KABISSA-FAHAMU NEWSLETTER 32 * 6362 SUBSCRIBERS
KABISSA-FAHAMU NEWSLETTER 32 * 6362 SUBSCRIBERS
WFP on Friday announced the launch of an "urgent" appeal for US $2.1 million to fund a six-month emergency humanitarian air operation to begin in early August in the DRC that will enable aid workers to reach remote areas to assess the needs of war-torn populations and set up relief operations.
A spokesman for the group of parties who supported the candidacy of Colonel Epitace Bayaganakandi for the presidency of the transitional period, Alphonse Rugambarara, reiterated that his group would not enter the transitional government led by President Buyoya and his deputy, Hutu leader, Domitien Ndayizeye.
After more than a decade in Ethiopia, Somali refugees in the eastern camp of Rabasso are preparing to return to their homes in northwestern Somalia, a spokesman for UNHCR told IRIN Thursday.
The Federal High Court has ruled to block the personal and business accounts of a number of former government officials and private businessmen accused of corruption, local press reports said Wednesday.
The Sudanese Movement for Children, which comprises governmental and nongovernmental agencies and civil society organisations, will next Friday organise a march to start from Wad Madani, the capital of Al-Jazirah State, and end at the Friendship Hall in Khartoum, as part of the global campaign "Say Yes for Children".
The governments of Sudan and Uganda are expected to restore diplomatic relations - severed in 1996, with each of the two accusing the other of supporting the other's rebel movements - through the formal exchange of diplomats next month, according to the 'EastAfrican' newspaper.
Liberian President Charles Taylor announced a general amnesty on Thursday for all treason suspects abroad and anti-government dissidents in the northern county of Lofa, news media reported.
Seventy-nine former child combatants of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) were returned to their families on Tuesday in Kailahun, after spending six weeks at an interim care centre run by Save the Children Fund (SCF)-UK.
There has been rising tension within Guinea-Bissau's army, the Senegalese news agency, APS, and other sources reported. The tension appears to centre on the future of Armed Forces Chief of Staff Verissimo Correia Seabra.
Zambia was expected to experience a huge shortage of maize, the country's staple food, the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) said on Thursday. "A maize shortage is expected this year. ZNFU estimates a shortfall of 120,000 to 150,000 mt," Songowayo Zyambo, ZNFU executive director, was quoted saying in an AFP report.
New British High Commissioner to Zimbabwe, Brian Donnely, said on Thursday that his government wanted to re-establish the friendly relations the two countries enjoyed before the current controversy over the land issue, news reports said.
The Washington Post newspaper reported on Thursday that the United States had again threatened to boycott next month's United Nations conference on racism in Durban, South Africa.
President Robert Mugabe has added three new seats to the Supreme Court by appointing three judges seen as stalwarts of his ZANU-PF ruling party, the state-controlled 'Herald' reported on Friday.
The international humanitarian organisation Oxfam says the Angolan government is responding inadequately to the needs of people displaced by the civil war. Speaking at the end of a visit to Angola, Oxfam's director Barbara Stocking said an end to the war was the only way out of the humanitarian crisis in the country, and called on the international community to support a negotiated peace.
As President Joaquim Chissano serves out his last term of office, a debate is simmering between two distinct factions in his ruling FRELIMO party to determine his successor, analysts have told IRIN.
With the introduction of its own national internet hub, Lesotho has cut the umbilical cord with South Africa. The authors of this week's story (for names see the end of the article) describe how this was achieved and Lesotho's future ambitions in this field.
Government soldiers and rebels in Sierra Leone are no longer restless since a ceasefire agreement signed last November ended 10 years of civil war. “It’s been like paradise since that time,” said Sule Musa, editor of the independent newspaper, the Advisor.
President Robert Mugabe confirmed that the Zimbabwe government would table a freedom of information and protection of privacy Bill, and replace the notorious Law and Order (Maintenance) Act.
Over the past four weeks a series of intercommunal clashes in central and northern Nigeria has left many dead or wounded and forced an estimated 65,000 people to flee their homes in Nasarawa, Benue, Bauchi and Kaduna states. Working with the Nigerian Red Cross Society, since the beginning of July the ICRC has distributed relief supplies such as blankets, buckets, soap and mats to a total of 22,500 displaced people living in improvised camps.
Overfishing is far more devastating than is commonly understood and was taking place long before its magnitude began to command public attention over the past century, say scientists.
