The United Nations says it has "credible information" that Zimbabwe may have received Chinese weapons by way of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The U.N. Security Council says Boeing aircraft delivered 53 tons of Chinese ammunition, meant for the Zimbabwean army, from the DRC to Zimbabwe last August.

This latest International Crisis Group report, argues that the announced withdrawal at year’s end of the Ethiopian army, which intervened in December 2006, opens a new period of uncertainty and risk but also provides a chance to launch an inclusive political process. “The world is preoccupied with a symptom – piracy – instead of concentrating on a political settlement, the core of the crisis”, says Rashid Abdi, Crisis Group’s Somalia Analyst. “There is no quick fix to Somalia’s tragedy, but this opportunity must not be missed”.

Angola has increased border restrictions with the Democratic Republic of Congo where an outbreak of the highly contagious and deadly Ebola virus is believed to have infected 40 people and killed 13. State-owned daily Jornal de Angola said migratory movements between part of Angola's eastern province of Moxico and the DRC were suspended, days after authorities closed the border of its Lunda Norte province with the DRC.

As we watch the horrors taking place in Gaza, it’s difficult to say the words “Happy New Year” though of course this is what we all wish for each other – a new beginning and some hope for a positive change. However, as in January’s past we are faced with yet more violence, death and injustice. African blogs especially those in Egypt have been very vocal in their commentary and reports on the “War in Gaza”.

Sokari Ekine reviews the following blogs:

“War On Gaza”
Arabawy
From the Rock
Rantings of a Sand Monkey
The Moor Next Door
SubZero Blue
Egyptian Chronicles
A Socialist in Egypt
Black Looks

Ghana swore in opposition leader John Atta Mills as president on Wednesday in a democratic transfer of power that has won plaudits from Africa and the world. President John Kufuor stepped down after serving the maximum two four-year terms in office in the West African state. His party's chosen successor lost a cliffhanger presidential election run-off to Mills last week by less than 0.5 percent.

President Kibaki’s decision to cancel the traditional New Year’s Eve state festivities at State House Mombasa is a laudable and encouraging move towards people sensitive leadership. For a long time, the Kenyan civil society has been vocal in condemning the unnecessary, spendthrift and morally irregular expense of holding grand state festivities in the same country where citizens are suffering grand social injustices and unaccountable unresponsive leadership.

First, it took the animals. Goats fell silent and refused to stand up. Chickens died in handfuls, then en masse. Street dogs disappeared. Then it took the children. Toddlers stopped talking and their legs gave out. Women birthed stillborns. Infants withered and died. Some said the houses were cursed. Others said the families were cursed.

JASS (Just Associates), a fast-growing global organization dedicated to strengthening the voice, visibility and collective organizing power of women, is looking for an experienced Senior Manager of Finance & Operations (SMF&O) with at least 10 years of experience, including at least 4 years working with an international organization with multiple offices and partners. Deadline for application submission: January 26, 2009.

Chronicles of a Refugee is a 6-part documentary film series looking at the global Palestinian refugee experience over the last 60 years. Starting with 'al-Nakba' (catastrophe) in 1948 (part I) and continuing through repeated community and individual expulsions (part II) and enduring discrimination by virtue of being Palestinian (part III), the first three episodes are more historical and informative, presenting an almost comprehensive review of 60 years of dispossession.

In this interview conducted by Jarmo Pikkujamsa for African Writing Magazine, Mamadou N'Dongo, a Senegalese writer and filmmaker and author of Bridge Road and L’Errance de Sidiki Bâ, talks about the roots of Bridge Road in Black American struggles, the art of film in relation the craft of writing, and much more.

http://www.pambazuka.org/

cc. We, black people in the United States, condemn the criminal Israeli attacks on the people of Gaza. We understand that these war crimes are being conducted with the overt material and unapologetic political backing of the government of the United States of America . Most importantly, we have learned the lessons of four centuries of racist oppression in the Western hemisphere; that the liberation struggles of the oppressed must not be divided by language, geography, gender, religion or race; that if they come for Gaza in the morning, they will most certainly come for Harlem at night.

In 1967, Dr Martin Luther King Jr spoke out against the US war in Vietnam. He called out the US as ‘the greatest purveyor of violence in the world’. For speaking this truth, Dr King was condemned by the rulers of the US and their loyal servants in the mass media, who arrogantly and condescendingly told him that the Vietnamese war had nothing to do with the black struggle for equality. Dr. King refused to be intimidated.

The stand taken by former US congresswoman and Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney in escorting the humanitarian supplies being taken by ship to break the Gaza siege is another example of black people's support. Her response after the ‘Dignity’ was rammed by an Israeli military boat was not to cower but to ‘organize’.

In the spirit of all those who have fought in our centuries-long river of struggle, we will fight by all means necessary to ensure that this genocidal attack on and blockade of the Palestinian people is ended. We demand that:
- Our elected officials, in particular, the Congressional Black Caucus, stand in opposition to the Israeli assault
- Sanctions be brought against Israel as they were brought against the racist apartheid regime of South Africa
- Disinvestment in US corporations which support Israel.

