PAMBAZUKA NEWS 102 A weekly electronic newsletter for social justice in Africa
CONTENTS: 1. Editorial, 2. Conflict, Emergencies, and Crises, 3. Rights and Democracy, 4. Corruption, 5. Health, 6. Education and Social Welfare, 7. Women and Gender, 8. Refugees and Forced Migration, 9. Racism and Xenophobia, 10. Environment, 11. Media, 12. Development, 13. Internet and Technology, 14. eNewsletters and Mailing Lists, 15. Fundraising, 16. Courses, Seminars, and Workshops, 17. Advocacy Resources, 18. Jobs, 19. Books and Arts, 20. Letters and Comments If you have e-mail access, you can get web resources listed in this Newsletter by sending a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the web address (usually starting with http://) in the body of your message. Want to get off our subscriber list? Write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and your address will be removed immediately! /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 1.EDITORIAL FORGIVE US THIS DAY OUR ODIOUS DEBT Mpumelele Giyose When the world marked the 50th anniversary of the London Agreement, which dealt with the debts of the then West Germany, Western leaders and the major international bankers hung their heads in unmitigated shame. For if the terms of that agreement had been applied to today's indebted countries, we could have avoided the deaths, sufferings and humiliations of hundreds of millions of people. The London Agreement dealt not only with the debts of the defeated enemy of World War II, but of an enemy that in the annals of world history stands out as having been particularly evil. Germany, of course, was not only the enemy in World War II, but the defeated enemy in World War I, too. It had not repaid the debts incurred on the money borrowed to pay the reparations arising from the previous war. The London Agreement therefore dealt, additionally, with Germany's outstanding World War I debts. In other words, the creditors and the creditor governments that met in London in 1953 did so to consider the debts of a country perceived to have been responsible for two world wars and the deaths of countless millions, along with the repeated destruction of huge parts of Europe and elsewhere. No less relevant, when viewed against Third World debt, the German people were seen as having been overwhelmingly enthusiastic supporters of their government's war efforts during most of both world wars. The contrast between the guilt behind the German debts and the innocence of most of the Third World debt could therefore not be greater. The origin of much of the Third World debt lies in the recklessness of Western bankers who, in the early 1970s, deliberately unloaded surplus capital on the Third World in the form of loans. What is more, much of these aggressively marketed loans were “odious” in terms of international law and therefore not covered by the obligations of sovereign debt. The Doctrine of Odious Debt removes any duty to repay the debt if the loan was contracted by dictatorships primarily for the benefit of the dictatorships and the creditors were aware of the nature of the regime to which they were lending. It is clear that most people suffering from Third World debts today have had nothing to do with either creditor recklessness or the odious debts contracted by their unpopular rulers. Notwithstanding their innocence, the First World has insisted on its full pound of flesh. Full debt repayment has been required regardless of all other considerations, including even the right to life itself. An exceedingly limited rethink did take place in 1996, but then only because the unpayability of the debt could no longer be avoided. The awful suffering caused by the debt had little if anything to do with this rethink. Similarly absent from consideration were questions of morality or international law. The debt was regarded as unpayable only because it was palpably unpayble in strictly financial terms: debtor countries were becoming increasingly indebted because of having to take out new loans in order to repay previous loans granted to repay original debt. The outcome of this slowly developing rethink was the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative. HIPC, presented with much fanfare as an example of unparalleled Western generosity, laid down very strict economic criteria for inclusion under the scheme. To be poor was not sufficient; neither was being heavily indebted. To qualify for consideration as a HIPC country and therefore potentially benefit from its partial debt “forgiveness”, a country had to be both extremely poor and very heavily indebted. In the event, only 41 countries qualified for consideration under the HIPC. This initial qualification, however, did not in itself result in real debt reduction. The Germany of 1953 would have come no way close to being considered a HIPC candidate, notwithstanding the destruction of its economy during the war or the poverty of its immediate post-war inhabitants. In terms of today's criteria, the Germany of 1953 was positively well off and would be ranked a middle-income country. This did not matter in the slightest to the London negotiators. Neither did Germany's culpability in two world wars have any bearing on the terms of the London Agreement. The agreement was designed to assist Germany, not punish it, regardless of the enormity of Germany's perceived guilt. Not one of the main arguments nowadays put forward by the G7, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other international bankers as to why they simply cannot do more to help ease the burden of the HIPC debt is to be found in the London Agreement. Politicians and bankers tell us how tied their hands are by economic imperatives way beyond their control. To a person, they assure us as to the nobility of their intentions, were it not for their powerlessness in the face of cold economic realities. They claim to have stretched the integrity of the world economic and financial system to its limits, in their desire to be as helpful as possible in ameliorating the problems of Third World debt. The contrast between the terms of the London Agreement and the HIPC initiative gives the lie to their arguments and exposes the hypocrisy of their proclaimed intentions. Consider the following: Germany was required to pay a maximum of 3,06% of its annual export income on repaying its debt. For the poorest countries on Earth, the HIPC initiative required them to use between 20% and 25% of their export income on debt servicing. To qualify for consideration under the HIPC initiative, a country's total external debt had to be 160% of its gross domestic product. Mainstream economists see “debt ratio” as being problematic if it is anything between 80% and 100%, that is, if the debt is equivalent to between 80% and 100% of what a country generates a year in its own currency from all economic activities. Germany's debt ratio in 1953 was a mere 21,2%. To qualify for consideration under the HIPC initiative a country's foreign debt had to be at least 250% larger than its national budget. Germany's “fiscal debt ratio” in 1953 was 4,9%. The contrast between the London Agreement and the HIPC initiative is even starker when measured against the additional HIPC conditions that have to be met before debt relief is rewarded. Stringent public expenditure cuts in health, education, housing and social security schemes, along with policies and practices to promote and protect a “market economy” free of import restrictions and attractive to foreign investors, are core HIPC conditionalities. A candidate country has three years in which to introduce these requirements. It has a further three years in which to demonstrate the consolidation of its good behaviour before receiving very limited debt relief. The London Agreement placed no similar conditionalities on Germany. What the London Agreement did was to place conditionalities on the creditors. The HIPC initiative ignored such demands on the creditors. The London Agreement required three major benefits from creditors. First, creditors had to promote German exports because the debt payments were made entirely from trade surpluses. No trade surplus meant no debt payments. Second, Germany had the option of imposing import restrictions if the balance of trade with any of the debtor countries failed to produce a surplus. Finally, creditors were given no resort to sanctions against Germany, in the event of any German infringement of the agreement. The most that the creditors could expect was the convening of direct negotiations with the option of seeking advice from an appropriate international organisation. The extraordinarily generous terms of the London Agreement are no more difficult to understand than the extraordinary punitiveness of the HIPC initiative. Their differences lie in their political purposes. The London Agreement seems to be generous only when compared to what our governments, financiers and economists now say about what can be done to ameliorate the enormous debt burden of the Third World. The London Agreement was not designed as an instrument of control, as is the HIPC initiative. Rather, the London Agreement was designed politically to promote Germany's reconstruction, but without having to cancel Germany's debts. What is clear is that in spite of First World claims that everything that can possibly be done to ease the current burden is being done, Third World debt is a very effective killer and continues to destroy innocent lives by keeping hundreds of millions of people trapped in poverty, ignorance and disease. What the London Agreement exposes clearly is that the Third World debt trap is an instrument of deliberate policy. At the stroke of a First World pen, things could be very different. A contemporary London Agreement would go a long way towards freeing the Third World from its debt bondage. * Mpumelele Giyose is the chairperson of Jubilee South Africa * Send comments on this editorial to [EMAIL PROTECTED] * NOTE TO SUBSCRIBERS: Please note that Pambazuka News will not be released next week due to staff leave. The next edition of the newsletter will be on 20 March 2003. