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DEFINING AN AGENDA FOR WOMEN’S RIGHTS IN AFRICA

Rotimi Sankore

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/features/14024

A key index for measuring the march of civilisation in any society is its comprehensive recognition of, defence and promotion of women's economic, socio-cultural, civil, human and political rights. By this measurement, all human societies so far have failed to achieve full civilisation. The only difference is that some have failed more spectacularly than others, and some have been more successful at disguising their failure with sophisticated deception.

The above is by no means a harsh judgement. The reality remains that in most societies and across all time women remain the most consistently discriminated against and exploited section of society. Wherever a higher or sharper form of discrimination has existed whether on the basis of race, nationality or religion, women have been doubly exploited both by members of their own race, class or nationality, and by the exploiters of their race, language group or nationality. This must end sooner rather than later if humanity's claim of being civilised is to have any real meaning.

Every year, the 'world' celebrates international women's day on 8 March. In numerous countries, many women are not even aware of the date. In most countries, this means seminars, workshops and lots of speeches - mostly for campaigners and the elite. There is nothing wrong with these. However we must go beyond mere commemoration and utilise this date in two ways. Firstly as an opportunity for an annual review of the progress made towards securing the institutionalisation of women's rights on a universal basis. And secondly as an opportunity to involve everyday women - and men - in the process of strategizing on ways to eliminate all remaining forms of discrimination against women.

But in order to make progress towards sweeping away the obstacles to the full emancipation of women, we all - men and women - must appreciate the framework that upholds this unjust discrimination, be prepared to take it down, and construct the basis of a new society. In Africa the underdevelopment of the economy and reign of mostly undemocratic governments - due to internal and external reasons - rests like a heavy burden on the back of rights issues in general. This underlines the fact that women's rights cannot be developed and secured in a sustainable way in isolation from the general development of society and human rights. In other words, the more democratic and economically developed a society, the more the rights of women are likely to be advanced.

But a developed economy and greater rights awareness are only enabling factors, not decisive ones. Two examples will suffice. For instance, since the inception of the Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1979, successive American administrations have refused to ratify it since the Carter government signed up in 1980. The current government of Afghanistan on the other hand ratified CEDAW on 3 March 2003. Also, many Asian countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia have produced female leaders with ease - unthinkable in the US or some more developed European countries. These show that while higher levels of economic development and 'democracy' facilitate better educational and job opportunities, higher incomes for individual women and therefore more individual freedom, women collectively will remain discriminated against until the social, economic and political frameworks that sustain such discrimination are dismantled. In this respect, the universal link between the role of conservative political and religious leaders in restricting women's rights is too strong to ignore.

As with most problems, formal and informal education and enlightenment are vital to finding solutions. The strategic goal of such education and enlightenment must be to enable exploited women in particular to see the big picture, to ask the awkward questions and most importantly to provide the answers. Why are women discriminated against and exploited? Who benefits from this and how can it be ended? What structures and mechanisms sustain this discrimination and how can they be nullified? Fear and ignorance are the biggest obstacles in the way of the exploited. Once they have been removed, previously insurmountable problems shrink progressively until they no longer exist.

In order to understand the basis of gender inequality it is vital to appreciate unequivocally that the basis of all institutionalised discrimination and inequality is to facilitate the exploitation of allegedly unequal persons. This is the basis of racism, slavery and all discrimination based on colour, language group, nationality, religion, class - or gender. Just like the myth of racial superiority, the myth of male superiority has been woven to serve one purpose – that of exploitation. Exploitation can manifest itself in many forms: economic exploitation for slavery or cheap labour in the home or in factories; political exploitation which denies the exploited their full rights to political participation; social exploitation which suppresses and ignores the views, opinions and aspirations of the exploited.

Whether in highly industrialised or less industrialised countries, the average woman in a family or relationship faces the same fate. She is expected to wake up, clean the house, get children ready for the day, do the cooking, the shopping, washing, have little or no opinion on the big issues, and sacrifice her career and aspirations. Just to remind her who is the boss she is likely to be subjected to threats, some intimidation and in some cases occasional or regular beating for emphasis.

Although personal aspiration, education, profession, income and social status make a difference to the circumstances of women in relationships, a defining factor is always the level of enlightenment of the male partner or family members. But it is not just individual men that benefit from this shameful state of affairs. Societal discrimination against women leaves them open to unequal pay for equal work, low paid jobs or stereotypical jobs and positions such as secretaries, teachers, nurses and shop assistants. These lead to only one conclusion. Not only is there a clear profit motive for denying women equal rights, there is also a clear social motive i.e. the artificial creation of an underclass based on gender and coerced into playing the role of helpers and assistants.

It is therefore vital to see the big picture. Although most men benefit from the status quo, not all men are misogynists and the major battle must be to change society as a whole. Significantly, the suppression of women's rights could not and cannot be sustained without the invention and implementation of both formal and informal control mechanisms. The mechanisms for social control and discrimination against women have ranged from the blatant to the subtle. For example, the denial of the rights to vote and to seek political office, denial of property and inheritance rights, imposition of spouse approval for bank loans, travelling passports and so forth, to outright denial of citizenship rights i.e. denial of the right to transfer citizenship to children as was the case until recently in Botswana, or to transfer citizenship to spouses as is the case in Nigeria. The tacit support of the law and 'culture' for violence against women inside or outside the home, marital rape, the 'stigmatisation' of rape victims etc are deliberate and cynical mechanisms for sustaining exploitation of women.

Women are also generally groomed for a life of subservience. They are indoctrinated within most families and communities to defer to men (not on the basis of intellect but gender), to have lower aspirations and expectations, and to acquire certain 'female skills' in preparation for being 'given away' in marriage. (Male children on the other hand are groomed for leadership in society.) In some societies, women who do not or are reluctant to adopt the name of the families they marry into are negatively described as 'feminists'. This logic confers 'legitimacy and respect' on married women and subtracts the same from women that are not. But despite these injustices, society has made a little progress from the era when assertive or 'troublesome' women were simply branded 'witches' and burnt at the stake or stoned.

Nevertheless, not enough progress has been made and humanity will still be considered far from attaining civilisation until the progress is swift and measurable against targets. A simple reason for this is that it is not only women that are negatively affected by discrimination against them. A UN population report in the year 2000 concluded that every single minute of everyday a woman dies as a result of pregnancy related complications. That is over half a million preventable deaths a year. Aside from the fact that it would be intolerable to a male dominated society for there to be a preventable cause of death of men on this scale, the loss to society of potential geniuses and innovators is astounding, except of course to those that by some twisted logic genuinely believe that women are inferior beings.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic currently sweeping across Africa is also cutting down millions of women in their prime. Although HIV knows no gender or social barriers, women are biologically more vulnerable and women of lower income and social status are paying a higher price than most. The reasons are economic as well as social. Some may disagree, but the reality is that the removal of social safety nets by naked commercialisation and liberalisation policies imposed by international financial institutions has left many women in Africa in an economically desperate situation.

While unchecked commercialisation has tripled or quadrupled prices of rent, transport and other social necessities, liberalisation has tied many economies to 'international' currencies and priced goods way beyond the income of most people - especially women whom in contemporary society the world over earn lower incomes. This has altered power relations in ways that leave women open to social and economic abuse.

For instance, women in relationships in which they are largely dependent on men are in no position to demand that their unenlightened male partners use condoms even when it is clear that they may have been engaging in unsafe sex with multiple partners. For example, the large number of migrant workers in South Africa mirrors this problem. The Apartheid socio-economic policy of migrant labour camps meant that tens of thousands of men travelled to work for long periods during which not a few engaged the services of sex workers. Many women are themselves forced into this by lack of education, poverty and the primitive drive to 'survive'. Inadequate education on HIV/AIDS ensures high infection levels. The men then travel back to their families where wives dare not refuse unprotected sex and when the infected become pregnant, the children also become victims.

The obstacles preventing gender equality in Africa are enormous but not insurmountable. As the most exploited of all continents through over five hundred years of slavery and colonisation, not to mention decades of several forms of dictatorships supported by internal and external forces, Africa needs all its human resources to develop society to the minimum level necessary for a dignified existence. To achieve this, general and specific issues need to be addressed and a clear agenda defined for the institutionalisation of women's rights in Africa.

GENERAL ISSUES

* Mass education and enlightenment: This means countering deeply established prejudice through the introduction of rights issues in general and women's rights specifically into formal educational systems. Informal channels such as the media and other public education avenues must also be utilised. The average person accepts society as they are born into it until education or confrontations with sharp decisions change their outlook.
* Constitutional and legislative reform: Immediate ratification and localisation of all international and regional conventions and treaties covering women's rights. The immediate review of constitutions to ensure that they fully reflect women's rights, and repeal of all anti women legislation.
* Judicial and law enforcement reform: An overhaul of the judiciary, legal system and law enforcement agencies to ensure that all issues relating to women are specifically covered and reviewed to reflect full and uncompromising respect for their rights. This must also include the retraining of judicial and law enforcement personnel, and the appointment of more qualified women into the judiciary and law enforcement agencies.

SPECIFIC ISSUES

* Violence against women: Every single form of violence against women to be specifically legislated against with emphasis of the obligation of the state to prosecute such cases without placing the burden of pressing charges on women. Special emphasis to be placed on violence in the home and rape. Law enforcement agencies and personnel to be retrained and prosecuted for failure to press charges and enforce the relevant laws.
* Health rights: An increase of health budgets in relation to health issues specific to women such as maternal mortality, mother to child transmission of HIV, cervical and breast cancer etc. Budget increases to be measured against World Health Organisation standards of expenditure per head. A strong emphasis on health awareness and preventive healthcare.
* Reproductive rights: The right to family planning, safe sex and enlightenment on the benefits of child spacing.
* Political rights: Full political participation rights including the rights to vote and be voted for, women quotas for elective and appointed public offices, the creation of women's affairs ministries and so forth.
* Economic and Employment rights: The right to equal pay for equal work, the right to maternity leave, the recognition of women as principal breadwinners and concessions that go with this such as tax breaks etc. Equal access to bank loans and credit and legislation outlawing workplace discrimination.
* Social and cultural rights: All forms of social discrimination and anti women right practices to be identified and outlawed through firm legislation. E.g. discrimination based on marital status or maternity. Discrimination reinforced by religion and 'culture' to be specifically targeted for enlightenment campaigns.
* Inheritance and property rights: Full rights to property especially in relation to inheritance from parents and husbands without the interference of family members to disposes women.

These ten points are not exhaustive, but must be the minimum acceptable standards. For these basic objectives to be achieved the issues must also be taken up outside the framework of rights organisations. Women at all levels must be involved, and be supported by community based organisations such as market women associations, their professional associations, trade unions and student unions. In more democratic countries, pressure must be placed on all political parties, the legislature and judiciary and in less democratic ones directly on the government. Networks must be established at national levels established to harmonise strategies. Timetables, targets and review dates for reform must be set in order for it to be both measurable and effective. March 8 every year should be a good date for such reviews.

* Rotimi Sankore is co-ordinator of CREDO for Freedom of Expression and Associated Rights an NGO focussing on rights issues in Africa. CREDO can be contacted via info@credonet.org

* International Women's Day: See the Women and Gender section of Pambazuka News for more stories.

* Send comments on this editorial to editor@pambazuka.org

* CREDO and Fahamu are developing an advocacy training programme for African women. Interested organisations and persons should kindly contact CREDO and Fahamu on issues they would like to see covered at info@credonet.org and info@fahamu.org

IRAQ WILL DOMINATE US ATTITUDE TO AFRICA IN DANGEROUS COLD WAR REPLAY

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/features/14023

TAKE ACTION – WHAT YOU CAN DO

* PROTEST THE WAR - TAKE TO THE STREETS
With the war now having begun, United for Peace & Justice calls on you and other groups to join in protest. However you choose to express your opposition to war - from solemn vigils to loud marches to nonviolent direct action - get out on the streets immediately and join with millions around the world in demanding an end to the bloodshed. See the United for Peace & Justice call for emergency actions for ideas about what you can do.
http://enos.realimpact.net/

* DON’T LET WORLD OPINION BE IGNORED
More than 30 million people have been out in the streets to say "No" to this war. More than half the Security Council, given a chance, would say "No" to this war, as would the overwhelming majority of the UN General Assembly. But the Security Council has failed us. It's time for the General Assembly of the United Nations, which more thoroughly represents the voice of this world's people, to rise up and demand that Iraq be disarmed peacefully, without slaughtering hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. Please, urgently, write to your Ambassador at the United Nations and ask that the Uniting for Peace resolution be invoked to stop this war. The voice of world opinion has been ignored. Don't let it continue to be ignored. http://act.greenpeace.org/aas/e?a=ufp&s=amb_s

* WHAT YOU CAN DO BEFORE OR AS THE WAR BEGINS

1) Write to the Pope via his UN mission and ask him to go to Iraq now. The website of the Papal UN mission is www.holyseemission.org, there you a find a "Contact Us" link, providing this E-mail address: vatobservny@qwest.net
2) Write to politicians and shame them for standing by while innocent people are being killed and will be killed. Use http://cflweb.org/congress_merge_.htm
3) Write to the media (local, national, international)and demand they hear and publish/publicize the voices of the people. For tips on media issues, please see http://www.commondreams.org/
http://www.fair.org/media-contact-list.html
http://www.MrSmithMedia.com/MrSmithNewspaper.html
http://al-awda.org/media http://pmwatch.org/
Also see these sites for additional Iraq information:
http://www.healthsentinel.com/Essays/101IraqWarQuestions.htmhttp://leb.net/iac http://www.iraqconflict.org/
http://epic-usa.org/
http://www.indymedia.org.il/imc/israel/webcast/48386.html
http://www.observer.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,882526,00.html
4) Stop buying! Stay with the necessities of food and shelter. Save your money for good causes and let us make corporations pay for their wars. Simplify your life. This consumer society is what drives the military industrial complex.

* STOP THE WAR ON IRAQ
Your voice and solidarity is crucial in stopping the war on Iraq. At the following page you can access free downloads to assist in your campaign. http://www.indiadisasters.org/iraq/

* THE ANTI-WAR MOVEMENT
Visit this link to find out about anti-war movements worldwide how you can join the protest against the war in Iraq.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/antiwar/subsection/0,12809,884056,00.html

* POETS AGAINST THE WAR
The bombs have begun falling on Baghdad. Despite the disapproval of the vast majority of citizens of the world, in defiance of the advice of its own intelligence agencies, and contrary to both common sense and fundamental notions of morality, the Bush administration has launched war against Iraq. Over the past two months, more than 12,000 poets worldwide have submitted poems or personal statements to register their opposition to this war. In doing so, they honor a long and rich tradition of thoughtful and moral opposition by poets and other artists to senseless and murderous policies, including those of our own government. At no time in history have so many poets spoken in such a large chorus. Poets Against the War calls upon poets everywhere to transform March 21, World Poetry Day, into a day of poetry against the war, to organize readings of poetry against the war in cities, towns, villages, and homes, and to present the 13,000 poems that have been published on the poetsagainstthewar.org web site to governments everywhere.
http://www.poetsagainstthewar.org/

NEWS AND COMMENTARY

A WILFUL BLINDNESS
George Monbiot
http://www.obv.org.uk/reports/2003/rpt20030311a.html
Those of us who oppose the impending conquest of Iraq must recognise that
there's a possibility that, if it goes according to plan, it could improve
the lives of many Iraqi people. But to pretend that this battle begins and
ends in Iraq requires a wilful denial of the context in which it occurs.
That context is a blunt attempt by the superpower to reshape the world to
suit itself.

DISOBEY
John Pilger
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=41&ItemID=3232
How have we got to this point, where two western governments take
us into an illegal and immoral war against a stricken nation with
whom we have no quarrel and who offer us no threat: an act of
aggression opposed by almost everybody and whose charade is
transparent?

NO TO WAR
Noam Chomsky
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=15&ItemID=3247
The most powerful state in history has proclaimed that it intends to control the world by force, the dimension in which it reigns supreme. President Bush and his cohorts evidently believe that the means of violence in their hands are so extraordinary that they can dismiss anyone who stands in their way.
The consequences could be catastrophic in Iraq and around the world. The United States may reap a whirlwind of terrorist retaliation -- and step up the possibility of nuclear Armageddon.


THE TWENTY LIES OF GEORGE W. BUSH
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/mar2003/bush-m20.shtml

GROUPS FEAR WAR WOULD SIDETRACK GLOBAL RELIEF EFFORTS
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=655&ncid=655&e=2&u=/oneworld/20030319/wl_oneworld/1032_1048082257

ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: COUNTRIES JOIN COALITION FORCES
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32914

SOUTH AFRICA: WAR A ‘BLOW TO MULTILATERALISM’ SAYS MBEKI
http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=11&o=17380

SOUTH AFRICA: HUMAN SHIELDS ARRIVE IN BAGHDAD
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=13&art_id=qw104815296058B262&set_id=1

SOUTH AFRICA: PROTEST AT US EMBASSY IN JHB
http://iafrica.com/news/sa/220970.htm

KENYA: US WARNS OF MISSILE ATTACKS
http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190484.html

AFRICA: SOUTH AFRICA/NIGERIA LEAD OPPOSITION TO WAR
http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190303.html

AFRICA: WAR WILL PUT AFRICA ON THE BACKBURNER
http://allafrica.com/stories/200303181034.html

ENDS

africa/global: sharing human rights tactics

2003-03-20

http://www.newtactics.org/main.php

The New Tactics in Human Rights Project invites you to visit its new web site, www.newtactics.org All over the world, people are addressing human rights issues in new and innovative ways. The New Tactics project gathers these innovations and disseminates them - using the web, print publications and cross-training workshops - while building global and regional networks of human rights practitioners.

protest the torture of internet activists

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/13976

The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) says it has been informed by a reliable Tunisian source of acts of torture committed against seven internet activists and has made an appeal for those concerned to write to the authorities in Tunisia urging them to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of the activists, and their immediate release.
Case TUN 060303 / TUN 060303.CC
Torture / Child concern

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Tunisia

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a reliable
Tunisian source of acts of torture committed against seven internet
activists.

According to the information received, the following 7 out of 20
young Internet users, who had been arrested in Zarzis on February 8th
2003, appeared before the investigating judge of the 11th office of
the Court of First Instance in Tunis on March 3rd and 5th:

· Abderrazek Bourguiba (17 years old student)
· Abdelghaffar Ben Guiza (20 years old)
· Amor Rached (student)
· Ridha Hadj Brahim (teacher)
· Amor Chalendi (student)
· Hamza Mahroug
· Ayoub Sfaxi (currently in hiding)

These persons are accused of "criminal organisation, partaking in
unauthorised meetings and robbing and acquiring products for the
manufacturing of explosives ." under Articles 131, 132 and 133 of the
Criminal Code.

According to the information received, the defence lawyers were not
granted access to the details of the case. The items produced in
evidence are a CD-ROM and a tube of glue.

According to our sources, the accused declared that they had been
arrested on February 8th in Zarzis (around 500 km from the capital),
while the minutes of the initial hearing state that the arrest took
place on February 26th in Tunis. On February 19th, the lawyers for
the defence reportedly filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor
concerning violations relating to the length of pre-trial detention
and the use of incommunicado detention.

Several other violations of the defendants' rights have been noted by
the lawyers, notably the lack of territorial jurisdiction of the
judge who is hearing the case, the falsification of dates and places
of the arrests as mentioned in the minutes, as well as the refusal to
keep 17-year old Abderrazak Bourguiba in a juvenile prison. However,
the judge has refused to include these observations as part of the
proceedings.

Furthermore, all of the Internet users declared before the judge that
they had been tortured in the premises of the State Security during
several days, until they agreed to sign minutes that they had not
been able to read. These documents were then used by the judge in
order to force them to give signed statements at the so-called April
9th Prison (prison du 9 avril) in Tunis.

OMCT is concerned about the considerable number of Internet users
that are currently being arrested in Tunisia, while the government,
which seems to show great interest in new information technologies,
is actively preparing the World Summit on the Information Society,
which is to be held in Tunis in 2005.

OMCT is very gravely concerned by the degradation of the situation of
human rights in Tunisia, particularly by the systematic use of
torture, for which this case is another example.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Tunisia urging them to:

i. guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Abderrazek
Bourguiba, Abdelghaffar Ben Guiza, Amor Rached, Ridha Hadj Brahim,
Amor Chalendi, Hamza Mahroug, Ayoub Sfaxi;
ii. order their immediate release, notably in light of the many
procedural violations that have led to their continuing detention;
iii. immediately launch a prompt and impartial investigation into the
alleged acts of torture in order to identify those responsible, bring
them to trial, apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions
as provided by law and guarantee that adequate reparation is provided
to the victims;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental
freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and
international human rights
standards, particularly the international Convention against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, that
was ratified by Tunisia on
September 23rd 1988.

Addresses

Note: In case you encounter difficulties using the Tunisian e-mail
addresses and fax numbers mentioned hereafter, pleas also use the
address of the permanent Mission of
Tunisia in Geneva.

§ M. Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, Président de la République, Palais de
Carthage, 2016 Carthage,
Fax: +216 71 744 721 ou +216 71 731 009
§ M. Mohamed Ghannouchi, Premier Ministère, Secrétariat Général du
Gouvernement, Rue de la Kasbah, 1008 Tunis, Fax: +216 71 562 378
§ M. Hédi M'henni, Ministère de l'Intérieur et du Développement
local, Avenue Habib Bourguiba, 1001 Tunis, Fax: +216 71 354 331 ; e-
mail :mint@ministeres.tn
§ M Dali Jazi, Ministère de la Défense Nationale, Avenue Bab Mnara,
La Kasbah, 1008 Tunis, Fax: +216 71 561 804
§ M. Bechir Tekkari, Ministère de la Justice et des Droits de
l'homme, 57, Boulevard Bab Benat, 1006 Tunis, Fax : +216 71 568 106 ;
e-mail : mju@ministeres.tn
§ S.E M. Habib Mansour, Mission permanente de la Tunisie, 58 Rue
Moillebeau, Case postale 272, 1211 Genève 19; Fax : +4122 734 06 63 ;
e-mail : mission.tunisia@ties.itu.int

Please also write to the embassies of Tunisia in your respective
country.

Geneva, March 17th 2003

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply.
Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : omct@omct.org
http://www.omct.org

request for volunteers for civil disobedience campaign

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/13945

“Every day more than 600 people in South Africa die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses. Many lives could have been saved had our government shown urgency and commitment. We still have a chance to save millions of lives. Regrettably, the Minister of Health continues to equivocate. After four years of negotiations, petitions, marches, litigation and appeals, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) has decided to begin a peaceful campaign of civil disobedience on 21 March 2003. The TAC requests your support in this campaign. We are mobilising 600 people across the country who will volunteer to get arrested in our civil disobedience campaign. To volunteer, please fill out the form below and fax it to 021 788 3507. Please state if we can use your name in adverts of people who will volunteer to be arrested.”
4 March 2003

Please circulate widely

Dear All,

Every day more than 600 people in South Africa die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses. Many lives could have been saved had our government shown urgency and commitment. We still have a chance to save millions of lives. Regrettably, the Minister of Health continues to equivocate. After four years of negotiations, petitions, marches, litigation and appeals, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) has decided to begin a peaceful campaign of civil disobedience on 21 March 2003. TAC requests your support in this campaign. We are mobilising 600 people across the country who will volunteer to get arrested in our civil disobedience campaign. To volunteer, please fill out the form below and fax it to 021 788 3507. Please state if we can use your name in adverts of people who will volunteer to be arrested.

We require volunteers with easy access to Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Pietermaritzburg, East London, Port Elizabeth and Nelspruit. If you volunteer, please be prepared to be asked to participate in an action some time between the 18th and 25th of March. If you can only make it at certain times or dates, please note these on your reply form. We aim to sustain our campaign until government makes an unequivocal and irreversible commitment to anti-retroviral therapy for all people who need it in the public sector. We also demand that government returns to NEDLAC to negotiate the national treatment and prevention plan.

All civil disobedience actions will be peaceful and dignified, but those participating are almost certain to be arrested. We will try to arrange immediate release after arrest, but there is a possibility of spending between one and three nights in police cells. TAC will provide full legal support, bail and other resources related to civil disobedience actions. We will not provide legal support or bail for anyone who commits an act of violence. Our aim is to change government policy and to unite people to condemn government culpability in the deaths of more than 600 people every day. We will not be provoked into acts of violence. We aim to expose the violence of allowing 600 children, men and women to die because they are poor and cannot afford medicines.

We urge government to act immediately to prevent the civil disobedience campaign. We appeal to every person in South Africa to call on government to act with speed, commitment and humility to fulfill its constitutional obligations.

Show your solidarity. Join the TAC civil disobedience campaign. Sign on with the form below.

Forward to a national treatment and prevention plan.

Zackie Achmat on behalf of the TAC National Executive Committee Reply by fax only to: 021 788 3726 or hand in to your provincial TAC office.

I Volunteer for TAC Civil Disobedience I volunteer to participate in the TAC Civil Disobedience campaign. I am participating in civil disobedience because millions of people with HIV/AIDS in our country are dying unnecessary, premature and avoidable deaths. They die because they do not have access to anti-retroviral medicines and proper care. My conscience is guided by our Constitution that guarantees the right to life, dignity, equality and access to health care. I want government to sign the NEDLAC framework agreement for a national HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention plan. I also want government to commit to rolling out antiretroviral therapy for people with HIV/AIDS.

I volunteer to (scratch out "Be arrested" if you do not wish to be arrested):

• Be arrested • Organise activities in support of the civil disobedience campaign including support for people who may be arrested.

If I have chosen to be arrested:

• I am over 18 years of age.
• I understand that this might mean spending a short time in prison and ultimately getting a criminal record. However, I understand that TAC will try to defend me from getting a criminal record and do all it can to ensure that I spend as little time in prison as possible.
• So long as any act I commit is non-violent and within the instructions of the TAC National Executive Committee, TAC must provide me with legal support for any charges I face resulting from my civil disobedience actions.

Full Name: ____________________________________________________

Signature: ____________________________________________________

ID Number: ____________________________________________________

Date: ___________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________

Work Tel: ___________________ Home Tel: ____________________

Cell: ___________________ Email: ____________________

Person to Contact if I am arrested: _________________________________________

Telephone number of person to contact: _____________________________________

Dates and times that I cannot participate: _____________________________________

Below is my suggestion for a civil disobedience action (optional):

securing justice in zimbabwe

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/13978

“We write to ask for your views and possible assistance in trying to secure democracy and justice for the victims of the 1981-1987 Matebele atrocities committed by President Mugabe in the name of national security. The atrocities led to the deaths of over 30 000 citizens mainly of the Ndebele tribe, in a campaign Mugabe dubbed "Gukurahundi".”
concernforzimbabwecampaign@yahoo.co.uk
courageshumba@yahoo.com

Dear Colleagues

We write to ask for your views and possible assistance in trying to secure democracy and justice for the victims of 1981-1987 Matebele Atrocities committed by President Mugabe in the name of national security. The atrocities led to the deaths of over 30 000 citizens mainly of Ndebele tribe in a campaign Mugabe dubbed "Gukurahundi". The scourge left thousands of families destitute and traumatised. Since that time Mugabe has not been challenged strongly for masterminding the genocide. The absence of vocal concern on this has led Mugabe to continuously resort to force and purges whenever confronted by political resistance. Besides, the fate of the victims of the genocide has not been discussed publicly nor have the perpetrators been brought to book. Both counselling and assistance must be considered for the victims of the Robert Mugabe mass killings. Similary the victims of parliamentary in 2000 and presidential 2002 election must find support within the national and international community.

As a campaign we are mainly concerned with bringing dialogue on this issue and pressuring the gorvenment to take responsibility for its massacres.Acceptance of responsibility must be followed quite logically by reparations,an apology and the bringing to book of perpetrators of the mass killings.The killings are a tesimony of the ruthlessness of Mugabes regime and its tendency to use violence and force against&n sp;citizens. It is not practicable to expect the gorvenment ofZimbabwe to take this initiative.Pure morality requires that all human beings distance themselves and show their distaste at the silence the gorvement would rather have mantained over the killings.

Zimbabwe is in crisis and needs concerted,focused countrymen and activists dedicated to put the record straight that the country must return to rule of law,needs democratic gorvenance and must abide by its obligations under the universal declaration of human rights to which it is a signatory since the 18 April 1980 proclamation of Independence .Mugabe has brought suffering to the people of Zimbabwe and needs to be challenged strongly to make way for democratic and progressive leadership.This needs constant engagement in dialogue,planning and campaigns both in Zimbabwe and worldwide to sustain pressure and demand a stop to abuse in Zimbabwe, Our campaign will be carried both by electronic media in and out of Zimbabwe on internet,radio,television ,journals and magazines.In Zimbabwe because of repression we will have no access to television and radio which are controlled by central Gorvenment.However we will campaign through progressive newspapers,and through regular public and consultative meetings.

We are looking for support to enable us to do all it takes to see democracy thrive in Zimbabwe.We hope you will find time to look at how you would wish to contribute to our fight .Unfotunately we can not offer a full list of our campaigners for security reasons but if you wish to join the campaign please email us on this address and we will give you more information on how you can contribute depending on where you are Concern for Zimbabwe Campaign will be running consultative workshops throughoutZimbabwe to find out what course of action Zimbabweans should take in light of abuse and suffering ushered in by Mugabe.Major issues that will be tackled in the meetings and planning programmes will include Matebele Atrocities Review Human rights Awareness Voter Literacy Research and Documentation Campaigning and lobbying We look forward to your support and hearing from you.You could either offer to join the campaigns,assist planning of events and /or donate to fund activities carried out as part of the campaign.We sincerely wish to hear from you and thank you for your time in reading this letter.

Yours faithfully Courage Shumba (Mr)

Coordinator or call on 079 318 77 438 for more details

urgent intervention required in sudan

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/13977

The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) has requested urgent action in a case involving the arbitrary arrest of Mona Zahir Alsadati and the incommunicado detention of Adam Abdel Hamied Adam by the Security Forces in Sudan. According to the information received, at 9pm on March 3rd, 2003, the Sudanese Security Forces arrested Adam Abdel Hamied Adam, a trainee advocate and member of the Abdelmajeed Imam Cultural Centre, and Mona Zahir Alsadati, a journalist. The OMCT has requested that those concerned by the case write to the Sudanese authorities.
Case SDN 130303
Incommunicado detention / Risk to personal integrity

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Sudan.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the
Sudanese Organisation against Torture, a member of the OMCT network,
of the arbitrary arrest of Mona Zahir Alsadati and the incommunicado
detention of Adam Abdel Hamied Adam by the Security Forces in Sudan.

According to the information received, at 9pm on March 3rd, 2003, the
Sudanese Security Forces arrested Adam Abdel Hamied Adam, a trainee
advocate and member of the Abdelmajeed Imam Cultural Centre, and Mona
Zahir Alsadati, a journalist. The two were arrested from outside the
building of the Abdelmajeed Imam Cultural Centre in Khartoum North.

According to the information received, both Mr Adam and Ms Mona were
taken to the offices of the National Security Agency near Farough
cemetery for interrogation. After two hours, Mona was released and
she was asked to report the next day to security offices. Adam
remains in detention and his whereabouts are unknown to his family
and his lawyer.

When Mona's family enquired as to the reason for the arrest they were
told that the Abdelmajeed Imam Cultural Centre was thought to be a
"suspicious" place, where it is undesirable for women to go. They
stated that the security forces are intended to protect Sudanese
women from such places, and that the Centre is under surveillance by
the Security of the Community Police and the Anti-Drug Squad.

According to our sources, Mr Adam's arrest is not directly connected
with his activities with the Abdelmajeed Imam Centre, which is
working to promote a culture of peace and human rights in Sudan, as
well as carrying out various other cultural activities. The Centre is
located in Bahri Alsafya in Khartoum North. It's activities were
suspended for a period last year, 2002, and it has also previously
been under surveillance by the security forces.

The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned for the
physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Adam Abdel Hamied Adam
and calls upon the Sudanese authorities to immediately locate his
whereabouts, guarantee his personal integrity and release him in the
absence of valid legal charges.


Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:

i. immediately locate Mr. Adam Abdel Hamied Adam's whereabouts;
ii. take all necessary measures to guarantee his and Ms. Mona Zahir
Alsadati's physical and psychological integrity;
iii. ensure that he is granted immediate access to family visits and
legal represeantation;
iv. order Mr. Adam's immediate release in the absence of valid legal
charges or, if such charges exist, bring him before an impartial and
competent tribunal and guarantee his procedural rights at all times;
v. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the
circumstances these arrests in order to identify those responsible,
bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil
and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
vi. put an immediate end to the persecution and harassment of the
above-mentioned persons;
vii. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental
freedoms throughout the country in accordance with international
human rights standards.

Addresses

· His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir, President
of the Republic of Sudan, President's Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum,
Sudan. Fax: + 24911
783223
· Mr. Ali Mohamed Osman Yassin, Minister of Justice and Attorney
General, Ministry of Justice, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: +24911 788941
· Mr. Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: +24911 779383
· Mr. Yasir Sid Ahmed, Advisory Council for Human Rights, PO Box 302,
Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 24911 779173
· His Excellency Ambassador Mr Ibrahim Mirghani Ibrahim, Permanent
Mission of Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva, PO Box 335, 1211
Geneva, Switzerland, Fax : +4122 7312656. E-mail:
mission.sudan@ties.itu.int

Please also write to the embassies of Sudan in your respective
country.

Geneva, March 13, 2003

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply.
Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : omct@omct.org
http://www.omct.org

David Simpson

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/letters/13966

Can the following story (Pambazuka News 102, SOUTH AFRICA: PARANOIA AND IGNORANCE FUELLING RACE DIVIDE IN RURAL AREAS
http://allafrica.com/stories/200303030232.html) really be true, or is the document in question a fabrication or forgery designed by the investigators to make the retrogressive Boers appear to be even more stupid than they really are? Or was it even a joke designed by the retrogressive Boers to fool whoever found it into believing they are really even more stupid than they appear to be? And is it only "men" who (supposedly) learnt so little about their fellow human beings?

Hannilie Zulu

African Institute

2003-03-20

http://www.african-institute.org

open letter on the treatment of zimbabwean women

Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA)

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/letters/13908

WOZA calls for an end to Torment
--------------------------------

Dear Sir/Madam,

Re: The WALK to FREEDOM and support for calls to end the TORMENT!

In Zimbabwe 56% of the population is female and traditionally it is
the mother who must provide sustenance despite meager budget. We be-
lieve that it is the women who are at the end of the suffering chain
and it is they who suffer in silence. The time has come for women to
arm themselves NOT WITH WEAPONS OF WAR AND DESTRUCTION but with their
God given weapons their hearts, minds and their voices. Women of
Zimbabwe Arise, (WOZA) was formed to end that silence and lobby to
end the suffering.

We, the women of Zimbabwe, who are wives, mothers and sisters, appeal
to you to assist us to vocalize this torment. We seek not feminist
ideals but rather to make it known that we will not stand by and let
the torment continue unabated. It is in our homes that we tend the
tortured and sadly turn away the starving.

We talk of our concern for our families, of our pain when we see
their pain. We, the women, sit for days and weeks and months in
queues waiting and waiting for food that does not arrive. While we
wait, our children wander the forests searching for roots and seeds
and even insects to eat.

Share our despair, the men we love and rely on, face the humiliation
because they cannot provide for us. Eight out of ten of our husbands
are without formal employment. Those in jobs earn so little money
that they can barely buy basic foods. 200% inflation has made wages
meaningless. Some of our husbands rise at 4 am to walk 20 km to work,
to avoid the taxi fares. They work all day on nothing to eat and ar-
rive home so late and so tired they can do nothing. Often they beat
us up just out of frustration.

We wish to tell you of our anguish as mothers of school leavers. Our
children have no hope of work, and worse still, are now being forced
into youth militia training. Last year, we were brutalised by our own
youth in our communities. Our daughters, who were forced to train as
militia, were returned to us raped and many are diseased.

Our sons have been taught the language of violence and intolerance.
As mothers, we weep privately to see our families being divided and
our family values corrupted by the men who rule our land.

Can you imagine the horror of a mother who sees her week-old baby as-
saulted for her political beliefs?

Can you imagine the hopelessness of a mother whose child is denied
access to health care because of his parents' political beliefs?

Can you imagine the endless frustration and simmering anger when our
children cannot eat because we, their mothers, do not have the right
political party card to produce at the selling point?

We write to you as employers of the nation. We know Zimbabweans to be
people of compassion and integrity, and that you are capable of imag-
ining our pain. Our children are hungry, our men are angry and we can
no longer comfort them.

We ask that you provide a copy of this letter to your employees, both
male and female and that you work with us as we mobilise them on the
walk to FREEDOM from TORMENT. If they are late for work spare them
and if they join us in our peaceful protests, do not deduct this time
from their salaries, as it is a compassionate absence.

