BS: Should we care about Africans?

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,Al
Date: 07 Jan 09 - 08:26 AM

No, they are the responsibly of their government. We aren't the feeding bowl of the world. Sooner or later you have to realise that.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 09 Jan 09 - 07:37 AM

Cornering A Killer In Africa
By Michael Gerson
Friday, January 9, 2009; Page A17

On Dec. 14, the Ugandan army launched an attack on leaders of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Congo, targeting its commander, Joseph Kony.

Kony's epic career of murder has few equals. As both a rebel and a cult leader in northern Uganda, he led an army of stolen children and sex slaves, sometimes forcing his captives to engage in cannibalism and the murder of neighbors to sever ties of community and humanity. The LRA has been known to line roads with the heads of enemies. Terror and conflict displaced millions of Ugandans into camps. When Kony lost his havens in that country, he fled into the chaotic vastness of Congo, using the cover of peace negotiations to raise another force of terrorists and child soldiers.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/08/AR2009010803029.html

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 04 Feb 09 - 09:19 AM

Sudanese forces bomb outskirts of rebel-held town
      

Mon Feb 2, 1:50 pm ET AFP/File – The United States is gravely concerned …

CAIRO – Sudanese forces bombed the outskirts of a rebel-held town in southern Darfur Monday as the U.N. secretary general said peacekeepers would not heed a government request to leave the area.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told journalists in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa that the joint U.N.-African Union peackeeping force will remain in the town of Muhajeria and all sides needed to show restraint, urging rebels to pull out of the town.

"I urge maximum restraint on President Omar al-Bashir and have urged the Justice and Equality Movement rebels to withdraw from the city to protect innocent civilians," Ban said.

The force is there to protect civilians displaced by the six-year civil war in the arid western region of Sudan.

The spokesman for the peacekeepers, Nourredine Mezni confirmed to the Associated Press that government planes were bombing the outskirts of the town and some 5,000 residents were now taking refuge around the peacekeepers' compound.

JEM spokesman Ahmed Tugod said government planes were bombing the outskirts of the town Monday and asserted that his forces, which captured the town Jan. 15, would stay and fight government forces.

Sudan told the peacekeepers on Sunday to leave so that they could retake the town after rebels seized it.

U.N. and AU officials say they want the peacekeeping force to reach its full capacity of 26,000 soldiers and policemen by June.

Sudan regularly challenges the U.N.'s presence in the country. In January 2008, Sudan's army attacked a convoy of U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur, critically injuring a driver.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 05 Feb 09 - 07:16 AM

Washington Post- ( link requires password after a day or so)


Zimbabwe's False Hope

South Africa demands that the West aid a 'unity' government under Robert Mugabe. How to answer?


Thursday, February 5, 2009; Page A16

SOUTH AFRICA has won a round in its relentless campaign to preserve Robert Mugabe's hold over a dying Zimbabwe. With the help of its allies in the Southern Africa Development Community, South Africa succeeded last week in coercing opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai -- the winner of last year's presidential election -- into accepting a subordinate role in a "unity" government led by the 84-year-old strongman. The deal, which Mr. Tsvangirai bravely resisted for months, will leave Mr. Mugabe in charge of the country's last functioning institutions -- army and police forces that have been waging a campaign of murder, rape and torture against the opposition and human rights activists.

Mr. Tsvangirai relented because he believed that the frightful humanitarian emergency in Zimbabwe left him with little choice. The United Nations estimates that 7 million of the 9 million people remaining in the country need food aid this month. A cholera epidemic has so far infected more than 62,000 and killed 3,100. Schools, hospitals and most businesses have closed, the national currency has been discarded and unemployment is over 90 percent.

The opposition will be placed in charge of the finance, health and education ministries, which it hopes will allow it to solicit and distribute aid to prevent mass death from starvation and disease. As South Africa and its client more cynically calculate, Mr. Tsvangirai's appointment will compel the United States, Britain and other Western governments to lift sanctions and renew economic support, thus preventing what would otherwise be the inevitable collapse of Mr. Mugabe's regime.


The misery of Zimbabwe is indeed compelling -- but the Obama administration and other Western governments should reject South Africa's demands. It long ago became clear that Zimbabwe cannot recover as long as Mr. Mugabe remains in power. South Africa and other neighbors who insist on supporting the criminal regime are free to supply aid. But Western governments must maintain their sanctions -- especially those aimed at individual members of the Mugabe regime and the companies they control.

A State Department statement this week said the administration would consider new assistance and the lifting of sanctions "when we have seen evidence of true power sharing as well as inclusive and effective governance." What should that include? Mr. Tsvangirai himself is demanding the freeing of more than 30 opposition activists from prison. Legislation must be passed giving the opposition a measure of control over security forces, and replacing the central bank president -- a Mugabe crony -- with a technocrat. Restrictions on the press must be lifted and foreign journalists admitted. Perhaps most important, the government must agree on a plan for a new presidential election, with guarantees for fairness and full international monitoring.

If these steps were taken, Western aid to Zimbabwe might serve some purpose. But they won't be. "Zimbabwe is mine" is Mr. Mugabe's only principle. The first step in any rescue must be prying the country from his grip.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 06 Feb 09 - 01:34 PM

Not Jews against Palestinians, so nobody cares.



UN: Sri Lanka war zone facing food crisis
   
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – The United Nations warned Friday of a food crisis in Sri Lanka's north where some 250,000 civilians are trapped in fighting between government forces and Tamil rebels on the verge of defeat.

