{jcomments on}OMAR, AGNEWS, BXL, le 27 mai 2010 – America.gov (Washington, DC)- May 27, 2010–The situation in Africa’s Great Lakes region has improved and the United States remains “dedicated to doing what we can to keep that positive momentum going,” the State Department’s senior diplomat for African affairs told the U.S. Congress May 25.
BURUNDI :
Burundi opposition alleges fraud in district poll
By Reuters/ May 27 2010
Eight Burundi opposition parties demanded on Wednesday that the national electoral commission (CENI) organise fresh district elections, arguing a vote this week was marked by massive fraud and irregularities.
The parties protested that early results announced by local media, showing the ruling CNDD-FDD had won in most of the 129 districts, were incorrect.
“We have evidence that there are people who voted several times with many voter cards,” Chauvineau Mugwengezo, spokesperson for the eight parties, said.
“We have also cases of heads of polling stations who went back home with ballot boxes after the counting. For the sake of peace and democracy, the electoral commission should organise new elections,” he told Reuters.
Burundi held the elections for district administrators on Monday, the first in a series of ballots including a presidential one that run until September.
The polls were postponed twice due to logistics problems involving voting cards and materials.
The polls are seen as a test of stability in the landlocked country which has enjoyed relative peace since the last Hutu rebel group agreed to lay down weapons and join the government last year.
President Pierre Nkurunziza CNDD-FDD will be battling out for votes with the former rebel Forces for National Liberation (FNL) of Agathon Rwasa.
District elections are often an indicator of how the rest of the vote will go. A political party that gets over 50 percent of the votes in the communal election in the first round is likely to win the presidential and parliamentary poll.
CENI is yet to publish final results and has promised to investigate the alleged fraud.
“The parties should present clear evidence of fraud and not just speculate. CENI is ready to organise a new vote in any constituency where serious irregularities will be identified,” said CENI spokesman Prosper Ntahogwamiye.
Burundi will hold a presidential election on June 28, the parliamentary vote is due on July 23, and one for senators on July 28.
EU Team Says Burundi Poll Meets International Standards
VOA News / 27 May 2010
European Union observers say this week’s local elections in Burundi met international standards.
The head of the EU’s observer mission, Renate Weber, told reporters Thursday that in 95 percent of polling stations, EU observers rated the voting system as good or very good.
He said EU observers visited a total of 189 polling stations during voting Monday.
Eight Burundian opposition parties have demanded a re-run of the vote, saying it was tainted by massive fraud.
An opposition spokesman said Wednesday some people cast multiple votes. He also said some ballot boxes were switched.
Provisional results from Burundi’s electoral commission show the ruling party winning most of the 129 constituencies.
Monday’s elections were the first in a series of polls seen as a test of stability for the central African nation.
The elections cap a five-year transition to democracy, started by peace agreements that ended Burundi’s civil war in 2005.
The country is next scheduled to hold a presidential election on June 28. President and former rebel leader Pierre Nkurunziza is running for a second term.
Burundi’s opposition demand re-election
By Josh Kron/www.monitor.co.ug/Posted Thursday, May 27 2010
Monitor Correspondent
Bujumbura
Burundi’s major opposition parties have demanded a re-vote of this week’s local-level elections, that have so far given an unprecedented landslide victory to the ruling party.
In a letter signed by eight parties, they said that the vote, started on Monday to elect 1,935 local politicians, had been ruined with “mass fraud orchestrated by the ruling party.” They also threatened to boycott the rest of the elections. “Opposition parties categorically reject the provisional results,” the letter said.
The protest is an early sign that the elections, which many feared could lead to violence, won’t run as smoothly as hoped. The polls are the first phase of a summer-long election marathon, that includes votes for Members of Parliament and President. These early local votes are supposed to set the tone for the rest.
The document, signed by the opposition parties, including the recently demilitarised National Liberation Forces, which was an active rebel group until last year, claimed that there had been widespread vote-rigging.
The leader of the opposition FNL, Agathon Rwasa, also threatened to pull out of the rest of the elections, which could bring Burundi’s tattered peace to the brink of war. According to the a recent data from Burundi’s national election commission, President Nkurunziza’s CNDD-FDD party had garnered over 70 per cent of the vote, with some estimates ranging as high as 80 per cent.
Results rejected
“We do not accept these results and the commission should take into account,” Mr Rwasa said. “We will not make fools of ourselves by taking part in the rest of the elections.” Over 3.5 million voters have registered for Burundi’s elections, which people hope will bridge the gap between civil war, to a stable, growing East African economy. But the opposition parties said many more, unregistered, had voted also.
Human rights watchdogs have warned of election violence as political parties bolster their ranks with former soldiers. Both the ruling party and the opposition have claimed that each side is raising youth militias to act as activist thugs. The country is emerging from a long civil war that killed hundred of thousands of people. Most of the political parties in this year’s elections are former rebels and there are fears that peace will disintegrate if the polls become too divisive.
Burundi: the opposition shouts about massive fraud
www.african-bulletin.com/27052010
The first results of the Burundian municipal elections of Monday let appear a wide victory of the ruling party, the CNDD-FDD. The party of the president, Pierre Nkurunziza, would take away 57 of 70 municipalities of which the results were skinned, with more than 70 % of the votes on a total of 129 municipalities. Far behind, in the second position, comes find the former rebels of the National Liberation Forces (FNL), which scored an average 15 to 20 % of the votes according to these partial results.
The Burundian opposition speaks about massive fraud, and it demands the cancellation of the ballot and asks to resume for a new ballot the same day as the presidential election. ” The Burundian Population is astonished to see that the choice which it had operated was not respected due to the fraud that had been prepared by the ruling party “, declared Chauvino Mugwengezo, the opposition parties’ spokesman. He is accusing the CNDD-FDD of having delivered multiple polling cards to their activists, also moving illegally some ballot boxes and other proofs which will be presented «at the appropriate moment”
The opposition threatens to boycott the next electoral terms in case it will not have satisfaction.
RWANDA
Rwanda: Genocide Fugitive Arrested in France
Edmund Kagire/ allafrica.com/The New Times/27 May 2010
Kigali — The Government of Rwanda has commended the French police for arresting top Genocide fugitive, Eugene Rwamucyo, a few days after the Rwandan doctor participated in a conference Genocide deniers’ in Brussels, Belgium.
Reports from France indicate that Rwamucyo, who last month was dismissed from his hospital post in northern France, was arrested by the French Metropolitan Police over accusations that he planned and carried out Genocide against the Tutsi in Butare, Southern Province in 1994.
According to sources, Rwamucyo was detained in Sannois, north of Paris, after attending the funeral of Jean Bosco Barayagwiza, who was convicted for war crimes by the Arusha-based International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda (ICTR) and died in jail.
Reacting to the arrest, the Prosecutor General, Martin Ngoga, noted that the arrest was timely as it occurred a few days after Rwamucyo participated in the conference organised by some defence lawyers at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the several jurists mainly based in Europe.
“Apart from this arrest of a fugitive we have indicted for Genocide, this is further evidence of how the self styled International Criminal Defence Lawyers, under the leadership of Peter Erlinder ,who have drifted from ethics of the profession, to being universal defenders of the ideology of Genocide under various guises, are being more exposed and put to shame,”
“You may recall that their association recently invited Rwamucyo to participate in their conference. Other than his being indicted, I know no any other credential he has on the basis of which they could invite him,” Ngoga said.
Several Genocide fugitives, as well as self- styled ‘hero’ of the Hotel Rwanda fame, Paul Rusesabagina, were also key speakers at the conference.
Immediately after the conference, Peter Erlinder, arrived in Kigali to join the defence team of Victoire Ingabire, the head of the yet-to-be-registered political party, FDU-Inkingi, who has been charged with terrorism and propagating the Genocide ideology.
Ingabire is out on bail.
Prof Erlinder has been very active in the Genocide deniers’ circle ever since he became lead defence lawyer for Maj. Aloys Ntabakuze, former commanding officer of the Para-Commando Battalion based in Kanombe in the Genocide.
Ntabakuze was in December 2008 found guilty of Genocide by the ICTR and sentenced to life in prison.
Rwamucyo lived in Belgium with his family but worked as a doctor in a city hospital in Maubeuge, northern France, near the Belgian border until last month. His wife, Mamerique Mukabanana, was a journalist with state radio until 1994.
During his visit to Rwanda earlier this year, President Nicolas Sarkozy said France would do everything possible to ensure that all those responsible for the Genocide are found and are punished.
Africa: U.S. Official Sees Improvement in Africa’s Great Lakes Region
Charles W. Corey/America.gov (Washington, DC) / allafrica.com/27 May 2010
Assistant Secretary Carson pledges support to region’s “positive momentum”
The situation in Africa’s Great Lakes region has improved and the United States remains “dedicated to doing what we can to keep that positive momentum going,” the State Department’s senior diplomat for African affairs told the U.S. Congress May 25.
In testimony before the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson said central to those efforts is improving the situation in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), “where the continuing presence of armed groups has been exacerbated by the lack of state authority.” The assistant secretary was on Capitol Hill to brief lawmakers on the latest developments in the region.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s military, commonly referred to as FARDC (Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo) is “ineffective and frequently abusive,” Carson told the lawmakers.
“The judicial and penal systems in the DRC are broken, and impunity rather than accountability reigns. Illegal natural resource exploitation funds armed gangs. Sexual and gender-based violence is at crisis levels, particularly in the eastern region. The Lord’s Resistance Army is perpetrating attacks against civilians in the northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and also in the Central African Republic. The U.N. mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, MONUC, is stretched to the limit.”
Carson said he met with DRC President Joseph Kabila on April 16 and expressed concern about the security vacuum that would result if MONUC left the DRC before the security situation in the east had dramatically improved and before local security services were sufficiently trained and able to protect civilians. “He was receptive to the concerns that I raised as well as the concerns that have been raised by the international community,” Carson said.
“President Kabila has taken important steps to address insecurity, but they remain insufficient,” Carson said. The president “has also voiced strong support for our program to train a light infantry battalion in Kisangani,” Carson added.
That training includes a strong focus on improving FARDC human rights practices, Carson said.
DRC President Joseph Kabila takes the oath of office during the inaugural ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Kinshasa on December 6, 2006. “President Kabila has taken important steps to address insecurity, but they remain insufficient,” says Ambassador Carson.
DRC President Joseph Kabila takes the oath of office at the Presidential Palace in Kinshasa on December 6, 2006.
In late 2009 and early 2010, the United States sent assessment teams to the DRC to investigate the five issue areas that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Kabila identified for greater bilateral cooperation when they met in August 2009 in Goma. The five areas are security sector reform, sexual and gender-based violence issues, anti-corruption, governance, and agriculture and food security.
“We have received the recommendations of these teams, and are now pursuing with the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s government those recommendations that we believe can achieve the best short- and medium-term results.” Carson also said population movements need to be monitored because there are more than 1 million internally displaced people (IDPs) in the North Kivu province alone and 2 million displaced people nationwide.
As these IDPs and refugees in surrounding countries begin to return home, he warned, there is a potential for renewed conflict. There will also be increased demands for humanitarian assistance and limited capacity by the government of the Democratic Republic to provide it, he predicted.
Carson said the United States is looking ahead to national elections in the DRC in September 2011 and local elections a year later. “In my conversations with President Kabila last month, I stressed the importance of adhering to this democratic electoral calendar. The government has promised that the elections will be free, democratic and transparent. We hope that this will be the case.”
