Weekly ANB1023_01.txt #7

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 23-10-2003      PART #1/7

* Africa. Noma Award for Publishing in Africa  -  Established in 1979, the 
Noma Award is open to African writers and scholars whose work is published 
in Africa. The US $10,000 prize is given annually for an outstanding new 
book in any of these three categories: Scholarly or academic; books for 
children; literature and creative writing. Books are admissible in any of 
the languages of Africa, both local and European. This year, the 2003 Noma 
Award Winner is: Walter and Albertina Sisulu. In our Lifetime, by Elinor 
Sisulu. The author is a journalist, academic amd daughter-in-law of Walter 
and Albertina Sisulu. The Jury's citation reads: "This is a powerful and 
searing book, told with honesty and authority, of the lives of two heroic 
figures in South Africa's history". The Noma Award Jury is chaired by 
Walter Bgoya from Tanzania, one of Africa's most distinguished and 
respected publishers.   (Noma Award, 10 October 2003)

* Afrique. Journée mondiale de l'alimentation  -  L'humanité a "un siècle 
de retard" dans sa lutte contre la malnutrition, a constaté le 16 octobre 
la FAO, à l'occasion de la Journée mondiale de l'alimentation. Selon cette 
organisation de l'Onu, 840 millions de personnes souffrent de faim 
chronique, dont 799 millions dans les pays en développement. Selon les 
statistiques de la FAO, 194 millions de personnes souffrent de la faim en 
Afrique subsaharienne; un tiers de la population souffre de malnutrition. 
21 pays sont particulièrement touchés, dont l'Ethiopie, le Soudan, la 
Somalie et l'Angola. Si rien n'est fait, indique la FAO, l'objectif de 
réduire de moitié, d'ici 2015, le nombre de victimes de la faim ne sera 
atteint qu'en 2115. L'organisation appelle à la création d'une alliance 
internationale contre la faim.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 17 octobre 
2003)

* Afrique. Le Vatican plaide l'annulation de la dette  -  Contre la 
marginalisation de l'Afrique, le Saint-Siège invite d'urgence à la 
solidarité et à l'annulation de la dette. Le 16 octobre à New York, Mgr 
Migliore, observateur permanent du Saint-Siège aux Nations unies, est 
intervenu au cours de l'assemblée générale de l'Onu en affirmant: "Le 
montant global de la dette extérieure de l'Afrique est peu élevé selon les 
paramètres mondiaux, mais son poids en matière de justice et de capacités 
économiques requiert une solution globale rapide. Le processus d'annulation 
ne doit pas être trop longtemps bloqué sous des prétextes techniques ou 
bureaucratiques". Il a aussi plaidé pour un nouveau modèle de coopération 
entre pays riches et pays africains. "Pour que le commerce extérieur 
devienne un facteur essentiel du développpement de l'Afrique, la communauté 
internationale doit soutenir et appliquer efficacement les véritables 
valeurs du commerce, en éliminant toute compétition incorrecte", a affirmé 
Mgr Migliore.   (D'après Zenith, Vatican, 17 octobre 2003)

* Africa. The desperation of migrants  -  20 October: At least 70 migrants 
have been found dead on a boat off the southern Italian island of 
Lampedusa, officials say. Some 15 people were found alive on the 10-metre 
boat. Italy has demanded action on both sides of the Mediterranean to 
tackle traffickers who exploit the desperation of clandestine migrants. 
Many of the estimated 85 people who boarded the boat in Libya were Somalis. 
The Italian captain who sighted the ship said the living and the dead were 
piled on top of one another. He said: "When we came closer to the drifting 
boast, what we saw was like a vision of hell". The deaths are the latest in 
a long series of disasters at sea. Last week, seven Somali migrants 
reportedly drowned when their boat capsized off Italy. The captain of the 
vessel has been arrested and charged with multiple manslaughter and aiding 
and abetting illegal immigration, Italian radio reported. In another 
incident, a group of 45 Egyptian illegal migrants who set sail for Italy on 
19 October were said to have been rescued after their boat capsized during 
bad weather at sea near Malta. Maltese marine police had rescued the 
Egyptians and transferred them to a refugee camp on the Mediterranean 
island to await deportation, the Egyptian government Al-Akhbar daily said. 
A group of 148 Egyptians were flown back to Egypt under Maltese police 
escort in late September after they also tried to enter Italy illegally by 
boat.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 20 October 2003)

