generation can give to the generations
To come- All of us have a role.
SEXUAL ABUSE SCANDALS AND THE NEW EVANGELIZATION
From: Ouko joachim omolo
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2012
Although the Synod bishops have not put it as a priority for discussion and how to resolve it once and for all, one of the biggest evangelical challenges facing the Catholic Church almost certainly in 21st century is continuing fallout from the child sexual abuse scandals by clergy.
Just as the bishops are discussing approaches to the new evangelization today, Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Bishop Marco Antonio Ordenes Fernandez of Iquique, Chile, accused of abusing a 15-year-old altar boy.
The Vatican said on Wednesday that the pope has accepted Ordenes' resignation under the code of canon law that says a bishop must resign if he is sick or because some other "grave" reason makes him unsuitable for his job.
The 47-year-old Ordenes is accused of abusing a 15-year-old altar boy in the northern city of Iquique. He defends himself by saying that he met the boy in 1999 when he was 17 and they had a relationship when he was no longer underage. His accuser, Rodrigo Pino, 30, said the abuse began when he was 15. At first, he said it was forced, but then they became lovers.
A handful of U.S. bishops have resigned after facing sex abuse allegations. More recently, the then-bishop of Bruges, Belgium, Roger Vangheluwe, quit in 2010 after admitting he had molested his nephew for years starting when he was a young boy. This is not to mention early this year when the Vatican laicized a Canadian bishop who was convicted of child porn possession.
Instead of giving the sexual abuse scandals a priority in their discussions, the bishops instead talks of the new evangelization as the need for humility, joy and confidence in spreading the Gospel, emphasizing on the act of evangelization of a child and his family, and also fosters respect for human life.
Although charity and justice is also put as a priority as the heart of evangelization, and that to work for justice, peace and development is especially attractive to young people who are touched by such witness that changes hearts, the discussion does not spell what justice can be given to the victims of the sexually abused children.
The bishops are also referring to new evangelization to mean the need of new saints because are called to be those new saints. This is according to the bishops is because the new poverty of the world is a poverty of saints.
They are also making the point that the greatest obstacle a priest or theologian faces in becoming an effective evangelizer is pride and selfishness, and that the obsession with becoming great, original and important results in pastors feeding themselves and not the flocks they lead.
Among other obstacles to evangelization they argue is the lack of missionary impulse, and the absence of joy and hope among priests. The evangelization therefore, becomes the medicine to give back joy and hope to the world, and priests are important agents of this effort to help the Church come alive again.
The bishops are also stressing the importance of Trinitarian love at the heart of all new evangelization efforts, and the building of community and the promotion of a sense of communion, emphasizing the fact that the primary sacrament of the new evangelization is the Sacrament of Penance.
Also often raised in the discussion was the subject of Islam. Many discussed evangelizing in the Middle East and elsewhere amid the threat of persecution, with some participants stressing the need to take “great care” in proclaiming the Gospel. “This can be a red flag and an invitation to tragedies.
Evangelization for Jesus however, meant adopting a new way of life where we would share kingdom values such as compassion, understanding, forgiveness, peace, acceptance, etc. This is how Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of God, saying that we are already in the kingdom if we live according to these values.
Furthermore, Jesus promised that we will live more completely in the kingdom after our death. According to Matthew 25:14-46 the kingdom of God will be like a man going on a journey calling his servants and entrusted to them his property, to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability.
Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.
Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.
And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?
Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
This is also what will happen during the final judgment. For when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’
Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’
Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
There are some pastors who think that evangelization is to convert and baptize people as well as the destruction of many indigenous cultures, filled with stories of much cruelty and suffering at the hands of many well meaning missionaries.
What distinguishes our Catholic faith today is precisely the understanding that the Church is the enduring presence of Christ, the mediator of God’s redeeming action in our world, and the sacrament of God’s saving acts.
The challenge here is not more on secularization but why many do not sense a value in Mass attendance, fail to receive the sacrament of penance and have often lost a sense of mystery or the transcendent as having any real and verifiable meaning. This is not because of secularism.
The majority of Catholics in Ireland for example, do not attend Mass regularly because the significant numbers do not believe in key tenets of the church’s teaching, according to an Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI poll.
More than two-thirds attended services far less frequently. Some 39 per cent said they either never or very occasionally went to Mass. A further 20 per cent said they attended every two to three months, while 8 per cent went once a fortnight. Those who attend Mass regularly are twice as likely to live in rural rather than urban areas. They are also more likely to be older and support Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael.