Before our nation is torn apart, help us to sow love where there is
hatred - this is the work of a mother! Help us to rescue our families
from poverty and repression and despair. SOKWANELE means enough is
enough means ZVAKWANA.

Signed: The Women's Council, Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA)
mailto:wozazimbabwe@yahoo.com

P.S. "Be strong! We are not here to play, to dream, to drift. We have
hard work to do and loads to lift. Shun not the struggle; face it,
'Its God's gift. Be strong it matters not how deep entrenched the
wrong, how hard the battle goes, the day how long; Faint not, fight
on! Tomorrow comes the song." By Malbie Babcock.

Sibanze Simuchoba

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/letters/13871

Against War with Iraq

2003-03-20

http://www.sevenstories.com/Book/index.cfm?GCOI=58322100044520

Despite public outcry at home and international opposition abroad, the Bush Administration is deploying troops and investing millions in preparation for a massive military assault on Iraq. In this Open Media Series special edition, three legal scholars from the Center for Constitutional Rights argue persuasively that the looming war against Iraq is both unnecessary for national security, and illegal.

Development from Below: A Namibian Case Study

Reinhart Kössler, Henning Melber, Per Strand

2003-03-20

http://www.nai.uu.se/webbshop/ShopGB/index.html

This Discussion Paper offers a revised lecture by Reinhart Kössler, which was originally presented to a Research Forum organised by The Nordic Africa Institute jointly with the Seminar for Development Studies of Uppsala University. It deals with aspects of rebuilding societies from below firstly in a general development studies discourse on a more theoretical level, considering aspects of the current debate on globalisation. This is followed by a concrete case study from southern Namibia. It illustrates local responses by the Witbooi-Nama in Gibeon to (re-)define identity within the context of a (nation-)state in a post-apartheid society. The paper is commented upon by two discussants (Per Strand and Henning Melber).

Journal of Refugee Studies -- Table of Contents Alert

March 2003; Vol. 16, No. 1

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/books/13930

This issue includes:
* Beyond the Losers: Transforming Governmental Practice in Refugee-Affected Tanzania. Loren B. Landau, pp. 19-43 http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160019.sgm.abs.html
* Working with Refugees and Survivors of Trauma in a Day Hospital Setting. Jane Derges and Fiona Henderson, pp. 82-98
http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160082.sgm.abs.html
Journal of Refugee Studies -- Table of Contents Alert

A new issue of Journal of Refugee Studies
has been made available:

March 2003; Vol. 16, No. 1

URL: http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Articles
Forced Migration and the Anthropological Response
Elizabeth Colson, pp. 1-18

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160001.sgm.abs.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Articles
Beyond the Losers: Transforming Governmental Practice in Refugee-Affected Tanzania
Loren B. Landau, pp. 19-43

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160019.sgm.abs.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Articles
Citizens and Denizens: Ethnicity, Homelands, and the Crisis of Displacement in Northeast India
Sanjib Baruah, pp. 44-66

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160044.sgm.abs.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Articles
Are Refugee Children an At-Risk Group? A Longitudinal Study of Cambodian Adolescents
Cecile Rousseau and Aline Drapeau, pp. 67-81

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160067.sgm.abs.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Articles
Working with Refugees and Survivors of Trauma in a Day Hospital Setting
Jane Derges and Fiona Henderson, pp. 82-98

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160082.sgm.abs.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Book Reviews
Atle Grahl-Madsen: The Land Beyond: Collected Essays on Refugee Law and Policy
Reviewed by Agnès Hurwitz, pp. 99-100

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160099.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Elspeth Guild and Carol Harlow, eds. Implementing Amsterdam: Immigration and Asylum Rights in EC Law
Reviewed by Emek M. Uçarer, pp. 100-102

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160100.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Ingrid Boccardi: Europe and Refugees: Towards an EU Asylum Policy
Reviewed by Claudena Skran, pp. 102-104

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160102.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Atsuko Matsuoka and John Sorenson: Ghosts and Shadows: Construction of Identity and Community in an African Diaspora
Reviewed by Khalid Koser, pp. 104-105

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160104.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Jonathan Crush and David McDonald, eds. Transnationalism and New African Immigration to South Africa
Reviewed by Steffen Jensen, pp. 105-106

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160105.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Harri Englund: From War to Peace on the Mozambique-Malawi Borderland
Reviewed by Julia Powles, pp. 106-107

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160106.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Nora Hamilton and Norma Stoltz Chinchilla: Seeking Community in a Global City: Guatemalans and Salvadorans in Los Angeles
Reviewed by Pia Steen, pp. 108-109

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160108.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Sanjay Sangvai: The River and Life: People's Struggle in the Narmada Valley
Reviewed by Renu Modi, pp. 109-111

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160109.sgm.abs.html

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Book Reviews
Tony Vaux: The Selfish Altruist: Relief Work in Famine and War
Reviewed by Mark Walkup, pp. 111-112

http://www3.oup.co.uk/refuge/hdb/Volume_16/Issue_01/160111.sgm.abs.html

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THE EARTHSCAN READER ON WORLD TRANSPORT POLICY AND PRACTICE

Edited by John Whitelegg and Gary Haq

2003-03-20

http://www.earthscan.co.uk/asp/bookdetails.asp?key=3890

This invaluable sourcebook looks at the critical transport problems occurring throughout the world including traffic congestion, crashes, and greenhouse gas emissions. The Reader contains 16 important contributions on how to improve transport globally. They are based on sound science, sound people-centred analysis, and a strong awareness of equity and human rights. And they have been selected for their originality, the importance of the issues they focus on, the quality of their insight and their practical relevance.

Youssou N'Dour Cancels US Tour Over Threat of War

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/books/13931

Youssou N'Dour, the acclaimed Senegalese singer and bandleader and UNICEF Ambassador, has announced the cancellation of his seven-week tour of North America, originally scheduled for March 26-May 15.   The 38-city tour was to be the most extensive series of performances in North America in his career. Youssou N'Dour says, "It is my strong conviction that the responsibility for disarming Iraq should rest with the United Nations.  As a matter of conscience I question the United States government's apparent intention to commence war in Iraq.  I believe that coming to America at this time would be perceived in many parts of the world - rightly or wrongly - as support for this policy, and that, as a consequence, it is inappropriate to perform in the US at this juncture."
YOUSSOU N'DOUR HEAD OFFICE
Route des Almadies, Parcelle No. 8 - Zone 11 - CPTE 63 DAKAR
(+221) 865-1039 TEL (+221) 865-1068 FAX

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Youssou N'Dour Cancels US Tour Over Threat of War

Youssou N'Dour, the acclaimed Senegalese singer and bandleader and UNICEF Ambassador, has announced the cancellation of his seven-week tour of North America, originally scheduled for March 26-May 15. The 38-city tour was to be the most extensive series of performances in North America in his career.

Youssou N'Dour says, "It is my strong conviction that the responsibility for disarming Iraq should rest with the United Nations. As a matter of conscience I question the United States government's apparent intention to commence war in Iraq. I believe that coming to America at this time would be perceived in many parts of the world - rightly or wrongly - as support for this policy, and that, as a consequence, it is inappropriate to perform in the US at this juncture."

"I understand that there are many in the US who do not support the idea of their government initiating war in Iraq at this time, and I offer my greatest respect to them. I also regret the difficulties this causes those who were to present my concerts in North America and those who were looking forward to seeing me and my band. This tour was over a year and a half in the planning and was the greatest commitment I had ever made to performing in the US."
"It is my fervent wish to return to the US in better times. But I find it impossible to imagine playing concerts in America when such grave issues are confronting all the peoples of the world."

Further information: info@africanhypertext.com

Africa/Global: Gender, water and poverty - actions for sustainable development

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1096

This is an overview of the relationship between gender, poverty and water. The first section explores how, in every corner of the globe, women play a central role in managing water supply and distribution. It also examines how access to water and sanitation has implications for women’s health and economic activities. Case studies highlight water projects and initiatives that have succeeded in elevating women’s status.

africa/global: POVERTY, HIV/AIDS, VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN CLEAR HUMAN RIGHTS PRIORITIES

2003-03-20

http://193.194.138.190/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/B3CFD411AF8A597DC1256CE5002DC3EA?opendocument

Combating poverty, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the pandemic of violence against women were clear human rights priorities, Sergio Vieira de Mello, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, told the Commission on the Status of Women.

africa: African women cry out for condoms on Women's Day

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/wgender/13884

The average African women gives birth to six children during her life, but she would gladly use contraceptives to lower that number. As one in 15 African women dies due to birth complications, women are also much more aware of the risks of giving birth than are men. More than one quarter of worldwide pregnancies between 1995 and 2000 were unwanted or not planned, according to the UN population fund UNFPA. This situation is particularly true for African woman, where child-demanding families and husbands in addition to lacking family planning resources leave the average housewife few possibilities of dissent.
African women cry out for condoms on Women's Day
-Oluma Yoseph
*******************************

[Cross-posted from People-to-People Forum]

afrol News, 8 March - The average African women gives birth to six
children during her life, but she would gladly use contraceptives to lower
that number. As one in 15 African women dies due to birth complications,
women are also much more aware of the risks of giving birth than are men.

More than one quarter of worldwide pregnancies between 1995 and 2000 were
unwanted on not planned, according to the UN population fund UNFPA. This
situation is particularly true for African woman, where child-demanding
families and husbands in addition to lacking family planning resources
leave the average housewife few possibilities of dissent.

In addition, the risks of dying due to birth complications are
particularly high in Africa. Of every fifteen women dying in Africa, one
loses her life due to birth complications. Women are aware of these risks,
while most men remain ignorant or even indifferent.

- Maternal mortality is an omnipresent reality in [African] countries, and
for that reason, women are very well aware of their risks, Stefanie Ettelt
of the German Fund for the World Population (DSW) tells afrol News. "For
men, the decision is easier: When a wife dies, they can always marry
again." DSW on Women's Day reminds the world community that "unwanted
pregnancy is a huge health risk for women in developing countries."
Between 1995 and 2000, an estimated 700,000 women died as a consequence of
unwanted pregnancies

- more than the half of these died of abortions carried out illegally or
without sufficient medical or hygienic knowledge. "Most of these deaths
could have been prevented by giving women access to contraceptives," says
DSW.

Some 350 million couples worldwide want to use contraception as a manner
of family planning without having the means to do so, according to a
recent UN study. The same study holds these couples/families could be
given effective family planning means foronly US$/euro 13 a year. Ms
Ettelt confirmed to afrol News that recent studies by the German fund and
other international bodies indeed confirmed African women were crying out
for condoms.

- Let's make an example of Ethiopia, Ms Ettelt says. Here, the average
fertility rate [describes how many children a normal women will give birth
to] is at 5.9 children. New surveys had put the number of children desired
in Ethiopia significantly lower. "In the 15-19 age group, these young
women by now only desire 4.2 children, while urban women of that age only
want 3.3 children. Thus, there is a large demand of family planning and
contraception here."

But it is not only the physical lack of contraceptives that stops African
women from realising their wishes of "a perfect family". Especially in
rural communities, husbands and families-in-law put a heavy pressure on
the female head of family when it comes toplan the offspring.

- To stay with the Ethiopian example, the desired family size is indeed
higher for men than for women, Ms Ettelt tells afrol News. "The older the
men, the clearer the difference," she adds. While an Ethiopian woman of
15-19 years wants 4.2 children, a man of the same age wishes to have 4.5
children. Among the elder group of 45-49 years, women want 6.7 children
while men cling to the desire of having 9.7 children.

- Indeed, contraception is a female issue in most African societies, as it
is in most countries of the world, says Ms Ettelt. The German scientist
emphasises on two main reasons for this: Social status increases
especially for men with a high number of children and health risks of
unprotected sex and of giving birthare a women's issue. We asked Ms Ettelt
to give an example of an African example where increased access to
contraceptives had had a positive effect on family planning. She
immediately mentions Kenya.

- Here, the total fertility rate has sunk from 7.5 children at the
beginning of the 1980s to 4.2 children each woman today, she says. "That
however doesn't mean that there isn't any unchecked need of contraceptives
any more, as the desire of having children drops with fertility, and
family planning becomes more and more popular due to ongoing programmes."

According to recent surveys, the unchecked needs of contraceptives in
Africa in particular comprises of condoms. The AIDS pandemic has made this
contraceptive the most wanted among African women. Contrary to the needs
and desires of African women, condoms are however barely used. Very few
couples use contraceptives at all. Of all African couples, some 7 percent
stick to the pill, devise that only gives responsibility to women and that
doesn't protect against AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Another four percent of African couples use intrauterine devices (IUDs).
Another one percent of couples use condoms, according to a survey
conducted by the Population Reference Bureau.

While African women are increasingly crying out for condoms, international
organisations and agencies are less and less able to fulfil the family
planning tasks they are supposed to. "The scarcity [of condoms] is further
increased because the United States meanwhile totally has ceased its
payments the [UN agency]UNFPA," complains Ms Ettelt.afrol News ask Ms
Ettelt how the shift in US family planning policies during the Bush
administration has changed the situation in the field in Africa.

- Many organisations that are active in Africa are hurt by the budget
cuts, Ms Ettelt answers. She mentions both international and national
family planning programmes. "The DSW is however not affected as we never
have received any funds from the US government."

While African and donor governments continue having different moral views
on family planning matters, African women continue to give birth to more
children than their bodies and their local environment can sustain. A
woman from Niger will give birth to over 7 children, a Swazi woman to 6
children.

Only some countries in Northern Africa and South Africa are close to give
women a real choice: Here,the fertility rate is close to 2.5 children.
Here, women have access to education, inheritance and family planning. In
the rest of Africa, women cry out for CONDOMS.

Oluma Yoseph
Email:oluma@yahoo.com

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africa: call to save women's lives from unsafe abortion

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/wgender/13901

More than 100 African leaders from 15 countries who attended the continent's first regional conference on unsafe abortion concluded deliberations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, March 7 with a strong call for action to address this global public-health problem. Unsafe abortion results in the deaths of about 30,000 African women every year, according to the World Health Organisation.
African health leaders, lawyers, women's advocates call for action to save women's lives from unsafe abortion








Participants in Africa's first regional consultation on unsafe abortion speak out against the Global Gag Rule, saying it impedes efforts to reduce unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion.



March 17, 2003 - More than 100 African leaders from 15 countries who attended the continent's first regional conference on unsafe abortion concluded deliberations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, March 7 with a strong call for action to address this global public-health problem. Unsafe abortion results in the deaths of about 30,000 African women every year, according to the World Health Organization.



The multidisciplinary group of experts attending the "Action to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Africa" conference included health ministers, parliamentarians, health-care professionals, women's advocates, lawyers and others. They called on African governments to uphold commitments under numerous international agreements to address unsafe abortion effectively, including by increasing the availability of information and services to help prevent unwanted pregnancy and by making safe abortion available to the full extent of local and national laws. Participants committed themselves to educate the full spectrum of stakeholders affected by unsafe abortion about its tragic, preventable impact and to work more effectively within existing legislation and health systems to make high-quality, comprehensive reproductive-health care universally available.



"The primary interest of everyone involved in this conference is to save women's lives from unsafe abortion - something we know how to do but for which the global community has lacked political will," said Dr. Eunice Brookman-Amissah, a former Minister of Health of Ghana who now heads the Ipas Africa Alliance for Women's Reproductive Health and Rights. Along with several other organizations, the Ipas Africa Alliance co-sponsored the conference.



"No one wants to promote abortion," she continued. "It's true that liberalization of abortion laws has been shown to reduce maternal mortality, but the immediate priority is not always to legalize abortion. It is instead to make safe services available to the full extent of existing laws."



Brookman-Amissah noted that every African country permits abortion in some circumstances but that women rarely have access to care to which they are legally entitled. "That is why so many women and girls are maimed or die," she said.



Participants also called on African governments and the global community to be accountable to citizens and other stakeholders by opposing the Global Gag Rule imposed in January 2001 by the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush. This policy disqualifies nongovernmental organizations outside the United States from receiving U.S. family planning funding if they provide counseling on abortion, provide legal abortion services except in very narrow circumstances, or participate in political debate surrounding abortion.



"By reducing funds available for preventive family planning, the Global Gag Rule clearly impedes efforts to reduce unsafe abortion," said Brookman-Amissah. "Contrary to its stated intentions, the policy results in more unwanted pregnancies, more unsafe abortions, and more deaths of women and girls. We who have seen those effects first-hand can no longer tolerate silence about the gag rule's tragic effects."



Conference participants decried the lack of attention to reproductive health in general and to unsafe abortion in particular in programs to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, which United Nations member nations adopted in 2000. "Maternal mortality cannot and will not be reduced by 75 percent by 2015, nor will goals related to poverty reduction and economic development be achieved, without attention to unsafe abortion," Brookman-Amissah said.





For more information, contact:



Merrill Wolf

Senior Advisor, External Communications

919 960 5612

wolfm@ipas.org

www.ipas.org

Africa: How are women affected? - A close look at impacts on young women and girls, older women, and sex workers

2003-03-20

http://www.eldis.org/gender/dossiers/prevalencewomen.htm

A decade ago women seemed to be on the periphery of the epidemic, today they are at the epicentre. This page guides you to some resources on women and HIV/Aids and to detailed information on especially vulnerable groups of women. Some sample statistics show that today 47 percent of the 36.1 million people living with HIV are women and this proportion is growing. Of the 16,000 new infections that occur everyday, up to sixty percent are now amongst women.

africa: women must play a key role in development - piot

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/wgender/13920

Women must play a central role in development, says UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot. "When they do so, the benefits are apparent immediately: families are healthier and better fed; savings and incomes rise; a supportive environment is created. Take away women's ability to fulfil these roles and entire societies fall apart."
Message from Peter Piot on International Women's Day
-UNAIDS, Geneva
*****************************

8 March 2003

Women must play a central role in development. When they do so, the
benefits are apparent immediately: families are healthier and better fed;
savings and incomes rise; a supportive environment is created. Take away
women's ability to fulfil these roles and entire societies fall apart.

Yet for the first time at the end of 2001, women accounted for 50 percent
of all people living with HIV or AIDS worldwide. In sub-Saharan Africa,
the figure was 58 percent.

There is no question that we understand women's vulnerabilities to HIV
vulnerabilities based on biological factors, culture, and on their social
and economic status. We know that women face domestic violence, at times
exacerbated by conflict or insecurity; that girls are the first to be
pulled from school and put to work when AIDS strikes at home; that women
lack the power and economic independence to negotiate sexual safety. We
also know that women face the full brunt of the stigma and discrimination
associated with HIV, which fuels their fear of getting tested, and
prevents them from seeking care if they are infected. We also know that
inequalities between the sexes and women's lack of power to challenge
these inequalities lie at the heart of their vulnerability. We now have a
framework within with to redress these inequalities. The Declaration of
Commitment on HIV/AIDS is clear about what we must do and when we must do
it.

But we also know much, much more. We know what works. We know that
empowering women works. Expanding reproductive health services, training
peer educators and providing micro-credit works. Where women have
participated in decision-making and in managing health services, HIV/AIDS
interventions have worked. When girls are educated and kept in school,
they are more likely to be able to protect themselves from HIV infection.

Women may be vulnerable, but we must distinguish between vulnerability and
weakness. Women have shown great courage and resourcefulness in facing the
epidemic. They have practised safer sex when it was dangerous to do so;
they have successfully pushed through legal reforms protecting their
rights; they have consistently provided care, both at home and in health
care settings. Wherever we look, we see the hope women have generated by
their actions.

We have waited too long. Today, we are reminded that AIDS has a woman's
face. Let us use International Women's Day as a starting point to stop the
waiting, and put our knowledge into action now.

Source: UNAIDS Press Release

Dominique De Santis
Press Officer
UNAIDS
Tel +41 22 791 4509
Fax +41 22 791 4898
Email: desantisd@unaids.org

Egypt: free those imprisoned for their sexual orientation

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/wgender/13868

The verdict in the retrial of 50 men, tried for their alleged sexual orientation, is expected on 15 March before a criminal court in the Qasr al-Nil district of Cairo. The trial takes place amid a continued clampdown by the Egyptian authorities on men on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation.
News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty International
AI-index: MDE 12/009/2003 13/03/2003
Egypt: free those imprisoned for their sexual orientation

The verdict in the retrial of 50 men, tried for their alleged sexual
orientation, is expected on 15 March before a criminal court in the Qasr
al-Nil district of Cairo. The trial takes place amid a continued clampdown
by the Egyptian authorities on men on the basis of their actual or
perceived sexual orientation.

Amnesty International is extremely concerned that the imprisonment of
people solely for their actual or perceived sexual orientation constitutes
a violation of the right to freedom from discrimination as guaranteed in
international human rights treaties.

"The Egyptian authorities must release immediately and unconditionally
anyone imprisoned solely for their actual or perceived sexual orientation,"
Amnesty International said.

The initial trial, which came to be known as the 'Queen Boat case', opened
in 2001. Following their sentencing, Amnesty International adopted those
sentenced solely for their actual or perceived sexual orientation as
prisoners of conscience and campaigned for their immediate and
unconditional release.

Several of the men alleged that they were subjected to torture or
ill-treatment, including beatings with a stick on the soles of the feet
(falaka), during the first stages of their detention. Gays - or those
perceived to be gay - face a heightened risk of torture or ill-treatment in
police stations and prisons in Egypt.

Shortly after his arrest, one of the 50 men informed the prosecutor that he
had been subjected to torture in detention and showed him the resulting
marks on his body. The prosecutor noted "red vertical lines on the middle
of the back...which the accused alleged were the result of beating with a
thin stick...". However, no investigations are known to have been conducted
into their allegations.

During the examination of Egypt's report to the UN Committee for Human
Rights, in October 2002, the Egyptian delegation stated that in Egypt
"homosexuality was not a criminal offence in itself". However, ongoing
trials and imprisonment of people solely for their actual or perceived
sexual orientation demonstrate that charges of "habitual debauchery"
continue to be used to criminalize consensual homosexual relations in private.

Over the past year, there have been several cases of alleged gays who have
been detained and tried after having agreed to meet people contacted over
the internet who turned out to be security officers or police informants.

On 17 February 2003 a court of appeals in Cairo upheld a sentence of
15-months' imprisonment of prisoner of conscience Wissam Tawfiq Abyad, a
26-year-old Lebanese national, for his alleged sexual orientation. On 16
January 2003 Wissam Tawfiq Abyad went to meet a contact he had made on an
Internet website for homosexuals. The person he met, in the Heliopolis
district of Cairo, is believed to be a security officer or police
informant. Wissam Tawfiq Abyad was detained and charged with 'habitual
debauchery'. Electronic conversations which they had exchanged over the
Internet in private were used as evidence against him.

In another instance, prisoner of conscience Zaki Sayid Zaki 'Abd al-Malak
was detained in similar circumstances on 25 January 2002 in Cairo. On 7
February 2002 he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for 'habitual
debauchery' by the Agouza Criminal Court in Cairo and the verdict was
upheld on 31 March 2002. He was reportedly ill-treated in detention.


Background

In May 2001 some 60 men were arrested in Cairo, the majority of them while
at a night club on a boat known as the Queen Boat. In June 2001, 52 of them
were referred by presidential decree to the Emergency State Security Court
for Misdemeanours in Cairo, an exceptional court established under
emergency legislation. In November the court sentenced 23 men to prison
terms of between one and five years. Twenty-one were convicted of 'habitual
debauchery', one of 'contempt of religion' and another on both charges.
(see Amnesty International: Egypt: Torture and imprisonment for actual or
perceived sexual orientation, December 2001 - [AI Index: MDE 12/033/2001]).

In May 2002 President Mubarak annulled the verdict of 50 of the 52 men
tried in 2001 in connection with their alleged sexual orientation and as a
consequence 21 prisoners of conscience were released. However, he upheld
prison terms imposed on two men in the same case. A retrial of the 50 other
men opened in July 2002 before a criminal court in the Qasr al-Nil district
of Cairo.

The Egyptian judiciary has on many occasions applied the term 'habitual
debauchery' to same sex relations in the context of consensual sexual
relations between men in private. Charges of 'habitual debauchery' are
based on Law 10 of 1961 on the Combat of Prostitution.

Different UN human rights bodies have expressed their concerns regarding
the treatment of men on the grounds of their actual or perceived sexual
orientation. For example, in November 2002 the UN Committee for Human
Rights issued several recommendations after having examined Egypt's
periodic report of its implementation of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights, including that Egypt should 'refrain from
sanctioning private sexual relations between consenting adults'.


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eritrea: Females Struggle Against Circumcision

2003-03-20

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L12524206

Eritreans do not discuss FGM openly because it is taboo to talk about sex in general. However, people's fear of a clampdown is leading to more secrecy than a decade ago when the government launched a campaign against the ancient practice.

kenya: Kenyan Women Hit Out At Male Citadels Of Science

2003-03-20

http://www.panos.org.uk/news/2003/Feb/kenyan_women.htm

Peninah Wanjira finished among the top five students in her secondary school. She wanted to be an engineer, but her headmaster prevented her from specialising in science. Too difficult, he told her. Boys whom she consistently outperformed took her place. “I will never forgive him. He killed my dream,” Wanjira, a sociology graduate currently working as a clerk in Nairobi, says bitterly. “Look at what I do: signing and stapling forms all day.” Fortunately, Kiriri Women’s University of Science and Technology (KWUST), which opened in September 2002, is challenging generations of gender stereotyping and an entrenched culture that favours males at all levels of education.

liberia: Women Call for Peace - Threaten Legal Action

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303100859.html

Liberian women have called on the Government and the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) to cease the hostilities in order for them to have a peace that would enable their children to go to school without any fear or intimidation to prepare themselves for the development of their country.

RWANDA: Rights Groups Accuse U.N. Of Lax Prosecution Of 1994 Rapes

2003-03-20

http://www.unfoundation.org/unwire/util/display_stories.asp?objid=32557

A coalition of human rights groups has accused the United Nations of making little effort to prosecute rapes alongside other crimes committed during Rwanda's 1994 genocide. "Thousands of Rwandan rape victims, many of whom are now dying of AIDS, continue to wait expectantly for justice from the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda," said coalition organizer Jean-Louis Roy, head of the Canadian humanitarian organisation Rights and Democracy.

sierra leone: Refugee Women Embrace Self-help on International Women's Day

2003-03-20

http://www.unhcr.ch/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home/opendoc.htm?tbl=NEWS&id=3e6f5b254&page=protect

Kountaya camp exploded in song and dance last Saturday as Sierra Leonean and Liberian refugee women gathered at the camp in Guinea's Albadaria district to mark International Women's Day, which was observed all over the world on March 8.

south africa: Equal benefits for SA gays

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2856811.stm

South Africa's highest court has ruled that gay couples should receive the same financial benefits as heterosexuals. The case was brought by lesbian judge Kathy Satchwell, who wanted her partner to get the same benefits as the married partners of other judges.

South Africa: Government boost for women in IT

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1062

The government has launched the South Africa Reference Group for Women in Science and Technology to enhance women's involvement in these sectors. The establishment of the group is an active implementation of the National Research and Development Strategy, which was approved by the Cabinet last year.

south africa: What kills women

2003-03-20

http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20030308

Up to 150 women out of 100 000 die annually whilst still pregnant, during labour or shortly after giving birth in South Africa. That is the finding of a report published recently by the national Department of Health and that follows three years of monitoring and collecting data on the patterns of maternal deaths.

southern africa: Gender and HIV: A discussion with Stephen Lewis, UN Special Envoy on HIV/Aids

2003-03-20

http://www.sarpn.org.za/documents/d0000218/index.php

One of the Southern African Regional Poverty Network's (SARPN) objectives is to promote discussion that will contribute to policy and action to reduce poverty and ameliorate its effects in the SADC region. HIV/Aids is having a major negative impact on the lives of poor people. SARPN invited Stephen Lewis, following the conclusion of his visit to Southern Africa with James Morris, to exchange views with a range of researchers, government officials, consultants, activists and donor representatives active in the fight against HIV/Aids in Southern Africa. Read the full report at the link provided.

Swaziland: Widows banned from being election candidates

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1070

Widows who have been bereaved within the past two years have been banned from running as candidates in this year's parliamentary election. This has enraged women's empowerment groups who are already bristling under cultural restrictions that regard Swazi women as legal minors.

africa: human rights watch urges action on rights commission

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/rights/13883

The United States and the European Union have a special responsibility to pull the United Nations Commission on Human Rights back from the brink of disaster, Human Rights Watch says. The annual meeting of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights is due to begin on Monday, March 17. Several of the world's worst rights violators are now among its 53 members, Human Rights Watch said.
Related Link:
* Protests mar human rights forum
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/2855737.stm
(Geneva, March 12, 2003) - The United States and the European Union have a
special responsibility to pull the United Nations Commission on Human
Rights back from the brink of disaster, Human Rights Watch urged today.

The annual meeting of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights is due to begin
on Monday, March 17. Several of the world's worst rights violators are now
among its 53 members, Human Rights Watch said.

"The sustained attention of the world's major powers can still reverse this
dangerous trend," said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights
Watch. "But if the United States and the European Union don't engage
themselves systematically in the work of the Commission this year, it could
slide into irrelevance."

With Libya assuming the chairmanship of the Commission, media attention has
focused on the abusive governments who have gained seats there in recent
years. Indeed, governments who have felt the sting of human rights scrutiny
have sought to immunize themselves against criticism by working
energetically to limit monitoring by the Commission.

The West, in particular the European Union countries and the United States,
have been largely indifferent to this trend, and at times complicit in it,
Human Rights Watch said. The European Union still sponsors most country
resolutions and takes the lead on many other initiatives at the Commission.
But its effectiveness has been diminished in recent years by its internal
consensus rule, under which resolution drafts and statements have settled
at the most watered-down version presented by one of the fifteen.

Human Rights Watch called on the Commission to pass resolutions on several
countries, including: China, Colombia, Iran, North Korea, the Russian
Federation (Chechnya), and Turkmenistan.

Human Rights Watch has also urged the appointment of a Special
Representative to monitor counter terrorist measures worldwide and their
impact on human rights, as well as the appointment of a special envoy to
secure the release of children abducted in northern Uganda.

Human Rights Watch Press release

Burkina Faso: LANDMARK ELECTIONS IN BURKINA FASO

2003-03-20

http://www.idea.int/burkina/policy_brief.pdf

Do the parliamentary elections of May 2002 mark the end of an era in Burkina Faso? The ruling party in power since the transition towards democracy in 1991 saw its share of seats shrink. While it retains a simple majority in parliament, the ruling party will now have to share legislative power with the opposition. The authors of this report from the Centre for Democratic Governance in Burkino Faso and the The International Centre for Democratic Governance, (ICDG) at the University of Georgia (2002) maintain that the results of the elections are as extraordinary as they were unexpected.

Guinea-Bissau: Concern mounts over Bissau poll

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2849529.stm

The leaders of five Portuguese-speaking nations are to hold talks on Friday on elections in Guinea-Bissau, amid international concerns over the fairness of the polls. The meeting has been called in Luanda by Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who is head of Palop, the five-nation Portuguese-language community.

nigeria: amnesty urges respect for human rights

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/rights/13866

Amnesty International is urging all candidates in Nigeria's upcoming presidential, federal and state elections to commit themselves publicly to place the prevention of human rights abuses during elections at the heart of their electoral campaigns.
News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty International
AI-index: AFR 44/010/2003 13/03/2003

Amnesty International is urging all candidates in Nigeria's upcoming
presidential, federal and state elections to commit themselves publicly to
place the prevention of human rights abuses during elections at the heart
of their electoral campaigns.

Amnesty International's plea comes in the aftermath of what seems yet
another politically motivated killing during the electoral period in
Nigeria, that of Harry Mashall, a leading member of the All Nigeria
People's Party.

In two open letters to candidates for the federal executive and legislature
and to candidates for state governorship and houses of assembly, Irene
Khan, the Secretary General of Amnesty International stressed that
protection and promotion of human rights should be central to their program
for the post election period.

She pointed out that it is during electoral periods in the past that
Nigeria has most suffered violence resulting, on many occasions, in the
military seizing power.

"Respect for human rights during the electoral process is essential, even
more so when political stability might depend on it, Amnesty International
said.

However, the organization has received reports of numerous cases of
political violence at the federal, state and local levels in the run-up to
the elections, resulting in the death of some candidates and several
supporters.

Allegations are rife across Nigeria of the use of groups of civilians armed
by political leaders, including vigilante groups, to foment political
violence at local and state levels.

"Unless immediate and sustained action is taken to prevent human rights
violations by vigilante and other armed groups, further human rights abuses
are inevitable," Irene Khan added.

"All candidates to the federal executive and legislature as well as
candidates to state governorship and houses of assembly must do their
utmost in preventing political violence whether it is generated by leaders
or supporters of their own political parties in internal disputes or
against other political party leaders or sympathizers," the organization
urged.

Candidates must also avoid the instigation of ethnic or religious tensions
among the electorate.


Post-election human rights agenda

In its open letter, Amnesty International urges candidates to both federal
and state executive and legislature to give priority to human rights in
their post-election agenda.

New state authorities should ensure that existing legislation in their
various states complies with international human rights law and with the
Nigerian Constitution. Several northern states have introduced new Sharia
Penal Legislation which provides for mandatory use of the death penalty and
other cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments despite Nigeria's
ratification of many international human rights instruments

Furthermore, new authorities of those states that have tacitly or openly
endorsed vigilante groups should ensure that these groups do not violate
the fundamental human rights of any individual.

At the federal level, Amnesty International is calling on all candidates
for the federal executive and legislature to commit themselves to making
public the report of the Human Rights Violations Investigation Commission
(Oputa Panel), and to produce a plan to implement its recommendations.

In the past four years of civilian rule, the Nigerian Police and the armed
forces have been responsible for large numbers of extrajudicial executions,
deaths in custody, torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of
alleged criminals in custody.

"Newly elected federal officials should give priority to the establishment
of training programs for the federal police and the armed forces that
include specific training on the use of force according to international
standards," Amnesty International urged.

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nigeria: candidate attacked

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2850315.stm

The convoy of Gani Fawehinmi, a candidate in next month's presidential election, has been attacked as he returned home after a campaign. He said that the gang of four machete-wielding men asked for him by name but he was in a different car to the one attacked. Mr Fawehinmi, a human-rights-lawyer-turned-politician, is one of 19 challengers to President Olusegun Obasanjo in next month's election but correspondents say he is unlikely to win.

Sierra Leone: Indictments Welcomed

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/rights/13894

The Sierra Leone Special Court's announcement of its first seven indictments is a tremendous step forward for the cause of justice in Sierra Leone, Human Rights Watch says. The Sierra Leone Special Court Prosecutor, David Crane, has announced indictments against Foday Saybana Sankoh, Johnny Paul Koroma, Sam Bockarie, Issa Hassan Sesay, Alex Tamba Brima, Morris Kallon and Sam Hinga Norman, for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and violations of international humanitarian law.
Sierra Leone Indictments Welcomed

(New York, March 11, 2003) - The Sierra Leone Special Court's
announcement of its first seven indictments is a tremendous step forward
for the cause of justice in Sierra Leone, Human Rights Watch said today.

The Sierra Leone Special Court Prosecutor, David Crane, yesterday
announced indictments against Foday Saybana Sankoh, Johnny Paul Koroma,
Sam Bockarie, Issa Hassan Sesay, Alex Tamba Brima, Morris Kallon and Sam
Hinga Norman, for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and violations of
international humanitarian law. Sankoh, Sesay, Brima, Kallon, and
Norman are in custody.

"This is a key step towards accountability for the horrific crimes of
the civil war in Sierra Leone," said Peter Takirambudde, executive
director of the Africa division of Human Rights Watch. "We applaud the
court for having the courage to indict persons who were on all sides of
the conflict."

The crimes alleged in the indictments include murder, rape,
extermination, acts of terror, enslavement, looting and burning, sexual
slavery, conscription of children into an armed force, and attacks on
UNAMSIL peacekeepers and humanitarian assistance workers.

The civil war in Sierra Leone was marked by serious atrocities committed
principally by the members of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF)/Armed
Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) rebel alliance. Civilians bore the
brunt of these abuses in widespread and systematic attacks characterized
by murder, mutilation, amputation, torture, rape and forced abductions.
Civilian Defense Forces (CDF) militias fighting on behalf of the
government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah also committed numerous human
rights violations, albeit on a smaller scale and of a different nature
than those committed by the rebel alliance.

Foday Sankoh was leader of the RUF. Johnny Paul Koroma was head of the
AFRC. Sam Bockarie was a particularly notorious RUF commander, and Sam
Hinga Norman led the Kamajors, the largest and most powerful group of
the CDF. Norman is currently Sierra Leone Minister of Internal Affairs.

