Malaysia pilot arrives in Taiwan as part of round-the-world adventure
(PHOTO: The China Post) Malaysia pilot arrives in Taiwan as part of round-the-world adventure: Pilot James Anthony Tan, 21, poses for photo with his single piston aircraft at the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday. He arrived as part of a bid to become the youngest man to fly solo around the world, across 21 countries in Asia, the Americas, Europe & Africa in 50 days, with stops in 30 cities. (Read more at The China Post)
Gaza Marathon Canceled After Women Banned
(Video AFP)
Earlier today, the UN Relief & Works Agency canceled the 3rd annual Gaza marathon after Hamas rulers barred women from participating in the race. “UNRWA regrets to announce that it has canceled the third Gaza marathon which was to be held on 10 April,”the agency said in a statement. “This follows the decision by the authorities in Gaza not to allow women to participate.” The response from Hamas - which has banned women from riding on the backs of motorcycles & men from working in hair salons - was predictable: "We regret this decision to cancel the marathon but we don't want men & women running together," Abdessalam Siyyam, cabinet secretary of the Hamas government said. The race, which included women last year, would’ve raised money for UN summer camps for children in Gaza. (Read more at the Saudi Gazette)
Mohamed Nasheed, Former Maldives President, Arrested In Abuse Of Power Case
(Video IBNLive)
Authorities say the former president of the Maldives, the first-democratically elected leader, Mohamed Nasheed was arrested Tuesday in the nation's capital Male on charges of abuse of power during his tenure. He was taken into custody by armed police almost 2 weeks after he left the Indian High Commission in Male where he had sought refuge for almost 11 days after a warrant was issued for his detention. Nasheed is charged with ordering the military to unconstitutionally detain the Chief Judge of the Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed, while he was head of state. Many of the ex-president’s supporters claim the charges against Nasheed are intended to keep him from attempting to reclaim the presidency in elections scheduled for September 7. (Read more at GulfToday)
Criminal court accused takes early lead in Kenya election
(Video Euronews)
Millions of Kenyans have poured into polling stations to cast their ballots in a crucial, anxiously awaited presidential election in which a candidate charged with crimes against humanity appeared a real chance to emerge the winner. Early results show deputy premier Uhuru Kenyatta, who has been accused of financing death squads, has taken the lead. He is reportedly ahead of PM Raila Odinga in the 1st elections since a disputed presidential run-off vote sparked ethnic clashes in December 2007, in which 1000 died. With nearly 1/3 of the votes counted, Mr. Kenyatta has received about 54% & Mr. Odinga about 41%. Six other candidates trailed by a wide margin. (Read more at the SMH)
UN Human Rights Chief calls for North Korea investigation
(PHOTO: Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, May 2012)Navi Pillay says North Korea's network of shadowy political prison camps is believed to contain 200,000 or more people & to have been the scene of rampant violations including rapes, torture, executions & slave labor - and she's calling for an international investigation into what she said may be `crimes against humanity'. She voiced regret there had been no improvement since Kim Jong-un took power a year ago, succeeding his late father, & said it was time for world powers to help bring about change for the "beleaguered, subjugated population" after decades of abuse. "Because of the enduring gravity of the situation, I believe an in-depth inquiry into one of the worst - but least understood & reported - human rights situations in the world is not only fully justified, but long overdue," Pillay said in a rare statement on North Korea.
(MAP: Some of North Korea's prison camps/HRNK) Pillay herself is a former judge at the International Criminal Court. Living conditions in the camps are reported to be "atrocious" with insufficient food, little or no medical care & inadequate clothing for inmates. Pillay said she regretted that international concerns over North Korea's nuclear program & rocket launches were overshadowing "the deplorable human rights situation in the DPRK which, in one way or another, affects almost the entire population and has no parallel anywhere else in the world." (Read more at Haaretz)
Cyclone Dumile Strikes La Réunion
(PHOTO: Le Port, Reunion Island/R. Bouhet, AFP)This photo shows Le Port, in the western part of the Indian Ocean French Overseas territory island of La Réunion, after Cyclone Dumile hit yesterday. Winds of up to 180kph & torrential rain caused extensive damage, knocking out power to 100,000 homes. La Reunion does hold the world record for the heaviest daily rainfall from 1966 when 1825mm of rain was recorded in just 24 hours; though Dumile was far more modest in terms of rainfall totals. The storm also struck Mauritius & Madagascar.
Planet At Night
(PHOTO: Flat map at night/NASA)Using new satellite capabilities, scientists from NASA & NOAA have released new imagery of Earth at night; providing an improved “Black Marble” counterpart to the iconic “Blue Marble” photo of the planet during the day. We first saw Earth from a 12/7/72 picture taken by Apollo 17 astronauts; NASA released improved `Blue Marble' photos earlier this year.
Climate Cliff, Spells `SOS'
(INFOGRAPHIC: Visual.ly)
After 36 hours of non-stop negotiation & 2 weeks of meetings in Doha, Qatar almost 200 nations agreed to a pact called the `Doha Climate Gateway' Saturday - intended to combat climate change & extend the life of the Kyoto Protocol until 2020; the only binding world treaty on curbing greenhouse gas emissions signed in 1997 & whose 1st leg expires December 31. Russia objected to the agreement & said it retains the right to appeal. Greenpeace'sKumi Naidoo calls it a betrayal, "setting us up to lose this decade". UN chief Ban Ki-moon said that what's needed most is "to accelerate action on the ground by limiting the global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius."@HUMCLIMATE
Cyclone Evan Slams Fiji, Leaves Thousands Homeless in Samoa
(Video: AJE)
As Cyclone Evan batters Fiji thousands of people took refuge in evacuation centers & airlines suspended flights in & out of the country on Monday. The military government warned that Evan could be the most destructive cyclone since 1993 to hit the island, one of the Pacific's biggest tourist centers. Winds of up to 200km/h battered homes, some, "flying through the air". Meanwhile, New Zealand rescuers are searching for 10 fishermen missing off Samoa since the cyclone hit the island nation & damage there is thought to be "worse than from a 2009 earthquake & tsunami" that killed 135 people.
An Heir for North Korea?