The military said it chalked up more victories on the ground, capturing the headquarters of a Tamil Tiger regiment responsible for the security of their top leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, on Friday.

"Troops surrounded the area so fast that the (fleeing) terrorists couldn't even take their flag," military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said.

The military's relentless offensive in recent months has almost routed the Tamil Tigers, virtually ending their 25-year war for a separate Tamil nation in the Sinhalese-majority country.

Nanayakkara said about 600 civilians fled the war zone Friday, joining thousands who have escaped in the past few days. The government says it is not targeting civilians, and accuses the rebels of using them as human shields.

But evidence has grown in recent days of mounting civilian casualties in the shrinking sliver of land still controlled by the rebels.

Reports from the sealed war zone, known as Vanni, are spotty. But the top health official there said last week that 300 civilians had been killed, and the U.N. said at least 52 civilians were killed Tuesday.

Amnesty International called on both sides to declare a cease-fire to allow civilians out and to let food, water and medical supplies be delivered to those who can't leave.

"A quarter of a million people are suffering without adequate food and shelter while shells rain down upon them," said Yolanda Foster, a researcher at the London-based rights group.

Emilia Casella, a spokeswoman for the World Food Program, told reporters in Geneva that the entire population of Vanni is facing a food crisis.

Some 250,000 people there are completely dependent on humanitarian aid, but WFP has not been able to get a supply convoy into the conflict zone since Jan. 16, she said.

A convoy that was supposed to enter during a four-hour "humanitarian window" Thursday could not go because the agency did not receive the necessary clearance from government officials, she said.

The earliest they would be able to send in another convoy is next Thursday, she said.

"We don't have any more stocks to be distributed, and our staff are essentially hiding at the moment," Casella said. WFP has 16 staff members and 81 dependents in the Vanni area.

Despite growing concerns over the fate of civilians, the government has rejected calls for a cease-fire to allow them to escape the fighting.

On Thursday, President Mahinda Rajapaksa assured U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a 15-minute telephone conversation that the offensive "would be carried out without harassment to the civilian population," a statement from the president's office said.

Some 70,000 people have died in the Tamil conflict, which began in 1983 after years of marginalization of the Tamil minority by governments dominated by the Sinhalese majority.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 06 Feb 09 - 02:24 PM

Nigeria: 84 children dead from teething formula

By EDWARD HARRIS, Associated Press Writer

– 32 mins agoLAGOS, Nigeria – Nigerian health workers hunted down errant bottles of a poisonous teething formula Friday as the government reported that 84 infants and children have now died after swallowing a syrup laced with a chemical normally found in antifreeze.

The children were stricken with fever, convulsions, diarrhea and vomiting, and were unable to urinate after being given the My Pikin Baby Teething Mixture.

The dead ranged from 2 months to 7 years old, the Health Ministry said, adding that at least 111 children in all have been sickened since the tainted batch hit store shelves in mid-November.

"The death of any Nigerian child is a great loss to the nation," Health Minister Babatunde Oshotimehin said in a statement. "The federal ministry of health sincerely regrets this painful incidence and sympathizes with the nation and the families."

Health officials said in early December that 34 children had died and stores were returning stocks of the formula meant to stop teething pain.

But health workers were now pressing to collect already-purchased bottles of the sweet-tasting medicine, said Marshal Gundu, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health. He said parents of the affected children were being interviewed and an epidemiological survey was under way.

Health officials said they don't know how many bottles of the bad formula were made or remain in circulation, so it was not clear if the death toll could rise further.

Nigeria is a vast, chaotic country of 140 million people, and bottles of the teething formula could easily go undiscovered by authorities. Nigeria also has a long history of poor enforcement of its own regulations, with corruption rampant among police and government officials.

It was unclear if any of the teething formula had been shipped overseas, but most products made in Nigeria are designed for domestic sale in Africa's largest market.

Many bottles of the paracetemol-based formula were found to have a high concentration of diethylene glycol, a chemical commonly found in antifreeze and brake fluid and sometimes used illegally as a cheaper alternative to glycerin, which thickens toothpaste. Exposure can cause kidney and liver damage and may be fatal.

An official with manufacturer Barewa Pharmaceuticals Ltd. apparently procured diethylene glycol from an unregistered chemical dealer in a sprawling slum near the main dump in Lagos, the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control has said.

Several officials of the Lagos-based pharmaceutical maker are under arrest, along with several other suspects accused of helping provide the poisonous ingredient. Gundu said no charges had been officially lodged against the suspects.

A phone number listed for the company was not working Friday, and officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Health officials said earlier that Barewa Pharmaceuticals appears to have been told it was purchasing propylene glycol, a normal ingredient in the teething formula. They said the pharmaceutical company had always bought that ingredient through approved channels before, but had turned to a new source for the ingredient used in the tainted batch.

The food and drug agency said the first sickened child was taken for treatment on Nov. 19 in Nigeria's far northern region. Similar cases turned up in subsequent days in Nigeria's densely populated southwest, and investigators isolated the product as the culprit.

Nigeria has been plagued by tainted, fake or untested drugs since it gained independence from Britain in 1960. About 200 babies died in 1990 under similar circumstances, also from diethylene glycol.

The food and drug administration, however, has drawn plaudits from Nigerians in recent years for having cut down on counterfeit or dangerous medicines.

Diethylene glycol has also been implicated in poisoning cases around the world, including in Panama, where at least 116 people died in 2006 after taking contaminated cough syrup, antihistamine tablets, calamine lotion and rash ointment made at a government laboratory.

