Pambazuka News 525: Popular uprisings and imperialist invasions
Pambazuka News 525: Popular uprisings and imperialist invasions
Palestinian Christians came together to launch the ‘Palestine Kairos Document’ on 4 April, ‘a testimony of faith in relation to their experience under the occupation of Israel.’ Christians from Southern Africa issued the following statement in response, which calls for ‘an inclusive and just peace where the dignity and equality of all the inhabitants are upheld.’
Rising unemployment in South Africa is spelling disaster for the country's black population, reports Al Jazeera in this video, as it highlights the prevalence of unemployment amongst youth both with and without educational qualifications.
Africa will write its own history, and it will be, to the north and to the south of the Sahara, a history of glory and dignity. Join us for a short documentary film: ‘Assassination: Colonial Style – Patrice Lumumba, an African Tragedy’, followed by a discussion with Firoze Manji from Pambazuka News and Vava Tampa from Save the Congo.
Where? Human Rights Action Centre, New Inn Yard, London EC2A 3EA
When? 7-9.30pm, Monday 18th April
Entry is free
Nigeria’s elections got off to a bad start, postponed by the electoral commission chairman after some citizens had already cast their votes. Is it just incompetence, or are there more sinister forces at play, asks Sokari Ekine.
The man who died after being beaten by police at a service delivery protest in Ficksburg was trying to help an elderly man when he was attacked. The brutal beating and shooting of Ficksburg resident Andries Tatane, 33, was screened to millions of South Africans last night on SABC News. The footage showed police officers cornering him during the protests in the Free State, and then several police officers beating him with batons.
Hundreds of Swazis have been arrested after they took to the streets on 12 and 13 April, to demonstrate against the monarchy. Swaziland’s King Mswati has presided over a ‘system of governance’ that protest organisers say has left the country’s ‘people divided, poor and powerless’. Sokari Ekine reports on southern Africa’s first uprising and provides updates on the situation in Djibouti, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Côte d'Ivoire and Libya.
This footage from the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) posted to shows the beating of a protestor during a protest in Ficksburg in the eastern Free State.
Last March, donors pledged billions of US dollars for the reconstruction of Haiti, after an earthquake devastated the country. But a year later, a group of 40 Haitian organisations finds that ‘nothing significant has really been undertaken’. Instead Haitian players have been excluded from strategic decision-making and the ‘millions of people affected directly or indirectly by the earthquake continue to face the consequences in destitution, and with no support whatsoever.’
As scores of Eritreans drown trying to cross the Mediterranean in the hope of a better life in Europe, a new campaign is highlighting Italy’s complicity in the deaths of migrants, both through its support for dictator Iseyas Afewerki and through its agreements with Gaddafi to prevent the free movement of refugees across the sea.
There is a wide recognition that regional integration is crucial for the prosperous future of African countries' economic progress, with some of the highest tariffs facing African countries being imposed by their neighbours, regional economic integration remains a challenge and only a very small percentage of African countries exports are being traded regionally. Visit the Chatham House website for a document summarising an event held at Chatham House which explored the prospects for an African free trade area.
Barack Obama has ‘no lawful basis for commencing a military campaign’ in Libya, the National Conference of Black Lawyers has said in an open letter to the US president.
Authorities in the kingdom of Swaziland should allow the news media to report freely on anti-government protests, the Committee to Protect Journalists said after security forces harassed at least 10 local and international journalists covering a mass demonstration demanding political and economic reform after more than two decades of rule by King Mswati III. Police stopped reporter Niren Tolsi and photographer Lisa Skinner of the South African daily Mail & Guardian, confiscated their notebooks and Swazi contact books, and threatened to deport them if the journalists reported anything negative about the country or the king, Africa's last absolute monarch, Nic Dawes, the paper's editor-in-chief, told CPJ.
To what extent do South Africa's municipal participation mechanisms enable meaningful engagement in development planning and local governance by poor or marginalised women? What interventions or alternative approaches are required? This article, 'Strengthening Women's Participation in Local Governance: Lessons and Strategies', from the Community Development Journal, finds a disconnect between women's experience and knowledge and state policy and programmatic responses. It proposes the creation of women-only forums, supported by training, to enable women to develop recommendations.
