Thursday, June 27, 2013

Mganga wa Kienyeji Akamatwa Akijaribu Kuloga Ndani ya Mahakama Kisutu


MGANGA WA KIENYEJI AKAMWATA AKIJARIBU KULOGA NDANI YA MAHAMAKA YA HAKIMU MKAZI KISUTU LEO






MGANGA WA KIENYEJI HUYU HAPA PICHANI, RAJABU ZUBERI(30),MKAZI WA Kerege,Muheza Tanga, akiwa chini ya ulinzi wa wanausalama leo saa mbili asubuhi katika Mahakama ya Hakimu Mkazi Kisutu Dar es Salaam, baada kifaa maalum cha upekezi kumnasa mganga huyo akiwa na vifaa hivyo vya uganga ambavyo alikuwa amekuja navyo mahakamani hapo kwaajili ya kufanyia mambo ya kishirikina katika kesi moja inayomkabili 
mmoja wa washtakiwa mahakamani hapo. Hongereni sana wanausalama kwa kazi nzuri ya kumnasa mtu huyo kwani mmesaidia kuvuruga azma yake.Picha kwa hisani ya Happy Katabazi

CHANZO: Jamii Forums


Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Waraka kwa Rais Obama Kutoka kwa Kamati ya Ulinzi wa Wanahabari

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The Committee to Protect Journalists writes to President @BarackObama ahead of his meeting with President @jmkikwete


The Committee to Protect Journalists wrote to U.S. President Barack Obama ahead of his meetings with Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete next week to ask that he bring up the critical importance of press freedom to economic development and democracy.
cpj_logo
June 25, 2013
His Excellency Barack Obama
President of the United States of America
White House
Via facsimile: +1 202-456-2461
Dear President Obama:
Ahead of your first trip to East Africa, we would like to bring to your attention the deteriorating state of press freedom in Tanzania. In your meetings with Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, we ask that you discuss the critical importance of press freedom to economic development and democracy.
In the past year, CPJ has documented a rise in threats and attacks against journalists in Tanzania. In September 2012, CPJ documented the first work-related journalist killing in the country since we began keeping detailed records in 1992. Police shot at point-blank range Daudi Mwangosi, reporter for TV Channel 10, after the journalist confronted them over the arrest of another reporter. A junior officer was arrested, but several other officers seen as being involved have not been held accountable. Another journalist, Issa Ngumba, was found dead from gunshot wounds in January. CPJ is investigating to determine if the murder was related to his coverage of local farming issues. No one has been arrested.
In addition, several journalists have been attacked in connection with their work. In March, unknown assailants attacked Absalom Kibanda, chairman of Tanzanian Editor's Forum and managing editor of the New Habari media company, leaving the critical columnist with severe injuries. No one has been arrested. Local journalists also said they have often been threatened by officials and high-ranking businessmen via text messages, emails, or intermediaries. Reporters based outside the capital, Dar es Salaam, are often targeted, the sources said.
This new trend of attacks against the press in Tanzania occurs against a backdrop of restrictive anti-press laws. One of them, the 1976 Newspaper Act, which allows the information minister discretionary powers to suspend publications, was used to ban the leading independent weekly Mwanahalisi in July 2012. The constitution includes at least 16 other anti-press laws that have induced journalists to practice self-censorship, our research shows.
Tanzanian authorities said they would present a new press bill this year that would eliminate legislation that censors or restricts the press. But the contents of the bill have been kept from the public, and local and regional media outlets have said they fear renewed anti-press legislation.
As you know, the Tanzanian government is one of five African nations that signed on to your Open Government Partnership Initiative, a multilateral effort to promote transparency. Tanzania cannot uphold its obligation given the current media climate of threats against the press and existing restrictive legislation. Economic development that benefits Tanzanian citizens can only occur in a system in which officials are held accountable by a free and vibrant press.
Tanzanian journalists are working in a highly restrictive media environment and are being attacked with impunity. We ask that you urge President Kikwete to promote media freedom in the country, without which vibrant democracy and economic development cannot exist.
Sincerely,
Joel Simon
Executive Director
CC List:
H.E. Jakaya Kikwete, President of Tanzania
H.E. Mwanaidi S. Maajar, Ambassador of Tanzania to the United States of America
H.E. Alfonso E. Lenhardt, Ambassador of the United States of America to the Republic of Tanzania
Filiberto Ceriani Sebregondi, Head of the Delegation of European Union to the Republic of Tanzania
John Kerry, Secretary of State for the United States of America
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Assistant Secretary for African Affairs for the United States of America
Dr. Fenella Mukandara, Minister of Information of the Republic of Tanzania
Pansy Tlakula, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights
Reginald Mengi, Chairman of the Media Association of Tanzania
Dr. Jeffrey Ashley, USAID / East Africa Mission Director
Kajubi Mukajanga, Executive Secretary of the Media Council of Tanzania
Mohamed Tibanyendera, Chairman of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, Tanzania
Ernest Sungura, Executive Director of the Tanzania Media Fund

