Sudan has a rich archaeological history, boasting more pyramids than Egypt. At the University of Khartoum, women archaeologists are set to dominate the field, with more than 90% of archaeology students now female. Henry Wilkins reports from Khartoum, Sudan
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Category: Africa
Africa news. Africa is highly biodiverse, it is the continent with the largest number of megafauna species, as it was least affected by the extinction of the Pleistocene megafauna. However, Africa also is heavily affected by a wide range of environmental issues, including desertification, deforestation, water scarcity, and pollution
Mozambique Battles Cholera in Record Cyclone’s Aftermath
Cyclone Freddy killed hundreds of people in February and March as it pummeled Madagascar, Malawi, and Mozambique. While the long-running storm’s victims were mostly in Malawi, floodwaters in Mozambique have created a fresh threat there from cholera. Cases have nearly doubled in one week to 19,000 amid a shortage of facilities, many of which were badly damaged by the cyclone, especially in the worst-hit province of Zambezia.
The neighborhood of Icidua, on the outskirts of Quelimane city in Mozambique’s central Zambezia province, has reported the highest number of cholera cases.
Most here lived in flimsy huts made of mud or bamboo that were flattened by the cyclone’s up to 215 kilometer per hour winds.
The local health center’s building is no longer stable, so doctors and nurses work outside under the shade of trees.
Mothers lined up patiently this week with their children for cholera treatment in one of the few wards that survived the storm.
The clinic’s director José da Costa Silva says the staff are working at high risk as the roof could collapse at any minute.
“Cholera cases are increasing, and the health center does not have the capacity to treat everybody. Most patients are referred to the provincial hospital,” he said.
The outbreak is not confined to Quelimane city.
The U.N. says more than 19,000 cases have been confirmed across eight of Mozambique’s 10 provinces.
The World Health Organization’s office has called it the worst cholera outbreak in Mozambique for 20 years.
At Quelimane Provincial Hospital, the director general of Mozambique’s National Health Institute this week addressed health workers in a packed room under a torn roof with two gaping holes.
Eduardo Sam Gudo Jr. tells the workers the cholera outbreak is getting more serious by the day.
Confirmed cases in Quelimane district alone have reached about 600 a day, he says, but the real number could be as high as 1,000.
“The disease is not localized to one neighborhood, it’s everywhere,” he said.” It can only be fought with a local chlorine water treatment product called ‘Certeza,’ but supplies are stretched and there aren’t enough people to distribute the bottles.”
Every day, volunteers collect crates of Certeza from outside the hospital and drive to neighborhoods like Icidua, where they walk from house to house, distributing bottles.
Each one should last a family for a week, but demand is massively outstripping supply as the cholera spreads.
For many Mozambicans still recovering in the cyclone’s wake, cholera is just one of many problems.
Outside the village of Nicoadala, about 300 people live in a makeshift camp of tarpaulin huts on a road next to a flooded field.
Their villages and fields are still under water, forcing them to fish in flooded rice paddies to survive.
Sixty-four-year-old Joaquina Bissane says she had to reach the camp by canoe after her village was submerged.
“Cholera is less of a problem here than malaria, as the damp and heat has turned these flatlands into a breeding ground for mosquitoes,” she said. They have received no support from the government, so they are supporting each other.
The World Food Program estimates the cyclone’s floodwaters destroyed 215,000 hectares of crops in Mozambique.
Seventy-year-old farmer Inácio Abdala says his family’s home and fields were among those destroyed.
He says they eat one day and don’t eat the next as they lost everything in the floods. Even the schools are flooded, so their children can’t go to school.
Even after the floods subside, saltwater brought inland by the cyclone may have damaged much of the soil.
Freddy hit just before the main harvest and officials say it will take months, or even years, for farmlands to fully recover — long after they hope to bring the cholera outbreak under control.
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South Africa Ends Electricity State of Disaster
The South African government on Wednesday terminated the national state of disaster announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa in early February. The declaration was intended to deal with the worst electricity crisis in the country’s history.
The government said the state of disaster had been a “necessary response” to the power crisis, but that since then, a number of measures had been put into place to deal with the constant shortages and daily scheduled blackouts, known as “loadshedding.”
Among them was the appointment of a minister of electricity, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, who has undertaken visits to struggling power stations and met with executives at embattled state power utility Eskom, the minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs, Thembi Nkadimeng, told a press conference.
“As we move forward, government will, through the Energy Crisis Committee, of course led by the minister, continue to engage, cooperate and coordinate its actions to reduce and eradicate loadshedding using existing legislation and contingency arrangements,” Nkadimeng said.
Loadshedding, however, continued Wednesday, even as the state of disaster was revoked, with Stage 4 — or at least five hours a day of power cuts — in place.
The cuts, meant to reduce pressure on the over-stretched electric grid, with its many aging and badly maintained coal-fired power stations regularly breaking down, have hit Africa’s most industrialized economy hard.
Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter left the job earlier this year after giving an explosive interview accusing high-level government officials of corruption. De Ruyter said he was unable to turn the graft-riddled and heavily indebted utility around and alleged there had been a poisoning attempt on his life.
There had been concerns the state of disaster, which did away with some of the bureaucracy surrounding energy procurement, could allow for further corruption. A non-governmental organization and a trade union had filed lawsuits challenging the state of disaster.
Last week, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced Eskom would be exempted from declaring all its expenditures. On Wednesday, after widespread criticism, he backtracked, withdrawing that exemption.
South African opposition parties have staged protests over the electricity situation, as the public becomes more and more frustrated. However, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said there is no quick fix for the crisis.
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Egypt’s Rampant Inflation Squeezes Ramadan Charities
For Egypt, and four other nations in the Middle East-North Africa region, the holy month of Ramadan comes at a time when food inflation has topped 60 percent. In Cairo, photojournalist Hamada Elrasam captures a series of charity iftars, or fast-breaking dinners for lower-income worshippers, as higher food prices mean fewer servings and more hunger. Captions by Elle Kurancid.