(PHOTO: In this image made from video, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, 2nd from left in front row & his wife Ri Sol Ju, left, attend a ceremony to reopen the mausoleum where his father's embalmed remains will lay/KCNA)As North Korea marked the 1st anniversary of the death of its former leader, Kim Jong-il, the nation’s current leader Kim Jong-un & his wife may be expecting. Kim’s wife, Ri Sol Ju, was seen on state TV wearing a billowing traditional Korean dress, walking slowly next to her husband at the Kumsusan mausoleum, where they bowed before statues of Kim’s father & grandfather. State media has not confirmed Ri to be pregnant, but there was speculation in October that she could be after she failed to appear in public for about 50 days. If Ri is pregnant & it's a boy, he will likely be groomed to become the country’s next leader, as his family’s dynasty has ruled since the end of WW2. (Read more at the National Post)
Malaysia lands one of biggest-ever Ivory stash
(PHOTO: Inspectors at Port Klang with Ivory plats/TRAFFIC)Customs officials at Port Klang, Malaysia have seized an enormous illegal haul of 1,500 elephant tusks thought to have originated in Togo, through Spain, ultimately headed for China. Togo is known to be a major source of ivory exiting Africa says the Elephant Trade Information System, managed by the wildlife monitoring organization TRAFFIC. This is the 4th seizure of African elephant ivory at Port Klang & the 6th in the country since July 2011.2011 was described by trade experts as the worst year for elephants in decades. (PHOTO: Inspectors at Port Klang with Ivory plats/TRAFFIC)
Devastation in the Philippines
(PHOTO: ICRC)The death toll from the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year - `Bopha', or `Pablo' - climbed above 700 people, with 100's more missing, many of them tuna fishermen feared lost at sea. The storm destroyed 115,000 houses & unleashed floods & landslides across the main southern island of Mindanao on 12/4 - obliterating entire communities. Here, in New Bataan, Compostela Valley province, Eastern Mindanao, people collect emergency food kits & basic household items at the Red Cross.
Kathmandu International Film Festival to Open
(Video: Future Guardians, a film about Educating Nepal)
The 10th Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival (KIMFF) is taking place in Nepal from December 7 to 11. Altogether 62 documentaries, fiction, short films, animation films from 28 countries will be screened during the festival to be held at the City Hall. Chairperson of KIMFF Basant Thapa says an additional attraction for this year is the screening of the 10 best films from the "Educating Nepal" short film competition held earlier this year. Also part of the festival is interaction on films, photography, a book fair & a documentary workshop. The Festival will opens with the Nepal premiere of “Who Will Be A Gurkha”, a documentary by Kesang Tseten, (Read more at Republica)
Longest Serving Monarch in World Celebrates Birthday
(Video: Telegraph)
A jubilant, crowd packed the Royal Plaza in Thailand today as more than 200,000 well-wishers in yellow listened to His Majesty the King's 85th birthday speech from the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall balcony. King Bhumibol Adulyadej known as Rama IX is the longest serving monarch in the world, having reigned since June 9, 1946; & he is the world's longest-serving current head of state & the longest-reigning monarch in Thai history. His Majesty's grand audience was broadcast live & watched by millions of people across the country. It's been 6 years since His Majesty last gave a grand audience at Dusit Palace in Bangkok. (Read more at the Bangkok Post)
Political Crisis in Paradise: Sao Tome and Principe
(Video: Mario Lopes/YOUTUBE)
Sao Tomé & Principe in the Gulf of Guinea, off the west equatorial coast of Central Africa, is living a constitutional crisis. Scenes of fist fighting in the National Assembly, & a mass protest calling for early elections has plunged this nation into rare chaos. Opposition MPs which constitute a majority, have brought down the government by censuring it in a parliamentary session on 11/29. On the one hand the parties in opposition - Movement to Liberate São Tomé & Príncipe (MLSTP), the Democratic Convergence Party (PCD), & the Democratic Movement Force of Change (MDFM) do not want early elections & the party in power - led by PM Patrice Trovoada(of Democratic Independent Action, or ADI) - wants them. Among the list of accusations presented were alleged “acts of corruption, taking on negotiations overseas with ‘private companies sidelining the respective ministers with oversight, without the awareness of other sovereign bodies, & even less so with public knowledge'”, as newspaper Jornal Vitrina reported. (Read more at Global Voices)
Voyager 1 Reaches Interstellar Shore
(Video NASA/JPL)
35 years & 2 months ago on September 5, 1977,NASAlaunched theVoyager 1spacecraft to study the outer edges of our Solar System. As the spacecraft, also travelling alongside its twin probe Voyager 2 - gets ever closer to becoming mankind's 1st interstellar emissary, mission scientists have announced the probe has now entered a new & mysterious region of theheliospherenicknamed the `magnetic highway.' (The heliosphere is the sphere of influence of our sun; basically a bubble in interstellar space inflated by the sun where all planets, spacecraft & satellites are contained within.) After completing its primary mission of planetary exploration many years ago, the Voyager's have been travelling through the outermost reaches of the solar system, rapidly approaching the edge - called theheliopause.
(PHOTO: Voyager 1/2 are both carrying a `Golden Record' with information about Earth, should the crafts encounter intelligent life/NASA.JPL)Although data collected by the aging Voyager 1 have been showing strong signs of flying beyond the heliopause, mission scientists are saying `not so fast'. It seems that thesolar windcarrying the craft is channeling solar particles forcing pressure back at Voyager. Scientists have said, "we didn't know this was there." But, says Edward Stone, Voyager project scientist, "We believe this is the last leg of our journey to interstellar space. Our best guess is it's likely just a few months to a couple years away. The new region isn't what we expected, but we've come to expect the unexpected from Voyager."(Read more atDiscovery)
Oldest Microbrewery Found in Cyprus
(PHOTO: University of Manchester)University of Manchester archaeologists, digging in Western Cyprus since 2007 have unearthed a site thought to be the world's oldest brewery from the Bronze Age, approx 3,500 years ago. Excavated were a mud-plaster domed structure, used as a kiln to dry malt & make variously flavored beers brewed & fermented with yeasts, produced from grapes or figs. The resulting brew had an alcohol content of about 5%; & the beer may even have been sold in the 50m long courtyard found, which was the bar area.
Djibouti In Need
(PHOTO: Harbi Abdillahi Omar)HORN OF AFRICA: Djibouti's Ali Addeh refugee camp is home to an estimated 25,000 refugees & by 2013 will total 30,000 according to UNICEF. The situation remains precarious - lack of drinking water, recurring droughts, malnutrition & food shortages are the norm here for asylum seekers from Somalia, Ethiopia, & Eritrea heading to Yemen & the Gulf States. Even more broadly approximately 120,000 people living in Northwest, Central & Southeast Djibouti are in dire need of humanitarian assistance, due to 5 years of drought & rainfall deficit.
Second Bangladesh Garment Factory Fire In 24 Hours
(Video: Times of India)
Fire-fighters Monday doused a fresh factory fire near the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, a day after 1 of the deadliest blazes destroyed the Tazrin Fashion plant building in the Savar neighborhood, killing 124 people & raising questions about safety standards in the world’s 2nd largest garment-exporting nation. More than 500 manufacturers in the Ashulia area make apparel for top global retailers such as Wal-Mart, H&M, Tesco to JC Penney, Kohl’s, Marks & Spencer, & Carrefour. Officials & witnesses said the latest fire did not claim any life as most workers jumped out, breaking safety grills in the 10-story building housing 3 garment units. The fresh blaze came as the nation conducted a mass burial for victims burnt in Saturday night’s fire & police said they opened a “murder case”, attributing the incident to “criminal negligence”. Thousands of workers staged a protest Monday, demanding better labor protections. (Read more at Times of India)
New Zealand's Tongariro Volcano Erupts
(PHOTO: John Hull/TV New Zealand)New Zealand'sTongariro Volcano erupted November 21, with no warning; lasting 5 minutes at 1:25p local time. 5 reported eruptions occurred here between 1855 & 1897; it's been dormant, since. Scientists warn there could be more activity "for the next week or 2, at least"; & last week warned of possible eruption at neighboring volcano, Mt. Ruapehu. The `Volcanic Alert Level' changed from 1 to 2; & the Aviation Colour Code from Yellow to Red due to the spread of an ash cloud, extending 15,000 feet.