The Second Committee of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, which focuses on economic and finance policy, released in January a draft resolution on external debt sustainability and development. The text of the draft resolution on external debt sustainability recognises the important role of debt relief, debt restructuring and debt cancellation for the purpose of debt crisis prevention as well as for mitigating the adverse impact of the world financial and economic crisis in developing countries.
More than 800 people have died in south Sudan violence since January and almost 94,000 people fled their homes, posing a major challenge for the fledgling state, the top UN aid official for the region warned. The nation in waiting has seen an upsurge in bloody clashes since January's largely peaceful referendum, in which southerners voted almost unanimously to split with the north. The number of people displaced by violence has doubled in the past month to 93,780 people, according to figures released by Lise Grande, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Sudan.
The latest issue of the Kenyan Woman is available. Highlights of this issue include:
- In a state of stagnation: wrangles have derailed the constitution implementation process in Kenya.
- Employers told to embrace affirmative action.
- Linah Kilimo, a fighter who wears the FGM Eradication belt.
- Men fighting for women’s rights.
Africans should think about the real reasons why western countries are waging war on Libya, writes Jean-Paul Pougala, in an analysis that traces the country’s role in shaping the African Union and the development of the continent.
'My father died when I was three years old. Armed bandits killed him one evening as he was coming home. Every night I remember this scene before falling asleep,' says Mariam Ibrahim, a 20-year-old Somali who grew up amid civil war. Mariam is one of 170,000 refugees of the Libyan conflict who were able to cross the Tunisian-Libyan border. She was nine months pregnant when she arrived in Choucha refugee camp accompanied by her husband. Mariam has since given birth to her first child, a girl, in a tent set up by the Red Crescent.
CODESRIA has postponed a colloquium to celebrate the life and works of Malawian academic, Thandika Mkandawire, following ‘gross violations of academic freedom’ at proposed venue, the University of Malawi. CODESRIA says that it will not hold the meeting until ‘our Malawian colleagues feel less threatened in the exercise of their rights as scholars and the enjoyment of the freedom of research and expression, without fear of being persecuted because of their ideas.’
The recent uprisings that have affected almost every country in the Middle East and North Africa region are indicative of deep structural issues that are facing societies in these countries. Calls for democracy, economic reforms, employment opportunities and greater accountability require us to question the development model pursued in the region by institutions like the World Bank and the underlying assumptions that may have led to the failure of this model, says this article from the Bank Information Centre.
The UN mission in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) must protect the tens of thousands of civilians displaced by the conflict who wish to return to their home villages but are afraid to do so, Amnesty International has said. 'Thousands of people are hiding in the bush in life threatening conditions and without any proper food or sanitation. They need to be reassured and to be allowed to return to their homes,' said Gaëtan Mootoo, Amnesty’s Côte d’Ivoire researcher who is currently in the west of the country.
Shakespeare Mukoyi was released on free bail on Tuesday (12 April). The MDC Harare province vice chairperson was arrested and beaten by police, who crushed a prayer for peace church service on Saturday in Glen Norah. Mukoyi was brutally assaulted by police in the church building and denied access to medication after an X-ray examination which showed the need for urgent treatment. Police took him to Harare Hospital during the evening where he was attended to briefly. He was however unceremoniously seized from the hospital and re-detained at Harare Central Police Station.
The cohesion of the coalition of 10 rebel commanders - termed 'Ouattara's forces' by the international media - may yet turn out to be fragile, says this article from the South African Institute of International Affairs. 'The former rebels will want to be rewarded for ousting Laurent Gbagbo, firstly with posts in the new army, and secondly with guarantees of impunity. And they will be reluctant to start any disarmament, a pre-requisite to any meaningful security reform.'
Ravensmead brothers who are alleged to have subjected three black workers at a factory in Blackheath to sexual, verbal and physical abuse appeared in court today (14 April) amid high drama. About a hundred people protested outside the Blue Downs Magistrate’s Court. The charges relate to claims by the three workers that the brothers, owners of a timber company in Blackheath Industria, had beaten, sexually assaulted and hurled racial remarks at them after they reported for work last Tuesday night.