It explains why the new evangelization should not be approached as a program. It is a mode of thinking, seeing and acting. It is a lens through which we see the opportunities to proclaim the Gospel anew. In other words, approach to the new evangelization should not be rigid but open to new challenges.
That is why the new evangelization must provide a clear theological explanation for the necessity of the Church for salvation, speak about God’s universal salvific will and at the same time recognize that Jesus has provided a clear and unique path to redemption and salvation. This is because the Church is not one among many ways to reach God, all of them equally valid.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Peaceful world is the greatest heritage
That this generation can give to the generations
To come- All of us have a role.
KENYA: DEFILEMENT SUSPECT COMMITS SUICIDE IN RIVER NYANDO.
By Agwanda Saye in Nyando Kenya.
A suspect who had been charged with defilement staged a daring escape while handcuffed and plunged into River Nyando in Kisumu County where he is believed to have died as efforts by divers to retrieve his body bore no fruit.
The suspect had been arraigned before Nyando Senior Principal Magistrate, Dorah Chepkwony for allegedly defiling his 16 year old sister in law.
Kennedy Odhiambo Aimbo (28) was being led to the Ahero law court cells from the Magistrate’s chambers, but abruptly took to his heels and headed straight to River Nyando where he drowned.
Confirming the incident, Nyando OCPD, Patrick Mbarire said the suspect was quite cooperative with the police officers who were surprised by his drastic act of staging a daring escape
The suspect had been taken to court by his mother in law who accused him of having impregnated her daughter (his sister in-law) who has been living with him following the death of his wife.
The incident took place at Kakola location in Nyando District- Kisumu County.
Odhiambo body has not been retrieved yet.
KENYA: WHEN SEX IN KISUMU CITY DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE
From: People For Peace
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2012
One of the local Daily Newspapers reported a shocking story yesterday how sex in Kisumu city is on high demand to the extent that a classy one will set you back Sh200, while in some places like Kondele, you can have sex with Sh50 or even less depending what type of sex and how long you have it. Men who do not want to use protection pay double.
[2 images]Rape of the Innocent; One million children trapped in the slavery of prostitution
Inset: left a man with child prostitute- right fourteen-year-old Lipi waits for customers at a brothel in Faridpur-Image by Andrew Biraj / Reuters
According to the report Kutuma salamu (a euphemism for giving head) cost only Sh20 in Kondele and Sh100 in higher-end red light spots. Most of the bamba 50s come wearing bathroom slippers, but they are adored because they are pocket friendly.
Some even offer credit services and ‘invoice’ their clients at the end of the month. Others are nearly ‘married’ to clients as they even cook, wash and iron for their regular male clients who pay handsomely — say Sh300 a night.
At Dunga Beach, along the shores of Lake Victoria of Kisumu, sex can be offered for exchange of fish. Women and young girls attract fishermen on the style they dress, with neatly plaited hair and good look. Some of these women are not tied to one fisherman, but will sleep with whoever offers the best deal on any given day.
Most of the fishermen would rather have sex with the young girls than have sex with their mother's age-mates. Some of the men are not conscientious about using condoms; they will use a condom if a girl brings one along, but if she doesn't, they will have unprotected sex.
Girls in Nyanza are said to begin sexual activity earlier than their counterparts in other regions: the average girls in Nyanza according to the report starts having sex aged 16, compared to 19 in Nairobi Province.
Recent report that on two separate incidents a group of form four students from Onjiko High school in Kisumu county reportedly sneaked their way in to two neighboring girls schools, namely Rae and Ahero Girls secondary schools allegedly on a sex quest mission can tell it all.
According to the principal of Onjiko Boys High school Mr. Alfred Ochiel, five form four boys from his school sneaked out of their school at 8.pm on the night of 21 July and went to Rae Girls which is almost 10 kilometers away where he alleged the students were received by a group of waiting form four Girls from the girls school who then went on to engage in sex.
While some girls and boys engage in sex at a tender age for money, some are said to be influenced by pornography. At Kisumu Day and Lela Day secondary schools for example, teachers decry the high number of pornographic materials accessible to the students.
A number of the boys who have been treated for having sexually transmitted infections, especially gonorrhoea, admitted to have slept with prostitutes to experiment the styles they saw in the pornographic materials.
