Kasonde24

  Gona Khudzingwa: The Forgotten Fishing Camp Along the Mulungushi River There are places that disappear from the landscape long before they disappear from people's memories. The houses come down, the footpaths become overgrown, the fires that once burned outside small kitchens are extinguished, and life slowly moves somewhere else. But for the people who once walked those paths, bought food from the small shops, watched fishermen return from the river or sat around evening fires, the place never completely disappears. It remains somewhere in the mind, waiting for a story to bring it back to life. For the people of Mulungushi Agro, Gona Khudzingwa is one of those places. The fishing camp may no longer be there in the form that many people remember, but mention its name to someone who knew the area and you may suddenly open a door to another time. There are memories of fishermen known locally as “Dam Bizzy,”  of smoky traditional kitchens, small shops crowded wit...

  B.I.G Mule: The Teacher, Artist and Rastafari Thinker Carrying Kabwe’s Sound to Mpika There are musicians you meet on a stage, musicians you discover through a song, and then there are musicians whose stories become intertwined with your own journey. For me, B.I.G Mule belongs to the third category. Long before our music found its way into a recording studio, our paths crossed in the world of education. We were young men finding our way, studying, teaching, thinking about the future and, somewhere in between, discovering that music was refusing to leave us alone. His name is Mulenga Pule , but to those who know him through music, he is B.I.G Mule  : a teacher by profession, painter, musician, lover of history, geography, mathematics and art, and a strong Rastafari believer whose worldview often stretches beyond the ordinary. Today, he is based in Mpika, but his story remains deeply connected to Kabwe, a city that has produced generations of musicians, artists and cul...

  What It’s Like to Live in the World’s Safest Countries in 2026 Imagine waking up in a country where safety is so deeply woven into everyday life that people barely think about it. Children go about their routines, neighbours know one another, lost belongings can find their way home, and a walk through nature is less an escape from danger than simply part of ordinary life. That picture may sound distant in a world experiencing wars, political tensions and growing uncertainty. Yet, according to the 2026 Global Peace Index , a handful of countries continue to maintain remarkably high levels of peace. The latest index ranks 163 countries using 23 indicators covering societal safety and security, ongoing conflict and militarisation. The results arrive against a troubling global backdrop: peacefulness deteriorated in 99 countries, continuing a 12-year decline. At the top, however, the picture looks strikingly different. Iceland, New Zealand, Switzerland, Slovenia an...

  Paris Jackson Inherited Michael Jackson’s Name — But Her Life Today Is Nothing Like You Imagine Author: Rodgers Mangwela There are famous surnames, and then there are surnames that seem to carry an entire history with them. For Paris Jackson, simply introducing herself can bring the same reaction that follows almost every mention of her father: Michael Jackson. For much of the world, Michael Jackson was the King of Pop, an extraordinary performer whose music, dancing and image became part of global popular culture. For Paris, however, the story has always been more personal. He was not simply the man behind Thriller , Billie Jean and Beat It . He was her father. That difference is important because Paris Jackson's life cannot really be understood by looking only at the fortune connected to her father's estate. When Michael died in 2009, Paris was just 11 years old. Overnight, the private tragedy of losing a parent became a global news story, and her family life beca...

  Elephantiasis Is Not Just “Swollen Legs”: The Disease That Can Affect the Genitals Too Author: Rodgers Mangwela There are some medical images that stop you in your tracks. A person walking with an enormous swelling around the lower body can immediately raise questions that are difficult to ignore: How did this happen? Can a mosquito really cause something like this? And is there treatment? One of the conditions that can produce dramatic swelling of the limbs and genital region is lymphatic filariasis , commonly known as elephantiasis. It is a neglected tropical disease caused by microscopic parasitic worms transmitted through mosquito bites. Although many people associate elephantiasis with severely enlarged legs, the disease can also affect the genitals, breasts and other parts of the body . That distinction matters because an image showing severe scrotal enlargement should not automatically be labelled elephantiasis. Several medical conditions can produce major...

  Why Was Rihanna’s “Umbrella” in a Pastor’s Alleged Vision of Hell? By Rodgers Mangwela There are stories that make you pause for a moment before scrolling. Then there are stories that make you go back and read the headline twice. In 2023, one such story exploded across social media: an American pastor claimed that he had experienced Hell during a near-death episode and encountered something almost surreal a place where demons allegedly sang songs familiar to people on Earth, including Rihanna’s global hit “Umbrella.” It sounds like the plot of a supernatural movie. But the story did not originate as fiction. Pastor Gerald Johnson said that he experienced the episode after suffering a heart attack in February 2016. In videos and interviews that later circulated widely online, he described what he believed was a journey to Hell, including disturbing scenes involving demons, suffering souls and music. Several media outlets reported his account in January 2023. But the...