I have been angry the whole day.
Simple, I am very unhappy about the smear campaign that happened in the Daily Monitor in Uganda and Daily Nation in Kenya.
They have a right to tell their lies. But, they are quoting me in the lies.
I would like advice from you. How should I handle these liars?
I would like to take on the Monitor and the Daily Nation, because they are the agents of the whole issue. And, since they are a reputable organisation that told a lie, I want to call them to it.
What do you think I should do?
gug
13 comments:
Go somewhere to a internet cafe and anonymously answer their mis-quotes (except of course allow them to somehow know it is Gay Uganda)-- challenge them to publicate your ¨response¨ --- send copies of their charges and your responses to all media--maybe someone else will pick it up--BBC, CNN International, South Africa (they have a Gay Radio Program)-- In addition I would send copies to ALL your supports (and regular readers)-- surely we can help--I already started this morning and posted many of your comments--lots of my readers are from the worldwide Anglican Communion and the David Kato history is very important to us as we claim him as our own-- lots of people have a history of ¨drinking too much¨ btw, I stopped when I was 35 and now it´s 32 years later without a drop--certainly ¨drinking¨ won´t tarnish the image of Ugandas and Kenyans-- I see lots of night life publicized at nightclubs, bars and parties...bullshit stuff these smut mongers will try and slander with (all they really ought do is look in the mirror).
Be careful,
Leonardo
I like Leonardo's advice to you, gug. Given the circumstances in the country, you need to go to a place where they can not find you, the person, to refute their lies.
As for David having a "drinking problem"... I did not know the man, but I know him as my brother, one who has been slaughtered. I would not be surprised if he drank too much because he must have been under extreme stress. That doesn't excuse what happened. If he was HIV-positive, I'm sure that would aid the Ugandan "authorities" in a smear campaign. All of this is disgusting. All of this should be condemned. Add to your list, besides the media, any groups like Amensty International or the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (ILGHRC.com).
And--yes--be careful.
Wise counsel from Leonardo. Just to let you know that we support you too. xx
Yes. Your previous blog - send it to those two papers, and ask them to print it as a response to their articles.
Hello there, I've been following your blog for a few weeks now from the US. I admire your desire to speak up and speak out.
My main question would be whether or not you can maintain your anonymity (and safety thereby) if you speak out, and I think Leonardo Ricardo has given you good advice on how to do that. My only other suggestion might be to consider some organizations that serve as a mouthpiece for human rights. Check out the Human Rights Campaign or look to South African political organizations. They can send out press releases to media outlets to get your message across.
I think you are very brave to consider fighting back! I wish you the best.
~~Jackrabbit
Send everything to Daily Monitor andDaily Nation Also contact International Media, this is a big story and GLBT groups worldwide have been following it. Also, Rachel Maddow on MSNBC in US is on the story and VERY sympathetic. They have a web site. Make a lot of International noise. We are with you! Be careful.
ForwardslashA (RomeoandJoe)
Gug, I can feel the intensity of your anger and outrage as you read the deliberate lies and distortions about David Kato that are being created by the Ugandan police and press and are being gleefully reported in the press and online in the UK and elsewhere.
You are in a very difficult position. Maintaining your own security and privacy is a major concern of everyone in Changing Attitude here in the UK. David's murder proves the fear we share that to be openly gay, or suspected of being gay, in Uganda, puts your life at risk. This makes it very difficult for you to respond effectively to the false reports, but you can at least try the ideas that others have suggested.
Challenging and correcting the lies is almost impossible. The press everywhere sells papers on the basis of reporting the most extreme views and images. The truth is always more difficult to get reported, and at the moment, getting the truth about gay people reported is almost impossible.
I don't think that correcting the false reports is necessarily the priority. The most important thing is to be focussed on the strategy of educating people and David's tragic murder is having a huge impact internationally as well as nationally and all sorts of changes are taking place as a result. Telling lies about David is one way the press are trying to denigrate him, but the reaction they create in people like you and me is an unanticipated side-effect, motivating people's passion and anger to campaign more aggressively for truth and change.
Hi gug, I think you should also read the article in the Monitor once agayin. http://www.monitor.co.ug/LifeStyle/Reviews/-/691232/1102714/-/view/printVersion/-/p8nrk9/-/index.html
As I understand it, "His aforementioned ex-lover however says ..." does not refer to the quote from your blog ("Another member of their community on his blog GayUgandan confesses to times when the deceased’s drinking worried them." but to an ex-lover that was mentioned earlyer, in the 9th paragraph.
Though it's a bit misleading, if one doesn't read *really* *very* carefully.
Thanks friends, for all your advice. Have been ruminating on it.
And, yes, I am planning to do something. Maybe a bit of all the ideas..... I find it interesting. A challenge. And, no, I have to respond.
Jutta, it is a fact that I have read it carefully. I first read the article in the Daily Monitor in Uganda. And, when I read the one in the Nation I realised that it was actually the same article, with more detail in the Nation of Kenya. They are owned by the same company
My email to your website bounced. Please let me know if you accept international donations, and if so, how to send the money. You may email me directly at elles . beads [!at] gmail.com. I am from the United States. If you do not take money from outside of Uganda, please let me know if there is a memorial to David Kato to which I can send my money. I am so deeply saddened by the tragedy in your country and I do not have much, but I want to help if I can. Thank you for doing your work to dismantle hate against the LGBT people in your nation. I would like to express my deepest gratitude for your efforts in making this world a safer place for all of us.
@GUG: The text in the Daily Monitor and in the Daily Nation differ in one important aspect: the Monitor talks about Davids ex-lover and the blogger "GayUgandan" as two different persons, the Nation combines them into one person.
@Elle: SMUG said that they didn't want donations for David Kato's memorial. The site that had initiated the donations has been taken down http://www.paragraph6.org/
Hey Gug, I think I'm with Colin to some extent - the press tell lies all the time. The most important lies to challenge are the really big ones, such as 'gays are paedophiles'. I also agreed with Jutta's reading of the Monitor article. However, I wonder if there's any chance of getting rival newspapers to run a story on how the Monitor and Nation are deliberately running down David's reputation? Send them a press release which very briefly sets out the story of running down a dead man - beginning with the priest at the funeral, and on to the Monitor's various lies. Just an idea.
Take care, sue
I have pondered this and have deleted several responses after reading them over again. I agree with you and others that the important lies must be addressed. BUT when we do this we let those who are telling the lies control the discussion. I struggle with what is the right balance in my own situation. I have no clue what the right balance is in yours.
I also wonder why you were quoted. Was it just that the comment about David Kato's drinking was an easy one to use in their lies, or do they think it is a way to take on and possibly discredit a significant voice in the struggle? Much of what I have read here in the US has been influenced to some degree by what you have written, directly or indirectly. I would not be surprised to find that is the case in other countries as well. I have no clue what they are trying to accomplish with these lies, but I hope you do.
In all of this, may you stay safe.
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