Where have all the writers gone?

By Otieno Amisi   When East African writers, publishers and scholars gather in Kampala later this month, they will draw attention to the art of creative writing and literary criticism.   The meeting, dubbed The People's Forum, is scheduled for Kampala between November 18 - 25 this year and will be the largest such gathering of literary critics, writers and publishers from across East Africa.   Two sad events have recently brought literary studies to the fore in recent weeks. The first was the death of Dr Taitta Towett late last month. Another has been the news of the death of renowned Nigerian writer Cyprian Ekwensi.   Prof Chris Wanjala, a literary scholar at the University of Nairobi who also runs the popular KBC  radio programme Literary Giants, says participants to the Kampala event have been invited from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi   Wanjala is East Africa’s leading literary critic and chairman of the East Africa Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language studies.    Cyprian Ekwensi, 86, was one of Africa’s veteran novelists. He was also a pharmacist and public commentator.   The author of the popular Jagua Nana series of  novels died at the Niger Foundation hospital on 5th November in Enugu where he underwent an operation for an undisclosed ailment. Initial reports were not clear if he died during or after the operation.    Ekwensi’s latest contribution to the literary world was Cash on Delivery, a collection of short stories. Last year the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) and the Committee for Relevant Arts (CORA) feted him.    Ekwensi was celebrated as the forefather of the city novel. He is believed to be the author of the earliest published fiction on social life in the Lagos Metropolis. The novelist will be remembered for his down-to-earth style of writing and his appeal to young reders. He had over 20 novels and short stories to his credit, including People of the City, Burning Grass, Beautiful Feathers, Iska, Rainmaker, Lokotown , Divided We Stand, The Motherless Baby and Gone to Mecca.  

Closer home,  Dr. Taitta Arap Toweett, ( 5th May1925 – 8th October 2007) was variously described as a seer, pioneer, Statesman, Poet, Writer, Scholar, Linguist, Historian, Master Politician, Traditionalist and eccentric. Besides his work as minister, he found time for scholarship and creative writing, rising to the chairmanship  of Kenya Literature Bureau and Director of Kenya Times Newspaper.Toweett wrote no less than eight books, namely Epitaph on Colonialism and Shorter Poems, An African’s Year in England,  A Study of Kalenjin Linguistics (1979), English-Kiswahili-Kalenjin Dictionary (1979), English-Swahili-Kalenjin Nouns Dictionary, Oral Traditional History of The Kipsigis (1980), Tears Over A Dead Cow and Other Stories and  100 Daily Essays

  In reflecting these recent incidents, I got thinking, “Can business, leadership and art work together? Is it possible to link art critics and scholars? Is it possible to find the missing link between reading, writing and cultural appreciation and a sense of national pride?   Can we have an East African equivalent of the incisive London Review of Books, or the authoritative New York Times Literary Supplement?    Unlike in the so called golden era, art criticism is today virtually non existent. Surprisingly few modern journalists can write a sensible paragraph appreciating a novel, a new movie, a collection of paintings or  photographs or a series of cartoons.   Many years ago Taban lo Liyong wrote The Last Word. Then Chris Wanjala penned Season of Harvest. For Home and Freedom and Another Last Word quickly followed.   But since then, there have been virtually no critiques of literature on the local scene.  Literary journals are few and far between. New Age died only two years after its inception, and Kwani’s deadlines are a struggle of life and death.   So why are our dons, who earn their living by expounding upon the written word, not mourning? Why are publishers moaning about people not reading, when so little is being done to encourage people to read? Why are our scholars not reviving Joliso, Darlite, or East Africa Journal?   This death of literary scholarship is manifest in several ways. A decline in interest in literature, the production of sub standard books, the collapse of writers’ associations, and a folding of literary journals.   One does not need to search far to see the sense of despair that has gripped the literary world, or what is left of it. Our university departments of literature have been cowed into a strange muddle called integration. Our best novels, even those that win the occasional but coveted Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature, are half sheng, half bad grammar and weak plots. I am talking about Marjorie Oludhe McGoye’s Kushnev Farm Wanjiru Waithaka’s The Unbroken Spirit and Kingwa Kamenchu’s To Grasp at a Star.   The result is a sea of confusion that a reader recently expressed to me at a poetry reading: “I have just finished reading Kwani? 04 and I must say it was an interesting read, save for the craze with blogs and an overwhelming sense of defensiveness.” 

