Up to 93% of women in Uganda are landless, the parliamentary women's association vice-chairperson, Loice Biira Bwambale, says. Bwambale was recently delivering a paper on land ownership and women rights in Uganda at a workshop organised by the Ugandan women parliamentarians association and the European parliamentarians for Africa. She blamed the discrepancy on negative traditional practices which exclude women in land ownership.

The Representative of the UN Secretary-General on IDPs, Francis Deng, on an official mission to Uganda between August 11-15, found the government’s draft national policy on internal displacement “to be comprehensive and rich in substance” and encouraged its speedy adoption and implementation. But Deng, who visited IDPs residing in camps in Kitgum and Gulu, called the spread of HIV/AIDS “a matter of serious concern” and drew attention to IDPs’ lack of access to water, health, sanitation and education.

Peace is crucial to sustainable societal development. Although some cynical students of history may sneer at this generalisation its veracity in the context of Liberia is unchallengeable.

Unfortunately, peace in Liberia is being built on the faulty premise that the physical extraction of one man (i.e. Charles Taylor) from the stage of conflict, a ceasefire, peacekeeping and a power sharing formula ‘acceptable’ (for the time being) to various factions and warlords will lead to a permanent and sustainable peace.

Some actors and observers will argue, that it was vital to first secure the peace and end the suffering and loss of life first at any cost, and then plan further later. No reasonable person will argue with this. But any reasonable person that has followed not just the history of conflict in Liberia, but the trajectory of many failed states will also know, that this formula has been applied to Liberia in the past and has failed tragically.

To recap summarily, the conflict in Liberia is 14 years old. (Thousands of combatant child soldiers have with the exception of brief intervals known no other life). ECOWAS has intervened in the past. Again Nigeria played a leading role. ECOWAS troops were sucked into the conflict. Eventually the country was stabilised – or so they thought. The financial cost of the last intervention to the Nigerian economy is estimated at roughly 12 billion US dollars (some of it ending up in the pockets of corrupt army generals). Other ECOWAS countries spent unknown sums estimated to be not less than several millions of dollars. Again leaders of key factions (Yormie Johnson and Roosevelt Johnson) were extracted from the stage of conflict, again to Nigeria. The part of the old script we have not yet reached is the planned elections, but this is currently being redrafted with new actors in mind. The new ‘agreements’ from the ‘peace talks’ suggest that elections will be held in 2004/2005. Once this happens, the old formula would have gone full circle. Elections will follow, a victory will be declared, at least one faction is virtually guaranteed to disagree with the election results. If the faction appears insignificant, the results will initially stand, but soon become wobbly as soon as the peacekeepers pull out. The faction may then begin to grow again, drawing on large pools of resentment from amongst those whose hopes of economic, political and social and human rights have been dashed.

No one pays twice to see a bad movie. No one would definitely pay to experience a nightmare let alone twice. But why is a failed formula being applied to the same problem? To answer this question, we need to look at what should have been done previously and in so doing answer some key questions.

Firstly, did the past military and electoral ‘victory’ of Charles Taylor and his forces resolve the social, economic and political inequalities and conflicts that triggered the first Liberian war? The answer is a no so resounding that it has swept him from the presidential villa.

Secondly, did the agreement that led to the withdrawal of ECOWAS forces from Liberia after the previous intervention include and ensure the implementation of provisions that would guarantee genuine rehabilitation and reconstruction, respect for fundamental rights and in particular freedom of expression, press freedom, and the rights to association, assembly and political participation. The answer again is a no so resounding that a continuous hail of gunfire, wailing and sorrow has followed it. Despite the reluctance of Nigeria and other ECOWAS countries the calls from the Liberian people (a captive audience caught in the crossfire on the stage of conflict) have dragged ECOWAS forces back to the stage for a repeat intervention.

THE CASE FOR A ‘MARSHALL PLAN’

The approach of the governments of the West African Sub-region and the African Union leadership displays a lack of holistic understanding of the dynamics of resolving war and conflict through development. All armed conflicts or wars, especially those that last for several years and spread in concentric circles, usually leave behind seriously, if not completely devastated societies especially at the epicentre of the conflict. (Although most wars differ in their scale, intensity and nature of prosecution.) This was largely the case in Japan and Germany following the Second World War (and to a lesser degree other European countries and the Soviet Union), South East Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia), Afghanistan (USSR invasion of 79-89), The Balkans, Iraq from the first gulf war to the second, and is certainly the case in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Liberia/Sierra Leone etc.