Turning to Rwanda, Carson said the August presidential elections are expected to be peaceful and nonviolent, but he said the security environment ahead of that vote is a cause for concern. “Recent grenade attacks in Kigali have caused numerous casualties as well as anxiety and
unease in the civilian population. We strongly condemn those attacks,” he said.
The United States also has concerns about recent acts by the Rwandan government, he said, which appear to be attempts to restrict freedom of expression. The actions include “suspending the licenses and activities of two newspapers, reversing the work permit of a Human Rights Watch researcher, and arresting and later releasing on bail the opposition leader, Victoire Ingabire. Two political parties, the Green Party and FDU Inkingi Party, have been unable to register.”
The United States has urged senior Rwandan government officials to respect the freedoms of expression, press, association and assembly, he said. “We have stressed that the international and domestic NGOs [nongovernmental organizations] and media should be allowed to operate and report freely in Rwanda. We have also called for due process and a fair and speedy trial for Victoire Ingabire.”
“Overall, long-term stability in Rwanda is best promoted by democratic governance and a respect for human rights. Rwanda and its regional and international partners must work together to achieve the free, fair and peaceful election that the people of Rwanda deserve,” he said.
Carson said “our hope is the same” for Burundi, “which has just held the first in a series of five elections for local and national-level institutions. We have undertaken numerous public and private efforts to reinforce the message that credible elections are necessary for long-term stability, economic growth and the growing partnership between the government of Burundi and the United States.”
(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)
UGANDA
Students Push for Disarmament in Uganda
May 27, 2010/Laura Herrera/www.globalshift.org
Only a year after 2,000 human rights activists, mostly students, descended on Capitol Hill to advocate the protection of Ugandan citizens from the hands of The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a rebel army, Congress passed the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act.
The youth-run organization Invisible Children inspired mass-student involvement in lobbying for the bill as they submitted over 250,000 signatures to the State Department that urged the arrest of rebel leader, Joseph Kony in January.
The grassroots efforts were a success as the LRA Act passed with the most support of any Africa-oriented legislation in United States history with 200 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives and 64 in the Senate.
Invisible Children even received a shout out from the House floor by Rep. Susan Davis of San Diego, California.
“These young members of the Invisible Children organization know that no child should live in fear of being abducted, mutilated or killed,” Davis said. “With that they have helped make the children of Uganda visible to us and now with this legislation we have the chance to truly join in this cause.”
The LRA Act, if signed into law, will require President Obama to present a plan of action within a year for a collaborative peace process to protect Ugandan citizens from the LRA. The rebel army has spread terror in Northern Uganda through murder, sexual servitude and abducting children as soldiers.
The LRA originally began as a spiritual cult fighting the Ugandan government with the leadership of Joseph Kony. Over a decade later, two million Ugandans have been left displaced and 60 thousand have been abducted according to the Survey for War Affected Youth.
But the LRA is no longer just in Uganda. The rebels spread to Sudan and Congo where they murdered villages. Christmas of 2009, the LRA slaughtered 600 Congolese villagers in the “Christmas Massacre” and just two months ago had a resurgence where they killed 300 more.
However, the acts of the LRA and the children of Uganda are no longer “Invisible,” as the organization started by three young filmmakers from California in 2003, has gained world-wide support, mostly among students. In the past seven years Invisible children has even been involved in direct peace talks with the rebels and outside of politics, use art to inspire young people to act. Through their online store and documentary screenings, volunteers sell t-shirts, patches, buttons and even bracelets made by formerly unemployed people in Uganda’s impoverished areas to raise money for the children. Their most recent program, The Legacy Scholarship Program, allows anyone to sponsor a student’s scholarship, since education in Uganda is not free. 35 dollars a month can send one child to secondary school and provide them a mentor.
The beauty of Invisible Children though is that any person can easily get involved. Screen the documentary at school, hold a bake sale, even join the team of roadies that travel around the country to raise awareness. To learn more about the LRA Disarmament and Northern Ugandan Recovery Act and Invisible Children visit www.invisiblechildren.com.
TANZANIA:
CONGO RDC :
KENYA :
Kenya: Sh21 Billion and Rising – Safaricom’s Big Score
Joseph Bonyo and Luke Mulunda/Daily Nation On The Web/allafrica.com/27 May 2010
Nairobi — Kenya’s mobile phone giant, Safaricom, has set another record with Sh20.9 billion earnings in profit for 2009.
The company grew its pre-tax profit by 37 per cent, from Sh15.3 billion last year, driven largely by data business, especially its revolutionary M-Pesa money transfer service.
According to financial results released on Wednesday, M-Pesa, now three years old, raked in Sh7.5 billion in the period under review, more than double what it earned the previous year. Short message service (SMS), which many mobile phone users believe is a cheaper way of communicating, earned the company Sh5.1 billion.
The mobile money transfer service has moved Sh405.5 billion since inception in March 2007, according to company figures. Person-to-person transactions (where virtual cash moves within the system without being withdrawn) for March 2010, the firm noted, stood at Sh28.59 billion.
M-Pesa has hugely been successful with 9.48 million registered users. The man behind Safaricom’s money-machine defended the higher-than-expected profit, which makes it the best performing company in East Africa and places it among the top on the continent.
“Compared to our peers in the region, our profits are very normal,” said Safaricom CEO Michael Joseph. “However, locally they appear super because our closest competitors record losses as we register profits.” With a dividend growth of 100 per cent, the firm’s shareholders will be paid 20 cents dividend per share from the Sh8 billion it has declared as dividends for the year.
In the 2008 financial year, the company paid out 10 cents with a huge chunk of the local retail shareholders accounting for 37 per cent of the shareholder roll, taking home Sh500 or less in dividend. The government of Kenya and Vodafone Kenya will be the biggest beneficiaries with a combined shareholding of 75 per cent.
Its share at the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE) sold at Sh5.70 yesterday after the results, from Sh5.40 on Tuesday. “Its performance was above expectations,” said Mr Einstein Kihanda, an investment expert at Sanlam Investment. “It’s hard to predict the share performance but its diversification into data gives it a long-term stability.”
He said there was huge potential in the data business. “Safaricom is a major player in data,” said Mr Kihanda. “It’s not just relying on voice for revenue.” During the 12-month period, the company’s total revenue grew by 19.1 per cent to Sh83.9 billion from the previous Sh70.4 billion.
Earnings from data — which includes SMS, M-Pesa and Broadband services for both mobile and fixed access – expanded 24.5 per cent to Sh15.7 billion. The huge earnings come at a time when pressure is mounting to rein in Safaricom’s dominance in the market, with the Communication Commission of Kenya publishing stringent rules for the industry.
The controversial rules were met with stiff resistance from Safaricom, which won round one of the battle when the government suspended their implementation. As far as earnings go, Safaricom is in a class of its own. The closest company at the NSE in terms of earnings is East African Breweries Ltd, at Sh11.9 billion for 2008 verses Safaricom’s Sh15.3 billion.
Voice market still remains their largest revenue earner, even though its growth slowed, earning Sh63.4 billion from Sh58.7 billion the previous year. This was salvaged by the additional 2.43 million new subscribers.
ANGOLA :
It’s the great Chevron protest road show: Activists trail the oil giant to Houston
By Steven Thomson culturemap.com/May 27, 2010
More than 50 activists gathered at Chevron’s Louisiana Street headquarters — the former Enron towers — to protest the annual Chevron shareholders meeting today. Typically held at the company’s offices in San Ramon, California, the meeting was moved to Houston this year in response to the vigilant protests that have annually taken place in San Ramon for 10 years.
Only Chevron’s switch didn’t quite work out the way the company hoped — for the protestors followed, taking their message on the road.
The protestors were sequestered to the sidewalk, barred from the property with metal gates as shareholders passed through security. Five activists were arrested for standing on private property outside the building, located on the 1500 block of Louisiana (29 people were arrested at a Chevron protest at San Ramon in December).
Organized by the Global Exchange’s Chevron Program, the event peacefully fought against breaches in human rights, environmental, economic and climate injustice and corporate irresponsibility. The protest commented on all aspects of oil production, giving a voice to communities that live and work at the points of oil exploration, production, transport, refining, selling and disposal.
The Chevron Program brought community representatives from Angola, Australia, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Colombia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Thailand and Turkmenistan. Equipped with valid proxies, the delegates aimed to address the shareholders meeting inside the tower. Many of those with valid permits were denied entry.
“We are here to expose the environmental catastrophes and human rights abuses that happen every day at Chevron’s facilities,” shouted Antonia Juhasz, director of the Chevron Program and author of The Tyranny of Oil. “We need to hold the shareholders and executives accountable.” Juhasz was among the five arrested protesters.
Just this week, Chevron asked Ecuador’s courts to disregard an environmental expert who had said the company should pay $27 billion in damages for the pollution there. The lawsuit argues that the corporation is responsible for pollution in that nation’s jungle and damage to the health of indigenous populations due to the dumping of billions of gallons of contaminated water over two decades, before leaving in the early 1990s.
Last year, Chevron saw a 25 percent increase in revenue, making it the fifth largest global corporation.
A handful of the foreign representatives addressed the crowd. Elias, from Angola, described his community’s plight: “Today, my country that used to be very rich in fish, suffers from such contaminated waters that we are beginning to import fish. I’m here from Angola to tell Chevron that their involvement with our oil is destroying our livelihood.”
“What is happening around the world due to Chevron is an ecological holocaust,” declared a representative from northern Alberta, who goes by “Gitz.” He explained the environmental impact of harvesting oil from Canada’s tar sands: “I’m at ground zero, watching Chevron chop down trees, destroying the air we breathe. I want to question this crazy lust we have for oil.”
Also speaking were Rev. Ken Davis and Jessica Tovar, community organizers from Richmond, Calif., where Chevron’s largest West Coast refinery is located. “We are not against Chevron making money,” Davis clarified, “But every morning I wake up, and the first thing I see from my bedroom window is the Chevron refinery. And everyday, the toxins from the refinery’s flare ups are going into our lungs.”
During the protest, Chevron employees gathered on the enclosed mezzanine balcony to watch the sidewalk’s activities. Davis turned his head toward the staffers and said, “Chevron, all I ask is that you please be a better neighbor.” Davis was also among those arrested.
The refinery in Richmond is over a century old. “It’s no surprise that there are so many people in Richmond that suffer from asthma, cancer, allergies, headaches,” Tovar lamented. “People are constantly sick because of the emissions coming from Chevron. Now we’re fighting Chevron attempting to expand its refinery to process dirtier, heavier oil from Canada’s tar sands.”
Others spoke out against the corporation’s support of the military regime in Nigeria and the usurping of aboriginal lands in Australia, as the crowd began to cry with increasing volume, “Shame on Chevron!”
On the agenda for today’s shareholder meeting was the announcement of a new human rights policy, promising new “two-way engagement with communities.” Details on the policy have yet to be released. Only a quarter of shareholders voted for a proposal to appoint a board director with environmental expertise, according to a preliminary count
Bail for kidnap accused
May 27, 2010/By Charl du Plessis/www.timeslive.co.za
One of the three Angolan men arrested in connection with the kidnapping of Samuel Amoes, 5, was released on R5000 bail yesterday.
Domingo Santiego’s bail application went unopposed after his lawyer provided proof that he was registered at Boston College.
Samuel, who was kidnapped from church, was reunited with his parents after they paid a R1.13-million ransom.
