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Burundi’s Nkurunziza hails chosen successor’s election victory

Burundi’s longtime President Pierre Nkurunziza has congratulated the governing party’s hand-picked successor on a “large victory” in the country’s presidential election, though the main opposition has pledged to contest the result in court.

The election commission on Monday declared Evariste Ndayishimiye, a former army general chosen by the CNDD-FDD party as heir to Nkurunziza, the winner of the May 20 poll with 68.72 per cent vote.

“I warmly congratulate the President-elect General Major Evariste Ndayishimiye for his large victory which confirms that the great majority of Burundians adhere to the projects and the values he embodies,” Nkurunziza, who chose not to run after 15 years in power, posted on Twitter.

Agathon Rwasa, Ndayishimiye’s main challenger in a race contested by seven candidates, came in a distant second with 24.19 per cent of the vote. His National Freedom Council (CNL), however, has rejected the results, alleging cheating by the CNDD-FDD.

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CNL spokesman Therence Manirambona said on Monday his party was putting together a legal complaint to submit within days “so that the court can take a decision on the massive fraud that marked this electoral farce”.

The CNDD-FDD defeated the CNL by a similar margin in the legislative elections held on the same day.

The polls went ahead with scant regard to the coronavirus outbreak following a tense campaign marked by violence and arbitrary arrests. They also proceeded without the presence of international observers.

On May 8, 12 days to the polls and before the scheduled arrival of an East African Community mission to the country, the government said the regional bloc’s observers would have to be in quarantine for 14 days, effectively ruling them out of the election process.

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Ndayishimiye is expected to be sworn in for a seven-year term in late August, when Nkurunziza’s term ends.

Nkurunziza has been in power since 2005, and his final years in office have been racked by turmoil.

His controversial decision to seek a third term in the last election in 2015 sparked mass unrest, violence and an opposition boycott.

Burundi is tightly controlled by the governing party and its youth wing has been linked to a forceful crackdown against the government’s critics.

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State security forces have been accused by rights groups and the UN of crimes against humanity and abuses such as torture, disappearances, sexual violence and executions.

Ndayishimiye is set to inherit a deeply isolated country, under sanctions and cut off by foreign donors, its economy and national psyche damaged by the years of unrest.

It remains to be seen how much influence Nkurunziza will exert going forward, and how freely his successor can reign.

Nkurunziza was this year elevated by Burundi’s parliament to the rank of “supreme guide for patriotism” and he will continue to be chairman of the governing party’s powerful council of elders.

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SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES

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Don’t insert foreign material into vagina

A Health expert has expressed concern about the nature of health issues that confronts women in adulthood and has since advised them to help themselves by prioritising vaginal health.

According to the Acting Programmes Manager of the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Mary Efua Commey, most of the issues that affect women were caused by some negative practices they indulge in at youthful ages.

Those practices, according to her lead to serious health implications and urged them to desist from them.

For instance, the insertion of foreign objects into the private parts was something women must avoid.

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Dr Mary Efua Commey gave the caution last week during an interactive session with female staff of the New Times Corporation (Times Ladies) aimed to create awareness on cervical cancer, and the need to vaccinate and screen girls and women.

According to Dr Commey, some women insert white clay, popularly known as ‘ayilo’, naphthalene balls (camphor), cloves (pepre), herbs, vagina tightening creams and many other things into their private parts.

But in response to that, she told the women to “leave the vagina alone; use tap water to wash it, don’t insert your finger into the vagina.”  

She underlined that the vagina naturally cleanses itself, hence, there was no need to use soap and other detergents to clean it.

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Dr Commey explained that the position of the cervix makes it easier to trap infections, a situation that might create problems, adding that, “let us not create new problems because you don’t know how your body will react to these chemicals.”

According to Dr Commey, women were expected to be screened once every three years but most sexually active women do not get screened after all.

She mentioned that one of the reasons some women shy away from screening was because they do not have the permission of their husbands.