Palestine Sets November 29th for UN Bid
(Video: Slate)
(UPDATE, 11/26/12) - The spokesman for the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the UN said President Mahmoud Abbas will address the 193-member world body before the resolution is put to a vote. Approval would give the Palestinians the same status at the UN as the Holy See. There are no vetoes in the General Assembly & the resolution, which needs a majority vote for approval, is virtually certain to be adopted.
(PHOTO: Ripe coconuts on a tree/HN file) The international collection of the South Pacific'scoconut palm species, held at a field gene bank in Papua New Guinea (PNG), is under threat from a disease outbreak located close to the center housing the samples. The warning came at a meeting on the Pacific coconut research & development strategy in Samoa last week, convened by the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research & the Secretariat of the Pacific Community. The deadly disease, Bogia Coconut Syndrome is named after the town of Bogia on mainland PNG, & appears to be caused by bacteria similar to one that causes Lethal Yellowing disease that attacks palm species. Ironically, PNG was selected as the site for the gene bank in the 1990s because the country was relatively free of coconut pests & diseases. The gene bank holds 3,200 coconut palms, representing 57 different varieties of Cocos nucifera, & is 1 of 5 coconut collections around the world. (Read more at Nature)
18 Nations Elected to UN Human Rights Council
On Monday, members of the UNGeneral Assembly voted on elections to the UN Human Rights Council. The General Assembly created the body in March 2006, made up of 47 UN member states - elected by the 193-member General Assembly to replace its widely discredited predecessor, the Human Rights Commission. All nations elected today will serve a 3-year term beginning January 1st. The US won a 2nd consecutive term, after choosing not to take part in the past; while Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Pakistan, the UAE, Estonia, Montenegro, Germany, Ireland, Argentina, Brazil & Venezuela all take seats representing their region. Of the 18 countries elected Monday, human rights advocates say only about a third are qualified & have adequate human rights records of their own. (Read more at the UN News Centre)
Another United State?
(Video NewsyPolitics)
On Tuesday, the US-territory of Puerto Rico voted by 61% approval to become the US' 51st state. The Congress would have to approve the bid. Complicating matters, the pro-statehood Governor Luis Fortuno lost his bid for re-election in a close race against Alejandro Garcia Padilla who supports the island's current status as Puerto Ricans being US citizens, using the same money & passports; with limited representation in government, who can't vote in US presidential elections. Hawaii was the last state entered into the union on August 21, 1959. (HN)
Tibetans Immolate to Free Region From China
(Video NTD TV)
5 Tibetans set themselves on fire in China in an unprecedented string of protests ahead of the country's once-in-a-decade leadership change. All 5 self-immolations took place on Wednesday, the eve of a pivotal week-long Communist Party congress which will end with the transitioning of power to Chinese VP Xi Jinping, who will govern for the coming decade. Individual self-immolations to protest Chinese rule in Tibet have occurred regularly since March 2011, but this is the first time such a large number of burnings have happened on the same day. (Read more at News.COM.AU)
Guatemala Earthquake Kills 50 People
(Video IBTimesUK)
Devastation in the mountainous state of San Marcos in Guatemala - as shown on a local TV station. Scores of people trapped under rubble after an earthquake - which measured 7.4 on the Richter scale - struck 15 miles south of its Pacific coast. It has so far claimed the lives of at least 50 people across the country, destroying homes, cars & businesses. The tremor hit around 10:30AM local time, & damage was reported in all but one of its 22 states. Shaking was even felt as far away as Mexico City - 600 miles to the NW of the country. Eyewitnesses spoke of people running all over the place & screaming. Through the night & into the morning brave rescuers continued to search for survivors, but 5 aftershocks meant their efforts were being hampered. Many areas remain blocked by landslides, with no phone, electricity or water. (Read more at The Guatemala Times)
Ghana Building Collapse Blamed on Faulty Construction
(PHOTO: Ghana Web)Faulty construction & a bad concrete mix are being blamed for the collapse of the multi-storey Melcom shopping centre collapse in Ghana's capital, Accra, killing at least 9 people, said a spokeswoman for Ghana's National Disaster Management Organization, Kate Adobaya. "The building did not have the necessary permit & had not had a safety inspection. The foundation was not good enough." President John Dramani Mahama said those responsible for the "negligence will pay a price". Rescue efforts are continuing, with 69 survivors pulled from under the rubble since Wednesday, police said. It is not known many people are still trapped. An Israeli rescue team has arrived, using sniffer dogs at the site. (Read more at The Ghana News Agency)
Mali: Finally on the World agenda?(PHOTO: Ansar al Dine fighters in Northern Mali/Al-Monitor)On Thursday, UN Deputy Secretary General Jan Eliasson said the international community was united in its goal to help Mali end a crisis which has seen radical Islamists take over the country's north, where it has implemented Sharia law. Just back from emergency talks in the capital city Bamako, where along with the UN, the African Union & the West African regional bloc ECOWAS, the veteran Swedish diplomat said the strategy will be to "establish constitutional order & achieve national unity to return respect of the country's territorial integrity".
(Video: Algeria TV)
His remarks came amid news that the African Union, which suspended Mali after a March coup, had agreed to reinstate the country's membership in a move to curb the extremist threat which followed the uprising, giving free rein to a rebellion by Islamic extremists & Tuareg separatists who took over an area in the North the size of France. Now, reports of jihadist fighters from Sudan & Western Sahara arriving to reinforce the Islamist rebels has added urgency to the international debate.
Hundreds of demonstrators in Panama burned tires & clashed with police hours after the National Assembly approved legislation allowing the sale of land in the duty-free zone of Colon, at the Caribbean end of the Panama Canal where more than 2,000 companies operate in the lucrative free trade port area. Work in the expansion of the canal, going on for years, should be completed in time for its 100th anniversary in 2014.