SOUTH AFRICA:
Foschini, Nampak Shares May Move: South African Stock Preview
May 27, 2010/By Garth Theunissen/Bloomberg
May 27 (Bloomberg) — The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in South Africa. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names and prices are from the last close.
South Africa’s FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index rose 867.67, or 3.3 percent, to 27,047.51 at the close in Johannesburg.
Foschini Ltd. (FOS SJ): South Africa’s third-largest clothing retailer reports full-year earnings. Foschini gained 1.05 rand, or 1.7 percent, to 64.60 rand.
Nampak Ltd. (NPK SJ): Africa’s largest packaging producer releases earnings. Johannesburg-based Nampak’s stock rose 35 cents, or 2.1 percent, to 17 rand.
–Editor: John Kohut.
Africa: a new economic frontier
www.hindustantimes.com/Kofi Annan, /May 27, 2010
This is an important year for Africa. The World Cup is putting the continent at the centre of global attention. Its strengths and frailties will be under greater international scrutiny than ever before. What will the story be?
Our economies are proving their resilience. After major difficulties in the wake of the global economic and financial crisis, economic recovery is underway, contrasting with gloominess elsewhere in the world. The African Development Bank and IMF foresee GDP growth rates of around 5% by the end of the year.
Trade is growing too, both within Africa and with partners, including the global South. Africa–China trade has multiplied more than tenfold in the last decade. Barely a week goes by without reports of the discovery of more oil, gas, precious minerals or other resources somewhere on the continent.
The value of Africa’s resources is increasing and business activity is increasing. Climate change is drawing attention to the vast potential of its renewable energy supplies, including hydro, thermal, wind and solar power.
In short, Africa’s stock is rising, as the Africa Progress Report 2010 being launched on Africa Day highlights. But the report also asks some difficult questions.
Given our continent’s wealth, why are so many people still trapped in poverty?
Why is progress on achievement of the Millennium Development Goals so slow and uneven? Why are so many women marginalised and disenfranchised? Why is inequality increasing? And why so much insecurity?
The good news is that access to basic services such as energy, clean water, healthcare and education has improved in many parts of the continent. But it is still denied to hundreds of millions of women, men and children.
In trying to provide the answers to these difficult questions, one must be wary of generalisations. Africa is not homogenous; it is raucously diverse. But its nations are linked by common challenges hampering human development and equitable growth – weak governance, and insufficient investment in public goods and services, whether citizens’ productive capacity, infrastructure, affordable energy, health, education and agricultural productivity.
Climate change is adding new dimensions and urgency. There is growing recognition that sustainable economic development and jobs need to be anchored in low-carbon economies, buttressed by disaster-risk and vulnerability reduction plans.
Over the last decade, we have learnt a great deal about what is needed. Ingredients include determined political leadership to set and drive plans for equitable growth and poverty reduction. Technical, management and institutional capacity are vital if policies and plans are to be implemented. Good governance, the rule of law and systems of accountability are essential to ensure that resources are subject to public scrutiny and used effectively and efficiently.
So what is holding back progress? Lack of knowledge and shortage of plans are not the problem. Good, even visionary agendas have been formulated by African leaders and policy makers in every field, from regional integration to women’s empowerment. Moreover, we have myriad examples of programmes and projects that are making a tangible positive difference to peoples’ lives in every field.
Nor, given the continent’s vast natural and human resources and the ongoing, often illicit, outflow of wealth, is lack of funds the insuperable barrier, though more are needed.
It is political will which is the issue, both internationally and in Africa.
Internationally, there are concerns that the consensus around development has been eroded by the financial crisis. Many rich countries are keeping their promises on development assistance. But others are falling badly behind.
These shortfalls do not result from any decrease in human solidarity and sympathy. Nor, given the relatively modest sums involved, can they be blamed on budgetary constraints alone.
They stem more from the failure to communicate the importance of putting the needs of the least developed and African countries at the heart of global policies.
Efforts must be stepped up to explain how these benefits, whether in providing fairer trade policies or stemming corruption, are not just ethical or altruistic but practical and in the self-interest of richer countries.
Africa’s leaders have prime responsibility for driving equitable growth and for making the investment needed to achieve the MDGs. They can help by making the case more strongly for development policies and the resources needed.
The continent now has leaders who stand out as champions of development. We need more of them. But sadly their efforts are overshadowed in the international media by the authoritarian and self-enriching behaviour of other leaders. Africa’s progress should be measured not just in GDP but by the benefits that economic growth brings to all its people.
Africa is a new economic frontier. The approach and actions of the private sector, and of Africa’s traditional and new international partners, are crucial in helping overcome the continent’s challenges. There is a real opportunity to strengthen the new partnerships with countries such as China, the Far and Middle East, South Asia and Latin America to help achieve development goals.
African leaders need to have more confidence in their bargaining position, and greater legal and negotiating capacities to ensure that they secure deals that bring benefits. Their partners, including private sector and from the global South, should be held to high standards of transparency and integrity.
Political leadership, practical capacities and strong accountability are the winning elements of a great story. The international community can play a decisive role in ensuring that Africa is playing on a level field. But Africa’s destiny is, first and foremost, in its own hands.
Kofi Annan, Chair of the Africa Progress Panel, former Secretary-General of the United Nations and Nobel Laureate
South African court forbids electricity workers’ strike as World Cup nears
English.news.cn/ Xinhua /2010-05-27
JOHANNESBURG, May 26 (Xinhua) — South Africa’ s state owned power utility, Eskom, after securing a court interdict on Tuesday night to prevent a strike, said it had contingency plans to ensure security of supply during the looming FIFA World Cup.
With South Africa due to host the World Cup from June 11 to July 11, the country is also in the third week of major strike by rail transport workers.
Should the planned Eskom strike by South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) go ahead despite the court order, the country’s 10 FIFA World Cup Stadiums may not be af
fected as each has its own back up electricity generators.
Explaining Tuesday night’s court order, Eskom said in a statement to the South African Press Association (SAPA): “Eskom is an essential service and employees of an organization classified as such are prohibited from taking part in industrial action”.
As a result, engaging in such action would be considered unlawful.
Earlier on Tuesday NUM spokesman Shane Choshane said 16,000 of its workers were planning to strike.
The union planned a march to Eskom’s head office in MegaWatt Park in Johannesburg on Wednesday, and NUM members would strike at Eskom power plants “wherever they are”.
SAPA reported that some workers apparently started striking at Eskom plants on Tuesday, but Choshane couldn’t say how many downed tools.
Another NUM spokesman Lesiba Seshoka was not surprised by the interdict “because Eskom always hides behind its status as the essential service”.
He said the union would inform our members of the interdict and tell them no to go on an illegal strike.
Howeve, Eskom “will have to deal with its angry employees if they decide not to listen to us,” he said.
Eskom said it held discussions with NUM leaders last week and discussed three issues in particular — full-time safety representatives, the recognition agreement and a housing allowance.
Choshane earlier told SAPA that union members had indicated they “cannot sit for 2010 negotiations as previous issues have not been resolved yet”.
He said issues related to a strike last year, which was suspended to start negotiations with management, were still unresolved.
Therefore NUM’s 18 percent wage increase demand was not even a consideration for the strike.
“It is impossible to approach Eskom on any issue, because all they say is that they are essential services and they are not allowed to strike,” Choshane said.
Editor: Zhang Xiang
AFRICA / AU :
Anglo, Foschini, Nampak, SABMiller: South African Stock Preview
May 27, 2010/By Garth Theunissen/Bloomberg
May 27 (Bloomberg) — The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in South Africa. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names and prices are from the last close.
South Africa’s FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index rose 867.67, or 3.3 percent, to 27,047.51 at the close in Johannesburg.
Anglo American Plc (AGL SJ): Copper rose for a second day, gaining as much as 0.8 percent to $6,835 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange. Stock of Anglo, the diversified mining company that makes up more than 10 percent of South Africa’s benchmark stock index, rose 7.64 rand, or 2.7 percent, to 289.19 rand. Shares in larger rival BHP Billiton Plc (BIL SJ) climbed 6.84 rand, or 3.4 percent, to 207.84 rand.
Adcock Ingram Holdings Ltd. (AIP SJ): The southern hemisphere’s biggest generic-drugs manufacturer plans to make acquisitions beyond Africa within the next three years, Business Day reported, citing Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Louw. Stock of Adcock rose 2 rand, or 3.7 percent, to 56 rand.
Cie. Financiere Richemont SA (CFR SJ): The world’s largest jewelry maker said full-year profit from continuing operations fell 18 percent to 603 million euros ($739.5 million), according to a statement released today. Richemont’s stock rose 88 cents, or 3.5 percent, to 25.88 rand.
Foschini Ltd. (FOS SJ): South Africa’s third-largest clothing retailer reports full-year earnings. Foschini gained 1.05 rand, or 1.7 percent, to 64.60 rand.
Nampak Ltd. (NPK SJ): Africa’s largest packaging producer releases earnings. Johannesburg-based Nampak’s stock rose 35 cents, or 2.1 percent, to 17 rand.
SABMiller Plc (SAB SJ): The world’s second-biggest brewer is considering a possible bid for Australia’s Foster’s Group Ltd. after holding “early-stage” talks with its advisers, the Daily Telegraph reported, without saying where it got the information. SABMiller’s stock rose 2.01 rand, or almost 1 percent, to 212.01 rand.
Sasol Ltd. (SOL SJ): Oil advanced for a second day, gaining as much as 0.7 percent to $72 a barrel in electronic trading in New York. Stock of Sasol, the world’s biggest maker of motor fuel from coal, rose 5.77 rand, or 2.2 percent, to 274.49 rand.
Shoprite Holdings Ltd. (SHP SJ): Chairman Christo Wiese bought 7.48 million rand ($968,159) of Shoprite shares, according to a stock exchange filing yesterday. South Africa’s biggest food retailer rose 3.58 rand, or 4.8 percent, to 78.58 rand.
Standard Bank Group Ltd. (SBK SJ): Africa’s biggest lender holds its annual general meeting in Johannesburg. Stock of Standard Bank rose 3.37 rand, or 3.2 percent, to 107.52 rand.
Shares or American depositary receipts of the following South African companies closed as follows:
Anglo American Plc (AAUKY US) added 0.5 percent to $18.31. AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU US) climbed 4.1 percent to $42.28. BHP Billiton Ltd. (BBL US) rose 0.2 percent to $52.54. DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY US) gained 2.7 percent to $4.60. Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI US) added 2.2 percent to $13.46. Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY US) gained 0.2 percent to $9.68. Impala Platinum Holdings Co. (IMPUY US) rose 1.6 percent to $23.60. Sappi Ltd. (SPP US) climbed 4.6 percent to $3.64. Sasol Ltd. (SSL US) fell 0.3 percent to $34.66. Telkom South Africa Ltd. (TLKGY US) advanced 3.5 percent to $18.48.
–Editors: John Kohut, Paul Richardson.
AU should end conflicts in Africa – Museveni
27 May, 2010/www.newvision.co.ug/By Milton Olupot
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said the African Union (AU) must work towards ending armed conflicts in Africa if it is to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
He said while progress had been made in the search for peace, security and stability, there was need for a renewed resolve to end the scourge of conflicts and violence on the continent.
“If this scourge is not brought to an end, Africa will not meet the MDGs, as peace is a necessary condition for development,” he said.
