Africa

On Sunday, June 5, three reporters were killed: Somali broadcast journalist Sagal Salad Osman, Aghan journalist Zabihullah Tamanna, and American photojournalist David Gilkey. Gilkey and Tamanna, who was Gilkey’s interpreter and fixer were killed together in Afghanistan. Fixer is a term for a local journalist who helps international journalists find sources and stories when they are visiting a […]

Loyce Maturu, a Zimbabwean living with AIDS since the age of 12 and an advocate for people living with HIV/AIDS, addresses the General Assembly High-level Meeting on HIV/AIDS. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

By Aruna Dutt
UNITED NATIONS, Jun 10 2016 (IPS)

Young people are disproportionately affected by HIV, yet their concerns about sexual education, and discrimination of key populations were ignored at the UN General Assembly High Level Meeting on ending AIDS.

Although the overall number of AIDS-related deaths is down 35 percent since 2005, estimates suggest that AIDS-related deaths among adolescents are actually rising.

In fact, AIDS is a leading cause of deaths among adolescents in Africa, and it is the second greatest cause of death among adolescents globally.

Young people’s vulnerability to HIV is exacerbated by a lack of access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information and services and by exclusion from decision making processes.

At the UN General Assembly High Level Meeting on ending AIDS this week, Member States adopted a new political declatarion focusing on the Fast-Track approach to fighting HIV and ending AIDS by 2030. Fast-Track is driven by the 90–90–90 targets: that by 2020, 90% of people living with HIV know their HIV status, 90% of people who know their status are receiving treatment and 90% of people on HIV treatment have a suppressed viral load so their immune system remains strong and the likelihood of their infection being passed on is greatly reduced.

“Sexual education is the direct link between HIV AIDS and sexual health and reproductive rights. The sooner we realize this, the sooner we will achieve an HIV free generation."

But youth delegates say that issues of stigma, discrimination, and sexual education were not given the importance they should have in the declaration since youth were not included in the negotiations.

“The concept of 90-90-90 is amazing, but in practice without access to sexual education or participation of key populations and young people, the goals are unrealistic,” said Peter Mladenov, one youth representative from Youth Peer Educational Network.

At the High Level Meeting on Ending Aids, there were 20 young people representing different organisations.

“Unfortunately, all youth representatives were excluded from the negotiations on the high level meeting on Aids political declaration,” said Mladenov.

“Our wishes were not heard and the rights were not promoted since in the final document we did not see any sexuality education, or mentioning of key populations.”

Mladenov is an expert on youth policies and has been a youth advocate for Sexual and Reproductive Rights  and Comprehensive Sexual Education for the past 10 years. At the age of 14, he was invited to join a class on sexual education in school which he says changed his life and began his journey with sexual health and reproductive rights advocacy.

“Sexual education is the direct link between HIV / AIDS and sexual health and reproductive rights. The sooner we realize this, the sooner we will achieve an HIV free generation.”

“Sex ed is not only about the sex, it is about the informed choice of each young person, understanding the changes in your body, a young girl having the right to say no to marriage at age 15, an instrument to prevent child abuse or female genital mutilation.”

Mladenov says sexual education can help end stigma and discrimination.

“It is nice that we are progressing, same-sex marriage is approved in different countries and shows that the world is changing for the better. But there is still a long way to go, people with HIV still experience stigma and discrimination on a daily basis. When someone discriminates against a person it is usually because they are afraid of something, which is why sexual education is so important.”

Another youth leader attending the meeting was Annah Sango from the HIV Young Leaders Fund Board:

“Sexual rights really are human rights, because when it comes to talking about my body and my health and well being, it is not an issue of a statistic, but what I live each and every day,” said Sango.

“It is every young person’s need and right to be in your own country, and be able to know you have access to health and to know that the justice system is working for you, not against you.”

Sango grew up seeing how disadvantaged young people are, and how sometimes culture, society and tradition play a very crucial role in the lives of young people as much as the economic aspects. When asked what she would have wanted in the declaration, she said it was important to ensure that countries aren’t allowed to hide behind culture and religion, and rather have an open mind to the issues in their countries. She also said that member states should have given clear-cut strategies to address some of the pertinent issues facing young people.

Sango is also Advocacy Officer for the African Network of Young People living with HIV (AY+) which heavily advocates for Comprehensive Sexual Education and supports young people to dispel disinformation which drive stigma and discrimination.

“We cannot talk about AIDS whilst excluding young people and key populations. At country level, the agreement needs to reflect the face of HIV: young people that face violence, the millions of young people that have died because of their sexuality, the reality of teenage pregnancies, and of adolescents who are dying because they cannot be identified.”

Sango also said the negotiations for the declaration were very exclusive of youth voices, however she is optimistic that in the future youth will be included at the national level.

“I am confident that whatever goals, whatever agendas we are working towards, we will be able to achieve them if we include the right people to lead and champion the agenda,” said Sango.

Mladenov was also optimistic that about young people’s participation.

“Many people say that young people are the future, but that is not correct – we are the present, and we should be the ones who drive the sustainable development agenda to its accomplishment.” Mladenov told IPS.

“Although we don’t have what we want in the political declaration, we have the will, the power, and motivation to do it. The youth working on the local and national level should not be afraid to take up the floor, to go to their ministries, to demand that they involve youth as equal partners in implementing the declaration.”

