{jcomments on}OMAR, BXL, AGNEWS, le 13 juillet 2010.— Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete has launched his bid for re-election in October’s vote, which he is expected to win easily though with a smaller share of the vote than the 80.3 percent he won in 2005.

 

 

 

BURUNDI :

Burundi’s Military on High Alert Following Uganda Attack
Peter Clottey/www1.voanews.com/13 July 2010

An official with Burundi’s army said the military has been put on high alert to protect unarmed civilians, as well as the country’s sensitive installations, following Sunday night’s deadly twin blasts in Uganda’s capital, Kampala.

The explosions claimed at least 74 lives.

Colonel Gaspard Baratuza, spokesman for Burundi’s army, said the military is encouraging Burundians to report anything suspicious ahead of the upcoming parliamentary election scheduled for 23rd July.

“We have taken into account to secure key infrastructures and we have re-enforced security measures in order to deal with the attacks that (may come) towards Burundi. Now, we didn’t decrease the strength of the measures that we have taken. We have updated day-by-day according to the situation, he said.

The Somali-based hard line Islamic insurgent group Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for Sunday’s deadly attacks and has also warned Burundi of an imminent attack.

Recently, the insurgent group warned it will attack both Uganda and Burundi soldiers currently serving as peacekeepers forming the bulk of the African Union forces in Somalia (AMISOM) tasked with supporting Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government.

Last week, Sheikh Muqtar Robow Abu Mansuur, a senior Al-Shabab official, issued a threat of retaliation against the peoples of Uganda and Burundi after he accused both countries of committing atrocities against residents of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, a charge a senior official of Uganda’s army has denied.

Army spokesman Baratuza said Burundi’s military has taken every measure to counter the threat posed by agents of the Somali hard-line insurgent group.

“We think that we should do something which is positive in order to fight against these attacks, which are (being planned) for the country. We have also reinforced (a) measure of control of the movement of the population. This is the role of the police, but we have increased vigilance to see if there is no strange thing which can enter into our country,” Baratuza said.

He also encouraged Burundians to report any suspicious activities in order to thwart any planned attacks.

Described by Washington as a terrorist organization with strong links to al-Qaida, the hard-line Islamic insurgent group al-Shabab has refused to recognize the internationally-backed Somali administration.

The group has vowed to overthrow President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed’s government to implement the strictest form of the Sharia Law.

RWANDA

Rwanda arrests writer for comparing Kagame to Hitler
Tue Jul 13, 2010/By Hereward Holland/Reuters

KIGALI (Reuters) – Rwandan police have arrested an independent journalist for comparing President Paul Kagame with the Nazi German leader Adolf Hitler, police said, but an official denied her detention was linked to upcoming elections.

Saidati Mukakibibi, an unregistered journalist who works for independent newspaper Umurabyo, was arrested for defamation, inciting public disorder and ethnic
“divisionism”, police spokesman Eric Kayiranga said on Monday.

“She wrote articles through the paper comparing President Kagame to Hitler. Behind his picture they put insignia of the Nazis,” Kayiranga said. “The articles were
causing public disorder in terms of causing divisionism and spreading rumours that can cause insecurity.”

Kagame’s administration says free speech must be tempered by concerns about stoking ethnic enmity which led to the 1994 genocide in which 800,000 ethnic Hutu and moderate Tutsi were killed.

Police also detained Umurabyo’s editor last week. But authorities deny charges by rights groups that the government is clamping down on critical opposition and
journalists before presidential elections in August.

Rwanda’s Media High Council (MHC) said Mukakibibi’s arrest was not linked to the upcoming ballot, which Kagame is expected to win by a large majority.

“What worries us most is that she has written things that are criminal in nature. Should law enforcement organs keep quiet because of elections?” MHC executive
director Patrice Murama told Reuters.

Police arrested the paper’s editor and owner Agnes Uwimana on charges of genocide denial and stirring ethnic hatred. Uwimana has previously served a one year jail term for inciting ethnic divisions and defamation.

Two other critical newspapers were suspended in April on similar charges but international media rights groups described the move as a veiled attempt at
censorship.

In June, a Rwandan journalist was shot dead outside his home after writing a report linking Rwandan security services to the alleged assassination attempt on a
dissident general in self-imposed exile in South Africa.

The government strongly denies being behind either shooting.

UGANDA

Uganda: U.S. Condemns “Cowardly” Bomb Attacks
Stephen Kaufman/America.gov (Washington, DC) /allafrica.com/13 July 2010

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other Obama administration officials strongly condemned terror attacks in Uganda July 11 that targeted spectators who had gathered in Kampala at a restaurant and a rugby sports center to watch the final game of the World Cup, hosted by South Africa.

In a July 12 statement, Clinton offered condolences to family and friends of the victims and expressed support for Ugandan authorities.

“At this tragic moment, the United States stands with Uganda. We have a long- standing, close friendship with the people and government of Uganda and will work
with them to bring the perpetrators of this crime to justice,” Clinton said.

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said July 12 that the United States has no reason to doubt the Somali terror group al-Shabab’s claim of responsibility for the attacks.

“Unfortunately, we see this contrast between the vision and the hope that South Africa inspired … through this past weeks and how that contrasts with the
cowardice and destruction espoused by al-Shabab, which used the celebration of the World Cup in Kampala to commit cold-blooded murder of innocent civilians,” Crowley said.

According to press reports, the three bombs killed at least 74 people. Crowley said that one American was killed and five others were hospitalized.

In March 2008, the State Department designated al-Shabab, a Somalia-based extremist group with known ties to al-Qaida, as a foreign terrorist organization. Crowley said the group had threatened Uganda because of its participation in the African Union’s peacekeeping mission in Somalia.

Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, visited the rugby center and said through reporters July 12 in Kampala: “If you want to fight, why don’t you attack soldiers
or military installations instead of fighting innocent people watching football?”

President Obama and other U.S. officials have spoken with Museveni in the aftermath of the attacks. Crowley said the Ugandan leader remains committed to his country’s participation in the Somali peacekeeping mission. “If this was somehow aimed at punishing or weakening Uganda’s resolve, we think that this has backfired,” Crowley said.

Crowley said “the strongest retort to al-Shabab” is that “we are going to continue to support those who want to responsibly govern in Somalia, and we’ll resist those
who have a narrow, brutal … violent vision of the future in that country.”

The United States “stands shoulder to shoulder with Uganda in the fight against terrorism,” Crowley said, both in Somalia and in Uganda’s efforts against the Lord’s
Resistance Army (LRA).

He said President Obama has sent a three-person team from the FBI to Kampala to help authorities collect evidence, and they are being joined July 12 by two members of the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security.

“We have an additional FBI team standing by in the United States, ready to assist if needed. But we will continue to do everything in our power to assist Uganda in
bringing the perpetrators of these attacks to justice,” Crowley said.

The American who was killed was identified by his employer, the charity Invisible Children, as Nate Henn, a native of Raleigh, North Carolina. Invisible Children
works with Ugandan children who have been abducted by rebel groups like the LRA and forced to become child soldiers or into sex slavery.

The organization’s website paid tribute to Henn’s dedication to Uganda’s children in a July 11 blog post.

“From traveling the United States without pay advocating for the freedom of abducted child soldiers in Joseph Kony’s war, to raising thousands of dollars to put war- affected Ugandan students in school, Nate lived a life that demanded explanation,” Invisible Children said.

“He was not serving some idea of downtrodden Africa. He was serving Innocent, Tony, Boni, Ronald, Papito, Sunday and Lilian. These are some of our Ugandan students who fell in love with Nate’s wit, strength, character and steadfast friendship. They gave him the Acholi name Oteka, which means ‘The Strong One.’ Some of them were with him at the time of the attack,” the blog post says.

Uganda blast kills local volunteer
July 13, 2010/www.signonsandiego.com

By Debbi Baker, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

Susan Shroder, Union-Tribune Staff Writer

Hieu Tran Phan, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

A volunteer with a local child-advocacy group was killed in Sunday’s bomb attack in Uganda as he gathered with friends to watch the final World Cup soccer game.

Nate Henn was enjoying his dream trip: He had flown to Uganda to reunite with Innocent Opwonya, a young man who spent his childhood evading warlords bent on making him and other youngsters slave soldiers.

The pair first met at the downtown San Diego office of Invisible Children, a nonprofit group dedicated to ending the 24-year violent conflict in the Congo region
of central Africa. The organization had brought Opwonya to the United States so that he, Henn and others could spread the message during a trip across Texas.

Opwonya and Henn became buddies. During the past week, Henn got to see his friend’s hometown during what Henn said was his “best trip ever.”

The dream ended at a rugby club in the city of Kampala. Explosions there and in an Ethiopian restaurant killed 74 people — including Henn, believed to be the only
American victim of the attack. Shrapnel hit Henn, who died before reaching a hospital.

The terrorist group al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the bombings.

“Opwonya is traumatized after witnessing what happened to Nate,” Adam Finck, mission director for Invisible Children, said Monday. “This is the first death our group has experienced. It is such a shocking tragedy.”

