Not only do journalists accept bribes and media houses accept paid material disguised as news stories, but all too often, reporters and editors are the instigators, extorting money either for publishing favorable stories–or for not publishing damaging ones. With all the organised efforts to support media development and defend press freedom around the world, there has been remarkably little done in any concerted way to reduce the problem of corrupt journalism, says this report.

Pambazuka News is pleased to announce the call for submissions for the first annual Pambazuka Samir Amin Award. This award, launched to mark Samir Amin’s 80th birthday in 2011, pays tribute to the extraordinary contribution Samir Amin has made to our understanding of the exploitation of the peoples of Africa and the global South.

An article from the International Journal of Refugee Law argues that advocacy for a new treaty to address climate change-related movement is presently misplaced for a number of reasons. It queries the utility – and, importantly, the policy consequences – of pinning ‘solutions’ to climate change-related displacement on a multilateral instrument, in light of the likely nature of movement, the desires of communities affected by it, and the fact that a treaty will not, without wide ratification and implementation, ‘solve’ the humanitarian issue.

The theme for the 16th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa is 'Towards Greater Unity and Integration through Shared Values'. Arguably, the success story of South-South cooperation around shared values is the African Peer Review Mechanism, says the South African Institute of International Affairs. It is the continent’s home-grown governance tracking system and will be re-examined when African leaders meet on the summit margins. Key agenda items for the APRM forum include Liberia’s accession as the APRM’s 30th member, the much-anticipated peer review of Ethiopia, and progress reports on the National Programmes of Action (NPoAs) from South Africa, Lesotho and Nigeria.

The protest movement in Egypt has mobilised the young and the middle classes using the Internet and social networks in a challenge to the authorities that has seen both Twitter and Swedish video-streaming site Bambuser blocked. Mobile phones too were unable to get a signal on Tuesday in Tahrir Square in the centre of the capital Cairo, which has been a rallying point for thousands of protesters. Pro-democracy activists countered on Wednesday by disseminating technical advice to overcome these obstacles to enable the mobilisation to continue.

In the State of the Union speech, Barack Obama did get applause for saying that the US stands with the people of Tunisia. Now, he didn’t mention the two decades of support the US had given the dictatorship, notes this article from Alternet. The President did not have anything to say about Egypt - where thousands of people, inspired by Tunisia, were taking to the streets to protest their own repressive government - another one the US has backed for years. Secretary of State Clinton’s official word is that the Egyptian government was 'stable'.

'This call is an appeal to develop wise initiatives to prevent Ivory Coast from going over the edge into disaster. This call addresses itself directly to the decision-makers of the UN, the EU, the Americas, the French, the African Union, and ECOWAS , who, by their actions, are liable to precipitate Ivory Coast and, maybe, the entire West African region into irreparable chaos.'

As a wave of protests sweeps Egypt inspired by Tunisia’s uprising, Africa’s bloggers ask if Algeria and Mauritania too will stand up to their oppressive governments, writes Dibussi Tande.

Samir Amin discusses the Tunisian uprising and the country’s prospects for building ‘a democratic government supported by the people’, in an interview with Aydinlik Magazine.

Mphutlane wa Bofelo explores the role of the newly-established Democratic Left Front in dealing ‘creatively and proactively’ with the challenges of neo-apartheid and neoliberal capitalism in South Africa.

What is at stake in Côte d’Ivoire ‘are the consequences of French on-going colonisation and ruthless exploitation in connivance with unscrupulous local leaders of swathes of west and central Africa’, writes Sanou Mbaye, in an analysis of the five parties affected by the country’s post-election crisis.

The Revenue Watch Institute (RWI) is a non-profit policy institute and grant-making organization that promotes the transparent, accountable and effective management of oil, gas, and mineral resources for the public good. RWI provides expertise, capacity building and funding to help countries maximize the long-term economic benefit of their natural riches.

This book traces the role of politicians and public intellectuals in media, civil society and the academy in producing and disseminating a politically usable historical narrative concerning ideas about patriotism, race, land, human rights and sovereignty. It raises pressing questions about the role of contemporary African intellectuals in the making of democratic societies. In so doing the book adds a new and rich dimension to the study of African politics, which is often diluted by the neglect of ideas.

A new set of research studies – available now on the International Land Coalition (ILC) website – explores the growing wave of large-scale international and domestic land acquisitions and the factors that are driving demand for investments in land. The studies examine how changes in demand for food, energy and natural resources, along with liberalisation of trade regimes, are making the competition for land increasingly global and unequal.

Pastoralist communities in two districts of northeastern Ethiopia have outlawed female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), saying it causes serious health problems to the women and is against their culture, a local official said. The two districts are Amibara and Awash-Fentale in Afar region. 'We are very happy to declare the abandonment of this horrible act on women,' the head of women's affairs in Amibara district, Fatuma Ali, said. 'We would like to thank the elders, our community and all our partners.'

