Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba has publicly expressed frustration at the slow pace of the country's land redistribution programme, a process which he urged government to swiftly address. Pohamba told the country's first cabinet session in 2011 that the largely discredited willing buyer willing seller principle had been a failure and implored the Ministry of Lands and Resettlement to speedily finalise the Consolidated Draft Land Bill and the implementation of small scale farming projects.

'If David’s murder stimulates discussion about the violence and discrimination facing people because of their sexual orientation or their gender identity, then his death will not have been completely in vain. That discussion must inevitably address the question of decriminalizing homosexuality. Criminal sanctions for homosexuality remain on the statute books in more than 70 countries, including Uganda. Such laws are an anachronism, in most cases a hangover from the old days of colonial rule.'

Journalists, broadcasters and media entrepreneurs on Monday raised a red flag over the proposed changes to the set of laws governing the operations of the media industry. Speaking at a consultative meeting at Nairobi's Sarova Panafric Hotel, the industry players said the government's draft Media Bill, 2010, was taking the industry 'many steps back'. According to the Media Council chairman, Dr Levi Obonyo, the proposal to limit the aspect of self-regulation in the new draft Bill is 'retrogressive'.

South Africa is gearing up for its third local government election. In an attempt to break with the authoritarianism of his predecessor, Thabo Mbeki, President Jacob Zuma has promised a new approach to these elections, where more responsive candidates are selected that genuinely represent the will of the people. But, asks Jane Duncan, Highway Africa Chair of Media and Information Society at Rhodes University, will the promise of these elections be realised? And will the ANC respect the will of the people if it clashes with the will of the party?

Police personnel in Accra on 2 February 2011 scuttled a plan picketing by members of the Right to Information (RTI) Coalition at Ghana’s Parliament House to register their displeasure about undue delay of the law makers to pass the bill into law, which was laid in 2009. The RTI Bill went through the first reading on 5 February 2010, it is now before the Joint Communication and Legal Committee of parliament and the committee is expected to conduct a nationwide consultative meeting, but the coalition says the bill is not on the agenda of this session of the house which ends in June, 2011.

The Commission of the African Union invites applications from University lecturers, who intend to undertake postgraduate studies at the PhD level in any reputable Indian University. The applicant must possess a Masters degree with at least 3 years post-graduation experience, and not above be 45 years of age.

Europe's development policy and external lending practices should play a greater role in securing raw materials from key producer regions such as Africa, the European Commission is set to propose in a new policy paper on Wednesday (2 February). The communication will also look at measures to tackle growing fluctuations in global commodity markets, an issue that French President Nicolas Sarkozy has made a cornerstone of France's G20 presidency.

From the grassroots to the global, communities and movements are imagining and creating a world where people and planet come before profit, and democracy trumps corporate power. 6 Billion Ways is a day that explores this resistance through discussion, ideas, action and the arts. With speakers and practical workshops for all ages, debates, films, music and art, 6 Billion Ways is your chance to inspire and be inspired, and to make connections with others who want to challenge injustice and inequality, both in the UK and globally.

Fahamu events at 6 Billion Ways include:

- Africa: Empire and Resistance

Africa is still portrayed as a hopeless, famine-struck continent in need of rescue. In this session, leading thinkers will paint a more positive picture, and assess the hopes and prospects for African resistance in the twenty-first century.

Speakers

Samir Amin, Third World Forum, Senegal
Firoze Manji, Fahamu network for social justice
Patrick Bond, Centre for Civil Society, University of KwaZulu-Natal

- Film: Tin Town

Promised housing by the South African government, more than a hundred Cape Town families found community through their struggle as squatters on a sandy road known as Symphony Way. Recently moved by court order to an indefinitely temporary relocation area dubbed ‘Tin Town’ or ‘Blikkiesdorp’ in Afrikaans, community members reflect on that road in their past and on the road ahead.

This is a short film followed by a discussion with Firoze Manji, Editor-in-chief at Pambazuka News.

The book 'No Land! No House! No Vote! Voices from Symphony Way' will also be launched at the screening.

'I shall leave now for Tahrir Square. My family is already there. My son phoned and said it's fine: the military are running checks and everything's orderly. The questions that are being settled on the streets of Egypt are of concern to everyone. The paramount one for us today is this: can a people's revolution that is determinedly democratic, grass-roots, inclusive and peaceable succeed?'