A controversial US project that pays drug users and alcoholics to undergo sterilisation or long-term contraception, is setting its sights on women living with HIV in South Africa. Founder of Project Prevention Barbara Harris has confirmed that they were making plans to offer similar services to women living with HIV in South Africa as well as drug users. However, Professor Eddie Mhlanga, Chief Director for Maternal, Child and Women’s Health in the health department said they would approach the Human Rights Commission if the project started operating in South Africa.
‘People who have suffered the impact of unjust practices and those who have been victims of abuse from corporate impunity will heave a sigh of relief the day directors of such companies are brought to court from behind their corporate shields,’ writes Nnimmo Bassey, amidst talk that ‘top guns at BP’ may be charged with manslaughter over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe on Thursday (14 April) condemned gay 'filth' in Europe, as he lambasted Western powers for maintaining their asset freeze and travel ban on him and his inner circle, and vowed to press ahead with the takeover of foreign firms. 'About the unnatural things happening there, where they turn man-to-man and woman-to-woman. We say, well, it's their country. If they want to call their country British Gaydom, it's up to them. That's not our culture. We condemn that filth.'
'Abahlali baseMjondolo Western Cape has observed with great concern...unlawful activities on demolishing people’s structures and evicting people without any order from the court. This tendency seems to be growing... this undermines the prevention of illegal eviction from and unlawful occupation of land act 1998 (Act 19 of 1998).'
Given Côte d'Ivoire’s history, 'Alassane Ouattara’s entry into State House… will no more prove a cure than Laurent Gbagbo’s presidency ever was,’ writes Kalundi Serumaga.
Robert Roth describes Haiti’s joy at the return of Jean-Bertrand Aristide after seven years in exile, despite the ‘bitter taste’ left by country’s ‘dismal elections’. ‘So many, in and outside of Haiti, had worked for this moment. Not because Aristide is a savior or can solve all the problems in Haiti. This was a basic issue of justice and self-determination. A democratically elected president had been illegally removed from office and banished from his homeland – and the majority of Haitians never accepted his removal. They wanted him home.’
Mobile phones in Africa are increasingly being used as a media to get information and use value added services, according to the Mobile Internet in Africa report. Whether it's checking market prices, transferring money or simply checking the latest news, Facebook or Wikipedia, mobile phones are transforming life in Africa. Inevitably, the African mobile Internet market is due to explode. The number of mobile Internet subscribers in Africa has increased dramatically in the last 12-18 months, particularly in East Africa.
The debates raging at the highest levels of the US National Security establishment and NATO over the military ‘stalemate’ in Libya conceal an even more competitive effort on the ground in Libya, by petroleum interests keen to divide up the territory to ensure access to the country’s vast oil resources, writes Horace Campbell.
The 2011 Economic Report on Africa (ERA) from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union Commission recommends that African countries adopt a developmental state approach that uses the market as an instrument rather than a sole mechanism for fostering long-term investment, rapid and sustained economic growth, equity and social development. This in the context, it states, of many African countries not experiencing high economic growth rates over extended periods.
The theme of the next African Union general assembly, scheduled for June 2011, is ‘Accelerating Youth Empowerment for a Sustainable Development’. But how far do existing development policies and programmes at national and continental level take into account the ‘multiple realities that African youth are living in?’ asks Eyob Balcha.
Africa Contact's Peter Kenworthy tracked the 'April 12 Swazi Uprising', providing a series of updates as events unfolded. While the government has branded the protests a 'failure', Kenworthy notes that now 'all ordinary Swazis … have seen the true face of the regime, if they hadn’t seen it already'.
'Bolivia is set to pass the world's first laws granting all nature equal rights to humans. The Law of Mother Earth, now agreed by politicians and grassroots social groups, redefines the country's rich mineral deposits as "blessings" and is expected to lead to radical new conservation and social measures to reduce pollution and control industry,' reports The Guardian's John Vidal.
...with some confusion over what's expected.
Lessons for one president from another...
Young people have the opportunity to play an active role in monitoring and documenting Nigeria's elections for the first time in history, thanks to social media. Rosemary Ajayi looks at how Nigerians are using their new tools to participate.
The International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA), representing over 1.3 million medical students worldwide, has expressed its solidarity with the students of health sciences in Côte d'Ivoire in opposing the months-long embargo of medications imposed on the West African nation. Concerns have been raised by the IFMSA regarding this restriction of access to essential medicines, while reminding the international community of their responsibility to uphold health as a human right.
