Gambia's crackpot leader is at it again

I have written before about the amazing leadership qualities of Gambian President Yahya Jammeh. Last time I wrote about this African leader I noted that his claim to have personally found a cure for AIDS might have been ever so slightly mistaken - well, I used more drastic words. Since then a reader of this blog alerted me to information about the latest travails of Gambia's leader. Yahya Jammeh had about 1000 villagers abducted by his special forces and rounded up in camps where 'witch doctors' beat the living hell out of them and forced them to drink all sorts of noxious substances. Reason being: the cause of death of the great leader's aunt was alleged witchcraft. So the Pres imported 'witch hunters' from neighbouring Guinea and had them have a go at about 1000 randomly chosen Gambian villagers. Amnesty International reports 'Many said they were then forced to confess to being witches. In some cases, they were also allegedly severely beaten, almost to the point of death. ... Villagers said they had been held for up to five days and forced to drink unknown substances, which they said caused them to hallucinate and behave erratically' I thought the Roman Catholic Church had a monopoly on these sorts of activities, but no, Muslim leader Jammeh seems to be operating in the same vein. Never mind that this kinda stuff is happening today, a few hundred years after the Catholics fought 'witchcraft' and burned to death a lot of people all over Europe.

Meanwhile, the leader of said Church, Pope Benedict (of ex-Hitler Youth fame) went out of his way to contribute to the AIDS crisis on the African continent by telling the locals in Cameroon that condoms contribute to the AIDS pandemic and that people should not be using them. I'm sure Benedict (whose penchant for wearing red shoes and colorful dresses is well-known and well-documented) is not using condoms either.

It's amazing what kind of things religious folks get up to when given half a chance, it seems. I wonder how long it will take until reality based policies will take hold in such godforsaken (pun intended) places. In any case, the African continent seems to be today's preferred playground for crackpots of all shades and colors. I wonder why...

Crackpotism - not only a US phenomenon -

Most interested observers are forgiven for thinking that crackpots in government seem a more recent invention of the USA. However, the USA isn't the only country the brain of the leader of which seems to have taken permanent leave of absence. Africa quite traditionally is a similarly successful breeding ground for nuttish leaders. Yahya Jammeh, devout Muslim leader of that most urbane of all African countries, Gambia, has made news headlines last year when he announced to the world that he (yes, he, presumably after consulting his God) had found a cure for AIDS. His cure, in line with that unsavioury African nationalism that has been destroying sensible AIDS policies in South Africa (where fellow crackpot Thabo Mbeki declared that there are no problems in Zimbabwe, after explaining to the world that he hasn't seen a single person with AIDS in his country), consists of local herbs. It goes without saying that his cure hasn't really cured anyone or preserved the life of even one person with AIDS.

Well, my bud Yahya has since disappeared from the world headlines, so he made a concerted public relations effort last week to redeem himself. Traveling the country for the last fortnight he declared that gay people are not wanted in Gambia, and that they must leave immediately. He promised stricter laws than Iran on homosexuality (they're only stoning people to death there, I wonder what Yahya has got in store). The Pres promised to cut off the heads of homosexual people found in the country. Quite appropriately, Gambia hosts the African Commission on Human and People's Rights. Guess the AU is to Gambia what Asean is to Burma. - Anyway, if we are honest, we know, deep in our hearts that gay people are not real people, they are ... ummm ... kinda aliens. See, that was not too difficult to swallow. So, now let's get on with that unpleasant business of chopping off Gambian gay peoples' heads, before they manage to sneak into Iran where they'd be stoned to death. Goodness, Allah annd the countries run by his followers are truly great.

Come to think of it, it is kinda sad that my fellow Aussies have decided not to permit a Muslim school in a rural town. Shows you how lily-white that bunch of rednecks really is.

... there's something about African Heads of State

... well, some of em anyway. I'm sure you will remember the South African President's ruminations about HIV being not the cause of AIDS, and it all being a nasty conspiracy of white supremacists aimed at denigrating black men. Anyway, Thabo Mbeki has since been engaged in a bitter race towards the ultimate goal, namely the title of 'Nuttiest President on the African Continent'. His most recent efforts in that regard are not focused anylonger on AIDS, he has moved on to suggesting crime isn't that serious a problem in South Africa (population: about 40 million, annual number of murders: 18,000). Another serious contender for the covetted title was for awhile his that-time Deputy President Jacob Zuma. Zuma thought nothing of having unsafe sex with a woman he knew to be HIV infected. Incidentally that woman was not one of his wives (plural, odd, I know) and claimed to have been raped by Zuma. Zuma decided to take serious efforts at post exposure prophylaxis in form of ... guess what ... a shower. Yep, Zuma thought if he washed himself properly his chances of contracting HIV would be reduced. Truly challenging to determine whether Mbeki is ahead or whether Zuma is currently the frontrunner.

My apologies, I have to concede that I kind of digress. I really wanted to tell you about another serious African presidential contender for the title of 'Nuttiest President on the African Continent'. I'm talking about the Gambian President Yahya Jammeh. He claims (yep, proudly on the record) that he is capable of curing AIDS within three days. I understand he was offered a place in various local psychiatric hospitals but he declined, obviously worried that he might have to share a room some time down the road with Thabo Mbeki, or (scary thought) Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, Mbeki's Minister for Health Prevention.