Museveni, in a statement read by foreign affairs minister Sam Kutesa, observed that thousands of people are killed and displaced every year due to armed conflicts.
Livelihoods and wealth, which people have worked hard to accumulate are wiped out, and infrastructure is destroyed, he added.
The more profound loss, Museveni observed, was the destruction of hope, as many children remain uneducated, women get abused and traumatised, and most skilled people abandon their home countries.
“It is within this context that African leaders resolved to declare the year 2010, a year of peace in Africa. While we are still far from realising this noble aspiration, all efforts should be made to achieve this objective,” Museveni stated.
Kutesa was representing Museveni as chief guest at a dinner held to celebrate the 47th Africa Day held at the Speke Resort Munyonyo in Kampala on Tuesday night. The theme for this year’s celebration is “Building and maintaining peace through sports in Africa.
Kutesa lit a symbolic torch of peace. A moment of silence was observed for the departed African revolutionary leaders and peace keepers.
Several diplomats and government officials attended the function sponsored by uganda telecom.
Abdulbaset Elazzabi, the uganda telecom boss, said the company was working towards connecting Africa with one network.
The dean of the African Diplomatic Corp, Rajabu H. Gamaha, noted that there were still problems in Darfur in Sudan, Madagascar, Guinea and Niger, while the greatest challenge was Somalia.
He commended Uganda and Burundi for contributing to the African Union peace-keeping force.
Museveni called for increased support to the African Peace Fund by the member states.
He reiterated the importance for member states to extend full cooperation and support to the Africa peace and security architecture to discharge its mandate.
UN /ONU :
SECURITY COUNCIL VOTES TO END UN MISSION IN CHAD AND CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
ACCRA MAIL/ Africa /27 May
25 May – The Security Council today voted to end the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Chad and the Central African Republic by the end of the year, with a military withdrawal starting this week, after the Government requested the move despite concerns that it could impair aid to some 430,000 people.
In a unanimous resolution, the Council ordered that the military component of the UN mission in the CAR and Chad (known as MINURCAT) be reduced from its current 3,300 troops to 2,200 military personnel 1,900 in Chad and 300 in the CAR by 15 July. Withdrawal of the remaining troops will begin on 15 October, and all military and civilian personnel are to be withdrawn by 31 December.
The resolution was in line with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s recommendations in his latest report, and he welcomed today’s vote, stressing that under the new mandate, Chad assumes full responsibility for protecting civilians as MINURCAT starts withdrawing its military on Friday.
The mission was set up over two years ago amid increasing unrest in eastern Chad, which hosts at least 250,000 refugees from neighbouring Sudan’s war-torn Darfur region and 180,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) driven from their homes by inter-communal unrest. The CAR, particularly in the northeast, has also been troubled by violent unrest.
But with new agreements on border security between Chad and Sudan, and with the Chadian Government stating that MINURCAT was not strong enough to provide complete security, the Government said in February that it felt it was better for Chadian forces to take over. Earlier this month Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes said he was extremely worried about the potential impact of a withdrawal on the civilians that the UN has been trying to help in eastern Chad.
Today, in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Mr. Ban said the new mandate will allow MINURCAT’s civilian component to work with the Government to consolidate gains achieved so far and help it to develop plans for their sustainability after 31 December.
In its resolution, the Council stressed that the Government has committed to ensure the security and protection of all refugees and IDPs, facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, and work towards the voluntary return and secure resettlement of IDPs and the demilitarization of refugee and IDP camps.
During its remaining months, MINURCAT will help support Chadian police forces, primarily the UN-trained Détachement intégré de sécurité (DIS), in taking over security responsibilities, assist in relocating refugee camps that are close to the Chadian-Sudanese border, and liaise with national and regional authorities on banditry and emerging threats to humanitarian activities.
The mission will also assist in resolving local tensions and protecting human rights, with particular attention to sexual and gender-based violence. Moreover, it is authorized, in consultations with the Chadian Government where possible, to respond to imminent threats of violence to civilians in its immediate vicinity.
In CAR, MINURCAT is to contribute to the creation of a more secure environment in the north-eastern region of Birao and to aid UN personnel and humanitarian workers in danger.
Accra / Ghana / African / Modernghana.com
Africa: Amnesty International Reports on State of Human Rights
27 May 2010/allafrica.com/Amnesty International
The regional overview for Africa, published in “The State of the World’s Human Rights,” Amnesty International’s report for 2010:
“No one ever asked the Sudanese themselves if they want the arrest warrant against their President. [But] undoubtedly, yes: it’s time.”
This Sudanese activist reflected the feelings of many in the region when the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued its arrest warrant against President Omar Al Bashir of Sudan in March. President Al Bashir was accused, as indirect perpetrator, of war crimes – specifically attacking civilians and pillaging – and crimes against humanity – specifically for murder, extermination, forcible transfer, torture and rape. This was a powerful and welcome signal sent to those suspected of being responsible for gross human rights violations: that nobody is above the law, and that the rights of victims should be upheld.
Members of civil society in Africa frequently stressed the importance of strengthening international justice, and called on the African Union (AU) and its member states to work with the ICC, but in July, the AU Assembly adopted a resolution stipulating it would not collaborate with the Court in surrendering President Al Bashir. The AU also reiterated its request to the UN Security Council to suspend the ICC proceedings against President Al Bashir, and expressed its intention to limit the Prosecutor’s discretion to initiate investigations and prosecutions. Although some AU states seemed to disagree with the position taken by the AU as a whole, their voices were drowned out by the more vocal opponents of the ICC.
The stark contrast from many leaders in Africa between their human rights rhetoric and the absence of concrete action to respect, protect and promote human rights is not new. But hardly ever has it been demonstrated so unequivocally as with their reaction to President Al Bashir’s arrest warrant. This triggered a wide – and still ongoing – debate in Africa on the role of international justice in ensuring accountability for gross violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.
Sadly, there are numerous other examples from 2009 that demonstrate the lack of political will in Africa to ensure accountability on any scale.
Conflict
Members of armed opposition groups and government security forces in Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Somalia and Sudan continued to commit human rights abuses with impunity in those parts of the countries affected by armed conflict or insecurity.
In Somalia there was no functioning justice system and no effective mechanism was put in place to monitor human rights abuses. The conflict between the various armed groups and government forces resulted in thousands of civilian casualties due to the indiscriminate and disproportionate nature of many of the military operations conducted by all parties to the conflict, especially around the capital Mogadishu. Civilians were often targeted in attacks and densely populated areas were shelled. Military assistance, including shipments of arms from the USA, to the Transitional Federal Government, without adequate safeguards in place to ensure that such assistance does not lead to gross human rights violations, risked exacerbating the situation. The conflict in Somalia also continued to have implications for stability in the rest of the Horn of Africa.
In eastern DRC, sexual violence, attacks against civilians, looting and recruitment and use of child soldiers continued unabated. Joint military operations of the national Congolese army (FARDC) and the UN peacekeeping force (MONUC) against the armed group the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR) displaced thousands more people, destroyed villages and killed and wounded thousands. The FDLR continued to target civilians. MONUC was heavily criticized for its support to the FARDC in these military operations as the national army was also responsible for numerous human rights violations.
The arrest in Germany in November of Ignace Murwanashyaka, President of the FDLR, and his deputy, Straton Musoni, was a positive development and demonstrated the contribution universal jurisdiction can make in addressing impunity. The government of the DRC refused to arrest former rebel commander Bosco Ntaganda and surrender him t
o the ICC, even though the government is legally obliged to do so as an arrest warrant has been issued. Other senior FARDC officers accused of war crimes or other serious human rights violations have not been suspended from duty or brought to justice.
In March, the AU mandated a panel under former South African President Thabo Mbeki, to explore ways of ensuring accountability as well as reconciliation in Darfur. The report of the Mbeki panel, released in October, contained a wide range of recommendations to obtain justice, establish the truth about past and ongoing human rights abuses and seek reparations for those affected by human rights abuses or their relatives. The Mbeki panel recognized the role the ICC plays in addressing impunity.
And yet, although a number of countries indicated that President Al Bashir would be at risk of arrest if he were to visit, many others, such as Egypt, Ethiopia and Eritrea were more than pleased to receive the Sudanese President. And the government of Sudan ignored international attempts at justice and continued to refuse to arrest former government minister Ahmad Harun and militia leader Ali Kushayb even though warrants from the ICC have been outstanding against both of them for war crimes and crimes against humanity since April 2007.
Conflict between various communities in Southern Sudan increased, specifically in Jonglei, leading to thousands of people being displaced and numerous others killed and wounded, including civilians.
Any help humanitarian organizations might have been able to offer people was hampered by the difficult working environment in the country, partly due to the general insecurity and partly because they were often targeted by parties to the conflict or bandits. This was also the case in the DRC, eastern Chad, and Somalia. UN and AU peacekeepers, often with a mandate to protect the civilian population, were also attacked in these four countries.
Accountability and reparations for past human rights violations were often not effectively addressed in post-conflict situations either. In Liberia, for example, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, established to shed light on the human rights violations committed during the period 1979-2003, published its final report in 2009 and recommended establishing an extraordinary criminal tribunal to investigate and prosecute those suspected of having committed crimes under international law. However, concrete steps need to be taken by the authorities to implement these recommendations.
In Burundi, there was only limited progress in establishing a Truth and Reconciliation Commission and a Special Tribunal within the Burundian justice system to investigate Burundi’s violent history and to prosecute, if established, crimes of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Good news came primarily from the Special Court for Sierra Leone, which concluded all its trials in 2009, including those at the appeal stage, except that of former President of Liberia Charles Taylor, which continued throughout the year. However, the reparations programme in Sierra Leone lacked means to be of much significance for the people affected by human rights abuses during the 1991-2002 conflict. The UN Security Council also extended in December the mandate of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda until the end of 2012 to ensure it could finalize the trials.
By the end of 2009, Senegal had still not started the trial of former Chadian President Hissène Habré, as requested by the AU, allegedly due to lack of resources. However, requests from Senegal for financial assistance were deemed excessive by international donors.
Public security concerns
The lack of commitment to address impunity was also reflected in the attitude of many governments in the region towards human rights violations committed by their law enforcement and other security officers. It was not unusual in 2009 for security forces to use excessive force and to commit unlawful killings, including extrajudicial executions.
On 7 February, the Presidential Guard in Madagascar fired live ammunition at unarmed demonstrators marching on the Presidential Palace in Antananarivo, killing at least 31 people. No independent and impartial investigation was conducted into the unlawful killings despite requests from the family members and human rights organizations.
In Nigeria, hundreds of people are unlawfully killed every year by the police, and 2009 was no exception. These unlawful killings, many of which may be extrajudicial executions, and which occur in police stations, at road blocks or in the street, are hardly ever investigated. Those who live in poverty face a greater risk of being killed as they are not in a position to bribe police officers. The law in Nigeria provides more grounds for lethal force than those permitted by international human rights law and standards.
There was no indication that the government of Cameroon had initiated investigations into the unlawful killings of about 100 people in 2008 when security forces cracked down on violent demonstrations against the increased cost of living and a constitutional amendment to extend the President’s term of office. The government of Kenya did not take measures to ensure accountability for human rights violations committed during the post-election violence in 2007/8 when more than 1,000 people were killed. As a result, the prosecutor of the ICC sought authorization from the Court to investigate possible crimes against humanity during the post-election violence in Kenya.