The Nigerian teething formula is the only the latest poisoning case to kill the very young.

In China, hundreds of thousands of children fell sick last year and six died after drinking milk tainted with melamine. A court handed down two death penalties and long prison terms for 19 other defendants in the scandal.

__

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,beardedbruce
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 08:49 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090210/ap_on_re_af/eu_international_court_congo

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 12 Feb 09 - 08:17 AM

A Glimmer of Hope in Africa
By Ben Affleck Thursday, Feb. 12,

The picture of the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo has grown tragically familiar: a region with great natural wealth, riven by war, racked with hunger and traumatized by a long history of colonial abuse, postcolonial kleptocracy and plunder. In the past 10 years alone, millions have died here, and more die each day as a result of the conflict. Most die not from war wounds but from starvation or disease. A lack of infrastructure means there is little medical care in the cities and none in rural communities, so any infection can be a death sentence. The most vulnerable suffer the worst. One in five children in Congo will die before reaching the age of 5 — and will do so out of sight of the world, in places that camera crews cannot reach, deep in a vast landscape and concealed under a canopy of bucolic jungle.

It is common in the West to read about African lives in grim statistical terms, so we've become inured to these huge numbers of deaths. Making matters worse, the conflict in Congo is often seen as a hopelessly byzantine African tribal war, encouraging the damning notion that nothing will ever change. This, of course, creates a sense of hopelessness — and nothing cuts down on humanitarian, foreign and development assistance so much as the jaded diminution of hope. The nation most in need of investment gets the least by the cruel logic that it is the most broken. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that ultimately fosters indifference in the guise of wisdom. (See pictures of the fallout in the Congo by James Nachtwey.)

That should not be the case in Congo.

more

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,beardedbruce
Date: 12 Feb 09 - 09:52 AM

Sudan dismisses Beshir genocide charge 'rumours'
      
Guillaume Lavallee – 21 mins ago AFP

KHARTOUM (AFP) – Sudan on Thursday sought to dismiss reports that its President Omar al-Beshir is about to become the first sitting head of state to be charged with genocide by International Criminal Court (ICC) judges.

The ICC had been expected to make a decision on issuing an arrest warrant as early as this month after chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo in July accused Beshir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.

According to the United Nations, 300,000 people have died and more than 2.2 million have fled their homes since rebels in the western region rose up against the Khartoum government in February 2003.

But Sudan, which puts the death toll from the six-year conflict at 10,000, sought to dismiss a New York Times report on Wednesday that the ICC had decided to issue an arrest warrant for Beshir as "rumours" aimed at thwarting peace talks.

"The rumours are aimed to spoil the Doha talks; that is why we don't consider them," foreign ministry official Mutrif Siddiq told AFP, referring to Qatari-hosted talks between a Darfur rebel group and the Khartoum government.

In Doha, the head of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the most active rebel group in Darfur, called on Beshir to give himself up.

"I advise Beshir to turn himself in, voluntarily," Khalil Ibrahim said, adding that he would welcome any arrest warrant for the Sudanese president.

"If Beshir does not turn himself in, no doubt, we will arrest him and hand him over to the international court," Ibrahim said.

Ibrahim, whose JEM last year launched an unprecedented but unsuccessful attack on Khartoum, said that a warrant would "not affect the peace process, neither in Darfur nor in Sudan, nor will it affect Sudan's stability."

Ocampo has also tried to obtain ICC arrest warrants against three unnamed Darfur rebel leaders for an attack in September 2007 in which 12 African Union peacekeepers were killed and eight wounded.

ICC judges in December requested more information from Ocampo on the charges against the rebels.

Sudanese officials, including Beshir, have always insisted they will not cooperate with the ICC, saying that any allegations of crimes in Darfur would be dealt with in Sudanese courts.

"It's clear Sudan is not a party of the ICC. Whatever the ICC does it is not affecting us," Siddiq said, slamming the charges as "politically motivated."

Sudan has been seeking to garner international support to fight the accusations, with the Arab League and the African Union both saying formal ICC charges will not help the situation in Darfur.

Khartoum has also in recent weeks hosted senior officials from China and Russia, both of which have veto rights as permanent members of the UN Security Council which has the power to defer a Beshir prosecution for one year, renewable.

ICC spokeswoman Laurence Blairon told AFP following the New York Times report that "at this moment, there is no arrest warrant."

"When we have something to announce, we will announce it. For now, there is nothing to announce."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday urged Khartoum to act "very responsibly" if an arrest warrant is issued for Beshir.

The UN chief said that whatever decision the ICC reaches, "it will be very important for President Beshir and the Sudanese government to react very responsibly and ensure the safety and security" of UN peacekeepers in Darfur and protect the human rights of the population.

Last week, UN special envoy to Sudan Ashraf Qazi warned that the UN Security Council would have to weigh "potential threats" to the operation of the UN mission in Sudan (UNMIS) and the joint UN-AU mission in Darfur (UNAMID).

"We have received assurances of protection and cooperation from Sudanese authorities at the highest levels," he noted. "But these assurances have been qualified by warnings about political outrage."

Earlier this month, Ban also voiced concern about remarks by some Sudanese officials suggesting that "Khartoum may redefine its relationship with UNMIS should an arrest warrant be issued against president Beshir."

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 13 Feb 09 - 07:45 AM

Washington Post

A Chance to Sway Sudan
By Michael Gerson
Friday, February 13, 2009; Page A17

While a new administration is just getting started, history doesn't stop.