A 12-year-old standard six pupil at St Mark Primary School in Kisumu admitted to her teacher that she was lured into sex when her boy friend showed her a pornographic video, he told her he was going to also try to feel the way the people in the video were feeling. Since then the girl became addicted to sex and would like to have it almost every time.
It is also a coincidence that men in Kisumu generally marry later than those in other towns, as recently revealed by the Kenya Urban Reproductive Health Baseline Survey. This is because sex workers are affordable and can offer ‘extra.
The survey shows that Kisumu has the highest number of males of between 15 to 24 years, constituting 42 per cent of the total area population. In the study men in Kisumu generally marry, later than those in other towns but they end up getting as many children or more than the men in other cities surveyed.
Some of the underage girls who offer sex for either money or fish are orphans whose parents had died. One such orphan girl who offered sex for money is Nancy who even bought land and established a home, which she turned into an orphanage.
Nancy according to the story started helping widows, orphans and street children. The children had left home to beg in the streets of Kisumu after being orphaned. No one was ready to look after them.
The report comes barely three months since a pastor was caught red handed, making love to somebody’s wife. A pastor of legio Maria sect (name withheld), was caught pants down, having a “good time” with someone’ wife, in one of the houses at the Kisumu Lower Railway estates.
It is also in Kisumu where a bishop of a protestant church was caught two years ago in a compromising situation with a wife of an intelligence officer in a Kisumu Hotel. The bishop who happens to be related to the intelligence officer was said to have been dating the young woman for a decade.
Last year a clergyman was also accused of having a love affair with a married woman in the city. The youthful clergyman who according to Crazy Monday took refuge in Kisumu after a teacher he was alleged to have cuckolded attacked him and smashed his car windscreen. Police arrested the teacher and booked him for malicious damage to property early last week.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Peaceful world is the greatest heritage
That this generation can give to the generations
To come- All of us have a role.
Inspiring children to dream, through play
From: Yona Maro
For children growing up in crisis and post-conflict areas, opportunities for education and play are limited, and funding is scarce. In the most recent edition to the ‘Beyond School Books’ series, UNICEF podcast moderator Femi Oke spoke with Ms. Cassie Landers, Columbia University, and Ms. Evelyn Margron, Tipa Tipa Program Country Director, on the importance of learning through play. UNICEF is testing playground projects in Bangladesh and Haiti to inspire children’s dreams, to help them rebuild their confidence and rebuild communities. Children are developing many skills in the playgrounds, such as learning geometry, verbalizing better and following rhythm. They are developing important social skills by learning how to play together and how to help younger children understand their capacities.
To listen to the podcast, please visit: http://www.educationandtransition.org/resources/podcast-62-inspiring-children-to-dream-through-play/
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Karibu Jukwaa la www.mwanabidii.com
Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com
Blogu ya Habari na Picha www.patahabari.blogspot.com
Kenya: Gethsemane Garden Christian Centre
From: Sam Oyugi
Hallo,
Greetings. This is Dr. Oyugi. I have sent you two messages for posting. The title is
Gethsemane Garden Christian Centre (the new Starehe of Kenya) Harambee Is August 18, 2012. So far I have not seen the posting. If I am not following any specific rules of posting request, please kindly inform me. As it is, it is getting late and the fundraising is in two days. I'll obviously be glad if the posting gets done before the event, preferably as soon as you can. Thanks.
Here again is the same attachment;
Sam Oyugi
732-857-0378
==========
Gethsemane Garden Christian Centre (the new Starehe of Kenya) Harambee Is August 18, 2012
Members of the Lowland Community, the organizing committee and Gethsemane Garden Christian Center students, staff and family are inviting you to a fundraiser in aid of the center on Saturday, August 18th, 2012 in New Jersey, USA starting at 5p.m. to 12 a.m. @ the American Legion Post 401, 148 Major Road, Monmouth Junction NJ 08852.
Gethsemane Garden Academy and Gethsemane Garden High School for orphans are the new Starehe of Kenya located on Mfangano Island in Suba District.
The center, which was started in 2003 for orphans from Kindergarten to third grade, has expanded to 12th grade or Form 4. It has been largely financially supported by well wishers from U.S. who have visited the school from time to time.
The center wants you to be part of its success as it makes history.