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Analysts Say Ethiopia’s Media Need to Empower Female Journalists
In her 15 years of working in Ethiopian media, Melkamsew Solomon says she still doesn’t see enough women in senior roles.
Often, she says, women are assigned to soft news stories, then overlooked for more prominent positions.
Melkamsew has managed to buck that trend and is pushing back boundaries with her radio program Yimechish, which focuses on gender-based subjects.
Despite efforts to promote equality and push for women’s empowerment in journalism, the media sector remains male dominated. It is an imbalance advocates say deprives audiences of more diverse and inclusive coverage of issues affecting women.
A January report by the Ethiopian nonprofit the Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy found that of the 80 journalists in leadership positions, only four are women. The report also found that only 526 of the 2,400 TV and radio journalists are women.
The study’s author, Mulatu Alemayehu Moges, told VOA that the number of women in both traditional and digital media is low.
“The data we’ve collected demonstrates that in the Ethiopian electronic media, women journalists, editors, media leaders and related professionals collectively hold only 25% [of decision-making roles],” said Mulatu, who is a lecturer at Addis Ababa University’s School of Journalism and Communication.
Mulatu suggests that women’s underrepresentation in media is a result of several factors, including social and cultural barriers, discriminatory hiring practices and a lack of opportunities for career advancement.
‘Some think it is unthinkable’
Melkamsew said many believe the Ethiopian media environment is not suitable for women.
“Media is a very serious thing. Hence, some think it is unthinkable to give such a big responsibility for women,” said Melkamsew.
She said that while Ethiopia has larger media companies in the country, there are few women leaders.
“It is the same with assignments,” she said. “Women are often assigned to do soft news. And later, they are considered as not good enough for leadership.”
Additionally, she said, “By unwritten law, [women journalists] are forbidden from coming forward.”
Journalists who are married or pregnant are often told not to go out on assignment to protect themselves. But, she said, they are then “blocked from getting leadership positions.”
She said those returning from maternity leave can find themselves pushed out of positions — something that she and other female journalists she knows have experienced.
Women face obstacles
Yeshewa Masresha, who has worked in media for 17 years, shares concerns about how to bring more women into senior roles.
Yeshewa has worked for the state-run Fana Broadcasting Corporate for more than a decade. She is also on the board of the Ethiopian Media Women Association.
“They don’t have any problem joining media organizations,” she said. “However, once hired when they try to step up as a leader, there are a lot of obstacles.”
Both journalists said that female reporters are often excluded from coverage of politics or hard news.
Melkamsew, who also has a radio show at Sheger FM and is a volunteer for the Ethiopian Media Women Association, believes newsrooms should introduce regulations and policies that include women. She says organizations such as the Ethiopian Media Women Association have a role to play.
“We have a plan to help achieve all media houses design and implement gender policy,” Melkamsew said.
Call for professional development
The Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy has suggested that the government and media create mechanisms to increase the number of women working in media and do more to help women further their professionalism and editorial decision-making skills so they can take leadership roles.
Yeshewa, however, believes that if media houses want to empower women, they should focus less on quotas and more on professional development.
“When it comes to using and working on digital media, women have shortcomings in technology,” Yeshewa said. “I also don’t think we need a quota. But once we join the media, leadership opportunities need to be presented equally.”
Media professor Mulatu said carving out space for women in leadership would bridge the equality gap in the industry.
“We must stop talking about inclusion for the sake of it, rather we must implement affirmative action,” said Mulatu. “We need to support them to be on the front line.”
This report originated in the Horn of Africa’s Amharic Service.
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Somalia, Cuba Resume Diplomatic Relations After 46 Years
Somalia and Cuba have agreed to resume diplomatic relations after 46 years, Somalia’s minister of foreign affairs has said.
Abshir Omar Jama confirmed the diplomatic rapprochement in a Twitter post on Monday.
“Having established diplomatic relations between 1972-1977, we welcome the resumption of diplomatic relations with the Republic of Cuba governed by cooperation and mutual respect,” he wrote.
Cuba’s ambassador to Somalia, Juan Manuel Rodriguez, was one of three ambassadors who submitted credentials to Somalia’s president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, on Tuesday.
Somalia’s Jama met the Cuban ambassador on Monday ahead of Rodriguez’s meeting with Mohamud.
“Honored to receive the credentials of the newly appointed Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba to the Federal Republic of Somalia, Amb. Juan Manuel Rodriguez,” Jama said.
Rodriguez is also Cuba’s ambassador to Kenya.
Somalia broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1977 during the war between Somalia and Ethiopia. The Cuban government under Fidel Castro sent thousands of Cuban troops to assist the Soviet-backed Ethiopian government during the war.
Somalia’s former foreign minister, Ahmed Isse Awad, said Somalia and Cuba do not share cultural and geographical relations but adds the country cannot “self-imprison” to what happened in the past.
“If they (Cuba) sent us an ambassador and want to improve relations with us it’s a gain,” Awad said. “I don’t think it’s in our interest to relive past hostility.”
Awad said Somalia currently enjoys good diplomatic relations with both Ethiopia and Russia.
Cuban hostages
The immediate concern for Cuba may be winning the release of two Cuban doctors abducted by the al-Shabab militant group in northern Kenya in April 2019.
Awad said when he was foreign minister in the previous Somali government, he was contacted by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla about the two hostages.
“I used to tell them that they are safe, they have not been killed and that they work as doctors for those who are holding them,” he said.
He said he told Cuba that Somalia will, “to the best of our ability,” play a role in securing freedom for the two doctors.
Awad said al-Shabab has not officially made any demands for the doctors. The group has previously released foreigners it held hostage after alleged ransom payments.
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US-Trained Woman Teaching Digital Skills to Children in Rural Kenya
The digital divide is one of the biggest challenges to education in sub-Saharan Africa, where the United Nations says nearly 90% of students lack access to household computers, and 82% to the internet. In Kenya, the aid group TechLit Africa aims to change that by building scores of computer labs. Juma Majanga reports from Mogotio, Kenya.