On Sudan and Darfur, President Obama's Africa team has begun a lengthy policy review and is mulling names for a special envoy. But an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity was reportedly approved by the International Criminal Court (ICC) this week. And the administration suddenly faces an unprecedented question: Can a hunted war criminal also be a partner in the Sudan peace process?

While in government, I was skeptical of the usefulness of ICC indictments in situations such as Sudan. Indictments are a blunt diplomatic instrument -- once imposed, they are almost impossible to withdraw in exchange for concessions. They leave a thug in a corner -- less likely to negotiate and more likely to lash out at humanitarian groups and civilians. A dictator with no options is dangerous.

But I have changed my mind in the case of Bashir. The traditional carrots and sticks of diplomacy have failed. For decades, the Sudanese regime has been masterful at using minor concessions and delaying tactics, playing allies who want oil and critics with short attention spans, to achieve its genocidal ends. Bashir would like nothing better than to play another round in this game. The ICC warrant provides an opportunity to change the rules, holding Bashir personally responsible for achieving massive improvements, or personally responsible for committing massive crimes.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/12/AR2009021203011.html

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 13 Feb 09 - 09:37 AM

More than 40 Hutu rebels killed in Congo air raid
         

GOMA, Congo – More than 40 members of a Hutu militia suspected of atrocities during Rwanda's 1994 genocide were killed in an overnight air raid, a Congolese military spokesman said Friday.

The air raids targeted the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, or FDLR, said Oliver Hamuli, a spokesman for a joint Rwanda-Congo military operation aimed at stamping out the remnants of the Hutu militia.

The group is made up primarily of ethnic Hutus from Rwanda who fled across the border into Congo after being linked to the 1994 slaughter of more than 500,000 mostly ethnic Tutsi civilians.

He also said several militia members were wounded in the attack that took place late Thursday in Kashebere, in the eastern Congo region of Masisi.

A few miles (kilometers) away, a second attack on the Hutu militia took place, with an unknown amount of deaths, Hamuli said.

"The death toll there was high as well. The survivors threw the bodies in the river," Hamuli said.

The echoes of Rwanda's genocide are still being felt in Congo nearly 15 years later. The presence of the Hutu militia in Congo's terraced hills has destabilized the region, giving rise to a counter rebel group, made up of Congolese Tutsis. While that group claimed to be protecting Congo's Tutsi minority from the Hutu militia, it too is accused of grave abuses.

Congo has long accused Rwanda of backing the Tutsi militia formerly led by rogue general Laurent Nkunda. Rwanda, on the other hand, has accused Congo of aiding the Hutu militia and the two countries twice went to war over the issue.

But Congo began a joint operation last month with Rwanda to finally root out the last of the FDLR. Rwandan troops are expected to leave Congolese territory by the end of the month.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: Teribus
Date: 14 Feb 09 - 07:03 AM

I see that having signed up for this "power sharing" deal in Zimbabwe the first of the MDC appointed Government Ministers has been arrested on charges of treason by ZANU-PF.

Morgan should start making his way quietly towards the border.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 18 Feb 09 - 06:33 PM

UN accused of failing to protect Congo civilians
      

Michelle Faul, Associated Press Writer – 2 hrs 17 mins ago AP

– U.N. humanitarian aid chief John Holmes, center,visits the pediatric ward of a hospital in Dorouma, Congo, …

DUNGU, Congo – Early in the morning the warnings came: Rebels notorious for vicious attacks on civilians were advancing on this eastern Congolese town of thatched roof huts along the winding Kibali River.

Aid workers alerted nearby U.N. peacekeepers, but for hours no one came.

So tens of thousands of townspeople fled — on foot, on bicycles, on motorcycles, anything to escape. Some did not get out on time and were slaughtered on the spot. Others were abducted and killed in the bush.

The failure to protect the people of Dungu and other towns from attack by the Lord's Resistance Army is a sign of the collapse of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in this sprawling Central African nation.

More than 1,500 civilians have been slaughtered since September, many hacked and clubbed to death in unspeakably brutal attacks, according to humanitarian groups. Aid workers and others say the U.N. force and Congolese military received almost daily alerts as the death toll mounted and the rebel offensives multiplied.

Critics say the 17,000-member U.N. mission has foundered despite being the largest and most expensive in the world — and with the strongest mandate ever issued to U.N. troops to use force to protect civilians.

U.N. officials say they simply do not have enough boots on the ground to perform effectively in Congo, a country more than twice the size of California and Texas combined, but with only 300 miles of paved roads.

With a population of more than 58 million, there is only about one peacekeeper for every 3,400 people.

During a tour last week of towns laid waste by the rebels in the remote Haut-Uele region, the top U.N. diplomat for humanitarian aid, John Holmes, said the peacekeepers have been given an impossible task.

"Can we do better? Yes. The fact that I am here is an admission that we need to do a lot more — more resources, more capacity on the ground, better security," Holmes told The Associated Press.

"In an area like this, where attacks are coming from all directions, it's impossible to protect every civilian. Even the big towns aren't particularly safe," he said.

Over nearly a decade, Congo's people have suffered through back-to-back civil wars that devastated the nation. Adding to the misery, the Lord's Resistance Army's more than 20-year insurgency in Uganda spilled over into Congo about five years ago.

Medecins Sans Frontieres holds the U.N. peacekeepers responsible for the hundreds of civilians killed by the Ugandan rebels, blaming the force for not doing more to protect them. And other agencies have joined the outcry.