The Malawi Digest, produced by MIDEA, raises concerns about the growing demise of democracy in Malawi. According to the Digest, Malawi is in danger of sliding back into one-party rule. There are real concerns about the government's lack of respect for the constitution and the rule of law, and the real dangers that are now faced from the abuse of human rights, the intolerance of dissent and the emergence of politcally motivated violence.
THE United States risked appearing indifferent about racism if it were to boycott the upcoming United Nations conference on the subject, South Africa's director general of foreign affairs said on Sunday."If they don't come, people will read into it that they don't see the issues as important. It will send a signal to their own constituencies and the rest of the world," Sipho Pityana told the SAPA news agency.
The following was published in "HIF-net at WHO" in response to a request on where to look for funding "for developing country NGOs undertaking not-for-profit nutrition, micronutrient and/or blindness prevention projects for the benefit of poor urban and rural dwellers/communities."
Titled "Planning for Leadership Transition," this edition of Management Sciences for Health (MSH)'s award-winning publication - The Manager -considers strategy and process for managing a leadership transition and developing leadership capacity among staff at all levels.
There have been a spate of damaging and ubiquitous viruses lately. This article explains the difference between a virus and a virus hoax. It also tells you how both can damage your computer. Throughout the article there are links to online resources: identify whether you are the victim of a virus or a virus hoax, visit websites offering free anti virus software, learn how to delete a virus FOREVER from your PC, and.. keep your anti-virus software up to date.
Software audits and licensing expenses are becoming more and more threatening. Or are they? This article mentions a threatening letter which is resulting in changes to open source software. The Business Software Alliance's (BSA) 'Truce Campaign' is not engendering support from users - and many are looking at other options. In South Africa, which is dominated by Microsoft at the end user level, there have also been threats of a 'crackdown'.
This news release about the Global Development Network (research in the developing world) describes it's mission and provides a link to the web site. It has moved outside the World Bank as an independent organisation, although still receiving funding from the WB. Take a look at the site, and tell KFN what you think.
Last year, from January to May 2000, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and The Africa Policy Information Center (APIC, now a part of Africa Action) co-sponsored "International Policies, African Realities: An Electronic Roundtable," which brought more than 500 people together, with African panelists and participants from Africa and around the world, in a structured on-line discussion on a range of African issues. The electronic discussion was hosted by Bellanet. The full report is downloadable from the web site below and the discussion is archived for all to access.
Earlier this month in Bredell, near Kempton Park on the East Rand, South Africa and some say that ‘land grabbing fever’ has hit South Africa, hot on the heels of the Zimbabwean debacle.
The land is owned by government, Transnet and a private company. Thousands of homeless people invaded the Bredell land allegedly after paying the Pan African Congress R25 a plot.
An interim Court order was granted allowing the government to evict the ‘squatters’. In coming to his decision, Judge Rabie made a reference to the irresponsibility displayed by the PAC.
Predictably, there has been a war of words between the PAC and the ANC over the land invasion. PAC leader Stanley Mogoba has warned that should the matter not be resolved satisfactorily resolved there could be a ‘revolution’. “If government wants to go the route of confrontation, they are asking for very big problems”, he said (www.iol.co.za).
ANC spokesperson Smuts Ngonyama called the PAC “an organisation of agents provocateurs masquerading as a caring liberation movement when, in fact, they are the worst hypocrites and opportunists who will jump at the slightest opportunity to exploit the plight of our people, with the sole purpose of lining their pockets” (www.iol.co.za).
Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane said that he found it paradoxical that the government was so quick to commit to a multi-million rand arms deal with not a visible enemy in sight, but at the same time so slow to respond to an issue it billed a top priority in the run-up to the 1994 general election (www.iol.co.za).
According to the South African Sunday Tribune, a group of black tenant farmers have invited Robert Mugabe to come to SA to advise them on how to proceed to get land. Joachim Hlatswayo, a tenant leader was quoted in the same newspaper as saying that they wanted to hear Mugabe’s views on land restitution and land seizure. The invitation to Mugabe has been confirmed by the Zimbabwean High Commission in Pretoria, but they noted that in terms of diplomatic protocol, only the President of SA, Thabo Mbeki could invite the president of another country for a visit.
What is clear is that the Bredell ‘land invaders’ have become political pawns. While government’s land restitution has been largely ineffective, it is equally clear that landless people are getting impatient (www.iol.co.za).
The squatters are now appealing the eviction order. In the meantime, local PAC leaders have not been able to account for the money collected from the squatters.
The Zimbabwean experience has suddenly made land grabbing an alternative to remaining landless. This week, saw the establishment of the National Landless People’s Movement. NLPA representative Lucas Mufamadi says they support “the gallant actions of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe”. He also said that land occupations are inevitable as land reform has been slow (www.mg.co.za).
