BAROTSELAND -THE CASE FOR PIZO.

26th October 2007

The Rt. Hon Ngambela
Kuta ya Mboo,
Limulunga,
Mongu,
BAROTSELAND.

Your honour,

BAROTSELAND -THE CASE FOR PIZO.

This is a follow up to our letter dated the 15th September 2007 concerning the above matter.

After a serious reflection over the issues of land and the Barotseland Agreement 1964, we now wish to expand and give more insight analysis of the subject matter. In particular, we wish to reiterate what we had stated to the Kuta as explained hereunder:

Acceding to the government proposal to apportion land covered by a 32 km radius from the District administrative centers of Barotseland would have the following implications:

Mongu:

Lealui and Limulunga would be enclosed within the Mongu District Council thereby rendering the Litunga a “squatter.”

Senanga

Nalolo and Muoyo would fall into the clutches of the Mongu Council periphery thereby rendering the Litunga la Mboela a “squatter”.

Kalabo

Libonda and Mulundumano would be ceded to Kalabo District Council thereby rendering the Mboanjikana a “squatter.”

Kaoma

Naliele would be ceded to the Kaoma District Council thereby rendering Mulena Amukena II a “squatter.”

Lukulu
Namayula would be ceded to the Lukulu District Council thereby rendering Mulena Anañanga a “squatter.”

Shangombo

Kaanja would be ceded to the Senanga District Council thereby rendering Mulena Lukama a “squatter.”

The only Resident Prince who would not be immediately affected by this dragnet is Mulena Inyambo whose muleneñi is situated about 64 kms from the Sesheke Boma.

The other fascinating aspect of this scenario is that since the distance from Mongu and Kalabo is 70 kms, only 6 kms between the two towns would be left for the local people for their agricultural pursuits and animal pasture after the apportionment as stated in our earlier letter.

A good example that shows government’s insensitivity over the land issue is exemplified by the issue of Albidon, a mining group that has been given rights in the Mazabuka district. Albidon was, recently, reported in the daily papers as having had filed papers of injunction in the High Court to stop activities of the local people in the Mukoto area because it is within the prescribed mining area. The helpless Tonga people will have no choice but to move to a horizon of unknown destination.

The Lozi people have been accused by many in Zambia for shunning or denying developmental initiatives within their land which of course is untrue.

It must be pointed out that the Lozi people are law abiding just like other people in Zambia except in circumstances where either the government or the investor has taken action that infringes on their cultural values and human rights.

We reproduce hereunder excepts of the discussion paper presented to the Lozi authorities over the issue of land by the Government of Zambia:-

“ PLANNING ISSUES FOR DISCUSSION WITH THE BAROTSE ROYAL
ESTABLISHMENT”

Preamble:

“The Barotse Royal Establishment has special agreements with the Zambian
Government which grants them a high degree of autonomy in dealing with issues related to land and spatial planning. It is thus imperative that the consultations adopt a different approach from that applied elsewhere in Zambia. The following set of questions are designed to elicit specific responses from the BRE and to bring them on board the national spatial planning system”.

Copy of the document produced by the Government is herewith provided.

The issue of land management in Barotseland will continue to provide serious challenges to the Government of Zambia as long as it fails to appreciate that Barotseland is part of Zambia on the basis of the Barotseland Agreement 1964.

Appreciating the foregoing, any attempt to negate this fact puts the Government of Zambia in an awkward position as it loses legal anchorage or basis upon which it could administer Barotseland. Accordingly, whatever efforts it seeks to make is bound to fail as it is illegal because it lacks legitimacy and morality.

The proper framework for addressing the issue of land in Barotseland is the Barotseland Agreement 1964 as provided under Article 5 (1) (2) that:-

5. Land;

(1). “In relation to land in Barotseland, the arrangements set out in
the annex hereto shall have effect”,

(2). “In particular, the Litunga of Barotseland and his Council shall
continue to have power hitherto enjoyed by them in respect of land matters under customary law and practice”

We wish to make quick reference to the outcome of the PIZO that was conducted in Lealui on 3rd and 4th November 1995 under which, on land issues, it was resolved as follows:-

(b) THE LAND ACT NO.29 1995. .

(i) “That the people of Barotseland re-affirm their belief and
commitment to the Litungaship. The Litunga means land. Without land, there is no Litunga”.

(ii) “That, therefore, the people of Barotseland reject the Lands Act 1995 in total as it has taken away the powers of the Litunga, it is inconsistent with the provisions of the Agreement and has been passed without the consent of the people of Barotseland”.

In addition, the people had resolved, in relation to the Barotseland Agreement 1964, that:-

(a) BAROTSELAND AGREEMENT 1964.

(i) “That the Government must, unequivocally, recognize the Barotseland
Agreement 1964 and accept that the rights and obligations enshrined
therein are still binding upon the Government”

(ii) “That the recognition must be incorporated in the Constitution of Zambia
as has been the case hitherto as with all other honourable agreements”

(iii) “That if the Government continues to be obstinate, the people of
Barotseland shall have the right to self-determination by reverting to the
original status before 1964”.

These resolutions stand binding on the Lozi people as they have not been changed or repudiated.

As regards the current Constitution making process, the Lozi people must use the National Constitutional Conference to state clearly that they will not be party to a Constitution that in ambiguous on the matter of the Barotseland Agreement 1964. In the preamble of the Draft Constitution it is stated thus:

We, the people of Zambia in exercise of our constitution………
“Resolve that Zambia shall remain a free, unitary, indivisible,
multi-ethnic, multi-racial multi-religious, multi-party democratic
sovereign State”

The word “unitary” is used to acknowledge the coming together of the former territories of Barotseland and Northern Rhodesia to form Zambia as was provided for in the Northern Rhodesia Independence Order 1964 and the Zambia Independence Act 1964 which state as follows:

The Northern Rhodesia Independence Order of 1964:

Interpretation 125 – 1. “In this Constitution, unless the context otherwise requires”,
“ Barotseland means the territory that on the 23rd October, 1964 was comprised in the former Barotseland Protectorate.”

“The former Protectorate of Northern Rhodesia means the territory that on 23rd of October, 1964 was comprised in theProtectorate of Northern Rhodeasia.”

The Zambia Independence Act 1964:

Establishment of the
Republic of Zambia 1. “On the 24th October 1964 (in this Act referred to as the
appointed day) the territory which immediately before the
appointed day are comprised in Northern Rhodesia shall
cease to be a Protectorate and shall, together, become an independent
Republic under the name of Zambia and on and after that day,Her
Majesty shall have no jurisdiction over those territories”.

The 1973 Constitution, which repealed the Northern Rhodesia Independence Order, took on board the constitutive status of Zambia out of the two territories mentioned above, by adopting the term “unitary” State and this has been repeated by successive amendments of 1991 and 1996. This trend has been repeated in the Mungomba Constitution to be tabled before the National Constitution Conference (NCC).

In our view, the maintenance and upholding of Zambia as a “unitary” State is an acknowledgement of the Zambian people through the government that Zambia comprised of two constituent parts.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the government, in drafting the Constitutions that replaced the Independence Constitution, has intentionally, omitted to define what constitutes the “unitary” State of Zambia. This is intended to conceal the fact that the “unitary” State of Zambia, in fact , arises out of the Barotseland Agreement 1964 which made it possible for the two constituent parts to for the Republic of Zambia as provided for at paragraph 3 of the preamble of the Agreement, which says:

“Whereas it is the wish of the Government of Northern Rhodesia and the Litunga of Barotseland, his Council, chiefs and the people of Barotseland that Northern Rhodesia should proceed to independence as one country and that all its peoples should be one nation”.



It is under this scenario, that the government has taken a public stance that portrays the picture that the Barotseland Agreement 1964 is no longer valid.

To this extent, the government has, on a number of occasions, taken administrative and legislative actions which tend to undermine the Barotseland Agreement 1964.

The foregoing scenario should not be allowed to continue. It is therefore imperative for SOPE to put into place a mechanism that will enable Barotseland to present its case on the need for an unequivocal acknowledgement of the status of Barotseland in the Constitution.

Our proposal is that such mechanism shall culminate itself in a PIZO at which specific resolutions will be adopted in order to guide those who will be mandated to speak for Barotseland at the NCC.

We wish to further remind SOPE that during the collection of information and submissions to the Mung’omba Constitutional Review Commission, one hundred and twenty-six (126) Lozi nationals had petitioned for the Agreement to be honoured.

In its preliminary report of June 2005, at pages 509-511, the Commission had acknowledged that:-

“The unilateral abrogation of the Agreement has given rise to frustrations and a sense of betrayal of the people of Barotseland by the Zambian Government hence their demand for the restoration of the Agreement.

Consequent to these frustrations, the Barotse Royal Establishment has continued to ignore the abrogation and has, in some instances, continued to discharge its functions as provided for in the Agreement, thereby resulting in conflict between the Barotse Royal Establishment and the Local authority in the Province. From the foregoing, it is clear that the need to find a solution to this problem can not be over emphasized”,

“The Commission notes that the submissions made to both the Mvunga and Mwanakatwe Commissions are similar to those made to this Commission. The two Commissions concluded that the issue of the Barotseland Agreement be settled by negotiations between the Government of the Republic of Zambia and the Barotse Royal Establishment.”

“The Commission, further, observes that in spite of those recommendations, negotiations have not been effected on account of lack of political will on part of the Government. The Commission is of the view that the country should utilize the current Constitution Review Process as a legitimate political device to address the social and political issues confronting it, including the Barotseland Agreement 1964.”

“In this regard, the intent, evolution and the arbitrary abrogation of the
Barotseland Agreement should be addressed through appropriate legislation in the context of the structures of the devolved system of Local Government now being proposed by this Commission.”

“The Commission recommends that:”

“The Barotseland Agreement should be addressed through the devolved and decentralisation system of local government as recommended in this Report; and “The Government and the Barotse Royal Establishment must show political will to finally resolve the outstanding issue of the Barotseland Agreement by initiating negotiations between the two parties.”

In our view, the Commission’s recommendation to resolve the issue of the Agreement, through devolution and decentralization, is ambiguous, evasive and intended to fall in line with government policy of deceit. This is confirmed by the Commission’s final report sub-titled “Summary of Public Comments of the Interim Report and Draft Constitution and Reactions of the Constitution Review Commission” dated 29th December, 2005 where-in at page 205, in reaction to the public comments on the un-workability of its recommendations, the Commission chose an escapist route by pleading that the matter of Barotseland Agreement did not form part of its terms of reference. This argument is invalid because, in our view, terms of reference Nos.1, 19 and 30 adequately empowered the Commission to deal with the matter.

We take this view because the Commission’s recommendations on local government, as reflected at pages 502-504 of the interim report, are based on the existing structure of local government with select powers of the central government being devolved thereto.

The Commission has not shown, under these recommendations, how the Litunga and his Council would gain any measure of control over the administration of Barotseland as envisaged by the Barotseland Agreement 1964.

Our general observation, over the years and from record, is that the statements by the Government of Zambia that the Barotseland Agreement 1964 has ceased to have effect is mere political posturing intended to condition the minds of the Lozi people and other Zambians to accept the government’s failure to fully implement the treaty.

This observation arises from the contradictory administrative actions by government which, tend to conform with the spirit and provisions of the Agreement such as those relating to land administration in Barotseland and remittance of funds through the “Barotse Treaty Obligations”.
Therefore, the latest proposals by government to discuss land alienation and special planning in relation to Barotseland, is yet another manifestation of government’s recognition of the Agreement.

We trust that as current Minyolui, you will emulate your visionary predecessors in office such as Mataa in 1864, Akapelwa (Silumbu) in 1885, Njekwa Mukamba in 1890 and Imenda Sibandi in 1964 who had risen to the occasion when it mattered most.

This proposal is put forward in appreciation of the fact that a decision to convene the PIZO has been accepted and endorsed by the Saa-Sikalo Kuta on the 12th September 2007.

On our part we undertake to provide assistance, within our means, in order to ensure the successful implementation of the PIZO.

Copy of this letter is availed to Lozi nationals as a way of alerting them about the forthcoming PIZO.


Yours in the common struggle,


Muyawa Liuwa


Muyoba Macwañi


Mutungulu Wanga.



c.c. The Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, Lusaka.

The Minister of Justice, Lusaka.

The Sambi of Nalolo Kuta, Senanga.

The Muleta of Libonda Kuta, Kalabo

The Liashimba of Mwandi Kuta, Sesheke

The Imangambwa of Naliele Kuta, Kaoma.

The Yutanga of Namayula Kuta, Lukulu.

The Mutundwalo of Kaanja Kuta, Shangombo.

The Inete of the Mongu-Lealui District.

BAROTSELAND’S MISMANAGED INFRASTRUCTURE

Goodafternoon,

I do beg your pardon Sire Ndubi,

What exactly is implied or was meant to communicate by ‘Hear, hear, hear, hear. So the Barosteland(sp) is closed?’ Even as i unreservedly agree with your good selves on the need to change the topic to what may be deemed more interesting, intellectually challenging subjects and politically correct. I only hope I have not misunderstood you, but kindly know this, Barotseland is too great to be closed with such ease. It lingers on in every true Barotse's Heart, aspiration and vision even when they may not opening say it. What should i talk about now,the greatness of Zambia? I fail to bring myself to going on about how great zambia is and the many of its achievements as i may not have lived long enough to learn about what these are. Here, I must admit i will need a bit of help to find remarkable achievements that are worthy of adoration about zambia's many achievements.

