{jcomments on}OMAR, AGNEWS, BXL, le 04 mai 2010 – www.blackvoicenews.com- May 04, 2010–A decisive electoral victory by Omar Hassan al-Bashir has returned the controversial Sudanese leader to a new 5-year term as president of this important oil-rich country in east Africa.
RWANDA
Rwanda: Gov’t Targets Investors At World Economic Forum
James Karuhanga/The New Times/allafrica.com/4 May 2010
Kigali — Finance Minister, John Rwangombwa said Monday that key on Rwanda’s agenda ahead of the high level 20th World Economic Forum (WEF) is to attract more foreign investments.
The three-day forum that starts Wednesday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, is expected to attract African heads of state and financial experts from 85 other countries.
“The economic forum will bring key people together – people that matter in terms of private investments for the country,” Rwangombwa told The New Times on phone from Tanzania.
The Forum, which will mainly focus on re-thinking strategies on investments in Africa, will be another opportunity for Rwanda, which encourages investments in form of public private partnerships (PPPs), the Minister said.
It is the first WEF meeting to be held in the East African region. With over 1,000 other participants expected, this year’s Forum is believed to have registered record participation.
Apart from the host, President Jakaya Kikwete, organizers say the list of leaders participating includes President Kagame and South African President Jacob Zuma.
Others include the Presidents of Mozambique, Gabon, Namibia, Benin and the Ethiopian Prime Minister.
In addition, according to a statement issued at a recent press briefing in Dar es Salaam, the Forum’s Young Global Leaders Summit will be held concurrently and will bring together over 200 of the world’s top young leaders.
It is noted that the delegates will discuss how African nations are managing relations with key economic partners.
The Geneva-based non-profit foundation – WEF, is best known for its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland which brings together top business leaders, international political leaders, selected intellectuals and journalists to discuss the most pressing issues facing the world economy.
Rwanda: Senate Wants Ministers Quizzed Over FARG Saga
Nasra Bishumba/The New Times/allafrica.com/4 May 2010
Kigali — A report digging deep into the housing projects of Genocide Survivors has prompted the Senate to call for several government Ministers to be quizzed over the misuse of the fund’s finances, The New Times reports.
The report released yesterday by the Committee on Social Affairs details the rot that has derailed the completion of housing units that were meant to shelter Genocide survivors 16 years down the road.
The chairperson of the Commission; Agnes Kayijire told the Senate that there was need to question Ministers Protais Musoni, James Musoni, Christine Nyatanyi, John Rwangombwa and the Local Government Permanent Secretary Eugene Barikana over the issue.
“These ministers need to be quizzed mainly because they were directly connected to FARG and yet they didn’t do their job of following up how the association was using the money causing huge losses to the government,” she said.
The report pointed out what it called “carelessness” by former Minister for Local government; Protais Musoni and the State Minister for Social Affairs; Christine Nyatanyi; under whose jurisdiction FARG falls.
Musoni is now minister for Cabinet Affairs.
“Musoni chaired all the meetings (while still at Local Government), and he should be answerable to all the mistakes that we see in this report. Nyatanyi was and is still in charge of organizations like FARG but she did not follow up. She needs to explain why,” she said.
The report called for Barikana to be quizzed on the tenders that have cost the government millions of francs over the years.
“Barikana appended signatures on the contracts of several companies that were in charge of constructing and repairing the houses of Genocide Survivors. Most of the work was shoddy and he should explain why,” she said.
Kayijire revealed to the stunned Senate how most associations financially supported by FARG had been operating for years but had no paperwork to support the expenditures.
“There was almost no paperwork to support the millions that had been dished out by FARG in most districts and even the minimal paperwork that was available was quite suspicious,” she said.
Kayijire also explained the embezzlement of funds, some of which were used for purposes that were not in any way connected to providing shelter to Genocide Survivors.
To shed light on the issue, Kayijire pointed out Rusizi and Nyagatare districts which misused Rfw 46 million and Rfw 30 million respectively.
“There was an issue of Rfw 100 million that was said to have been disbursed to Gasabo district and yet the available paperwork can only account for Rwf 56 million,” she said.
Senator Joseph Karemera requested for a thorough investigation into the report findings.
“There is need for an investigation into the connection between the false numbers and the malpractices mentioned in the report,” he said adding that it was important that the people implicated in the report be investigated whether they are in or outside the county.
Senator Rwigamba Balinda referred to the contents of the report as sad and confusing.
“The contents of this report are sad and confusing. The loss of government money indicated here is quite tremendous and saddening”
“I am supportive of the idea of an audit and heavy punishments to be levied on anyone found guilty. We cannot allow this carelessness and mismanagement to eat away our society,” he said
The report review continues today.
Lawsuit alleges Rwandan President Kagame’s guilt in Rwanda genocide and Congo war
[Traduction]
by Ann Garrison/www.sfbayview.com/May 4, 2010
On April 30, in Edmond, Oklahoma, a team of lawyers and process servers attempted to personally serve Rwandan President Paul Kagame with an eight count lawsuit, which includes racketeering to acquire and control the resources of eastern D.R. Congo.
Kagame delivered the commencement address at Oklahoma Christian University in Edmond, while demonstrators held up signs outside the hall. Inside, Kagame’s aides refused to accept the documents presented by lawyers and process servers. University officials then ordered the lawyers and process servers to leave, and Kagame himself left early, surrounded by bodyguards.
The lawsuit alleges that Kagame and nine of his current and former military officers and officials are guilty of the assassination of former Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira and subsequent acts that caused the 1994 massacres that came to be known as the Rwanda Genocide, after costing approximately 1 million Rwandan lives. The suit was filed by the widows of the two assassinated presidents.
It also alleges that Kagame and other defendants are guilty of racketeering, as defined by the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, to acquire and control an interest in the resources of Rwanda’s neighbor, D.R. Congo, site of what the U.N. has called the most lethal conflict since World War II. In January 2008, the International Rescue Committee estimated that it had cost 5.4 million Congolese lives.
D.R. Congo is one of the most resource rich nations on earth and its mineral wealth, most of all its cobalt reserves, is essential to modern military industries’ ability to manufacture for war.
Outlets around the world reported that Kagame had avoided process service by leaving the commencement exercise early, surrounded by bodyguards, but Digital Journal
and KPFA Radio News both reported lawyer Peter Erlinder’s assurances that Kagame will have failed to avoid service if lawyers are able to demonstrate that he tried to do so intentionally. This is the KPFA Radio News report, “KPFA Radio News: Lawsuit alleges Rwandan President guilty of Rwanda Genocide.”
The lawsuit includes arguments for jurisdiction in the U.S., based on the Alien Tort Claims Act and the Federal Extraterritorial Torture Statute, and for the supplemental jurisdiction of the Oklahoma City court, based on laws of the state of Oklahoma and “ongoing, substantial contacts” with Kagame and the other defendants, meaning their engagement with various educational and non-profit organizations.
Its sixth count alleges that Kagame and the other defendants violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act in order to acquire and control the resources of neighboring D.R. Congo.
Specifically, it says:
“From not later than 1990 to the present, Kagame et. al, and his agents, and their co-conspirators formed a ‘RICO’ enterprise within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. §:1961(4) engaged in foreign and interstate commerce.”
and
“Over a period of years and continuing to the present, through a pattern of racketeering activity, have acquired and maintained an interest in resources in the eastern Congo to their own benefit.”
The 24-page complaint is available online, as a Google Doc, which can be reached by clicking on: Habyarimana vs. Kagame.
Its eight counts are:
1. Wrongful Death and Murder,
2. Crimes against Humanity,
3. Violation of the Rights of Life, Liberty and Security of Person,
4. Assault and Battery,
5. Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress,
6. Violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act,
7. Torture and
8. Conspiracy to Torture.
Peter Erlinder is arguing not only the affirmative lawsuit of widows Habyarimana and Ntaryamira in Habyarimana vs. Kagame but also the defense for Rwanda’s leading opposition presidential candidate, Victoire Ingabiré Umuhoza of the FDU-Inkingi Party, whom Kagame’s government has charged with genocide ideology speech crime and “associating with terrorists” amidst the run-up to what was to have been Rwanda’s 2010 presidential election, scheduled for Aug. 9.
Roots of the lawsuit
The three attorneys who filed the wrongful death lawsuit in an Oklahoma City federal court on Thursday, April 29, are representing Madame Agatha Habyarimana, widow of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, and Madame Sylvana Ntaryamira, widow of Burundian President, Cyprien Ntaryamira. Both their husbands died when assassins shot down their plane on April 6, 1994.
The two presidents were flying home from a conference between east and central African leaders in Tanzania, held to discuss ways to end violence between ethnic Hutus and Tutsis from Burundi and Rwanda, when their plane was shot out of the sky with a surface-to-air missile over Rwanda’s capital, Kigali.
That evening the BBC reported: “The deaths of the presidents, both Hutus, look likely to make the situation in both states [Rwanda and Burundi] worse. Heavy fighting has already been reported around the presidential palace in Rwanda after news of the deaths spread. News agencies in Kigali said explosions have been rocking the city but it was not immediately clear who was involved in the fighting.”
Between 800,000 and 1,200,000 Rwandans died before the fighting ended, largely in civilian massacres. At its end, current Rwandan President Kagame seized power in Kigali, as the victorious general in the 1990-1994 Rwandan Civil War.
Madames Habyarimana and Ntaryamira allege in their wrongful death lawsuit that Kagame, then leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, ordered their husbands’ assassination and that his and his army’s actions brought about the mass civilian massacre known as the Rwanda Genocide.
Earlier this week, French media reported that a Paris judge investigating the crash, Marc Trevidic, was planning to send experts to Rwanda. His predecessor, Judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere, had accused the RPF of shooting down the plane and called for the arrest of President Kagame.
The widows do not live in the United States but argue that a federal court in Oklahoma City has jurisdiction over their claims because of Kagame’s substantial contacts with Oklahoma Christian University.
President Kagame appeared at the university in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Friday, April 30, the day after the lawsuit was filed, to deliver the commencement address, but left the ceremony early, surrounded by bodyguards, avoiding process service.
Media outlets around the world report that Kagame avoided process service, but it’s not yet clear that he has, because a defendant may be considered served if it can be demonstrated that he has intentionally avoided process service.
Professor Peter Erlinder, lead defense counsel for the International Criminal Tribunal on Rwanda and one of the attorneys on the wrongful death case, said: “The U.S. Secret Service and university staff informed Kagame that we had a valid summons and complaint that we wished to serve upon him. We were instructed we could not approach Kagame for security reasons, with which we agreed, but Secret Service informed us that security requirements permitted service on any authorized person on his staff.”
Rather than accept service, members of his staff refused to accept documents and the University ordered process servers and lawyers to leave campus … which is ‘interference with service of process,’ a misdemeanor under Oklahoma law. Also, because the university has now involved itself in the conspiracy to cover up Kagame’s crimes, they have exposed themselves to liability. The president of the University has been served with a copy of the complaint and summons for Mr. Kagame.”
A university spokesman said, “President Kagame is at Oklahoma Christian as the head of Rwanda to honor the 10 outstanding Rwandan Presidential Scholars who are graduating today.
“We do not want to distract from their remarkable accomplishments by getting involved in the politics of Rwanda and surrounding countries. We cannot comment on pending lawsuits.”
Attorneys in the lawsuit stated, “There is no independent functioning judiciary in Rwanda and any suit against defendants there would have been and would still be futile and would result in serious reprisals.”
Carla del Ponte, lead prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals on Rwanda and Yugoslavia, in her book, “Madame Prosecutor; Confrontations with Humanity’s Worst Criminals and the Culture of Impunity,” tells the story of how she was fired by the U.N. after announcing her intent to prosecute sitting Rwandan President Paul Kagame for the assassination of Presidents Habyarimana and Ntaryamira that triggered the genocide.
San Francisco writer Ann Garrison writes for the San Francisco Bay View, Digital Journal, Examiner.com, OpEdNews, Global Research, Colored Opinions and her blog, Plutocracy Now. She can be reached at anniegarrison@gmail.com. This story, which originally appeared May 3 in Digital Journal, is combined with another Digital Journal story by Ann Garrison posted May 1.
UGANDA
TANZANIA:
Islamic banking in Tanzania
www.bizcommunity.com/4 May 2010
Absa has launched Islamic banking in Tanzania through its subsidiary the National Bank of Commerce (NBC), in line with its strategy of expanding its offering in Africa. It will offer the options of a cheque account and saving account with an embedded funeral plan. Christo de Vries, NBC’s MD, said this new service is part of its business banking strategy to provide innovative products to meet the needs of the market.
