[The African Union force in Mogadishu said its forces on Monday fought their way into and took over the last militant strongholds in the northern end of Somalia’s capital. At least eight civilians and one AU soldier were killed.]
BURUNDI :
RWANDA :
Rwanda: Belgium, Sudan and U.S. Envoys Present Credentials
11 October 2011/The New Times
Village Urugwiro — Three envoys accredited to Rwanda, yesterday, presented their credentials to President Paul Kagame at Village Urugwiro.
The ambassadors are from Belgium, Sudan and the United States of America (USA).
First to present credentials was US Envoy to Rwanda, Donald W. Koran who replaces Stuart Symington who had been an ambassador for the last three years.
Speaking to reporters shortly after presenting his letters of credence, he said that he will continue to cement the bilateral co-operation between Rwanda and USA.
“I am so much excited to be back in Rwanda, I served here from 1997-2001 as the deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Kigali and I look forward to work with the government and the people of Rwanda to maintain the excellent relations existing between two countries,” he said.
Koran stated that he will embark on strengthening cooperation between two countries in the areas of Health, agriculture and security, among other things.
He added that he was impressed by the tremendous developments that have taken place in Kigali with in a short period of time.
The new Belgian Envoy, Marc Pecsteen de Buyrswerve mentioned that he will promote trade and investment by bringing Belgian investors to Rwanda, among other duties.
“This is my first time to be an ambassador and what has excited me is to become an ambassador in a country like Rwanda which has a long historical relationship with Belgium. I will continue building on the already existing bilateral cooperation,” he said.
Before his posting to Rwanda, Buyrswerve served in various capacities, in different Belgian diplomatic missions, including China and the United Nations in New York.
The Sudanese Ambassador, Nasreldin Ahmed Walli pledged to promote strong and constructive relationship between two countries. He has a permanent residence in Kigali.
“During my term of office I will bring the Sudanese investors to Rwanda so as to boost the growth of business in this country,” he noted.
He also said that, his country acknowledges and values the role played by Rwandan peacekeepers in maintaining peace and security in Sudan.
Before being appointed ambassador to Rwanda, he was the director in charge of America in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Sudan.
The Sudan embassy in Kigali is new. Its high commission in Kampala was accredited to Rwanda.
Rwanda: Three Cheers for Democracy
11 October 2011/The New Times
analysis
I heard a foreign diplomat based in Kigali say just before the swearing in of the new prime minister that the occasion was very important.I thought so too. But I suspect our reasons for rating the occasion so high were probably different.
I don’t know what the diplomat read into the appointment and swearing in of Pierre Damien Habumuremyi as Prime Minister (there is a tendency to read into such things various meanings depending on the baggage one carries). Mine was this.
This was the first time in our history that there had been a “peaceful” change of prime minister, so to speak. All previous ones had either been a result of violence, sacking, or been accompanied by flight from the country.
Mrs Agatha Uwilingiyimana was brutally murdered at her post. Jean Kambanda fled the country with the blood of a million Rwandans still dripping from his hands. Faustin Twagiramungu had an inflated opinion of himself and was too steeped in the divisive politics of the past to be of any use in the challenges that faced post-genocide Rwanda.
Because he found it difficult to fit into the new Rwanda, he ran away. He has learnt nothing since then. He still makes the same caustic comments that are his trade mark, more to remind us that he is still around than to make any serious impact on our society.
Then there was Pierre Celestin Rwigema. He fled the country before criminal charges could be brought against him. Before all these, there was the forgettable duo of Sylevestre Nsanzimana and Dismas Nsengiyaremye between 1991 and 1993.
The transition from one prime minister to the next was always abnormal. Not so that from Bernard Makuza to P D Habumuremyi.
And therein lies the significance of the change. It is normal to change governments just as it is usual practice to shuffle personnel as President Kagame said at the swearing in ceremony.
Normal change reflects maturity of politics and stability of institutions. Changes of this sort also reveal confidence that there will be continuity because the necessary foundations exist.
That a change can be made and the result is not what used to happen is proof of the strength of institutions. We have gone beyond identifying individuals with institutions – something “experts” on African politics usually dwell on as the norm and would describe what is happening in Rwanda as exceptional and not typically African.
There has been a delinking of institutions and individuals who head them- with the former being permanent and the latter, temporary occupants.
I don’t know whether this is what the diplomat I heard had in mind. Probably not. What is certain, however, is that stable governance is now entrenched in Rwanda and that can only feed into growing democratic practice.
And talking about democracy, that, too, is becoming the norm and not the exception. Yesterday a new senate was sworn in, following elections a few weeks ago. This is only the second senate in Rwanda’s history.
But it already has a permanency that makes it appear like the institution has been with us for as long as the country has existed.
That’s saying a lot. For an institution barely eight years old to make itself look like a permanent fixture is further proof of institutional entrenchment.
With the second senate building on the achievements of the first, we can be sure of parliamentary permanency and a growing democratic tradition.
