Kudos to Ghana at 50

Dan Simpson, retired American diplomat and columnist at the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette gives an appropriate assessment of Ghana at 50 years of Independence.

New, Low-Cost, Anti-Malaria Drug

Malaria has been, and continues to be a huge problem for many Africans. Around 3 million people per year die from the disease, most of those people are from Africa. Even worse, about 1 million of those deaths are African children. To try and help solve this problem, (or at least subside it), Europe's largest pharmaceutical company, Sanofi-Aventis and a non-profit organization, Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDI) have come together to create and distribute a low-cost drug to fight malaria. The drug contains two medications, therefore to help increase the likelihood of killing the parasite. Set at a low-cost most Africans will be able to purchase the drug. Why not make it free? Many Africans say that making it free makes them suspicious of the drugs intent, and putting a price on it that they can afford will be more popular with the population. Malaria is such a large problem, but has been solved by an easy-fix, a cheap drug that contains two medications instead of one. Getting Africa back on track is going to take a lot more than just selling drugs at a low cost, but at the same time helping the smaller issues and leaving the larger ones to Africa, such as civil war and corruption will help get their population strong enough to fight their own battles and win.

A Ban on Some Traditions is Essential

I chose this article so that people do not forget what happened in London on September 21st, 2001. The torso of an unidentified little boy "Adam" washed up in the Thames River. Massive media coverage was initiated, but today, have people forgotten?

Ritual killings and mutilations are still events that happen too often in some African countries. Some individuals believe that these disgusting acts will bring them good fortune. When people try to contact the police about these problems, they encounter barriers that disable them from taking further actions. The countries do not want to admit that this sort of behavior takes place on their land to them because it will cast them in an unfavorable light. One Gabonese citizen has finally been able to put a group together to speak up against this issue. The American embassy helped host the event, which is exactly the kind of assistance that many people need in Africa: the sort that will directly benefit the people.

I believe that Africans should be able to keep their traditional ways, as long as it does not hurt others! Human sacrifices are unacceptable, no matter what! The fact that governments do not actively pursue these criminals is truly appalling. In addition, something else that must not be forgotten is that public human sacrifices, not conducted out of belief that one will benefit from them, but rather out of pure evil, go on every day. One example is the LRA, led by Joseph Kony. When will these evildoers be stopped? When will justice be done? Should we be concerned or should we let these injustices happen? Personally, I believe this is a tragedy and we (the West) must absolutely do something about this!

A Ceasefire That Ceases To Exist

33 minutes before I began reading this article, the six-month old ceasefire between the Ugandan Government, and its rebellious combatant for nearly 20 years, the Lords Resistance Army (LRA), became defunct. This may come as a bit of a shock to many, including myself, who were unaware that ceasefire's had end dates when the problem is clearly ongoing. Although there were recent difficulties arising between the two parties, most notably involving the LRA's indictments from the International Criminal Court (ICC), it is beyond me why all other options have not been exhaustively persued in the days leading up to today. This raises the frightening question (although much more frightening for Ugandans) of "What happens next?". Probably, both sides are currently preparing to attack each other, or perhaps the attacks have already begun, less than an hour after the ceasefire has been ceased. While it is very clear that there had not been much recent progress in terms of negotiations, the sheer brutality and overbearing length of the civil war recently halted would seem, in my mind, to be enough to deter both sides from immediate conflict. Nevertheless, the prospects are grim, as we are likely to be forced to yet again open the book on Ugandan civil war and write in it another tragic chapter.

Stick to making wine...It's time to leave Africa to Africa

The “scramble for Africa” is on, indeed. Here’s another story about international concerns influencing Africa. This situation is a little different than China’s involvement, though. Here, the former colonial giant, France, is continuing to ensure its influence on the African continent with their annual Franco-African summit. France is committed to continuing aid, debt relief, humanitarian assistance, et cetera, to Africa. How nice.
But there might be a problem here. Does anyone else think France has maybe done enough and should consider leaving Africa alone? The trouble is that France, (and other international, well-meaning aid givers) tend to “help” through the institutions of the established state in African nations. But, consider this quote from the article:

"For the average African, the state is the enemy," says Richard Cornwell, a political analyst at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria. "But very often, outside countries, such as France and China, tend to strengthen the state, which is the exact opposite of what the Africans want and need."

Maybe what Africa really needs is a chance to get back on its feet without foreign meddling. It’s not that France is really an evil conspirator, trying to reestablish effective colonial control via international corporations or whatever. It’s just that things like profit have a way of getting between good intentions and net results. Or am I just being paranoid?

Sierra Leone War Crimes Suspect Dies

Ex-former Defence Minister of Sierra Leone Sam Hinga Norman has died, aged 67. For several months he had been receiving medical help, it is thought that he died from heart failure after an operation.
Verdict for his case was pending. He was indicted for several crimes against humanity including murder. During the 10 year civil war he had led a pro-government militia against the RUF (hence being considered a hero among some of the population of Sierra Leone).
Mr Hinga Norman had visited a hospital in Senegal for what seemed a routine medical check up but died after an operation. He was pronounced dead little more than 20 minutes after collapsing in hospital (around 1115am).
The court was set up to prosecute all those involved in the crimes committed during the civil war which created millions of displaced peoples in the region.