CONGO RDC :
DR Congo vows to step up battle against rebels
Tue May 4, 2010 /By Thomas Hubert/Reuters
KINSHASA (Reuters) – The Democratic Republic of Congo is looking to intensify military operations against rebel groups on its territory, a top aide to President Joseph Kabila said on Monday despite a U.N. appeal for negotiated solutions.
Seraphin Ngwej, Kabila’s diplomatic advisor, also told Reuters the president would stick to a 2011 target date for U.N. peacekeeping forces to leave the country, a move some observers fear will lead to further bloodshed and humanitarian problems.
Seven years after the 1998-2003 war that claimed more than five million lives, Congo is still riven by insecurity with Rwandan Hutu and local Mai-Mai militias at large in its east and Ugandan Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels in the north.
“In South Kivu, we need to intensify the current operations,” Ngwej said of the conflict in the east, where government forces backed by the U.N. peacekeeping force MONUC have fought since July 2009.
Congo launched a new wave of military operations against the FDLR rebels in the east in March, committing 18 battalions to a series of targeted attacks on north and south Kivu provinces. A battalion typically comprises at least several hundred soldiers.
Referring to the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan rebel group now chiefly based in north-eastern Congo and in the Central African Republic, Ngwej said: “The President does not believe in a political solution.”
“For the president, the only solution is an intensification of military operations after June 30. With the Ugandans, we are going to reinforce our troops along the border to make sure it is clean,” Ngwej said.
Ugandan forces moved into Congo to take part in joint military operations against the LRA last year and have remained in the country informally since then.
He gave no details on reinforcement plans but visiting U.N. Under-Secretary-General John Holmes separately voiced concern at the prospect of fresh offensives, which rights groups say have provided cover for mass abuses of civilians by both sides.
“Those military operations have very serious humanitarian consequences. Their consequences are even more negative in the short term because those groups tend to seek revenge against the population,” he said after a meeting with Kabila at his farm just outside Kinshasa.
“If those military actions can create the conditions … for development to be possible, despite their humanitarian consequences, those operations are justified. But you need results,” added Holmes, winding up a five-day visit.
Kabila and Holmes also disagreed on the timetable for the withdrawal of MONUC. Ngwej said Kabila maintained his 2011 deadline for the departure of the last U.N. peacekeeper while Holmes has called for a gradual pull-out as security allows.
KENYA :
Negotiations on Pro-Abort Kenyan Constitution Break Down
By Peter J. Smith/www.lifesitenews.com/May 4, 2010
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Negotiations have finally broken down between Kenya’s Christian leaders and the government over a proposed draft-constitution, which would enshrine a right to abortion and establish Islamic courts within the African nation’s legal structure.
The leaders of Kenya’s National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), the Anglican Church of Kenya, the Catholic Church, and Evangelicals have recognized that the country needs a reformed constitution, but they say that they will vigorously oppose the adoption of the proposed constitution – a popular referendum is in the works for June or July – so long as the constitution threatens the right to life and establishes the parallel “Kadhi” courts, which they say would undermine religious equity.
“We will instead focus energies on educating the people of Kenya on the meaning of the cardinal issues and on campaigning for the rejection of the draft,” said Rev. Peter Karanja, an Anglican priest and general secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya, at a Nairobi press conference.
Christian leaders pulled out of talks with the government on April 28 after negotiations went sour, saying they could not compromise on fundamental issues and that the government had not made a good faith effort to help resolve their concerns. The cabinet team selected by President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga told church leaders the day before that they would not rewrite the draft constitution and only held out the promise that their problems could be ironed out through the legislative process – a guarantee Christian leaders found unreassuring.
A statement from the Anglican Church in Kenya (ACK) stated, “The document in itself is not the solution to Kenya’s myriad problems neither will its adoption automatically change Kenya for the better. We therefore say ‘no’ to the proposed constitution as it is unless amendments are effected before the referendum.”
Abortion is currently illegal in Kenya, except in the case where a doctor views abortion as necessary to save the life of the mother.
However, the new draft constitution would allow abortion for the sake of the “health” of the mother – a key descriptor which pro-life Kenyan and international leaders say will open the way for abortion on demand.
The section in question states that every person has the right to life, and that life begins at conception. However, it then goes on to say, “Abortion is not permitted unless, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law.”
A poll conducted March 21-26, 2010 by the global research company Synovate showed that an overwhelming majority of Kenyans want to preserve the nation’s status quo on abortion, and are vigorously opposed to an expansion of abortion.
The sample of 2003 Kenyan respondents showed 77 percent believe that life begins at conception. Sixty-nine percent oppose the legalization of abortion (only nine percent actually favor legalization) and 70 percent say they would only have abortion legal if it were necessary to save the mother’s life.
The Kenya Broadcasting Company reports that retired Anglican archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi is warning that the country needs to fully evaluate the constitution before making a decision.
Nzimbi’s concern appears to be justified: as of March Synovate’s poll revealed that while a majority of Kenyans supported the Constitution, 43 percent know “very little,” and 24 percent know “nothing” about it. Only 6 percent said they knew “a great deal” and 26 percent said they knew “something/some of it.”
“There is need for truth to prevail in the country in this time when Kenyans are at crossroads over the constitutional dispensation,” said Nzimbi. “Kenyans needed to be fully educated on the constitution because it will affect their lives but they are now being influenced without hindsight of the contents.”
ANGOLA :
BP pursues at least five ways to stop spill
By BRETT CLANTON/HOUSTON CHRONICLE/www.chron.com/May 4, 2010
BP says it is working on at least five possible approaches for halting the spew of oil from a damaged well deep in the Gulf of Mexico that is feeding one of the worst spills in U.S. history.
The company says all of the plans are moving forward simultaneously, even though some may turn out to be unnecessary or unsuccessful. But several of the ideas, once considered backup solutions, have begun to figure more prominently into the sweeping effort, including work on a subsea collection system for leaking oil and the drilling of a relief well to stop the flow from the damaged one.
That work is centered at BP’s offices in west Houston, where hundreds of engineers and technical specialists, representing 160 companies, are assembled to attack the growing crisis.
“This is not just about BP,” said Bob Fryar, senior vice president of BP’s exploration and production business in Angola, brought in to the center for his expertise in deep water drilling.
After more than 10 days of continuous work without success, BP officials still hope to seal the well at any moment using robot submarines to activate an array of shut-off valves atop the well, called a blowout preventer.
Fryar and other BP executives said they still don’t know why the blowout preventer did not seal the well when workers tried to activate it on April 20, when a blowout in the well engulfed the Deepwater Horizon in flames, killing 11 and sinking the structure two days later.
In recent days, half a dozen remotely operated vehicles have been engaged in the effort, but BP said it still hasn’t worked, perhaps because the blowout preventer was damaged in the initial blast.
Within 24 hours of the explosion, robot submarines failed to execute two backup methods for engaging the blowout preventer, he said.
Later, when trying to diagnose the problem, BP discovered leaks on the hydraulic controls, Fryar said, which since have since been fixed.
‘Nothing unique’
Investigations are still trying to determine causes of the disaster, but Fryar said “there is nothing unique about the situation that was taking place at the time that would have prohibited the (blowout preventer) system from working as designed.”
Meanwhile, BP said Monday four other solutions for halting the flow of oil from the well are gathering momentum.
Those include installing huge containment boxes over leaks to collect the oil and send it through a mile of pipe to a ship above; using long wands to spray chemical dispersants on the leaks at the sea floor to break up oil and keep it from rising to the surface; lowering a second blowout preventer onto the damaged one to seal the well; and drilling a relief well to intercept the damaged one and plug it.
Monday night, the company planned to install a valve on the end of a leaking drill pipe — one of three leaks in equipment down below — that could help slow the flow from the well.
That would be a first step in preparing to place one of two containment boxes over a leak causing the majority of the spill by as soon as this weekend, BP officials said. A second box would be placed over a smaller leak close to the wellhead several days later.
“Over the next seven days or so, we’ll be actually trying to connect all these pieces up and start up that system,” said Doug Suttles, chief operating officer of BP exploration and production, during a press briefing Monday. But he cautioned the technology has never been tried in such deep water.
In addition, deep-sea injection of chemical dispersants directly at the source of the leaks continues, and officials are hoping an aerial assessment will soon give them a sense of how effective that has been.
Blowout preventer repair
Fryar said an initial test showed “a clear difference” in the amount of oil traveling to the water’s surface from the wellhead a mile below.
BP says it will try this week to take pressure measurements within the 50-foot tall blowout preventer atop the well to determine if it is safe to remove a top portion of the stack called the lower marine riser package. Removing the piece would allow BP to lower another blowout preventer on top of the damaged one to seal the well, but also might carry a danger of rupturing the well further.
As a last-ditch effort, BP began Monday afternoon drilling a relief well into the damaged well with the hope of permanently sealing it, though that process could take 60 to 90 days, company officials said.
As a last-ditch effort, BP began Monday afternoon drilling a relief well into the damaged well with the hope of permanently sealing it, though that process could take 60 to 90 days, company officials said.
brett.clanton@chron.com
SOUTH AFRICA:
South African leader accused of racism
Corruption also alleged
By Geoff Hill SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES/Tuesday, May 4, 2010
JOHANNESBURG | South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Monday night postponed a disciplinary hearing for its Youth League leader, who is accused of targeting whites with vicious chants and criticizing President Jacob Zuma.
However, ANC leaders might find the situation with Youth League President Julius Malema a welcome distraction from recent polls that show the public is angry about the party’s inability to deal with issues such as unemployment and corruption.
Official statistics suggest that one in four South Africans is out of work, but analysts and aid groups put unemployment as high as 40 percent.
Mr. Malema, who grew up in extreme poverty as the son of a domestic worker, owns two luxury homes in the wealthiest suburb of Johannesburg and several imported cars. His youth group has denied charges of corruption but has not explained how he has amassed such wealth.
“The National Disciplinary Committee has not completed its work and consequently it will reconvene next week,” ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu said of the postponed hearing for Mr. Malema, who also stands accused of “bringing the party into disrepute.”
The ANC Youth League leader also is accused of praising and pledging support for the dictatorial rule of President Robert Mugabe in neighboring Zimbabwe, where Mr. Zuma is trying to mediate between parties who contested that nation’s 2008 election.
Mr. Mugabe lost the election but refused to hand over power, forcing the opposition into an ill-fitting coalition. The South African government has been at pains to show that it has not taken sides in the conflict.
In the wake of Mr. Malema’s visit last month to Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, Mr. Zuma — who had previously supported the youth leader — described his behavior as “totally out of order” and warned that action would be taken against him.
Mr. Malema fired back, condemning the president for criticizing him in public.
But both men could have bigger battles.
A recent opinion poll showed that only 27 percent of voters support Mr. Malema, while 59 percent said the ANC should discipline him. The polling was done by TNS Research Surveys, an international firm that also monitors political and consumer opinion in Europe, India and the USA.
In addition, TNS found that in the first quarter of 2010, support for Mr. Zuma had dropped from 58 to 43 percent, the biggest fall for a ruling head of state since the advent of democratic rule in South Africa in 1994.
The research showed that key concerns in the electorate were a lack of jobs and housing and rising levels of corruption.
Testing times
BILL CORCORAN/The Irish Times/Tuesday, May 4, 2010
A South African initiative has been praised as having the potential to break ‘the trajectory of the Aids epidemic’
THE RECENT launch of a new testing programme by the South African government, which aims to persuade 15 million people to know their HIV status by mid-2011, is the biggest the world has ever seen, according to the United Nations.
The initiative launched by South African president Jacob Zuma and senior government ministers has been widely praised by civil society groups and health experts, who say it is a vital undertaking that has the potential to break “the trajectory of the Aids epidemic” around the globe.
The campaign, which will travel the country over the next 14 months in the form of a health fair, aims to increase the number of people who know their HIV status and tackle deeply rooted social ills that have hampered attempts to halt the spread of the disease.
Sexual violence against women, older men bribing young girls for sex, and the difficulties women have in persuading men to use contraception have all been listed as contributing social factors to South Africa’s extremely high rates of HIV.
The testing campaign is part of the new prevention and treatment strategy announced by the government on World Aids Day last December as part of its efforts to tackle the disease.
The latest government figures estimate that 5.2 million people were living with the disease in 2008, and more than 250,000 people died from Aids or related illnesses that year.
Also included in the revised policy is the introduction of treatment for all children under the age of one, all patients with both TB and HIV, and for pregnant HIV positive women.
