A Few Reactions in Kenya to Court Ruling

We recently noted that a judge in Kenya pointed out that Kenya does not have laws criminalizing sex between cousins. To follow up on that news, Ruth Nyambura at allafrica.com collected opinions against the court finding from people who aren't lawyers, judges, or legislators. Seems legit.

First up to say the judge, who made a legally (and ethically) connect ruling, got it wrong is a chaplain...

Daystar University's Chaplain Jeremiah Obura said a lot of what is happening is out of influence from the western culture where they do all sorts of weird things and people copy for the sake of it.

Right. Uhm, western culture didn't invent sex between first cousins. It's been going on for all of human history.

He quoted the Bible the book of Leviticus Chapter 18 verse six which states: "No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations, I am the Lord. There is no debate on this issue. Based on the scriptures it is not right and it rules out."

1. I was unaware that present-day Kenya is ancient Israel, subject to the laws of ancient Israel. If so, well, there's a whole lot of other laws I'm sure Obura is breaking.

2. In those laws for ancient Israel, prohibitions on cousins getting together are NOT THERE. If this guy bothers to read his Bible, he knows that.

3. The Bible, subsequent to this passage, depicts marriages between cousins in a positive light.

4. Kenya shouldn't be a theocracy.

Kenya Feel The Love Tonight

Ignorance abounds when it comes to sex and marriage between first cousins. Your first cousin is your parent's sibling's child. In many places in the world, and for most of human history, marriage between first cousins has been a common thing. There are, however, places where such marriages face discrimination, including criminalization. The US, where this blog is based, is a mixed bag because each state has their own laws. As such, about half of the states (some with restrictions) will marry first cousins, a handful of the others will criminally prosecute first cousins for having sex, and the remainder of the states neither criminalize sex between first cousins nor will marry first cousins.

But this news is not about the US, but rather Kenya. Martin Oduor reports at ghafla.co.ke...

If you didn’t know, it’s okay for cousins to have sexual relationships in Kenya!

Apparently Kenyan law hasn’t criminalized sexual relationships between cousins; high court ruling on an ‘incestuous’ relationship has stunned the nation.

High Court judge James Makau found that the Sexual Offenses Act did not mention cousins among the list of relatives under the offence of incest.

So it's legal. Apparently, some courts were not aware of what the law says and doesn't say, which is a problem.

Reading his ruling in a case where a woman took her nephew to court for having sex with her daughter, Makau stated that sex and marriages between cousins was permissible because there are no provisions for it in the law.

“The National Assembly did not leave out the clause on cousins by intension but by the fact that in some cultures in Kenya, like the Hundus and Muslims, allow sexual acts and marriage between cousins. It is not criminalized,” The Standard quoted the high court judge.

The law should be changed so that the criteria for adults having sex or marrying is consent. If they are adults and they consent, it shouldn't be discriminated against.

The accused in the said ‘incestuous relationship’ appealed the case at the High Court after a lower court found him guilty of incest and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.

The High court found him not guilty of incest and suspended the jail term he had been handed by the lower court.

Ten years in prison! How outrageous! It's a good thing that was overturned.

UPDATE: Reaction from a few Kenyans.

Consenting Adults Imprisoned in Swaziland

Here's another case of an outrageous prosecution of consenting adults for loving each other. Starsky Mkhonta reports at observer.org.sz...

Police pounced on a brother and sister for continuously having sex, which resulted in two children being born.

The incestuous relationship between Sampi Dlamini (35) who is a soldier and his blood sister Ntombifuthi Dlamini (22) had worried residents of Mahlalini for a long time.

What's to worry about? Why not just let them be?

This newspaper established that the Dlamini siblings had even gone public with their illegal relationship. It is a crime in Swaziland to have a sexual relationship with your biological relative.

It shouldn't be.

Good News From Zambia

A case that has been going on for a while, last covered on this blog in this posting, has come to a somewhat positive end. As reported at daily-mail.co.zm, a court has discharged two consenting adults who were facing criminal charges for living as spouses.

THE Serenje Magistrate’s Court has discharged two siblings who were arrested in 2013 and taken to court for allegedly committing incest.

2013. This has been going on for over a year.

Mukuwa Nicholas Bulaya, 39, and his younger sister Bertha Mwenda Chipapuka, 36, were allegedly married and had five children.

And there's nothing wrong with that.

Serenje resident magistrate Fedelis Ngosa, on January 13 this year, granted the State an application for Bulaya and Chipapuka to be discharged.

Good.

The siblings were arrested in December 2013 and were believed to have been married for 14 years.

They appeared in court for over 10 months last year for mention while the State was waiting for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to issue instructions on the case.

And what can the court do about having ripped apart their family, disrupting their lives, and all of the prejudiced bigots who have, and will, try to interfere in their lives? This should have never been a criminal matter in the first place. They have not hurt anyone. It has been a waste of public resources and is an example of why remaining laws against consenting adults being together, married or not, need to be repealed or overturned.