Henn, 25, was on his first journey to Uganda since becoming a full-time volunteer with Invisible Children a year and a half ago. His family’s ties to Uganda reach
back further.

His aunt and uncle are missionaries there. His sister also volunteered with Invisible Children and introduced him to the cause. An inspired Henn was being
considered for a managerial job at a Home Depot in Delaware, but he quit and moved to San Diego.

Like other volunteers for Invisible Children, Henn raised money from family members, friends and other supporters to pay for outreach trips. He and four or five other travelers, called roadies, would spend about three months visiting schools, churches and community groups.

The roadies get around in a van. Finck said the setup helps forge indelible bonds among the 60 or so volunteers who crisscross the country each year.

“We remember Nate as big in stature and big in personality,” he said. “He was always so idealistic and passionate.”

Friends gave Henn the ethnic Ugandan name of “Oteka,” which means “the strong one.” The name is tattooed on his right arm, as shown in photos from Invisible Children and on Henn’s Facebook page taken during his road trips.

Henn completed three of those tours, teaming with Opwonya on the last one.

Angela Diange, 23, traveled with Henn in the spring. The two contac
ted each other frequently after their tour ended in May and last exchanged e-mails several days
ago.

They traveled on the East Coast, mostly in New England, holding talks at schools and community centers in six states. They usually had host families that let them stay overnight.

“I remember one time we got to a house where there were five beds, and Nate was the first person to call the floor even though he had worked the hardest,” Diange said. “He was so selfless. He has always been other-centered. … He was a strong, sensitive and strategic leader.”

His loved ones encountered another scare Monday when a family friend offered to fly Henn’s brother, Kyle, to the family home in North Carolina. There were problems upon landing at an airport and the pilot was killed, Diange said. Kyle Henn was injured.

Henn’s girlfriend and parents were mourning in seclusion.

“Nate’s legacy is the pursuit of peace and a future for the children of Uganda and the Congo,” Henn’s family wrote on natehenn.com, a website it created Monday. “We hope people will feel compelled to join his legacy.”

Invisible Children’s leaders plan to expand their work as a tribute to Henn, Finck said.

“That’s what Nate would have wanted,” he said. “He wanted to make his life meaningful.”

 

Ellicott City teen is among those injured in Uganda bombings
By Stephanie Lee:Washington Post Staff Writer /Tuesday, July 13, 2010

A teenage girl from Maryland was among those injured Sunday by a pair of terrorist bombings in Uganda that killed at least 74 people watching the World Cup final on television.

Emily Kerstetter, 16, of Ellicott City was at a restaurant in Kampala with her grandmother’s Pennsylvania church group when the bombings occurred. Kerstetter was flown to a hospital in Johannesburg, where she was in stable condition Monday, family friend Nicola Liskovec said.

Kerstetter, a rising junior at Mount de Sales Academy in Catonsville, Md., was on a missionary trip with her grandmother, whose arm was broken, and four others. The extent of Kerstetter’s injuries was unclear, but she had an injured leg, Liskovec said.

The teenager’s parents flew to South Africa on Monday night, Liskovec said.

Those in the church group had been in Uganda since June 15 and were planning to return to the United States a week ago but decided to extend their stay to work in a hospital, Liskovec said.

On Monday, an al-Qaeda-linked Somali militia claimed responsibility for the back-to -back bombings.

News of bombings stuns Ugandan monarch visiting Texas
www.dallasnews.com/ Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Leigh Munsil
The 18-year-old monarch of a kingdom within Uganda was in a Las Colinas hotel room when he was told of Sunday’s bombings in his country.

“I was very sad to hear about that,” said King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, commonly known as King Oyo. “It was very sad to hear that my countrymen had died.”

He had just returned to the hotel after throwing out the first pitch at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, as he visits Texas to strengthen the relationship between his
kingdom and the U.S., when he learned about the blasts that killed at least 74 people.

On Monday, his group began a tour of Tarrant County College’s Trinity River Campus with a moment of silence in remembrance of the lives lost in the attack.

The Kingdom of Tooro in southwestern Uganda makes up 3.2 percent of the country’s population, and King Oyo’s ceremonial position is limited to cultural duties.

Michael Kisembo, a Boston University professor traveling with the royal entourage, broke the news to King Oyo after receiving a phone call from Kampala.

“He was very, very shocked and very, very sad,” Kisembo said of King Oyo, adding that the news changed the tone of the visit.

“We are depressed, we are much depressed that it happened,” he said. “But we had to move on.”

Leigh Munsil

Uganda: Zuma Condemns Uganda Bombings
13 July 2010/BuaNews (Tshwane) /allafrica.com

Pretoria — President Jacob Zuma has joined international leaders in condemning the bomb blasts that ripped through Kampala, Uganda, killing over 70 people and leaving scores injured.

The bombs exploded at two bars packed with soccer fans watching the final moments of the FIFA World Cup on Sunday.

Zuma said the South African government condemned the attacks in the strongest possible terms, and called on those responsible to pursue their objectives in a
dignified and peaceful manner.

“The government believes that, whatever reasons prompted the perpetrators of these deeds, does not justify the killing of innocent people,” said Zuma.

No South African citizens are reported to have been affected by the incident, but the Department of International Relations and Cooperation is in contact with the
mission in Kampala and has been monitoring the situation and will communicate further developments in this regard.

It is still not clear who is responsible for the bombings, but media suspicion has fallen on the Somali al Shabaab rebel group.

United States (US) President Barack Obama also joined in condemning the blasts, labelling them deplorable and cowardly attacks, saying Washington was ready to help Uganda in hunting down those responsible.

He was joined by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council, who described the bombings as “vicious” in a statement issued by Ban’s spokesperson.

“The Secretary-General hopes that the perpetrators of these acts will be brought to justice and prosecuted,” it said.

The Council too underlined the need to bring the perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these “reprehensible acts of terrorism” to justice.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has announced a week of mourning in the country.

Uganda: Teacher Got With 400 Books
Chris Ocowun/The New Vision/allafrica.com/13 July 2010

Kampala — For the last 12 years, he allegedly stole the text-books supplied to the school where he served as a teacher and librarian. However, his luck ran out on
Saturday.

John Bosco Komakech of Koch-Amar Primary School in Koch-Goma sub-county in Nwoya district said he exploited the poor record keeping system at the school to pinch the books.

He was nabbed after the parents of the school reported that they had got some text books bearing the stamp of Koch-Amar Primary School being sold by Komakech’s wife at sh10,000 each.

“We searched his house at Kirombe in Gulu town and only got two copies of text books; but we decided to go to his home at Kweyo in Ongako sub-county where got 400 text books,” the LC3 chairman of Koch-Goma sub-county, John Bosco Okullu, narrated.

Of the recovered books, 330 copies had stamps of Koch-Amar Primary School, while others belonged to Sir Samuel Baker School, Negri College, Koch-Kalang and Koch-Goma Central Primary School.

Two office chairs and one table with Komakech’s name written under them were also recovered. Okullu said Komakech confessed after being arrested that he picked about seven text-books from the school, which he had at his home.

Komakech was handed over to Koch-Goma sub-county Police. “I started picking these text books one by one in 1998 and keeping them at my home for reference and for future use by my four children. I now beg for forgiveness from the authorities,” Komakech pleaded.

He teaches P.4 up to P6.Schools in the north receive donations from mainly the Government and NGOs. “There are many school text books which are with children in the villages and camps. I don’t want to mention names of teachers who have such books at their home, but there are many teachers keeping school text books with them,” he told the Police.

Komakech, 38, is a Grade-three teacher from Gulu Core PTC. He attended St. Joe Primary School before joining Koch-Goma SS for his O’ level education. He is married with four children.

The Police said investigations into the matter were still going on, adding that Komakech would most likely be charged with theft and burglary.

TANZANIA:

Little challenge as Tanzania leader seeks new term
Tue Jul 13, 2010/By Fumbuka Ng’wanakilala/Reuters

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) – Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete has launched his bid for re-election in October’s vote, which he is expected to win easily though with a smaller share of the vote than the 80.3 percent he won in 2005.

After the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party’s national congress confirmed his candidacy in the administrative capital Dodoma, Kikwete said he would focus on boosting agriculture, livestock development, infrastructure, health and education.

“We will put more effort on improving those sectors of the economy that can have a tangible impact on the betterment of people’s lives, such as agriculture,” he said
late on Sunday after being endorsed as the party’s candidate.

A prolonged drought and high oil prices had curbed his administration’s ability to deliver on some of his economic promises during his first term, Kikwete said.

Two opinion polls released earlier in the year show Kikwete, 59, would beat opposition candidates by a comfortable margin. A poll by the University of Dar es
Salaam showed in April that 77.2 per cent of Tanzanians would vote for his re- election.

Another by pollster Synovate said in June that Kikwete’s popularity had declined to 69 percent from 73 percent, reflecting some criticism on how he handled threats by labour unions for a nationwide workers’ strike over pay and conditions.