Oxford University’s Master's programme in International Human Rights Law is offered jointly by the Department for Continuing Education and the Faculty of Law. It is conducted on a part-time basis over 22 months. It involves two periods of distance learning via the internet as well as two summer sessions held at New College, Oxford. The degree programme is designed in particular for lawyers and other human rights advocates who wish to pursue advanced studies in international human rights law but may need to do so alongside work or family responsibilities. The aim of the degree programme is to train and support future leaders in the field of international human rights law. A central objective of the course is to ensure that participants not only know but can also use human rights law. The curriculum places roughly equal emphasis on the substance of human rights law, its implementation, and the development of human rights advocacy skills.

It is now official that almost half of Tanzania’s public servants and politicians are yet to declare their wealth as required by the law. According to the 1995 public servants ethics code and act all public servants are required to declare their wealth 30 days within their election and appointment. Thereafter they are required to continue declaring their wealth annually.

Alarmed by the increase in piracy, the United Nations has proposed the establishment - for a transitional period - of a Somali extra-territorial jurisdiction court in the Tanzanian city of Arusha to deal just with piracy cases. Jack Lang, the Special Adviser on Legal Issues related to Piracy, told reporters the estimated costs of setting up a court would be around 25 million dollars. This, he pointed out, was 'a relatively modest expense compared to the estimated seven billion dollars' that is the current cost of piracy, including the multi-million-dollar ransoms extracted by pirates in the high seas.

‘Like most Kenyans, the chilling sight of plainclothes policemen gunning down three unarmed “gangsters” at close range and in cold blood… left my stomach turning,’ writes H. Nanjala Nyabola. ‘Is this how low we’ve sunk as a nation?'

Back to the front
No more heckling at the back
No more ranting in the dark
No more pontificating from a distance
No more writing behind the scenes…

In the wake of the ousting of entrenched Tunisian president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, Horace Campbell reflects on events in the country, regional implications and the inspirational example of the Tunisian people in organising for a new future.

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A multi-billion dollar iron ore deal involving lifetime dictators and a system of power through patronage makes for a toxic mix that is bad for the people of Gabon, writes Khadija Sharife.

A deal valued at nearly US$30 billion that will increase Nigeria’s refining capacity is on the cards. But is there a catch for Africa’s largest oil producer? Khadija Sharife investigates.

The Angolan government is preparing to renew efforts to eradicate polio with support from global partners, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has made polio eradication its top priority. Angola succeeded in stamping out polio for three consecutive years at the beginning of the century, but a strain of the virus prevalent in India reappeared in 2005 and has since spread to the neighbouring countries of Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo.

The Royal Advisory Council for Human Rights (CCDH) of Morocco in a unique report confirms the killing of 352 'disappeared' Saharawis from 1958 to 1992. Out of these, over 200 died in military bases and secret detention centres, including children.

The phenomenon of regional warriors in West Africa is rearing its head again today, as Cote d’Ivoire hovers on the brink of civil war. Thousands of combatants roam this fragile region from conflict to conflict, fighting as a means to survive in some of the poorest nations on earth, where peace without proper reintegration has brought not happiness but rather a life of idle deprivation for some former fighters, many of whom were coerced to take up arms as children.

Reporters Without Borders says it is 'dismayed' by the three-year jail sentence and fine of six million Somaliland shillings (around 1,000 dollars) that a court in Hargeisa, the capital of the breakaway northwestern territory of Somaliland, has passed on Mohamud Abdi Jama, the editor of the independent newspaper Waheen, for allegedly libelling local officials.

Ugandan gay rights activists have dared Rolling Stone Editor Guiles Muhame to continue outing gays and lesbians in that country, warning that he may be up for a surprise that could end his career or land him in jail. This after Muhame vowed to continue publishing articles outing Ugandan homosexuals despite a recent court ruling that permanently barred the newspaper from publishing such articles and even instructing the Rolling Stone to pay three plaintiffs damages of over 1.5 million Ugandan Shillings.

Freedom of the press could be seriously impacted across the world in the wake of the ongoing political revelations brought about by whistle-blowing websites such as Wikileaks, one of foremost constitutional law experts in the US has said. Speaking at a Personal Democracy Forum event, at New York University, veteran First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams warned governments could use the controversy surrounding the recent release of thousands of confidential diplomatic cables as an excuse to crack down on journalists and publishers.

With serious human rights concerns surrounding the development of the Kajbar dam in Sudan, Peter Bosshard of International Rivers says the companies involved need to respect the interests of local people.

Between 20 September and 31 December 2010, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) carried out the Zimbabwe Documentation Process (ZDP). In the period leading up to the documentation process, civil society organisations began voicing concerns about the short timeline provided and the management of the process. These concerns continued as the process got underway. In light of these concerns, and in order to identify any obstacles as they emerged, the African Centre for Migration and Society (ACMS) – formerly the Forced Migration Studies Programme – began sending researchers to observe the situation. The findings from this monitoring provide a picture of how the process worked and highlight important problem areas. This report presents the key lessons learned, with suggestions for carrying out future regularisation measures.