The same occasion yesterday saw the election of the President of the Senate and his two deputies. It was done in characteristic orderly and relaxed fashion – no acrimonious exchanges or unseemly horse-trading in public. If there were any such things, they must have been done behind the scenes, away from public view. And if there were any ugly scenes, we were spared the sight.
This also is significant. In the order of precedence, the President of the Senate is the second most important person in the land. You don’t need a divisive figure for this post, but rather a consensual one.
All this is good for democracy.
I wrote in this column earlier this year that democratic governance has taken root in Rwanda (See ‘Democracy takes root in Rwanda,’ TNT 22/2/2011). I pointed out then that elections had become such a regular occurrence that they were part of normal life.
They have become so usual that they are even boring (in terms of lack of violent excitement preferred by some). In spite of this, they are competitive and attract candidates of the highest integrity.
The senate certainly does as is to be expected since it is the custodian of national values.
The events of yesterday and last Friday, and the elections before that are all evidence of this fact. Yes, the diplomat I heard was spot-on if this is what he had in mind. If he had a different view, that doesn’t alter the fact. We can still shout hurrah to cheers to Rwandan democracy.
RDC CONGO:
L’économie verte, une opportunité pour la RDC riche en ressources
UN News Centre/www.congoplanete.com/ 10 octobre 2011
Avec la moitié des forêts et des ressources en eau de l’Afrique, ainsi que d’énormes réserves minérales estimées à 24.000 milliards de dollars, la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) pourrait devenir une locomotive pour le développement africain, à condition que les différentes menaces pesant sur ses ressources naturelles soient rapidement jugulées, estime une étude du Programme des Nations Unies pour l’environnement (PNUE).
« Cette évaluation confirme la richesse unique des ressources naturelles de la RDC et illustre comment celles-ci peuvent contribuer à une croissance économique durable. Cependant, elle révèle aussi les séquelles laissées par un conflit financé largement par l’exploitation de ces ressources, ainsi que la tragédie humaine dont souffre le peuple depuis trop longtemps », a déclaré le Directeur exécutif du PNUE, Achim Steiner, à Kinshasa lors de la présentation des résultats de l’étude avec le Ministre congolais de l’environnement, de la conservation de la nature et du tourisme, José Endundo.
L’étude met en garde contre des tendances alarmantes, telles que l’accélération de la déforestation, l’extinction de certaines espèces, la pollution par les métaux lourds et la dégradation des terres résultant des activités minières, ainsi qu’une pénurie aigüe d’eau potable affectant quelques 51 millions de Congolais.
Selon le rapport, des progrès substantiels ont déjà été faits en termes de gouvernance environnementale. Par exemple, à travers des mesures telles que le renforcement de patrouilles anti-braconnage, l’Institut congolais pour la conservation de la nature a permis de sécuriser le Parc national de Virunga qui, au pic de la crise congolaise, perdait l’équivalent de 89 hectares de forêt chaque jour du fait de la collecte illégale de bois énergie.
Toutefois, une forte croissance démographique (le pays compte aujourd’hui près de 70 millions d’habitants, qui dépendent pour la plupart des ressources naturelles pour leur survie), ainsi que la vive concurrence internationale pour les matières premières, font peser encore davantage de pressions sur les ressources naturelles de la RDC, estime le PNUE.
Selon le rapport, la biodiversité de la RDC est la plus importante en Afrique, mais 190 espèces sont classées comme étant en danger critique d’extinction, en danger ou vulnérables sur la Liste rouge des espèces menacées de l’Union internationale pour la préservation de la nature (UICN). Les éléphants et les gorilles de montagne font partie des espèces menacées.
La forêt tropicale de la RDC s’étend sur plus de 1,55 million de km2 et représente plus de la moitié des ressources forestières de l’Afrique, ce qui en fait une source potentielle de revenus, qui pourraient s’élever à 900 millions de dollars d’ici à 2030, indique le rapport.
La RDC détient la plus importante main d’œuvre d’exploitation minière artisanale au monde, estimée à deux millions de personnes, mais le manque de contrôle de ce secteur a contribué à la dégradation des terres et à la pollution. Les réserves minérales inexploitées de la RDC (estimées à 24.000 milliards dollars) ont une importance stratégique pour l’économie mondiale.
Selon les experts du PNUE, le problème le plus alarmant lié au changement climatique est la vulnérabilité de l’agriculture pluviale à petite échelle. Par exemple, en 2020, la durée de la saison des pluies dans la région du Katanga, fréquemment touchée par la sécheresse, pourrait passer de sept à cinq mois.
Dans ce pays émergeant d’une longue période de crise et de défaillance de l’Etat, la fourniture de services de bases, notamment en termes d’énergie et de provision en eau, ainsi que les problèmes environnementaux dans les centres urbains, restent des enjeux de taille. Afin d’aider la RDC à relever ces défis, un doublement de l’aide au développement est requis de toute urgence (y compris 200 millions de dollars pour l’environnement), conclut le rapport.
Selon Achim Steiner, l’évaluation met en avant des opportunités stratégiques pouvant soutenir la durabilité de la reconstruction économique post-conflit de la RDC et accélérer les efforts de consolidation de la paix.