Clearly, the Bredell land occupation is illegal and governments all over need to take quick action to avert this from happening by stepping up the pace of land reform and where land occupations have occurred, they must take action too.
However, should our laws not reflect an African reality as far as land is concerned? Should there be private property clauses in our constitutions, or should there be communal property provisions, or should there be both? Civil society and governments must start seriously debating this and other human rights issues to make sure that we do not prescribe to a Eurocentric definition of human rights which does not fit into the African context. The landlessness issue must be looked at from this perspective.
In the interim, government must start pouring its resources into land reform. In addition, land grabbing must be strongly discouraged.
Over the past few weeks, KFN has carried a healthy, and splendidly civilised, debate on the World Bank’s new Development Gateway initiative. Behind the candid commentary, though, are some rather bitter issues, many of them directly relevant to African politics.
First, the theory. Colonisation and ‘development’ need knowledge in order to prop up the rather shaky rationalisations upon which they rest. The World Bank has spent a great deal of time and money cornering the market in ‘development’ knowledge for precisely this reason. The tragedy is that there’s a great deal of subversive work being done by African academics, policy analysts, teachers and activists that rarely gets the coverage that headline Bank projects do.
This ‘African silence’ works to the advantage of those trying to secure the status quo. For those concerned with active democracy rather than ‘good governance’, with redistribution rather than ‘poverty’, with justice rather than ‘law’, the Bank’s site is bad news. It is hard enough, given the neoliberal domination of Africa, to shift public debate to questioning social fundamentals, much less changing them.
Now, to practice. Many comrades in the NGO world here are forced to adopt a different kind of language in order to get themselves heard not only by donors, but by governments too. The adoption of ‘the master’s tools’ is precisely the sort of compromise that many hoped would be unnecessary after decolonisation. That our politicians remain beholden to these rhetorics and policies, whether GEAR in South Africa, structural adjustment in Zimbabwe, HIPC conditions in Mozambique or PRSPs in Uganda, bears witness to the very limited extent of African decolonisation. That people believe that there are no alternatives is *precisely* because neoliberalism cannot allow the space imaginatively to entertain these alternatives. Hence the importance of the Development Gateway.
So what to do? Sadly, ignoring the World Bank doesn’t make it go away. Meeting the Bank’s knowledge offensive (and offensive is the right word) demands action. Activists have only limited resources, though, and firefighting new neoliberal initiatives takes time and energy. This time, we’re in luck. In challenging the Bank website, we can not only to reject the Bank, but do it by actively getting creative with other projects.
There are already many African organisations that have taken a stand. The MWENGO website, at for example , is a recently launched Southern African regional hub. Among the positions there are some that are openly critical of neoliberal colonial economics, and supportive of land redistribution. The chances of challenges to property rights being disseminated by the Bank? Slim.
(Although the Bank’s PR machine has swung into gear to defend its openness to other positions, there are already reasons to be suspicious. Even before the official launch, the site has already refused to post correspondence from one legal scholar, and there is reason to think merely by looking at the titles of the topic areas that some comments are liable to be more ‘on topic’ than others.)
Initiatives similar to MWENGO’s, that fly in the face of this ideological intimidation, exist elsewhere on the continent. It is our responsibility actively to support them, and to create spaces in which alternatives are thinkable not only by ourselves, but also the people with whom we work, and whom we may claim to represent.
To sign the declaration against the Bank, send an email to [email][email protected] with your Name and organisation in the subject line (no organisational endorsement is assumed).
As traditional media becomes increasingly repressive in Zimbabwe, the launch of a local web site, www.kubatana.net, is a breath of fresh air. The NGO Network Alliance Project, the energy behind the development of kubatana, has brought Zimbabwean ngos, csos and development organisations together under one online umbrella. Kubatana is a Shona word which means "working together" - an apt name when a strengthened civic response to the current social and political unrest in Zimbabwe needs to be encouraged.
Freedom of Information experts and activists across Africa will meet in Nigeria in September to map out strategies for establishing a regional network aimed at strengthening campaigns for the enactment and implementation of access to information laws throughout the continent.
OneWorld is an international non-profit Network whose mission is to harness the democratic potential of the Internet. Its website www.oneworld.net is the world's leading portal on development and human rights. We are looking for an Editor to edit OneWorld's DebtChannel.org. The DebtChannel.org Editor will be responsible for editing and updating the channel to enable it to fulfill its mission as a leading Web resource on international debt. She/he will report to the OneWorld Africa Regional Coordinator based in Lusaka, Zambia.