High poverty levels and the skewed distribution of resources in Zambia's poorest province is stirring secession talk - with an ethnic dimension. 'The tensions in Western Province are a consequence of the neglect that the place has suffered in terms of socio-economic and infrastructure development,' Thomas Mabwe, head of Development Studies at the Zambia Open University, told IRIN. 'Poverty levels in Western Province are the highest in the country, and there is very little to show in terms of infrastructure development. So, to some extent, people are just reacting to that under-development of their region,' he said.

Zimbabwe's fiscal cupboard remains bare and the unity government will struggle to meet its wage bill for public sector workers in January 2011, finance minister Tendai Biti told the inaugural Global Poverty Summit in Johannesburg on 19 January. Public sector unions are threatening a national strike and have refused an 18-26 per cent salary increase offer by government that would increase the lowest-paid worker's monthly income from $128 to $160. The unions are demanding a minimum monthly wage of $500.

Côte d'Ivoire's Laurent Gbagbo receives a call from International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

Tunisia's waves of political change seem on the verge of drenching unsuspecting old despots across the North African region, says Gado.

Books which were banned under the Ben Ali regime are now beginning to be available in book stores in Tunis. Librairie el-Kitab in Tunis is now working to establish contacts with publishers to provide books for free to intellectuals and commentators in the country as part of the effort to establish a new democratic Tunisia.

An explosive WikiLeaks cable claims that spy boss and President Jacob Zuma confidante Mo Shaik threatened to expose the 'political skeletons' of Zuma’s enemies and reveals that he was cultivated by the Americans as a key informant within the Zuma camp. The fresh revelations are likely to shake the Zuma administration as they involve one of the president’s key allies and the man tasked with running the country’s secret service.

Esperança Chidzinga lives in the rural town of Chicualacuala in Mozambique's Gaza province. Accessible only by a train that comes twice a week, the town is isolated and under-serviced. When Chidzinga was nine years old she went into the forest with school friends to gather wood for a party and she stepped on a landmine and lost a leg. Her life has never been the same. 'I was at the hospital and my father came to see me,' she said. 'When he left I tried to follow him but when I got off the bed I fell down. That's when I realised I had lost my leg.' Chicualacuala is a typical example of the many areas in Mozambique still affected by landmines laid during the country's civil war.

The roundtable discussion is aimed at bringing together participants from African, Asian and Latin American civil society organisations and movements to discuss the concept of South-South cooperation from a peoples’ perspective. The roundtable will interrogate the challenges and opportunities for people centered South-South cooperation in the context of Southern ‘emerging powers’ and increased intergovernmental relations.

The extrajudicial killings that were carried out along Lang'ata Road by the Kenya Police indicates to all Kenyans that the death squads are now completely out of control. It is now clear to all that the Kenya Police have abandoned all pretext of any reform and are now operating totally outside the law.

Oxford University’s Master's programme in International Human Rights Law is offered jointly by the Department for Continuing Education and the Faculty of Law. It is conducted on a part-time basis over 22 months. It involves two periods of distance learning via the internet as well as two summer sessions held at New College, Oxford. The degree programme is designed in particular for lawyers and other human rights advocates who wish to pursue advanced studies in international human rights law but may need to do so alongside work or family responsibilities. The aim of the degree programme is to train and support future leaders in the field of international human rights law. A central objective of the course is to ensure that participants not only know but can also use human rights law. The curriculum places roughly equal emphasis on the substance of human rights law, its implementation, and the development of human rights advocacy skills.

'The Southern Sudan referendum allowed the free expression of the will of the people for self determination. Turnout was massive, in a peaceful environment, and administrative procedures met national legal requirements in an atmosphere of respect and cooperation. Though the counting and tabulation stages of the referendum have yet to be completed and the final results are still awaited, our observation showed that voter participation far exceeded the required 60 per cent threshold and indicated that the final official referendum results will show that people chose a peaceful secession.'

In this week's edition of the Emerging Powers News Round-Up, read a comprehensive list of news stories and opinion pieces related to China, India and other emerging powers....

The Rotary Foundation is now accepting applications for the world-competitive Rotary Peace Fellowship. The fellowship provides academic and practical training to prepare scholars for leadership roles in solving conflicts around the world.

South Africa’s recently-awarded tender for antiretroviral drugs halved drug costs for the world’s largest ARV programme. Driven by a better-prepared and more aggressive government, the deal may stand up to criticism better than initially thought. In a country with an estimated HIV prevalence rate of about 18 per cent, more than a million South Africans are currently on ARVs. South Africa will save an estimated 685 million dollars over the two-year life of the new tender.

Many Malian farmers are boycotting cotton this year, instead planting cereals. Cotton isn’t edible, but observers say that the shift could weaken food security. Discouraged by falling prices for cotton, and poor administration at the state-owned Malian Textile Company (known by its French acronym, CDMT), many Malian farmers are reducing the area planted with cotton on their farms – or abandoning growing it altogether.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s state visit to South Africa shows that he is already looking ahead to next month’s national election, which he is expected to win comfortably. With Uganda’s first oil exports expected to start flowing next year, as well as a growing service sector and significant agricultural potential, opportunities for economic cooperation between South Africa and Uganda is likely to dominate discussions during the two day state visit, says the South African Institute of International Affairs.