On 26-28 June 2009, Oxford Transitional Justice Research (OTJR) hosted the international conference, 'Taking Stock of Transitional Justice'. 170 delegates from 36 countries took part in the event, which was held in the Social Sciences Building at the University of Oxford. Featuring 75 presentations by established experts and new thinkers who challenge accepted positions, the conference provided the basis for re-orienting the study and practice of transitional justice. Bringing together speakers and participants from a wide range of geographical areas, with a focus on transitional justice-affected countries, the conference provided a means to foster dialogue and establish long-term working relationships. The podcasts for this event, which include a series on Sudan, are now available from the website provided.

Party of National Unity affiliated parties will consult on how to pull out of the grand coalition its deputy secretary general Jeremiah Kioni said on Sunday, reports the Daily Nation. PNU, which is a key party in President Kibaki’s alliance of parties that brought him to power and which is in the coalition with ODM, had last week indicated that it would want its top decision-making organ to call a conference to discuss withdrawal from the grand coalition.

The inland Niger delta of Mali is a unique wetland ecosystem that supports a million farmers, fishermen, and herders and a rich diversity of wildlife. But now, the country’s president and Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi have begun a major agricultural project that will divert much of the river’s water and threaten the delta’s future.

The Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation is in the process of popularising the highly subsidised malaria drugs now available in the country, reports the Daily Nation. Through the programme, the ministry and the private sector are offering treatments for less than Sh40, effectively bringing down the cost of malaria medicine from a high average of Sh500 per dose. Although these medicines have been around for several months now, many pharmacies have been selling them at prices far above those that have been recommended. This has prompted the current campaign to inform Kenyans that the medicines are available and that they need not buy them at the previous high prices.

The African Union (AU) Friday called for 'appropriate reforms' in Egypt, where protesters have been pushing for President Hosni Mubarak's exit from power. In a statement made available to PANA, AU Commission Chairperson Jean Ping expressed regret at the continuing violent protests, which entered its 11th day Friday. He said the Egyptian authorities must institute appropriate reforms and respond to the needs of the protesters, while expressing concern at the violent protests and loss of lives.

The UN-backed Global Fund Against Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria has announced it is strengthening financial safeguards following corruption claims. The fund, with a budget of almost $22bn (£13.6bn), said the new measures would include a panel of independent experts to review financial procedures.

The purpose of this research paper from the South Centre is to describe, above all, a negotiating process which many have described as historical. More than an analysis on the subject of public health and intellectual property, this is an analysis of a negotiating process which could change the course and the nature of an organisation such as the WHO. It is still too early to say whether this was achieved are not, but we are starting to write a chapter in the history of public health in the 21st century.

Algeria's 19-year state of emergency will be lifted in the 'very near future', state media has quoted Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the president, as saying. During a meeting with ministers on Thursday, the president also said Algerian television and radio, which are controlled by the state, should give airtime to all political parties.

The world is in financial crisis thanks to the reckless behaviour of bankers, say campaigners, yet ordinary people are picking up the tab. Debt activists fear the recession will provide cover for a fresh round of toxic debt to countries in the South. Nick Dearden, director of the Jubilee Debt Campaign, an international coalition of about 200 organisations, says there has never been a more important time for activists to meet to discuss collaboration and strategies to bring about real change to the world's economy than now.

'We, the undersigned civil society organisations working to promote freedom of expression around the world, condemn the serious violations of human rights taking place at this critical moment in Egypt. Since pro-democracy activists first began popular protest across Egypt on 25 January, there have been at least three hundred deaths, incidents of physical attacks and brutality, often involving live fire, and
arbitrary arrests and detentions of protestors and journalists. The government has also restricted access to the internet, withdrawn mobile phone services and placed restrictions on independent media.'

South African based refugee rights group, PASSOP, has accused the Zimbabwean government of robbing its citizens in South Africa, where more than a hundred thousand Zim nationals are still waiting for passports. Zimbabweans who have applied for permits to remain in South Africa legally are still waiting for their government to issue them passports so they can get the permits. But the Zim authorities have not made good on their promises to roll out the documents, even shunning meetings with civil society to explain the delay.