(PHOTO: Protestors in Colon, Panama/BBC) Protesters fear the new legislation will cost jobs & cut incomes. President Ricardo Martinelli appealed for calm & said the sale of state-owned land will benefit the region. According to the law, 35% of the proceedings generated by the sale of land will go to a trust for "social investments" in the area. The other 65% will go the central government in the Central American nation. (Read more at the BBC)
Cuba to allow citizens to freely travel abroad
Beginning January 14, 2013, Cubans will be able to leave the island with only a valid passport & visa from the country of destination, without first obtaining exit permits, the Foreign Ministry announced Tuesday. The long-awaited immigration reform eliminates the presentation of a letter of invitation from the host country & the processing of the “carte blanche” needed by Cubans for decades to leave the country. The reform also extends permission to stay abroad from 11 to 24 months as current laws prohibit Cubans uninterrupted stays abroad under penalty of losing their property on the island & the possibility of being able to return. In mid-2011, President Raul Castro’s government announced immigration reform as part of a series of profound economic adjustments to “update” the Cuban model with market elements. It remains unclear whether the measure will allow temporary travel abroad for political dissidents such as bloggers like Yoani Sanchez, who has been denied exit visas on 20 occasions. (Read more at Havana Times)
One of biggest art heists in history takes place in Netherlands
(PHOTO: Dutch police handout shows 3 paintings stolen; L to R - Tete d’Arlequin by Pablo Picasso; La Liseuse en Blanc et Jaune by Henri Matisse & Autoportrait by Meyer de Haan)On Monday night thieves pulled off 1 of the biggest art heists in history taking 7 masterpieces, including priceless works by Picasso, Matisse, Monet and Gauguin, from Rotterdam’s Kunsthal museum in the Netherlands, police said. The paintings are Pablo Picasso’s “Tete d’Arlequin”, Henri Matisse’s “La Liseuse en Blanc et Jaune”, Claude Monet’s “Waterloo Bridge, London” & “Charing Cross Bridge, London”, Paul Gauguin’s “Femme Devant une Fenetre Ouverte, dite La Fiancee”, Meyer de Haan’s“Autoportrait” & Lucian Freud’s“Woman with Eyes Closed”. The gang managed to raid the high-security museum & slip back into the night with such skill they didn't even set off the 'state-of-the-art' alarm system, snatching the paintings straight from the walls of the museum which was showcasing a private collection of over 150 works & had only been open for a few days. Roland Ekkers, a spokesman for Rotterdam police, said they received a call alerting them to the theft at around 3 a.m. local time Tuesday. (Read more at Daily Mail)
Taliban shoots teenage peace campaigner in targeted assassination
(PHOTO: Malala Yousufzai, peace campaigner/THENEWS.PK) The Tehrik-i-Taliban of Pakistan claimed responsibility for an attack Tuesday on a 14 year-old teenage peace campaigner, Malala Yousufzai as she was returning from her school in Mingora town of Swat valley. They shot her in the head & said they did so for her pro-peace, anti-Taliban, ‘secular’ agenda. The assassination attempt took place on a school bus & 2 other girls were also wounded; all were taken to a local hospital & then to the NW city of Peshawar for further treatment, but doctors said they were out of danger.
(PHOTO: The Dawn) Malala won international recognition for highlighting Taliban atrocities in Swat with a blog for the BBC Urdu service 3 years ago, when the Taliban led by radical cleric Maulana Fazlullah burned girls’ schools & terrorized the valley - a place known traditionally as popular with holidaymakers for its stunning mountains, balmy summer weather & winter skiing. Malala was awarded the country's first National Peace Award & in 2011 was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize by advocacy group Kids Rights Foundation.(Read More at Gulfnews)
Maldives first democratically elected President on trial
(PHOTO: Supporters of former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed in Male/Minivan News) Hundreds of protesters gathered near the President’s Office in the Maldives capitol of Male on Monday night before former President Mohamed Nasheed attended a preliminary hearing Tuesday afternoon. The country’s 1st democratically elected president was taken into police custody after the Hulhumale Magistrate Court issued a warrant for his arrest over the weekend. The notice came exactly 7 months after Nasheed’s ousting & followed his defiance of a court-ordered travel ban outside the capital Male, & 2 court summons.
(PHOTO: Mohamed Nasheed outside court Tuesday/The Hindu)At this afternoon's court proceeding, the state read the charges, & Nasheed stated that the trial reflected the “grave” situation that the democracy of the Maldives is in, saying, “Honorable judges, this charge against me is a deliberate attempt by the prosecutor general to bar the presidential candidate of the largest opposition political party of this country from contesting the next presidential elections”. The next announced hearing will be held November 4, 2012. (Read More at Minivan News)
Amid continuing concern for journalists' safety, guerrillas claim bombing of radio station
(PHOTO: Paraguay EPP guerillas/RWB)Reporters Without Borders joins the Paraguayan Journalists’ Union (SPP) in demanding justice & protection for the journalists who were the target of a bomb attack by 2 gunmen last week in the northern department of Concepción. Claiming to be members of the Paraguayan People’s Army (EPP), the 2 gunmen left 3 bombs inside Guyra Campana, a privately-owned radio in the town of Horqueta on the evening of October 4. 2 of them exploded, causing serious damage & forcing the station off the air. Police defused the 3rd after it failed to go off.
Saudi Arabia Refuses Entry to Nigeria Women For Hajj
(PHOTO: BBC) Saudi Arabia has begun to expel 1,100 Nigerian women pilgrims for violating the kingdom's rule which prohibits Muslim women from entering the country without a male guardian. The government-run el-Eqtisad website quotes an unnamed Saudi official Friday as saying the women were detained after landing at the international airport in Jiddah. On Thursday, 171 were sent back. The report says some of the women have been detained since Monday. In Saudi Arabia, women must be accompanied by or have permission from a "mahram" - a male guardian - in order to travel. But in the past, authorities allowed women to perform the annual hajj pilgrimage in groups with male tour operators. There was no explanation for why the authorities were now enforcing the rule. (Via ABCNEWS)
Russia's Continued Disdain for NGO's Targets USAID
(PHOTO: File/AFP)Russia said on Wednesday it has given USAID until October 1 to stop work in the country, claiming it was meddling in domestic politics. The decision may also seriously harm the operations of a string of NGOs that are heavily dependent on its funding, including vote monitor Golos that pointed out irregularities in recent elections. The unexpected move appears part of an increasing crackdown in Russia on civil society after President Vladimir Putin's return to the Kremlin for a 3rd term in May amid an outburst of street protests. "The decision was taken mainly because the work of the agency's officials far from always responded to the stated goals of development & humanitarian cooperation," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement. (Read more at AFP)
Somalia Elects First President in 21 Years
(Video: Standard Group Kenya)
Somalia’s lawmakers voted overwhelmingly on Monday for political newcomer Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to be the country’s next president, with the streets of the capital erupting into celebratory gunfire. An academic, & activist, Mohamud was immediately sworn in following the vote. The country’s lawmakers were voting in the first poll of its kind since the organized government fell into chaos & clan conflict in 1991. Mohamud, seen as a moderate, defeated incumbent President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed in a 3rd round run-off after 2 of 4 candidates who made it to the 2nd round of voting opted out. Speaker of parliament Mohamed Sheikh Osman said the new president won in a landslide; declaring, "Sharif Sheikh Ahmed got 79 votes. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud got 190 votes."(Read more at The State)
Red Cross Chief Pleads for Greater Syrian Civilian Protections
(SOURCE: Cablemap.info)Greg’s Cable Map is an attempt to consolidate all the available information about the world’s undersea communications infrastructure & provide a map along with raw data. See “The Economic Impacts of Broadband” for more information on how the internet & broadband internet access has an impact on a country’s GDP. (Read more at the World Bank)
Asia Typhoon Season Causing Food Price Spikes
(PHOTO: News Channel Asia) An intense & active typhoon season continues in parts of Asia. This weekend at least 27 people were killed during `Kai-Tak'; which swept across northern provinces of Vietnam. On Sunday, parts of Hanoi remained flooded & flash floods still posed a risk. Meanwhile, repeated storms this season have hit more than 10 cities in China, where on Friday, the same storm also left 2 dead & 2 others missing as it passed across southern parts of the country, destroying some 4,200 homes in Guangdong province. In Singapore, the storms have caused a food price pinch where certain types of vegetables imported from China, including carrots, radishes, cabbage & onions have seen a 5% increase. Wholesalers said they have been importing vegetables from various sources in a bid to minimize price fluctuations - and at least 2 more storms are on the way. Typhoon "Igme" has gained strength as it moves in waters off the northern Philippines on Monday night, likely to move toward Taiwan by Tuesday; additionally, Tembin, the 14th storm of the Pacific typhoon season, was just named & is packing winds of 119 kph, with gusts of up to 155 kph, also expected to reach Taiwan later this week. (Read more at Channel Asia)
The 16th Non-Aligned Movement Summit Opens in Tehran
(Video: PRESSTV)
Taking place in Tehran, Iran from August 26 to 31, representatives from over 150 countries are attending this gathering. The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a group of 120 members & 17 observer countries who don't consider themselves to be formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. This year, the UNSecretary General, 27 presidents, 2 kings and emirs, 7 prime ministers, 9 vice presidents, 2 parliament spokesmen & 5 special envoys travelled to Tehran where Iran is taking over from Egypt as Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement for the period 2012 to 2015. On Tuesday, foreign ministers of the NAM issued a draft statement on Syria, saying that the crisis must be resolved without foreign intervention & welcomed Lakhdar Brahimi as the representative of the UN Secretary General for Syria, replacing Kofi Annan.