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Mwanafunzi Ameshindwa Kuja Darasani Ili Kumtunza Mbwa

Jana, mwanafunzi wangu mmoja aliniandikia ujumbe kuwa hangehudhuria darasa. Mbwa wa familia, kule Minneapolis, alikuwa hajisikii vizuri, na hapakuwa na mtu wa kumwangalia. Kwa hivyo, kwa niaba ya familia, ilibidi kijana aende kule kumshughulikia mbwa. Hali ya mbwa ilihitaji apelekwe kwa daktari.

Kijana alinipa maelezo hayo. Ila leo amekuja darasani. Kabla ya kipindi kuanza nilimwuliza mbwa anaendeleaje, naye akasema alimpeleka kwa daktari ile jana, na anaendelea vizuri.

Ninafahamu kuwa habari hii itawashangaza wa-Tanzania wenzangu na wa-Afrika kwa ujumla. Kwetu mbwa hatumjali kiasi hicho. Ni utamaduni tofauti. Lakini hapa ni Marekani. Kama nilivyoeleza katika kitabu changu cha Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences katika utamaduni huu, mbwa wanamjali utadhani binadamu. Baadhi ya maneno niliyoandika ni haya:  

Many Americans keep pets, such as dogs, cats, birds, and fish, lavishing much care and tenderness on them. They let their dogs wander anywhere in their house, even taking them in the car as they drive. They rush home from work or other engagement to walk their dog or feed their cat. Americans will hug and even kiss their dog or hold their cat like a baby. When the Americans list the members of their family, they might include the dog, the cat, or other pet. They are probably joking, but it would be insulting to list an African's dog as part of his or her family. I cannot imagine an African allowing a dog in his car, hugging it, or kissing it. (kurasa 52-53)

Nashukuru kwamba nimeishi Marekani kwa miaka mingi kiasi cha kufahamu mengi kuhusu utamaduni wao. Kwa hivyo, ujumbe wa kijana kuwa hangekuja darasani kwa ajili ya mbwa, niliuelewa bila tatizo. Hii ni nchi yao, na huu ni utamaduni wao. Ingekuwa ni Tanzania, udhuru wa namna hiyo ungeleta tafrani kubwa.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Pinda Awaagiza Polisi Kuwapiga Wakaidi

Sijawahi kusikia kutoka kwa serikali nchini Tanzania kauli kama hii ya waziri mkuu Pinda, kuwa wanaofanya ukaidi wapigwe, kwani eti nchi inaendeshwa kwa misingi ya sheria. Pinda anawaagiza polisi wawapige watu wa aina hiyo. Hapo naona Pinda anajikanyaga, kwani kama Tanzania inaendeshwa kwa misingi ya sheria, sidhani kama sheria inaruhusu kuwapiga hao anaowaita wakaidi. Vile vile maagizo ya Pinda ni ukiukwaji wa haki za binadamu.

Kazi ya polisi ni kuwakamata watuhumiwa na kuwafikisha kwenye sheria. Hao ambao Pinda anawaita wakaidi wana haki ya kuhesabiwa hawana hatia hadi mahakama iamue vingine. Kuna tangazo la kimataifa la haki za binadamu ambalo liko wazi kuhusu suala hilo. Kwa muda wote tangu wanapofanya huo ukaidi hadi wanapofikishwa mahakamani, na hadi mahakama itoe uamuzi, hao watu ni watuhumiwa tu.  Huu ndio utawala wa sheria na ni msingi mojawapo wa haki za binadamu. Kusema wapigwe ni kutetea ukiukwaji wa haki za binadamu.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Wanafunzi Wangu Walipata Mkong'oto Babati

Nilikuwa Tanzania mwezi Januari mwaka huu na wanafunzi wa hapa chuoni St. Olaf katika kozi juu ya mwandishi Ernest Hemingway. Tulikaa siku nne Babati.