Literary journals in East Africa have been few and far between. Besides Kwani, there isn’t much literary activity going on in Nairobi, Kampala or Dar es Salaam. Literary criticism, which is the gem of any department of literature or publishing house worth its name, is virtually lacking in the region. East Africa’s literary history is littered with bundles of journals and magazines- Darlite, Nexus, Black Orpheus, Transition, Joliso, Ghala, East African Journal- and many more.  Journals, even corporate inhouse newsletters, are noble  creations which nurture literary talent, create a spirit of community or merely explains a firm’s policies.  Many cultural, business political or literary  magazines are often born at a time when the political, economic or cultural climate is ripe- when as one would say, the winds of change blow strongly over the land, raising the level of consciousness of the people.  In essence, then they represent or manifest a movement in society triggered off by the prevailing political, economic and cultural climate. Remember Njehu Gatabaki and his Nairobi Law Monthly, or Pius Nyamora and Society?It is therefore not suprising that when the cultural and political tide ebbs and people find their places in business, politics and sports, such magazines are sniffed away like candles. Much like civil society business, which died when the activists became waheshimiwa.This is principally because so few so called men of letters their founders and sponsors are artists at heart and they would rather invest their intellectual and financial input in apparently (sadly) more socially and financially rewarding activities like politics, law or trade.    Perhaps if we had a vibrant literary society, bigger than Kwani? and the university of Nairobi’s department of literature put together, we could talk of a literary rain forest, overgrown with poetry, fiction and criticism. Will the men and women of letters please stand up to be counted?Otieno Amisi runs a blog on Aids, Arts and Culture, www.otienoamisi.wordpress.com He has recently published Write that Story, A Guide for Journalists and Editors.

On stress management

Stress management is crucial in management, writes Otieno Amisi

 

Forget absenteeism. The most serious problem in today’s workplace is presenteeism. People go to work when they shouldn’t, or work too long, or too hard.

 

Contrary to popular belief, a large chunk of Kenya’s workforce spends far too many hours at work. Many more simply go through the motions of work, like zombies. And what’s worse, productivity is going down.

 

According to Nancy Njoki Kamau of Lifebloom Consultancy, employers need to take the existence of presenteeism at work more seriously if productivity is to rise.

 

“Presenteeism is a problem that creates huge loses for companies, much like absenteeism is known to do.”

 

In a new video, Nancy examines psychological challenges at the modern workplace. The video, ‘Stress Management in a Changing Environment,’ was launched on November 16 at the St Andrew’s Church Conference Hall, Nairobi. It discusses the psychological impact of work and examines some stress coping mechanisms at both the personal and office levels. The guest of honour at the launch was Joseph Kaguthi, former Nyanza PC.

“Stress is the body’s reaction to anxiety producing events. The force of stress, if not well handled, can bring down and disrupt one’s life completely,” Nancy explains. “Today’s lifestyle demands a reference tool on coping with stress. This video fills in that gap with local examples that people can easily identify with at work, at home or at community levels.”

 

Nancy also defines stress as an emotional sign that the concerned person needs help to cope with issues in their lives that are demanding more energies and capacities than they presently have.

 

“Stress affects the way we feel and think. When someone is stressed, they perform below capacity. They also run the risk of reaching burnout.”

 

The video explores sources of stress at work, at home and in the community. It also examines signs and symptoms, such depression and explains how to cope.

 

A recent study in Nairobi shows that negativity, a key emotion among both managers and employees, leads to the loss of motivation and morale. She says there is need for more studies in the organizational change phenomena that focuses on employees.

The study observes that only a few organizations are proactively involved in communication processes that help workers understand the effects of change and how to manage stress.

 

Most workers in the study, conducted by a counseling and management training firm, placed lack of proper and adequate communication at forty five percent, while those who wanted improvement on training reported twenty five percent. Improvement of welfare was twenty one percent.

 

Seventy percent of the participants felt that poor communication was a major problem in their workplaces. The survey also reflects a growing element of resentfulness and suspicion among workers towards employers.

 

Nancy says though many employees and managers go through psychological problems both at home and in the office, they are too immersed in work to address these problems, often until it is too late. This results in low morale, which impacts negatively on the productivity of organizations. In some cases, stress leads to depression and suicidal tendencies among workers, she says.

 

The researcher says people have become so busy struggling to eke out a living, that they have forgotten how to listen to one another.

 

“The traditional social systems of support have collapsed and people need something to fall back on,” Nancy says. “The work arena in both the public and private sectors has left workers with stress that has not been addressed.”

 

At home, the economic problems both for the rich and poor triggers immense stress. Dual career parenting (where parents are employed), and single parenting have exerted considerable pressure on motherhood and fatherhood in recent years.

 

At the community level, issues such as politics, poor infrastructure and insecurity are a further burden. People are further compelled to take on too many roles in religious and community activities, which further strains the family unit.

 

For school going teenagers, the havoc wrought by bodily changes is compounded with growing pressure to perform and fulfill sometimes unrealistic expectations of peers, parents and teachers

 

“Stress can lead to clinical depression and burn out if not well addressed. People who are depressed are sometimes suicidal due to the feeling of hopelessness they have about them. They tend to blame other people and not take responsibility for things,” Nancy explains.

