galz accusing media on libel and irresponsibility

By Nthateng Mhlambiso (BTM Senior reporter)

April 24, 2007: Director of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) Keith Goddard has lately accused a Zimbabwean daily newspaper, ZimDaily, for irresponsible journalism.

This came in the wake of string of Zimdaily’s stories published about the gay organisation a week ago, first with the newspaper’s reporter Fikile Mapala writing about the sacking of Dumisani Dube who’s the Information and Publications Manager of GALZ.

The story outlined allegations that Dube infected twelve colleagues with HIV scourge and implicated one of Robert Mugabe’s cabinet members – Stan Medenge who’s blamed to have infected Dube, for which Goddard dismissed as incorrect.

Despite the newspaper’s credentials, Goddard pointed out that the claims in the article are based almost entirely on hearsay, and it reflects the newspaper’s overwhelming homophobia. He clarified that over a period of about a year – three and not twelve   complaints were brought to the attention of GALZ which alleged that Dube had knowingly infected the complainants with HIV.

“These were investigated under the organizations code of conduct”, said Goddard also adding that Dube was first suspended in 2004 and finally dismissed in 2005.

While Zimdaily’s editor Munamato Maiswa is adamant on the newspaper position, GALZ Programmes Manager Chesterfield Samba said everything published about him are blatant lies. “It has always been the case with the media in Zimbabwe that they publish negative things and baseless stories about our organisation. I am not surprised. It has happened in the past”, Samba berated.

In one of the ZimDaily articles, former GALZ Health Services Manager – Martha Thodlanah, whom according to the publication now works for Southern African HIV and Aids Information Dissemination Service (SAFAIDS) is said to have revealed to the paper that she had handled a total of 12 cases of GALZ members who all confided with her that Dube insisted on unprotected anal sex with his partners, bribing them with cash inducements.

However Thodlanah denied that Mapala ever contacted her. “I saw that story but I never said all the things that Fikile says I have said. I did not talk to him and I do not know where he got that information”, she is alarmed.

Goddard had earlier said in his response to Behind The Mask about the Zimdaily article that allegations saying Dube was infected by a government minister, and that this was revealed by GALZ Operations Manager are a pure fabrication and dangerous libel, but did not say under which grounds his beliefs were based.

While Goddard demanded a full retraction of the story and an apology from Mapala for having caused what he termed a ‘severe and unnecessary stress’ to GALZ, Maiswa said that Goddard had never made any direct contact with his paper and that he is not retracting the story.

“We operate under the best standards in the land, even though our journalists have to operate in secrecy because of the situation in Zimbabwe right now. They have their way of finding information and at the end of the day the job is done.”   

In another Zimdaily article, Dube is said to be hunted down by the Central Intelligence Organisation of Zimbabwe after he threatened to expose names of six well known Zimbabwean cabinet ministers, priests and several ZANU PF officials whom he claims are gay.