The school started from a humble beginning, a loving vision of supporting a few children who lost both parents to the dreaded HIV by a God chosen couple Mr. Naphtaly Mattah and his wife Nereah Mattah. Like the children of Israelite the number multiplied very fast and God's miracle worked its way to now 535 students. Gethsemane now prides itself with strong candidates distributed in academic giants such as Alliance Boys and Girls, Starehe, Mangu, Moi Girls Eldoret, Maranda to mention a few. Below is the official website and videos of Gethsemane story:
www.ggcckenya.com
Video stories of the students of Gethsemane:
1. Orphans With AIDS Given Hope By GGCC
2. Gethsemane Garden Christian Center school of hope
3. Boat that brings people to God
Video songs of students of Gethsemane:
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMNkhC9BhZk&feature=player_detailpage
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=SPE3Hid_MGM
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=uw21EIgi0ng
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=QH2Ox54k9uE
5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=WXpNs8likgg
6. (In suba): http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=ZvB1mSiQmDw
It is for this reason that we are inviting you to help raise funds to continue supporting this noble cause.
Also during this event, you will have the opportunity of selecting a child to sponsor at GGCC and thereby have your family participate in raising up the child back in Kenya at very affordable monthly fee. GGCC has a tax exempt status in the USA. Therefore, all your donations on June 18th and any future support through child sponsorship or one time donation will be tax deductible.
Come and join some of the previous sponsors of the school on August 18th. It will be a good opportunity to join them in promoting the school and thanking them for their kind support for the last 12 years.
Guest of Honors will be:
Amos Atonga: New Jersey/ Rusinga Island
Dr. Sam Oyugi: New Jersey/ Mfangano Island
Dr. Joshua Ojwang: Florida/Mfangano Island
Maurice Onyuka New Jersey/Homa-Bay
Peter Menya New York/Migori
Yours sincerely,
Contacts:
Dr. Sam Oyugi 732-857-0378
Amos Atonga 732-586-2849
THE ROOT CAUSES OF SEXUAL ABUSE BY CLERGY IN IRELAND
From: People For Peace
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 2012
For more than a decade, advocates for those abused by clergy have been demanding that church leaders in Ireland and at the Vatican accept blame for protecting paedophile priests. The big question here is why such cases do increase almost in daily basis.
[book cover image; An Irish Tragedy
How Sex Abuse by Irish Priests Helped Cripple The Catholic Church; by Joe Rigert]
Joe Rigert's book, An Irish Tragedy, tries to give the answer to the question. He makes a potentially controversial suggestion that there was something about the background and training of Irish priests that made them more prone to become abusers. Joe adds that apart from the training, social and religious background in Ireland has also contributed to the matter. The story of how Irish immigrants helped to build the Catholic Church, both in Ireland and America. In his investigative reporter Joe Rigert's search for the roots of the Catholic sex-abuse scandals which led him to Ireland, he found that rigid sexual repression in both society and the priesthood has had the opposite of its intended effect, fostering bizarre and criminal sexual expression. Though a tiny country, Ireland has been a chief exporter of abusers to America, making the Catholic Church's darkest crisis a true Irish tragedy. Catholic historian Terrance Dosh calls this book "a riveting read with many remarkable insights." The book details the history of the migration of Irish priests and their unusual penchant to abuse girls and women, and raises questions on the Church's emphasis on homosexuality as the primary cause of the sex-scandal.
The book is a must-read for those who remain unconvinced of breadth of the scandal; and a useful book for those wanting the history, details and underpinnings of this tragic event. The book suggests that sex abuse by Catholic clergy is not limited to a “church” problem. It is a deeply rooted, complex flaw in society in general because the results impact so many aspects of their daily lives. It is against the background that the problem is not only with priests but nuns as well. In March this year an Irish nun appeared before a special sitting of the country’s Circuit Court on 87 charges of the sexual abuse of primary school girls. Rape and sexual molestation were "endemic" mainly in Irish Catholic church-run industrial schools and orphanages where priests and nuns for decades terrorised thousands of boys and girls in the Irish Republic. According to the report, molestation and rape were "endemic" in boys' facilities, chiefly run by the Christian Brothers order. The report concluded that when confronted with evidence of sex abuse, religious authorities responded by transferring offenders to another location, where in many instances they were free to abuse again.