On 28 September, more than 150 people were unlawfully killed in Guinea when security forces violently repressed a peaceful demonstration in a stadium in the capital Conakry. Women participating in the demonstration were raped in public. No credible investigations were initiated by the authorities so the UN set up an international Commission of Inquiry. It concluded that crimes against humanity had been committed and recommended referral to the ICC.
At least here there was political will among the UN, AU and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to act swiftly to determine the facts and identify those responsible. Unfortunately, this was more an exception than a rule in the region.
The problems in 2009 were compounded by the fact that security forces continued to be poorly paid, badly trained and ill-equipped. In many states security forces were still primarily a tool for repression and not for maintaining law and order, or for serving the public. In this way the demand for accountability was squashed by further violations.
Repression of dissent
In many countries, journalists, political opponents, trade union activists, and human rights defenders had their right to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly violated. Across the region, governments’ reaction to criticism was often to discredit and attack the messenger, including through intimidation, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and sometimes killings. In some countries the judiciary lacks independence and magistrates are intimidated – so the judiciary becomes yet another tool of repression.
The work of journalists was restricted in numerous ways and the list of governments in 2009 that repressed basic freedoms and the right of their people to information, is long: in Angola, journalists faced lawsuits for “abusing the media” and defamation charges leading to prison sentences; in Cameroon, a journalist was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for publishing “false news” and others were charged with insulting government officials; journalists were also arrested in the DRC, Eritrea, Gambia, Nigeria and Uganda for their work; Sudan and Chad deported several foreign journalists and media laws restricting their work were introduced or remained in place in both countries as well as in Rwanda and Togo; print media in Sudan were heavily censored for most of the year
; in Madagascar, Nigeria, Senegal and Uganda various media outlets were closed down; in Côte d’Ivoire, the Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Guinea, Kenya, Senegal, Swaziland and Tanzania journalists were harassed and intimidated; in Somalia, nine journalists were killed and many others fled the country, as they and human rights activists were also threatened by members of armed groups.
Human rights activists were intimidated for their work across the region, and sometimes arrested, including in Burkina Faso, Chad, the DRC, Mauritania, Swaziland and Zimbabwe. Other countries, including Ethiopia, passed legislation restricting the legitimate work of civil society. In Gambia, the President reportedly threatened to kill anyone wishing to destabilize the country and specifically threatened human rights defenders. In Kenya, two prominent human rights defenders were killed in broad daylight in Nairobi by unknown gunmen. In Burundi, a human rights defender working on corruption, including within the police, was stabbed to death at his home.
Political opponents of the government, or people perceived to be, were arbitrarily arrested in many countries, including Cameroon, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Niger and Zimbabwe. Those in detention were regularly tortured or otherwise ill-treated. Some political opponents remained a victim of enforced disappearance, including in Chad and Gambia. Military personnel in Guinea Bissau killed a number of political and military figures.
In some countries, such as the Republic of Congo, Guinea, Madagascar, Mauritania and Uganda, demonstrations were violently repressed.
People on the move
The ongoing armed conflicts and insecurity on the continent meant hundreds of thousands of people remained displaced in 2009, often living in camps, in precarious conditions with limited access to water, sanitation, health, education and food. Many of the internally displaced in northern Uganda returned to their homes but had no access to basic services.
Refugees and asylum-seekers in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda were forcibly returned, or were at risk of being so, to their countries of origin where they still faced persecution or other risks. In South Africa the police response to xenophobic attacks against migrants and refugees, and destruction of their property, was often inadequate.
In Mauritania, migrants continued to be arbitrarily arrested and detained before being expelled, a policy put in place by the authorities as a result of pressure from European states to control migration. Angola expelled an estimated 160,000 DRC nationals in a process fraught with abuses, including reports that Angolan security forces subjected those expelled to wide-ranging ill-treatment including sexual abuse. Some died during the expulsion. In retaliation, the DRC expelled thousands of Angolan citizens, including refugees.
One positive development of 2009 was the adoption by the AU of the Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa, recognizing the specific vulnerability and needs of displaced people.
Housing – forced evictions
The rapid urbanization on the continent also causes displacement. Every year, tens of thousands of people end up living in informal settlements, often in very precarious living conditions with no access to basic services such as water, sanitation, health and education.
People have no access to adequate housing, no security of tenure and are at risk of forced evictions. The forced evictions often lead to the loss of their livelihood and their meagre possessions, and drive people deeper into poverty. Those evicted are hardly ever consulted, are not given advance notice of the evictions and are not granted compensation or adequate alternative housing. In 2009 the trend continued, and mass forced evictions took place in Angola, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria.
Economic concerns – corporate accountability
The lack of corporate accountability resulted in a range of human rights abuses. In eastern DRC, the exploitation of natural resources, specifically in the mining industry, continued to fuel the conflict. Armed groups as well as the national army were involved in the exploitation of natural resources and were trading with private economic actors. Children were working in some of the mines.
In the Niger Delta in Nigeria the situation deteriorated as security forces committed human rights violations during their military operations against armed groups. Armed groups kidnapped numerous oil workers and their relatives and attacked oil installations. The oil industry damaged the environment and had a negative impact on the standard of living and livelihood of local people. Laws and regulations to protect the environment were poorly enforced, and impunity for past human rights abuses continued, further contributing to poverty and conflict.
Due to corruption, nearly 30,000 victims of the 2006 dumping of toxic waste in Côte d’Ivoire, were at risk of missing out on the compensation granted to them by the multinational corporation Trafigura in an out-of-court settlement in the UK.
Discrimination
Discrimination against people based on their perceived or real sexual orientation continued in various countries. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people as well as human rights activists working with and for them were harassed and intimidated. Some faced arbitrary arrest and detention as well as ill-treatment. New legislation to further criminalize homosexuality was introduced or debated in parliaments across the region.
Burundi, for example, adopted a new penal code in April that criminalized consensual same-sex relations. In Uganda an Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced for consideration by parliament, building on the existing discriminatory laws by proposing new offences such as the “promotion of homosexuality”. The Bill also sought to impose the death penalty and life imprisonment for some offences. In Nigeria, discussions continued on the draft Same Gender Marriage Bill, which would criminalize people of the same sex getting married, and also make criminals of their witnesses or officiators.
In Cameroon and Senegal, men faced harassment, arbitrary arrest and detention, torture and unfair trials because they were suspected of engaging in same-sex relationships. In Malawi two people were arrested and charged with “unnatural practices between males and gross public indecency” at the end of December, following a “traditional engagement ceremony”. They were reportedly ill-treated while in detention.
More positive was the public statement in Rwanda by the Minister of Justice that homosexuality would not be criminalized, as sexual orientation was considered a private matter.
People were also discriminated against across the region for their gender, ethnicity, religion and identity. Discrimination and violence against women and girls prevailed in many societies and in different forms. Women and girls continued to be raped, particularly in situations of armed conflict such as in Chad, the DRC and Sudan. Some countries also recorded high levels of domestic violence although in most no proper reporting or investigating system was in place. Most women and girls faced numerous obstacles to obtain access to justice. Discrimination and the low status of women in countries such as Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone affected their ability to seek healthcare, and contributed to high levels of maternal mortality. Traditional harmful practices continued, including female genital mutilation and early marriage.
In Sudan, women were arrested and flogged for wearing trousers – which were considered “indecent or immoral”. In Somalia, al-Shabab (“youth”) militias closed women’s organizations. In northern districts of Sierra Leone women were not allowed to contest c
hieftaincy elections. An attempt to address the inequality of women in law sparked protests in Mali, and Nigeria still has to adopt legislation to incorporate the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, almost 25 years after it chose to ratify this treaty.
In Mauritania, Special Rapporteurs of the UN highlighted the ongoing marginalization of black Mauritanian people. Several religious groups remained banned in Eritrea and people were persecuted due to their religion. In Burundi and Tanzania, killings and mutilations of albino people continued, driven by cultural and religious beliefs. Some suspected of involvement in the killings were convicted of murder in Tanzania.
Conclusion
Lack of accountability in Africa was not only reflected in the reluctance of many states to investigate and prosecute those responsible for crimes under international law, or to collaborate with the ICC on the arrest of President Al Bashir. The lack of accountability for human rights abuses – by local and central authorities, law enforcement agencies, armed groups and corporate actors – continued to be a systemic problem across the continent. Unless it is addressed, there will be no lasting improvement in the realization of all human rights as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and regional and international human rights treaties.
The AU should lead by example, but in certain situations it has become part of the problem. The call for accountability from civil society has become stronger over the years in Africa, but commitment from the political leadership is required to make significant change.
A call for a better Africa
KARABO KEEPILE/ www.mg.co.za/ May 27 2010
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA
An Africa progress report released on Tuesday called on African leaders to turn the “scramble for Africa” into real results for all of the continents people, while urging African finance ministers to climate proof their economies and invest in women.
“It’s Africa day and 50 years ago, from this year, 17 governments of our African countries won independence, and we are only 17 days away from the World Cup, so this is an important day,” said Kofi Annan, chair of the panel and former secretary-general of the United Nations (UN).
Africa Progress
Annan and other Africa Progress Panel (APP) members presented the Africa Progress Report 2010 in Johannesburg. The panel, including Peter Eigen, Linah Mohohlo and Olusegun Obasanjo, are a group of individuals who want to share their experiences and influence on development on the African continent, Annan said.
Formed in the wake of the Gleneagles G8 Summit and the Commission for Africa Report in 2007, the panel monitors the implementation of Africa’s commitments, while the annual publication analyses the continent’s progress and offers recommendations to African leaders and their international partners.
The lack of transparency throughout Africa’s entire resource system, from how contracts are awarded and monitored, to how taxes and royalties are collected, was highlighted as one of the major stumbling blocks in Africa’s progress.
“While evidence and reliable statistical data sources are thin, it is apparent that inequalities within African countries are increasing and the benefits of economic growth are very unevenly shared,” the report said.
Resources into benefits
The panel called for a more assertive approach from African leaders to translate the continent’s resources into social benefits for its people, noting that “Africans beyond elite circles are not benefiting sufficiently”.
“We call on African leaders to use their armoury of fiscal and social policy instruments to prioritise public goods and services that benefit and create opportunities for all citizens,” Annan said.
Meanwhile former Nigerian president, Obasanjo, warned about corruption. “We need to pay attention to both the receivers and givers of bribes, because mostly these givers are not from Africa.”
Obasanjo, who signed the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Bill into law on 28 May 2007, said there were countries outside of Africa that encouraged corruption on the continent.
“During my administration I caught corrupt companies outside of Nigeria doing business in the country. When I approached the countries where the companies were from, nothing was done to the companies,” he said.
Poor representation
For a continent with over a quarter of the worlds states and a billion people profoundly affected by global dynamics, Africa is under-represented in many formal and informal international processes, including in new fora emerging in the global South, the report said.
Where Africa does have adequate representation, Africa often lacks negotiation capacity and a coordinated position, it added.
“Our request to be appropriately represented calls on us to take our responsibility seriously. We need to speak with one voice and to do our homework,” said Mohohlo, Governor of the Bank of Botswana.
Mohohlo said she was encouraged by the uniformed voice used by African leaders in Copenhagen.
Climate proof economies
The APP called on the continents finance ministers, who are meeting in Cote D’Ivoire for the Annual African Development Bank summit on May 31, to climate proof the continent’s economic growth and development.
“Climate change will increase the cost of attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), whether in food production, health, water, energy, infrastructure, and other areas. It will have disproportionate effects on women and the poor,” the panel said.
