Kenya has banned its first feature film to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, accusing it of having “clear intent to promote lesbianism in Kenya, contrary to the law”.

“We believe adult Kenyans are mature and discerning enough to watch local content but their right has been denied,” she said Friday on Twitter. The director has said in interviews that she had been nervous about the film’s reception in Kenya, but had received some support. In a strange twist, just days prior, the head of the Kenya Film Classification Board [KFCB], Ezekiel Mutua, had praised her work in an interview with a local radio station.

But on Friday, the KFCB said in a statement that the film “contains homosexual scenes that run counter to the law, the culture and the moral values of the Kenyan people”. The board also accused producers of changing the original script that was licensed for production, which they say didn’t have romantic scenes between the female actors.

The board said it met with the director earlier this month and asked her to edit out the film’s “offensive” parts. On Wednesday, the director instead told the board to go ahead and make a ruling, it said.

Moralising the arts

Under British colonial-era laws, homosexuality remains illegal in Kenya. A person caught in the act can face up to 14 years in prison, though activists say that it is rare for people to be prosecuted. Many members of the LGBTI community do face severe harassment and physical threats.

Mutua, the head of the KFCB and a self-described “fervent moral crusader”, has previously sought to ban films, ads and cartoons he deems immoral, often on the grounds that they promote homosexuality.

After the decision was announced, the KFCB Twitter account began to retweet homophobic tweets supporting the ban.

For activist Kevin Mwachiro, the author ofInvisible – Stories From Kenya’s Queer Community, the ban didn’t come as a surprise.

“I was hoping it wouldn’t be banned, but this does reflect what is happening in society,” Mwachiro told FRANCE 24. “There are moralists in positions of authority who have blurred the lines between what is faith-based and what isn’t. In a secular nation like ours, they are bringing in personal beliefs to something that shouldn’t be moralised.”

He cited other instances – such as the KFCB’s 2014 decision to ban the Kenyan-made film “Stories of Our Lives”. The film, which told five different stories about LGBTI Kenyans, was shown internationally, including at the Toronto International Film Festival.

“It’s terrible when content made by Kenyans for Kenyans is outlawed,” Mwachiro said. “Now ‘Rafiki’ will only be screened in Western capitals.But for LGBT people in Kenya, seeing these stories on the silver screen would help them in their own journeys.”

A prize-winning story

In Kenya, gay rights activists have quickly raised an outcry to the ban, while the Cannes Film Festival shared Kahiu’s comments on Twitter.

“Rafiki” will premiere at the French festival next month in the “Un Certain Regard” category, earmarked for films with unexpected or marginal themes by emerging directors.

The film is adapted from a story called “Jambula Tree” by Ugandan writer Monica Arac de Nyeko, who now lives in Nairobi. The main characters, who live in a housing estate in Nairobi, are the daughters of rival politicians.

It won the 2007 Caine Prize, which is awarded to African writers of a short story published in English.

Legal challenges

In a recent interview with journalist Christiane Amanpour, President Uhuru Kenyatta dismissed gay rights as being “not of any major importance to the people and the Republic of Kenya”.

However, in reality, the ban on “Rafiki” occurs against a backdrop of a nation struggling to come to terms with the varied sexuality of its people.

Currently, Kenya’s High Court has begun hearing arguments in a case that challenges parts of the penal code seen as targeting the LGBTI community. The National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission argues that the sections are in breach of the constitution and deny basic rights by criminalising consensual same-sex relations between adults. The court on Monday is expected to announce a date for its ruling.

This comes on the heels of another small victory for activists when a Court of Appeal in Mombasa ruled that conducting forced anal examinations of people accused of same-sex relations is unconstitutional.

Victories like this make Mwachiro hopeful.

“We aren’t out of the woods yet but a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes,” he said. “We live in a beautiful country with talented people.”

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP)

Congolese music star Koffi Olomide is due back in Kenya to perform for the first time in two years since he was deported from the country on the orders of the police chief Joseph Boinnet.

In July 2016, Kenya detained and subsequently deported the 61-year-old to his country, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where he was slapped with assault charges.

On Friday, he announced that he will be back in Kenya to perform on April 24 at a devolution event, a national conference involving Kenya’s 47 county heads. The event is to be held at Kakamega, he thanked the organizers for inviting him to return to Kenya.

In a video announcing his return to Kenya Olomide said he loved his Kenyan fans so much and had missed them.

In the 2016 incident, a video of him kicking a female dancer in his group went viral on social media sparking outrage. He was at the time scheduled to hold a concert in Nairobi, but was arrested in front of television cameras outside the premises of a television station where he was granting an interview.

He was deported and the schow he was bill to attend went ahead without him. He initially denied the assualt claims and insisted that he was protecting his crew from an unspecified person who was threatening their security.

He has since apologized for the incident and even sang a song praising women and womanhood at a show in Congo Republic. Olomide in August 2012, was slapped with a three-month suspended prison sentence in Kinshasa for assaulting his producer.