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Over 1M Undocumented Ethnic South Sudanese Thought to Be in Sudan
More than 10 years after South Sudan split from Sudan, as many as 1.2 million ethnic South Sudanese could be living in Sudan without citizenship for either country, the U.N. refugee agency says. In this report from Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, reporter Henry Wilkins meets undocumented people and discovers they have problems accessing work, education and medical care.
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UN Calls for Urgent Help for Malawi Cyclone Survivors
The United Nations and humanitarian partners in Malawi are calling for $70.6 million to help more than a million people who were affected by Cyclone Freddy.
The storm, which also hit Mozambique and Madagascar, killed hundreds of people and displaced more than 650,000 in southern Malawi.
The U.N. says the flash appeal will provide shelter, nutrition, health, water and sanitation for those hardest hit by the crisis.
The appeal comes on top of the $45.3 million called for earlier this year by humanitarian partners to respond to a cholera outbreak, bringing the total revised flash appeal to $115.9 million.
The U.N. says the funds would enable it to work swiftly in support of the Malawi government-led response to assist communities affected by Cyclone Freddy and cholera.
U.N. resident coordinator in Malawi Rebecca Adda-Dontoh said Malawians have mobilized to support one another in this time of tremendous need, and the appeal aimed to step up solidarity as the international community.
The cyclone destroyed many bridges and cut off roads in Malawi, making many areas reachable only by boats and aircraft.
Government statistics show that the cyclone left at least 676 people dead, and the death toll is expected to rise, as more than 600 others are still missing.
Werani Chilenga, chairperson for the committee on natural resources and climate
change in Malawi’s parliament, said the devastation caused by the cyclone would have been less had the country done a better job of managing its natural resources.
“We have almost lost all the forests. Our land is degraded,” he said. “What we have already started doing as a committee is to lobby the government to come up with deliberate policies where they should distribute these gas stoves for free to people living in cities and towns. Because if you look at the charcoal market, it is found in cities.”
The committee donated gas-powered stoves to cyclone victims living in a camp in Blantyre on Sunday to dissuade them from using charcoal.
“If we can’t do that then these calamities are here to stay,” Chilenga said. “And each year out, year in, we shall be coming here donating food items to people staying in camps, which is what we don’t want as Malawians.”
The U.N. said in a statement that the appeal aims to provide an integrated response — including shelter, nutrition, health, water, sanitation and hygiene and protection — for those hardest hit by the crisis.
Reverend Moses Chimphepo, director for preparedness for the Department of Disaster Management Affairs in Malawi, said the government is now working on helping survivors move away from disaster-prone areas and start a new life.
“With the food which the government is providing, we are trying to put together a package and mobile (mobilize) enough resources and then give it to the district councils so that they can give to those people who are willing to move,” he said.
In the meantime, Malawi Vice President Saulosi Chilima has asked city authorities in Blantyre to override a court ruling that allowed residents to build unauthorized homes in hilly areas.
Thousands of people in Blantyre had their houses washed away and hundreds of others were killed when Cyclone Freddy caused mudslides on hills in Chilobwe Township.
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Zimbabwean Farmers Turning to Conservation Agriculture
Zimbabweans in the agriculture sector are dealing with rising fertilizer costs and poor rainfalls due to climate change. Now, some are turning to organic farming and conservation agriculture to make ends meet, and officials say they are making progress against the odds. Columbus Mavhunga has more from Mashava, one of Zimbabwe’s poorest and most drought-prone districts. (Camera: Blessing Chigwenhembe)
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UN: Children in Central African Republic Are Victims of Appalling Abuse, Brutality
A review by U.N. independent experts of the human rights situation in the Central African Republic reveals rampant ethnic violence and systemic gross violations throughout the country with children suffering appalling abuse and brutality at the hands of armed groups, defense and security forces, and private military and security companies.
“It is rare to find a country with a human rights record so alarming, which has been forgotten by the rest of the world,” said Volker Türk, U.N. high commissioner for human rights in his opening salvo at the U.N. human rights council Friday.
“The people of the Central African Republic face a daily reality of sudden spikes of violence where fear is used as a weapon and serious trauma, which has been caused by years of violence.”
He said children were not spared the ravages of the conflict that has been ongoing since 2012, noting that girls especially were subjected to horrific acts of sexual violence linked to the conflict.
“Last year, the Human Rights Division recorded 647 children who were victims of child rights violations. The majority concerning the use of children in the armed conflict, attacks on their physical integrity, their freedom, arbitrary detention, and sexual violence linked to the conflict,” he said.
Reports received by the U.N. human rights office estimate that armed groups who signed last year’s peace agreement were responsible for 35% of the documented abuses, including killings, abductions, detention, ill-treatment, the destruction of infrastructure and appropriation of property.
Virginia Gamba, Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict said the number of grave violations committed against children in 2022 had decreased compared to the previous year.
However, she added that conflict continued to take a heavy toll on boys and girls with many being killed and maimed by gunshots and explosive remnants of war.
Sexual abuse
“The recruitment and use of children remained the most prevalent violation verified in 2022,” she said. “While boys were most affected, girls were also recruited and used by parties to conflict and most of them were subjected to sexual violence during their association. Some of the girls became pregnant following the rape.”
She said children were driven to join armed groups because of poverty and protection of their communities from attacks by rival armed groups.
More than a decade of armed conflict has kept the CAR in a state of perpetual impoverishment, hunger, and ill health. The U.N. office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs, OCHA reports more than two million people, or more than one-third of the population needs humanitarian assistance to survive.
A recent U.N. food assessment finds 2.7 million people, nearly half the population, are acutely food insecure, with 642,000 on the verge of famine. OCHA reports hundreds of thousands of people are suffering from acute malnutrition, most are children under age five. In addition, more than half a million children aged three to 17 are out of school, making them susceptible to recruitment, exploitation, and trafficking.
Mohamed Ag Ayoya, deputy special representative of MINUSCA, the U.N. peacekeeping force in CAR warns children continue to be raped, abducted, killed, maimed, and recruited by armed groups and security forces with impunity.
“There is no peace without justice. Despite the government and partners’ efforts, there is still a lot of impunity,” he said.