The U.N. troops "are mere spectators in the massacres of these people whom they should be defending," Fides, the Catholic missionary news agency, wrote last week.

In July, Congo's army — supported by U.N. helicopters and planes — deployed more than 3,000 troops with a plan to contain the rebels in their hideouts near the border with Sudan. They hoped to encircle them, cut off their food and weapons supply, then flush out the rebels so they could be captured.

The U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA, which had set up an office in the town of Dungu in September, warned the U.N. peacekeepers of the risk of rebel reprisals on the civilian population, according to an official involved in setting up the office. But the U.N. force did nothing.

The rebels had killed only two people between January and mid-September, according to U.N. humanitarian and other aid workers. But after the army launched its offensive, the rebels struck as predicted and attacked some 20 villages on Sept. 17.

In some, every person was slaughtered, their heads smashed in with clubs, their throats slit with machetes or bayonets. In others, all the men were killed, and women and children were abducted to become sex slaves and forced labor.

A total of 620 civilians were killed between Sept. 17 and Dec. 24, according to aid groups. More than 900 others were slaughtered from Christmas until mid-January, although the toll is likely even higher, aid workers say.

After the September attacks, the people of Dungu rioted and attacked a U.N. base, setting ablaze a U.N. vehicle and storming the compound. U.N. troops abandoned the base, which now is littered with goat droppings and the vehicle's burnt-out carcass.

A Moroccan peacekeeper told an AP photographer the 240 U.N. troops now have no contact with the people they were sent to protect; they stay in their new camp at an airstrip, a 20-minute drive from town, according to the soldier, who would not give his name because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.

After the rebel attack on Dungu in the pre-dawn hours of Nov. 1, the peacekeepers finally arrived at 4 p.m. to evacuate aid workers from the town, U.N. officials said. By then, the Congolese troops had driven out the rebels.

"MONUC did nothing for us the day we were attacked," said Edoxie Babe, a market vendor, using the French acronym for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo. "I saw MONUC come in only in the afternoon, and then only to get the white foreigners to safety."

U.N. deputy mission chief Ross Mountain said the peacekeepers plan to set up protection units at their military bases to improve communication with and defense of civilians. The U.N. military spokesman, Lt. Col. Jean-Paul Dietrich, said the U.N. also is preparing a rapid reaction force to swiftly intervene in conflicts.

The belated action comes after the head of the U.N. mission in Congo, Alan Doss, pleaded for months for more soldiers. The U.N. Security Council in November approved 3,000 more troops for Congo, but only Bangladesh has responded with an offer of about 900 troops.






shhhh.....

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,beardedbruce
Date: 18 Feb 09 - 06:50 PM

"More than 1,500 civilians have been slaughtered since September, many hacked and clubbed to death in unspeakably brutal attacks, according to humanitarian groups. Aid workers and others say the U.N. force and Congolese military received almost daily alerts as the death toll mounted and the rebel offensives multiplied."















shhhh......

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 24 Feb 09 - 05:38 PM

refresh

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: Riginslinger
Date: 24 Feb 09 - 09:29 PM

"Should we care about Africans?"


             Shouldn't Africans care about Africans?

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,b eardedbruce
Date: 25 Feb 09 - 07:06 PM

Sierra Leone rebel leaders guilty of war crimes
         
Clarence Roy-macaulay, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 35 mins ago AP –

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – The rebels were known for asking their victims if they preferred "long sleeves" or "short sleeves." They then cut off the hands of those who chose the first option and the full arm of those that picked the second.

On Wednesday, an international court modeled after the Nuremberg tribunal convicted three top Sierra Leone rebel leaders of crimes against humanity — the closest thing to justice in this West African nation of amputees, orphans and widows.

Revolutionary United Front leader Issa Sesay and one of his battlefield commanders Morris Kallon were found guilty on 16 of 18 counts, including mutilation, terrorism, rape, forced marriage, sexual slavery and the enlistment of child soldiers. Another commander, Augustine Gbao, was found guilty on 14 of the 18 counts.

All three had pleaded not guilty and shook their heads as the verdict was read.

About a half-million people were victims of killings, systematic mutilation and other atrocities during Sierra Leone' 11-year civil war, which ended in 2002. Illicit diamond sales fueled the conflict, dramatized by the 2006 film "Blood Diamond," starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090225/ap_on_re_af/af_sierra_leone_war_crimes

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 06 Mar 09 - 08:36 AM

UN to see if Sudan's aid group ban is war crime
      

Associated Press Writer Frank Jordans, Associated Press Writer – 24 mins ago AP –

… GENEVA – The U.N. human rights office will examine whether Sudan's decision to expel aid groups constitutes a breach of basic human rights and possibly a war crime, a spokesman said Friday.

Rupert Colville said the Sudanese decision to expel relief workers from 13 of the largest aid groups constitutes a "grievous dereliction" of duty, putting the lives of thousands at risk.

The World Health Organization said the loss of the aid agencies would tear a hole in the body's disease monitoring efforts that could lead to outbreaks of infectious diseases going unchecked.

The U.N. refugee agency said refugee camps in neighboring Chad were ill-prepared to deal with an influx of people crossing the border from Sudan in search of help.

Sudan ordered the organizations out after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for President Omar al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Darfur conflict. It has accused the groups such as CARE and Save the Children of cooperating with the court and giving false testimony. The groups deny the accusations.