The formation of a country called zambia was clearly wrought with political Skullduggery. What a terrible and dangerous path to nation building. Therefore, when you say, “What is of yesterday remains there for reference and not to determine tomorrow” in my limited capacity to fathom deep intellectual concepts such as the one you are obviously espousing here, I have failed to understand it, sadly. If zambia has any future at all in this great chain of being, it will be self-destructive to commit the facts about its founding in the annuls of history. Here is an exercise in rudimentary academic regimen. Are you ready?
1. Barotseland has been a Nation well before zambia was born correct? This fact one may choose to independently verify.
2. The truth is that colonialists did not teach Barotseland administrative order and governance when they came into contact with us in the early or 1800s or earlier but they found them in place alive in Barotseland. I would like to think this was what fascinated them about us and dwell amongst us.
3. What I have come to know about the Caucasian mind-set and disposition is that they would never ordinarily befriend anyone late alone a Cushite (Cushean), unless they have been bewildered, impressed, dazzled and shocked by what they discover are someone’s special talents contrary to what they have hitherto been told and believed about a people. Sometimes they will befriend you because they are interested in what resources you own and they figure they would not have a tough time taking advantage of you.
4. I advise zambians never to ignore these facts about the Barotse’s general personality and character traits. Barotseland’s history and present they may choose to ridicule at their own peril especially when they face economic management and political leadership challenges such as they are grappling with today.


“Honeslty, distinguished members of this august house, I am having problems following this debate on the so called Barotse Anthem and am left wondering as to which country it belonged or belongs. I have been forced to check on the map of Africa to see if at all there is such a country I must have omitted during my social studies and geography but am only seeing the number coming to 53. So where is this country? And if this august house comprises Zambians then why bring in an issue that has very little or no direct impact on the development of our beloved country. Can some one enlighten me on this so that am able to follow as well." So wrote a Mr.Ndubi.

I always endeavor to make these regular checks on such matters especially after a very boisterous exchange because it determines our effectiveness in imparting knowledge to one another which is all aimed at pushing back the frontiers of ignorance. I must hasten to apologize if some of you with attention spans long enough and are not sufferers from an innate hatred for reading matter have already read this extract from the site I provided to help clear certain grey areas. The infra-structural contribution of Barotseland is herewith provided for all to appreciate and maybe only with humility may finally understand what makes us Barotseland, so proud and yet peaceful and humble in outlook but grossly misunderstood. This with the help of systems hell bent on making people completely ignorant of my people’s culture and history, clearly there is a conspiracy somewhere!

I humbly refer ALL to the International Court of Justice at The Hague and see the Status of Barotseland contrary to what one wants to believe.

Below is an extract from the earlier website I referred the distinguished readership to. It is referring to Great Barotseland therefore, I would most graciously appreciate a feedback on whether the matter of what Barotseland is, where is it situated, what is it now, how come it does not appear in the atlas e.t.c has been duly clarified. As will be seen below before most folks in zambia even knew what reading and writing meant, Barotseland was signing Bilateral Agreements between itself and other Nations, world powers, we were signing Contracts for huge capital projects such as rail lines and roads in the length and breadth of our Great Nation of Barotseland which still exists today for anyone to see just in case some thought these pieces of Infrastructure may have merely materialized in Star Trek fashion. Sorry, these structures have a rich Barotse History, our history, my story. Once this has been told maybe you will not mismanage the railway system the way it has been. We are about to tour the full length of this great infra structure. Please read below ……

Under the Chartered Company's rule considerable progress has been made in the development of the resources of the country i.e. (Barotseland), italics added), especially in opening up the mining districts in the north. The seat of the administration, Kalomo, is on the "Cape to Cairo" railway, about midway between the Zambezi and Kafue rivers. The railway reached the Broken Hill copper mines, 110 m. N. of the Kafue in 1906, and the Belgian Congo frontier in 1910. From Lobito Bay in Portuguese West Africa a railway was being built in 1909 which would connect with the main line near the Congo frontier. This would not only supply Barotseland with a route to the sea alternative to the Beira and Cape Town lines, but while reducing the land route by many hundred miles would also supply a seaport outlet 1700 m. nearer England than Cape Town and thus create a new and more rapid mail route to southern Rhodesia and the Transvaal. The Zambezi also, with Kebrabasa as its one bar to navigation between Barotseland and the sea, will supply a cheap line of communication. (See RHODESIA .) See David Livingstone, Missionary Travels and Researches in South Africa (London, 1857); Major Serpa Pinto, How I crossed Africa (London, 1881); F. Coillard, On the Threshold of Central Africa (London, 1897); Major A. St H. Gibbons, Exploration and Hunting in Central Africa (London, 1898), Africa South to North through Marotseland (London, 1904); "Journeys in Marotseland," Geographical Journal, 1897; "Travels in the Upper Zambezi Basin," Geographical Journal, 1901; A. Bertrand, Aux pays des Barotse, haut Zambeze (Paris, 1898); Col. Colin Harding, In Remotest Barotseland (London, 1905); C. W. Mackintosh, Coillard of the Zambesi (London, 1907), with a bibliography; L. Decle, Three Years in Savage Africa (London, 1898). Consult also the annual reports of the British South Africa Company, published in London. (A. ST H. G.)
SOURCE: http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/main_page

NOTA BENE: If it should still be debatable, which would be rather unfortunate, the dates and country quoted and being talked about above, is Barotseland, our Proud Nation and Homeland Forever! We had not given birth to zambia yet (24th October 1964) by signing Barotseland Agreement 1964, which sadly they continue to abrogate and treat as trivial and petty. We will not be bulldozed into a future so hazy and beleaguered with leadership myopia such as this. My innards churn with repugnant disgust at what we have almost become part of. I grieve for the future of Barotseland ’s progenies, may posterity judge us harshly for what we have done to our Nation.

May the TRUTH be defended always for, “Truth crushed to Earth shall rise again from the Root for the Eternal years of God are hers, but error wounded writhes in pain and dies among its worshipers.”

Kozo Sha,

Namakando Nalikando Sinyama
Barotse Patriot
Barotseland, Central Africa

“I tell you a truth, liberty is the best of all things, my son, never live under a slavish bond.” – Sir William Wallace’s Uncle

Should Bemba /Nyanja be the only ‘National’ Languages? A critique against the Post Newspaper Editorial

Paper Presentation



Title:
Should Bemba /Nyanja be the only ‘National’ Languages? A critique against the Post Newspaper Editorial


A Paper Presentation to the University of Zambia Linguistics Association (UNZALA).




Date: Tuesday 6th February 2007
Time: 14:30 hrs
Venue: NELT



By Austin Mbozi
University of Zambia
Department of Philosophy and Applied Ethics
Box 32379, Lusaka
austinmbozi@yahoo.co.uk












Introduction
My article begins by joining all those appealing to Zambians of all linguistic groups to ignore the Post editorial (16th January 2007) which read ‘Accept Bemba as a ‘national’ language. Instead Zambians must accept all local languages, including Bemba and Nyanja of course, as ‘national’. The Post editors may have expressed their opinion, but it is just an opinion. Actually it is good riddance that they dared write it because it has given us a basis to openly debate the matter which normally goes on in tribal gossip cartels. The fact is that we have been hearing many Bemba speakers (by ‘Bemba speakers I mean those who speak Bemba although some may not be Bemba by tribe) arguing along those views expressed by The Post. But it was difficult to publicly oppose or academically challenge them since such insinuations went on in ‘tribal gossip cartels’ or in their behaviors such as refusing to speak other languages, calling those speaking Tonga and Lozi as tribal, refusing to be addressed in other languages (except Nyanja) sometimes even if they visit your province or home, or phoning in Bemba to English programs. Worse in the early 90s there were media reports that some ‘sources’ alleging that former President Frederick Chiluba had wanted to make Bemba the official alongside English, a matter which was vehemently opposed. The Post later published a government-headed letter written by a Bemba minister in Bemba! I had tried to bring tribal/linguistic debates but I was ostracized by some people. I went into hibernation, knowing this time will come! I hope The Post will welcome my challenge to them which I am doing with utmost respect.
The Post may have attempted to moderate their editorial in their 18th January editorial and said they never intended to destroy other languages or impose Bemba or that they are not tribalists. Well, where I disagree with them is that their approach is like saying that to end religious tensions all people must ‘Accept Islam as a world religion’ instead of advising people of different religions to live side by side.
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My proposals on the BRE/ Radio Liseli station
Before commenting on The Post editorial may I state that I agree with the goal of the Barotse Royal Establishment (BRE) to promote Lozi language and culture. However I wonder whether the BRE really meant a complete ban on Bemba and Nyanja music because the 18th Jan. Post story stated that some sources thought they merely wanted to play less of other languages and more of Lozi music. And how possible could it be that they only banned Bemba and Nyanja music; what about Tonga, Luvale, Kaonde etc music? The Post needed to clarify this otherwise the public are suspecting that The Post concentrated more on Bemba, just to make the matter more sensational? I would also disagree with a complete ban on Bemba and Nyanja (and all other non-Lozi languages) and the proposed removal of director Fr Victor Mwansa and production manager Bella Zulu because they are Bemba and Easterners respectively.
So firstly I would suggest that rather than ban Bemba and Nyanja music completely they must insist on having 70% local language music and 30% in all other languages.
Secondly, the BRE is clearly overreacted to insist on the dismissal of Father Victor Mwansa and Bella Zulu. What the BRE must do is to request Father Mwansa to play more local language music. If Father Mwansa does not comply they may press for his replacement but even then his replacement does not have to be a Lozi. It may be any Zambian, even another Bemba, who complies with the directive. Even a Lozi who does not comply can be dismissed. There are so many Bemba people who can go out of the way to speak Lozi and promote it.
Thirdly, there must a compromise regarding the banning of Luvale and Mbunda broadcasts by the BRE. I propose that broadcasts themselves may be exclusively in Lozi, but songs in Luvale, Mbunda , Nkoya or any language indigenous in the province (i.e. languages there found at the advent of colonialism ) can be allowed equal airtime as Lozi ones. More importantly any people interviewed or phoning in to programmes may be allowed to use Luvale, Mbunda or any language indigenous in the province (the way the Tonga section of ZNBC operates with respect to Lenje and Ila) provided that language is understood by at least 30% of the people there. This compromise is aimed at making not letting all the various language groups demanding broadcasts if only one of them is allowed and at the same time making they feel part of the province. Although Luvale and Mbunda speakers are found in the northern part of the province they are very few and more importantly Luvale itself by government policy is a Northwestern province language were it is taught in schools. The Western province linguistic groups are 27 namely; Lozi, Kwandi, Kwangwa, Mbowe, Mbumi, Simaa, Imilangu, Mwenyi, Nyengo, Makoma, Liyuwa, Mulonga, Mashi , North Kwandu, South Kwandu Mbukushu, Nkoya, Mbwela, Lushangi, Mashasha, Fwe, Luvale,Chokwe,Mbunda,Shanjo,Totela and Subiya (The Post says they are 32 but my research I can’t find the other five!) However, currently all these people do understand Lozi since it is the language taught in their schools and some of these languages are almost dead. Strictly speaking Lozi is just a language coming from these various groups.