War is a massive destroyer of society and its productive forces. The specific consequences and aftermath of war or conflict in a country or region depends on: the causes and roots of a conflict (economic, political, religious, ethnic etc); the size and population of a country/region; its homogeneity or diversity; contending parties and the size of their social base; their fire power; the nature of victory or stalemate; the forces waiting in the wings to capitalise; available natural resources; previous levels of industrialisation; the extent of the destruction of human and other resources; and very importantly, the amount of planning and resources put into reconstructing the society, rehabilitation of combatants and victims etc. Where the conflict or war has been caused or exacerbated by inequalities and exclusion, repression or mass murder of significant social formations, issues of rights and political participation become even more crucial to rebuilding those societies.

In the case of Liberia, the attitude of the regional governments, at least those not involved in the conflict, has merely been to ensure some sort of peace which amounts to scarcely more than a continuation of the conflict by less violent means, and then hope that the problem goes away. ‘It’ did not go away in Cambodia, Afghanistan, The Balkans or Sierra Leone where conflicts were left half resolved and simmering. Instead ‘it’ paved the way in those theatres of conflict, for more extreme forces waiting in the wings to inflict even more pain on already mortally wounded societies. If the problems caused by the consequences of the devastation of war were resolved in Japan, Germany and much of Europe (to the extent that large scale armed conflict has been so far neutralised), it is because there was a Marshall Plan that absorbed the forces of conflict, paved the way for their rehabilitation and funded the reconstruction of society. This is what not just Liberia, but all the conflict zones of Africa need. The billion-dollar question, literally speaking, is who will pay for this? Following World War Two, morbid fear of the potential spread of communism propelled America to underwrite the reconstruction of Europe and Japan.

In the case of Africa, this writer argues that morbid fear of a steady concentric spread of conflict should act as the propellant for the African countries, especially the bigger and richer ones, to act. The funds spent on potentially endless cycles of peacekeeping are better spent on peace building. African countries are not very rich - but they are rich enough for Nigeria to have spent 12 billion US dollars in its first peace keeping intervention in Liberia. How much will a Marshall Plan cost? No one knows unless it is actually costed. Prioritisation can then be effected.

What will the Marshall Plan do? For one, the physical reconstruction of schools, hospitals, homes, roads and vital infrastructure such as water, electricity and communications. It will facilitate: the re-emergence of the educational system; the healthcare system; a financial system; rehabilitation and skills training centres for soldiers and militia especially child combatants; rehabilitation of internally displaced persons and refugees; reconstitution of the judicial and justice system, institutionalisation of rights and an end to impunity. These will constitute a start.

THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY

But who will preside over planning and the allocation of resources. Should this once again be the exclusive preserve of warlords and factions whose hunger for power is driven by the desire for control of the state apparatus and the countries resources? Certainly not. While political realities cannot be ignored, the reconstitution of civil society, the professional associations and trade unions for medical personnel, teachers and other key sections of society and economy must be a priority. Will it really be possible to successfully rebuild Liberia’s healthcare system for example without the organised and democratic participation of its health workers in the process? Will it be possible to rebuild the justice and judicial system without the democratic participation of what is left of Liberia’s Bar Association? What of the role of journalists in rebuilding the media which was at once marginalised and appropriated by the Taylor regime? Only by involving civil society in the policy shaping and decision making process can democracy be institutionalised. The warlords and factions will not like this. But either ECOWAS ensures this, or more armed conflict and regional instability is only round the corner. More importantly, the myth that armed conflicts in neighbouring countries are of no concern to other governments has been punctured. At the last count, the major regional conflicts in Africa have each spread to or drawn in at least three or four other countries.

And to ask the cynical question. What is in it for the more industrially advanced nations? The events of the past few years provide a self-evident answer. Failed states are a threat, and not just to their immediate neighbours. The capture of failed states by extremist forces as in Cambodia, Afghanistan, and as almost happened in Sierra Leone also lead to massive refugee issues and potential destabilisation of regions.

