Xenophobia in South Africa

I have been greatly disturbed by the recent wave of violence in South Africa. Violence brought about by fear. Not fear of the unknown as it is in most cases, but fear of foreigners or strangers. Some South Africans living in their shanty towns are murdering their neighbors they've known for 10 sometimes even 20 years. Why? Because they're "taking all of the South Africans Jobs and houses".

I'm trying to be objective but this just takes the cake, doesn't it? I mean picture this. This guy, your neighbor who may have come from anywhere, be it Ghana, Zimbabwe, DRC Congo, Nigeria...wherever, has been living with you in the same ghetto or shanty town for 10 to 20 years. The guy even has a South African wife and children born and bread in the country. Then all of a sudden he's stealing your jobs?!? Your chasing him away after 20 years. What about his wife and kids? Have you given them a thought? Who is he feeding with the job he has? I mean, he obviously isn't stealing enough because he's still your neighbour ain't he? I mean what would you like the guy to do...go to the job agency and say...."ummmh I'll just wait until all the South Africans get a job first and then I'll start working.....will you give me a call then?"

When you guys were under apartheid, you were shielded by your neighbours. They gave you protection, food and shelter sometimes at risk to themselves. Now you have a democratic government and instead of going to the government and kicking up a fuss on why the promises of houses and jobs given during the election, aren't being delivered....you resort to chasing away, brutally beating and murdering your own African neighbours. C'mon man......when are we gonna wake up?!

Africans in European countries are told to go back home all the time, they have to endure the racism, the weird looks they get in buses, the hard work for low pay, being overlooked for job opportunities because of their colour, or their accent, or the name they have. Everyday it's a struggle, but they persevere, everyday new measures are being put in place to make it more difficult for immigrants to enter a country let alone try and settle down. We can't have this happening in an African country...our own countries...and for it to be done by Africans...on fellow Africans or anybody for that matter is crazy.

I just finished watching the clip below so the wound is still fresh so to speak. Hence, the ranting today. This shouldn't be happening. We've had, and continue to have, enough civil wars already...Darfur, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Rwanda and Burundi, DRC and Kenya to name a few. When do we say enough? I'm not advocating for "world peace", thats never going to happen, let's just not take the law into our own hands...ok I'm done...

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Homicides in Toronto

I remember speaking to a friend of mine in London, UK earlier this year, she was very concerned with the murders that were taking place all over the city. I have to admit I was also concerned when I used to live there, and I remember seeing the murder rates compared to other cities in Europe and thinking...wow, things are really bad in London.

Even recent statistics are terrifying, with Knife Attacks occurring every four minutes, you've got to admit, it does sound very scary. The Sun reports that there have been 24 murders so far this year in London alone.

Then there's Toronto. I recall my friend saying "well at least it's safer in Toronto" and I remember having the same perception as hers. A peaceful, safe city without all the problems that beseech its neighbour immediately to the south. How naive I was. Research has shown that Toronto had 84 killings in 2007, 42 of the murders were shootings, 22 were stabbings, and 14 were caused by trauma (blunt force). The cause of six murders was either unknown or unreleased as of January 2, 2008. All this in a city with barely 3 million people... London has approximately 10 million people, go figure.

To date, in 2008 there have been 49 kilings as reported by CBC, a popular news broadcasting station in Toronto.

Seven murders took place days after Statistics Canada named Toronto as Canada's Safest City among urban areas with a population of 500,000 or more. A fact that few Toronto residents can stomach easily. I mean c'mon, we're halfway through the year, have 48 homicides, and now we're being branded the "safest city" in Canada! How bad are these other cities?!? Apparently, Winnipeg had the highest crime rate, followed by Edmonton.

Drive-by shootings, triple homicides, stabbings, trauma, you name it, we've got it in Toronto. So Londoners, if you think you got it bad, take a look at oh so peaceful Toronto....the grass is not always greener on the other side.

I'm Back!

Hi Guys,

First of all, the good news, I'm back. While i've been away a multitude of things have changed, gosh where do i even start? Well atleast for the next couple of days i won't be short on posts, you can count on that.

Thanks to all those who have been posting messages of support, wondering where i was, i must admit, i did feel love (even though a part of me is almost certain it's a family member, which makes it even better of course...hehe).

You know the whole purpose of starting this blog was to try and establish some sort of link, or dare i say, a common place where we Tanzanians living in this foreign land can share something, anything. well...that goal hasn't been achieved as of yet, in-fact, apart from the couple who have blogs like myself, i haven't come across any Tanzanian whatsoever.