The report noted that while more than 70% of Africans depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, agriculture was not realising its potential as a driver of poverty alleviation and economic growth, or its ability to ensure that everyone had access to enough food and a balanced diet.
Instead, Annan noted that “hunger and chronic malnutrition are widespread, and accelerating climate change threatens to reduce productivity further”.
Africa needs to invest in women
The panel urged African policymakers to empower women by enforcing existing conventions, laws and policies.
“Women need to be given greater access to and control of Africa’s resources,” the panel noted.
In sub-Saharan Africa, women produce up to 80% of all basic food products, both for household consumption and for sale.
“Given the key role of women in the agricultural sector, improving their situation, particularly through bettering their access to productive assets and ownership rights, means progress for the sector and for the economy as a whole,” the report added.
The South African Commission for Gender Equality agreed, stating that while it was aware of the “enormous gains” that had been made towards gender equality throughout the continent, it still had not reached the level it had anticipated at the turn of the century.
Future leaders
Also present at the release of the Africa progress report 2010 was Kwasi Adu Berchie, 18, from the African Leadership Academy.
Berchie was one of five students selected to attend the function after winning an essay competition.
The Ghanaian, who dreams of becoming a medical doctor, told the M&G that he continued to have faith in the continent despite its many problems.
“It is not the end of Africa, no matter how bad things are, as long as the leaders are trained well,” he said.
BAN URGES STRONGER EFFORTS TO HELP AFRICA CONSOLIDATE PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT
ACCRA MAIL | Africa /27 May
25 May – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged the international community to step up efforts to help Africa attain its potential for peace and sustainable development, saying the continent continued to influence the global agenda by reminding the world of its responsibility to the most vulnerable.
In his message to mark Africa Day, which commemorates the founding in 1963 of the Organization of African Unity, now known as the African Union (AU), Mr. Ban said the United Nations was a key partner of Africa, supporting the continent’s efforts in various fields, including peace and security, social and economic development and regional integration.
The independence movement that swept Africa five decades ago brought many new members to the United Nations, resulting in a new focus on the continent’s development needs and heightened emphasis on greater democracy in the management of international relations, the Secretary-General said.
By consistently reminding the international community of its responsibility to the most vulnerable, and affirming that we are all members of a global family of nations, Africa has helped to reshape the global agenda, he added.
This year’s anniversary has particular significance because it also marks 50 years of independence for several Francophone African States, as well as Nigeria, the continent’s most populous nation.
The UN has played a key role promulgating the fundamental values of the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights among the diverse nations of African, Mr. Ban said.
Our extensive presence on the ground in Africa encompasses peacekeeping, peace-building, mediation and conflict prevention, and there is growing cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union Commission, exemplified by regular dialogue between the Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council, he said.
The September Summit on the Millennium Development Goals offered yet another venue for upholding UN’s commitments to Africa and supporting the continent’s efforts to implement its New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD, the Secretary-General said. As an economic programme of the African Union, NEPAD aims to provide a policy framework for accelerating economic cooperation and integration among African States.
Africa is poised to capitalize on its potential. On this Africa Day, let us rededicate ourselves to fruitful partnerships in pursuit of peace and sustainable progress for all the continent’s people, he added.
Accra / Ghana / African / Modernghana.com
USA :
Sable’s Groves Taps U.S. Funds for Mines, Ends Rautenbach Ties
May 27, 2010/By Thomas Biesheuvel/Bloomberg
May 27 (Bloomberg) — Andrew Groves, the Zimbabwean entrepreneur who sold his Central African Mining & Exploration Co. for $840 million, aims to replicate that success with a new venture after breaking from former backer Billy Rautenbach.
“We want to show the market that Camec was not a one- off,” said Groves, whose new company is backed by U.S. investors Harbinger Capital Partners and Eton Park Capital Management LP. “We’ve learnt a lot of lessons from Camec. We have a very different relationship with the hedge funds we have backing us now.”
With the support of Zimbabwean businessman Rautenbach, Camec snapped up copper, bauxite and coal mines from Mali to Mozambique, boosting its shares more than sixfold between its 2002 initial offering and last year’s sale. Rautenbach, 50, has been slapped with sanctions by European Union and U.S. authorities for his links to President Robert Mugabe’s regime.
Groves, who said he’s split from Rautenbach, will use new venture Sable Mining Africa Ltd. to buy and develop coal and iron-ore deposits in Africa as prices for the commodities surge. Groves and Sable Chairman Philippe Edmonds, a former England cricketer, also have uranium projects on the continent.
“Phil and Andrew have learned the lesson of what not to do,” said Brock Salier, an analyst at Ambrian Partners Ltd. who has a “speculative buy” recommendation on Sable. “There’s no doubt that they are not going to repeat any potential mistakes that happened.”
Zimbabwe Ties
The EU added Rautenbach to its list of people subject to financial sanctions in January 2009, saying he had “strong ties” to the Zimbabwean regime when it gave military assistance to the Democratic Republic of Congo in its fight against rebels. Rautenbach was appointed head of Gecamines, Congo’s state mining company, after Zimbabwe’s military intervention.
The investor has also been pursued by authorities in South Africa on fraud charges linked to the collapse of Hyundai Motor Distributors, a Botswana-based company he controlled. He agreed to pay a 40 million-rand ($5.1 million) fine in September to settle related claims.
While Rautenbach wasn’t a direct shareholder in Camec, indirect holdings were acquired by family members, Madelain Roscher, his spokeswoman, said in a May 25 e-mail.
Rautenbach is not involved in Sable and has “no plans to become involved in any listed company and will not consider doing so until the sanctions issue is resolved,” Roscher said.
Shares tied to Rautenbach remain frozen by the EU. Eurasian Natural Resources Corp., which bought Camec for about 584 million pounds ($840 million) in September, was unable to acquire that stock. Charlotte Kirkham, a spokeswoman for ENRC, declined to comment on the shares when contacted by Bloomberg.
Buy Up, Sell On
Groves, 42, and Edmonds, 59, made their names buying up African mines, proving their development potential and selling them on. They launched Sable as a mining company in October after scrapping plans to invest in Mozambique ethanol.
Sable, formerly known as BioEnergy Africa Ltd., acquired Delta Mining Consolidated Ltd., which gave them four coal projects in South Africa and Botswana. Those included the Rietkuil deposit, which may start production by the end of 2011, Groves said in an interview in London, where Sable is based.
The pair’s experience in African resources attracted New York-based Harbinger, the fund’s Managing Director Lawrence Clark said May 25 in a telephone interview. Harbinger has a history of backing mining projects, yet its investment in an early-stage venture goes against its usual strategy.
Find Opportunities
“If we weren’t comfortable that these guys would either find opportunities, or return the capital if they couldn’t find worthy opportunities, then we wouldn’t have invested,” he said. “We typically invest when we can evaluate a project at hand.”
Groves and Edmonds’s past ventures include African Platinum Plc, which they founded in 2002 and took to startup stage before stepping down in 2005. It was sold to Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. for 55 pence a share in 2007, a 54-pence premium on its initial sale price five years earlier.
“That’s probably what they are trying to achieve in the future,” said Brian Moritz, who became chairman of African Platinum in 2006. “They’re best at bringing in management around them then moving on to the next deal.”
Not all their backers have reaped such rewards. While Camec was sold for 20 pence a share, up from its initial 3-pence price, it had raised 100 million pounds in 2006 by selling shares at 80 pence apiece, and 100 million pounds in 2008 with stock at 50 pence.
“I was disappointed by the price it was sold at, but sometimes you have to lick your wounds and move on,” said Russell Fryer, founder of Baobab Asset Management, who was an investor in Camec and holds shares in Sable.
Commodity Price Jump
Mining companies are competing for assets in Africa as China’s commodities demand soars. Following a twofold increase in iron-ore spot prices in 12 months, miner Vale SA agreed to pay $2.5 billion for deposits in Guinea in April. JSW Energy Ltd. bought 50 percent of Royal Bafokeng Capital (Pty) Ltd. the same month, gaining access to coal mines in South Africa.
Harbinger, founded by billionaire Philip Falcone, holds stakes in African Medical Investments Plc, another Groves and Edmonds company, and Frank Timis’s African Minerals Ltd., which is developing iron ore in Sierra Leone, Director Clark said.
Sable is 22 percent held by Harbinger, 4.5 percent by Eton Park and 4.3 percent by OppenheimerFunds Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Groves and Edmonds each have a 0.65 percent interest.
Mary Beth Glover, a spokeswoman for Eton Park, declined to comment.
Groves and Edmonds “seem to be able to raise funds pretty easily from North America funds,” said Moritz, who is now chairman of Chromex Mining Plc and Goldplat Plc. “That’s the only thing anybody cares about: they’ve made money out of Phil and Andrew’s deals.”
–Editors: Amanda Jordan, Tony Barrett
The Cable: Zimbabwe ambassador heckles U.S. official; N. Korea on terror list?
www.washingtonpost.com/Thursday, May 27, 2010
Zimbabwe diplomat heckles U.S. official
When Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson took to the podium Tuesday night, he probably didn’t expect any hecklers.
Carson was speaking at the Africa Day celebration at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington, a meeting of embassy officials representing countries across Africa. Carson, a soft-spoken diplomat with a professorial air, spoke on the progress of Africa from a colonial dominion to a group of independent, if struggling, states. His remarks were going along as expected — until he started to talk critically about the downslide of human rights and good governance in Zimbabwe.
“You are talking like a good house slave!” came a shout from an audience member to Carson’s right. Your humble Cable guy nearly choked on his filet mignon as it became clear that the heckler, Zimbabwean Ambassador Machivenyika Mapuranga, was determined to keep interrupting the speech by shouting at Carson.
As the crowd hissed “Boo!” and other condemnations, Mapuranga wouldn’t let it go, going on with shouts such as: “We will never be an American colony. You know that!”
But Carson silenced both the ambassador and the cro
wd when he started speaking again. Changing his tone, he scolded Zimbabwe by pointing out that such outbursts would have evoked vicious punishment in the southern African country, which has been ruled by revolutionary leader Robert Mugabe with an iron fist since the 1980s.
“You can sit in the audience in darkness, but the light will find you and the truth will find you,” Carson told Mapuranga, as event staff quietly tried to encourage the ambassador to leave.
Turning to the crowd, Carson said: “It seems that Robert Mugabe has some friends in the room tonight. Unlike in Zimbabwe, they are allowed to speak without oppression, because this is a democracy.”
The event staff persuaded Mapuranga to leave, but he shouted all the way. His staff filed out behind him.
Ship’s sinking not likely to land N. Korea on terror list
Calls are rising for the Obama administration to take punitive measures against North Korea in response to the sinking of a South Korean ship, the Cheonan.
But the Obama team is clearly signaling that it does not intend to do what many lawmakers want: put North Korea back on the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism.
The calculation is that the listing, which administration officials see as having been overly politicized during the George W. Bush years, is more trouble than it’s worth.
“With respect to . . . the state sponsor of terrorism list, the United States will apply the law as the facts warrant,” Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in Beijing on Monday. “The legislation, as you know, sets out specific criteria for the secretary of state to base a determination. . . . If the evidence warrants, the Department of State will take action.”
