Pambazuka News 281: Connecting social values with human rights
Pambazuka News 281: Connecting social values with human rights
There are still some 350,000 refugees outside South Sudan waiting to go home, as well as an estimated 4 million internally displaced people. Many of them cite the lack of schools, water, sanitation, health care and other infrastructure for their reluctance to return to Sudan after 21 years of civil war.
Ethiopian consulate officials in Yemen said they had been concerned for the welfare of 122 Ethiopian migrants after Yemeni authorities had detained them for nearly a week before deporting them. "We were worried about why they were arrested and what condition they might be in, but then the authorities told us it was because they entered the country illegally, and were not political refugees, and that they were being well looked after," Abebe Biazen, Consul of the Ethiopian Embassy, said.
Some Angolan refugees are fleeing from refugee camps in Zambia for fear of being repatriated to their countries of origin, the Times of Zambia has reported. The Angolan voluntary repatriation from Zambia started in 2003, one year after the 27 year civil war ended in the country. Since then a total of 64,000 refugees have been safely repatriated to their motherland while about 29,000 Angolan refugees remain in Zambia.
A coalition of former opposition parties and independent candidates has won Mauritania's parliamentary elections, after a second round of voting on Sunday. Of the 95 seats in the new national assembly, an alliance of ex-opposition parties has won 41, seats while independent candidates have taken 39 others.
First results from elections on the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar have showed Marc Ravalomanana, the millionaire president, is on course to win a second term. The election was the first since the political crisis in 2001-2002 which brought one of the world's poorest countries close to civil war before Ravalomanana won power.
As the International Monetary Fund (IMF) kicks of its assessment mission in Zimbabwe this week, the country's courts sent two officials of a well-known bakery to prison for breaking the price control law. The IMF has repeatedly called for price deregulation, among other measures, to manage the economic crisis in Zimbabwe.
The Congolese government has signed a deal with the last rebel groups in the northeastern district of Ituri to disarm 3,500 militiamen and release 700 child soldiers. Wednesday's (29 November 2006)agreement came two days after the Supreme Court of the Democratic Republic of Congo confirmed the result of the 29 October elections proclaiming Joseph Kabila as president.
UNICEF in Uganda, in view of the continued violence linked to the ongoing process of disarmament in areas of northern Kotido District, expresses its serious concern about the impact of escalating insecurity on the lives of children and families in those locations.
Jan Egeland, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, today (1 December 2006) denounced the use of rape as a weapon of war and called upon the authorities in one of the most affected countries, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to ensure that rape victims - including those traumatized by fistula - no longer find themselves ostracized in their communities, as is now so often the case.
The practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) is on the decline in Tanzania, according to the results of a study by the country's Ministry of Health. Released on 1 December, the Tanzania Demographic Health Survey showed that FGM prevalence had declined from 18 percent in 1996 to 15 percent in 2005, when the survey was carried out.
Forcing women or girls to submit to sexual acts has been described as a form of gender-based violence against women. Reports say that rape causes severe physical and psychological pain and suffering. Rape also can have serious physical, psychological and reproductive consequences for the victims, including death, unwanted pregnancies, complications in childbirth, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon has welcomed the proposed creation of a new United Nations agency dealing with women's issues. The new body will serve as a multilateral agency to support women's rights, UN's Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Lewis told Mr McKinnon during his visit to the Commonwealth Secretariat's headquarters in Marlborough House in London, UK, on 29 November 2006.
Jeanne fled the Democratic Republic of Congo after being repeatedly raped and tortured by rebels. She had been working for a non-government organisation in the east of the country and the rebels accused her of being a spy. "My life was in great danger and I was very near to death. I was detained for at least two months," she says.
Former ambassador Norman Mashabane is guilty of sexual harassment, the Pretoria High Court found on Friday (1 December 2006). More than three years after Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma overturned a guilty verdict against Mashabane, the court decided otherwise.