Another war with Eritrea? A water war with Egypt? Alemayehu G. Mariam deconstructs Meles Zenawi's latest war talk.
Through the eyes of protestors who have filled the streets of North African protests, what might a new society look like? Dani Wadada Nabudere, drawing on the meaning of social network use and principles of Ubuntu, explores.
A new report released by the US Department of State documents the ongoing violation of human rights and basic freedoms by the government of Equatorial Guinea against its citizens, the group EG Justice has said. The report’s findings strongly contradict the Equatoguinean government’s claim that it has 'turned the page' and disassociated itself from the abuses that have marred the country for decades, EG Justice says.
In defiance of a global recession that halved Africa’s growth, military spending on the continent rose by 5.2 per cent, a new study shows. The region's total military expenditure in 2010 in real terms was an estimated $30.1 billion, according to new analysis from the Stockhom International Peace Research Institute. Angola, recovering from three decades of civil war, set the pace with a 19 per cent increase in real terms, or $600 million in 2009 prices.
Some 1.5 billion people live in countries affected by repeated cycles of political and criminal violence, and no low-income fragile or conflict-affected country has yet to achieve a single Millennium Development Goal. Fixing the economic, political, and security problems that disrupt development and trap fragile states in cycles of violence requires strengthening national institutions and improving governance in ways that prioritise citizen security, justice, and jobs, according to a new report from the World Bank. The World Development Report 2011 notes that at least 1.5 billion people are still affected by current violence or its legacies.
Development is accelerated when a country is able to use its own resources effectively and efficiently, say the authors of this article. 'That is why the decision by the UK government, with France and Germany, to support reform of obscure European Union rules on financial reporting for oil, gas and mineral companies will have such far-reaching consequences,' they say. 'The importance of extractive industries to African development cannot be understated. In 2008, exports of oil, gas and minerals from Africa were worth about nine times the value of international aid to the continent ($393bn versus $44bn), and over 10 times the value of exports of agricultural produce ($37.9bn).'
On 6 April, officials of a branch of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) - the Rapid Intervention Force (FIR) - used violence to put an end to a protest by the employees of the private security firm Group Four Security (G4S). Allegedly, reports Global Voices, G4S has been illegally discounting employees' salaries, and they were now complaining about an worsening situation since June 2010. At the demonstration, workers appealed for payment of unreasonable discounted pay by the employer, as well as for the payment of holiday bonuses and overtime.
A group of human rights activists led by Kenya National Commission on Human Rights commissioner Hassan Omar have been denied entry into Uganda. The four were detained at Entebbe Airport by immigration officials despite having secured an appointment with the Ugandan Chief Justice over the continued detention of activist Al-Amin Kimathi.
Mineral Resources' Minister Susan Shabangu has told Pondoland opponents of a titanium dune mining project that she needs another month to consider their appeal against the Xolobeni coastal dune mining project. Amadiba Crisis Committee spokesman Sinegugu Zukulu said the mining project 'has become an ever more menacing threat to the unique biodiversity of the Wild Coast and traditional way of life of the amaMpondo'.
Makerere University wants the government to quickly approve a proposal to raise fees to sh6m, up from sh3m per student per year, a public accounts committee has heard. Committee members Nandala Mafabi, Oduman Okello and Grace Oburu argued that Makerere tuition fees were still high and expressed worry that if implemented, the proposed fees structure would affect the poor. 'Sh6m per student? Parents and students should now brace themselves for hard times ahead. I don’t know why Makerere charges high fees despite the fact that it is a public university,' Mafabi said.
As the protest campaign grows in Swaziland, and alarming reports grow of a security clampdown, African democracy institute Idasa has called on Swaziland to avoid further bloodshed and a repeat of the crises in conflict-ridden Libya and Ivory Coast – urging parties in the mounting conflict in that country to aim towards building an environment that is conducive to dialogue and negotiations. Idasa says it recognises citizens’ right to protest and make their voices heard, and sees the demonstrations as a clear indication of the determination, commitment and willingness of the people of Swaziland to pursue democratic reform.
Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the richest man in the Middle East, had a grand vision for turning a swath of land in southern Egypt into an agricultural marvel. Since 1998 Alwaleed has invested $127 million in 100,00 acres (40,470 hectares) of land in the Nile River delta Tushka agricultural project (also known as Toshka). Egypt’s public prosecutor’s office said Sunday (10 April) it froze the land controlled by Alwaleed because the original sale of the land violated the law, Reuters reported.
In Madagascar, grassroots struggles against corporate-driven land grabbing have emerged as a political point of focus in the growing global spotlight on land grabs throughout the global south, a process that the UN special rapporteur on the right to food says has 'negative effects on the right to food as well as other human rights'. Mass scale corporate land occupations are expanding throughout Africa, and Madagascar is an example of the intensity of the corporate push for national lands but also on the ability for communities to resist such land grabbing.
Angola, Africa's second-biggest crude oil producer, has denied a report that it lost almost $6 billion in illicit capital flows in 2009. Calculations provided to Reuters by Washington-based watchdog Global Financial Integrity (GFI) suggest funds equivalent to nearly a sixth of the annual budget went missing in the last year for which data are available. In a rare response from the usually tight-lipped government, the finance ministry denied there was anything suspicious about the discrepancies highlighted by GFI.
The personal security noose seems to be tightening on Malawi’s civil society leaders, with Dorothy Ngoma, who has fled her home after receiving threats, being the latest target. Ngoma, who is executive director of the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives, said she suspected the cause of the threats could be rooted in her close association with activist Undule Mwakasungula, executive director of the Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) - whose offices were attacked last month.
Zimbabwe's government adopted new guidelines set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for treating people living with HIV almost a year ago, but funding constraints have made it difficult to implement them - until now. On 1 April 2011, Zimbabwe started phasing out the combination antiretroviral treatment (ARV) Stavudine, Lamivudine and Nevirapine as its first-line option for the national programme, replacing it with the less toxic Tenofovir-based regimens for adults and Zidovudine-based regimens for children, as recommended by the 2010 WHO guidelines.
Dozens of minors interviewed by Amnesty International for a new report had joined the Chadian army and armed opposition groups in the east. The report found that 80 per cent of the estimated 7,000-10,000 child soldiers recruited in Chad are associated with armed groups, while the remaining 20 per cent are involved with the country’s armed forces. These UN estimates also indicate that they may have been used as combatants.
Vishwas Satgar examines the concept of non-racialism in South Africa, calling for a radical and people-centred non-racial nationalism.
Rather than backing down after the arrest of two Ugandan opposition leaders for staging a 'Walk to Work' protest against high fuel and food prices on Monday, Ugandan activists have responded by announcing a hunger strike and planning more demonstrations, reports Global Voices. According to the Uganda Talks Blog: 'Mukono North MP Betty Nambooze told journalists today that the leaders have decided not to eat anything as they go about their duties at Parliament. She said that there was no point for them (leaders) to eat when the public can hardly afford food.'
Egypt's prosecutor general has ordered the detention of former President Hosni Mubarak, ahead of an investigation into corruption and abuse allegations. He is reported to be in an 'unstable condition' a day after being admitted to hospital with heart problems. He has been ordered detained for 15 days. His sons Alaa and Gamal have also been detained.
The exodus of migrants streaming out of Libya due to ongoing unrest has highlighted the heavy dependence of some countries on remittances from their citizens working abroad. In several countries this flow has now become choked. 'With thousands returning home the economic impact of the unrest in Libya is that remittances will be reduced,' Dr. Mizanur Rahman, economist and research fellow at the National University of Singapore told IPS. Recent World Bank statistics indicate that developing countries got more than 325 billion dollars last year from migrant worker remittances, outstripping foreign direct investment and development assistance combined.
In the two months since pro-democracy rebels rose up, eastern Libya has faced food and fuel shortages, media blackouts, power outages and the total disruption of social services. And with a long-time government prohibition on all NGOs and international humanitarian agencies barred from filling the void, the citizens of Benghazi are on their own and have set up their own structures to provide for themselves.
An Egyptian military court has jailed a blogger for three years for criticising the armed forces, ruling the country since president Hosni Mubarak''s ouster in February. The verdict is likely to cause concern among Egypt's large network of bloggers who had hoped the overthrow of Mubarak in a popular uprising would usher in a new era of freedom of expression.