"To knowingly and deliberately deprive such a huge group of civilians of means to survive is a deplorable act," said Colville, who speaks for U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay. "Humanitarian assistance has nothing to do with the ICC proceedings. To punish civilians because of a decision by the ICC is a grievous dereliction of the government's duty to protect its own people."

"This decision by the government could threaten the lives of thousands of civilians," living in camps in Darfur and elsewhere, he added.

World Health Organization spokeswoman Fadela Chaib said the expelled aid groups had been carrying out surveillance of infectious diseases in the region.

"If they are not helping us do this very vital work, we may see the emergence of infectious diseases," she said.

There is currently an outbreak of meningitis in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, she said. One of the groups, Medecins Sans Frontieres-Holland, was carrying out meningitis vaccinations in the area before it was expelled.

On Thursday, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Sudan's decision will cause "irrevocable damage" to humanitarian operations in Darfur and called on the government to urgently reconsider its decision.

At least 2.7 million people in the large, arid region of western Sudan have been driven from their homes in the war between Darfur rebels and the government since 2003. Ban said 4.7 million people in Darfur are receiving aid.

The U.N. has identified the NGOs expelled as Oxfam GB, CARE International, MSF-Holland, MSF-France, Mercy Corps, Save the Children Fund-UK, Save the Children Fund-US, the Norwegian Refugee Council, the International Rescue Committee, Action Contre La Faim, Solidarites, CHF International and PADCO.

Sudan's expulsion order removes 40 percent of the aid workers in Darfur, roughly 6,500 national and international staff, said Catherine Bragg, the U.N.'s deputy emergency relief coordinator. She said at U.N. headquarters that 76 NGOs had been operating in Darfur along with all major U.N. agencies.

The U.N. humanitarian coordination office says the global body will have a hard time making up for the loss of its aid partners.

"The U.N. is looking into contingency planning to fill the gaps left by the expulsion, but it will be very, very challenging for both remaining humanitarian organizations and the government of Sudan to fill this gap," said spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs.

"Some of us don't see how these gaps can be fully covered," she added.

Christophe Fournier, president of Medecins Sans Frontieres's umbrella group, MSF International, said there was "absolutely no way" the remaining aid workers would be able to meet the needs of the population in Darfur.

Fournier complained that his aid group was caught up in a battle between the government of Sudan and backers of the ICC indictment.

"We are being held hostage — we and the population of Darfur — to judicial and political process," he told reporters in Geneva.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,John from Kemsing
Date: 06 Mar 09 - 08:54 AM

Here is a way the wealthy nations can kill two birds with one stone. Show generosity and kickstart the global economy.
Vote billions of dollars in aid for the African nations who can then, in turn, place new orders for the most expensive Mercedes, Mitsubishis and presidential palaces.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 06 Mar 09 - 01:16 PM

Iran, Hamas defend wanted Sudanese president
         

AP KHARTOUM, Sudan – Iran and the Palestinian militant group Hamas showed their support for Sudan's president Friday, sending top officials to the Sudanese capital and denouncing the international warrant for his arrest on charges of war crimes in Darfur.

Their visit came as the U.N. human rights group warned that Sudan's expulsion of 13 aid organizations from Darfur could also constitute a war crime. Sudan took the step in retaliation after the Netherlands-based International Criminal Court issued a warrant against President Omar al-Bashir on Wednesday.

The expulsion raised fears of a humanitarian crisis in the large, arid western region, where war has been raging for six years. Some 2.7 million people have been forced from their homes, and many rely on aid groups for food, water, shelter and medical care.

The government also ordered the closure of SUDO, the largest Sudanese non-governmental aid organization operating in Darfur, said SUDO's head, Ibrahim Mudawi. He said the order came late Thursday, accusing the group of "violations" of the law, without providing specifics.

SUDO, with about 300 staffers, distributes food and drills water wells in Darfur, as well as operates 13 clinic and provides psychological help, Mudawi said. "We will take legal procedures against this decision," he said. "We are worried (about our staff). We don't know what they are going to do with them."

The ICC accuses al-Bashir of leading a counter-insurgency campaign against Darfur rebels that included atrocities against civilians. Al-Bashir denies the charges against him and his government refuses to cooperate with the ICC, calling it part of a "colonial" conspiracy to destabilize Sudan.

Dozens of al-Bashir supporters marched in downtown Khartoum after Friday prayers in support of the president. They are waving banners and shouting: "With our blood and soul, we defend you, al-Bashir." The small rally came after al-Bashir joined thousands of supporters demonstrating in the capital on Thursday, denouncing the warrant.

Iran's parliament speaker, Ali Larijani, arrived in Khartoum along with Moussa Abu Marzouk, the No. 2 figure in Hamas' Damascus-based leadership. Larijani told reporters at the airport that the ICC's arrest warrant is an "insult." Also in their delegation were Syrian Parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Abrash and representatives from other Palestinian militant factions.

Iran and Hamas have been long time allies of Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, whose government is dominated by Muslim fundamentalists and military officers.

A spokesman for the U.N. human rights office said Friday that the expulsion of the groups may be a war crime and said officials at the agency were looking into the issue.

"To knowingly and deliberately deprive such a huge group of civilians of means to survive is a deplorable act," Rupert Colville said in Geneva. "Humanitarian assistance has nothing to do with the ICC proceedings. To punish civilians because of a decision by the ICC is a grievous dereliction of the government's duty to protect its own people."

"This decision by the government could threaten the lives of thousands of civilians," living in camps in Darfur and elsewhere, he added.