So if your out there...Tanzanians, or any East African and you happen to come across this blog, show yourself, drop a line and say hi or something, don't worry i'm not trying to sell anything, i do have a place to live so i won't be suddenly dropping by your town and asking for refuge, i do work so i won't ask for a loan....hehehe....reveal yourselves.

Back to the matter at hand, to start off. I came across this great video about a girl, living in Hyena Square (Uwanja wa fisi), in Dar. She is infected by the Aids virus and talks about her predicament. A very touching story and at the same time very inspiring. As soon as i started watching the clip i got hooked. check it out for yourself.

I couldn't embed the video as this has been disabled, so you will be redirected to youtube once you click on the link below:

Hyena Square

Ottawa & My Birthday

First of all,i'd like to wish all those who will be fasting during this holly month of Ramadan...Ramadan Kareem.

So alot of things have happened since my last article, I spent a couple of days in Ottawa, fortunately I didn't have to stay there long. The city itself is nice, but I expected more, with it being the capital city of Canada and all that. For me the most dissapointing aspect of it was the food. My wife and I struggled to find decent food, don't get me wrong, there's loads of nice restaurants, but the food is very dissapointing and slightly more expensive than the equivalent in Toronto.

My birthday came and went, had a few prezies..thanks to my wife....my dad was the first to call me from Tanzania, at the stroke of midnight, bless him, i could sense how sleepy he was from the tone of his voice..my mom sent a text message....to the home phone so i obviously didn't get it...bless her soul (Note to siblings....a birthday call does'nt count as a gift..it only counts if ur my dad or mom....and u live in Tanzania.)

As am writing this, it's the second day of Ramadan, fasting seems harder today than it was yesterday, nevertherless, i'm coping without struggling much. Long gone are the days of breaking my fast with the £2.99 No.6 from Ali Baba's takeaway across the street....Alhamdullilah.

On arrival at Ottawa Airport

Canadian House of Parliament....Parliament Hill.

Rideau Canal Locks

My wife on the doors of Parliament Hill.....Mashallah

Me on the footsteps of Parliament Hill.

Canadian Museum of Civilisation

Parliament Hill in the background

A closer look at the Canadian Museum of Civilisation

Canadian Museum of Civilisation, a view from between the trees...love this photo.

Pont Alexandra Bridge...cross this bridge and your literally in Quebec

Inside the Canadian Museum of Civilisation

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday......I've just hit the big 3-0...don't know if i should laugh or cry.

Birthday boy had just woken up..

Waiting to be seated for dinner

Having dinner on my birthday, the food was excellent...if only the portions were bigger...hehehe

Profile - Dr Asha Rose Migiro

Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro was named as the UN Deputy Secretary General in January, making her the third African to hold such a senior position at the UN in about twenty years, after former Secretary Generals Kofi Annan and Butross Butross Gali.

It also adds a name to the list of celebrated female achievers from East Africa. Women like Tanzanian Dr. Anna Tibaijuka, the UN-Habitat Executive Director who held the highest post in the UN system, Gertrude Mongela, the president of the Pan African Parliament, Kenya’s Mathaai Wangari, the environment Nobel Prize winner, and Uganda’s woman activist Winnie Byanyima, currently the director for Gender in the Bureau for Development Policy at the UN.

"I have decided to appoint Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania, as Deputy Secretary-General. Minister Migiro served previously as Minister for Community Development, Gender and Children of the United Republic of Tanzania for five years. In her academic career, she rose to the rank of a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law of the University of Dar-es-Salaam.

She is a highly respected leader who has championed the cause of developing countries over the years. Throughout her distinguished service in diverse areas, she has displayed outstanding management skills with wide experience and expertise in socio-economic affairs and development issues.

I have deep confidence in and respect for her, and intend to delegate much of the management and administrative work of the Secretariat, as well as socio-economic affairs and development issues, under a clear line of authority to ensure that the Secretariat will function in a more effective and efficient manner."-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

Her appointment to such a high level gives African women hope that at one time, their achievements would be recognised even they can be at the pinnacle of the United Nations.

Born in Songea, Tanzania on July 9th 1956, she is a product of Tanzania’s education system, having studied at Mnazi Mmoja Primary School, Korogwe Primary School, Weruweru Secondary School and Korogwe High School. She is fluent in German, Swahili and English.

Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro was appointed last year by the President of Tanzania, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation. Making history as she became the first woman to hold that post in the Republic of Tanzania since it's independence in 1961. The appointment also showed a lot of trust by Kikwete, who headed the ministry for 10 years prior to becoming the president. But some can argue that she was fit and favored for the post in the ministry because for a long time before her appointment, she had been head of the department of Politics and International relations for Tanzania’s ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).



For five years however, she was the Minister of Community Development, Gender and Children in the government of former Tanzanian president Benjamin Mkapa, but under the same CCM party.

As Foreign Minister, Dr. Migiro spearheaded Tanzania 's engagement in the pursuit of peace, security and development in the Great Lakes Region. She served as Chair of the Council of Ministers' meetings of the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region, a process that culminated into a Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region.

Dr. Migiro was also Chair of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Ministerial Committee of the Organ on Politics, Defense and Security Cooperation and President of the UN Security Council during its open debate on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes Region. As Chair of the SADC Organ, Dr. Migiro coordinated SADC assistance to the democratic process, including elections, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as well as support for national elections in Zambia and Madagascar . At the time of her appointment, she was chairing an important SADC Ministerial Troika Meeting ahead of the national elections in the Kingdom of Lesotho

It is this experience that Dr. Migiro hopes to use at her new appointment in the UN as Deputy Secretary General. She said during her six-year term as minister she learned how to deal with new challenges enabling her to be a better leader by collaborating with the others.

Dr. Migiro maintains four keys issues she hopes to tackle at the UN during her tenure: scrap the death penalty, maintain equality, reduce the gap between the North and South and to bring peace and stability to Africa.



A lawyer by profession, Dr. Migiro is not only an academician, but a politician and woman activist. She has been a senior lecturer at the University of Dar-es-Salaam where she excelled during her bachelor’s degree studies and was instantly accepted to take on her Masters, while at the same time teaching at the faculty of law. She later attended the University of Konstanz in southern Germany to attain her PhD.

Her former lecturers describe her as an intelligent and principled person who excels at everything she does. Others who know her performance in politics believe that she will rise to greater heights.

“I am confident that she will rise to the occasion of the tremendous responsibilities which the UN Secretary-General has entrusted in her. Her vast experience spanning an illustrious career as Minister of Government in Tanzania will certainly translate into a great asset for the UN quest for a new and better world economic and social order,” said the Secretary General of the East African Community, Juma Mwapachu.

On the women’s scene, Dr. Migiro was one of the founders of the Feminist Activism Coalition (FEMCAT), a coalition of over 50 non-governmental organizations that deal in democracy, human rights, gender equality and development.

"We have worked with Dr. Migiro and have always admired her level of professional integrity as a lawyer and a woman academician. She is respected for being hardworking, articulate, and committed to serve the people. She is also a highly educated Tanzanian," the statement from FEMCAT said.

Dr. Migiro believes her appointment was due in part to Tanzania’s role in the UN Security Council and the country’s major strides in international relations. Tanzania’s participation in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Sudan through the Africa Union has thrust the country into the lime light as a peace broker. But she says that being an African lends her first hand experience of the situations facing Africa and developing countries in general. “I will use this experience to contribute in effecting development changes on the global level.”

A statement from Ban Ki-Moon says her appointment was based on merit, ability and experience.

"I'm quite confident that with her extensive knowledge and experience as a former foreign minister and development minister of Tanzania, she will bring leadership qualities to this organization," Ban said.



Tanzania’s diplomats in peace affairs like Daudi Mwakawago and Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim, who was appointed by Kofi Anaan as peace mediator in Darfur, have added to the credibility of a people from a country that has seen peace prevail since its independence in 1961.

Dr. Migiro’s appointment comes at a crucial period in major global issues and developments affecting the East African sub-region and indeed the African continent. Threats to world peace, security and stability loom large over the globe.
In Africa, the economic and social crisis that has blighted the continent for decades persists unabated—all this requiring the urgent, appropriate and decisive interventions of the United Nations.

When questioned by critics about her lack of adequate management experience, she had the following response:

"I do have that managerial capability," she said, citing her experience as an academic and in successfully managing two government ministries.

"And maybe I should emphasize that, yes, the United Nations is a big organization, but management does not always have to do with the size of the organization," Dr Migiro said.