My proposals on the national language problems

1. Bemba speakers must accept the reality and appreciate being addressed in and speaking other languages of this country. There attitude is what provokes reactions such as we saw with the BRE.
2. The non-Bemba speakers; the Tonga, Lozi, Luvale, Kaonde, Lunda, Lenje , Namwanga, Lamba etc must use their languages and transfer them to their children in major cities such and Lusaka and Copperbelt. When in their own home provinces they should only use their language to anybody and stop giving in to Nyanja and Bemba speaking visitors. Otherwise, if a Post letter by Emmanuel Chishimba on 26th January 2007 who advocated that they will make sure 4/5 Mongu residents speak Bemba in 10 years is anything to go by, it seems some people are determined to promote Bemba hegemony at all costs.
3. Government must recognize Lenje, Lamba and Namwanga for broadcasting and teaching. Namwanga and Lamba must be taught where ever Bemba is taught while Lenje must be taught where ever Tonga is taught. For broadcasting, announcers should be employed to use these languages within the seven languages. For example one announcer must be employed on the Tonga section, one Lamba and one Namwanga announcer on the Bemba section.
4. UNZA and Lusaka urban, led by UNZALA, should be the model of linguistic and ethnic unity. As such UNZA must practice linguistic and ethnic respect and respect in all its activities. No tribe or language should be allowed to dominate UNZA or Lusaka. I, for one commit to playing my humble part by introducing a course at UNZA , Philosophy of Multiculturalism, after I have done my PHD. Unfortunately, at the moment UNZA has become the breeding ground for ethnic rivalries.
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Responses to the Post editorial of 16th Jan
Now I here are my responses to various sentiments by The Post.
1. First, let us be clear what is meant by accepting a language as a ‘national ‘ one and what does it mean not to accept a language as national? The Post repeatedly stated that they merely meant ‘accepting the reality that Bemba and Nyanja languages are widely spoken’. Even this is vague. If I tell women who already know that I am a man to ‘accept me as a man’ they should ask me, ‘so what should we do to show our acceptance that you are a man?’ There should be a specific list of things that we must do to Bemba and Nyanja in our ‘accepting’ them! In mine and many people’s understanding, to accept Bemba as national is like accepting the Kwacha as legal tender. It means that no person must refuse to be paid in Kwacha within this country. To say Bemba is national means nobody in the country must refuse being addressed in Bemba, regardless of where they are in the country. And since the Post are saying only Bemba and Nyanja must be national, then the other 70 languages are not national. This in practical terms means that a Bemba speaker should go to Mongu alone, refuse to be addressed in Lozi but expect the entire majority Lozi’s there should speak Bemba to him. But a Lozi who goes to Kasama should not address the people there in Lozi but in Bemba. The Post has stated that they don’t mean taking a gun, making a decree or a law to force people to ‘accept these languages’. But The Post proposes teaching them in schools countrywide. This is impossible without using laws. The Zambian law force me to pay tax (ZRA can send police with a gun to me if I don’t pay!) which will be used to fund the teaching of Bemba and Nyanja. And many schools in Zambia make learning Zambian language compulsory. So a child will be chased from school if they refused to learn Bemba or Nyanja! It also means the entire country must give the Bemba speakers media and interpreter services as is being attempted in Lusaka. Earlier, all tribes, Tongas, Lozis, Luvales, and etc accepted Nyanja church interpreters etc. But newly arrived Copperbelt Bemba speakers refuse services in Nyanja. So in Pentecostal churches they are demanding services in Bemba. And the media have given in. Tonga actors Muzelengana and Gubwagubwa in the Kapotwe drama on MUVI-TV have reduced usage of Tonga, and the Tonga introduction song, amubaleke basobane has been replaced by a Bemba one. Even some adverts on seed are in Bemba when farmers are Tonga-Lenje. Also when the spread of these two languages is speeded by school teaching, the death of the other languages would also speed up. The Post must give examples of how practically ‘accepting’ Bemba means, otherwise readers must stick to my interpretation in the meantime!
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2. Why did the editorial, going by its very heading focus more on the Bemba language and less on Nyanja? Is it because they assume that the BRE is more against the Bemba language. So to annoy them they dare them by emphasizing on the Bemba language. By their own admission when they say no tribe is called Nyanja, Nyanja is a far more unifying factor than Bemba. No province in this country takes serious offence with Nyanja. Professors like Ali Mazrui [1] and Wole Soyinka said that a language that should be made national is not necessarily the one which the majorities who may be from one tribe speak but one which has no tribe is attached to. They both recommended Kiswahili for the whole Africa. In Uganda the Luganda and Bunyoro tribes are a majority but they chose Kiswahili.
In 2005 French President Jacques Chirac objected to English as world language and opted for Arabic. This also explains why in places like Lusaka, when say a Tonga and a Bemba each refuses to speak each other’s language they switch to Nyanja and why this very debate has concentrated against Bemba, and not against Nyanja.
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3. The Post says ‘we should realize that Bemba and Nyanja do not belong to any one tribe but all those who use them’. Correct. like a name you ‘own’ a language if you chose it. The Post is also correct that various Northern and Luapula province tribes who speak Bemba are not Bemba by tribe. The 1968 CSO statistics show that the real Bembas were only 18.6% of the Zambian population. The other tribes are Aushi, Bisa, Lala, Ngumbo, Chishinga, Kabende, Mukulu, Twa (Bangweulu), Unga, Bwile, Lunda (Luapula), Shila, Tabwa, Ambo, Luano, Swaka and Lima. Those around Mbala and Isoka; Namwangas, Mambwes, Lungus, Iwa, Tambo, Lambya Nyiha and Wandya speak Bemba but primarily use their own languages. In fact the CSO does not categorise them as Bemba speaking. Anyhow, the point is that if these people chose Bemba then they own it. So The Post admits that languages are owned after all, except not necessarily by a tribe! Even all the 26 tribes in Western province own Lozi since they chose it. So what criterion is The Post using to chose Bemba as be national and not Lozi since both languages were chosen and owned’ by people who are from different tribes? Or is what Northerners chose more important than what Westerners chose? Even if some people in Lusaka also chose to ‘own’ Bemba, why should it be imposed on the Goba and Shonas of Chirundi who chose to ‘own ‘Tonga?
Since The Post said there are Lozis who speak Bemba even in Mongu they could reply that there are more Bemba speakers in Mongu than Lozi speakers in Kasama. Well, firstly the Lozi within Mongu who speak Bemba are not speaking it to follow Lozi speakers; they speak it as a matter of hospitality to Bemba speaking visitors who have no grasp of Lozi, with the hope that in future these people will speak Lozi. They have supported the BRE, as The Post itself revealed, because they don’t want to be taken for granted and to be made to appear as if they speak Bemba because they dislike Lozi. Secondly, very few people speak Bemba in Mongu to justly that Bemba should now be ‘national’ there. The Post argument can infact simply discourage non-Bemba people from using it if they feel that this might mean declaring it a national language. Actually that editorial has generally been criticized even by some people who speak Bemba, especially ‘real’ Bembas. When they speak it, especially the civilized ones, they do not do so with a view that it is a national language. They are quite ready to speak or accept any language within this country. Thirdly, the people who go to Mongu must learn Lozi. There is no way they can go there and expect local people to change to suit them. Fourthly, if there are Bemba speakers in Mongu but no Lozi speakers in Kasama then it justifies why the Lozi want to intensify knowledge of Lozi within Mongu. People who speak Bemba in Mongu leant if from the Copperbelt or northern regions. So if people who visit Mongu learn Lozi they will also be able to speak it when they return to Kasama and find another Lozi speaker there.
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4. The Post says Bemba is the most widely spoken. True, but this number does not need to be exaggerated. The 1968 census say 56% were able to speak Bemba. Being Able to speak a language is not the same as speaking it predominantly. Far less than 30% used Bemba predominantly, 23.2% were able to speak Nyanja, 23.2% Tonga and 17.2% Lozi. This means 44% were not even able to speak Bemba. The 1990 Census on Population and Housing which Prof. Kashoki also cited on 25 January to The Post showed that only 2.076 million (less than 29.9 %) of Zambians predominantly used Bemba in their daily communication., which means 69.1 did not use Bemba predominantly. The 2000 census shows that only 38% predominantly use Bemba related ( or a collection of all languages of Luapula, Northern and Copperbelt provinces), which means those who use actual Bemba are far less. The rest, 62%, the majority, of Zambians did not use Bemba related languages predominantly. More over those speaking Bemba are concentrated in its traditional regions on the Copperbelt, Northern and Luapula provinces. It is spoken in the northern parts of central province and begins to give way to Nyanja (urban areas), Lenje and Tonga (rural areas). It has also entered Solwezi and Lusaka firstly because of the collapse of the Coppberlt and because of stereotypes about being a symbol of ‘urbanization’; but still it has still not overtaken Kaonde and Nyanja respectively and in any case it looses its force in Lusaka, since it becomes a mixture of Nyanja and Bemba. A language spoken by the majority but mostly confined to its ethnic regions cannot be declared to other areas; otherwise Mandarin spoken by 1.2 billion Chinese but confined to china would be the world language. Also it is not only Bemba that has challenged Nyanja in Lusaka. Tonga-Lenje has also entered because of the collapse of the farming industry. The Bantu-Botatwe (Tonga-Ila-Lenje/Solis) are the majority in Lusaka as a whole province. If today they all overcame their fears and spoke only their languages loudly to anybody, like the Bemba speakers do, Tonga-Lenje might suddenly be the most spoken language in Lusaka city.
This shows that Bemba understanding and usage levels have not and will not reach a stage to be declared national. In Zimbabwe 80% speak Shona, but even Ndebele spoken by just 15% is recognized as a national language.[2] In Switzerland only 0.7 % speak Romanish and 4.1% speak Italian (majority speak German and French) but these are also promoted. [3]In South Africa it is not only four languages accepted as national as claimed by The Post. Eleven languages; English, Afrikaans, Ndebele, Xhosa, Zulu, Sepedi, Sotho, Tswana, Swati, Venda and Tsonga are all official.[4] You can address the nation, even parliament in any. But here in Zambia we refuse to accept Tonga as national even when now probably around 30% can speak it and actively spoken by 15.6 %! We must ignore Lozi which is actively spoken by 9.1%, Lunda 2.6%, Luvale 5.4 %, Kaonde 2.9%, Tumbuka 3.9%, Lamba 2.2%, Lenje (2.0%), Namwanga by 1.7% and Mambwe 1.6% to pay way for Bemba and Nyanja and expect to unite this nation?
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5. The Post’s claim that Copperbelt is not Bemba tribe dominated but united by Bemba language is faulty. Firstly, research by Mubanga Kashoki [5] reveal that during migration to the mines between 1940 and 1960 the most sources of labour was from Northern/Luapula, followed by Northwestern, Central , Eastern, Copperbelt, Western and Southern provinces and that the Chinsali district population even reduced by 19%. And common sense show that the majority of names of people growing up on Coppebelt, be it politicians, musicians, sportsmen and even call boys bear names from Luapula and Northern provinces.
Secondly, the Bemba language may have ‘unified’ the urban people because they have no reason to protest because they simply ‘migrated’ there. This is why some Lozi people who speak Bemba on the Copperbelt have written to The Post to support the BRE emphasis to promote Lozi in Western province. Dr Kaunda said he did not remember when language tensions become a problem in his tenure (Post 20th Jan). He made it appear as if only the BRE are trying to protect their language. Let him deny historical records whether on March 26 1968 scores of Lamba –speaking people in Mpongwe, Senior Chief Mushili and Chief Chiwala did not demonstrate to him with posters to his face demanding the use of Lamba in Coppperbelt schools; rejecting Bemba.[6] Let him deny whether in 1971 he never appointed Chief Undi of the Chewa people as chairman of a panel to investigate ethnic and language conflicts between the Luvale and Lunda in Chavuma, and then made Chavuma a ‘sub-boma’ on 19th April 1991.[7] In fact earlier in 1952, the colonial Government had declared a State of Emergency in Chavuma because of these disputes. Dr Kaunda even makes an exaggerated statement that all Post editorials are correct, when The Post themselves just told us they don’t claim monopoly of wisdom! Anyhow to date the Lamba have continued to press for their language to President Mwanawasa, who has a Lamba mother, after he assumed office in 2001. On 8th January 2002, I had written an article to The Post newspaper in which I argued that the Zambian Republican Presidency must rotate among all provinces except Copperbelt and Lusaka because these regions no longer had a clearly distinct tribe. On 10th January a Lamba citizen, Love Mtesa wrote in strong protest: ‘Mbozi must know that the Copperbelt province has fifteen traditional chiefs, including senior chiefs. The people of this province have a language, which was written long before other Zambian languages were written. Their language was taught in schools before independence and they have a Bible in the local language, which again was written long before the Bibles in many other Zambian languages were written. They have a culture, which some modern politicians have tried to suppress but which is being revived. They need to be treated at the same level as all other tribes in this country. They are capable of reacting in one way or another…. (Mbozi’s statement) could bring confusion, which could easily bring civil strife in our otherwise peaceful country. …’.
Similarly the Namwanga are also aggrieved! The very Post editorial of 18th Jan stated the various groups of Eastern and Western provinces are united around Nyanja and Lozi, respectively. The Post said that the various tribes of Northern and Luapula provinces developed a sense of oneness because the Bemba language unites them to become ‘one Bemba tribe’. So since The Post thinks speaking Bemba can make you part of the Bemba tribe then all the tribes, Tonga, Lozi, Ngonis etc will belong to the Bemba tribe if the start accepting Bemba! Alas! This is precisely what they don’t want! And nothing strange about this! Tell the Bemba tribes to speak Lozi and be called as belonging to the ‘Lozi tribe’ and see if they will agree!
Besides Copperbelt urban so-called linguistic unity, which The Post cherishes, cannot be a model for Zambia. Non-Bemba speaking regions – parts of central, Lusaka, Eastern, Western, Southern and North-western - see nothing special about the so-called ‘unity of tribes’ on the urban Copperbelt. Unity in what? What did they achieve? If Copperbelt is a success why are they leaving it? Unity in prejudices against non-Bemba speakers? Copperbelt urban has been noted by many Zambians to be the most intolerant of non-Bemba speakers. Even politically Copperbelt rejected Harry Nkumbula (a Tonga-Ila) in 1963, but accepted the Kaunda Kapwepwe team of Bemba speakers. In 1968 they rejected Nalumino Mundia ( a Lozi) of UP but heavily voted for a Bemba, Simon Kapwewpwe, to win the Mufulira West bye-election in 1971 even when his UPP campaign centered on Bemba ‘salvation’ from alleged state victimization. In 2001 Coppebelt rejected the highly qualified Anderson Mazoka (a Tonga) only to vote for a pro-Chiluba Micheal Sata (a Bemba) in 2006 even if he, like Kapwepwe, centred his campaign on Bemba salvation! [8]Unity in negative habits is destructive. Aren’t we told that God created many languages to prevent people from uniting to build the Tower of Babel against His will?