 The 36 minute video, taped before a live audience, is a handy human resource tool for managers. It also focuses on dealing with change at a personal level.  It is available both on VHS and DVD formats.  

Nancy Kamau is a member of Kenya Counseling Association and the Kenya Institute of Management. She is a counseling psychologist, researcher and mentor. A prolific writer and researcher, she has been a columnist with Sunday Nation. She studied research, marketing and psychology and has presented findings in both local and international forums on human development, organizational change, marketing and product development. She has also anchored in many radio and television programs on change management issues.

  

   

Aids Widows cry foul

Aids Widows in Kenya are among the most discriminated lot.

By Otieno Amisi When Gaudencia Oduor (30) lost her husband last month, she had no time to mourn him. She had to flee from the hostility of her in laws. Even before he died, Oduor’s brothers in the city had been openly hostile to her, accusing her of ‘infecting’ their son with Aids. Even though Oduor had been a man of small means, (he was a junior bank clerk) his brothers hurriedly took away the title deed, social security card, bank card and other important documents, pretending to be helping her. As soon as her beloved husband’s remains had been lowered into the red earth at Mur Malanga in Gem, Nyanza province, the relatives turned their wrath against her. She was ostracised, discriminated against, and denied use of the family land. Finally, she was chased out of the matrimonial home.  A distraught and traumatized Gaudencia now lives in a rescue centre in Kayole, Nairobi. Her two sons, Caleb Okoth (12) and Andrew Ojuok (15) stay with her brother in Kangemi estate.   Nowhere else does the ugly head of discrimination and stigmatisation rear its ugly head as it does among the poor citizens. But in Kenya’s Nyanza province, where stigma and discrimination due to HIV Aids is rife, hostile customs compound the plight of widows and orphans. Here, the woman who is unfortunate to survive her husband’s death by Aids is easily accused of ‘killing’ him.  Such women are literally robbed of everything perceived to belong to the husband, such as land documents, savings and any other assets. Like the proverbial baby and the bathwater, the children are also sent away.  “Woe unto you if you are a Luo woman and your husband dies before you,” says  Esther Agudha, a women’s rights activist who runs the rescue centre. “There is extreme violation of human rights,’ she adds. “The treatment of widows, especially young widows in their thirties and below is pathetic. In many Kenyan communities, young widows are often thrown out of their matrimonial homes after the death of their husbands. Since they have already been culturally denied any property rights, all valuables are forcefully taken away.”  Esther says the problem gets worse for young widows who have been living with their husbands away from home as they have had little to time to know their matrimonial land  at home and properly bond with relatives at home. Esther, who coordinates the Young Widows Advancement Programme, observes that in some cases, even children are taken away from them. But even there, such children do not necessarily get better care than they would if they were left to stay with the mothers,” she says. Members of the Nairobi based organisation testify that because of this man made hardship, many women turn to prostitution, while the children go to the streets because of the trauma and hardship that they face at home. Leonida Odongo, a programme officer at the organisation, says in Kenya, where title deeds for land or houses are traditionally issued to men, many young widows are denied access to their deceased husband’s benefits. “Land, which is one of the most important resources, is largely in the hands of men, and the clan, operating under insensitive laws, does not  entrust women ownership, especially after the death of their husbands.,” she says. This means women are left with little recourse in cases of divorce from or death of their husbands. This state of affairs forces women to endure abusive relationships or infidelity to ‘safeguard’ their access to property through their husband, rather than seeking a divorce.  The most affected widows, says Esther, are those who have lost their husbands to HIV/Aids. “With the spread of the scourge and the attendant stigma, the number of young widows being thrown out of their matrimonial homes has been on the rise. The young  widows are often  accused of ‘killing’ their husbands,  and are ‘punished’ by taking away their property.” The problem is further compounded by the fact that few of the widows have any means of earning a livelihood. Few of these women have marketable skills and are therefore unable to support their children. Yet both the modern and traditional structure is unable to support them and their children. The average widow has to depend on minor trades like charcoal selling or vegetable vending. Some end up as house helps or hawkers in the streets. For many more the only option is commercial sex work. Young Widows Advancement Programme helps the women by paying for their training them in marketable skills such as tailoring, food processing, marketing and book keeping. Even then, the income they receive from informal activities is insufficient to cover their basic needs and those of their children. The programme also educates members on their legal rights. “Few widows  are aware of their legal rights. Ignorance, poverty and lack of  self confidence makes it difficult for many widows to go to court to seek redress, says Jane Dwasi, a volunteer lawyer attached to the programme. “It is  still common  for a widow to  lose land and other  property because  her in-laws  have managed to establish a prior claim on the property. Women who are not legally married are particularly disadvantaged,” explains Dwassi, who teaches law at the University of Nairobi. Dwassi says, “ in many cases in-laws are simply motivated by greed, selfishness  and a false sense of being in control.”Besides  the temporary shelter, the program offers counseling, and anti Aids medicines.   