« Le PNUE espère que les résultats de cette évaluation galvaniseront l’action et un soutien plus marqué de la communauté internationale et aidera la nation à s’orienter sur une voie plus durable, capitalisant sur les opportunités offertes par une économie verte en RDC » a conclu M. Steiner.
RDC: Oppoistion, à quoi joue Kengo wa Dondo?
Publié par La Rédaction, /direct.cd/le 11 octobre 2011
Faut-il croire à la prophétie de François Muamba, le président de l’Alliance pour le Développement et la République (ADR), qui, au lendemain de la rencontre entre Etienne Tshisekedi et Léon Kengo dans un hôtel bruxellois, tirait la conclusion suivante: l’opposition congolaise aura du mal pour se trouver un candidat commun devant affronter Joseph Kabila lors de la présidentielle.
Quelques semaines après cette rencontre qui avait suscité beaucoup d’espoirs dans les rangs de l’opposition, les choses ne semblent pas s’accélérer dans le sens devoir l’opposition se doter d’un candidat commun pour la future bataille présidentielle. Au lendemain de l’entrevue entre les deux anciens Premiers ministre de feu maréchal Mobutu dans la capitale belge, d’aucuns avaient cru que la sortie du tunnel était prête pour l’opposition congolaise qui se cherche un joker pour barrer la route au Président sortant.
Après la rencontre de Bruxelles, tout le monde attentait la rencontre entre Etienne Tshisekedi, président national de l’Union pour la Démocratie et le Progrès Social (UDPS) et candidat déclaré à la présidentielle et Vital Kamerhe, le président national de l’Union pour la Nation Congolaise (UNC) et candidat à l’élection présidentielle, lui aussi. Selon plusieurs sources, les deux hommes devraient se rencontrer le 8 octobre dernier aux USA.
D’après sources proches de deux leaders politiques, cette rencontre n’a pas eu lieu. En plus, l’entourage de Vital Kamerhe indique que ce dernier devrait regagner Kinshasa aujourd’hui.
Pourquoi cette entrevue tant attendue n’a-t-elle pas eu lieu? La question est sur toutes les lèvres.
Néanmoins, il y a lieu de rappeler qu’au Sud-Kivu, la base arrière de Vital Kamerhe, la population ne semble pas être chaude quant à une alliance politique entre leur leader et Etienne Tshisekedi. Intervenant la semaine passée sur Radio France Internationale (RFI), le président fédéral de l’UNC/Sud-Kivu était clair à ce sujet. «Nous attendions Vital Kamerhe comme candidat à l‘élection présidentielle. En 2006, il nous avait amené Joseph Kabila. Aujourd’hui tout le monde sait que ce pouvoir n‘a pas résolu nos problèmes. Maintenant nous apprenons qu’il veut venir avec Etienne Tshisekedi qui, au plus fort de l’envahissement de notre province par les soldats rwandais, s‘était vu dérouler le tapis rouge à Kigali. S’il veut faire alliance avec Etienne Tshisekedi, nous lui donnons condition: obtenir la Primature et avoir le plein pouvoir». En réaction à cette déclaration, Valentin Mubake, originaire du Sud-Kivu et conseiller politique du leader de l’UDPS, a clairement indiqué que Tshisekedi ne cédera pas face à ceux qui exigent des postes avant de tisser des alliances. Hier matin, intervenant sur RFI, Mubake a fait savoir que c’est Tshisekedi que la population attend au Sud-Kivu et non Kamerhe.
Ces déclarations croisées peuvent-elles à la base de la non concrétisation de la rencontre entre Etienne Tshisekedi et Vital Kamerhe ?
Nombreux sont ceux des analystes qui soutiennent cette thèse en tenant compte des positions soutenues par les deux camps politiques.
Léon Kengo, candidat commun de l’opposition ?
Après la rencontre de Bruxelles, d’aucuns étaient sûrs que Léon Kengo, le président du Sénat allait s’effacer au profit de celui qu’il a appelé «cher grand frère». Mais aujourd’hui, la réalité est toute autre sur terrain. En effet, le samedi 8 octobre 2011 est née une coalition dénommée Forces Réunies de l’Opposition au Congo (FORECO). Constituée d’une trentaine de partis politiques et d’une vingtaine d’associations, cette structure a pour but de soutenir la candidature de Léon Kengo wa Dondo à l’élection présidentielle du 28 novembre prochain.
Dans son mot de circonstance, le candidat Léon Kengo wa Dondo – désigné candidat commun du nouveau cartel à la Présidence de la République- s’est dit interpellé par les conditions de vie de la population congolaise. Pour le président du Sénat, la RDC a «besoin d’un leadership qui doit conduire le peuple congolais vers le bien-être, pourquoi pas le mieux-être».