Latest Update on Zambia Prosecution of Consenting Adults

We've been following the case of two lovers in Zambia who have been subject to an hateful prosecution for the "crime" of loving each other. According to this report at lusakatimes.com, the pair has been convicted and face a minimum of twenty years in prison. 

ext size Teen's Disappearance Helps Unravel Large-Scale, Incestuous Sex Ring Updated: Monday, November 3 2014, 04:30 PM CST BAY MINETTE, Ala. (AP) -- By most accounts, 19-year-old Brittney Wood was with uncle Donnie Holland the night of May 30, 2012, the last time anyone saw her. Holland - who was under investigation for horrific sex crimes at the time - died from a bullet within days in what was ruled a suicide. The investigation that followed has publicly unraveled what authorities describe as a dark, twisted tale of perversion in the working-class neighborhoods and piney backwoods of coastal Alabama. Eight of Woods' adult relatives and three family friends have been charged with dozens of felonies in two counties as the alleged members of an incestuous ring that authorities say shared children for group sex. Holland was the leader, prosecutors say, of what has been described as the largest sex ring ever uncovered in Alabama. Wood was a victim and likely key witness. "Brittney could have been huge," said prosecutor Teresa Heinz. "She could have corroborated so many things." Wood is presumed dead, but authorities haven't found a trace of her and no one is charged in her disappearance. Even without Wood to testify, two of her uncles and an older brother already have pleaded guilty to sex charges, and jurors this month convicted a friend of Holland's of multiple sex charges in the first trial. Others - including the missing teen's mother, Chessie Wood, and two aunts - await trial. Chessie Wood denies committing any crime, but says some of her closest relatives are guilty of abusing children, including of abusing her daughter. "There are innocent people in this and there are guilty people in this," Wood, 39, said in an interview. "I don't know how the judicial system is going to figure it all out because they're not the sharpest tools in the shed." Chessie Wood, accused of having sex with a young female relative, said she had no idea what was going on in the family until after her daughter's disappearance. "The No. 1 thing here is to find Brittney. The No. 2 thing is to get all these sick (people) off the streets," she said. Authorities are making plea-bargain offers and getting ready for more trials, but questions persist. Perhaps most troubling, why didn't child welfare workers pursue charges following what prosecutors describe as multiple complaints about sexual abuse within the family going back at least six years? "You'd be surprised how many of them had prior allegations. Nothing happened," said Heinz, an assistant district attorney in Baldwin County. "You have to wonder what wouldn't have happened to these children if something had been done. And Brittney might still be alive." The case is so big officials don't know exactly how many kids inside and outside the family might have been victimized; estimates range from 11 to 16 children who were as young as 3 or 4 when they were first molested or made to watch adult relatives during drug-fueled orgies. The children of the suspects have all been placed in foster care or with relatives who weren't involved in the crimes. Brittney Wood isn't the alleged victim in any of the cases filed so far; each involved other young people, mostly within her family. But the investigation mushroomed only after she was reported missing and her uncle Donnie had died. Authorities believe group sex and child sexual abuse went on for three generations in two families that merged when Holland married Wendy Wood, Chessie Woods' sister. "Donnie was the manager. He'd say, 'I've got this child and this adult, come on over,'" said Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Nicki Patterson. Brittney Wood, meanwhile, led a life that was troubled long before folks on the Alabama coast came to know her smile because of missing persons fliers posted in store windows and shared on social media. The single mother of a daughter born when she was 17, Wood was molested as a child by a step-grandfather who went to prison for the crime, said Patterson. Before she went missing, Patterson said, Wood was using drugs and had a gun for personal protection while bouncing between relatives' homes; others often cared for her daughter. A relative reported Holland for allegedly abusing one of the family girls in February 2012, authorities said, and word spread through the clan. Private Facebook messages provided to The Associated Press by Stephanie Hanke, Brittney Wood's stepmother, show that a female relative informed Wood about being raped by three male relatives on May 27, just three days before Wood vanished. The night of the disappearance, cellphone records and witness accounts indicate Wood left west Mobile with Holland and crossed Mobile Bay into Baldwin County, where Holland was found two days later inside his SUV by his wife and one of her friends. He had been shot in the rear of his head behind an ear, which authorities considered an odd spot for a self-inflicted wound. Holland was scheduled to be questioned about allegations of sexual abuse the very day he was found in the car on an isolated dirt road. Wood's cellphone battery was in the vehicle with Holland, but there was no sign of the teen. Her gun was there as well, it was the only gun in the car. Holland never regained consciousness and died several days later. After Holland died, relatives and police wondered about Wood. "We didn't even realize she was missing until after they found him shot," said Hanke. Searches for the teen began and the sex abuse probe picked up, too. Two of Woods's uncles, Dustin Kent and Scott Wood, were arrested within three weeks and later pleaded guilty to rape and sodomy. Aunts and family friends were eventually charged. This month, family friend Billy Brownlee, 50, was convicted in Baldwin County on charges of sexually abusing a girl in the Holland family when she was about 12. Brownlee claimed Donnie Holland forced him into the acts against his will, but jurors needed only 20 minutes to return a guilty verdict. Donnie Holland's 35-year-old wife, Wendy, is set for trial in early December in what could be a key prosecution. Court records show she has pleaded not guilty, and Heinz said she shows no interest in a plea agreement. Still, authorities wonder how child sexual abuse could go on for years between so many people without anyone being charged until 2012. One girl accused an uncle of sexually abusing her as early as 2008, Heinz said, but welfare workers found the complaint unsubstantiated. "You look at these reports and wonder, 'Why? How did it not go anywhere?'" said Heinz. Barry Spear, a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Human Resources, said privacy statutes prevent the agency from commenting. "I can't even say whether we're had any involvement with this family at all," Spear said.