Bemba national language will give Bemba a political advantage, like it does on the Copperbelt. Some people complained of and refused to vote for Mazoka for fear of Tonga-domination just because of his nkuyumayuma Tonga song, but Sata gets voted for using all his addresses in Bemba! The use of the Lozi dress as national dress, as espoused by The Post, can’t be compared with language! No country quarrels with dress but if space is given I can give data that in every country at least one group is aggrieved over language marginalization.
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6. The Post says Bemba and Nyanja spread naturally, ‘without any investment in them.’ This is obviously not true. Bemba language spread through outright conquest of smaller tribes and incorporating them into the larger Bemba-speaking kingdom before colonialism. To start with, the context of who the Bemba people are and what the Bemba language is all about has to be explained. Strictly speaking, the Bemba people are not the ones that arrived from Baluba in the Congo in the mid- 1600. The Bemba has always lived as a small tribe somewhere north of the Chambeshi river in present day Kasama. In 1650, a group of warriors from the Buluba region in Congo DR crossed the Luapula River. Led by two warriors, Chiti and Nkole, they conquered this Bemba tribe, assimilated it into their kingdom and began calling themselves Bemba. It is not known whether this Buluba group introduced the modern day Chibemba language or whether they adopted it from their conquered group.
Anyhow, calling themselves Bemba, they conquered the many tribes they found in northern Zambia namely Mambwe under Chief Nsokolo, the Namwanga under Chief Chikanamulilo , the Bisa in Chinsali District , the Lungu under Chief Zambe , as well as some Fipa and Sukuma tribes. Many smaller groups have been so absorbed into the Bemba tribe that they recognise the Bemba language as their own.
However, the larger groups such as the Mambwe and the Namwanga still maintain the distinct languages and some, especially the cultural conscious ones, refuse to be classified as Bemba. The Mambwe, unlike the Bemba who came from Congo DR, are recorded to have originated from the northern territories of East African. They settled in the areas around Mbala and Isoka in Zambia more than 250 years ago and at Sumbawanga in southwest Tanzania. Unlike the Bemba who are matrilineal the Mambwe are patrilineal and their language is more similar to Inamwanga, Iwa, Lambya, Tambo and Nyiha than with Bemba. Their first chief (Mwene Mambwe) was Changala who came from Kola in Angola and became their chief at their request. The current Mambwe chiefs are Nsokolo, Chindo, Chilesya, Mwamba and Mpenza i Fwamba. Conquest is an investment in guns, spears, bows and arrows. When you rule over people you influence your language. So if Bemba’s initial spread by conquest then it s initial spread was by ‘guns’.
This was followed by Bemba being made the official vernacular taught on the Copperbelt, Luapula, Northern and parts of Central Province just as Nyanja is in Lusaka and Eastern Province! To develop these languages government invests billions of money; to teach them government pays the teachers. In fact the reason government is reluctant to teach other languages like Tumbuka, Lamba and Lenje is because it is costly.
The Lamba language was the first to be written and recognised during the BSA rule on the Copperbelt Province by Reverend William Arthur Philips of the South African Baptist Mission who opened the first mission in Lamba territory at Kafulafuta near Chief Katanga in 1905. Another mission was later opened at Lwamala, 160 km west of Kabwe and a school was opened at Lushiwashi in 1920. In 1935 the Scannavian Baptist Mission opened a mission at Mpongwe and at Fawile Hills. All these were using Lamba as medium of instruction in the schools.
Hyms, translated bible scriptures and teaching materials for schools were printed in Lamba. Efforts to develop the language were so rigorous that by 1937 professor C.D Doke of the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg who worked in the area had produced six huge volumes of the Lamba-English Dictionary that is still found in the University of Zambia library today.
But in 1929 the Department of Native Education of the colonial government abandoned the teaching of Lamba in Copperbelt schools in preference for Bemba which it thought was spoken by more people in the northern regions of Zambia. The Lamba resisted were but ignored.
Now, isn’t teaching Bemba to millions of non-Bemba children not on the Copperbelt where many people are concentrated not an investment? The Post might reply, that even the Lamba people speak Bemba ‘voluntarily without anybody pointing a gun at them’. But what option do they have? They find everybody there speaking Bemba and nobody appreciates Lamba! Imposition doesn’t always require a gun! Why do we say whites imposed English on Red Indians in America? Did they carry a gun? They initially banned teaching of Red Indian languages, made state laws so that any immigrant, be it from Germany, Italy, Ireland etc only use English. This time if a Red Indian uses his language in New York nobody appreciates it!
Even radio stations promoted Bemba more than other languages. In 1957, the Central African Broadcasting Station, which broadcast for the entire Federation of Rhodesia and Nyansaland, broadcast gave more airtime to Bemba (15%) and Nyanja (14%). Other languages were not yet recognized. Then after Tonga and Lozi were added the Zambia Broadcasting Services (ZBS) still gave more airtime to Bemba (13. %) and Ninja (12.6%). Tonga and Lozi were given 9.7% and Lunda (4.8%) Luvale (4.7%) and Kaonde (4.5%) had less airtime.[9] So all these language groups paid equal taxes just to promote Bemba and Nyanja.
Another mode of spreading Bemba is social, by bullying and indoctrinating people to hate their own languages and love Bemba in order to appear urbanized. In names, times and incidents. I can disclose if challenged. In a research of the teaching of Nyanja in Lusaka schools Prof. Robert Serpell found that Bemba children did badly in Nyanja subject because they regarded Nyanja as less prestigious.[10] This happens even at the highest level. In 2002 President Mwanawasa, to prove he did not hate Bembas said, ‘I speak Bemba more than I speak my own language’. In reaction, opposition PF President Micheal Sata, a Bemba, replied in a sarcastic way saying it just showed how lost the President was. He questioned how Zambians could trust a president who speak other people’s language and ignore his own. Yet on 3rd August 2006, President Mwanawasa warned Sata in a face –to-face confrontation in Bemba saying ‘Nga watumpa filekubipila apa pene (things will sour for you right here if you are funny). Sata equally replied in Bemba but when the President began to speak in his own Lamba language Sata replied sarcastically that the President was now speaking ‘fitundu’ (sinister languages) which he (Sata) could not understand. Now if Sata can call a President’s speech ‘fitundu’ what more can, and do, street Bemba speaking boys treat a lone Lamba, Tonga or Lozi speaker on the streets? Sata, after calling the president’s language chitundu, had even the audacity to advise politicians to use local languages where they go to campaign when he has so far proved to be the worst campaigner of Bemba linguistic hegemony. How many letters and articles, including Dr Neo Simutanyi (Post 29.Jan.2007) in The Post complained over his addressing Lusaka audiences in Bemba which millions of compound people don’t speak? Like on the constitution and ZANACO sale, he wants to be champion against the very thing he promoted! In their notion to portray Bemba as a symbol of modernity; the Bemba speakers say Ichibemba chimi chimo fye ne chisungu (Bemba is same as English). That is why they call in Bemba to English programmes. As Philosopher J.S Mill reminds us, human beings, especially young people, fear being ridiculed a lot. Fist year UNZA students get indoctrinated that to be elite they must use Bemba. Only a year or so ago UNZA Radio reported that two Tongas speaking and two Bemba speaking students physically fought it out when the Bemba speakers allegedly tried to stop Tonga speakers using their language. In 1970, researcher Moses Musonda found that only 29% understood Bemba at UNZA against 40.9% Nyanja. But now thousands of Lusaka children will speak Nyanja as they go to Kabulonga, Munali, DK schools but the moment they enter UNZA they switch to Bemba. Then they continue this in offices. This is why there is more Nyanja in compounds in Lusaka and more Bemba in posh offices. Image deception is the best tool of submerging the masses with inferiority complexes. Even Nigerian professor Efurosibina Adegbija noted in his 1994 book that the Bemba have used their numerical advantage to establish a hegemony in Zambia. [11]
Even the English and French languages have spread decrees and force by colonial masters. Yes, a language may appear to spread naturally to you if you do not look at history. If I took kapinga grass to your field, uproot the ‘indigenous’ mangwegele grass that I find and plant it at the most fertile part of your field and later it spreads ówn its own’ throughout your field, can I convince you after 20 years that it is spreading own its own? The Post say they also ówn’ English since they now use it. Fine, but can they then have the right to go to Senegal and declare it national to replace French? Even to say that because we fought the British using English then we must fight Bemba tribalists using Bemba is not convincing. If this is the case why doesn’t the Post argue Zambians to fight what they perceive as Lozi tribalism using the Lozi language? No Zambian opposed English precisely because after they colonized us we could not agree on a local language. Besides English gives us international exposure. But since when has the Bemba colonized the Lozi and what international exposure can Bemba give them? In fact even Lozi has some international exposure, since it is an indegous official language in Namibian broadcasting, and varieties of it a spoken in Botswana and South Africa. In fact Tonga is recognized in Zimbabwe and its dialects present in Mozambique and Malawi and South Africa. Nyanja in Malawi and Lunda and Luvale in Angola while Bemba is not a national language anywhere in the sub-region, not even in Congo DR. Even the statement that only Bemba and Nyanja are key to national development is exaggerated. Why are Kasama and Chipata not the most developed places in Zambia? Actually the spread of these languages in cities was because while the then economically strong Bantu-Botatwe refused to work for white people from the regions where these languages come from moved to other regions in search of economic gains not found in their indigenous regions! Bemba and Nyanja are just y are like any other language in Zambia? And we should not be mislead that English is accepted world wide. The French-speaking people of Quebec in Canada are ready to secede just to reject English in their territory. Even in the US, the states of California and Puerto Rico and to some extent, Florida are actually rejecting English as official in those states, preferring Spanish.[12] The EU Member states reject English that is why the EU has 20 languages as official.[13] Even in Asia people know English but its use is reducing there. So if you adopt a language that is yours, each one should adopt their own. The Post may ask me why Tonga and Lozi are not spreading much even if they also get state investment. Well, actually while Bemba is spreading southwards because Bemba speakers are mainly traders looking for expanding southern towns Tonga is expanding northwards in rural areas right up to Mkushi because Tongas are mainly farmers looking for better rains. Besides, Nyanja and Bemba are taught in cities, giving them advantage.
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7. The editorial says those ‘narrow-minded’ people who hate the Bemba tribe may get away with it but if they extended this to the Bemba language will choke with frustration and envy as the use of the language continues to spread across the country ‘unabated.’ Why such confrontational statements? Did even the BRE say they hated the Bemba tribe? Since the BRE also banned Nyanja why doesn’t The Post also say the BRE hate the Nyanja tribe, if it exists? The Post statement can incite the Bemba to feel that Lozi people hate them. If The Post has specific names of people who hate the Bemba tribe, let them give the public. And who envies the spread of Bemba language? In fact it is actually those who think the entire Zambia might one day be Bemba speaking like Copperbelt who will ‘ choke with frustration and envy ’ since they are the ones who dislike Lozi or Tonga around them. Instead what is likely to happen is that all these languages will intermingle and one that is more neutral will emerge, since we don’t normally write these languages but use them informally. This is already happening in Lusaka. A new language Nyanja-Bemba mixture is emerging. In Southern Province,Tonga-Nyanja and in Western Province Lozi-Nyanja and in Solwezi Kaonde-Bemba. Eventually, some lingua franca like Kiswahili will emerge. To use terms such as narrow-minded gives an impression that The Post is warning anybody in advance that ‘íf you differ with this editorial you shall be attacked’. Even The Post editorials and mine are just personal opinions and we must allow and encourage opposing views. Many people opposed to The Post editorial are not attempting to stop the ‘spread’ of the Bemba language. What we are saying is that all the languages, including Bemba, must spread countrywide so that people can express themselves freely anywhere. If anything the narrow-minded person is one who thinks that just because he speaks Bemba then everybody else does or should.
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8. The argument that there isn’t much recorded Lozi music should not be exaggerated. Key singers like JK, Angela Nyirenda, Ricky Ililonga, Shatel, Smocky Hangala, Chris Chali, the Barotse band etc. The broadcasting stations in Lusaka and Copperbelt in fact has a habit of playing down songs that are sung in other languages than Nyanja and Bemba. If Angela sings an album with a Bemba and a Lozi song they will play the Bemba and Nyanja one more, thereby discouraging the composing and buying of music in other languages. Furthermore, the insistence of playing more Lozi music on the Radio Liseli will force many musicians to play Lozi songs and give profit to Lozi singers not now where Bemba/Nanja singers whose language is widespread should make profits alone. It has happened in Southern Province. As Post columnist Elvis Zuma correctly observed on 16th June 2006, the mainstream media ignore Tonga music and concerts. But since it opened Radio Chikuni has been recording and playing more Tonga music and the music industry in that region has spread like wildfire. Southerners have there own stars such as Mashombe, Green Mamba, Kalonda, Chibweza, Nsabata bands etc. People there and are not bothered when not a single Tonga song has ever came out on the Top 20 charts of Lusaka radio stations. Because of this even Lusaka radio station like Hone and ZNBC radio 4 now play some Tonga banjo music. Even the Rhumba that the Post says Zambians enjoy spread because Mobutu Seseseko decreed that nobody should play foreign music within Congo. So the editorial is not correct to say that ‘arts don’t develop by decrees’. They even say that Lozi musicians like Ricky Illilonga sang some songs in Bemba. So what? Singers are simply looking for markets. When JK sang in Shona did it mean that he did not love his Bemba language?
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9. The editorial questions the legal basis for the BRE to order Radio Liseli. Yes, the BRE has not legal basis in the current Zambian laws because the Zambian Government violated the provisions of the Barotse Agreement in the first place, another issue which the Post provokes when they try to ignore it. The BRE has the right to demand restoration of the Baroste Agreement signed on 19th May 1964. If such as serious agreement can be ignored just to promote so far useless Zambian nationalism that has impoverished Barotseland, killed its language and culture violate its land rights granted in article 5 of the Barotse Agreement with legislation such as the 1995 Lands Act, then they have the right to fight for their rights. The Baroste Agreement does give the BRE rights to persevere ‘customary matters’; language and culture (article 3 (i)). Press Freedom is within a cultural context. Article 3 of the The Barotse Agreement allows the BRE allowed to ‘make laws’ relating to Barotseland. Besides The Post cannot pretend that the BRE has no influence in Western Province. They have more authority over their people more than The Post itself or the Central Government. That is why central government officials make it a point to visit the Litunga from time to time. Even over this very issue, is it not the Post newspaper itself that reported on Jan 16th and 18th Jan that many ordinary people, in Western Province have celebrated the ban on Bemba and Nyanja music and even Barotse Band musician Mboo Kuta apologized for earlier criticizing the BRE?
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10. The Post argument that Zambians who meet abroad use Bemba is over-generalized. It depends on whom the Post editors meet abroad. Some use Nyanja, others Bemba, others Lozi, others even Kaonde. I met Goodwell Lungu (now TIZ), Joseph Munsanje etc in the UK and we were all using Tonga. If footballers Isack Chansa and our greet Christopher Katongo meet at Jomo Cosmos they might greet shani bakaamba in Bemba; but if Clive Hachilensa and Kennedy Mweene meet at Free State Stars they may greet kamwaamba badaala in Tonga. Besides if a Lozi and a Bemba spoke Bemba in the UK it does not follow that they should go about using it in Sesheke where everybody uses Lozi.
There is nothing primitive about preserving your language. In fact what The Post advocated for is at variance with the goals of the University of Zambia Linguistic Department and its Association (UNZALA), the policy of Government which promotes several local languages and even that of UNESCO which in an effort to preserve threatened languages has declared 21 February as the Mother Language Day. We need to get statements from these institutions over this. The notion that a country unites better with only one or two languages is outdated and challenged by almost every modern researcher. In Zambia we must impart in our children the Swish culture. In Switzerland every child is taught to appreciate linguistics diversity. So they use German (73.4%), French (20.5%), Italian (4.1%) and Romanish (0.7) side by side without problems. Every Zambian must be encouraged to speak at least all the seven major languages and use them anywhere. It should be seen as a sign of primitive and tribalism if a person can live in a multi-lingual society but refuses to speak the available local languages.
To be blunt Bemba speakers must be the first ones to change their attitudes and appreciate being addressed in and speak other languages. Also the other groups, such as the Tonga, Lozi, Kaonde etc must learn to speak their languages right in major cities, especially Southern, Lusaka and Copperbelt. Zambians must treat all languages as equal and accept them in major cities especially Lusaka and Copperbelt. Eventually, a new language will emerge which no tribe can claim hegemony over. I await more debate.
austinmbozi@yahoo.co.uk



