Advocacy & Safety - Strange Journalism

Minibus Kills Cyclist (http://allafrica.com/stories/200501270021.html) -- I don't call your attention to this article for the usual reasons, as this does not appear to be the sort of safety issue that generally interests readers of this forum (ie., no helmet debate, no lateral lane location debate, no drunk driver, no cellphone)... instead I found the journalism itself puzzling. Is this one story, or two?

If you just want the usual bad driver story, there's always this one (http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/10737810.htm).

Very strange.

looks to me like two seperate stories got merged together somehow. probably a cut and paste job gone wild.

I think this is a dispatch, along the lines of "here's the news from this part of B.F.E."

Minibus Kills Cyclist


The Times of Zambia (Ndola)

January 27, 2005
Posted to the web January 27, 2005

Times Reporter


A CYCLIST died on the spot on Tuesday when he was hit by a mini-bus 12km north of Kapiri Mposhi on the Kapiri Mposhi-Ndola highway.

And the police in Kabwe yesterday arrested a 48-year-old staff sergeant at Chindwin Barracks for defiling an eight-year-old girl of the same barracks.

Police Service spokesperson, Brenda Muntemba who confirmed the incident, said the boy of Kapiri Mposhi was killed as he tried to cross the road while riding his bicycle in Chikokoshi area around 16:50 hours.

Ms Muntemba said Chama Chabinga was hit by a Ndola-bound minibus Toyota Hiace registration number AAV 6062 which was being driven by Collins Mpyana of Kabwe's Chowa township.

Chama who was heading towards Kapiri Mposhi town suddenly decided to cross the road from the west part and he was hit in the process. He sustained severe head injuries and died on the spot.

And the military officer who allegedly defiled a neighbour's daughter, aged eight about, two weeks ago and was reported to have fled his home, was picked up by police on Tuesday.

He was charged with defilement yesterday.

Central division community directorate coordinator Alfred Nawa said that the named man's arrest was delayed because the matter was reported to the police two weeks after the incident.

Mr Nawa said initially the police could not proceed with the arrest as they were waiting for a medical report. He however, said that a doctor had managed to find evidence of ****.

The girl was allegedly defiled between January 7 and 15 this year within the barracks. The soldier allegedly found the girl playing with a friend, called her promising to give her some cobs of maize.

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The girl was later seen coming with her pant in the hands, the soldier is currently in police cells waiting to appear in court.

Mr Nawa cautioned parents especially mothers to always be on the guard for their female children and ensure they play within their locality.

Well, it's 2 things, both bad:

- Looks like an attempt to cover a story about corrupt police

- Also looks like a bad translation from whatever the native language is for that paper by someone who really doesn't have a good grasp of the english language.

Both of these lead to some pretty bad reporting. :(

Koffee