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Earlier today, two Malawian men, Steven Monjeza, 26, and Tiwonge Chimbangala, 20, were given the maximum sentence of 14 years in jail in a Blantyre court, after being convicted of performing "unnatural acts and gross indecency."

The two have been imprisoned since December 27 2009, following their arrest immediately after their engagement to each other. Their crime, according to Malawian laws, is to have expressed love for each other and for wishing to be united as partners in marriage.

While we South Africans enjoy the right to choose our sexual partners, some 38 countries on the African continent have outlawed gay and lesbian relations and transgressors face long terms in jail.

Of course, every sovereign state must enact laws to govern the conduct of their own citizens, however we believe that laws that control how individuals choose their sexual partners have no place in a 21st century Africa.

The South African government should distance itself from this tragic and wrongheaded ruling, and should attempt be actively emphasising to fellow African states the seminal importance in democratic statehood of protecting human liberties.

Indeed, one of the major tenets of the African Renaissance was the establishment, promotion and protection of human rights across the continent. South Africa should be leading the way in this regard. The African Renaissance, and all it stands for, represents this continent's future; what's happening in Malawi is a return to the past.