Recommended Readings

Adegbija, Efurosibina. Language Attitudes in Sub-Saharan Africa.1994. Multiligual Matters LTD. Clevedon. Philadelpia. Adelaide.

Bamgbose, Ayo. Language and Nation: The Language Question in Sub-Saharan Africa. 1991, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.

Calvet,Louis-Jean. Language Wars and Linguistic Politics. 1998. Oxford University Press

Chisanga, Teresa. D.Phil. An Investigation into the Form and Function of Education English in Zambia as a Possible Indigenised Non-native Variety. 1987. Unpublished thesis, University of Zambia, Lusaka

Cohen, Ronald. “The Assimilation of Aliens among the Tonga” in From Tribe to Nation in Africa. Edited by Ronald Cohen. 1970. Chandler Publicity Company. Pennsylvania, USA

Coulmas,Florian (e.d).A Language Policy for the European Community. 1991. Mouton de Gruyter, New York


Emenanjo, Nolou (e.d) Multilingualism, Minority Languages and Language Policy in Nigeria. 1990. Central Books Limited, Bendel State, Nigeria.

Government of Zambia, Ministry of Education. National Policy on Education. May 1996, Zambia Educational Publishing House


Gray, John (e.d) John Stuart Mill: On Liberty and Other Essays. 1991. Oxford University Press, Oxford

Halemba, Andrizej. Fr. Mambwe-English Dictionary. 1994. Mission Press, Ndola, Zambia.

Hertzer, Joyce. 0. A Sociology of Language. 1965. Randon House. New York

Kashoki, Mubanga. ‘Town Bemba: A sketch of its Main Characteristics’ in Africa Social Research No 13. Institute of African Studies. 1972. University of Zambia, Lusaka

Kashoki, Mubanga and Sirarpi Ohannessian (e.d). Language In Zambia. 1978. International African Institute, London.

Kashoki,Mubanga. ‘Is Mubanga Kashoki Promoting Bemba? The Problem of Promoting African Languages in Zambia.’ In Zango: Zambia Journal of Contemporary Issues. Vol. 10. 1982. University of Zambia Press, Lusaka

Kashoki E. Mubanga. The Factor of Language in Zambia. 1990. Kenneth Kaunda Foundation. Lusaka, Zambia

Kashoki,E. Mubanga. ‘Language policy:language,law and human rights vis-a-viz the place and role of non-official languages in a democracy in multilingual settings.’ The paper presented at the Third International Conference of the Academy of Language Law held in South Africa in April 1992. The theme was ‘Language,Law and Equality’.

Kashoki, E. Mubanga. ‘Language Policy in Multilingual Countries vis-à-vis Language Maintenance, Language Shift and Language Death’. The Journal of Humanities. Vol.2 1998-1999. UNZA Press , Lusaka.


Kymlicka, Will. Multicultural Citizenship. 1995. Clarendon Press, Oxford

Lege’re , Karsten & Fitchat, Sandra (e.d). Talking Freedom: Language and Democratisation in the SADC region. 2002, Gamsberg Macmillan Publishers, Windhoek, Namibia. ( This authors in this book are members of the Linguistics Association for SADC Universities. The editor-in-Chief is Femi Dele Akindele).

Lukhero,M.B. Ngoni Nc’wala Ceremony. 1985. Zambia Publishing House, Lusaka

Mazrui, Ali. Cultural Engineering and National-Building in East Africa. 1972. Northweastern University Press, Evanston, Illinois. USA

Mazrui, Ali & Tidy Micheal. Nationalism and New States in Africa. 1984. Heinemann. International. Oxford. U. K

Mbozi, Austin. Cultural Diversity in Zambian Communities: A paper presented to the National Workshop On Youth And Intercultural Dialogue in Everyday Life organised by the Zambia National Commission for UNESCO. Wednesday 18th February 2003. Unpublished.

Museveni, Yoweri. 1997. Sowing the Mustard Seed: The Struggle for Freedom and Democracy in Uganda. Macmillan Education, London

M’kunga, Chiwomba. Reconstructing the Creation of Ethnicity in the Central Province of Pre-colonial Zambia: The case of the Lenje. A paper presented to a history department seminar at the University of Zambia on 5th May 2004 (unpublished)

Niddrie, Davis. L. South Africa: Nation or Nations?. 1968. D.Van Nostrand Company, inc. Toronto. Canada


Ohannessian, Sirarpi. The teaching of Zambian Languages and Preparations of Teachers for Language Teaching in Primary Schools: In Mubanga Kashoki’s Language In Zambia. 1978. International African Institute, London.

Robbins, Robert.H. etal (e.d). Endangered Languages. 1991. BERG. Oxford/New York

Sangambo, Mose. The History the Luvale People and their Chieftainship. 1979, Robert J. Papstein Art Hansen. Los Angeles, USA

Schmid, Carol. The Politics of Language: Conflict, Identity, and Cultural Pluralism in Perspective. 2001. Oxford University Press, Oxford

Serpell, Robert. Comprehension of Nyanja by Lusaka School Children: In Mubanga Kashoki’s Language In Zambia. 1978. International African Institute, London


Snelson, P.D. Education Development in Northern Rhodesia 1883-1945. 1970. Desmond Snelson. Ndola, Zambia

Tembo, Vincent, Mark. A History of Central and Southern Africa. 1990. Zambia Printing Company. Lusaka

The Barosteland Agreement 1965. Presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations by Command of Her Majesty, 17th May 1964

UNESCO. Cultural Diversity: Common Heritage and Plural Identities. 2002. UNESCO

Wele, Patrick. Likumbi Lya Mize and other Luvale Traditional Ceremonies.1993. Zambia Educational Publishing House. Lusaka

Zwane, Japhet. The Administrative Role in the Introduction of African Languages as Primary Medium of Instruction in African Schools: An Explanatory Study. 1977. University Microfilms International,USA


[1] Mazrui 1972
[2] Legere 2002:243-249
[3] Schmid, 2001: 127-132
[4] Legere, 2002:98
[5] Kashoki,1990: 113, 119,133
[6] See Goodwin Mwaangilwa’s biography of Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe
[7] Wele 1993: 70-77
[8] It is true that Copperbelt residents have in the past voted for many non-Bemba s at parliamentary level. The issues here are at presidential level which mainly is the basis for inter-tribal voting rivalries. In Zambia voters do generally vote for anybody as long as that person belongs to the party of the president of their choice.
[9] As compiled by Graham Mytton in Kashoki (e.d) 1978
[10] Kashoki (editor) 1978: 152
[11] Adegbija 1994:92. Adegbija also cites the Amharic of Ethiopia, the Wolof in Senegal , the Akan in Ghana as well as the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa in Nigeria as behaving like the Bemba.
[12] Schmid 2001. This whole book discusses this matter. But see 168-177 on the Spanish problem
[13] The EU official languages are Czech, Estonian, Hungarian, Latvian, Lithuianian, Maltese, Polish, Slovak, Slovene, English, French, Spanish, Danish, Germany, Greek, Italian, Dutch, Portueguese, Finish and Swedish. More languages will be adopted as the EU expands.

'JUS AD BELLUM’ – BY DECEPTION THOU SHALT DO WAR IS THE OPERATIONAL MANTRA.

'JUS AD BELLUM’ – BY DECEPTION THOU SHALT DO WAR IS THE OPERATIONAL MANTRA.

By Namakando Nalikando Sinyama

The assassination of the Hamas leader in Dubai echoes to the fullest extent possible the implication of that all too familiar Latin maxim 'Jus ad bellum'. These are the many events that have historically been credited with having sparked off some of the deadliest conflicts the world has ever seen. The party that feels its national sovereignty has been injured by a particular incident resorts to what it considers justified military action as a means of winning their honor back. As to whether this is the best way of resolving conflicts by the Homo sapien species (which is Latin translated to mean, ‘Thinking Man’) is not the point of this piece of writing. If human beings, self-acclaimed to be the most superior form of life in the entire universe decide to reach the end of their thinking processes or choose not to think at all and pick up arms to slaughter each other it is not my concern just now. "War is a product of the cruelty and selfishness of man. If all of us used the goodwill endowed in us by God for the benefit of our fellowmen, the effort and wealth expended on military training and armament would have been unnecessary. There is no doubt that the wealth wasted in the destruction of humans could, if properly utilized, have contributed enormously towards the welfare of men and the world-wide advancement of civilization." - His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Sellasie I

Through out history it has been discovered that for some convenient reasons these events have tended to be ‘staged’ or orchestrated by other parties who may not be active participants in the resultant skirmish but have vested interest in the outcome. They do this so that other nations can go to war on their behalf. It is these events that have created the justification, primer or conducive environment for the wars to break out. They portend a moral premise for destroying your previously perceived enemies even through a disproportionate display of force if need be. An historical example I may give is the Bahia de cocinos that is the infamous,
'Bay of Pigs' incident. What most do not know or realise is that there was also a botched attempt of plotting to blow up a plane load of supposed western college kids above the Atlantic so that the blame could rest on a perceived stubborn island state. The result would have been.....War!

The heartless, inconsiderate and mischievous use of other nation’s passports by those assassins however, is a dangerous ploy that was clearly meant to seriously endanger the nationals of the countries whose travel documents were dubiously used to stage a daring coldblooded murder of a member of a political group in a foreign land. The direct superficial consequence may have merely been to strain the relations between those countries and this group. What we do know though is that it would have had far reaching military ramifications and this by my humble reckoning is exactly what was planned. The huge portion of blame would have been heaped on the Dubai administration by Hamas for having seemingly collaborated and actively facilitated the hit.

Hamas, after being so aggrieved would have sought to retaliate against the nations and these nations would have banded together to annihilate Hamas and further isolate them. As a consequence of this, possibly dragging Hezbollah into a spiral of an endless war. Such an eventuality it must be appreciated would eventually bring in the now almost nuclear Iran! Why do they (Iran) not hurry their nuclear program in pursuit of The Bomb because we want them to offer a stabilizing effect in the Middle East and keep rogue nations in their place? This should consequently make these belligerent states re-think any funny ideas of attacking the revolutionary guard. Am i being too melodramatic? I do not know, it is just that the thought of how they had Saddam hang after a very suspicious and 'smartly' executed 9/11 attack on America is too clear for even the unschooled to see their machinations. There is a glaring question that the world evidently or rather conveniently chose to ignore, which is, what was the link between 9/11 attacks and The Iraqi regime(false claims of WMDs aside)?