That comment leaves Clinton wiggle room, but the original reasons for listing North Korea, when it blew up half the South Korean cabinet in Rangoon in 1983 and then bombed Korean Air Flight 858 in 1987, do not appear to be enough to put Pyongyang on the list today. Nor do other reasons listed in State Department reports as recently as 2007, namely that North Korea hasn’t answered for 12 Japanese abductees and harbors members of the Japanese Red Army.
The sinking of the Cheonan, a military vessel, falls outside the definition of a terrorist act.
Leading Asia experts lament that the process was reduced to a political negotiation at the very end of the Bush administration, when then-North Korea negotiator Christopher R. Hill agreed to delist Pyongyang in exchange for North Korea’s promises to keep alive the six-nation nuclear talks. Those promises have gone unfulfilled.
U.S. funding of Lebanese military is questioned
As Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri made the rounds in Washington this week, he faced deep questions about the future of the U.S. military aid to the Lebanese Armed Forces.
Many lawmakers and some at the Pentagon, including Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, are extremely skeptical that continuing to funnel large amounts of cash and supplies to the LAF is a good way to approach the Lebanon problem. They are angry about statements Hariri has made about Syria’s alleged transfer of long-range missiles to Hezbollah and question whether U.S. military aid to Lebanon is part of a coherent strategy.
Supporters of the funding, mostly at the State Department and the White House, argue that strengthening the Lebanese military is the best way to bolster Hariri’s government against the mounting influence of both Syria and Hezbollah, the radical Shiite militant group, inside Lebanon. The Lebanese military, this faction argues, is most representative of the country’s civic institutions; continuing the funding can help convince Hariri that working with the United States is a beneficial way forward.
CANADA :
Pharming initiates equity fundraising
www.pr-inside.com/2010-05-27
Leiden, The Netherlands, May 27, 2010. Biotech company Pharming Group NV
(“Pharming”) (NYSE Euronext: PHARM) announced on April 22, 2010 to investigate
the possibilities of attracting additional funding. Today, Pharming announces
that it has received a number of pre-commitments from
existing and new
shareholders to participate in an intended equity offering of up to €12 million,
by means of a private placement with institutional investors and qualifying
investors who subscribe for a minimum amount of €50,000.
The net proceeds of such offering will be used for corporate activities, most
notably for the ongoing regulatory approval processes and start of
commercialization of Rhucin for the treatment of Hereditary Angioedema, and
selective development of subsequent indications of rhC1 inhibitor.
Pharming expects to be able to make further announcements on the intended
offering shortly.
About Pharming Group NV
Pharming Group NV is developing innovative products for the treatment of genetic
disorders, ageing diseases, specialty products for surgical indications, and
nutritional products. Pharming’s lead product Rhucin® for acute attacks of
Hereditary Angioedema has passed clinical development stage and the Market
Authorization Application is under review with the European Medicines Agency.
Prodarsan® – a product under development by Pharming’s subsidiary DNage – is in
early stage clinical development for Cockayne Syndrome and lactoferrin for use
in food products. The advanced technologies of the Company include innovative
platforms for the production of protein therapeutics, technology and processes
for the purification and formulation of these products, as well as technology in
the field of DNA repair (via DNage). Recently the partial spin- out of DNage was
initiated. Additional information is available on the Pharming
website,http://www.pharming.com.
Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States,
Australia, Canada, Japan or South Africa or to US persons. This announcement is
not a prospectus and does not contain or constitute an offer for sale or the
solicitation of an offer to purchase securities in the United States, Australia,
Canada, Japan or South Africa or any other jurisdiction.
The securities mentioned herein have not been and will not be registered under
the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be
offered or sold in the United States absent registration under the Securities
Act or an available exemption from, or to or for the account of US persons (as
such term is defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act) or transaction
not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act.
In the event that an offering will be pursued, a prospectus will be made
generally available in connection with the admission of the offered shares in
the capital of the Company to trading on Euronext Amsterdam by NYSE Euronext,
copies of which will then be available at no cost through the website of
Euronext Amsterdam (Dutch residents only) and by sending a request in writing to
the Company.
This press release contains forward looking statements that involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual
results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different
from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these
forward looking statements.
Contact:
Sijmen de Vries, Pharming Group NV, T: +31 (0)71 52 47 431 or +31 (0)6
109 299 54
Ensco plc Announces Partial Tender Offer for Outstanding Shares in Scorpion Offshore Ltd.
May 27, 2010/www.marketwatch.com
LONDON & OSLO, May 27, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Ensco plc /quotes/comstock/13*!esv/quotes/nls/esv (ESV 39.42, +0.43, +1.10%) today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ensco (Bermuda) Limited, is making a partial tender offer to purchase in the market 19% of the outstanding shares in Scorpion Offshore Ltd. (OSE: SCORE) at a price in cash of NOK 39.50 per share.
The partial tender offer commences immediately and will expire on 28 May 2010 at 6:30 p.m. Oslo time. The shareholders first tendering their shares will have priority with respect to allocation of sales (first come-first served).
Following the successful closing of the partial tender offer, Ensco or one of its subsidiaries will take such additional steps permitted or required by law to acquire the remaining shares of Scorpion Offshore at the same cash price, subject to customary conditions. If the partial tender offer is not successful, Ensco does not intend to take further steps to acquire Scorpion Offshore under the proposal. Ensco (Bermuda) Limited is not obligated to purchase in the partial tender offer less than the number of shares that, when aggregated with shares subject to certain irrevocable preacceptances and conditional sales agreements, would equal more than 50% of the outstanding shares.
The Scorpion Offshore Board of Directors has decided to recommend Ensco’s proposal including the partial tender offer. Shareholders, including members of Scorpion Offshore’s senior management and the Board of Directors and their affiliates (including Kistefos and Polgas), representing in the aggregate 31.2% of the outstanding shares have undertaken to accept any subsequent voluntary or mandatory offer, if made by Ensco, and have granted Ensco an option to purchase their shares at the same cash price of NOK 39.50 per share.
If the partial tender offer is successful and Ensco chooses to exercise the options granted by members of Scorpion Offshore’s senior management and Board of Directors and their affiliates, then it will proceed to take such additional steps permitted or required by law to acquire the remaining shares of Scorpion Offshore at the same price per share of NOK 39.50.
Ensco reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to withdraw the partial tender offer at any time or to extend the offer period. Any such withdrawal or extension of the partial tender offer will be publicly announced no later than 28 May 2010 at 6.30 p.m. Oslo time.
Scorpion Offshore shareholders who want to accept the Offer need to contact Matthew Cyzer (telephone +44 20 7774 8333) or Matthew Stanton (telephone +44 20 7552 9865) at Goldman Sachs International or Gaute Ulltveit-Moe at Arctic Securities (telephone +47 21 01 32 00) by 6.30 p.m. Oslo time on 28 May 2010.
Any steps to acquire shares not yet owned by Ensco after the partial tender offer would be contingent upon successful completion of the partial tender offer, receipt of all necessary legal and regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other customary terms and conditions specified in the accepted proposal, which contains customary termination and termination fee provisions.
Chairman, President and CEO Dan Rabun stated, “Scorpion Offshore is a highly-respected offshore drilling contractor with an excellent reputation for safety and operational excellence. The proposed transaction fits our strategy of high-grading our fleet with newer rigs that will benefit from stronger utilization and higher day rates.”
Scorpion Offshore’s rig fleet is comprised of seven recently built LeTourneau Super 116 jackup rigs that can drill in up to 350′ of water to a total depth of 30,000′. All seven rigs were delivered from the shipyard within the past few years. As noted in Scorpion Offshore’s most recent Fleet Contrac
t Status Report, the seven rigs have contracts up to three years in duration, and the average day rate is approximately US$167,000, which amounts to a sizeable contract backlog.
Ensco plc is a public limited company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales. Headquartered in London, England, Ensco is a global offshore contract drilling company. Its American Depositary Shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “ESV.” Ensco is one of the leading providers of offshore contract drilling services to the international oil and gas industry. Ensco’s offshore rig fleet includes 39 jackup rigs, four ultra-deepwater semisubmersible rigs and one barge rig. Additionally, Ensco has four ultra-deepwater semisubmersible rigs under construction. Its operations are concentrated in the geographic regions of Asia Pacific (which includes Asia, the Middle East and Australia), Europe and Africa and North and South America. The Ensco group of companies employs approximately 3,600 people worldwide. The principal executive office of Ensco is located at 6 Chesterfield Gardens, London W1J 5BQ England. Ensco’s telephone number is +44 (0) 20 7659 4660, and its website is www.enscoplc.com. If the partial tender is successful and the other conditions satisfied, any voluntary or mandatory offer will be made through an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Ensco.
If the partial tender is successful and the other conditions are satisfied, formal documentation with complete details of additional steps permitted or required by law to acquire the shares not yet owned by Ensco would be distributed to all eligible shareholders of Scorpion Offshore following approval from the Oslo Bors (to the extent required) and as soon as regulatory and legal conditions allow.
The partial tender offer and any other offers made by Ensco and any acceptances thereof shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Norway. The Oslo district court shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute with Scorpion shareholders arising out of the partial tender offer or any other offers made by Ensco.
The partial tender offer is not being made and will not be made, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan or in any other jurisdiction in which the making of the partial tender offer would not be in compliance with the laws of such jurisdiction. Any and all materials related to the partial tender offer should not be sent or otherwise distributed in or into the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan, whether by use of the United States mail or by any means or instrumentality of United States, Canadian, Australian or Japanese commerce (including, but without limitation, the mail, facsimile transmission, telex, telephone and the Internet) or any facility of a United States, Canadian, Australian or Japanese national securities exchange, and the partial tender offer cannot be accepted by any such use, means or instrumentality, in or from within the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan. Accordingly, no materials related to the partial tender offer will be, and must not be, sent or otherwise distributed in or into or from the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan or, in their capacities as such, to custodians, trustees or nominees holding shares of Scorpion Offshore for United States, Canadian, Australian or Japanese persons, and persons receiving any such documents (including custodians, nominees and trustees) must not distribute or send them in, into or from the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan. Any purported acceptance of the partial tender offer resulting directly or indirectly from a violation of these restrictions will be invalid. No shares of Scorpion Offshore are being solicited from a resident of the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan and, if sent in response by a resident of the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan, will not be accepted.
Statements contained in this press release that state the Company’s or management’s intentions, plans, hopes, beliefs, expectations, anticipations, projections, confidence, schedules, or predictions of the future are forward-looking statements made pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Forward-looking statements include words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “could,” “may,” “might,” “should,” “will” and words and phrases of similar import.
The forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to statements about the contemplated acquisition of Scorpion Offshore in general, and the contemplated further steps to gain full control of Scorpion Offshore, including potential voluntary or mandatory tender offers, in particular.
Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Numerous factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, including failure to successfully complete the partial tender offer, material adverse changes in Scorpion Offshore’s business, governmental and court orders and other factors, including risks as described from time to time as Risk Factors in the Company’s SEC filings.
Copies of such SEC filings may be obtained at no charge by contacting our Investor Relations Department at 214-397-3045 or by referring to our website at www.enscoplc.com. All information in this press release is as of today. The Company undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement, to conform the statement to actual results, or reflect changes in the Company’s expectations.
SOURCE: Ensco plc
Ensco plc
Sean O’Neill, +44 (0)207 659 4660 (London)
Vice President
AUSTRALIA :
Hue and cry as Australia proposes mining tax
May 27, 2010/By Justin Brown/www.busrep.co.za
The proposed super tax that Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd plans to impose on that country’s mining industry has sparked a vociferous response that has put the local industry’s reaction to the mining empowerment charter and the mining royalty act in the shade.
