{jcomments on}OMAR, BXL AGNEWS, le 11 février 2010 While Kenya has utterly denied the accusation, several regional intelligence sources have confirmed that it has helped train and equip Kenyan and Kenya-based Somalis to take part in the offensive against al-Shabab rebellion.

BURUNDI :

RWANDA

Rwanda: CID Summons Ingabire

James Karuhanga/The New Times/allafrica.com/11 February 2010

Kigali — Victoire Ingabire, the leader of the yet to be registered political party – FDU-Inkingi, was yesterday summoned and interviewed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at Police headquarters in Kacyiru.

This was confirmed by Police spokesperson Supt. Eric Kayiranga.

“Like any Rwandan citizen, or any other person on Rwandan territory, she was summoned this morning by police for the purpose of facilitating investigations,” Kayiranga said, in a phone interview.

The details of the investigations could not be established as he declined to specify.

“Issues under investigation cannot be revealed when they are still ongoing,” he said.

Kayiranga also said that Ingabire was in the company of her lawyer, Protais Mutembe.

Ingabire who returned to the country last month, has angered many Rwandans with her declarations and actions which many consider ‘divisive and revisionist’ and espousing the double genocide theory.

Last week, she was involved in a scuffle at Kinyinya Sector in which five people were arrested.

UGANDA

Canada, Netherlands provide Uganda vehicles for Darfur mission

Thursday 11 February 2010 /www.sudantribune.com

February 10, 2010 (WASHINGTON) – Canada and the Netherlands gave six new armored personnel carriers and other equipment to the Uganda Police Force for its part in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Darfur. The contribution is valued at US $12 million.

In the Darfur region, Ugandan police will form part of a heavy police contingent called “Formed Police Units” of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). Currently, Uganda already has 135 personnel deployed in Darfur with UNAMID and 17 with the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS).

In the spring of 2010, for a period of six months, 150 Ugandans will deploy to Darfur as a Formed Police Unit (FPU).

Canada and the Netherlands offered this in-kind contribution consisting of armoured and non-armoured vehicles, tents, and engineering, logistical, medical, dental and protective equipment. In addition, a six-month supply of critical spare parts along with equipment-related operator and basic equipment training has been provided.

According to the Canadian High Commission to Uganda, the contribution is part of Canada’s “concerted international effort to support a just and lasting peace in all of Sudan. Canadian contributions focus primarily on resolving the humanitarian and human rights crisis in Darfur, and supporting the full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) which ended the southern civil war in January 2005.”

“We are pleased to support vital peacekeeping efforts in Darfur, in a partnership with African peacekeeping nations like Uganda…,” said Canadian High Commissioner to Uganda, H.E Ross Hynes. “Uganda’s important contribution to peacekeeping efforts in Sudan is very much appreciated.”

The Government of Uganda will have the choice of using the vehicles and equipment received yesterday to extend the deployment or take part in other peacekeeping missions around the world, stated the Canadian High Commission.

(ST)

Opposition to Uganda’s anti-homosexuality bill has imperialist ring

GUEST COLUMN / Life in the West is not necessarily easier than life in the East

www.xtra.ca/Akim Adé Larcher / Vancouver / Thursday, February 11, 2010

From torturing and murder-ing men suspected of homosexual conduct in Iraq to the proposed Ugandan Anti-Homosexuality Bill, to the arrest and abuse of crossdressers in Guyana, to the recent arrest of a same-sex couple now facing up to 14 years in prison in Malawi, to the gang-rape and murder of well-known lesbian football player Eudy Simelane in South Africa, gender and sexuality are currently at the forefront of the international debate about human rights.

Or are they?

As part of an international movement for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer human rights, I have grown increasingly concerned about the lack of self-reflection regarding what this so-called international movement stands for and represents.

I’d like to see a re-examination of the lens through which we engage in these debates in the first place.

In November, Trinidad and Tobago hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. This seemed the perfect setting for a debate about human rights and sexuality since of the 53 Commonwealth member states, 40 still have anti-sodomy laws. President Museveni of Uganda was chairing the summit at a time when that country was being fiercely attacked in the international press because of the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

Homosexual activity is already criminalized in Uganda, and the proposed legislation further violates LGBTQ human rights by setting out provisions regarding so-called aggravated homosexuality, which would incur the death penalty.

The draft bill also calls for the imprisonment of those people, including heterosexuals, who fail to report the identities of those who they know are LGBTQ, or who support their human rights. Reports must be made within 24 hours. This is obviously a seriously problematic bill for Ugandans and for anyone who cares at all about human rights.

Canada seems to have come out punching first. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, AIDS-Free World co-director Stephen Lewis, the minister of foreign affairs and even the minister of transportation took swipes at the Ugandan punching bag.

Challenging and opposing this bill is indeed critical. But the ways in which the objections are being put forward is deeply troubling.