To be sure, many governments both non-African and African may not be enthusiastic to support the emergence of a society which may question the nature of their own rule. Massive public spending and entrenchment of democratic values to end marginalisation, lift the standard of housing, healthcare, education, ensure political participation, access to justice and defence of rights have been caught up in the quagmire of politics. This is the case even in more advanced countries. But there is no other choice in the long run. Failure to implement these will in the long run, create again and again the social, political and economic conditions that have led to continuous cycles of conflict. To put it crudely, bands of armed and jobless, uneducated, unskilled, homeless, hungry and angry young men will at the very least be drawn into crime sooner or later. At worst they are ready armies for potential warlords prepared to subvert peace and stability in a bid to control states and resources.

It is also not politically or economically viable to plan for peacekeeping without planning for peace- building. The lack of a clear development based exit plan will either lead to indefinite peacekeeping with the peacekeepers being seen sooner or later as an occupying force, or the establishment of a ‘peace’ similar to a fragile sheet of glass soon shattered into pieces by the slightest pressure. DRC, Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, almost Cote D’Ivoire and many more. How many years, how many countries and how many lives will it take for African governments to realise that ceasefires, peacekeeping and power sharing will never be enough.

* Rotimi Sankore is Coordinator of CREDO for Freedom of Expression and Associated Rights an international NGO focussing on rights issues in Africa. CREDO can be reached at [email][email protected]

* Please send comments on this editorial to [email protected]

"I will never forget the fateful day I returned home sick from work. I got into bed and asked the people I was living with to help me and buy some Panado and Med-Lemon. I gave them R5 for the medicine, but they bought poison instead. When I took the tablets I immediately lost consciousness. That was when they threw the paraffin on me and set it alight. I woke up weeks later in the hospital's intensive care unit where I was kept alive with the support of oxygen, drips and blood. When I regained consciousness, the doctors told me both my legs had been amputated; it was the only way to save my life. I was shocked and sad, very sad. I wished to end my life. There was very little I could do. I tried to understand how this could have happened to me." Read the rest of Collin Emanuel's harrowing story by clicking on the link provided.

Alpha Konare, former President of Mali and newly elected Chair of the Commission of the African Union, has the right credentials for the job, CREDO for Freedom of Expression & Associated Rights says. Reacting to the election of the new AU Chair, CREDO’s coordinator Rotimi Sankore said: “As the first elected Chair of the Commission of the African Union, the success or failure of the entire African Union project depends largely on how Alpha Konare approaches the job.”

This case study surveys the response of the South African labour movement to globalisation. It attempts to indicate how far unions in South Africa have maintained their position with respect to traditional constituent demands, whether they are adapting to a changing environment by organising new constituents, whether they are addressing new concerns by developing new perspectives on civil society, and whether they are enhancing their image as a major social actor.

Halting progress in the world's 49 least developed countries (LDCs) was reported this week to the UN Economic and Social Council, along with a call to set their plight higher on the international agenda. Major challenges cited by UN Under-Secretary-General Anwarul Chowdhury include the widespread prevalence of diseases in the LDCs, slow progress in debt relief and continuing low levels of foreign investment and trade - with 11 per cent of the world population, LDCs account for a bare 0.42 per cent of global trade, he said.

Child trafficking is a global human rights tragedy. Over one million children worldwide, including thousands in West Africa, are recruited from their homes each year by individuals seeking to exploit their labour. Extreme poverty, sometimes combined with the death of one or both parents, makes children highly vulnerable to false promises of education, vocational training or paid work. Human Rights Watch's April 2003 report "Borderline Slavery: Child Trafficking in Togo" highlights Togo as a case study of trafficking in the region. Contact your elected representatives, your countries' embassies, authorities in Togo and international lending agencies urging them to condemn, monitor, and prevent all forms of child trafficking.

Rolake Nwagwu, from the Treatment Action Movement (TAM) Nigeria, writes that if America says she is committed to fighting AIDS in Africa, then the right things should be done at the right time in the right way. "Don't claim to commit to PMTCT if you won't make ARVs available. Don't claim to support Africans using generic drugs if you go on to try enforcing the same laws that will make getting generic drugs almost impossible. Don't claim to be against stigma and discrimination of PLWHA (People Living with HIV/AIDS) if your staff members still screen their domestic workers for HIV and visa lottery winners are compelled to take HIV tests without their informed knowledge or consent, without voluntary and confidential counselling."