* The Blacks Against Genocide Coalition is composed of groups and individuals who have come together in response to the criminal Israeli assault on the Palestinian people. Please read and circulate the statement below. Please let us know if you or your organisation will sign on to it.
* Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/

Exploring the growing support for the newly formed Congress of the People (COPE) in much of South Africa, Mphutlane wa Bofelo cautions against people’s unquestioning backing of the party. The author argues that for all the hope it inspires in many South Africans, COPE is likely to be even more unfavourable to social spending than the African National Congress (ANC).

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/414/Tanzanian_Gaza_protest2_l.jpg

His head wrapped in bandages
His face scared
With blood
Oozing out of the wounds
His eyes shut
Unconscious maybe dead
His arms high
High enough to surrender
No. He will never surrender
He is a terrorist
He is a murderer
He is an extremist
He must die
10-month-old baby?
A baby who cries for his mother's milk
A baby whose hands wave in the air
Who clutches at your thumb
Is he your terrorist?
Is he who you are targeting?
Because he is who you got.
He will never surrender,
How can he surrender
For a crime he has not committed

In September this year, my cousin Norman died of an HIV related infection. It was very wrong, not too surprising and painful news. Wrong because we live in the era of ARVs and no one need die of HIV related infections. Not surprising, because if you are living with HIV in Zimbabwe where there is an absolute collapse of the health system death is highly likely. Public hospitals are closed, no medicines, private health care and medication too expensive, and besides you need over 200 days of daily queuing for cash to get a 30 day supply of ARVs. Painful, because I hadn’t spoken to him for months and the last time I spoke to him I was so angry with him and my anger had not yet subsided. Angry with him, because firstly I discover he is HIV positive. How can Norman, in his early 30s, well educated, intelligent and a switched on guy be HIV positive? He knew how you get it and how you can prevent yourself from getting it? Where did he slip up? How could he be so stupid!!?

cc. Mukoma Wa Ngugi reflects on the absence of action by African governments against the Israeli invasion of Gaza and lambasts the divide between African Muslim and non-Muslim populations, calling for a solidarity of action.

The authors introduce a new paradigm to study the African state, Fundi wa Afrika. According to this paradigm, the current African predicament may be explained by the systematic destruction of African states and the dispossession, exploitation, and marginalization of African people through successive historical processes: the trans-Atlantic slave trade, imperialism, colonialism, and globalization.

Susie Smith, a pioneer in the fight against HIV and AIDS, worked for Oxfam GB for 30 years. With this prize, Oxfam wants to acknowledge her commitment to sub-Saharan Africa and her constant willingness to challenge conventional thinking. The prize of £3,000 will be awarded for a single piece of writing on HIV and AIDS from sub-Saharan Africa, which has already been published. Any writing – possibly an article, poetry, fiction or a chapter of a book – of up to 10,000 words and published in English since 2006 will be eligible. The judges will focus on the quality of the submissions and on the impact the writing has had. All submissions must be received by March 31st 2009. Please include a cover letter outlining the impact your piece has had. We expect to announce the winner in July 2009. To enter, send your submission, with a cover letter, to: [email][email protected]

The Lesbian and Gay Equality Project has been following the case into murder of Eudy Simelane (31), a former Banyana-Banyana soccer player, and an out lesbian, whose body was found stabbed and mutilated in an open field in Tornado - one of the sections in the Kwa-Thema township - on the 28 April 2008. The LGEP is mobilizing at least 120 people from the East Rand to 'camp' for three days in Delmas (Mpumalanga) for the duration of the trial

This course is an intensive and practical introduction to System Dynamics, a unique framework for understanding and managing complex development problems. Participants will be introduced to a variety of tools, including mapping techniques and the Threshold 21 simulation model developed by Millennium Institute, which will help them to understand the sources of persistent development problems and identify the best approaches to mitigate them. The course is designed for policy advisors, planning technicians, advocacy and civil society groups, policy research institutions, private foundations, and bilateral development agencies.

The leader of Mauritania's opposition Rally of Democratic Forces (RDF), Mr. Ahmed Ould Daddah, has said the outcome of the country's national consultations, held 27 December to 6 January by the ruling junta, is against the principles of democracy and Mauritania's national interest. In a declaration which was made public Thursday in Nouakchott, the RDF leader also said the conclusions reached at the consultations could not guarantee peace and national unity, adding that the consultations were held under an atmosphere of utter confusion.

Apparently drawing inspiration from the success of Ghana's opposition in the recently-concluded parliamentary and presidential polls, Nigeria's main opposition Action Congress (AC) party has hailed the polls, saying they have shown that a ruling party can be defeated in a free and fair election.