“We should not forget that these people were elected by us, they are accountable to us, not vice-versa. If we have more governments really involving young people, we can achieve sustainable development.”

“Young people should be the agents of change, they should be the ones who push their governments to do something for them because they already agreed to with this declaration.”

“I dream for a day when I will not hear about a person coming from an LGBT community who is harassed, or a young woman or girl who is somehow violated, or a young person is excluded.”

IPS also spoke to Sharonann Lynch, HIV/Tuberculosis (TB) policy advisor at Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Access Campaign.

“In many countries where MSF works, young people, especially adolescent girls and young women, are most at risk of contracting HIV,” said Lynch. “For example, in Lesotho, the prevalence of HIV will multiply by 5 in the next 7 years among adolescent girls from the age of 15 to 22. So the question for the region is what can we put in place as soon as possible to provide life-saving treatment as well as prevention.” Lynch told IPS.

“Youth are critical to combat stigma by creating more visibility. Young people can combat stigma by being out about their HIV status, demanding not only a voice but also acceptance in their communities. But governments need to make sure they take steps to reduce stigma and discrimination as well.”

 

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

June 10, 2016(ADDIS ABABA) – Ethiopia's Ministry of Defence on Friday said Ethiopian forces alongside troops from the Somali army have killed 248 Al-shabaab militants in central Somalia.

In this photo taken Thursday Feb.17, 2011 Al-Shabab fighters march with their guns during military exercises on the outskirts of Mogadishu,Somalia (AP)

The militants were killed after attempting an attack on an African Union base in central Somalia where Ethiopian forces are mainly stationed serving under African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM.

According to the statement, Ethiopian and Somalian forces jointly have foiled a planned Al-Shabab attack on Ethiopian forces on Thursday in Hiran region's Halgan town, some 300km north of the capital Mogadishu.

Although AMISOM said it has foiled the attack, the Islamist militant group however alleged killing dozens of Ethiopian soldiers.

“Our fighters stormed the Halgan base of AMISOM . We killed 43 AU soldiers from Ethiopia in the fighting” Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, Al-Shabab's military operations spokesperson, told Reuters news agency.

Al-Shebab's claim has not yet been independently confirmed by AMISOM or the Ethiopian government.

According to the statement by the Ethiopian defence ministry, Al-Shabab attempted to carryout the attack in four directions, by using cars equipped with bombs.

“Ethiopian and Somalia forces jointly repulsed the attack and killed 248 Al-Shabab militants including 5 top commanders” it said.

Hundreds of Al Shabab fighters were also captured during the clashes.

The state-run TV, Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) today aired a large cache of weapons it said were captured during Thursday's attack.

Meanwhile the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, condemns in the strongest terms the failed attack.

The Chairperson commended the fast response exhibited by the Ethiopian contingent of AMISOM and the Somali forces in repulsing the attack.

“Attacks such as this further demonstrate the despicable nature of Al Shabaab, whose sole purpose is to spread terror and continue the destabilization of Somalia” She said.

“Our resolve can only be rejuvenated, to fight on until Somalia is freed of all elements of terror. She further stresses that the failed attack demonstrated AMISOM's capability to respond effectively against this terrorist threat”

Dlamini-Zuma reaffirmed AU's continued support the Somali Government and people in their effort to achieve sustainable peace.

Ethiopia is one of the five countries contributing troops to the 22,000-strong AU mission in Somalia.

This the first time for an Ethiopian-run AMISOM base to be attacked by Al-Qaeda allied terrorist group.

Al-Shabab's insurgency aims to topple the western-backed government and turn the nation in to an Islamic state.

(ST)

Headscarves have made a come-back in South Africa but it seems that their appeal is steeped in more than just fashion writes the BBC's Pumza Fihlani

June 10, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan Police Force and UNMAID police on Friday agreed to form a joint coordination mechanism to achieve peace and stability in Darfur.

UNAMID forces from Rwanda patrol in an area for families displaced by the fighting over goldmines between the Abbala and Beni Hussein tribes on the outskirts of El Sereif in North Darfur on 13 May 2013 (Photo: Albert González Farran/UNAMID)

The hybrid mission has been deployed in Darfur since December 2007 with a mandate to stem violence against civilians in the western Sudan's region.

Sudanese Police Forces Commander, General Hashim Osman al-Hussein, and UNAMID Police Commander, Brigadier Barsila Makothi discussed, in Khartoum, ways to enhance joint cooperation in Darfur.

Following the meeting, it was announced that that the two parties agreed to create a coordination mechanism to achieve peace and stability in Darfur.

According to a statement issued by Sudan Police Press Office, on Friday, the two parties discussed the security situation in Darfur, the role of Sudanese police in enhancing peace and stability in Darfur and its support to UNAMID police in achieving its mandate in Darfur.

UNAMID Police Commander hailed cooperation with Sudanese police, according to the statement.

“The deployment of UNAMID Police in Darfur is not a substitute for Sudan Police but it aims to enhance joint cooperation , building capacities and sharing experience in training, managing prisons and community police,'' reads the statement.

In February 2015 , A tripartite working group including the Sudanese government, African Union (AU) and United Nations (UN) has been set up to develop an exit strategy for the UNAMID from Darfur.

UNAMID currently has 13,809 military personnel, 1,161 police advisers, 1,814 formed police unit officers, 762 international civilian staff, 152 United Nations volunteers, and 2,177 national civilian staff.