RWA International are looking for a communications specialist to undertake a 2 year input to carry out the following tasks: development and implementation of communications strategies and policy at national and regional level; capacity building and training in data management and modern communication methods; provide national components with communications guidelines and media materials; assist with production of media materials nationally and regionally, esp. printed publications, TV and Radio; assist with provision of timely and accurate data on animal health and disease outbreaks; represent PACE at national and international conferences etc; other duties as advised.
A collaboration between HEARD and the USAID funded Policy Project In 1998 the University of Natal established HEARD under the Directorship of Professor Alan Whiteside. The mandate of HEARD is to carry out teaching and academic and applied research on the impact and implications of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Southern African region. The Division currently has four academic research posts and a number of Research Associates. HEARD is now seeking a Research Director who will provide leadership within HEARD and support to the School of Economics in the Faculty of Management Studies.
Women's Human Rights Net wants civil society worldwide to protest the war, rebuild a fair society in Afghanistan and support Women's Human Rights. The Twelve Points were developed in exchanges among several women's human rights activists in New York, Asia and Latin America following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. They are intended to suggest alternatives to military action and the cycle of violence, destruction and death. Please use these suggestions in whatever way you find helpful.
KABISSA-FAHAMU NEWSLETTER 31 * 6182 SUBSCRIBERS
KABISSA-FAHAMU NEWSLETTER 31 * 6182 SUBSCRIBERS
I note that your subscriber base is growing (have been following your progress with interest!) - Any idea what proportion of subs. that make up the the figure "6179" are from Southern Africa? You could do an analysis using suffixes ie. "za" = SA, "sz" = Swaziland etc. - it would be interesting to know ..
WE REPLY: We will provide an analysis of our subscriber database from time to time - stay tuned!
The Development Gateway appreciates this opportunity to clarify the most recent information being circulated on Kabissa regarding the Gateway. First, the Gateway's editorial and content management policies - which are clearly posted on our site at - are designed to encourage broad-based participation and a plurality of opinions on the Gateway. Numerous organizations, including NGOs, universities, indigenous organizations, and faith-based groups manage their topic pages selecting advisors, framing the focus of the page, deciding what content is displayed and highlighted, and promoting online discussions. (see a complete list of contributing organizations at http://www.developmentgateway.org/aboutus/links). Further, anyone with access to the Internet can post resources such as links and documents on the Gateway, as well as post comments and ask questions, thus adding to the inclusive and synergestic nature of the Gateway. Second, while the Development Gateway is being initially funded and designed by the World Bank, it is based on an partnership approach that has involved over 100 government, civil society, private sector, and donor organizations in the planning, design, and implementation phases. This partnership approach also includes local Country Gateways - to date being established in 32 countries - which are managed by diverse and independent organizations that will aggregate local knowledge and help to address the digital divide at the national level. Third, the Development Gateway team has not only consulted widely on the design and scope of the portal, but has from the beginning been open to the comments and feedback - both positive and negative - received. It is precisely for this reason that the portal is being built through a phased approach that allows us to constantly reassess our policies, incorporate user feedback, and refine features. We have already introduced many improvements, such as a greater emphasis on open technology standards, adopting institutions as topic guides, hosting autonomous community portals, and moving forward in establishing an independent Foundation that will manage the portal through a multi-stakeholder board of directors. In closing, we invite all those interested in learning more about the Development Gateway to visit our site, and particularly the "About Us" section to view our business plan, consultation meeting reports, team member bios, and frequently asked questions (FAQs).
WE REPLY: The independence of the Gateway's board is being questioned by a number of organisations, including the Bretton Woods Project (see the Editorial in this issue of the Newsletter). Please note that the name of this newsletter is the Kabissa-fahamu Newsletter.
I have been very impressed by your newsletter, but have unsubscribed because I simply don't have time to read it. My colleagues who work on Africa will do so and will alert me to matters of special interest. With all best wishes for your excellent newsletter.
A former Rwandan mayor, who was last month acquitted of involvement in the 1994 genocide, is still being held in prison by the United Nations war crimes tribunal in Arusha, Tanzania.
A Rwandan priest wanted by a UN war crimes tribunal to face charges of genocide is in hiding in Italy.
The University of Malta is pleased to announce the holding of the second Mediterranean Master's Course in Human Rights and Democratisation.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Engineering Professional Development will offer a disaster management workshop, "Managing Mass Population Displacement Emergencies," September 17-21, 2001 in Madison, Wisconsin.