* Afrique. Mortalité maternelle  -  Les femmes africaines ont une chance 
sur 16 de mourir lors d'un accouchement, soit un taux de mortalité 175 fois 
supérieur à celui enregistré dans les pays occidentaux, indique une étude 
publiée le 20 octobre par les Nations unies. Elle estime que 95% des 
529.000 décès maternels survenus en 2000 ont été enregistrés en Afrique et 
en Asie. Selon le directeur général de l'OMS, Lee Jong-wook, de nombreuses 
femmes africaines accouchent par leurs propres moyens ou avec l'aide de 
personnes non qualifiées. "La présence d'accompagnateurs qualifiés est 
vitale car ils peuvent reconnaître et empêcher des crises médicales", 
estime-t-il. La directrice de l'Unicef, Carol Bellamy, qualifie pour sa 
part ce taux de mortalité d"inadmissible" et souligne le besoin urgent de 
soins plus adaptés, en particulier en Afrique.   (AP, 20 octobre 2003)

* Africa. Childbirth deaths too high  -  A UN report says that African 
women are 175 times more likely to die in childbirth and pregnancy than 
Westerners. Overall, African women have a one in 16 chance of dying in 
childbirth and pregnancy -- but the report says many deaths could be 
avoided. UNICEF's Executive Director, Carol Bellamy, says the figures show 
"an unacceptably high number of women dying in childbirth" and calls for 
increased access to emergency obstetric care. Many women deliver their 
children alone or with untrained attendants, says the report. In 2000, 95% 
of the 529,000 deaths among pregnant women occured in Africa and Asia. The 
report is the first time a new analytical technique has been used to 
estimate the number of deaths among pregnant women in countries where 
accurate figures are hard to come by. The two countries with the worst 
record are Sierra Leone and Afghanistan, both suffering from years of civil 
strife, where the risk of deaths among women is one in six. In Angola, 
Malawi and Niger, it is one in seven.   (BBC News, UK, 20 October 2003)

* Afrique. Classement de la liberté de presse  -  Reporters sans frontières 
(RSF) publie son second classement mondial de la liberté de presse. Pour 
établir ce classement, RSF a demandé à des journalistes, des juristes ou 
des militants des droits de l'homme de remplir un questionnaire permettant 
d'évaluer la situation dans un pays donné. 166 nations figurent dans cet 
index (contre 139 l'an passé). Ce classement démontre que le respect de la 
liberté de la presse n'est pas uniquement lié au développement économique. 
Ainsi, des pays les plus pauvres de la planète, comme le Bénin (29e) et 
Madagascar (46e), figurent dans les cinquante premiers. Sur le continent 
africain, les guerres et les graves crises politiques ont inévitablement 
des conséquences sur la liberté de la presse. Les trois pays qui ont perdu 
le plus grand nombre de places par rapport à 2002 sont la Côte d'Ivoire 
(137e), le Liberia (132e) et la Guinée-Bissau (118e). Le pays africain 
classé le plus bas est l'Erythrée (162e).   (D'après RSF, France, 20 
octobre 2003)

* Africa. Sahara hostages asked to pay up  -  20 October: German tourists 
taken hostage in the Sahara desert this year have been told to pay for 
being rescued. One of them, Rainer Bracht, said the Foreign Ministry asked 
him for about 2,300 euros, a fraction of the total. He said the request was 
"totally populist", and that victims of violence should not have to pay. 
The nine Germans were among 14 European tourists freed in August more than 
five months after being seized in small groups by Islamic militants in 
Algeria. A 15th tourist, a German woman, died during the ordeal. Germany is 
reported to have paid a ransom for the hostages, but the government has 
refused to confirm or deny this. The hostages are expected to pay towards 
the costs of communications and trips by officials in negotiation with the 
hostage-takers, and their own flight home on a German Air Force plane. 
Press reports have put the total cost at around 20 million 
euros.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 20 October 2003)