“There are no criminal courts operating. So, rape is often tried as a minor crime, trivialized. And that stops peace and security efforts,” he said. “I urge all partners to support the government to bring an end to inequality and to give justice to the victims of rape.”
Calls for dialogue
The minister said there was no military solution to this long-lasting conflict and urged the warring parties to lay down their weapons and “take up a dialogue for the sake of all children in the country.”
His sentiments were echoed by rights chief Türk who urged the Government to adopt measures to prevent serious violations from occurring and to provide comprehensive care for the child victims.
Arnaud Djoubaye Abazene, minister of state in charge of justice, human rights and good governance of the CAR responded to these pleas by assuring members of the U.N. human rights council that attention was being paid to all children’s issues at the highest level in the country.
“The government is resolved to ensure the protection and promotion of the rights of the child and to combatting the recruitment of children by armed groups.
“The government also reaffirms its commitment to prosecute and punish the perpetrators of crimes against children and other serious human rights violations,” he said.
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UN Experts Name South Sudan Officials for Rights Abuses
A panel of U.N. rights experts on Monday named several high-ranking South Sudanese officials they say warrant criminal investigation and prosecution for their part in grave atrocities against civilians.
Top government and military leaders were identified in a new report by the U.N. Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan that details state responsibility for widespread murder, rape and sexual slavery.
The commission, which conducted a year-long investigation across six states in South Sudan and released a partial summary of its findings in March, said none of those named in the final report had faced any accountability for their crimes.
“Over several years, our findings have consistently shown that impunity for serious crimes is a central driver of violence and misery faced by civilians in South Sudan,” commission chair Yasmin Sooka said.
“So we have taken the step of naming more of the individuals who warrant criminal investigation and prosecution for their role in gross human rights violations.”
The report identifies Joseph Monytuil, governor of Unity State, and Lieutenant General Thoi Chany Reat of the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces, in relation to state-sanctioned killings in Mayom County in August 2022.
Four captured rebel officers were summarily executed by government troops in killings that were captured on video and shared widely. Three were killed by firing squad and a fourth was burned alive in a hut.
The report also names Gordon Koang, the county commissioner of Koch, who was accused of leading horrific attacks on civilians in neighboring Leer County between February and April 2022.
Other top-ranking officials in Warrap, Upper Nile, Jonglei and the Equatoria states were identified as warranting further scrutiny or investigation for their role in various abuses.
“The Commission found that while the Government of South Sudan has announced special investigation committees into several situations, not one has led to any form of accountability,” the panel said in a statement.
“Government and military personnel implicated in these serious crimes remain in office.”
The government has accused the commission of interfering in its national affairs and rejected past findings from the three-member panel.
South Sudan achieved independence from Sudan in 2011 but collapsed into a civil war two years later that devastated the world’s newest country.
Close to 400,000 people died before a peace deal was signed in 2018 but core tenets of the agreement remain unfulfilled, and the country is riven by armed violence.
A promised tribunal led by the African Union to prosecute offenders and deliver justice for victims of war crimes has never eventuated.
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Kenya Opposition Leader Odinga Calls Off Monday’s Protest
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga said Sunday he was suspending anti-government protests temporarily as he was ready for talks after an appeal from President William Ruto.
Early Sunday, Ruto addressed the nation live on television. It is the first time he has done so publicly since nationwide protests began over the high cost of living and alleged elections irregularities. Thousands have attended the protests that began March 20 and were organized by Odinga.
Ruto said, “Our country has experienced grave acts of lawlessness, widespread violence, looting and invasion of private property by persons taking advantage of political demonstrations called by the opposition.”
In the speech, he pleaded for Odinga to call off the protests scheduled for Monday.
Three people have been killed since the protests began, more than 400 others have been injured, Ruto said Sunday.
The opposition has been pushing for electoral reforms, and Ruto said there could be bipartisan reform to the election commission.
Odinga warned that protests would resume if the government does not resolve the issues.
Last week, Odinga claimed his convoy was attacked and his car was hit with seven live bullets, each aimed at him. There’s “no justification for the excessive force used against peaceful unarmed citizens exercising their democratic rights,” he told reporters.
Three people have been killed since the protests began, more than 400 others have been injured, Ruto said Sunday.
Odinga wrote on Twitter earlier Sunday, before calling off protests, “We are all ready and set for #MegaMonday.”
He also continued to claim that he was victorious in the August elections and urged Ruto to “vacate his office immediately.”
In his Sunday morning address, Ruto said that last August’s elections were free and fair. And that he hopes the opposition’s claim of election irregularities can be handled in parliament and by a bipartisan group.
There have been reports of more than 20 journalists being attacked, harassed and injured since the protests began.
Addressing that issue, Ruto said his country believes in free media and any engagement that puts media in danger is unacceptable. He said media should be allowed to carry out its duties.
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Congolese Student’s Device Makes Science Fiction Reality
A student in Congo has developed a tool that allows people to control or move objects using their brain signals. Andre Ndambi visited the department of engineering at the University of Kinshasa and has this story narrated by Salem Solomon. Jean-Louis Mafema contributed.
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El-Sissi Heads to Saudi Arabia Amid Financial Pressure, Regional Realignment
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is traveling to Saudi Arabia on Sunday, according to three diplomatic sources, as Cairo continues to seek financial inflows to ease pressure on its currency and bolster a faltering economy.
Oil-rich Saudi Arabia has long provided financial support to Egypt but recently signaled it would no longer provide such backing without strings attached, which observers think may have sparked a rare media clash between the two countries.
The trip also comes amid a major diplomatic realignment in the region, with moves by Saudi Arabia and Egypt to ease tensions with Syria, Iran and Turkey.
There was no immediate official comment from Egypt or Saudi Arabia on the visit.
Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies have repeatedly come to Egypt’s help since el-Sissi led the ouster of Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood a decade ago.
When Egypt’s financial difficulties were exposed and exacerbated by the fallout from the war in Ukraine last year, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar made deposits in Egypt’s central bank and pledged major new investments.
But those investments have been slow to materialize, putting new pressure on the Egyptian pound in recent weeks despite the currency losing nearly half its value against the dollar since March 2022.
