EDITORIAL
Some of the members of new
writers club to be launched next term at a private college Sturdy Christian
College in Epworth
Welcome
to our 97th issue of the WIN Newsletter which we believe will add pleasure
to your reading this Easter holiday. We are so thrilled that we only have three
issues of our newsletter left for us to reach the landmark 100th! We are in the process of strengthening all our programmes that had
become slack due to certain challenges. These programmes include the Epworth
Community Outreach programme and others. In this newsletter we introduce a new
column Get Inspired which we hope will motivate you in your daily life. We wish
everyone a peaceful Easter holiday. Please enjoy.
WIN MEMBERS TO MEET ON WORLD BOOK
AND COPYRIGHT DAY
WIN-Zimbabwe
members are expecting to meet on April 23, 2016, to join the world in celebrating
the World Book and Copyright Day. The organisation is taking this day as an
opportunity to educate its members about the importance of reading as an
aspiring writer or poet and about the rights of the author.
Normally
aspiring writers are not given an opportunity to learn about issues that affect
their careers due to the diminishing number of writers’ workshops that address
these issues.
WIN
believes that it has a role to play in the education of its members. The event
in April will also provide a chance for the office to communicate the status of
the organisation to its members.
'World Book and
Copyright Day (also known as
International Day of the Book or World Book Day) is observed on April 23. The
annually celebrated day is organized by UNESCO to promote reading, publishing
and copyright. It was first celebrated in 1995' - This text has been taken from www.cute-calendar.com.
WIN EPWORTH COMMUNITY OUTREACH
PROGRAMME REVIVAL
By Supa Mafuta - above - (Chairperson, Epworth
Branch)
From left: Performance poet Odreck Nyika, writer Supa Mafuta and EMA Writers Club Patron Mr. Dube, who is also a teacher and poet
Epworth
Methodist Academy (EMA) writers club proved it has potentially talented
aspiring writers when on March 18 2016 they displayed enviable confidence in
poetry and a drama with the theme of child marriage.
The
afternoon event, organized by WIN-Zimbabwe, took place at the college. WIN will next
term start a full-fledged package of activities in Epworth community as part of
its outreach which was launched in 2013.
Mr.
Dube, a lecturer at the college who is also the writers’ club patron, stood in
as the master of ceremony. He encouraged club members to take writing, and the
arts in general, seriously.
As
I was one of the WIN members accompanying the Director Mr Tapureta, I was not
denied a chance to share what I had and therefore I recited my poem called ‘Ishongakamwe’.
Odreck
Nyika, another Epworth-based WIN member, also grabbed the opportunity to
showcase his poetry performance talent.
In
his brief speech, Mr. Tapureta urged the young writers to be natural, to be
themselves when writing because talents vary from writer to writer. He also
made it clear that one’s educational level or low school grades should not be
hindrance to expressing one’s thoughts on paper.
The
WIN director, who recently won the 2016 NAMA Outstanding Arts Journalist
(Print)
award, expressed concern over the shortage of books to read in writers clubs, saying
reading is instrumental in an aspiring writer’s career.
The
EMA Principal, Mr. Dube, in his closing remarks thanked WIN for remembering the
college and said WIN programmes are interconnected with the new educational
curriculum. He said the programmes, among other things, sharpen students’
linguistic skills.
On
Wednesday morning, March 23, WIN visited a new private college in Epworth
called Sturdy Christian College. The visit was also in preparation for the
launch of the writers club at the college sometime next term.
The
club at Sturdy College was founded by one of WIN members Mr. Gondoto, who is
the principal. He also won a prize in the WIN Short Story Writing Competition
in 2012 for his story Rwendo neBhazi.
The
WIN director Beaven Tapureta was once again accompanied by Odreck Nyika, who is
a poet and WIN volunteer, and me (Supa Mafuta).
The director told members of the writers club that they are very fortunate to have
teachers who have a passion for writing and reading and they should take
advantage of that in order to develop their skills also.
Tapureta
spoke at length about writing skills, saying the club is set to be officially
launched next term. Afterwards he had a quiz show with the club members where
he asked literary questions and those who answered correctly he gave books as prizes.