This stability would happen as a direct result of the positively polarizing effect of M.A.D (Mutually Assured Destruction) especially as it existed during the cold war era between the US and USSR. What occurred then was that we saw relative peace on the planet because either party was reluctant to wage war against the other because they were equally capable of dissipating their opponents with the use of nukes. The globally spread interests of these super powers were secured thus. Kindly contrast this with what is happening now that there is only one super power having unchecked cart-blanche to do as they please, bulldozing smaller nations into submission and murdering their heads of state even shoving demon(cracy) down these people’s consciences.

What baffles me is the utter imprudence and total lack of obvious tact in the whole assassination plot. Hamas in my mind does not have any clear belligerence against those nations they were trying to implicate. Hamas has only aided in one way or the other the mujahedeens and other members of the ummar ably fighting any occupationist forces oppressing Muslims where ever they may be but nothing directly antagonistic towards these nations.

Even when they managed to eliminate their target, the full result was not and should not be realized. I hereby call upon all nations that have hitherto been blinded and chose to look away and render unquestionable support to them to reconsider their stance. This incident should be investigated further and when the truth is finally known by people of the peace loving world they should be isolated and no more of their country's tax payers money should be spent on supporting them. Granted, that they wanted him for some previous murders of their people but wittingly, in a very vile way dragging other nations into their activities is very evil and personally am not surprised because i know better. The practical precept of applied ethics is you can never kill your way to peace! The citizens of this state perpetrating these acts should bring their misleaders to account for committing heinous crimes against the state and recklessly jeopardizing their existence where ever they find themselves in the world. I honestly do think it is about time humanity evoked the massive power of ordinary citizens in deciding the course world politics. Am here not referring to the sham of an inquiry recently held in the UK over the IRAQ War and Britain’s involvement. Why waste task payer’s money on a toothless exercise? Who exactly were they trying to impress by staging that show of hypocritical rectitude?

It is my solemn wish that they eventually learn the wisdom in the principle of ‘Cause and Effect’. The world will reach a point soon where they will give up on the Middle East and this will ultimately unleash the fury of Armageddon due to a few selfish nations that are childish and afflicted with a severe case of psychiatric and socio-pathic attention seeking syndrome.

MY MANUAL OF STEREO-TYPING NATIONALITIES

On a group of beautiful deserted islands in the middle of nowhere, the following people are suddenly stranded by, as you might expect, a shipwreck: 2 Italian men and 1 Italian woman2 French men and 1 French woman2 German men and 1 German woman2 Greek men and 1 Greek woman2 English men and 1 English woman2 Bulgarian men and 1 Bulgarian woman2 Japanese men and 1 Japanese woman2 Chinese men and 1 Chinese woman2 American men and 1 American woman2 Irish men and 1 Irish woman One month later on these same absolutely stunning deserted islands in the middle of nowhere, the following things have occurred:

THEY ARE FOLLOWED BY MY INTERPRETATION OF WHAT HAPPENED IN BRACKETS

/*One Italian man killed the other Italian man for the Italian woman.
(For me this shows the Italian’s over reliance on violence as a way of solving problems. This character trait is forever immortalized in Hollywood as Mafia pictures when the code of La Cosa Nostra is lived to the letter in protecting La Familia.)
/*The two French men and the French woman are living happily together in a ménage-a-trois. (Typical of French society, they will always be revered for their socio-liberalism and their near obsession with sensual gratification, to paraphrase, if there are 3 consenting adults why not indeed!)
/*The two German men have a strict weekly schedule of alternating visits with the German woman. (The German’s desire and insistence on Discipline, Order and Perfection in all they do comes out here. These are the Fuhrer’s boys living the true meaning of their creed. That is why we will forever chant, “Dem Furher Einte Gergen Arbeitten.” If you need a typical example of Hitler’s inspirational legacy of Order and the pursuit of Perfection look at The VW,BMW,Mercedes Benz, Audi and Football Defense formation and then we can talk! )
/*The two Greek men are sleeping with each other and the Greek woman is cleaning and cooking for them.(The Grecians have historically had no trouble expressing what that Great Irish Play write and Dramatist Oscar O’flahertie Wills Wilde once called, “ The Love that Dare not speak its Name.” He further followed this up with, “The greatest way to get rid of a temptation, is to yield to it.” WOW! What genius I say!)
/*The two Bulgarian men took one long look at the endless ocean, and another long look at the Bulgarian woman, and started swimming.(If its not the famed Romany’s pre-occupation with wonder-lust. There is no where the Gypsy will not go, provided there is a route, they will take to it in search of sustenance. Yes, not even the allure of multiple sessions of erotica comes close!)
/*The two Japanese men have texted Tokyo and are awaiting instructions.(The Nipponese have become too afflicted with techno-philia that their ability to make even the most basic of decisions has been reduced somewhat.)
/*The two Chinese men have set up a pharmacy, a liquor store, a restaurant and a laundry, and have got the woman pregnant in order to supply employees for their stores. (The entrepreneurial instinct of the Sino shines through here. In their endeavor or quest to dominate global commerce, they will stop at nothing. They are prepared to use their run away libido to procreate and raise an army of workers. Ask the West and you will see how they have taken notice. They want to attack their Human Rights record, Ecological Footprint but they care less. The Red Army’s match is as inexorable as the very passage of Time I say!)
/*The two American men are contemplating the virtues of suicide because the American woman keeps endlessly complaining about her body; the true nature of feminism; how she can do everything they can do; the necessity of fulfilment; the equal division of household chores; how sand and palm trees make her look fat; how her last boyfriend respected her opinion and treated her nicer than they do; but how her relationship with her mother is improving and how at least the taxes are low and it isn't raining.(It’s the Yankees with their all too familiar holier-than-thou attitude and drunkenness with Demon-cracy which they impose on societies as if they were told it’s the most ideal governance model. What civil rights does the Yankee speak of? They have even waged War to export demon-cracy to weak countries and plunder those nation’s natural resources and impose governments there. Their materialistic society will be their undoing in the end. Human Rights my foot, Katrina Re-visited, let ‘em Go to the Reservations and assess the welfare of Native Americans, then they can come and chew gum in my face!)
/*The two English men are waiting for someone to introduce them to the English woman.(The Anglo-saxon’s genteel nature reverberates in this piece. They do not give it a hoot,no sensual desire can overpower their good nature; they can wait until hell freezes over before they can disrespect the woman folk. This they will do even if they drowned in their own civility. The Angles are so conservative,the Fox Hunt on horse back continues even as I write, the truffles are still being picked in the country-side, nhuuu yammy!)
/*The two Irish men have divided the island into North and South and set up a distillery. They do not remember if sex is in the picture because it gets sort of foggy after the first few litres of coconut whisky. But they're satisfied because at least the English aren't getting laid either.(The Land of Eire is still in a constant battle over territory, and their bullish nature will be seen in their temperament, talk about Austere Unionists, Orange Order matches in Londonderry, Belfast, Sein Feihn will live on! We will forever be grateful to the gods for the culture of what I would call in the rich Scottish/Irish Gaelic tongue uisage beatha. Like Barotses they relish the many outings to the local pub and have no qualms what so ever about empting a few kegs of some good old social lubricant as they engage in intellectual intercourse. My wits are at their sharpest after I imbibe a few swigs of you know what while lending an ear to some classic yoddling of The Dubliners’ renditions of Irish and Scottish drinking songs, Ooooooooh!!!!! How I miss them!)

Let us celebrate the diversity of human beings!

Phenotype = Genotype + Environment

Namakando Nalikando Sinyama

MY ONLINE DEBATE SUBMISSIONS ON BAROTSELAND

BAROTSELAND’S MISMANAGED INFRASTRUCTURE

Bo Imasiku Sibitwane (AKA) Sha,

Reading this from Bo Lisulo, now you may know exactly what the late Her Ladyship Gladys Mutukwa meant when she said, "Having very little knowledge is damaging." Consequently, this may explain why zambia will take long to attain any semblance of meaningful development in all areas. For this reason I want to officially withdraw from this august forum especially after seeing that no official invitation was extended to me to begin with. I rather mistakenly thought I would gradually benefit from some pockets of intellectual intercourse hereon from a few individuals who would seriously analyze some pertinent national and personal issues but I guess I was too hopeful. What i have noticed is that there is a greater response to postings or emails that are inclined to the sensually profane and ones that appeal more to the waist down wards rather than exciting my cranial department. I was almost excusing myself from this forum, because my brain is very small and am particularly wary of what i feed it with. My brain cells were even beginning to suffer from a rare form of cerebral degeneracy.

In retrospect, however I have since resolved that it is our mission as BAROTSES i believe, to rid Zambians and the world of self imposed ignorance on certain matters of great import so as to foster genuine national unity. This is in contrast to the current situation where we just pretend and ignore burning issues brewing under foot. There has been several constitution review commissions that have been held but all have regrettably failed to address this issue conclusively. It really saddens me when grown members of the Homo sapien species willingly decide not to know or not believe or not understand material presented to them in so clear a manner because of their inability to comprehend.

When I furnished them with a copy of The Barotseland Agreement 1964 I was rather naively hoping they would be schooled in the art Logical Thought and Reasoning which should serve to help them appreciate what led to their country’s founding. The discerning mind will realize that this Document is the only basis there is for MALOZI to be called Zambians and it is the only thing that will truly reconcile Malozi to the entity called zambia. Is it that important you ask? You betcha! This is a very important document that SHOULD unite ‘us’ as ‘ZAMBIANS’. I would like anyone who sees anything seditious and treasonable about it to write to me, clearly highlighting which parts these are. What Malozi have been belabouring to explain to Zambians with little success is that this document MUST be respected or RESTORED for us to be truly united as a people in a united zambia because as Barotseland we ARE and were a Nation with a National Anthem, National FLAG and National Dress code even before zambia was born take me to court for this if what I have said is a piece of historical inaccuracy .I do challenge thee this very minute!

Since we signed it,rather unfortunately, what it means is we must , may or can only co-exist in accordance with the clauses and terms enshrined therein. Long years of passed on misinformation and scary ignorance has perpetrated a totally wrong and incorrect notion about the intentions of Barotse nationals. Mr. Lisulo and many like him, ought to have appreciated this fact by now but NO this is what he writes back, “You lozi chaps- can you stop using a derogatory and colonial term such as Barotseland !!!!!!!!!!! You chaps must know that this term was started by the stupid British colonialists after they failed to pronounce ba-lozi. And do you chaps want WP to be a state ?????? With all the sand there ????????? Guys be serious !!!!!!!

BAROTSELAND is the name of our homeland Forever! Choke on that if you may. The ROTSE in Barotseland is our SOTHO language which means PLAIN. So Barotseland is simply “PEOPLE OF THE PLAIN as in BAROTSE PLAINS. Contrary to the way Mr.Lisulo wants to mislead the untaught Zambian masses, it was NEVER suggested by what he calls ‘stupid’ British Colonialists. Guess who is S-T-U-P-I-D Now? May this gentleman know and hopefully realise that the original inhabitants of Barotseland (Aluyana) spoke and speak Siluyana or (kwangwa) may the always enlightened Barotses please correct me where I may over embellish the truth as unlikely as it may be of course.

I want to say this to Mr.Lisulo in as plain a language as I can possibly muster for the gentleman to understand. The following languages only sound slightly different because of the diverse ethnic interactions they have encountered in geographical localities its speakers find themselves. Because of this form of dispersion there results a form of linguistic stratigraphy of sorts making Si Sotho, Si Tswana, SiPedi, SiKololo not so different and of which LOZI also happens to be a variant. Are you alright thus far Bo Lisulo? Come on then, do not look so stupefied you have to catch up now. This is not Infinitesimal calculus relax! Silozi or our version of SiSotho has over the years become modified by languages spoken by people who once hailed from Angola and Congo but are now proud inhabitants of Barotseland. Therefore, Basutholand and Barotseland have unbreakable cultural ties, period.

Bo Imasiku Sibitwane, with your permission my brother,kindly allow me to ask Bo LISULO if he has the brains God gave a flee(Ok, this is not exactly civil of me to say so I take it back.) you see my current problem is I am at me wits end for I know not whether to joke or be as serious and candid as possible as he may be our Lost brother after all. It is just that I relished the idea of spicing up the point in a courser way. The question to him is,” What language it is or where does he think the Sibitwane in your name comes from?” Like I always say,” The beauty with HISTORY is no matter how hard you try you can NEVER ever change it, unless of course you invented a Time Machine.” Like My favourite reggae poet says, “Search your History and it will show, if you know not from whence you came you are doomed to live in shame.” – Mutabaruka (The greatest radical poet alive, well by my reckoning of course).

Have you ever wondered why Barotses are so different? Not better, just culturally different. You Zambians have on countless number of times openly chosen to insult the Zambian Head of State, only material written to the editors in your local tabloids that is carnal and insolent gets preference for publication thus you continuously disrespect the President for the outside world to see and hear, even your young children and marketeers on the streets disrespect him because you celebrate news publications that insult him is such a vile fashion. You have allowed your opinions and reasoning to be shaped by these news papers. It is truly sad in our Barotseland we can never do what you do even when we grossly disagree with the way we are governed as Barotseland. We have channels of respectfully airing our disapproval and seeking redress for most contentious issues. Occasionally though, even our tempers do run high but our better and cultured nature quickly takes over to sober us up. I guess in the end its what makes us who we are,Proud Barotses. TRUTH sure does have this nasty piecing sensation to the ear, does it not my dear sire?
While you celebrate your ceremonies the way you do by smearing yourselves in charcoal ash and your wise chiefs drink goat blood, we do not. It is alright, I guess. Hey, which reminds me, Bo Lisulo did you see chief Macha in one of your daily tabloids really ‘struggling’ to fit in and look dignified in the presence of True Royal Splendor? He did look very nice actually. Most honest Zambians have conceded that while they have chiefs what we have as Barotseland is a line of Kings (Litungas) of which the current one is His Royal Highness The Litunga Lubosi Imwiko II. When our Kings usually travel to Buckingham Palace and other Royal residences around the world they are duly received and acknoledged as such. I just thought I could interest with some piece of Royal trivia.