The Special Court is a "mixed" tribunal that has both international and
domestic elements, including international and Sierra Leonean judges and
staff. The court is designed to function for three years and has power
to prosecute those "who bear the greatest responsibility" for serious
violations of international humanitarian law and certain violations of
Sierra Leone law committed in Sierra Leone since November 30, 1996.

While Human Rights Watch welcomed the indictments, Takirambudde said
that "they are only one step on the long road to a full accounting of
crimes committed in Sierra Leone."

Because the Special Court is anticipated to prosecute around twenty
persons, it will leave many crimes unaddressed. A Truth and
Reconciliation Commission is also at work in Sierra Leone. Its mandate
is to seek to establish an impartial historical record of the conflict
and promote reconciliation, but it will not have the capacity to
adjudicate criminal responsibility.

For Human Rights Watch's report on the widespread and systematic use of
rape and other sexual violence during the ten-year civil war, please see
"We'll Kill You If You Cry: Sexual Violence in the Sierra Leone
Conflict," http://hrw.org/reports/2003/sierraleone/sierleon0103.pdf

Please see also "Sierra Leone: Getting Away with Murder, Mutilation, and
Rape," http://www.hrw.org/reports/1999/sierra/ and "Sowing Terror:
Atrocities Against Civilians in Sierra Leone,"
http://www.hrw.org/reports98/sierra/

zimbabwe: call for icc prosecution of mugabe

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/rights/13944

The International Bar Association (IBA) has called for the trial of Robert Mugabe for serious violations of international humanitarian law. The IBA addressed its call to all State Parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC), each of whom has the authority to request that prosecution be initiated. The IBA urged that the first act of the ICC's Prosecutor should be directed at the alleged atrocities committed by Zimbabwe's President and his regime.
International Bar Association Calls For International Criminal Court To Investigate And Try Robert Mugabe I
nternational Bar Association (London)
PRESS RELEASE
March 6, 2003
Posted to the web March 6, 2003
London

The International Bar Association (IBA) today called for the trial of Robert Mugabe for serious violations of international humanitarian law. The IBA addressed its call to all State Parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC), each of whom has the authority to request that prosecution be initiated. The IBA urged that the first act of the ICC's Prosecutor should be directed at the alleged atrocities committed by Zimbabwe's President and his regime.

'No single act would more accurately reflect the purpose and importance of the ICC than to have Mr Mugabe as the first individual tried by the new Court', said Mark Ellis, the IBA's Executive Director. 'Fortunately for the international community and for those who have suffered under Mr Mugabe's policies, the existence of the ICC means that if found guilty he will not escape being held accountable for his actions.' Mr Ellis states that there is already sufficient evidence to justify the investigation of allegations that Mr Mugabe has committed and continues to commit crimes against humanity. These are defined as acts that are part of a widespread or systematic attack against any civilian population, including murder, torture, imprisonment or other inhumane acts of a similar nature intentionally causing great suffering.

Evidence and reports are emerging almost daily in support of these claims from Zimbabwe, where threats, beatings, and torture appear to be systematically directed at those groups who stand outside, or criticise the ruling Zanu-PF party. Mr Mugabe's rhetoric increasingly defines those who do not actively support him as traitors, and many of the actions of the police and the militia appear to be motivated by such rhetoric. In the current atmosphere, the independence of the rule of law has been consistently undermined, as frequently highlighted by the IBA's Human Rights Institute.

The ICC came into existence on 1 July 2002 as the first permanent court ever established to investigate and try individuals for the most serious violations of international humanitarian law, including crimes against humanity. The ICC is currently recruiting its first Prosecutor, hence the timing of the IBA's call.

About the International Bar Association In its role as a dual membership organisation, comprising 16,000 individual lawyers and 180 Bar Associations and Law Societies, the International Bar Association (IBA) influences the development of international law reform and shapes the future of the legal profession.

Its Member Organisations cover all continents and include the American Bar Association, the German Federal Bar, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the Mexican Bar Association and the Law Society of Zimbabwe.

Grouped into three Sections - Business Law, Legal Practice, and Energy & Natural Resources Law - more than 60 specialist Committees provide members with access to leading experts and up-to-date information as well as top-level professional development and network-building opportunities through high-quality publications and world-class Conferences. The IBA's Human Rights Institute works across the Association, helping to promote, protect and enforce human rights under a just rule of law, and to preserve the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession worldwide.

zimbabwe: call for independent electoral commission

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/rights/13862

The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) and other civic organisations and political parties have called on the government to establish an independent electoral commission comprised of representatives from interested and relevant civic organisations. This call was made at a public hearing on the Electoral Amendment Bill, which was organised by the Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs portfolio committee.
ZESN UPDATE
14 March 2003

CIVIC ORGANISATIONS CALL FOR AN INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL COMMISSION
Yesterday, ZESN among other civic organisations and political parties called on the government to establish an independent electoral commission comprised of representatives from interested and relevant civic organisations. This call was made at a public hearing on the Electoral Amendment Bill, which was organised by the Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs portfolio committee.
In a presentation, which was made by Dr Reginald Matchaba Hove, the Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) he stressed ZESN’s serious concern on the issue of the proposed accreditation committee, which does not include the civil society organisations but would be made up of government appointees only. He said there is an urgent need for an independent commission, which would ensure that elections are held in a free and transparent manner. “We recommend, that the independent election commission be comprised of representatives from interested and relevant civic organisations and the commission should also be given the privilege to invite observers and monitors in any election”, said Dr Matchaba-Hove.
Dr Matchaba-Hove also added that the idea of having the Electoral Supervisory Commission (ESC) reporting to the Registrar General is not proper since as a civil servant the interest of the Registrar General may defer transparency and the common interest of democracy. “According to Section 14B (4)(b), the ESC appoints and deploy monitors and reports to the Registrar General, giving the Registrar General an overall say in the process,” said Dr Matchaba Hove.
Among other issues on which ZESN presented were issues of the role and recruitment of observers and monitors. Dr Matchaba-Hove argued that given that the bill states that civic organisations cannot recruit monitors, the whole process is therefore is done by the Electoral Supervisory Commission through the Registrar General, thereby involving civil servants throughout the organising of elections including monitoring.
ZESN also expressed great concern on the issue of voter education. According to section 14D (1) 4, no person other than the Commission or person appointed in terms of subsection (3) by the Commission, a political party, or person registered in terms of this section shall provide voter education.
Dr Matchaba called for broad definition of ‘voter education’ not to include discussions on the electoral law in workshops and public meetings since the ESC is reluctant to appoint and register persons and organisations to assist in voter education.
ZESN also suggested that counting of ballot papers should take place at the polling station, so that the observers can witness the counting and to avoid any swindling of ballots during transportation of ballot boxes to the counting centres.
In consent with ZESN’s presentation, the National Constitutional Assembly’s representative, Mr Felix Mafa added that there was need for an overhaul, of the current Electoral Act backed by Constitutional amendments or a complete overhaul, instead of having piece-meal amendments.
NCA also noted with concern how ineffective the law could be considering the fact that the constitution of Zimbabwe still gives the President so much power, for instance the President can make any regulations on the electoral process in accordance with Section 158 of the Electoral Act.
A ZANU representative also suggested that the Electoral Law should state clearly the issue of postal votes. According to ZANU its major concern as a party was on how the whole process is conducted and its precision.
The MDC director for elections Mr Remius Makuvaza also added that the Electoral Amendment Act should speak clearly on the issue of access to public media by contesting parties and that the issue accessing any of public services, state machinery and state organs for political gains should be clear.
In conclusion, ZESN advocated that the Electoral Amendment Law should reflect the SADC Parliamentary Forum Norms and Standards for free and fair elections.
Whilst the deliberations went on well and in an open atmosphere, ZESN urged the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs to take all the concerns raised by all stakeholders seriously.
The Electoral Amendment Bill has gone through the first reading and has an adverse report prepared on it by the Parliamentary Legal Committee after ZESN made submissions before the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on the 7th of November 2002. The report is expected to be tabled before Parliament soon.
END

_____________________________________________________________________________

Ellen Kandororo
Information Officer
Media and Communication Programme
Zimbabwe Election Support Network [ZESN]
1082 Western Close
Greendale
Harare

Tel/Fax: 263 4 480148/9/498554
E-mail: ellenk@zesn.org.zw

Website:www.zesn.org.zw

ZIMBABWE: Commonwealth suspension continues until December

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32878

Zimbabwe will remain suspended from the councils of the Commonwealth until December when the Commonwealth Heads of Government meet in Nigeria to decide on a way forward, Commonwealth Secretary-General, Don McKinnon, said on Sunday.

Zimbabwe: Danger and Opportunity

2003-03-20

http://www.crisisweb.org

A behind-the-scenes succession battle appears to have begun following indications that senior ZANU-PF officials are exploring retirement scenarios for President Mugabe. Since the rigged March 2002 presidential election, the country has been heading towards state collapse. The economy is imploding, a government-created food crisis is turning Zimbabwe into a beggar nation and deepening state sponsored violence could degenerate into widespread unstructured conflict. At the same time, the international community has become even more divided. A new mediation effort is urgently needed that involves all relevant Zimbabwean stakeholders and aims to restore legitimacy to the government by creating a transitional administration, restoring the rule of law, finding an electoral compromise, reforming economic policies, ensuring genuine land reform, and creating an exit strategy for the president, argues the International Crisis Group.

zimbabwe: Mugabe critics spurred on by strike

2003-03-20

http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=37&o=17393

After a two-day anti-government strike, Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change yesterday vowed to escalate "mass action" to force President Mugabe's government to reform or leave office. The national strike was the biggest protest for more than two years against Robert Mugabe's 23-year rule, shuttng factories, shops, banks and other businesses in protest at alleged human rights abuses and the economic decline.
Related Links:
* Police fire tear gas to disperse crowd
http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1084
* Protest fuelled by hunger
http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1100&PHPSESSID=c5e9288d36dade8663915d70cae94c99
* Support for mass action
http://www.zvakwana.org/

ANGOLA/NAMIBIA/ZAMBIA: Plans for return of refugees finalised

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32873

The office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Monday said details for the voluntary repatriation of up to 200,000 Angolans living in Zambia had been finalised following a meeting involving UNHCR and the two governments last week.

botswana: Survival labelled 'terrorist' organisation

2003-03-20

http://www.survival-international.org/bushmannews030313.htm

Survival has recently been labelled a 'terrorist' organisation by a senior figure in Debswana, De Beers's Botswana subsidiary. In a BBC interview Dr Akolang Tombale, who is both permanent secretary in Botswana's Ministry of Mineral Resources and Water Affairs, and deputy Chairman of Debswana, accused Survival of being a 'terrorist organisation', and of doctoring the government's own mineral concession maps.

ghana: migration and poverty in ghana

2003-03-20

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Units/SCMR/working_papers/mwp10.pdf

This paper examines the welfare outcomes of migrants and non-migrants in Ghana in the years 1991/2 and 1998/9 using nationally representative survey data. The results reveal that migration is a common feature of household behaviour in Ghana in both years, with over 50% of individuals migrating at some point within their lives.

GREAT LAKES: Help us go home, CAR refugees urge UNHCR

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32917

Refugee leaders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Republic of Congo (ROC) have urged the Office of the UN High Commissioner to Refugees (UNHCR) to help about 5,000 refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR) in the two countries to go home, days after a coup in the CAR, according to the UN agency.

lesotho: life worse for communities after water projects

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/refugees/13904

While it is seen as a project that has brought some remarkable economic prosperity to the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho and an engineering feat surpassed by none of its kind in the whole world, the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) has left a trail of destitution, uncertainty and hopelessness amongst the communities affected by it in the Mohale area.
"Our Lives Have Become Worse Since We Were Resettled By the LHDA" -
Communities Affected By LHWP
Mopheme/The Survivor (Maseru)
March 13, 2003
Posted to the web March 13, 2003
Thabo Thakalekoala
Maseru
While it is seen as a project that has brought some remarkable
economic prosperity to the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho and an
engineering feat surpassed by none of its kind in the whole world,
the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) has left a trail of
destitution, uncertainty and hopelessness amongst the communities
affected by it in the Mohale area.
These communities from different villages in the Mohale area were
resettled in the villages of Ha Ratau, Nazareth, Ha Seoe-hlana, Ha
Mosuoe, Ha Makotoko, Ha Makhale and Ha Moji on the foothills of the
Machache mountain range in the Maseru district to make way for the
construction of the Mohale dam as part of the Phase 1B of the Lesotho
Highlands Water Project which sells water to the neighbouring
Republic of South Africa.
Destitution, uncertainty and hopelessness amongst the resettled
communities came to the fore during the week-long formal inquiry into
the complaints against the LHWP by the affected communities conducted
by the Ombudsman, Sekara Mafisa and his team that ended at the
Molengoane Lodge on Friday, March 7, 2003.
The resettled communities from the seven villages all had the same
complaints against the custodian of the LHWP. The complaints included
delayed and inadequate compensation for communal assets, threshold
payment, provision of schools, clinics and clean water. What emerged
from different speakers at the formal inquiry was that the LHDA has
made the economic status of many resettled families move from bad to
worse.
They sent a clear message to the Ombudsman and the LHDA that despite
the economic upliftment promised them by the giant multi-billion
dollar water scheme, their lives have gone from bad to worse.
A representative of the community resettled at Ha Ratau, Moeketsi
Lakabane indicated that in 1995 when the Project informed them that
they would be resettled at Ha Ratau it promised that they would
receive training in vocational skills in order for them to engage in
income-generating activities in their adopted villages.
"However, nothing has happened as far as this is concerned. And the
Project does not communicate with us about this," he told the inquiry.
Lakabane disclosed that only five families out 34 families relocated
at Ha Ratau have received compensation for their assets such as
gardens since their arrival in the area in February 2002. "When we
ask for compensation for the remaining families, the Project gives us
unclear and ambiguous answers. Every time we ask for our compensation
Project officials tell us that it will soon pay us. And again, those
five families which were paid their compensation got inadequate and
unsatisfactory amounts of money for their property taken over by the
Project," he said.
He also indicated that, when paid out, compensation arrived late and
that inconvenienced many families as it hindered their plans and
plunged them in unnecessary debts which could have been avoided if
the LHDA paid out their compensation in time.
Lakabane pointed out that the houses built for them by the Lesotho
Highlands Water Project were in a terrible state and were starting to
crumble, and had leaking roofs and cracking walls.
"Despite being too small, the houses have a lot of structural
deficiencies and the equipment installed in the houses such as coal
stoves are malfunctioning and have become a threat to our lives and
we are in danger of contracting respiratory diseases. We have, on
several occasions informed the LHDA authorities about these problems
but they have done nothing," he said.
He disclosed that before they were resettled at Ha Ratau in the
Thaba-Bosiu area, the LHDA had promised them top-up money of
M3,960.00 but they [LHDA] have now reneged saying that people whose
belongings and property exceeding M3,960.00 would not receive any
top-up money.
"Another thing is that LHDA discriminates against some people when
paying out compensation for fields and other property. The LHDA also
promised us that they will release compensation for our communal
assets.
But, now the LHDA wants us to form a cooperative and pay M10.00
towards opening of a bank account into which our compensation for
communal assets will paid," he said.
Lakabane said the installation of clean water taps that the LHDA
promised to do in their homes have not been effected and they had to
walk long distances to fetch water.
'Mathato Takatso of Ha Ratau told the inquiry that the yards around
the houses built for them by LHDA were too small and did not allow
for extension of buildings. "These yards are so small we cannot even
build enclosures for our livestock," she added.
To the amazement of the Ombudsman and his officials, Molefi Sello
disclosed that the Chief of Ha Ratau, Lerotholi Theko threatened
resettled people with law suits if they continue demanding
compensation and other services from the LHDA.
"He refuses to write letters for us detailing our demands from the
LHDA saying that we have no right to bother the LHDA with our
demands," he said.
The Chief of Ha Ratau, Lerotholi Theko refuted the allegations and
said he was working in close collaboration with the resettled
communities in his area to make sure that they get their compensation.
"What the boy is saying is false. I am happy that these people from
Mohale resettled at my place. They have brought several developments
with them because the LHDA made sure that developments which were not
there before at Ha Ratau were initiated. These include provision of
clean drinking water," Chief Theko added.
Sello further told the inquiry that one LHDA official by the name of
Maile told them that LHDA's promise that they would get development
projects such as roads, schools and clinics was just a ploy and a
tactic to make them move away from their original homes in the Mohale
area to make way for the construction of the dam.
"In essence our lives have become miserable since we left our
original homes at Ha Mohale. We have become poorer because the LHDA
has reneged on its promise of providing better lives for us," the
young man added.
Complaints leveled against the LHDA by communities affected by the
Project and resettled at places like Ha Seoehlana, Ha Mosuoe, Ha
Makotoko, Ha Makhale and Ha Moji were all very similar and centred
around compensation for their various properties and the unfair
treatment meted out to them by the officials of the LHDA.
The LHDA will respond to the complaints and concerns of the affected
communities on March 20 to 21, 2003.



Ryan Hoover
Africa Program
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way
Berkeley, CA 94703
USA
Phone: (510) 848-1155 Fax: (510) 848-1008
www.irn.org
--
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Lori Pottinger, Director, Africa Program,
and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network <'})))>><
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
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LIBERIA: Fighting escalates 15,000 displaced

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32897

Escalating fighting between Liberian government forces and rebels has displaced at least 15,000 people from Gbarnga, 150 km north of the Liberia's capital, Monrovia, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Monday.

NIGERIA: Red Cross launches appeal for 57,000 displaced

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32845

The Nigerian Red Cross has launched an appeal for relief assistance for more than 57,000 people displaced in recent communal conflicts across the country, officials said last Thursday.

tanzania: 'i'm like someone who is in jail', says refugee

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/refugees/13867

Just 16 years old, Francine Afsa has lived more than a quarter of her life in this refugee camp in western Tanzania. She has been here with her parents, nine brothers and two sisters since 1999, having already spent a short time in Tanzania as a refugee in 1996 when a Tutsi-led rebellion broke out in her homeland, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire). She regards her future in the camp bleakly: "It will get worse and worse. There is no hope for my life. I'm like someone who's in jail."
LUGUFU, Tanzania (UNHCR) - Just 16 years old, Francine Afsa has lived more
than a quarter of her life in this refugee camp in western Tanzania. She
has been here with her parents, nine brothers and two sisters since 1999,
having already spent a short time in Tanzania as a refugee in 1996 when a
Tutsi-led rebellion broke out in her homeland, the Democratic Republic of
the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire).

She regards her future in the camp bleakly: "It will get worse and worse.
There is no hope for my life. I'm like someone who's in jail."

"I would love to go back to Congo once peace is restored," says this
articulate, forthright teenager. "But for the moment peace is only a dream
because there is no solution for the DRC. I am losing hope of going home."

Francine speaks for many of the nearly 87,000 Congolese refugees living in
the two sprawling camps of the Lugufu complex, who see little prospect of
going back to their homeland any time soon. With Congolese refugees still
arriving from fighting in eastern DRC, Tanzanian authorities have recently
given the UN refugee agency permission to receive an additional 4,000
refugees in Lugufu II.

Medar Mwanuke, a 53-year-old pastor, just arrived with his wife and two
small children two weeks ago. He had been a refugee between 1965 and 1968
and says, "I never thought I would be a refugee again."

He says his family decided to flee rebels of the Congolese Rally for
Democracy (RCD-Goma) faction who were looting and burning houses in the
Kalimi region of eastern DRC. "The situation in eastern Congo will not
change very soon because the government in Kinshasa and the warring
factions do not have a concrete agreement," says the pastor. "They are
still pulling strings."

When Lugufu was first opened in 1996, the shelters were makeshift, but
after full-scale war erupted in 1998 - involving troops from neighbouring
countries - refugees began building more solid houses from mud bricks.
Today, having resigned themselves to what could be a long stay as refugees,
many are growing their own crops on their assigned plots of land, giving a
lush green look to the camp.

A tailor who came to the camp in 1997 now says with a sigh, "I thought I
would be able to go home the same week. I am very sad" to be here so long.

Kennedy H. is a more recent arrival. The 26-year-old son of a Tutsi mother
and a father from the Mufuliru ethnic group, he says his family was
persecuted in eastern DRC because of the mixed marriage. Three years ago,
he says, local militias came to his home and told the family, "You are
Tutsis, you should not stay here." He says they killed his older sister on
the spot, and detained his mother for a while.

He was away from the house at the time, and when he got word of what had
happened, he fled immediately, with only the clothes on his back, the
equivalent of $20 in his pocket and his national ID card.

"Since that time I have not heard any message from them," says Kennedy,
whose uncle named him after his political hero, the late American president
John F. Kennedy. "But a few days ago, [newly-arrived refugees] told me
'your parents were killed'.

"When somebody's your neighbour and he comes and tells you your parents are
dead, you believe him." He feels the message was also a covert threat and
says he feels unsafe as a child of a Tutsi in a camp where nearly all the
refugees are from the Bemba ethnic group.

The news of his parents' death - and the fact that his three brothers and
four remaining sisters are now dispersed and on their own - haunts him. "I
can't eat any more; I lost four kilos in a few days. Before, when I got
some message from home, it couldn't touch me. But when I got the message
that my parents are dead and my little brothers are scattered, it hit me
very hard. As the oldest boy and because of my standard of education, I am
the one who should have taken care of them. Maybe I should have stayed with
them."

Fluent in English and French, as well as a number of African languages,
Kennedy also compiles a camp newspaper in Swahili, and takes his mind off
his worries by writing poetry in English. "Peace, peace, you're simple to
pronounce, but not easy to get once you're lost," run the lines of one poem.

He too has few hopes that peace will come to his homeland soon. "The
situation in the Congo is getting worse and worse because there are still
new arrivals in the camps," says Kennedy. "There are still ethnic clashes,
and no peace deal lasts more than three months. It doesn't make me very
hopeful."

For therapy, he pours out his feelings in his poetry, as he concludes in
one poem, "Remember, God will not create another world for us, so let's
find a solution."

By Kitty McKinsey
UNHCR Regional Office in Nairobi
Story date: 12 Mar 2003
UNHCR News Stories

Tanzania: UNHCR begins integration of Somali Bantus

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1078

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) began the integration of more than 3, 300 Somali Bantu refugees into the local community in Tanzania, the UN agency reported. UN High Commissioner for Refugees reported that the Somali Bantus fled to Tanzania in 1991 and 1992 following civil war and the collapse of the Siyad Barre government in Somalia. This group was among "tens of thousands" of Somalis who "travelled on overcrowded and rickety dhows to Kenya's coastal town of Mombasa", it said.

africa: THE IMPACT OF FAILURES OF ACCOUNTABILITY ON POOR PEOPLE

2003-03-20

http://hdr.undp.org/docs/publications/background_papers/2002/Mohiddin_2002.pdf

It has been argued that good governance is an integral element in the creation of the enabling environment of peace, security, the rule of law, legitimacy and stability, in which sustainable human development can be promoted. This paper presents a regional overview of the impact on poor people and disadvantaged groups of the failures of accountability of institutions of governance.

chad/cameroon: Corruption in Chad-Cameroon pipeline to be monitored

2003-03-20

http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51992

The scope for corruption in the Chad-Cameroon pipeline will be evaluated jointly by l'Action Tchadienne pour l'Integrite (ATI), Transparency International's contact group in Chad, and Transparency International Cameroon (TIC), it was agreed at a meeting on 16 February 2003.

Ex-President Chiluba's house repossessed by state

2003-03-20

http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=52036

The anti-corruption task force has seized former President Frederick Chiluba's house in Kabulonga. According to the government gazette notice issued by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Director-General judge Robert Kapembwa, the house will be forfeited to the state if it is not claimed within three months from the date of the notice's publication.

kenya: "Rebellion" by Narc MPs forces government to withdraw anti-graft bill

2003-03-20

http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=52054

The government has been forced to temporarily withdraw a crucial anti-corruption bill as a backbench rebellion which started on Wednesday continued. The government, which has a huge majority, is finding it difficult to do business in parliament because instability within the coalition is finding expression on the floor of the House.

mozambique: NYIMPINE ASSOCIATES ACCUSED OF $20 MILLION FRAUD

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/corruption/13874

Two Mauritian business partners of Nyimpine Chissano, son of president Joaquin Chissano, have been accused of involvement in embezzling $20 million from the national pension fund.
MOZAMBIQUE:
DROUGHT & FLOOD
CARDOSO-RELATED
POLITICS & ECONOMY

News summary and clippings
on the things people ask me about,
circulated by Joseph Hanlon
(j.hanlon@open.ac.uk)
14 March 2003

-----------------------
CARDOSO CASE AND RELATED
-----------------------

NYIMPINE ASSOCIATES ACCUSED OF $20 MILLION FRAUD. Two Mauritian business
partners of Nyimpine Chissano, son of president Joaquin Chissano, have
been accused of involvement in embezzling $20 million from the national
pension fund. At the request of the Mauritius independent commission
against corruption, a court on 22 February froze bank accounts and assets
of Dev Manraj and of the London-based Teeren Appasamy. In Mozambique, the
two are owners of Belle Beach Holdings, which in turn owns Expresso Tours.
Other shareholders are Nyimpine and N'Naite Chissano, Apolinario
Pataguana, and Egas Mussanhane. Giving evidence at the Cardoso murder
trial, Nyimpine Chissano justified delays in making various payments on
the grounds that he was waiting from money from Appasamay in London.

WITNESS SAYS SHE LIED AT NYIMPINE'S REQUEST. Businesswoman Candida Cossa
admitted she lied to the court during the Carlos Cardoso murder trial, but
claims she was coerced into doing so by Nyimpine Chissano, at a meeting
set up by Apolinario Pateguana and his sister Stella, according to the
weekly newspaper Savana. Cossa also said that while she was with him, she
watched Nyimpine telephone Interior Minister Almerino Manhenje and talk to
him twice.

SONS HAVE LAND. Nyimpine Chissano and Mussumbuluco Guebuza, sons of the
two top leaders of Frelimo, Joaquin Chissano and Armando Guebuza, both
have land in a disputed area on the edge of Maputo, according to the daily
MediaFax. Both deny this. Nyimpine's lawyer claims the land is held by the
office of the first lady which is controlled by Nyimpine's mother,
Marcelina.

SUNDAY PAPER SAYS ANIBALZINHO ALLOWED OUT OF JAIL. The Maputo Sunday paper
"Domingo" reports convicted assassin Anibal dos Santos Junior
("Anibalzinho") was allowed out of prison in mid-February to visit his
mother, and roamed around Maputo in a Mercedes-Benz saloon that day. The
General Command of the Mozambican police claimed the story was "totally
false", But "Domingo" stuck by the story, saying it had several sources,
including high-ranking people in the state apparatus.

SIBA-SIBA PETITION. As part of the campaign to force an investigation of
the assassination of economist Antonio Siba-Siba Macuacua, a group of
prominent Mozambicans has nominated him posthumously for the Transparency
International Integrity Award. A petition in support of the nomination
(below) is now being circulated, and if you wish to support it, please
reply to ahardingox@yahoo.co.uk by Monday 17 March.

DROUGHT AND FLOOD
-----------------------

LEAST RAIN IN 50 YEARS. Maputo has had the least rainfall in a "rainy"
season for 50 years which means the drought in the south has extended into
a second year, according to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS
NET). It warns that food shortages are expected to worsen over the next
year, after "a near-total crop failure in some zones, following a poor
harvest last year." Perhaps 1 million people in parts of six provinces -
Tete, Manica, Sofala, Inhambane, Gaza and Maputo - will need food aid. But
harvests should be good in parts of Zambézia, Nampula and Sofala. However
a northern surplus does little to lessen shortages in the south; there is
no longer a state grain marketing board and no longer a national grain
policy, and private traders move relatively little grain from north to
south. And when the free market does not work, Mozambique has to turn to
the donors.

GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO LIE, SO NO SPECIAL APPEAL. Foreign Minister Leonardo
Simao said that the natural disasters do not warrant the declaration of a
state of emergency. He admitted pressure on the government to declare an
emergency by institutions which "depend on emergency funds. When the
government does not declare an emergency, these institutions don't have
access to that money. So a perverse effect is created. You have to declare
that an emergency exists, even when it doesn't, in order to enable these
institutions to have access to money. But we can't use that as a
criterion. The criterion must be the scale of the disaster."

DONOR POLICY WORSENING FOOD CRISIS. World Bank, IMF and donor policy have
reduced food security because poor farmers have less support, according to
an article published by IRIN, the United Nations Integrated Regional
Information Networks. Policy prevents government intervention, and looks
at short-term financial considerations rather than medium-term food
security, critics argue. Subsidised inputs such as fertiliser were
stopped, social services starved of funds, and the commodity boards that
fixed producer prices and collected farmers' produce abolished. The poor,
for the most part, are now on their own.

CYCLONES AND FLOOD. Two cyclones have hit Mozambique this year, Delfina in
the north in January and Japhet, which is currently causing serious floods
on the River Save which was badly affected in the floods of 2000.
Thousands of people were evacuated after early warngins, but some still
needed rescue; 49 people died in Delfina and 11 are known to have died in
Japhet.

OTHER NEWS
-----------------------

NO RENAMO DISRUPTION. The new parliament session opened peacefully,
without the promised Renamo disruption.

ELECTION DELAY. Municipal elections in are behind schedule admitted
Antonio Carrasco, director of the Electoral Administration Technical
Secretariat (STAE). It will take at least six months to organize all the
stages of the registration and election process, which suggests elections
could not be held until October. The exact dates of elections are fixed by
the government, which normally just endorses the date suggested by the
CNE. So far, CNE as not suggested a date. One possible source of further
delay is the Renamo demand that, as set out in the law, the CNE must
appoint a new director of STAE, after seeking candidates through publicly
advertising the job. Carrasco remains in post and could run the local
elections before a replacement is named; indeed, he could apply for the
post.
Meanwhile, Frelimo has named Political Commission member Alcinda Abreu
the new head of its election office. She was Minister for Social Welfare
1994-97, and a Frelimo appointee to the 1998 and 1999 CNEs.

INDUSTRIAL CRISIS. If one leaves aside mega-projects such as the MOZAL
aluminium smelter, Mozambican industry is stagnating, or even declining,
warned economist Carlos Castel-Branco "Outside of the mega-projects (which
are very localised with few economic linkages), there is little to show
change and transformation". Mozambican GDP had grown - but this growth has
not generated new technological capacities, or promoted a broadened and
diversified production base. Apolinario Panguene, a consultant for the
Confederation of Mozambican Businesses (CTA), said 30 per cent of
Mozambique's small and medium sized industries closed down or changed
their activity between 1998 and 2002. Of those that still exist, "many are
moribund".

==========================
CARDOSO RELATED ARTICLES
==========================

COURT FREEZES ASSETS IN MILLION-DOLLAR MAURITIAN BANK FRAUD
Agence France Presse , February 22, 2003 Saturday

PORT LOUIS, Feb 22. The supreme court in Mauritius has frozen the assets
of four individuals and eight businesses as part of an inquiry into a
20-million-dollar fraud case at the Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB), court
officials said on Saturday.

The 163-year-old bank, the largest private bank in the Indian Ocean island
state, announced on Thursday that 600 million rupees (20 million dollars,
18 million euros) had been illegally transferred into its accounts from
the national pension fund. At the request of the independent commission
against corruption (ICAC), the court has frozen the assets of retired MCB
director Robert Lesage, who is currently in prison awaiting the start of
his trial on Monday.

Lesage is accused of involvement in the fraud case. He has been charged
with stealing 500 million rupees and laundering 372.9 million rupees.

The court has also frozen the assets of former finance ministry official
Dev Manraj, London-based Mauritian businessman Teeren Appasamy and
Mauritian economist Donald Ha Yeung.

The assets of eight businesses of which Appasamy is majority shareholder
have also been frozen.

The bank has said the 600 million rupees will be repaid to the pension
fund, along with nine million dollars in interest.

Trading in MCB shares, suspended on Monday after the disclosure of the
serious irregularities, is to resume on February 24. (Copyright 2003
Agence France Presse)


BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE; / MAURITIUS; N. 1031
THE RAMIFICATIONS OF A FINANCIAL SCANDAL
The Indian Ocean Newsletter, February 22, 2003

A Mauritian businessman is at the heart of a financial scandal that runs
the risk of comprising political figures of every political camp in Port
Louis

A Mauritian businessman who made his fortune in real estate in Great
Britain is at the heart of a financial scandal that runs the risk of
comprising political figures of every political camp in Port Louis. Teeren
Appasamy is suspected of having been the beneficiary of the embezzlement
of 500 million rupees ($ 1 equals 27.7 rupees) from the National Pension
Fund (NPF). The money was deposited in a Mauritius Commercial Bank (MBC)
account in the name of the ministry of social security and national
solidarity. The manager of these funds at the MBC, Robert Lesage, is
accused of having embezzled this money in collusion with high-level
employees at the bank. Arrested by the Independent Committee Against
Corruption (ICAC) and detained since February 18, Lesage revealed the
names of the people that were supposedly involved in this affair: former
financial secretary Dev Manraj, who was T. Appasamy"s consultant for his
hotel projects in Mauritius and Mozambique; Donald Ha Yeung, an economist
and a partner at Price WaterhouseCoopers who has served on the boards of
several of Appasamy's companies, including Angel Resort Ltd; and
high-level MCB officials. Appasamy's defense. Appasamy, who holds 60% of
the newspaper Le Dimanche and 40% of Siddick Chady's (a labor MP and
cinema owner) company, doesn't want to take the blame in this affair. He
rejected fraud accusations by claiming that he simply took out a
300-million-rupee, 15-year loan from the MCB. He also pointed an
accusatory finger at vice-prime minister Paul Berenger, who, according to
him, was behind these revelations in an effort to tarnish Dev Manraj
politically. In fact, Manraj is a likely MSM (ruling coalition) candidate
for this year's legislative by-elections to replace Anerood Jugnauth in
parliament when he becomes president of the republic. Manraj could then
succeed Berenger as finance minister when Berenger becomes prime minister
in Jugnauth's place in September.

Wide-ranging political ties. Considered a close associate of Vasant
Bunwaree, the Parti travailliste's (opposition) general secretary,
Appasamy is said to have financed his electoral campaign in the south of
the island. Bunwaree is marked in this affair, since he helped Appasamy in
his efforts to obtain bank loans when he was finance minister (1997-2000).
Even though the present scandal doesn't have any apparent links to the UOB
affair, Bunwaree had already had discussions with a representative of the
Swiss bank in 1997 about possibly placing NPF money abroad (ION 1026). T.
Appasamy has also long known G. Ollivry, a lawyer and leader of the UDM
(opposition), which he financed. It's G. Ollivry who introduced Appasamy
to R. Lesage, then MCB's senior manager, to help him obtain financing. R.
Lesage is the brother of the former UDM leader, Maurice Lesage. However,
Appasamy's connections aren't limited to members of the opposition, and he
is also close to Jayen Cuttaree and Nanda Bodha (tourism minister), and at
the same time has friendly ties with the MCB's number one, Pierre Guy
Noel.

Ramifications in Mozambique. This affair could have ramifications in
Mozambique, where Manraj and Appamasy have interests. The two men are
partners in Belle Beach Holdings (BBH), which owns the travel agency
Espresso Tours. Other shareholders in the company are the Mozambican
president's two sons, Nyimpine and N'Naite Chissano; as well as Apolinario
Pateguana; and Egas Mussanhane, the president of Credicoop, the banking
institution that just went bankrupt in Maputo. BBH has several projects in
Mozambique. In addition to plans for a luxury hotel in Ponta de Ouro and a
conference center in Maputo, the company acquired a 6-hectare plot of land
close to Maxaquene to build a 40 -apartment development, manage a seafood
quota (400 tons of shrimp and 120 tons of fish) and own 200 hectares of
land for the construction of a luxury hotel on the cape of Sao Sebastiao
(close to Vilankulo). This is the same place that the Mozambican minister
John Kachamila, in partnership with South African entrepreneurs, has a
project that's facing opposition from the local population. (Copyright
2003 Indigo Publications)

116203E CARDOSO MURDER: "NYIMPINE CHISSANO TOLD ME TO LIE"

Maputo, 28 Feb (AIM) - A key witness in the Carlos Cardoso murder
trial, the wealthy businesswoman Candida Cossa, has admitted that
she lied to the court - but claims she was coerced into doing so
by Nyimpine Chissano, the oldest son of President Joaquim
Chissano, and one of his associates, Antonio Malo.

Cossa's admission came at a hearing with the Maputo City
branch of the Attorney-General's Office on 3 January. The minutes
of that hearing have been obtained by the weekly paper "Savana",
which published them on Friday.

Cossa requested the hearing herself in order to "clarify"
questions raised during her testimony at the murder trial.