Interrogé Léon Kengo se veut «le candidat du rassemblement de toutes les forces du changement autour d’un idéal et d’un programme communs de gouvernement». L’homme se veut également celui qui, une fois élu, pourra rompre avec l’impunité, la corruption, la gabegie, l’oisiveté. Il se propose aussi de ramener la rigueur dans la gestion, de rétablir l’autorité de l’Etat et d’assurer l’égalité des citoyens. «Ensemble, redonnons à notre peuple les raisons d’espérer », a conclu Léon Kengo.
Les révélations d’Ernest Kyaviro
Pendant que Léon Kengo était intronisé à l’hôtel Memling, Ernest Kyaviro, député élu de Beni, dans le Nord-Kivu, révélait dans la presse que les principaux candidats de l’opposition étaient en train de chercher des soutiens en Occident. Parlant de Léon Kengo wa Dondo, Kyaviro a indiqué que le projet de société de ce dernier était discuté au Pentagone. Même s’il faut prendre cette information avec des pincettes, il y a lieu d’affirmer qu’en politique une rumeur peut devenir une réalité après.
Sinon, comment comprendre que Léon Kengo qui a presque finalisé un accord politique avec son aîné Etienne Tshisekedi, selon certaines indiscrétions, se dote d’une structure qui a pour mission de soutenir sa propre candidature et ait affirmé dans discours «qu ‘il était le candidat commun de l’opposition».
Maintenant il reste deux équations : les positions que vont adopter Vital Kamerhe et Jean-Pierre Bemba. Candidat à la présidentielle, Kamerhe est, lui aussi, à la tête d’une coalition qui soutient sa candidature. Celle-ci s’appelle Alternance Vital Kamerhe (AVK). De son côté, Jean-Pierre Bemba a envoyé une lettre dans laquelle il a indiqué que son parti, le MLC, soutiendra le candidat commun qui sera désigné par l’opposition. Et cela, a-t-il précisé, qui qu’il soit.
Comme on peut le constater, l’opposition congolaise a encore du chemin à faire pour se trouver un candidat commun. A moins que toutes ces candidatures soient considérées comme celles «de marchandage».
Thomas NABOR
Le président de la CENI confirme la tenue des élections le 28 novembre
ACP /www.congoplanete.com/- 10 octobre 2011
Le président de la Commission électorale nationale indépendante (CENI), Daniel Ngoy Mulunda, de retour d’une tournée euro-américaine, a confirmé dimanche soir, à l’aéroport international de N’Djili à Kinshasa, la tenue de la présidentielle et des législatives à la date prévue du 28 novembre 2011.
« Ma tournée a consisté à expliquer aux partenaires de la RDC au processus électoral, l’évolution de celui-ci. Il y avait beaucoup d’incertitude, mais nous leur avons rassuré que les élections auront bel et bien lieu en RDC le 28 novembre 2011 », a dit à la presse le président de la CENI.
« Nous devons habituer notre population à la culture du cycle électoral, 5 ans après les élections de 2006 », a ajouté le pasteur Daniel Ngoy Mulunda, soulignant que dans ce contexte, la CENI va lancer la campagne électorale à travers tout le pays le 28 octobre prochain.
Il a invité les partis politiques à organiser leurs témoins qui seront les seuls à être admis aux opérations de dépouillement et de signature des procès verbaux des résultats après le vote.
Répondant à la question de savoir si la CENI avait quelque chose à cacher, le pasteur Daniel Ngoy Mulunda a répondu : « On a rien à cacher ».
UGANDA :
Uganda’s 49 years of recurrent turmoil
By Samuel Oduny/www.newvision.co.ug/Tuesday, October 11, 2011
It is now 49 years since Uganda got Independence. Ever since then, the country has gone through many challenges.
Two years after Independence in 1964, the army mutinied signalling bad things were going to happen. The mutiny was because of low salaries, poor welfare and the demand for Ugandans to command the army. Parliament quelled the mutiny by resolving to increase the salaries of the army and improve their welfare. Brigadier Shaban Opolot was appointed Army Commander, becoming the first Ugandan to to hold that office. He was deputised by Colonel Idi Amin.
The referendum of 1964, which was to decide where the lost counties belonged, brought a lot of tension when it was voted in favour of Bunyoro. Buganda Kingdom’s relationship with the central Government soured.
Parliament of Uganda which Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) and Kabaka Yeka (KY) formed went into conflicts. A vote of no confidence in the Government was moved in Parliament by the late Daudi Ocheng. Ocheng alleged that the Deputy Army Commander, Col. Amin smuggled gold and ivory from Congo during the clash between the two countries in 1965. This motion brought a lot of controversy in Parliament as well in the executive of the Government. Five ministers were detained at Luzira Maximum Prison without trial.
The disagreement between Buganda Kingdom and the central Government in 1966 resulted into the Kingdom being stormed by the Government forces. The Kabaka fled to the UK where he died in November 1969.
Problems continued when Army Commander, Major General Idi Amin staged a military coup in 1971.
The military take-over disappointed many people because when Amin assumed power, he embarked on the programme of killing Ugandans in cold blood. Notable people killed were the Chief Justice Ben Kiwanuka, the Archbishops of the church of Uganda, Janani Luwum, the Vice chancellor of Makerere University, Frank Kalimuzu and the Governor of Bank of Uganda, Joseph Mubiru.
