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African Shirts - (http://africanshirts.blogspot.com/2006/01/prison-works.html) is surprised that Nigeria’s prison population is nearly 4 times less that of the UK. The Nigerian Government is set to release more than half of its 40,000 inmates, which again he finds surprising.

“Call me biased against Nigeria, but I'd never have expected this to be the case. I still think of Nigeria as a country where people get arrested and subsequently disappear forever, like Houdini gone wrong. “

He also questions the suggestion implied by the prison numbers that Nigerians are more law abiding than in the UK.

“This is rubbish. Lagos is probably the most crime-ridden and unsafe place in the world, except for Baghdad (which is in a war zone, so it doesn't count). Given the amount of crime in Lagos, its prison population alone should be 40,000. I suspect that Nigeria ranks lower than the UK because the Nigerian justice system grinds slowly, if at all.”

And here lies the crunch. Nigerian prisons are less populated probably because the justice system is slow and people can bribe their way out of jail! None the less he is impressed by:

“…the move as most of the inmates appear to have been held in violation of the number one right of the imprisoned - habeas corpus. This shows that the Nigerian government is, shock horror, interested in the rights of its citizens.”

Darfur blog, The Passion of the Present - Passion of the Present (http://platform.blogs.com/passionofthepresent/2006/01/a_movement_by_w.html) reports on a movement by women in the DRC to fight the stigma associated with rape.

“These women are part of a growing movement of female community leaders who, with support from international donors, are fighting the stigma long associated with rape in northeast Congo, where a violent, ethnically driven conflict has raged for much of the past decade.”

The women are beginning to form local vigilante committees to protect and support women who have been raped and to provide them with counselling.

Ethiopian Politics - Ethiopian Politics (http://ethiopianpolitics.blogspot.com/2006/01/dictator-of-month.html) reports that Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been chosen as “Dictator of the Month Dot Com” which
is an online magazine that features infamous works of “dictators, autocrats and monarchs of the world”. Dictators that have been featured on this website include: Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Kim Jong Il and Mengistu Halilemariam. This blogger along with other concerned Ethiopian citizens has been in contact with “dictator of the month” website informing them of the atrocities committed by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. After reviewing all the evidence from all the major news sources they are finally convinced that Meles does indeed deserve this title.

Black Star Journal - Black Star Journal (http://blackstarjournal.blogspot.com/2006/01/38000-die-each-month-in-dr-...) comments on the astounding figure of 34,000 people dying each month in the DRC and the lack of response from the global community.

He contrasts the response to the Asian Tsunami where 283,000 people lost their lives with a million displaced, and 9/11 when 3,000 people died.

“But if I told you there was a conflict that has cost almost 15 times as many lives as the tsunami, could you name that crisis? If I told you there was a crisis that, in mortality terms, was the equivalent of three 9/11s every week for the last 7 years, would you know which one I'm talking about?”

He rightly concludes that it is all about location, location, location!

Tunisian blogger Subzeroblue - Sub Zero Blue (http://www.subzeroblue.com/archives/2006/01/biodiesel_in_tunisia.html) writes about the rising cost of fuel throughout the world. The consumer is loosing whilst the big oil companies continue to bank their profits. Although Tunisians are lucky because their oil is subsidised by the Government, this will not last forever and like the rest of the world an alternative fuel needs to be found. One suggestion is BioDiesel,
“An option that I find really accessible for a country like Tunisia, that can't afford to invest a lot of money in hydrogen-powered fuel cells for example, is BioDiesel. Biodiesel is fuel made from renewable materials such as vegetable oils or animal fats, or even recycled fryer oil. It is biodegradable and non-toxic, and has significantly fewer emissions than petroleum-based diesel when burned. It also functions in current diesel engines and reduces engine wear by as much as one half.” Bio Diesel is already available in the UK and the US and there is a website which explains how you can make it yourself. Bio Diesel (http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html)

Black Looks - Black Looks (http://okrasoup.typepad.com/black_looks/2006/01/a_56_year_old_e.html) comments on the sentencing to five years of a British paedophile for sexually abusing young children in Ghana.

“Obviously the arrest of this despicable individual is a relief but the reality is that in Africa alone there are millions of children being abused in this way whilst the number of prosecutions is relatively small. “

African countries are full of sex tourists, Gambia, Cameroon, Kenya and South Africa to name a few. Using Gambia as an example she explains how sex tourism operates. South Africa is a major destination and distributor of children from across the world.

“Child trafficking, child prostitution and child pornography have become major money making operations for individuals, gangs and syndicates in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban and other parts of the country; and around the world. Molo Songololo’s research revealed that children are trafficked across South Africa’s borders; both into and from South Africa, as well as within its border.”

* Sokari Ekine produces the blog Black Looks, http://okrasoup.typepad.com/black_looks

* Please send comments to [email protected]