Mozambique's Response to Floods A "Success Story"

Paulo Zucula, head of Mozambique's National Disaster Management Institute, was surprisingly satisfied when speaking about his department's response to the flooding that has submerged whole villages in the southern nation. An estimated 70,000 families have been left homeless and the government reports that 10 have been killed (BBC News reports 120,000 Mozambicans displaced and a approximately 30 fatalities) since the flooding began in December. Such numbers would not please some disaster management agencies, unless they were comparing them to numbers from a flood like the one Mozambique was ravaged by in 2001, when around 700 people were killed by rising waters in the Zambezi River Basin.

The UN has applauded Mozambique for is deliberately early predictions of the flooding and subsequent actions that were taken months before the waters rose. Villages began preparing to evacuate, food supplies were being moved into the Zambezi Basin, and warning systems were being set up throughout the region well in advance of what could have been just as deadly of a disaster as 2001. A UN spokesperson for its World Food Program said, "If you're looking for a success story of an African government that's trying to make things better for its people, this is a very good example of that."

The disaster agency was recently set up by the government. Several outside humanitarian groups, as well as the US State Department, have applauded Mozambique for its development since its 17-year civil war ended in 1992. They point to its continued progress in creating a democratic government and sustaining economic growth, alongside its ability to manage its own affairs and crises itself (as has been demonstrated by its response to the flooding) as signs of the country being a budding model nation in Africa. The key to revamping their disaster management and creating such an effective new agency was (USA, take notes...) in making it prevention-focused rather than response-oriented. The government was predicting the floods as early as October, and acted accordingly right away, knowing that the natural course of the floods could not be stopped, but the impact could be minimized with proper action.

While land has been damaged and displaced Mozambicans are still hungry, the government's actions over the last few months are models of what a cooperative, organized government can achieve in saving the lives of hundreds of its own people. Their operations will continue as the flood-waters subside, leaving in its wake an even more difficult task: to help those who were displaced find new homes in the aftermath of the disaster that destroyed 100,000 acres of farmland.

North AFrica seen as breeding ground for terror

This article is disturbing at best and a dire warning to developed countries at worst. There is now evidence that terrorist groups are uniting and cohering in Northern African countries. These groups seek to train militant Muslims. They are uniting and establishing links with Al Queda. Currently, they have already claimed responsibility for numerous small bombings, but when are they going to plan another major terrorist attack? Last week in class, we talked about the US's motives for placing a permanent AFRICOM command in Africa. One of the motives was to deter and persecute terrorist attacks. Well, this seems to be a reasonable assumption gived the new intelligence given in the article.
Fighting terrorism in African states is especially hard because they lack the basic infrastructure which western nations take for granted in combating criminals. There is no reliable police force, army or intelligence gathering. The leaders of the nations only have their personal interests in mind, and therefore may support or finance these groups if it offers them personal gain. As we read last night, It is quite easy for terrorist groups to finance themselves from enclave economies. Therefore, it is easy for these groups to proliferate in African states. The solid eveidenccec that there are now such groups is very disturbing for developed nations. We must act together to find and eliminate such groups. Perhaps one of the best ways to do this is by helping these countries to develop. As Leonard and Straus argued, international guarantees would help to build goverrnamental stability in these unstable states. By ensuring the stability of African countries, the developed nations will also gain because they can ensure that terrorist groups do not proliferate.

The growing power of Nigeria's gangs

With the approaching 2007 elections, Nigerians are worried about the influence armed gangs will have at the ballot box. Stemming from the 2003 elections, desperate politicians hired armed muscle from gangs like the ‘KKK’, 'Greenlanders' and 'Icelanders' to steal ballot boxes and intimidate political rivals. These politicians offered political jobs and other incentives for their services. However, these jobs failed to materialize.

Leading up to the elections in April, one prominent gang leader pronounced that the upcoming elections will be… “bloodier. This time it’s [the gangs] who will say this person is good, this person can work”. Unfortunately for Nigeria and the rest of the world, these highly motivated gangs operate in and around the Niger Delta which serves as the hub for the cultivation and trade of Nigeria’s chief export: crude oil. Because the terrain of the delta is so difficult too manage, the gangs operate impervious to local police and military force. The gangs claim that political office is really a “low intensity” struggle to obtain the rights to control Nigeria’s rich oil trade. The gangs also are making their clarion call in the name of accountability, in the sense that political corruption leads to the impoverishment of their cities and people. Consequently, in a sad turn of events for all Nigerians, these gangs are openly declaring to the people that their vote will not determine the 2007 ‘democratic’ election, but instead determined by the gangs.

Unfortunately, this article begs the question about the viability for democracy in Africa. If political and in this case the power to control the lucrative oil trade changes hands every 4 years through bloodshed, is democracy really the best option? Wouldn’t stability in the form of a benevolent albeit probably corrupt dictator prove better?

Justice in Uganda

Starting on March 5th with aspirations of ending in May, eight Ugandan judges will be hearing 534 criminal cases in addition to other civil cases in the warring areas of northern and eastern Uganda. These judges will be dealing with criminal and civil cases that have been prolonged because of the instability in the region. Finally justice will (hopefully) be served to those who have been awaiting trial. This plan is part of an overall long-term strategy to bring about speedier trials. The implementation of this strategy has been granted 215 million shilling by the Prime Minister as part of the Emergency Reconstruction Programme.
There is a complexity to the judicial system in Uganda due its basis upon the British system; therefore, it can be difficult for cases to reach the appropriate court. As a result a build up of cases is not uncommon. There is also a gap in communication and authority between the Ugandan government and the judiciary, therefore, the government usually keeps from meddling in the courts' business. The attempts being made by the Ugandan government sound promising and should be a huge success if they are carried out properly. Only time will tell....