Mining companies with mines both in South Africa and Australia that could be hit by the proposed tax include Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, BHP Billiton, Exxaro Resources, Gold Fields, Rio Tinto and Xstrata.
Rudd announced the proposed super- profits tax earlier this month. The mooted regime will result in a 40 percent tax on profits from resources projects after costs and capital recoupment.
In contrast, in July 2002, the draft of South Africa’s mining charter was not announced by the head of state or a government minister but was leaked to the media.
What shocked owners of South African mines was that the charter proposed that 51 percent of local assets be transferred to black people as compensation for the dispossession of apartheid.
Ultimately a compromise of 26 percent transfer of the sector to empowerment companies was agreed.
However, unhappiness about that compromise continues to lead the ANC Youth League, Cosatu and other players to call for nationalisation of the mining industry.
The move to increase taxes on Australian mining follows from the multi-year boom in the sector, especially as regards commodities like iron ore required for the expanding Chinese economy.
Like South Africa, Australia earns a key portion of its export revenue from mining. The tax is due to be implemented from July 2012 and is expected to raise tens of billions of rands in its first two years.
The tax has caused an outcry from Australian-based mining companies. Iron ore producer Fortescue Metals has already put two projects on hold. BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, which are planning an iron ore joint venture in Western Australia, have both come out strongly against the tax.
The extent of the rage is reflected by the fact that the Australian Stock Exchange took the unusual step of censoring the bourse statements of two companies.
Rudd, the leader of the centre-left Labor Party, has been called Australia’s version of left wing Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who has nationalised key sectors.
The sharp reaction from the Australian mining industry appears to indicate that it feels it has good public support.
In contrast, the local mining industry in July 2002 had little public support for its objections to the charter due to the benefits it derived from apartheid.
Rudd’s move has prompted fears from outsiders that South Africa, together with other major mining countries, could follow suit with similar windfall taxes. However, this appears unlikely as South Africa’s Mineral and Petroleum Resources Royalty Act came into effect only in March.
Added to this is that the National Treasury in August 2007 decided against imposing a windfall tax on Sasol, which was earning record profits as oil prices surged.
Rudd’s Labor Party has acknowledged that its popularity may be hit by the tax. It has won support from Australia’s trade unions and this week a group of Australian academics and economists backed the proposal, saying it would allow for a more equitable sharing of profits.
Maybe a lesson to be learned is that governments are prone to maximise their tax base in the name of voters especially when they see extraordinary profits going to a few.
EUROPE :
Wanted man, President al-Bashir preps for re-inauguration in Sudan
May 27, 2010/www.monstersandcritics.com
Nairobi/Khartoum – President Omar al-Bashir, wanted over allegations of war crimes in Darfur, is to be sworn in Thursday after winning Sudan’s first multiparty elections in 24 years.
The elections last month were marred by an opposition boycott, allegations of fraud, and logistical problems.
But the biggest controversy surrounding al-Bashir’s re- inauguration is over the attendance of foreign diplomats, whom the New York-based Human Rights Watch says should not be going.
The United Nations is sending the heads of its two peacekeeping missions in the country, despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against al-Bashir for allegedly overseeing mass murder and rape in the restive Darfur province.
He is the only sitting head of state wanted for war crimes.
In an open letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, HRW Executive Director Kenneth Roth said sending diplomats to al-Bashir’s inauguration would damage the UN’s credibility.
‘Attending the inauguration of an individual subject to an ICC warrant for serious atrocity crimes would send a terrible message to victims of such crimes in Darfur and around the world that their suffering is not reason enough to dispense with ceremonial support for their alleged abuser,’ he wrote on Monday.
The ceremony comes just one day after ICC judges told the UN Security Council that Sudan was protecting former minister of humanitarian affairs Ahmed Haroun and a militia leader, both wanted by the court, rather than hand them over.
The leaders of five African countries – Eritrea, Chad and Djibouti among them – are attending the ceremony before Sudan’s parliament.
It is also believed that low-level diplomats from European Union nations will attend the ceremony, something that HRW feels is at odds with the EU’s attempts to pressure Sudan into cooperating with the ICC.
‘The EU can’t have it both ways,’ said Elise Keppler, International Justice Program senior counsel at Human Rights Watch. ‘It should be consistent in its efforts to bring justice for crimes committed in Darfur.’
Once Al-Bashir, who won 68 per cent of the ballot, is officially sworn in, he will face the challenge of a referendum on independence for the autonomous Southern Sudan, set for January.
The mainly Muslim north and Christian and Animist south fought a decades-long civil war, which was officially ended by a 2005 peace deal that provided for the referendum.
Analyst say the south is certain to vote for independence. Many fear this could spark a return to bloodshed unless crucial issues, such as the north-south border – where much of Sudan’s oil wealth lies – are resolved.
CHINA :
China’s imports from Africa increase 167% in Q1
May 27, 2010/english.peopledaily.com.cn
In the first quarter of this year, Chinese imports from Africa amounted to 15.2 billion U.S. dollars, up 167 percent, and bilateral trade amounted to 27.8 billion U.S. dollars, up 76 percent, said Xie Yajing, Chinese Commercial Counselor in charge of Western Asian and African Affairs, on May 26.
While attending the press conference on the Third African Commodity Exhibition, Xie mentioned that from 2004 to 2008, China’s imports from Africa maintained an annual growth rate of more than 35 percent. In 2009, China-Africa trade fell to some extent, but with gradual global economic recovery, this year trade is growing once again.
Xie said the trade structure of China and Africa is highly complementary, and there is huge potential for trade development. China is willing to continue putting efforts and is looking forward to the participation of African countries to promote the healthy, balanced development of Sino-African trade.
In 2008, Chinese imports from Africa amounted to 56 billion U.S. dollars. In 2009, affected by the global financial crisis, this amount dropped to 43.3 billion U.S. dollars.
By People’s Daily Online
INDIA :
SAfrica transport strike may end after new deal
Thu May 27, 2010 /By Agnieszka Flak/Reuters
* Decision on revised offer expected on Thursday
Stocks | Global Markets
* Transport union says optimistic about a deal
JOHANNESBURG, May 27 (Reuters) – A South African transport strike that has crippled rail and port infrastructure two weeks before the World Cup is likely to come to an end on Thursday after a revised wage offer by logistics group Transnet.
The strike, now in its third week, has affected coal exports in one of the world’s biggest suppliers of the power station feedstock, and may impact the country’s target of exporting 65 million tonnes this year.[ID:nWEA3967]
The transport strike has also dented exports of metals, cars, fruit and wine to Europe and Asia, as well as imports of vehicle parts and fuel and cost the economy at least 7 billion rand ($889.2 million) in lost production and sales.
The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) said its members appeared to favour the new offer from Transnet, with a final vote expected later on Thursday.
“We are quite positive. When we speak to our members, everyone believes that we will have a deal,” Satawu President Ezrom Mabyana told Reuters.
Transnet said the new offer, which includes a once-off payment to all bargaining sector employees, was a “breakthrough” which could end the strike.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC) has pressed both sides for a quick solution, warning the dispute could hurt the World Cup, which starts on June 11 and runs for a month.
Satawu, which represents 39 percent of Transnet’s 54,000 workers, has called for sympathy stoppages at other transport firms countrywide, including at the national airline and the coal export terminal, which could start next Tuesday if the dispute with Transnet is not resolved. [ID:nLDE64O15L]
Recent strikes have drawn criticism from economists and the central bank who say unions are trying to hold the government and state enterprises to ransom by staging strikes close to the World Cup, to squeeze pay hikes above inflation of 5.1 percent.
Late on Tuesday, South Africa’s biggest union called off a strike at power utility Eskom due to start on Wednesday after the state-owned firm obtained a last-minute court order declaring the planned industrial action illegal. [ID:nLDE64O2FA]
BILLION LOSSES
With a backlog that will take at least a month to clear, the strike has taken its toll on the country’s mining, transport and manufacturing industries and hurt producers of perishable goods. Transnet said that with 65 percent of its workers back at work after the company’s bigger union accepted a previous wage offer, the logistics group had managed to move a backlog of crucial shipments, including World Cup cargo.
Shipping companies are asking clients to pay a surcharge to partly recover their losses. Fruit producers began using costly air freight to export their produce and car manufactures have opted to fly in some parts to be able to keep production going.
All automotive plants were limping along due to the backlog at ports, an industry body said. [ID:nLDE64P159]
Fuel imports through South Africa to landlocked Botswana have fallen by a half, but supplies within South Africa itself have been unaffected.
Analysts said the strike is likely to have long-lasting consequences on the country’s exports, with South Africa losing some contracts to other markets such as India or Brazil. Retrenchments may also be looming, they said.
Global miners with operations in South Africa, including Anglo American Plc (AAL.L), Xstrata (XTA.L) and the world’s top steelmaker ArcelorMittal (ISPA.AS)(MT.N) have declared force majeure on the supply of iron ore, ferrochrome and steel. — For a Q&A on South African strikes, see [ID:nLDE64O12G] (Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Nissan starts the booking process for Micra
Submitted by Devang Murthy /www.topnews.in/05/27/2010
It may have taken Nissan its own time to enter India but after the company had announced its aggressive plans in the Indian market a few months back, it is now rightly acting on the same. After starting with the commercial production of its hatchback Micra in the Indian market, the company has recently started the booking process for the product.
Keeping in mind that the new entrants in the Indian small car market like the Figo for Ford and Beat from Chevrolet have been received by the Indian consumers with open arms, it may be noted here that experts believe that Nissan will also be able to cash in on the positive sentiment in the market.
Nissan Motor Company Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga said that since the product has been designed keeping in mind the needs of the Indian consumer, the product has the potential to chart a new success story for the company in the Indian market.
Moreover, he further highlighted the fact that the product will be exported to destinations like Europe, the Middle East and Africa that is a part of its plan to export it over 100 countries.
China mine acquisitions won’t hit Indian iron exports: Essar
economictimes.indiatimes.com/27 May 2010
BEIJING: The acquisition of iron mines in Madagascar by Chinese companies is unlikely to affect Indian ore exports to China, as the bulk of Indian
exports consist of high quality ore, which is only available in Australia and Brazil, besides India.
India, along with Brazil and Australia, have the high-grade quality iron ore needed for manufacturing high-end steel products and China only has to access it from these three countries, Deep Banerjee, Vice-President of the Essar group in China, told.
He said he is not aware of any curbs being imposed by China on ore imports following the acquisition of some mines in Africa and does not see it as a threat to Indian ore exports, which form the bulk of India’s exports to China.
China has to import quality ore from Australia, Brazil or India and any curbs would not be in China’s own interest.
So India need not be concerned, Banerjee argued. There were, however, differences over the pricing system and China may would like to import it at a cheaper rate. Ultimately, however, Beijing has to pay the internationally agreed prices dictated by demand and supply, he said.
It would also take a long while for China to get supplies from its newly acquired mines in Africa. It could take even a decade, as they have to create infrastructure to bring it all the way here, he said.
In the long run, Indian iron exports may go down because Indian infrastructure development is gathering pace and more companies may choose to sell the ore back home, where it is needed, the Essar official said.
China imported 627 million tonnes ore last year, of which India supplied around 100 million tonnes.
BRASIL:
EN BREF, CE 27 mai 2010 … AGNEWS / OMAR, BXL,27/05/2010