AfriForum youth leader Ernst Roets on Monday (11 April) testified that ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema promised his delegation a repeat of the Shell House massacre if they marched to his offices to complain about the singing of the song Dubul' ibhunu. Malema, who is facing charges of hate speech in the Johannesburg high court, publicly sang the contentious liberation song repeatedly during March and April last year.
The party of Zimbabwe’s prime minister said on Thursday (07 April) that 14 people were hurt after youths attacked scores of mourners at a memorial service. The ceremony was being held to remember four party activists slain during the election violence in 2008. An independent Christian group known as Heal Zimbabwe Trust organised the ceremony. It has held services for victims of political violence across the country since the 2008 poll.
A court has ordered militant supporters of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to stop exhuming hundreds of skeletons they say were the victims of colonial-era massacres. The judge said the exhumations violated all international protocols on investigating suspected human rights violations and amounted to 'interference or tampering with crime scenes'.
When Nigerian political refugee Barry Wuganaale heard on television that Shell would be fracking for gas in the Karoo, he nearly choked on his dinner. 'I was shocked. I didn’t need to think twice about opposing this. South Africa has no experience of Shell operating upstream. You know them at the pumps here, but not drilling,' Wuganaale said. 'I am from the Ogoni people in the Nigeria. We know Shell. What Shell has done to the Ogoni people and to the Nigerian state, I don’t wish to be repeated on anyone.'
Cameroon's parliament stripped its electoral body of the right to announce provisional results in future elections, and opposition parties called the move a 'foul game' by President Paul Biya to steal another term. The government proposed the change in light of the violent post-election crisis in Ivory Coast, where electoral commission results showing incumbent Laurent Gbagbo's loss were quickly reversed by the country's highest court.
Management consultancy McKinsey & Co has been accused of giving inaccurate and unethical advice to countries such as Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, potentially driving deforestation while allowing the countries to generate revenue from new UN-backed forestry protection schemes. A report released by Greenpeace claims McKinsey has drawn up strategies that could help rainforested nations continue with logging practices, while still gaining access to millions of dollars from the United Nations Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) and REDD+ schemes. McKinsey has denied the accusations.
Political opposition parties have tabled submissions calling for the scope of the Protection of Information Bill to be whittled down after progress on the legislation appeared to stall in recent months. In its document, the Democratic Alliance called for the scrapping of entire chapters of the bill, which is widely seen as a regressive bid to prevent scrutiny and criticism of the state.
Deaths at South African mines increased by 27 per cent in the first three months of the year, compared with the same period last year. Department of Mineral Resources spokeswoman Zingaphi Jakuja said that there were 38 fatalities reported from 1 January to 31 March compared with 30 for the first quarter last year.
'As activists, health professionals, technicians, researchers, lawyers and other individuals and organisations concerned about the adverse consequences of inadequate and poorly maintained sanitation services, we hereby commit to working with local government to ensure that every person living in the City of Cape Town has their right to Basic Sanitation realised.'
South Africa's the Mail&Guardian newspaper has obtained access to surveillance footage taken inside the Kimberley Prison, showing beatings and the humiliation of prisoners at the hands of warders. Visit their Youtube page to view the footage.
There are concerns about the future of organic cotton in Burkina Faso, reports Farm Radio Weekly. The concern is caused by a jump in plantings of genetically modified or GM cotton. By 2009, genes from GM crops had been found in organic cotton. At that time, only 10 per cent of conventional cotton farmers were growing GM varieties. But with the massive spread of GM cotton in 2010, almost 90 per cent of conventional producers now grow GM cotton.
As Nigeria goes to the polls to elect a new president, a wind of change is moving through the political landscape of this emerging democracy. Young Nigerians are adamant that it is time their voice and vote counted. 'Our culture has used the issue of respect to silence the youth for a long time. I don’t think it was intentional but it’s a case where if you are young, you are seen and not heard and you only speak when spoken to,' says Nosariemme Garrick, 26, the co-founder of Vote or Quench, a non-partisan youth empowerment organisation that uses social media to engage young Nigerians, at home and in the diaspora.
Kenya's suspended Higher Education minister William Ruto has been cleared of graft charges involving irregular allocation of a forest land. Also acquitted were Ruto's co-accused Baringo Central MP Sammy Mwaita and Joshua Kulei.