As for whether Bo Lisulo is Tonga or a lost brother is something left to conjecture. My wildest guess tells me he could most certainly be a ‘Cuban’ on this I could bet my white African teeth. You know, neither Tonga nor Lozi that kind of thing. For I can not embrace his logic and reasoning as it is so unBarotse-like and I do not want to think of him as Tonga (Tribal cousin)because my brothers are quite brilliant, well the few of them I have had the pleasure of making an acquaintance of.

Truth be told, We are BAROTSELAND FOREVER, choke on that. You can inform your shushushu relatives to follow me, but know this today; some of us are beyond intimidation. Even if it came to me stopping a bullet. Zambia shall unite the day WE stop hiding these TRUTHS from the citizenry.

This is why when Barotses go to South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho we can freely speak SiLOZI and our brothers understand us without much trouble. Guess who I support when South Africa National football team is playing zambia, with what you call your ‘National’ team? Yes, you are smart after all, you guessed it, it’s a No brainer.

Did you know that Channel Africa as a Radio station has a slot that features SiLozi through and through? It is embarrassing to learn that some Mushoooota misinformation government official character once protested to Channel Africa, rather unsuccessfully am glad to add, to cancel SiLozi from this station and replace it with what they thought was a language spoken more in zambia. The South Africans explained that we share more historical ties with Barotseland than he knew. Do you know that when you speak some of these dialects you have, in South Africa the locals there reach to safe guard their wallets!

In ending, may I share this universal thought, “Truth crushed to earth shall rise again from the Root, for the Eternal years of God are Hers. But Error, wounded, writhes in pain and dies among its worshipers.”
You are right Bo Imasiku Sibitwane when you said to Bo Lisulo, “Come home son, come, our arms are open for you!” Before your remaining brains wane off completely. Am actually looking forward to meeting you in person of this am confident as I believe and strongly so that, “There is order in the Cosmos”

Kozo


BAROTSELAND’S MISMANAGED INFRASTRUCTURE

Bo Imasiku Sibitwane (AKA) Sha,

Reading this from Bo Lisulo, now you may know exactly what the late Her Ladyship Gladys Mutukwa meant when she said, "Having very little knowledge is damaging." Consequently, this may explain why zambia will take long to attain any semblance of meaningful development in all areas. For this reason I want to officially withdraw from this august forum especially after seeing that no official invitation was extended to me to begin with. I rather mistakenly thought I would gradually benefit from some pockets of intellectual intercourse hereon from a few individuals who would seriously analyze some pertinent national and personal issues but I guess I was too hopeful. What i have noticed is that there is a greater response to postings or emails that are inclined to the sensually profane and ones that appeal more to the waist down wards rather than exciting my cranial department. I was almost excusing myself from this forum, because my brain is very small and am particularly wary of what i feed it with. My brain cells were even beginning to suffer from a rare form of cerebral degeneracy.

In retrospect, however I have since resolved that it is our mission as BAROTSES i believe, to rid Zambians and the world of self imposed ignorance on certain matters of great import so as to foster genuine national unity. This is in contrast to the current situation where we just pretend and ignore burning issues brewing under foot. There has been several constitution review commissions that have been held but all have regrettably failed to address this issue conclusively. It really saddens me when grown members of the Homo sapien species willingly decide not to know or not believe or not understand material presented to them in so clear a manner because of their inability to comprehend.

When I furnished them with a copy of The Barotseland Agreement 1964 I was rather naively hoping they would be schooled in the art Logical Thought and Reasoning which should serve to help them appreciate what led to their country’s founding. The discerning mind will realize that this Document is the only basis there is for MALOZI to be called Zambians and it is the only thing that will truly reconcile Malozi to the entity called zambia. Is it that important you ask? You betcha! This is a very important document that SHOULD unite ‘us’ as ‘ZAMBIANS’. I would like anyone who sees anything seditious and treasonable about it to write to me, clearly highlighting which parts these are. What Malozi have been belabouring to explain to Zambians with little success is that this document MUST be respected or RESTORED for us to be truly united as a people in a united zambia because as Barotseland we ARE and were a Nation with a National Anthem, National FLAG and National Dress code even before zambia was born take me to court for this if what I have said is a piece of historical inaccuracy .I do challenge thee this very minute!

Since we signed it,rather unfortunately, what it means is we must , may or can only co-exist in accordance with the clauses and terms enshrined therein. Long years of passed on misinformation and scary ignorance has perpetrated a totally wrong and incorrect notion about the intentions of Barotse nationals. Mr. Lisulo and many like him, ought to have appreciated this fact by now but NO this is what he writes back, “You lozi chaps- can you stop using a derogatory and colonial term such as Barotseland !!!!!!!!!!! You chaps must know that this term was started by the stupid British colonialists after they failed to pronounce ba-lozi. And do you chaps want WP to be a state ?????? With all the sand there ????????? Guys be serious !!!!!!!

BAROTSELAND is the name of our homeland Forever! Choke on that if you may. The ROTSE in Barotseland is our SOTHO language which means PLAIN. So Barotseland is simply “PEOPLE OF THE PLAIN as in BAROTSE PLAINS. Contrary to the way Mr.Lisulo wants to mislead the untaught Zambian masses, it was NEVER suggested by what he calls ‘stupid’ British Colonialists. Guess who is S-T-U-P-I-D Now? May this gentleman know and hopefully realise that the original inhabitants of Barotseland (Aluyana) spoke and speak Siluyana or (kwangwa) may the always enlightened Barotses please correct me where I may over embellish the truth as unlikely as it may be of course.

I want to say this to Mr.Lisulo in as plain a language as I can possibly muster for the gentleman to understand. The following languages only sound slightly different because of the diverse ethnic interactions they have encountered in geographical localities its speakers find themselves. Because of this form of dispersion there results a form of linguistic stratigraphy of sorts making Si Sotho, Si Tswana, SiPedi, SiKololo not so different and of which LOZI also happens to be a variant. Are you alright thus far Bo Lisulo? Come on then, do not look so stupefied you have to catch up now. This is not Infinitesimal calculus relax! Silozi or our version of SiSotho has over the years become modified by languages spoken by people who once hailed from Angola and Congo but are now proud inhabitants of Barotseland. Therefore, Basutholand and Barotseland have unbreakable cultural ties, period.

Bo Imasiku Sibitwane, with your permission my brother,kindly allow me to ask Bo LISULO if he has the brains God gave a flee(Ok, this is not exactly civil of me to say so I take it back.) you see my current problem is I am at me wits end for I know not whether to joke or be as serious and candid as possible as he may be our Lost brother after all. It is just that I relished the idea of spicing up the point in a courser way. The question to him is,” What language it is or where does he think the Sibitwane in your name comes from?” Like I always say,” The beauty with HISTORY is no matter how hard you try you can NEVER ever change it, unless of course you invented a Time Machine.” Like My favourite reggae poet says, “Search your History and it will show, if you know not from whence you came you are doomed to live in shame.” – Mutabaruka (The greatest radical poet alive, well by my reckoning of course).

Have you ever wondered why Barotses are so different? Not better, just culturally different. You Zambians have on countless number of times openly chosen to insult the Zambian Head of State, only material written to the editors in your local tabloids that is carnal and insolent gets preference for publication thus you continuously disrespect the President for the outside world to see and hear, even your young children and marketeers on the streets disrespect him because you celebrate news publications that insult him is such a vile fashion. You have allowed your opinions and reasoning to be shaped by these news papers. It is truly sad in our Barotseland we can never do what you do even when we grossly disagree with the way we are governed as Barotseland. We have channels of respectfully airing our disapproval and seeking redress for most contentious issues. Occasionally though, even our tempers do run high but our better and cultured nature quickly takes over to sober us up. I guess in the end its what makes us who we are,Proud Barotses. TRUTH sure does have this nasty piecing sensation to the ear, does it not my dear sire?
While you celebrate your ceremonies the way you do by smearing yourselves in charcoal ash and your wise chiefs drink goat blood, we do not. It is alright, I guess. Hey, which reminds me, Bo Lisulo did you see chief Macha in one of your daily tabloids really ‘struggling’ to fit in and look dignified in the presence of True Royal Splendor? He did look very nice actually. Most honest Zambians have conceded that while they have chiefs what we have as Barotseland is a line of Kings (Litungas) of which the current one is His Royal Highness The Litunga Lubosi Imwiko II. When our Kings usually travel to Buckingham Palace and other Royal residences around the world they are duly received and acknoledged as such. I just thought I could interest with some piece of Royal trivia.

As for whether Bo Lisulo is Tonga or a lost brother is something left to conjecture. My wildest guess tells me he could most certainly be a ‘Cuban’ on this I could bet my white African teeth. You know, neither Tonga nor Lozi that kind of thing. For I can not embrace his logic and reasoning as it is so unBarotse-like and I do not want to think of him as Tonga (Tribal cousin)because my brothers are quite brilliant, well the few of them I have had the pleasure of making an acquaintance of.

Truth be told, We are BAROTSELAND FOREVER, choke on that. You can inform your shushushu relatives to follow me, but know this today; some of us are beyond intimidation. Even if it came to me stopping a bullet. Zambia shall unite the day WE stop hiding these TRUTHS from the citizenry.

This is why when Barotses go to South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho we can freely speak SiLOZI and our brothers understand us without much trouble. Guess who I support when South Africa National football team is playing zambia, with what you call your ‘National’ team? Yes, you are smart after all, you guessed it, it’s a No brainer.

Did you know that Channel Africa as a Radio station has a slot that features SiLozi through and through? It is embarrassing to learn that some Mushoooota misinformation government official character once protested to Channel Africa, rather unsuccessfully am glad to add, to cancel SiLozi from this station and replace it with what they thought was a language spoken more in zambia. The South Africans explained that we share more historical ties with Barotseland than he knew. Do you know that when you speak some of these dialects you have, in South Africa the locals there reach to safe guard their wallets!

In ending, may I share this universal thought, “Truth crushed to earth shall rise again from the Root, for the Eternal years of God are Hers. But Error, wounded, writhes in pain and dies among its worshipers.”
You are right Bo Imasiku Sibitwane when you said to Bo Lisulo, “Come home son, come, our arms are open for you!” Before your remaining brains wane off completely. Am actually looking forward to meeting you in person of this am confident as I believe and strongly so that, “There is order in the Cosmos”

Kozo

Goodmorning Bo Ndubi, Sorry for replying rather late.

Kindly correct me if am wrong but the incident you cited was one afternoon in parliament I would not want to forget. If my memory serves me right it must have been Honourable Mulasikwanda who was referring to her homeland by its name, only to be taken aback by a speaker hailing from the same Nation, reacting under invisible pressure to say what he said, which he obviously deemed more politically correct and palatable to the powers that be. I would not be too wrong if I assumed he was hailed as a truly progressive Patriot, zambian that is! It is perfectly understandable, as not all Barotses are brave enough to stand for the defense of their Nation. “Just at the mention of the same(Barotseland) the current able Speaker of the National Assembly Amusa Mwanamwambwa curtailed that MP's debate and reminded him to withdraw the statement and added that in so far as the current law of the land was concerned there was no such a place in the country Zambia called Barotseland.” For the umpteenth time, therein lies the fatal flaw and Achilles heel in your country’s founding. For once you may at least agree with me on this matter that to make the mention of Barotseland a parliamentary taboo is sad, but that is what they had done. What are they scared of, it does not make sense. That great pundit Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Your future depends on what you do in the present.” By the same token, what is zambia’s future has been cast in stone by what it has done in the past and continues to do in the present especially regarding the matter of Barotseland. This may partly explain why zambia will forever struggle with many problems as it is haunted by certain aspects of its coming to be that were gravely mishandled. This has effectively spawned disunity which will weaken it further eventually making its people unable to confront her challenges in unison as a united force. It is indeed a fallacy, an exercise in wishful thinking, and only exists by choice as a figment of one’s imagination to assume that zambia is united, proud and free, the moment this fact completely registers in serious people’s mind and the hearts of decision makers then we will be making the first baby steps to true development.

The unitary state is mentioned in the zambian constitution but in a sinister ploy they refuse to overtly make mention, in legal phraseology and take cognizance of the entities that made up the union or unitary nation. Now kindly contrast these machinations with what happened with the formation of the Unitary state of Tanzania. Tanganyika and Zanzibar united to form the Republic of Tanzania but as opposed to the zambian scenario Zanzibar still exists and is respected as a very integral part of that country. It was not insulted by demeaning it and degrading it to the level of an administrative province and subjected to a subtle form of economic blockade. Another case, Scotland The Brave’s place in the Union of Great Britain is very distinct and obvious. The banner of St. Andrew or Saltire(National Flag of Scotland) still proudly flies and adorns many government edifices in Scotland. Although, as you may well know by now since you strike me as one that is abreast with most issues, their union is currently shaky and Scotland will be voting in a referendum about whether they should remain part of that Union. Sir Sean Connery has vowed never to set foot in Scotland until it is free(just some piece of trivia to interest you) The examples above may be assessed for relevance considering the points am belaboring to make. These matters must be addressed as openly as can be managed for ZAMBIA(Is it punctuated alright now my most learned Sire?) to make genuine progress in her quest to equitably develop its vast land. In future I would like to be cited as one that was never scared to set things right despite people strong desire to willfully forget important matters that are crucial to fully defining its total national character. Only when this is done will you begin to have and inspire men and women who can be called PATRIOTS. I do very much appreciate what your children are learning, they must be at a good school. Your wise investment in their education as a good parent will certainly pay off as they will be well rounded individuals, better equipped to face the challenges of their country, fully respecting the ethnicities in its borders and the various roles they have played and continue to play.