Michel Sidibé, executive director of the UN’s programme on HIV/Aids, has been upbeat about the new programme and its chances of success, saying the South African government was now showing leadership and taking responsibility.
While conceding testing for HIV was not going to stop the transmission of the disease, he maintained it was an essential first step.
“It can break the log jam in starting difficult conversations around HIV treatment and prevention. Such conversations are necessary to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support,” he wrote in South Africa’s Mail Guardian last month.
“This is why the country’s new campaign to test nearly 15 million people for HIV by 2011 is courageous and must succeed. And the international community should do all it can to support this effort.”
The new HIV policy by the Zuma-led government contrasts greatly to the manner in which the disease was addressed by his elected predecessor, former South African president Thabo Mbeki.
Both Mr Mbeki and his health minister, Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, disputed the causes of Aids, and were slow to embrace the HIV/Aids policies advocated by international experts.
Infamously, the recently deceased Dr Tshabalala-Msimang advocated the use of lemon, garlic and beetroot as a treatment for Aids over anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs.
Although president Zuma’s extra-marital affairs and polygamist lifestyle are said by many people to be undermining the country’s efforts to combat the disease, his decision to make public his HIV status – which he said was negative – at the programme launch was received positively.
“After careful consideration, I have decided to share my results with all South Africans . . . to promote openness. I’m sure South Africans will know I am very open,” he said at the launch of the initiative.
“We have to work harder . . . to make all South Africans understand that people living with HIV/Aids haven’t committed a crime. We have to expand the knowledge and understanding of the epidemic to protect affected individuals and families.
“The stigma arises from fear, and fear from ignorance. Let us fight ignorance. The greatest benefit from the HIV-testing campaign should be the education of our people, and the promotion of the rights to human dignity and privacy of those living with HIV.”
Prominent support and lobby group, the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), has welcomed the government’s expansion of its HIV and Aids programme, but has expressed concerns over the state’s ability to sustain its initiatives due to the scarcity of resources.
TAC senior researcher Catherine Tomlinson said the plan to increase the number of accredited treatment and testing facilities from 466 to 4,000 over the coming 12 months would be a difficult task.
“There is a shortage of resources and manpower especially in the rural areas. We hope to see nurses trained to initiate treatment to improve access for rural people,” she said.
Mr Sidibé told reporters last week that one way the government could optimise resources was to review its policy on purchasing drugs locally. “The government pays 25-30 per cent more for ARVs than the average international price,” he said.
AFRICA / AU :
South Africa April PMI dips
May 4, 2010 /234next.com
South Africa’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) dipped in April, a survey showed on Monday, but stayed above the crucial 50.0 level, suggesting manufacturing output remains on a recovery path after last year’s plunge.
The latest easing in PMI — a key indicator ahead of official manufacturing data — however points to the sector, one of the largest in the economy, remaining fragile after shrinking sharply in 2009 on depressed domestic and global demand.
In a note, Brait economist Colen Garrow said markets were uncertain about the sustainability of strength in the manufacturing sector, which also hinges on the global economic recovery, with some countries gradually withdrawing economic support measures put in place last year.
The South African Reserve Bank joined other central banks in cutting rates to help spur the economy.
Bashir Slate Carries Sudan, Angering The West .
04 May 2010 /Special to the NNPA from the GIN /www.blackvoicenews.com
(GIN) A decisive electoral victory by Omar Hassan al-Bashir has returned the controversial Sudanese leader to a new 5-year term as president of this important oil-rich country in east Africa.
Al-Bashir won 68 percent of the votes. Under electoral law, he needed to surpass 50 percent to avoid a run-off election against his nearest competitor.
A parallel vote to elect the president of the semi-autonomous south was won by the incumbent, Salva Kiir with 93 per cent of southern votes.
The men will renew their coalition government, as the country moves towards a referendum on independence for the south due next January.
The victory was called “fraudulent”, “marred” and a win for a war-crimes suspect (al-Bashir) in western media reports. But according to Sudanese writer Nesrine Malik, writing in the Guardian newspaper, the Sudanese election didn’t need fraud.
“People are starting to accept that Bashir, 20 years after coming to power via a military coup, has established himself as the only choice for president,” Malik wrote, citing the last minute withdrawals by candidates Yasir Arman and Sadiq al-Mahdi.
“…There is an entire generation that knows nothing but Bashir. They grew up in a Sudan shaped, culturally and socially by the Bashir’s party… In Khartoum, most people are just grateful to be able to eat out in the plethora of new restaurants and go about their business without fear of a curfew guillotine or security forces.”
Commenting for the New York-based Human Rights Watch, Africa director Georgette Gagnon said: “Our concerns go beyond technical irregularities. Bashir belongs in The Hague responding to the serious charges against him (concerning alleged war-crimes in Darfur), for which victims have still seen no accountability.”
Nevertheless, Pres. Al-Bashir found a warm welcome in Egypt one day after his electoral victory. The presidents of the two nations have been allies for years. A video of Sudanese rappers and a discussion of the elections can be found at http://www.linktv.org/video/5365/sudanese-elections-music-the-vote-with-nasjota-and-girifna
An African Divergence
By Dan Denning / www.dailyreckoning.com.au/May 4th, 2010
It is not every day that you can stick your finger in the eye of your largest trading partner, undermine your country’s reputation as a stable place to do business, and demonstrate your fundamental ignorance of why entrepreneurs take risks…but in his high-handed small-minded way, Kevin Rudd managed to do all of that yesterday.
Bravo Mr. Rudd!
That’s an impressive day’s work for someone in the public service. But more seriously, the underlying justification for new resource rent tax, when you get right down to it, is that wealth belongs to the government, which is free to take its “fair share” from private enterprise and then spread around wisely in Solomonic fashion. We’ll get to that philosophical issue shortly.
But the financial issue is already quite clear: mining shares got battered. Locally-listed resource shares shed about $14 billion in market value yesterday. That’s about how much the Henry review reckons would be raised by imposing a 40% “super profits tax” on Aussie miners (over and above the current corporate tax rate of 28%).
Why bother raising super annuation contributions if you’re going to reduce corporate profitability and the total return to shareholders generated by Aussie firms? It doesn’t make much sense.
Of all the issues to talk about with respect to the “super profits tax” there are three that interest us most: the reaction in China, the divergence between Aussie and African projects, and the astounding ignorance of why entrepreneurs take risks. Let’s deal briefly with each.
There isn’t any reaction in China yet to the policy change. But you can bet there will be if Aussie firms try to pass on the higher tax by raising prices on their $42.4 billion in exports to China. Of course, because of the nature of the pricing of global commodities, Aussie firms may have less pricing power relative to China than what they think (or have just achieved with quarterly benchmarks for iron ore).
That means the knock-on effect is a re-rating of Aussie companies based on where their projects are. If it is less profitable to explore and extract resources in Australia because of the 57% aggregate tax on projects, then companies will look to places with friendlier, less confiscatory tax regimes. There are plenty of them in Africa.
Out in WA, The West reports that, “Expectations that the Federal Government’s planned resources super tax could send investment dollars offshore saw investors pile into WA’s African juniors yesterday. Defying the share market slump that wiped $8 billion from the value of Australian stocks, shares in Gryphon Minerals, DMC Mining and Ampella Mining rose between 2 and 6 per cent as analysts warned local projects may struggle to secure funding.”
Diggers and Drillers editor Alex Cowie was way ahead of this trend, albeit for different reasons. About a third of his recent recommendations have major projects or operations in Africa. Alex originally cited the lower operating cost as the big driver. But with this weekend’s events, there may be another tailwind now.
To be fair, there is a provision in the Rudd government’s proposals which encourages exploration. But you wonder how many firms will take it up if the end result is the government grabbing its “fair share” of the “excess profit.” That sounds a little bit like a pimp telling his girls they’ll get new jewellery if they go out and drum up more business.
If the new tax decreases investment – as the miners claim it will – then it will lead to less exploration of Australian for new mineral and energy projects. That results in lower capital formation and fewer jobs in the domestic mining industry (although plenty of Aussies could head overseas for work). It would be ironic – and typical of a misunderstanding of how markets work – if a policy designed to capture more of the country’s mineral wealth led to a net decline in that wealth.
But before we get any further into whether the government has sabotaged the prosperity of one of Australia’s key industries, it may be a moot point anyway. Implicit in the “super profits tax” is that profits will remain “super!” But commodity markets are inherently cyclical. And the proposed policy may be based on assumption that’s about to proven invalid.
Of course that’s the argument we made in our “Exit the Dragon” report this weekend. The argument, in brief, is that the pricking of China’s real estate bubble by increased reserve requirements at commercial banks will put an end to the building boom that’s driven Aussie resource prices.
Our old friend Dr. Marc Faber thinks it – a crash in the Chinese stock market – could happen quite soon. Dr. Faber told Bloomberg TV, “The signals are all there, the symptoms of a major bubble are all there. The Chinese economy is going to slow down regardless. It is more likely that we will even have a crash sometime in the next nine to 12 months.”
He also cited the property bust and subsequent depression that followed the 1873 World Exhibition in Vienna, which you have to admit is doing your homework on the relationship between large fixed asset investment and later busts. You can also find a more contemporary example in the way Chinese stocks peaked and then declined before the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics began. Take a look at the charts below.
What do the charts show? Shanghai’s stock market peaked in late 2007, about the same time the S&P peaked. But its decline was more immediate and gradual, if less panicky than the S&P’s performance. Shanghai also bottomed well ahead of the S&P 500. So what?
The Chinese stimulus kicked in sooner and had a more visible effect on stock and real estate prices than nearly anywhere else in the world (except maybe Australia). The debut of the Expo is merely anecdotal and kind of mile marker. But like the decline in stocks before the Olympics, the markets could be telling us that China’s construction boom is over. With banks liquidity tightening and industrial and material stocks struggling, all the signs are there of a market rolling over.
Incidentally, the Expo sounds and looks amazing. China expects nearly 70 million visitors while it lasts, which would put the Olympics to shame. You can see how it’s just the sort of project that would boost construction spending. And then?
What is it with Americans and their constant predictions of an Aussie house bubble? GMO analyst Edward Chancellor – whom we quoted in our China research – says Aussie house prices are 50% of fair value. He told Katherine Jiminez at the Australian that, “My view is Australia had a private sector credit boom just like the US and the UK and it had a real estate boom.”
So far, so good.
“Those are facts and you can’t paper over them. In this environment house prices rose last year [by 20% in fact]and that seems to me to actually have exacerbated the problem. The problem is the bubble and that hasn’t gone away.” He added that rising interest rates “tend to generate the collapse.”
Many property advocates say the comparison between Australia and the U.S. is not apt. Australia didn’t have a subprime lending boom (the FHOG doesn’t count!), the population is growing and immigration is high (underlying demand), there is a lack of supply, credit is still plentiful, and Australians have a preference to live in their own homes.
The alternative view is that Australian households are badly over-leveraged in residential housing. Debt has risen faster than incomes and when interest rates rise – they do that sometimes – the pain will follow. You could argue that the government won’t allow rates to rise. But good luck with that.
Incidentally, we have agreed in pr
inciple to
debate one of Australia’s foremost property experts in July in Sydney. We can’t say anything more about it now. But details will follow.
Finally, has the government fatally misunderstood the cyclicality of commodity markets and the whole notion of risk taking?
One of the intriguing aspects of the debate about the resource rent tax is what the theoretical “adequate return” on a project is. The government used long-term government bond yields as the benchmark, and those are around 5.75% right now. The tax kicks in after that rate of return is reached.
You could forgive a career diplomat for not understanding the nature of risk-taking. Entrepreneurs don’t go into business and take tremendous risks with their time and talent to earn back what you could get in a government bond. Otherwise, why try to capture huge profits by taking risks?
Profits are incentive to produce goods and services. Take away the incentive and you take away the human energy that goes into producing such a large variety of goods and services. The market regulates the returns on projects through supply and demand and transparent pricing. Resource companies make long-term decisions about what to invest based on their forecasts of commodity prices.
The government has essentially butted in and distorted the economics of capital spending plans by blindly assuming resources prices are going to stay high and that it’s going to capture its “fair share.” That’s pretty short-sighted. But more importantly, it shows how badly policy makers misunderstand why entrepreneurs take action – to create surplus value and capture profit.
If the government says “every time you create surplus value we’re going to take it,” who’s going to bother? This is the government behaving as if it is already a majority shareholder in private companies and free to do what it likes with retained earnings, like dole them out to its favorite projects. It’s pretty cheeky – perhaps even immoral – for an institution that didn’t have that much to do with creating the surplus value in the first place.