Civic United Front leader Ibrahim Lipumba, who ran unsuccessfully for president in the past three elections, will challenge Kikwete, but Tanzania’s opposition parties are divided and previous efforts to field a single candidate have failed.

“We all know that anybody proposed by CCM as a candidate will likely win,” political commentator Azaveli Lwaitama said.

“As we approach the elections, the ruling party is the only party with any semblance of being organised, while there is a complete lack of organisation in opposition
parties.”

The country’s economy expanded by 6 percent in 2009, beating a forecast for 5.0-5.5 percent growth, and should grow by 7 percent this year. Concern over corruption and weak governance have however prompted donors to give less development support than they had pledged for the past few years.

CONGO RDC :

KENYA :

Kenyan experts see Al Shabaab threat to regional security
English.news.cn/Xinhua/ 2010-07-13

By Steve Kimani

NAIROBI, July 12 (Xinhua) — Kenya is likely to take a direct military role in helping to reduce the threat posed by the Somalia militia Al Shabaab, blamed for
deadly twin bomb blasts in Kampala on Sunday that killed 74 people, analysts said on Monday. “With the looming referendum that the government is very keen to win and the just concluded formation of East Africa Common Market, Al Shabaab is seen more as diversionary development,” said Joshua Kivuva, a political science lecturer at the University of Nairobi. “But after the referendum, Kenya is likely to take a more direct responsibility as part of regional effort to reduce the threat of the group,” he told Xinhua in an interview.

Kenya has avoided taking a more direct role in helping Somalia Transitional Federal Government to quell the threat of Al Shabaab that controls most of Somalia and the capital Mogadishu.

But analysts said with the kid of attacks that could destabilize the economy and political situation, the country may be prompted to become more directly involved.

Kivuva said any action against Al Shabaab – in addition to current efforts under the African Union that maintains a skeleton peacekeeping force there – will be regional because of the ongoing processes of unifying the East Africa region.

Chris Abong’o, a lecture at the University of Nairobi’s Institute of Diplomacy and International Studies said since the East Africa Community is developing common laws on defence and security, that arrangement will come in handy in case of a joint regional effort to attack Al Shabaab. “The most ideal would have been Africa Standby Force’s EAC brigade but that is yet to be formed,” said Abong’o.

The African Standby Force is a home-grown peacekeeping force intended to ease Africa’s dependence on foreign forces for peacekeeping missions.

It is planned to have military and police components with five regional command posts. Its operational date was set as this year but that is yet to happen.

Abong’o said the attacks, if confirmed to have been staged by the militant group, will be “costly to the group” because it is a direct affront to neighbouring
sovereign states with their own armies. “I think the group may have underestimated the air fire power possessed by countries like Kenya, which can neutralize their
positions in very less time,” he said.

He said more attacks on Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia – all countries that have been threatened in the past by the militant group – may result in immediate military
response.
Editor: Bi Mingxin

Yes, We Kenya!
By Ken Blackwell / dailycaller.com/ 07/13/2010

President Obama made much of the Executive Order he signed last March. It was supposed to stop federal funding of abortion. It was given as a fig leaf to formerly
pro-life Democrats who had voted for ObamaCare and enabled it to pass, narrowly, in the House of Representatives.

Most pro-life Americans knew the Obama order was a charade. We have had this administration pushing vigorously for abortion-on-demand from the first day they
took office. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had hardly taken her oath of office before she told a House Foreign Affairs committee hearing early in 2009 that “sexual and reproductive rights and health” were a major goal of the Obama administration. She assured House members she would do all in her power to help overturn foreign countries’ pro-life laws. The Obama administration may not want to protect democracy demonstrators in the streets of Tehran. That would be, they say, “meddling.” But they are more than willing to trample the sovereignty of other nations to advance the Planned Parenthood agenda.

Take Kenya, for example. Kenya suffered terrorist attacks back in 1998 because of their close ties to the U.S. You would think that this East African ally would get a special measure of respect, especially because Barack Obama’s late father, and many of his relatives, hail from Kenya. Think again.

President Obama dispatched his veep, Joe Biden, to Kenya last month. Vice President Biden went there specifically to lobby for a new constitution for Kenya. Art. 26 of that new constitution would repeal the country’s long-standing pro-life law on abortion. He spurned the efforts of American-based pro-life groups who are working to prevent this Roe v. Wade of Kenya. Their selfless activities, he said, are “one of the drawbacks of democracy.”

So, having groups use their free speech rights to dissent and to appeal to fellow Christians is a “drawback of democracy?” James Madison, call your office. To make matters worse, Joe Biden told Kenyans that by passing the pro-abortion constitution, they would “allow money to flow” to Kenya from other countries.

No, Joe, responsible dissent is one of the strengths of democracy; bribery is one of its drawbacks.

Congressman Chris Smith (R-N.J.) is protesting this intervention—this pro-abortion meddling—by Joe Biden in the affairs of a self-governing African nation. He notes that Biden’s heavy-handed intervention may well be against federal law. Since 2006, the law has said “no foreign assistance funds may be used to lobby for or against abortion.” This sounds like another case of Joe Biden over the line.

Joe Biden’s long-term abortion advocacy is well-known. Years ago, he was hailed at an Amtrak train station by then-Sen. Warren Rudman (R-N.H.) The pro-abortion Rudman and Biden ran to meet one another. They embraced on the train platform, laughing and almost weeping for joy. Two middle-aged men jumping up and down like schoolboys on a vacation; that must have been quite a sight.

This scene was all because Rudman’s secret assurances to Biden, then the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, about Justice David Souter had proven correct: Souter would be a solid vote for abortion-on-demand. When Souter began twenty years of liberal judicial activism on the Supreme Court, Biden and Rudman were relieved and rejoiced.

Grove City College’s Paul Kengor, a careful researcher, documented all of this from the memoirs of Warren Rudman. (You know Professor Kengor is a great scholar. Who else would read Warren Rudman’s memoirs?)

Souter recently left the Court. He left town without renown. What fate awaits Joe Biden?

That’s not nearly as important as the fate of millions of Kenyans yet unborn.

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow at the Family Research Council and a visiting professor at the Liberty University School of Law.

 

Kenyan minister bounces back
BY CORRESPONDENT/www.capitalfm.co.ke/Jul 13

MATUGA, Kenya, Jul 13 – Chirau Ali Mwakwere of the Party of National Unity has successfully recaptured the Matuga parliamentary seat after winning the by-election with a sizeable lead.

The tally of votes, which concluded at about 4.30am on Tuesday at the Government Training Institute in Matuga, showed that Mr Mwakwere had garnered 16,350 votes.

His closest challenger Hassan Mwanyoha of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) had 10,887 votes. The United Democratic Movement’s Kassim Tandaza garnered 5,165 votes, while Labour Party of Kenya candidate Isaac Mutula had 134 votes.

Mr Mwanyoha, accompanied by the party’s Secretary General Anyang’ Nyong’o and Lands Minister James Orengo, conceded defeat and accepted the final verdict of Matuga voters.

Mr Orengo said ODM had conceded defeat and wished Mr Mwakwere the best of luck as he goes back to parliament to finish some of the projects he had initiated before he lost his seat following a successful petition by a voter, Ayub Mwakesi.

Meanwhile, it was party time for the former Transport Minister, who patiently waited for the results to be announced by the Returning Officer Helen Sidi, amid jubilation from his supporters who flanked him.

People danced and the now famous vuvuzelas greeted the announcement of the results, which were also relayed live through the big screen mounted outside the Matuga’s GTI tallying centre.

MPs Philip Kaloki and Johnstone Muthama and PNU party activist Stanley Livondo were also present to congratulate the re-instated legislator.

In a brief acceptance speech, Mr Mwakwere thanked Matuga residents for turning up in big numbers to vote for him, saying the results reflected voter confidence in his leadership.

“Campaigns have ended and its time to get down to business and I call on Matuga residents to be with me to bring more developments,” he said.

At the same time, ODM recaptured the Mwembe Tayari and Changamwe civic seats in Mombasa.

Kibwana Abubakar Rashid who was fronted by Abdulswamad Nassir won the Mwembe Tayari seat, while Peter Oduor backed by the area MP Ramadhan Kajembe won the Changamwe seat.

The Mwembe Tayari seat fell vacant after the resignation of Abdallah Ibrahim, who said he could not work with corrupt officials at the Mombasa Municipal Council,
while the Changamwe seat fell vacant following the death of former councillor Kelvin Wesonga last year.

ANGOLA :

Eni, Petrobras Make Major Angolan Discoveries
www.benzinga.com/ 07/13/10

by Gordon Wilcox
Eni SpA (NYSE: E), Italy’s largest oil company, and Petrobras (NYSE: PBR), Brazil’s state-run oil company, both announced major discoveries along the coast of Angola today.

Eni said that the discovery holds ”material volumes of oil.” Eni’s Cabaca South East-1 well is located 470 meters below sea level, according to the Wall Street
Journal.

Partners on the Eni project include France’s Total (NYSE: TOT), Norway’s Statoil (NYSE: STO) and Petrobras.

