|
|
Police oppression in Zambia This interview shows how even gay people in positions of authority feel compelled to cooperate with and even continue oppressive practices themselves, for fear of being outed and exposed themselves if they don't. It demonstrates how homophobia becomes a self-sustaining state of affairs. But it also demonstrates how even among oppressive authorities there is a large pool of people that would love to be free to be themselves. Interview by Ndanji "I’m 36 years old born in Zambia and live here, I’m gay but my job that I have been serving for the past 16 years has always kept me in the closet. I’m a police office in one of the police stations out here in Zambia’s Capital city Lusaka, I must say that I love the job because I always wanted to become a police officer and to my surprise it has brought me cases that are not worth working in the police force any more. None of my family knows that I’m gay and yes they always ask me when I will be able to bring the right woman home which is a typical African issue that will never fade away. But I have always ignored that question and usually say I’m married to my job, it does result into a joke at times that’s how I manage to change the subject of marriage all the time that question is asked. My main point in this interview is that there issues that affect me and the whole gay community that is growing in Zambia if at all it will go further. I must express that there is a lot of blackmail happening out here in Zambia among the gay people out here and gay foreigner that live and visit Zambia. This come as one case that recently came up at the station, now you might get shocked how the case comes up to the police station. Its not as if the case happens out there and we as the police officers go out there to investigate no, its all organized. Lusaka is a Capital city of Zambia and its one of the fastest growing cities in central Africa, this has been taken as an advantage by a lot of straight people to easily claim that they are gay hence just to blackmail or to gain money out of the act. Usually it’s the foreigners that are targeted, and when that sort of case is brought to the station the foreigner loses a lot or faces deportation, surely and not any tourist want to go through this. I witnessed one case that was well organized by a civilian and the police officers, the civilian called chintu had to claim that he was gay and some how managed to communicate with an Italian man who was visiting Lusaka, yes the internet works but how much do we benefit from it especially if it lives the other person stuck? Maurizio was visiting Zambia for 10 days and unfortunately he ended up communicating with chintu via internet and they discussed all about how they would meet and what hotel to go to, but no money would be involved, this gave Maurizio confidence that it would be a fruitful visit. We all want to at one point find a partner doesn’t matter where that person comes from as long as there is love in between the two that’s what matters, so many people from all walks of the world east to west north to south in search for the right one we don’t know when that time comes and it has to start from friendship later interests develop and what goes on in between the two its your business.
Maurizio came into the country smiling, all was well he met all his Italian friends out here and on his forth day of visit that was the day everything went wrong, he email chintu for a meeting in the evenings, it was all well arranged and chintu what he had done was he informed part of his friends in the force that the plan was going on as planned, the task for the police officers was around that time when chintu would be having a meeting with Maurizio then they would burst on them, it’s a horrifying act because these people all they want is that foreign money from you. It was about 21:10pm Zambian time and I was among the police officers, we were about four of us, we got to the hotel reception and yes, if it’s the police business we have the right to go up to the guest’s room and knock, we did that, when we knocked Maurizio opened the door and we told him we were the police and demanded him to let us search the room, when we got in, chintu was half naked and of cause Maurizio was too, so the other officer asked chintu a few questions and I remember clearly Maurizio was really scared, and the worst part of that interrogation in the hotel room was that chintu rushed in to saying that yes he was gay and was just trying to have fun with a foreigner. Later that evening we suggested that Maurizio should come to the police station with us but the other officer openly said it out that " You are the people from the west countries that pay for a behind fun" this was really shocking that I was witnessing this then the same office went on to say this is a deportation case, I could see Maurizio almost peeing in his pants, then he said wait he tried to compromise but as it was a planned act there was no way we could let him go without getting money out of him, so he asked what he could do to avoid this situation now? Officer lisulo said cash! How much cash do you have? Maurizio reached out into his suit case and gave us $780 the rest of the notes were in travelers cheques worth $800 so the other officer asked me to go with him and cash them in within the hotel, that was the only chance I could talk to Maurizio while my fellow officers waited in his room together with chintu, on our way I asked Maurizio if he trusted chintu and he said he looks to be an innocent boy, and I then told him about the whole situation that chintu was not even gay, he was shocked, he cashed the money and started heading back to his room. On our way to his room, he cried, I felt sorry for him because I knew how it felt when you are a tourist and face such situations, I then told him that I was gay but none of the other officers knew I was, then I promised him that in the mornings I would bring in a parcel for him, I did not want to see him because it was too much trauma for him that evening, we got to the room and he gave us all the cash, we were there for at least almost an hour, then time for us to leave we left with chintu and that was it. The following morning the share I got from my fellow officers I had to put it in an envelope and wrote a note, went to the hotel and gave it to the receptionist to give it to Mr. Maurizio urgently, that was what happened in this case, its really unbearable, its really happening out here in Lusaka its now a pattern, in our language we say " yaku mbuyo" meaning "the behind fun", its not just the foreigner that are being blackmailed no, its everyone out here that falls in a trap of those that are on the look out for gay guys. My advise to all those that are visiting please be sure about the person you are chatting with on the net before you meet them for fun out here, you might fall in a trap and not able to bell out. Please note that the names in this article have been changed due to the protection of the people involved.
|
Home Page |
More Zambian articles |
||
© Copyright African Veil 2005 - 2008