Elibariki Isaya, a pastoralist in northern Tanzania’s Kiteto District, has been caught in clashes between farmers in the area. "We are regarded as refugees in our own country," he said. "Farmers have thrown us off the land. We now have nowhere to take cattle, goats and sheep for grazing and drinking water."
At United Nations headquarters today (30 November 2006), Secretary-General Kofi Annan launched the Humanitarian Appeal 2007 -- thirteen consolidated appeals for specific emergencies -- seeking $3.9 billion to help 27 million people in 29 countries. Some 140 non-governmental organisations, United Nations agencies, and other international and local organizations are appealing for funds through the Humanitarian Appeal this year.
Moscow recently played host to the seventh meeting of the Africa Partnership Forum (APF) signalling growing relations between Russia and Africa. The APF is a unique interface of relations between Africa and external partners.
Edward Zwick's movie brings to the fore Africa's diamond curse, reports Koigi in the Daily Nation. Diamonds are forever, so it is said, and so it seems, are movies themed on them. On December 8, the latest Hollywood depiction of this iconic symbol of love and the role it has played in fanning conflict in Africa will open in American theatres.
South Africa's largest property group-Pam Golding Properties (PGP) will enter the East African market beginning early next year. PGP chief executive officer Mr. Andrew Golding told Business Week from Cape Town, South Africa last week that the group had highlighted Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Angola, Zambia, Lesotho, Morocco, Rwanda, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and the rest of Africa as important growth areas.
Under this task order, the contractor will independently provide support services to satisfy the overall operational objectives of the Global AIDS Program, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tanzania. USG aims to expand services for HIV prevention, care and treatment to individuals affected and infected with HIV.
As an experienced campaigner with knowledge and experience of developing and managing complex campaigning strategies and projects, you will take part in the implementation of an overall strategic vision for AI’s Stop Violence Against Women (SVAW) campaign.
The University of York intends to establish a new interdisciplinary Centre for Applied Human Rights and seeks to appoint a founding Professor who will be the Centre's first Director. Both the Centre and the Professorial post are made possible through a generous benefaction from the Sigrid Rausing Trust.
The objectives of the Chronic Diseases Prevention and Management unit are to reduce overall risk in high-risk individuals and to provide appropriate care by facilitating early case finding through affordable strategies and technologies, as well as equitable and good quality health care for major chronic diseases.
IFEX-TMG members have called on the Tunisian President to cease harassment of human rights defenders and journalists: “We, the undersigned members of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG), again call on Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to stop persecuting human rights defenders and journalists.”
Libya's internal security agency has held an outspoken critic of Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi in incommunicado detention for almost a month, Human Rights Watch said. Libya's Internal Security Agency detained Idrees Mohamed Boufayed, a doctor who had been living in Switzerland for the past 16 years, on November 5 during a visit to Libya, his family and Libyan organizations abroad report.
On 2 December 2006, agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigeria's anti corruption agency, raided the privately owned radio station Cosmo FM, based in Enugu in south-eastern Nigeria. They arrested some staff, took away documents belonging to the station house and shut the station down for about two hours.
On November 16, 2006 Alpha Camara, a reporter for "L'Observateur", a privately-owned weekly newspaper, was attacked by a police officer from the criminal investigations department in Kaloum district, southwest of Conakry, the capital. The journalist was detained for an hour in custody and was released on the intervention of the chair of the National Council for Communication.
Broadcasters from across Africa will gather in Rwandan capital Kigali this week to propose new plans to bring digital sound to their hundreds of millions of listeners. The first-ever Pan-African Conference on Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM), and the system they have developed to bring digital radio to the world, will open Wednesday and continue until the end of the week.
Scientists have created an online global map of communities at high risk of malaria, which could prove a valuable tool for policymakers targeting resources to fight the disease. The map links data collected by population surveys to Google Earth's online map of the world designed using satellite photographs.
African science ministers have backed a set of measures to promote science and technology across the continent, four of which will be recommended for endorsement at next month's African Union summit of heads of African states.The ministers, who met last week in Cairo, Egypt, will ask the heads of state to create a Pan-African Intellectual Property Organisation, and to designate 2007 as a year for science, technology and innovation in Africa.