Petrobras, Latin America’s biggest company by market value, said it discovered an oilfield along the Angolan coast that may have up to 500 million barrels of crude.

Angola is OPEC’s eighth-largest producer. The country sends the bulk of its oil exports to China.

 

Angola: Forum Analyses Business, Investment in CPLP
13 July 2010/AngolaPress/allafrica.com

Luanda — A forum focused on the analysis of business opportunity and investment within the Portuguese-speaking Countries Community (CPLP) will be held on July 22, in Luanda, Angop learnt from a official source.

Speaking to Angop on Monday, José Rodrigues Alentejo, chief of department for support to Private sector of the Angolan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the event will take place in the International Fair of Luanda (FIL) and will be attended by representatives of all CPLP member countries.

The forum is jointly organized by the Angolan Chamber of Trade and Industry (CCIA), Angolan Industrial Association (AIA) and the National Agency for Private Investment (ANIP).

The Portuguese-speaking Countries Community (CPLP) was created on July 17 of 1996, is integrated by Angola, Portugal, Mozambique, Brazil, Sao Tome and Principe, Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde and East Timor.

Kimberly Clark, Petrobras, Celulose Irani: Latin America Equity Preview
www.bloomberg.com/By Eduardo Thomson/Jul 13, 2010

The following companies may have unusual price changes in Latin American trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses and share prices reflect the previous close.

The MSCI Latin America Index fell 0.8 percent to 3,837.45. In Brazil, preferred shares usually are the most-traded class of stock.

Brazil

Celulose Irani SA (RANI4 BS): The Brazilian pulp and paper producer plans to issue as much as 40 million reais in local bonds, the company said in a press release. Celulose Irani fell 9 percent to 30.95 reais when it last traded on June 8.

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4 BS): The state-controlled oil company and its partners found an estimated 500 million barrels of high-quality oil 100 kilometers off the coast of Angola at the 15/06 block, according to a regulatory filing. Petrobras fell 1.3 percent to 27.23 reais.

Sul America SA (SULA11 BS): The Brazilian insurance company approved a stock split of three shares for each common share, the company said in a regulatory filing. Sul America rose 1.1 percent to 45.50 reais.

Mexico

Kimberly-Clark de Mexico SAB de CV (KIMBERA MM): The Mexican consumer products company was rated new “hold” at Banif-IXE by analyst Ana Pedroni Quintanar. The company’s stock rose 2.2 percent to 74.16 pesos.
 

Total: Angola: a Sixth Major Oil Discovery on Deep Offshore Block 15/06
July 13, 2010 /BUSINESS WIRE

PARIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Total (Paris:FP) (LSE:TTA) (NYSE:TOT) announces that its subsidiary, TEPA (Block 15/06), Limited, and its partners have made a new oil discovery in Block 15/06 with the well Cabaça SE-1, in the Angolan deep-offshore.

The well, located in 470 metres of water depth and 100 kilometres from the Angolan shore line, encountered significant gross thickness oil bearing reservoirs in the
Miocene series. Volumes estimates suggest that Cabaça SE could hold substantial volumes of oil in place, with a potential yet to be confirmed.

An appraisal well is planned to be drilled in the third quarter 2010 with the objective of delineating and testing this oil accumulation.

Cabaça SE-1 is the seventh exploration well drilled in Block 15/06 since the block award at the end of 2006. The eighth well of the exploration drilling campaign
(Mpungi-1) is currently being drilled, and it will complete the work commitment of the first exploration period one and a half year in advance of the contractual
period. The exploration effort of the Block 15/06 partnership has reached a remarkable rate of success with six commercial discoveries out of the seven
prospects drilled to date. TEPA (Block 15/06), Limited, holds a 15% interest in the Block 15/06, operated by Eni.

Total Exploration & Production in Angola

Total is present in Angola since 1953. In Angola, Total operated 491,000 barrels oil equivalent per day (boe/d) in 2009, and its SEC* equity production amounted
approximately 191,000 boe/d. This production comes essentially from Blocks 17, 0 and 14.

Deep offshore Block 17, operated by Total with a 40% interest, is Total’s principal asset in Angola. It is composed of four major zones: Girassol-Rosa and Dalia, which are currently producing; Pazflor, a project under development for a production start in 2011; and CLOV (based on the Cravo, Lirio, Orquidea and Violeta discoveries), a project for which the final investment decision should be taken soon.

Total is also the operator with a 30% stake in the ultra deep offshore Block 32, on which 12 discoveries were made, confirming the oil potential of the block. Pre-
development studies for a first production zone in the central south eastern portion of the block are underway.

In addition, the Angola LNG project for the construction of a liquefaction plant near Soyo is designed to bring the country’s natural gas reserves to market. This
project, on which Total holds a 13.6% stake, will be supplied, in a first step, by the associated gas from the fields on Blocks 0, 14, 15, 17 and 18. The plant is
under construction with production expected to begin in 2012.

In Angola, as in all countries where Total operates, the Group is committed to developing the local oil industry while recruiting and providing professional
training to local workers. Through its ambitious “Angolanisation” and technology transfer plans, Total has strengthened the local economy and made of Hygiene, Safety and Environment awareness a top priority. Total E&P Angola has developed a transparent and solid corporate social responsibility policy around three main axes: health, education (opening of four high schools in the provinces in 2009) and economic community development.

*SEC: Security Exchange Commission of the United States

*******

Total is one of the world’s major oil and gas groups, with activities in more than 130 countries. Its 96,000 employees put their expertise to work in every part of the
industry – exploration and production of oil and natural gas, refining and marketing, gas & power and trading. Total is working to keep the world supplied with
energy, both today and tomorrow. The Group is also a first rank player in chemicals.

SOUTH AFRICA:

South African Equities: Anglo American, BHP Billiton, Sasol
July 13, 2010/Bloomberg

July 13 (Bloomberg) — South Africa’s FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index fell for a second day, losing 71.42, or 0.3 percent, to 27,120.89 at 9:59 a.m. in Johannesburg.

The following are among the most active stocks in the South African market today.

BHP Billiton Ltd. (BIL SJ), the world’s largest mining company, retreated 2.75 rand, or 1.3 percent, to 207.70 rand, extending yesterday’s 1.3 percent drop. Anglo American Plc (AGL SJ) declined 2.93 rand, or 1.1 percent, to 272.45 rand. Copper dropped for a second day on concern that China’s determination to rein in real- estate speculation will reduce demand for the metal used in pipes and wires.

Sasol Ltd. (SOL SJ), the world’s biggest maker of motor fuel from coal, retreated for a second day, sliding 2.15 rand, or 0.8 percent, to 277.85 rand. Crude oil fell
for a second day in New York after Chinese equities declined and as a stronger dollar reduced the investment appeal of commodities.

Separately, South Africa’s Competition Tribunal will tomorrow either confirm or dismiss a settlement agreement reached between Sasol Ltd. and the Competition
Commission, the Pretoria-based regulator said in an e-mailed statement today.

–Editors: Ana Monteiro, Shanthy Nambiar.

 

Uganda makes arrests after deadly bomb attacks
Tue Jul 13, 2010/Reuters

(Reuters) – Ugandan police have found an unexploded suicide belt and made several arrests after 74 soccer fans were killed by two bomb attacks while they were
watching the World Cup final on television.

Somali Islamists linked to al Qaeda said on Monday they carried out the attacks. Uganda’s opposition called on Tuesday for the country’s peacekeepers to be withdrawn from Somalia.

A government spokesman said the unexploded suicide belt was found at a third site in the capital Kampala, a day after the twin explosions ripped through two bars heaving with soccer fans late on Sunday.

“Arrests were made late yesterday after an unexploded suicide bomber’s belt was found in the Makindye area,” government spokesman Fred Opolot said.

He did not say how many people were arrested, or where they were from. Such coordinated attacks have been a hallmark of al Qaeda and groups linked to Osama bin Laden’s militant network.

The al Shabaab militants have threatened more attacks unless Uganda and Burundi withdrew their peacekeepers from the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia (AMISOM).

Uganda’s opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party urged President Yoweri Museveni to pull his soldiers out and said it planned to withdraw if it won
elections scheduled for early 2011.

“There is no peace to keep in Somalia and Uganda has no strategic interest there. We’re just sacrificing our children for nothing,” FDC spokesman Wafula Oguttu told Reuters.

“Our objective is to withdraw our troops immediately after coming to power.”

AMISOM said the explosions would not affect its mission in Somalia, where it shields the presidential palace from insurgent attacks and guards Mogadishu’s airport and port.

FBI INVESTIGATES

The coordinated blasts were the first time al Shabaab has taken its bloody push for power onto the international stage. Analysts say its threats should be taken
seriously, given the clear evidence the group has the intent and will to strike abroad.

Foreign direct investment into east Africa’s third largest economy has surged, driven by oil exploration along the western border with Democratic Republic of
Congo.