People in poor countries could soon have a new and cheap way to get hold of the wealth of information on the internet. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are developing a search engine designed for people with a slow net connection.

I wanted to tell you how much I appreciate Pambazuka News for African news that I would otherwise not have access to. I have been particularly interested in the Niger Delta situation as well as the plight of refugees in Congo-Brazzaville, as I worked with them two years ago. I am doing some research towards a Master of Public Health and am excited about the new database, as it will facilitate the task at hand. Again, thank you for the excellent service you provide to all concerned. I am very grateful for this information.

Human Rights Watch has written to the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), John Kufuor, urging him to ensure that ECOWAS troops sent to Liberia act in full accordance with international human rights and humanitarian law, and with a clear mandate to protect civilians and to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Amnesty International has appealed to regional Heads of State or their representatives meeting on 20 July 2003 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to inject a renewed momentum to ending the armed conflict in Burundi and to give protection of human rights priority on their agenda. "The gap between paper agreements and the situation of Burundian civilians in constant fear for their lives, property and security grows ever larger," said Amnesty International.

Africa's editors are today communicating more and more through the internet, forming members-only chatrooms to exchange thoughts on the issues that confront the continent. But while such an exchange is welcome, the editors are worried that their privileged access to the internet may distance them from the vast majority of Africans who because of poverty are excluded from the information revolution.

Includes: How many portraits does a dictator need to flatter himself?; Rhodesians never die: they're alive and well and living in the politburo; POSA is LOMA's ghost, and we need to chase it out - one time!; Bob and Bush have more in common than we realised.

Nurses are still being 'poached' from Africa to work in Britain - even though there is a ban on recruitment from developing countries, unions have warned. The head of Kenya's nursing union told the BBC it was the most experienced nurses who were leaving.

In Africa, national identity and ownership of land and other resources is deeply contested, largely as a result of the continent's colonial history. The need for art to advocate these issues and to promote ownership by the people of Africa of their culture, land and resources, is now paramount. This is according to Artists for Human Rights (AHR) a Durban-based non-profit voluntary association that promotes the international cooperation of artists and human rights organisations. AHR has developed a model for the use and application of high quality art as an effective public advocacy tool. Read more by clicking on the link provided.

"People are here to pursue their own interests. In fact, one would say that Somalia is up for grabs," says a delegate to the Somali peace talks being held in Mbaghati, Kenya. The delegate is from Somaliland, the renegade region whose "head of State" has snubbed the Nairobi talks.

A group of 767 people walked l3km to Lumley beach on May 31st to raise money for cataract victims and condom users. The sum of one hundred and nine million Leones was raised.

With a generating capacity of more than 40,000 MW, South Africa-based Eskom is Africa’s largest energy utility, and ranks as one of the top five energy utilities in the world. Eskom is a de facto monopoly in South Africa, and also generates over half the electricity produced in the whole of Africa, with operations in 31 countries on the continent. Because of its heavy reliance on coal, it is the primary source of greenhouse gas emissions in South Africa. Eskom management has also stated that it intends to rely increasingly on nuclear power. And in recent years, Eskom has begun to promote new dams and buy existing hydropower plants around the continent as it seeks to expand its influence across Africa. This paper explores the company's social and ecological footprint across Africa.

The Zimbabwe Council of Churches has apologised to the people of Zimbabwe for not doing enough to protest human rights abuses by the government. The apology was made in a communique issued by the Zimbabwe Council of Churches following its annual meeting.
Related Link:
PIED PIPER
http://www.africapulse.org.za/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1358

In an interview published in the last issue of "A World of Science", the quarterly newsletter of UNESCO's Natural Sciences Sector, Abdul Waheed Khan, the Organisation's Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, explains how information and knowledge can contribute to development in a world where 80% of people still lack access to basic telecommunication tools.

There were 113 cases of torture recorded for the month of June, while political discrimination, violations of freedom of expression and assaults remained widespread, according to the Zimbabwean Human Rights NGO Forum's Political Violence Report for June. "Since the Human Rights Forum began documenting and publishing politically related human rights violations in 2000, there has been a sustained level of organised violence and torture, peaking at periods surrounding elections, public marches and demonstrations.”