The activity registration deadline for the WSF has been extended till December 13, 2006. All organizations that want to register activities for the WSF2007 event in Nairobi should do this at the World Social Forum Process website. An announcement will be made on the modalities and deadlines for payment within the next few days. Please note that there is no deadline for registration of organizations or individuals.
The Italian Government has decided to support a range of media related activities for the WSF2007 event in Nairobi. Representatives of the Italian Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, representatives of the WSF Secretariat and IPS Director General, met in Rome on November 16th, 2006.
While the recent stakeholders' conference on the Zambezi River Basin saw many good intentions expressed, it also served as a reminder of the persistent challenge posed by weak co-operation between Southern African states. At the conference, held in Windhoek, Namibia, on Nov. 22 and 23, participants from civil society raised concerns about the lack of a united driving force to develop the Zambezi watercourse.
The executive arm of the Senegalese journalist union, Bureau Executive National (BEN), was forced to convene an emergency extra-ordinary session today to shame and condemn waves of death threats against their members in the country.
Cotton growers, scientists and textile businesspeople in Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad have been supported by the African Development Fund (ADF) with a loan of US$ 51.9 million. Regional scientific cooperation and the sharing of genetic material is emphasised in the project.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero is in Senegal for talks which are expected to centre on the issue of illegal immigration.He may confirm reports that over the next two years some 4,000 Senegalese will be allowed to work in Spain. Spain's Canary Islands are a tempting destination for many Senegalese.
Young people in the Nigerian state of Kano have been turning the region's big cities into what one resident has termed "Premiership football ghettos". Kano is densely populated and predominantly Muslim - and with its long standing history of conservative traditional values, some would think European football would be the last focus for young people.
The BBC's Africa Have Your Say programme is linking students at a school in Abuja with a school in London to discuss migration and explore the realities of life through the eyes of young people.
Three former ministers in Liberia's transitional government have been charged with stealing millions of dollars of public funds. Former deputy Finance Minister Tugbeh Doe spent the night in custody after problems with his bail. Former Finance Minister Lusinee Kamara and ex-Minister of Commerce Samuel Wlue were also charged.
The United Nations has said it will hold a conference in New York on Monday to address the issue of the sexual abuse of children by UN peacekeepers. The issue was highlighted in a BBC report earlier this week, with claims of children being subjected to rape and prostitution in Haiti and Liberia.
Diabetes is striking growing numbers of children around the world as parents and doctors fail to diagnose a disease that until recently was associated mostly with middle-aged and elderly people, experts said on Tuesday (5 December 2006). "Diabetes has become a chronic and common disease among children ... and often these children die."
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he would make the killings in Sudan's Darfur region his priority until the day he leaves office on December 31, according to an interview to be aired on Monday (4 December 2006). "It's very tragic and painful, not only (to me) as secretary-general but as a human being and as an African," Annan said.
In 2003, The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched a joint effort to develop, through multi-site field research in refugee communities in Africa, a set of strategies for using food and nutrition-based interventions to support HIV prevention, care, treatment and support for people living with HIV.
Pambazuka News 280: The war on HIV/AIDS
Pambazuka News 280: The war on HIV/AIDS
The International Rescue Committee currently seeks a Program Coordinator for its Sierra Leone program, based in Freetown with frequent travel to the field, Freetown including the Kenema, Kailahun and Kono field sites.
Since 1988, the Fogarty International Center, part of the National Institutes of Health, has published the Directory of International Grants and Fellowships in the Health Sciences. This current volume (NIH Publication 06-3027, February 2006), a comprehensive compilation of international funding opportunities in biomedical and behavioral research prepared by Ms. Hannah Leslie, should serve the individual or institution who seeks financial support.
The NIGH program is a competitive abstract submission and selection program designed to highlight exemplary research, policy and advocacy initiatives of new and future leaders in global health, and empower participants with global health advocacy skills.