* Africa. Action against the Media
	-- THE GAMBIA: On 20 October, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) 
issued a press release condemning the 17 October arson attack on the 
offices of the private, biweekly Independent newspaper, located in a suburb 
of the capital, Banjul. According to local journalists, on the evening of 
17 October, three unidentified men assaulted a private security guard in 
front of the paper's offices, using tear gas and an iron bar and knocking 
the guard unconscious. After tricking a second guard into leaving his post, 
the assailants doused the building's windows and doors with gasoline and 
set it on fire, as well as the electrical meter located outside. The 
attackers fled the scene without entering the building, local journalists 
said. The first guard was hospitalized and is recovering from his injuries.
	-- LIBYA: On 16 October, Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said it has the 
Libyan authorities for more information about the suspension of the 
official newspaper Al-Zahf Al-Akhdar. The Standing Revolutionary Court 
suspended the daily on 13 October for having "damaged national interests 
and harmed Libya's position".
	-- MAURITANIA: On 21 October, RSF urged the Mauritanian authorities to 
lift a suspension order against the weekly Le Calame. The Ministry of the 
Interior, Posts and Telecommunications, which regulates the press, 
suspended issue 414 of the weekly on 19 October 2003, citing Article 11 of 
the Press Law, which allows for censorship without explanation. A member of 
the weekly's editorial staff said the suspension is believed to be linked 
to an article entitled, "The big silence at the centre of the debate".
	-- MOROCCO: On 17 October, RSF condemned the legal harassment of two 
Moroccan weekly newspaper editors. Mohammed el-Hourd, of Asharq, and 
Mustapha Kechnini, of Al Hayat al-Maghribia. They were previously convicted 
under the country's new press law, but they are being tried again for the 
same offenses by a court in the northeastern city of Oujda, where their 
respective newspapers are published. They have been summoned to appear in 
court on 19 October 2003.
	-- MOZAMBIQUE: On 16 October, the Media Institute of Southern Africa 
(MISA) said that on 7 October, Mozambique Television journalist Hermínio 
Nhanombe and Ruben Jossai, of Savana newspaper, were threatened and 
harassed by the bodyguard of Afonso Dlakhama, leader of the opposition 
Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana. The journalists were covering a political 
gathering in the Vilankulos district, in southern Mozambique. In addition 
to openly harassing the journalists, Dlakhama's bodyguards also threatened 
to confiscate their equipment. The journalists were also denied an 
opportunity to take photographs or notes relative to the event.
	-- SOUTH AFRICA: On 15 October, the International Federation of 
Journalists (IFJ) called upon the South African authorities to withdraw 
subpoenas issued to journalists, which could force them to reveal their 
sources of information. "Protection of sources is of paramount importance 
to professional and ethical journalism," said Aidan White, IFJ General 
Secretary. "South Africa should avoid any judicial procedures that threaten 
this key principle." -- On 17 October, the International Press Institute 
(IPI) criticised the decision of the South African Hefer Commission to 
widen the pursuit of journalists. The IPI is alarmed that although the 
South African Hefer Commission is now "inviting" journalists to attend, it 
is still threatening to use subpoenas if they fail to appear. In recent 
days, the Commission has extended these "invitations" to two journalists, 
Sunday Times editor Mathatha Tsedu and City Press journalist Elias 
Maluleke. Both Tsedu and Maluleke have refused to accept the Commission's 
"invitation". The IPI is worried at the apparent statement of Commission 
secretary John Bacon who was quoted as saying that if Maluleke failed to 
appear he would be "summonsed to do so".
	-- TANZANIA: On 16 October, MISA reported that on 10 October, the Kome 
Kichangani village authority expelled a group of local and foreign 
journalists from the Lake Victoria island of Kome, in Tanzania's Mwanza 
region. The foreign journalists, who are from the United States and France, 
and a local reporter from the East African newspaper were undertaking 
research on fisheries in the lake region for documentaries and feature 
articles. In addition to being expelled, the journalists' passports and 
accreditation cards, which they had obtained from the Department of 
Information Services were also confiscated.
	-- ZAMBIA: On 21 October, MISA reported that on 18 October, journalists 
from both private and state-owned media outlets were barred from reporting 
on the deliberations of various committees at a government-organised 
national convention (Indaba) taking place in Lusaka, Zambia. The 
journalists, who had been accredited to cover the four-day meeting, were 
told on 18 October that, in order to avoid intimidating the delegates, they 
would not be allowed to cover the deliberations of the 12 committees formed 
at the convention.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 21 October 2003)

* Afrique. Menace de criquets au Sahel  -  Le 20 octobre, l'Organisation 
des Nations unies pour l'agriculture et l'alimentation (FAO) a lancé un 
appel à l'aide pour le nord de l'Afrique noire où une invasion de criquets 
pourrait "rapidement" ravager les cultures. Les trois principaux foyers 
d'infestation repérés par les experts sont le nord-ouest de la Mauritanie, 
le nord du Niger et le nord-est du Soudan. Des équipes d'épandage de 
pesticide ont été dépêchées en Mauritanie et au Soudan, mais "le nombre de 
criquets augmente rapidement. Ils commencent à se regrouper, ce qui est 
caractéristique d'une invasion", a insisté la FAO. L'alerte est destinée 
aux gouvernements africains concernés et à la communauté internationale des 
bailleurs de fonds, a ajouté l'organisation.   (ANB-BIA, de sources 
diverses, 21 octobre 2003)

* Africa. IMF admits it is failing Africa  -  21 October: The International 
Monetary Fund (IMF) has admitted that one of its key African initiatives is 
in trouble. In a working paper published in Washington, two of the IMF's 
researchers show that its programme to relieve some of Africa's poorest 
countries of their debt burden may not produce a sustainable economic 
situation. The IMF's initiative for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries was 
launched in 1996. Its aim was simple: to cut the mountain of debts that 
countries had run up, reducing them to more manageable levels. At the same 
time, the programme encouraged states to increase their spending on the 
poor -- on badly needed policies aimed at building schools and paying 
teachers. This study looks at the performance of 12 African countries -- 
all of which were heavily indebted before the programme got under way. 
These include Mozambique, Tanzania, Ghana and Cameroon -- countries chosen 
to represent a variety of economic conditions.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 21 
October 2003)

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