United Nations Security Council resolution 1769, in July 2007, authorized the deployment of an appropriate civilian police component consisting of more than 3,500 police officers, with 19 formed police units comprising up to 140 personnel each.

(ST)

June 10, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The African Union (AU) Commission chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Friday has urged Sudan and South Sudan to implement the Cooperation Agreement signed between them on 27 September 2012.

Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, chairperson of the African Union Commission (Photo: Reuters)

In September 2012, both Sudan and South Sudan signed a series of cooperation agreements, which covered oil, citizenship rights, security issues, banking, border trade among others.

In March 2013, the two countries signed an implementation matrix for these cooperation agreements. However, the execution of the agreements didn't go according to the plan.

Last Sunday, the Joint Political and Security Committee (JPSC) between the two countries signed a series of security agreements, including immediate re-deployment of joint military forces along the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ), and approved a plan to stop supporting and harbouring rebels as well as opening the crossings points.

In a statement issued on Friday, Zuma expressed satisfaction with the signing of the security agreements, urging the two countries to implement the joint Cooperation Agreement signed between them on 27 September 2012.

Zuma also underscored her full support for the Sudanese/South Sudanese higher committee and the African Union Border Programme (AUBP) to implement the agreements reached by the JPSC.

She praised the outcome of the JPSC meeting which was co-chaired by the defence ministers, stressing her support for the implementation of the agreements signed between the two sides.

South Sudan seceded from Sudan on July 9th 2011 following a referendum on whether the semi-autonomous region should remain a part of the country or become independent. 99% of the southern voters chose independence.

Relations between the two nations soured after South Sudan's independence following a series of disputes over a number of issues.

(ST)

June 10, 2016 (JUBA) – A group of national and international civil society and human rights organizations have criticized the South Sudan's top leadership for authoring an opinion paper seeking to avoid justice and accountability mechanisms in the country.

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir prepares to give his speech during the India Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015 (Photo AP/Bernat Armangue)

The group of six organizations under the umbrella of the Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG), said although they have realized that the two leaders, President Salva Kiir and First Vice President, Riek Machar, did not co-author the controversial article, it yet gave concerns as to why one of them did it.

“Although its authorship remains hotly contested, the recent opinion article in the New York Times, entitled, “South Sudan Needs Truth, Not Trials,” brings into doubt the commitment of the top leadership in the TGONU to turn over a new leaf and build a state that is accountable to its people,” partly reads the joint statement from TJWG extended to Sudan Tribune on Friday.

The group called on the top leaders to withdraw the opinion for the interest of the people.

“Group (TJWG), urge President Salva Kiir and First Vice-President Riek Machar to withdraw their stated opposition to the Hybrid Court and publicly renew their commitment to abide by the terms of the peace agreement. South Sudan can no longer afford to lose its citizens and tolerate impunity. Reconciliation and healing are important for the nation but to move South Sudan forward on a path to peace, justice must be done and people must account for the lives of the tens of thousands of innocent South Sudanese who died in this war,” they said.

The signatory organizations to the joint statement include Assistance Mission for Africa (AMA); Dialogue and Research Initiative (DRI); Human Rights Development Organization (HURIDO); South Sudan Law Society (SSLS); South Sudan Women Empowerment Network (SSWEN); Foundation for Democratic and Accountable Governance (FODAG); and Solidarity Ministry Africa for Reconciliation and Development (SMARD).

(ST)

June 10, 2016 (JUBA) - Members of parliament in the newly created Aweil East state, one of the controversial proposed 28 states in South Sudan, have approved a new constitution that restricts marriageable age in the state.

People displaced in Northern Bahr El Ghazal state by alleged SAF bombings in 2012 (Office of the Aweil North county commissioner/File)

This came after a committee tasked with reviewing the previous constitution of Northern Bahr el Ghazal state from which the new Aweil East state was curved out, agreed to insert a provision in the new constitution to regulate marriageable age.

In the new constitution, the committee suggested that the “full age means the age of 20 years and above” and specifies that “any woman who is married shall be deemed to be of full age.”

Daniel Akol Diing, former parliamentary affairs minister, told Sudan Tribune on Wednesday that the parliament had unanimously passed the new constitution after conducting public hearings to gather the views of the people on what should be marriageable age for ladies and young men in the state.

“The members have passed the new constitution. There are two important provisions. One is the provision which restricts the marriageable age for ladies to 20 years and 25 years for gents,” said Diing.

“Another important provision is the one that talks about age at which a person should have reached to be a member of parliament. This particular provision applies to the male. For anyone aspiring to be a member of parliament, the person must have reached 25 years to qualify,” he explained.

Aweil East is one of the new states created through a unilateral and controversial presidential establishment order in which president Salva Kiir in October 2015 dissolved the state governments and increased the number of states to 28 from 10.

Opposition factions and international partners said this was in violation of August 2015 peace agreement which President Kiir signed with armed opposition and other stakeholders to end more than two years conflict.

The peace deal was signed on the basis of the ten states.

(ST)

August 10, 2016 ((JUBA)- The United States has urged South Sudan leaders to respect their commitment to establish a hybrid court meant to arbitrate charges of war crimes in the country.