Now, whether Australia is doing the most to make itself richer from the resource boom is certainly a fair question. But the Rudd government seems to have jumped the shark by deciding that the risks taken by the private sector are its own, but the benefits and profits belong to the public. You wouldn’t blame foreign capital for finding that a disturbing and high-handed attitude.
Dan Denning
for The Daily Reckoning Australia
Newcrest takes out the tax
Stephen Bartholomeusz/www.businessspectator.com.au/4 May 2010
Maybe it was a coincidence but the timing of the now agreed merger of Newcrest Mining and Lihir Gold, less than 48 hours after the Rudd government announced its massive super tax on resource company profits, is propitious. The deal might also provide a preview of things to come.
That super tax certainly validates Newcrest’s decision to raise its offer for the third time. Newcrest, with most of its assets in Australia will, according the UBS analysis, see about 15 per cent of its value wiped out by the super tax.
Lihir, with its major resource in Papua New Guinea and its other significant interests in Africa, is unaffected by the tax. Whether that influenced Newcrest’s decision to sweeten the terms again or not, acquiring a big income stream outside Australia will help dilute the impact of the super tax on the group’s earnings and value and will provide it with options to grow those offshore earnings more aggressively in future.
Other big miners adversely affected by the super tax will also be forced to consider taking action to moderate its impact on their earnings and value. Acquiring offshore resource companies and assets is an obvious strategy.
BHP, for instance, will no doubt be considering elevating its giant Jansen potash in Canada – potentially a $US10 billion-plus investment – within its vast pipeline of prospective new projects.
Whatever the equity or otherwise of the super tax, the amount of value the Rudd government is proposing to expropriate from the sector will inevitably have a very material impact on investment decisions and corporate strategies.
The merger of the region’s two biggest gold mines to create a $25 billion gold major was, even without the prospect of the super tax, a compelling transaction. Not only does it produce a group with massive reserves – among the top-five gold groups in the globe – but it will marry Newcrest’s strength in a stable developed country, albeit one whose appeal was reduced at the weekend, with the riskier but high-quality and long-life resources within Lihir.
The market has loved the merger concept from the moment it was unveiled and Lihir itself was quick to acknowledge the strategic logic – it just wanted more value for embracing it. Ross Garnaut and his board and their advisers have done a good job of extracting that value – from the moment Newcrest first approach them it has subsequently added $1.5 billion of value to the pot.
They have also kept alive, until 8 June, the possibility, albeit slight, of a competing offer. There are no lock-ups in today’s announcement, leaving Lihir free to talk to third parties until that June date.
While the super tax has made Newcrest scrip less attractive, which would have necessitated some improvement in the terms of its offer in any event, it has no implications for Lihir’s own value nor would it impact the decision-making of any of the other big gold groups.
While it is possible that one of them might counter-bid for Lihir, the over-lap between the Newcrest and Lihir registers and the aversion of local investors to accepting offshore-listed paper makes it unlikely.
From Lihir’s perspective, third-party competition would be cream on an already rich cake. The Newcrest offer – worth more than 40 per cent of Lihir’s market value before Newcrest approached it in February and a 33 per cent premium to its one-month volume-weighted average price before the discussions were publicly disclosed – is demonstrably attractive given Lihir shareholders’ continuing exposure to the enlarged and more diversified portfolio of the merged operations
UN /ONU :
UN Nuke Treaty Meeting Begins
www.periodico26.cu/May 4
United Nations, May 3, (RHC/PL).- The United Nations is beginning on Monday a new Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, when there is still a world arsenal with more than 20,000 nuclear weapons.
Representatives from the UN member countries will debate the different aspects related to this issue, which has been in force for 40 years and made up of the five largest world nuclear powers and the permanent members of the UN Security Council (the United States, Russia, Great Britain, France and China) that are identified as Nuclear Weapon States.
However, countries as India, Pakistan and Israel, which possess this kind of weapons, stay of the treaty and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea opted out of it in 2003.
The text includes an article that supports the inalienable right of all States to develop nuclear energy with peaceful ends.
Iran is currently developing a nuclear program with peaceful objectives, but the United States and other powers consider it as a project with a nuclear weapon production end.
The moment of the conference coincides with intensive actions by the United States, France and Great Britain to have the UN Security Council pass a new sanction package against Tehran for its nulcear project.
The essential items of this year’s conference will deal with universality of the treaty, adoption of practical measures aimed at disarmament, promotion of non-proliferation and reinforcement of the existing defense in the matter.
The meeting is being held right after Russia and the United States signed a new agreement in early April to reduce and limit strategic offensive weapons, replacing another accord signed in 1991, and also after a so-called summit on nuclear safety that was in session prior to the UN Conference in Washington on April 12, attended by over 40 countries.
Some days before this meeting, the United States made public its Nuclear Posture Review, which reserves the US right to turn to that kind or armament in extreme cases and in defense of vital interests.
In addition, the Second Conference of Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones (Latin America and the Caribbean, South Pacific and Southeast and Central Asia and Africa) also took place last week at the UN headquarters.
USA :
African Bank, Altron, BHP, Nedbank: South Africa Stocks Preview
May 04, 2010/By Garth Theunissen and Janice Kew/Bloomberg
May 4 (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 4.94, or 0.02 percent, to 28,630.82 at the close in Johannesburg.
African Bank Investments Ltd. (ABK SJ): Deutsche Bank AG cut its recommendation on the continent’s largest provider of unsecured loans to “sell” from “hold.” Deutsche said it no longer sees value in the bank’s shares as its earnings outlook is 12 percent below consensus for fiscal 2011. African Bank rose 33 cents, or 0.9 percent, to 35.88 rand.
Allied Electronics Corp. (ATN SJ): The investment company with interests in industrial cabling and communications equipment said profit for the year through February declined 27 percent to 841 million ($113 million). Stock of Altron, as the company is known, fell 5 cents, or 0.2 percent, to 27.95 rand.
BHP Billiton Ltd. (BIL SJ): Copper dropped to the lowest price in seven weeks in London and Shanghai, leading a decline in industrial metals and catching up with losses in New York as both markets re-opened today after a holiday. BHP, the world’s largest mining company, fell 5.40 rand, or 2.4 percent, to 224 rand.
Freeworld Coatings Ltd. (FWD SJ): The paint producer said it expects earnings per share in the six months through March to be between 20 percent and 30 percent lower than the same period the previous year. Stock of Freeworld was unchanged at 101.80 rand.
Nedbank Group Ltd. (NED SJ): South Africa’s fourth-biggest bank maintained is earnings guidance for the year and said advances rose by 3.9 percent. Nedbank climbed 2.38 rand, or 1.8 percent, to 136.25 rand.
Sasol Ltd. (SOL SJ): Crude oil dropped below $86 a barrel, ending four days of gains, on analyst forecasts that U.S. crude supplies increased last week and concern the debt crisis in Greece will spread and damp fuel demand. Sasol, the world’s biggest maker of motor fuel from coal, rose 1.20 rand, or 0.4 percent, to 302.20 rand.
Shares or American depositary receipts of the following South African companies closed as follows:
Anglo American Plc (AAUKY US) fell 0.2 percent to $21. AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU US) gained 0.3 percent to $41.99. BHP Billiton Ltd. (BBL US) dropped 2.7 percent to $59.38. DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY US) advanced 1 percent to $5.08. Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI US) dropped 1.6 percent to $13.22. Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY US) fell 1.3 percent to $9.64. Impala Platinum Holdings (IMPUY US) gained 0.8 percent to $28.63. Sappi Ltd. (SPP US) advanced 2.1 percent to $4.31. Sasol Ltd. (SSL US) gained 0.9 percent to $41.
–Editor: Ana Monteiro.
US scores poorly on world motherhood rankings: charity
May 4, 2010 /news.smh.com.au
The United States has scored poorly on a campaign group’s list of the best countries in which to be a mother, managing only 28th place, and bettered by many smaller and poorer countries.
Norway topped the latest Save the Children “Mothers Index”, followed by a string of other developed nations, while Afghanistan came in at the bottom of the table, below several African states.
But the US showing put it behind countries such as the Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; and eastern and central European states such as Croatia and Slovenia.
Advertisement: Story continues belowEven debt-plagued Greece came in four places higher at 24.
Save the Children compiled the index after analyzing a range of factors affecting the health and well-being of women and children, including access to health care, education and economic opportunities.
One factor that dragged the US ranking down was its maternal mortality rate, which at one in 4,800 is one of the highest in the developed world,” said the report.
“A woman in the Unites States is more than five times as likely as a woman in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece or Italy to die from pregnancy-related causes in her lifetime and her risk of maternal death is nearly 10-fold that of a woman in Ireland,” the report said.
It also scored poorly on under-five mortality, its rate of eight per 1,000 births putting it on a par with Slovakia and Montenegro.
“At this rate, a child in the US is more than twice as likely as a child in Finland, Iceland, Sweden or Singapore to die before his or her fifth birthday,” the report noted.
Only 61 percent of children were enrolled in preschool, which on this indicator made it the seventh-lowest country in the developed world, it said.
And it added: “The United States has the least generous maternity leave policy — both in terms of duration and percent of wages paid — of any wealthy nation.”
Norway headed the list of developed countries at the top of the list of best places to be a mother, followed by Australia, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, New Zealand, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
At the bottom was Afghanistan, followed by Niger, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Sudan, Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea.
“While the situation in the United States needs to improve, mothers in the developing world are facing far greater risks to their own health and that of their children,” said Save the Children’s Mary Beth Powers.
“The shortage of skilled birth attendants and challenges in accessing birth control means that women in countries at the bottom of the list face the most pregnancies and the most risky birth situations, resulting in newborn and maternal deaths,” she added.
Egypt to partner Chinese to build, operate US$2 bln refinery
www.plastemart.com/(4-5-2010)
Construction is to commence on Egypt’s largest refinery. The North African country’s Government has signed an agreement with China’s Rongsheng Holding Group and
China National Chemical Engineering Co. Ltd, to build and operate a US$2 bln refinery. Under the terms of the contract, ownership of the facility will be transferred to Egypt 25 years after its start-up date. Capacities will include 30 million tpa of refined products including jet fuel and diesel for the domestic market and naphtha for export to China.
Sudan: DC Human Rights Activists Protest Darfur Genocide and Rigged Elections
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)/www.realcourage.org//sudan-dc-protest/beforeitsnews.com/2010/05/04
On April 30, 2010 in Washington DC, human rights activists and members of the Sudanese diaspora held demonstrations and a protest march to condemn the ongoing genocide and violence in Darfur, and the fraudulent elections that led to the “re-election” of Omar Al-Bashir. Al-Bashir has been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war criminal charges. Damanga had publicized this event as “Say No to Sudan’s Stolen Election.” Damanga’s Executive Director Mohamed Yahya also provided an article on this subject to the Salem News, entitled “First African American president to Promote Injustice in African Country.”
The event was to allow Sudanese from all over the United States to come to Washington D.C. to demonstrate their rejection of Sudan’s fraudulent, rigged election and to call upon the US administration not to legitimize the regime led by the indicted war criminal Al-Bashir. Sudanese traveled from across the East Coast from Boston to Richmond to congregate in Washington DC to express their views on April 30, 2010.
Along with the Sudanese diaspora that attended, a broad range of organizations were involved in the April 30 Washington DC demonstration and march including Damanga, Voices for Sudan, Southern Sudan Project, Africa Action, Darfur Women’s Action Group (DWAG), Nubia Project, My Sister’s Keepers, Institute for Religion & Democracy, Our Humanity in the Balance, and Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.).
The demonstration began at Lafayette Park across from the White House, then proceeded in a march to the U.S. Department of State to deliver a statement to the U.S. Secretary of State. (See Adobe Acrobat PDF file of joint statement to the U.S. Department of State.)
Speakers included:
— Mohamed Yahya, Damanga
— Jimmy Mulla, Voices for Sudan
— Fakiri Taha, Nubia Project
— Parek Maduot
— William Bol Gai Deng, Southern Sudan Project
— Nuraddin A. Abdulmannan, Nubia Project
— Adam M. Ahmed Yahya, member of the FUR Solidarity
— Mohamed Altayib, Member of the Sudanna organization
— Muhammad Al-Hassan, a candidate in this year’s election
— Nasredin Hajam
— Niemat Ahmadi, Darfur Women’s Action Group (DWAG)
— Gloria White-Hammond, My Sister’s Keepers
— Meryl Zordanki, Africa Action
— Shaza Abdulla
— Faith McDonnell, Institute for Religion & Democracy
— Terry Nickelson, Our Humanity in the Balance
— Jeffrey Imm, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
Damanga’s Executive Director Mohamed Yahya expressed the concerns and voice of many, speaking of his disappointment and sense of betrayal by the Obama administration on the issue of Darfur and Southern Sudan. At Lafayette Park near the White House, Mohamed Yahya asked how President Obama could allow his representatives to preside over what has been repeatedly reported as a fraudulent election, with a candidate indicted by the ICC for war crimes. Mohamed Yahya voiced his concerns also in an article published by the Salem News, entitled “First African American president to Promote Injustice in African Country.”