The books are Shona and English anthologies of poems and short stories written
by the writers club at Glen View 2 High and were published to inspire more young
authors. About four students walked away each with a book.
Odreck
Nyika (in the picture with Man U jacket) did his poem Bhora Mugedhi and
I did my poem called Chigagairwa Muhope.
Mr. Gondoto ‘recited’ his short story
Rwendo neBhazi and one of his staff, Mr Chikanga read a chapter from his
novel which he is writing. The novel by Chikanga is titled Chidziva Cheropa.
It
was a wonderful two-hour meeting with the new writers club and a lot of talent
was displayed by the club members.
The
visits to Epworth Methodist Academy and Sturdy Christian College writers clubs
in Epworth were motivating and hopefully next term WIN will resume the club
visits to strength the outreach programme with more different writing and reading activities. Below are some photos from the Sturdy College writers club visit:
A young poet recites his poem Let Us Arise.
The Writers Club is composed of both primary and secondary students
Student listens carefully
Teachers at the college showed a great passion for writing
HARARE CITY LIBRARY
COMMEMORATES BOOK WEEK
By Edwin Msipa, aka Uncle Sipet
On March 10 and 11 this year
the Harare City Library commemorated Book Week with its all-weather
friends - primary and secondary school children from Tariro School in Hopley
and Eaglesvale School.
Over 100 children were
privileged to be part of this important event which afforded them the
opportunity to share experiences in writing with famous writers such as
Virginia Phiri, author three books Destiny,
Desperate and Highway Queen.
Mrs Phiri gave a moving
presentation as she encouraged children to continue working hard, reading and
yearning to learn more in life.
Mrs Phiri's lively presentation
also included reading folktales and having a plenary discussion with the
students. Indeed, the children were kept on the edge of their seats especially
when the characters in the folktales read were performing their antics. The
English book written by Dr. Pathisa Nyathi and translated from SiNdebele was up
to the scratch as it seemed all the children liked it. Mrs Phiri urged children
to befriend the book as reading heals especially when feeling lonely. It
soothes the soul, she said.
As poet and writer, I also got
the chance to share my life and writing experience with the children. My presentation
was hinged upon the writing of a good composition as well as the writing of
books.
This presentation was in order
as most of our children are struggling to come to terms with the requirements
of a good composition.
I encouraged the children not
to despair when they feel they are behind because time is always there to make
amends. From the discussion with the students, the following points came up: (a)
Reading widely, (b) Understanding the topic chosen, (c) Planning the work by
crafting/ brainstorming several ideas to become sentence topics for
composition's paragraphs, (d) Writing a good captivating/interesting
introduction which gives the gist or the main idea of the whole piece, (e) writing
the body of the story with every paragraph highlighting an idea. I encouraged
children to practice writing 5 to 8 short and long sentences spiced with good
handwriting, phrases, idioms, similes, correct plurals, tenses and punctuation,
(f) Conclusion-this should be the ending and may be open. It may offer
explanations or solutions to identified challenges, and (f) Revising the work
and making necessary corrections.
Mr Takwana Masunda, Harare City
Library's Assistant Librarian, showed a lot of experience in dealing with
children as well as his knowledge of the library and the importance of the book
industry and developing a reading culture.
His exciting presentation included
taking the children on a tour of the library. He urged children to read
anywhere -on a bus or even when herding cattle. Children were urged to plan
their daily activities so as to set aside a couple of hours for reading.
It was a delightful,
entertaining and fascinating experience as was seen by the active participation
by most of the children.
WOMEN IN THE ARTS DEMAND
EQUALITY AND RESPECT
Musician Edith weUtonga (left) and theatre practitioner Elizabeth 'Zaza' Muchemwa at the launch of the book Status of Women in the Arts and Culture Sector last year
THE YOUTH PERSPECTIVE
With
Mimi Machakaire
Constraints and Influences
of Journalists
Recently, I was
given the opportunity to study journalism on an online university and one of
the topics we covered was the constraints and influences of journalists in
today’s society. So I thought this would
be an interesting topic to share with you all who are considering journalism as
a possible career choice. After all, it
is all about writing!