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 2.CONFLICT, EMERGENCIES, AND CRISES AFRICA/GLOBAL: REGULATING WEAPONS DEALS http://www.oxfam.org.uk/policy/papers/39weapons/39weapons.html Every day around the world over 1300 men, women and children lose their lives in conflict, adding up to an annual total of half a million deaths, the majority of these in the poorest countries. Countless more livelihoods are ruined as a result of armed conflict through disability, displacement or lack of access to markets and health and education facilities. Yet although the European Union regulates everything from beaches to bananas, it does not regulate arms brokers, says this briefing paper from Oxfam. The lack of regulation is despite the fact that Europe is home to many of the world’s arms brokers responsible for arranging deliveries of weapons into countries in conflict and or into the hands of those who commit grave human rights abuses. AFRICA: US DIRTY TRICKS TO WIN VOTE ON IRAQ WAR http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=13&o=16623 The United States is conducting a secret 'dirty tricks' campaign against UN Security Council delegations in New York as part of its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq. A leaked memorandum makes clear that the target of the heightened surveillance efforts are the delegations from Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Mexico, Guinea and Pakistan at the UN headquarters in New York -- the so- called 'Middle Six' delegations whose votes are being fought over by the pro- war party, led by the US and Britain, and the party arguing for more time for UN inspections, led by France, China and Russia. AFRICA: WASHINGTON LOBBIES FOR AFRICA'S UN COUNCIL VOTES http://allafrica.com/stories/200302260001.html The Bush Administration is pressing African nations to support the impending war with Iraq, and the three African nations on the United Nations Security Council have been targets of special lobby efforts by the president, secretary of State and other administration officials. As part of an intensive search for at least nine 'yes' votes on the Security Council resolution on Iraq introduced Monday, the administration last week dispatched Assistance Secretary of State for Africa Walter Kansteiner to the capitals of the three nations with current Council seats - Angola, Cameroon and Guinea, which takes over as Security Council president on March 1. Related Link: * Senegal steers course on Iraq http://allafrica.com/stories/200303050218.html ANGOLA: NOW ANGOLA FACES ENEMY DEADLIER THAN CIVIL WAR http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=37&o=16626 After waiting so long for peace and stability, there is something almost vindictive in the timing. A plague potentially more deadly than any battle is seeping across Angola just when people had reasons to hope. Open borders, family reunions, trucks of food and goods have been granted, but with them travels HIV/Aids, a killer that scythed through sub-Saharan Africa but spared Angola. BURUNDI: ATTACKS ON CIVILIANS GROWING Recent attacks by government troops, and the pullout of the main rebel force from a ceasefire agreement, are combining to put civilians in Burundi in growing danger, Human Rights Watch says in a new briefing paper. Human Rights Watch urged the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Sergio de Mello to encourage the new African peacekeeping force in Burundi to protect civilians. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13706 BURUNDI: FIGHTING OUTSIDE BUJUMBURA: SEVERAL KILLED http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=37&o=16629 Fighting has broken out near Burundi's capital, where several soldiers were killed by rebels, local officials and rebel sources said on Saturday as the president flew out for a peace parley. The clashes came as President Pierre Buyoya left Bujumbura for peace talks in neighbouring Tanzania with the main rebel movement, saying he hoped it would be the last ceasefire parley. BURUNDI: GOVERNMENT, REBELS IN TALKS AGAIN http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32600 Burundi's transitional government and the country's main rebel movement, Pierre Nkurunziza's faction of the Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie- Forces pour la defense de la democratie (CNDD-FDD), recommitted themselves on Sunday to implementing past agreements to end nearly 10 years of civil war. DRC: ITURI CEASEFIRE TO BE SIGNED ON 10 MARCH, SAYS UPC'S LUBANGA http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32585 The signing of a ceasefire for the Ituri District of northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will take place on 10 March, Thomas Lubanga, leader of the Bunia-based Union des patriotes congolais (UPC) rebel movement, told IRIN last Friday. He was accused by the UN Mission in the DRC, known as MONUC, of blocking the signing of the ceasefire that was to have taken place on 19 February. Lubanga, in turn, accused MONUC of favouring the DRC and Ugandan governments, which, he alleged, supported the creation of a rival militia to the UPC, namely the Front pour l'integration et la pacification de l'Ituri. KENYA: KENYANS ABROAD OPPOSE WAR The Kenya Community Abroad has added its voice to those of millions around the world who have come out to demand a peaceful resolution to the stand off between the United States and Iraq on the question of weapons of mass destruction. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13686 LIBERIA/IVORY COAST: LIBERIA ACCUSES IVORY COAST http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2812033.stm Fresh fighting has reportedly broken out in the west of the Ivory Coast despite continuing discussions on a new power-sharing government for the country. The claims, from rebel and government officials, come shortly after neighbouring Liberia accused the Ivory Coast of employing Liberian mercenaries to carry out cross-border attacks. NIGERIA: POLICE DEATHS IN NORTH-EAST NIGERIA http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2814255.stm At least 44 people, including seven policemen, have been killed in clashes between nomads and farmers in north-eastern Nigeria. Police were sent to quell the unrest on Saturday, but according to police spokesman Chris Olakpe "were killed in cold blood by the warring factions". SOMALIA: MILITIAS ON LOOTING SPREE AS MOGADISHU DEATH TOLL TOPS 50 http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32616 Hundreds of families are fleeing their homes in Mogadishu's southwestern Medina district after fierce clashes broke out in the Somali capital last week. Many families had lost relatives "to indiscriminate shelling by both sides", a local journalist told IRIN. Residents began fleeing Medina after fighting between rival factions broke out on 26 February. "They are basically leaving so as to keep what is left of their families alive," he said. SOMALIA: MONITORING COMMITTEE MEETS AFTER HEAVY FIGHTING IN MOGADISHU http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32580 A newly-formed committee, set up to monitor a shaky ceasefire accord between the warring sides in Somalia, met on Thursday following clashes between rival warlords in Mogadishu. The monitoring committee - made up of the US, EU, AU, Arab League and the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) - met at the venue of the Somali peace talks in Mbagathi near the Kenyan capital Nairobi, sources close to the talks told. SOUTH AFRICA: WHY WORKERS, YOUTH AND UNEMPLOYED SHOULD SUPPORT THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE WAR ON IRAQ http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1032 The Anti-War Coalition has issued a call to workers, the youth and the unemployed to join the international movement against the war on Iraq and the plans of the giant monopolies. SOUTHERN AFRICA: UN ENVOY CONVEYS CRISIS TO WASHINGTON http://allafrica.com/stories/200302270767.html At the end of January, the UN Secretary General's special envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa, James Morris, completed a tour of four countries in the region and said the HIV/Aids pandemic was threatening the very future of nations. One president told him: "My country is on the verge of extinction." SUDAN: PEACE TALKS RESUME ON DISPUTED AREAS http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32623 Peace talks between the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) resumed in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Tuesday. The negotiations will focus on the administration of the three disputed areas of Southern Blue Nile, the Nuba Mountains (Southern Kordofan State) and Abyei (also Southern Kordofan). UGANDA: KONY DECLARES UNILATERAL CEASEFIRE http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32603 Uganda's rebel leader, Joseph Kony, has declared a ceasefire in northern Uganda to pave the way for talks to end the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) insurgency in the region, but his gesture has been greeted with a mixture of hope and scepticism. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 3.RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY ERITREA: PRESIDENT SAYS ELECTORAL PROCESS TO BE IMPLEMENTED http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32571 President Isayas Afewerki of Eritrea has said the electoral process is ongoing and will be "seriously implemented". Speaking at the opening session of National Union of Eritrean Women's (NUEW) congress on Thursday, he said the process had been delayed "because of Ethiopia's war, the disruption caused by internal defeatists and external intervention". But, he said, it was "firmly on the agenda and would be seriously implemented". GHANA: NEWMONT MOVES IN TO OPEN GHANA'S CLOSED FOREST RESERVES Mining operations in Ghana have displaced more than 50,000 indigenous people without just compensation, employed less than 20,000 Ghanaians (due to over- reliance on expatriate workers), burned villages, illegally detained activists, raped women and continually denied the culture. Ghana's Human Rights and Administrative Justice Committee has recently reported "overwhelming evidence of human rights violations occasioned by the mining activities, which were not sporadic but a well established pattern common to almost all mining communities." Now one of the world's largest gold mining companies, Denver- based Newmont, will be granted licenses for two new operations in Ghana. This dangerous precedent will allow Newmont to enter Ghana for the first time and pour in an initial US$450 million to exploit Ghanaian land, law and people, says a report from Drillbits & Tailings, a newsletter published by Project Underground, which works to support the human rights of communities resisting mining and oil exploitation. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13693 IVORY COAST: AMNESTY EXPOSES REBEL ATROCITIES, CALLS FOR END TO IMPUNITY http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32594 Cote d'Ivoire's main rebel group, the Mouvement patriotique de Cote d'Ivoire (MPCI), executed dozens of gendarmes (paramilitary policemen) and some of their children in the central town of Bouake in October 2002, Amnesty International reported this week. The report was denied by the MPCI, which called it a political diversion. Related Link: * Gbagbo lashes out at critics http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32612 NIGERIA: FOCUS ON NATIONAL REGISTRATION PROGRAMME http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32630 Over a four-week period that began on 18 February, every Nigerian aged 18 years and above is required to register for a national identity card. According to officials of the Department of National Civic Registration, which is in charge of the programme, at least 60 million Nigerians are estimated to be eligible for registration. The main objective of issuing identity cards to Nigerians, according to the government, is to create a national database of information, that will aid effective government. NIGERIA: OPC A CONTINUING THREAT TO SECURITY Militia and vigilante violence continues to pose a real threat to security in Nigeria, especially in the period leading up to elections in April 2003, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released last week. One of the more notorious groups is the O'odua People's Congress (OPC), an organization active in the southwest, which has killed or injured hundreds of people over the last few years. The 58-page report, "The OPC: Fighting Violence with Violence," provides detailed accounts of killings and other abuses by the OPC since the government of President Olusegun Obasanjo came to power in 1999. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13701 RWANDA: IMMUNITY DEAL SIGNED WITH US http://www.sabcnews.com/africa/central_africa/0,1009,54354,00.html The United States and Rwanda have agreed to exempt each other's citizens from prosecution in the International Criminal Court, the US State Department said. Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, and Charles Murigande, the Rwandan Foreign Minister, will sign the accord, known as an Article 98 agreement, at the State Department. SOUTH AFRICA: TREVOR MANUEL’S ‘FREEDOM’ BUDGET SPEECH http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1025 Finance Minister Trevor Manuel 2002/2003 budget has been likened to “sweet fruits” when he dished out goodies in his annual speech. Manuel has been praised for his pre-election year budget, which boosts social spending and grants to the poor. It puts money into the taxpayer’s pocket without compromising fiscal discipline. TOGO: OPPOSITION PARTY WITHDRAWS FROM COALITION http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32567 One of Togo's oldest opposition parties, the Union des Forces du Changement (UFC-Union of the Forces for Change), has announced its withdrawal for the opposition coalition, which groups all of the country's opposition parties. The UFC said it would withdraw because the coalition had agreed to sit on the National Independent Electoral Commission ahead of presidential elections, news sources reported. ZIMBABWE: FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1024 Gas lines, food shortages and political repression are making life tougher than ever for ordinary Zimbabweans. So why are regional leaders softening their stance on Robert Mugabe? asks Karen MacGregor. ZIMBABWE: HARARE POLICE ARREST PROTESTING CLERICS http://www.guardian.co.uk/zimbabwe/article/0,2763,905251,00.html Twenty-one church leaders were arrested in Zimbabwe last week when they tried to deliver a petition to the police urging an end to its abuse of power. The ministers, carrying three big wooden crosses, walked through the streets of Harare to the police headquarters to deliver a petition urging "immediate corrective measures to ensure that the police force in this country performs its duties with respect for the church and all citizens of Zimbabwe". ZIMBABWE: MASS ARRESTS IN ZIMBABWE http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?a=37&o=16632 Police in the Zimbabwean capital Harare on Saturday arrested more than 50 members of the main opposition party who were canvassing ahead of a by- election, the opposition said. But police have denied the claim. The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said in a statement that those arrested were carrying out home visits in the suburb of Kuwadzana, where a by-election is to be held at the end of the month. ZIMBABWE: MENASHE BLEW MDC FUNDS: DEFENCE http://zwnews.com/issuefull.cfm?ArticleID=6321 Ari Ben-Menashe, the key State witness in the MDC treason trial, allegedly blew the US$97 600 (Z$5 368 000) paid by the MDC to his company to hold in trust. Defence lawyer Advocate George Bizos said Ben-Menashe was, therefore, not a credible witness. ZIMBABWE: THE ROLE OF MILITIA GROUPS IN MAINTAINING ZANUPF’S POLITICAL POWER http://zwnews.com/issuefull.cfm?ArticleID=6324 It is evident that a strong case can be made that militia in Zimbabwe are a significant threat to peace and security and furthermore that a strong prima facie case can be made for the militia's deployment being state-condoned and state-controlled, according to a new report, 'The role of militia groups in maintaining ZanuPF's political power'. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 4.CORRUPTION AFRICA: TI URGES AU GOVERNMENTS TO APPROVE DRAFT AFRICAN ANTI-CORRUPTION CONVENTION http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51900 Approval of a draft Convention by the AU Executive Council on 5-6 March would pave the way for an African instrument to prevent and combat graft and help countries to live up to their NEPAD promises, says an anti-corruption organisation. Transparency International, the world's leading anti-corruption organisation, and its national chapters in Africa have urged AU ministers to approve the draft African Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption. KENYA, SOUTH AFRICA: CORRUPTION: CALLS TO PROTECT WHISTLE-BLOWERS http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51893 Confronted with sophisticated fraudsters and increasing levels of corruption, experts are now seeking systems that can empower leaders to spearhead the fight against the two vices. A major effort is already going on, particularly within the local corporate sector, to adopt an anti-corruption and anti-fraud culture, to encourage employees to " blow the whistle" on such activities. KENYA/ZIMBABWE: A TALE OF TWO COUNTRIES http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51884 Newly elected Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki, his government and ordinary Kenyans have launched one of the biggest house cleanings in post-colonial African history. Kenyans, fed up with their east African country being branded as one of the most corrupt nations on Earth, are fighting back against corruption. But at the same time Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis relentlessly deepens and Africa's other leaders have steadily increased their support for Zimbabwe's corrupt President Robert Mugabe. KENYA: FIGHT AGAINST GRAFT YIELDS SH15 BILLION, SAYS KIRAITU http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020163.html The government has recovered Sh15 billion stolen from public coffers in the ongoing fight against corruption. The money had been siphoned by well-connected people in the former Kanu government, Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Kiraitu Murungi disclosed at the weekend. KENYA: KENYAN ANTI-GRAFT POLICE FOLLOW THE MONEY http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51848 Kenya's Anti-Corruption Police Unit (ACPU) have interrogated officials of Kenya's Euro-Bank, which collapsed last week, taking with it billions of shillings of depositors' money, an ACPU official said on Thursday. "We recorded statements late Wednesday from four top officials of the bank, including its chairman and managing director, on the whereabouts of the depositors money," ACPU representative Kaplich Baristo told AFP by telephone. MOZAMBIQUE: MURDERED MOZAMBICAN ECONOMIST NOMINATED FOR TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL AWARD As part of the campaign to force the Mozambican government to investigate the assassination of economist Antonio Siba-Siba Macuacua, a group of prominent Mozambicans has nominated him posthumously for the 2003 Integrity Award of the anti-corruption body Transparency International (TI). Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13716 NIGERIA: SENATE TO HOLD HEARINGS INTO ANTI-GRAFT BODY http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51879 A public hearing in the Nigerian Senate will begin next week into the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), widely regarded in Nigeria as under-performing and heavily criticised for alleged corrupt practices. SOUTH AFRICA: WINNIE MANDELA TRIAL RESUMES http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2814715.stm The fraud trial of Nelson Mandela's ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, has resumed in South Africa after months of delays and postponements. The well- known and controversial character, known as "the mother of the nation" in South Africa, is facing 85 charges of theft and fraud relating to a bank loan scam. ZAMBIA: JURY STILL OUT FOR CHILUBA AND MWANAWASA http://www.transparency.org/cgi-bin/dcn-read.pl?citID=51872 At five-feet tall, former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba, known as Titus Jacob , is on the way to becoming more noticeable than when he lorded over Zambians with impunity. That's because he has quite a tall order: sixty-six counts of corruption and a pursuit of his jugular by President Levy Mwanawasa, who once served as Mr Chiluba's number two. ZIMBABWE: MUGABE WON POLL WITH ARMY OF GHOST VOTERS http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1033 Zimbabwe's opposition has obtained evidence that President Robert Mugabe won re- election in March last year with the help of as many as 1.8m "ghost" voters who were added to the electoral roll. Tobaiwa Mudede, the registrar-general and a Mugabe loyalist, has repeatedly refused requests by the Movement for Democratic Change for a copy of the roll to be used in a court action challenging the result - even though the roll is a public document. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 5.HEALTH AFRICA: DEEPER DEBT RELIEF WILL BETTER HELP POOR COUNTRIES TO FIGHT AIDS In January 2003 President Bush proposed the Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, calling on Congress to spend an additional $10 billion over the next five years to help countries in Africa and the Caribbean fight AIDS. The US announced that 14 countries with the highest rates of HIV infection in Africa and the Caribbean would be the targeted beneficiaries of the additional $10 billion. However, according to the United Nations Development Program statistics, in the same period these 14 countries would pay approximately $36 billion in total debt-servicing to their creditors in the rich countries. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13687 CAR: UNICEF TO SUPPLY DRUGS TO EASTERN PROVINCES http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32597 In response to a health crisis caused by months of fighting in the Central African Republic the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) will begin distributing drugs to hospitals and health centres in three eastern provinces, an official said on Thursday. CONGO: CONGOLESE FLEE EBOLA SCARE http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2810701.stm Thousands of people have fled a town in one of the two areas of Congo- Brazzaville most affected by the Ebola virus, which in the last two months has killed more than 80 people. GHANA: LACK OF PORTABLE WATER HAMPERS GUINEA WORM ERADICATION http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020183.html Lack of portable drinking water in certain rural areas of the country has made the eradication of Guinea worm infection difficult. According to the Minister for Health, Dr. Kwaku Afriyie, even though the disease has been decreasing over the past two years and is now confined to only three regions, the unavailability of potable drinking water has made the eradication of the disease difficult. KENYA: HEALTH PLAN CAN WORK ONLY IF THE ECONOMY IMPROVES http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020222.html Government's plan to provide free health care for all may be difficult to implement unless the economy improves, says Avenue Healthcare Chairman Dr Amit Thakker. Thakker, who is also the chairman of the unregistered Kenya Association of Healthcare Organisations (KAHO) feels that the only time Kenyans can have reasonable access to health care is when the government revives the ailing economy. KENYA: SYMBOL OF A COLLAPSED HEALTH SYSTEM http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020223.html Kenyatta National Referral and Teaching Hospital (KNH) is a classic metaphor of what ails the public healthcare delivery system in the country: A colossal monolith that is structurally unsuitable for efficiency and organisational order, the hospital has a capacity of accommodating upward of 2,000 patients, making it truly one of the biggest hospitals in the world. But the hospital has for many years been a monumental dysfunctional edifice that has defied efficiency and proper management of medical service delivery. MOZAMBIQUE: STRUGGLING TO COPE WITH HUNGER AND HIV/AIDS http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1023 Sixteen years of civil war, cyclic floods and severe drought have collectively caused much hardship in Mozambique. But the current drought, affecting about 600,000 people, alongside the devastating impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, are together pushing a growing number of families to the brink of survival. NIGERIA: ETHICAL CONCERNS LOOM HIGH IN HIV DRUG TRIALS IN NIGERIA A Nigerian non-governmental organisation has concluded that ethical concerns loom high in HIV drug trials in the country. The Centre for the Right to Health (CRH), based in Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria, made this assertion in a recent report on the experiences of People Living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) during recently conducted drug trials. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13783 SOUTH AFRICA: ARV’S - WHAT IT WOULD COST http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20030215 The cost of a state supported anti-retroviral programme in its most expensive year could be below R10-billion and still be highly effective, according to calculations by Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and researchers at the University of Cape Town (UCT). TAC manager, Nathan Geffen, presented these figures to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health last week. SOUTH AFRICA: INCREASED HIV/AIDS SPENDING TO BENEFIT PWAS http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1027 South Africans living with HIV/Aids have been given new hope. They might soon have access to treatment and better care, after the Finance Minister, Trevor Manuel, announced plans to almost double the amount spent on HIV/Aids. Over the next three years, R3,3 billion (400 million US dollars) will go towards extending preventative programmes and finance "medically appropriate" treatment for HIV/Aids. SOUTH AFRICA: PROFITING FROM AIDS http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20030212 Drug companies are continuing to sell anti-retrovirals at hugely inflated prices in South Africa with some branded drugs selling for up to eight times more than generic versions available worldwide but that are not yet manufactured locally. The price for an annual course of triple therapy consisting of AZT, 3TC and Nevirapine in South Africa would cost around R20 000 (around R1 700 per month) before VAT and the chemist’s mark-up is added. In contrast, the same course of generic ARVs would cost around R3 300 year (or R275 a month). The huge profit margins of the drug companies forms the basis of a complaint lodged last year at the Competition Commission by a group of people living openly with HIV/AIDS, health workers, labour and civil society. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 6.EDUCATION AND SOCIAL WELFARE AFRICA: CURSED CHILDREN GIVEN HOPE http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2760489.stm For the first two years of his life burns victim Mavuto was unable to walk. An accident with scalding water had left the skin on one of his legs so scarred he was unable to stand. And the future looked bleak for the little Malawian boy, whose name means problem. AFRICA: OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING: TRENDS, POLICY AND STRATEGY CONSIDERATIONS http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001284/128463e.pdf The present paper aims to review open and distance learning in the context of present challenges and opportunities, describe relevant concepts and contributions, outline some significant current global and regional trends, suggest policy and strategy considerations and identify UNESCO's initiatives in this area, including its role in capacity building and international co- operation. The globalization of distance education provides many opportunities for developing countries for the realization of their education system-wide goals. Two main factors have led to an explosion of interest in distance learning: the growing need for continual skills upgrading and retraining; and the technological advances that have made it possible to teach more and more subjects at a distance. AFRICA: TEACHERS AND TECHNOLOGY - RESPONDING TO ICT'S http://www.id21.org/insights/insights-ed01/insights-issed01-art01.html While issues of access and the relative merits of satellites or solar power are being discussed internationally, a project in South Africa and Egypt is exploring what actually happens at the classroom level when ICTs are introduced. How do ICTs change the way teachers teach? How do pupils respond to ICTs-enhanced teaching? GHANA: GOVERNMENT BUDGETS FOR POVERTY REDUCTION http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32589 Ghana has prioritised health, education, sanitation, infrastructure, local government administration and agriculture under its poverty reduction strategy for 2003, the Finance Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo told Parliament on Thursday. Reading the 2003 budget speech, the minister said that funds to support the poverty reduction strategy would be provided under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC). KENYA: MALARIA KILLS A STAGGERING 72 CHILDREN DAILY http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020200.html Some 20 million Kenyans - more than half the entire population - are regularly affected by the most deadly malaria parasite: Plasmodium falciparum.The cumulative human suffering and economic damage caused by malaria is immense. Children and pregnant women are most at risk. Each year, an estimated 26,000 children, that is a staggering 72 per day, die from direct consequences of malaria infection in Kenya. KENYA: MALARIA KILLS A STAGGERING 72 CHILDREN DAILY http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020200.html Some 20 million Kenyans - more than half the entire population - are regularly affected by the most deadly malaria parasite: Plasmodium falciparum.The cumulative human suffering and economic damage caused by malaria is immense. Children and pregnant women are most at risk. Each year, an estimated 26,000 children, that is a staggering 72 per day, die from direct consequences of malaria infection in Kenya. NAMIBIA: AIDS ATTACKING SCHOOLS http://allafrica.com/stories/200302280256.html The millions of dollars pumped into the training of teachers and the construction of schools could be rendered null and void by HIV-AIDS. Education authorities have released a report which predicts that around 3 360 people, or 20 per cent of Namibia's total teaching staff of 18 000 countrywide, could be lost due to AIDS-related illnesses in the next seven years. SIERRA LEONE: GAINS MADE IN REHAB OF WAR-AFFECTED CHILDREN http://193.194.138.190/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/40658142EEC597B4C1256CDE002C 8734?opendocument At the conclusion of a week-long visit to Sierra Leone Under-Secretary-General Olara A. Otunnu, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, has called upon the international community to continue to support the country in the peace-building period so that the impressive gains made so far in the rehabilitation and protection of war- affected children can be strengthened and sustained. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 7.WOMEN AND GENDER AFRICA/GLOBAL: EXPERTS QUESTION WISDOM OF MICRO-CREDIT FOR WOMEN http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1239/context/cover/ Micro-credit programs have long been praised as stepping stones out of poverty. But new international studies shed doubt on whether small loans can really make a difference against the enormous problem of poverty. AFRICA: GENDER, WATER AND POVERTY http://www.wedo.org/sus_dev/untapped1.htm Water is essential to human beings and all forms of life. But pollution and lack of access to clean water is proliferating the cycle of poverty, water- borne diseases, and gender inequities. At the United Nations conferences of the 1990s-beginning with the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil all the way through to the 2000 Millennium Development Summit in New York, U.S.A. and the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa-it became widely accepted that gender equality and women's empowerment are essential to poverty eradication. But despite the recognition that advancing women's human rights is key to breaking the cycle of poverty, implementation of this overarching policy agenda has been elusive. This paper presents an overview of the relationship between gender, poverty and water. AFRICA: PUTTING SAFE ABORTION ON THE PUBLIC'S AGENDA Saving the lives of millions of African women who die from complications related to unsafe abortions will come center stage Wednesday at the first ever consultation held in Africa on providing access to safe abortion for women. The landmark consultation - 'Action to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Africa: A Regional Consultation on Unsafe Abortion' - brings together, medical professionals, legal experts, researchers, ministers of health, youth leaders, parliamentarians, women's health activists and journalists from 15 African countries. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13818 ANGOLA: WOMEN, WAR AND RECONCILIATION http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32549 "I came here to the quartering area to try and find my husband, the father of my children," Celita Vasco says. "But when I arrived here I heard that my husband had died in the war. My children have no father." Her story is typical of women who found themselves caught up amid the ever-changing front lines of the Angolan civil war. KENYA: KENYAN WOMEN LOSING HOMES http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2817831.stm Women in Kenya are vulnerable to poverty, HIV infection and violence because of discriminatory property inheritance practices, says a report from the New York- based Human Rights Watch. The United States based NGO says that after the death of their husbands, women are often evicted or made penniless, or forced to engage in traditional sexual cleansing rituals risking HIV infection, in order to stay in the property. NIGERIA: STOPPING AIDS AT MOTOR PARKS http://www.savingwomenslives.org/pearl.htm As a young Nigerian girl, Pearl Nwashili saw women come crying to her grandmother, bleeding and bruised from beatings at their husbands' hands. "I wanted to clean them, sew up their clothes, I wanted to heal the kids with sores, I just wanted to see people happy again as fast as possible," she says. As an adult in Lagos, she studied microbiology and earned degrees in public health as a way to help her people. With a grant from the Ford Foundation and facilities donated by Nigeria's government, Nwashili set up walk-in health centers at eight major Nigerian "motor parks," where hundreds of truck drivers, taxis and buses wait for loads and seek entertainment, food and rest in the meantime. NIGERIA: TACKLING THE SEX SLAVE TRADE http://observer.