Riek Machar, left, first vice president of the Republic of South Sudan, and Salva Kiir, the president, at the first meeting of the new transitional coalition government in Juba, South Sudan, in April, 2016 (Jason Patinkin/AP)

This week, the New York Times published a commentary purportedly written by South Sudan President Salva Kiir and first vice president Riek Machar, calling on the international community and the US and Britain in particular to reconsider a key component of South Sudan's peace deal: a hybrid international court tasked with trying alleged war criminals.

In the article, both leaders argued that South Sudan needs a South Africa-like truth and reconciliation commission that will unify the nation and “guarantee lasting peace.”

Mark Toner, the US State Department said Washington was “disappointed” by the joint article published on 7 June.

“We firmly support the African Union's efforts to establish this hybrid court,” Toner said in a statement, further adding “And we expect the parties to fulfill their responsibilities.”

Creation of a hybrid court, he said, was key elements in South Sudan's peace accord signed by Kiir and Machar.

South Sudan's largest donor, the US played a leading role in the process that led to the country's independence in 2011.

Analysts, however, say the defence of the proposed court by President Barack Obama administration may make it difficult for South Sudan's factions to avoid accountability for atrocities that both sides are said to have committed.

Both Kiir and Machar advocated for an “organized” peace and reconciliation process with international backing.

Such a process, they said, would ensure everyone in South Sudan is engage through dialogue, and by so doing affirm the truth of what happened during our bloody civil war.

“We intend to create a national truth and reconciliation commission modeled on those of South Africa and Northern Ireland. This commission would have wide-ranging powers to investigate and interview the people of South Sudan, from the poorest farmer to the most powerful politician, to compile a true account of events during the war,” they wrote.

The two leaders, in the op-ed, said those who tell the truth about what they saw or did would be granted amnesty from prosecution, even if they did not express remorse.

Washington said it does not oppose such a commission, which “could be an important part of this peace agreement,” adding “There needs to be accountability.”

Meanwhile, the New-York based Human Rights Watch criticized South Sudanese leaders for allegedly bypassing justice in the young nation in favor of a truth-telling exercise.

(ST)

June 10, 2016 (JUBA) – A United States-based global news organization, The New York Times, has admitted making a mistake by publishing a controversial opinion article which was alleged to have been authored jointly by South Sudanese leaders as an appeal to dodge justice and accountability mechanisms in the August 2015 peace agreement.

President Salva Kiir greets First Vice President Riek Machar before to start a meeting at the South Sudanese presidency in Juba on 3 June 2016 (Photo Moses Lomayat)

The spokeswoman of The New York Times, Eileen Murphy, said the initially unverified opinion article bearing the names of President Salva Kiir and First Vice President, Riek Machar, as co-authors was forwarded to them by “representatives” of the government of South Sudan.

She admitted that they should have confirmed the authenticity of the document from both parties in order to avoid the one-sided story which has resulted to the controversy.

“This piece came to us through representatives of the government of South Sudan with assurances that they were working on behalf of both President Kiir and Vice President Machar. Today, we learned that Vice President Machar does not agree with the content of the op-ed,” Eileen Murphy, spokeswoman for The New York Times, told Washington-based Foreign Policy (FP) on Thursday.

“We should have sought direct confirmation of the argument of the piece from both parties,” Murphy added.

This came after officials in the office of the First Vice President, Machar, dismissed the claim that the document was co-authored by President Kiir and First Vice President, Machar, saying Machar did not draft or see the document.

Machar's spokesman, James Gatdet Dak, said he wrote an email to The New York Times, asking the media outlet to correct their publication, saying the document's content on justice and accountability was “irresponsible and falsified.”

The Foreign Policy in Washington on Thursday said they were also surprised that Machar would have suddenly changed his known stance in support for justice and accountability to try in hybrid court those responsible for serious crimes committed beginning from 15 December 2013 when the war broke out in Juba.

“But we at FP [Foreign Policy] weren't the only ones surprised to see Machar reverse course and join Kiir in calling for “truth, not trials…,” said the Foreign Policy, suggesting that Machar had been vocal in seeing to it that justice must prevail.

It also said the argument presented by Ateny Wek Ateny, President Kiir's press secretary that he was the overall spokesman in the Presidency and that the article was written in his office was also a reason to doubt the process involved.

“But even as he affirmed the article's authenticity, Ateny added a layer of doubt, saying that he is the spokesman for the “whole presidency” and admitting that the op-ed “was written from my office,” Foreign Policy further added.

It said when Ateny was asked whether Machar involved in the drafting of the alleged joint document, he did not respond to an email from Foreign Policy.

“Ateny did not respond to an email Thursday asking how exactly Machar had been involved in the drafting process,” it added.

A HIRED FIRM INVOLVED

However, Ateny revealed that the President's office or his office hired a Washington-based public relations firm in drafting the controversial document and ensuring that The New York Times published it.

“But in an interview with journalist Jason Patinkin, Ateny all but admitted that the piece had been produced in conjunction with a Washington-based public relations firm, though he did not say which one,” said Foreign Policy, adding that Ateny argued, “It's the right of anybody to employ [a] consultancy.”

The new revelation suggested that the document was worked out through a third party.

NEW YORK TIMES CRITICISED

Another United States major global news organization, The Washington Post, has published a story, criticizing The New York Times for publication unverified Op-ed article.

In the article titled, “Who wrote that op-ed? The New York Times isn't sure”, the Washington-based major news organization described the publication of the controversial opinion article as a “blunder.”