Many Ugandans fled the country and formed a united front to fight Amin and his Government. Amin was defeated in 1979. Some people thought peace could return in Uganda.
Unfortunately, the first President after Amin, Yusuf Lule, was removed within 68 days of his rule and was replaced by Godfrey Binaisa. One year later, the Army removed Binaisa and formed a military commission chaired by Paulo Muwanga and deputised by Yoweri Museveni.
In 1980, General Elections were for the second time since Independence of 1962. UPC, DP, and UPM contested and UPC won with Dr. Obote becoming the President of Uganda for the second time.
During campaigns, Yoweri Museveni vowed to go to the bush to fight if the elections were rigged. Indeed he went to the bush to fight until in 1986 when the military Government of Tito Okello was defeated by the NRA. When the National Resistance Movement assumed power under the leadership of Yoweri Museveni, people expected revenge from them but it was the contrary. What the NRM came with was total reconciliation with all the people in the past regimes and a broad-based system of government was introduced.
Politics and democracy came in place, especially when Ugandans were given a chance of giving their views for the new constitution. After the people giving their different ideas on the new constitution, a Constituent Assembly was established when Ugandans were elected to discuss the proposed constitution. In 1995 the new constitution was promulgated which is effective up to now.
Writer is a former UNLA soldier
SOUTH AFRICA:
SOUTH AFRICA: Two plead not guilty to killing Eugene TerreBlanche
October 10, 2011 /latimesblogs.latimes.com
REPORTING FROM JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA — Two black farm workers on Monday pleaded not guilty to killing South African white supremacist Eugene TerreBlanche, who was found dead on his farm last year after being brutally beaten.
The defendants, Chris Mahlangu and a teenager whose identity is confidential under South African law, were employed by TerreBlanche as laborers.
Prosecutors allege that the killing occurred in a dispute over wages. Prosecutor George Saloyi said the pair found TerreBlanche, 69, asleep on his bed and beat him to death with a steel pipe. An autopsy indicated he sustained 28 injuries.
TerreBlanche founded a pro-apartheid paramilitary group, the Afrikaner Resistance Movement, that was prominent in the 1970s and ’80s but was a spent force by the time of his death.
The youth’s attorney, Norman Arendse, told the nation’s High Court in Ventersdorp that the boy was terrified of TerreBlanche, saying the militant abused him physically and verbally, often swearing at him. The attorney said there were also allegations that his client, who was 15 at the time, was a victim of sex abuse.
Arendse said the youth had entered TerreBlanche’s home on the day of the slaying but that the victim was already dead by then.
“On the day in question … the accused did enter the house of the deceased through an open window,” Arendse told the court, according to the South African Press Assn. “He was able to say that the deceased had already been killed and this will explain why some blood was found on his clothes.”
He said the teen had received partial payment for his day’s work as a herdsman for TerreBlanche’s 97 cattle and had no dispute with the militant at the time of the killing.
Police Officer Klaas Nkathule testified that he received a call from a minor at dusk on April 3, 2010, the day of the killing. A boy told him that he and a friend had killed TerreBlanche because they had not been paid for a day’s work, he said.
The boy told him that they were hiding, afraid of being killed in revenge, the news agency reported.
South Africa resists march of Walmart
Richard Wachman, Johannesburg guardian.co.uk,/ Monday 10 October 2011
Trade unions and government ministers unite to oppose giant US retailer’s takeover of Massmart supermarket chain
On the face of it, Walmart’s decision to take South Africa by storm via the acquisition of a controlling stake in Massmart, a leading supermarket chain, looked like a canny deal.
In one fell swoop, it gave America’s biggest grocer, and one of the largest companies in the world, a beachhead into the expanding markets of Africa.
But Walmart, which owns Asda in Britain, faces increasing opposition from a coalition of local unions, politicians and anti-capitalist campaigners – all of whom oppose the move.
There is a lot at stake here. Walmart’s acquisition of 51% of the Johannesburg-based company for about 17bn rand (£1.6bn) is viewed as a test of South Africa’s willingness to allow unimpeded foreign investment. And all this as the ruling African National Congress is being pressed by its radicalised youth wing to adopt a more protectionist stance.
This is not a deal that Walmart can suddenly unpick: it was announced in June and completed recently, approved by Massmart’s international investors.
But since then, three government departments and the shopworkers’ union, Saccawu, have lodged an appeal with the South African competition tribunal asking it to review its initial decision to let the Walmart deal stand. They fear job losses, the livelihoods of local producers and Walmart’s reputation for being anti-union and, allegedly, aggressive in its dealings with staff and competitors.
No one really believes that the competition tribunal, which is to hear the case at the end of October, will actually kick the Walmart transaction into touch. That would sow panic within the foreign investment community and raise fears that South Africa was a Zimbabwe in the making.
But the government is pushing the tribunal to impose far more stringent conditions – and potentially expensive ones – before allowing Walmart’s plan to proceed. That is an alarming development for the US company, and could cast a shadow over the work of Andy Bond, Asda’s former chairman, who played a pivotal role in overseeing the merger. The deal is Walmart’s biggest since it bought Asda in 1999.
