When arguments turn to arrogance and stupidity

The arrogance of a people is exposed when they fail to argue intelligibly and factually; their men ego comes out full force, Ngenkani khathesi, what I say is correct because I am a man and of Ndebele ethnic group. Kangehlulwa ngumfazi mina njalo kangiphikisani lomfazi mina. Uzibona engubani u Nomazulu? This confirms the argument that a woman is regarded as a child in Ndebele settings. She is not supposed to argue with men, let alone arguing in public platforms. I am at pains writing this article, inadvertently exposing culture that is mine and its multifaceted inadequacies in multiple dimensions.

A day ago, I made my research in Bulawayo and from many corners of the social divides: My research confirms "ABESINTWANA" is not a term used to define a family unit but is used to mean exclusively women and children combined; never a noun or a predicate that defines a homestead. Kuthiwa Abesintwana ngo mama and abesilisa ngo baba, and this is standard gender description that has always been time immemorial in isiNdebele culture. To deodorize to mean different from its original definition is disingenuous, absurd, and stupid.

But the Mthwakazi Review in their wasted effort and inward-looking arguments; NGENKANI to prove that Nomazulu Thata hates Ndebele people: she hates herself, they decide to put a deodorant to twist it to mean different. To say this is not only arrogance but stupid pride of the highest order. Abesintwana is a hierarchal TOP-DOWN SET UP that demarcates who is who at home.

To say it is a description meant for all living in the homestead gives another dimension that is crafted for the sake of the argument. It gives a new understanding that all Ndebele settings NGABANTWANA nje BONKE: again, that is not true. It appears Mthwakazi Review and those that commented want to put deodorants to the meaning "Abesintwana" to win the argument against Nomazulu's article at all costs. It is fashionable to argue against Nomazulu Thata these days to show and display unfettered Ndebele solidarity inadvertently exposing stupidity.

A NDEBELE MAN MUST NEVER LOSE AN ARGUMENT AGAINST A WOMAN is the bone of contention.
Some Ndebele men are known for their misogynistic traits culturally. They have little respect for their mothers too because they are women. It is becoming noticeable in the Mthwakazi Review that their arguments are so desperate to shoot down Nomazulu hence hell bent to contra whatever she says. I will accept contra if it is factual and intelligently presented and not this expression of emotions and bubbling of frustrations void of factuality and decency. Mthwakazi Review is not even embarrassed to show disgust emotionally, desperate to get the upper hand over this "curse" called Nomazulu Thata in their midst, a whole Mthwakazi Review arguing without sound content and factuality. SHEM!

In many settings in isiNdebele culture, a man will want to dominate to feel safe; they demand absolute respect; will met corporal punishment to their wives and children to force them to be subordinate to them. Domestic violence is prevalent in Ndebele homes too. Several cases of femicide and homicide whereby a woman refused to be lesser person in marriage are known and Ndebele man will go for a kill. If I were in Bulawayo today, I would have been shown my place where women like me belong to, long back. I will be lucky if I am still alive, otherwise I will be hacked to death, or burnt to death with a Winnie Mandela necklace.

The anger in these Mthwakazi men is immense to get hold of woman who dares openly. A society that still believes men are nearer to gods and cannot be challenged despite global transformations and social, economic development around them. Ndebele men want that status core of yester year unchallenged in the second Millennium. It is for this reason that I am a gender activist that fights for societal changes beginning with Bulawayo: charity must begin at home going out. In the words of No Violet Bulawayo; speaking from the bone going out.

Openly, I fight against all forms of men-dominance and patriarchal settings in our societies even in Matabeleland. Our women and girls should have it better than us. Women living in free worlds fought for their gender rights and succeeded. Gender privileges were not given to them on a silver plate. In my home, in Matabeleland, Zimbabwe, gender justice and other forms of gender equalities will be achieved if we fight extremely hard to get them, and we demand them as early as yesterday.

Fighting for gender equalities will be more painful than liberating the nation from colonialism for several reason: The enemy we are fighting lives in our homes and bedrooms and they sleep in our beds. To put it in Dr. Masimba Mavaza's words, if marriages are wars, then the bedroom is the battlefield: this makes our fight extremely difficult: it is not surprising most women resign to their female fate. It will take enormous courage to stand up against gender injustice starting with a husband, a boy child who thinks his mother has a lesser status at home because she is a woman.  

Yes, admittedly I find myself in a privileged position to write extensively about gender issues. I am not married, one; and I live in Germany, two. As a victim of all sorts of gender violence, I am passionate about gender activism, three. Four, I am cynical to the point of madness. Germany is the safest territory I must maximize to highlight gender issues in the region of Matabeleland, in Zimbabwe, and globally. Fighting gender equalities is a global challenge, it demands auxiliary assistance from other women who have freed themselves from patriarchy, misogyny, and other forms of gender injustices.

Nobody in Matabeleland will silence me when it comes to fighting gender injustice at home and elsewhere. Daily, I communicate with women at home in Bulawayo, even men too. They give me courage to fight gender injustices. I realize the constraints of the territory they are in, and it is easier for me than them to challenge men safely on social media. I welcome and will engage Mthwakazi Review if their comments on my articles are factually and without threats of masculinity and emotions and obviously some of them are challenged in expressions.

I may not win the fight for gender justice in my lifetime because it is late now and am getting old. Our daughters, however, will read these articles and will say: SHE TRIED TO PUT A MARK IN HOSTILE PARTRIACAL SOCIEITIES OF SOUTHERN AFRRICA. This gives me strength and hope to move on and accept the challenges we have in our hands. It is wholly my hope that young women will take the challenge and move on from where we shall have left the fight for gender justice.

I will be introducing a radio project for southern Sahara Africa whose themes are on gender, climate change and poverty in our diverse societies soon. It is a radio project that could be a game changer. The broadcast languages we shall use are English, French, Portuguese, and German. We shall introduce local languages as we grow and with time. Evidently, fighting for gender justice is taken on to another level and platform becoming the most interesting times of gender activism in southern Africa. UTHINTE UMFAZI; UTHINTE IMBOKODO I cannot be modest.