The runner-up in last year’s Guinean presidential elections is threatening a nationwide civil disobedience campaign if 67 members of his party are not released from detention by the newly elected government of President Alpha Condé. Cellou Dalein Diallo warned that the opposition in Guinea will not allow the government of President Alpha Condé 'to trample on the rights of citizens' as the military dictatorship did in the past.
The privately-owned Standard newspaper which was in 2010 banned by the Gambia authorities has been given the green-light to operate. Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) sources reported that the decision was announced by the newly appointed State House Press Secretary, Fatou Camara, during a rare interaction between President Yahya Jammeh and media owners and editors in the country.
These days there are dozens of online news websites focusing on Zimbabwe. However, many of them are produced in exile, sometimes making them vulnerable to inaccuracies. But a growing number of reputable websites are able to publish news that would otherwise be censored, providing a voice to the voiceless, writes Vladimir Mzaca on
The French approach to Libya and Côte d'Ivoire shows little understand of the mood of the African people and is more about a futile search for global influence, writes H. Nanjala Nyabola.
Okello Oculi writes about a Nigerian documentary series featuring inspiring stories from African women.
An African Union (AU) bid to halt Libya's civil war, led by South Africa's President Jacob Zuma, collapsed within hours on Monday (11 April) after Muammar Gaddafi's forces shelled a besieged city and rebels said there could be no deal unless he was toppled. The rebel rejection came less than 24 hours after Zuma, head of the AU's mission, said Gaddafi had accepted the plan, including a ceasefire proposal for the conflict in this North African desert state.
An Angolan journalist who was convicted for reporting on a local judge has been released on bail of $2,400. The Voice of America’s Armando Chicoca was sentenced on 3 March 2011, to one year in prison for criminal defamation against a judge in the coastal town of Namibe.
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe could be plotting his own downfall by attacking regional leaders who have in the past shielded him against mounting world pressure to leave office. President Mugabe last week appeared to be taking badly a mini SADC summit that encouraged him to respect the power sharing deal. He was also told to stop politically motivated violence, end the arrest of his opponents and follow a roadmap for fresh elections backed by the regional body. The veteran ruler appeared stunned by the rebuke.
Pambazuka News 524: Uprisings and the politics of humanitarian intervention
Pambazuka News 524: Uprisings and the politics of humanitarian intervention
Climate change negotiations have not delivered what is needed to stop climate change. Following on from the outcomes of the past two years, the Durban hosted COP17 could be a defining moment for climate activists. At a January meeting of South African environmental, social, trade union, faith community and climate justice organisations, the Civil Society Committee for COP17 (C17) was mandated to facilitate civil society engagement in COP17. The C17 will work towards coordinating joint actions at and in the lead-up to COP17.
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...
In the shadow of the extraordinary events under way in the Middle East, Djibouti's presidential vote was always going to struggle for attention. Indeed, the plight of this tiny country, sandwiched between Somalia and Yemen, remains almost completely ignored. But as the primary seaport to 85 million landlocked Ethiopians, the center of anti-piracy efforts in the Horn of Africa, and a reliable Western ally in the war on terror, Djibouti is a strategically vital country in an unstable neighbourhood.
University of Namibia students are participating in a range of activities to create awareness on the need to stamp out gender-based violence after research showed that the problem - which has become an acknowledged social challenge in the country - exists at their institution. Lucy Edwards, one of two UNAM lecturers who led the research, said that gender-based violence had lately been rearing its ugly head in various forms at the university and that both male and female students were taking a stand against it. The research conducted by Edwards and her colleague is collaboration between five universities in Southern Africa and the African Gender Institute.
Anger at Egypt’s privatisation programme, involving the transfer of billions of dollars worth of public assets to private hands, aided the Egyptian revolution that elbowed the Western-backed Hosni Mubarak out of office in February, a top army general said. Prodded by the Washington-based trio – the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), World Bank, and International Monetary Fund (IMF) – Egypt under Mubarak adopted an aggressive programme to sell public companies to both local and foreign investors since the early 1990s.
Martha Karua fears nothing and no one, but when her adversaries look back at her long track record in politics, they must get nervous. This previously staunch supporter of Mwai Kibaki resigned as justice minister in 2009, and will challenge all comers for the presidency at the head of her own party next year. The veteran politician has been around since the heyday of Daniel Arap Moi, who ruled Kenya from 1978 until 2002. Karua helped form the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) that won the 2003 general election, and ended nearly four decades of rule by KANU. When she entered parliament, there were six female MPs. Now there are 22 out of a total of 222.
