Blog taboo

It occurs to me that the one major taboo for blogs like this one is local danger. It doesn’t feel right to cause anxiety to family and friends by describing local hazards. Sometimes imagination can run wild and it is better not to know the details of events which can act as a starter’s gun for that imagination. I still remember receiving our first letter from our daughter Clare when she was on a gap-year in Malawi. Enclosed was a photo of a 4-foot snake which had been killed in the compound around her house.
In that spirit, here is the story of a crime which is the talk of Kamembe. A woman was found murdered and decapitated in her house at the week-end, with a 2-month old baby. Such a horrific murder of course caused a great deal of alarm. 2 days later, suspects have been arrested and it is alleged that the husband arranged for the murder of his wife, paying about £100 for this. The case is likely to come to trial very quickly.
It’s a window into a very dark part of Rwandan life. I must emphasise that this is not a dangerous or crime-ridden society and people do not get attacked at random. As at home, murders are most usually committed by family members. However, there are people around who hold human life very lightly and you can only wonder if that is a remaining product of the genocide.