Read More at: http://www.keyetv.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/teens-disappearance-helps-unravel-largescale-incestuous-sex-ring-21964.shtml

text size Teen's Disappearance Helps Unravel Large-Scale, Incestuous Sex Ring Updated: Monday, November 3 2014, 04:30 PM CST BAY MINETTE, Ala. (AP) -- By most accounts, 19-year-old Brittney Wood was with uncle Donnie Holland the night of May 30, 2012, the last time anyone saw her. Holland - who was under investigation for horrific sex crimes at the time - died from a bullet within days in what was ruled a suicide. The investigation that followed has publicly unraveled what authorities describe as a dark, twisted tale of perversion in the working-class neighborhoods and piney backwoods of coastal Alabama. Eight of Woods' adult relatives and three family friends have been charged with dozens of felonies in two counties as the alleged members of an incestuous ring that authorities say shared children for group sex. Holland was the leader, prosecutors say, of what has been described as the largest sex ring ever uncovered in Alabama. Wood was a victim and likely key witness. "Brittney could have been huge," said prosecutor Teresa Heinz. "She could have corroborated so many things." Wood is presumed dead, but authorities haven't found a trace of her and no one is charged in her disappearance. Even without Wood to testify, two of her uncles and an older brother already have pleaded guilty to sex charges, and jurors this month convicted a friend of Holland's of multiple sex charges in the first trial. Others - including the missing teen's mother, Chessie Wood, and two aunts - await trial. Chessie Wood denies committing any crime, but says some of her closest relatives are guilty of abusing children, including of abusing her daughter. "There are innocent people in this and there are guilty people in this," Wood, 39, said in an interview. "I don't know how the judicial system is going to figure it all out because they're not the sharpest tools in the shed." Chessie Wood, accused of having sex with a young female relative, said she had no idea what was going on in the family until after her daughter's disappearance. "The No. 1 thing here is to find Brittney. The No. 2 thing is to get all these sick (people) off the streets," she said. Authorities are making plea-bargain offers and getting ready for more trials, but questions persist. Perhaps most troubling, why didn't child welfare workers pursue charges following what prosecutors describe as multiple complaints about sexual abuse within the family going back at least six years? "You'd be surprised how many of them had prior allegations. Nothing happened," said Heinz, an assistant district attorney in Baldwin County. "You have to wonder what wouldn't have happened to these children if something had been done. And Brittney might still be alive." The case is so big officials don't know exactly how many kids inside and outside the family might have been victimized; estimates range from 11 to 16 children who were as young as 3 or 4 when they were first molested or made to watch adult relatives during drug-fueled orgies. The children of the suspects have all been placed in foster care or with relatives who weren't involved in the crimes. Brittney Wood isn't the alleged victim in any of the cases filed so far; each involved other young people, mostly within her family. But the investigation mushroomed only after she was reported missing and her uncle Donnie had died. Authorities believe group sex and child sexual abuse went on for three generations in two families that merged when Holland married Wendy Wood, Chessie Woods' sister. "Donnie was the manager. He'd say, 'I've got this child and this adult, come on over,'" said Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Nicki Patterson. Brittney Wood, meanwhile, led a life that was troubled long before folks on the Alabama coast came to know her smile because of missing persons fliers posted in store windows and shared on social media. The single mother of a daughter born when she was 17, Wood was molested as a child by a step-grandfather who went to prison for the crime, said Patterson. Before she went missing, Patterson said, Wood was using drugs and had a gun for personal protection while bouncing between relatives' homes; others often cared for her daughter. A relative reported Holland for allegedly abusing one of the family girls in February 2012, authorities said, and word spread through the clan. Private Facebook messages provided to The Associated Press by Stephanie Hanke, Brittney Wood's stepmother, show that a female relative informed Wood about being raped by three male relatives on May 27, just three days before Wood vanished. The night of the disappearance, cellphone records and witness accounts indicate Wood left west Mobile with Holland and crossed Mobile Bay into Baldwin County, where Holland was found two days later inside his SUV by his wife and one of her friends. He had been shot in the rear of his head behind an ear, which authorities considered an odd spot for a self-inflicted wound. Holland was scheduled to be questioned about allegations of sexual abuse the very day he was found in the car on an isolated dirt road. Wood's cellphone battery was in the vehicle with Holland, but there was no sign of the teen. Her gun was there as well, it was the only gun in the car. Holland never regained consciousness and died several days later. After Holland died, relatives and police wondered about Wood. "We didn't even realize she was missing until after they found him shot," said Hanke. Searches for the teen began and the sex abuse probe picked up, too. Two of Woods's uncles, Dustin Kent and Scott Wood, were arrested within three weeks and later pleaded guilty to rape and sodomy. Aunts and family friends were eventually charged. This month, family friend Billy Brownlee, 50, was convicted in Baldwin County on charges of sexually abusing a girl in the Holland family when she was about 12. Brownlee claimed Donnie Holland forced him into the acts against his will, but jurors needed only 20 minutes to return a guilty verdict. Donnie Holland's 35-year-old wife, Wendy, is set for trial in early December in what could be a key prosecution. Court records show she has pleaded not guilty, and Heinz said she shows no interest in a plea agreement. Still, authorities wonder how child sexual abuse could go on for years between so many people without anyone being charged until 2012. One girl accused an uncle of sexually abusing her as early as 2008, Heinz said, but welfare workers found the complaint unsubstantiated. "You look at these reports and wonder, 'Why? How did it not go anywhere?'" said Heinz. Barry Spear, a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Human Resources, said privacy statutes prevent the agency from commenting. "I can't even say whether we're had any involvement with this family at all," Spear said.

