The rise of social cynicism in Zimbabwe

It’s barely a few hours before Zimbabweans decide their future, but some things have been ignored in the run up to the July 30^th elections.Social cynicism is growing rapidly in most African countries with Zimbabwe included. The rise is perpetuated by high expectations concerning society institutions and authorities which are later on unfulfilled expectations leading to disillusionment.

Focusing on Zimbabwe, social cynicism is clouding today’s youth way of thinking. The youth no longer partake in activities that develop their communities as they believe that these activities are self-centered, they do not benefit them. This is because of corruption in our country. Corruption has destroyed institutions, therefore the rise of negative attitudes among the youth. 

Burgess (2015) says  social cynicism fosters low self-esteem, alcohol abuse and dissatisfaction with life. Looking at the current situation in Zimbabwe, youths are unemployed; they are abusing alcohol and drugs including health drugs as they can be easily accessed. The youth have been left out in major issues that affect them and they have lost hope in the current leaders. Zimbabwean youths feel they have no ability to influence outcomes. So, they put their hope in things that don’t deliver value to them.

When the new dispensation was ushered in, Zimbabweans had hope for a change in the government but nothing has changed so far. Up to now, people still sleep at the banks; prices are going up, no cash flow, people are buying money on the streets. With such a recipe, Zimbabweans have lost hope in the ruling government and occupy themselves with things that offer value to them like drugs and alcohol abuse. Most of these people even if they have registered to vote, they will not go and vote.  Most of the youth did not even register to vote as they think that these elections do not affect them.

Analysts believe this year’s election might change the history of Zimbabwe as 60 % of the registered voters are below forty years of age thus they will vote for their own generation but these are the same people who are abusing drugs and alcohol, people who feel dis-empowered, people who have been disappointed every five years.

The question that remains is what we are doing to put an end to the rise of social cynicism as active citizens. Such incidents call for action now as something should be done to curb the rise of social cynicism. The government and civil society should engage people especially those who feel dis-empowered so that they are given the space and time to voice their issues in the future.

#ZimDecides #ZimVotes

WELL DONE WICKNELL CHIVAYO

Over 200 Zimbabwean women were fooled into thinking that they would be house maids in Kuwait only to find out that they were being used as sex slaves. These women were left stranded in Kuwait as some of them do not have passports plus money for travelling expenses.

According to the NewsDay of 28 April 2016 ,the Zimbabwean government    ignored the cries of these women citing financial problems and some parliamentarians even tried to raise funds but their efforts were in vain.

The Herald of 28 April  2016 has a headline saying “Chivayo rescues trafficking victims.” According to the story it is said that Mr Wicknell Chivayo bought return tickets worth $58k for the 32 stranded women.

Barely a month ago Chivayo was being attacked by the media because he had not paid Pasuwa’s salary. The article sparked a cold war  between the media and Chivayo. A lot of issues were evoked by the media which Chivayo had done in the past. People shouls always bare it in their minds that “to err is human,” and no one is perfect. The media forgot about how Chivayo had rescued ZIFA’s debt to ensure Zimbabwe remained in the 2022 World cup.

Most women were delighted to read today’s article on Chivayo’s donation as they felt for the women in Kuwait. Bubblejoy Chimbwedza said she believes regardless of someone past behaviour if they do something good, it should be appreciated. 

Sibonokuhle Mpofu said "The government failed to raise funds to get these suffering women to Zimbabwe but Wicknell managed to help these women. What he did is a good thing as these women left the country because they wanted to put a meal on the table for their families. Being a sex slave is not a good thing at all. I wish most businessmen in the country should see what Chivayo did as an example to follow,"

Charles de Lint  says every time you do a good deed you shine the light a little farther into the dark. And the thing is, when you're gone that light is going to keep shining on, pushing the shadows back.  From this context, it simply means nomatter what people will say about Chivayo what he has done will always be remembered.

As human beings we should be remembered for the things we do. The things we do are the most important things of all. They are more important than what we say or what we look like. The things we do outlast our mortality. The things we do are like monuments that people build to honour heroes after they've died. They're like the pyramids that the Egyptians built to honour the Pharaohs. Only instead of being made out of stone, they're made out of the memories people have of you. That's why your deeds are like your monuments. Built with memories instead of with stone.

Being used as a sex slave is not something that anyone would love to be. One’s identity is robbed, and one is left empty. In reality, no female desires to be a part of this nightmare. The dwindling economic situation in the country has forced a lot of people to cross the Zimbabwean boarder in search for greener pastures. Most people don’t not care much about the kind of job they will do as long as they can make money, but being a sex slave is not one thing that one would love to do.

THEIR FUTURE IS IMPORTANT!

When one drives around Harare, it’s now a norm to bump into children who will be asking for money. These children are stationed mostly at busy intersections or robots of major roads begging for money or food sometimes.

Young children begging in the CBD

These beggars are as young at three year olds and they manoeuvre their way in between the cars. Some of them are as old as fifteen year olds. These children are both males and females. My main concern is on the girls who are amongst these beggars.