Central to the case were a series of cheques presented as
evidence by loan shark Momade Assife Abdul Satar ("Nini"), one of
those charged with ordering the murder of investigative
journalist Carlos Cardoso.

Satar admitted making payments equivalent to over 50,000 US
dollars to Anibal dos Santos Junior ("Anibalzinho"), the man who
organised the death squad that murdered Cardoso. But Satar
claimed he made the payments at the request of Nyimpine
Chissano - the money, he insisted, was a loan to Nyimpine, and it
was secured by a series of post-dated cheques, signed by
Nyimpine, and drawn on an account in the name of his rent-a-car
company, Expresso Tours.

Satar thus presented himself as a mere middleman, suggesting
that it was really Nyimpine Chissano who paid for the
assassination. Satar said he did not cash Chissano's cheques, and
handed all seven of them, totalling 1.29 billion meticais (about
54,000 dollars), to the court.

Called to the witness stand, Chissano's explanation for the
cheques was that they were security for a loan, not from Satar,
but from Candida Cossa. He claimed he could not understand why
Cossa had "negotiated" them with Unicambios, the foreign exchange
bureau owned by Satar's brother, and co-accused, Ayob Abdul
Satar.

But when Cossa took the witness stand, on 6 December, she
did not corroborate this story, and started telling the court of
a series of dubious deals involving Expresso Tours, Unicambios,
and various South African companies.

6 December was a Friday, and when judge Augusto Paulino
interrupted the trial for the weekend, Cossa's testimony was far
from finished. When she went home, she found she was under
pressure to change her story.

In the 3 January hearing, Cossa said that on the afternoon
of 6 December she began to receive a series of threatening calls
on her mobile phone. So she switched it off, and fell asleep.

When she awoke, at about 20.25, she found a message had been
left by Stella Pateguana, sister of Apolinario Pateguana
("Nanaio"), one of Nyimpine Chissano's partners in Expresso
Tours, asking her to contact Nanaio urgently.

Some time later, Stella Pateguana came to Cossa's house in
person, and asked her to come immediately to Nanaio's house.
Cossa agreed, but to her surprise the destination turned out to
be the home, not of Nanaio, but of Nyimpine Chissano, where
Nanaio was waiting for them.

The two Pateguanas were acting as intermediaries, since
Cossa's relations with Chissano and Malo had deteriorated
seriously.

Once in Chissano's house, Cossa found that he and Malo were
urging her to back up his story. The minutes of the hearing
state: "Nyimpine and Malo asked Candida to tell the court that
there was never any direct business between Expresso Tours and
Nini, but a business in which she (Candida) was the
intermediary".

Cossa said she could not do that, but promised she would try
to "attenuate" the situation in court. Which was why she told the
court on 9 December that she and Malo had taken the cheques to
Nini Satar, but in fact, according to the minutes cited by
"Savana", Cossa "knew nothing about the cheques presented by Nini
in court. She did not see how they reached Nini, and does not
know what business they referred to".

While she was in Nyimpine's house, she watched him ring up
Interior Minister Almerino Manhenje. Initially he used his normal
cell-phone, paid for by contract with the company M-Cel.
Manhenje, however, demanded that he use the more anonymous pre-
paid cards: Chissano switched to a second phone, using the pre-
paid method, and requested that Manhenje send men to protect
Cossa's house. The following day policemen were indeed stationed
on her house.

(It is more expensive to use the pre-paid cards than to sign
a contract, but the calls are less traceable, since M-Cel does
not, as a matter of course, provide detailed invoices. M-Cel
invoices for phones on contract proved very useful evidence for
the prosecution during the trial.)

After Cossa's evidence, she received further messages from
Stella Pateguana attempting to set up a meeting with Nyimpine
Chissano in Expresso Tours. But Nyimpine told her not to bring
her lawyer, Espirito Santo Monjane. Cossa consulted the lawyer,
and on his advice, did not attend this meeting.
(AIM)
pf/ (819)

28303E PAPER COVERS LAND DISPUTE, DESPITE LAWYERS' LETTERS~~
~
Maputo, 7 Mar (AIM) - Despite letters from lawyers,
the independent newsheet "Mediafax" on Friday reaffirmed its
claims that, according to local residents, Nyimpine Chissano, the
oldest son of Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano, and
Mussumbuluko Guebuza, son of Armando Guebuza, general secretary
of the ruling Frelimo Party, have land in Guava, a part of
Marracuene district on the outskirts of Maputo city.

The paper reports that last Tuesday, Marracuene district
administrator Andre Wade met with the Guava population to discuss
land disputes in the area. The main such dispute concerns 200
hectares which the private "Zambeze Valley" company says has been
allocated to it for a low cost housing scheme. But half this land
has been occupied by people who claim to have bought plots there.

During the meeting, Guava residents also mentioned
Nyimpine Chissano and Mussumbuluco Guebuza. Wade told the meeting
that, as far as he knew, the land in question had been allocated
legally to Zambeze Valley, to a church, and to the office of the
first lady, Marcelina Chissano.

But the Guava neighbourhood secretary retorted that nobody
had ever told him previously that the plot in question belonged
to the First Lady's office - he said it was always Nyimpine
Chissano who visited the place, and presented himself as the
owner.

"He always told us that the land was his, and that he wanted
to build a project of a social nature", said the secretary.
"Nobody ever came in the name of the Office of the First Lady".

"It's Nyimpine that we know, and not the First Lady", he
said. "We also know Guebuza's son, who has an area here. It was
Mr Ruben who brought those two here".

In its reports of the land disputes over the past week,
"Mediafax" has claimed that the mysterious Ruben is at the
centre of the illicit buying and selling of land - illicit
because, under the Mozambican constitution, all land is state
property.

A member of the local land commission told the meeting that
Nyimpine Chissano's plot was "large" because it was more than two
hectares in size.

Wade advised the Guava residents to treat the dispute in an
"orderly and civilised manner", and promised another meeting with
all the parties involved next week.

Also on Friday, Mediafax published letters from the lawyers
for Nyimpine Chissano and Mussumbuluco Guebuza, respectively
Jorge Oliveira and Mario Seuane, denying the claim made by the
paper last Monday that the two men quarrelled over land in Guava.

Oliveira declared "Nyimpine Chissano does not possess land
in Guava. He has not quarrelled with Mussumbuluco Guebuza, with
whom he has the most cordial relations".

The lawyer says that "any serious investigation on the
ground would prove that these statements are dishonest".

Seuane's letter describes the "Mediafax" Monday story as "a
gross attempt at disinformation, the purpose of which only its
author can explain".

Both lawyers demand a formal apology - which "Mediafax"
refuses to provide. The paper replies that the best thing the
lawyers can do for their clients is to visit Guava "so that you
can be better informed about what is going on".
(AIM)
pf/ (453)

1303E SUNDAY PAPER REPLIES TO POLICE ATTACK

Maputo, 2 Mar (AIM) - The Maputo Sunday paper "Domingo" is
sticking to its story that convicted assassin Anibal dos Santos
Junior ("Anibalzinho") was allowed out of prison in mid-February
to visit his mother, and roamed around Maputo in a Mercedes-Benz
saloon that day.

The "Domingo" story infuriated the General Command of the
Mozambican police which claimed it was "totally false", and that
Anibalzinho is in solitary confinement in a "disciplinary cell".

Anibalzinho was tried in absentia from November to January
for his part in the murder of the country's top investigative
journalist, Carlos Cardoso. He was not present at his trial,
because he had been illicitly released from the Maputo top
security jail on 1 September.

Only on 30 January did the South African police track him
down to a house in Pretoria and re-arrest him. He was extradited
to Maputo the following day.

The police statement attacked "deceitful, untrue and
distorted" news items, which, it claimed, gave the public "the
wrong idea" about the performance of the police.

In its latest issue, "Domingo" does not retract a word of
its story. Under normal rules of ethics, it points out, a
newspaper can publish a story "as long as the journalist has
obtained it from sufficient credible sources, that provide him
with the moral certainty of its truth. That is what happened with
us. There were a variety of sources, from citizens in the street
to authorities in high-ranking positions in the state apparatus,
who told us that Anibalzinho left the prison, visited his
mother's house, and travelled in a Mercedes".

"We cross-checked the sources, several journalists worked on
the story and we had the moral certainty that it was true", said
the paper.

"Domingo" believed it was its duty to publish the story,
precisely because of the indignation it would cause. for
Anibalzinho "is not just any prisoner. The court declared him an
''habitual delinquent'', and his behaviour does not lead us to
conclude that he has repented of his crime".

The paper admits that there is always the possibility of
getting the story wrong. Despite the variety of sources, in
journalism there can never be "any absolute truth of the two plus
two equals four variety". But while "Domingo" may not be the
indisputable depository of truth, "neither is the General Command
of the Police".

In questions to do with Anibalzinho, the police command is
not a reliable source, the paper says. "It is public and well-
known that Anibalzinho has enjoyed protection from the top levels
of the police", it accuses. "It is certain that before the murder
of Carlos Cardoso there were already case files against this
notorious criminal gathering dust in police drawers".

The police public relations department, "Domingo" notes, has
not seen fit "to explain why this happened inside the
organisation which should be at the fore in the fight against
crime".

Furthermore, the police have not yet explained Anibalzinho's
September "escape", although it was obvious that his cell door
could not have been opened without "police complicity at the
highest level".

Even worse, the police command, including Interior Minister
Almerino Manhenje, had been warned well in advance (by the former
head of the Maputo Criminal Investigation Police, Antonio
Frangoulis) that Anibalzinho might try to escape. "So far the
police public relations department has not bothered to inform us
why timely measures were not taken to avoid the escape, just as
it has not informed us why Frangoulis was removed from the murder
investigation", comments "Domingo".

It is also certain that a Mercedes seized from Anibalzinho
disappeared from the police car park, where it was placed on the
orders of the Maputo City court. Somehow this car found its way
from the car park to the hands of a relative of Anibalzinho, a
journey which judge Augusto Paulino, on the final day of the
murder trial, described ironically as "miraculous". This is
something else that the police have not yet been able to explain.

"It seems that the police does not know, or does not want to
know, who was the author of this ''miraculous gesture''", remarks
the paper.

The police command is equally silent on how mobile phones
continue to be smuggled into the top security prison, for the use
of Anibalzinho and of the others convicted of murdering Cardoso.
Ever since the initial arrests, in early 2001, the assassins have
never had difficulty in communicating with the outside world. The
phones can only enter the prison with police complicity,
"Domingo" points out.

The police also claim that Anibalzinho is "incommunicado" in
his disciplinary cell. But it is known that Anibalzinho, shortly
after his return to prison, came to blows with another of the
assassins, Nini Satar. How was this possible, if he was in
solitary confinement ?, the paper asks.

"Domingo" also accuses the police command of lying about the
circumstances of Anibalzinho's re-arrest. The police statement
paints the re-arrest as "joint work" between the Mozambican and
South African police forces. In fact, President Joaquim Chissano
entrusted contacts with the South African police, not to the
Interior Ministry, but to Attorney-General Joaquim Madeira, and
the Mozambican police had nothing to do with the arrest.
(AIM)
pf/ (873)

PETITION TO SUPPORT TI NOMINATION

In November 2000, journalist Carlos Cardoso was assassinated for
investigating bank fraud. Initially there was no investigation. But there
was an international campaign, including an award by Transparency
International. Under this pressure, the killing was investigated, and in
January 2003 six people were found guilty of that murder. A similar
campaign can force an investigation of the assassination of Siba-Siba. A
key step would be a TI award, and we ask economists and all those
interested in Mozambique and in justice and integrity to sign this
petition to Transparency International.
Alan Harding, Centre for Study of
African Economies, Oxford
Joseph Hanlon, Open University

If you wish to support this petition, which will be sent to the
Transparency International office in Berlin, Germany, please reply to [
mailto:ahardingox@yahoo.co.uk ]ahardingox@yahoo.co.uk by 15 March stating
your name, address (city, country) and, optionally, your professional
affiliation. Also, please circulate this petition to your friends and
contacts.

TEXT OF THE PETITION TO TI:

"We, the undersigned, wish to support the recent nomination of Antonio
Siba-Siba Macuacua for the 2003 Transparency International Integrity
Awards. We believe that Siba-Siba would be a worthy recipient of this
reward in recognition of his outstanding courage, determination and
integrity as a government official seeking to investigate and publicise
widespread fraud and high-level corruption in the Mozambican banking
sector. We also believe that this award would play an important role in
putting necessary pressure on the Mozambican authorities to instigate a
full and comprehensive investigation into his brutal assassination on
Saturday 11 August 2001, which, to date, has been sadly lacking.

In his short career, António Siba-Siba Macuacua had already demonstrated
that he possessed the necessary qualities to be a role model for a new,
younger generation of Mozambican leaders wishing to work for a society
based upon transparency, justice and the rule of law. His assassination
was designed to send a clear message to those involved in Mozambican
public life that such a society is not achievable. By supporting his
nomination for this award and by demanding that those involved in his
murder be brought to justice, we wish to declare our solidarity with all
those in Mozambique who are working for higher standards in public life
and against the forces of crime and corruption."

================
DROUGHT & FLOOD
================

46303E HELICOPTERS AND BOATS NEEDED TO RESCUE FLOOD VICTIMS

Maputo, 11 Mar (AIM) - The river Save, which marks the boundary
between southern and central Mozambique, has burst its banks and
flooded the towns of Nova Mambone, in Inhambane province, on the
south bank, and Machanga, in Sofala province, on the north bank.

The governor of Inhambane, Aires Aly, on Monday made an
urgent appeal for helicopters and boats to rescue hundreds of
flood victims, who were stranded in trees and on rooftops when
the flood waters hit Nova Mambone.

After overflying the flooded areas, Aly said it is urgent to
rescue those people, who have been cut off by the waters for the
last two days. He said that at least 13,000 people have been
affected in Nova Mambone, of whom only 600 have been rescued to
safety, in the locality of Malovane.

"I overflew the area and saw that the town has been
seriously affected, houses are totally submerged, with children
and women on the treetops, awaiting rescue", he said.

There is a similar situation in Machanga. According to the
Sofala provincial director for state administration, Eduardo
Chilundo, the offices of the district administration, and many
homes have been swamped, and residents are seeking safety on
higher ground.

The road which links Machanga to the main north-south
highway has been cut, making it impossible to enter the town
overland. One of the people unable to return to Machanga was the
district administrator, Joao Bata, who had been on a visit to the
provincial capital, Beira.

The flood was caused by the torrential rain brought to the
area last week by cyclone Japhet. The save reached flood alert
levels on Sunday: the river rose in 24 hours from 5.7 to 8.05
metres.
(AIM)
ju/bm/pf (289)


40303E FLOOD WARNING FOR THE SAVE BASIN
~
Maputo, 10 Mar (AIM) - The Mozambican authorities have issued a
flood warning for the basin of the Save river, which forms the
conventional boundary between southern and central Mozambique.

The rise in the level of the Save has led to the evacuation
of people from the towns of Machanga and Nova Mambone, on the
northern and southern banks of the river.

According to a note received by AIM on Monday, the country's
relief agency the National Disasters Management Institute (INGC),
has made a helicopter available to the governor of Inhambane
province, Aires Aly, so that he can overfly the area and monitor
the situation.

The level of the Save has been rising since Saturday, thanks
to torrential rains in the area, brought by Cyclone Japhet, which
hit Inhambane a week ago. The cyclone has dissipated, but the
rains have continued. There are also fears of flooding in the
Buzi basis further north.

The INGC warned people living near the Save to remain on
maximum alert, and to stay away from the river's banks.
(AIM)
dt/pf (181)

29303E LATEST DEATH TOLL FROM CYCLONE
~
Maputo, 7 Mar (AIM) - The number of known deaths caused by
cyclone Japhet in the Mozambican provinces of Inhambane and
Manica now stands at 11, while a further seven people are
reported missing in Sofala province, reports Friday's issue of
the Maputo daily "Noticias".

The torrential rains brought by the cyclone have also led to
the interruption, since Tuesday, of traffic along a 2.5 kilometre
stretch of the main north-south highway near Muxungue town in
Sofala. This has effectively halted toad transport between Maputo
and Beira.

.

=================

MOZAMBIQUE: Serious deterioration in food security

JOHANNESBURG, 3 March (IRIN) - Two recent reports point to a serious
deterioration in the food security situation of vulnerable populations in
Mozambique's southern and central areas.

Statistics from a December vulnerability assessment indicated that about
650,000 Mozambicans required food aid to survive, but this estimate was
made before drought-related crop failure became evident.

The latest Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) report said
food shortages were expected to worsen over the next year.

"A near-total crop failure in some zones, following a poor harvest last
year, has been the primary cause of the current situation. Food insecurity
is most critical in remote zones where household access to food and income
is heavily dependent on rain-fed agriculture, such as the interior of Gaza
and Inhambane and southern Tete," the FEWS NET report warned.

A World Food Programme (WFP) situation report agreed that the food
security situation in the drought-affected provinces was deteriorating.
The report added that WFP was "currently assessing the food security
situation in two localities in drought-stricken Maputo province following
reports of deaths from malnutrition".

The cumulative rainfall from October 2002 to January 2003 in Maputo was
the lowest in more than 50 years, according to official statistics.

FEWS NET noted that other factors have contributed to the worsening food
security situation in southern and central Mozambique, including HIV/AIDS,
and foot-and-mouth disease that has hit livestock.

"Malnutrition rates after last year's poor harvest were already higher
than most other countries in the region. These rates are likely to
increase markedly in the coming year after households consume whatever
crops they harvest and exhaust their already weakened coping strategies,"
the early warning unit agency said.

Given that the next significant harvest in the most affected areas was not
until February 2004, FEWS NET has recommended that food aid distributions
be re-targeted.

"The food security picture has changed dramatically since the
November/December VAC [Vulnerability Assessment Committee] report. Some
districts in Zambézia, Nampula and Sofala included in the VAC report are
expecting a good harvest so the food security situation should improve
rapidly in the coming months. Scarce food aid should be diverted now to
meet more urgent needs and to avoid disincentives for producers," FEWS NET
noted.

WFP said it would continue to "monitor the situation to ensure that food
assistance is reaching the most vulnerable people".

FEWS NET added that the rapid distribution of agricultural inputs, such as
seeds appropriate for second season planting, was also crucial.
[ENDS]

32303E RAINFALL LOWEST FOR 50 YEARS

London, 7 Mar (AIM) - The US-funded Famine Early Warning
Systems Network (FEWS NET) has warned that rainfall in Maputo in
the period October to January was the lowest in more than fifty
years.

An analysis by FEWS NET found that the current drought is
much more severe than last year's, and is similar in severity to
the 1991/92 drought.

FEWS NET has issued a warning that a growing number of
people are, or about to become, highly food insecure. The
organisation points to the more remote parts of Gaza, Tete and
Inhambane Provinces as areas of most immediate concern. The
situation is at its most critical in areas where crop failure is
combined with lack of access to other sources of food and income.

In some remote areas much of the population was already food
insecure because of last year's drought. Near total crop
failure has led people to resort to extreme measures, including
moving to nearby towns - or even across the border into South
Africa - taking children out of school, and eating dangerous or
unpalatable wild foods.

The warning stated that "a serious deterioration in the food
security status of vulnerable populations in southern and central
Mozambique is occurring and is expected to worsen over the next
twelve months. A near-total crop failure in some zones, following
a poor harvest last year, has been the primary cause of the
current situation."

It added that "Food insecurity is most critical in
remote zones where household access to food and income is heavily
dependent on rain-fed agriculture, such as the interior of Gaza
and Inhambane and southern Tete. Other contributing factors
include human, plant and animal diseases, as well as the economic
situation in neighbouring Zimbabwe".

The FEWS NET warning also claimed that malnutrition rates
"are likely to increase markedly in the coming year after
households consume whatever crops they harvest and exhaust their
already weakened coping strategies."

The organisation used data from the Maputo rainfall station
as it is one of the few stations with good historical data,
largely unaffected by war and disasters. An analysis of the
rainfall pattern shows that the October to January period has
seen the lowest rainfall since modern records started in
1951/52.

FEWS NET points out that the most severe drought in recent
memory was the 1991/92 drought. It compares satellite images of
vegetative growth between then and now, which show stark
similarities. FEWS NET warns of clear parallels between the two
seasons, especially for Gaza Province and elsewhere in southern
Mozambique.

Ironically, this warning came as Cyclone Japhet hit the
coast of Inhambane, bringing torrential rain to much of
Inhambane, Sofala and Manica provinces. The rain itself is too
late to assist what harvest remains, and has in fact made
things worse.
(AIM)
jhu/pf (464)

54203E GOVERNMENT WILL NOT ISSUE EMERGENCY APPEAL

Maputo, 13 Feb (AIM) - Mozambican Foreign Minister Leonardo Simao
said in Maputo on Thursday that the natural disasters that have
struck the country recently do not warrant the declaration of a
state of emergency.

Speaking to journalists during an interval in a meeting
between the government and donors on the food security situation,
Simao said "We cannot just go on making emergency appeals. We
must endow the country with its own capacities so that it can
deal with natural disasters when they strike. Any appeal will
always depend on the scale of the disaster".

This year Mozambique has faced two quite separate disasters.
In the south and parts of the centre of the country, the rains
have failed for the second year running. But in parts of the
north, there has been too much rain, resulting from the passage
of tropical depression "Delfina" in January: flimsy houses were
washed away, roads rendered impassable and crops inundated.

Based on the data currently available, Simao said the
government would continue to depend on the normal assistance from
its cooperation partners, and thought there was no need to
declare a state of emergency.

But Simao admitted that there was some international
pressure on the government to declare an emergency. Certain
institutions (which he did not name) "depend on emergency funds",
said Simao, "and when the government does not declare an
emergency, these institutions don't have access to that money".

"So a perverse effect is created. You have to declare that
an emergency exists, even when it doesn't, in order to enable
these institutions to have access to money", said the Minister.
"But we can't use that as a criterion. The criterion must be the
scale of the disaster. Because if you declare a state of
emergency, without the proper justification, then you begin to
lose credibility, and on the day when there is a really serious
catastrophe, nobody will help you".

The latest assessment made by the vulnerability committee,
formed by representatives from the government and the donors, is
that there are about 655,000 people who may need food aid before
the next harvest.

This is actually much fewer than the numbers in the
contingency plans drawn up by the government last year. "When we
made our estimates last year, these indicated that 1.2 million
people might need food aid", said Simao. "But the number of
people affected is less than we envisaged".

Simao denied that there was any reluctance on the part of
donors to channel food aid to Mozambique. "Food stocks are going
to arrive gradually", he said, "since our estimates are for the
period up to April. Food aid has never all arrived at the same
time. It's always been gradual".

Mozambique was already receiving aid for the victims of
drought in the southern and central provinces. But needs have
increased with the damage done by "Delfina" north of the Zambezi,
particularly in Nampula province.

The known death toll from "Delfina" was 46 in Nampula, three
in Zambezia and one in Cabo Delgado. About 35,000 homes were
destroyed in Nampula, and a further 5,000 in Zambezia and Cabo
Delgado.

"Every effort is being made to restore the access roads, to
allow support to reach the affected areas", said Simao, "and to
help people rebuild their houses".

But the second year of drought south of the Zambezi means
that this year's harvest will not provide the hoped-for relief.
The current projections are that, in the commercial year that
begins in April 2003, the number of people in need of food aid
will rise to 1.475 million, well over twice the number currently
affected.

The director of the government's relief agency, the National
Disaster Management Institute (INGC), Silvano Langa, told the
meeting that the country has 15,000 tonnes of food aid available,
which is only enough for the next two months. He thought that a
comfortable figure, that would cover all needs until the next
harvest (April/May) would be 25,000 tonnes.

As for the future, Langa estimated the requirements for the
2003/04 commercial year at 32 million US dollars.
(AIM)
dt/pf (676)

=====================================
NEW THINKING NEEDED ON FOOD SECURITY
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
January 20, 2003 http://www.irinnews.org

Southern Africa's food crisis is not a short-term transitory
phenomenon that will be over when this year's harvest is gathered.
It points, instead, to a failure of development policies and the
impact of HIV/AIDS, for which there are no easy solutions,
humanitarian officials acknowledge.

Over 14 million people in six countries are at risk through a
combination of poverty, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, government policy
mistakes, and the collapse of social services and traditional
safety nets. UN agencies and NGOs have called for a rethink of
development strategies and partnerships that can help lift the
region's subsistence farmers out of chronic food insecurity.

Although the immediate humanitarian response "has gone someway to
stabilise the situation ... the outlook is clearly not good and
there are not many reasons for hope," Chris Kaye, the Regional
Disaster Response Advisor of the Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs said.

By the end of December the food component (US $507 million) of the
UN's US $611 million consolidated appeal for the region was only 62
percent funded. Donors were even less generous towards non-food
projects, providing only 20 percent of the money needed. An
anticipated El Nino year in 2003 threatens another drought, but
that is likely to be overshadowed by the expected war in Iraq,
which will divert attention from the Southern Africa crisis, Kaye
said.

THE DEVELOPMENT DILEMMA

The humanitarian response of providing food aid "will not solve the
problem because the underlying causes of the HIV/AIDS pandemic will
not make this famine a normal famine. There is no end to it because
people are too weak to plant, too weak to harvest so this will go
on. The problems don't go away with better weather. That means the
response of governments and the international community make must
recognise that," Urban Jonsson, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF)
Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa told IRIN in
November.

"There are no answers at the moment," Michael Drinkwater, the
regional coordinator of the development NGO CARE International
conceded. "We are looking at a situation where countries will need
ongoing assistance for many years to come in agriculture, health,
at the macro-economic level ... Throwing money at it is not going
to help, we need to work much more strategically."

The failure of rains over two consecutive seasons should not have
precipitated a crisis as deep as the region has now experienced.
The current emergency, therefore, points to a slow erosion of
people's coping mechanisms exposing a more deep-seated and complex
problem of vulnerability. According to UNICEF, for example, 59
percent of Zambian children under five were already malnourished in
2000. In Malawi it was 49 percent, 44 percent in Lesotho and 27
percent in Zimbabwe.

Even under normal conditions, subsistence farmers in Malawi can
only grow 90 percent of their food needs. From December until the
next harvest in March, many eke out an existence by providing
casual labour known as "ganyu" within the community, using money
earned to buy food on the market. But if the planting season has
been poor, labour opportunities dry up and the price of food on the
market rises.

"That daily wage rate has not changed in five years, it's about 20
kwacha [US 27 cents] per day. But the inflation rate in Malawi has
been outstanding. So you have this inflation rate, to which all the
other prices get adjusted accordingly - fuel transport, maize
prices, they're all directly linked. But the casual labour rate
hasn't budged - it's a precarious situation," Nicholas Haan,
Regional Programme Advisor of the World Food Programme's (WFP)
Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping unit told IRIN in June.

.

QUESTIONING THE DONORS

But at the policy level, there is also little room for new thinking
by African governments. They are constrained by the "Washington
consensus" on market reforms championed by the World Bank and
International Monetary Fund (IMF) as the ideologically correct
development path. It frowns on government intervention, and looks
at short-term financial considerations rather than medium-term food
security, critics argue. The debt burden also robs governments of
development resources.

The role of the state has been downsized - it is no longer that of
a food security guarantor, however inefficiently it operated in the
past. Subsidised inputs such as fertiliser were stopped, social
services starved of funds, and the commodity boards that fixed
producer prices and collected farmers' produce abolished. They were
supposed to have been replaced by the private sector, but in most
cases local entrepreneurs could not rise to the challenge or lacked
the profit incentive to reach the more remote regions.

The poor, for the most part, are now on their own. "The reform
programmes, yes are necessary, [but] they are painful ... I think
we need some contingency plans in order to minimise the worst
effects," said Mugwara. [Reggie Mugwara, the director of the Southern
African Development Community (SADC) Food and Natural
Resources Unit.] "You can't go back to the old ways, but we
cannot also ignore the present realities ... that the vulnerable
are much more vulnerable than they were."

Smallholder agriculture, the predominant source of livelihoods in
Africa, had proved to be at least as efficient as large farms when
farmers received similar support services in inputs like seeds,
fertiliser and credit, the International Food Policy Research
Institute (IFPRI) said in a report last year. Raising their output
would stimulate the rest of the economy. Each 1 percent increase in
agricultural productivity had been shown to reduce poverty by 0.6
percent, the institute said.

But public investment in African agriculture has been falling for
many years. World Bank lending for agriculture slumped from about
31 percent of its total lending in 1979-81 to less than 10 percent
in 1999-2000. The funding levels required to boost agriculture
"depart sharply from recent trends", IFPRI acknowledged.

In a report on the food crisis released in June, Oxfam warned that
until the right to food was put at the top of the agenda of
international financial institutions and national governments, food
security would remain precarious. It said Africa needed policies
that were carefully thought-out and implemented, and not driven by
dogma, political opportunism or hypocrisy.

"At the same time as African farmers are told that they can no
longer have free seeds or fertilisers, US farmers are receiving an
average US $20,000 a year in subsidies - which is soon to increase
by 70 percent - and EU [European Union] farmers US $16,000," noted
the briefing paper.

It cited an IMF evaluation that found that in Zambia between 1991
and 1994, the liberalisation of state marketing had contributed to
a 30 percent increase in rural poverty. "It is clear that without
some form of state intervention as a safety net, poor people have
become much more vulnerable to shocks such as erratic weather.
Unfortunately, the IMF and other donors are not learning this
lesson."

African countries also face gigantic hurdles in establishing an
agro-export economy to trade their way out of poverty, due to
tariff barriers and produce dumping by European and US producers.
"Rich countries spend vast sums of money protecting the interests
of their producers, while at the same time forcing poor countries
to open their markets to subsidised imports," Oxfam argued.

Chris Kaye believes that both regional governments and the
international community need to reform the way they operate, and
develop a "compact" on the way forward.

"Governments must wake up to their responsibilities and show they
are caring for their own people, because if they don't, no
self-respecting donor will do that for them." By the same token, he
said, the depth of the problems confronted by the region required
a "much more concerted effort by donors ... otherwise Southern
Africa will go down the tube".

===============================

6303E ASSEMBLY SITTING BEGINS WITHOUT DISRUPTION
~
Maputo, 3 Mar (AIM) - The first sitting in 2003 of the Mozambican
parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, began quietly on
Monday, since the main opposition party, the former rebel
movement Renamo, did not implement its threats to continue
disrupting parliamentary sessions.

In December, Renamo rioted for four consecutive days, at the
end of the previous parliamentary session. It was demanding that
five Renamo dissidents, including a former head of the Renamo
parliamentary group, Raul Domingos, be expelled from the
Assembly.

When this issue was put to a vote, and Renamo lost, the
Renamo deputies went berserk, shrieking, chanting, banging on the
tables and wrecking the Assembly's sound system. They threatened
that this would continue into the first sitting of the New Year,
and that Renamo would not halt its disruptive behaviour until the
five dissidents were thrown out of parliament.

But on Monday not a whistle was blown, not a table was
thumped, not a slogan was chanted: Renamo was on its best
behaviour for the formal opening of the sitting - perhaps because
of the presence of the diplomatic corps in the public gallery.

Even more surprising, the leader of the Renamo group, Ossufo
Quitine, did not so much as mention the five dissidents, who have
successfully demanded the status of "independent deputies",
during his lengthy speech.

.

7303E RENAMO INSULTS CARDOSO MURDER TRIAL JUDGE

Maputo, 3 Mar (AIM) - Mozambique's main opposition party, Renamo,
on Monday performed a somersault in its attitude towards the
trial of the six men found guilty of murdering Mozambican
investigative journalist Carlos Cardoso.

Two months ago, Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama issued a
statement praising the trial - yet on Monday, in his speech at
the opening of a sitting of the Mozambican parliament, the
Assembly of the Republic, the head of the Renamo parliamentary
group, Ossufo Quitine, dismissed the trial as "a farce".

Quitine claimed that the sentence in the trial, read out on
31 January by judge Augusto Paulino, had been written before the
trial even began. There can hardly be a more serious defamation
against a judge.~~~

.

"Those who really ordered the murder of Carlos Cardoso have
not been found", claimed Quitine. "It was all a piece of
theatre".

.

Quitine also claimed that the ruling Frelimo party is
already engaged in fraud to win this year's municipal elections.
The only example of "fraud" that he cited was the election of
Lutheran pastor Arao Litsuri as chairman of the National
Elections Commission (CNE).

Litsuri won with the votes of the ten CNE members chosen by
Frelimo, against the eight chosen by Renamo. So Renamo has
redefined fraud to mean any vote that goes against it.

115103E MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS CANNOT BE HELD ON TIME

Maputo, 28 Feb (AIM) - Antonio Carrasco, director of the
Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), the
electoral branch of the Mozambican civil service, acknowledged on
Thursday that municipal elections in Mozambique are behind
schedule, but he assured reporters that they will be held before
the end of this year.

Addressing journalists during a seminar on electoral
coverage, organized by the Mozambican Journalists Union (SNJ),
Carrasco explained that STAE needs at least six months to
organize all the stages in the electoral process, starting from
the announcement of the election dates up to the voting itself.

The first municipal elections were held on 30 June 1998, and
the mayors and municipal assemblies elected then had a five year
term of office. So the second elections ought to be held in June
of this year: however there is simply not enough time before June
to do all the preparations that are necessary

"We are now at the end of February, and it is technically
impossible to organize the municipal elections in just four
months", said Carrasco. "We have timetables strictly established
by law, that we cannot violate".

He noted that there is an established period for the
electoral campaign, for the submission of candidates, and other
procedures. Furthermore, the electoral registers have not been
updated since 1999.

Carrasco said that only on Wednesday did STAE submit its
work plan to the National Elections Commission (CNE), the body in
overall charge of the elections. The CNE must now study that
proposal, and decide whether to endorse it.

The exact dates of elections are fixed by the government,
but on the proposal of the CNE. In practice, the government will
simply endorse the date suggested by the CNE.

Carrasco said that STAE is suggesting that the update of the
electoral registers take place in July, and the election be held
in August. However, according to reports on Mozambican
Television, it is more likely that the elections will be
postponed into November, or even early December.

Carrasco said that around 70,000 people will be working as
electoral staff, "and the priority is the training of staff for
the electoral bodies. We are going to train trainers at national
level, who will be recruited through public advertisements in the
media. National trainers will train others at district level, and
the latter will do the same at local level".

As for funding, Carrasco said that the government has, so
far, disbursed only 18 per cent of the 25 million US dollars
necessary. "What we know is that the government is working to
raise financial support from its international partners", he
said.

Carrasco added that extra money might be needed for an
eventual second round in some of the municipalities, should none
of the candidates for mayor win an outright majority on the first
round.

Carrasco's assessment of the timetable is not to the liking
of the main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo,
which has instantly claimed that Carrasco does not have the legal
power to determine the dates of the elections.

"Carrasco's past his expiry date. He shouldn't be in STAE
any more", declared Renamo spokesman Fernando Mazanga. He pointed
out that the CNE must appoint a new director of STAE, after
seeking candidates through publicly advertising the job.

This is true, but, until somebody else is chosen, Carrasco
remains director, and has the duty to advise the CNE on such
matters as electoral timetables. And there is nothing to stop
Carrasco applying for the post when it is advertised.

The delay in the municipal elections is entirely due to
Renamo's obstructionist tactics last year in the country's
parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, where it delayed
amendments to the electoral legislation until September, and the
appointment of a new CNE until December.
(AIM)
mu/bm/pf (633)

67303E FRELIMO APPOINTS NEW HEAD OF ELECTION OFFICE
~
Maputo, 14 Mar (AIM) - Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party has
appointed Political Commission member Alcinda Abreu the new head
of its election office.

She replaces Mariano Matsinha who ran the party's election
office for both the 1994 and 1994 general elections.

Abreu was Minister for Social Welfare Coordination from 1994
to 1997, when she was sacked by President Joaquim Chissano.
However, she seemed fully rehabilitated by the time of the
Frelimo Eighth Congress in June last year, when she was elected
to the 15 member Political Commission.

Abreu has plenty of electoral experience. She was a Frelimo
appointee to the National Elections Commission (CNE) in 1997/98.
This was the body that organised the country's first municipal
elections. Frelimo chose her again for the 1999 CNE, which was in
charge of that year's presidential and parliamentary elections.

Frelimo is preparing its electoral machinery months before
this year's local elections. No date has yet been fixed, but the
elections cannot possibly be held earlier than August.

Frelimo general secretary Armando Guebuza has been
travelling round the country preparing the ground for the party's
election campaign. Officially, Frelimo exudes optimism:
interviewed in the latest issue of the weekly paper "Savana", the
Frelimo Central Committee secretary for mobilisation and
propaganda, Edson Macuacua, predicted "a resounding victory", in
both the municipal elections, and in next year's general
elections.