As part of its mission to ensure that the Web is available to all, W3C invites participation in a public Workshop on the Role of Mobile Technologies in Fostering Social and Economic Development in Africa in Maputo, Mozambique, on 1-2 April 2009. Participants will explore ways to fulfil the potential of mobile phones as a platform for deploying development-oriented ICT services towards the poorest segments of populations in developing countries, with an emphasis on the African context.

There is confusion in Kenya over how to deal with bodies piled in the town of Eldoret's morgue for more than a year. The deceased died in a church burnt down by a mob during ethnic violence after elections in December 2007. Thirty-seven bodies were to have been buried on Wednesday but after the first 10 were interred they had to be dug up amid furious protests from relatives.

The reopening of schools in Zimbabwe after the Christmas break has been delayed by two weeks. Education Minister Stephen Mahere said teachers needed to mark last year's exams before the new term can begin.

The South African government should end its sole reliance on an overburdened asylum system that protects only a tiny fraction of the more than a million Zimbabweans who cannot return to the humanitarian disaster in their home country, Human Rights Watch has said.

Extreme poverty will continue to blight sub-Saharan Africa for another 200 years unless action to overcome it is intensified, a new report has suggested. Social Watch, a network of campaigning groups, has devised a measure known as the "basic capabilities index" to assess the level of hardship throughout the world.

For some time now the West through its media has focused its attention on Mugabe and Zimbabwe. Aside their giant media houses like the BBC and CNN, Aljazeera have lately joined the bandwagon, running daily documentaries on the impoverishing state of Zimbabwe. They have even been innovative enough by stepping into the world of adverts and clutching such opportunities to further demonize Mugabe and Zimbabwe.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has condemned the murder of Hassan Mayow Hassan, a Somali journalist, who was shot dead in the Afgoye District of lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia. "We strongly condemn this killing which marks a violent start of the year for journalists in Somalia," said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. "There is an urgent need to end violence against journalists in Somalia and all warring factions must refrain from targeting the media.

The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) says the number of suspected cases of cholera in Zimbabwe has now reached almost 36,000 while nearly 1,780 people have died from the infection since the outbreak began over five months ago. The relief community has boosted its response capacity and coordination in order to manage the outbreak, the worst ever in the country’s history, amid a collapsing health system and worsening humanitarian situation.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has embarked on one of the largest vaccination campaigns in the history of the Central African Republic (CAR), aiming to give 800,000 children the tools they need to address the three leading causes of preventable death: malaria, measles and diarrhoea. “UN agencies and non-governmental organizations run campaigns all the time, but this is a big one and we want it to stand out,” UNICEF Representative in CAR Mahimbo Mdoe said of the 10-day initiative.

The United Nations is continuing to rush assistance to help those uprooted by clashes in the war-torn far east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), including victims of violence at the hands of the notorious Ugandan rebel group known as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).

Measles outbreak has hit the town of Maroua in northern Cameroon, leaving two dead and over 160 infected. Medical officials in the town are on high alert to abate the progress of what they now refer to as an epidemic.

With an increasingly laughable judicial system conniving to illegally detain abducted activists, defence lawyers and rights groups are using name and shame tactics to apply pressure for their release. This week lawyer Alec Muchadehama, who is representing 7 MDC activists charged with plotting to overthrow Mugabe’s regime, named several state agents who abducted his clients.

Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has requested a meeting with President Robert Mugabe in a last-ditch effort to salvage a power-sharing deal, an opposition spokesman said on Friday. Tsvangirai and Mugabe signed a unity pact last September, but the agreement appears to be unravelling following a dispute over the control of key ministries and the abduction of several opposition and human rights activists.

The warming climate is likely to put stress on crops and livestock alike and could cause serious food shortages for half the world's population, U.S. researchers predicted on Thursday. The worst effects will be in the regions where the poorest people already live -- the tropics and subtropics, the researchers wrote in the journal Science. But temperate regions will see very warm average temperatures, they added.

African investors have hatched an ambitious plan to launch a dedicated satellite to beam more bandwidth to the continent. Africans will supply 90 per cent of the funding, with global satellite company Intelsat providing the experience and credibility to get the project done. The main local backer is Convergence Partners, a hi-tech investment fund chaired by Andile Ngcaba, a former Director-General of South Africa’s Department of Communications.

A quarter of Ugandan HIV-positive patients with active tuberculosis (TB) had a viral load below 10,000 copies/ml, investigators report in a letter published in the December 1st edition of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. Furthermore, the investigators found that viral load increased in a significant proportion of patients whose viral load was below 1000 copies/ml after they started treatment with anti-TB drugs.

In 2003, two journalists from Radio-Télévision Libre des Milles Collines were convicted of war crimes in the Rwanda genocide -- illustrating the dangerous role media can play by relaying hate speech or rumours during times of violent conflict. RTLM, which broadcast from July 1993 to July 1994, was found to have "fanned the flames of hate and genocide in Rwanda". It was the first such conviction since that of Julius Streicher at Nuremberg for his anti-Semitic publication Der Stürmer.