Egypt signed a $3 billion rescue plan with the International Monetary Fund in December that targeted $9.7 billion in foreign direct investment in the financial year ending in June 2023.
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Algerian Court Sentences Prominent Journalist to 5 Years
A court in Algiers on Sunday sentenced a prominent journalist in the North African country to five years in prison with two years suspended and ordered his website and a radio station shut down based on the accusation that they threaten state security.
Ihsane El-Kadi was detained Dec. 23 at his home in the capital, Algiers. He was accused of receiving foreign funding for his outlets. He has remained in custody since his arrest and appeared in court on Sunday for the verdict, along with a collective of lawyers, defending him, journalists and family members.
The court also ordered El-Kadi to pay a fine of 700,000 Algerian dinars ($5,200). The media company which owns El-Kadi’s website and radio station was ordered dissolved, its assets seized, and a fine of one million Algerian dinars ($7,390) was imposed on its owners.
El-Kadi, who was active in Algeria’s Hirak pro-democracy protest movement in 2019, appears to be the latest target of an encroaching crackdown on dissenting voices in the North African country.
His outlets were seen by many as outposts of free debate in Algerian media that provided journalists and opposition politicians a platform to point out contradictions or shortfalls in the government’s policies.
The case against him is linked to the crowdfunding used to finance his media outlets, Maghreb Emergent and Webradio. The website and radio station operated in Algeria for years but did not have government recognition as official media organizations.
El-Kadi was accused of violating an article in the criminal code targeting anyone who receives funds aimed at “inciting acts susceptible to threaten state security,” stability or Algeria’s fundamental interests, his lawyers said before the verdict.
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Burkina Faso Expels Two French Journalists
Burkina Faso has expelled two French journalists working for newspapers Le Monde and Liberation, the two newspapers said on Sunday, accusing the authorities of seeking to stifle freedom of speech with an escalating crackdown on foreign media.
Liberation said its correspondent Agnès Faivre and Le Monde’s Sophie Douce arrived in Paris early on Sunday after they were summoned separately for questioning by the military authorities on Friday and later notified of their expulsion.
The two are “journalists of perfect integrity, who worked in Burkina Faso legally, with valid visas and accreditations … We strongly protest against these absolutely unjustified expulsions,” Liberation said in an editorial statement on its website.
There was no statement from the authorities in Burkina Faso and it was not immediately possible to reach them for comment.
The French foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Relations between Paris and Ouagadougou have deteriorated sharply since Burkina Faso’s military seized power in a coup last October. The junta has since ordered French troops to withdraw from the country and suspended broadcasts by France’s RFI radio and television channel France 24.
“These two expulsions mark a new major setback in the freedom to inform on the situation in Burkina Faso,” Le Monde Director Jérôme Fenoglio said in a statement.
Douce’s reporting “obviously ended up seeming unbearable to the regime of Ibrahim Traoré, transition president for six months,” he said.
Liberation said a recent investigation by Faivre into children and adolescents allegedly being killed in a military barracks had likely displeased the authorities.
“These restrictions on freedom of information are unacceptable and the sign of a power that refuses to allow its actions to be questioned,” it said.
Burkina Faso is one of several West African countries and former French colonies battling violent Islamist groups that took root in neighboring Mali and have spread across the region over the past decade. Thousands have been killed and over two million displaced across the Sahel region south of the Sahara despite the presence of foreign troops including from France.
Frustrations over authorities’ failure to restore security has spurred anti-French sentiment and helped bring about two military takeovers in Burkina Faso and two in Mali since 2020.
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Sudan Delays Signing of Deal to Usher in Civilian Government
Sudan’s military leaders and pro-democracy forces will delay the signing of an agreement to usher in a civilian government, both sides said in a joint statement issued early Saturday.
The postponement of the signing — which had been scheduled for later Saturday — comes as key security reform negotiations between the Sudanese army and the country’s powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces appear to have reached a deadlock.
Military generals met with pro-democracy leaders Saturday in the capital of Khartoum and agreed to sign the deal April 6, said Khalid Omar, a spokesman for the pro-democracy block, in a separate statement.
The meeting was attended by representatives from the U.N., the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in Eastern Africa, who have facilitated talks between the military and pro-democracy groups.
Sudan has been mired in chaos after a military coup, led by the country’s top Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, removed a Western-backed power-sharing government in October 2021, upending the country’s short-lived transition to democracy.
But last December, the military, the RSF and numerous pro-democracy groups signed a preliminary deal vowing to restore the transition.
In recent months, internationally brokered workshops in Khartoum have sought to find common ground over the country’s thorniest political issues in the hope of signing a more inclusive final agreement.
Chief among the discussion points have been security sector reform and the integration of the RSF into the military — the topic of this week’s talks. But talks ended Wednesday without any clear outcome.
Shihab Ibrahim, a spokesperson for one of the largest pro-democracy groups that signed December’s deal, said the army and the RSF have struggled to reach an agreement over the timeline of the integration process.
The army wants a two-year timeline for integration while the RSF has called for a 10-year window, he said.
Spokespersons for the Sudanese army and the RSF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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UN Food Chief: Billions Needed to Avert Unrest, Starvation
Without billions of dollars more to feed millions of hungry people, the world will see mass migration, destabilized countries, and starving children and adults in the next 12-18 months, the head of the Nobel prize-winning U.N. World Food Program warned Friday.
David Beasley praised increased funding from the United States and Germany last year, and urged China, Gulf nations, billionaires and other countries “to step up big time.”
In an interview before he hands the reins of the world’s largest humanitarian organization to U.S. ambassador Cindy McCain next week, the former South Carolina governor said he’s “extremely worried” that WFP won’t raise about $23 billion it needs this year to help an estimated 350 million people in 49 countries who desperately need food.
“Right at this stage, I’ll be surprised if we get 40% of it, quite frankly,” he said.
WFP was in a similar crisis last year, he said, but fortunately he was able to convince the United States to increase its funding from about $3.5 billion to $7.4 billion and Germany to raise its contribution from $350 million a few years ago to $1.7 billion, but he doesn’t think they’ll do it again this year.