In New Year's Speech North Korea Leader Says Wants to `Remove Confrontation'
(Video: New Year's Eve, 2012/Telegraph)
In a domestically televised New Year’s Day speech, North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-un said he wants to “remove confrontation” on the divided Korea peninsula. The lengthy address, which laid out the country's goals for the year, marked Kim’s 1st formal remarks since the election 2 weeks ago of Park Geun-hye as South Korea’s next president, who takes office next month. Kim asked for a detente - but with prerequisites that the conservative Park is likely to be reluctant to accept. Those agreements call for, among other things, economic ties, high-level government dialogue & the creation of a special “cooperation” zone in the Yellow Sea, where the North & South spar over a maritime border.
(PHOTO: New Year's Day address, 2012/KCNA)Park, has said she will resume humanitarian exchanges & small economic projects with the North - but has pledged to hold off on major economic cooperation unless the North disassembles its nuclear weapons program. Kim's father, Kim Jong-il, who ruled for 17 years, only addressed North Korean citizens once verbally, preferring the New Year’s message to be delivered in a lengthy editorial carried by the state-run newspapers. The previous live address for January 1 was last given by North Korea’s founder, Kim Il-sung, in 1994, months before his death. (Read more at the ChosunIlbo)
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Dreams and nightmares - Chinese leaders have come to realize the country should become a great paladin of the free market & democracy & embrace them strongly, just as the West is rejecting them because it's realizing they're backfiring. This is the "Chinese Dream" - working better than the American dream. Or is it just too fanciful? By Francesco Sisci
The South: Busy at the polls - South Korea's parliamentary polls will indicate how potent a national backlash is against President Lee Myung-bak's conservatism, perceived cronyism & pro-conglomerate policies, while offering insight into December's presidential vote. Desire for change in the macho milieu of politics in Seoul can be seen in a proliferation of female candidates. By Aidan Foster-Carter
Pakistan climbs 'wind' league - Pakistan is turning to wind power to help ease its desperate shortage of energy,& the country could soon be among the world's top 20 producers. Workers & farmers, their land taken for the turbine towers, may be the last to benefit. By Zofeen Ebrahim
Turkey cuts Iran oil imports -Turkey is to slash its Iranian oil imports as it seeks exemptions from United States penalties linked to sanctions against Tehran. Less noticed, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the Iranian capital last week, signed deals aimed at doubling trade between the two countries. By Robert M. Cutler
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(PHOTO: A boat carrying asylum seekers & migrants in the Mediterranean Sea. UNHCR/L.Boldrini)(October 9, 2012) - Six people died and 10 are still missing after a small vessel carrying 24 people capsized on Monday morning off the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, the United Nations Refugee Agencyreported today.
“The capsizing is a reminder of the risks faced by people desperate to escape poverty, conflict and persecution,”Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told reporters in Geneva.
“As in the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Aden, the seas around Mayotte are the scene of irregular movements of migrants and refugees searching for a better life or protection from persecution and war.”
For decades, people have been using small open vessels known as “kwassa-kwassa” to sail from the Comoros to the more prosperous French territory of Mayotte, according to UNHCR.
(PHOTO: A general view of the island of Mayotte/UNHCR)Most of these movements take place without the requisite documentation and involve considerable risk to those attempting them. Asylum-seekers account for a small proportion of these movements but their numbers have been increasing in the last two years, Mr. Edwards said.
UNHCR said that last year there were some 1,200 applications for asylum in Mayotte, 41 per cent more than in 2010. The largest proportion of applicants – about 90 per cent – came from the Comoros, with citizens from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Rwanda and Burundi, accounting for the rest.
Mayotte: Is an overseas department and region of France consisting of a main island, Grande-Terre a smaller island, Petite-Terre, and several islets around these two. The archipelago is located in the northern Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, namely between northwestern Madagascar and northeastern Mozambique. Mayotte's area is 374 square kilometers and with its estimated 194,000 people is very densely populated. Its biggest city and prefecture is Mamoudzou. The territory is geographically part of the Comoro Islands, but has been politically separate since a 1974 referendum in which it elected to remain under French rule. The territory is also known as Mahoré, the native name of its main island, especially by advocates of its inclusion in the Union of Comoros. In a 2009 referendum, the population overwhelmingly approved accession to status of department. On March 31, 2011, Mayotte became an overseas department. (By Alex Ohan)
Marie-Paul Kimakosa, 18, with 12 month-old son Emmanuel Mbolina, and Mado, 3 (sleeping). Formerly of Ngilima village, Marie-Paul lost her husband, her father, grand-father, grand-mother to the LRA. Two cousins have been kidnapped and not returned. She fled to Dungu where she has settled with other internationally displaced persons (IDP's). July 2011 PHOTO CREDIT: Oxfam International /via FlickrInfrequent observers of central Africa are startled and appalled to learn that the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan rebel group that emerged in the late 1980s, is still killing. Forced into the border zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Central African Republic (CAR) and South Sudan, its brutality can no longer be framed as political protest but rather survival by its own awful, time-tested method.
However, military and civilian efforts to stop the LRA are gaining momentum and there is now a precious opportunity to end the nightmare of thousands. To make the most of it, African leaders and foreign partners should commit to an immediate military push and measures to help traumatised communities recover in the long-term.
In late 2008 Joseph Kony, the group’s leader, refused to sign a peace deal with the Ugandan government. Talks collapsed and the Ugandan army botched a US-backed assault on the LRA’s camps in north-eastern DRC. Since then it has been trying to catch Kony and scattered, highly mobile groups of fighters in dense forest.