Asked about the comments, a senior Sudanese Foreign Ministry official, Mutrif Siddique, said only, "Their campaign against us continues."

Siddique said the Sudanese humanitarian affairs ministry, which is responsible for the work of aid agencies, is aware the expulsion of the organizations will have an impact on people in Sudan.

"This ministry and authorities have made arrangements to avoid a food shortage or a medical crisis," he said. "There will be a partial effect and they (authorities) will work to avoid any shortage.'

Siddique claimed that major U.N. aid agencies were not affected by this expulsion decision and stressed that "hundreds of Sudanese NGO workers remain and work in Darfur."

The U.S. State Department condemned the decision to expel the aid groups and called on the Sudanese government to allow the groups to continue operating.

"These organizations provide critical humanitarian assistance to millions of Sudanese, and the forced departure of these organizations immediately and seriously threatens the lives and well-being of displaced populations," said spokesman Gordon Duguid.

The World Food Program questioned whether the remaining aid groups would be able to fill the gap.

"We simply don't have the capacity to carry out the life saving work of the NGOs," said the agency's spokeswoman in Geneva, Emilia Casella.

Under the Geneva Conventions it is illegal to intentionally starve people to death by blocking their access to food. The rule applies to international conflicts, but efforts have been made to incorporate it in customary international humanitarian law, which would carry weight in courts.

Other U.N. agencies also expressed concern about the consequences of losing their aid partners. The World Health Organization said it would tear a hole in the body's disease monitoring efforts that could lead to outbreaks of infectious diseases going unchecked.

"If they are not helping us do this very vital work, we may see the emergence of infectious diseases," said WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,beardedbruce
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 06:44 AM

US urges protest of Darfur aid group expulsions
         
Edith M. Lederer, Associated Press Writer – Wed Mar 11, 2:50 am ET

UNITED NATIONS – The United States is urging leading African, Arab and Muslim groups to protest Sudan's ordering aid organizations out of Darfur, an expulsion it says threatens the lives of more than a million Muslims.

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said Tuesday the African Union, the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Conference must tell the Sudanese government to reverse the expulsion of the largest humanitarian organizations in conflict-wracked Darfur.

The Sudanese government ordered the expulsion of 13 international aid organizations and three domestic groups after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant last week for President Omar al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.

"If this decision stands, we can expect over a million people to be in immediate risk of losing their lives and the responsibility for that decision lies squarely with the government of Sudan," Rice told reporters.

There has been criticism of the arrest warrant in Africa and the Middle East. The African Union chief, Jean Ping, has called it "counterproductive" for peace efforts in Darfur. And in a strong sign of support, Qatar's Prime Minister Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Al Thani said al-Bashir will be invited and welcomed at an Arab summit in late March.

"I think it's imperative that the African Union and its member states, the OIC, the Arab League come together and deliver a very clear message to the government that they will not tolerate and stand by while over a million African Muslims are at risk of urgent death," Rice said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090311/ap_on_re_af/un_un_sudan_humanitarian_1

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: GUEST,Guest from Sanity
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 10:16 PM

Care about Africans???..Not on here!...Too busy caring about the most ridiculous arguments and bullshit, I've ever heard in my life!

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: Amos
Date: 11 Mar 09 - 11:30 PM

Funny how concerned we were about the half-a-million or however many Iraqis who got chewed up and spit out during the Iraqi invasion. BAM!! Well, see, there were these WMD so we had ta do it...


First of all, there is no "Africans"--it is a HUGE collectivity. Second of all caring is an indivdual choice not some silly moralistic mandate imposed by a vote.

Individuals should care about those they can care about.

A

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 17 Mar 09 - 10:49 AM

Arab League will not arrest Sudan's president
      
Albert Aji, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 3 mins ago AP –

… DAMASCUS, Syria – Arab League countries will not carry out an International Criminal Court request to arrest Sudan's president on charges of war crimes in Darfur, the group's leader said.

Amr Moussa said Qatar — one of the league's 22 member states — has also rejected a similar request to arrest Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who has indicated he will attend an Arab summit in the country later this month.

"The court asked Qatar and the Arab League at the same time, but our legal position on the matter does not allow what the International Criminal Court is requesting," Moussa said Monday during a visit to Syria.

Only three Arab League states recognize the Netherlands-based court — Jordan, Djibouti and Comoros. It was unclear whether they have endorsed Moussa's statement.

The Arab League chief did not specify when the court made the requests but said he was concerned about the effect that arresting Sudan's president would have on the country's stability.

The court issued its arrest warrant in early March, accusing al-Bashir of orchestrating atrocities against civilians in Darfur, where his Arab-led government has been battling ethnic African rebels since 2003. Up to 300,000 people have been killed, and 2.7 million have been driven from their homes.

Al-Bashir has denied the charges and has said he will not cooperate with court. He has struck a defiant tone, and his trip to Qatar at the end of the month is meant to show he cannot be touched.

He has expelled 13 large foreign aid agencies mainly operating in Darfur, accusing them of spying for the court. The U.N. has said those expulsions will leave millions at risk of a humanitarian crisis. On Monday, al-Bashir said he wants all international aid groups out of the country within a year.

Moussa said the Arab League was working with the African Union in trying to halt the court's efforts. Many Arab and African countries have lobbied the U.N. Security Council to pass a resolution deferring any prosecution of the president for at least a year, hoping to defuse the crisis.