Around 09h30 yesterday (4 February), the MEC for Housing Bonginkosi Madikizela, came with police and the Anti-Land Invasions Unit. No one consulted with anyone in the community. They came without warning, without the necessary court documents, and destroyed brick houses and shacks in section 20-21 of Mandela Park. At around 18h00, the Mandela Park community gathered at Andile Nhose community hall to discuss the illegal demolition earlier in the day. Community members decided to take to the streets in a spontaneous demonstration protesting against the actions by Madikizela and the government.

As the government prepares for round two of the shuttle diplomacy in its efforts to seek deferral of the ICC case, a debate is raging on the implications of the move, reports the Daily Nation. And in the raging debate, there is a view that the country is slowly reclaiming its sovereignty and a counter argument that the move is seriously hurting Kenya’s image in the international community.

The African Union commission chairman Jean Ping has been unhappy about Sudan’s lack of progress on handing justice for victims of alleged war crimes committed in Darfur, according to a classified U.S. document obtained by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks. Ping’s views came at a meeting he held in January 2009 with representatives of the P-3 group (United States, United Kingdom and France) in London.

Zimbabwe's main rival political parties on Saturday condemned a spate of violent clashes among their supporters, which Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai blames on President Robert Mugabe's youth brigades. In the last two weeks, Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has traded accusations with Mugabe's ZANU-PF party over attacks on some MDC members in townships around the capital Harare, including the burning down of a satellite party office.

Without access to sanitary towels, a girl child in the SADC region may be excluded from her right to education. The Commonwealth Education Fund (CEF) and the Girl Child Network (GCN) have discovered that despite the provision of free schooling by the Kenyan government, more than 800,000 children (mostly girls) continue to forgo the opportunity of education. The CGE and the GCN found that during menstruation, some girls refused to go to school because they cannot access sanitary towels and the school toilets are unsafe or unusable. The high cost of sanitary towels also results in the use of unhygienic sponges, tissue paper and even foliage during menstruation.

Twenty-four hour network coverage, activist videos, Twitter, Facebook and blogs have all mashed together to convey the Egyptian revolution to the world, writes Patrick Burnett.

The Governor of the Bank of Mozambique, Ernesto Gove, has claimed that the economic and social conditions now exist in Mozambique for the government to renegotiate contracts signed with some of the mega-projects that have come to dominate the economy. Speaking on Friday at the closing session of a meeting of the Bank's Consultative Council in Mozambique, Gove said, 'In investment everybody has to win, otherwise social tensions are created.'

With nearly one in three South Africans expected to receive state assistance in the form of welfare benefits during the 2011/12 financial year, commentators are wondering how the country can afford to keep providing an ever expanding social safety net. According to the latest South Africa Survey, released on 1 February by independent think-tank the South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR), the number of social grant beneficiaries has increased by more than 300 percent in the past nine years, while the number of registered individual taxpayers has grown at a much slower rate.

In Southern Sudan, preliminary referendum results point to 99 per cent of those polled voting to split from the North. Panos has spoken to voters in the Warrap and West Bahr al Ghazal states about their hopes for the future. Ariac Kuot Akuei, 64, waited in line for nine hours to cast her vote for separation after walking four kilometres to her polling station at Kuajoc Secondary School, in Warrap state.

Beauty Pillow is a rare woman in Malawi - she can afford to run for office. 'I don’t have any donors but I use the little my husband sends from South Africa and from my own business—selling chitenjes (traditional garments), rice and sometimes beans,' Pillow says. Aspiring for local government is no easy task. Beyond campaigning costs and time spent, Pillow says a major challenge will still be to win her party’s favour and make it through the primaries next year.

The 'deafening' silence by the South African government on issues relating to homosexuality on international platforms has been highly condemned by gay rights groups at a rally spearheaded by the Lesbian and Gay Equality Project (LGEP) outside offices of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) in Pretoria on 01 February 2011. Over 150 people attended the march which called for DIRCO and government as a whole to uphold and promote the South African Constitution and urge African Union member states to fight discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people.

A number of female Moroccan seasonal workers in Spain find themselves in a precarious legal and economic situation, a study revealed on 28 January. 'They do not speak Spanish, so they have no way of defending their rights,' said Rachid El Badouli, director of strategic studies at the Orient-Occident Foundation. According to the findings, around 90 per cent of the women are illiterate and come from large poor families. Over 23 per cent of them earn less than 35 euros per day.