In
summary, the code of ethics for journalists states that journalists must seek
the truth and report it. Journalists are supposed to double check all sources,
to name their sources on every occasion, to promise obscurity only when justly
required. They are also told to avoid racial or other stereotypes in stories
and to collect the news in an authentic way but only with the exception of when
a hidden investigation is needed for a key story. Journalists are also told to
avoid plagiarizing other writers.
The
second guideline states that one must minimize harm. It highlights points in
which journalists must act in such a way that shows sensitivity to the rights
of others. The third guideline is ‘act
independently’. These points inspire journalists to side-step conflicts of
interest. The fourth guideline states that one is to be accountable. It points out that journalists must publicly
acknowledge and correct their mistakes when necessary.
Journalists
must still honor their ethical code by keeping to the standards that not only
have been set for them but that they have set for themselves. At the same time,
we as journalists also seek the truth because we have an obligation to give our
readers factual information that has been obtained in a legal way. However,
obtaining the information in a way that is regarded as legal, ethical and
socially acceptable might not be easy for journalists because people might not
be willing to give away too much. Often it’s rare to find someone who will
willingly talk to a journalist unless they have their own agenda because they
are often worried about being misquoted.
One
might therefore find themselves going to desperate measures to obtain
information in order to get a good story. Despite that, however, there are
other resources that one can use to gain more information for their story.
Journalists can use online research, talk to more people, read various old and
new books about the topic and find videos related to the story as well.
A
few other examples of how legal and social constraints affect the ways in which
a journalist reports a story could be based on a situation whereby you are
found quoting a police officer about a drunk driver who triggered a lethal
accident. Or an error occurred were you might have connected the wrong name or
home address with an illegal wrong doing, or announcing that someone involved
in a business of any sorts has just contracted AIDS. Any of these situations
could cause a costly lawsuit. After some further research it has been stated
that the average cost of simply just defending yourself from a libel suit is at
least $550,000. In most cases legal constraints like shield laws, laws against
defamation, libel, infiltration of privacy are within the public’s top concern
while others are not.
Now
to answer the next question, in this statement I will give an example of a
situation where the media might break the ethical code of conduct. Imagine a
scenario whereby a journalist somehow managed to convince a murderer to confess
to killing several humans at a time, the journalist is now obliged to report
that story for the safety of the citizens and therefore that said journalist
would not be able to keep that information confidential.
In
conclusion holding one’s self accountable to ethical conduct as a journalist
can sometimes be challenging. However, if one is to remain true to the
profession and to their own authenticity, these ethical guide lines must remain
the overarching principal to the work that we perform.
***
WIN IS AGAINST BOOK PIRACY BECAUSE IT IS IMPOVERISHING OUR WRITERS IN ZIMBABWE
STOP BOOK PIRACY NOW!
***
GET INSPIRED
With
Mercy Mutingwende
Value Love
It
is by love that the world was created. By love, we're called a nation. And love
is the same thing that keeps us going every day. Love makes us know who we are,
it brings out the true view of ourselves and by it we can make our world a
better one.
Love
is the foundation of every relationship, strength to the weak, it is a
stronghold to those who are falling down and love brings us together and keeps
us as one. Love is not just a word or a saying but it is a feeling that comes
from the heart.
Love
has no fear, it has no harm but it is a kind of thing that brings joy to our
hearts and happiness to those around us.
Don't
despise love.
Love
doesn't have anything to do with what you are but it truly does have something
to do with who you are. And it is by love you are called a human being today.
Please
respect, honor and value love.
(Mercy Mutingwende is an
active member of WIM-Zimbabwe. She was born in 1996. She grew up staying with
her mother in Muzarabani District. Writing is her passion wherever she is. Mercy says she is interested
in themes that will make us know who we are; themes which will light the fire
and give hope to the heartbroken and themes that make us realize the importance
of humanity.)
REVIEW OF AWARD-WINNING CHAOTIC
NAMA award-winning young Samantha Chihuri, author of Chaotic
Read the book review HERE
A FEW BEAUTIFUL IMAGES FROM
CHARLES MUNGOSHI (Jnr) BOOK LAUNCH
Read more about the event on the following link:
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR READING.
WE
WISH YOU AN ACCIDENT-FREE EASTER HOLIDAY