Interactive Workshops Saturday 23rd - Thursday 28th December Lamu, Kenya.
Judges in Botswana’s High Court will rule on 13 December on the landmark case brought by the Kalahari Bushmen against the Botswana government. The court will be open to journalists and members of the public. The Bushmen are fighting for their right to live on their land in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, and to hunt and gather freely there.
The fifty-first session of the Commission on the Status of Women will take place from 26 February to 9 March 2007. In accordance with its multi-year programme of work for 2007-2009, the Commission will consider “The elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against the girl child” as its priority theme.
Domestic violence happens everywhere. It affects someone near you. At least 1 in 3 women has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Usually, the abuser is a member of her own family or someone known to her. Get active against domestic violence as part of the 16 Days of Activism.
I am writing to you in advance of the meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) on 29 November in Nigeria, to urge the AUPSC to do the utmost to protect civilians in Darfur. As negotiations proceed along the possibility of establishing a “hybrid operation” of United Nations (UN) and AU peacekeepers in Darfur, Amnesty International urges member states to ensure that the effective protection and human rights of the civilian population are at the centre of any peacekeeping operation in Darfur.
At a conference on the subject in the Egyptian capital Cairo, the scholars said governments should enforce existing laws against the practice. Earlier, the top religious authorities in Egypt said religion offered no justification for the procedure.
This study tries to challenge the stereotypes of men, women, boys and girls in times of war. The first part brings up the questions of "men" and "women", in a perspective of both victims and perpertrators in the different phases of violent conflict. The second part exemplifies development efforts in the area of gender and armed conflict.
Atrocities are occurring daily in Sudan's Darfur region and rape and pillage directed against civilians are at "a horrific level," United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour said on Wednesday (29 November 2006).
Minni Arcua Minnawi, the leader of the only rebel group in Sudan's Darfur province to sign a peace deal with the government, has accused Khartoum of violating the truce. He said on Monday (27 November 2006) that Sudan's government was re-arming the Janjawid, an Arab militia accused of killing over 200,000 civilians in Sudan's western province of Darfur.
Fighters loyal to a dissident general have attacked army positions in the east, killing two soldiers and sending thousands of people fleeing into the bush, UN officials say. Saturday's (25 November 2006) attack came amid tensions in the capital where supporters of a former rebel chief are protesting against Joseph Kabila's victory in October's presidential runoff.
Rebels fighting Chadian government troops say they have entered the city of Abeche, as fighting continues. A government official also confirmed that the rebels had entered Abeche, 700km east of the capital N'Djamena.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor, has said that the ICC has identified "those who could be considered to be the most criminally responsible" for crimes in Darfur. Thousands of people have been killed and about 2.5 million forced from their homes in three years of conflict in Darfur.
Rwanda has cut diplomatic ties with France and given France's ambassador to Rwanda 24 hours to leave the country. On Thursday (23 November 2006), thousands of Rwandans had held protests after a French judge said that Paul Kagame, the country's president, should stand trial for a 1994 plane crash which killed the country's then leader.
A UN-appointed panel has told Eritrea and Ethiopia to resolve a six-year border dispute within a year or accept a boundary map drawn up by other parties. The two countries have already rejected plans by the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission to demarcate their frontier on paper.
Several hundred people were killed and at least 10,000 displaced in recent militia attacks on approximately 60 Chadian villages, primarily in and around Kerfi, Koloy and Bandikao, in October and November. Many of the attacks were carried out by Chadian Arab militia against non-Arab communities.
A judge in Malawi on Wednesday (29 November 2006) allowed a coalition of human rights groups to proceed with a legal challenge to United States pop star Madonna's adoption of an African baby boy. Judge Andrew Nyirenda ruled that the coalition of 67 rights groups could be regarded as "friends of the court".