The framing of Canada’s opposition resonates with colonialism and imperialism. The words being used are the same words that have historically been — and unfortunately still are today — used to describe racialized people. That is, anyone with black or brown skin or who has any other visibly cultural or ethnic identifiers, or stereotyping markers.

Terms like “malice,” “menacing,” “lunatic,” “backward,” “dark ages,” “vile,” and “twisted” have been used by Canadian politicians to describe the draft bill and its proponents. Demonizing words oversimplify a complex situation and exacerbate the stereotype of the East (or South) as underdeveloped and failing to catch up to the West (or North). Such language draws binary lines, and false distinctions, between what is evil and what is good, what is black and what is white, what is developing and what is already developed, and what is inhumane and what is human.

Any political movement using such language unreflectively does harm by not considering those environments in which people are born, live, work, age, love, die and change.

Within the various contexts of racialized queers in Canada, life in the West is not necessarily better or easier than life in the East. Faced with multiple and intersecting forms of oppression, racialized queers face not only racism, but also over-the-top eroticization within predominantly white queer communities, and exclusion where lesbians lack spaces of their own within predominantly male-centred queer communities. This is in addition to issues of stigma, discrimination, poverty, homelessness, heterosexism, homophobia, lesbophobia, biphobia and transphobia within the wider Canadian contexts.

In Canada today, people with nonconforming gender identities or expressions have very few legal protections against violations of their basic human rights. Health Canada’s guidelines and policies exclude men who have sex with men from donating organs, blood and semen. Canada’s own immigration and refugee system has been questioned because cases of bias and stereotypes regarding sexual orientation and gender identity have been appealed within our federal court system.

Egale Canada’s First National School Climate Survey demonstrates that youth who self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, two-spirited, queer and questioning face high levels of homophobia and transphobia in school, which are linked with poor performance, high drop-out rates and teen suicide.

In Canada today, we do not have equality for all people. And until it examines its own human rights abuses and reflects upon how it frames the situation in other places, Canada cannot claim to be a beacon for international human rights.

TANZANIA:

CONGO RDC :

Victory, Valentines, and Vaginas

Heather MacLean / www.smujournal.ca/11022010

Valentine’s Day is upon us, and a production of The Vagina Monologues is taking place on campus, which is part of V-Day (the “V” stands for Victory, Valentine, and Vagina), a global movement to end violence against women and girls. The Vagina Monologues, besides celebrating women’s various sexualities, also calls attention to gender-based violence. Every year, V-Day spotlights a different area of gender-based violence to raise awareness and funds for various causes ($50 million to date). In 2010, the spotlight is on the women and girls of the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The war in the DRC has been called one of the worst emergencies to unfold in Africa in recent decades. The war ended in 1999, but the Eastern area of the country is still plagued by violence. In this war, as in all armed conflicts, rape was a weapon of war. Armed groups, even international actors like UN personnel, have been implicated in perpetrating gender-based violence. Many survivors suffer from profound, long-term psychological and physical consequences. However, the health care system in the DRC is almost non-existent. Survivors also have difficulty obtaining justice. Many women and girls suffer in silence, fearing stigma and ostracism if their ordeal is made public. The stigma comes from the fact that in the DRC, as in most places in the world, a woman who is raped is seen as ‘damaged goods.’

At SMU, proceeds from the production are also going towards Stepping Stone, the only organization in the Maritimes that supports sex workers (Stepping Stone director Rene Ross is also in the production). Stepping Stone operates on a harm reduction model, and the staff don’t try to stop their client’s work, rather, they assist them in making as safe and positive choices as possible. Many sex worker advocates fight to have sex work seen as work, because sex workers do provide a service. However, Canadian laws criminalize sex work, which fuels stigma and creates an environment where sex workers are subjected to violence and are sometimes killed. Often people don’t take crimes against sex workers seriously, because sex workers are seen as operating outside the boundaries of normative sexuality. Stepping Stone, besides supporting sex workers, also aims to educate the public about sex work and fight for decriminalization.

The Saint Mary’s production of The Vagina Monologues takes place February 12th and 13th at the McNally Auditorium. There is also a February 14th performance at The Company House, 2202 Gottingen Street. For all performances, doors open at 7 and the show starts at 7:30. Tickets are available at the SMU Women’s Centre and Venus Envy, or call 496-8722 or e-mail vdaysmu@gmail.com. Advance tickets are $7 for under waged, $12 for fairly waged. Tickets at the door are $10 for under waged, and $15 for fairly waged. Besides seeing great theatre, there will also be spoken word from Sara Asyyed and music by Catherine McCormack, not to mention chocolate vagina pops!

KENYA :

Somalia: Rebels storm capital, warn Kenya

Thursday 11 February 2010 / by Konye Obaji Ori /en.afrik.com

African Union forces in Somali and Somali government forces are geared for combat against militants in the capital city Mogadishu. Eyewitness reports claim that hordes of rebels, loyal to al-Qaeda linked al-Shabab, have stormed into Mogadishu with truck-loads of weapons.