Empire
When the South African tie-up was unveiled with much fanfare in the summer, Bond said Massmart hoped to open 40 new outlets a year, not only in South Africa, where it has the bulk of its 300-plus stores, but in countries such as Nigeria, Malawi and Zambia, where it already has a presence. And he said Massmart was targeting new opportunities in places such as Senegal, Cameroon and Angola. “Walmart likes emerging markets and South Africa in particular,” said Bond.
But there are forces in South Africa that are seeking to derail Walmart’s dream of building a new empire on the continent, to rival its growing international businesses in Asia and South America.
Cosatu, the South African equivalent of Britain’s Trades Union Congress, is urging the competition tribunal to endorse the view of Saccawu that “it is not in the best interest of South Africa for Walmart to be allowed into our country, but that if they are, it must be under conditions that protect workers, suppliers, and the wider South African community”.
The unions estimate that as many as 4,000 jobs could be lost from industries such as general merchandise – including clothing and footwear – and in food and beverage production if Massmart were to shift just 1% of its procurement from local to imported sources.
A union spokesman said: “Walmart, with sales of more than $405bn [£258bn – more than South Africa’s GDP] in 2010, has massive power to dominate the world’s global supply chains, and national retail sectors, and to dictate the conditions of trade to thousands of supply firms in other sectors.”
He added that Walmart’s track record in other countries “has led to massive job losses” and [it] has a tendency to “dictate sector trends that compel all to adapt to ‘Walmartisation’ in order to compete and survive”.
Three South African ministries say Walmart’s recent history shows a growing propensity to source from abroad, from countries such as China. In a statement, the government said: “Given Walmart’s global purchasing power, the merged entity will significantly increase imports and reduce purchases from local suppliers in South Africa.”
One government minister even raised the spectre of the deal posing a threat to South Africa’s food security, through its impact on agro-processing and farming.
The Walmart-Massmart merger was initially approved by the competition commission at the end of May with several conditions attached: Walmart had to set up a R100m supplier development fund to help local producers; there should be no merger-related redundancies for two years, and the company must honour existing union agreements for three years.
Walmart has tried to allay fears by promising hundreds of new stores and thousands of new jobs, as well as announcing a planned 50% increase in Massmart’s food business. The Americans want to expand the African chain by nearly 9% to 346 stores in 2012, increase trading space by more than 20% in three years, and spend about R1bn a year on capital investment.
Grant Pattison, chief executive of Massmart, said work had begun “to deliver lower prices to consumers, as well as expand sourcing, most of which will come from local manufacturers, amounting to R60bn of additional food and consumer goods purchases”.
Doug McMillon, head of Walmart’s international division, has told South Africans: “We will provide previously undeserved customers and communities with better prices and increased access to the products they want and need.”
But none of this has assuaged the fears of critics who fear eventual union derecognition, downward pressure on staff wages and growing procurement from overseas.
The unions have secured the backing of Michael Bride of the North American United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). Bride said: “In North America, we have witnessed the devastating effect the Walmart model has had on small business, suppliers and communities.”
Walmart has stoked controversy in the US with allegations of anti-union policies, overpriced health insurance, predatory pricing and poor relations with staff, some of whom, it is claimed, have been paid below the minimum wage. Walmart rejects such allegations.
Libertarian
The company has its supporters: Walmart has a positive influence on small businesses, according to a recent study from the American libertarian Ludwig von Mises Institute. The report said that while Walmart’s low prices caused some businesses to close, the chain also created opportunities for other small companies “with no net negative impact”. Numerous studies have shown that Walmart consumers benefit from low prices.
But any positive PR has fallen on deaf ears in South Africa, where the American company’s detractors have formed an “anti-Walmart coalition” and unions have threatened to strike.
Most worrying for Walmart, the South African government has backed the coalition by spearheading the appeal against the Massmart takeover with the competition authorities.
Then again, perhaps it’s not that surprising: President Jacob Zuma has pledged to create 5 million jobs over the next three years to cut unemployment in a country where nearly half of working-age adults are out of work.
The economics minister Ebrahim Patel said the government must “make a trade-off between consumption and jobs to protect the economy”. Walmart is a big, powerful company, but it may have to make significant concessions in Africa if its latest venture is to see the light of day
South Africa starts murder trial of supremacist
By Peroshni Govender/ Reuters/ Mon Oct 10, 2011
VENTERSDORP, South Africa
VENTERSDORP, South Africa (Reuters) – The trial of two blacks accused of hacking to death South African white supremacist leader Eugene Terre’blanche in a wage dispute at his farm opened Monday, exposing racial divisions in Africa’s largest economy.
Chris Mahlangu, a gardener at Terre’blanche’s farm, and a 16-year-old minor not identified for legal reasons were charged with the April 2010 murder that highlighted continuing racial tensions 17 years after the end of the apartheid system that Terre’blanche had fought to preserve.