At Lafayette Park, Mr. Muhammad Al-Hassan, one of the candidates who ran for office in the recent Sudanese elections spoke. Mr. Al-Hassan confirmed the frequent reports of election fraud that had occurred in the recent Sudanese “elections.”
Other Sudanese speakers echoed his concerns, with stories and narratives of their own. “William” Bol Gai Deng of the Southern Sudan Project came from Richmond, Virginia and spoke about his struggles working as an African slave in Sudan, and the struggles of Sudanese people to receive equal dignity and human rights throughout Sudan. He spoke of how those who would get “paid” were sometimes promised a “cow” for each year’s wages, equivalent to 50 U.S. dollars, and even then such “wages” were withheld from them. Mr. Deng also stated how he sought equality and liberty fairly for all Sudanese people, with laws that were not dependent on any single religious views, but treated all people equally.
He and other Sudanese speakers spoke of the ongoing violence, genocide, and killings in Darfur. They expressed their concerns about the expectations that Sudan will soon be divided into two countries, and what that would mean for their people, and they hoped that someday Sudan would be a united nation with human rights, justice, and dignity for all people. Nuraddin A. Abdulmannan expressed concern that a divided Sudan would lead to a northern Sudan that could host extremists that could become a new haven for terrorism to threaten not only Africa, but also the world.
Meryl Zordanki and Faith McDonnell spoke of their commitment to human rights for the people of Darfur and Sudan, and their own experiences and disappointments with the latest widely reported fraudulent election results. Terry Nickelson spoke of the need for people to come together and take responsibility for human right atrocities in the world and not be dependent on the predictable disappointments of governments willing to compromise on basic human rights.
While marching from the White House to the U.S. State Department, the protesters carried signs stating “Freedom for Darfur,” “Stand with People of Sudan,” “Justice and Human Rights for Darfur,” and “Peace Begins with Justice in Sudan.” They chanted “Al-Bashir to the ICC,” “We Reject Rigged Elections,” and “Justice, Justice for Darfur,” as they marched to the U.S. State Department headquarters.
At the front of the U.S. State Department headquarters, the group requested that a representative of the U.S. State Department accept their statement. Mohamed Yahya, Jimmy Mulla, Niemat Ahmadai, Rev. Gloria White-Hammond, and Jeffrey Imm spoke.
Mohamed Yahya urged State Department Secretary Hillary Clinton to hear their concerns about Darfur and Sudan, and he led the protesters in protest chants at the U.S. State Department.
Gloria White-Hammond traveled from Boston to speak in front of the U.S. State Department with the Sudanese diaspora and human rights protesters. Reverence White-Hammond spoke of her own travels to Darfur and the need for Americans to recognize the essential human rights challenge that Darfur genocide and the latest “elections” represented to peace and human dignity.
Jeffrey Imm spoke to the law enforcement and security officers that surrounded the U.S. State Department headquarters entrance, and urged them to realize that the crisis in Darfur is both a human rights and a law enforcement crisis, comparing the situation in Sudan with the election of Al-Bashir to the election of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany. Imm also stated that having an indicted war criminal leading a nation that was continuing genocide was also an international law enforcement issue as well.
Niemat Amadi spoke of the need to remember the continuing crisis of women in Darfur and the abuses that women continue to suffer every day in Sudan.
Jimmy Mulla thanked all those who traveled from different areas to represent the “voices” of the Sudanese diaspora and others that seek freedom and our universal human rights for Darfur and for all of Sudan.
The Joint Statement to the U.S. State Department read as follows:
April 30, 2010
To the US Secretary of the State, Madame Clinton
U.S. Department of State, 2201 C Street NW, Washington, DC 20037
Dear Madame Secretary:
As concerned members of the Sudanese community and its civil society, we are writing to express our grave concern about the recent Sudanese national elections. We come tog
ether
today as diverse Sudanese leaders from all over the world to say we reject the rigged and fraudulent election and urge the U.S. government not to legitimize the victory and rule of the indicted war criminal Omar al-Bashir over our people in Sudan.
We welcome the recent statement by the U.S. State Department spokesperson that these elections will not bring the Government of Sudan redemption or legitimacy, as well as statements that Sudan’s elections did not meet international standards. However, we urge you to ensure that these declarations are committed to and applied by leaders at all levels of the U.S. government. U.S. policy toward Sudan must be based on a commitment to human rights and justice for all the people of Sudan. The lack of serious measures from the international community and the US in particular have emboldened al-Bashir’s government to continue its manipulative tactics in oppressing the people of Sudan.
We appreciate the United States’ efforts to help resolve Sudan’s multiple crises. Sudan’s national elections were one of the important milestones laid out in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed in 2005 with U.S. support. As Sudanese, we all hoped that a free and fair election could transform the country to a democratic nation, if all Sudanese people could participate in a secure environment free from oppression, fear and intimidation. However, these elections fell far short of fulfilling this dream. Instead, the elections were characterized by political repression and countless irregularities both before and during the election process that made the elections in both North and South Sudan far from free and fair or credible.
Sudan’s leading National Congress Party (NCP) manipulated the process, using all state organs and the state capacity to provide unfair advantage to its campaigns. Security blocked other political parties’ attempts at campaigning, organizing, and accessing the media. As a result, most other political parties boycotted the presidential contest and many other races.
It was also impossible for the Darfuri people to participate in the election process in any meaningful way. As stated by the European Union observer team, which withdrew from the region, the security situation was not conducive for elections to take place in Darfur. The lands of many Darfuri victims have also been occupied by Arab nomad settlers who were introduced to the area by the government of Sudan in exchange for taking part in the fighting and destruction in Darfur. This, combined with the fraudulent census and registration process, allowed for the intentional exclusion of countless Darfuris from the voting process.
With many of our families still on the ground, we are well aware that the security situation in our home region Darfur remains tense and volatile for the nearly three million displaced persons and refugees who have been driven from their homes and are still facing constant threats to their survival. Humanitarian access also remains blocked in many areas of Darfur, such as in the region of eastern Jebel Marra where aid groups that were forced to withdraw in February have
not been able to return. Attacks on civilians including rape and various forms of sexual violence against girls and women remain frequent and unaddressed. The abduction of aid workers and peacekeepers presents a huge challenge for the protection of civilians and provision of life-saving aid. The grave situation of committing heinous atrocities, forcibly displacing and replacing the original inhabitants of Darfur by Arab nomads from other countries for resettlement, combined with fraudulent census, will unequivocally jeopardize any endeavor of future peace process.
It is also important to note that, while many in the international community are well acquainted with difficulties in the implementation of Sudan’s CPA and the ongoing conflict in Darfur, residents of the Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile, Eastern Sudan and Nubia regions also face grave threats to life and liberty. The fate of popular consultations in the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile remains unknown and the non-implementation of the Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement (ESPA) leaves the grievances of the people unresolved and creates a potential for conflict. We recognize the challenges of dealing with al-Bashir’s regime, which has long specialized in divide-and-rule tactics and benefitted from intermittent focus by the international community on North-South issues and on Darfur. However, addressing the urgent situation in Darfur and the implementation of the CPA simultaneously is critical for the future of the entire country. The international community must recognize the urgency and hold the government of Sudan accountable for its actions in both regions.
Given the critical situation in the South with the referendum quickly approaching, we urge the U.S. to take serious measures to ensure that the oppression and irregularities of this election process are not repeated during the referendum. The people of the South must be able to exercise the right to decide their future.
The U.S. must also work with other U.N. Security Council member states to ensure better protection of civilians in Darfur by a more effective UNAMID peacekeeping force. It must also continue to push for an inclusive and genuine peace process that will address the root causes of the crises in Darfur and other areas of Sudan such Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile, Eastern Sudan, and Nubia Region. The United States must proactively support justice for victims of the
genocide in Darfur and continue to urge the execution of ICC arrest warrants for all those wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
Madam Secretary, we call for your leadership in ensuring the U.S. takes serious and concrete steps to hold the Sudanese government accountable for respecting the human rights and democratic will of the people of Sudan. This begins with recognizing and working hard with international partners to address the abuses and irregularities that denied the Sudanese people free and fair elections.
Cc: President Obama
Sincerely,
The undersigned Civil Society and Community Leaders:
Mohmed Ahmed Eisa, Darfuri Activist/ Human Rights laureate, Boston. MA
Jimmy Mulla, President, Voices for Sudan, DC
Fakir Taha Jaweesh, Nubia Project, VA
Niemat Ahmadi, Darfur Women Action Group, DC
Nasma Abdalla Mohamed, Darfuri Activist, Washington, DC
Nagi Idris, Activist, VA
Nuraddin A. Manan, President Nubia Project, VA
Adam Yahya, President, Fur Solidarity of North America, Richmond VA
Parake Madout, Southern Sudanese Activist, Washington DC
Mahmed Daoud, Kush Movement, KM
Salah Abu Gabar Elhaj
Chair, Sudanese Democratic Alliance, VA
Mohaned Alhassan M H, Presidential Candidate /National Reform Party TX
Izzelddin Hohamed Alhassan, National; Reform Party TX
Nagi Iddris Nubia Project
Khalid Grase, Nubia Project, MD
Amal Allagabo, General Secretary, Darfur Women Action Group, VA
William Deng, President South Sudan Project, Richmond VA
Mohamed Mahmoud, Chair, Sudana, VA
Dr. Mahmoud Braima, Darfur Association of North America, Louisiana
Ahmed Adam Ali, President Darfur Association of Colorado, Denver
Mahdi Elkhalifa, Umma Party, VA
Page 4
Darfur Association of Dallas, TX
Darfur Association of Houston, TX
Darfur Association of Arizona
Darfur Association of Nebraska
Mr. Mansour Ahmed-, F Secretary-General- Fur Cultural Revival (Portland, ME)
Mr. Mohmmed Yahya, Director -Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy
Adam Abakar, Darfurian Association of Utah,
Mr. Bakheit Shata, Darfur Community Organization (Omaha, Nebraska)
Mohamed E. Suleiman, Darfur’ Self Reliance Education, San Francisco Bay Area
Abdeljabar Seddik, Western Sudan Aid Relief in the USA Inc TX
. Darfurian Urgent Action of USA
. Care Unit for Unity and Development, Atlanta, GA
Activists
1. Dr. Adam Omer Lincoln, NE
2. Kamaldine Fort Wayne IN
3. Khalid Hanhdal Houston TX
4. Abdelrahim Khamis Houston TX
6. Adam Babiker Houston TX
7. Taragi Mustafa Ontario Canada
8. Basmat Ahmed Stone Mountain GA
9. Ezeldin Yahiya Dallas TX
10. Ismail Omer Dallas TX
11. Mohamed Hassan Omaha NE
12. El Gouzuli Sheruf Manhattan NY
13. Nusaiba Abbas Houston TX
14. Ahmed Yahya Stone Mountain GA
15. Hawa Ahmed Stone Mountain GA
16. Adam Abdullah Tucson AZ
17. Yahya Harun Dallas TX
19. Abdel Jabbar Seddik Dallas TX
20. Bakri Jumaa NJ
21. Abdo Ashoor Des Moines IA
22. Elsadiq Ashoor Des Moines IA
23. Mansour Ishaaq
24. Makki Makki Houston TX
25. Mohamed Haroon Dallas TX
26. Sulieman Awadallah Houston TX
28. Ibrahim Abdelrahman Houston TX
29. Elsadiq Jibril Houston TX
30. Abdel-Raziq Ibrahim Houston TX
31. Adam Mohamed Houston TX
32. Dr. Ismail Abdlla Baltimore MD
33. Jumaa Haree Manhattan NY
34. Alm Eldeen Adam Manhattan NY
35. Hassneen Sluman Fort Wayne IN
36. Ibrhim Adam Phoenix AZ
37. Salah Noreen AZ
38. Ahmed Elshikh Dallas TX
39. Elkhalee Shegfat Ph PA
European Diaspora
Mohammadain Mohamad Ishag, President -Darfur Culture Organization, Belgium
Ahamad Omar Ishag -Darfur Community Belgium
Mustafa A. Ali Dinar
Darfur Union, the Netherlands
Ahmed M.