The New York Times has sparked an international incident by publishing an op-ed article under the byline of a foreign official who never agreed to it, according to his supporters,” wrote The Washing Post on Friday.

“The newspaper this week blundered into the bloody politics of South Sudan, the fledgling east African nation, by posting a column ostensibly written by that country's president and first vice president, Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, respectively,” it added.

“Only one problem: Machar's supporters say he didn't sign on to the editorial and doesn't agree with it. They suggest the Times was effectively hoodwinked by Kiir's faction into running the column with his name on it.”

Newspapers such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, it said, routinely receive proposed columns from government officials and others through intermediaries.

In this case, the Times said it received assurances from a third party, which it didn't identify, that it represented both the president and vice president of South Sudan.

“In retrospect,” an official of The New York Times told The Washington Post, “we obviously should have taken it a step further” and verified that both men gave their assent.

In a speech at the United Nations on Thursday, David Pressman, the U.S. representative for special political affairs, said he was surprised and disappointed by the editorial published by The New York Times.

He said reconciliation and justice go hand in hand as in the peace agreement.

“As we have seen in countless other settings after widespread violence, reconciliation and justice are mutually reinforcing, not mutually exclusive,” he said.

“And that is precisely why both are included in the August 2015 peace agreement, and it is precisely why the United States will continue to make every effort to both support the African Union in its establishment of the hybrid court.”

The argument over the document has been making headlines in local and international media organizations due to its sensitivity and controversy.

However, the matter seems to be put to rest as it becomes clear that the alleged co-authored opinion article was unilaterally drafted by the President's office - with the help of a hired unnamed Washington-based public relations firm - without involvement of the First Vice President, Machar, or his aides.

The peace deal inked by the top rival South Sudanese leaders to end 21 months of civil war has called for establishment of a hybrid court, to be facilitated by the African Union (AU), to put to trial those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

(ST)

June 10, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) Friday said the “Sudan Call” forces would hold a mini meeting to arrive at a unified stance towards the Roadmap Agreement proposed by the African mediation.

Leaders of the opposition "Sudan Call" sign an agreement on the alliance's structures in Paris on 22 April 2016 (ST Photo)

On 21 March, the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) and the Sudanese government signed a framework agreement calling to stop war in Blue Nile, Darfur, and South Kordofan and to and to allow humanitarian access to the needy in the war affected zones ahead of the national dialogue process.

However, the opposition groups, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), National Umma Party (NUP), SPLM-N and Sudan Liberation Movement-Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) refused to sign the roadmap saying it excludes other opposition groups and acknowledges the government controlled process as a basis for the constitutional reform process.

Following a meeting held last week to discuss the opposition refusal of the Roadmap, NUP leader al-Sadiq al-Mahdi said he agreed with the AUHIP chairman Thabo Mbeki to hold a meeting with the Sudan Call forces to discuss the matter.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Friday, SPLM-N pledged to ensure the success of the upcoming meeting and to seek to reach a positive stance that promotes the unity of the Sudan Call and achieves its demand for holding an equal national dialogue.

“Change is inextricably linked to the unity of the opposition parties and the pursuit of change wouldn't be achieved without seeking to unify the political and civil society forces” read the statement.

The statement stressed the need for making a joint decision and holding joint consultations among the opposition alliance to reach a collective position, adding that “no party within the Sudan Call could act on behalf of the rest of the alliance forces”.

The opposition National Consensus Forces (NCF) Wednesday distanced itself from al-Mahdi's meeting with Mbeki, saying such meetings seek “a way out for the regime and not for the people who are suffering under its rule,”

The NCF is a member of the Sudan Call coalition but says the regime is not credible and points that the popular uprising is the best way to achieve regime change.

The chief mediator form his side, deals in his peace initiative with the forces that signed an agreement with his panel on the national dialogue on 5 September 2014 including the JEM, NUP, SLM-MM and the SPLM-N.

The statement further said that the meeting would discuss ways for handling the Roadmap, stressing the outcome of the meeting will serve the Sudanese issue and the equal national dialogue besides putting the relationship with the mediators on the right path.

It added that meeting would include the Sudan Call's presidential coordination council besides delegates from the alliance parties, saying the meeting comes following “attempts to break the stalemate in the peace process and the Sudan Call refusal to sign the Roadmap for objective reasons that are consistent with our people's desire for change”.

The SPLM-N stressed that its leadership has held consultations with their allies in the Sudan Revolutionary Forces (SRF) and the Sudan Call besides influential regional leaders and international parties and concluded that the upcoming meeting is crucial in order to arrive at a joint and binding stance particularly after the developments that followed the recent Paris meeting of the Sudan Call.

It further pointed that Sudan Call real battle is against the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) which “requires us to make diligent and patient efforts with the regional and international community to put the record straight and force the NCP regime to bear its responsibility for refusing to execute the AU and the international legitimacy resolutions and for conquering the Sudanese people and destabilizing the regional and international stability”.

The statement pointed to the need to bring the issue of the humanitarian situation and human rights violations including the aerial bombing of civilians and arbitrary detention and dismissal of university students to the regional and international forums to put more pressures on the regime.

Since 2011, the SPLM-N has been fighting the Sudanese army and its allied militia in South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

(ST)

The United Nations Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide has condemned the inflammatory speech by the President of the Gambia, Yahya Jammeh of the Gambia at a political rally this past week, in which he reportedly threatened to eliminate the Mandinka ethnic group.