At least 70 people were killed and 15 wounded when armed men attacked the north Angolan diamond-mining town of Chinguvu, close to the Congo border, Lusa reported on Monday. Quoting an unnamed military source who identified the attackers as UNITA, the news agency said about 100 rebels were involved in the Saturday assault on a residential area of Chinguvu. A number of local residents were taken away by the attackers.
The National Center for Nonprofit Boards (NCNB) will host its sixth International Fellowship in Nonprofit Governance in Washington, DC from November 1-16, 2001. The Fellowship is a capacity-building program created to build a cadre of board development professional trainers who can facilitate the strengthening of boards of directors in various regions of the world.
The Department of Nursing Education, University of the Witwatersrand will provide a platform at this conference to bring together experts from the academic, clinical, corporate and government sectors, as well as non-governmental organisations from all corners of the African continent and the rest of the globe.
This publication provides information about support for biomedical a0nd behavioral research available from organizations throughout the world. It is one of our most requested publications, and is widely distributed to scientists in the United States and abroad.
Here's the debut issue of "Echoes of Africa" - your new monthly magazine from the Life in Africa Foundation. We hope you enjoy your first adventure through Africa with us.
The World Bank has made much of the fact that its Development Gateway internet project will be 'independent'. Because of the sensitive nature of the issues it will cover, and its claims to represent all views – including those of civil society groups – the Bank has repeatedly said it is establishing a Foundation to run the Gateway and will not be running it in-house. This was first announced last July to civil society organisations discussing a possible committee to help steer the creation of the Gateway (this never materialised), and then restated to the e-consultation last November. The World Bank President on 11th November stated that the Bank would create: "a new structure in which the Gateway will be financed and controlled in a public-private partnership outside the World Bank and with a separate and totally independent Editorial Board with broad representation from all sections of the development community."
It has been known for some time that the only certain way to get onto the Gateway Foundation's board was to contribute 5 million dollars. But leaked Bank documents prepared for today's Board meeting demonstrate that the Gateway Foundation is "merely an appendix of the World Bank". These are the words used in an anti-corruption claim filed yesterday by two prominent Uruguayan civil society members. The claim, filed to the Bank's Fraud and Corruption Hotline, alleges "serious irregularities" in the way the Gateway Foundation has been established.
It points out that the World Bank will provide up to three directors to the Foundation, and that the Foundation will contract back to the Bank the running of the internet portal, its main output. As the Foundation will be situated in the Bank, was entirely designed by the Bank and the Bank has made the key outside appointments, the claimants argue that "donors and perhaps even the American authorities that granted it legal status as a non-profit organization, may have been deceived in their good faith to accept a non-existing independence." The Bank's documents recognise that conflicts of interest exist, but proposes two very insufficient measures to deal with them. It will: "establish a timetable to phase out the management contracts", and "in the course of the first year will locate the Foundation Secretariat outside of Bank premises." Nothing about competitive tendering for the services or proper separation of functions.
The claim was filed by Roberto Bissio, coordinator of Social Watch () and Latin American secretary of Third World Network and Dr Carlos Abin, Executive Director of the Instituto del Tercer Mundo (http://www.item.org.uy). They are both closely involved with a number of internet initiatives, and have clearly stated during consultations that the Gateway appears to represent unwarranted competition with existing country- and topic- focussed portals which are genuinely independent.
They, as others involved in such existing initiatives will be outraged by some of the claims in the Gateway team's June 2001 report to the Bank's Board. The Gateway Business Plan (28 June 2001) mentions other initiatives and organisations in the field, such as the DOT Force, ECOSOC's ICT Taskforce, IICD, Bellanet, Benton Foundation, Eldis and Oneworld. Then claims that "The Foundation adds the following unique and complementary elements in the fight to bridge the digital divide: 1) Independence. As a non-profit organization with broad stakeholder representation, the Foundation will maintain its independence and act as an honest broker in the development community; 2) Global reach with local roots; 3) Catalytic approach; 4) Inclusiveness."
It is hard to see that the Gateway is really richer in these qualities than many other schemes. It seems then that the Bank is not content with keeping control of the initial site design, staffing and appointment of outside editors for the site. It wants to maintain a tight grip of its day to day management. One person working with the Gateway commented to the Bretton Woods Project yesterday: “the Foundation is a nice idea, but it does seem like a front for Bank employees to keep their Bank jobs with all the traditional trappings.” It seems ironic that a site which will cover topics including good governance and corruption is built on such shaky foundations. Once this is more widely known, the Gateway will have an even harder time drumming up civil society engagement in the scheme. For the anti-corruption claim (which raises other issues too) and a summary of the leaked Bank documents, see the web link below.