CANADA :
AUSTRALIA :
Mothers in Norway, Australia have best lives
Tue, May 04, 2010/ Source : Reuters
The NANYANG MBA Singapore
Number 1 MBA in Singapore 27th in the World. Find Out More!
Mothers in Norway and Australia are in the best nations in the world to bring up their children while mothers in Afghanistan and many African nations fare worst, according to an annual Mothers’ Index.
The 11th annual Save The Children index, which ranks the best and worst places to be a mother, looks at the well-being of women and children in 160 countries which includes access to education, economic opportunities, and health care.
The list last year was headed by Sweden but for 2010 Norway came first followed by Australia, Iceland, Sweden and Denmark with New Zealand, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany rounding out the top 10.
In the bottom 10, Afghanistan ranked last preceded by Niger, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Sudan, Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea. In 2009 Niger was last.
The 2010 list of 43 developed nations and 117 in the developing world highlighted the fact that nearly 350,000 women die during pregnancy or childbirth every year and nearly 9 million children die before their fifth birthday.
“Conditions for mothers and their children in the bottom 10 countries are grim. On average, 1 in 23 mothers will die from pregnancy-related causes. One child in 6 dies before his or her fifth birthday, and 1 child in 3 suffers from malnutrition,” said a statement from Save The Children.
The United States came 28th in the list, down from 27 last year, largely as its rate for maternal mortality — 1 in 4,800 — is one of the highest in the developed world. The United States also offers less maternity leave than other wealthy nations.
“While the situation in the United States needs to improve, mothers in the developing world are facing far greater risks to their own health and that of their children,” Mary Beth Powers, vice-chair of Save The Children’s Every One campaign, said in a statement.
“The shortage of skilled birth attendants and challenges in accessing birth control means that women in countries at the bottom of the list face the most pregnancies and the most risky birth situations, resulting in newborn and maternal deaths.”
Save The Children said:
* Fewer than 15% of births are attended by skilled health personnel in Afghanistan and Chad with only 6 % of births in Ethiopia attended which compared to skilled staff being present at almost every birth in Norway.
* In Niger one woman in every seven dies in childbirth. The risk is one in 8 in Afghanistan and Sierra Leone compared to Ireland where the risk is less than 1 in 47,600.
* In Angola, Chad, Democrastic Republic of Congo and Somalia, one child in five does not reach his or her fifth birthday. In Finland, Iceland, Luxembourg and Sweden only one child in 333 dies before age 5.
* A typical female in Afghanistan, Angola, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea and Guinea-Bissau receives less than five years of formal education. In Australia and New Zealand, the average woman stays in school for more than 20 years.
EUROPE :
We ignore foreign policy at our peril
Britain has been on mass-media Valium during this campaign as far as foreign policy goes, but the stakes are higher than ever
Denis MacShane guardian.co.uk/Tuesday 4 May 2010
Foreign policy and the eternal Europe question have not featured in this election. There were predictable exchanges in the second leaders’ debate but they were focused on domestic aspects of foreign policy as Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg tried to trip each other up in a pointless point-scoring contest. For four weeks Britain has been on mass-media Valium as far as serious foreign policy issues are concerned.
But on 7 May harsh realities will break into the parochial provincialism of British politics. Barack Obama is gunning for one of Britain’s key export earners and iconic companies, BP. The Middle East remains poised for all-out conflict as neither Israel nor its Palestinian and wider Arab opponents seem to have any desire or idea on how to make peace.
Will prime minister’s question time always have to begin with the roll-call of dead in Afghanistan or will a new Commons begin to reflect growing public disquiet about the dead and maimed returning from a region riddled with corruption and terror? Despite the huffing and puffing what will stop foreigners coming to Britain as long as employers refuse to hire British workers, and are the latter willing to do the work that our 24/7 service economy demands?
There has been plenty of hubris at the Greek drama. But if Greece defaults, devalues, or the drachma replaces the euro, the consequences will be felt in Britain. A Europe that replaces open-border integration with economic sauve qui peut politics will hit trade. A Britain that says “no” to Polish workers can face a Poland – strong and growing under its moderate Civic Platform government – that may say “no” to British financial services or Easyjet flights. Why should Italian olive oil exporters who have to price in euros not demand protection against Greek olive oil exporters if they export in a devalued drachma?
Wider afield there is no coherent policy to deal with China’s demands that it is allowed to export at will without allowing its citizens democratic rights or fair wages. It is 50 years since Harold Macmillan’s Wind of Change speech and France, too, is celebrating the half-century of granting nominal independence to all its African colonies. Now China is recolonising Africa as Beijing scrambles to buy raw and precious materials and put African leaders on its payroll.
The Department for International Development (DfID) was set up with great fanfare 13 years ago and now has the lion’s share of UK spend on international policy. But poverty, corruption and malnutrition has gone up not down in the countries where DfID operates. Meanwhile the BBC World Service faces a 25% cut in its budget as funds are diverted to pay for Adam Smith’s overseas operation from the swollen DfID budget. Will Britain continue to replace statecraft by aidcraft?
Many diplomats hope that a new Conservative foreign secretary will restore the cuts Labour imposed on the Foreign Office to pay for the increased budgets of DfID, the MoD and the intelligence agencies. They hope in vain as Cameron wants more money for the military, for DfID and for spies.
Iran continues its reckless rush to become a nuclear power with no one willing to apply either effective sanctions or make clear other options are on the table. Russia seeks to recreate its Soviet sphere of influence. But as the US and other countries extract gas from shale, questions about Russia’s mono-economy emerge as the Russian population dwindles under the Putin-Medvedev neo-authoritarian rule.
India is unable to defeat illiteracy, poverty and terrible assaults on women despite having more billionaires and millionaires than any country in Europe. Kashmir remains a burning issue with 70,000 Muslims killed since the Indian army took control of the disputed region 20 years ago. Latin America still have too many trade barriers and too much populist nationalism, as well as unresolved narco-terrorism from outfits like Farc in Colombia.
None of these problems merit a mention in our election. After 1945, the Conservative party was the multilateralist, indeed internationalist, party. Churchill called for a “United States of Europe”. The Tories set up the Council of Europe, supported the creation of Nato, the OECD, GATT (now the WTO), and entry into the EEC, now the EU. The Tories negotiated the first nuclear test ban treaty and the law of the sea treaty. Margaret Thatcher signed the Single European Act and John Major signed the Maastricht treaty. As supporters of open trade capitalism and a Lockeian view of the world based on enforceable contract under law, the Conservatives in government sought to bind the world together by sovereignty-sharing treaties and international law. The failure at Copenhagen to secure a climate change treaty shows how multilateralism is being sidelined in favour of the renationalisation of sovereignty-sharing treaties.
This will accelerate after 7 May if Cameron becomes PM. If there is one guiding foreign policy principle to emerge from five years of William Hague’s stewardship of Tory foreign policy it is bilateralism in place of multilateralism. Thus implies working with France, not the EU on defence policy even though the French have made clear they want more not less Europe on defence questions. Cameron talked vaguely about building relations with north Africa (Algeria? Libya?) in place of the EU. Cameron has said he wants to repatriate core elements of the Lisbon treaty, including social rights for workers, and common rules on combating transfrontier crime. He wants a sovereignty act to push back the EU. Fair enough. But if 26 other EU nations pass sovereignty acts to repudiate elements of the EU that Britain likes and wants to see upheld, how can an open Europe survive?
Cameron is proud of his alliance with homophobic politicians in the European parliament and has placed his Tory MEPs under the orders of a Polish radical rightist who venerates Augusto Pinochet and will not apologise for the massacre of some Jews in wartime Poland. Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel are aghast at this behaviour as well as Cameron’s rupture with the decades-long alliance with centre-right parties in Europe. Again this has had no play in the election but will return to haunt Britain if Cameron becomes PM.
He has also called for a referendum on any treaty change that affects Britain. This is aimed at placating anti-EU voters and Tory backers like Rupert Murdoch, the Barclay Brothers and their vizier, the anti-European Andrew Neil, as well as Lord Rothermere and his editors. Again, fair enough. But it is impossible to imagine Turkey joining the EU without substantial treaty change. The Tories are nominal supporters of Turkish EU aspirations, but their promise of plebiscites on future EU treaties will torpedo Turkey’s putative EU entry hopes.
It is hard to imagine Clegg and Chris Huhne and Menzies Campbell supporting Cameron’s desire to create a Eurosceptic isolationism as the UK’s new foreign policy. And if there is no clear majority in the Commons these undiscussed issues about foreign and EU policy will come to dominate the next political agenda. It is a shame that the British people have been denied any chance to examine these issues in what has been a policy-free and personality-dominated election.
Krengel Addresses Goldstone On UN Report
Tuesday, May 04, 2010 /www.newstime.co.za
Opening statement by Avrom Krengel, chairman of the SAZF, delivered at a meeting with Judge Richard Goldstone.
OPENING STATEMENT
In the past three weeks the Jewish people have commemorated two of the most important events in their 4 000 year history. On the 11th of April we commemorated Yom Hashoah. This is the day that we remember the 6 million Jews of Europe who were murdered by the Nazi’s during the 2nd World War. We also remember the 6 years preceding the war, when not a single nation was prepared to provide a safe haven to the Jews wishing to flee from Nazi tyranny. A week after Holocaust Remembrance Day we celebrated one of our most joyous occasions, the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Sixty five years after the liberation of Auschwitz and 62 years since Israel’s independence, Jews throughout the world live lives of unprecedented freedom, dignity and security. The vast majority of Jewry attribute this remarkable transition to the existence of the State of Israel. After 2 000 years, Jews finally have a refuge to where they may flee in times of trouble, and a country that will always protect and defend them, whether they are suffering persecution under Communist Russia or are being held hostage in Entebbe, Uganda.
While Diaspora Jewry enjoys all the benefits that the State of Israel bestows on us, it is only the citizens of Israel that bear the burden and make the ultimate sacrifice in order to ensure the continued existence of Israel. Hence, Diaspora Jewry feel a deep sense of gratitude towards and solidarity with Israel and its citizens. We recognise however, that in Israel’s continuous fight for survival, it is not exempt from any international law or rules of warfare which apply to every nation.
The South African Zionist Federation is an organisation established 112 years ago to allow South African Jewry to assist in the creation of a Jewish homeland. Today, it is the organisation which represents the South African Jewish community in matters relating to Israel. Every Jewish Organisation in South Africa which supports Israel in some form or another is an affiliate of the Federation and their members span the entire spectrum of our community. The functions and events organised by the Federation in honour of Israel are by far the largest gatherings of South African Jewry.
It is in my capacity as the Chairman of this organisation that I address you today, to express our deep disappointment and dissatisfaction, with your involvement, as a South African Jew, in leading the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza conflict.
The United Nations Human Rights Council, which established your Fact Finding Mission, is notorious for its bias against Israel. Since its creation in 2006, the UNHRC has devoted 27 of its 33 censures to one sided and unconstructive resolutions criticising Israel. In the past 12 months it has passed resolutions praising Sri Lanka after it killed an estimated 20 000 civilians in its struggle against the Tamil Tigers and congratulated Sudan for its “progress” while never in the past having condemned Sudan for its atrocities committed in Darfur.
The enabling resolution of the UNHRC upon which your mission was established, stated that the designated purpose of your mission was “to investigate all violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law by the occupying Power, Israel, against the Palestinian people throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly in occupied Gaza Strip, due to the current aggression.” As a result of this one sided resolution and the fact that most democracies in the UNHRC had either abstained or voted against it, the UNHRC battled to find anyone with the necessary profile to lead its mission. Persons such as Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and convenor of the United Nations Conference Against Racism in Durban, refused to accept the appointment.
It would appear that you were convinced to become the head of the mission pursuant to discussions held between yourself and the President of the UNHRC whereby he gave you permission to investigate international law and human rights violations carried out by all parties involved in the Gaza conflict. It is important to note that your mission of enquiry into the Gaza conflict, where approximately 1 000 civilians were killed, is unprecedented. As far as I am aware, never before has the UNHRC, nor any other organ of the United Nations conducted an investigation of human rights violations into conflicts which do not involve massacres, genocide or crimes against humanity such as organised and systematic mass rapes, the cutting off of limbs of civilians and the use of child soldiers. There has never been an investigation into Russia’s wars in Chechnya which have caused over 200 000 civilian casualties, nor has there been an investigation into America’s invasion of Iraq which resulted in over 100 000 civilian deaths and as previously stated, Sri-Lanka’s killing of 20 000 civilians in 2009 alone, led to a congratulatory resolution being passed by the very same UNHRC.