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,905316,00.html Mercy escaped her slavers last year. Like many Nigerian women smuggled or lured into Italy with the promise of jobs, Mercy was forced into prostitution to earn her freedom. But escape did not end her nightmare. Three weeks after speaking publicly to human rights groups about her experience, her sister was reported dead in Florence, true to the threats made by her former captors. SOMALIA: UNICEF STRESSES PROTECTION OF WOMEN, CHILDREN AS KEY TO FUTURE http://www.unfoundation.org/unwire/util/display_stories.asp?objid=32149 UNICEF said last month at a meeting of donors in Nairobi that the key to Somalia's future lay in the survival and protection of women and children and noted with optimism that peace talks aimed at ending more than a decade of anarchy were moving forward. SOUTH AFRICA: WOMEN AGAINST THE WAR The Anti-War Coalition has announced that it will be joining women around the world in commemorating International Women's Day on Saturday, 8 March 2003. The group has organised a Women Against the War demonstration at the US Consulate in Killarney and a symposium on the effects of war on women and children. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13782 SWAZILAND: WOMEN AT FOREFRONT OF FOOD AID DISTRIBUTION A silver lining has emerged in Swaziland's current food crisis through the efforts of thousands of Swazi women who have been put in charge of food aid distribution. "We use the phrase, 'Teach one man, and you teach one man, teach one woman and you teach 50 women," Erika MacLean, emergency coordinator for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Swaziland, told IRIN. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13700 /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 8.REFUGEES AND FORCED MIGRATION BURUNDI: THEATRE GROUP ASSUMES ROLE IN PROTECTING RIGHTS OF IDPS http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32542 An association of theatre groups in Burundi has developed innovative ways of sensitising internally displaced persons (IDPs) about their rights. The latest issue of Forced Migration Review, published by the Refugee Studies Centre and the Norwegian Refugee Council, details how the association, known as Tubiyage, stages plays in IDP camps to tell the people about their rights. DRC: 30,000 DISPLACED BY ATTACKS IN LOMAMI RIVER VALLEY, KASAI ORIENTAL http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32604 Slightly over 30,000 people have been displaced since late 2002 by attacks and counterattacks by Mayi-Mayi militias and the Rwandan-backed Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie-Goma (RCD-Goma) rebel movement along the western bank of the River Lomami, between Katako Kombe and Lubefu, in Kasai Oriental Province, central Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the official relief and development agency of the US Catholic community. LESOTHO: INQUIRY INTO LESOTHO HIGHLANDS COMPLAINTS ENDS http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020212.html The first part of the formal inquiry conducted by the Ombudsman into over 100 complaints regarding compensation of communities affected by the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) ended at the National Convention Centre (NCC) on Wednesday, February 19, 2003 with compensation for communal assets, threshold payment and resettlement in general dominating the discussions. Most of the complaints put forward by the communities affected by the mammoth Project were similar to those presented in the first day of the inquiry and included delayed payment of compensation for communal assets, gardens, threshold payment and the poor and shoddy workmanship on the houses built for them by the Project, and lack of basic household equipment such as stoves supposed to have been provided by the Project. RWANDA-TANZANIA: FEWER THAN 1,000 RWANDAN REFUGEES REMAIN http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32624 Fewer than 1,000 Rwandan refugees remain in Tanzania - roughly 700 in Ngara and 300 in Kibondo - with returns continuing, according to Ivana Unluova, the spokeswoman for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). RWANDA: NEW LAWS NEEDED TO ADDRESS LAND RIGHTS OF BATWA, NGO SAYS http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32578 The government should ensure that land rights issues faced by the Batwa, Rwanda's third and smallest ethnic group, are effectively addressed through the implementation of new national land laws, an international NGO, Minority Rights Group (MRG), says in a new report. UGANDA: MALNUTRITION RATES HIGH AMONG DISPLACED CHILDREN An assessment conducted by the World Food Programme (WFP) and the government of Uganda has revealed that over 31 percent of children, under five years of age, are suffering from acute malnutrition in Anaka camp for displaced people, located in Gulu district, northern Uganda. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13825 WEST AFRICA: THIRD-COUNTRY NATIONALS STUCK IN LIBERIA AND GUINEA http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32592 Thousands of West Africans who fled Cote d'Ivoire are stuck in Liberia and Guinea, unable to return to their home countries - Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal and Togo - Refugees International reported. "An estimated 43,000 people fled Cote d'Ivoire and entered Liberia and Guinea. Thousands more continue to arrive. In addition to 20,000 Ivorian refugees and 45,000 returnees, Liberia has received at least 12,000 nationals of third countries, with the majority from Burkina Faso," RI said on Thursday. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 9.RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA AFRICA/GLOBAL: UN COMMITTEE MEETS TO DISCUSS DISCRIMINATION http://193.194.138.190/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/78EA1E8621705B71C1256CDB002B 27A1?opendocument The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination will meet at the Palais des Nations from 3 to 21 March to review anti-discrimination efforts undertaken by the governments of Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Fiji, Ghana, Morocco, Poland, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Tunisia and Uganda. These countries are among the 167 States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, a treaty that first took effect in 1969. The 18-member Committee, the first body created by the United Nations to review actions by States to fulfil obligations under a specific human-rights agreement, examines reports submitted periodically by States parties on efforts to comply with the Convention. Government representatives generally present the report, discuss its contents with Committee members, and answer questions. SOUTH AFRICA: DISMANTLING RACIST AND SEXIST INJUSTICE Khosa Xaba joined the African National Congress (ANC) women's league as a student to fight against apartheid. But her fight for racial and social justice did not stop with the dismantling of the racial system which denied Blacks their human rights. The next fight on her agenda was the discrimination met by black women in accessing reproductive health services. "When apartheid was dismantled, we used the opportunity to bring to the public that black women were unable to access the services," says Xaba who worked with the Women's Health Project in South Africa. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13819 SOUTH AFRICA: PARANOIA AND IGNORANCE FUELLING RACE DIVIDE IN RURAL AREAS http://allafrica.com/stories/200303030232.html When the leaders of the Boeremag were tracked down and arrested last year, investigators came across a document describing how the organisation planned to take over SA. Among the institutions the plotters wanted to seize in the first stage of the coup were television and radio channels, power stations and abattoirs. Why abattoirs?The plotters wanted to trick blacks into abandoning the interior of the country for the east coast. So they planned to line all eastbound highways with raw meat. The blacks would follow the trail, the plotters believed, and once they were all in KwaZuluNatal, the borders of the province would be closed. Trapped in the eastern lowlands, they would be herded northwards, at gunpoint, into Mozambique. Think about it. And once you have gotten over how staggeringly stupid the plotters were, think about it again. How on earth did a group of men, most of whom grew up in rural SA, cheek-byjowl with black communities, learn so little about their fellow human beings during the course of their lives? /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 10.ENVIRONMENT AFRICA/GLOBAL: HIGH STAKES: THE FUTURE FOR MOUNTAIN SOCIETIES http://www.panos.org.uk/High-stakes1.pdf This report from the Panos Institute looks at the threats that face mountain environments and the people that live in them. It describes a 'vertical gradient of poverty' whereby 80 per cent of mountain inhabitants live below the poverty line. The authors describe the political, cultural and social marginalisation of many mountain communities. The report describes the environmental importance of mountain ecosystems to the rest of the world and ways in which mountain communities can become more involved in decision making, conservation of natural resources and poverty reduction. AFRICA/GLOBAL: UN ADVISER URGES FOCUS ON ENVIRONMENTAL ‘HOTSPOTS’ http://www.scidev.net/frame3.asp?id=0303200315400745&t=N&authors=David% 20Dickson&posted=3%20Mar%202003&c=1&r=1 A top adviser to UN secretary general Kofi Annan has warned that the importance of preserving biodiversity in poor countries is not being adequately conveyed to those responsible for implementing economic development policies, and suggests that a global system of environmental 'hotspots' could help to focus their attention. AFRICA: DAMMED RIVERS, DAMNED LIES What The Water Establishment Doesn’t Want You To Know http://www.irn.org/index.asp?id=basics/ard/wwf3.html Over 45,000 large dams have been built to meet the world’s water, energy and flood management needs. However, dams have failed to live up to expectations and have devastated communities and ecosystems. This briefing kit exposes the myths behind large dams and promotes equitable and sustainable solutions for meeting the world’s needs. This briefing kit was created for the Third World Water Forum in Kyoto, Japan by Friends of the Earth Japan and International Rivers Network. AFRICA: WORLD BANK WATER STRATEGY IS REACTIONARY, DISHONEST AND CYNICAL The World Bank's executive board has approved a new Water Resources Sector Strategy (WRSS). The Strategy says the Bank needs to shrug off its critics and boost spending on big dams, inter-basin transfers and other water megaprojects. Patrick McCully, Campaigns Director of International Rivers Network said in a press statement: "The strategy is a reactionary, dishonest and cynical document. If put into effect it would provide rich pickings for the Bank staff's friends in the big dam lobby and private water companies but only worsen poverty, water shortages and the dire condition of the world's rivers." Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13697 GHANA: GOLD DISCOVERED BENEATH GHANA'S FOREST RESERVES http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2003/2003-03-04-02.asp Dozens of bulldozers and excavators belonging to five multinational mining companies operating in Ghana are poised to tear apart thousands of hectares of forest reserves in the Ashanti, Western and Eastern Regions of the country, if the government gives them approval to haul out what they describe as rich deposits of gold beneath the forests. KENYA: FIERCE BLAZE THREATENS MOUNT KENYA ECOLOGY http://ens-news.com/ens/feb2003/2003-02-28-02.asp A raging fire - suspected to have been started by arsonists - has now burned over 4,000 hectares (15 square miles) of Mount Kenya forest and is threatening the Mount Kenya ecology and some 882 rare plant species, unique to the area, government officials here say. The fire came weeks after the new government of President Mwai Kibaki announced tough measures to stop illegal logging, encroachment of the forest by neighbouring communities, and growing of narcotics inside the forest. KENYA: NEW OZONE MONITORING STATION LAUNCHED http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=32574 The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has installed a new high-tech monitoring station in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, to monitor air quality and detect ozone depletion in the eastern African region. The Kenya-based environmental body said on Thursday that the newly installed Nairobi Validation Station, within the world environmental headquarters grounds in the Gigiri suburb, was the first of its kind in "tropical and subtropical" Africa. NIGERIA: PARLIAMENT TO SEND SHELL $1.5BN BILL FOR DAMAGES TO IJAW COMMUNITY http://www.busrep.co.za/html/busrep/br_frame_decider.php? click_id=345&art_id=ct20030227210342340I5352385&set_id=60 A judicial committee set up by Nigeria's parliament had asked Anglo-Dutch oil firm Shell to pay $1.5 billion in compensation to a community in southern Nigeria, officials said. The panel, headed by former chief justice Mohammed Bello, was set up in December 2000 by the house of representatives after the Ijaw people of Bayelsa state filed a petition demanding compensation from Shell for "the harmful impact of its oil production and exploration activities for over 60 years". UGANDA: GORILLAS ENDANGERED http://allafrica.com/stories/200303050174.html The coveted mountain gorillas at the Bwindi National Park are facing new pressures, this time from the very people supposed to protect them. The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) is allowing more tourists to track the primates than they (primates) can tolerate. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 11.MEDIA GUINEA-BISSAU: CONCERN AT RADIO STATION CLOSURE The World Association of Newspapers (WAN) has written to President Kumba Yala of Guinea-Bissau expressing serious concern at the government's closure of Radio Bombolom. According to reports, on 13 February police shuttered Radio Bombolom's offices, forcing the broadcaster off the air. The Ministry of Information accused the station of 'broadcasting false information that could jeopardise national sovereignty and the stability of the country'. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13696 NIGER: EDITOR RELEASED AFTER COMPLETING EIGHT-MONTH PRISON SENTENCE The Committee to Protect Journalists has welcomed the release from prison of Abdoulaye Tiémogo, an editor at the weekly Le Canard Déchaîné, which is based in Niger's capital, Niamey. Tiémogo, who was freed on Tuesday, February 18, after completing his eight-month prison sentence, was arrested on June 18, 2002, for allegedly defaming Prime Minister Hama Amadou in a series of unflattering opinion pieces. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13698 NIGERIA: NIGERIA GETS SCIENCE MEDIA CENTRE http://www.scidev.net/frame3.asp?id=2502200310001251&authors=James% 20Njoroge&posted=25%20Feb%202003&c=1&r=1&t=NB Three new media facilities have been unveiled in Nigeria that aim to help journalists improve reporting of development aspects of science, health, environment and population. The facilities - a media resource and advocacy centre, a computer 'club house' and access to an online population database - are being officially inaugurated by Finjap Njinga, the director of the United Nations Information Centre, Lagos. ZAMBIA: INFORMATION MINISTER THREATENS TO REVOKE RADIO STATION'S LICENCE On 24 February 2003, Information and Broadcasting Services Deputy Minister Webster Chipili threatened Radio Icengelo, a Catholic-owned station in Kitwe, with closure, saying it risks losing its broadcast licence if it continues to be used as a mouthpiece for opposition political parties. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13699 ZAMBIA: JOURNALISTS BARRED FROM COVERING CHILUBA COURT CASE Reuters correspondent Shapi Shacinda, Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent and Zambia Independent Media Association (ZIMA) Chairperson Dickson Jere, BBC correspondent Penny Dale, "Post" newspaper assistant news editor Amos Malupenga and Radio Phoenix reporter Wendy Mpolokoso were prevented from entering the Lusaka Chikwa Magistrate's court to cover former president Frederick Chiluba's court appearance on charges of "theft by a public servant". Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13730 ZIMBABWE: COURT ISSUES WARRANT OF ARREST AGAINST FORMER EDITOR A warrant of arrest has been issued against former Daily News editor Geoff Nyarota, reports MISA-Zimbabwe. The warrant was issued after Nyarota failed to appear in court for a hearing in which he is charged with publishing falsehoods. Nyarota is jointly charged with Lloyd Mudiwa, a Daily News reporter. The two are being prosecuted under section 80 of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA). Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13770 ZIMBABWE: FOREIGN JOURNALISTS ARRESTED AND BARRED FROM FILMING FOOD QUEUE http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1022 Two Dutch journalists Raymond Bouuman and Pim Hauinkels, were arrested on 26 February in the city of Bulawayo for filming a bread queue. The two work for the Dutch TV Journal ITL5. The two journalists were taken in for questioning by the police. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 12.DEVELOPMENT AFRICA/GLOBAL: THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM: A DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVE http://www.twnside.org.sg/pos.htm If trade is not an end in itself but a means to balanced, equitable and sustainable development, the current global trading system must be reoriented towards the satisfaction of the needs of the world's people. This paper examines the present system and its implications and offers some suggestions for improving it. The paper - produced by the Third World Network - is a detailed report on the WTO and the multilateral trading system. AFRICA: CONCERN OVER TRADE http://www.oneworld.net/campaigns/trade/front.shtml Trade - simply put, it's an exchange of one thing for another. A straightforward concept, yet it's the most important issue in global relations, and the impact of it touches all our lives. There is growing concern that trade on the global scale may be doing more harm than good and that human and environmental needs are being forgotten. Keep up with the news, actions, background information and possible solutions by visiting the campaign page of Oneworld at http://www.oneworld.net/campaigns/trade/front.shtml. AFRICA: TOURISM'S DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL UNCERTAIN http://www.eldis.org/csr/PPT.htm Tourism's economic input is often significant in developing countries, but the relationship remains inherently inequitable, with the rich visiting the poor and prescribing the conditions which they expect to find. Economic benefits tend not to reach the poorest, leaking out to Western based tour operators and national governments. So, to date, the poorest have been most impacted and least rewarded. Visit this Eldis page for their feature on tourism and poverty; policy and research. AFRICA: WTO REJECTS DRAFT DOCUMENT ON AGRICULTURAL TRADE http://allafrica.com/stories/200303030012.html A review hearing of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture in Geneva last week dismissed the Harbinson Draft, describing the document as inadequate in addressing the concerns of developing nations in international agricultural trade. The draft, commonly known as the Harbinson Draft, had been issued on 17 February by Stuart Harbinson, chairman of the WTO Agriculture Committee. In a statement released at the end of the review hearing last week, participants said: "The Harbinson Draft text reveals the emptiness of the Doha Ministerial Declaration's stated intention of placing development, food security and rural livelihoods at the heart of the Doha Round." SOUTH AFRICA: STRATEGIES, IMPACTS AND COSTS OF PRO-POOR TOURISM APPROACHES http://www.africapulse.org/index.php? action=viewarticle&articleid=1035&PHPSESSID=5b728b7aae0546657bb3605be93e613e This document describes strategies devised by five private sector tourism enterprises in South Africa, to address poverty and development issues in neighbouring communities. The enterprises include land-based safari operations, a diving operation, and a large casino-golf resort. Each of the enterprises had been assessed against a number of the country’s national Responsible Tourism Guidelines – in relation to economic, social, and environmental impacts. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 13.INTERNET AND TECHNOLOGY AFRICA'S NEW COMMUNICATIONS USERS - WHAT DO THEY USE AND WHY? http://www.balancingact-africa.com The explosive growth of communications technologies has given potential users a wide range of new tools to communicate. Yet beyond the familiar numbers generated by the growth of mobiles, very little has emerged about how these new users communicate. A recent survey from Gamos and the CTO looks at patterns of behaviour for a range of users, particularly poorer users and those in rural areas. Read the findings of the report on the Balancing Act website. CIVIL SOCIETY WINS A PLACE AT WSIS TABLE The World Summit on the Information Society this year will be the first multilateral negotiations in which non-governmental organisations will participate on equal footing with governments and business. The NGOs claimed an important victory last Friday, at the conclusion of the two-week meeting of the WSIS preparatory committee (Prepcom) in Geneva. The delegates to the Prepcom decided that, alongside government and private sector representatives, civil society and international intergovernmental organisations will be the main actors involved in preparing for and participation in the December Summit, where the mandate is to establish policies to bridge the global digital divide. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13689 GLOBAL UNIONS ACCUSE GOVERNMENTS OVER EXCLUSION OF PUBLIC VOICES IN POLICY Members of the Global Unions group have accused the government planners of the Second Meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) of "stifling voices of dissent" after having excluded civil society from the debate over the draft conclusions. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13729 GOOGLE: THE ULTIMATE BIG BROTHER So you thought Google was your best online buddy. Think Again. The link below lays out why a privacy organisation has nominated Google for corporate Big Brother of 2003 - and explains how Google gets to know so much about your daily online habits. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13732 ICT RADIO SERIES: DIALOGUE ON DIGITAL DIVIDENDS IN AFRICA http://www.wougnet.org/Links/ICTRS The African Information Society Initiative (AISI) Radio Series is based on the Harnessing ICTs for Development programme of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). The Radio Series is aimed at creating greater awareness on the information society, serving as a tool for media practitioners, especially radio broadcasters to engage various groups in debating the role of ICTs in the development process. The series examine people's understanding of the role and impact of ICTs and raises questions on the issues of access and disparities in the African information society. USING PDA'S TO FIGHT MEASLES In Africa measles are often called the "disease of the wind". Every year, the virus moves swiftly through overcrowded schools and closely huddled shacks, killing almost half a million of African children. Now, efforts to stop this killer have received a significant boost from an unlikely source: the handheld computer, a.k.a. a Personal Digital Assistant or PDA. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13773 /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 14.eNEWSLETTERS AND MAILING LISTS 1325 PEACEWOMEN E-NEWS http://www.peacewomen.org/news/1325News/1325ENewsindex.html The 1325 PeaceWomen E-News was initiated in May 2002, as a direct means of maintaining the momentum and visibility of Resolution 1325, advocating for the further implementation of the Resolution, and keeping people informed of the scale and range of activity around 1325. By prioritizing the efforts of women peace activists, by providing them with timely information to help build their capacities as peace women, by providing informed and current analyses of 1325, 1325 PeaceWomen E-News can help fuel the support and advocacy efforts for further implementation of Resolution 1325. EQUINET NEWS MAILING LIST http://www.equinetafrica.org/equinetnews.html Equinet News is the electronic mailing list of the Network for Equity in Health in Southern Africa (EQUINET). The newsletter is designed to keep you informed about materials on the Internet on equity and health in southern Africa. You can use the links at the web page provided through the link provided to read the newsletter online, send feedback or subscribe to the newsletter. HEALTH-E NEWS SERVICE http://www.health-e.org.za Health-e is a news agency dedicated to producing news and analysis for the print and electronic media regarding health policy and practice in South Africa. The particular focus is to report on health issues affecting the poor and disadvantaged, and the implications of different health policies for society as a whole. Content is tailored to the requirements of different weekly newspapers and/or radio stations. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 15.FUNDRAISING INSIDE OUT FUNDRAISING http://www.saifundraising.org.za/articles.htm#inside%20out This series on the SOUTHERN AFRICA INSTITUTE OF FUNDRAISING web site is based on the premise that Non-profit organisation (NPO) staff or volunteers have no right to ask outsiders to support their work if they have not first given themselves. "It’s a strange thing that when a new NPO gets off the ground it is usually the founders, whether they be committee members or volunteers, who put their hands deep in their pockets to keep the young programme going," it begins. THE SOUTHERN AFRICA INSTITUTE OF FUNDRAISING (SAIF) http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Delphi/4594/ The Southern Africa Institute of Fundraising (SAIF) was established in 1986. It is a non-profit voluntary organisation which exists to promote and encourage high standards of ethics, practice and public service among people involved in fundraising in Southern Africa. Visit their web site to find out more. YOUR GUIDE TO MOBILIZING RESOURCES – A FUNDRAISING MANUAL FOR SOUTHERN AFRICAN NON-PROFIT ORGANISATIONS http://www.cafonline.org/cafsouthernafrica/default.cfm?page=publications This handbook provides NPO volunteer leaders and staff managers with all the information they need to achieve financial security and sustainability. Subjects covered include the role of the NPO in civil society, keys to sustainable funding today, funding sources in Southern Africa, planning for income and developing a funding plan. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 16.COURSES, SEMINARS, AND WORKSHOPS HELINA 2003: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN THE FIGHT AGAINST HIV/AIDS IN AFRICA Johannesburg, South Africa, 12-15 October 2003 The International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) will convene HELINA 2003, the fourth HELINA (HEaLth INformatics in Africa) conference in South Africa from 12 to 15 October 2003, focused on communication and information technologies (ICT) in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa. The conference aims to bring expert clinicians and researchers in HIV/AIDS together with regional and international experts in health informatics in a unique forum. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13717 LEADING TO CHOICES: A DISTANCE LEARNING COURSE ON PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP 26 May-3 August 2003 This innovative distance learning course on developing participatory leadership skills is intended for leaders, activists, and staff of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in promoting human rights and equitable societies. The course is based on a conceptualization of leadership as horizontal, inclusive, and participatory. Leadership is approached as a process that leads to greater choices for all by fostering communication among individuals who learn from each other, create a shared vision, and reach a common goal forged by consensus. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13728 SOUTH AFRICA: LANDMARK CONFERENCE IN YOUTH DEVELOPMENT http://www.africapulse.org/index.php?action=viewarticle&articleid=1031 The Youth Development Network will be hosting a unique conference that seeks to bring integration to the sphere of Youth Development in South Africa. The conference will take place on the 5th and 6th of March 2003, at the Sunnyside Park Hotel, in Johannesburg. THE SIXTEENTH STANDING CONFERENCE OF EASTERN, CENTRAL, AND SOUTHERN AFRICAN LIBRARY AND INFORMATION PROFESSIONALS 5TH - 9TH JULY 2004, KAMPALA, UGANDA The organising committee has the pleasure of inviting Library and Information Professionals to the sixteenth Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern African Library and Information Professionals (SCECSAL XVI) to be hosted by the Uganda Library Association in Kampala. This is the second time in the history of SCECSAL that Uganda Library Association will host colleagues from the region and beyond. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13722 WOMEN'S ELECTRONIC NETWORK TRAINING WORKSHOP 29th March 4th April 2003, Cape Town, South Africa The training workshop aims to build the capacities of women and their organisations to utilise new Information and Communication Technologies in social development work and policy advocacy. The workshop offers two parallel instructional tracks from which participants can choose the most appropriate for their training needs and two sessions in which all workshop participants will be involved. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13800 /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 17.ADVOCACY RESOURCES 101 WAYS TO STOP THE WAR ON IRAQ http://www.earthfuture.com/stopthewar/ Use email, snail mail, signs, friends, your organisation and even your mind, body and spirit to help stop the war on Iraq. Visit the web site link provided to find out more. POETS AGAINST THE WAR http://poetsagainstthewar.org/ Poets Against the War provides a venue for poets to voice their conscience against impending war, and to encourage peaceful means of resolving conflict in company with the world community. To this end, Poets Against the War will facilitate the outcry of poets in various ways, including publishing poetry via its website and other print media, through newspaper ads and the broadcast media, encouraging public readings, and supporting the production of a documentary that chronicles a movement that has given rise to the largest chorus of poets in history. STOP GATS This International sign-on letter to all WTO member countries demands that no secret deals on services are concluded. It states that services are the lifeblood of societies and that a moratorium should be placed on GATS negotiations until the process is made more public. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13794 TAC CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE CAMPAIGN Every day more than 600 people in South Africa die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses. Many lives could have been saved had our government shown urgency and commitment. We still have a chance to save millions of lives. Regrettably, the Minister of Health continues to equivocate. After four years of negotiations, petitions, marches, litigation and appeals, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) has decided to begin a peaceful campaign of civil disobedience on 21 March 2003. TAC requests your support in this campaign. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13821 TAKE ACTION FOR TRADE JUSTICE http://www.christian-aid.org.uk/campaign/trade/0301plan.htm 2003 is a big year for the trade justice campaign. From 10 to 14 September trade ministers from nearly 150 different countries will be meeting in Cancun, Mexico for the fifth ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation. On 23 and 24 September the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank hold their annual meetings in Dubai. Visit this web site and find out what you can do to further the cause of trade justice. THE POWER TO CHANGE THE WORLD http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action Have you ever wondered how change happens? Ever wonder if you could be a part of something that will improve the lives of billions around the world? The power to change the world, says the web site of Jubilee USA Network, lies in whether you choose to take action. The Network offers several ways to get involved on their web site. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 18.JOBS DRC: MEDICAL PROJECT MANAGER Malteser http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/2748E8497809DD34C1256CD4004CBA76 Responsibilities include planning and implementing all health project activities in cooperation with the district health office in different health zones for an ECHO project supervision of the implementation (medical monitoring and evaluation) of project activities (including medical administration, procurement of drugs and management of stocks, budget control) in cooperation with project coordinator and administrator respectively. RWANDA: TECHNICAL ADVISER, CHILD PROTECTION, (MINALOC) Save The Children http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/C7AB220E6EA61BC3C1256CD9004FE4F4 Save the Children requires a Technical Advisor who will assist in the development of action plans, collaborate with MINALOC staff and provide advice on the development of child rights legislation and reinforce partnerships between the government, INGO's and NGO's. SOMALIA: NATIONAL ADMINISTRATOR Pace http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/093177BEE28F9E22C1256CD9005C29DF Working in collaboration with the ADM Advisor under the supervision of three heads of mission and in collaboration with five other senior staff members, S/he will be responsible for overall administrative and financial tasks of the program, under advisement of the ADM Advisor. SOMALIA: PROJECT EVALUATOR INTERSOS (K) http://www.reliefweb.int/w/res.nsf/wDocs/F4CCB082B32A0F63C1256CD900481FB1 The project evaluator will be required to assess and study the relevance of an education project in Somalia in assisting in the provision of primary education to children in the target schools. SOUTH AFRICA: MICROBICIDES E-ADVOCACY PROJECT MANAGER Health And Development Networks (HDN) The HDN Microbicides E-Advocacy Project has been on-going since 2001. The project aims to report on local, regional and international efforts to advocate for prevention options for women and to facilitate virtual discussion and debate around microbicide research in popular discourses around HIV/AIDS. The Project Manager will co-ordinate and implement the project, manage a small international team of writers and engage in international advocacy efforts - in collaboration with the Global Campaign for Microbicides. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13692 ZIMBABWE: EMERGENCY PROGRAMME MANAGER Save The Children UK http://jobs.oneworld.net/ads/index.cfm?job_id=2123 We are seeking applicants with significant experience in the management of emergency programmes involving food aid, a high level of competence in the area of proposal and report writing, sound knowledge of logistical, administration and financial systems, and the ability to work under pressure. This post requires strong representational and communication skills as well as proven team management and team building skills. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 19.BOOKS AND ARTS AFRICAN AFFAIRS -- TABLE OF CONTENTS ALERT The new issue includes: * How will HIV/AIDS transform African governance? Alex de Waal http://afraf.oupjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/102/406/1?etoc * Facing Mount Kenya or Facing Mecca? The Mungiki, ethnic violence and the politics of the Moi succession in Kenya, Peter Mwangi Kagwanja http://afraf.oupjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/102/406/25?etoc * Analyzing Apartheid: how accurate were US intelligence estimates of South Africa, 1948-94? Jeffrey Herbst http://afraf.oupjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/102/406/81?etoc Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13759 BEFORE THE ROOSTER CROWS Peter Kimani http://www.africanbookscollective.com/rooster.htm A first novel from an award winning Kenyan journalist, playwright and poet, Peter Kimani, a one-time writer in residence at the Mesa Refuge in California, who is now making a name for himself as one of Africa’s emerging young writers. This is the story of Muriuki, a young man from a Kenyan village who leaves his mother, the rest of his family, and a backbreaking job on a coffee plantation for the city, the pursuit of wealth, and happiness with the love of his childhood, Mumbi. But life is not straightforward for the young lovers who become steeped in the quagmire of Kenyan politics, and are confronted with the sophistication of a new world, its economic hardships and brutality, and the racism and persistent inequities of the post-colonial and global society. BORN TO WRITE: PROFILE OF AMA ATA AIDOO http://allafrica.com/stories/200303020184.html Literature is a very powerful tool. Used correctly it can empower, educate and bring joy to its readers. The power of fiction is often overlooked but African women writers like Ama Ata Aidoo have made sure that literature thrives in our world today. CARING FOR SEVERELY MALNOURISHED CHILDREN Ann Ashworth And Ann Burgess This publication is based on guidelines developed by the World Health Organisation and on training modules for nurses in Africa prepared by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13758 OUT OF AFRICA http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,12084,900102,00.html Chinua Achebe, father of modern African literature, has long argued that Joseph Conrad was a racist. Caryl Phillips, an admirer of both writers, disagrees. He meets Achebe to defend the creator of Heart of Darkness but finds their discussion provokes an unexpected epiphany. Read the full interview as published in The Guardian newspaper. THE 15% SOLUTION Jonathan Westminster In 1996, Westminster envisioned that the sociopolitical trends launched in the postwar period would coagulate and merge into a tide of fascist ideology. He predicted that the political mobilisation of the right-wing of American society would result in the destruction of civil liberties, the bill of rights and the constitution by perfectly constitutional means. In so doing, Westminster has provided a detailed blueprint for the current Bush administration, which from many vantage points appears to be moving the United States inexorably in the direction of the fascist governments of the 1930s. Given the circumstances, it is clear that the present US administration may yet fulfill The 15% Solution's core premise, a fascist takeover of US government by purely peaceful, legal and electoral means. Further details: http://www.pambazuka.org/newsletter.php?id=13757 THE WORLD COMES TO ONE COUNTRY : AN INSIDER HISTORY OF THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Victor Munnik And Jessica Wilson http://boell.org.za/ What happened at the World Summit on Sustainable Development? The World Comes to One Country attempts to answer this question from a civil society perspective, based on interviews with insiders, ongoing discussions with prominent players from all sides and the author's own experience. It introduces the main actors in South African civil society and documents how they engaged in a fierce contest for control of the international civil society forum, and South African preparations for it. The story is told against the background of the South African government strategy as Summit hosts, the role of the New Partnership for African's Development (Nepad) and the dynamics in international civil society. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 20.MEMBERS CORNER /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 21.LETTERS AND COMMENTS ALBERT KENYANI Multinational Fund For Development Aid, Nairobi, Kenya We think this newsletter is relevant for our information needs. JOHN DADA, FANTSUAM FOUNDATION Nigeria I have just read my latest on-line copy of Pambazuka News and wish to tell you how much I appreciate receiving such an informative newsletter. Pambazuka newsletter is in a class of its own, with authoritative depth of coverage. It remains a source of up-to-date news, information and views from within and about Africa, and just for the price of 10 minutes at a cyber cafe, it is all yours. It will cost ten times as much to look for, and get access to all the information you have managed to put together so professionally. More grease to your elbows. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ THIS NEWSLETTER IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY FAHAMU, KABISSA, AND SANGONET Fahamu - learning for change Unit 14, Standingford House, Cave Street, Oxford OX4 1BA, UK [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.fahamu.org Kabissa - Space for change in Africa 24 Philadelphia Avenue, Takoma Park, MD 20912, USA [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.kabissa.org Southern African Non-Governmental Organisation Network (SANGONeT) P O Box 31 Johannesburg, 2000 South Africa [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.sn.apc.org The Newsletter is an advocacy tool for social justice. The Newsletter is open to any organisation committed to this goal. You can use this Newsletter to tell others about your work, events, publications, and concerns. The quality and range of information depends on you. SUBMIT YOUR NEWS If your organisation is a regular provider of information, please ensure that your information is widely read by adding [EMAIL PROTECTED] to your addressbook and mailing lists. Help us in particular by making sure that sections relevant to your work are well represented. We consider every submission to that address for inclusion. Please attribute original sources by including a website address and/or contact e-mail. SUBSCRIBE The Newsletter comes out weekly and is delivered to subscribers by e-mail. Subscription is free! To subscribe, send an e-mail to <pambazuka-news- [EMAIL PROTECTED]> with only the word 'subscribe' in the subject or body. WRITE AN EDITORIAL We welcome original editorials. Typically, editorials run 300-500 words and include links and contact details of their authors. Space is available through the website for longer editorials. Please inquire to [EMAIL PROTECTED] FAIR USE This Newsletter is produced under the principles of 'fair use'. We strive to attribute sources by providing direct links to authors and websites. When full text is submitted to us and no website is provided, we make the text available on our website via a "for more information" link. Please contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] immediately regarding copyright issues. The views expressed in this newsletter, including the signed editorials, do not necessarily represent those of Kabissa, fahamu and SANGONeT. (c) Kabissa, Fahamu and SANGONeT 2003 If you wish to stop receiving the newsletter, unsubscribe immediately by sending a message FROM THE ADDRESS YOU WANT REMOVED to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] should you need further assistance subscribing or unsubscribing. /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\