June 9, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese police authorities on Thursday denied reports casting doubts on the identity of an Eritrea man arrested and sent to Italy as “one of the world's most-wanted people smugglers", saying they are sure he is the right suspect searched by the Italian police.

Left: An image of the man believed to be Mered Medhanie previously released by the UK National Crime Agency; Right: the man extradited to Italy (BBC Photo)

British media; particularly The Guardian and The BBC, published reports claiming that Sudanese authorities didn't extradite Medhanie Yehdego Mered, 35, who is wanted for running a huge human trafficking network. Instead, Khartoum arrested and delivered Medhanie Tesfamariam Kidane, a 27-year-old.

High ranking security officials from the Sudanese police and other security apparatuses involved in the operation Thursday held a meeting with the British and Italian Ambassadors to Khartoum to discuss the issue.

Reached by Sudan Tribune after the meeting, a police official who is not authorized to speak to the media stressed that nothing proves that the arrested man is not the one who is searched for smuggling of illegal immigrants and the death of many thousands in the Mediterranean.

The official further said that the arrested man is one of a wide human trafficking network, adding "he may not be the head of the network but he is one of its most prominent members".

The National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), since several months are also tasked with the file of illegal human trafficking. This decision created a confusion of competencies between the two security services.

Italian police announced Wednesday that Mered, suspected of controlling a migrant trafficking network, was arrested in Sudan with the help of Britain's National Crime Agency, had been extradited to Italy on Monday 6 June.

Sudan committed itself to cooperate with Italy and Germany to stop the flow of illegal immigrants from the Horn of African countries.

(ST)

BBC Africa looks back at the boxing great's strong connection to the continent.

Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Adebayor, Victor Valdes and Martin Demichelis will all be released by their Premier League clubs.

Nigeria's military is accused of killing at least 17 Biafran protesters by rights group Amnesty International.

South African telecoms firm MTN agrees to pay $1.7bn to Nigeria over unregistered Sim cards, after originally being fined $5bn.

Roberto Azevêdo is the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO)

By Roberto Azevêdo
GENEVA, Jun 10 2016 (IPS)

This is a challenging time for global trade. According to the current World Trade Organization (WTO) new trade forecasts, global goods trade is expected to grow by 2.8%, making 2016 the fifth consecutive year of sub 3% growth. The gross domestic product (GDP) is still the most critical variable in the trade expansion equation, and as long as GDP growth remains low, trade numbers are likely to follow a similar trend.

Roberto Azevêdo

This sort of dip in the numbers is not unprecedented, and we have experienced low trade growth in the early 1980s. Though we expect to come out of this pattern of low growth in the coming years- with trade growth forecast to pick up to 3.6% in 2017, it is nevertheless of some concern.

While the level of trade growth has stayed fairly constant in recent years, it is interesting to note that its composition is changing. A key driver of trade growth from 2011-2013 was import demand in Asia.

In the last two years this has shifted, with the US and Europe as the driving force of today’s modest growth, making up for slowdowns in Asia and elsewhere. In fact, if Asia’s contribution to trade had matched its average of recent years, world trade would have grown 3.5% in 2015, rather than 2.8%.

Rather than being an abstract indicator, trade growth, often matters because trade can act as a driver of broader economic growth and job creation. It certainly isn’t the only driver, but is an essential component of any strategy for sustainable economic growth.

And so the current downturn leads us to the question: what can we do to respond?

Governments have pushed monetary and fiscal policies to their limits in recent years but there is still room to move on trade. A more proactive approach could help to stimulate global demand.

One step would be for governments to remove the restrictive barriers introduced in recent years. Currently only 25% of these measures put in place by WTO members since the 2008 financial crisis have been removed. A shift in strategy here could help make a big difference.

We can also put in force trade agreements we have reached recently. By implementing the Trade Facilitation Agreement alone we could add another trillion dollars to global trade. This would include exports of about $730 billion dollars from developing countries.

Another step is, of course, striking new trade agreements. And we are seeing a lot of activity on this front both at the regional level, and through the World Trade Organization. While they have grown rapidly in recent years, bilateral and regional trade initiatives are not a new thing, pre-dating the creation of the global trading system.

These two different approaches are frequently portrayed as incompatible, however, they do not require an “either/or” strategy and can be created and implemented to complement each other. These different kinds of initiatives have long co-existed and complemented each other and I have no doubt that they will continue to do so.

Today, virtually all WTO members are involved in at least one of these initiatives. Today there are 270 regional trade agreements or RTAs in force and have been notified to the WTO with over a third in the Asia-Pacific region.

The most recent examples in the region are the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. And of course there are other important initiatives such as the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road, which attempt to build and develop links between several partners.

To take the example of the TPP, many of the 12 partners involved already have existing bilateral agreements with each other. The added advantage of this broader agreement is the potentially enormous market it creates. Instead of dealing with a number of different sets of rules or standards, the TPP could help to homogenize rules between all the parties.

Like several other agreements today, the TPP is an example of deep integration initiative through regional trade agreements. While earlier RTAs concentrated on only liberalizing tariffs, more recent RTAs have gone further.

Empirical evidence suggests that RTAs with deeper integration between signatories provide greater potential for the development of production chains which span national borders. WTO members in the Asia-Pacific region in particular have greatly benefited from these global value chains.