Alex Wilks, Bretton Woods Project, UK, 19th July 2001
See also: Letter below from John Garrison
Vanessa von Struensee, a lawyer with a degree in public health working in development for years in Tanzania, Ukraine and Nicaragua, has reported major problems getting the material she has suggested onto the [World Bank] Gateway site. Site editors have simply referred her to the editorial policy, despite her efforts to discuss the particular reasons for non-posting (and her producing statements from African NGO workers stating that they have found the pieces useful. Efforts to trigger the arbitration process mentioned in the Editorial Policy have proved fruitless.
EISA has recently published this innovative CD Rom as a comprehensive resource on the local government election process in South Africa. In order to allow as many people as possible to access this important resource EISA has set up a website housing much of this information in an online format. Users wishing to buy the full version of the e-book, complete with video clips, full text reference of legislation and detailed analysis of election issues may do so by accessing the website and placing their order with EISA. The CD Rom is currently selling at the introductory price of only R85 per CD Rom.
Sudan had the second-largest number of refugees in Africa, after Burundi, at the start of 2001, and attempts to find solutions to this and other problems had borne limited fruit, UNHCR reported on Tuesday. The civil war in Sudan had shown few signs of abating and continued to drive thousands of Sudanese refugees into neighbouring countries, it said.
The Burundi human rights organisation, Ligue Iteka, has called on the government to ratify the statute of a proposed International Criminal Court (ICC). "This would prove that the government really wants to put an end to impunity," the organisation said, according to the Net Press news agency.
The European Union announced yesterday that it will contribute 120 million euros (about $103.5 million) to the Global AIDS and Health Fund, Reuters reports. The contribution will be officially announced by European Commission President Romano Prodi at the G8 summit that begins tomorrow in Genoa, Italy.
President Bush yesterday called on the World Bank to provide a larger proportion of its financial assistance to developing nations through direct grants instead of loans for needs such as health care, the New York Times reports. Speaking at World Bank headquarters yesterday, Bush proposed that the bank provide up to 50% of its assistance to developing countries through grants, thus allowing the countries to "alleviate the debt that burdens" their economies.
Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi's suggestion that Kenyans abstain from sex for two years to slow the spread of HIV/AIDS has garnered worldwide press attention. Outlined below is a sampling of some of the opinions.
Amnesty International today called on the government of the Central African Republic to end further human rights violations after eight weeks of killings and detentions. Bangui, the capital, remains in a climate of fear since a failed coup on 28 May 2001 against President Ange-Félix Patassé.
On Tuesday 17 July 2001, Joseph Mutambule, Joachim Diana Gikupa, Kipela Mondo and Mireille Kavungu, deputy director-general, publication director, principal editor-in-chief and management secretary, respectively, from the pro-government daily "L'Avenir", were summoned to the Public Prosecutor's Office's Criminal Investigation Department (Police judiciaire des parquets, PJP) in Kinshasa / Gombe.
Zimbabwean Labour Minister July Moyo on Thursday said he hoped that the next round of negotiations between the government, labour and business would avert another national strike in the country.
World environment ministers gathered in Bonn, Germany, this evening for crucial talks to agree the implementation of the Kyoto climate protocol. All sides pointed to an atmosphere of increasing optimism that a comprehensive deal on outstanding political issues can be reached. Even just days before the summit the signs of a full agreement had looked bleak.
A new strategy that aims to integrate environmental concerns into the World Bank's lending programs was approved by the bank's Board of Directors Wednesday. The bank has developed a broad environment portfolio worth some $18 billion.
In advance of a major international conference
on racism, Human Rights Watch today called for reparations to counter the most severe continuing effects of slavery, segregation, and other
extreme forms of racism.
A United Nations conference on small arms is failing to produce a serious plan of action and may even prompt a walkout by some key member states, Human Rights Watch said today. The conference, which concludes in New York on July 20, has not addressed state responsibility for
weapons proliferation and has focused too much on the illegal trafficking of small arms, Human Rights Watch said.
Zwelinzima Vavi, the General Secretary of COSATU, was today part of a delegation of international trade unionists who met the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi - the host to G8 Summit taking place in Genoa. The General Secretary spoke on the HIV/AIDS crisis. He pointed out that no war has killed as many people as the HIV/AIDS epidemic has in Sub Sahara Africa and that projections and statistics tell us that HIV/AIDS is the single most potent threat to humanity.
The banning of a live current affairs radio phone-in discussion forum in the week served to underline government’s apparent determination to stifle all independent sources of information and opinion in the media and reinforced fears that renewed threats to curb “unprofessional practices and misconduct by the oppositional Press” will see the introduction of further repressive media legislation.