Other countries need to step up now, he said, starting with China, the world’s second-largest economy which gave WFP just $11 million last year.
Beasley applauded China for its success in substantially reducing hunger and poverty at home, but said it gave less than one cent per person last year compared to the United States, the world’s leading economy, which gave about $22 per person.
China needs “to engage in the multilateral world” and be willing to provide help that is critical, he said. “They have a moral obligation to do so.”
Beasley said they’ve done “an incredible job of feeding their people,” and “now we need their help in other parts of the world” on how they did it, particularly in poorer countries including in Africa.
With high oil prices Gulf countries can also do more, especially Muslim nations that have relations with countries in east Africa, the Sahara and elsewhere in the Middle East, he said, expressing hope they will increase contributions.
Beasley said the wealthiest billionaires made unprecedented profits during the COVID-19 pandemic, and “it’s not too much to ask some of the multibillionaires to step up and help us in the short-term crisis,” even though charity isn’t a long-term solution to the food crisis.
In the long-term, he said what he’d really like to see is billionaires using their experience and success to engage “in the world’s greatest need – and that is food on the planet to feed 8 billion people.”
“The world has to understand that the next 12 to 18 months is critical, and if we back off the funding, you will have mass migration, and you will have destabilization nations and that will all be on top of starvation among children and people around the world,” he warned.
Beasley said WFP was just forced to cut rations by 50% to 4 million people in Afghanistan, and “these are people who are knocking on famine’s door now.”
“We don’t have enough money just to reach the most vulnerable people now,” he said. “So we are in a crisis over the cliff stage right now, where we literally could have hell on earth if we’re not very careful.”
Beasley said he’s been telling leaders in the West and Europe that while they’re focusing everything on Ukraine and Russia, “you better well not forget about what’s south and southeast of you because I can assure you it is coming your way if you don’t pay attention and get on top of it.”
With $400 trillion worth of wealth on the planet, he said, there’s no reason for any child to die of starvation.
The WFP executive director said leaders have to prioritize the humanitarian needs that are going to have the greatest impact on stability in societies around the world.
He singled out several priority places — Africa’s Sahel region as well as the east including Somalia, northern Kenya, South Sudan and Ethiopia; Syria which is having an impact on Jordan and Lebanon; and Central and South America where the number of people migrating to the United States is now five times what it was a year-and-a-half ago.
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UN Weekly Roundup: March 25-31, 2023
Editor’s note: Here is a fast take on what the international community has been up to this past week, as seen from the United Nations perch.
Vanuatu leads action on climate justice
The U.N. General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution Wednesday that will ask the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory opinion on the obligations of states under international law to protect the rights of present and future generations from the impact of climate change. The Pacific island nation of Vanuatu spearheaded the drafting and negotiations of the resolution, with a core group of 18 countries representing most corners of the world.
What Are State’s Obligations to Protect Citizens from Climate Change? World Court to Weigh In
General Assembly closer to creating new entity on missing Syrians
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the international community Tuesday to create an international body that would assist families of the estimated 100,000 missing persons in Syria to find out the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones.
UN Chief Urges Creation of Entity to Clarify Fate of 100,000 Missing Syrians
Disarmament chief: risk of nuclear weapon use now highest since Cold War
The United Nations disarmament chief warned Friday that the risk of a nuclear weapon being used is higher now than at any time since the Cold War. Izumi Nakamitsu told the Security Council that the war in Ukraine “represents the most acute example of that risk.”
Russia takes over Security Council’s April presidency
On April 1, in what some critics say sounds more like an April Fool’s joke than reality, Russia will take over the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council for the month — and no one can prevent it.
Cyclone raises risk of disease at Malawi sites for displaced people
The U.N. humanitarian agency says Malawi needs immediate help to deal with diseases spreading in displacement camps for Cyclone Freddy survivors. The Malawi health minister told reporters Tuesday that the government is beefing up its medical staff, but a local newspaper says the country needs more money to adequately deal with health care needs.
UN Concerned About Disease in Malawi’s Displacement Camps
Talking to Sudanese men about female genital mutilation
The World Health Organization says about 87% of Sudanese females between 15 and 49 have undergone female genital mutilation, one of the highest rates in the world. A project by the U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF, is targeting sports clubs to engage men and boys in the fight against the practice. Watch this report from Henry Wilkins in Khartoum, Sudan:
UNICEF Talking to Sudanese Men’s Clubs About Female Genital Mutilation
In brief
— A resolution put forward Monday by Russia at the United Nations calling for an international investigation into the apparent sabotage last year on the Nord Stream gas pipelines failed to win Security Council support. Russia’s draft received only three votes in favor — from itself, China and Brazil. The other 12 Security Council members abstained. Several council members said an additional investigation would not be beneficial right now and urged waiting for the results of the national ones. Others suggested that a deadline be imposed for the national investigations to conclude, saying they should not be open-ended.
— International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Mariano Grossi made a mission to Ukraine this week. He has been trying for months to negotiate a weapons-free zone around the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, which has come under repeated shelling and blackouts during the war and is currently occupied by Russian troops. A team of IAEA experts is also based at the facility. Grossi met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the city of Zaporizhzhya on Monday and indicated he may soon go to Russia for further talks. He warned that a nuclear accident with radiological consequences “will spare no one.”
— Thursday was the first ever International Day of Zero Waste. U.N. Secretary-General Guterres warned during a General Assembly meeting on the issue that the planet is turning into a “garbage dump” and by 2050 municipal solid waste will double to 4 billion tons a year. He called for more sustainable consumption and production patterns with the goal of a zero-waste future. Guterres also announced that he is establishing an Advisory Board of Eminent Persons on Zero Waste to be chaired by the first lady of Turkey, Emine Erdoğan.
Did you know?
The U.N. flag was designed in 1945 when the organization was founded. It is a map of the world resting inside two olive branches. The blue background was chosen to represent peace, and this shade of blue has become known as “U.N. blue.” American architect Oliver Lincoln Lundquist led the design team that created it.