Analysts say a sustained bombing campaign would damage Uganda’s investment climate, but a one-off attack was unlikely deter major companies such as British hydrocarbons explorer Tullow Oil from investing.

An American was among the dead, and the United States has offered assistance with its investigations.

The State Department said it had three FBI agents on the ground collecting evidence. An additional FBI team is on standby to deploy to the east African nation, it said.

Opolot said there was no suggestion an African Union summit to be hosted by Uganda this month would be canceled following the bombings.

AFRICA / AU :

Africa must fight Islamic terror
July 13, 2010/ www.boston.com

THE AL QAEDA-LINKED Somali group that took credit for bombings that killed at least 74 people watching the World Cup final Sunday in Uganda was delivering two different messages. The announced message was that Al Qaeda’s Somali associates, the Al Shabab militia, wanted to punish Uganda for sending African Union peacekeepers to Somalia. But another, unintended message was that Al Qaeda and its collaborators are proud of killing not only American and European civilians, but anyone identified with an enemy or condemned for violating their benighted ideas of religious piety.

It isn’t exactly a revelation that Al Qaeda is targeting the very people it purports to be defending. But sometimes the West, in its eagerness to connect atrocities
committed in the name of Islamic fundamentalism to anti-Western attitudes, obscures this fact.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, there has been an understandable tendency to define Al Qaeda and its ilk primarily as enemies of the American way of life. They are that, but
they are also waging war against everyone — and particularly the great mass of moderate Muslims — who stands in their way of imposing a Taliban-style religious
dictatorship that would outlaw music, dancing, and sporting events such as the World Cup.

The lesson from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan is that America is most resented where it most takes over the fight against Al Qaeda. And while the United States can offer technical assistance as appropriate, Al Qaeda is most effectively diminished when local forces make that fight their own.

The United States must not make resistance to Al Qaeda any more of an American enterprise than it already is. Low-key US aid to Somali forces fighting against Al
Qaeda’s allies should stay that way. That conflict is, and should remain, Somalia’s struggle. To the extent it involves other players, they should be Somalia’s African
neighbors.

Safer sex by young in Africa drives HIV rates down
Tue Jul 13, 2010/Reuters

By Kate Kelland

LONDON (Reuters) – Young people in Africa are leading a “revolution” in HIV prevention and driving down rates of the disease by having safer sex and fewer
sexual partners, the United Nations AIDS programme said on Tuesday.

The prevalence of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS is falling among young people in 16 of the 25 countries most affected by the disease, a study by UNAIDS found, with many of them on track to hit a 25 percent reduction target in HIV/AIDS rates in 15- to 24-year-olds by the end of the year.

“Young people have shown that they can be agents of change in the prevention revolution,” the report said.

It called on governments worldwide to learn from this progress and provide comprehensive programmes for sexual health education, access to HIV testing and wide
availability of prevention methods such as condoms.

An estimated 5 million young people around the world aged between 15 and 24 are living with HIV, the often fatal and incurable virus that causes AIDS. Nearly 80
percent of those people live in sub-Saharan Africa. HIV is spread during sex, in blood and breast milk, and by contaminated needles.

According to UNAIDS, an estimated 900,000 new infections occurred among young people in 2008 and the vast majority of those cases were in young women in Africa.

In a study published ahead a global AIDS conference due to be held in Vienna next week, UNAIDS found that in 16 of the 25 worst affected countries, rates of HIV had been falling among young people, with some of the most dramatic declines seen in Kenya, where there was a 60 percent change between 2000 and 2005.

Botswana, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia and Zimbabwe have all achieved a goal set agreed in 2001 to reduce HIV prevalence in 15 to 24-year-olds by 25 percent by 2010, it said. Burundi, Lesotho, Rwanda, Swaziland, the Bahamas and Haiti were all “likely to achieve” it.

The study found the main drivers of the reductions were changes in sexual behaviour. Young people in 13 of the 25 countries were waiting longer before they become sexually active. In more than half of the 25 countries, young people were choosing to have fewer sexual partners.

Condom use was also on the increase, the study found, with 10 countries reporting more use of condoms among women and 13 reporting increased condom use among men. Cameroon, Tanzania and Uganda reported increases in condom use by both sexes.

UNAIDS said in November that an estimated 33.4 million people worldwide were currently infected with the AIDS virus.

 

AngloGold, Mvelaphanda, Discovery: South Africa Stock Preview
July 13/ (Bloomberg)

July 13/ (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 fell for the first time in five days, losing 80, or 0.3 percent, to 27,192.31 in Johannesburg.

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (ANG SJ): Gold gained, rebounding from the biggest decline in a week, as prices of less than $1,200 an ounce boosted buying interest. AngloGold, Africa’s largest gold producer, rose 1.15 rand, or 0.4 percent, to 313.33 rand.

BHP Billiton Ltd. (BIL SJ): Copper dropped for a second day on concern that China’s determination to rein in real-estate speculation will reduce demand for the metal used in pipes and wires. BHP, the world’s largest mining company, fell 2.82 rand, or 1.3 percent, to 210.45 rand.

Brimstone Investment Corp. (BRT SJ): The investment holding company said it sold shares of Life Healthcare Group Holdings Ltd. for 112.13 million rand ($14.69 million), according to a stock exchange filing. Brimstone’s stock was unchanged at 11.55 rand. Mvelaphanda Group Ltd. (MVG SJ) said it sold shares of Life Healthcare for 133.9 million rand. Mvelaphanda’s stock increased 5 cents, or 0.6 percent, to 8.35 rand.

Discovery Holdings Ltd. (DSY SJ): The owner of Africa’s largest medical insurance administrator is examining opportunities in the U.S. for its Vitality product, Business Day reported, citing Chief Executive Officer Adrian Gore. Discovery advanced 25 cents, or 0.7 percent, to 35.10 rand.

Village Main Reef Gold Mining Ltd. (VIL SJ): The resources investment company is seeking to buy an asset, most likely a gold mine, Business Day reported, citing Chief Executive Officer Bernard Swanepoel. Village Main Reef was unchanged at 2.20 rand.

Shares or American depositary receipts of the following South African companies closed as follows:

Anglo American Plc (AAUKY US) fell 2.6 percent to $17.90. AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU US) increased 0.2 percent to $41.05. BHP Billiton Plc (BBL US) lost 2.3 percent to $55.11. DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY US) declined 2.3 percent to $4.24. Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI US) was unchanged at $13.12. Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY US) declined 1.3 percent to $10.44. Impala Platinum Holdings (IMPUY US) climbed 0.2 percent to $24.55. Sappi Ltd. (SPP US) dropped 2.1 percent to $4.19. Sasol Ltd. (SSL US) retreated 1.8 percent to $36.94.

–Editors: John Kohut, Gavin Serkin.

 

Blasts horror
Tuesday, July 13, 2010/www.gulf-daily-news.com

LONDON: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and world leaders yesterday condemned the “cowardly” blasts that killed 74 people and wounded more than 60 in Uganda as they watched the broadcast of the World Cup final, hailed as a triumphant moment for Africa.

Ban hoped the perpetrators would be brought to justice.

Somalia’s Shebab hardline Islamist group has claimed responsibility for the attacks on two restaurants in capital Kampala.

The Al-Qaeda-inspired movement warned in an audio message earlier this month that Uganda would face retaliation for supporting the Western-backed Somali transitional government.

Uganda was the first country to deploy troops in early 2007 for the African Union (AU) mission to protect the transitional government from the Shebab and their
allies. The Shebab had also called for a jihad against countries contributing to the AU force. Uganda is set to host an AU summit from Monday to July 27.

“These were cowardly attacks during an event that was widely seen as a celebration of African unity,” British Foreign Secretary William Hague said. “The UK will stand with Uganda in fighting such brutal acts of violence and terror.”

US President Barack Obama pledged assistance to Uganda following the violence in which one American was among the victims, National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said.

“We have a long-standing, close friendship with the people and government of Uganda and will work with them to bring the perpetrators of this crime to justice,”
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.

“We condemn this act that was directed at an African country that is active in promoting the goals of the African Union,” AU peace and security commissioner
Ramtane Lamamra said, adding the attacks showed that terrorism had no boundaries.

Somalia’s President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed denounced the blasts as “evil”.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said: “The authors of these barbaric acts must be identified, pursued and brought to justice.

“France stands beside the Ugandan people and supports the country in its fight against terrorism.”

Ethiopia also pointed to the Somali Islamists, alleging that the blasts had “the bearings of the usual suspects, the extremists such as the Shebab”.

An Ethiopian restaurant and sports bar was the target of one of the attacks.

“You can never stop crime, attacks, even when we think that during the World Cup the world should have stopped and should have been touched only by the emotions of the World Cup,” Sepp Blatter, head of FIFA football governing body told reporters in Johannesburg.

AU chief in high-level talks with el Bashir before arrest order
Pana /13/07/2010

News – Africa news .Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The second arrest warrant against Sudanese President Omer el Bashir on Monday followed a series of high-profile
meetings in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, between the Sudanese president and top officials of the AU Commission, PANA reported Monday.