More than 60 protesting Zimbabweans, some carrying babies, were arrested and at least another 40 were allegedly assaulted by the police in the country's second city, Bulawayo, on Wednesday (29 November 2006). "The level of police brutality was shocking," said Annie Sibanda, of the activist organisation Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), which had organised a peaceful march to mark the launch of a 'People's Charter', a declaration on political and economic rights, and the '16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence', an international campaign running until International Human Rights Day on 10 December.
Armed troops were out in force on the streets of Cote d’Ivoire’s largest city, Abidjan, on Tuesday (28 November 2006) as already tense relations between President Laurent Gbagbo and Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny deteriorated. Since Sunday (26 November 2006), Gbagbo has signed eight decrees and reinstated three senior civil servants suspended by Banny last month for their part in the dumping of toxic waste around Abidjan in September.
Zambian nongovernmental organisation (NGO) revealed this week that it records eight cases of rape of young girls every week at its centre in the capital, Lusaka. The statistics were released by the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) of Zambia to mark the start of the global campaign, '16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence', which runs from 25 November - International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women - until International Human Rights Day on 10 December.
Twenty-two African countries have recommitted themselves to ending violence against women and children as part of a United Nations-backed 16-day-long campaign against the scourge. Some 170 participants at a colloquium in Benoni, South Africa, pledged to take up the challenge issued by UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Country Representative Macharia Kamau "to work together to build partnerships, establish a common vision and take common action" to end violence against women and children in their respective countries.
Amnesty International, the human rights group, has accused Nigerian police and soldiers of raping women and committing acts of sexual violence with near impunity. In a scathing report on Nigeria issued on Tuesday (28 November 2006), it also criticised the Nigerian government for failing to bring the attackers to justice.
Gloria left Nigeria hoping to make enough money in Europe to lift her family out of poverty. Three years later, she came home a penniless ex-prostitute. The nightmare began when a family friend offered to help her get from Benin City to Italy.
Twenty-five years after AIDS was first identified, programs to fight the disease continue to be undermined by conservative ideologies and moralistic approaches, Human Rights Watch said ahead of World AIDS Day. “The most effective approaches for preventing HIV/AIDS are not being used,” said Joe Amon, director of the HIV/AIDS program at Human Rights Watch.
AIDS treatment in the developing world will not be sustainable unless international institutions get serious about the high cost of newer medicines, the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) warned today (29 November 2006).
The World Health Organization (WHO) has this week released a groundbreaking report highlighting the health problems affecting Africa, and says that without a serious improvement in the healthcare system, African societies will not advance. "African countries will not develop economically and socially without substantial improvements in the health of their people," the report says.
The South African Council of Churches (SACC) is "deeply disturbed" by a traditional healer's claim that 500 HIV-positive people have been cured with African herbs, the SACC said on Wednesday (29 November 2006). "Herbs may play an important role in treating opportunistic infections, but to make claims of curing Aids without hard scientific evidence is irresponsible, misleading and mischievous," said SACC general secretary Eddie Makue.
The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has advised African countries to diversify their exports in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). "The ability of African countries to make significant progress towards achieving the MDGs, especially with regard to eradicating extreme poverty and hunger by 2015, largely depends on the extent to which African economies are able to diversify their exports and integrate into appropriate marketing and global production networks," said Stefano Bologna, Head of the UNIDO Southern African Regional Office.
The government has spent about P451 million in six construction projects supported by the Chinese government in the last three financial years creating 2,171 jobs for locals.The projects employed 143 expatriates, Finance Minister, Baledzi Gaolathe told Parliament. He said the projects included the construction of 104 BHC houses in Gaborone awarded to Complant Botswana in 2001.
The reinforcement of South-South co-operation ties, based on their diversification is part of the Angolan Government's plans to be presented during the Africa-South America Summit in Abuja, Nigeria, from November 30 to December 01. This information was revealed this Wednesday (29 November 2006) to the press at Luanda's "4 de Fevereiro" International Airport by the Prime Minister's Assistant Minister, Aguinaldo Jaime, who will represent the Angolan Head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos, in this forum.