The other 3 members of your mission consisted of an advocate from Pakistan, an English academic who had already signed a petition accusing Israel of war crimes prior to joining the mission and a colonel in an army that has never fought a war never mind an asymmetrical one.
With regard to the actual contents of the mission’s report, one would have hoped that your involvement would have ensured that a principle I once heard best described by a veteran corporate lawyer would have applied, namely “what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander”. In other words, Israel is treated no differently from Hamas. While simple Jews such as ourselves living at the tip of Africa are unable to second guess you as to the reliability of witnesses you heard or the evidence and information which you received or did not receive, there are however certain aspects of this report which even we can understand are highly prejudicial to Israel, while being extremely favourable towards Hamas. For the sake of brevity during this opening statement I shall only highlight 2 of these glaring disparities in the way the parties have been treated by your mission.
Your report never misses an opportunity to mention that Israel refused to co-operate with the mission. The underlying message is clear, Israel is to blame for any harsh findings made by your mission against it. If it wished to provide the true facts that would have changed your mind, it was welcome to do so, but refused.
Your approach to Hamas however , is entirely different. On page 6 of the report you state that during your visits to the Gaza Strip, the mission held meetings with senior members of the Gaza authorities and they extended their full co-operation and support to the Mission. In a footnote on page 40 of the report you state that the term “Gaza authorities” is used to refer to the de facto Hamas-lead authorities established in Gaza since June 2007. It is therefore clear that you wish the reader of the report to believe that Hamas co-operated fully with your mission and therefore no adverse findings against it can be made as a result of their non co-operation.
Later on in your report however, an entirely different picture emerges. On page 134 you state “the mission also addressed questions regarding the tactics used by Palestinian armed groups to the Gaza authorities. They responded they had nothing to do, directly or indirectly, with the Al-Qassam brigades or other armed groups and had no knowledge of their tactics. To gather first hand information on the matter, the mission requested a meeting with representatives of the armed groups. However, the groups were not agreeable to such a meeting”. Later, on page 151, you state the following “the mission asked the Gaza
Authorities to provide information on the sites from where the Palestinian armed groups had launched attacks against Israel and against the Israeli armed forces in Gaza. The mission similarly asked whether, to their knowledge, civilian buildings and mosques had been used to store weapons. In their response, the Gaza authorities stated they had no information on the activities of the Palestinian armed groups or about the storage weapons in mosques and buildings”. Finally, on page 134 it is recorded that the mission notes that those interviewed in Gaza appeared reluctant to speak about the presence of or conduct of hostilities by the Palestinian armed groups. Whatever the reasons for their reluctance, the mission does not discount that the interviewee’s reluctance may have stemmed from a fear of reprisals.
In other words, based upon the mission’s own version, absolutely no-one in Gaza, neither the civilian population, nor any armed group, nor the Gaza Authorities were prepared to co-operate in any way in respect of the way Hamas and others conducted their armed operations during the conflict. The question to be asked is why is it stated on page 6 that the mission received full co-operation from the Gaza authorities, when it is patently clear that it did not.
Secondly why did you not make a negative inference from such refusal to co-operate, in the same manner which you did towards the Israelis. On page 151 of the report you actually state that if the Gaza Authorities failed to take the necessary measures to prevent the Palestinian armed groups from endangering the civilian population by conducting hostilities in a manner incompatible with international humanitarian law, they would bear responsibility for the damage done to the civilians living in Gaza.
There is an important line missing after that observation which is inserted in almost every section dealing with alleged Israeli atrocities. The missing sentence should simply have stated that the refusal of the Gaza Authorities to co-operate with the mission on this issue, while fully co-operating in respect of all other requests made by the mission, forces the mission to conclude that Hamas did in fact act in a manner which would lead them to bear responsibility for the damage done to the civilians living in Gaza.
The second example of the different treatment afforded to Israel and Hamas is the manner in which you expanded your mandate to allow the report to provide a complete context for the reasons the conflict in Gaza had occurred. With regard to the Israelis, over 100 pages of your report are devoted to giving the reader a history of every actual and alleged human rights violation Israel has committed in what you term “the Occupied Palestinian Territories”, since 1967. One can only presume that this endless list of Israel’s ”violations” is designed to provide the report’s readers with an understanding as to why Hamas and the “other Palestinian armed groups” resorted to rocket fire into Southern Israel and the capture of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
In respect of Israel however, no such contextualisation of its actions is provided in any meaningful manner. Nowhere in your 573 page report do you feel it is of value “for contextual purposes” to mention that Hamas’ founding charter calls for the destruction of the State of Israel. Furthermore, you failed to disclose that the very reason for Israel’s and Egypt’s blockade of Gaza and the sanctions imposed upon Hamas by the US and the EU is a direct result of Hamas’ refusal to abandon its primary aim of destroying Israel. Notwithstanding the report’s claim that it supports a peaceful two state solution between Israel and the Palestinians, you fail to mention that Hamas is an implacable enemy of such a solution . In fact, at the height of the Oslo Peace Accords in the mid to late 1990’s, Hamas waged a merciless suicide bombing and terror campaign against Israel, resulting in 150 Israeli civilian deaths, specifically aimed at the derailing of such peace negotiations. You fail to disclose that Hamas killed over 500 Israeli civilians in suicide bombings committed during the years 2000 to 2009. You fail to disclose that the introduction by Hamas of suicide bombing into the Middle East has caused the death of tens of thousands of Muslims in the region. You fail to disclose that Hamas is armed, supported and supplied by Iran, a country whose president has on numerous public occasions stated its desire to destroy the State of Israel and is suspected of developing nuclear weapons perhaps for this very purpose.
Finally you failed to disclose that Iran has stated that in any war which it wages with Israel, Hamas would be expected to open a second front against Israel during what will be a war for Israel’s existential existence.
In summary, your mission and its report is, in the words of Canada’s famous jurist and human rights lawyer Professor Irwin Cotler “tainted to the core”. Without your credentials as a Jew and pre-eminent Human Rights Jurist this report would have lacked all credibility and would have failed to gain any traction. Your involvement in this mission and report has lead to potentially devastating consequences for Israel and the Jewish people.
Based upon the circumstances surrounding the establishment of your mission and the contents of the Report itself, it now appears that the world has two sets of international law, one to be applied to Israel the other to everyone else. While Israeli soldiers, generals and politicians face the prospect of war crime trials at the Hague, a fate formerly reserved for persons who were involved in such atrocities as the genocide of 300 000 Darfurians and 1 million Tutsis, the soldiers, generals and politicians of Russia, United States, Nato and Sri Lanka, who are collectively responsible for the death of over 320 000 civilians during the past 15 years of armed conflicts, will continue to be able to act with impunity and immunity. Your request that countries prosecute Israeli soldiers under Universal Jurisdiction Principles will prevent thousands of Jews from visiting their parents and grandparents in certain countries and force their absence from family celebrations.
Judge Goldstone, this situation which I have described, is not International justice. It is simply a travesty of justice, a reintroduction of discriminatory laws and practices against the Jewish People.
In your letter addressed to Rabbi Goldstein in the Business Day dated 22nd April, you admonished him, as a fellow Jew, for not “reaching out to your family”. As a South African Jewish Community, and as a fellow Jew, we admonish you for spending 14 days in the Gaza Strip, listening to the testimony of hundreds of Gazan residents, publicly thanking them for their warm welcome and hospitality, while failing to reach out to Corporal Gilad Shalit who has languished for 4 years in a hellhole which may have been situated only a few blocks from where you were enjoying your Gazan hospitality. In exchange for bestowing your prestige and credibility on the testimony of the Palestinian victims of this conflict, we think it would have been only appropriate of you to demand of Hamas the unconditional release of Gilad Shalit or failing that to demand that they recognise his status as a prisoner of war and failing even that, to at least insist that you personally visit him to allow him to tell you first hand of his story of suffering and isolation, in the same manner that you did for all the inhabitants of Gaza.”
As a member of the Jewish community, we ask you to reach out to us and understand our pain and anger at what you have done and to work with us in ensuring that Israel is not treated in a manner different to any other nation.
In conclusion, while we are extremely unhappy with your involvement in drafting the Goldstone report, we nevertheless laud your desire to minimize casualties in any armed conflict and encourage you to develop a standard set of rules of engagem
ent which shall apply to all nations in any conflict. We urge you to work with your fellow jurists and the United Nations to create a mechanism whereby if in any conflict a certain amount of civilian casualties are incurred, there is automatically an impartial and objective investigation into the circumstances which led to those civilians being killed. If you are able to establish such mechanisms and rules for every nation of the world, we would support you whole heartedly in encouraging Israel to participate in such investigations, which would be no different to those applying to Russia, America, Sri Lanka, Nato and any other nation which is involved in an armed conflict.
CHINA :
Kibaki jets back with goodies from China
BY PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/www.capitalfm.co.ke/May 4
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 4 – President Mwai Kibaki jetted back into the country on Tuesday from Shanghai, China after a five-day state visit to the East Asian country.
The plane carrying President Kibaki and his entourage touched down at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport shortly before 6.00 am.
President Kibaki’s visit climaxed with the holding of fruitful bilateral talks with his host President Hu Jintao. The President attended the grand opening of the Shanghai World Expo. Over 192 countries participated in the expo which accorded Kenyans an opportunity to display and promote their products and services in the vast Chinese and Asian markets.
At the bilateral talks President Hu Jintao announced the extension of a Sh1.2 billion grant towards Kenya’s development projects.
President Kibaki and the Chinese President discussed the construction of Lamu port where the two leaders agreed that the port had the potential to open up vast parts of Northern Kenya and benefit regional economies of Southern Sudan and Ethiopia.
The two nations agreed to prioritise the construction of the Lamu Port as a key pillar project towards the attainment of Kenya’s development blue print, the Vision 2030.
In this regard, it was agreed that appropriate modalities on financing arrangements be made to avoid any financial gaps due to the huge financial resources that will be required.
The deliberations attest to the fact that Kenya has edged closer to the development of the second port at Lamu.
The Kenya government has already commissioned feasibility studies on the port and accompanying infrastructure which include a railway line from Lamu.
The Chinese President termed President Kibaki a true and old friend of China and had redefined relations between the two countries, giving impetus to overall China Africa relations.
President Hu said President Kibaki’s leadership had set Kenya on the growth path to drive the economies of countries in the East and Central Africa region.
President Kibaki said China had proved to be a genuine development partner and critical ally in Kenya’s economic revival that has led to major infrastructural development in the country.
The Head of State noted with appreciation that China remained one of the leading bilateral donors to Kenya with an accumulative official development assistance totaling Sh42 billion.
The President assured China of the government’s determination and commitment to boost the existing cordial relations through exchange visits at all levels for the benefit of the peoples of the two countries.
With regard to implementation of Vision 2030 the President affirmed the government has adopted a pragmatic approach that would transform the country into a middle income economy.
On stability in the horn of Africa, the Head of State expressed the government’s full support for the peace processes in both Sudan and Somalia.
President Hu Jintao thanked the government and people of Kenya for being at the forefront in peace initiatives in both Sudan and Somalia.
The Chinese leader committed to encouraging investors to open up businesses in Kenya. He will also encourage more tourists to visit the Kenya’s world renowned and preferred destinations.
President Hu Jintao at the same time announced new areas of development cooperation with Kenya including health and education where more scholarships will be given for Kenyans to study in China.
During the visit President Kibaki also met and held discussions with officials from various Chinese companies and businesses interested in investing in Kenya.
The President assured potential investors that the government had created an enabling environment to do business in the country.
The Head of State held talks with officials of China-Africa Development (CAD) Fund led by the Chief Executive Officer Chi Jian Xin.
Mr Chi Jian Xin briefed the President on the company’s willingness to partner with private/public companies in supporting projects that can be funded through the official bilateral framework between Kenya and China.
The Head of State also met with the Head of Hydro-China Guiyang Corporation Pan Jilu. The company, a hydropower and wind power generation, transmission and distribution Company, has been involved in various hydro and wind power generation projects.
The Head of State directed the ministries of Energy, Finance and Regional Authorities to organise consultative meetings with companies interested in Kenya’s development needs and work out modalities of implementing identified projects without delay.
During the visit President Kibaki was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, cabinet Ministers Moses Wetangula, Amos Kimunya, Fred Gumo, John Munyes, Assistant Ministers Nderitu Muriithi, Mohammed Abu Chiaba, Joseph Nkaissery and the MP for Kisauni Hassan Joho among other senior government officials.