On behalf of the Feminist Activist Coalition (FemAct), we are pleased to announce the 2001 Gender Festival, formerly popularly known as the Annual Gender Studies Conference (AGSC). The four-day event will take place on the 10th to the 13th of September, Dar es Salaam. The theme of this year’s Gender Festival will be focused on: Gender, Democracy, and Development: Transformative Approaches for Challenging Impoverishment.
ONEWORLD (), in partnership with EURODAD (www.eurodad.org), invite you to participate in an online discussion from 18 July to 12 October at http://www.DebtChannel.org, the portal on international debt. In the run-up to the Genoa G8 Summit and against a background of 'debt fatigue' we are launching this online discussion forum. Our aim is to increase understanding of current issues for NGOs, policy-makers and interested citizens. We want to map out the way ahead, allow contributors to bring in new ideas and re-animate the debt debate prior to the World Bank and IMF meetings in Washington. To find out more and to register please go to DebtChannel.org
A new website with green news and opinion updated daily. If you like the site, you might like to subscribe to receive a weekly summary by e-mail, which lets you keep in touch with the Green movement without surfing for hours or getting your in-box jammed with mail.
The Ethiopian Federal Supreme Court has adjourned to consider a request from police investigators for more time to gather evidence against former Defence Minister Siye Abraha and other former government officials and businessmen charged with corruption, local newspapers reported on Tuesday.
Protestant churches yesterday called for special courts to handle economic crimes. They also said the appointment of the anti-corruption director and his assistants must have the approval of two-thirds of MPs and not just a simple majority.
Public officers who fail to declare their wealth risk jail and a fine of up to Sh1 million in the proposed anti-graft law. But wealth acquired before December 1, 1997, will not be subjected to scrutiny unless the officer was under investigation by the former Kenya Anti-Corruption Authority, police or the Attorney-General by December 22, 2000.
Journalists from Bangladesh, Kenya and elsewhere around the world discussed: "Are the New Media Good for Democracy?" at a recent forum and found they shared doubts. Their presentations and conclusions are now available online.
Spurred by Jake Lynch, a TV journalist with Rupert Murdoch's Sky News, a new initiative, Reporting the World, is challenging one-dimensional war and conflict reporting, offering concrete alternatives rather than mere (if solid) criticism. Jake is the driving force behind the initiative, a MediaChannel-affiliate, which has been holding a series of seminars in association with the Freedom Forum in London and the Conflict and Peace Forums at Taplow Court in London. The seminars have attracted prominent U.K. and international editors and reporters willing to debate objectivity and balance in reporting.
INSTRAW is currently running a programme on "Men's Roles and Responsibilities in Ending Gender-Based Violence", consisting among other activities of a number of Virtual Seminars. Seminar One (with Robert Connell) was finished last week. The discussion - including a summary - is archived and can be reviewed at
Seminar Two - Building Alliances - begins Monday 23 July and will highlight examples of men and women working together to end gender-based violence. New participants are welcome!
The African Wildlife Foundation has launched a new regional conservation project known as the "four corners natural resource management project." The transboundary four corners project refers to the Caprivi Strip, the only place in the world where four African countries - Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe - meet. They share the Zambezi River, one of the longest rivers in Africa.
The suspension of the independent Radio Ecclesia on July 9 and the arrest of reporter Gilberto Neto is one of several recent attacks on Angolan journalists. Freelance journalist Rafael Marques reports from Angola.
Southern Africa's first women-only university will open in Zimbabwe next year. It will be one of only two women-only universities in Africa, the first being in Sudan, northern Africa.
The Special Session on Children is an unprecedented meeting of the UN General Assembly dedicated to the children and adolescents of the world. It will bring together government leaders and Heads of State, NGOs, children's advocates and young people themselves from 19-21 September, 2001 at the United Nations in New York.
More than 200,000 students of Nigeria's 37 Universities are scheduled to resume studies this week following the end of a three-month strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities.
Well paying jobs and ambient working environments continue to lure thousands of university graduates from developing countries to move North. The result is a loss of billions of dollars due to a brain drain to rich nations.
Commitment to the goal of universal primary education (UPE) by 2015 has received unprecedented support from governments and donors. But what is the reality for sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in terms of the additional educational capacity required? And will the demand for primary schooling be sufficient
to achieve UPE?