Read More at: http://www.keyetv.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/teens-disappearance-helps-unravel-largescale-incestuous-sex-ring-21964.shtml

---

 Kabwe Principal Resident Magistrate John Mbuzi has convicted and committed brother and sister facing sex charges to Kabwe High Court for sentence.

Mr Mbuzi said it was undisputable that Maureen and Aaron Musonda where living as husband and wife despite knowing very well that they where siblings.

So what?

Particulars of the offence are that Aaron Musonda on dates unknown but between December, 2013 and February 27, 2014 in Kabwe knowing Maureen Musonda was his sister had unlawful carnal knowledge of her.In the second count incest by female particulars of the offence are that Maureen on dates unknown but between December 1, 2013 and February 27, 2014 in Kabwe knowing Aaron to be her brother permitted him to have unlawful carnal knowledge of her.

Still no mention of any victim. Because there isn't one. This shouldn't be crime.

Another report at zambia.news24.com....

The offence against the two carries a minimum sentence of 20 years.

The couple has since been remanded to custody and are currently awaiting sentencing during their next appearance in the Kabwe High Court.

Neither of them have hurt anyone. They're not a threat to anyone. If they are, in fact, genetically related, they are half siblings who did not grow up together. This whole prosecution was outrageous and prison for any length of time is an injustice, but twenty years? The court should do the right thing and set aside the conviction and set them free, and apologize. The only reason they should have to be in a courtroom is to get married.

People in consanguinamorous relationships need to remember to protect themselves.

Zimbabwe Still Sending Consenting Adults to Prison

Even though marriages between first cousins are legal (and common) in much of the word (including being legal in many US states) and always have been, the authorities in Zimbabwe think it is a great use of government resources to prosecute and imprison cousins for the "crime" of loving each other. Here's a report from southereye.co.zw...

Benedict Daka and his cousin Michelle Daka appeared before the Western Commonage magistrate Tancy Dube, where they pleaded guilty to incest.

Benedict was slapped with 15 months imprisonment, but he will serve nine months after six months were suspended on condition that for the next five years, he does not commit a similar offence.

Michelle was sentenced to a 15-month prison term with six months being suspended on condition that she does not engage in a prohibited relationship. The remainder of her term was suspended on condition that she performs 315 hours of community service at Western Commonage Police Station.

And who is the victim of their "crime?" Oh, that's right. There is no victim.

In their defence, the couple mentioned that they were so much in love with each other and could not stay apart.

They shouldn't have to.

Prosecutor Kenneth Shava told the court that Benedict approached his cousin, whom he stayed with in 2012 and proposed love to her.

She accepted the love proposal and soon Michelle was expecting their first child.

Michelle’s mother, Sibonisiwe Nyoni, said she realised that there was something amiss and set out to investigate.

So Sibonisiwe is the rat. Too bad she didn't read this. She should be more like this person.

They couple is now expecting their second child. You can assume nothing is wrong with the first child, or that would have been mentioned in the article.

There is no good reason to drag them into the courts and prison. They should be free to marry, if that is what they want, and protected against haters.

Update on Zambia Prosecuting Consenting Adults For Marrying

In a case we last blogged about here, Zambia is still moving ahead with the prosecution of consenting adults for the "crime" of loving each other. Here's a report from lusakatimes.com...

A woman of Makululu Township in Kabwe District yesterday narrated to Kabwe Principal Resident Magistrate John Mbuzi how she rented out a room to a brother and sister who lived as husband and wife.

And them living as husband and wife has hurt people.... how? Oh, that's right. It hasn't.

This is in case where Maureen Musonda and Aaron Musonda of Makululu compound are facing two counts of incest, in count one incest by male contrary to Section 159(1) of the Penal Code Chapter 87 of the Laws of Zambia.

Particulars of the offence are that Aaron Musonda on dates unknown but between December, 2013 and February 27, 2014 in Kabwe knowing Maureen Musonda was his sister had unlawful carnal knowledge of her.In count two statement of offence incest by female contrary to section 159(1) of the penal code chapter 87 of the laws of Zambia.

Particulars of the offence are that Maureen on dates unknown but between December 1, 2013 and February 27, 2014 in Kabwe knowing Aaron to be her brother permitted him to have unlawful carnal knowledge of her.

These things should not be crimes. Let them love each other the way they both want. 

Update on Zambia Imprisonment of Consenting Adults

We have an update on the situation we last read about many months ago. Chambo Ng'Uni reports at daily-mail.co.zm...

TWO siblings of Serenje, whose marriage of 14 years shocked the nation, appeared in a Serenje Magistrate’s Court for mention after spending seven months in prison on charges of incest.

On Monday and Tuesday, respectively, Chipapuka and Bulaya appeared for mention for the fourteenth time before Mr Chiluba and Mr Ngosa.

They were, however, informed that the State is still awaiting instructions from the Director of Public Prosecution on how to proceed with their cases.

How about letting them go free and apologizing?!?

It is alleged that Bulaya, between January 1, 2000 and December 29 last year, in Serenje, had unlawful carnal knowledge of Chipapuka, who is his biological sister.

And so what is the problem???

Mr Chiluba and Mr Ngosa adjourned the cases to August 25 and August 26, respectively, and the siblings are remanded in custody while the State awaits instructions from the DPP.