"Comrade Armando Guebuza enjoys great popularity among the
party members", he said. "We are working to keep up the
enthusiasm of our militants". He guaranteed that Frelimo would
not make "triumphalist" mistakes, as its opponents hoped.

Victory for Frelimo in the elections was "a national
imperative", said Macuacua, "because Frelimo is the only force
for change, and because Frelimo has a clear mission to combat
absolute poverty".

Macuacua denied that Frelimo has chosen any candidates yet
for the municipal elections. "There's a very strong internal
democracy in our party", he said. "Our candidates will emerge
from a transparent process. They will be chosen as a result of
the projects for work that they present".

Frelimo would shortly hold municipal electoral conferences
to choose its candidates. "Party members are free to put
themselves forward", said Macuacua.
(AIM)
pf/ (358)

16303E MOZAMBICAN INDUSTRY IN THE DOLDRUMS

Maputo, 5 Mar (AIM) - If one leaves aside mega-projects such as
the MOZAL aluminium smelter, Mozambican industry is stagnating,
or even declining, warned prominent economist Carlos Castel-
Branco on Wednesday.

Speaking at the Seventh Annual Conference of the Mozambican
public sector, Castel-Branco said that the country's economy
remains unstable, and plagued by structural problems that cannot
be addressed merely by monetary measures.

The weight of manufacturing industry added value in the
gross domestic product has changed very little over the past four
decades. It is currently just 13 per cent - and much of that is
accounted for by MOZAL. Without MOZAL, this figure would be the
same as in 1961.

Castel-Branco said that industry is excessively concentrated
in just a few sectors. MOZAL's aluminium ingots, plus the food,
drink and tobacco industries amount to over 80 per cent of
industrial production. Engineering and chemical industries only
account for seven per cent of production and this figure is
rapidly shrinking.

This level of concentration has been increasing. The ten
main products accounted for 50 per cent of industrial production
in 1959. In 2001 ten products accounted for 80 per cent of
production. What had once been key industrial sectors (such as
cashew processing) have virtually disappeared, and the only
significant new product added to Mozambican industry in recent
years has been the aluminium ingots of MOZAL.

Excessive concentration can also be found within each
industrial sector. Thus 75 per cent of production in the textile
and clothing sector is simple cotton ginning.

"There are no substantial signs that new dynamics and new
capacities are being created to diversify and broaden the base of
development", Castel-Branco warned. "Outside of the mega-projects
(which are very localised with few economic linkages), there is
little to show change and transformation".

It was certainly true that Mozambican GDP had grown - but
this growth was not such as to generate new technological
capacities, or promote a broadened and diversified production
base. "Above all, this growth is continuous only in some sectors,
and in most others it is occasional, momentary or non-existent",
said Castel-Branco.

Furthermore, the Mozambican economy remains highly dependent
on imports, with a heavy deficit on the balance of trade.
Whenever investment expands, imports are sucked in, and the
balance of payments goes into crisis. This, Castel-Branco argued,
showed structural instability in the economy.

Apolinario Panguene, a consultant for the Confederation of
Mozambican Businesses (CTA), pointed out that about 30 per cent
of Mozambique's small and medium sized industries closed down or
changed their activity between 1998 and 2002. Of those that still
exist, "many are moribund", he said.

Although MOZAL and other mega-projects had increased the
country's exports, and in the long run improved the balance of
payments, "they are not the solution for reducing absolute
poverty".

Panguene said the mega-projects create relatively few jobs,
and those jobs are expensive. On average, each job in a mega-
projects "has cost between one and two million dollars, while the
average cost per job in older investments was 15,000 dollars".

Outside of the mega-projects, industry is, at best, just
ticking over. On average, industry uses just 51 per cent of its
installed capacity, said Panguene.

Among the range of problems facing Mozambican industries
were the prohibitive interest rates charged by commercial banks,
and the lack of sufficient alternative sources of funding.

Transport costs, whether by road or sea, between the north
and south of the country were enormous. Companies also had to
deal with unreliable water and electricity supplies, obliging
them to make additional investments in emergency generators and
their own wells.

Panguene also pointed to the lack of skilled Mozambican
labour. This could be overcome by recruiting foreigners from
neighbouring countries, but bureaucratic obstacles are thrown in
the way of such recruitment which must be approved by the Labour
Ministry.

Panguene summarised that industry faces "a poor business
climate caused by administrative barriers, defective
infrastructures and unsatisfactory public services". Furthermore,
the government lacked an industrial policy aimed a "technological
development and increased productivity".
(AIM)
pf/ (672)

ENDS

nigeria: Nigeria to scrap anti-graft law

2003-03-20

http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=52053

Nigeria's parliament has voted to scrap a landmark anti-corruption law and replace it with a controversial new act stripping President Olusegun Obasanjo of many of his powers to appoint financial investigators. The House of Representatives approved new rules proposed by the Senate that could render obsolete the work of an anti-corruption commission established by the president after the return of civilian rule in 1999.

south africa: Arms deal challenged in court

2003-03-20

http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=11&o=17395

South Africa's multi-billion rand arms deal was challenged in the Cape High Court on Wednesday by a group which believes it can still be stopped. The Economists Allied for Arms Reduction (Ecaar), represented by anti-arms activist Terry Crawford-Browne, applied to the court to have the deal scrapped, e-tv reported.

south africa: jail for benz man

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2863531.stm

A prominent member of South Africa's governing African National Congress has been sentenced to four years in prison after he admitted defrauding parliament. Tony Yengeni, the former chief whip of South Africa's parliament, was sentenced in Pretoria.

SWAZILAND: Showdown over royal jet

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32906

A parliamentary select committee this week recommended the government's controversial purchase of a luxury jet for King Mswati III should not go ahead.

TANZANIA: Mkapa orders government officers to enhance transparency

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32919

Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa called on government leaders on Tuesday to increase transparency and to avoid hindering the media's attempts to disseminate information to the public.

zimbabwe: Zvobgo blasts state corruption

2003-03-20

http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=52048

Eddison Zvobgo, the Member of Parliament for Masvingo South, this week accused the government of condoning corruption, saying it was time to hunt down those spreading the "Aids of corruption". Moving a motion in Parliament for the establishment of an anti-corruption commission, he said government departments, politicians and parastatals were riddled with corruption and it was time for the "bigger hunt to commence".

Africa: Chronic poverty and remote rural areas

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1071

This article argues that there has been a widespread &#8216;policy failure&#8217; in remote rural areas. The focus on livelihoods development, based on successes in non-remote areas does not take account of the special risk, exclusion and marginalisation characteristics of remote rural areas.

africa: Diamonds, forever or for good?: The economic impact of diamonds in Southern Africa

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1087

This document considers the economic impact of diamonds in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. It states that the many global campaigns to stop trade in conflict diamonds has tended to ignore the benefits of the legitimate industry for these countries. The author describes a study that attempts to verify the claims regarding the positive aspects of the industry. It is important because concern about possible economic damage to these countries has caused NGOs campaigning against conflict diamonds to be less aggressive where consumers are concerned, than might otherwise have been the case.

africa: Escaping poverty: Can policy reach the chronically poor?

2003-03-20

http://www.id21.org/insights/insights46/insights-iss46-art00.html

The past few years have seen remarkable consensus on and commitment to poverty reduction from governments around the world. This has resulted in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which seek to reduce global absolute poverty by 50 per cent by 2015 and to reduce other forms of human deprivation. However, even if the MDGs are achieved - and the prospect of this happening is not good - some 900 million people will have an income of less than US$1 a day in 2015. Hundreds of millions of people will have suffered losses that severely reduce their capabilities and scores of millions will have died easily preventable deaths.

africa: How will HIV/AIDS transform African governance?

2003-03-20

http://afraf.oupjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/102/406/1

The HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa has far-reaching implications for governance and development. In addition to killing millions of individuals and causing serious economic contractions, the pandemic threatens structural transformations in African economies, institutions and governance. Decreased adult life expectancy has important adverse impacts upon savings, capital accumulation, skills acquisition, and institutional functioning. This article examines how the impacts of the pandemic can be envisaged as running processes of demographic transition, economic development and the growth of a bureaucratic state, in reverse.

africa: Improving agricultural research at universities in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Study Guide

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1097

Universities in sub-Saharan Africa have been widely criticized for being too academic and remote from the practical needs of the societies that they are supposed to serve. Yet these universities often include among their faculty a great proportion of their country&#8217;s most highly trained researchers, and some of the best research facilities. How can these resources best be mobilized to contribute to national development objectives.

africa: Nepad vows to take Africa forward

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2833627.stm

African leaders have agreed on a framework for a peer-review mechanism aimed at tackling obstacles to growth and development on the continent. It follows a meeting on Sunday in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, to discuss implementation of the New Partnership for African Development (Nepad).

africa: Trade Barriers Hurt African Agriculture

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190243.html

Trade barriers and subsidies in developed countries are depressing prices of agricultural goods, resulting in a "tax" of $7,1bn a year on African countries. These were the findings of a report into advancing African agriculture through trade reform, which was compiled by the Economic Analytical Unit of the Australian foreign affairs and trade department.

mali: Mali reaches HIPC Completion Point

2003-03-20

http://www.jubileeplus.org/worldnews/africa/mali110303.htm

Mali &#8211; a poor, landlocked country in West Africa &#8211; became the seventh Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) to reach &#8216;Completion Point&#8217; under the World Bank and IMF&#8217;s enhanced HIPC initiative on March 7. Mali had already received some debt cancellation under HIPC. Mali is the first country for almost a year to receive any write-off of debt under the HIPC initiative, which campaigners have criticised for failing to keep to the schedules promised to the international Jubilee 2000 campaign.

uganda: How fair is ethical trade? A look at Uganda's organic cotton sector

2003-03-20

http://www.id21.org/society/s7bam2g1.html

Ethical trade can be used to describe any trading relationship where social and environmental criteria are used, in addition to the purely economic, to measure performance. What impact has fair trade practice had on rural livelihoods in Uganda? What is needed to sustain such projects?

africa: unsafe sex primary cause of hiv transmission, say experts

2003-03-20

http://www.unaids.org/whatsnew/press/eng/HIVinjections140303_en.html

An expert group has reaffirmed that unsafe sexual practices are responsible for the vast majority of HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa, and that safer sex promotion must remain the primary feature of prevention programmes in the region. Following a review of evidence, which included recent articles suggesting that a majority of HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa are due to unsafe medical practices, particularly injections, the experts concluded that such suggestions are not supported by the vast majority of evidence and that unsafe sexual practices continue to be responsible for the overwhelming majority of HIV infections.

Burkina Faso: Burkina Faso suffers lack of meningitis vaccine

2003-03-20

http://www.scidev.net/frame3.asp?id=0703200311445552&t=N&authors=Gretchen%20Vogel&posted=7%20Mar%202003&c=1&r=1

Despite pleas last October to prepare for a serious outbreak of bacterial meningitis, public health officials are scrambling to halt a mounting epidemic in Burkina Faso. Public health officials will be forced to ration the limited supply in a way that saves as many lives as possible, and WHO officials are now trying to figure out how best to distribute the available doses of vaccine.

CONGO: Ebola deaths reach 111

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32927

The death toll in the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in the Cuvette-Ouest Region of northern Congo has continued to rise. Of the 123 people known to have been infected with the haemorrhagic fever, 111 had died, Joseph M'boussa, who is heading the fight against the virus, told IRIN.

kenya: STI treatment in Kenya's private sector

2003-03-20

http://www.id21.org/health/h6bm2g1.html

Improved management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can reduce the rate of new HIV cases by up to 40 per cent. AMREF (African Medical and Research Foundation) provided training in STI treatment for the six hundred licensed private providers (doctors, nurses and clinical officers) in Nyanza province in western Kenya. But what happens when people use untrained providers or self-medicate?

NIGER: Meningitis cases reported

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32847

At least 2,056 cases of meningitis including 195 deaths have been reported by the Ministry of Health in Niger and in three districts, Magaria, Aguie and Matameye, the outbreak had reached the epidemic threshold as at 9 March, the World Health Organisation reported last Thursday.

south africa: aids complications major killer of pregnant women

2003-03-20

http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=16497

AIDS-related complications have become the leading cause of death among pregnant women in South Africa, according to a report released on Friday by Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, South Africa's Sunday Times reports.

south africa: aids dissident being consulted

2003-03-20

http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=16527

South African Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, speaking on public radio on Monday, said that Roberto Giraldo, who denies that HIV causes AIDS, will not be appointed as a ministerial adviser but is simply being consulted by the government for his advice on nutrition and HIV/AIDS, the South African Press Association reports.

South Africa: Children, HIV/Aids and communication - a literature review

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1063

This commissioned report aimed to provide insight into issues related to communication of HIV/Aids to children in the 3-12 year age group, with an emphasis on South Africa. The overall brief includes identifying of key issues related to children and HIV/Aids, including discrimination, grief, knowledge, attitudes and practices.

south africa: Dying for Treatment -The TAC Civil Disobedience Campaign

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/hivaids/14025

This Briefing document is intended to help TAC activists and supporters to understand the background to TAC's decision to embark on a civil disobedience campaign in March 2003. Hundreds of pages could be written about TAC's efforts to persuade government to work with civil society on an HIV/AIDS treatment programme - but this is just a summary. In addition, although there is a great deal of independent research and information that could be cited to support TAC's demands, in this document we refer only to government's own research and policy statements to show how, in reality, the reluctance to commit to a treatment plan, including anti-retroviral medicines, contradicts its own findings, policies and constitutional duties.
Dying for Treatment -The TAC Civil Disobedience Campaign
- Zackie Achmat, SA
***************************************

TAC Briefing Document on the Civil Disobedience campaign
March 2003

This Briefing document is intended to help TAC activists and supporters to
understand the background to TAC's decision to embark on a civil
disobedience campaign in March 2003. Hundreds of pages could be written
about TAC's efforts to persuade government to work with civil society on
an HIV/AIDS treatment programme - but this is just a summary.

In addition, although there is a great deal of independent research and
information that could be cited to support TAC's demands, in this document
we refer only to government's own research and policy statements to show
how, in reality, the reluctance to commit to a treatment plan, including
anti-retroviral medicines, contradicts its own findings, policies and
constitutional duties.

What are TAC's two main demands?

1.That government make an irreversible and unequivocal commitment to a
public sector ARV programme.

2.That government return to the negotiations at Nedlac and make a
commitment to signing a Framework Agreement with business, labour and
community on a National HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment Plan.

What is the background to TAC's Civil Disobedience campaign?

1.Why we are calling for a National Treatment Plan?

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a crisis that threatens South Africa's
reconstruction and development. Up to five million people are infected
with HIV and AIDS is now killing approximately 600 people every day.

In late 2002 an investigation by Statistics SA, titled Causes of Death in
SA, 1997-2001 found that:

"Throughout the study period, the emergence of HIV, TB and influenza and
pneumonia as the main causes of death is observed. Female South Africans
in the age category 15-39 died primarily as a result of HIV infections.
The data show a unique racial topology of mortality in the registered
deaths."

Dealing effectively with a crisis of this scale requires a recognition
that HIV/AIDS is an emergency as Cosatu, the religious sector, business
and the international community has demanded. It requires mobilization of
all of society and a plan to save lives.

South Africa has a five-year HIV/AIDS and STDs Strategic plan, which was
adopted in 2000. TAC is not calling for this plan to be scrapped, or
replaced. We are calling for a National Treatment and Prevention Plan to
strengthen the Strategic plan, which says very little about treatment
generally and nothing about anti-retroviral treatment. We are calling for
firm targets and timeframes and for all sectors of society to take
responsibility for meeting those targets.

This is why TAC and COSATU supported by more than 500 organisations
including FEDUSA and NACTU decided to take our call for a National
Treatment Plan to Nedlac. Nedlac is a statutory body that has a
responsibility to create a forum for negotiation and agreement between
labour, business, community and government on issues to do with labour,
the economy and development. Among its functions are:

"Seek to reach consensus and conclude agreements on matters pertaining to
social and economic policy." And "to encourage and promote formulation of
co-ordinated policy on social and economic matters."

HIV/AIDS is an epidemic, disproportionately affecting the labour market
and the poor. It clearly has a major impact on social policy.

Between October and November 2002 a senior HIV/AIDS task team at Nedlac
jointly developed and negotiated a 'Framework Agreement for a National
HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment Plan.' In this document there are major
areas of agreement.

Originally the aim was to sign the agreement by December 1st 2002, World
AIDS day. However, government and business requested additional time.
Business has now completed its consultation and supported the document. To
date, however, government has not returned to Nedlac. Instead it has used
the media to try to discredit and misrepresent the process.

TAC does not agree that it is forcing the government to make 'policy
choices' at Nedlac. We do believe that the government has a Constitutional
duty to act and take effective measures against this epidemic. This is
because it must "respect, protect, promote and fulfill all people's rights
to equality, dignity, and life. This can be done by improving access to
health services in general, and HIV/AIDS treatment in particular.

2. Why is TAC demanding an ARV programme?

TAC has been accused of being only interested in anti-retrovirals. This is
not true. The Nedlac Framework Agreement, for example, deals with many
interventions that must be improved. But for those people with HIV who are
dying ARVs are an absolute and urgent necessity.

In considering TAC's demand for an ARV programme the following points need
to be borne in mind:

-Anti-retroviral drugs, including generics are registered by the Medicines
Control Council. This means, like all other medicines, they have been
approved for use in SA and are considered safe and effective.

-In 2002 the World Health Organisation (WHO) strongly recommended the
scaling up of ARV programmes in poor countries, so that people with AIDS
in Third World countries could have the same benefits from medicine as
people in Europe and America. Many countries with less resources that SA
have heeded this call, including Botswana and Namibia.

-In South Africa several conferences organised by the Department of Health
have recommended that there should be ARV treatment. The National Health
Summit, in November 2001, called for pilot projects on ARVs. The draft
report from the National Scientific Consultative Forum on HIV/AIDS in
August 2002 stated:

"As far as anti-retroviral therapy is concerned, there was complete
consensus that anti-retroviral programmes are efficacious, and therefore
carry the potential to keep many people with HIV alive for many more years
than would be possible otherwise. .. unanimous on the need for the DOH to
develop a more pro-active plan for the =
implementation of ARV programmes."

-Most importantly the Cabinet Statement of April 17th 2002,recognised that
anti-retrovirals work when used according to internationally accepted
protocols.

TAC believes that the delay by government in acting on its own policies
and recommendations is leading to immense suffering and loss. It is also
creating new inequalities in SA. MPs have access to ARVs. People with
medical aid have access to ARVs. Parastatals such as Transnet and Eskom
provide employees with ARVs. The SANDF is designing an ARV programme. It
is only the poor, those employed in the informal sector and small and
medium sized enterprises, and the unemployed - ie those who are totally
dependent on the public health service - who, as a matter of policy are
denied these medicines.

The government has said that we must wait until April or May, when the
report of an investigation into the costs of an ARV programme is complete,
before a decision is made. TAC disagrees with this. TAC says a policy
decision and commitment must be made now.


The history of TAC's discussions with government, particularly the Deputy
President;

The TAC has been accused of being anti-government. This is not true. The
TAC supports this government, and its agenda to reconstruct and develop
SA, to eradicate poverty and create equality. It is because we support
this agenda that we demand an end to political denial about HIV. Our
demonstrations, petitions, court cases etc are all an affirmation of the
rights we won under our new Constitution.

TAC was founded in December 1998. From that moment on we have led the
march for access to treatment, including ARVs, for people with AIDS. Our
first march to Parliament to call for a National Treatment plan was in
2000. Since then Memos have been written and marches organized that have
repeated the call for a National Treatment Plan. The last was our march on
Feb 14th 2003 of 20,000 people.

But in addition to demonstrating we have made many other efforts to assist
government to overcome the barriers to treatment. These have included:

-Our intervention in the PMA case, which led to the pharmaceutical
companies withdrawing;
-Our campaign against Pfizer which led to to the multi-million Rand
Diflucan donation to the SA government;
-The research we have commissioned into the costs and impacts of
treatment;
-Our complaint to the Competition Commission regarding excessive pricing
by pharmaceuticals companies;
-The community based 'treatment literacy' programmes we run to improve
knowledge of HIV.

This contribution was recognised by the Deputy President, Jacob Zuma, when
TAC met with him in October 2002. The Deputy President agreed the Nedlac
process was important, but said that the government may need until
February 2003 to sign any agreement. "However, both parties recognized
the need for urgency based on the impact of the disease and the suffering
and death in communities."

The Nedlac negotiations went extremely well and consensus was reached
within the HIV/AIDS task team on most areas of the Framework Agreement,
including the principles and challenges of ARV access. Unfortunately
though the Nedlac process has now been de-railed by political opposition.
From the optimism of the negotiations we now feel that we are back in a
dark and difficult situation - once gain charcterised by political denial
about HIV. President Mbeki's refusal to recognize gravity of the HIV
epidemic in his State of the Nation address seems to be proof of this.

Why did TAC and COSATU organize the 'Stand up for Our Lives' march at the
opening of Parliament on February 14th?

The agreement with Deputy President Jacob Zuma did not include a promise
by TAC to cease social mobilization for its demands, although TAC did
decide not to proceed with its threatened civil disobedience campaign. It
was in this spirit that the TAC NEC decided to organise a "Stand Up for
Our Lives" march on the opening day of Parliament 2003.

The purpose of this march was to link the year's most important political
event with one of the country's most important social challenges,
HIV/AIDS, and to demonstrate to our MPs the strength of feelings that
exist behind calls for treatment and a treatment plan.

The march turned out to be the largest march in the history of the AIDS
epidemic, not only in South Africa but in any developing country. It
involved people of all races and classes as well as all faiths; it was led
by people living with HIV and AIDS; it included 650 delegates who traveled
on a train from Johannesburg. The demonstration was
disciplined and peaceful and, as we said repeatedly, it was not an
anti-government demonstration but a demonstration to show government what
could be mobilized with TAC support to prevent and treat HIV.

A memorandum was handed over to government representatives from the
Presidency, Deputy Presidency, Health Portfolio Committee and Finance
Committee. The memorandum was respectful and requested a response by the
end of February to its demands. Those who received the memorandum
publicly stated that it would be given serious consideration. But, to
date, there has not been any response from the government.

What is meant by civil disobedience?

For the most part, the TAC is committed to lawful protest. Our short
history bears testimony to this.

We wish to state clearly: the TAC civil disobedience campaign is not
promoting ungovernability. It is not promoting gratuitous law-breaking. It
is not calling for the overthrow of the government!

The aim of the campaign is to demonstrate anger and compel our political
leaders to deal with our demands. For millions of people AIDS is a
personal and community crisis. It must be felt by our politicians as a
political crisis. If there is time to negotiate on behalf of Burundi and
the Congo (which we support) - there must be time to resolve policy
questions on AIDS.

This year our Minister of Health has had time to go to Iraq, Switzerland
and the United States. She has not had time to take a decision on ARV
treatment. This is immoral.

As will be seen, this campaign will follow in the traditions established
by the ANC and United Democratic Front in their protests against unjust
laws. However, our protest is against political negligence and unjust
policies which willfully withhold life-saving medicine and other resources
from people in desperate need.

AIDS in South Africa has created a social crisis that is being felt in
millions of households. This crisis has to be addressed visibly, urgently
and at the highest possible levels of political leadership.This is not
happening at the moment. The TAC's actions are intended to draw renewed
attention to this crisis.

In conclusion, we state plainly that government can avert this campaign by
responding to our cries. Partnership is our strongest desire. We end with
a repetition of TAC's two reasonable demands:

1. That government make an irreversible and unequivocal commitment to a
public sector ARV programme.

2. That government return to the negotiations at Nedlac and make a
commitment to signing a Framework Agreement with business, labour and
community on a National HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment Plan.

We ask you to support this campaign. Stand up for Our Lives!

Zackie Achmat
Email:zackie@pixie.co.za

SOUTH AFRICA: GAUGING AIDS AWARENESS

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1089

This paper compares public opinion survey data from the Afrobarometer with epidemiological data about the HIV/Aids pandemic in seven Southern African countries. The authors use this data to examine the degree to which people are aware of the pandemic, and are willing to speak about it.

Uganda: ARV Access a Drop in the Ocean

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/hivaids/13893

Uganda Access to Essential Medicines Coalition has voiced concern over comments made in the media regarding antiretroviral use in Uganda. The media recently reported that 10,000 Ugandans now have access to antiretroviral therapy. In a statement on behalf of the coalition, Rosette Mutambi said the 10,000 Ugandans accessing AIDS drugs is just a drop in the ocean.

Uganda ARV Access, a Drop in the Ocean
--------------------------------------

By Gloria Katusiime, Kampala, Uganda


Uganda Access to Essential Medicines Coalition has voiced concern
over comments made in the media regarding antiretroviral use in
Uganda.

The media recently reported that 10,000 Ugandans now have access to
antiretroviral therapy.

In a statement on behalf of the coalition, Rosette Mutambi said the
10,000 Ugandans accessing AIDS drugs is just a drop in the ocean.

She argued that more than 90% of people with AIDS in Uganda are not
receiving antiretrovirals, which is over 100,000 people or 0.5 of
Uganda's population.

She added that many more of the over one million HIV+ people would
like to benefit from the antiretroviral treatment.

Uganda currently leads sub-Saharan Africa in the use of antiretrovi-
ral drugs.

Rosette Mutambi says the cost of the drugs needs to reduce because it
is still more than the total annual income of the average Ugandan
citizen.

"Until costs are reduced further antiretrovirals will be beyond the
reach of the vast majority of Ugandans living with AIDS."

She proposed that the grant recently approved by President Bush in
the fight against AIDS be used as part of an answer to the existing
problem.

Uganda was recently awarded a grant of about 36 million dollars by
the Global fund for HIV/AIDS management.

The Uganda Access to Essential Medicines Coalition is a group of
civil society organizations and individuals advocating for increased
access to essential medicines.


--
Gloria Katusiime
mailto:gkgloria@yahoo.com

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Zambia: HIV/Aids dramas at food aid points

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1088

A recently launched UN Children's Fund project in Zambia is providing vulnerable population groups in drought-affected areas with HIV/Aids messages of hope. This is part of a collaborative effort to address the explosive combination of acute food shortages and the HIV/Aids epidemic in the country, says UNICEF Zambia Representative, Dr Stella Goings.

Zimbabwe: Post-flood concerns over malaria and diarrhoea

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1082

Malaria and diarrhoea related diseases are likely to worsen the plight of Zimbabweans already battling to survive. This follows a year marked by floods, drought, and serious food shortages. According to the latest Zimbabwe Humanitarian Situation Report by the UN Relief and Recovery Unit (RRU), there has been a sudden increase in malaria in Binga, Hurungwe and Kariba in the north west of the country and outbreaks have been reported in Bindura and Shamva districts in the north east.

africa: HIV/AIDS lessons are failing young people

2003-03-20

http://www.actionaid.org/newsandmedia/lessons.shtml

Children in Africa and Asia are being badly let down by their respective teaching systems warns ActionAid in a hard-hitting new report. The charity's comprehensive study found that in schools, stigma, fear and embarrassment prevent open discussion about HIV and in particular the virus's links with unsafe sex. This is leaving young people at risk.

Africa: Poverty and exclusion among urban children

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1072

This digest assesses the human rights situation of poor and marginalised children in urban areas around the world. While it covers issues as diverse as air pollution and children's participation in decision-making, it also ranges from outlining global urban trends to providing concrete examples of positive practices in poor urban neighbourhoods.

africa: Securing the future of wheelchair production: Training Wheelchair Technologists

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/education/13996

Having the right wheelchair can literally change the life of a person with a disability by giving them greater independence, confidence and dignity. It can often provide them with their first opportunity to earn their living or be educated. In Africa over 3 million people need a wheelchair. But a UNESCO report indicates that just 2% of these people have access to this vital piece of equipment which gives not just basic mobility but also the freedom and independence which non-disabled people can take for granted.
Securing the future of wheelchair production in Africa: Training Wheelchair Technologists

Having the right wheelchair can literally change the life of a person with a disability by giving them greater independence, confidence and dignity. It can often provide them with their first opportunity to earn their living or be educated.
In Africa over 3 million people need a wheelchair. But a UNESCO report indicates that just 2% of these people have access to this vital piece of equipment which gives not just basic mobility but also the freedom and independence which non-disabled people can take for granted.

An appropriate wheelchair is a basic human right for wheelchair users, and a starting point for any improvement in quality of life.

Motivation is a UK registered charity working primarily in developing countries to improve the quality of life of wheelchair users. We work with local organisations to initiate sustainable projects that enable individual wheelchair users to fully participate in the life of their communities.

By designing wheelchairs suitable for the environment, training local people in production and all the necessary support services, we help individuals make the most of their lives and gain greater freedom, confidence and self-worth.

Motivation always works at the request of a local partner based within the country of operation. We have worked in Africa since 1999 with disability organisations from Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Since 1999, Motivation has been working in partnership with the Tanzanian Training Centre for Orthopaedic Technologists (TATCOT) to establish a course which is now training people from all over Africa to establish workshops which will produce low-cost wheelchairs made from locally available materials.

Since Motivation was established in 1991, it has received more than 60 requests for help with wheelchair provision from 25 countries in Africa. TATCOT, established in 1981, has continually received requests from organisations seeking assistance in wheelchair technology. In spite of the recognised need for appropriate wheelchairs in Africa no course prior to this existed to train wheelchair technologists, making the Motivation &#8211; TATCOT joint venture a World first.

The aim of the year-long course, which has now been running for nearly three years, is to produce qualified experts in all aspects of wheelchair design and production and the associated skills needed to operate a successful, sustainable wheelchair provision service.

The course is divided into modules in which students are taught technology, workshop management, wheelchair design and production and technical drawing. There is also a therapy component which is designed to enable students to recognise different disabilities and the specific needs of each disability, in order to assess and measure individuals and prescribe appropriate wheelchairs.

The Wheelchair Technologists Training Course can train eight people each year, therefore, as we encourage graduates to work in pairs, there is potential for up to four wheelchair workshops to be initiated each year. Each workshop should be capable of producing an average of 20 wheelchairs each month. On a conservative estimate of just 2 of the workshops achieving this production level, this will still result in almost 500 wheelchairs being made available to beneficiaries in the first full production year from one intake of students alone. The next year, this will increase to 1,000 as the original students continue production and a new batch of graduates establish production, and so on.

The first graduates of the course have established wheelchair workshops in Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe and initiated local production. All of the first graduates were themselves people with disabilities, and we are positively encouraging people with disabilities to apply to the course. The second year of students graduated in August 2002 and are currently laying the foundations to begin production. The course is fully established and going from strength to strength as awareness is raised and the demand for places increases. So far, applications for places on the course have been received for more than twenty countries in Africa. Priority is given to candidates who have a workshop in which to initiate production, or who represent an organisation with the resources to help them put their training to good use.

The course is directly tackling the problems of hardship and disability by providing vocational training for disabled people and equipping them with the skills necessary to set up their own businesses. This has an immediate impact, giving disabled people access to employment and the means to support their families. Furthermore, the fact that disabled people, often isolated and excluded from their communities, are able to play an active and visible role in society contributes to the breakdown of negative attitudes towards disability, encourages more wheelchair users to participate in community life.

The wider implication of the course is that it will create a network of wheelchair workshops across Africa and has the potential to improve the quality of life of thousands of wheelchair users, their families and dependants every year.

If you would like to find out more about the Wheelchair Technologists Training Course or the work of Motivation throughout Africa, you can contact us by emailing motivation@motivation.org.uk or visit our website www.motivation.org.uk

Africa: THE IMPACT OF HIV/AIDS ON EDUCATION

2003-03-20

http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001293/129353e.pdf

This International Institute for Educational  Planning (IIEP) report is divided into two parts, the first looking at the impact of HIV/AIDS on the education sector in sub-Saharan Africa, and the second at ways of bringing effective HIV/AIDS education into schools. It is based on a synthesis of a number of research findings from a variety of studies.

Africa: Working with older people and understanding their issues

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1099

The number of older people above 60 years throughout the world is increasing drastically. By 2050, they are expected to reach the 2 billion mark, which will be more than that of children under the age of 14. In Africa, traditional living arrangements are changing and values that used to ensure that older people were cared for and protected are crumbling. All too often, older people are the victims of abuse even by the very institutions that are supposed to protect them.

ethiopia: LESSONS IN REPRESSION: VIOLATIONS OF ACADEMIC FREEDOM

2003-03-20

http://hrw.org/reports/2003/ethiopia0103/

This report from Human Rights Watch outlines human rights abuses of teachers, lecturers and students in Ethiopia. The report states that the international community has failed to condemn human rights abuses in Ethiopia for strategic reasons of their own. The report details a number of cases of human rights abuse, including a time line of events and makes recommendations to the Ethiopian government as well as to the international community.

ghana: 'Free the Fishing Boys' - Ending Child Slavery

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303110789.html

Free the Fishing Boys - A US-funded programme, which aims to assist and return to their families more than 1,200 children trafficked for forced labour in the Central and Volta regions of Ghana is making good progress.

NIGERIA: Polio can be wiped out this year, UNICEF's Rima Salah says

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32896

The eradication of the polio virus in Nigeria in 2003 is still possible with adequate political commitment to overcome resistance to immunisation, says UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Director for West and Central Africa, Rima Salah.

south africa: Equation of HIV with death prevents adoption of HIV children

2003-03-20

http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20030307

Possibilities of adoption for a child infected with HIV depend on nothing more than compassion, as opposed to a primary need to have a child or give a home to a child who deserves to grow in a stable family unit. More and more social services organisations have come to realise that placing HIV positive children in adoptive homes can be a futile attempt.

south africa: Right-wingers 'hoped to blow up Mandela's car'

2003-03-20

http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=11&o=17319

Allegations that right-wingers plotted to assassinate former president Nelson Mandela, blowing up his vehicle on a trip to Limpopo, were made in an indictment, SABC radio news reported on Wednesday. It was not clear from the report whether the indictment had been officially served on 23 alleged members of the Boeremag by court officials. The document apparently alleged that a group of Boeremag members built a bomb last October, hoping to blow up Mandela's vehicle on a road in Limpopo, where he went to open a school.

africa/global: Debate over water privatization pits economics vs. human rights

2003-03-20

http://www.enn.com/news/2003-03-18/s_3426.asp

Among the world's water experts, privatization has become something of a dirty word. Once thought of as the new frontier for private investors, the idea of letting corporations operate municipal and regional water systems has been criticized by environmentalists, international organisations, and governments alike as a flawed solution for getting water to the poor people who need it the most.

africa/global: Restructuring the Energy Economy

2003-03-20

http://www.dev-zone.org/cgi-bin/links2/jump.cgi?ID=4724

The key to restoring climate stability is shifting from a fossil fuel based energy economy to one based on renewable sources of energy and hydrogen. Advancing technologies in the design of wind turbines that have dramatically lowered the cost of wind generated electricity to the point where it can be used to produce hydrogen from water, along with the evolution of fuel cell engines, have set the stage for a dramatic restructuring of the world energy economy. The good news is that this shift is under way. The bad news is that it is not happening nearly fast enough to avoid a climate disrupting buildup in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, writes Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute.

africa/global: The 3rd World Water Forum: A Civil Society Backgrounder

2003-03-20

http://www.citizen.org/cmep/Water/cmep_Water/articles.cfm?ID=9130

Unless we dramatically change our ways, between one-half and two-thirds of humanity will be living with severe fresh water shortages within the next quarter century. The global fresh water crisis looms as one of the greatest threats ever to the survival of our planet. Tragically, this global call for action comes in an era guided by the free-market principles of what has been called the "Washington Consensus." This includes an unprecedented assault on the commons. Everything is now for sale, even those areas of life, such as social services and natural resources, that were once considered the common heritage of humanity. Faced with the suddenly well-documented fresh water crisis, governments and international institutions are advocating the privatization and commodification of water. Price water, they say in chorus; put it up for sale and let the market determine its future. This is the context in which the 3rd World Water Forum is taking place in Kyoto, Japan from March 16-22.

africa/global: the water barons

2003-03-20

http://www.icij.org/dtaweb/water/

The explosive growth of three private water utility companies in the last 10 years raises fears that mankind may be losing control of its most vital resource to a handful of monopolistic corporations. In Europe and North America, analysts predict that within the next 15 years these companies will control 65 percent to 75 percent of what are now public waterworks. The companies have worked closely with the World Bank and other international financial institutions to gain a foothold on every continent. They aggressively lobby for legislation and trade laws to force cities to privatize their water and set the agenda for debate on solutions to the world&#8217;s increasing water scarcity. The companies argue they are more efficient and cheaper than public utilities. Critics say they are predatory capitalists that ultimately plan to control the world&#8217;s water resources and drive up prices even as the gap between rich and poor widens. The fear is that accountability will vanish, and the world will lose control of its source of life.