The pair pleaded not guilty to charges including housebreaking, robbery and bludgeoning Terre’blanche to death with an axe.
The case has served as a reminder of bitter divisions in the country now dubbed the “Rainbow Nation” and ruled by the African National Congress, the party that helped end apartheid.
Norman Arendse, the attorney for the minor facing murder charges, said there were “appalling conditions on the farm” that was not fit for human habitation.
He told the court his client did not participate in the killing but did call police after finding Terre’blanche’s body.
He said it was difficult to get witnesses to testify on the dismal conditions on farms.
“The main reason appears to be naked fear and intimidation. Fear that they will loose the little they earn, fear that they will lose the roof over their head and the food they receive for working on the farms,” Arendse said.
Prosecutor George Baloyi told the court the two accused found Terre’blanche asleep on his bed and then beat him with a steel pipe.
“The DNA found on Eugene Terre’blanche’s clothes matched the DNA found on the accused’s clothes,” he told the court.
Many in the country still scarred by its brutal apartheid past were worried that the murder of Terre’blanche — who led the hardline supremacist Afrikaner Resistance Movement (AWB) — could have sparked racial violence.
But police said the motive for the crime was likely unpaid wages rather than anything political and the case has not led to any major fallout.
A handful of AWB supporters gathered outside the courthouse in Ventersdorp Monday morning, a farming community about 125 km (80 miles) west of Johannesburg. They flew the AWB and former Transvaal flag — symbols of the apartheid regime.
“We are here to support the Terre’blanche family and see that justice is done. We don’t want special treatment, the person who killed our leader should get a trial,” said AWB member Johan Potgieter.
“There is a place for the AWB. The whites are getting threatened in our own country, we are getting murdered on our farms,” he said.
Terre’blanche was a prominent figure during the dying years of apartheid but then lived in relative obscurity, particularly since his release in 2004 after serving a prison sentence for beating a black man nearly to death.
The AWB is seen as a fringe group with little influence, but many still say that remnants of the white-minority apartheid state linger in the country, where about half of the black majority live in poverty.
A local black resident, who only wanted to be identified as Sello, said: “The ANC may be in government but in Ventersdorp, the whites are still in charge.”
(Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Giles Elgood)
S.Africa allows oil firms to share data on supply
Tue Oct 11, 2011/ Reuters
Oct 11 (Reuters) – South Africa’s Competition Commission has granted the South African Petroleum Industry Association (SAPIA) members permission to share data on logistics and supply agreements to ensure stable availability of fuel in the country.
The commission, however, said the exemption does not apply to sharing information relating to setting margins, imposition of levies and the approval of tariffs, unless required to do so by the Department of Energy and the national energy regulator.
The exemption commenced on Oct.3 and will run to end December 2015, the commission said in a statement posted on its website on Monday.
SAPIA members include BP Southern Africa, Chevron South Africa, Engen, PetroSA, Sasol , Shell (RDSa.L) SA and Total South Africa .
The commission also said SAPIA must open up its membership, currently restricted to refineries, to accommodate both existing and potential marketers in the petroleum and refinery industry on fair and transparent basis.
“(This) will allow existing and potential marketers to benefit from the exempted agreements and practices, which otherwise would not have been the case,” it said. (Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda
South Africa: Census Call Message From His Excellency President Jacob Zuma
10 October 2011 /South African Government (Pretoria) /allafrica.com
press release
Fellow South Africans,
From 10 October until the end of this month, government will send people to your homes to count members of households, in order to help us plan better for the future.
Government people will count about 13 million households in our country.
This will enable us to know how many people there are in South Africa, where they stay, what they do, how many are employed and how many are struggling to get jobs.
They will check access to water, education, electricity, sanitation and other services.
This information will tell us as government how far we have come and how far we still need to travel to ensure a better quality of life for all. It will also help us to plan well in order to build a better life for all.
I urge all South Africans and all who reside in our country, to avail themselves to be counted. All of us must be counted.
The Government people doing the counting will carry official identification and you will be able to verify exactly who you are talking to.
We look forward to a successful Census and working with all of you, we will succeed.
Let us all be counted from the 10th to the 31st of October.
I thank you.
Issued by: The Presidency
Dalai Lama Joins South African Nobel Laureate in Google+ Hangout
By Erica Ho /techland.time.com/on October 11, 2011
These days, social media is circumventing politicians and bureaucracies in ways they could have never have imagined. Thanks to the Internet, the Dalai Lama joined Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu for the Archbishop’s 80th birthday – via Google+. No visa, plane tickets or government intervention required.
The Dalai Lama, who originally planned to attend the event in South Africa, hoped that he would be granted a visa into the country weeks ago. In company with a vast array of notable figures, he was also scheduled to deliver an address to the audience. However, a large debacle with the South African government led to several snags – complicated by its growing economic ties with China – and the Dalai Lama was forced to cancel his trip after a visa failed to materialize. The two spiritual figures then turned to the power of Google.