Siku moja wanafunzi waliniambia wameona kiwanja mjini hapo na wanataka kwenda kucheza kabumbu. Walipofika kiwanjani, waliwakuta vijana wenyeji wamevalia sare za kabumbu, wakapatana kuwa wapimane nguvu.

Wanafunzi walitwanga vibaya, ila sikumbuki walitwangwa magoli mangapi. Siku ya pili wanafunzi wakaenda tena. Nadhani walikuwa na ndoto ya kulipiza kisasi. Wapi, ndugu yangu. Waligaragazwa tena.

Nadhani siku hiyo Babati ilisisimka sana. Kwanza, sio kawaida kutembelewa na wazungu wengi namna hii. Halafu, huenda waliamini kuwa hao wazungu ni wacheza soka, na kwa maana hiyo, matokeo ya mechi yalikuwa kwamba wa-Marekani wamegaragazwa Babati. Yawezekana kuwa hayo ndio maneno yaliyoenea mitaani.

Ukweli ni kuwa hao wanafunzi wangu wala sio timu ya kabumbu. Walijikusanya tu kiholela wakaenda uwanjani. Ila, kwa vile ninapangia kuwapeleka wanafunzi wengine siku za usoni, labda itakuwa vema nikiwaambia kabla kuwa wafanye mazoezi ya kabumbu, ili kuwafundisha somo watu wa Babati. Kwa hivi, watu wa Babati subirini kichapo.

Hizo mechi za kabumbu zilifanikisha sana ndoto yangu ya kujenga mahusiano baina ya wa-Marekani na wa-Tanzania. Ni mbinu ambayo nitafanya juu chini niitumie siku zijazo. Hapo pichani, hao wanaume wanne walioko mstari wa mbele kabisa bila sare si watu wa Babati bali madreva wa msafara wetu.





Mnyika Aeleza Sababu za Nassari Kuhamishwa


Tuesday, June 18, 2013

CHADEMA: Mlipuaji wa Bomu la Arusha ni Polisi

Baadhi ya kauli za Mheshimiwa Mnyika katika video hii zinaendana na kauli aliyotoa mwenyekiti wa CCM, Jakaya Kikwete, miezi kadhaa iliyopita, kwamba kuna viongozi katika CCM ambao hutumia polisi kuwahujumu wapinzani. Kwa vile mwenyekiti wa CCM alisema hivyo, nawajibika kusema kuwa ni ukweli. Bila upendeleo, nilivyomwelewa mimi ni kuwa alikuwa na nia ya kuwakanya CCM waache ufedhuli huo.

Nasubiri kusikia kauli ya msemaji yeyote wa CCM kuhusu hilo suala. Wakisema kuwa CHADEMA inadanganya, basi waseme pia wazi wazi kuwa mwenyekiti wa CCM naye ni mdanganyifu.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

CCM na Wadanganyika

Niliiona picha hii katika mtandao wa Facebook, ikaniacha hoi, mbavu sina. Hatimaye, nimeshindwa kujizuia kuiweka hapa katika blogu yangu.

Bahati mbaya sijaweza kuona jina la aliyeiandaa picha hii. Ningemtaja, kwa mujibu wa haki mikili.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Makala Yangu Kuhusu Hemingway na Afrika

Jana, niliandika makala fupi kuhusu juhudi zangu za kumwelewa Hemingway na kufundisha maandishi na habari zake. Jana hiyo hiyo, niliona kuwa makala yangu kuhusu kozi niliyofundisha Tanzania mwaka huu juu ya Hemingway inachapishwa na African Global Roots. Nategemea kuwa yeyote anayejiuliza kwa nini nahangaika sana na mwandishi huyu atanielewa, angalau kidogo.


Studying Hemingway in East Africa–Upcoming Africana Magazine Article


Students entering kenyaby Joseph L. Mbele
For the whole month of January, 2013, I was in Tanzania, with 29 students from St. Olaf College. We were studying the African writings of Ernest Hemingway while visiting some of the places he visited and wrote about.
Student w child

Hemingway is a famous writer, world traveler, big game hunter, and fan of bull fighting and boxing. About ten years ago, I discovered that he also greatly loved Africa. I embarked on exploring this aspect in earnest.