AFRICA/GLOBAL: third water forum opens

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1086

The most important international water meeting ever opens in Kyoto, Japan on March 16th to address life and death issues. These range from helping the 2.7 billion people who will face water scarcity by 2025 and preventing the 5 million annual deaths from water-related diseases, to growing dangers of accelerating conflicts over water and saving the world's lakes, rivers and wetlands.

AFRICA/GLOBAL: TRUSTEES OF THE EARTH

2003-03-20

http://www.earthsite.org/

All individuals and institutions have a mutual responsibility to act as Trustees of Earth, seeking the choices in ecology, economics and ethics that will eliminate pollution, poverty and violence, foster peaceful progress, awaken the wonder of life, and realize the best potential for the future of the human adventure.

africa: Hydro-electric power: the good and the bad

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/environment/13986

How to balance the environmental, social and financial costs of large-scale dams with the benefits of hydro-electric power for developing countries prompted an emotional debate on Tuesday at the Third World Water Forum. As many as 80 million people wordwide have been displaced by reservoirs and incalculable damage has been done to once healthy river ecosystems and fauna, according to a World Commission on Dams report released in 2000 by the World Bank and a consortium of non-governmental organisations.
A report from the Kyoto water meeting by the South African Press Assoc.

Hydro-electric power: the good and the bad

March 18 2003 at 03:28PM

Kyoto - How to balance the environmental, social and financial costs
of large-scale dams with the benefits of hydro-electric power for
developing countries prompted an emotional debate on Tuesday at the
Third World Water Forum.

As many as 80 million people wordwide have been displaced by
reservoirs and incalculable damage has been done to once healthy
river ecosystems and fauna, according to a World Commission on Dams
report released in 2000 by the World Bank and a consortium of
non-governmental organisations.

But energy needs are becoming more pressing as the global population
is expected to increase by 50 percent in the next half century to
nine billion, noted the International Hydropower Association (IHA).

"Energy consumption will triple in the next 50 years, not just
because of the population but because of increased equity in
distribution," said IHA president Raymond Lafitte.
"It is a huge challenge to provide the water, food and energy to all
those people."

Dam proponents advocate large-scale power projects for developing
countries as they utilise a resource that is in abundant supply and
may incur only minor maintenance costs over a dam's lifespan, which
can exceed 100 years.

"Only seven percent of Africa's hydro resources are developed, which
means only five percent of the population has access to modern
energy," Daudi Migereko, Uganda's minister of energy for Uganda told
the forum.

"The only way forward to ensure the advancement of the continent is
to exploit its hydro potential."

Opponents argue the costs of large-scale projects, often a huge
proportion of a struggling nation's gross domestic product, as well
as the implications for indigenous communities whose homes and
livelihoods are washed away by reservoirs, outweigh the benefits.

"It's hard to say, in black and white, that there should be no large
hydro-electric projects, because countries all have different power
needs," said Ute Collier, the dams initiative leader for the
conservation group WWF, one of 250 NGOs invited to the forum of 8 100
participants from 165 countries.

"What we are saying is that dam projects should better meet the needs
of the communities they are trying to supply, and take into account
the environmental and social impacts, while also ensuring that enough
power is generated to make the projects worthwhile."

Hydropower advocates point to large-scale projects such as the
Ataturk dam in Anatolia in southeast Turkey and the Saltos Caixha dam
on Brazil's portion of the Iguacu River, as evidence that communities
can be resettled happily and environmental damage can be minimal with
proper planning.

Yet there are dams illustrating precisely the opposite, such as the
Brokopondo in Indonesia, which forced the resettlement of 5 000
people to produce 30 megawatts of power, and went broke in the
process.

China's controversial $27-billion (about R220-billion) Three Gorges
dam project, likely to displace more than one million people, will
produce 18 000 megawatts of power by the time its 600km-long
reservoir is completed in 2009.

Collier proposed that a calculation of how many people would be
displaced compared to the amount of power produced be included in the
assessment of the impact a large-scale project would have on a
community.

"If we are talking about the poorest people in the world's poorest
countries, if a project is providing so little power and they are
being saddled with an enormous amount of debt, it is not worth it,"
Collier said.

"The bottom line is making sure that the poor benefit from the
projects that are having a major impact on where and how they live."
- Sapa-AFP


Ryan Hoover
Africa Program
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way
Berkeley, CA 94703
USA
Phone: (510) 848-1155 Fax: (510) 848-1008
www.irn.org

kenya: Kenya joins ozone-monitoring network

2003-03-20

http://www.scidev.net/frame3.asp?id=0503200313050020&authors=James%20Njoroge&posted=5%20Mar%202003&c=1&r=1&t=NB

A new monitoring facility adds Kenya to a worldwide network to detect ozone depletion and monitor the levels of ozone-damaging pollutants. The high-tech monitoring station was inaugurated last week at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi, and is the first of its kind in tropical and sub-tropical Africa.

kenya: Nairobi National Park Threatened by Human-Wildlife Conflict

2003-03-20

http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2003/2003-03-18-03.asp

&#8220;People crowd even closer to animals as a magnificent park turns 50,&#8221; said photographer Virginal Morell, about the Nairobi National Park while visiting Kenya on assignment in 1996. Today, the park appears even more crowded as the growth in human population surrounding the park&#8217;s southern frontier increases.

RWANDA: Reafforestation in progress

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32890

Rwanda has reafforested at least 6,000 ha destroyed during the 1994 genocide, the Rwanda News Agency (RNA) reported on Monday. Citing a statement issued by the agriculture ministry, the agency reported that at least 160 million seedlings had been planted since 1994. However, natural forests in Rwanda have declined from 643,000 ha to 221,200 ha in 41 years, according to the ministry, the main cause having been human activity.

south africa: biodiversity suffers from climate change

2003-03-20

http://137.158.131.188/edrclib.nsf/d05740d3820657c3422566c700303022/b2be56954022cf1b42256b99004f29c6/$FILE/VALUAT%7E2.PDF

This study, from the Energy and Development Research Centre (EDRC) at the University of Cape Town, forms part of a broader study on the economic impact of climate change in South Africa, and concentrates on the existence value of the biodiversity that is threatened by climate change. It is predicted that climate change will cause significant biodiversity loss in South Africa and it is possible to measure direct economic costs of this loss.

South Africa: Thor chemicals to be held accountable

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1067

The Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs, Rejoice Mabudafhasi, will personally hand over a clean-up directive to the management of the Thor Chemicals plant in Cato Ridge. Thor Chemicals is notorious worldwide for giving mercury poisoning to its workers and for widespread mercury contamination of the surrounding land and streams.

Zambia: Rains help crops

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1069

The latest heavy rains in Zambia, while causing localised damage, were good news for those who planted late, says the latest UN Resident Coordinator's report. Zambia has been struggling with food insecurity brought on by drought. The December 2002 vulnerability assessment indicated that 2.7 million people or 28 percent of the population required food aid to survive.

africa: Reporting NEPAD in Africa: Where is the missing story?

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13954

It is important to note that for any development initiative to be considered serious, it has to incorporate at least an element of participation by the intended beneficiaries. This is done to ensure that there is a universal acceptance and compliance to the vision, objectives and the general provisions of the overall programme. With NEPAD one finds that the finer details of NEPAD are not disclosed. How will the programme benefit the poor of the poorest? How will the success of the programme be measured or assessed? The media reports in Africa have mainly been narrative, highlighting what the Western World and the proponents of NEPAD have to say about the programme. Faced with this scenario, people found it difficult to clearly understand what NEPAD was all about. Without any clear cut consensus being arrived at, it is worrying that NEPAD should be given the green light to proceed to implementation stage without subjecting it to a litmus test.
Reporting NEPAD in Africa: Where is the missing story?
Robert Ndlovu
It is important before delving much into the media aspect of this paper to briefly look at what NEPAD is? Who the main actors are and how it was conceived?
The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is a holistic, comprehensive and integrated strategic framework for the socio-economic development of Africa. The primary objective of NEPAD is to eradicate poverty in Africa and to place African Countries, both individually and collectively, on a path of sustainable growth and development, to thus halt the marginalisation of Africa in the globalisation process.
According to the NEPAD document, the goals of NEPAD are:
1. To achieve and sustain an average gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of
above 7 per cent per annum for the next 15 years;
1. To ensure that the continent achieves the agreed International Development Goals (IDGs), which are to:
reduce the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by half between 1990 and 2015;
enrol all children of school age in primary schools by 2015;
make progress towards gender equality and empowering women by eliminating gender disparities in the enrolment in primary and secondary education by 2005;
reduce infant and child mortality ratios by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015;
reduce maternal mortality ratios by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015;
provide access for all who need reproductive health services by 2015;
implement national strategies for sustainable development by 2005, so as to reverse the loss of environmental resources by 2015.

The strategy has the following expected outcomes:
Economic growth and development and increased employment; reduction in poverty and inequality; diversification of productive activities, enhanced international competitiveness and increased exports; increased African integration.

The proponents of this initiative, are the State Leaders of South Africa, Nigeria, Senegal and Algeria who also form the Steering Committee. The initiative is a result of various Afro-initiatives like the &#8220;Millenium Africa Recovery Programme&#8221; of President Thabo Mbeki (South Africa), Obasanjo (Nigeria) and Bouteflika (Algeria) and the &#8220;Omega Plan&#8221; of President Wade of Senegal who have tried to draw the new processes for African development.

What NEPAD refers to is however not new to Africa as many concepts have come and gone and still left Africa worse off than she was before. What then makes NEPAD a more attractive and a constructive intervention? Was NEPAD better explained and understood by the generality of the citizens and other stakeholders in Africa? How will NEPAD be implemented? What role will the Citizens of Africa play?

All these questions spell out the missing links between NEPAD and the vast communities of Africa who are unwilling recipients who have largely depended on the Western Press to learn more about the programme.

Role of media
It is important to note that for any development initiative to be considered serious, it has to incorporate at least an element of participation by the intended beneficiaries. This is done to ensure that there is a universal acceptance and compliance to the vision, objectives and the general provisions of the overall programme.

With NEPAD one finds that the finer details of NEPAD are not disclosed. How will the programme benefit the poor of the poorest? How will the success of the programme be measured or assessed? The media reports in Africa have mainly been narrative, highlighting what the Western World and the proponents of NEPAD have to say about the programme. Faced with this scenario, People found it difficult to clearly understand what NEPAD was all about. Without any clear cut consensus being arrived at, it is worrying that NEPAD should be given the green light to proceed to implementation stage without subjecting it to a litmus test.

The media has an important role as 'catalysts' in initiating a broad based popular dialogue on NEPAD, facilitate the integration of academics, civil society and other stakeholders into the processes of NEPAD; support and give prominence to lobby and advocacy process to engage the ordinary people and politicians. NEPAD must be unpacked a conducive environment created for greater understanding and contribution from a wider section of the continent. The media need to provide checks and balances that ensure that the processes of policy formulation are made transparent and decentralised to the lowest possible sectors of society.

It has been noted that development theory no longer conforms to simplistic modernist paradigms but to more concrete socio-economic and political factors that take into account such unconscious factors of processes of change, of culture, tradition or the human heart. To this end, the biggest challenge facing the media is to understand the development context into which NEPAD is being initiated. This entails the knowledge of the exact position the people of Africa, civil society, politicians and other stakeholders are in, in relation to the processes of NEPAD.

Unpacking NEPAD
NEPAD seeks to overcome the marginalisation of Africa and to reduce poverty. This is said with the firm belief that;
· Africa has a great potential and wealth
· Poverty in Africa is a result of Colonialism prior to independence and bad governance and corruption after independence.

With the new partnership for African development, the initiative recognies that it is necessary to come up with new reforms which can be itemised as follows;

1. Need to stabilise mechanisms for conflict prevention at Regional and Continental level
2. Promote good governance, human rights, transparency and the participation of civil society at national and local levels.
3. Facilitate the creation of a transparent framework for free markets
4. Stabilising the provision of education, training and health service with a special focus on HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention.
5. Promotion of the role of women by ending gender disparities.
1. Promotion of stable agricultural systems and infrastructure that promote stability within an export oriented processing industry economy.

However all these new initiatives were not built on a solid foundation of a self sustaining revolving fund generated by the African countries themselves but that the whole initiative seems to be bent on trying to attract foreign investment. In other ways, the document can purely be seen as a publicity or marketing document. It has been criticised from different sectors as perpetuating &#8220;begging&#8221; from outsiders. I has also been criticised for not having a clear strategy to address the current poverty in Africa including the unemployment crisis.

The G7s response that NEPAD provides a &#8220;paradigm shift&#8221; in development thinking on Africa renders most of those who have not participated in the formulation process unwilling recipients. The fear that have been raised is that NEPAD further perpetuates the 'divide and rule' concept which was successfully used by the west for decades. Those African Leaders who do not subscribe to the provisions of NEPAD, will be left out and the whole concept of 'African Renaissance' lost.

The North has argued that NEPAD is more acceptable than previous plans. It is not surprising that the North would find NEPAD more acceptable than all the other initiatives that Africa has generated. This is mainly a result of the fact that NEPAD largely follows the kinds of conditions that have been demanded by creditor and donor countries before both in terms of governance and economic strategy.

In this light it is very difficult to perceive an equal partnership arising from this initiative. The North still remains a powerful partner having control over the global economy, trade and technology. Africa remains a recipient. It is only through a miracle that the North can accept the conditionalities from below to embrace the new initiatives from Africa.

From the foregoing, it is very important to note that what NEPAD seeks to address, are issues retarding development in Africa although the corrective processes are not put in the right and more sustainable perspective. If it is agreed that the overall thrust of this initiative is development or eradication of poverty, it is important that this process of developing a development programme has to include all the actors in Africa-the people, civil society, media, politicians and all relevant stakeholders.

This means that NEPAD has to be put under spotlight. The speed at which it is being subjected to by its proponents to try and 'fast-track' it for approval has to be halted and the participatory process instituted.

Food for thought for the media
Having discussed to some extent about NEPAD though not comprehensively, it is prudent that we look at the media and how it can fit into the whole process of reporting about NEPAD. A standpoint has to be taken if the media is to come up with a realistic stance that can be understood by all. The first point that we have to agree on is that NEPAD attempts to redress colonial imbalances and reduce poverty in Africa, NEPAD tries to instill a sense of self-reliance and above all eliminate underdevelopment.

If a common understanding is reached, then NEPAD can be subjected to a litmus test. A test that puts the whole document to public scrutiny. The first step will be to understand that development is a process, it can not be caused but can be nurtured just like a biological system. One can not simply work up and become an adult but has to undergo certain biological developments to reach the adult stage. Whilst this biological perspective may be perceived as a simplistic model, it gives more currency to the fact that the stage at which NEPAD is now in relation to the perceived 'beneficiaries', has a lot of biological deficiencies.

In a developmental perspective, the Community Development Resource Association, says that development happens in three distinct phases. The first one is that of dependence. This is a time of great learning and skills acquisition in which the media and other agents of change provide the necessary inputs for great understanding and growth.

The second stage is that of dependence which provides a much more developed picture in the metamorphosis from the first stage. This stage entails self-reliance attained through own experiments and achievements. The final stage is the one of inter-dependence, a stage where the Africa that we have been trying to create realises that full potential can only be achieved through effective collaboration with others.

It is incumbent on the media that they facilitate an environment that will allow the 'Africa&#8221; as a whole to learn and acquire new skills of analysis, understanding and above all making informed choices. This entails the provision of correct and precise information which informs decision making and creates opportunities for debate.

The essential aspects to be looked at in this instance will be the origins of NEPAD, who the authors are and what inspired them to develop this programme? How has been the consultative processes? What has been done to minimise the negative effects of NEPAD? Who stands to benefit from this perceived &#8220;partnership&#8221; between the North and South?. Once the answers to these questions have been answered and a two way communication established, the NEPAD is geared to move on to the second phase. A phase of independence. This is when the media reports should be able to make independent assessments of our period of great learning and establishing the continent as unique and self-reliant bearing in mind that Africa has had interventions for more than four decades which have not take her out of the under-development limbo.

This is an opportunity for the press to engage the politicians and civil society to draw up self-sustaining initiatives that will seek inter-dependence rather than perpetuate 'begging'. Once these positions have been established, it is easy to come up with smart partnerships that emphasise equal partnerships based on sharing the same or more or less the same vision with resources pulled together equally to make the world a better place to live in.

The food for thought for the media is that NEPAD is here to stay and has provided an opportunity for the case of Africa to be heard whether the hearing is partial or full it does not matter. What is important is whether the media is ready? Ready to engage with NEPAD and put the whole case of Africa in a global debate based on facts. Facts arising from a popular dialogue and consensus resolutions from multi-stakeholder meetings.

Conclusion:
I would like to conclude this paper by taking an excerpt from Professor Tandon's paper NEPAD and FDIs: Symmetries and Contradictions:

The sentiment behind NEPAD is noble. It is to put Africa on a self-reliant path to development where Africans themselves own the processes. But, as they say, the road to hell is often paved with good intentions. The intentions notwithstanding, the practical effect of NEPAD would be to surrender the human rights of the people of Africa(their rights to food, water, energy etc) to the whims of volatile and untrustworthy global capital.

It is important to note that there can never be any meaningful development if the basics of policy formulation like participation are ignored. Similarly, there will never be any effective participation if the information disseminated does not provide opportunities for popular dialogue amongst the people of Africa.

This is an abridged version of the paper presented by Robert Ndlovu, at a workshop (Kadoma Conference Centre 24-27 February 2003) organised by SEATINI for the media in Southern Africa. Ndlovu is the Regional Manager of the Zimbabwe Decentralised Cooperation Programme.

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cameroon: Two privately-owned television stations closed

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13948

On 14 March 2003, Reporters sans frontières (RSF), expressed concern over the recent closure of two privately-owned television stations, RTA and Canal 2, which has threatened the development of diverse and independent broadcast media in Cameroon.
La version française suit. The French version follows.

IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________

ALERT - CAMEROON

17 March 2003

Two privately-owned television stations closed

SOURCE: Reporters sans frontières (RSF), Paris

(RSF/IFEX) - On 14 March 2003, RSF expressed concern over the recent closure
of two privately-owned television stations, RTA and Canal 2, which has
threatened the development of diverse and independent broadcast media in
Cameroon.

Although the country's laws provide for privately-owned broadcast media, the
government has ignored all requests from television broadcasters for
authorisation, forcing them to operate illegally (see IFEX alert of 17 April
2000). RSF urged the authorities to take the necessary steps to regulate the
status of all broadcast media and, in particular, to allow RTA and Canal 2
to resume their operations.

On 19 February, provincial governors suspended RTA and Canal 2 broadcasts on
grounds of illegality, at the behest of Communications Minister Jacques Fame
Ndongo. The two companies were authorised to carry foreign media programmes
but not to broadcast their own programmes. AEA and TV+, the companies that
own the television stations, do not have permits to set up and run
privately-owned broadcast companies.

The minister's decision followed the broadcast of a number of political
debates in which the government was criticised. Aside from RTA and Canal 2,
there is only one other privately-owned channel in the country, which mainly
broadcasts films.

The communications minister has publicly attacked the media, accusing them
of "repeatedly and intentionally disregarding the profession's universal and
sacrosanct principles by interfering in an untimely manner in the private
life of citizens and government bodies." He also warned broadcast media
entrepreneurs that the government would increase its efforts to collect back
taxes from them.

For further information, contact Jean-François Julliard at RSF, rue Geoffroy
Marie, Paris 75009, France, tel: +33 1 44 83 84 84, fax: +33 1 45 23 11 51,
e-mail: afrique@rsf.org, Internet: http://www.rsf.org

The information contained in this alert is the sole responsibility of RSF.
In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit RSF.
_________________________________________________________________
DISTRIBUTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
EXCHANGE (IFEX) CLEARING HOUSE
489 College Street, Toronto (ON) M6G 1A5 CANADA
tel: +1 416 515 9622 fax: +1 416 515 7879
alerts email: alerts@ifex.org general e-mail: ifex@ifex.org
Internet site: http://www.ifex.org/
_________________________________________________________________
IFEX - Nouvelles de la communauté internationale de défense de la liberté
d'expression
_________________________________________________________________

ALERTE - CAMEROUN

Le 17 mars 2003

Les médias audiovisuels menacés

SOURCE: Reporters sans frontières (RSF), Paris

(RSF/IFEX) - RSF s'inquiète des récentes mesures prises par les autorités à
l'encontre des médias audiovisuels. La fermeture des deux chaînes privées
RTA et Canal 2 menace le développement d'une expression pluraliste et
indépendante dans le pays.

Dans le domaine de l'audiovisuel, alors que les ondes sont ouvertes au
secteur privé, les médias sont contraints de travailler dans l'illégalité,
les autorités n'ayant pas encore daigné répondre à leurs demandes d'agrément
(consulter l'alerte de l'IFEX du 17 avril 2000). L'organisation demande aux
autorités de prendre les mesures nécessaires afin de régulariser la
situation de l'ensemble des médias audiovisuels et appelle notamment au
rétablissement de la RTA et de Canal 2.

Le 19 février 2003, sur ordre du ministre de la Communication, Jacques Fame
Ndongo, les gouverneurs de provinces ont suspendu la diffusion en ondes
hertziennes de deux chaînes privées de télévision, RTA et Canal 2.
Officiellement, les deux médias sont accusés d'être illégaux. En effet, les
chaînes RTA et Canal 2, qui appartiennent respectivement aux sociétés de
télédistribution AEA et TV+, ne sont pas titulaires d'une licence de
création et d'exploitation d'entreprises privées de communication
audiovisuelle. En d'autres termes, les deux chaînes étaient autorisées à
émettre des images de médias étrangers mais pas à diffuser leurs propres
programmes. Selon d'autres informations récoltées par RSF, cette décision
survient après la diffusion de plusieurs débats politiques qui critiquaient
le régime. Mis à part RTA et Canal 2, il n'existe qu'une seule autre chaîne
privée, qui programme principalement des films.

Le ministre de la Communication s'est attaqué publiquement aux médias qui,
selon lui, "dérogent de manière répétitive et intentionnelle aux
sacro-saints principes universels de la profession en s'immisçant
intempestivement dans la vie privée des citoyens, fussent-ils des corps
constitués". Enfin, le ministre a menacé les promoteurs de médias
audiovisuels de redressements fiscaux et parafiscaux.

Pour tout renseignement complémentaire, veuillez contacter Jean-François
Julliard, RSF, 5, rue Geoffroy Marie, Paris 75009, France, tél: +33 1 44 83
84 84, téléc: +33 1 45 23 11 51, courrier électronique: afrique@rsf.org,
Internet: http://www.rsf.org

RSF est responsable de toute information contenue dans cette alerte. En
citant cette information, prière de bien vouloir l'attribuer à RSF.
_______________________________________________________________
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_______________________________________________________________

eritrea: CPJ receives response from U.S. Defense Department

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13952

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has received a response from the U.S. Defense Department to a letter sent on February 5, 2003, to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. CPJ had written to Rumsfeld expressing concern about 18 journalists in Eritrea who are currently being held incommunicado, as well as the Eritrean government's decision to ban all private press in the country. In December 2002, Rumsfeld met with Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki while visiting Eritrea to investigate possible sites for a U.S. military base. When asked at a press conference about the country's abysmal press freedom record Rumsfeld noted that Eritrea "is a sovereign nation, and they arrange themselves and deal with their problems in ways that they feel are appropriate to them."
IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________

PRESS RELEASE - ERITREA/UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

10 March 2003

CPJ receives response from U.S. Defense Department

SOURCE: Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), New York

**For further information about the Eritrean government's crackdown on
private media, see IFEX alerts of 12 February 2003, 11 December, 20 and 19
September 2002 and others**

(CPJ/IFEX) - The following is a 7 March 2003 CPJ press release:

ERITREA: CPJ receives response from U.S. Defense Department

New York, March 7, 2003-The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) yesterday
received a response from the U.S. Defense Department to a letter sent on
February 5, 2003, to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. CPJ had written
to Rumsfeld expressing concern about 18 journalists in Eritrea who are
currently being held incommunicado, as well as the Eritrean government's
decision to ban all private press in the country. (Click here for to read
CPJ's letter: <http://www.cpj.org/protests/03ltrs/Rumsfeld_05feb03.html>.)

In December 2002, Rumsfeld met with Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki while
visiting Eritrea to investigate possible sites for a U.S. military base.
When asked at a press conference about the country's abysmal press freedom
record Rumsfeld noted that Eritrea "is a sovereign nation, and they arrange
themselves and deal with their problems in ways that they feel are
appropriate to them."

In response to CPJ's letter, Theresa Whelan, acting deputy assistant
secretary of defense for international security affairs, Africa, wrote: "The
Secretary is well aware of the Government of Eritrea's human rights abuses
and discussed their impact on our relationship during his visit. He strongly
pointed out to President Isaias that failure to resolve these issues would
harm our ability to proceed toward regularizing our defense cooperation
regardless of the advantages cooperation offered both sides."

CPJ is a New York-based, independent, nonprofit organization that works to
safeguard press freedom worldwide. For more information about press
conditions in Eritrea, visit www.cpj.org

For further information, contact Yves Sorokobi (ext. 112), Wacuka Mungai
(ext. 106) or Adam Posluns (ext. 107) at CPJ, 330 Seventh Ave., New York, NY
10001, U.S.A., tel: +1 212 465 1004, fax: +1 212 465 9568, e-mail:
africa@cpj.org, ysorokobi@cpj.org, wmungai@cpj.org, Internet:
http://www.cpj.org/

The information contained in this press release is the sole responsibility
of CPJ. In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit
CPJ.
_________________________________________________________________
DISTRIBUTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
EXCHANGE (IFEX) CLEARING HOUSE
489 College Street, Suite 403,Toronto (ON) M6G 1A5 CANADA
tel: +1 416 515 9622 fax: +1 416 515 7879
alerts e-mail: alerts@ifex.org general e-mail: ifex@ifex.org
Internet site: http://www.ifex.org/
_________________________________________________________________

GUINEA-BISSAU: Editor of state radio suspended

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13950

The editor of Guinea-Bissau's state-run RDN radio station was suspended last Wednesday by the government for covering the return home of an opposition politician, the Portuguese news agency, Lusa, reported.
U N I T E D N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)

GUINEA-BISSAU: Editor of state radio suspended

ABIDJAN, 13 March (IRIN) - The editor of Guinea-Bissau's state-run RDN radio station was suspended last Wednesday by the government for covering the return home of an opposition politician, the Portuguese news agency, Lusa, reported on Thursday.

RDN's news editor, Ensa Seidi, was suspended for defying instructions not to cover the return on Saturday of opposition leader and former prime minister Francisco Fadul. "The suspension of RDN's news editor Ensa Seidi was the latest incident in a recent government crackdown on opposition politicians and media ahead of April 20 legislative elections," Lusa said.

RDN's director-general, Malam Lamine Djatá, was quoted by Lusa as saying that Seidi would answer two in-house inquiries for having "disobeyed" express orders not to report Fadul's return to the capital, Bissau, from Portugal.

Fadul, who had spent more than two years in self-imposed exile in Lisbon, was transitional prime minister in 1998-99 following the military's ouster of President Nino Vieira. He recently formed a political party to challenge President Kumba Yala's ruling Social Renovation Party in the upcoming elections.

Late last month, Guinea-Bissau closed its most influential private radio station, Radio Bombolom, which the government believed was sympathetic to the opposition. The closure was ordered even though international and national rights groups had appealed to Yala's government to allow the station to continue broadcasting.

Guinea-Bissau has been in the throes of a political and economic crisis for months now. Yala's government has responded to growing criticism by arresting those who speak out against its policies. The April elections were called after Yala dissolved parliament, accusing its members of sabotage.
[ENDS]

IRIN-WA
Tel: +225 22-40-4440
Fax: +225 22-41-9339
Email: IRIN-WA@irin.ci
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nigeria: critical role of the media in election process

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13911

Following the advocacy and legal victory that led to the existence of the current 30 political parties in Nigeria, it has become critically important to review the role of the media, especially the broadcast media, in the electoral process. This is imperative given the capacity of the media and, in particular, the broadcast media to influence and shape public opinion. This is according to the text of a press conference called by The Media for Democracy in Nigeria (MFD) Group And CREDO on equitable access to the broadcast media by all political parties.
TEXT OF PRESS CONFERENCE
by:
The Media for Democracy in Nigeria (MFD) Group And CREDO
On Equitable Access to the Broadcast Media by all Political Parties

At the International Press Centre Lagos 11-03-03

INTRODUCTION

The press is called as part of a process to develop principles and guidelines for equitable access by the various political parties to the broadcast media during this period of electioneering campaigns and beyond.

The project is being implemented by the Media for Democracy Group in Nigeria (MFD) comprising Media Rights Agenda (MRA), the Independent Journalism Centre (IJC), Journalists for Democratic Rights (JODER), and the International Press Centre (IPC), in collaboration with an international non-governmental organisation, CREDO for Freedom of Expression and Associated Rights, which is based in Dakar and London.

Following the advocacy and legal victory that led to the existence of the current 30 political parties in Nigeria, it has become critically important to review the role of the media, especially the broadcast media, in the electoral process. This is imperative given the capacity of the media and, in particular, the broadcast media to influence and shape public opinion.

The failure to carry out such a process in the past has led to violent conflicts triggered in part by the use of broadcast media to undermine election outcomes and democratic principles. The &#8220;Verdict 83&#8221; election programme on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), for instance, attracted a lot of criticism for its highly partisan coverage of the 1983 elections in favour of the incumbent National Party of Nigeria (NPN) government. The importance of avoiding a repeat of such a scenario cannot be overstated considering Nigeria&#8217;s recent political history since the June 12, 1993 elections and the lessons learnt from events in other African countries such as Sierra Leone, Liberia, Zimbabwe and Cote D&#8217;Ivoire.

A major cause of this problem is the tendency by those in power at both the federal and state levels to view the public broadcasting stations as the propaganda arms of their governments and, therefore, to use them to advance partisan or personal interests while preventing access to these media by other stakeholders, including opponents and opposition parties.

We believe that the broadcast media, particularly the publicly funded media, have an obligation not to biased in their coverage of the political process, and in particular to give all parties equitable access as part of their social responsibilities to the society.

Since the government has neglected to carry out necessary reforms, the civil society has to live up to its role of safeguarding of democratic principles, including ensuring an open, accountable, transparent and democratic electoral process.

The partners in this project propose to organize a one-day conference in Abuja later this month in an effort to develop an agreed set of standards for the coverage of the electioneering process by the broadcast media. Participants at the conference will include: representatives (management or senior editorial staff) of the NTA and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) at the federal and zonal levels; representatives (management or senior editorial staff) of public broadcast media (radio and television) at state level; representatives of key private/independent media; representatives of all the 30 political parties; representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); representatives of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC); representatives of other various journalist associations and media bodies; as well as other stakeholders.

KEY ISSUES

Broadly speaking, the key issues which need to addressed are as follows:

1) How the editorial orientation and policies of the publicly funded broadcast media (radio and television) at the federal level, i.e. the NTA and the FRCN, can be reviewed in order to ensure that they do not deny other political parties democratic visibility and that they are not used as mere propaganda arms of the ruling party.

2) How the editorial orientation and policies of the publicly funded broadcast media (radio and television) controlled by the 36 state governments can be reviewed in order to ensure that they do not deny other political parties democratic visibility and that they are not used as mere propaganda arms of the ruling parties in the states.

Specifically, we propose to table the following issues for discussion and, if possible, seek agreement on them by all stakeholders attending the conference:

i. That all publicly funded broadcast media must, as part of their social responsibilities, commit themselves to giving regular and free air time to voter education programmes covering issues such as the voting process, venues, time of elections, the political parties and candidates running for elections.

ii. That a limited number of brief and free slots for electoral campaign broadcasts be given to all political parties to outline their programmes and candidates for federal, state and local government elections. This is vital to voter education and will ensure that at least all parties and candidates are given the minimum visibility necessary for genuine democracy. This will be particularly important during the last month of the campaigns.

iii. That a ceiling be placed on the total number of election campaign broadcasts that any one political party and its candidates can run over the period of the campaigns. This will prevent the outright buying of the elections by parties backed by richer members of society to the detriment of the poorer parties.

iv. That no discounts be given to any one political party for paid election campaign broadcasts and that if discounts are given, they should not be selective, but should be across board and done in a fair and transparent manner.

v. That all campaign adverts must be ethical, decent and must avoid incitement, hate speech, and defamation.

vi. That campaign adverts of any political party must not be rejected to the advantage of another party. Adverts may only be rejected if they fail to satisfy the requirements stated in Paragraph v. above.

vii. That there must be a right of reply and correction for candidates that may have been defamed.

viii. That the publicly owned media should not to be used by incumbent political parties to attack other political parties, and in particular that government and party officials must not intervene in or undermine the editorial independence of the broadcast media. This will also cover opinion polls and election projections.

ix. That the safety, physical security and job security of journalists, editorial and management staff of public and private media houses that exercise the right to editorial independence from political intervention must be guaranteed.

x. That the principles of fairness, balance and equitable news coverage of political party campaign activities be observed especially during major news broadcasts. This should include distinguishing between government activities and campaigns.

xi. That there should be fair, balanced and equitable coverage of election debates.

xii. That there should be no broadcast of any speculative results that may truncate the will of the electorate and lead to conflict or violence based on electoral disputes. Any results broadcast should at a minimum be based on results obtained from polling stations and agreed by agents of all parties present.

xiii. That disputed results should not be broadcast in such a manner that is inflammatory and could lead to violent conflict.

These issues are based on universally agreed standards for election coverage and the principles of relevant international instruments to which Nigeria subscribes.

In the interim, we are constrained to condemn the widespread commercialization of political news, which we find unprofessional and unethical and hereby call on media houses and individual journalists to desist from such a practice.

We also urge the editorial or management staff of publicly or privately owned broadcast media organisations in the country to discontinue their involvement in the campaign activities of any political party, particularly their inclusion on the campaign teams of political parties or candidates.

Media organisations must also ensure that all advertorials are clearly marked as such. Sponsors of adverts must be named or mentioned.

We believe that the media and in particular the publicly funded broadcast media must not be used to undermine the democratic process, and therefore call upon all political parties, government officials, INEC, the NBC, the broadcast and print media, professional associations and unions within the media, and the rest of civil society to join us in preventing such an occurrence.

Signed:

Edetaen Ojo
Media Rights Agenda
Executive Director

Sola Isola
Executive Director
Independent Journalism Centre

Adewale Adeoye
Chairman
Journalists for Democratic Rights

Tunde Aremu
MIS Manager
International Press Centre

All for the
Media for Democracy Group in Nigeria
Contact: International Press Centre Lagos
42 Ijaye Rd Ikeja Lagos
Tel/Fax: 234-1-4921292, 234-1-4925568
email- ipc@ipcng.org

And

Rotimi Sankore
Coordinator
CREDO for Freedom of Expression and Associated Rights

Ends

For further information, contact our International Office:
Centre for Research Education & Development Of
- [CREDO]- Freedom of Expression & Associated Rights.
73-75 Newington Causeway
London SE1 6BD, UK
Tel: + 44 20 77875501
Fax:+ 44 20 77875502
E-mail: Media &#8211; media@credonet.org , General &#8211; info@credonet.org


CREDO is an International human rights organisation based in Senegal and London and focusing on work in Africa. CREDO believes that freedom of expression and other strongly associated rights, are major platforms on which all civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights stand. CREDO further believes that &#8220;without distinction of any kind such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status&#8221; everyone is entitled to these rights as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights, The African Charter on Peoples and Human Rights and other similar documents.

SIERRA LEONE: Journalist set free after four months in prison

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13951

Paul Kamara, founder and editor of the privately-owned daily For Di People, was released on 11 March after serving four months of a six-month sentence for libelling a judge. The authorities granted him two months' remission of sentence.
**We apologise for any cross-posting - The following is being forwarded
exactly as received**

To: IFEX Autolist (other news of interest)
From: Reporters sans frontières (RSF), afrique@rsf.org

Press freedom
12 March 2003

SIERRA LEONE

Journalist set free after four months in prison

Paul Kamara, founder and editor of the privately-owned daily For Di People,
was released on 11 March after serving four months of a six-month sentence
for libelling a judge. The authorities granted him two months' remission of
sentence.

Kamara announced at a press conference on leaving Freetown's Pademba Road
prison that he would go back to work as soon as possible. He challenged the
legality of his arrest and called for the repeal of the laws under which he
was convicted, which limit press freedom. He was the only journalist in
prison in Sierra Leone.

The Freetown high court originally sentenced Kamara on 12 November 2002 to
nine months in prison and a fine of 4.5 million leones (2,100 euros), and
banned the newspaper from appearing for six months. Three days later, this
sentence was reduced to six months in prison and a fine of 4,500 leones
(about 2 euros).