The African Union Commission (AUC) President Jean Ping held talks with the Sudanese president on 4 July ahead of an emergency summit of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

The details of the meeting between el Bashir and Ping were still scanty, with both sides saying they “discussed issues of mutual concern” between the two sides.

According to the state-run Sudan News Agency (SUNA), el Bashir also used the meeting to brief the AU on the progress of the peace talks between his government and rebel movements in Darfur.

Ping described the meetings as “fruitful”.

Ping has been leading the African Union’s efforts to oppose the issuance of an arrest warrant against the Sudanese President.

The African leaders have taken a strong position that an arrest warrant against the Sudanese leader was likely to injure the peace efforts currently underway to end the conflict in Darfur.

This year, Darfur has witnessed one of the deadliest periods since the start of the conflict seven years ago.

Meanwhile, the AU Commission Chairperson held talks with the President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Sang-Hyun Song, the court’s top judge.

The two met in Addis Ababa on 9 July, days before the issuance of a second arrest warrant against the Sudanese leader, who has now been indicted for genocide.

The second arrest warrant issued Monday confirmed the Sudanese leader was involved in the attacks against three Darfur tribes.

“During the meeting, Ping and Song agreed that the AU and the ICC share the common value of ending impunity and bringing about lasting peace,” the court said in a statement Monday, hours after a second arrest warrant was issued.

The two agreed to work to facilitate the establishment of the Liaison Office that would encourage dialogue and exchange of information and would thus be for the
mutual benefit of the two institutions.

Song also conducted a meeting with Ambassadors of the African States Parties to the Rome Statute and another with European Heads of Missions.

In both meetings, he updated participants on judicial developments at the ICC, briefed them on the outcome of the Kampala Review Conference and discussed
developments regarding the establishment of the ICC Liaison Office in Addis Ababa.

Addis Ababa

UN /ONU :

Uganda Attack Marks Spread of Somali War to Region
July 13, 2010/Bloomberg

July 13 (Bloomberg) — The bombings in Uganda that left 74 people dead signaled that Somali Islamists are carrying their three-year fight for power to the rest of East Africa, said analysts including Scott Stewart at Stratfor.

Al-Shabaab, which the U.S. has designated as a terrorist organization with links to al-Qaeda, yesterday claimed responsibility for the July 11 attacks at a restaurant
and a sports club in Uganda’s capital, Kampala. The blasts occurred while patrons were watching the final of the soccer World Cup.

Al-Shabaab said it targeted Uganda because of that nation’s deployment of troops to serve an African Union-led peacekeeping force in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital. It threatened a similar attack on Burundi unless its troops are withdrawn. Uganda has 2,700 soldiers in Somalia and Burundi has 2,550, according to the website of the Francophone Research Network on Peace Operations.

“It looks like al-Shabaab has taken the first step toward becoming transnational,” said Scott Stewart, vice president of tactical intelligence at Stratfor, the Austin,
Texas-based intelligence group. “They’ve clearly shown they have an intent to strike outside of Somalia. Now the big question is to try and find out how far the reach is.”

Islamist militias including al-Shabaab and Hisb-ul-Islam have been battling Somalia’s government since 2007 and now control most of southern and central
Somalia, as well as parts of Mogadishu. Both groups have said they want to impose Islamic Shariah law on the Horn of Africa nation, which hasn’t had a functioning
central administration since the ouster of former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

Arrests

Ugandan police late yesterday arrested people suspected of carrying out the attacks, Inspector-General Kale Kayihura told reporters today. Ball bearings found in an unexploded suicide vest in a nightclub in Kampala were similar to fragments found at the bomb sites, he said.

Last week, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, a Djibouti-based body that groups six East African countries, called for the peacekeeping mission in
Somalia to deploy an additional 2,000 soldiers to help the government battle “extremist groups.”

IGAD, as the group is known, includes Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda.

The organization “calls upon the international community and its member states to strengthen the economic and military support” for Somalia’s government to fight
terrorism,” the organization said in a statement handed to reporters in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, today.

‘Sends a Message’

The attack “sends a message to those countries who are thinking of sending troops to Somalia: ‘This is the fate that awaits you,’” Rashid Abdi, a Nairobi-based analyst at the International Crisis Group, said in a phone interview.

The U.S. ended its two-year “Operation Restore Hope” mission in Somalia, which involved as many as 33,000 U.S. and United Nations forces, after the downing of two American helicopters in Mogadishu in October 1994, an incident made famous by Mark Bowden’s book “Black Hawk Down.”

U.S. citizen Nate Henn, who worked as a volunteer with the charity Invisible Children, was among those killed in the Kampala bombings, according to the website
of the group, which aims to end the recruitment of child soldiers in northern Uganda. Another five injured Americans will receive medical treatment in South
Africa, Joann Lockard, the U.S. Embassy’s spokeswoman in Kampala, said today by phone.

Peacekeepers

Peacekeepers are in Somalia to help stabilize the country and end one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. About 1.5 million people are displaced within the country and more than 560,000 people are living as refugees in neighboring countries, the UN Refugee Agency said in January. At least 3.2 million people in the country depend on humanitarian aid, according to the World Food Programme.

Al-Shabaab has previously threatened to attack Kenya, which it accused of recruiting ethnic Somalis living in the country to fight against the militia. An estimated
300,000 Somali refugees are being sheltered at the UN’s Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya.

One of the establishments targeted in Uganda was an Ethiopian restaurant. That “may not be a coincidence,” said Gus Selassie, an analyst at IHS Global Insight, with Ethiopia’s government being seen as a chief backer of the Somali administration.

Consequences

“It’s meant to send a signal to others in the region, mostly Ethiopia, that meddling in Somali affairs, whether its peacekeeping or occupation, would have consequences,” said Philippe de Pontet, Africa analyst at New York-based Eurasia Group.

U.S.-backed Ethiopian troops invaded Somalia in December 2006, ousting the Islamic Courts Union government that had captured the south of the country. The army occupied Mogadishu and the southern town of Baidoa in an effort to bolster the government, though the forces became bogged down in a guerrilla war with the Islamists who now control most of the country. The Ethiopians withdrew in January 2009.

“Al-Shabaab hates the Ethiopians because they’re the people that kicked the Islamic Courts out of power in Mogadishu,” Stewart said. “They really have an axe to grind against the Ethiopians.”

–With assistance from Fred Ojambo in Kampala and Hamsa Omar in Mogadishu. Editors: Philip Sanders, Karl Maier

Karzai Wants 50 Taliban Names Deleted From UN Terror List
7/13/2010 /RTTNews

(RTTNews) – Afghan President Hamid Karzai is reported to be seeking the removal of up to 50 Taliban commanders from a United Nations terror blacklist ahead of a major international conference in Kabul this month, aimed at bolstering stability and advancing a political reconciliation in the war-torn nation.

The Washington Post reported that Afghan officials had cited severance of ties with the Taliban by former Taliban commanders for Kabul’s renewed effort to de-list 50 out of the 137 from the UN terror list. The list imposes a travel ban, arms embargo and a prohibition on both direct and indirect provision of funds and/or economic resources.

Kabul had for years been seeking to have them (reformed Taliban commanders) struck off from the UN terrorist list, but now the diplomatic push at the world body has taken on renewed urgency as Karzai has begun to press for a political settlement to end the decade-long violence plaguing that south-west Asian country.

The United States has endorsed Karzai’s plan and sent Richard Holbrooke, Special Envoy of Obama for Afghanistan and Pakistan, last week to meet with U.N. officials to press them to hasten the delisting, the newspaper said.

At the same time, it quoted some American officials as saying that Washington opposed the delisting of some of the most violent Taliban fighters, including their
leader Mullah Omar.

On their part, U.N. officials are resisting the move, demanding more evidence that these Taliban commanders had renounced violence.

Australia’s Thomas Mayr-Harting, overseeing the terrorism list, has clearly stated that the U.N. committee he heads will not approve the de-listing solely to boost the
peace process. He adds that Kabul has not provided evidence for the de-listing.

In October 1999, the Security Council, imposed sanctions on members of the Taliban, which was ruled Afghanistan at the time, for refusing to surre
nder its chief, Osama bin Laden, to U.S. authorities for al-Qaeda’s role in the August 1998 bombings of two American embassies in East Africa.

In January 2001, more than 100 Taliban leaders were added to the list, and following the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. pushed through resolutions that added more al-Qaeda members and their supporters to the terrorist list.
by RTT Staff Writer

 

International Criminal Court charges Sudan president with genocide
PTI/ timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ Jul 13, 2010

UNITED NATIONS: Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir, has been slapped with three counts of genocide in Darfur by the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

Last year, an arrest warrant for war crimes and crimes against humanity was issued against the leader of the largest country in Africa.

The Court’s pre-trial chamber said that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Bashir is responsible for three counts of genocide against the Fur, Masalit and
Zaghawa ethnic groups in the region.

The charges include genocide by killing; genocide by causing serious bodily or mental harm; and genocide by deliberately inflicting conditions of life meant to
destroy each target group.