Yes, we are suffering in Zimbabwe but why should a parent risk the future of their child by letting them be in the streets where there are vultures waiting to prey on the young girls. Who knows what these girls are going through to at least go home with $5. Even if they are sexually abused they won’t say a word as they will be given money and this is sort of better than going back home empty handed. These children are at a high risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases and further spreading them.

A month ago people were celebrating the court ruling on early child marriages. Yes it is a milestone achievement but let us also work towards removing these children from the streets. They are supposed to be at school but they are on the streets facing a lot of challenges. Some of these children are exposed to drug abuse at a very tender age.

 In most cases these girls are of school going age but they are in the streets begging for money. Their future is already dead as it. My question is where are the parents of these children? Do they care about their children’s future?

Another related case is that of blind people who move around in town with their children begging for money. These blind people are abusing their children and taking away their right to education. A good example is that of a boy who begs by Sam Mujoma and Josiah Tongogara. As early as half six the boy is already there with his father begging for money until around six o’clock in the evening. The boy has to withstand harsh weather conditions every day. The boy no longer has a life that other boys of his same age group have.

Where are the children’s rights activists in the middle of all this?  These groups should be the ones fighting to stop this kind of behaviour. Children’s rights activists may say that child labour is when children are working in farms however I additionally need to contend that the asking in the lanes is likewise tyke work as the kids are sent by their guardians to ask for cash. 

Street kids hanging behind a car

Some of these children are street kids and they are the ones that are abusing drugs and indulging in sexual activities at a tender age. These childern are seen at the back of the cars risking their lives and by the look of things they seem to be enjoying the ride. Can the constables on duty do something on this kind of  behaviour.  

Let us work together to help remove these children from the boulevards and get them back to school. With education their future is better than spending their days in the streets.

DIGITAL SECURITY IS A LIFESTYLE

The Source media house was raided in March by Econet and their data was manipulated. Radio personality Tinopona Katsande popularly known (as Tin Tin) sex tap video leaked. There have been a lot of videos and pictures going viral on social media platforms mainly because of negligence and ignorance on how to secure our personal data.

journalists at DSZ workshop

Digital Society of Zimbabwe has been training journalists, bloggers and civil society to secure their information. The main trainers are Natasha Musonza, Tawanda Mugari and Christopher Musodza. DSZ provides in person and web-based digital security literacy capacity building and training. DSZ is a network of voluntary digital security trainers, IT professionals and privacy advocates scattered across the country, working together on a mission to empower Zimbabwean activists, human rights defenders and everyday internet users to become more resilient and secure in their use of digital tools online and offline, through capacity building assistance.

The journos really welcomed this kind of training because their work is at risk as they can easily be raided and their machines taken. A good example is the raid by Econet on The Source. 

Last week they had a workshop whereby they were training journanilsts on digital security. Most of the journalists did not know anything on digital security. Among the trainees was Xolisani Ncube, a News Day who was recently arrested by the police for publishing falsehoods. The journalists were trained on how to secure their information and their sources especially in times of raids.

Many people are not well versed with knowledge on how to protect their data. As someone that has attended  a digital security training l have attained some knowledge on how to strengthen online resilience, including assessing and understanding digital threats and how to combat them; practical tips on staying safe when using technology and social media; protecting my laptop against malware and viruses, creating and remembering strong passwords and mobile security.

@Stash training journalists

People have to be aware of phishing links. This is an attempt to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details (and sometimes, indirectly, money), often for malicious reasons, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication.

Most often this can happen on Facebook.  For instance, last week l received a message someone asking me to send them an email. I went through their profile and found out that they had joined Facebook 2 hours ago. After l declined to send them an email, the profile was pulled down. People must not trust unlicensed software as these pose threats to their personal data. Genuine software licences are not cheap but they are worth having, they have fewer risks and they are trustworthy, the moment we have cracked OP, we are now opening the doors for malware.

One can also protect their data by turning on the two step verification button on their email settings.  It’s like you will be signing in with something you know (your password) and something you have (a code sent to your phone). One can also pre generate codes from g-mail and the codes can be used once only. One can also download an app called google authenticator.

Google Authenticator generates 2-step verification codes on your phone. Enable 2-step verification to protect your account from hijacking by adding another layer of security. With 2-step verification signing in will require a code generated by the Google Authenticator app in addition to your account password.

Tinopona’s pictures could not have leaked if she had protected her information in a way that it can only be visible to her. One can protect her data by using Vera crypt. Vera Crypt adds enhanced security to the algorithms used for system and partitions encryption making it immune to new developments in brute-force attacks. The encrypted information will be visible when you want it to be.

In this digital era, people have to be very careful and protect their data. Being safe means sacrificing some circumstances. Digital security should be a life style for everyone.

LETS US BE RESPONSIBLE YOUTH

Most Zimbabwean youth no longer have their future at heart. All they think about is how to make themselves happy and live a life that they see on MTV. Yes there are no jobs and all the other hardships we are facing but going around town dressing like the Jonas brothers and all the other hip hop artists and partying all the time will not bring food to the table.