Born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1899, Hemingway learned about Africa from his earliest years as his father took him to the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where, among the exhibits, there were stuffed animals from Africa, including the celebrated lions of Tsavo.

In 1909, retired president Teddy Roosevelt was on safari in Kenya for many months, writing accounts of his safari in the U.S. media. The American public, including the young Hemingway, followed the adventure with great interest.

As time went, Hemingway’s interest in Africa grew. In 1922, while living in Paris, he reviewed a famous novel, Batouala, written by Rene Maran of Martinique, who worked as an official in the French colony that is today the Central African Republic. The novel was set there, and Hemingway liked the way it depicted the life of the villagers. This novel helped shape Hemingway’s own writing style.

tribeFinally, Hemingway visited East Africa in 1933-34. From that experience, he wrote the book Green Hills of Africa, and two famous short stories: “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber,” and “The Snows of Kilimanjaro.” He also wrote journalistic pieces and letters. He visited East Africa again in 1953-54. From this experience he wrote a major manuscript, which his son Patrick edited and published as True at First Light. This was shorter than the original manuscript. The entire manuscript was published in 2005 as Under Kilimanjaro.


Hemingway’s love of Africa shines through these writings and the more I read them, the more I wondered why people were not paying much attention to this side of Hemingway. I decided to create a course, which would give students an opportunity to follow Hemingway’s footsteps in East Africa, while reading his writings about those places.

I created the course, ”Hemingway in East Africa,” in 2006, for Colorado College and took students to Tanzania in 2007 and 2008. This year, I traveled with St. Olaf College students.
Such trips work well if the students are given some orientation beforehand, especially on cultural issues. Fortunately, based on years of advising Americans going to Africa, I had written a book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences. As part of the orientation, the students read this book.

We traveled in various places in northern Tanzania: Arusha, Mto wa Mbu, Karatu, Babati, Moshi and Namanga. We did game drives in the game reserves where Hemingway had hunted: Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Manyara, and Tarangire. Hemingway wrote about his experiences in those areas, describing, in particular, the wildlife and the landscape. Being in those areas, observing the animals, and reading Hemingway’s descriptions you are mesmerized by how his words capture the reality.
In all the places we visited, from markets to hotels and bars, the students interacted with Tanzanians of all walks of life: children, youths, adults, men, women, people of different faiths. They talked and shared stories with the Tanzanians, danced together, and even played soccer.

They learned about Tanzanian culture, encountering the kinds of situations I describe in my book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences. For example, a group of the students asked someone in one town where the ATM was. Instead of just giving them directions, that person led them through the streets to the ATM.

The students ate Tanzanian food, especially ugali. On one occasion, to introduce them to local transportation, I had them travel in a dala dala, a minibus tightly packed with passengers.
They learned Swahili words and phrases, especially greetings. This was not just to facilitate interactions with local people, but also to foster appreciation of Hemingway’s habit of using words and phrases from languages other than English. I see this in the broader context of Hemingway’s desire to embrace other cultures.

We explored not only Hemingway’s fictional works, but also his theories about literature, writing, and hunting. Hemingway saw writing and hunting as related, to be pursued with the same seriousness and perseverance. He described true hunting as an artistic pursuit, distinguishing it from what he calls shootism, the tradition of shooting the animal from the safety of a vehicle, by people who might not even be good shots. He advocated facing the animal on foot, and firing only one shot, which should kill the animal.

The more I read Hemingway, the more I realize the extent of his preoccupation with Africa. In addition to the fictional works I have mentioned, which dwell on his African experiences, he wrote essays and letters, such as “The Christmas Gift,” and ”Three Tanganyika Letters” which also deal with those experiences. Furthermore, in novels such as The Garden of Eden and Islands in the Stream, he refers to Africa.

Hemingway loved Africa, and he expressed those feelings again and again. He wrote: “I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy.” He also wrote this intriguing statement: “All I wanted to do was get back to Africa. We had not left it, yet, but when I would wake in the night I would lie, listening, homesick for it already.”
Roaming elephantsA world traveler, Hemingway encouraged others to travel. He encouraged members of his family to go to Africa, and some did go. His son, Patrick, spent many years in Tanzania, where he ran a tour company and taught at the Mweka Wildlife College.
In view of all this, as I have said, I found it strange, if not disturbing, that scholars and critics have generally ignored this pervasive African influence on Hemingway. I have realized that some of these people are not comfortable with the way Hemingway glorifies Africa, contrary to the prevailing tradition of depicting Africa as the dark continent, a dangerous place, not worth paying attention to.