Source: Africa News

Two Nigerian brides abandoned their respective wedding receptions in order to sit their final exams, a move that delighted their head of department, local news portals have reported.

The incident happened on Saturday at Makurdi in the Benue State University where the two identified only as Dorcas and Deborah, entered the exams hall with their gowns much to the surprise and delight of their colleagues.

They managed to get married and to complete their final paper “Com 402: Media Law and Ethics.” Speaking to the media about the incident, course lecturer Dr. Benjamin Ogbu described it as a double joy for the students and all involved.

“The timetable for the exam was earlier fixed before their weddings were fixed and interestingly, both were on April 7, 2018. Since the exam couldn’t be shifted, the two brides left their various reception venues for the examination hall to sit for the exams in their wedding gowns.

“I was with the deputy vice- chancellor (academic) when both women stormed the examination hall. It was a moment of joy for all of us as students and lecturers.

“We were happy that our students got married and they (students) were happy too that they got married and also took their last exams same day. It was a double joy for them.”

Source: Africa News

US President Donald Trump had sent a personal letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin inviting him to the 2013 Miss Universe pageant in Moscow, a new report says.

Citing sources familiar with the content of the letter, The Washington Post reported that Trump, who at the time owned the Miss Universe pageant, was so eager to have Putin attend the event, which was being held in Russia for the first time.

The sources, who saw the letter, said it shows how interested Trump was in attracting the personal attention of the Russian president. Trump wrote the note at a time when he was looking to expand his brand to Russia, according to the report.

At the bottom of the typed letter, the estate magnate also added a postscript saying he looked forward to seeing “beautiful” women during the trip to Moscow.

A White House spokesman and attorneys for the Trump Organization declined to comment on the report. John Dowd, an attorney for the president said he was not familiar with the letter, calling it “all nonsense.”

Trump,however, made no secret at the time about his enthusiasm for meeting Putin. In a June 18, 2013 tweet, he wrote, “Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow — if so, will he become my new best friend?”

The Russian president did not go to the event but sent a “sealed letter “and a Russian lacquered box instead, according to a former report by The Post. What the letter said has never been revealed.

Special counsel Robert Mueller, who has been investigating alleged collusion between Trump’s Presidential campaign and the Russian government, have asked witnesses questions about the Miss Universe pageant and Trump’s interest in having Putin attend the event, according to the report.

Allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election that have gripped Trump’s administration prompted his legal team to pursue negotiations with Mueller to end the probe in exchange for an interview with the president, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. Muller declined to comment on the report.

Trump has so far made contradictory stories about whether he met Putin before he became president. During a Republican primary debate in November 2015, he claimed that he knew Putin “very well.” But the next year, he said in an interview with CBS that he has “nothing to do with Russia, nothing to do, I never met Putin, I have nothing to do with Russia whatsoever.” Both Moscow and Washington have consistently denied the allegations of collusion.

Source: Presstv

State-owned Cameroon Radio Televison (CRTV) in the restive South West region has reported of security threats from persons believed to be separatists.

According to a letter written by CRTV regional station manager, workers needed reinforced security especially in the wake of a threatening call to an official at Mt. Cameroon FM.

The letter addressed to the Governor of the region said an anonymous person believed to be a member of the separatists group was behind the call. Titled “Telephone Threats from Ambazonia elements,” the letter dated February 26, 2018; read as follows:

His message was frightful; that they were coming to Buea to kidnap, the Divisional Officer for Buea, the Governor and take over CRTV.

“I wish to draw your attention to the fact that an unidentified person called my collaborator Mme Charline Flore Demgne, Chief of Service for Programmes and Information at Mt. Cameroom FM on Monday, February 26, 2018 at 7am.

“I, therefore appeal to you to reinforce security at CRTV South West and put the whole city on alert,” it concluded.

Separatists under the banner the so-called Ambazonia Republic have abducted two government officials in February 2018. First a divisional commander and more recently an administrative official in the North West region also affected by what is referred to as the Anglophone crisis.

The kidnapping is a new trend in the activities of the armed wing of the separatists – the Ambazonia Defense Force (ADF). They have in the past months used guerilla style attacks on security forces killing over twenty officers at last count.

Government insists that there is durable peace in the two regions despite deadly attacks on the security forces. Curfews have been slapped on the two regions in the wake of the attacks. There has also been reports of military reprisals on locals.

Thousands of Cameroonians have fled into neighbouring Nigeria to escape the reported attacks. The United Nations refugee agency has said the numbers fleeing the crisis continues to grow. The government has been tasked to pursue dialogue but no concrete steps have so far been undertaken.

Culled from Africa News

Many observers have remarked on the recent photo published by Cameroon Concord News Group on President Biya’s 85 birthday celebration forcing us to hire the services of some photo experts to scrutinize the birthday pictures.

The observed animosity and discomfort was evident from the very first photo snapped of the event reportedly hosted at the Unity Palace. The photos showed an elaborate cake with President Biya and his wife grinning with merriment.