The conflict between the ethnic tribes of Darfur and the predominantly Arab government has been persisting for almost ten years.

The fighting has been interrupted by efforts to make peace but this has not stopped low-level skirmishes, which are continuing along with attacks on UN peacekeepers stationed there.

The rebel groups in the western part of the nation claim that they have been marginalised for decades and want greater political autonomy and more economic
resources to be directed towards them.

At the peak of fighting, the notorious government-backed militia, the Janjaweed, killed civilians, raped women and pillaged villages.

Despite previous charges and international concern about the events in Darfur, Bashir was re-elected as president in May and enjoys support within the country.

Since the warrant was issued, however, Bashir stays close to him and does not venture out of Africa because of the danger that another ICC member-state may arrest him.

On the other hand, several African countries have spoken out against the ICC action as an attempt to impose the will of the West on leaders of smaller nations.

They question why US President George Bush has not been indicted for starting an illegal war in Iraq.

Like the US, Sudan is not a member of the ICC and the case was referred to the ICC by the Security Council. In March 2009, Bashir became the first sitting head of State to be indicted by the ICC.

At the time, the court rejected Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo’s application to charge Bashir with genocide, on the grounds that there was not enough evidence.

USA :

National Strategy Unveiled to Fight AIDS
Associated Press /JULY 13, 2010

President Barack Obama was set Tuesday to announce a new national strategy for combating HIV and AIDS, aimed at stopping new infections and increasing access to care for people living with the virus.

The strategy calls for reducing the rate of new HIV infections by 25% over the next five years, and for getting treatment to 85% of patients within three months of
their diagnosis.

The new policy will concentrate HIV prevention efforts on the highest-risk populations—which include gay and bisexual men, as well as black Americans—far more
than is done today, said Chris Collins of the Foundation for AIDS Research, one of the groups that met with administration officials as the new policy firmed up over
the last few months.

While the strategy calls for improved coordination among federal agencies, it doesn’t identify any new government funding.

Approximately 56,000 people in the U.S. become infected with HIV each year, and more than 1.1 million Americans are living with the virus, according to the White House.

 

First Lady Urges African Americans to Focus on Childhood Obesity
Dan Robinson | White House /www1.voanews.com/13 July 2010

In an address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), First Lady Michelle Obama has spoken about the campaign she launched earlier this year against childhood obesity.

Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign, which she launched this past February, aims to shine a constant spotlight on childhood obesity in the United States, and the
millions of young people at risk of developing related serious health conditions.

According to government statistics, one in three children in the United States is overweight or obese, with black and Hispanic children facing the greatest risk of
developing heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses related to obesity.

Addressing the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights organization at its 101st annual convention in Kansas City, in the central U.S. state of Missouri, Mrs. Obama
said the African-American community in particular is suffering negative effects.

“We are living today in a time where we are decades beyond slavery, we are decades beyond Jim Crow [former segregationist laws] when one of the greatest risks to our children’s future is their own health,” she said.

Major goals of Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign include empowering parents and caregivers, providing healthier foods to American schools and U.S. communities, and increasing physical activity.

The First Lady has announced a revised web site for her “Let’s Move!” campaign where she will conduct a live web chat on Tuesday at 1400 UTC

In her address to the NAACP, Mrs. Obama equated the commitment needed to tackle the obesity problem, including efforts to bring better quality foods to disadvantaged communities, with the commitment required during the U.S. civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.

Without action, Mrs. Obama said, African-American children will not be able to fulfill the hopes of those who came before them.

“Will you move with me? Let us move! I am going to need you NAACP, this is not an endeavor that I can do by myself, we cannot change the health our community alone, I am going to need each and every single one of you to work together for this campaign for our children’s future,” she said.

Mrs. Obama’s address to the NAACP was the first event on a busy schedule for the week in which she will make her first visit to the U.S. Gulf coast to see damage
caused by the oil spill.

In Panama City, Florida she will meet with local people and inspect beaches where oil has washed ashore.

On Tuesday, the Obama administration rolls out another major health initiative when senior officials announce the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.

What the administration calls its “comprehensive plan” aims to reduce the number of people who become infected with HIV, increase access to care, and reduce HIV- related health disparities.

CANADA :

AUSTRALIA :

BAE Systems Likely To Add To Number Of ‘Home’ Markets – CEO
online.wsj.com/JULY 13, 2010

LONDON (Dow Jones)–BAE Systems PLC (BA.LN) Chief Executive Ian King Tuesday said the defense giant will likely increase its number of “home” markets.

King described the likelihood as absolute. BAE Systems has established operations in international defense markets, including South Africa, Australia and Saudi Arabia. It last year designated India its seventh “home” market.

It is “a model that works for us,” said King, who identified Latin America and Asia as regions that present possibilities. He didn’t offer a time frame.

-By Jonathan Buck, Dow Jones Newswires

EUROPE :

Arrow ECS Receives EMEA Distributor of the Year Award from Novell 
Jul 13, 2010/ (BUSINESS WIRE)

PARIS, Jul 13, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE)
— Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions, a business segment of Arrow Electronics Inc. [NYSE: ARW], has been named Novell’s distributor of the year for 2010 in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.

Novell presents the award annually to the value-added distributor that most consistently demonstrates its ability to deliver a consistent level of presales,
technical and customer service to Novell’s community of resellers and solution providers across multiple countries and markets.

Arrow was praised for its solid operational systems, dedicated supplier resources, and its effective development and management of, and service to, resellers in local markets.

“This award from Novell recognizes the value that Arrow ECS delivers across EMEA through its channel management,” said Laurent Sadoun, president of Arrow ECS’ EMEA region. “We remain committed to ensuring that both suppliers and resellers benefit from the comprehensive expertise and services that we offer in delivering solutions through the channel.”

“Arrow ECS has proven over the past year through their ability to recruit, enable, and develop channels that they are among the best value-added distributors for
Novell,” said Dan Veitkus, vice president and general manager, channels and alliances for EMEA for Novell. “The result of our relationship with Arrow ECS, along
with the satisfaction of our resellers and customers, proves that they are committed to supporting our business, our resellers and ultimately our customers.”

Arrow ECS provides enterprise-class solutions and services focused on data storage, network security, enterprise software, virtualization and access across EMEA.

ABOUT NOVELL

Novell Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!novl/quotes/nls/novl (NOVL 6.14, +0.08, +1.32%) , a leader in Intelligent Workload Management, helps organizations securely deliver and manage computing services across physical, virtual and cloud computing environments. Novell helps customers reduce the cost, complexity, and risk associated with their IT systems through its solutions for identity and security, systems management, collaboration and Linux-based operating platforms. With its infrastructure software and ecosystem of partnerships, Novell integrates mixed IT environments, allowing people and technology to work as one. For more information, visit www.novell.com.

ABOUT ARROW ENTERPRISE COMPUTING SOLUTIONS

Arrow ECS, a business segment of Arrow Electronics Inc. [NYSE: ARW], provides enterprise and midrange computing products, services and solutions to value-added resellers, system integrators, and independent software vendors. Based in Englewood, Colo., and with offices in 26 countries, Arrow ECS connects its customers to the world’s foremost technology suppliers. Arrow ECS reported $4.9 billion in global enterprise computing solution sales in 2009.
SOURCE: Arrow ECS

CHINA :

Africa monopolises mobile
By Leigh-Ann Francis/www.itweb.co.za/ 13 Jul 2010

Johannesburg,
Global mobile subscriptions have reached a milestone as the count recently topped five billion global subscribers, with a growth rate of two million additions daily.

The Africa and Asia-Pacific regions together accounted for 80% of global subscription net additions in the first half of 2010. This is according to telecoms
tech provider Ericsson.

The successful growth rate, says the company, is attributed to emerging markets like Nigeria, Zimbabwe, China and India.

Particularly in Africa, there are currently 450 million mobile subscriptions, compared to figures in 2000, when there were about 16 million subscriptions – less
than the amount of users in Ghana alone today.

The figures also show mobile broadband subscriptions are growing at a similar pace, says Ericsson. It points to another milestone reached in December last year, in
which the amount of data traffic carried over mobile networks exceeded the amount of traffic generated from voice calls.

To this end, mobile broadband subscriptions are expected to reach over 3.4 billion by 2015, states the company. Over 100 million of these will come from sub-Saharan Africa.

Mobilising growth

The cellphone and other mobile devices play a significant role for people living in rural areas across Africa, who are likely to have a cellphone, rather than a PC or
laptop.

“Mobile broadband is uniquely positioned to stimulate economic growth and welfare in areas that lack adequate fixed-line broadband infrastructures – assisting to close the digital divide in Africa,” states Aingharan Kanagaratnam, head of engagement for mobile broadband at Ericsson sub-Saharan Africa.

Studies show that soon 80% of people in the world accessing the Internet will do so using their mobile device and this is already the case in Africa. With more
broadband comes more opportunity, not only for SA, but the African continent, and those living and operating here, he continues.

