Countering William Ruto’s Ignorant Lies

Jul 15th, 2010 by Mars Group Kenya

Countering William Ruto’s Ignorant Lies (No. 1): William Ruto, your bigoted stripes are showing, and you are now taking our intelligence for granted. Shame on You!

Sex Means Gender – Look it Up in a Dictionary

The Referendum Campaign is degenerating into a farce and somewhat to blame is the Kenyan Mass Media which is unfortunately force feeding us with daily television clips of politicians saying bizarre things and obvious lies about the Proposed Constitution. Surely the time has come for the Mass Media to allow rebuttal of everything being said by the desperate ‘No’ proponents before broadcasting their misleading versions of what the Proposed Constitution means to Kenyans and their future. Ditto the ‘Yes’ political gang which is unscrupulously going about promising heaven on earth the day after August 4, 2010. Balance is a key ethical demand of journalism, or is it not?

Recently, the ‘No’ political gang has become preoccupied with Sex. This word that only appears in the Proposed Constitution of Kenya three times, is now one of the linchpins in William Ruto’s campaign against the Proposed Constitution. Mr. Ruto has now taken to the ‘Big Lie’ technique by which a lie repeated frequently enough will eventually be taken to be the factual truth – and unquestioningly so.

Today, from within the precincts of Parliament William Ruto, in the company of several MPs, held a press conference at which he claimed that section 27(4) of the Proposed Constitution will legalise same sex marriage. He also dared anyone to rebut his interpretation – and so we at Mars Group, totally fed up with William Ruto, now meet his challenge.

William Ruto is spewing bunk and we’d like to call him out of order.

The Proposed Constitution in section 45 (2) is clear as to what marriages are to be legal in Kenya should it be passed at the Referendum of August 4, 2010. In sum, section 45(2) of the Proposed Constitution of Kenya clearly states that “Every adult has the right to marry a person of the opposite sex, based on the free consent of the parties.”

Either because of desperation, or for lack of education, Mr. Ruto understands, or believes that the word ‘sex’ in section 27 means something other than ‘gender’ in constitutional terms. His inferences on same-sex-marriage and otherwise are ignorant and unbefitting of a three-term legislator especially now that he is on a whirlwind tour of the country advising people on the content of the Proposed Constitution. In fact section 27 of the Proposed Constitution of Kenya declares the right to equality between the two sexes (Female and Male) and the prohibition of any State and Private discrimination against any Kenyan merely on account of their gender (i.e. sex).

Section 27 (4) reads as follows:
PROPOSED CONSTITUTION OF KENYA
Equality and freedom from discrimination
27. (1) Every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law.
(2) Equality includes the full and equal enjoyment of all rights and fundamental freedoms.
(3) Women and men have the right to equal treatment, including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres.
(4) The State shall not discriminate directly or indirectly against any person on any ground, including race, sex, pregnancy, marital status, health status, ethnic or social origin, colour, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, dress, language or birth.
(5) A person shall not discriminate directly or indirectly against another person on any of the grounds specified or contemplated in clause (4).

The only other clause in the Proposed Constitution of Kenya which contains the word ‘sex’ is section 53 which makes plain that in the event that a child is to be detained that detention conditions shall take account of both the age and the gender of the concerned minor. To advance this argument we would advise William Ruto and his cohort to look at the Current Constitution of Kenya, and if they did they would surely see (unless they choose to be blind) that Chapter V our Bill of Rights, currently contains two clauses in which the word ‘sex’ appears; AND clearly when the word appears it means ‘gender’ (read section 70 – ‘Fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual’ & section 82(3) – ‘Protection from discrimination on the grounds of race, etc’). The word ‘sex’ appears nowhere else in the Current Constitution of Kenya, and obviously it’s context and meaning are clear. Since 1963 how many same-sex marriages have been conducted on the basis of these two clauses of our Current Constitution, Mr. Ruto?

We pray that Kenyans won’t be fooled by the likes of Mr. Ruto; and that they will read the Proposed Constitution for themselves. Compare the Proposed Constitution with that which has prevailed in Kenya and permitted dictatorship and gross human rights violations, and make your own individual choices. For our part we would say to Mr. William Ruto, using his own well-worn catch-phrase, ‘Give Us a Break’! William Ruto, your bigoted stripes are showing, and you are now taking our intelligence for granted. Shame on You, Kiema Kilonzo, Canon Karanja et al.

Lies run sprints but the Truth runs marathons.

Mars Group Kenya

RELEVANT CLAUSES REFERRED TO:

PROPOSED CONSTITUTION OF KENYA

Family
Section 45.

(1) The family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and the necessary basis of social order, and shall enjoy the recognition and protection of the State.
(2) Every adult has the right to marry a person of the opposite sex, based on the free consent of the parties.
(3) Parties to a marriage are entitled to equal rights at the time of the marriage, during the marriage and at the dissolution of the marriage.
(4) Parliament shall enact legislation that recognises—
(a) marriages concluded under any tradition, or system of religious, personal or family law; and
(b) any system of personal and family law under any tradition, or adhered to by persons professing a particular religion,
to the extent that any such marriages or systems of law are consistent with this Constitution.

Obviously, in this context, Sex’ means gender!!

PROPOSED CONSTITUTION OF KENYA
Children
section 53.

(1) Every child has the right –


(f) not to be detained, except as a measure of last resort, and when detained, to be held –
(i) for the shortest appropriate period of time; and


(ii) separate from adults and in conditions that take account of the child’s sex and age.

Obviously, in this context, Sex’ means gender!!

CURRENT CONSTITUTION OF KENYA
Section 70.

Fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual.

Whereas every person in Kenya is entitled to the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual, that is to say, the right, whatever his race, tribe, place of origin or residence or other local connexion, political opinions, colour, creed or sex, but subject to respect for the rights and freedoms of others and for the public interest, to each and all of the following, namely—
(a) life, liberty, security of the person and the protection of the law;
(b) freedom of conscience, of expression and of assembly and association; and
(c) protection for the privacy of his home and other property and from deprivation of property without compensation,
the provisions of this Chapter shall have effect for the purpose of affording protection to those rights and freedoms subject to such limitations of that protection as are contained in those provisions, being limitations designed to ensure that the enjoyment of those rights and freedoms by any individual does not prejudice the rights and freedoms of others or the public interest.

Obviously, in this context, Sex’ means gender!!

CURRENT CONSTITUTION OF KENYA
Section 82.

Protection from discrimination on the grounds of race, etc.

(1) Subject to subsections (4), (5) and (8), no law shall make any provision that is discriminatory either of itself or in its effect. [FN: 9 of 1997, s. 9,]

(2) Subject to subsections (6), (8) and (9), no person shall be treated in a discriminatory manner by a person acting by virtue of any written law or in the performance of the functions of a public office or a public authority.

(3) In this section the expression “discriminatory” means affording different treatment to different persons attributable wholly or mainly to their respective descriptions by race, tribe, place of origin or residence or other local connexion, political opinions, colour, creed or sex whereby persons of one such description are subjected to disabilities or restrictions to which persons of another such description are not made subject or are accorded privileges or advantages which are not accorded to persons of another such description.

Obviously, in this context, Sex’ means gender!!