Experts warn an influx [of returnees] is expected to cause dire shortages of food, water, health care and sanitation in Southern Sudan. The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Mr. Georg Charpentier says even when the referendum results are announced, the number of returnees could keep increasing.

As in many African countries, women in Mozambique often give birth outside of a health facility. Factors leading to this decision include having difficult access to health services, being scared of how they will be treated at a health facility, and feeling more comfortable delivering at home. But, when complications occur at home, women and babies are much less likely to receive the appropriate, life-saving care they need. Women Deliver reports that the Mozambique’s government and partners are working to change this trend by improving health care delivery through the Model Maternities Initiative (MMI). The goal of MMI is to improve maternal and newborn health care services while providing a supportive environment in which women give birth.

With the world’s population slated to top the milestone seven billion mark by late 2011, the new head of the United Nations agency that helps countries use population data for policies to reduce poverty pledged today to focus on the largest global youth generation ever. 'Investing in youth, their reproductive health and gender equality can help put countries on a path to accelerated economic growth and equitable development,' UN Population Fund (UNFPA) Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin said in his first address to the UN Development Programme (UNDP)/UNFPA Executive Board.

In the wake of the welcome and peaceful move towards democracy in Tunisia, PEN International notes with great concern the violent response to anti-government protests elsewhere in the region, notably Egypt, but also in Yemen and Syria.

The Angola Monitor covers the politics, economics, development, democracy and human rights of Angola. It is published quarterly by Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA) and is available in both English and Portuguese. This issue covers President dos Santos’ state visit to South Africa, the meeting of the general secretaries of liberation movements in Luanda and the 2011 budget and increased investment in industry and health. It also covers calls for more transparency in the oil industry, cases of rape during the continued mass expulsions into DRC and growing concerns about violence against reporters.

Sanogo Aboubakar and Kangbe Yayoro Charles Lopez, of the pro-Ouattara Television Notre Patrie (TVN) in Bouake, the second largest city in Cote d’Ivoire, have been detained by security forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo since their arrest on 28 January 2011. The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)’s correspondent reported that the two journalists were picked up at the airbase of the Liaison Transport Air Group in Abidjan where they were to board a flight belonging to the United Nations Operations in Cote d’Ivoire (ONUCI) to cover a story at the Golf hotel.

This Friday, COSATU, with people from organisations and groups around Gauteng will protest outside the Egyptian embassy in Tshwane to raise their voices in support of the demands of the Egyptian people: Bread, Jobs, Education, Dignity, Democracy, Freedom of Expression. Join workers and people of Egypt and South Africa. Show your support.?

Following developments in Tunisia and as Egypt’s extraordinary scenes continue, Melakou Tegegn stresses that the ruling classes across the region are shuddering at the power of the revolts.

We, civil society organizations from across the world, strongly urge all governments, as well as regional and international organizations, to clearly and unequivocally denounce the ongoing violent crackdown against the public protests and demands for democratic reform and government accountability that have been occurring across Egypt since the 25th of January.

Survival International has reported that: 'In a momentous decision, Botswana’s Court of Appeal today quashed a ruling that denied the Kalahari Bushmen access to water on their ancestral lands...Celebrating after the decision, a Bushman spokesman said, "We are very happy that our rights have finally been recognised. Like any human beings, we need water to live."' Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow says, 'This is a major win, it’s the first test case of our right to water resolution at the United Nations.'

Raising Voices is searching for a website resource person, with experience in the field of violence against women, and knowledge of organisations and individuals in this field within Africa and specifically the Horn, East and Southern Africa.

Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) has issued a statement showing how solidarity groups can help following the murder of David Kato on 26 January 2011. Kato was an advocacy officer and a longtime leading activist for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) human rights.??

With decentralised organising structures and the absence of a leadership vanguard, events in Egypt and Tunisia point to an emergent mode of revolutionary organisation, argues Horace Campbell, one which provides new lessons for mobilisation around progressive change and non-violence.

Privatised seed corporations are grabbing the market in basic food staples. Khadija Sharife explains how they pay nothing for the market dominance.

The memoirs of Jacinto Veloso, Frelimo supporter and former general, are a rich introduction to Mozambican history by a knowledgeable man with ‘plenty of stories to tell’, writes Wilson Gomes de Almeida.

Negotiations in both Côte d'Ivoire and Zimbabwe remain hands-on, says Gado.