“With broadband, the telecommunications industry has an opportunity to create a world in which all people can have affordable access to basic services that can
improve livelihood, enable access to healthcare and education, provide information and entertainment, and more – a world in which everyone can take part in a
borderless and global information society,” notes Kanagaratnam.

Broadband access helps promote equal opportunities for everyone, he opines. Once people have a broadband connection, their geographic location becomes less of a barrier to social and economic inclusion.

Kanagaratnam argues that mobile broadband makes it easier for people to live and work everywhere, and especially in rural areas – supporting local development,
avoiding unnecessary migration and improving national socio-geographic structures.

There are challenges, but Africa can look forward to mobile broadband changing the way it communicates, operates and infiltrates, he states.

“As devices become more available, costs continue to be driven down by regulation and competition, broadband connectivity is increased and services more widespread, Africans can finally benefit from ‘always available’ connectivity,” concludes Kanagaratnam.

INDIA :

Nissan takes lead with Thai-made March in Japan
By YURI KAGEYAMA (AP)/13072010

YOKOHAMA, Japan — Nissan took the wraps off its new March subcompact Tuesday, which is being manufactured in Thailand for sale in Japan, underlining a trend for Japanese automakers to shift more production abroad.

Nissan Motor Co. said it was setting up a special inspection facility at its Oppama plant in Japan, which used to make the model, to do additional quality checks on the Thai-made March to ensure it makes the cut with notoriously finicky Japanese customers.

“We are not hiding that this was made in Thailand,” Nissan Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga said in answer to a reporter’s question on why his presentation had focused on the car’s green features, not where it was made. “It is important to deliver value to customers wherever we make our products.”

The March, previously been made in Great Britain, will now also be made in India, where it will be exported to more than 100 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The model — called the Micra in Europe, India and Australia — will be produced in Mexico and China as well.

As home to top automakers including Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., Japan has long been a market where local manufacturers reign supreme. Imports make up just 5 percent of the Japanese market, mostly European luxury brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

But with labor costs rising in Japan and the yen staying strong against the dollar, automakers are looking at making more vehicles abroad for export to global markets and in some cases for sale in Japan — known as “gyaku yunyu” or “reverse imports.”

Nissan, allied with Renault SA of France, is the first major Japanese automaker to make the move in a significant way — doing so with a popular subcompact whose sales totaled 31,600 vehicles in Japan, and nearly 122,000 worldwide last year.

How the March fares will be a crucial test for Nissan’s strategy.

It will also be a test for global quality controls. A lack of global quality checks have been cited, both by outsiders and company officials, as one contributor to
Toyota’s massive recalls totaling more than 8.5 million vehicles since October over a spate of problems including sticky gas pedals and braking glitches.

Mamoru Katou, analyst with Tokai Tokyo Research, says moving production abroad will be largely limited to cheaper models. Buyers aren’t as fussy about where such cars are made and are happier just getting a good deal, he said.

But it won’t be that easy for Toyota to follow suit because it has excess capacity in Japan and doesn’t have many supercheap models, he said.

“It’s not going to be that easy for others,” Katou said. Nissan took the lead because it has already slashed production in Japan ahead of its rivals, he said.

“I was initially worried about the possible damage to a company’s image. But where a car is made matters less than the price for people buying cars at below a million yen (about $11,000),” Katou said.

“There is definitely a plus for manufacturers to move production abroad because it’s so much cheaper,” he said.

The March starts in Japan at 999,600 yen ($11,000).

Toyota produces models for export in Thailand, including the Corolla subcompact and IMV pickup and sport-utility models, but doesn’t sell them in Japan. South Africa also serves as an export hub for Africa and parts of Europe for Toyota, according to the company.

Nissan said it had developed a global manufacturing system to ensure quality standards.

Nissan is planning a compact based on the March platform, with an annual sales target of more than a million vehicles in 2013.

Japan production will focus on higher-end models including the Leaf electric vehicle, which will be available later this year.

“We have made preparations to meet our standards for global quality,” Shiga said of the March at Nissan’s Yokohama headquarters.

 

Africa’s day of joy turns to grief as Somali militants strike out at Uganda
www.independent.co.uk/13072010

Continent fears further attacks as terror group with links to al-Qa’ida kills 74 fans watching World Cup final
By Trevor Snapp and Megan Alani in Kampala and Paul Peachey

East African nations stepped up security last night after a double bombing targeting hundreds of people in Uganda watching the World Cup final raised fears that Somali militants planned to expand terrorist attacks across the region.

Al-Shabaab, a group which claims to have links with al-Qa’ida and is fighting the fragile, Western-backed Somali government, claimed responsibility for its first
successful foreign strike. More than 70 people – from Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Ireland and the United States – were killed in the synchronised twin blasts.

Investigators identified the severed head of a Somali national at one of the bomb sites in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, suggesting it was a suicide attack, according
to the Ugandan army.

For months al-Shabaab has been threatening to attack its East African neighbours that were threatening its hold over large parts of Somalia. Sunday night’s attacks
followed a failed attempt by the militant group to bomb hotels and other high- profile targets in Kenya last year. “We will carry out attacks against our enemy
wherever they are,” Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage, an al-Shabaab spokesman in Mogadishu, said. “No one will deter us from performing our Islamic duty.”

The attacks on two crowded venues came 48 hours after the group threatened attacks on Uganda and Burundi for sending peacekeeping troops to try to bring an end to two decades of war and chaos in Somalia. Burundi yesterday stepped up its own security.

US President Barack Obama, condemning what he called deplorable and cowardly attacks, said Washington was ready to help Uganda in hunting down those responsible.

Analysts have warned of a growing threat from the group with ranks swollen by growing numbers of foreign jihadists from Afghanistan and Pakistan. Co-ordinated
attacks have been a hallmark of al-Qa’ida and groups linked to Osama bin Laden’s militant network.

The first bomb ripped through the Ethiopian Village restaurant, a popular Kampala nightspot heaving with local and foreign football fans during the latter stages of
the World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands. The blast killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens more.

“I was scared” said James, a motorcycle taxi driver who witnessed the blast. “People were rushing up and down the street looking for help. There was blood and so many dead bodies. Many people were guessing and talking about al-Shabaab.”

Shortly afterwards, another blast hit a rugby club, popular with young professionals and students in Kampala, where hundreds of spectators had also gathered to watch the match on a large screen. Witnesses said spectators sitting in plastic chairs in the front rows of the partly open-air venue took the full force of the explosion.

“All of a sudden we heard this big explosion in front of the screen. The screaming started and everyone started to run,” said Ivan Muhame, who was watching the game at the club.

Andinda Moses, 21, a Ugandan student, said there were two explosions. He thought the first was an electrical fault, then came a second bigger blast. “I just remember running and stepping over the bodies that had blood spilling from their bodies. It was so terrible. I was running, not knowing where I was going,” he told the BBC. “After coming to my senses, I realised that I had blood stains all over my feet.”

Many of the wounded from both bombings were taken to the Mulago Hospital, Uganda’s largest. Outside, family members who had not heard from their relatives held each other, while others wailed and threw themselves to the ground. Inside the hospital, bodies covered in blood were rushed in and out of surgery.

In one corridor, a man lay on the floor bleeding from his head. It was impossible to know if he was dead or alive. A few feet away in a small storage locker, staff had created a makeshift morgue. Six bodies – all young – lay on the tiles; some had had their clothes blown off.

Before the official claim of responsibility, a senior commander for al-Shabaab, Sheikh Isse Yusuf told The Independent: “We are very glad with the loss of the
Christian Uganda. These explosions were in reply to the massacre which their mercenaries are committing in Somalia. I am not going to say who was behind it,
though it’s obligatory to attack Uganda.”

Yoweri Museveni, the Ugandan president, who visited the rugby club yesterday, said: “This shows you the criminality and terrorism that I have been talking about,” he said. “If you want to fight, go and look for soldiers, don’t bomb people watching football.”

Analysts said that the blasts appear to mark a significant change in tactics by militants in Somalia, a country that has been mired in conflict and anarchy since
warlords toppled the military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

Ethiopian troops invaded in 2006 to oust an Islamist movement from Mogadishu, sparking the Islamist insurgency which still rages and has left al-Shabaab in
control of large areas of south and central Somalia.

“The targeting of an Ethiopian restaurant full of foreigners [is] three targets in one really – Ethiopia, Uganda and the United States,” said Anna Murison of Exclusive
Analysis.

The apparent shift by al-Shabaab outside of the country appears to be linked to the influence of what the International Crisis Group in a recent report called a
“foreign jihadi cabal”. The think-tank named one of its leaders as Fazul Abdullah Mohamed, who has been indicted by the US for his alleged role in the 1998 bombings of American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 240 people.

Last week, Kenya’s foreign minister, Moses Wetangula, warned that the situation in Somalia was “very, very dire”, with intelligence reports warning that Afghan,
Pakistani and Middle Eastern fighters were all relocating to Somalia

BRASIL:

 

EN BREF, CE 13 juillet 2010… AGNEWS /OMAR, BXL,13/07/2010