As production networks expand and regional and global value chains become more important, it is critical to minimise significant differences in legislation, rules and infrastructure, which impact international trade and investment between trading partners. This appears to be the case more and more in current RTAs and other regional trade networks.

The silk-road economic belt, for instance, is rebuilding traditional links by concentrating on issues of connectivity such as improved infrastructure including port facilities, roads, and rail links. By improving these infrastructural networks connecting Asia and Europe, it is likely to improve trade by facilitating upgraded trade routes with landlocked areas of Central Asia.

These are all important steps that need to be taken to free up international trade and facilitate greater integration in value chains.

But how does all of this regional activity fit within the global framework of the World Trade Organization?

Currently the WTO has 162 members with increasing numbers. The rules and regulations of the WTO covers 98% of global trade, therefore by and large, RTAs operate within these rules.

Indeed, our analysis of regional agreements have shown that a large number of them fall within the guidelines set by the WTO with no obvious conflicts between overlapping agreements.

Perhaps a bigger consideration is where such initiatives touch on areas that are not currently covered by the WTO, whereby different RTAs deal with the same issues in different ways. This is not to suggest that regional agreements should not venture into these areas. But I think conversations in the WTO could help us establish whether a multilateral approach is feasible or desirable. Through discussions with the WTO, we’re likely to have a much more balanced, and inclusive framework.

A healthy trading system requires progress and engagement at all levels. And we have to acknowledge that one reason for the proliferation of regional agreements over recent years was a lack of progress in striking trade agreements globally through the WTO.

I’m pleased to say that we are now changing this situation. The WTO has actually delivered an impressive amount over the last couple of years.

But it’s also important to note that a healthy trading system isn’t just about negotiating trade agreements, the WTO’s work extends far beyond negotiations. We also monitor trade policies, build trading capacity in developing and struggling countries, and we have built one of the most effective dispute settlement systems in international law.

Indeed, although some RTAs have provisions on disputes, most of the dispute settlement mechanisms provided are rarely used. Meanwhile the level of activity in the WTO’s dispute settlement system is rising very rapidly. We have dealt with over 500 disputes in the WTO’s 21 year history. And of course most of the disputes brought to the WTO involve parties who are also themselves part of an RTA.

By Zubeida Mustafa
Jun 10 2016 (Dawn, Pakistan)

The Pakistan Economic Survey 2015-16 reminds us of our ticking population bomb.

We are told that today the country`s population stands at 195.4 million 3.7m more than it was the previous year. We have regressed.

The population growth rate stands at 1.89pc in 2016. It dropped to 1.49pc in 1960-2003.

Yet few express serious concern about the threat we face from our rapidly growing numbers that are undermining our national economy and destroying our social structures.

Many myths have been propagated to camouflage the official apathy vis-à-vis the population sector. Thus, it is said that there is population resistance to family planning on religious grounds. Another myth goes that people are ignorant of birth control and prefer large families.

These myths have been exploded by the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey of 2007 and 2014 which established that only a handful of women cited religion as a factor in their failure to limit pregnancies.

As for ignorance, practically all women questioned knew of at least one or more contraceptive methods. It cannot be disputed that irrespective of the views expressed from the pulpit women are now ready to plan their families. According to the two demographic surveys, there is also a substantial unmet need. That means there is a big chunk of the reproductive age female population 40 pc according to some estimates who want to limit their family size but cannot.

Then why are we failing in this sector? Of course, there is the usual absence of political will, ineptitude and corruption that marks the government`s working in the social sectors.

Policies are there but implementation is not.

The number and performance of population welfare centres that were set up to provide access to contraceptive services leave much to be desired. Media reports indicate that they are either non-existent or non-functional in many remote areas. Poor performance of official service institutions impacts mainly on the underprivileged, the worst sufferers. This is visible in the large family size of the poor.

There is a lot of focus on awareness-raising and research when the key issue to be addressedis thatofeasy access tocontraceptive services for potential acceptors. It is a pity that many who do not want more children cannot avert births because family planning services are beyond their reach.

There is also the need to integrate the population sector with the health system. This was suggested many years ago by Dr Nafis Sadik, the first executive director of the UN Population Fund, to the Pakistan government. But for reasons not known, Islamabad could never understand why a holistic approach was needed for a successful familyplanning programme.

Another aspect that has been ignored is the need to focus intensely on the status of women.

It seems that the progress made by the feminist activists in the 1980s and 1990s in empowering women has been pushed back. With daughters held in low esteem, family planning has suffered a setback. Parental preference for a male child remains pronounced.

Itappears thatithasbeenlefttoahandful of NGOs to sustain Pakistan`s population programme. The biggest of them is RahnumaFPAP, the oldest organisation in the field.

Having been launched in 1953 when Pakistan did not even have an official population programme, it has an impressive delivery network of 10 family health hospitals, 10 mobile service units and thousands of clinics. It has created referral mechanisms with a number of government and private clinics and practitioners and thus claims to cover an area of 77,910 square kilometres and a population of 12.5m.

Rahnuma`s dynamic and committed president, Mahtab Akbar Rashdi, tells me that her organisation has made all its programmesholistic and integrated. She herself is a staunch advocate of family planning and agrees that low esteem for women is a deterrent to progress in this sector.