Good practices and lessons learned on integrating gender into security sector institutions (SSIs) and security sector reform (SSR) processes in West Africa were the topics of a three-day working level regional conference organised by the United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWA) and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) in partnership with the ECOWAS Gender Development Centre (ECOWAS GDC), the Mano River Women's Peace Network (MARWOPNET) and the Alliance for Migration, Leadership and Development (AMLD). The conference took place in Saly, Senegal, from 22 to 24 June 2010 and a report from the meeting is now available.
Across Zimbabwe, economic and political crisis has forced students to do without books, classroom furniture, teachers - the basics of a conducive learning environment. These learners cannot go to libraries, so the libraries have gone to them. In recent years, Zimbabwe’s rural schools have become notorious for their under-funding and dilapidation. For two decades, mobile libraries have formed a crucial part of encouraging a reading culture and promoting literacy in hard-to-reach places. The donkey-drawn libraries have helped spur Zimbabwe’s literacy levels according to Sylvester Nkomo, a headmaster stationed in Inyati, about 60 kilometers north-west of Bulawayo.
What’s green, controversial, 15km wide, 7,775km long, cuts across 11 African countries and is designed to reduce livestock deaths and boost food security for millions of people? Nothing yet, but the Great Green Wall project, a pipe-dream for decades, was recently endorsed by a swathe of African states stretching from Senegal to Djibouti. The project has faced opposition, despite its stated commitment to combating drought and desertification, which have exacted a heavy toll on the region as a whole. Wally Menne, a member of Timberwatch, the African NGO focal point for the Global Forest Coalition, told IRIN the organisation was sceptical. 'In our view it seems poorly conceived in terms of both ecological and socio-economic considerations. Its chances of being a success could be limited, and it may even cause more harm to the environment,' he said.
The current food shortage in Kenya might soon be declared a national disaster, but one refugee does not take hunger lying down. With eight children and a ninth one soon, Ms Husna Mohammed, 30, is taking charge of her plates of food at Dagahaley in Dadaab Refugee Camp in North Eastern Province. She keeps a vegetable garden outside her tent to supplement her food ration. Refugees at this camp receive food rations every two weeks. The amount given depends on the family size.
The course objective is to improve the capacity to inform and influence national and regional policies to improve pastoral livelihoods in East Africa, particularly on issues of access to and control over natural resources, livestock health and trade and regional and global integration.
Who should attend: Leaders of pastoral civil society groups, policy makers, including government and donors at local, regional and national levels, project staff, researchers, MPs and other key actors from the public and private sectors.
For more information on the course and fees, please contact the Course Administrator at
MS-Training Centre for Dev. Cooperation
P.O.Box 254, Arusha Tanzania
[email][email protected]
This practically-focussed course, consisting of six two-hour seminars on consecutive Monday evenings (and an additional study seminar), places international human rights law as it affects children in perspective.
The popular uprisings in the middle east and north Africa have invigorated arguments about the power of new information and communication technologies (ICT), says Armine Ishkanian on 'The new tools and technologies certainly provide unprecedented means of connecting and coordinating. But there should be caution about reproducing technologically determinist and normative arguments which are often unsupported by strong empirical evidence or rigorous research,' Ishkanian cautions.
Ivoirians who have fled across the border to Liberia have reported incidents of rape, sexual abuse and murder to NGOs and human rights groups working in Grand Geddeh and Nimba counties. Children in villages in Liberia’s Nimba County have told field workers at NGO Equip that they were forced to watch as their mothers were raped and then killed. In several cases, the children themselves were then sexually assaulted.
As thousands of people flock to the north of Tanzania in search of a popular herbal 'miracle' cure, authorities are urging HIV-positive people to continue taking their antiretroviral medication. A herbal concoction made by Ambilikile Mwasapile, a former Lutheran pastor, has drawn thousands to his home in the village of Loliondo in northern Tanzania's Ngorongoro district; believers claim it can cure several diseases including diabetes, tuberculosis and HIV. Patients pay 500 Tanzanian shillings - about US$0.33 - for one cup.