14

★comment
NAIROBI STAR Tuesday 27 January 2009

NAIROBI STAR
Lion Place, Waiyaki Way IT’S TIME ABORTION
WAS MADE LEGAL
PO Box 74497- 00200
Nairobi, Kenya

A
If you can’t beat llow me to com-
ment on the By Collins Wanderi
wanted children all over the
country.

them, join them ongoing debate on

the Reproductive
Health and Rights
There is no morality in living in
Research has linked the
presence of many neglected
and homeless children in

T
HE Ministry of Finance has confirmed Bill, 2008 and the merits and
that M-Pesa, the money transfer service demerits of legalising abor-
tion. I support the legalisa-
offered by Safaricom, is “safe and reli- tion of abortion. The law that
able”. prohibits abortion in Kenya
In December the acting Finance minister John is one of the oldest and
archaic pieces of legislation in
Michuki expressed fears that M-Pesa could col- our statute books.
lapse like a ‘pyramid scheme’ and ordered the The Penal Code, Chapter
audit which has now given the all-clear. 63 Laws of Kenya is in seri-
ous need of reform in several
The scare over the M-Pesa was prompted by
aspects in order to put all
its extraordinary popularity. Launched in March Kenyans in the same pedestal
affluence and privilege while
innocent souls who had no
control over their procreation
wallow in abject poverty.
trench gender parity through
legislation and repeal of all
laws that promote discrimi-
nation against women. This
includes the promotion of re-
productive rights for women,
rape, incest and defilement
means that a very big number
of girls and women in this
country stand a very high
risk of being put in the family
way against their will.
our urban centres to these
problems. Moralists who are
opposed to the legalisation of
abortion should demonstrate
responsibility by establish-
ing institutions to cater for
these neglected and homeless
children.
There is no morality in liv-
ing in affluence and privilege
while innocent souls who had
no control over their procrea-
tion wallow in abject poverty.

2007, it now has over 5,000,000 registered us- with the rest of the world in
ers and almost 5,000 registered outlets. the full enjoyment of funda-
mental human rights.
It is now transferring almost 500 million shil- Many people who oppose
lings monthly and is a major revenue earner for the legalisation of abortion
Safaricom. in Kenya argue from the mis-
guided pedestal of obsolete
By comparison the banks only have 750 cultural norms or religious
banking outlets and 3,000,000 bank accounts beliefs which totally ignore
between them countrywide. the strides which have been
made since 1946 when the
M-Pesa may soon mutate into a ‘mobile wal-
UN established the Commis-
let’ or something very similar to a debit card. sion on Status of Women. In
But this does not mean that M-Pesa or Safari- 1948 the UN adopted the
com is becoming a bank. Universal Declaration of Hu-
man Rights (UDHR) which
A bank makes loans and pays interest on de- restated the equality of men
posits. Safaricom does neither of those things. and women.
If commercial banks see a threat in the emer- This was followed in
1979 by the Convention on
gence of the mobile wallet, they should jump on the Elimination of all Forms
the bandwagon rather than derailing it. They of Discrimination against
should provide their own mobile platforms – Women (CEDAW) common-
ly known as the International
for instance, instant SMS updates on account
Bill of Rights for Women.
transfers or Internet banking. Kenya is a member of the
UN and a party to both
conventions. The convention
Quote of the day: “We can do no great things; only came into force in 1981 after
small things with great love” — Composer Wolfgang ratification by 20 member
Amadeus Mozart was born on 27 January, 1756 in states of the UN.
Salzburg, Austria. The convention enjoins all
state parties thereto to en-
which encompasses the right
to decide if and when to
procreate and with whom. In
many countries women now
have the right to access safe
and legal abortion.
Even where this right is re-
stricted, abortion is allowed if
the pregnancy was as a result
of sexual violence. It is only
in a few countries like Kenya
where abortion is completely
outlawed. Parliament should
speedily pass the Reproduc-
tive Health and Rights Bill
and repeal sections 158,159
and 160 of the Penal Code
and allow abortion in Kenya.
The government should even
go further and provide the
appropriate equipment for
carrying out this medical
procedure in all major pubic
hospitals.
This is for a number of rea-
sons. To begin with the high
rate of reported violent crime
and sexual offences such as
Is he right? Tell us what YOU think.
email opinion@nairobistar.com
T
he socio-psycho
trauma of bringing
up a child conceived
as a result of rape,
incest and defilement
is unbearable for most vic-
tims and survivors of sexual
abuse. Any society worth its
status ought to enact laws
and social norms that protect
rather than denigrate the
weak and the marginalised.
Secondly, the rapid rate of
urbanisation and the attend-
ant erosion of the moral fab-
ric of our traditional values
have resulted in numerous
social problems.
The aping of foreign
ideologies and the adoption
of an economically superior
but morally inferior Western
culture by our youth has
resulted in many cases of
teenage pregnancies. The
inevitable consequence has
been the birth of many un-
Finally, outlawing abor-
tion denies women the right
to take control of their
productive powers, more so
in a male dominated society
such as ours. Allowing it on
the other hand, will enable
qualified medical personnel
to carry out the procedure
safely using the right equip-
ment.
At the moment, abortion
is carried out in secret and
unsafe underground facilities
often by unqualified people
who do not have the right
equipment.
Abortion is happening
all over the country and we
cannot continue to bury our
heads in the sand. Women de-
serve the right to take control
over their productive powers.
This is a fundamental human
right. I hope our male domi-
nated Parliament will take
heed and legalise abortion.
Capt. (Rtd) Collins Wan-
deri is an advocate of the
High Court, a Commissioner
of Oaths and a certified fraud
examiner.

WANJIRU: I wish I was a little bit taller

I’m good at………… running the mara-
thon and now since I started playing
golf, I think I will be good at it.
I am very bad at…………fighting.
The most surprising thing that hap-
pened to me ………… winning Kenya’s
first ever gold in the men’s marathon.
A common misconception of me
is……….that I’m very rich.
SAMUEL WANJIRU One of my worst childhood fears
was…………animals. That’s why I
don’t have any pets in my house.
★5min My ideal night out is…….with friends
another life I’d have been a………….
businessman.
I am not a politician but if I were one
I would …………create employment for
the youth.
The best age to be is…………. in your
20’s. That’s when you start shaping
your life.
The best part of what I do is………
travelling and meeting different peo-
ple and winning medals.
In a nutshell my philosophy is
………….everyone has something to
offer in this world.
My greatest fear is…………. something
bad happening that will stop me from
running.
Living person I most admire……………
Barack Obama.
Trait I most deplore about my-
self…………..making too many com-
mitments at the same time.
Occasion when I lie………….. when I
promise something and forget it.
What I dislike most about my ap-
pearance is……. my height. I’m short.
If I could change one thing about
Greatest achievement………becoming
the 2008 sports man of the year.
Quality I most like in a woman
………… honesty.
Greatest love of my life………… my
wife and daughter.
I would like to die…….. in my sleep
with my family around me.
If I were going to die in the next
five minutes, my last word swould
be………. “ I love you” to my family.
Samuel Kamau Wanjiru is a long
distance runner. He recently won

interview and family at a good restaurant.

You know me as an athlete but in

My idea of perfect happiness is………
winning after hard training.
myself, it would be………… spending
more time with my family.
Kenya’s first ever gold in the men’s
marathon, breaking the Olympic
record in Beijing.