GAY MALAWI MAN GOES STRAIGHT

Is it possible to be gay one day, then flip a switch and NOT be gay the next?  Well, it apparently is if you’re Steven Monjeza, one half of the Malawi gay couple who were arrested for planning to marry, but were later pardoned by the Malawi government.

Recently, OK WASSUP! reported HERE about the story of Steven Monjeza and his partner Tiwonge Chimbalanga, a gay male couple in Malawi who were so in love they intended to marry each other, in a country that considers homosexuality and gay marriage illegal and punishable by imprisonment. But after planning a public engagement party for themselves, the men were arrested, forced into physical examinations to check for sodomy, found guilty of gross indecency and unnatural acts, and sentenced to 14 years of hard labor in prison. Their story garnered the attention of human rights and gay rights groups from around the world, and despite their continued condemnation against homosexuality, the Malawi government pardoned the men and set them free to the ridicule of a homophobic nation.

However, after only 2 days of freedom and returning to being a “couple,” Monjeza and Chimbalanga separated. Why? Because Steven Monjeza decided he was no longer gay and immediately struck up a new relationship — WITH A WOMAN!

Despite seeming happy and willing to go the length for his male partner, Steven Monjeza recently told Malawi’s Nation newspaper that he had been coerced into the gay relationship, and had now moved in with a woman named Dorothy Gulo. When asked by the newspaper about her formerly homosexual new boyfriend, Ms. Gulo said: “I’d heard about men getting involved in a sexual relationship. I was curious so I accepted him.” And when asked about Monjeza’s former fiance’ Ms. Gulo said: “I’m scared he is going to beat me up.”

Does a switch actually exist where Steven Monjeza could flip it and instantly turn his homosexuality off in a matter of 2 days? Don’t count on it! According to human rights advocate Peter Tatchell, who campaigned for Chimbalanga and Monjeza’s release, he believes local anti-gay pressure was just too much to overcome and split the “star-crossed lovers”. Said Tatchell: “It is a tragedy that homophobic threats and abuse have forced this couple apart. They were deeply in love. The pressure has got to Steven.” But since the two men were warned they faced re-arrest if they continued their relationship, this too was likely a major factor in their decision to split.

So the question remains: Did the gay Malawi men actually end their relationship and go their separate ways, with one of them even giving up homosexuality?  Or are they just playing “Hollywood” and continuing their relationship on the “Down Low” so as to avoid further ridicule and possible re-arrest?