Not all HTML books are the same and HTML Complete is perhaps the best of what has largely become a tired rehashing of the same old tune. HTML Complete is refreshingly different.

Every time my American friends alert me to an article on Africa in a major US newspaper, they do so with the comment that all one reads about Africa is grim, sad and tragic. As a Malawian studying in the United States, frustration over the way Africa is portrayed in the western media is almost cliché. The just-ended trip to five African countries by President George W. Bush triggered debates as to whether his concern for Africa was genuine, or whether it was a photo-op. Salih Booker, executive director for Africa Action conceded that at least the world was focusing on Africa and that in itself was a good thing, while arguing that the whole trip, on the whole, didn't amount to much. Save for TV and newspaper shots of the president with his hosts and his speeches, much of the media however was gripped by the debate over the White House admission earlier in the week that the state of the union address reference to Saddam Hussein seeking uranium in Niger, pronounced wrongly half the time, was inaccurate. The admission took the limelight away from Africa and brought it back to the US as soon as the president landed on the African continent.

This is a new and exciting opportunity to lead, develop, manage and have responsibility for development, emergency, advocacy, policy and campaign work for the West Africa region. You would be responsible for the processes of developing, implementing and monitoring Christian Aid policy and strategy for your region. Click on the link for details of this and other jobs with Christian Aid.

The job description includes: To support the food security project manager in mobilising communities at grass roots level and to improve the effectiveness of the project by building a strong partnership with the extension department of the Ministry of Agriculture (at municipal and provincial level) and civil society organisations; To support the project manager (PM) in the management of project activities using Concern's Project Cycle Management model, policies and strategy; and To support the PM to prepare high quality reports and proposals.

The Human Rights Diploma Programme is an academic programme aimed at strengthening capacity for the promotion, protection and advancement of human rights activities to meet a specific need in human rights advocacy and activism. It builds upon existing theoretical and practical experiences and equips the participants with the capabilities for protecting, enforcing and evaluating the impact of human rights. The Human Rights diploma programme covers a number of substantive fields. These include international human rights law and organisations, where the evolution of international human rights law and practice as well as its current implementations are covered. It also includes domestic instruments for the protection and promotion of human rights which seek to analyse and compare the ways and mechanisms used by various countries to protect human rights. It further analyses the role of state and non-state actors in the enforcement, promotion and protection of human rights, and the use of information and communication technologies in human rights work.

This important book on the politics of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which takes the lid off how the WTO really works, and what really happened before, at, and after the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha in 2001, on the basis of interviews with 33 Geneva-based delegates to the WTO and 10 Secretariat staff members. This is the ammunition the critics of the WTO have been waiting for. It reveals the systematic subversion of an ostensibly democratic system to ensure that the "agreements" that are reached are those the major powers - primarily the US and the European Union - want, irrespective of the views of interests of most developing countries, who form the great majority of the membership.

Angola was still at war when, in 1997, Pedro Rosa Mendes, a young Portuguese writer, decided to travel by land from Angola to Mozambique, another former Portuguese colony that had been ravaged by war. It was never going to be easy; Unita also then controlled vast territories of southern Angola through which Rosa Mendes would have to pass. Bay of Tigers is a winsome, bittersweet account of Rosa Mendes's travails as he progresses through these countries. It is obviously the work of a highly talented, sensitive writer, though a preface or more detailed notes explaining some of the more involved aspects of Angolan history would have made it easier for Anglophone readers. The English edition could have also done with some rigorous copy editing. These faults do not, however, weaken the vitality of the work.

Pedro Rosa Mendes

E-vote, or E-mail-voting is a non-profit private initiative. It tries to use the power of the internet to influence political decision making, bringing political leaders and voters closer together and giving the majority a voice. E-vote is a service and has no political viewpoint of its own. Participants get an easy to use medium to express their political demands.

Sound financial management of South Africa's courts was essential to maintain public respect and confidence in the country's justice system, the New National Party (NNP) said on Monday. For this reason, a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe -- authorised by President Thabo Mbeki -- into allegations of misappropriation of funds and corruption, could not happen soon enough, said NNP justice spokesperson Carol Johnson.