Cameroon Intelligence Report has clarified the photo to be a Photoshop modification of a half decent computer artist. Upon scrutinizing the photos they concluded that;

1. They found a little girl of Asian origin in the background. That supported their theory that the original photo belonged to a family of Asian lineage.



2. There were three cakes on the cake tray stand where Biya participated in the cutting. So why was Biya holding another cake in the same photo?  Where would that fit?



3. The home background, furniture and deco are all of Asian extraction.
4. The complexion of his hands is too light and appears youthful for an African male at 85 years of age.
5. Mrs. Chantal Biya has always loved exotic hairstyles correspondingly; the style on the photo isn’t her taste.

The photos released by the presidency of the republic purporting to show a healthy Paul Biya, may as well just be another ploy by the ruling CPDM crime syndicate to mislead national and international public opinion about his health.

By Chi Prudence Asong in London

Kenya’s High Court has suspended a government blackout imposed on three private television broadcasters over a live coverage of an opposition rally in the capital Nairobi.

Judge Chacha Mwita ordered Thursday that the shutdown imposed on the private stations, namely Kenya Television Network, Citizen Television and Nation Television News, would be suspended for two weeks so that the court could hear a petition by activist Okiya Omtatah Okoiti against the ban.

The administration of President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered a shutdown of the TV stations on Tuesday morning after they ran a live coverage of a mock swearing-in ceremony for opposition leader Raila Odinga.

Okoiti described the gag as “grossly arbitrary, disproportionate, oppressive, and unreasonable.”

Kenyatta had reportedly warned heads of the TV stations last Friday that they will be cut off the air if they broadcast the event.

Odinga was sworn in as Kenya’s “people’s president” at a park in Nairobi to the cheers of thousands of supporters. The mock ceremony came in response to Kenyatta’s taking of office for a second time, which the opposition believes was the result of rigged votes.

Odinga refused to accept the results of an initial presidential election last August. He then boycotted a re-run ordered by Kenya’s Supreme Court, claiming irregularities that existed in the first round still persisted. Official government tallies show that around 100 have been killed since the start of vote-related unrest in the Horn of Africa country.

An investigation has been launched into the Tuesday mock swearing-in ceremony which had no sign of violence.

Meanwhile, people on Thursday protested the arrest of Tom Kajwang, a lawyer and opposition lawmaker who administered Odinga’s “oath,” as he was standing a trial over his role in the swearing-in ceremony.

Source: Presstv

It is no longer a rumor as was the case on January 5th. The songwriter and producer of the famous Makossa tune “Ndolo l’amour” is no more. A sister publication Cameroon Info.Net reported that Pierre de Moussy died on January 25, 2018 in Geneva, Switzerland where he had taken up resident.

We gathered that Makossa legend Dina Bell who was at his bedside, confirmed the news yesterday January 26, 2018 via the antennas of Cameroon’s state radio and television CRTV.

Victim of a serious traffic accident in Geneva, Switzerland, on the 30^th of December 2017, Pierre de Moussy was in a coma and interned at the Geneva Central Hospital. But his condition, according to his family remained stable thanks to respiratory assistance that kept him alive, until it took a U turn and deteriorated dramatically on January 25, 2018.

Songwriter, Pierre de Moussy will be remembered as one of the major figures of Makossa, a Cameroonian musical rhythm with a career that started in the 1980s.

By Chi Prudence Asong

One of the BBC’s most senior journalists has resigned from her post, accusing the British broadcaster of having a “secretive and illegal” pay structure.

“With great regret, I have left my post as China Editor to speak out publicly on a crisis of trust at the BBC,” Carrie Gracie wrote in an open letter.

Gracie, who has been the BBC’s China editor since 2013, claimed the corporation is not “living up to its stated values of trust, honesty and accountability.”

The journalist accused the BBC of “breaking equality law” in its dealings with employees, and adopting a “bunker mentality” which is failing to close the significant pay gap.

“The BBC belongs to you, the license fee payer. I believe you have a right to know that it is breaking equality law and resisting pressure for a fair and transparent pay structure.”

Gracie, who has worked for the BBC for more than three decades, said the broadcaster faced an “exodus of female talent” because of a culture that discriminates against women.

The BBC ordered a review into its pay structure after it was revealed that only a third of its experienced journalists earning more than £150,000 were women, while the top seven earners were all men.

More than 40 of the broadcaster’s most high-profile female staff, including presenters Clare Balding and Victoria Derbyshire, signed a letter calling for immediate change.

Gracie announced she was leaving her position in Beijing after learning that she earned less than male international editors, despite stressing when she accepted the post that she must be “paid equally” with her male peers.

“I told my bosses the only acceptable resolution would be for all the international editors to be paid the same amount. The right amount would be for them to decide, and I made clear I wasn’t seeking a pay rise, just equal pay. Instead the BBC offered me a big pay rise which remained far short of equality,” she said.

The journalist said she rejected the pay rise and faced a “dismayingly incompetent and undermining grievance process which still has no outcome” before deciding “enough is enough.”