Our much traveled ex-Minister of Education, more latterly opposition spokesit for Education and even more latterly an independent MP is off to greener pastures.
He is off to Kabul apparently at the behest of the United Nations to tackle corruption there.
It hasn't been reported if his husband will be joining him there - if he does that will raise an eyebrow or two I'd posit.
He is off to Kabul apparently at the behest of the United Nations to tackle corruption there.
It hasn't been reported if his husband will be joining him there - if he does that will raise an eyebrow or two I'd posit.
A job with the UN? I wonder who arranged that? Interestingly, Goff said that he wouldn't have given Chris a reference had he asked, but Chris obviously had much better connections than Goff.
ReplyDeleteAfghanistan will be a hard place to live and work, so I wish Chris all the best there.
I had heard that in spite of the public rhetoric about being anti-gay, there is a strong gay culture there, more open now post-taleban rule in Kabul. A quick Google verified the fact very quickly:
I also found the homosocial culture was gay friendly in its own weird way. I have been to Kabul where men ask you to have sex with them directly on the street, visited seeming cruising areas in Kandahar near temples as well as the walls which the Taliban murdered homosexuals. In Mazar and the surroundings, there is a history of men dressing as women to dance at weddings, and the videos of the dances are for sale in shops.
I recommend Afghanistan as a destination gay men should consider visiting. ... Look for an upcoming book by me called "Men with Guns and Smiles" about my adventures in the near future.
And this link discusses the "norms" of men having sex with boys: Gay Afghanistan - a bit of an eye opener.
I can't get my head around this at all - it is just too bizarre for words Zen.
ReplyDeleteIt demonstrates that a record of dishonesty is no bar to getting a well-paid "job".
ReplyDeleteA gay NZ minister for education is going to kabul to tackle corruption? Are you sure he's not going for the opium?
ReplyDeleteI'm predicting that after all of his/her hard work, corruption won't have changed much over there.