The political agendas of the region’s leaders have made a difficult job even harder. Since the LRA no longer presents an immediate threat to Ugandans, there is understandably little domestic pressure on Museveni to invest the men and money needed to complete the mission. He has prioritised other more politically rewarding goals, including his re-election in February 2011 and beefing up the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). In mid-2010 he pulled out about half the troops assigned to the operation. The campaign of attrition became markedly more passive and for months was little more than a cordon preventing the LRA’s return to Uganda. Local armies meanwhile have neither the will nor the strength to protect their people, let alone hunt down Kony’s fighters.
The DRC’s tolerance of a Ugandan military presence on its soil has been exhausted. During the second Congo war (1998-2003) Uganda occupied part of Congo’s territory, plundered its natural resources and earned President Joseph Kabila’s lasting mistrust. A deeply engrained animosity has seen the Congolese army deny the Ugandans access to LRA areas and in October 2011 forbid them to leave camp, reportedly on pain of death. Most of the LRA is in the CAR but could cross back into Congo at any time and find safe haven.
The LRA is inevitably a low priority for the governments of Uganda, the DRC, CAR and South Sudan sitting hundreds of kilometres away in country capitals. But an outcry from local civil society and pressure from human rights groups, particularly in the U.S, has made it difficult for western partners to stand idle.
Under direction from Congress, the US. government has committed to using political, economic, military and intelligence means to eliminate the LRA threat. The deployment in late 2011 of about 100 troops to Uganda, a minority of which have now advanced to south east CAR to advise and assist the Ugandans, is the clearest expression of US commitment to the fight.
The African Union (AU) is also in the process of launching its “regional cooperation initiative” to end the LRA. The three countries affected by Kony’s violence pushed the AU to the fore hoping it would bring in more funding. Looking to promote African ownership, the US also encouraged it. The AU’s limited capacity and difficulty reconciling the demands of affected member states and those of its main backer, the EU, have delayed the launch. But in November 2011 the AU appointed a special envoy to muster political will on the LRA issue and plans to reframe the operation as a “regional intervention force” thereby investing it with greater legitimacy.
US support, the AU initiative and other international interventions have now advanced far enough to present a genuine collective opportunity to end the LRA in the near future and enable afflicted communities to rebuild their lives in the long-term.
The U.S. military advisers in the field have the chance to embolden and strengthen Ugandan operations, in particular by improving communications and coordination among the troops and with host armies. But they will not be there long; just a matter of months according to US officials. While their expertise is on hand, while most LRA fighters are in the CAR and while the dry season allows for easier movement, the Ugandans should launch a concerted military push against the LRA, at all times prioritising civilian safety and accepting strict accountability for their actions.
As an essential complement to military pressure, the UN mission in Congo uses leaflets and radio messages to persuade LRA fighters and captives to leave the bush. Defectors say it works. The UN should take advantage of a healthy appetite among donors for such non-military measures and expand and intensify them as quickly as possible.
The UN, present in DRC, CAR and South Sudan, should also agree with government, military and humanitarian actors on procedures by which escapees are debriefed, taken home and helped to restart their lives. It should iron out unnecessary delays and funding gaps to be ready for greater numbers in the future. Assisting returnees should dovetail with long-term government and donor plans for stimulating social and economic recovery in hard-hit, border-zone communities.
For these collective efforts to come off, regional leaders, Museveni and Kabila in particular, will need to show their commitment to military and civilian efforts and cooperate. In particular, Kabila will need to allow Ugandan operations on Congolese soil and Museveni ensure his forces behave with total professionalism. It falls to Francisco Madeira, the AU special envoy, western partners and the UN to work with both on these issues.
Hoping for the best but planning for the worst, the AU should recognise the need to maintain political support among African leaders and international donors for comprehensive military and civilian efforts in the long-term, especially if domestic pressure sees the US reduce its role. This political commitment is critical to beating the LRA and enabling thousands of vulnerable families to live without fear.
DRC - photo courtesy of AlJazeera As people across the Democratic Republic of Congo wait for the country's election commission to announce the final results from presidential elections, there is a real sense of fear in the capital, Kinshasa.
After 16 nights here, it is not difficult to understand people's anxiety.
At least 18 have been killed in election-related violence and the situation has raised many questions.
Can this vast country deepen its democracy or democratise successfully given the conditions here, such as very poor infrastructure, tribalism, corruption, poor standards of education and insecurity?
Then, there is its history to consider.
When ordinary Congolese flocked to the polls on November 28, it was only the third democratic election to take place after some 51 years of independence from Belgium.
Chaos expected?
The question must be asked: do we expect too much from countries like the DRC in terms of their ability to conduct free, fair and transparent polls?
Should we expect logistical chaos, rigging, ballot box snatching, clashes between police and opposition party supporters as part of the path to democracy?
And when one looks at the world's most developed and stable democracies, one has to ask whether they experienced such challenges on the path towards building their democracy.
There is no doubt that holding this election is a positive step towards empowering the Congolese people, but there is still a very long way to go.
For starters, the manner in which elections are organised here needs to be overhauled.
Hundreds of thousands have missed out on casting their ballots, simply because ballot papers failed to arrive in many parts of the country, and the process of compiling results has been chaotic and confused.
There is not doubt that this will lead to some candidates losing their rightful place and some candidates wrongly assuming power.
Impact on the region
The poll needs to be decentralised and it is unreasonable for such a vast country to have one just one nerve center based in Kinshasa.
Political parties need to be strengthened so that those with the true ability get a chance to run for public office, and not just candidates who are wealthy.
Overhauling the elections and decentralizing the manner in which the polls are conducted will do much to improve the legitimacy of future elections.
Finally, there is a huge role to be played by members of the international community, remembering that this country borders nine others.
Its political maturity and its stability has ramifications for millions in Africa, beyond its borders. Much more needs to be done, in terms of training and funding projects, individuals and organisations, who are all working towards trying to improve democracy in the heart of Africa.
But above all, the country’s key political actors will have to learn to respect the will of the people at the ballot box, and put aside any personal interests in their quest for power.
Originally published by AlJazeera under Creative Commons Licensing
Democratic Republic of Congo, May 4, 2011 Photo courtesy of ICGby The International Crisis Group
(May 5, 2011) -- After four years of electoral inertia and in a stalled democratic process, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is preparing its second set of democratic elections in a hurry and on a rolling calendar. Opposition parties are trying to unite, thus far without success, and the international community is not in charge, as in effect it was the first time, in 2006.
The Congolese authorities face a dilemma: respect the constitutional deadline and organise botched elections, or ignore that deadline and slide into a situation of unconstitutional power. In both cases, the government’s legitimacy would be seriously questioned.
The only way out of this Catch-22 situation is to both speed up preparations and negotiate a contingency electoral calendar and political agreement to manage an almost certainly necessary transition period. More attention must also be paid to putting in place essential measures for transparency and inclusiveness, as well as a security system that will ultimately require important UN help. If these steps are not taken, foreign partners should disengage lest they lend undeserved credibility to a fundamentally flawed process.
