We are long-winded when it comes to cursing. We are forked-tongued when it comes to gossiping. We know how to innovate when it comes to hurting others. And when the time comes to look in the mirror, we invent excuses. Between a young man in the prime of life who dies accidentally and this society that does not know how to avoid danger, who should we blame? The tragedy of Kayogoro (Makamba) should serve as a lesson to us. Rant.
Last week, Kayogoro emerged from anonymity in the worst possible way. Some media outlets revelled in it. Social networks literally wallowed in the mire. Some fell so low that they went so far as to dump on the net memessome more ignoble than others for shamelessly mocking the poor young people who were barely entering adolescence. From one day to the next, we relegated them to the ban of society, the real damned of the earth! There were even some who went all out in baseness, took the funeral press release of the young man who had left in the prime of life and used it in nauseating jokes. These “click whores”as a dear friend called them, do not give a damn about the pain of the family of the deceased. They amused the gallery, they laughed at the misfortune of others. We are saddened to see that there are young people who participated, ad nauseam, to the orchestra of this media cabal against young people who have committed only one mistake: that of not being informed, of not knowing. By laughing at everything and anything, we are getting rid of what constitutes the essence of humanity: ubuntu
All guilty!
So one of Kayogoro’s children, only 23 years old, died, and all the keyboard freaks could think of to do was to have fun with the situation! Another 17-year-old child, who had just witnessed the scene, was arrested and no one was moved by the situation. All we can say is that she knows how to take it! Where are we? The internet court ruled, even before the police investigation was concluded, that the boy had taken aphrodisiacs. But no one put themselves in the shoes of the young girl, a minor to boot, to imagine how she feels after all these misfortunes have fallen on her face. She has become the enfant terrible of Kayogoro, the shameless girl who suffers from sexual bulimia, the laughing stock of an entire country. But did we even take a minute to ask ourselves what was the reason for her arrest? Is she suspected of killing her boyfriend when preliminary information indicates that they were mating when the boy died? Would it not have been wise if this girl had been entrusted to a psychologist or a mature mother while waiting for the next events? By doing nothing, or rather by letting these murderous jokes pass, we are all guilty of the errors of this society lacking in reference points.
And what about responsibility in all this?
We will recall a similar case that happened in Muyinga, more than a year ago. It was said that a motorcyclist, who had a date with a woman, took a room at the hotel and consumed aphrodisiacs while waiting for her arrival. When the woman entered and noticed the disturbing prominence of the man’s penis, she fled. The man died afterwards. Unfortunately, the woman was arrested, as if she had any responsibility in the death of this man. Where is the responsibility of women and girls in these stories?, one is tempted to ask.
The grey eminences in legal science will correct us if we are wrong, but for there to be an offence, three elements must be present:
-legal element;
-material element;
-moral element or intention.
It is difficult to find any of these elements in these cases, since the law does not provide for the offence of consuming aphrodisiacs. Then, the woman did not contribute in any way to the death of the young man who consumed these substances on his own, even if the end was tragic. Allow us therefore, dear readers, to repeat the question once again: where is the responsibility of the woman or girl in these stories?
It is easy to condemn
The only responsibility that is easy to establish is that of society. This society that does not find the right words and the right moments to talk about sexuality to young people in languages that they understand. Let us assume that the unfortunate young man from Makamba had consumed aphrodisiacs. Would he have died if he had been told about the consequences, the possible risks of these substances on his health, he who was still so young? Would he have dared, if he had been told that, taken in high doses, these drugs can cause heart complications, even death? If we do not tell them about it, do they become guilty because they do not know? It is easy to condemn. It is stupid to ridicule the misfortune of others. It is stupid not to warn others of the danger that awaits them.
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2024-08-20 10:50:55