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VP Harris Praises Tanzania’s President for Strengthening Democracy
Human rights activists are voicing appreciation for U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris’s recognition of efforts by Tanzania’s president to strengthen democracy in the country.
In Dar es Salaam on Thursday, Harris oversaw the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two countries, covering a range of issues.
In a joint press briefing at Dar es Salaam State House, Harris hailed President Samia Hassan. “You have been a champion in terms of democratic reforms in this country and, in that way, have expanded our partnership,” she said. “And so today, then, is part of the strengthening of the relationship between our two countries.”
The U.S. and Tanzania signed a five-year agreement of assistance worth $1.1 billion aimed at improving good governance and development.
Since coming to power in 2021, Hassan has moved away from policies by her late predecessor, John Magufuli, that critics said suppressed the opposition and all forms of dissent.
Hassan has lifted restrictions on the media, ended a ban on political rallies and recently promised to restore competitive politics.
Speaking at the event, the president told the vice president that she was committed to strengthening democracy.
“Acceptable democratic space has been a major concern of my government,” she said. “We have endeavored to build a democratic state that upholds transparency and respect of the rule of law.”
Anna Henga, executive director of the Legal and Human Rights Center in Tanzania, said that “when we look at the current situation, there is some relief” with regard to human rights. “We cannot deny that we haven’t yet reached where we want to be, but the world can see the moves that Tanzania is making toward democracy. Therefore, I was not surprised by Harris’s remarks. As for the U.S. support, I believe it will continue and I’m hopeful that we’ll reach our desired destination.”
Bob Wangwe, head of the Tanzania Constitutional Forum, known in Swahili as Jukwaa la Katiba, said Tanzania needs constitutional reforms that will, among other things, allow presidential results to be challenged and independent candidates to run for office.
“I think that these engagements and the statement from Kamala will ultimately advance democracy in this country,” he said, “and I am looking forward to the substantial steps the government has to undertake.” Wangwe said those include “undertaking constitutional reforms to strengthen some institutions that will help the country in terms of accountability.”
Harris left Tanzania on Friday for Zambia, the final stop on her tour of three African countries that began in Ghana.
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Malawi Sets Final Deadline for Refugee Return to Lone Authorized Camp
Malawi’s government has told refugees and asylum-seekers to relocate to the country’s lone refugee camp by April 15 or face forced eviction from their homes.
The Ministry of Homeland Security said in a statement Thursday that the new deadline followed the expiration of the February 1 deadline the government set last year for about 8,000 refugees who had settled outside the Dzaleka refugee camp.
Ken Zikhale Ngoma, Malawi’s minister of homeland security, said the latest move was in line with Malawi’s encampment policy, which prohibits refugees from staying outside a refugee camp.
Ngoma said the Dzaleka camp in central Malawi has facilities that meet international standards for all refugees and asylum-seekers, including primary and secondary schools, a health center and a public market.
Raphael Ndabagha, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, disputes that.
Ndabagha lived outside the Dzaleka camp before returning ahead of the February 1 deadline. “The advantage of living in the city, you have many more opportunities than the camp,” he said. “In the city, if you are a businessperson, you can open a shop and you are able to make a living, because you can make income, you can prosper.”
Ndabagha said that in the city, his three children were able to go to better schools than those in and around the refugee camp.
Kenyi Emanuel Lukajo, associate external relations and reporting officer for the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR in Malawi, told VOA on Friday that the agency would comment officially on the new deadline later.
However, the UNHCR had previously expressed concerns when the Malawi government issued the first relocation order in August 2022.
The refugee agency said in a statement that the relocation would result in extreme pressure on the camp’s already inadequate health services, water, shelter and sanitation.
But the Malawi government said in its new order that refugees were already given ample time to make necessary arrangements for the relocation.
It warned that those resisting the new deadline would be forcefully evicted from their homes.
Business operators in Malawi have long threatened to forcefully evict refugees from market areas, saying they are bringing unnecessary competition in terms of prices of goods.
Teneson Mulimbula, general secretary for an association of small-business operators in Malawi, said, “If you go to their shops you will find that there is stock, farm produce items like beans, rice, peas, which they receive at Dzaleka refugee camp. And just because they receive them freely, they start selling them at a lower price.”
But some refugee traders, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, denied that they were selling items from the refugee camp.
The government said state agencies such as the Malawi Police Service and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services would be involved in the relocation.
It added that any person or group found to be harassing refugees or asylum-seekers would be arrested.
Dzaleka is home to refugees and asylum-seekers from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Somalia.
The camp was meant to accommodate about 10,000 refugees but now is home to more than 50,000.
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How Chinese Private Security Companies in Africa Differ From Russia’s
The killing of nine Chinese gold mine workers in conflict-ridden Central African Republic this month highlighted the risks some Belt and Road development projects face in volatile areas.
To protect Chinese investments and citizens, Beijing deploys its own private security contractors, but analysts say these companies operate very differently on the continent than Russia’s notorious Wagner Group.
President Xi Jinping called for those responsible for the March 19 attack by gunmen on a Chinese-run gold mine outside Bambari to be “severely punished,” while the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a security alert for its citizens.
“The foreign ministry will continue to work closely with other government agencies concerned and subnational governments to do everything possible to protect the safety and security of Chinese nationals and companies in Africa,” ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters after the incident.
With thousands of Chinese working in Africa since Xi’s infrastructure-building push began in 2013, their security and the protection of assets like mines and natural gas projects — as well as railways and shipping routes — have become a key concern for Beijing, said Jasmine Opperman, an independent security consultant based in South Africa.
Chinese workers in Africa also are increasingly targeted by criminal gangs for kidnapping.
All these threats have led to a rise in the number of private military companies (PMCs) or private security companies (PSCs) operating on the continent.
“On China PMCs we have to go back to the Belt and Road Initiative,” Opperman told VOA. “We have seen a massive deployment of workers, Chinese workers, more specifically infrastructure. Now these investments, like in Sudan, South Sudan, are really in volatile areas, so we have seen a proliferation of Chinese PMCs on the African continent, with a task to protect employees and the infrastructure projects.”