HANDS is another large NGO that was launchedin 1979 with the mission of improving health and education, with a focus on mother and child and reproductive health. It claims an outreach of 25m people in 42,000 villages. Its Marvi model involving community-based health workers visiting women in their homes was conceptualised in 2007. HANDS claims that it is making an impact.

But can NGOs with their limited resources and capacity achieve what is essentially the government`s responsibility? Mahtab Rashdi complains that `visible political commitment from the provincial governments is yet to be seen`. She specifically identifies Punjab, Pakistan`s most populous province, where the government`s family planning programme `reaches only 17pc of people in the reproductive age`.

This leaves one wondering if family planning also has a political dimension as the census that has been blocked since 2008. After all, doesn`t a big population translate into a big constituency? That is a political bonus in a country where ethnicity determines electoral results.

www.zubeidamustafa.com

This story was originally published by Dawn, Pakistan

By Ahmad Ibrahim
Jun 10 2016 (The Daily Star, Bangladesh)

In a developing country such as Bangladesh, where the implementation of democracy still seems a far flung dream as national budgets blur the line between fantasy and expectation, land has come to be the defining issue of the day. It is of little surprise that a third-world country, caught in the throes of frantic industrial development, would have to deal with the issue of land. Add to it the fact that Bangladesh is the most densely populated country in the world and what you basically have is a recipe for development induced disasters. But even taking all of these challenges into account the current state of land rights in the country is appalling. Almost 56 percent of the entire population is functionally landless, getting by either through odd jobs or becoming part of the industrial division of labour. The average size of land holding is a meagre 0.6 hectare. For a country that is yet almost completely dependent on agrarianism as part of its economy, that is a terrible figure.

PHOTO: Sheikh Nasir

A quick look at the rampant corporatism in the acquisition and use of land will tell us where the root of the problems lie. A 1950 law states that no corporation or household is allowed to own more 33.33 acres of land by itself. While this law itself seems to have been made with the region’s low availability of land in mind, it falls flat in the face of bureaucratic capitalism. An investor can now easily create dummy firms and corporations under whose name they can own an unlimited amount of land, all registered under different firms or people. This is why we see thousands upon thousands of acres of land owned by giant firms, while the poorest are becoming increasingly dispossessed of land and livelihood.

The question of land extends far beyond the scope of acquisition. In many parts of the country, some yet to be transformed by the mechanisms of for-profit businesses, land forms an intrinsic part of a community’s identity. Often the land on which people farm has been passed down through the generations, and is used to grow crops, house the dead and for festivals and the likes. Is there a monetary value that can be placed on such a relationship? The answer to that might be no, but the government does seem intent on trying its best to do so. A nation gripped by the rhetoric of development, Bangladesh is now site to several contested regions where displacement is occurring every day.

Yours truly has visited several of these sites- Rampal in Bagerhat, Chunarughat in Habiganj, Banshkhali in Chittagong. In all of these cases, displacement either has occurred or will occur due to development projects. In the case of Rampal, the land acquisition for the coal-power plant has already displaced thousands. Where there was once fields of fish farms and crops, there are now trucks carrying sand as the Sundarbans wait apprehensively for a death blow. A fact-finding mission has revealed that the government had absolutely no safeguards in place for the displacement that happened there. They only offered monetary compensation for the land, and even that below market price. The government knowingly flouted several rules from institutions such as World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) for Development-Induced Displacement (DIDR). That is, when a government removes a people from their land in order to make way for some infrastructural development, they must not only compensate but also rehabilitate, make sure that these people have a new area of living, and a secure means of living. Instead, the government chose to only pay the value of the land and move on. Not looking at the population who were landless on paper, who were evicted and got nothing in return. These people, along with the ones who received compensation, will eventually fill garments factories and chemical factories, having no choice but to enter the labour supply- thereby fundamentally changing their way of life without their consent. The only law the government has to go by is the Acquisition and Requisition of Immovable Property Act 1984, which is probably one of the laziest examples of lawmaking. In a legislation that is almost copied word for word from one created in 1850 by the colonial powers, the document provides many barriers for those who own land and, in fact, makes it extremely easy for the Bangladeshi government to acquire land via eminent domain.

Bangladesh is home to a diverse group of religions and ethnicities, many of whom have culturally different ties to nature and land, and yet the rampant dispossessing of the poor from their lands is changing the realities of all these communities. Take, for example, the legislation on Special Economic Zones (SEZ), where it is mentioned that the government will only look at khas land and not farm lands. And yet the records they rely on date back to colonial times, making a mockery of all their promises. In those outdated records, the 512 acres in Chunarughat are khas arid lands, while in reality they are the major source of sustenance for the tea-workers’ community, who have endured poverty for centuries. In those records, the Khasia village in Nahar Tea Gardens is khas land, whereas the indigenous community have lived there for over 75 years. It is these inefficiencies that forever cripple an already corrupt system of governance.

No doubt the country needs a robust infrastructure if it is to compete in the wider world’s game of power, but it is being done by sacrificing millions of poor people inside the country. Who does the electricity generated from Rampal go to? Where would the profits from the SEZ in Chunarughat go (according to BEZA, there is full repatriation for foreign investors)? These are hard questions that we must ask ourselves. Today, the state of land rights in the country is in a deplorable condition, but with effective campaigning, we may be able to better protect individual landowners from the mouths of the big sharks.

The writer is a researcher and activist.

This story was originally published by The Daily Star, Bangladesh