Hemingway died in 1961. There are some things about him that we will never know, because he liked to fabricate stories, even about himself, passing them off as true. He describes, for example, his relationship with Debba, a Kamba girl in Kenya, calling her his fiancée. It is impossible to know whether, or to what extent, the tales he tells about their good times together are true or false.
One thing, however, is certain, and my students learned it well: Africa was very important in Hemingway’s life and career. He not only truly loved Africa, but he wanted to live there. He wrote: “I would come back to Africa but not to make a living from it. I could do that with two pencils and a few hundred sheets of the cheapest paper. But I would come back to where it pleased me to live; to really live. Not just let my life pass.”

Joseph L. Mbele, a Tanzanian, is a professor in the English Department at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. He is a cultural consultant, helping Americans and Africans navigate their cultural differences. He is the author the popular book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences.
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Saturday, June 8, 2013

Nimetoka Mbali na Kozi ya Hemingway

Kila siku, nawazia habari za mwandishi Ernest Hemingway. Kila siku nawawazia pia waandishi wengine, kutoka sehemu mbali mbali za dunia.

Hakuna siku inayopita nisisome angalau kurasa kadhaa za maandishi yao, au uchambuzi wa maandishi hayo. Kwa hilo, naweza kusema Hemingway ndiye anayetawala mawazo yangu kila siku.

Nilifanya utafiti na tafakari ya miaka kama sita hivi, kabla sijaunda kozi ya "Hemingway in East Africa." Kozi hii imeniwezesha kuzifahamu sehemu nyingi za Tanzania kaskazini, na  kufahamiana na watu wengi katika sehemu hizo.

Cha zaidi ni kuwa nimefahamiana na wanafunzi wengi wa ki-Marekani, waliokuja Tanzania kwenye kozi hiyo. Katika picha hapa kushoto, ambayo ilipigwa na Profesa Bill Davis wa chuo cha Colorado, ninaonekana nikitoa mhadhara juu ya Hemingway. Wanafunzi walikuwa kutoka chuo hicho. Huo ulikuwa ni mwaka 2008. Mara ya kwanza kufundisha kozi hiyo ilikuwa ni mwaka 2007, na wanafunzi walitoka chuo hicho hicho. Hapo ni katika viwanja vya chuo cha MSTCDC kilichopo eneo la Usa River, Arusha.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Sikujua Mwandishi Legson Kayira Alifariki

Leo katika kupitapita mtandaoni, nimeona taarifa kuwa mwandishi Legson Kayira alifariki mwaka jana, tarehe 14 Oktoba. Sikuwa nimepata taarifa hii ya kifo chake.

Kilichonifanya nikatafuta habari za Kayira ni kuwa siku chache zilizopita, niliongea na mzee mmoja m-Marekani na katika maongezi na mzee mmoja m-Marekani, mzee huyu alikumbushia kuhusu mwandishi fulani, na kutokana na maelezo yake, nikahisi anamwazia Legson Kayira. Nilipomtajia, pamoja na jina la kitabu chake maarufu cha I Will Try, mzee huyu alikubali kuwa ni yeye aliyekuwa anamwazia.

Basi leo, katika kuangalia mtandaoni, nimesoma kuwa kumbe mwandishi huyu alifariki mwaka jana, akiwa na miaka 70. Taarifa hii imenikumbusha miaka ya ujana wetu, tulipokuwa sekondari. Tulikipenda sana kitabu cha I Will Try.

Habari ya kijana fukara Legson Kayira kuamua kutembea kwa mguu kutoka kijijini kwake Malawi ili akafike Marekani kusoma, ilikuwa ni habari ya kusisimua, iliyotutia hamasa ya kuwa wakakamavu katika kufuatilia malengo bora ya maisha. Kwa kweli nashukuru tulielimishwa kwa namna ile, ya kuthamini juhudi na ustahimilivu, sio mambo ya mkato.

Miaka yetu ile tulikuwa tunapenda kusoma vitabu. Tulisoma vitabu vilivyohitajika kwa masomo darasani, lakini tulisoma pia vitabu nje ya mahitaji ya darasani. Kayira alikuwa mmojawapo wa waandishi waliotuvutia. Binafsi, pamoja na kusoma I Will Try, nilisoma pia kitabu chake kilichofuatia, kiitwacho Jingala. Sina hakika, lakini huenda nilisoma pia The Looming Shadow.Le3o nimeona pia taarifa kuwa kitabu cha I Will Try sasa kinapatikana kama kitabu pepe mtandaoni.

