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JUST IN:
MZUZU: If the Malawi ‘anti-farting legislation’ story making the rounds in the world press has put off US comedian and TV host Whoopie Goldberg to consider any future travel plans to the Warm Heart of Africa, she had better change her mind.
Malawi’s Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister George Chaponda on Friday retracted remarks he made on a local radio criminalizing farting in the country.
Chaponda on Thursday told the private Capital Radio's popular ‘Straight Talk’ programme: "Would you be happy to see people farting anyhow?"
He said the "anti-farting" bill would be tabled in Parliament next week in a bid to promote what he called "public decency".
But Chaponda’s remarks contradicted his Principal Secretary (PS) Anthony Kamanga who said “fouling air” doesn’t include farting.
Chaponda however has eaten humble pie and admits he had not read the proposed law before the radio interview, saying fouling air "does not necessarily mean farting" and that it will be not punishable by law in Malawi.
Kamanga is on record saying the Malawi Parliament couldn’t be that childish to debate “breaking wind”.
The issue of criminalizing farting has made headlines in various European newspapers, with British newspapers going to town with sensational headlines in their tabloids and broadsheets.
UK’s Mirror had the headline ‘Breaking wind is to become a crime in Malawi’ and added "and it is already causing a stink".
‘No More Farting Around In Malawi’ was the headline in the celebrity blogger PerezHilton.com.
"If this sounds pretty ridiculous to you, you’re definitely not alone. Many citizens feel the country has bigger fish to fry than holding people accountable for living by the phrase ‘better out than in’," reported the blog.
‘Malawi poised to outlaw farting’ was another headlined in The Register with a sub-head ‘Clampdown on undisciplined bowels’.
"How can this government criminalise the release of intestinal gases? Everyone does that, even if it’s in public or it has an accompanying sound which is boring; making it criminal is a joke of democracy," The Register quoted a Malawian.
“Law that puts the wind up for you… Malawi bans flatulence” was the headline in the The Daily Express, saying critics of the proposal fear it could lead to potential miscarriages of justice as guilty parties try to pass on the blame.
The Daily Mail had ‘Better in than out: African country set to make breaking wind a crime’.
But the PS, who is also the country’s Solicitor General, said fouling air can come in the form of burning tyres, rubbish and old computers and smoking in the neighbourhood thereby spoiling the air in the atmosphere of the neighbours.
Another offence is that fouling the water.
Kamanga said fouling water includes urinating or defecating or heaping rubbish into a stream or water reservoir which some people use.
"These are minor offences and not farting in public... In countries like South Africa and Zimbabwe you cannot just burn rubbish anywhere,"
Kamanga says fouling air is stipulated in the Penal Code 198 while fouling water in 197, which stipulates that:
"Any person who voluntarily corrupts or fouls the water of any public spring or reservoir, so as to render it less fit for the purpose for which it is ordinarily used, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour."—maravipost
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