After Niger Coup, China Confirmed As Africa’s “Behind-the-Scenes” Power
www.economywatch.com/04May 2010
Just a few months ago, China was widely derided here as the financial backbone propping up an autocratic president, Mamadou Tandja,
giving him the confidence to ignore international condemnation as he chopped away at Niger’s democratic institutions.
But now that Mr. Tandja has been overthrown, China appears to be settling into a new role:
business partner to the good-government-preaching military officers who ousted Mr. Tandja under the banner of restoring democracy.
“Our diplomatic relations with China were not affected by the coup d’état,” said Mahaman Laouali Dan Dah, a spokesman for the military junta now running the country.
The junta has said broadly that it may adjust any deals made by Mr. Tandja to ensure that they sufficiently benefit Niger, a nation rich in uranium and, potentially, oil.
But the junta does not seem eager to upset the Chinese — “checking doesn’t mean calling into question,” said Col. Abdoulkarim Goukoye, a junta member —
and for now China appears to be proceeding confidently, sealing its reputation here as the continent’s behind-the-scenes force, ready to do business regardless of who is in power.
That was plain to see from the front page of the government newspaper this month. China’s ambassador to Niger, Xia Huang, was prominently shown inspecting the bridge that his country is building here in the capital.
About 10 days before, Mr. Xia had proclaimed on state television that China’s extensive oil and uranium interests in Niger had not been “disrupted by the events” — the coup — in February, news agencies reported.
There may still be some small perturbations, according to this article in the New York Times.
“They couldn’t care less” who leads the country, Mohamed Bazoum, a former opposition leader recently appointed by the junta to a civilian council, said of China’s investments in Niger.
“The Chinese, they were about to destroy democracy. They were playing a very negative role.”
But even Mr. Bazoum did not suggest breaking with China now.
In a sign of how desperately Niger needs investment — the nation ranks at the very bottom of the United Nations human development index —
Mr. Bazoum said he hoped the old deals would be respected, suggesting how quickly the looming backlash against China here has become an embrace.
“When the international community turns its back on you, you’ve got to find money somewhere,” said Sanoussi Tambari Jackou, the senior member of Niger’s Parliament.
After all, he said, “it’s the West that threw Tandja into the arms of the Chinese.”
INDIA :
BRASIL:
My Thoughts on the Oil Spill
caps.fool.com/ May 04, 2010
report
Until yesterday, I was long long long on the deepwater drillers. I sold my positions in RIG and DO and closed my CAPS picks after several years. In a nutshell, I believe the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon and subsequent spill destroys all visibility into where the industry is heading. With no visibility, I have no idea of future profits and no way to put a value on these companies.
Prior to this event, deepwater drilling was one of the most promising areas of the oil patch. There were big finds off of Africa, Brazil, and in the GOM. While expensive, it was the one area where huge fields were being found–10 billion barrels+. For America, deepwater production in the GOM was reversing a multi-decade decline in domestic oil production. The environmental record of the industry was very good–all the hurricanes passed through the Gulf in 2004-2005 and nary a drop of oil was spilled.
Meanwhile, environmentalists warned of exactly this kind of disaster. We were told by the oil industry that there was a valve–a blow out preventer–on the sea floor that would shut and prevent any leakage. For 40 years, there wasn’t a major incident at an American offshore platform and the environmentalists looked like a bunch of out of touch, “sky is falling” chicken littles. Sadly, their warnings have now been substantiated. All the technology and sophistication of a $700 million deepwater drilling rig has failed to prevent catastrophe.
So, at a bare minimum, when the environmentalists warn against further deepwater drilling, particularly on the East Coast and other new areas, the entire calculation of risk and reward has changed. The rewards might still be appealing, but the perception of risk will be much higher.
Sure, there have been rig fires and oil spills in the past. Yet, demand for oil continued to grow unabated. What makes this different? In my mind: people. When the Exxon Valdez occurred, it was a major environmental incident, but a very small population of people was impacted. This time, it could be the entire Gulf Coast population. Millions of people will likely be impacted. The second thing is that this spill is continuing for weeks, unlike the sinking of an oil tanker which is a one-time event. Therefore, this incident will have a much greater human impact than previous spills and could prove to be a watershed moment like 3 Mile Island in the American nuclear power industry. 30 years later and we still have not built another new reactor.
And this brings us to the supply and demand equation. Due to high prices and the recession, oil demand in the U.S. has already been falling. High mileage vehicles have already been introduced to the market. Sales have seemed to fall every time gas prices fall, but for several years people have driven the Prius as a badge of environmental honor. I suspect this incident will only solidify the already existing trend towards conservation in the U.S. Demand growth in Japan has been falling or stagnant for a long time. Demand in Europe has also been stagnant or falling.
So, we have Japan, U.S., and Europe with stagnant or declining demand for the next decade. That is over 50% of global demand right there.
Now, demand in China and India will continue to rise. I suspect overall global demand will also continue to rise along with them. However, the rate of demand growth will likely be anemic due to stagnation in the developed world.
So, supply does not need to grow very much or very fast. Iraq has huge production increases hitting the market over the next 10 years. Oil sands production will continue increasing. Will it be enough to make up for lost production elsewhere? I don’t know, but I suspect it will be possible to get along without huge new finds from deepwater sources.
I also suspect is that deepwater drillers will find their profits plumetting. The price of anything is based on the marginal supply. In 2003, dayrates for deepwater rigs were “only” $200,000/day because there were plenty of rigs sitting in storage. In 3 short years, dayrates rocketed up to $600,000/day as demand for rigs outstripped supply. New rigs were commissioned and the supply of rigs will be increasing in the next few years.
Meanwhile, because of this incident, governments could put a moratorium on new drilling projects, existing projects could be scrapped, new regulations can be put in place to make the projects more expensive, and so on. Any of the above will negatively impact demand for deepwater rigs. A small decrease in demand for rigs will result in a surplus of rigs on the market and delcining dayrates. If dayrates drop, profits for deepwater drillers will evaporate overnight.
That’s why I sold the deepwater drillers from my portfolio.
So, what can the oil companies and deepwater drillers do? First, the blow out preventer should be made “fail safe.” My understanding is that it is currently a manual process. They need to put the controls in place to automate the function in the worst case scenario. At 10,000 feet of water depth, this is likely no easy task or they would have already been there. Second, they should put in place a mitigation plan for incidents like this. Right now, they are welding a huge metal dome to put over the top of the leaking pipe to direct the oil onto barges until the relief well can be drilled. Why isn’t there one of these things already built and ready to deploy on the Gulf Coast? In the future, it should be.
In the end, the real wild card is whether or not they will be able to stop the leak and minimize the environmental impact in the next few days. If Plan A (the metal dome) fails and the well continues to leak until a relief well is successful (likely sometime in June), this will undoubtedly be the worst environmental disaster in American history if it isn’t already.
Petrobras Posing Downgrade Risk as Yields at Six-Month High
May 04, 2010/By Veronica Navarro Espinosa/Bloomberg
May 4 (Bloomberg) — Petroleo Brasileiro SA bonds are yielding the most relative to Brazilian government debt in at least six months on concern the state-run oil company will need to boost borrowing for its $220 billion investment plan.
“From a creditor’s perspective, it’s not the ideal scenario,” said Marcelo Menusso, a corporate bond analyst for Deutsche Bank AG in New York. “Leverage has been increasing. When you have higher debt, the chances of a credit-rating downgrade increase.”
Petrobras’s 5.75 percent bonds due in 2020 yield 80 basis points, or 0.8 percentage point, more than the government’s 5.875 percent notes maturing in 2019, the biggest gap since the Rio de Janeiro-based company issued the debt in October, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The spread was as narrow as 17 basis points on Nov. 5.
A planned equity sale to raise as much as $25 billion from investors would cover 11 percent of the investment the company says it needs over five years to exploit the biggest oil discovery in the Americas since 1976. Chief Executive Officer Jose Sergio Gabrielli said April 30 that the company will “for sure” need to sell more debt to help finance the plan.
While investors are showing increasing concerns about Petrobras, government debt is trading like it’s poised for an upgrade. The cost to protect Brazil’s bonds, ranked BBB- by Standard & Poor’s, from default for five years fell seven basis points last month to 123 basis points, or 1.23 percentage points, according to data compiled by CMA DataVision. Brazil’s credit-default swaps are less expensive than Bahrain, which is rated A, or four levels higher, as well as South Africa, two steps higher.
Dollar Bonds
The extra yield investors demand to own Brazilian government dollar bonds instead of U.S. Treasuries narrowed six basis points yesterday to 1.9 percentage points, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. The average spread for emerging-market government dollar debt shrank five basis points to 2.60 percentage points.
The real rose 0.7 percent to 1.7270 per dollar. The yield on the overnight interest-rate futures contract due in January climbed three basis points to 11.19 percent, the highest level since February 2009. Brazilian economists raised their forecast for inflation this year to 5.42 percent from 5.41 percent the previous week, according to a central bank survey published yesterday. Policy makers lifted the benchmark interest rate last week for the first time in 19 months to curb price increases.
Faster Growth
Brazilian companies have sold $15.1 billion of bonds abroad this year, up from $4.2 billion in the same period of 2009, as a quickening expansion in Latin America’s biggest economy spurs demand for credit, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The economy will expand 6.06 percent this year after shrinking 0.2 percent in 2009, according to the median forecast in the central bank survey.
The surge in debt sales swelled supply, adding to declines in Petrobras bond prices, according to Victor Rodriguez, a fixed-income portfolio manager for ING Investment Management in Atlanta who is underweight on Petrobras bonds. He said he may upgrade that given the debt is starting to look inexpensive after the sell-off.
“The number one thing that’s happening is Brazil corporates have been issuing so much debt lately,” Rodriguez said.
Gabrielli said last week he will seek to avoid selling bonds this year on concern that an increase in the company’s indebtedness could trigger a second credit-rating downgrade since June. Standard & Poor’s lowered the rating one level to BBB-, the lowest investment-grade rating, in June, citing the “company’s sizable five-year capital spending program.”
‘No Plans’
“We have no plans right now to issue debt in 2010,” Gabrielli, 60, said in an interview in Sao Paulo. “We need to keep a balanced relation between equity and debt and we are reaching the upper limits for investment grade.”
Reginaldo Takara, an S&P analyst in Sao Paulo, said concerns about the investment plan remain.
“Petrobras has strong cash generation but it has a very aggressive capital expenditure program for the next several years and that will basically use all the free operating cash flow and may require additional debt as well,” said Takara. “This is the critical point for us to monitor for now.”
S&P has a stable outlook on the rating. Moody’s Investors Service rates Petrobras Baa1, or the third-lowest investment- grade level. Moody’s analyst Thomas Coleman wasn’t available to comment on the rating.
International Bonds
Petrobras tapped international bond markets three times last year, raising $6.75 billion in the company’s most active year of issuance since Bloomberg began collecting the data in 1991. The $2.5 billion of bonds due in 2020 form part of the company’s last sale on Oct. 30.
The yield on the securities has climbed 40 basis points since April 23 to 5.51 percent, the highest since Feb. 25, according to Trace, the bond price-reporting system of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
The jump in yields “could be related to the uncertainty about the Petrobras share sale and the fact that the government deadline for the share issuance approval is getting close,” said Eduardo Suarez, an emerging-market strategist at RBC Capital Markets in Toronto.
Gabrielli said on March 24 the company expects final approval by lawmakers and a presidential sanction for the share sale by June 4. As part of the offering, the government would exchange oil reserves for additional shares in the company.
Investment Plan
Petrobras expects to spend $200 billion to $220 billion through 2014, more than any other oil producer in the world. Most of the investment will go into developing Brazil’s pre-salt area in South Atlantic waters where Petrobras found Tupi, the Americas’ largest oil discovery since 1976.
The yield gap between Petrobras and government bonds may narrow by as much as 30 basis points if the oil-for-equity swap is approved, said Juan Cruz, a corporate bond analyst with Barclays Plc in New York.
“There is a likely chance that Petrobras could receive a large capitalization in oil and cash, enough to materially alter its credit profile for the better,” he said in a report. “Ultimately they will” sell bonds, Cruz said. “They probably will at some point before the end of this year.”
–With assistance from Alexander Ragir and Peter Millard in Rio de Janeiro. Editors: Lester Pimentel, David Papadopoulos.
EN BREF, CE 04 mai 2010 … AGNEWS / OMAR, BXL,04/05/2010