Instead of signalling consolidation of democracy, the coming elections present at best a logistical problem and at worst a new cause of destabilisation for a country that has still not recovered from the long wars that marked the end of the Mobutu era and its denouement.
President Joseph Kabila’s ruling party has already launched its campaign, even before the official start of the electoral season, while the opposition is trying to find its “champion” for the presidential contest. More than logistical difficulties give reason for concern.
At the start of the year, a constitutional review removed the presidential election’s run-off round, making it a single winner-takes-all round to the incumbent’s benefit, other electoral law changes favouring the ruling party may happen soon, as the draft bill is still being discussed. Within what is a general climate of insecurity, intimidation of Kabila’s opponents has already become apparent. Despite last-minute integration of some armed groups into the Congolese army, insecurity is still rife in the Kivus, while unexplained security incidents, including an attempted coup, have occurred in the west.
Technical preparations are lagging. Neither the new electoral law, the voters list, nor the budget are ready. Set up a year late, the National Independent Electoral Commission (NIEC) is in a race against time. Registration is already controversial, funding of the electoral cycle is incomplete, and the electoral calendar published on 30 March, though it partially respects constitutional deadlines, is problematic.
The international community’s role is far more limited than in 2006, when it organised, financed and secured all aspects of the elections. However, it still provides 40 per cent of the funding, gives technical assistance and maintains about 17,000 UN troops in country. Given the risks of electoral illegitimacy, bias and violence, it should not stay in the background but instead make clear to the Congolese politicians that a postponed election would be better than a botched one.
The international community, including through the UN Security Council and an inclusive donors forum, should make clear the need for the Congolese authorities to include essential measures in the electoral system and apply the same standards as in 2006. In this respect, stepped-up political engagement is required, and new Special Envoys for the U.S., France and EU should be appointed; the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations (SRSG) has an equally significant role to play.
In order not to become trapped in a biased process that could all too easily become as violent as that which Côte d’Ivoire recently experienced, technical and financial assistance should be contingent on constant and precise monitoring of the freedom to campaign, respect for political pluralism, political violence, access to state media, dialogue with the Congolese authorities and state funding for the NIEC, as well as the opportunity for civil society groups to do their own monitoring of the process.
Congolese politicians and the international community should anticipate now the very real possibility that the 5 December constitutional deadline cannot be met. Negotiating a transition agreement with the opposition, setting a new deadline for organising the elections and limiting the business of government to routine matters during the transition would not yet guarantee a free and fair election, but it would avoid having a likely unconstitutional postponement of the elections become a crisis of legitimacy.
- The International Crisis Group is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisation committed to preventing and resolving deadly conflict. Recommendations by ICG on the above topic can be found here.
(HN, January 9, 2011) - A 55-year quest for freedom in southern Sudan makes a crucial home run today when over four million voters step out to cast their vote either to remain with their Arab and Muslim brothers or to become an independent state. The stakes are high for both sides and for Africa as a whole.Southern Sudan has considerable agricultural potential, but a lack of infrastructure - such as roads and storage facilities - and ongoing insecurity has limited production. CREDIT: Caroline Gluck, OXFAM
Sudanese President Omar Hassan El-Bashir pledged last week to abide by the result of today’s referendum, thereby dousing fears of a possible return to the trenches, in the event of southern voting to end its 113-year association with the Arab north.
El-Bashir, facing indictment in the International Court of Justice at The Hague, made what could be his last visit to the South as a united country last week and gave the world the assurance the north will not resort to violence to thwart the decision of the south. The vote is the result of a 2005 peace deal, which ended a 55-year conflict that has claimed the lives of two million people and left twice as many displaced.
El-Bashir held talks with southern Sudanese leader, Sylva Kiir, on issues bordering on citizenship rights, resource control, border demarcations, and the fate of the oil-rich Abyei, which is supposed to vote later on whether it should become part of the north or to join the south. Today’s referendum is part of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended one of Africa’s longest-running civil war. In the north, the ruling National Congress Party, led by Omar El-Bashir, is campaigning for unity while the former rebels under SPLM decided “to campaign for what the people want.”
Before the closure for registration last week, at least 3.4 million people in Sudan have registered to vote while Sudanese in Diaspora are also allowed to vote. Reports said aid agencies have been assisting to educate the illiterate rural population on how they will choose between two images on the ballot paper.
One of them is that of clasped hands symbolising “ unity.” The second symbol is a “single hand”, signalling separation from Khartoum. The vote for separation has united the diverse southern communities who are often divided along ethnic lines. There have been pro-separation rallies as the people look forward to end centuries of slavery and abuse at the hands of the Arabs in the north.
Sudan is located in the north-eastern part of Africa. It is the 10th largest country by land mass, combining the size of France, Britain, Germany and Belgium, put together. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea, to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, Kenya and Uganda to the southeast, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central Africa Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west and Libya to the northwest. The River Nile, world’s longest river, divides the country on the east and west.
Khartoum is the political, cultural and commercial capital of the nation, while Omdurman remains the largest city. Its population of 42 million people, Arab and Nubian origins who are Sunnis and the Dinkas and other diverse groups in the South.
Islam is the official and largest religion, while Arabic and English are the official languages. The pro-Islamic policies of the government led to a second civil war in 1983, followed by a bloodless coup d’etat in 1989. Under the dictatorial leadership of El-Bashir, Sudan has initiated a series of macroeconomic reforms which resulted in its economy being rated amongst the fastest growing in the world. Sudan is rich in natural resources including petroleum, with China and Japan as its main partners.
The British began the process of divide and rule in 1922, when the northerners were not allowed to travel over the 10th parallel south and southerners travel over the 8th north. This ensured that Muslims were stopped from spreading their faith southwards while the British supported the influx of Christian missionaries to the south. This was the basis for the dichotomy that existed till date.
The two cultures were never given a proper opportunity to interact, in the 55 years of the country’s independence. The north imposed its dominance by force and attempted to impose Sharia on southern Christians where illiteracy is almost 100 per cent; poverty is rife, healthcare is non-existent and starvation a frequent blight.
Flashpoints of conflict
Separatist movements in regions such as Darfur and the Nuba Mountains and border areas are watching the development in the vote today; in the same way other African and Arab countries are watching the development in Sudan.
‘Under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which brought civil war to an end, two referenda were agreed: one for southern secession or unity and the other to give Abyei the opportunity to choose to be part of the north or the south.
Oil diplomacy
Sudan has achieved great economic growth by implementing macroeconomic reforms and finally ended the civil war by adopting a new constitution in 2005 with rebel groups in the south, granting them limited autonomy to be followed by a referendum about independence in 2011.
The discovery of oil in the southern part of Sudan has been one of the problems of the country. It produces 500,000 barrels every day. Eighty per cent of the oil is in the south, while the pipeline runs to the north. It accounts for 70 per cent of government revenue and 93 per cent of its exports. South produces vast majority of oil, but north has means of processing.