[map of Irland]
Some clergy and nuns were considered notorious child molesters. Some of them raped or indecently assaulted over one hundred children, mainly in Dublin where four former archbishops in Dublin – John Charles McQuaid, who died in 1973, Dermot Ryan, who died in 1984, Kevin McNamara, who died in 1987, and retired Cardinal Desmond Connell – were found to have failed to report their knowledge of child sexual abuse to the Garda from the 1960s to the 1980s despite the fact that they were aware of complaints. The Murphy Commission of Inquiry into the abuse of children in Dublin identified 320 people who complained of child sexual abuse between 1975 and 2004. It also stated that since May 2004, 130 complaints against priests operating in the Dublin archdiocese had been made. It is so notorious to the point that the Irish government had to announce the closure of its embassy to the Vatican, starkly illustrating that relations between Dublin and the Catholic Church are at a historically glacial low. The government and the Vatican has always remained in serious disagreement over child abuse by the clergy, with the Irish Prime Minister, Enda Kenny, accusing Rome of trying to sabotage official inquiries. Traditionally, Ireland has been unusually close to the Catholic Church, but its faith was greatly shaken by a series of damning reports on the Church's alleged indifference to child sex abuse by priests and other clerics. Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJTel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.comPeaceful world is the greatest heritageThat this generation can give to the generationsTo come- All of us have a role.
MYSTERY WHY PRIESTS ABUSE CHILDREN UNDER THEIR CARE
From: People For Peace
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
TUESDAY, 19, 2012
At the conclusion of the 50th Eucharistic Congress in Ireland last Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI used the occasion to tell Irish Catholics it is a mystery why priests and other church officials abused children entrusted in their care, undermining faith in the church "in an appalling way."
[image]Children who have been prepared for first Holy Communion in one of the parishes in Western Kenya-cases of such children being abused by clergy still remains a mystery/ File
Benedict commented on the scandals of sexual abuse and cover-ups by church hierarchy in a pre-recorded video message for an outdoor Mass attended by 75,000 Catholics, many from overseas, in Ireland's largest sports stadium attended by Ireland's prime minister and president.
In Ireland, the United States and many other countries, bishops and other church leaders have been accused of systematically covering up pedophile priests, often by shuffling them from parish to parish without telling the faithful about the abuse.
Ireland announced last year it would close its embassy to the Vatican, one of the Catholic country's oldest missions, after relations hit an all-time low over the Church's handling of the sex abuse cases.
The Pope spoke about the abuse at the time justice was finally served at a Kitui court for an 18 year old girl who is alleged to have been defiled by a Kitui Catholic priest, Father John Mutua Munyoki. He was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by Kitui Principal Magistrate Beatrice Kimemia on charges of defilement.
The prosecutor said that Fr Munyoki lured the girl who was at the time 16 years old and a form three student at Zombe Girls Secondary School to his car and defiled her. The girl told the court she was headed home from school on that fateful day when the father offered her and her friends a lift home.
After the heinous act he threw her out of the pickup and threatened her to not say a word to anybody, offering her Kshs. 1000 as an assurance of her silence. The girl however confided with her school matron who took her to a local health centre for examination. Medics made a clear report that the girl was raped leading to the arrest of Fr. Munyoki on June 5, 2010.
In a similar case, a16 year old girl in Samburu north was staring at a bleak future after a priest allegedly defiled and impregnated her and denied fathering the baby she delivered. Efforts by the girl and the family to have the priest provide for the child have proven fruitless as the clergyman has demanded a DNA test to prove paternity.
The missionary priest was hurriedly transferred to another parish, ostensibly to avoid the unfolding drama. Villagers and relatives of the standard five students had reported the matter to the provincial administration and district children's officer.
In May this year, one girl in Maralal was raped by a priest. Talking to the media the girl said that the priest promised to take her to a sister’s home and then changed directions and took her to his own home where he defiled her and only to be thrown out of the house in the morning as he went for mass. The 14 year old orphaned girl is now the mother of a six months old child.
In August last year Police in Jinja were holding a catholic priest for alleged defilement. Reverend Father Joseph Kalinaki, the Jinja Diocese secretary for finance and Episcopal vicar, was picked from Paradise Hotel in Jinja, where he was found with a senior five student.
The 16-year-old girl by then hails from Namwendwa village in Kamuli district. Police said the sister to student tipped them that Fr. Kalinaki had picked the girl from Busoga High School in Kamuli and taken her to Paradise Hotel where they were found.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail- ppa@africaonline.co.ke
omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
Empowering Girls and Women through Physical Education and Sport
From: Yona Mar
The topic of gender and physical education with a particular focus on girls has been widely researched and reported in the English language literature. The issues influencing girls’ participation in physical education and sport and the potential benefits they derive from their experiences are well known.
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002157/215707E.pdf
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Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com