In the South African address, in which the two friends were united, the Dalai Lama criticized China openly. The Dalai Lama remarked, “Some Chinese officials describe me as a demon so naturally some fear… the demon.” South Africa, which views China as a key trading partner, has also denied the Dalai Lama a visa once before in 2009. The African nation has come under strong criticism for being influenced thanks to its relationship with Beijing. Unsurprisingly, the video was not broadcast on South African state media.
During the debacle, South Africa fired back, denying that they had refused the Dalai Lama a visa and was processing his application. “[His application] was being considered when he decided to cancel,” spokesman Clayson Monyela said. The government also contested that the Dalai Lama’s application had been incomplete and that it wasn’t until September 20 that they received the Tibetan leader’s passport. Monyela went on to say that it can take up to two months to issue a visa, though the South African consulate states that the usual processing time is five days for a normal tourist visa. The Dalai Lama was originally scheduled to address a live audience on October 6.
Archbishop Tutu was critical of his government, saying, “Clearly, whether they say so or not, they [are] quite determined that they are not going to do anything that would upset the Chinese.” He was not the only one who was upset over the government’s decision. The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), a trade union coalition within the country, has expressed displeasure toward the nation’s foreign policy. Tony Ehrenreich, a COSATU leader, opined in a South African news agency that, “even though China is our biggest trading partner, we should not exchange our morality for dollars or yuan.”
China views the Dalai Lama as a dangerous figure who is trying to split Tibet from China, though over the course of the years, the Dalai Lama has stated repeatedly that he favors Tibet be given more autonomy from China, and not necessarily political independence. Since fleeing Tibet in 1959, the Dalai Lama has been based in Dharamasala, India.
Though the two friends were forced to rely on technology, it was clear that Google+ helped bridge the gap between the two Nobel laureates. The Dalai Lama told Tutu fondly, “I can see your face. I really feel very, very happy.” Then with a mischievous remark, the Tibetan leader noted that he was looking forward to Tutu’s 90th birthday. “Don’t forget to send me an invitation. Then we can test your government.”
SA will not deviate from African bloc in key climate talks
By: Brindaveni Naidoo /www.engineeringnews.co.za/10th October 2011
South African will take an “African” position at the global climate change meeting in Durban later this year, Environmental Affairs chief negotiator Alf Wills said on Monday, while acknowledging that the continent was not united on some environmental issues.
South Africa, which is the president of the Seventeenth Conference the Parties (COP 17), has key trade partners within the Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) and the Ibsa (India, Brazil, South Africa) grouping of countries, as well as strong relations with the US, particularly through the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
But Wills said the country’s position on climate change was aligned with the African position, pointing out that Brics was not a negotiating bloc.
Although Africa as a bloc was not as coherent as the European Union (EU), it remained the most coherent after the EU, Wills said.
“There are differences in Africa, especially with regard to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, REDD, between the Democratic Republic of Congo and East African countries in terms of the use of forests in a market-based platform, while oil-rich African countries also had certain affiliations with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.”
In terms of the EU, Poland’s Centre for International Relations CEO Janusz Reiter said the EU remained diverse in its views, taking into consideration the economics and culture of climate change. However, the EU’s energy policy remained one around common rules and infrastructure, which is why the former Polish special envoy on climate change and ambassador to the US and Germany, believed Germany’s decision to phase out nuclear energy shortly after the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March, was a challenging one.
“Some believe that Germany’s decision is one that was irrational, but other believe it was a decision to generate pressure on Germany to develop green technologies and make their green industry more competitive,” Reiter said.
He believed that Germany would try to fill its energy gap through the use of natural gas, which has political and geopolitical implications, as it also increased dependence on Russia.
Indicating that his comments were in his personal capacity, he said such thinking, even for countries in the EU, were not attractive, particularly for countries that could not transition to a low based carbon economy and do not have the resources available to compete globally.
“This raises the question of fairness within the EU,” he said.
While Poland did not have a climate change policy, it remained fully committed to the EU agenda on climate change.
The coal-dependent Poland, he said, was transitioning towards nuclear, with the intention to build two nuclear power plants. It would also invest in shale gas, but the challenge remained the strong lobbying groups against the source of energy in the EU and the US, with strong opposition from Germany, Reiter explained.
EU negotiators were currently meeting in Luxemburg to finalise its final position for the COP 17 talks.
Reiter told Engineering News Online that the European debt crisis could reflect itself in the conditions of the EU’s offering to reduce emissions.
“The debt crisis remains a serious issue and makes much more of a difference in how the conditions reflects the realities of the EU’s vision,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Wills called for the agreements reached in Cancun to be operationalised and that while a legally binding agreement may not be reached at COP 17, it was key to ensure that a rule-based multilateral systems is encouraged to put forward the best system that could enable a legally binding agreement.
Both Wills and Reiter believed that it was key that in driving economic growth through climate change, that Intellectual property (IP) rights should not be undermined and there should be no room for taking away incentives for innovation.
Both agreed that a mixture of trade with climate change would also lead to a “no-win situation,”
Edited by: Mariaan Webb
LIRE TOUT LE DOCUMENT : bur11102011.doc