This is not justice.

Mr Ngandula said Chipapuka will be remanded in custody. On July 28 this year, Mr Ngosa expressed concern that Bulaya has been appearing in court since January for mention and the State has continued applying for adjournments.

“This matter has taken too long, the court does not understand why it should take too long,” Mr Ngosa said. “I am concerned about this.”

Do the right thing and order them to go free! They are being mistreated with these delays. They shouldn't even be in custody in the first place. They haven't harmed anyone.


Dear readers, you may not live anywhere near Zambia, but many countries, and most US states, continue to imprison consenting adults for loving each other. This needs to stop. This family and others are being torn apart for no good reason.

Ten Myths About Sibling Consanguinamory

Zimbabwe Sending Consenting Adults to Jail

From iharare.co.zw comes this report that two consenting adults have been sentenced to jail for having sex.

A Mbare brother and sister have been thrown behind bars for the next 12 months for having prohibited sexual intercourse-incest. 

The pair was caught red handed in the act by another family member before they were taken to the police.

They were ratted out by family. They shouldn't have to hide, but where bigotry still prevails, precautions are a good idea. 

 Tendai, 30 and Nyaradzai, 22, of Zengeni family were brought before Mbare Magistrates’s court answering to a charge of having sexual intercourse within a prohibited degree of relationship.

That shouldn't even be a crime. They should be free to be together and marry, if that is what they want.

All their hopes of getting an out of custody were shattered after the presiding officer Magistrate Anita Tshuma condemned their conduct. 

I wonder if everyone approves of every aspect of Tshuma's love life?

In passing sentence, the Magistrate described the pair as lovers in a serious relationship who had not repented after they were caught red handed in December last year. Their conduct has proved that they can not change thus they need a custodial sentence so that they are separated from each other.  although they came clean and pleaded guilty,the Magistrate slapped them with 24 months imprisonment, 12 months were then suspended conditional they do not commit the same offence in five years.

Outrageous.

The State proved that the two were having unprotected intercourse on several occasions before they were suspected of the affair by their brother Edward and their stepmother Chipo Mungeni.

Perhaps someone was jealous? Family members and friends should read this.

Further circumstances are that Edward and the mother confronted them, of which they denied the act.All hell broke loose when they were caught red handed caressing each other on May 17 at around 10pm.  

Oh, no, caressing each other! We can't have people actually being affectionate, can we? What a waste of law enforcement resources. Let them out and let them be! This is another example of why we need full marriage equality worldwide.

Doing What the Royals Did?

Out of Egypt comes this very interesting story, found at emirates247.com, about someone doing what the Egyptian royals (and non royals) did throughout history... have sex with a sibling.

An Egyptian woman who moved in with her husband to her brother’s apartment became involved in an affair with her brother while her husband filmed them.

Before anyone asks... no, I don't have a link to the video.

Sabra told police that poverty pushed her to do so and that she enjoyed sleeping with her brother more than with her husband Mohammed.

I can understand poverty causing them to move in together. I know that people typically report consanguineous sex to be the best they've ever had.

When her brother’s wife discovered the relationship, she angrily left home

Ah, so this was cheating?

and went to live with her brother.

Hmmmm.

After telling her brother why she left, he proposed that they all sleep together in the same bed.

Interesting. Was this adapted from something printed by Penthouse? If this is serious, my guess is that some of the people involved had this planned out.

“My husband knows about this and to be frank, he encouraged me to do this.

“He even films us when I have sex with my brother. It became an addiction.”

 Like I said, it can be an unparallelled experience.

Newspapers quoted Mohammed as telling the court “We were very happy until our neighbour discovered the affair and started to put pressure on us to have sex.

“When we refused, he reported us to the police.”

A rat.

The papers said the couples refused to file any complaint, prompting the prosecutor to release them all.

Which papers? We don't know. Maybe somebody is just trying to get hits?

Zambia Keeps Prosecuting Consenting Adults For Marrying

Another news item out of Zambia details the prosecuting of consenting adults in an attempt to break up a marriage. If you think this only happens in Africa, you are sorely mistaken. Where I live, in the US, many states still prosecute in these cases, and it happens in many other countries as well. Chambo Ng'uni reports at dail-mail.co.zm...

A 27-YEAR-OLD man of Kabwe and his young sister aged 20 have appeared in the Kabwe Magistrate’s Court to answer to charges of incest.
 
Aaron Musonda an electrician and Maureen Musonda a grade 12 pupil in Kabwe both appeared before Kabwe resident magistrate John Mbuzi on Thursday for explanation of the charge of incest.

The accused persons are both residents of Makululu Township and they share the same father but different mothers.

So they are half siblings. For all we know they were not raised together and this is a case of Genetic Sexual Attraction.

The police have slapped Musonda with a charge of incest by males contrary to Section 159(1) of the Penal Code Chapter 87 of the laws of Zambia.
 
It is alleged that Musonda on dates unknown but between December 1 last year and February 27 this year in Kabwe, knowing that Maureen was his sister, allegedly had unlawful carnal knowledge of her.
 
His sister has been charged with incest by females, contrary to Section 161 of the Penal Code Chapter 87 of the Laws of Zambia.
 

The court heard that Maureen on dates unknown but between December 1 last year and February 27 this year in Kabwe, allegedly permitted her elder brother to have sex with her.