Organic foods could be a key for developing countries, hemmed in by the protectionism of the industrialised world, to open a space in the global market, say United Nations experts. The market for organic foods and beverages - that is, produced without pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilisers - is growing rapidly in most industrialised countries, and even in some developing countries, says Rudy Kortbech-Olesen, of the International Trade Centre (ITC), a UN agency.
No move on education, thin pledges to meet the global health crisis and a debt relief programme that leaves most countries still paying more to lenders than to their healthcare systems - Oxfam looks at the "huge gap" between the G8's promises and action.
As international climate negotiations resume this week in Bonn, the Bush administration is fighting a battle on both the domestic and international fronts to win support for President George W. Bush's controversial decision to abandon the Kyoto Protocol. The administration faces growing opposition from environmental groups and Congressional Democrats over his stance on global warming.
A leading global watchdog has added to President George W. Bush's calls for a shake-up on aid and debt by arguing for a targetted "third way" approach involving independent oversight of decisions on which countries should receive 100 per cent cancellation.
Somalia's capital Mogadishu has seen an upsurge in fighting this week as militia loyal to rebel factions clashed with government loyalists, according to local sources.
Tougher action must be taken against those who get embroiled in fraud schemes set up through letter and email networks, says an anti-corruption
group following the high-profile kidnapping of a British businessman allegedly caught up in such a scam.
The 2001 summit in Genoa this week will be a crucial test of the ability of participating nations to group around a common agenda on global economic governance. As protesters on Genoa's streets will make clear, the fundamental challenge facing the G8/G7 leaders is to address mounting concerns about economic globalisation and the power of transnational corporations, argues Tom Barry.
After years of lethargy, the international community has declared war on AIDS. Following the G8 summit, a fund is to be set up by the end of the year. But the agreement being negotiated with the pharmaceuticals industry may fail to provide much-needed care for millions in poor countries, argues Philippe Riviere.
A string of military offensives is causing large-scale turmoil in Sudan's southern province of Bahr El Ghazal, according to United Nations sources who fear the civilian population will bear the brunt of the disruption.
Civil society groups from across Africa yesterday pledged to be a driving force on the road towards the creation of a 53-nation political and economic
union at the close of a three-day trans continental summit.
The United States is to give US$5 million to a special United Nations fund to help kick start a proposed Sierra Leone war crimes tribunal during its first year.
As negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol enter a new round in Bonn this week and G8 leaders gather in Genoa, Italy, the global community is braced for a climate showdown between EU leaders and the Bush administration. Although President Bush has questioned the need for the emissions reductions required in the Kyoto Protocol, recent scientific reports by the International Panel on Climate Change and the US National Academy of Sciences have been even firmer than earlier ones in their conclusion that emissions reductions are urgently needed.
Veterinary pathologists in Kenya have identified heavy metals as the leading cause of massive deaths of flamingos in two Rift Valley Lakes of Kenya, and warned that the scenic pink birds of Lakes Nakuru and Bogoria remain threatened unless the lakes are cleared of pollutants.
The following is an article by Stan Houston, a doctor with the University of Zimbabwe's medical school. In response, Helen Jackson, UNFPA has written a comment about Dr. Houston's article. Both the article and the comment were published in SAfAIDS News (June, 2001). We would like to hear your views on the article and publish feedback in the next edition of SAfAIDS News.
The Gender & Trade Network in Africa raises concerns about the impact that globalisation and trade policy have on women and men in Africa. There is no mystery about globalisation. It is important for all of us to understand the impact it has on gender relations, employment, violence against women and human rights. The Gender & Trade Network in Africa will hold a "teach-in". This is a participatory method of learning about issues. It gives people the opportunity to teach others about globalisation and mobilize for action. Date: 18 July 2001 Time: 09:00 am To 13:00 pm. Venue: Johannesburg Civic Theatre's Batsobi Lounge. Please RSVP with Brenda or Nthabiseng at 011-426-2056. Book early, space is limited.
A distinguished member of the Parliamentarians for Global Action is asking for nominations for the PGA's 'Defender of Democracy' Award. Senator Johnson would much appreciate nominations of women as he fully realises women are so often overlooked in the world's awards. If you have suggestions of women defenders of democracy, please e-mail them direct to Senator Johnson on his e-mail address below. Nominations are due by July 31, 2001.
IPS has launched Shaan online, an e-zine on Gender and Human Rights, produced in cooperation with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). In this special magazine women tell us, in their own words, how HIV/AIDS and the denial of their human rights have affected their lives.
Amnesty International [AI] is making an urgent appeal to Italy to fulfil its international obligations and immediately arrest a Rwandese citizen who has reportedly been indicted by the ICTR to ensure that the accused person does not flee.