"What matters is whether one has the experience, the skills, the dedication and the commitment to work as a team. And my experience in the last week has shown that there's a lot of expertise, there's a lot of skills within the United Nations -- and I'm ready to tap the skills combined with my own," she said. 



World leaders agreed on major reforms at a UN summit in 2005, and the 192 member states have taken some steps to modernize the organization, which was founded in the ashes of World War II. 

But developed and developing countries have been at odds over how to implement key reforms. The United States and other wealthy countries have demanded greater flexibility for the secretary-general and the UN Secretariat, but poorer nations have been reluctant to give up power over the UN budget and administrative matters. 

Migiro said she would like to see all UN development programmes in a country "under one roof" -- that there is "one budget, one vision and one voice" instead of many separate UN agencies and programmes often competing with each other.

Dr. Migiro, 50, becomes the first black woman and first African to hold the position of Deputy UN Secretary-General, a post created in 1998. She follows after Louise Frechette of Canada and Mark Malloch of Britain in the post.

She is married to Prof Cleophace Migiro, a lecturer at the university of Dar es Saalam and they have two children.

sources
http://www.thewip.net/contributors/2007/03/profile_dr_asharose_migiro.html
http://www.un.org/sg/deputysg.shtml
http://english.people.com.cn/200702/06/eng20070206_347851.html.

Summertime in Toronto

Summertime in Toronto is just the place to be. Dare i say it, it's even better than summertime in London. The weather is just great, theres loads of events going on....free events at that and the whole city generates this unique vibe that is awesome. As part of my pledge to take toronto as it is...i've been going to a few places, taking in some wonderful sites and eating ice cream almost twice a week...of course you understand this is purely part of my pledge.

So since the last article, i've been to the gay fest (whilst holding my wife in very close proximity ofcourse), an r'n'b concert, took the ferry to centre island (beautiful place) and also attended the refugee day event at Dundas square.

World Refugee Day 20th June, Divine Koge was on the UNICEF stand. He frequents schools and colleages to give accounts of his experiences as a refugee, he told me he was in Kibondo, Tanzania. What a great guy he is.

Salsa dancers were part of the festivities for world refugee day

Nice question, ask yourself, are you a reason for hope...?

Kapoiera, brazillian art of self defence..it's wicked

R'n B festival was excellent, Donnel Jones, Carl Thomas, Jagged Edge, KC and JoJo, New Edition, SWV were all there man...need i say more? Pictures didn't come out good, this is the only one worth showing

On the ferry leaving Queens Quay and heading for Centre Island

The view from the ferry whilst going to Centre Island

Centre Island

Centre Island

Harbourfront

CN Tower

Having come more or less straight form London UK, it's been inevitable for me to compare the two cities, which i've come to realise is a bit unfair on Toronto. Toronto is a fairly new city and comparing it with one of the oldest cities in the world wouldn't do it any justice at all.

My experiences so far have been just great, i'm particularly impressed with the people of Toronto. They are so friendly it's amazing. I mean in London, it was normal practice to pass your neighbour in the corridor like yu didn't see him, a smile at the most was all you would exchange amid the constant rush to get somewhere. Here in Toronto, they actually stop and ask you how was your day...and they mean it. It's not just neighbours, people on the street, in restaurants, in clothing stores...it's just great. Tha pace of the city is also much slower than what you would experience in London...on a Sunday afternoon....hehe. Even the rush hour is slow....it's amazing and so refreshing.

So i've taken my first steps towards admiring Toronto for the beautiful city it is... i went to the CN Tower which, at a height of 553.33m (1,815 ft., 5 inches), it is Canada’s National Tower, the World's Tallest Building, an important telecommunications hub, and the centre of tourism in Toronto. The view was spectacular

The view from below....

The security system was quite impressive, you get hit with a jet of air from head to toe...thats it.....mambo ya kupapasana hamna...and the air is harmless...i mean how does that work...??

The Glass Floor

Inside Rogers Centre..this is just about as close as i'd ever get to a baseball field...this picture was taken through the glass floor

Do u feel dizzy or is it just me..?!

Lying down on the Glass floor...i'm smiling on the outside....screaming in the inside...

People standing on the glass floor

This building looked great ...glittering in the sun like a bar of gold

On my way out i see this beautiful garden....then i hear some relaxing...tranquil music...so i look and i see BOSS speakers amongst the flowers...yes i checked it twice....BOSS speakers.and not one....i counted 6 speakers scattered all over the place....the flowers were listening to some music.....i'm gonna shut up now