And...? What's the problem? Notice, no explanation of harm to anyone is cited in the article.

The police at Kasanda Police Station last Friday confirmed that the two were reported to the police by their father who wanted the police to end their marriage.

What a rat. So it is OK for him to have sex with and impregnate at least two women, but not OK for other consenting adults to love each other? He should have read this.

A police source said according to their father, siblings allegedly got married last year and when their family attempted to end their affair they fled Kabwe.
 
The source said they resurfaced this year, and their family heard that they were renting a house in Makululu.

Renting a house! Oh, those scary people! Seriously, what a waste of law enforcement resources. Let them be together, and let them marry if they want. There is no good reason to deny them their rights.

Newspaper Editorial Calls For Hate

A newspaper in Zambia is calling for more hate in response to recent shocking discoveries that people are loving each other even though they are siblings. Here is the editorial at daily-mail.co.zm...

THE continued reports of incestuous marriages in Central Province are worrying and raise many social and psychological questions.

What is there to worry about?

We urge relevant Government organs and non-governmental organisations to carry out a research to establish if this could be widespread and unravel the factors that could be driving people in this particular province into such marriages.

Yes, it is common. What is driving them to it is usually the same thing that drives any lovers.

This kind of behaviour should not be allowed to take root because it could have devastating social and biological consequences.

Such as...? Such as...? They got nuthin'.

Human beings are not animals that are ruled by instinct. We are ruled by reason.

Some of us are ruled by reason. Others want to interfere in the marriages of strangers.

Surely, how could a brother and sister have the courage to engage in a sexual relationship and even have children between them?

I can show you video.

This does not happen even in the most liberal and morally depraved western societies.

This happens everywhere and always has.

Incest is a criminal offence in Zambia.

Not for any good reason. 

It is disturbing to imagine the stigma the innocent children that could be born out of such a perverted marriage would have to endure.

Uh, then stop stigmatizing them.

What a pile of crap that editorial is. I hope the person who wrote it doesn't actually get paid for that drivel.

Cousins Can't Love Each Other Because it Makes Gay Babies

Or so says someone by the name of  Ropafadzo Mapimhidze writing at newsday.co.zw about the cruel treatment (including criminal conviction) recently of a couple of consenting adults in Zimbabwe, prosecuted for loving each other while being first cousins. You know, like hundred of millions of other people throughout history and alive today and legally married.

This story has generated so much debate and I decided to do a bit of research on reasons why incest is taboo, and why incest occurs despite the prohibition. And what the consequences are.

Where this is taboo, it is because of superstition, ignorance, legislative inertia, and control. It happens anyway because consenting adults love each other more than they pay attention to following unjust laws.

Such children can be born with extra toes, three eyes, and they can also grow to become homosexual, they may also have a low IQ and a potential to mentally harm future offspring, says the website. It also notes that such children can become people who are not able to interact with others or express love.

First of all, they were not prosecuted for having children. They were prosecuted for having sex. There is a difference. Also, all the columnist described above happens with unrelated lovers, too. In fact, we do not prevent people with obvious, serious, genetic diseases and birth defects from dating, having sex, having children, or marrying. But there are hundreds of millions of children from first cousins who are healthy, attractive, bright, and very social. Finally, there's nothing wrong with being gay.

The New York Times recently reported that first cousins are somewhat more likely than unrelated parents to have a child with a serious birth defect, mental retardation or genetic disease, but their increased risk is nowhere near as large as most people think, the newspaper quoted research done by some scientists.

But who needs scientists when we can listen to bigotry instead?

At least the piece does mention Genetic Sexual Attraction. Then it goes on to...

“Traditionally, such matters were dealt with by chiefs who then would find the rightful people to raise products of incest. We have to go back to our roots and see how best these matters can be dealt with the Zimbabwean way because these children are innocent victims of incest,” Kandiero said.

You know what makes children the biggest victims? When strangers use the power of unjust laws to force their parents apart and break up their home and brand their parents as criminals.

Updates on Two Criminal Cases

A sentence has been issued in this absurd prosecution of two adults in Zimbabwe for loving each other and (gasp!) being cousins! Here's a report from radiovop.com...

Two members of the Feremenga family from Dzivarasekwa Extension in Harare, whose incestuous relationship resulted in two pregnancies, were yesterday convicted and ordered to perform 630 hours of community service at different institutions in the suburb.

Robson (21) and Ashley Feremenga (19), whose fathers are blood brothers, pleaded guilty to incest charges when they appeared before Harare regional magistrate Adonia Masawi and were slapped with a 36-month prison term each.

But Masawi later suspended 18 months of their sentence on condition of good behaviour and again suspended the remainder on condition each of them performs 630 hours of community service.

Got that? If you break up your family, you can stay out of prison. Of course, the bigots in the neighborhood are going to have a field day being sadistic towards you anyway, and we won't stop that. Because, you know, you shouldn't be allowed to love each other.

The court was nonetheless, left in stitches when the two relatives insisted they wanted to stay together as a couple despite the implications of their unlawful relationship.

The cruelty is appalling. First cousins have been marrying for all of human history. Everyone involved in prosecuting these two should look into their heart, if they one, and clear it of this hatred.

The other update is about a case out of Nevada in which there was a sentencing a while back. I don't think the media ever specified the relationship, but my guess would be uncle-niece. This update comes from elkodaily.com reported by Dylan Woolf Harris.