The Executive Secretary of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas has disclosed that work on the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP), is at the completion point and would start discharging natural gas from Nigeria's Niger Delta as an alternative source of fuel to Togo, Benin and Ghana by the first quarter of 2007.
On November 22 Cabinet met in Kampala to discuss the White Paper on the findings and recommendations of the Ogoola Commission of Inquiry into allegations of mismanagement of the Global Fund to fight Aids, tuberculosis and malaria in Uganda. Cabinet adopted the paper and assigned roles to various sub committees for further investigations.
Legislation to ensure that oil exploration companies do not shortchange Kenyans is on the way, the ministry of Energy announced yesterday (27 November 2006). It seeks to, among other things, fix the percentage such companies should remit to the Government for the oil found and sold, said the ministry's chief geologist and director of geo-exploration, Mr Don Riaroh.
Vulcanologist Celestin Kasereka Mahhinda said on Tuesday (28 November 2006) there was no immediate danger to the eastern Congolese city of Goma after the eruption of Mount Nyamulagira in the Democratic Republic of Congo. "There was no loss of life and no immediate threat to Goma because Nyamulagira lies 32 km to the north and has Mount Nyirangongo acting as a barrier against lava reaching the city," Kasereka, who is director of the Goma Volcano Observatory, said.
It is the world's most sought-after seafood commodity: some 3.5 million tons of the many-legged delicacy are pulled from the ocean's waters each year, with another 2.4 million tons raised on aquatic farms. The popular seafood is a gold mine for poor countries feeding avid consumers in northern markets.
The loser in Congo's presidential election, Jean-Pierre Bemba, said on Tuesday (28 November 2006) that while he disagreed with the Supreme Court's endorsement of rival Joseph Kabila as winner, he would lead the opposition. "In the greater national interest and to preserve peace and to save the country from chaos and violence, today I, before God, the nation and history, in permanent communion with you all, vow to lead this fight for change within the framework of a strong opposition," he said on his radio and television stations.
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has pledged its support for President Joseph Kabila after his confirmation by the Supreme Court as winner of the recent elections aimed at consolidating the vast country’s democratic transition from years of civil war and factional fighting.
Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) on Wednesday (29 November 2006) suspended participation in peace talks with the government to end a brutal two-decade conflict, claiming the army had killed three rebel fighters. Rebel spokesperson Obonyo Olweny said they withdrew from the peace process after the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) attacked a rebel unit headed to one of two neutral camps in southern Sudan in line with the truce.
Provisional results from historic legislative and municipal elections in Mauritania indicated on Thursday (23 November 2006) that opposition parties that had defied the country's previous military regime had made a strong showing. The Rally of Democratic Forces (RDF), which struggled against former military ruler Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed Taya, won 12 of 43 National Assembly seats in the 19 November polls.
Nigerians are waiting to know which political platform the country's Vice President, Atiku Abubakar will be contesting for the country's Presidential elections scheduled for 21 April 2007. Atiku has already revealed that he is set to announce his candidacy on Saturday (25 November 2006) but he is yet to disclose under which party's platform, as he was sacked from the ruling party last month.
Mount Kilimanjaro, known as "The roof of Africa," faces the threat of losing its beautiful icecap unless efforts are made to reverse environmental degradation and global warming. Environmentalists say Africa could lose the ice cover and glaciers on mountain peaks between 2018 and 2020 unless global campaigns to save the mountain's ecology are mounted.
Africa has been relegated to the background in the world affairs largely because of her low level of industrial and technological development, the Director General of African International Foundation for Science and Technology, Dr Yakubu Haruna Ugwolawo has said.
Here is a man who thought of putting African journalists on the global map by awarding them for exemplary performance. Mr Edward Boateng talked to Lillian Aluanga on his mission to appreciate the efforts made by African journalists to tell Africa's stories. It is one of Africa's most sought after journalism awards.
The 11th conference of the International Society for Telemedicine and eHealth (ISfTeH) kicked off Monday (27 November 2006) at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town, South Africa, where delegates from around the globe gathered to discuss the benefits and challenges that eHealth (electronic health) offers to both the developed and developing world.