Demystifying Aids

The Aids myth has been hyped. Is this good for humanity, and who benefits? Otieno Amisi asks.

 In Kenya, the typical message from the Ministry of Health beseeches pregnant women to go for an HIV test. It is on billboards, radio, television and everywhere else you care to look.  These days, it comes with a promise of free ‘treatment.’  

Across the road, religious leaders are getting away by canceling weddings among  HIV positive couples, or where couples are reluctant to declare their status. Many unmarried people are terrified simply by the thought of entering a new relationship because of the possibility of contracting HIV.

 

Everywhere you go, humanity is living in extreme terror, in great fear, in neck deep guilt, in utter shame, even in denial. Our lives are ruled by fear, far more fear than if there is was a world war  raging all around us.

 

It all started nearly twenty-four years ago, when Dr.Robert Gallo, a little known researcher at the American National Institute of Health, called an international press conference. Dr Gallo announced that he had discovered a new retrovirus, the now famous Human Immuno deficiency Virus. (HIV).

 

Since then, the world has never been the same. Millions of people all over the world have been condemned to death by being declared HIV positive. Many more are said to be suffering from Aids.

 

While Gallo rather cautiously, even meekly, described the Human Immunodeficiency Virus as “the probable cause of AIDS,” the medical fraternity rushed to crown it as “another miracle of American medicine…the triumph of science over a dreaded disease”.

 

Thus was the damage done, and today, many lives and careers have been devastated, and life has become is practically hopeless for both the infected and the uninfected.

 

Because the gospel of hopelessness that comes with being declared HIV positive is so deep and disarming it inhibits any sense of fulfillment and diminishes the zest for life.

 

Mercifully, there is a growing concern in medical circles today for a need to demystify the message that “HIV=AIDS=Death.”  Doctors are beginning to agree that the conventional knowledge that HIV causes AIDS may not be true. And that it is probably time to review anti-Aids campaigns.

 

They are beginning to realize that the cherished Aids tests are actually causing more great harm to people. Activists and radical thinkers are beginning to argue that the sustained, multi billion marketing of condoms, the hype on anti-retroviral drugs and the downplaying of abstinence is a mere cash cow for rich western countries preying on a huge, ignorant world market.

 

Today, everyone living with Aids is advised medically to take anti retroviral drugs to ‘prolong’ their lives. Failure to do so, they are warned, will mean their body’s immunity will deteriorate and they will ultimately die.

 

What many people do not remember is that though a lot of research has been undertaken in extension to Gallo’s discovery, no single test to date has identified the virus that causes Aids. Instead, the reliance is purely on detection of interactions between proteins and antibodies thought to be specific for HIV or based on the detection of small genetic fragments believed, by consensus, to be from HIV.

 

Interestingly, and unfortunately, a variety of viruses, bacteria and other antigens can cause the immune system to make antigens that also react to give HIV test positive results. In fact some respected scientists like Dr. Luc Montagnier of the Pasteur Institute in France have stated categorically that HIV does not cause AIDS without other unidentified cofactors.

 

So, what exactly is Aids?

 

The so called dreaded disease is  not any one disease. In fact,  it is not a disease at all. It is a condition in which the body becomes unable to fight away common ailments.

 

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC),  Aids refers to a collection of no less than 29 familiar illnesses and conditions. Now, humans have been suffering from these diseases from time immemorial. The illnesses are called Aids only when they occur in a person who also has protective disease-fighting proteins or antibodies that are thought to be associated with HIV. In other words, Pneumonia in a person testing HIV positive is Aids, while the same Pneumonia in a person who tests HIV negative is not Aids.

 

Once one is said to suffer from Aids, the emphasis is to administer the anti-retroviral drugs.  Media reports attributing declines in Aids to protease inhibitor cocktails often neglect to mention the high rate of drug failure or the considerable number of HIV positives who quit the new combinations because of intolerable side effect or have never taken them at all. They also neglect to note that the rate of new Aids cases and deaths was declining before these drugs came on the market, possibly due to reductions in the dosages of the first generation of Aids drugs. Claims of victory for protease inhibitors are based entirely on changes in surrogate markers, those laboratory measurements of unsubstantiated accuracy and value in assessing actual health.

 

Against this background, it is wise to review our understanding of HIV and Aids. More importantly, the perception of Aids and our treatment of ‘victims’ is deeply wanting. By our dismissive, hostile, ignorant and arrogant attitude, we are actually  killing hundreds of  healthy people every day.

 

The writer is a Nairobi based author and  journalist. He has recently published Back to the Future, a collection of poems on Leadership, Aids, Love and Nature