Hughes isn’t specifically appealing his conviction, but instead the district court’s decision to allow prosecutors to use evidence gathered during a search of Hughes’ home. Leading up to trial, the defense filed a motion to suppress on grounds that a search warrant request wasn’t supported by probable cause, but District Judge Nancy Porter held that the warrant was supported and the prosecutor’s evidence was permissible.

The investigation and eventual search of Hughes’ home began in late 2008 after Kimberly Harphant, an acquaintance of Hughes, met with sheriff’s detective Kevin McKinney. She brought with her an unsigned, handwritten letter she said she took from Hughes’ home one day, as well as a prepared document of cut-and-pasted emails between Hughes and the victim.

Harphant had helped Hughes set up a business email account to which she remembered the password, and had lent him a phone. She was retrieving the phone when she found the letter, according to court documents.

The letter appeared to indicate romantic love between two people, but “in addition to a complete lack of attribution, it contains no references to a past or existing sexual relationship,” the brief states. Similarly, the emails’ authors were unverified and didn’t mention sex.

The appeal brief asserts McKinney made little attempt to corroborate or verify the items Harphant presented to him.

Interesting.

Update from February 2017.

Zimbabwe Still Prosecuting Consenting Adults

From allafrica.com comes this report of the criminal prosecution of first cousins for the "crime" of loving each other.

Two cousins who were involved in an incestuous relationship which resulted in the birth of a girl and current pregnancy will perform 630 hours of community service. The two's fathers are brothers and traditionally are expected to treat each other as brother and sister. Ashley Feremenga (19) and her cousin Robson Feremenga (21) were living as husband and wife in Dzivaresekwa before neighbours alerted Ashley's father Jonasi.

I wonder what the love lives of those neighbors are like... if they have a love life in the first place. Must not be very fulfilling if they have time to rat people out for loving each other.

I'm sure their child is healthy. Otherwise, you can be sure this report would have noted any problems.

The duo was convicted after their own plea of guilt when they appeared before Harare magistrate Mr Aidonia Masawi who sentenced them to a 36 month-imprisonment term.

What a waste of the court.

Ashley's father Jonasi only came to know about their relationship after being advised by his neighbours.

He filed a police report leading to their arrest.

Rat. The lovers should keep his grandchildren away from him.

Fortunately, very few US states have ridiculous laws criminalizing consensual sex between first cousins. About half of US states will legally marry first cousins, and such marriages are common in many countries today, and have been very common throughout history. Prosecuting consenting adults for loving each other is outrageous.

Update on Zambia Attack on Family

Bertha Chipapuka, 35, with her 11-month-old baby and her ‘brotherly’ husband Mukuwa Nicholas Bulaya, 38, appeared before Serenje Magistrate’s Court for incest.

Authorities in Zambia continue with their attack on a family, which we wrote about here before. Chambo Ng'uni reports at daily-mail.co.zm...

SCORES of residents yesterday thronged the Serenje Magistrate’s Court to hear the case of incest involving Mukuwa Nicholas Bulaya and his younger sister Bertha Mwenda Chipapuka. 

Some residents arrived at Serenje Magistrate’s Court before 08:00 hours and scrambled for a few seats inside the courtroom when the doors were opened while others stood on the doorway and windows to hear the case.

So much interest. Are they voyeurs?

Mr Ngosa said the court decided to hear the cases against Bulaya and Chipapuka separately in the interest of justice since the two siblings are separately charged.

And the victim is....? Is...? No victim! No crime!

“I am asking for my sister to be released so that she can look for the things that the child needs and also bring me food and soap since no one from our family has visited us since we were arrested,” Bulaya said.

Mr Ngosa rejected the application and told Bulaya that he had no powers to release his sister (Chipapuka) because her case was being heard by another court.

Infuriating.

Let them go and apologize for ever interfering. Of course, even if that happened, their lives have been ruined by the outrageous bigotry and invasion of privacy to which they're being subjected. There is no good reason for this to be a matter for law enforcement to begin with.

Ten Myths About Sibling Consanguinamory

Out In Africa

Thabo Seroke has an important commentary printed at thoughtleader.co.za about human rights and civil rights in some African countries.

A couple of months ago, Uganda asked a question that could usher in the systematic hate aimed at a group of people. The question was simple: Who is going to inspire the senseless murder of gender-variant people in Africa?

This was not a view that needed to be vocalised by Ugandans, but many nations responded. Nigeria is the latest. The Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, which provides penalties of up to 14 years imprisonment for gay marriage and a maximum of 10 years for membership or encouragement of gay clubs, societies and LGBTI organisations, was last week signed into law by Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.

Since then, nearly 40 people have been arrested and many more threatened with violence.

Frightening stuff.

History provides many examples of same-sex practices such as the “boy-wives” of the Azande in contemporary Sudan and Congo, the gender-crossing queers of the Hausa Bori culture in … wait for it … modern-day Nigeria! Lesbian relations were also prominent among co-wives in polygamous marriages in 19th century Southern Sudan — the same polygamous practice frowned upon by the western world — which leads me to an unsurprising fact. Colonialism imposed this prejudice and other divisive ideals on a number of non-western societies.

Same-gender sexuality and relationships, as well as polyamorous relationships, are nothing new.

The issue in countries such as Uganda, Malawi and Nigeria isn’t a “gay issue”, it’s a human-rights issue.

Precisely!

We must stand up for the rights of ALL.

