Several military personnel and civilians are being held illegally for prolonged periods and often under inhumane conditions, according to the human-rights watchdog (L'observatoire congolais des droits de l'homme) in the Republic of Congo. In a new report, the organisation denounced the arrest in February 2005 of 13 army officers and warrant officers for the alleged theft of weapons from a military camp south of the capital, Brazzaville.

The Department of Education has emphasised that communities also need to play their part in the efforts to make schools in the country safe. "In as much as we strive to make our schools safe havens, we also need parents and communities to play a major role in making our schools safer," spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said. He said pupils who became criminals came from communities and families, urging parents to be actively involved in their children's schooling.

Twenty migrants have drowned while trying to reach the Canary Islands, survivors of a boat sinking have told Spanish police. The survivors - seven adults and four children - said they were picked up by a merchant ship after their boat broke up on the high seas before dawn. They said they were then brought to a port on the Gran Canaria. Some 25,000 migrants, mostly from west Africa, have arrived in the Canary Islands this year. Up to 3,000 people are said to have died during the trip.