The daughter of Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu has been forced to abandon her priesthood in the South African Anglican Church after she married a woman.

Reverend Mpho Tutu-van Furth, who is in her fifties, told AFP that according to the canon law of the Anglican Church in South Africa, marriage is a union between a man and a woman so she decided to quit.

“After my marriage, we told the Bishop of Saldanha Bay (in eastern South Africa) to revoke my license. I gave it up rather than impose it on myself,” she said.

Reverend Mpho Tutu-van Furth can no longer preside over communion, wedding celebrations, baptisms and funerals.

South Africa has legalized gay marriage since 2006 and her father, former archbishop of the church, Desmond Tutu, is well known for his support of gay marriage.

Mpho Tutu-van Furth told AFP that her father, who was active during the apartheid days, was “sad but not surprised by the news”.

“It is ironic that our similarity, the fact that we are both women, is the cause of our pain today, whereas in the past the differences were an instrument of division,” she said in reference to the South African apartheid regime, which officially ended in 1994.

An official of the Anglican Church in the Saldanha Diocese, Bruce Jenneker, told AFP that they received the licence of Mpho Tutu-van Furth with sadness. “It’s a shame that it happened,” he added.

Mpho Tutu and her wife Marceline van Furth, a professor in pediatric infections based in Amsterdam, both divorced from previous marriages with a child each, were officially married in December in the Netherlands. They organized a second ceremony in May near Cape Town which 84-year-old Desmond Tutu attended despite poor health.

They are currently on their honeymoon on the Indonesian island of Bali.

This article was first published by Ismail Akwei on africanews.com

Nigerian musician Innocent Idibia also known as 2Face has cancelled a planned protest against economic hardship citing security concerns.

He posted a video on online mobile photo-sharing site Instagram late Saturday night explaining the reason for canceling the One Voice Nigeria protest scheduled for Monday, January 6, 2017.

“After due consultations, it has become clear that the One Voice Nigeria protest scheduled to hold in Lagos and Abuja on Monday, 6th February is under serious threat of hijack by interests not aligned with our ideals.

“The point I intend on making is not worth the life of any Nigerian. It is motivated by the need to demand a better deal for the ordinary Nigerian.

After due consultations, it has become clear that the One Voice Nigeria protest scheduled to hold in Lagos and Abuja on Monday, 6th February is under serious threat of hijack by interests not aligned with our ideals.

“I therefore announce the cancellation of the planned protest … I appreciate the massive support and I am convinced our voices have been heard,” he said.

2Face who had called for the protests last month to demand solutions to Nigeria’s crises received backlash from government officials and later a warning by police who called for a halt of the protest in Lagos for security reasons.

“Information reaching us revealed that some hoodlums are planning to hijack the peaceful protest and as such, we won’t allow it to hold in Lagos,” Lagos State police commissioner, Fatai Owoseni warned on Thursday.

2Face’s cancellation of the protest came as a surprise to supporters especially after earlier insisting on holding the protest despite the warning from police.

“U [sic] shouldn’t have started this in the first place. U [sic] will never be forgotten for being a coward,” a comment on the video read.

“Illiterate greedy 2face. You wanted to be an activist. Did you read up on the civil right movement? Or on people like Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela? Did you even study the constitution of Nigeria? It’s your legal right to hold a protest,” said another comment.

Meanwhile, 2Face had support for calling off the protest including from one follower who commented: “Tuface that helped raise awareness is a ‘coward’ but you that did nothing are not? Do you now see why Nigeria has so few helpers? Who would want to die for a people who specialize in stoning their defenders and hailing their oppressors?”

Innocent 2Face Idibia said in the video post that further information will be shared in due cause.

Nigeria continues to suffer from recession and economic crises as a result of falling oil prices among others.

This article by Ismail Akwei was first published on africanews.com