What Do Montana and Zambia Have in Common?

Both places criminally prosecute adults for consensual sex. We told you in this posting how a family was being broken up by the prosecution of siblings who had been living as spouses. Barbara Chanda gives this infuriating update at daily-mail.co.zm...

MINISTER of Community Development, Mother and Child Health Joseph Kasonde says the ministry is assessing the plight of the abandoned children of the incestuous couple of Serenje.

Dr Katema said it was unfortunate that the innocent children have been abandoned by their extended family and the community.

Their parents shouldn't have been taken away from them in the first place!

After Nicholas Mukuwa Bulaya, 38, and Bertha Chipapuka, 35, were arrested and charged for incest, their relatives and community abandoned the five children, who are now reportedly living on their own at their parents’ farm.

This problem is one the authorities have created for themselves, and children are suffering as a result.

And yes, Montana is still going ahead with a prosecution as well, one that we told you about in this posting. Emily Foster reports at abcfoxmontana.com...

A man accused of having consensual sex with his 19-year-old daughter pleads not guilty in Missoula District Court.

Russell Smith, 48, is charged with one felony count of incest.

Court documents show Smith moved from Alaska to Missoula to live with his daughter and her roommate.

The girl's roommate called police when she learned Smith and his daughter were having sex, and were planning to get married.

The roommate is a rat. Prosecuting adults for CONSENSUAL sex is ridiculous. Let them be together, and let them marry.

Two examples of why relationship rights and full marriage equality are needed for ALL adults.

Zambia Still Prosecuting Consenting Adults

CHAMBO NG’UNI reports at daily-mail.co.zm that authorities in Zambia are wasting efforts that could go to fighting child abuse as they are instead spent on prosecuting consenting adults for loving each other.

BERTHA Mwenda Chipapuka and her elder brother Mukuwa Nicholas Bulaya yesterday appeared before the Serenje Magistrate’s Court in which the charge of incest they are facing was explained to them.

Chipapuka, 35, and Bulaya, 38, have been married for 14 years and they have five children, with their first child being 13 years and the last aged 11 months.

And...? Why are they being prosecuted for living each other? Where is the harm?

Mr Chiluba informed Chipapuka that she was facing an offence of “incest contrary to Section 159(1) of the Penal code Chapter 87 of the Laws of Zambia as read with Act number 15 of 2003”.

It is alleged that between January 1, 2000 and December 29, last year in Serenje, Chipapuka had unlawful carnal knowledge of Bulaya, who to her knowledge is her biological brother.

Why is this a crime? It shouldn't be. I wonder who ratted them out? What will become of the children with their parents being forced apart and imprisoned?

Bulaya is also alleged to have had carnal knowledge of his immediate younger sister Chipapuka and he committed the offence between January 1, 2000 and December 29, 2013.

And who exactly is the victim? Since their names are different I'm wondering if they are half-siblings and if this is a case of  Genetic Sexual Attraction. Regardless, they have been together for a long time and their marriage has lasted longer than many others. What is the problem?

The article does not mention any problems with the children, and I'm sure that would have been mentioned if there were problems. This is another example of why we need full marriage equality in every country sooner rather than later. Although this is in Zambia, prosecutions like this happen in many places around the world, including the Americas, Australia, Europe, and Asia. Nobody should be discriminated against, let alone have to live in fear of prosecution, for loving other adults.

Why Ghana Needs Full Marriage Equality

Ghana not only continues to deny people their fundamental right to marry, but adults continue to be arrested and prosecuted for having consensual sex with each other. Here's the latest example I found, this time a myjoyonline.com... 

Two siblings have been remanded in Police custody for alleged incestuous relationship which produced an 18-year-old boy.

53-year-old Issifu Abubakari and 36-year-old Ramatu were arrested on Wednesday December 11, 2013 and charged with the offence.

With that age difference, it seems possible to me that they are half-siblings and it is possible that Issifu wasn't even around while Ramatu was growing up.

They are alleged to have been in a relationship for about 20 years.

That would make Ramatu 16 years old at the beginning. The age of consent in Ghana is 16.

Kumasi-based Nhyira FM's Ohemeng Tawiah reported that the couple relocated from Dawu, near Agona, to Koforidua after family members and other relatives raised suspicions about their relationship.

So they were already dealing with hostile family and having to move simply because they loved each other. Family should support, not hate.

After 20 years, relatives of the couple discovered that they had been living as husband and wife with an 18-year-old son in his first year in Senior High School.

Even though the brother and sister were summoned to the chief of their village, and made to perform some rites to 'cleanse' them, they continued to have sexual relationship, Ohemeng reported.

Well. yes, they are married except in law, and they obviously love each other. What is the sense in trying to break up a family? If they've been together for 20 years without a problem, why try to stop them? There is no good reason.

They do not mention any problem with their child, so my guess is that that child is healthy, because I'm fairly certain they would have included any significant problems experienced by him in the report. To American eyes, reading that he is 18 and in his first year at Senior High School seems strange, but it is entirely possible he wasn't started in school until later than most American students start.

So what exactly was the problem with their relationship? Other people didn't like the idea. So what? How ridiculous it is to waste resources trying to pry apart adult lovers, especially ones that apparently haven't caused any trouble for anybody. I can guarantee you there are other siblings in Ghana living as spouses, some with children together, just as there are (and always have been) all over the world. The sooner we recognize all adults should have relationship rights, including full marriage equality, the better.