20th November 2008 marks the 10th annual International Transgender Day Of Remembrance, commemorating those who were killed due to anti transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honour Rita Hester whose murder on November 28th 1998 inspired the “Remembering our Dead”. This year the Trans Africa movement is remembering not only those who passed away but also those who are victim and survivors of Transphobia and hate speech from our societies.

Due to the fact that most cases of murders related to transphobia are not documented in the majority of African countries, we are not able to list all incidents but would like to reflect on some known incidents. For over a year one of our trans sisters in Nigeria suffered severe transphobia, as she was continually harassed, beaten, and had to flee for her life. On 2 July 2008, Daisy Dube, a well known drag artist in Johannesburg, was murdered when she asked the perpetrator to not call her istabane anymore (a derogative Zulu slang word, similar to faggot). To mention just two cases reported to us.

TDOR takes place 5 days before the start of 16 days of activism, and we, the Africa Transgender Network and Gender DynamiX want to point out to include the importance of raising awareness about transgender, transsexual and gender non-conforming matters

This press release serves the following purposes;

1. To commemorate those who have died due to Transphobia, across the world

2. To acknowledge our many African brothers and sisters who are silenced about their gender identity and living daily in danger of their lives.

3. To increase public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people and to publicly condemn all those involved in these acts.

4. To call upon governments to protect gender non-conforming people.

5. To encourage and stand together with all those in the fight against Transphobia

The day will be commemorated in different countries at different times. The Trans Africa Network and Gender DynamiX however will commemorate the day in Cape Town on the 12th of December 2008

Source: Gender Dynamix Press Release - Cape Town

Tags:
LGBTI
Transgender
Gender Dynamix

Trying to understand and give some context to the renewal of conflict in the DRC is extremely difficult. I recently spoke briefly with Dieudonné Wedi who is a DRC national and a human rights defender who has written on the violence perpetrated on women and children, for his thoughts on the present crisis.

SE: What is your thoughts on the origins of the conflict?

DW: When in 1996, the Rwandese president Paul Kangame backed the rebellion led by the Laurent Desire Kabila who latter overthrew Mobutu one of the former Congolese president and become president, the reason was that Rwanda was backing Laurent desire Kabila in order to eradicate the presence of those responsible of genocide in 1994 in Rwanda, but later on it was shown that Rwanda was looting Congolese natural resources.

Indeed, Rwanda with RCD a rebellion backed by Rwanda occupied the Eastern DRC for three years where those responsible of genocide are based but they could not eradicate them because they (Rwanda and RCD) were more busy looting natural resource than fighting those criminal. Thus the real origin of the conflict is the need of access and exploitation of the mineral resource and the land occupation.

SE: Do you think the mining multinationals have any contribution to the conflict

DW: Yes, indeed, many reports released by ONGs and UN panel have confirmed the involvement of multinational and mining,

SE: What are your thoughts on the UN - the reports we get is that they are not doing enough by far:

DW: The current problem of the UN peacekeeper is the mandate. Instead of being a peacemaker force, the current is a peacekeeper. Those who are supposed to make peace in DRC case are those who are fighting and none of them are willing any peace. Indeed, peace in Eastern seems not to be a common concern. The conflict allows the looting of Congolese natural resource, traffic of weapon and other illegal practice through which multinational, arm groups, neighbouring countries as well as individual are earning a lot of money. Thus, instead of waiting for those involved in conflict to make peace the better way will be for international community to oppose peace because the main objective of those who perpetuate conflict in Eastern DRC is to keep this area in state of a no man land..

SE: You have written many times child soldiers and violence such as rape against women. Are these kind of violence still taking place in the present conflict?

DW: Unfortunately once again sexual violence remains a weapon in conflict in eastern DRC. The impunity is one of reason encouraging the practice ; The recruitment of child soldier is one of the worse thing happening in conflict in DRC. But we have to distinguish two kinds of recruitment of child soldier.

Those who abduct children as soldier and those who recruit them through promise of money and other advantage they can get by being soldier. But all those recruitments have to be condemned and those responsible prosecuted.

SE: Do you think this is a problem from the Tutsi fighting the Hutu in DRC or more complex

DW: The problem is more complex than Tutsi fighting Hutu because the real reason of conflict is the looting of natural resource of DRC and the research to occupy the land .The current rebellion is backed by Rwanda which is interested by land and natural resource of DRC. Of course there are those who committed genocide in Rwanda but their presence becomes a pretext for Rwanda to explain his presence in DRC because the same Rwanda and the previous rebellion backed by Rwanda the RCD had occupied the eastern DRC for three years where are based those responsible of genocide without ending their presence.