The conviction was a result of the complaint brought on 5 April 2002 by
appeal court judge Methland Tholla Thomson over several articles calling him
a thief, a criminal and a constitutional swindler, and the publication of
his photo with the caption: "This man is dangerous."

Kamara is one of Sierra Leone's best known journalists. He has received
several international awards for his work and he is a human rights activist.
He has been jailed several times in recent years.

Liberté de la presse
12 mars 2003

SIERRA LEONE

Un journaliste libéré après quatre mois de détention

Paul Kamara, fondateur et directeur de publication du quotidien privé For di
People, a été libéré le 11 mars 2003 après avoir passé quatre mois en
prison. Les autorités lui ont accordé une remise de peine de deux mois.

A sa sortie de la prison de Pademba Road (Freetown), le journaliste a donné
une conférence de presse pour annoncer qu'il allait reprendre son travail au
plus vite. Il a également contesté la légalité de son arrestation et demandé
l'abrogation des textes de loi liberticides qui ont entraîné sa
condamnation. Il était le seul journaliste emprisonné dans le pays.

Paul Kamara avait été condamné le 12 novembre 2002, par la Haute Cour de
Freetown, à neuf mois de prison et à une amende de 4,5 millions de leones
(environ 2 100 euros) pour "diffamation" et "calomnie". Son quotidien For di
People avait également été suspendu pour six mois. Trois jours plus tard, sa
peine avait été ramenée à six mois de prison et à une amende de 4 500 leones
(environ 2 euros).

Le 5 avril, suite à la parution de plusieurs articles dans For Di People
traitant le juge de la cour d'appel, Methland Tholla Thomson, de "voleur",
"criminel" et "fraudeur constitutionnel", et à la
publication de sa photographie légendée "cet homme est dangereux", celui-ci
avait porté plainte contre Paul Kamara et son quotidien.

Le directeur de For di People est l'un des journalistes les plus connus du
pays. Il a reçu plusieurs prix internationaux pour son travail et milite
activement pour la défense des droits de l'homme
dans son pays. Au cours de ces dernières années, il a été emprisonné à
plusieurs reprises.
--
Reporters sans frontières
Bureau Afrique - Africa desk
afrique@rsf.org, africa@rsf.org
www.rsf.org
Tel : 33 1 44 83 84 84
Fax : 33 1 45 23 11 51
5, rue Geoffroy-Marie
75009 Paris
France

**The information contained in this autolist item is the sole responsibility
of RSF**

**RSF est responsable de toute information contenue dans ce message**

somalia: call for media to join peace talks

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13953

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ)has renewed calls on the regional Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD) in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, responsible for organising the current Somalia peace talks, to guarantee formal participation by the Eastern Africa Media Institute (EAMI) Somalia Chapter as the formal civil society representative of the Somali media community.
IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________

PRESS RELEASE - SOMALIA

12 March 2003

IFJ calls for media community's participation in peace talks, legal
protection of press freedom

SOURCE: International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Brussels

(IFJ/IFEX) - The following is an 11 March 2003 IFJ media release:

World Journalists Support Demand for Somali Media Delegation To Join Peace
Conference in Kenya

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today renewed calls on the
regional Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD) in the Kenyan
capital, Nairobi, responsible for organising the current Somalia peace
talks, to guarantee formal participation by the Eastern Africa Media
Institute (EAMI) Somalia Chapter as the formal civil society representative
of the Somali media community.

Last month, on 19 February, the IFJ formally approached the conference
organizers on the same issue. However, the Somali media community are still
denied the right to participate fully. Almost all civil society groups in
Somalia are represented, except for the media. The IFJ strongly believes
that journalists should be involved in all policy discussions on media
regulation, freedom of the press and freedom of expression.

The EAMI Somalia Chapter is lobbying for a media clause on press freedom,
freedom of expression, and general media regulations to be included in the
future provisional charter for Somalia's transitional administration.

The IFJ, which is the world's largest organization of journalists,
representing more than 500,000 journalists in over 100 countries, supports
formal Somali media representation, and sees the legal protection of press
freedom and a climate where journalists can work without fear or oppression
as vital to Somalia's process of attaining democracy.

The peace talks are aimed at establishing a broadly-based government in
Somalia. The talks, which opened on 15 October last year, have already seen
controversy over the number of participants and the allocation of seats to
the various groups.

For further information, contact the IFJ, International Press Center,
Residence Palace 155, Rue de la Loi - Bloc C, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium, tel:
+322 235 2200 or +322 235 22 01, fax: +322 235 22 19, e-mail:
safety@ifj.org, Internet: http://www.ifj.org/

The information contained in this press release is the sole responsibility
of IFJ. In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit
IFJ.
_________________________________________________________________
DISTRIBUTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
EXCHANGE (IFEX) CLEARING HOUSE
489 College Street, Suite 403, Toronto (ON) M6G 1A5 CANADA
tel: +1 416 515 9622 fax: +1 416 515 7879
alerts e-mail: alerts@ifex.org general e-mail: ifex@ifex.org
Internet site: http://www.ifex.org/
_________________________________________________________________

zimbabwe: MINISTER REITERATES INTENTION TO REVISIT MEDIA LAWS

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13949

Zimbabwe&#8217;s Minister of State for Information and Publicity Professor Jonathan Moyo has reiterated his intention to amend the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and the Broadcasting Services Act (BSA). MISA-Zimbabwe however notes that the proposed amendments amount to nothing as far as democratizing the laws is concerned.
MEDIA ALERT


13 JANUARY 2003



MINISTER REITERATES INTENTION TO REVISIT MEDIA LAWS.



Zimbabwe&#8217;s Minister of State for Information and Publicity Professor Jonathan Moyo has reiterated his intention to amend the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and the Broadcasting Services Act (BSA). MISA-Zimbabwe however notes that the proposed amendments amount to nothing as far as democratizing the laws is concerned.



Minister Moyo made the announcement in an address to Army Officer in Harare on 12 March 2003. He also announced that the Department of Information and Publicity is also coming up with modalities on how to licence community-broadcasting stations. In the BSA Amendment Bill available, there is however no mention of any amendments to the &#8220;Community broadcasting&#8221; sections. Minister Moyo said that community broadcasters might be licensed for up to ten years and these licenses would be renewable. Minister Moyo said that AIPPA had created a lot of controversy, but he believes that the Act is meant to open up information on various national issues.

&#8220;Every nation is entitled to protect its interest through the legal means available to it. AIPPA should be seen as a defence to democracy, our democracy not anyone&#8217;s democracy, but our democracy based on our history of cultural heritage,&#8221; said Moyo.

The Minister did not fully explain what he meant by his statements. He however went further to say that the amendments to these laws are meant to clarify that position.

&#8220;We are amending it to clarify that position. We are not amending it because somebody has put us under a lot of pressure but because the time it was enunciated the temperatures were very high,&#8221; said Moyo.

&#8220;Now its time that we have to sit down and rationalize because the same environment that existed then might come back and we want to ensure that there would be no leakages. We believe the message was sent and it was heard,&#8221; said Moyo.

Under AIPPA 21 media workers all from the private media have been arrested to date. Many have been arrested more than once. Many more have also been arrested, some under Zimbabwe&#8217;s laws enacted in the colonial era such as the Entertainment and Censorship Act, the Protected Areas Act and the newly passed Public Order and Security Act. It must also be noted that since the enactment of the BSA in April 2001, no private broadcasters have been licensed. On the contrary Joy TV closed and Voice of the People Communications Trust (VOP) had its offices bombed.



In reports broadcast by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) Minister Moyo was quoted as having said that the amendments are being made because of internal and external pressure being exerted on Zimbabwe. The South Africa President Thabo Mbeki and His Nigerian counterpart Olusegun Obasanjo have already come out in the open that the Zimbabwe government is amending its repressive laws. MISA-Zimbabwe notes that although these laws are being amended the amendments are not positive at all as they seek, in the case of AIPPA, to entrench the arbitrary and qausi judicial powers of the Media and Information Commission. Although removing the criminal element in section 80 as relating to the writing and publishing of falsehoods, the Amendment seeks to extend the definition of a &#8220;journalists&#8221; to affect even those involved in civic education. Anyone who publishes anything, be it a church newsletter or on HIV/AIDS will be deemed to be a journalist.[1] The BSA Amendment Bill defines or adds penalties of breaching the licence regulations that were left out in the BSA Act. Again there is nothing on Community broadcasting as announced by the Minister. The BSA amendment Bill is without any effect of the important and repressive sections of the law. MISA-Zimbabwe has conveyed these concerns to the High Commissioners of South Africa, Nigeria and Australia in separate meetings in February and March. Promises were made by the High Commissioners that this information will be passed to their respective leaders.



END


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1] Those interested in the full version of the MISA-Zimbabwe critique of the amendments can contact MISA-Zimbabwe to get a copy


Rashweat Mukundu
Research and Information Officer
MISA-Zimbabwe
221 Fife Ave
Box HR 8113
Harare
Zimbabwe
Phone 00 263 4 712 841 , 735 441/2
Mobile 00 263 4 11 602 685
E Mail misa@mweb.co.zw

zimbabwe: Publishing company executives arrested

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/media/13947

William Nyamangara, the managing director of Sovereign Publishers, and another company executive, Mhlabene Bhebhe, were detained at the Harare central police station on 11 March 2003, for allegedly printing subversive materials.
IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________

ALERT - ZIMBABWE

17 March 2003

Publishing company executives arrested

SOURCE: Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), Windhoek

(MISA/IFEX) - William Nyamangara, the managing director of Sovereign
Publishers, and another company executive, Mhlabene Bhebhe, were detained at
the Harare central police station on 11 March 2003, for allegedly printing
subversive materials.

The police raided the offices of Sovereign Publishers and confiscated
120,000 pamphlets belonging to the opposition Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC). The content of the pamphlets could not be established.

Nyamangara told the media that his lawyer Linda Cook accompanied him to the
police station. "The police said the documents we were printing were
subversive and said we should accompany them to the Law and Order Section at
the Harare central police station, where they recorded statements from us,"
said Nyamangara.

After recording the statements the two were released. The police indicated
that they would proceed by way of summons.

For further information, contact Zoe Titus or Kaitira Kandjii, Regional
Information Coordinator, MISA, Street Address: 21 Johann Albrecht Street,
Mailing Address; Private Bag 13386 Windhoek, Namibia, tel: +264 61 232975,
fax: +264 61 248016, e-mail: research@misa.org or kkandjii@misa.org,
Internet: http://www.misa.org/

The information contained in this alert is the sole responsibility of MISA.
In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit MISA.
_________________________________________________________________
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zimbabwe: Zimbabwe openly flouts African Union statutes

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1056

Zimbabwe, a declared pan-Africanist nation that claims to respect and uphold all the statutes and treaties that bind the continental club of African countries, the African Union (AU), is openly flouting conventions and declarations governing human rights and freedoms, especially in relation to freedom of expression, says the Media Institute of Southern Africa.

BURUNDI: 13 killed in Ruyigi fighting

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32865

An army officer, his bodyguard and 13 rebels died last Thursday during heavy fighting between government forces and rebels of the Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie-Forces pour la defense de la democratie (CNDD-FDD)faction led by Pierre Nkurunziza, a Burundi Defence Ministry official told IRIN.

car: rebels control capital

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2853429.stm

Central African Republic rebel leader General Francois Bozize has suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament after his forces captured the capital, Bangui. The rebels, who are estimated to number about 1,000, apparently met little resistance from government forces when they marched into the capital on Saturday.

DRC: Civilians at risk of revenge killings in Ituri

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1065

All parties involved in the renewed combat in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo must prevent killings and other abuses of civilians by their troops, Human Rights Watch says. &#8220;Many military operations in this area have turned into slaughter of civilians or other kinds of abuses, like rape, torture and pillage,&#8221; says Alison Des Forges, senior adviser to the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch.

eritrea: Drought Worsens As World Attention Focused Elsewhere

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190005.html

With the world's attention focused elsewhere, aid officials in Eritrea say this tiny nation in Africa's Horn is quietly approaching a humanitarian disaster. More than two thirds of Eritrea's 3.3 million people are facing the spectre of famine as the country confronts its worst drought since it officially gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993. Appeals for international assistance began last summer, but the response so far has not been as swift as aid officials and government representatives had hoped.

LIBERIA: Civilians flee key central town

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32869

An exodus of civilians from the central Liberian town of Gbarnga, 150 km north of the capital, Monrovia, began on Sunday as clashes intensified in nearby Gbalatua between government forces and Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) rebels.

NIGERIA: Death toll mounts as violence escalates in Niger Delta

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32922

Violence has escalated in southern Nigeria's Niger Delta, with militants from one community attacking villages populated by a rival ethnic group and storming an oil facility, officials and residents said on Tuesday.

NIGERIA: Five killed as troops, militants clash in Niger Delta

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32871

Clashes between navy troops and ethnic Ijaw militants near Nigeria's southern oil town of Warri resulted in the death of five civilians, heightening tension in the town and other parts of the Niger Delta, community activists said on Sunday.

SOMALIA: Ceasefire again violated as fighting resumes in Mogadishu

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32912

Heavy fighting has again broken out in the Medina district of Mogadishu, according to sources in the Somali capital. The fighting pits militias loyal to faction leader Muse Sudi Yalahow against those led by his former right-hand man, Umar Mahmud Muhammad Finish.

somalia: Negotiating a Blueprint for Peace

2003-03-20

http://www.crisisweb.org

Somalia's peace talks are in danger of collapsing and need stronger leadership from mediators, the international community and Somali factions themselves. A serious problem is that faction leaders and civil society representatives are self-appointed, with real risk that the negotiation will produce another "government in exile" unable to provide a working administration inside the country that represents popular will, says the International Crisis Group.

SOMALIA: Talks to start on provisional government

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32887

The Kenyan chairman of the Somali peace talks, Bethwel Kiplagat, said on Tuesday the conference would soon start work on setting up a provisional, broad-based federal government for Somalia, but appealed for guidance on how this should be done.

South Africa: Anti-War Coalition calls to action

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1066

The Anti-War Coalition has called for the &#8220;broadest possible democratically minded forces to register strong protests against the likely slaughter of innocent men, women and children in Iraq&#8221;.

south africa: Protest against SA arms in possible Iraq war

2003-03-20

http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=11&o=17160

About 100 people from the Anti-War Coalition (AWC) gathered outside Denel in Kempton Park on Friday to demonstrate against the state-owned arms company's supply of military equipment worth millions of rands to Britain and the United States, which could be used in the war against Iraq.

south africa: SA Plays Down Africa's Vote in the UN

2003-03-20

http://www.ipsnews.net/africa/interna.asp?idnews=16648

South Africa is playing down its efforts to get the three African countries -- Angola, Cameroon and Guinea -- sitting on the United Nations Security Council to vote against a resolution that would clear the way for the United States to launch an attack on Iraq. South African foreign affairs officials insist the country is not lobbying for the African nations represented on the Security Council to vote against the resolution. ''We are not lobbying anybody. Those countries are aware of African Union (AU) and Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) resolutions against the war,'' says a spokesperson for the South African Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Ronnie Mamoepa.

southern africa: assessing the crisis

2003-03-20

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200203/cmselect/cmintdev/116/116.pdf

In early 2002 southern Africa was gripped by food shortages. These were just one aspect of a complex humanitarian crisis, with impacts ranging across all sectors, from agriculture, to education and health. This report, from the International Development Committee of the UK House of Commons, says that if the countries of southern Africa are to escape the vicious circle of vulnerability, crisis, poverty and HIV/ AIDS, governments, donors, NGOs, the private sector and international organisations will have to work together more effectively, and work together regionally.

southern africa: call to reject war

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/conflict/13918

The Southern African People&#8217;s Solidarity Network (SAPSN) has made an urgent call to the Angolan representative on the UN Security Council and other African member states of the UN to remember the devastating effects of a US state-sponsored war in Angola over many decades and to reject the proposed resolution in the UN Security Council designed to legitimate the war on Iraq.

Appeal of the Southern African People&#8217;s Solidarity Network (SAPSN) to the Representative of Angola on the UN Security Council, Ambassador Ismail Martins; and all African governments.

As a network of civil society organizations engaged on the substance and effects of national, regional, continental and international economic agreements and institutions, we are also conscious of the contradictions between
·Our concerns with economic development and global and national equity and
·The lack of human rights guarantees, democracy and peace in our countries.

On the basis of these concerns we met in Malawi in November 2001 to discuss these issues. We noted that
·War is contradictory to the fulfillment for fundamental human rights;
·Recalled the devastating effects of wars over many decades in Africa, to the present day;
·Extended our solidarity to peoples all over the world suffering from wars and all forms of terrorism;
·Expressed our support to the international peoples movement mobilizing against all such wars;

On the basis of these commitments, in the light of the latest drive by the governments of the US, UK and Spain to secure some legitimization for their war aims by the UN Security Council, we urgently call on the representative of Angola on the UN Security Council, and other African member states of the UN to;
·Recall the devastating effects of US state sponsored war in Angola over many decades;
·Reject the proposed resolution in the UN Security Council designed to legitimate the US UK war on Iraq

We call upon all other People&#8217;s organizations in Southern Africa and the rest of the continent to endorse this message and circulate it widely.

SUDAN: End of first round of talks on disputed areas

2003-03-20

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32913

Key talks between the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLA/M) on the disputed areas of the Nuba mountains, Southern Blue Nile and Abyei has achieved "limited progress", Kenya's special envoy to the talks, Lazarus Sumbeiywo, said on Wednesday.

sudan: Sudanese government continues military assault

2003-03-20

http://www.crisisweb.org

As peace talks resume, the Khartoum government is violating the cessation of hostilities agreement it signed 15 October 2002 with the SPLA rebels and reaffirmed on 4 February 2003. Government forces and government-sponsored militias are attacking the Western Upper Nile oilfields in an effort to dislodge the SPLA and expand oil development. The primary victims are civilians. The fighting does not immediately threaten the peace talks. The International Crisis Group says if this grave breach is not challenged by the international community, however, it will set a precedent that the parties have no reason to take other parts of the peace process seriously, including any final agreement and accompanying international guarantees.

Uganda/Rwanda: tension mounts

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2856211.stm

Uganda has warned Rwanda against fighting a "proxy war" in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This follows a Rwandan threat to send its troops back into DR Congo unless Uganda also withdrew.

uganda: peace talks fail

2003-03-20

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2854067.stm

An attempt to hold peace talks between the presidential peace team and rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has failed. This is the second time peace talks have failed to take place recently. This has led to question marks over the future of efforts to end the 17-year war.

Africa: ICT and Poverty: The indisputable link

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1095

The author argues that ICTs can be harnessed for poverty alleviation, but maintains that lack of ICTs is often a cause of poverty. The study described in this paper correlates poverty, using the human development index, with ICTs and finds that the higher the HDR rank, the higher the ICT indicator values.

Attempts to bridge the 'digital divide' could lead Africa down a costly path

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/internet/13985

Poor planning, expensive software and under-utilisation make computers a costly mistake for some African schools. Research published by id21 Insights Education shows that the yearly cost of supplying and maintaining one African school with 10 second-hand computers, software and technical support could be as high as the cost of 2000 text books or 3.6 teachers. Good planning and utilisation - such as making computers available for community use outside school hours - and free 'open source' software however, can lower costs dramatically.

id21 News Release
March 6, 2003

Attempts to bridge the 'digital divide' could lead Africa down a costly path

Poor planning, expensive software and under-utilisation make computers a costly mistake for some African schools. Research published by id21 Insights Education shows that the yearly cost of supplying and maintaining one African school with 10 second-hand computers, software and technical support could be as high as the cost of 2000 text books or 3.6 teachers. Good planning and utilisation - such as making computers available for community use outside school hours - and free 'open source' software however, can lower costs dramatically.

The publication, which is guest edited by Yusuf Sayed, former deputy director of the Centre for International Education, University of Sussex, raises questions about the use of information communication technologies for education in developing countries, including the suitability of proprietary software, such as Microsoft's, for which users must normally buy a licence, and cannot modify to their own needs. Sayed comments that open source software and operating systems such as Linux, which are free to use and allow users to view and adapt the underlying source code, are a 'practical way forward for many developing countries and pose serious challenges to the monopoly of large software firms'.

Sayed's comments are timely as they coincide with a heated debate in Africa following the South African government's acceptance last year of free Microsoft software for use in its schools. The government's agreement with Microsoft stood at odds with its own Advisory Council on Innovation (NACI) recommendation that open source software 'has the potential to empower people in ways that proprietary software simply does not allow'. NACI's recommendations were recently paraphrased in a proposed strategy published this January by the South African government's Information Technology Officers' Council, which adds that because open source software 'offers people the freedom to probe, modify, learn from and customise the software to suit their needs' it can be 'an especially useful tool to allow developing countries to leapfrog into the information age'.

id21's publication of Insights Education was welcomed by Tony Roberts, Executive Director of the charity Computer Aid International, the largest not-for-profit provider of refurbished Pentium PCs to schools in developing countries. For Roberts, the issue is not just about nurturing African ICT expertise, but also a simple question of cost. 'It is a fact' Roberts commented, 'that there is no Ministry of Education anywhere on the continent of Africa that can afford to buy licensed copies of Microsoft software. The only options are to use Microsoft unlicensed (most common) to use Linux (increasingly common) or to beg the local Microsoft representative for a few charity handouts (least common)'.

This is precisely why Computer Aid has recently established a partnership with the newly launched Open Source Foundation for Africa to showcase low cost, open source ICT solutions at a series of conferences and exhibitions across Africa in 2003. 'We cannot allow the digital revolution,' Roberts comments, 'to be yet another technological revolution which entirely leaves Africa behind and further entrenches underdevelopment'.

ENDS

For more information contact Sally Gainsbury, id21 Research Editor, on +44 (0) 1273 877305 or s.gainsbury@ids.ac.uk

Notes for Editors

* Insights Education, published by id21, a UK Department for International Development-funded research reporting service, can be found online at http://www.id21.org/insights/insights-ed01/index.html
*
* The South African National Advisory Council on Innovation document Open Software & Open Standards in South Africa: A Critical Issue for Addressing the Digital Divide can be found at http://www.naci.org.za/docs/opensource.html . The extract cited here is taken from page 12
*
* The South African Government Information Technology Officers' Council document Using Open Source Software in the South African Government: A Proposed Strategy can be found at http://www.oss.gov.za/docs/OSS_Strategy_v3.pdf The extract cited here is taken from page 8-9
*
* Further information about the Open Source Foundation for Africa can be found at their website http://osfa.allafrica.com/
*
* Further information about Computer Aid International can be found at their website http://www.computeraid.org/
*
* Further useful information on the digital divide may be found at http://www.bridges.org
*
* id21 is a fast-track research reporting service funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID). id21's website http://www.id21.org provides instant access to a fully-searchable database of over 2000 reports on current social, economic, education and health research on developing and middle income countries. To subscribe to periodic email alerts on new research visit http://www.id21.org/id21-email/email.html
*
* id21 publishes its thematic review Insights - available in print and online every two months. Forthcoming issues include chronic poverty, water, sanitation and hygiene, and the private health sector. For subscription details and back issues visit http://www.id21.org/insights/index.html
*
* To receive further id21 news releases by fax, post or email, send your details to Sally Gainsbury, id21 Research Editor, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9RE, UK. Telephone: +44 (0) 1273 877305; Fax: +44 (0) 1273 877335; Email: s.gainsbury@ids.ac.uk

Bridging the digital divide

2003-03-20

http://www.tectonic.co.za/default.php?action=view&id=112

NGO Bridges.org recently launched a two-year study comparing the use of open source and proprietary software in Africa. Tectonic recently caught up with programme manager Philipp Schmidt to get some more information on the study.

Gender evaluation methodology for internet and ICTs

2003-03-20

http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1090

Gender evaluation methodology is a guide to integrate a gender analysis into evaluations of initiatives which use Information and Communication Technologies for social change. Gender evaluation methodology provides a means for determining whether ICTs are really improving women's lives and gender relations as well as promoting positive change at the individual, institutional, community and broader social levels.

Internet Access for African Countries: Exploring the factors that hinder and help the development of Internet access in Africa

2003-03-20

http://www.comminit.com/ctrends2002/sld-7026.html

This article looks at the current state of Internet access in the African countries of Ghana (in West Africa), Kenya (in East Africa) and South Africa. The different approaches for hooking onto the Internet backbone are discussed with a view to the availability and cost to Internet services for the community at large.

new Plan Will Provide Africa with Cheap Biotech

2003-03-20

http://www.oneworld.net/ips4/2003/03/13-1.shtml

A leading U.S. charity revealed Wednesday a new initiative that it says will assist research and development workers in Africa to access and manage biotechnology to help reduce poverty and hunger. The Rockefeller Foundation says that its new African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) will serve as a platform where African scientists and development experts can access new materials and information on technologies owned by international private companies and later even transfer them into the hand of millions of poor African farmers.

The Young Rudd International Trust (YURIT)

2003-03-20

http://www.comminit.com/pdskdv82002/sld-5565.html

The Trust works to promote the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by disadvantaged young people and other members of the Zimbabwean community. It trains young people to communicate information through the Internet, CD-ROMs, books, and mobile phones. Strategies include a Multimedia Internet Centre, web-based and CD-ROM-based information resources, and a short-story-writing contest for publication on the internet.

Women's statement to UN Commission on the Status of Women

Statement From The African Women's Caucus On African Women And Information And Communication Technologies (ICTs)

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/internet/13981

Despite efforts to review international ICT regulations, African women's perspectives have not always been taken into consideration. The potential for ICTs to contribute to human development in Africa is negatively impacted by the uneven spread of ICTs and the differential effects that their diffusion produces in economic and social structures.
47th Session of the United Nation's Commission on the Status of Women, March
2003

Statement from the African Women's Caucus on African Women and Information and
Communication Techonologies (ICTs)

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson. My name is Nish-Muthoni Matenjwa. I work for ABANTU
for Development, an African NGO with an international presence and also
represent the African Women's Caucus for the CSW.

Despite efforts to review ICT international regulations, African women's
perspectives have not always been taken into consideration. The potential for
ICTs to contribute to human development in Africa is negatively impacted by the
uneven spread of ICTs and the differential effects that their diffusion
produces in economic and social structures. In addition, African women face
cultural, economic and social challenges tht limit their access to, use of and
benefits from ICTs.

During the African Regional Preparatory Meeting for the World Summit on the
Information Society (WSIS) held in Bamako, Mali in July 2002, the following
concerns about African women and ICTs were identified.

The marginalisation of Africa is characterised by increased poverty, lack of
infrastructure, deepening rural/urban disparaties and high illiteracy. African
women represent the majority of the poor and illiterate.

The few complete ICT and telecommunications policies in Africa are not
gender-responsive. African women continue to be seen as passive receivers of
information rather than actors able to contribute to decision and
policy-making.

The use of the Internet to perpetuate violence against women and as a platform
for hate speech is of concern. The impact of the Internet on the proliferation
of pornography must be addressed. There is also an awareness of the dillema of
calling for government action against this. Proposing control on these areas
could enable censorship to be extended to limit freedom of expression in other
areas.

Privacy, security and Internet rights are also issues of concern for African
women. Having secure on-line spaces where women, free from harassment can enjoy
freedom of expression have also recently been threatened by the events of
9/11/2001.

Engagement on the regulation of ICTs is thus critical for African women. But the
level of awareness about ICTs is still low. Most African countries lack the
infrastructure to engage in the Information Society. The high cost of ICT
training further aggravates the problem as few African women can afford
training in the new technologies.

The weakness in representation of African concerns in interational regulatory
processess is also very low. The number of African women's organisations
involved is even lower.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Bamako meeting for the WSIS urged African states "to ensure better gender
balance in ICT use while instituting specific programmes that address the
needs of women, particularly those aimed at rural and disenfrenchised areas.

Considering the critical role that women play in society and their potential
contribution to developing the Information Society, the Gender Caucus, during
the Bamako meeting, urged the UN system and agencies including the ITU, UNDP,
UNECA, UNESCO and UNIFEM to ensure the following:

1. Continue working towards ratifying treaties and protocols that recognise
women's human rights, including the right to communication and include
provisions for supporting implementation of these in all action plans including
those arising from the WSIS process.

2. Develop gender-dissagregated data on women' participation in the Information
Society and to caryy out research to identify impacts of exclusion and
opportunties for increased participation.

3. Apply gender analysis frameworks in the development of national, regional and
international policies and strategies.

4. Ensure that there is gender equality in education, specifically by providing
opporunties for women and girls to access fair and equitable participation in
science and technology education at all levels.

5. Support capacity-building and training to raise awareness of the gendered
nature of the Information Society.

6. Strengthen co-operation among UN agencies working on gender and ICTs
including support for the working relationship established between the ITU,
UNDP and UNIFEM.

7. Reform decision-making processes to ensure good governance and greater
accountablity to all stakeholders.

8. Ensure licensing for women's intellectual property rights.

9. Apply gender-analysis frameworks in the development of national, regional and
international policies and strategies.

We urge that these recommednations are taken into account during this meeting as
they are key and integral to African women's advancement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.

...........ENDS.......

Please note that we only had 5 mintues to make the presentation. While working
and editing the statement , we concentrated on what we saw as key issues for
the CSW. There are, of couse, many other issues we could have focussed on.

Regards.

Nish-Muthoni




_______________________________________

wsis-gc is a listserve set up by the WSIS Gender Caucus, a global group of
women and men working on gender equality and Information Society issues. It
has been established to circulate information in preparation for the World
Summit on the Information Society, which takes place in two phases -- WSIS
2003, December 2003 in Geneva and WSIS 2005 in Tunis.
To learn more about the WSIS Gender Caucus check out the web-site at:
http://www.wougnet.org/WSIS/wsisgc.html
For the WSIS Gender Caucus archives, go to:
http://www.lists.kabissa.org/mailman/listinfo/wsis-gendercaucus

email list for water issues

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/enewsl/13872

WATER-L is a new e-mail list for news and announcements related to the World Water Forum and water policy issues. Water-L is created by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Third World Water Forum and the World Water Council.
To subscribe to WATER-L send an e-mail to subscribe-water-l@lists.iisd.ca

new email service for medical workers

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/enewsl/13873

'HIV & AIDS Treatment in Practice' is an email newsletter for doctors, nurses, other health care workers and community treatment advocates working in limited-resource settings.
'HIV & AIDS Treatment in Practice' is an email newsletter for doctors,
nurses, other health care workers and community treatment advocates working
in limited-resource settings, to be launched, free of charge, on Thursday 13
March 2003.

The newsletter is published by NAM, the UK-based HIV information charity
behind www.aidsmap.com The newsletter will be edited by Julian Meldrum, NAM
's international editor, <julian@nam.org.uk>.

A voluntary advisory panel, of 23 medical practitioners (from the public,
private and NGO sectors), academic researchers and people from community
organisations, working in middle-income and low-income countries, is central
to this newsletter.

The panel will guide the development of the newsletter and comment on key
issues from their experience of implementing HIV and AIDS treatment. Further
volunteers are welcomed.

Further information (including a web-based archive) is available at:

http://www.aidsmap.com/main/hatip.asp

*To subscribe, please follow the instructions below, and do NOT reply to
this email.

GOALS OF HIV & AIDS TREATMENT IN PRACTICE
Our goal is to consider, in practical terms, how appropriate and effective
treatment, including but not limited to ARVs, can become a reality for all
who need it.

We acknowledge in this title that for medicines to be effective in the real
world, other things are important besides the supply of drugs. These begin
with the relationships between treatment providers and people with HIV.
Beyond this, effective treatment depends on wider patterns of practical and
psychological support and care within families and communities.

While the political and international financial context is very important
for access to treatment and care, other forums exist for discussion of those
issues and so they will not be covered in 'HIV & AIDS Treatment in Practice'
, except as links to aidsmap news stories.

SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE NEWSLETTER:
**Each issue will review one major topic in HIV & AIDS treatment. In the
first few issues, we will be looking at implementing co-trimoxazole
prophylaxis, fixed-dose ARV combinations, and treating active TB while
giving ARVs at the same time.
**You can order further articles, providing more detail and supplementary
information, to be sent to you by e-mail. This reduces the amount of time
you have to spend on the internet.
**Each newsletter will contain specialist comment from doctors with
expertise in delivering ARVs and AIDS treatment in resource-limited
settings.
**Each edition will contain up to date information on ARVs and how they are
being used in resource-limited settings.
**All articles are medically reviewed to ensure accuracy, balance and
relevance.
**The newsletter is NOT sponsored by any pharmaceutical company.

WHO IS IT FOR?
* anyone directly involved in providing HIV and AIDS treatment in limited
resource settings
* anyone planning the development of treatment and care services in limited
resource settings

FREQUENCY
This e-mail newsletter is due to appear twice every month.

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
If you have web access, sign up here:
http://www.aidsmap.com/components/subscribe.asp

For people who have internet email access only, please send an email with
your name, email address and the country in which you work to:
<hatip@nam.org.uk>

with the words "add HATIP list" in the 'subject' line.

REPRODUCTION AND TRANSLATION
While the newsletter is only available in English and by email (or from a
web-based archive), permission for republication and distribution in
different formats and translation into different languages is freely granted
to community-based and not-for-profit organisations, provided the source is
acknowledged and an electronic copy of any translation is supplied to NAM.

ABOUT NAM
NAM was established in 1987 and has been publishing information on HIV
treatment for people with HIV and health care professionals since 1991. NAM
also runs an award-winning website
http://www.aidsmap.com
in partnership with the International HIV/AIDS Alliance and the British HIV
Association.

NAM originally stood for `National AIDS Manual`, the UK's first
comprehensive guide to HIV prevention, care and services. NAM now publishes
more than a dozen directories and manuals each year.

For more information about NAM and its services, use the link below:
http://www.aidsmap.com/about/nam/about_nam.asp#NAM

Social Change email list

2003-03-20

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/socialchangezw/

The Social Change email list is a continuation of Social Change magazine, and is intended for discussing social and economic development issues, especially as they relate to Zimbabwe.

effectively mobilising resources

2003-03-20

http://www.resource-alliance.org/

The Resource Alliance is an international network working to build the fundraising and resource mobilisation capacity of voluntary sector, non-governmental and community based organisations. Visit their web site by clicking on the link provided.

Ghana: Japan Assists 3 Northern And Upper East Regions

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190354.html

The Government of Japan is to extend a total amount of US $ 67,614 (approximately ¢567,959,600) under the Japanese Government Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects (GGP) to three communities for the construction of students hostels and a clinic respectively.

South Africa: EU to Fund Civil Society

2003-03-20

http://allafrica.com/stories/200303190061.html

The European Union (EU) will give a grant of Shs 8m Euro (about 16bn) to Uganda civil society groups to enhance trade and development co-operation.

South Africa: Pensioners raise R24000 for home

2003-03-20

http://www.dispatch.co.za/2003/03/20/easterncape/DHOME.HTM

Dot Wampach and Emma Lawler might be in their seventies, but that did not stop them and 500 other volunteers from raising money for the Berea Gardens retirement home. Selling goodies and veggies at a tuckshop, they raised R24000 from selling gifts and food parcels that donors offered for the home. With the other volunteers they also sewed, knitted, baked and did repairs and maintenance.

South Africa: presidential golfing to aid development

2003-03-20

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=124&art_id=qw104773068177B241&set_id=1

President Thabo Mbeki will participate in his first major golf tournament, the inaugural Presidential Golf Classic 2003, to raise funds for youth development in the sport. Presidential spokesperson Bheki Khumalo said the tournament, to be hosted by the president, would be held at the Woodhill Country Club in Pretoria on March 22.

South Africa: R800 000 Lotto lolly for BC

2003-03-20

http://www.dispatch.co.za/2003/03/15/easterncape/CLOLLY.HTM

The National Lotto Distribution Trust Fund has allocated R800000 to Buffalo City after the council applied to the fund last year. The grant will be paid in three installments with the second and third payments subject to progress reports on the first and second installments.

2003 Child Rights Interdisciplinary Course on Children’s Rights

5 - 18 May 2003, Harare, Zimbabwe

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13974

The Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa (SAHRIT) implements national and regional programmes for the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and good governance. SAHRIT's aim is to facilitate the development of a society in southern Africa that respects human rights, democracy and good governance. This will be achieved by mainstreaming human rights, democracy and good governance in public institutions; advocacy and training and through fostering a culture that promotes and protects human rights through community based initiatives. In this regard, SAHRIT has been offering short courses on human rights since 2002. The Interdisciplinary Course on Children's Rights focuses on the rights of the child.
2003 Child Rights Interdisciplinary Course on Children&#8217;s Rights

5 - 18 May 2003

St. Lucia Park Conference and Training Centre, Harare, Zimbabwe

Background
The Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa (SAHRIT) was established in October 1996. SAHRIT&#8217;s focus is to promote human rights in southern Africa. In this regard, SAHRIT focuses on mainstreaming human rights within public institutions in its quest to fulfil the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1993 &#8211; 2004) and the Vienna Declaration of Human Rights (1993), which call upon States to introduce human rights education in all their institutions.