Incidents like the one in CAR could now result in more Chinese security companies deployed.
“It’s about the protection and expansion of Chinese influence, and because of the volatile security situations, we are seeing these PMCs now growing in numbers,” said Opperman.
Different than Wagner?
But analysts stress there is a huge difference between Chinese security firms and companies like Wagner Group — which the U.S. Treasury this year designated a “transnational criminal organization” — or even disgraced and disbanded U.S. company Blackwater, which committed abuses during the Iraq war.
Wagner Group, which has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin, has been in the news recently because of the group’s deployment of tens of thousands of mercenaries to fight in the war in Ukraine. But it’s long been operating in destabilized countries in Africa, including CAR and Mali.
Paul Nantulya, a China expert at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, told VOA that Chinese private security companies are not really private at all.
“Ninety-nine percent of security contractors in China are ex-People’s Liberation Army and also ex-special forces and ex-paramilitary police. There’s a level of control, the laws in China are very clear, that the state must have a holding interest in all security firms,” he said.
Nantulya’s previous research on the topic found that of the 5,000 security firms registered in China, 20 were licensed to operate overseas and reported that they employed 3,200 individual contractors. However, he said he thought the true number was much higher.
Among the companies working on the continent are Beijing DeWe Security Service, Huaxin Zhong An Security Group and China Security Technology Group. In Kenya, DeWe employs around 2,000 security contractors just to protect the $3.6 billion China-built Standard Gauge Railway, according to his study.
However, Nantulya told VOA that Chinese companies “work very, very differently from Russian ones like Wagner. Wagner is engaged in combat operations. It’s engaged in wars; it supplies a national security adviser in, for instance, the Central African Republic. They become part of the governing architecture. They fight wars on behalf of governments.”
The U.S. government said Wagner has “meddled and destabilized countries in Africa, committing widespread human rights abuses and extorting natural resources from their people. … Wagner personnel have engaged in an ongoing pattern of serious criminal activity, including mass executions, rape, child abductions and physical abuse in the Central African Republic and Mali.”
Asked by VOA whether the U.S. has any concerns about Chinese security contractors operating in Africa, a State Department spokesperson replied: “We respect the ability of countries to decide for themselves whether to partner with the PRC. However, we echo the long-standing calls from African capitals that the PRC must respect host country laws and international obligations.”
Nantulya noted that most Chinese security contractors – except for those involved in maritime escort missions intended to protect against pirates – are strictly controlled and aren’t even allowed to be armed.
“The Chinese, it’s a small footprint. According to Chinese law, Chinese contractors are not allowed to go into operations with weapons, so they have to work very closely with host nation security forces. They do a lot of training, they do a lot of capacity building, they supply equipment, they supply intelligence, they supply surveillance and so on,” he said.
Opperman said the Chinese security contractors could still have a destabilizing effect.
“Though PMCs from China are not allowed to carry weapons, what they are doing is collaborating through private or local security companies or even local militia groups in terms of providing security … by means of collaborating with local militias, you’re basically taking sides.”
In 2016, more than 300 Chinese oil workers were stranded amid heavy militia fighting in Juba, South Sudan. DeWe’s unarmed personnel helped to evacuate the Chinese nationals by enlisting armed South Sudanese by enlisting armed South Sudanese as backup. Some of the South Sudanese government-backed militias used by Chinese companies have been accused of committing atrocities.
And there have been incidences of violence, despite the arms ban. In Zimbabwe, two Chinese security contractors were jailed in 2017 for shooting and wounding a politician’s son, while in Zambia in 2018, two suspected Chinese security contractors were arrested for providing illegal training and military equipment to a local security firm.
The Chinese Mission to the African Union did not reply to a request for comment.
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USAID, Ugandan Activists Striving to Support HIV Patients Amid Anti-Gay Bill
Uganda’s former prime minister, Ruhakana Rugunda, has applauded the U.S. Agency for International Development for its support in fighting AIDS, saying the country cannot afford to treat patients on its own.
An estimated 1.2 million Ugandans aged 15 to 64 are living with HIV/AIDS and surviving on anti-retroviral drugs. Almost all HIV/AIDS patients receive the drugs through financial support from the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.
Rugunda, speaking as chief guest at celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of the USAID partnership with Uganda, painted a picture of what HIV/AIDS was before U.S. support.
Rugunda recalled that as the AIDS pandemic ravaged the country in the 1990s and early 2000s, the government had no means to afford treatment for patients.
“We knew that AIDS drugs had been developed and they could control AIDS in many ways. The problem we had in Uganda was the drug is there, the people are here needing the drugs, but there’s a gap,” Rugunda said. “How does Uganda fill the gap? The taxpayer in Uganda, even if he or she was squeezed so hard, could not fill the gap.”
In more recent years, Uganda has registered significant success in the fight against HIV, as seen in reduced HIV prevalence and a decline in new infections.
USAID Uganda Mission Director Richard Nelson said his agency and its partners have prioritized HIV/AIDS for the last 20 years and are getting close to control of the epidemic, but obstacles remain.
Uganda’s parliament this month passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill that criminalizes identifying as LGBT, mandates life in prison for gay sex, and imposes a possible death sentence for certain homosexual acts. THe bill is awaiting President Yoweri Museveni’s veto or signature.
Nelson said the bill’s progress is being watched carefully because it could scare people away from seeking treatment for HIV or AIDS.
“The last remaining work that needs to be done to reach epidemic control involves some of these key populations,” he said. “And so, if those key populations are unable to access services, if it’s difficult for us to provide those services, it will really jeopardize our ability to reach our goals of eliminating HIV/AIDS by 2030.”
Even before the bill was passed by parliament, organizations providing HIV/AIDS care services were seeing people shy away from getting anti-retroviral drugs.
Henry Mukiibi, founder of one such group, Children of the Sun, spoke with VOA: “I’ve seen the number of people who are HIV positive, the number of people who are suppressing now is going down. Because people are in fear of getting health services in public facilities.”
According to the Uganda AIDS Commission, stigma, denial, discrimination, inaction and violations of human rights continue to be major barriers to effective national responses to HIV.
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