In my opinion, Nkunda is just playing a role: To create and maintain a state of conflict in Eastern DRC in order to allow Rwanda to loot and try to gain a piece of land which will be one day claimed like Kosovo was. The RCD, the previous rebellion played the some role.

Dieudonné Wedi is an expert in the transitional justice field. He is research and publishing peace building, conflict resolution, reconciliation and implementation of democracy.

Tags:
DRC

“Nepal Equal marriage and civil rights based on sexual orientation and gender identity” …………..

A summary decision was issued in December 2007, when the court issued directive orders to the Nepal government to ensure the right to life according to their own identities and introduce laws providing equal rights to LGBTIs and amend all the discriminatory laws.

The final judgement was issued today.

It reiterates that all LGBTIs are defined as a “natural person” and their physical growth as well as sexual orientation, gender identity, expression are all part of natural growing process. Thus equal rights, identity and expression must be ensured regardless of their sex at birth……….Continue reading

Tags:
Same Sex Marriage + Nepal
LGBTI

Park Ranger, Benjamin Mujinya from the Virunga National Park recounts how the rebels killed his father.

DRC;
Virunga National Park;

Aid agencies, NGO’s are being outed for their role as agents of Western financial captial at any cost who feed of the misery caused by their masters. Christian Aid is one such example. Following the 2004 coup against President Aristide of Haiti, Christian Aid issued a position statement in which it colluded with the lies of the US and France that Aristide resigned when in fact he was kidnapped and dumped in the Central African Republic. The paper went on to present Aristide’s government as a corrupt bunch of thugs whilst completing ignoring the fact that he won two elections with over 75% of the vote. They continued to ignore the violence committed by the UN forces following the removal of Aristide plus the systematic terrorising of Lavalas supporters. All this done under the disguise of “humanitarian concerns”. After assisting in the destruction of an elected government by bleeding it dry it then calls for aid to rebuild the very structures it has prevented from developing by the elected government. The people, in this case Haitians then become the objects of NGO industry which is based on the premise that there is a disaster or a conflict which enables them to step in and “save” the situation. This in turn is driven by adverts of helpless hapless people with no agency as victims of something that is disconnected from the financiers of the NGO’s themselves and Western financial interests.

Governments view humanitarian aid as a strategic battleground where their military forces can operate alongside doctors, to the great displeasure of the doctors. Multilateral organisations, such as the European Union, finance largescale programmes; the UN funds peacekeeping operations. All these players flood the poorest countries, overlap and fail to coordinate with each other, creating chaos rather than order.

Governments and multilateral organisations cannot allow voluntary organisations to have a monopoly on solidarity and generosity. So humanitarian work has become a world of populist politicians; tired, concerned professionals; international funders caught in a bureaucratic, financial rationale; and suspicious or blasé donors who prefer local causes. The circus follows the show – the misfortune of others – a media product in ever greater demand.

The media is busy reporting endless tragedies in Haiti - floods, hurricanes, collapsing schools. What they do not report is what iis behind these disasters. Why is it when the hurricane hits Haiti, thousands die yet in neighbouring Dominican Republic the numbers are in their tens and twenties? The $1 million Haiti pays back in debt payments every week which the West refuses to write off but is happy to spend millions on UN peacekeepers and the huge overhead costs of NGO’s and humanitarian aid thereby maintaining it’s control and occupation of the country.

In Haiti: Racism & Poverty, John Maxwell makes some comparisons between the amount of money paid out in bonus payments to Wall St bankers $18 billion - double Haiti’s GDP (8 million people).

The chairman of Goldman took home more than $70 million and his lieutenants – as Zoellick once was – $40 million or more, each.
It should be clear that someone like Robert Zoellick is likely to be totally bemused by Haiti when his entertainment allowance could probably feed the entire population for a day or two. It is not hard to understand that Mr Zoellick cannot understand why Haiti needs debt relief.

One million dollars a week would feed everybody in Haiti even if only at a very basic level – at least they would not have to eat earth patties. Instead the Haitians export this money to pay the salaries of such as Zoellick

But debt relief is too simple and at the same time to complicated to process. There are NGOs to rebuild what Western governments and multinationals destroy and NGOs to prop up the regimes that the US and multinationals wish to keep in place to maintain their financial interests and NGOs to spread the deceit that is charitable capitalism….

The aid industry is central to the current globalisation of ideology. Global capitalism must launder the profits from its exploitation. The harsh demands of this unregulated world – child labour, increased production, unpaid overtime – must be disguised. The huge number of people who suffer from these forms of social violence are rarely identified as victims. Governments, businesses and donors are paying a moral tax, trying to claim they are part of a moral humanity, through their pledges of morality, pseudo-transparency and charity.

Tags:
Haiti
Christian Aid
USA
NGO