"To endow African youth with material resources, skills, and international synergies which would enable them contribute maximally to the democratic, gender equal, peaceful and rights based development of Africa," is the vision statement of the Fifth African Development Forum (ADFV), which is drawing to a close its three-day meeting in Addis at the United Nations Conference Center under the theme "Youth and leadership in the 21st century."
The letter by Jeffrey Sachs, Mmegi Nov.1, "The environment fights back" contains several problems that most of the world is concerned about. When Prof. Sachs was to give a talk at the Royal Swedish Agriculture Academy in Stockholm at the end of January this year I sent him an email informing him that we are aware of "The need for a Green Revolution in Africa", as his title was in Stockholm.
Reporters Without Borders has condemned the arrest and mistreatment of Abdullahi Yasin Jama of privately-owned Radio Warsan by militiamen loyal to the federal transition government in the western city of Baidoa. They held him for three days and abused him physically after luring him to the presidential palace on 24 November 2006 with an invitation to a fake news conference.
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today (28 November 2006) condemned the jailing and harassment of journalists by the Burundi government in an apparent reaction to broadcasts that suggested a failed coup attempt was actually staged by the government.
Microsoft will announce availability of business versions of its long-awaited Vista operating system on Thursday (30 November 2006), according to analysts invited to a release event in New York City. The final version of Microsoft's Office 2007 business applications software is to be available along with Vista.
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I have not had time to read the article, ‘The Stigmatisation of Sex Workers’ () in full. However consideration needs to be given to why, in a society, certain activities are stigmatised and some outlawed. We have lived among each other for thousands of years and some things eventually become clear from either a moral or social point of view. Sexual intercourse is too vital to be regarded as trivial as you appear to regard it.
The article, ‘The Stigmatisation of Sex Workers’ () is a voice from a deep hole for the attention of all of us. When I was studying criminology in Law, I learnt that a society creates its own kind of criminals. Before we stigmatise, let us ask ourselves, what have I done for society to make it better for someone else to live in? Have we given sex workers proper teachings on family life? What other options do we offer as a society? I look forward to other good articles.
It is a fact that Morgan Tsvangarai, former president of the Movement For Democratic Change (MDC), asked the west (Britain and the United States) to institute sanctions against Zimbabwe. This fact is not a propaganda initiative by the ZANU-PF. It is the truth - unadulterated fact. There are MDC elected officials in the Zimbabwean parliament. It is another fact that overwhelmingly, the people in Zimbabwe support ZANU-PF. The empirical evidence again says that democracy is a fact of life in Zimbabwe. Democracy is not a propaganda tool of ZANU-PF. The government of Zimbabwe was duly elected by the people of Zimbabwe even though Britain financed the MDC to try and taint the will of the people. People must learn to separate fact from fiction.
I thought the article, ‘Community rights and foreign direct investment’ (http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/34803) was well written and informative. I am indeed impressed by the way the author brings out his point. However, recently, I met a very senior member, as in authority; of the Yala community and he had a totally different viewpoint to yours. The gist of his argument was that for once, the communities around Yala Swamp will earn income, either from employment at Dominion or those spinning from the support tree trickling down from Dominion.
In fact he was positive that many members of the community would have not changed from their current economic activities 100 years from now - several generations hence. This man is about 67 years old and he asserts that nothing has changed for the better since his childhood!
Well, I have not been able to visit the Yala Swamp. Judging from the two arguments, I have a feeling that somebody, somewhere, is letting the Yala community down.
What is your comment when one looks at the bigger picture in respect of Yala? I believe each international project has unique features and alternative approaches.
Sub-Saharan Africa must improve its scientific and technological capacity if it is to boost social and economic development. According to UNESCO, there is less than one scientist or engineer for every ten thousand people in Africa — compared with two to five per thousand in Europe and the United States. But experts disagree on how to improve this capacity.