But the U.S., which has a veto on the council, does not support the move, and there have been some signs of frustration among Arab and African countries with al-Bashir's tough line.

"Any policy must be based on two things: achieving justice in Darfur and maintaining security and stability in Sudan," said Moussa.

When the court's chief prosecutor first presented his charges against al-Bashir last year, the Arab League said the move undermined Sudan's sovereignty and only the country's courts should have jurisdiction.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 18 May 09 - 10:44 AM

Commentary: War on women in Congo

Story Highlights
Eve Ensler: War in Congo is targeting girls and women
She says rape is being used as a weapon, with 1,100 raped each month
Western governments, including the U.S., need to protect Congo's women, she says
updated 1 hour, 22 minutes

By Eve Ensler
Special to CNN
   
Editor's note: Eve Ensler is the playwright of "The Vagina Monologues" and the founder of V-Day, a global movement to end violence against women and girls. V-Day has funded over 10,000 community-based anti-violence programs and launched safe houses in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Kenya, South Dakota, Egypt and Iraq. This commentary was adapted from remarks Ensler made Wednesday to the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs and the Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women's Issues.


Playwright Eve Ensler says conflict in Congo is taking a terrible toll on women and girls.

(CNN) -- I write today on behalf of countless V-Day activists worldwide, and in solidarity with my many Congolese sisters and brothers who demand justice and an end to rape and war.

It is my hope that these words and those of others will break the silence and break open a sea of action to move Congolese women toward peace, safety and freedom.

My play, "The Vagina Monologues," opened my eyes to the world inside this world. Everywhere I traveled with it scores of women lined up to tell me of their rapes, incest, beatings, mutilations. It was because of this that over 11 years ago we launched V-Day, a worldwide movement to end violence against women and girls.

The movement has spread like wildfire to 130 countries, raising $70 million. I have visited and revisited the rape mines of the world, from defined war zones like Bosnia, Afghanistan and Haiti to the domestic battlegrounds in colleges and communities throughout North America, Europe and the world. My in-box -- and heart -- have been jammed with stories every hour of every day for over a decade.

Nothing I have heard or seen compares with what is going on in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where corporate greed, fueled by capitalist consumption, and the rape of women have merged into a single nightmare. Femicide, the systematic and planned destruction of the female population, is being used as a tactic of war to clear villages, pillage mines and destroy the fabric of Congolese society.

In 12 years, there have been 6 million dead men and women in Congo and 1.4 million people displaced. Hundreds and thousands of women and girls have been raped and tortured. Babies as young as 6 months, women as old as 80, their insides torn apart. What I witnessed in Congo has shattered and changed me forever. I will never be the same. None of us should ever be the same.

I think of Beatrice, shot in her vagina, who now has tubes instead of organs. Honorata, raped by gangs as she was tied upside down to a wheel. Noella, who is my heart -- an 8-year-old girl who was held for 2 weeks as groups of grown men raped her over and over. Now she has a fistula, causing her to urinate and defecate on herself. Now she lives in humiliation.

I was in Bosnia during the war in 1994 when it was discovered there were rape camps where white women were being raped. Within two years there was adequate intervention. Yet, in Congo, femicide has continued for 12 years. Why? Is it that coltan, the mineral that keeps our cell phones and computers in play, is more important than Congolese girls?

Is it flat-out racism, the world's utter indifference and disregard for black people and black women in particular? Is it simply that the UN and most governments are run by men who have never known what it feels like to be raped?

What is happening in Congo is the most brutal and rampant violence toward women in the world. If it continues to go unchecked, if there continues to be complete impunity, it sets a precedent, it expands the boundaries of what is permissible to do to women's bodies in the name of exploitation and greed everywhere. It's cheap warfare.

The women in Congo are some of the most resilient women in the world. They need our protection and support. Western governments, like the United States, should fund a training program for female Congolese police officers.

They should address our role in plundering minerals and demand that companies trace the routes of these minerals. Make sure they are making and selling rape-free-products. Supply funds for women's medical and psychological care and seed their economic empowerment. Put pressure on Rwanda, Congo, Uganda and other countries in the Great Lakes region to sit down with all the militias involved in this conflict to find a political solution.

Military solutions are no longer an option and will only bring about more rape. Most of all, we must support the women. Because women are at the center of this horror, they must be at the center of the solutions and peace negotiations. Women are the future of Congo. They are its greatest resource.

Sadly, we are not the first to testify about these atrocities in Congo. I stand in a line of many who have described this horror. Still, in Eastern Congo, 1,100 women a month are raped, according to the United Nations' most recent report. What will the United States government, what will all of you reading this, do to stop it?

Let Congo be the place where we ended femicide, the trend that is madly eviscerating this planet -- from the floggings in Pakistan, the new rape laws in Afghanistan, the ongoing rapes in Haiti, Darfur, Zimbabwe, the daily battering, incest, harassing, trafficking, enslaving, genital cutting and honor killing. Let Congo be the place where women were finally cherished and life affirmed, where the humiliation and subjugation ended, where women took their rightful agency over their bodies and land.

Subject: RE: BS: Should we care about Africans?
From: CarolC
Date: 18 May 09 - 11:16 AM

We also need to try to find another way to make cell phones without using coltan, and people should stop buying mined diamonds altogether. It is now possible to buy laboratory produced diamonds that are just as good as, and in some ways, better, than mined diamonds. Mined diamonds are not better than laboratory produced diamonds except for the value that the diamond merchants artificially create in the minds of buyers. It's a huge scam.