The violence that followed a cattle-rustling incident last month in Kakuma refugee camp, northwestern Kenya, was unprecedented in its deadly impact. Displacing 30,000 people and killing two Turkana, nine Sudanese, and one Ethiopian caught in the crossfire, the effects are still being felt four weeks later.

Kenya is under immense pressure from the US government not to ratify the Rome Statue on the International Criminal Court (ICC). Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Mr Peter ole Nkuraiya, said the US is putting pressure on Kenya not to sign Article 98 of the Statute. "We are left to wonder what is the way forward as regards the issue. We are being arm and neck twisted by the big brother," he said.

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has urged the international community and African governments to back rural development for the continent. Speaking at the launch of the UN Development Programme’s 2003 Human Development Report in Addis Ababa on Monday, he said rural and agricultural development was the “quickest and most reliable” way to reduce poverty. Meanwhile, Patrick Asea, chief economist at the UN’s Economic Commission for Africa, told the meeting that cooperation between rich and poor nations was a litany of broken promises.

A non-profit charity based in the United States, the Centre for the Prevention of Genocide, has launched a human rights resource website. In a statement, the centre described the new website http://www.genocideprevention.org as one of the world's few early warning systems for the detection of genocidal activity.

Rwanda’s National Electoral Commission has approved four candidates to contest the country’s first post-genocide presidential elections, scheduled for 25 August. The commission cleared four of six candidates who had declared their interest in the presidency. The approved candidates are the incumbent, President Paul Kagame, former Prime Minister Faustin Twagiramungu, a woman candidate, Alvera Mukabaramba; and former Member of Parliament Nepomuscene Nayinzira.

Swaziland's draft constitution was initially greeted with relief by pro-democracy groups who had feared it would be far more draconian. But six weeks on, banned political parties have begun to condemn the document for its ambiguous language regarding the legalisation of political groups. "We will only be interested in a constitution that would be inclusive of the entire people of Swaziland, not just a few. So we reject this draft constitution with contempt," the People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) said in a statement last week.

Two thousand nurses are to be hired for public hospitals this year. Director of Medical Services Richard Muga said this was expected to ease staff shortages and improve public service.

Lack of awareness of the disease and supplies for detecting HIV infection may mask prevalence levels in some areas of the country, UNICEF resident representative Dr. Stella Goings has said. Speaking at the regional workshop for peer educators held at Mulungushi International Conference Centre, Dr. Goings noted that most countries represented at the workshop were among those heavily affected by the HIV/AIDS infections.

Not a single member of the Nigerian police or security forces has been charged with dozens of killings during the "Miss World" riots in Kaduna last November, Human Rights Watch said in a new report. The 32-page report, "The 'Miss World riots': continued impunity for killings in Kaduna," provides detailed eyewitness accounts of how soldiers and police killed people in cold blood between November 21 and 23, during an operation intended to restore law and order.

Civil society networks are recognised almost universally as essential promoters of democratisation. What makes a coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) effective? What role should international NGOs play in fostering alliances of local CSOs? Should local networks pursue international advocacy?

At the expense of local media, South African media were given access to events during the British Princess Anne's official visit to Lesotho in the week of July 16, 2003.

Sun Microsystems SA and its partner AL Indigo - the new, black-owned enterprise solutions company - have provided technology to create a groundbreaking HIV/AIDS portal for SA's Medical Research Council (MRC). The HIV/AIDS portal, which can be visited at www.afroaidsinfo.org, was conceived and designed to be a comprehensive resource for information and research for researchers, health professionals, policy-makers, educators and the public.

Former President Daniel arap Moi has been advised to voluntarily appear before the anti-corruption police unit to record a statement and to clear his name against the many economic crimes levelled against him. Justice and Constitutional affairs Assistant Minister Robinson Githae at the same time dismissed claims that the former President was being harassed by the NARC Government, adding that other than the sitting President, nobody else enjoys immunity.

Médicins Sans Frontièrs (MSF) on Wednesday called for greater assistance to refugees returning to Angola, saying that many had resettled in areas lacking basic services.

The government of Sudan is considering a date for the resumption of postponed peace talks with the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A). "We are still consulting on that," Sudan's deputy ambassador to Kenya, Muhammad Ahmad Dirdeiry, told IRIN. He said a decision would be made before 3 August, which the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) mediators have suggested as a starting date. The talks were originally scheduled to restart on Wednesday.