Sambamba na Kayira, waandishi wengine kutoka Malawi waliokuwa wakisifika walikuwa Aubrey Kachingwe na David Rubadiri. Hao wote ni kama makamanda waliojenga misingi ya uandishi wa ki-Kingereza Malawi. Leo Malawi iko mbali sana katika uwanja huo. Na kwa jinsi wa-Tanzania tunavyoendekeza uzembe na visingizio elfu, hatutawafikia.

Monday, June 3, 2013

Tunaanza Kusoma "Midnight's Children, Kitabu cha Salman Rushdie

Wiki kadhaa zilizopita, niliezea katika blogu hii azma yangu ya kufundisha kitabu cha Salman Rushdie kiitwacho Midnight's Children.

Sasa wakati wa kufanya hivyo umefika. Leo ni siku ya kwanza ya muhula wa kipindi cha joto. Ni siku ya kwanza ya somo langu la Post-colonial Literature. Leo nimejitambulisha kwa wanafunzi na kuitambulisha kozi.

Nimeongelea maana ya Post-olonial literature na utata uliopo katika dhana hiyo, malumbano yanayoligubika dhana hiyo.

Nimetoa utangulizi kuhusu India, historia ya utamaduni wake na fasihi yake, nikianzia na tungo za kale za Mahabharata na Ramayana, nikalipitisha darasa hadi kwenye uandishi wa watu kama Kalidasa, Tagore, Raja Rao, Mulk Raj Anand, na R.K. Narayan. Niliwaelezea jinsi, kwenye miaka ya sitini hadi leo, wanawake wamejitokeza katika uandishi wa India na wanatoa mchango mkubwa.

Hayo yote yalikuwa ni sehemu ya  matayarisho ya kusoma na kujadili Midnight's Children. Nimewaelezea kiasi habari za mwandishi Salman Rushdie, maandishi yake, na zogo lililozuka duniani baada ya yeye kuchapisha kitabu cha Satanic Verses.

Hayo niliyowaeleza leo yatakuwa yanajitokeza tena na tena wakati wa kujadili kazi za fasihi. Nimefurahi kuwajulisha wanafunzi majina ya waandishi mbali mbali. Tutakaphotimisha majadiliano kuhusu Midnight's Children, tutasoma The Guide, riwaya ya R. K. Narayan, ambaye nimemtaja leo.

Baada ya hizo kazi za fasihi ya India, tutasoma kazi kadhaa za fasihi ya Afrika, ambazo ni Half of a Yellow Sun kilichoandikwa na Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wa Nigeria na Unconfessed kilichoandikwa na Yvette Christianse wa Afrika Kusini.

Nimewaambia wanafunzi kuwa ni kawaida yangu kuweka katika kozi yangu baadhi ya vitabu ambavyo sijawahi kuvisoma. Ninapenda changamoto ya kuvisoma sambamba na wanafunzi.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Nimehudhuria Ibada ya Ki-Swahili, Minneapolis

 Leo, baada ya kukosekana kwa miezi mingi, nilienda kuhudhuria ibada ya ki-Swahili Minneapolis. Ni ibada ya madhehebu ya ki-Luteri, ambayo hufanyika katika kanisa la Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.

Ibada iliendeshwa na mchungaji Dr. Mwalilino. Kwaya iliendeshwa na ndugu Smart Baitani, mwanzilishi na mkurugenzi wa COSAD. Nilipopata fursa ya kuongea na Baitani, ambaye tumefahamiana kwa zaidi ya miaka ishirini, nilimtania kuwa sikutegemea kumwona Minneapolis wakati huu, kwani nilidhani yuko Muleba (Bukoba).

Kwenda kwangu leo kulitokana na mwaliko wa rafiki yangu, Mzee Paul Bolstad, anayeonekana wa pili kutoka kulia hapo pichani.