Picture courstey of HarareNews

The Kim Kardashians of this world get money by partying all night. My question to the youths out there is are you getting paid by partying. If you are please show the whole of Zimbabwe how you are doing it. Nowadays young girls think being half naked is the “in thing” copying what they see on TV and the funny part is they wear it in the streets. Girls are now more concerned about how they look so as to impress men and to look on top of the range rather than concentrating on their school work.

Yes, it is understandable that your parents cannot afford to take you to school because of the prevailing economic situations. Then why do you have to be of loose morals to earn a living. There are many ways to survive in this country under these circumstances but not selling your body at a tender age.

 Most uneducated girls are now prostitutes because they want to live a life they are not. Some of them are strippers plus prostitutes at the same time. After a stripping session one starts to look for a client. This is their daily routine. A visit of Private Lounge will confirm to you what l am saying. Girls as young as 18 years old are involved in this kind of business. During the day they are normal ladies in the suburbs and in most cases they have a boyfriend of their age group whom they are also having sex with. This leads to the circulation of the HIV/AIDS virus amongst the youth of today. 

“Pantyprenuership” won’t make us be better citizens of the country. This is one of the reasons our economy is getting so bad because of this generation of young man and women who don't know what to prioritize in life. I don't  understand that you can  afford  to be buying alcohol instead of investing that money into your education or something that will have long term benefits for you and your family.

  

One of the Strength is confronting the brutal facts! I hope this helps some of my friends.

VIOLATION OF THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION

As we celebrate the 16 days of activism against gender based violence, ABAMMELI posted a video on social media of a lady whose access to education was violated by a lecturer at the National University of Science and Technology.

Thembelihle Zulu was in her final year when a lecturer in her department asked for sex and in exchange he would offer her a dissertation project.  According to Zulu she refused and life at the university turned to be hell. The lecturer was now shouting at her to the extent that she had to avoid school because of him, change her cell number. Her marks took a dramatic turn for the worst.

“I approached a female assistant lecturer, told her everything on a person note. She advised me on how to report the matter to the relevant authorities in the department. I reported the issue and papers were said to be pushed until now nothing has been done. It’s nearly two years now and there is nothing has ever been done. Too many people came in into the situation. There were lawyers, NGO and Human rights and as l stand right now l didn’t graduate when l was supposed to,” said Zulu.

“I didn’t want to go back but now l have enrolled because l have done 99.5 %. But l feel unsettled because l need to go back to that same place where he was.  I feel like the whole system is just mocking me like that girl, what were you trying; did you accomplish what you wanted to accomplish. Am very disappointed in the university system.”

According to Female Students Network, there has been a significant rise in the number of female students being abused and they do not report the issues. Most students are afraid to speak out because they are afraid of failing.  

According to a source that could not be revealed, Zulu was the one who seduced the lecturer. “The lecturer actually has WhatsApp messages that show that she was the one who wanted a favour from the lecturer.”

“How can she put the blame on the department? She was given another supervisor and she failed the dissertation.”

Another source said what the lady is saying is true as the issue was pushed forward to the relevant offices at the institution.

He said, “This issue is a very difficult one because it’s Thembelihle’s word against the lecturer’s word. What really happened will only be known when the hearing is conducted.”

Zulu is said to be a lesbian and she was once involved in a fight with her former colleague over a girl in the same class.

STRIPPER PLUS PROSTITUTE

Picture courtsey of iHarare

Young girls are now strippers plus prostitutes at the same time due to the prevailing economic situation in the country.

The economy has left many people jobless and most families are finding it hard to sustain themselves.   Most people are now diverting into other ways just to have a meal on their tables.

A visit to Private Lounge will prove to you how hard things are in the country. Young girls are stripping until they are in their birthday suits because they are in need of money since there are no jobs.

Two of the strippers are girls from Bulawayo aged 21 and 20 respectively. These young women migrated from Bulawayo to Harare in search of greener pastures in the city of Sunshine.  Life in Harare is not that rosy like what most people out of the town think.  The two had to join the strippers community because it is the only way one can make money in the city.

Firstly they used to strip at the Airport Lounge but it closed down now they are at Private Lounge where there is a lot of competition.  Sometimes they do not get to strip which means they are not pocketing any money home. This leads to the young women selling their bodies in the club just to pocket money.

According to the two, it’s a stiff competition and it needs one to be clever and strong because you won’t be able to make money if you are dull and weak willed. After stripping these women make sure that they get hired as prostitutes as the money they get there is peanuts.

However, some people think these women are hiding behind the fact that there is no employment in doing illicit things. These women enjoy what they are doing because it’s in them ‘kushama.’

Chido Musodza said, “Why can’t they sell tomatoes or be maids rather than do what they are doing. What example are they setting to the younger generations? ”

This week some pictures of old women stripping in a bar went viral on the social media. Boys as young as ten years were part of the crowd at the stripping show. This act was  condemned by many people as children were exposed to illicit stuff.