Wednesday, April 11, 2012

LULU: That Girl! Kasichana Kale!

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LULU: That Girl! Kasichana Kale!


By Jacqueline Mgumia

Dear TGNP members, young feminists and those in support of our sisters, I think we have a role to play in understanding Lulu's case, its context and her future charges in relation to Kanumba’s death. This portrays a classic relationship between private and public life.

I think it is a platform for expanding and demanding for women’s right issues in our current context - the media space. We should follow up the tragedy to understand what is at stake in relation to women’s rights, images and representations on the media and legal spaces, specifically how domestic spaces make life so vulnerable.

Thus far, Lulu is in rumande, accused, suspected, or associated with Kanumba's death. Unfortunately, public opinion is against Lulu as she is condemned and demonized for her loose sexual conducts, a fact which could easily forge her rights in regard to the accusations or, if found innocent, her security in the public domain will be threatened.

I am not saying she is innocent, but I always wonder why only young superstar women are labeled as loose or malaya! And, yes, if she has been malaya or bad, so what? Is this only bounded/confined to a moral question? Is this about good girls and bad girls? Does this mean she deserves to be accused without being listened too? Does this justify one being declared guilty without a fair trial or being understood?

Some people say YES! Kaache kasote rumande ama kaende jela, maana, asiyefunzwa na mamaye atafunzwa na ulimwengu! I say NO, mnyonge mnyongeni lakini haki yake mpeni!

This is not a claim for being guiltless, rather it is a call to allow police and medical practices as well as procedures to rule the investigations, not the hyped media opinion of kale kasichana.

Justice is for everyone, those good and bad, those present and absent. If the investigation finds any association or relation of her conducts to be incriminating that will be a different question of the law and lawyers will choose positions.

Human right activists, feminists and the media, how do we associate ourselves with those labeled bad or indeed bad on culture lenses? Do we choose to remain in silence on whose lenses we are trading?

I speak not because she is a woman and young, as that could be doing injustice to our late Kanumba and being biased on a purely gender stance, rather it is to engage with the notion of good and bad girls in the media and its implication on women representation in general, and especially in our digital generation.

Lulu is still in rumande, maybe a quick and quiet visit will help us understand what is happening to her and perhaps make a decision if it is a case we might want to follow. We should start by getting facts right by acknowledging that Lulu is prejudged because of her character, and that can never be right or fair.

This is not about Lulu, it is about Wema, Ray C, Yasinta, and many young women like her in the movie and music industry; the platform is rough and tough, providing different experiences to female artists, of which we know very little about.

We need to start engaging with these spaces, as these young women define the good and bad girls in subtle but very important ways!

This is not about that girl! It is about understanding what is happening in domestic spaces, where both men and women rights could easily be abused in silence. It is about engaging with misunderstood women using our lenses to make sense of their stories and realities so as to inform ourselves on diverse issues facing women. It is about understanding the perceptions and cultures that influence practices and outcomes of laws.

I pray for Kanumba the Great that he may rest in peace and, at this point, I should declare that he was one of the Tanzanian actors that I gave respect to for his achievements; however, his latest movie MOSES, which is centered on hate on women, left me wishing to meet him and chat about impacts of such contents on women. Indeed he has left us very young. He will be greatly missed.

As he rest in peace tomorrow and justice is found for his sudden death, let Lulu - before the law and public - be judged and treated with fairness regardless of being that girl - kasichana kale!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wasiwasi wangu mkubwa ni maadili ya vijana wetu. Tusipokuwa wa kweli katika kubadilisha maadili na utamaduni unaukua kila kukicha, kwa kisingizio cha “feminism”, taifa letu tunaliangamiza.

TGNP mpo hapoooo!! Pokeeni ushauri huu... Anzisheni idara ya kutunza na kulinda maadili ya Taifa la Tanzania muwasaidie, pamoja na wengine hao akina dada kabla hawajawa sababu au kufikiliwa kuwa sababu jambo lolote. Hiyo iwe moja ya ajenda yenu kubwa.. short of which HATUWAELEWI na HATUTAWAELEWA. Msisubili kukulupuka na kudandia mambo ili kutekeleza ajenda zenu tu. Hapana!

Anonymous said...

Halima Mdee na Ester Bulaya,
Ni bora mngeanzisha Programu maalumu ya vijana kuwasaidia kutunza ujana (usichana na uvulana) wao na maadili ya taifa letu na uafrika wetu kwa faida yao , kizazi kijacho, na dunia kwa ujumla. Hilo ndilo liwe jambo la msingi.

Tuache siasa na cheap ways to ourselves popular. Tuangalie serious issues na jinsi ya kupambana nazo.

Zaidi sana tuache vyombo vya sheria vifanye kazi zake kwa uhuru na mtuhumiwa anahitaji haki ya kulindwa asitumike kuendeleza ajenda zisizo na msingi za wanasiasa.

Anonymous said...

Walimfanyia bethdei ya kusherekea miaka 18! Leo anadai ana miaka 17! Lulu umri mdogo lakini umalaya na uhuni ulimzidi. Ulitak kukua haraka mno wakati wenzako wako shule. Hakuna msamaha kutoka kwangu!

Anonymous said...

Hadithi yetu ya leo inatufundisha kuwa ....asiye funzwa na mamaye/babaye hufunzwa na .......ulimwenguuuuuuuuuu, piga makofi tafadhali.

Anonymous said...

Is better to being pro-active as others are proposing than being reactive as Mdee at el wants to practice.
Wanaweza kuambulia manyoya tu na aibu ikawa yao, they are trying to being reactive,waanzishe mipango ya muda mrefu itakuwa msaada na jamii tutawaona wamepevuka kiuongozi na kifikra, but kwa huyu Lulu wameshachelewa.
Maji yameshamwagika na juhudi zao za kuyazoa watazoa matope na yatawachafua.

Anonymous said...

duh,maskini kanumba!umemfundisha huyu mtoto usanii na ukamfundisha na mapenzi akajua na umalaya,zawadi aliyokupa ni moja tu KIFO!
pole sana ndugu yangu,ajali kazini hiyo

Anonymous said...

mh....... r.i.p kanumba ila. mungu anajua mengi na ana siri za watu wengi saana. nakumbuka kanumba aliojiwa kama ana gf akasema hapana bado hajazaliwa. na mwanamke atakae kuwa nae yeye ni lazima awe na hofu na mungu sasa mungu kaamua kuonyesha siri nzito na kuonyesha kuwa hatupaswi kumchezea na kutamka jina lake kwenye mambo ya uongo na uasherati.. angalia kilichotokea kanumba mauti yamemkuta katika hali ya aibu. na mtoto mdogo yule alie dai kuwa amemlea na amekuwa akimfundisha maadili sasa jamni maadili gani tena chumbani saa 8 za usiku.
inatia abiu. jamani nyie sta wa muvi liwe fundisho. mjifunze jamani hawa watoto mnapokabidhiwa na wazazi wao haina maana mkalale nao. ni huzuni kwa taifa na niaibu pia

lulu maskini ya mungu kabinti ka watu wamekakatisha masomo kwa starehe za mda mfupi. wamakafundisha kuigiza na kulala nacho. ni wasanii wengi watu wazima wamelala na haka ka toto leo hii kamepatwa na matatizo kila m2 anamyooshea kidole hakuna hata mmoja wa ku msapoti. mmepa mama yake lulu mzigo mzito