May I suggest that at an appropriate time in these debates we try to assess the quality of the curriculum or syllabi that children are exposed to in primary school. Is it still relevant to the challenges of the 21 st Century and beyond? Do we need to urgently change or modernize it. What did we learn at what stage and is it still practical and beneficial that we be subjected to the same pedagogy. Escalate this further to assess the mushrooming nursery schools strewn all across zambian suburbia and the standard of teachers there. If you think this is not necessary wait until your child at nursery,welfare Hall,church(moonlighting as a school)comes home saying something as confusing as , “ You are going where?” then you will take interest in the quality of academic instruction they are receiving.

This is my humble submission for your consideration.
NAMAKANDO NALIKANDO SINYAMA’S PERSONAL DISCLAIMER TO THE EMERGENCY SPAM MAIL

Dear All,

I would like to most sincerely apologize for any emotional anguish and excitement that this whole spamming charade has caused.
This was most certainly from a bunch of desperate ‘Nigerians’ hell bent on using my name to milk money from the severely gullible(with due respect to those who fell for it and bought the scam Hook, Line, Sinker and floater plus Rod!(We are talking serious fishing here). What I find most unfortunate though, is that they are intent on profiteering from a few people’s true fondness of me. This I find utterly disturbing! What guts me the most is that one of my brothers had even sent some of his hard earned money to these confidence tricksters.

MY WARNING IS THIS : KINDLY DO NOT OPEN ANY MAIL PURPOTING TO BE FROM THE YAHOO MAIL ADMINISTRATION TEAM INFORMING YOU OF YOUR BOX NEARING EXPIRY.THEY THEN ADVISE YOU TO FURNISH THEM WITH YOUR DETAILS ,THEY RESPECTFULLY REQUEST PERMISSION TO ACCESS YOUR CONTACTS ,WHICH THEY THEN USE TO UNLEASH THIS SPAM


Kindly note that reports of my wonder-lust and travel adventures are highly exaggerated. What you have been receiving in a carefully orchestrated cynical chain e-mail which is meant to hoodwink you into sending money to some unknown account. This mail could have been sent to anyone there is no need to panic. I would like to humbly suggest that our IT team verify and fortify our networks and heighten security protocols. What is even more baffling is am not even on ZRA mail.

Even as I agree that my financial situation is not one I could write home about but please DO NOT SEND ANY MONEY to anyone who answers to my name and shares my e-mail if that is possible. To the best of my memory I never did travel not even in my usual states of transcendental meditation in Asingular consciousness via Teleportation. There is a very serious wave of spamming activity that has caused many search engines like google to slow down and some have even crashed.

I would like to take this opportunity to truly thank all those who were quick to try and contact me so as to verify my well being and whereabouts . It is in times like these albeit, a terrible hoax, that you get to know who is who in your circle of ‘Friends’!



Best Regards,


Namakando Nalikando Sinyama - ZRA Chingola Customs
“Mwana Tau Ki Tau”

ON THE NATIONAL FLAG OF BAROTSELAND

Dear Mr.Flag,

My heart was deeply gladdened when i came across your site that presented me an opportunity to finally own my National flag and which i had long intended to have adorn my home frontage. I actually ticked the item and included it in my online shopping basket and had plans of distributing it and encouraging my fellow Barotses to visit your site and order their personal Flags of their Nation. My enthusiasm however was quickly dashed when i read your description of my National Flag as Historic(having connotations of disused,former and obsolete).

Is St.Andrew's Saltire(Official Scottish Flag )historic and thus obsolete in this day when they are still part of Great Britain?(We know not though how long they will remain or be of that Union either) Let the truth be known that by the same token the Flag of the Nation Barotseland in not and shall NEVER be obsolete despite our having united with another region to make an unholy union with economically devastating consequences for our people i might add. Before Zambia was born the Nation of Barotseland already had its own National flag and National anthem. The country called Zambia was only born in 1964 and it would not be having its current borders if Barotseland is not a key part of it and well deserving of due recognition as such. Therefore, you ought to appreciate just how insulting it must feel in Barotseland where patriotic sentiments run deep to see a website deliberately or otherwise, berating their Nationhood! It is therefore my advice to Mr.Flag to be cautious and exercised some degree of tact before you describe any National symbols in a very loose, casual, and cavalier and not so well informed ways.

On behalf of the Nation of Barotseland and all its Proud Nationals i would like to commend you for stocking our National symbol and they will be communicated to about its availability from Mr.Flag.


Best Regards,

Namakando Nalikando Sinyama
Barotse Patriot
Barotseland, Central Africa
“I tell you a truth, liberty is the best of all things, my son, never live under a slavish bond.” – Sir William Wallace’s Uncle

2. 187. NAMAKANDO NALIKANDO SINYAMA
Aug 21st, 2008 at 3:52 pm Vote: 0 0
2. I believe it was the late Gladys Mutukwa who once said, “Having very little knowledge is damaging. ” There is a very strong possibility that most of the people are commenting on issues they think they know about when in actual fact are merely parroting sentiments and arguments they have over heard on a minibus or in the local bar. If you are saying things you do not know much about or are not even true then you hide behind a pseudonym/alias and what not that is cowardice of the worst order.
N.B. Kindly find your own personal copy of THE BAROTSELAND AGREEEMENT 1964 and a piece i Titled “THE NCC AND THE BAROTSELAND QUESTION “so that next time you debate you will talk intelligently from a point of empowered knowledge.

BAROTSELAND, we have a National Flag, National Anthem and a National Dress Code. We are not special people, better than any other. We are who we are and it will never change. Lets share and celebrate our differences we hold our ceremony the way we do, others drink goat blood as they walk around clad in animal skins smeared in ash, which is what defines them as a people. The British did not teach us order, etiquette and organized society they found them. To the best of my knowledge we never threw stones to liberate ourselves from the British, what civility indeed! Of course i stand to be corrected on this. You just cannot change history no matter how hard you want to try.
I must commend everyone active on this message board. The quality of some of the writing is quite superb, its one i never thought even existed in this part of Afrika. To Stalin i say your writing is exceptional. I would like you to give me a few pointers on how to write better but of course in the end it may have a lot to do with ones early academic instruction. I am not exactly sure just to what extent the occasional negativity and questionable taste and choice of language on this forum would do to ones intellectual well being.
To everyone, i submit, that since you all seem to have unanimously agreed to carry on with this obviously deemed enriching debates on futile politics, albeit draining to the spirit. Is it possible we begin another parallel debate where we can use our wit to provide practical solutions to challenges we face? To be exciting i would encourage witty vulgarities so that we keep everyone glued especially those who seem hooked to the profane!!!
*CLIMATE CHANGE AND ITS IMPACT ON AFRICA-SOLUTIONS*UNITED STATES OF AFRICA-CHALLENGES AND BENEFITS*CONSTANT INDENI SHUT DOWNS-LASTING SOLUTIONS*PRODUCTIVE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN ZAMBIA-DOES IT EXIST?

*INTELLECTUAL QUALITY OF THE ZAMBIAN GRADUATE*CONFLICT PREVENTION VERSUS RESOLUTION IN AFRICA VIS AVIS BAROTSELAND AGREEMENT 1964,NIGER DELTA, DARFUR…*GLOBAL FUEL CRISIS- AFRICA’S HOPE ALTERNATIVE FUELS VERSUS FOOD SECURITY*ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRIALISATION OF RURAL AFRICA.*THE CONTRIBUTUION OF NATURAL RESOURCES IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT-RADICAL VIEWS

MY MANUAL OF STEREO-TYPING NATIONALITIES

On a group of beautiful deserted islands in the middle of nowhere, the following people are suddenly stranded by, as you might expect, a shipwreck: 2 Italian men and 1 Italian woman2 French men and 1 French woman2 German men and 1 German woman2 Greek men and 1 Greek woman2 English men and 1 English woman2 Bulgarian men and 1 Bulgarian woman2 Japanese men and 1 Japanese woman2 Chinese men and 1 Chinese woman2 American men and 1 American woman2 Irish men and 1 Irish woman One month later on these same absolutely stunning deserted islands in the middle of nowhere, the following things have occurred:

THEY ARE FOLLOWED BY MY INTERPRETATION OF WHAT HAPPENED IN BRACKETS

/*One Italian man killed the other Italian man for the Italian woman.

(For me this shows the Italian’s over reliance on violence as a way of solving problems. This character trait is forever immortalized in Hollywood as Mafia pictures when the code of La Cosa Nostra is lived to the letter in protecting La Familia.)

/*The two French men and the French woman are living happily together in a ménage-a-trois. (Typical of French society, they will always be revered for their socio-liberalism and their near obsession with sensual gratification, to paraphrase, if there are 3 consenting adults why not indeed!)

/*The two German men have a strict weekly schedule of alternating visits with the German woman. (The German’s desire and insistence on Discipline, Order and Perfection in all they do comes out here. These are the Furher’s boys living the true meaning of their creed. That is why we will forever chant, “Dem Furher Einte Gergen Arbeitten.” If you need a typical example of Hitler’s inspirational legacy of Order and the pursuit of Perfection look at The VW,BMW,Mercedes Benz, Audi and Football Defense formation and then we can talk! )

/*The two Greek men are sleeping with each other and the Greek woman is cleaning and cooking for them.(The Grecians have historically had no trouble expressing what that Great Irish Play write and Dramatist Oscar O’flahertie Wills Wilde once called, “ The Love that Dare not speak its Name.” He further followed this up with, “The greatest way to get rid of a temptation, is to yield to it.” WOW! What genius I say!)

/*The two Bulgarian men took one long look at the endless ocean, and another long look at the Bulgarian woman, and started swimming.(If its not the famed Romany’s pre-occupation with wonder-lust. There is no where the Gypsy will not go, provided there is a route, they will take to it in search of sustenance. Yes, not even the allure of multiple sessions of erotica comes close!)

/*The two Japanese men have texted Tokyo and are awaiting instructions.(The Nipponese have become too afflicted with techno-philia that their ability to make even the most basic of decisions has been reduced somewhat.)

/*The two Chinese men have set up a pharmacy, a liquor store, a restaurant and a laundry, and have got the woman pregnant in order to supply employees for their stores. (The entrepreneurial instinct of the Sino shines through here. In their endeavor or quest to dominate global commerce, they will stop at nothing. They are prepared to use their run away libido to procreate and raise an army of workers. Ask the West and you will see how they have taken notice. They want to attack their Human Rights record, Ecological Footprint but they care less. The Red Army’s match is as inexorable as the very passage of Time I say!)

/*The two American men are contemplating the virtues of suicide because the American woman keeps endlessly complaining about her body; the true nature of feminism; how she can do everything they can do; the necessity of fulfilment; the equal division of household chores; how sand and palm trees make her look fat; how her last boyfriend respected her opinion and treated her nicer than they do; but how her relationship with her mother is improving and how at least the taxes are low and it isn't raining.(It’s the Yankees with their all too familiar holier-than-thou attitude and drunkenness with Demon-cracy which they impose on societies as if they were told it’s the most ideal governance model. What civil rights does the Yankee speak of? They have even waged War to export demon-cracy to weak countries and plunder those nation’s natural resources and impose governments there. Their materialistic society will be their undoing in the end. Human Rights my foot, Katrina Re-visited, let ‘em Go to the Reservations and assess the welfare of Native Americans, then they can come and chew gum in my face!)

/*The two English men are waiting for someone to introduce them to the English woman.(The Anglo-saxon’s genteel nature reverberates in this piece. They do not give it a hoot,no sensual desire can overpower their good nature; they can wait until hell freezes over before they can disrespect the woman folk. This they will do this even if they drowned in their own civility. The Angles are so conservative,the Fox Hunt on horse back continues even as I write, the truffles are still being picked in the country-side, nhuuu yammy!)

/*The two Irish men have divided the island into North and South and set up a distillery. They do not remember if sex is in the picture because it gets sort of foggy after the first few litres of coconut whisky. But they're satisfied because at least the English aren't getting laid either.(The Land of Eire is still in a constant battle over territory, and their bullish nature will be seen in their temperament, talk about Austere Unionists, Orange Order matches in Londonderry, Belfast, Sein Feihn will live on! We will forever be grateful to the gods for the culture of what I would in the rich Scottish/Irish Gaelic tongue uisage beatha. Like Barotses they relish the many outings to the local pub and have no qualms what so ever about empting a few kegs of some good old social lubricant as they engage in intellectual intercourse. My wits are at their sharpest after I imbibe a few swigs of you know what while lending an ear to some classic yoddling of The Dubliners’ renditions of Irish and Scottish drinking songs, Ooooooooh!!!!! How I miss them!)