SAHRIT implements national and regional programmes for the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and good governance. SAHRIT&#8217;s aim is to facilitate the development of a society in southern Africa that respects human rights, democracy and good governance. This will be achieved by mainstreaming human rights, democracy and good governance in public institutions; advocacy and training and through fostering a culture that promotes and protects human rights through community based initiatives. In this regard, SAHRIT has been offering short courses on human rights since 2002. The Interdisciplinary Course on Children&#8217;s Rights focuses on the rights of the child. The course will run from the 5th to the 18th of May 2003.

For more information on other courses offered by SAHRIT please visit our website: www.sahrit.org

Cost
SAHRIT will cover airfares, accommodation, meals and course materials. Participants and their organisations will have to provide for personal day to day expenses.

The Regional Interdisciplinary Course on Children&#8217;s Rights
The course is multidisciplinary and endeavours to bring pertinent child rights issues to the fore. It will be an opportunity for participants from the different disciplines to share information and experiences and at the same time learn from the presentations and panel discussions by different regional and international experts. Study visits will also be carried out on how some of the issues affecting the rights of children are being addressed in Zimbabwe.

Duration and venue
The course will be held from the 5th to the 18th of May 2003 at St. Lucia Conference and Training Centre, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Course content
· Civil and Political Rights
· Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
· The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
· African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC)
· Child Rights Monitoring Mechanism
· Children&#8217;s Rights and HIV/AIDS
· Child Participation
· Children and Law Enforcement
· Human Rights Approach to Programming (HRAP)
· Study Visits to Children&#8217;s Homes, and Community Coping Projects and Strategies

Working and Presentation Methodologies
Different working and presentation methodologies will be employed during the course depending on the subject; such as lectures, thematic feature films, panel discussions, working groups and workshops. Informal sessions for sharing of experiences, getting to know more about each other and each other&#8217;s organisations including displays and exhibitions.

SAHRIT acknowledges and appreciates the financial assistance by the undermentioned organisations which made the Regional Interdisciplinary Course possible.

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)
The Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA)
The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
The Norwegian Agency for Development (NORAD)
The Royal Netherlands Embassy

2003 GENDER FESTIVAL

3-6 September 2003, Mabibo, Dar Es Salaam

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13972

On behalf of the Feminist Activist Coalition (FemAct), the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP) is pleased to announce the 2003 Gender Festival (GF), formerly popularly known as the Annual Gender Studies Conference (AGSC). The four-day event will take place between September 3-6 2003. This event, which now takes place once every two years, is an open space for bringing together gender and civil society members of organisations, institutions and all development actors at various levels.
Date: 06/02/2003

Dear Like-minded Activists, Friends, Colleagues & other Partners:

RE: 2003 GENDER FESTIVAL (GF)
03rd &#8211; 06th September 2003
at TGNPs Gender Resource Centre, Mabibo - Dar Es Salaam

On behalf of the Feminist Activist Coalition (FemAct), TGNP is pleased to announce the 2003 Gender Festival (GF), formerly popularly known as the Annual Gender Studies Conference (AGSC). The four-day event will take place on the 03rd to the 06th of September, 2003.

This event, which now takes place once every two years, is an open space for bringing together gender and civil society members of organizations, institutions and all development actors at various levels. It provides a major opportunity for gender and civil society activists to convene, share, take stock of achievements and constraints and foster joint action plans to further the civil society development agenda. At the conference, individuals and groups share outputs of their work, sharpen their skills and capacities, network and establish further linkages with other different actors.

Gender Festival Objectives:

1. GF is a forum for people from different areas of activism to share knowledge, to reflect, to build capacities, and to start new discussions;

2. GF is a celebration of what TGNP and FemAct have done and what we have gained, which creates an awareness of our presence;

3. GF helps to identify new likeminded individuals and organizations who we can pick up, hence expanding our network at the local, national, and international levels;

4. GF is an opportunity for TGNP and FemAct to enhance our skills and our own conceptual knowledge base.

The theme of this year&#8217;s Gender Festival will be focused on:


&#8220;Gender, Democracy and Development:

An Alternative World is Possible&#8221;

Proposed Sub-themes:

§ The Growth and Challenges of Feminist Activism in Tanzania (10 Years of TGNP Activism, 1993 - 2003);
§ Alternative Politics and Participatory Development;
§ Alternative Sustainable Development;

§ Environmentally Friendly Development Process;

§ The Challenges of Organising Alternative Thinking and Action;

§ Challenges of Activism within growing Fundamentalism (ideology, globalisation, culture, religion etc.);


§ People&#8211;Centred World is Possible;

§ Child and Youth&#8211;friendly Development Process;
§ The Role of Exhibition in Gender Activism;
§ Alternative World Views;
§ Women&#8217;s Leadership and Activism;
§ HIV/AIDS, Gender and Resources: A Challenge for Feminism.


We encourage the active participation of all civil society organizations, gender groups and all other organizations and individuals working in policy, programme, technical, service delivery, and other areas at local, national, and international levels. This conference is an open space for sharing skills, ideas, strategies and celebrating achievements on various development initiatives.

Your participation can include:
Þ Preparing papers for presentation related to the various sub-themes outlined above;
Þ Coordinating a workshop or skills building session;
Þ Mobilising a large group from your area or constituency to attend and contribute at the conference;
Þ Creating an interactive exhibition that may include publications, photographs, appropriate technology materials, handicrafts and others;
Þ Preparing Artistic Performances related to conference themes;
Þ Active attendance and contributions during the conference;
Þ Financial contributions and fundraising to support specific events; and
Þ Other forms of contribution to enhance the conference and festival.

The Gender Festival is a collective capacity building, skills building, and networking fora for civil society and development actors in and outside the country. Therefore, individuals and organisations are expected to sponsor their participation and contribution in order to create a quality festival. We encourage organisations to begin fundraising early to support their envisaged role in the event. Costs could include registration costs, travel, and up-keep of up-country participants, as well as planning and preparation, acquisition of relevant materials and other associated costs.

Please communicate to us early your organisation&#8217;s expected contribution to the festival, so that we can include you in the plan and the programme. To present a paper, prepare a case study, or facilitate a workshop, please refer to the Guidelines for Papers, Case Studies and Workshops. We also welcome suggestions and innovative ideas for ways to organise, coordinate, and conduct this year&#8217;s festival and have fun.

Please also note that the official languages of the conference will be English and Kiswahili. We look forward to your communication with the Gender Festival organising team, based in the Activism, Lobbying, and Advocacy (ALA) Programme at TGNP Secretariat.

You can also register online at www.tgnp.co.tz

Sincerely yours,

Dr. Fenella Mukangara,
TGNP Chairperson.
GENDER STUDIES CONFERENCE AND FESTIVAL
03rd to 06th September, 2003

Registration Form
(please return by e-mail, fax, mail, or hand delivery)

Name ______________________________________ Sex ________

Age __ 13 &#8211; 18 __ 19 &#8211; 25 __ 26 &#8211; 35 __ 36 &#8211; 45 __ 45 and older

Organisation/Institution/Party _________________________________

Position __________________________________________________

Contact Address __________________________________________________________

Telephone(s) _______________________________ Fax _________________________

Email _______________________________


Indicate your mode of Participation by CHECKING the relevant box below

Þ ____ Preparing papers for presentation related to the various sub-themes outlined. (we need Paper Abstracts 15th March, and a Paper by 30th June, 2003).
Sub-theme __________________________________
Þ ____ Coordinating a workshop or skills building session.
Þ ____ Mobilising a large group from your area or constituency to attend and contribute at the conference.
Þ ____ Creating an interactive exhibition that may include publications, photographs, appropriate technology materials, handicrafts and others. (Please let us know the type of goods to be exhibited by July 31st, 2003)
Þ ____ Preparing Artistic Performances related to conference themes. (ngoma, drama, songs, talents shows etc. inform us by July 31st, 2003)
Þ ____ Active attendance and contributions during the conference.
Þ ____ Financial contributions and fundraising to support specific events. (We encourage organisations to sponsor the participants directly or through TGNP)
Þ ____ Other forms of contribution to enhance the conference and festival:
What type: ___________________________________________________________
Do you require more information about accomodation and transport?: ___Yes ___ No
Registration Fees:
Local: Conference Participants: 20,000/= International: US $100
(includes conference bag and relevant materials)
Tanzanian Students: 5,000/=
Exhibitors: 20,000/=

Note: Participants are responsible for all of their accommodation and transport costs.
We would appreciate pre-registration and cash payment when possible. You can bring this registration form and your fees to the TGNP offices. This will ease the registration process for both TGNP and yourself.

ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, CENTRE OF AFRICAN STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

21-22 May 2003

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13971

In 2003, the Centre's annual international conference will examine the ways that law is embedded in and shaped by processes that have an impact upon political, economic, and social development in Africa.
ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, CENTRE OF AFRICAN STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

21-22 May 2003

REMAKING LAW IN AFRICA TRANSNATIONALISM, PERSONS AND RIGHTS


Overall Rationale
In 2003, the Centre's annual international conference will examine the ways that law is embedded in and shaped by processes that have an impact upon political, economic, and social development in Africa.

Scholars have observed that law represented the cutting edge of colonialism in its attempts to control and govern its subjects while bringing about their transformation and that of the societies in which they lived. Its role continued to have a powerful presence in the postcolonial period when many newly independent countries turned to law as a form of social engineering within the nation-state. In recent years attention has focused on globalisation as a phenomenon and local communities' responses to it. This has led to a growing recognition of the importance of transnational forms of law and ordering derived from diverse sources, including the World Bank, the European Convention on Human Rights, the WTO, the WHO, the IMF, the African Union, and religious movements. The success or failure of polities and persons' access to, and use of, law raises questions about the power and authority to construct meaning at multiple levels, including, local, regional, national and international domains that intersect with one another in a variety of ways. This conference aims to explore the ways in which law operates in different places at different levels and at different moments in the historical record, in order to gain a more informed view of the processes that underpin continuity, transformation, and change.

In the tradition of the Centre it is hoped that participants will be drawn from a number of academic disciplines including history, social anthropology, politics, economics, health, education and law, as well as from international agencies, state institutions, NGOs and development actors.

Themes include
Human Rights; Constitutional Issues; Tribunals and other forms of Justice; Law, Development and Gender; Resource Entitlement; Rights to Health, Education and Intellectual Property


Speakers at the conference will include: Abdullah An-Naim (Emory University); Yash Ghai (Hong Kong University); Issa G. Shivji (University of Dar es Salaam); Hon Aloysea Inyumba (Governor of Kigali, Rwanda); Catherine Jenkins (SOAS); Hon Winnie Byanyima (MP and Chairperson of Forum for Women in Development, Uganda); Anne Stewart (University of Warwick); Albert Barume (Democratic Republic of Congo); Fareda Banda (SOAS); Anne Hellum (University of Oslo); Charles Clift (Department for International Development); Chidi Odinkalu (Interrights); Fr. Matthew Hassan Kukah (Nigeria); Patrick Watt (ActionAid); Olive Shisana (Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria); Zackie Achmat (Treatment Action Campaign, Cape Town).

The Steering Committee for the Conference includes: Dr. Anne Griffiths, School of Law; Dr. Paul Nugent, School of History; Dr. Stephen Neff, School of Law; Professor Alan Barnard, School of Social and Political Studies; Pravina King, Centre of African Studies; Jude Murison, Centre of African Studies; and Professor Kenneth King, Centre of African Studies

The conference will include a keynote Royal African Society lecture on Wednesday evening by Prof Issa Shivji (Dar es Salaam), and another RAS lecture on Thursday lunchtime by Zackie Achmat (Cape Town).



REGISTRATION FORM

You may return the completed registration form by email to: P.King@ed.ac.uk or return to the address below.

A full conference programme will be available nearer the date of the conference.

The conference will begin at 1.30 on May 21 and finish at 6.00 on May 22.

On the evening of Wed 21 there will be a Royal African Society Scotland Lecture and a conference dinner.

Full conference Fee: £ 60.00
Edinburgh Staff: £ 40.00
Student: £25.00
Dinner: £15.00
[the Conference fee, whether for students, Edinburgh staff or other participants, includes a full set of the conference papers, teas, coffees and a reception. The conference dinner is
extra.]


REMAKING LAW IN AFRICA: TRANSNATIONALISM, PERSONS, AND RIGHTS
Conference Registration
Centre of African Studies
University of Edinburgh
21 George Square
Edinburgh EH8 9LD, Scotland.

Tel. +44 (0)131 650 3878; Fax: +44 (0)131 650 6535; Email: African.Studies@ed.ac.uk

PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING


REMAKING LAW IN AFRICA
May 21-22, 2003

Name
Organisation

Address

Phone
Fax
E-mail

I enclose a cheque, made payable to the Centre of African Studies, for £ ___. Please register me for the CAS conference under the following category:

Full conference fee q
Edinburgh staff q
Student q
(evidence of status required)

I do / do not wish to attend the conference dinner on May 21. delete as applicable

I am / am not a vegetarian. Delete as applicable

On registration more information about the conference and accommodation in Edinburgh will be sent.


**************************************************************************************************************************************


New Research in the Great Lakes Region
Working Group

Centre of African Studies, University of Edinburgh

20-21st May 2003


The working group will begin at 13h00 on Tuesday May 20th and finish at 13h30 on Wednesday May 21st. The close coincides with the opening of the Centre of African Studies Annual Conference on 21-22 May on Remaking Law in Africa: Transnationalism, Persons, and Rights, which will feature papers on the Great Lakes Region.


REGISTRATION FORM

Please return the completed registration form to: R.C.Hayman@sms.ed.ac.uk or by mail to Rachel Hayman, Centre of African Studies, University of Edinburgh, 10 Buccleuch Place (2nd Floor), Edinburgh, EH8 9LW


Name:

Address:


Phone:

E-mail:


Research Topic / Title:


Institution:


Year:


I am / am not a vegetarian. Delete as applicable (we intend to organise a dinner for the evening of the 20th so this information would be useful)


On registration more information about accommodation and practical details will be sent.

Please also send us an abstract of your thesis by email, preferably in .rtf format, of maximum 1500 words by the end of April.

BOLD 2003: Development and the Internet

Free Online Course

2003-03-20

http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/bold/devel03/

This five-week online series, the latest of the BOLD series, will consider the many initiatives being undertaken, worldwide, to bridge the &#8220;Digital Divide&#8221;. It will aim to provide a basic conceptual framework of background information, readings and case studies derived from the personal experiences and projects of the staff, faculty and affiliates of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at the Harvard Law School.

Khanya College Winter School

30 June - 05 July, Johannesburg, South Africa

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13973

The Khanya College Winter School for 2003 will be held from 30 June to 05 July. The school aims to provide a space for activists from a range of different sectors in the rest of the Southern African region to collectively debate and share experiences about issues that impact on their organisational work.
The Khanya College Winter School for 2003 will be held from 30 June to 05
July. The Winter School will be held in the Johannesburg area. This where
most of the constituencies we serve, in South Africa, are based.

ABOUT KHANYA COLLEGE

Khanya College is an independent non-governmental organization based in
Johannesburg, South Africa. Khanya College was established in 1986 with the
aim of assisting various constituencies within working class and poor
communities to respond to the challenges posed by the forces of economic and
political globalisation. The College offers assistance through providing
capacity building workshops, publications and research to organizations and
individuals in these communities. Khanya College contributes to confronting
these challenges by emphasizing solutions based on social solidarity,
popular democracy and participation, organization and mobilization.

AIMS OF THE WINTER SCHOOL

To provide a space for activists from a range of different sectors in the
rest of the Southern African region to collectively debate and share
experiences about issues that impact on their organizational work.

To develop and strengthen a progressive perspective on development issues in
South Africa, Southern Africa and the world today.

To exchange experiences about struggles for social change currently taking
place in the various sectors in which the activists work.

To equip activists with the theoretical and organizational skills that will
enhance their contribution to the process of social change in South Africa,
Southern Africa and the world.

OUR TARGET GROUP

We target activists or militants interested in advancing development and
social change in South Africa and the rest of the Southern African region
today. Membership of an organization advancing the aims of social change
will receive priority consideration when choosing applicants.

ISSUES AND ACTIVITIES FOR THE 2003 WINTER SCHOOL

The theme for this year's Winter School will be NEPAD within the processes
of a consolidating economic and political neo-liberal globalisation. This
will be the second the Winter School will be having participants from
outside of South Africa. This gives us the opportunity to look at issues
from a much broader perspective and to share the experiences of our
different countries. These various activities of the School are designed to
ensure the week has a strong Southern African identity about it:

- Two-day workshops whose focus will be on NEPAD. The intention is to foster
a much more solid understanding of the NEPAD programme, the driving forces
behind it and its implications for the peoples of the Southern African
region.
- An "Activist Forum" that acts as a space for debate and discussion among
the activists from the different countries and sectors. The main focus here
will be political discussions and a sharing of experiences among the
participants. This is one activity where real networking between the various
organizations can take place.
- The "Activist Forum" will be opened by the delivery of a keynote address
by a visiting militant from one of the countries in the SADC region. The
keynote address will focus on Southern African solidarity in the context of
policies like NEPAD, AGOA and others.
- Cultural exchange will be another activity where the comrades will have an
opportunity to appreciate the different but, sometimes, common cultural
outlooks of the communities they come from.
- An Exhibition will be organized. Organisations will get a chance to tell
who they are by displaying a variety of the products that define them. In
this way comrades will be able to move around, meet, ask and get to know the
different organizations that will be participating in the Winter School. The
intention is to also use the exhibition in various ways to celebrate "Our
Heroes", writers and practitioners of revolution like Walter Rodney, Amilcar
Cabral, Franz Fanon, Eduardo Mondlane, Agostino Neto and others.
- There will be time allocated for Khanya College to showcase it various
programmes.
- A social activity will also be organized to allow for a more relaxed
atmosphere of interaction between comrades.
- The activities of the Winter School will culminate in a march against
zenophobia in South Africa. Organisations and societies of immigrants will
be invited to come and own the streets of Johannesburg on the day. In
concrete ways this will be a small step in process of confronting
zenophobia, from which only the ordinary and poor people suffer.

OXFORD UNIVERSITY ACCREDITED COURSE:"ACTION FOR CHANGE: ADVOCACY AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION"

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13979

FAHAMU, in association with the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, England, is offering courses specifically designed to meet the needs of non-profit human rights and advocacy organisations in the SADC region. Developed together with international and regional experts the last two of the six available courses will begin during April 2003. Applications are now open for Action for change: advocacy and citizen participation. The course's approach to advocacy is geared to improving the lives and participation of marginalized people and forging broad alliances for reform across society.
ADILISHA PROJECT

OXFORD UNIVERSITY ACCREDITED COURSE:
"ACTION FOR CHANGE:
ADVOCACY AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION"

FAHAMU, in association with the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, England, is offering courses specifically designed to meet the needs of non-profit human rights and advocacy organizations in the SADC region. Developed together with international and regional experts the last two of the six available courses will begin during April 2003.

Applications are now open for Action for change: advocacy and citizen participation. The course's approach to advocacy is geared to improving the lives and participation of marginalized people and forging broad alliances for reform across society. The course aims to help activists analyze, plan, and manage strategies with a clear understanding of potential risks. The course builds on experiences in advocacy, gender, human rights, popular education, and social change. The material has been developed in the hope that bridges and alliances between peoples will be built for justice, equality and peace. The course is designed for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and grassroot groups, trainers, activists, organisers, and researchers working in the field of human rights and advocacy.

The course involves distance learning from interactive materials on CDROM with support from a course tutor via email. In addition, there will be a workshop in the region, assessed assignments and one major project.

Those successfully completing the course will be awarded with a Certificate of Completion from the University of Oxford.

Partial funding is available to 15 successful applicants from the SADC region, to cover course fees, travel and accommodation to the workshop. Successful applicants would be expected however, to pay a non-refundable fee of USD250.

The duration of the course is 21 April-14 August 2003. Applications close on 7 April 2003. Requests for course information and application forms may be directed to Camille Downes at camille@fahamu.org.za or phone her on +27-31-2071144/8360.

OXFORD UNIVERSITY ACCREDITED COURSE:"USING THE INTERNET FOR RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY"

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13980

FAHAMU, in association with the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, England, is offering courses specifically designed to meet the needs of non-profit human rights and advocacy organisations in the SADC region. Developed together with international and regional experts, the last two of the six available courses will begin during April 2003. Applications are now open for &#8216;Using the Internet for Research and Advocacy&#8217;. This course is designed for people and organisations grappling with how to harness the power of the internet for research and advocacy.
ADILSIHA PROJECT

OXFORD UNIVERSITY ACCREDITED COURSE:
"USING THE INTERNET FOR RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY"
FAHAMU, in association with the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, England, is offering courses specifically designed to meet the needs of non-profit human rights and advocacy organisations in the SADC region. Developed together with international and regional experts, the last two of the six available courses will begin during April 2003.

Applications are now open for Using the internet for research and advocacy. This course is designed for people and organisations grappling with how to harness the power of the internet for research and advocacy. The course is designed for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and grassroot groups, trainers, activists, organisers, and researchers working in the field of human rights and advocacy.

The objective of the course is to promote effective use of the internet for advocacy through the development of online research skills and the creation of effective online resources. In addition, the course aids the development of a critique of existing internet research and advocacy materials.

The course involves distance learning from interactive materials on CDROM with support from a course tutor via email. In addition, there will be a workshop in the region and assessed assignments.

Those successfully completing the course will be awarded with a Certificate of Completion from the University of Oxford.

Partial funding is available to 15 successful applicants from the SADC region, to cover course fees, travel and accommodation to the workshop. Successful applicants would be expected however, to pay a non-refundable fee of USD250.

The duration of the course is 7 April-26 June 2003. Applications close on 31 March 2003. Requests for course information and application forms may be directed to Camille Downes at camille@fahamu.org.za or phone her on +27-31-2071144/8360.

Training Course on Ageing in Africa

4 - 8 August 2003, Nairobi, Kenya

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/courses/13970

If you are a mid-level or senior programme manager, social worker, senior government officer or planner, a health care professional, or have an interest in ageing issues, then this course is for you. Topics to be covered include: Demographic situation and socio-economic implications for Africa; HIV/AIDS and its impact on older people; Gender dimension of ageing; Poverty; Research and Policies on ageing.
Training Course on Ageing in Africa
-HelpAge, Kenya
*********************

Training Course on Ageing in Africa
4 - 8 August 2003, Nairobi, Kenya
All you need to know about ageing in Africa

If you are a mid-level or senior programme manager, social worker, senior
government officer or planner, a health care professional, or have an
interest in ageing issues, then this course is for you.

Topics to be covered include:

-Demographic situation and socio-economic implications for Africa

-HIV/AIDS and its impact on older people

-Gender dimension of ageing

-Poverty

-Research and Policies on ageing

A course fee of US$400 is chargeable for those requiring accommodation and
US$150 for those who make their own arrangements.

The next training course on Ageing in Africa will take place from 4th to
8th August 2003 in Nairobi, Kenya.

For more information, please write to us.
HelpAge, Kenya
Email:helpage@africaonline.co.ke

COMMISSIONING EDITOR

ZED BOOKS

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/jobs/13921

Zed Books is seeking a full-time commissioning editor to join our team producing hard- hitting books on the issues that matter.   Please email taylorson@zedbooks.demon.co.uk with your name and full postal address, or phone Rosemary Taylorson on +44 (0)20 7837 0384, to be sent full details.  

VACANCY AT ZED BOOKS

COMMISSIONING EDITOR

Zed Books is seeking a full-time commissioning editor to join our team producing hard-
hitting books on the issues that matter. Please email taylorson@zedbooks.demon.co.uk
with your name and full postal address, or phone Rosemary Taylorson on +44 (0)20
7837 0384, to be sent full details.

Please specify whether you would like to receive the application pack by post or by
email.

Zed Books

for books with a critical vision

7 Cynthia Street, London N1 9JF

www.zedbooks.demon.co.uk

Great Lakes Region: Senior Programme Officer

International Alert

2003-03-20

http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/40E3157D4C43A247C1256CE20062F018

International Alert (IA) is an NGO that seeks to relieve the poverty, suffering and insecurity of people affected by war by transforming conflict from violence to sustainable peace. IA works with partner organisations in conflict regions in Africa and other continents to analyse the causes of conflict, facilitate dialogue, and help local actors develop peace-building skills. IA also seeks to influence international policies and practice by bringing into the policy arena the voices of those most affected by conflict. We are now looking for two Senior Programme Officers to work for IA's Great Lakes Programme which focuses primarily on Burundi, Rwanda and the DRC. The two posts are for different jobs, with different skill sets and experience required.

kenya/tanzania: East Africa Regional Coordinator

Global Education Partnership (G.E.P.)

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/jobs/13925

The East Africa Regional Coordinator is responsible for the management and oversight of all G.E.P.&#8217;s activities in our two Africa divisions (Kenya and Tanzania). Our mission is to provide low-income youth with access to the educational resources needed to become self-sufficient. Current programs focus on entrepreneurship training and micro-finance for young people (mid teens to late 20s), many of who are dropouts or unemployed secondary school graduates. For more information, please see www.geponline.org
Global Education Partnership (G.E.P.)

Job Description: East Africa Regional Coordinator

The East Africa Regional Coordinator is responsible for the management and oversight of all G.E.P.&#8217;s activities in our two Africa divisions (Kenya and Tanzania). Our mission is to provide low-income youth with access to the educational resources needed to become self-sufficient. Current programs focus on entrepreneurship training and micro-finance for young people (mid teens to late 20s), many of who are dropouts or unemployed secondary school graduates. For more information, please see www.geponline.org

Duties:
· oversee the implementation, management, and expansion of G.E.P.&#8217;s educational programs in Kenya and Tanzania.
· coordinate in-country fundraising efforts (donor relations, proposals, grant reports, etc.).
· maintain productive relationships with government officials, community groups, and other NGOs.
· work with indigenous Divisional Directors in human resource management (recruitment, staff policies, performance evaluations, compliance with local labor laws, etc.)
· train staff in development, finances, computer applications, report writing, etc.
· supervise budgeting, financial reporting, and daily accounts.
· maintain regular and efficient communication with Washington, DC headquarters, as well as between Kenya and Tanzania Divisions.

Qualifications: At least two years&#8217; experience working in the developing world as an educator and project manager. Proven leadership and cross-cultural ability. Excellent oral and written communication skills. Good math, computer, and basic accounting skills. Micro-finance background a plus. Knowledge of KiSwahili helpful. Two-year commitment required.

Salary: high 20s-low 30s DOE. (NB &#8211; Coordinator will be based in East Africa.)

To apply, send cover letter and resume to:
Mark Carr
International Programs Director
Global Education Partnership
1411 K Street, NW &#8211; Suite 602
Washington, DC 20005
(Please no electronic submissions.)

kenya: executive director

The Regional AIDS Training Network (RATN)

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/jobs/13924

RATN is in the process of becoming an independent entity, and has constituted a Board of Directors and General Council to govern its future activities. The next step is to transfer the day-to-day operational management from the founding universities to an Executive Director who will be directly accountable to the Board of Directors. This will be an internationally-hired position, requiring an individual who combines a broad knowledge of current HIV/AIDS issues with demonstrated experience and skill in project management and administration, fund-raising, organisational development and strategic planning.
REGIONAL AIDS TRAINING NETWORK (RATN)

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Regional AIDS Training Network (RATN) was founded in 1997 as a project of the University of Nairobi and University of Manitoba, in response to the need for high-quality HIV/AIDS training in the Eastern and Southern African region. The goal of RATN is to provide through its member institutions skills-training, upgrading, extension services and technical assistance to health and allied workers in the region. Coordinated by a Secretariat based in Nairobi, RATN has grown into a network of twenty training institutions based in seven countries in the region. These institutions collaborate in developing, implementing and evaluating regional training courses in a wide range of HIV/AIDS/STD sub-specialities. Over ninety courses have been delivered to date, attended by over 1400 trainers and managers from twenty-three African countries. As well, RATN has become recognised internationally as a success story in networking and collaboration, and an authority on training and capacity-development issues in the field of HIV/AIDS. Its programme has attracted the support of a number of international donors as well as UN agencies.

RATN is in the process of becoming an independent entity, and has constituted a Board of Directors and General Council to govern its future activities. The next step is to transfer the day-to-day operational management from the founding universities to an Executive Director who will be directly accountable to the Board of Directors.

This will be an internationally-hired position, requiring an individual who combines a broad knowledge of current HIV/AIDS issues with demonstrated experience and skill in project management and administration, fund-raising, organisational development and strategic planning.

The successful candidate&#8217;s duties will include:
· Programme implemention on behalf of Board of Directors
· Liasing and reporting to donors. Proposal-writing and soliciting additional donor funding.
· Strategic planning and ensuring regular monitoring and evaluation of activities.
· Supervision of budget-planning, financial reporting, and audits, in consultation with the Project Finance Manager and the Finance sub-committee of the Board.
· Reporting to the RATN Board of Directors and General Council.
· Supervising members of the Management Team and Secretariat staff, including developing personnel policies and addressing disciplinary issues. Engaging and supervising consultants and contractors as needed.
· Overall supervision of the planning and organizing of workshops and meetings
· Travelling in the region and internationally to market RATN, meet with donors and agencies, liaise with other HIV/AIDS projects in Kenya and elsewhere and represent RATN at international conferences, seminars and workshops.


Qualifications required
A University degree at Masters level or higher in health, business administration, education, international development or social sciences combined with a demonstrated knowledge of HIV/AIDS issues in the region. At least ten years experience, which would include some or all of project management in Africa, human resource management, financial management, experience working with NGOs, demonstrated fund-raising achievements, strategic planning, proposal-writing, program design and implementation, and monitoring/evaluation.

Skills required include up-to-date computer literacy (word processing, powerpoint, internet and email, spreadsheets, etc), writing skills, public speaking and presentation skills, and demonstrated leadership capabilities. English mastery is essential, and knowledge of French or Portuguese would be advantageous.

This is an international-hire position, and salary/benefits will be commensurate with this. An initial three-year contract will be offered, with an option for renewal.

Please submit a comprehensive CV in English with a supporting cover letter, including the names of three referees (preferably one should be your current or previous employer), as well as salary expectations and availability. Applications should be sent by mail or email to the following address, and be clearly marked Application for Executive Director Position:

The Chairman of the Board
C/o The Co-Director
Regional AIDS Training Network
P.O. Box 16035 00100 GPO
Nairobi, Kenya

Email: lgelmon@ratn.org

Closing date: APRIL 30, 2003

RATN is an equal opportunities employer. Preference will be given to qualified applicants from the region.

We will respond only to short-listed candidates for the interview, and will communicate the venue of the interview to short-listed candidates only. For more information about RATN and details about our programme, visit our website at www.ratn.org

somalia: Nutrition Program Manager

International Medical Corps

2003-03-20

http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/34182B73D89837B6C1256CE6007EAFE8

International Medical Corps requires a Nutritionist Program Manager to manage nutrition activities in Maternal & Child Health Centers (MCH); supervise SFP and Information Education Communication (IEC) activities; oversee outreach, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting; and provide technical support to IMC senior and national staff.

south africa: Project Manager and Facilitator positions

Participative Development Initiative

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/jobs/13923

Participative Development Initiative is a Durban-based non-governmental organisation that seeks to contribute to the alleviation of poverty through promoting sustainable development and strengthening the institutional capacity of established community, institutional and corporate structures in South Africa. The organisation seeks to employ a Project Manager for the Sinethemba HIV/AIDS Project and a facilitator for a Social Crime Prevention Project. Both positions are based in Durban.
Job Adverts &#8211; Project Manager and Facilitator positions

Participative Development Initiative is a Durban-based non-governmental organisation that seeks to contribute to the alleviation of poverty through promoting sustainable development and strengthening the institutional capacity of established community, institutional and corporate structures in South Africa.

The organisation seeks to employ people in the following two positions:

Durban - Based Project Manager - Sinethemba HIV/AIDS Project and Social Crime Prevention Project

As a management position the job of project manager requires both management and leadership expertise.

. Provide mentorship, leadership and support to staff
. Propose and initiate new projects for PDI to consider
. Develop and monitor the implementation of project objectives and
obligations
. Compile process and impact-related reports on project status for
Sinethemba and Social Crime Prevention Projects
. Monitor the progress and performance of project staff and deal with any
Problems timeously, within the parameters of the company policy and BCEA
. Maintain regular reporting between project teams and the Executive
Director
. Coach project staff in areas of low performance and concern, take
appropriate and timeous action with respect to performance that is not improving
. Develop work process and task lists for project teams
. Monitor and Evaluate performance of project staff and project goals and
provide a report to the Director on a monthly basis
. Identify and coordinate interviews of potential facilitators and define
selection criteria for new positions
. Ensure project activities remain within budget line items and prepare
budgets for new projects &#8211; coordinate a weekly meeting with project managers to discuss budget allocations and include the office manager in these
. Manage all funder visits to target communities and arrange the necessary
meetings, workshops, etc.

Skills Requirements:
· Knowledge and experience of Social Crime Prevention and HIV/AIDS work
· Social science or relevant three-year degree
· Background in development work
· at least five-years project management experience in an NGO environment
· Proposal writing and materials development skills
· Experience in training and organisation
· Ability to work in a team
. At least five years experience in management position
. Drivers Licence

Contract position: 2 years
Salary package: R150 000 per annum



Durban - Based Facilitator - Social Crime Prevention Project

The incumbent will be required to achieve the following:

. Implement project activities at local level
. Liase with local police, community police forums and school governance structures
in target communities
. Make the necessary contacts to initiate social crime prevention programmes
. Develop intervention programmes for address social crimes
. Network with other organisations and institutions working in the area of social
crime prevention
. Training of local partners
. Facilitate the implementation of the programme

Skills Requirements

. At least five years experience in NGO and social crime prevention work
. Excellent communication (written and verbal) skills in Zulu and English
. Demonstrable working knowledge of social crime prevention legislation and policy
. Experience with working with police and the security industry
. Training and organising experience
. Ability to work in a team
. Undergraduate degree in social science or relevant field
. Drivers Licence

Contract Position: 2 Years
Salary Package: R 65 000.00 per annum

Apply in writing, including the names of three contactable referees to Amitha Ramraj at PO Box 104 Hyper by the Sea, Durban North, 4053 or info@pdi.org.za by Monday 17 March 2003.

south africa: Transition and Reconciliation Programme Manager

The Centre for the Study of Violence & Reconciliation

2003-03-20

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/jobs/13922

The Centre for the Study of Violence & Reconciliation (CSVR) is a well established multi-disciplinary NGO specializing in dealing with and preventing violence, protecting human rights and building sustainable peace. CSVR has more than a decade of experience in innovative research, policy formulation, education and training, advocacy, lobbying, and in providing counselling and consultancy services and boasts a 15 year track record of work in South Africa, Southern Africa and internationally. Based in Johannesburg, the CSVR is looking for a dynamic professional to fill an exciting position in its senior management.
The Centre for the Study of Violence & Reconciliation (CSVR) is a well established multi-disciplinary NGO specializing in dealing with and preventing violence, protecting human rights and building sustainable peace. CSVR has more than a decade of experience in innovative research, policy formulation, education and training, advocacy, lobbying, and in providing counselling and consultancy services and boasts a 15 year track record of work in South Africa, Southern Africa and internationally. Based in Johannesburg, the CSVR is looking for a dynamic professional to fill an exciting position in its senior management as

Manager of the Transition and Reconciliation Programme (TRP)

The incumbent would be expected to:
· Take forward CSVR&#8217;s work on truth commissions, transitional justice and the contested area of reconciliation
· Oversee CSVR&#8217;s dynamic and internationally-recognised research and intervention work in these fields
· Lead strategic thinking and engage in advocacy work for the CSVR in these fields
· Help drive CSVR&#8217;s international work, particularly on the African continent
· Represent CSVR on the international stage
· Interface with donors, government officials, NGO partners and international organisations
· Provide leadership to an energetic staff of researchers and intervention specialists
· Participate as a full member of the CSVR management team

The ideal candidate should:
· hold a relevant post-graduate social science or law degree
· be a committed human rights advocate concerned with victims&#8217; rights and reparation
· be willing to oversee high quality research projects
· have experience and expertise which enables him or her to work regionally and internationally
· be comfortable with conducting high level interactions with government, donors and other NGOs
· Diverse language skills would be an advantage


Applications must reach CSVR no later Friday 11 April 2003 Applications, accompanied by a detailed CV and the names of two contactable referees, should be forwarded to Shamila Singh on ssingh@csvr.org.za or by fax at (011) 339-6785.

The CSVR reserves the right not to fill advertised positions.

Preference will be given to historically disadvantaged individuals.

Fahamu