Aliniambia kuwa leo angekuwepo mchungaji mgeni, Herb Hafermann, ambaye anaonekana kushoto kabisa. Mchungaji huyu anaifahamu sana Tanzania, na ameishi kule miaka mingi. Mara yake ya kwanza kuja Tanzania ni mwaka 1963, na bado yuko kule. Alitoa mahubiri leo, kwa ki-Swahili. Anaongea ki-Swahili sawa na wa-Swahili, na michapo juu. Wakati huu mchungaji huyu yuko Lutheran Junior Seminary, Morogoro.

Nilimwambia kuwa nimewahi kufika katika chuo kile. Mzee Bolstad alimweleza kuhusu shughuli zangu za uandishi, na alitaja hasa kitabu cha Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences. Tulikubaliana kuwa niandae nakala nimpelekee mchungaji wakati akiwa bado hapa Marekani, ili ikawekwe katika maktaba ya Lutheran Junior Seminary. Mzee Bolstad ni mdau na mpiga debe mkubwa wa kitabu hicho, na pia mdau mkubwa wa blogu hii ya hapakwetu. Alizaliwa Tanganyika (Tanzania) na kukulia kule.

Nilikutana na watu wengi, wale tunaofahamiana na wengine tukafahamiana leo hii. Nilikutana na hata mdau wa blogu yangu, ambaye nilikuwa simjui. Aliniambia anaitwa Eric. Alinikosoa kwa kutoweka taarifa kila siku katika blogu, akatoa mfano wa namna taarifa yangu kuhusu safari ya Montana kumwona Mzee Patrick Hemingway ilikaa kwenye blogu siku nyingi, bila kuwekwa nyingine. Nami nilikubaliana naye kwamba huu ni udhaifu, nikaongezea kuwa Michuzi ndio anaiweza kazi hii, kwani anaweka taarifa nyingi kwenye blogu yake kila siku. Nilikiri wazi kuwa mtu kama mimi nababaisha tu kadiri ninavyoweza. Hata hivi, nilimwambia kuwa nimeguswa kumkuta mdau kama yeye, na kwamba itabidi nijitahidi kufuata ushauri wake, ili angalau iwe ni shukrani yangu kwa wadau wanaofuatilia blogu yangu.

Huyu mwenye Kaunda suti ni ndugu Charles Semakula, mratibu wa ibada ya ki-Kiswahili.

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Mama wa Mwanafunzi wa Kozi ya Hemingway Kanitembelea

Leo nimepata bahati ya kuonana na mama wa mwanafunzi mojawapo wa kozi ya Hemingway, ambayo niliifundisha Tanzania mwezi Januari. Mama huyu, mtoto wake, na mimi tunaonekana pichani hapa kushoto.

Mama kaja kutoka kwao Connecticut kujumuika na wahitimu wenzake wa chuo cha St. Olaf. Ni utaratibu wanaouita "reunion." Wanakuwepo chuoni kwa siku mbili tatu, wakiongelea masuala mbali mbali, pamoja na kujikumbusha miaka waliyosoma hapa. Laiti tungekuwa na utamaduni huu Tanzania.

Mama huyu alikuwa ameleta taarifa kabla, kupitia kwa mtoto wake, kwamba atapenda tuonane. Alisema ana nakala za kitabu changu cha Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences, ambazo alitaka nizisaini. Ndivyo ilivyokuwa leo. Tulikutana, akanielezea jinsi mwanae alivyofaidi na kufurahia kozi ya Hemingway na fursa ya kuwepo Tanzania. Kisha ilisaini nakala zake tatu za hicho kitabu.

Kitabu hiki ni kati ya vile ambavyo wanafunzi walitakiwa kusoma kwa maandalizi ya safari ya Tanzania. Nimeshakutana na wazazi wengine ambao wamekisoma pia, na wanaponiona wanakizungumzia.

Mama huyu alishaniandikia barua kunishukuru kwa kufundisha kozi ya Hemingway, nami niliandika taarifa hii hapa. Maoni ya aina hii nimekuwa nikiyapata kutoka kwa wazazi wengine. Yananigusa sana na kunihamasisha nijibidishe zaidi katika kutekeleza wajibu wangu wa mwalimu na mlezi wa hao vijana. Mungu kanibariki kwa kunipa uwezo, nami nawajibika kutumia vipaji hivyo kwa faida ya walimwengu.

Tangazo la Maongezi Yangu Books on Central, Faribault

Kwa miaka mingi, nimeongea na hadhira mbali mbali hasa kuhusu tofauti za tamaduni. Matangazo huandaliwa na kusambazwaa kabla ya mikutano. Ka...