El-Basir is proposing a wealth-sharing deal that splits oil profits 50-50 between north and south Sudan. The Chinese National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), runs the largest oil-extraction operation in the country. China has been roundly condemned for closing its eyes to human rights violations in Sudan because of the oil diplomacy. Its company has been accused of false declaration of oil production figures which puts the south in disadvantage. In the five years of peace, the north has shared $10 billion in oil revenue with south.
The suspicion that the north was hiding oil revenue almost derailed the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, three years ago. Bashir’s National Congress Party and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army must negotiate a new oil revenue-sharing agreement, and a “credible, independent” company must conduct a detailed audit of the country’s oil industry and release its findings in full to the public.
Observers believe that the ICC indictment of El-Bashir has put him under tremendous pressure and he is not in the mood to fight any more, but the UN, and some anti-genocide groups have set up Satellite Sentinel Project, along the border areas to monitor movement of persons and troops.
The surveillance project is to prevent a new civil war in the event that the south votes for secession in the referendum. “We want to let potential perpetrators of genocide and other war crimes to know that we’re watching, the world is watching,” they said. “War criminals thrive in the dark. It’s a lot harder to commit mass atrocities in the glare of the media spotlight.”
Today’s referendum is important for the people of Sudan and the world as it may see the birth of a new nation in Africa and the world.
This article originally appeared in the Vanguard Newspaper in Nigeria
In the DR Congo where the land is fertile enough to grow plenty of food and graze animals, constant moving as a result of war keeps children and adults alike malnourished. In the documentary above Doctors without Borders and VII photographer Franco Pagetti bring to light the result of war on this fertile soil.
The video story below of Somalian refugees fleeing to Dadaab, Kenya is but one example of the work UNHCR is doing and the condition many refugees from around the world live in today.
(HN, June 20, 2010) -- Today marks the 10th year that World Refugee Day will be recognized around the globe. From June 18 to 20 the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) commemorates World Refugee Day encouraging people from around the globe to host events in order to draw the public’s attention to the millions of refugees worldwide who are forced to flee their homes.
In 2000 The United Nations General Assembly, in Resolution 55/76 decided that from 2001, June 20 would be celebrated as World Refugee Day. UNHCR was originally established in 1950, to help an estimated 1 million Europeans uprooted as a result of World War II to return home. In the 1960’s, the decolonization of Africa produced the beginning of the continent’s many refugee crises. New waves of refugees emerged in the following decades as a result of displacement issues arising in Asia and Latin America, continuing in Africa and turning full circle, at the end of the century, in Europe from the series of wars in the Balkans.
Today the refugees of concern to the UNHCR span the globe. More than half are in Asia and another twenty-two percent in Africa. Latin American countries host hundreds of thousands of refugees, asylum-seekers and internally displaced persons (IDP’s); most come from Colombia. In the Middle East there are an estimated 1.8 million Iraqi’s seeking shelter overseas – while the largest number of refugees are from Palestinian territories with an estimated 4.7 million seeking a home. In Eastern Europe, statelessness, particularly as a result of the dissolution of the former Soviet Union, remains an issue of concern throughout the region. The precise number of people who are fleeing their homes in Eastern Europe is not known - but may be as high as 120,000 - as UNHCR is only beginning to quantify the problem.
Refugees live in a wide variety of conditions, from well-established camps and centers to makeshift shelters to living in the open. The United Nations Refugee Agency operates in 110 countries, this year, has a record annual budget of $3.058 billion (U.S.) for 2010 in order to help an estimated 40 million people return to their home of origin, integrate locally or resettle in a third country.
Among the longest-standing refugee camps are the ones located in the countries adjacent to the Palestinian Territories - Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. There is now an entire generation of young people who know no life outside the walls of a refugee camp. In some of the countries, the refugees are banned from working and their children have limited access to services.
The latest wave of refugees to become part of UNHCR's case load are the more than 100,000 refugees that have fled Kyrgyzstan because of ethnic violence.
So heavy is the strain on UNHCR's resources that the Geneva-based agency suffers from a chronic shortage of donor funds.
On World Refugee Day, Seeking a Place to call "Home" (VIDEO REPORT)
(UN News) -- The United Nations is marking World Refugee Day by urging governments and individuals not to forget the 15 million men, women and children who have been uprooted by conflict or persecution and are unable to return to their homes.
The theme for this year’s observance on 20 June is “Home,” and highlights the need to ensure that all refugees can have a place to call home, whether they return to their places of origin, settle in host countries or re-settle in a third country.
“Refugees have been deprived of their homes, but they must not be deprived of their futures,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a message to mark the Day, calling for working with host Governments to deliver services, and intensifying efforts to resolve conflicts so that refugees can return home.
A recent report by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) noted a decline in the number of refugees who are able to go home. In 2005, more than a million people returned to their own country on a voluntary basis.
Last year, only 250,000 did so – the lowest number in two decades. The reasons for this include prolonged instability in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and southern Sudan.
“Despite the decline in voluntary repatriation opportunities for refugees, UNHCR is working hard on solutions,” High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres said in his message.
Mr. Guterres is marking the Day in Syria, which, according to Government estimates, hosts over 1 million refugees, the majority from Iraq. It was announced today that 100,000 Iraqi refugees have been referred for resettlement from the Middle East to third countries since 2007, a major milestone for one of the world’s largest refugee populations.
He stressed the need to find solutions to help ensure that refugees have a place to call home, to do more to combat misunderstandings about refugees, and to provide education and other skills training so that even if they do not have homes they can still have a future.
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and award-winning actress Angelina Jolie is in Ecuador, where she is highlighting the challenges facing refugees.
“Having a home, a place where we belong, a place where we feel safe is something most of us take for granted,” she said on the occasion of World Refugee Day. “Yet those who flee from conflict and persecution no longer have their homes, and it will be years before they can even return. In fact, many may never go home again.”
There are around 51,000 registered Colombian refugees in Ecuador, but UNHCR estimates that about 135,000 people are in need of international protection. This makes Ecuador the country with the largest refugee population in Latin America.
Mr. Guterres and Ms. Jolie are taking part today, along with United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in a live video link – “WRD Live” – which will connect with Washington DC, Malaysia, Syria, northern Ecuador and DRC to talk to refugees about their experiences.
For the first time, the 79-year-old Empire State Building in New York will be lit blue on 20 June to honour the world’s refugees. Other global landmarks that will turn blue include the ancient Coliseum in Rome and – also for the first time – the bridge across the Ibar River in the divided Kosovo town of Mitrovica.
World Refugee Day activities also include film screenings, photography exhibitions, food bazaars, fashion shows, concerts and sports contests across countries in the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Americas and Africa.
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Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at 11:54AM 
(PHOTO: A boat carrying asylum seekers & migrants in the Mediterranean Sea. UNHCR/L.Boldrini)(October 9, 2012) - Six people died and 10 are still missing after a small vessel carrying 24 people capsized on Monday morning off the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, the United Nations Refugee Agency reported today.
(PHOTO: A general view of the island of Mayotte/UNHCR)Most of these movements take place without the requisite documentation and involve considerable risk to those attempting them. Asylum-seekers account for a small proportion of these movements but their numbers have been increasing in the last two years, Mr. Edwards said.