Furthermore, she recounted a few instances where some men acts as impediment on the way of their wives because they do not understand what it means for their wives to be screened for cervical cancer.

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She said the death rate for cervical cancer was unacceptably high as the GHS was trying to reduce the number.

She again indicated that over 3,000 cases of cervical cancer was recorded every year with more than half death cases.

Dr Commey mentioned that screening rate among women in Ghana was extremely low with only 3.6 per cent women screening for the disease in 2023.

Moreover, mentioning some of the risk factors of the disease, she said women with family history, multiple sex partners, personal history of abnormal screening results, women with persistent HPV infection, and smoking were prone to it.

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She said signs and symptoms of cervical cancer include bleeding during or after sex or between periods, post-menopausal bleeding, unusual vaginal discharge, pain during sex and lower back pain.

By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu

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 Silence box fighting violence, forced marriages in Nanumba North District

The silence box
The silence box

 Aisha, a 16-year-old girl’s prefect of Nabuli Junior High School in the Numumba North district of the Northern region, is among hun­dreds of girls in rural communities, where a simple metal box kept in a safe room in their school is offering a lifeline for many innocent girls.

To the untrained eye, it looks ordi­nary. It’s just a box with a narrow slit at the top, but to the teenage girls, it is a silent witness and a keeper of secrets. “This is the Violence Report­ing Box.

In Nabuli, violence was once an unspoken norm for decades, where issues of domestic abuse, child mar­riage, and gender-based violence were swept under the carpet.

The victims bore their pain in silence, fearing banishment when such issues were reported to powerful community elders.

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It was installed as part of a commu­nity driven initiative, spearheaded by ActionAid and implemented by songta­ba, a local base NGO.

Madam Hamida Kukuna, the Com­munity Officer for Songtaba at Nabuli said the box does not judge, but only listen, trying to address your issue if you have been wronged.

She indicated that every week, trained volunteers discreetly emptied the box, forwarding reports to a team of social workers and law enforcement officers stationed in the district cap­ital, after victims of violence anony­mously slip handwritten notes into the box.

“At first, the box was a curiosity, where children giggled as they looked at it, and villagers questioned its pur­pose”, she said.

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Ms Hamida continue that for weeks it remained empty, then after one rainy evening, she saw a footprint towards the box so she opened it and saw a piece of paper inside.

It stated “He comes every night when my mother is away. I am only 12, Please help me.”

The volunteers acted swiftly and that led to the identification of the girl and rescued her from her abusive uncle, who was later arrested.

The news spread quickly, and for the first time, the people of Nabuli real­ised the power of this silent box.

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Soon, more notes followed, as a wife who had been battered for years sought help and a father reported his daughter’s forced marriage to a much older man.

According to Hamida, the box be­came a beacon of hope, an outlet for the voiceless.

Moreover, she said within a year the box has facilitated the rescue of over 30 individuals from abusive situations.

“It has also triggered critical con­versations about violence, gender roles, and justice in the community, she added.

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Mrs Beatrice Yanman Biije, a Pro­grammes Officer at ActionAid Ghana at the Tamale office stated that vil­lage council, once complicit in silenc­ing victims, began working with the authorities in creating a safe place for the teenagers.

She said one of the most remarkable transformations was when a 26-year-old mother of two, after years of beatings from her husband, wrote a note to the box with the help of a teacher.

“Her story inspired the creation of a women’s cooperative, offering skills training and support to survivors of abuse,” she said.

She added that, the initiative faced hurdles, where some villagers accused the box of encouraging rebellion and breaking families apart, said an elder in the community.

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“Others tried to sabotage it, spread­ing rumors and threatening volun­teers, but the tide was turning with each life saved, the community’s support grew stronger”, she added.

The success of the violence report­ing box in Nabuli caught the attention of many schools in the communities around who are working on getting a metal box.

The box stands as a testament to what happens when silence is bro­ken, when whispers become voices, and when justice is given a chance to thrive, even in the most unlikely places.

 From Geoffrey Buta, Nabuli

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