The UN and U.S backed Somali transitional government of president, Sharif Sheikh Ahmed recently promised to launch an offensive to take control of the country. However, reports say the rebels are prepared to resist the government.

The report that al-Shabab rebels and government forces are on the verge of a serious brawl, has caused many Somalis to flee the capital. One of the many running away from the impending clashes told AFP news agency that neither the government forces nor the rebels cared about civilians.

“The government has vowed to retake the city, rebels are going to stick to their bastions and the civilians are going to be the only victims, as always bearing the brunt of the war,” the man was quoted as saying.

Another local resident, Abdullahi Mohamed told reporters that: “Eighteen trucks – big trucks – packed with Shebab militants drove through Lafole. I saw hundreds of new Shebab militants deployed around Hodan and KPP (Casa Populare) districts this morning… They are heavily armed with machine guns and anti-aircraft weapons.”

Analysts believe the rebels coming in from the south will strengthen an already numerous and organized group of fighters in Mogadishu. Human Rights Watch say gunfights and shelling are common in the city – and civilians are killed by both sides.

The transitional government controls only a small part of Mogadishu while the rest of the country is divided by warlords, al-Shabab and other Islamist militias. Since 1991, Somalia has been wracked by violence as it has had no functioning central government, for almost 20 years.

While the rebels prepare to do battle with the Somali government, they have their eye on Kenya’s role in supporting the Somali government against them. “We are not at war with Kenya at the moment but we are monitoring their acts of aggression in our country which have prompted us to be alert,” argues al-Shabab spokesman, Sheikh Hassan, who is based in the strategic southern city of Kismayo.

“The Kenyan government has been recruiting Somali soldiers who have now been armed and are ready to fight us. We will teach them a historic lesson that will not be forgotten,” he said on the Shebab-run Radio Andalus.

While Kenya has utterly denied the accusation, several regional intelligence sources have confirmed that it has helped train and equip Kenyan and Kenya-based Somalis to take part in the offensive against al-Shabab rebellion.

The UN’s refugee agency is already struggling to assist the million people displaced in 2007 and the quarter million more that have been displaced since May.

A year ago, President, Sharif Sheikh Ahmed was hailed by Washington as Somali’s best hope of peace in years. But the moderate Islamist has since failed to make any progress in his peace plans, and is now boxed in his Mogadishu compound, under African Union Peacekeeping protection. He celebrated late last month his first year in office under a hail of mortar fire.

Kenya Airports receive French support

BY EVELYN NJOROGE/ www.capitalfm.co.ke/Feb 11

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 11 – Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) on Wednesday signed an agreement with the French Development Agency for Sh6.9 billion ($93million) to be used for the upgrading of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

Managing Director George Muhoho told reporters that the deal would pave way for construction of Terminal Four and a multi-storey car park which marks the beginning of the second phase of the airport modernisation exercise.

Once the funds were released the contractor, China National Aero-Technology International Engineering Company which won the tender in September last year will begin the construction immediately.

The modernisation exercise of the busiest airport in East Africa, which was initially projected to cost Sh10 billion, begun in 2006 with phase one involving construction of the aircrafts parking space at a cost of Sh3 billion.

Mr Muhoho, whose term expires in April said they would issue tenders for phase three of the project for the upgrading of Units 1, 2 and 3 in the next two months.

“We have been given a loan to the tune of $93 million (Sh6.9billion) by the European Investment Bank and that is adequate for that project. So there is nothing standing in the way, it’s just the implementation,” he assured.

Mr Muhoho also said the refurbishment of the other airports such as Kisumu, Wajir, Mombasa and Malindi was ongoing with some of the projects already completed.

He however regretted that not all projects came to fruition during his tenure but was quick to add that he was proud of his achievement at the Authority.

“I would have liked to see these projects gone but gestation period take a long time. I would have wanted to see Isiolo as an international airport but things cannot all happen at the same time,” he said while defending his record at the helm of the parastatal where he has served for seven years.

Although at times his tenure was riddled with controversy for example when his critics accused him of corruption when KAA signed an agreement to provide a 90 acre piece of land to Qatari investors, the parastatal has recorded improved performance during the time he’s been in office.

For instance, the number of passengers using the JKIA went up by 1.5 million. Last year the airport handled 4.9 million and so has the cargo handling business which has now seen JKIA overtake Johannesburg and Cairo as the number cargo hub.

Mr Muhoho spoke during the ground breaking ceremony of Jetlink’s Express hangar and office complex which is estimated to cost Sh174 million.

Jetlink Managing Director Capt. Elly Aluvale said once the complex which should be completed in 57 weeks is in operation, it would save the airline millions of shillings that is spent in rent and leasing of hangar space.

“Having our own hangar and office complex will guarantee us many benefits including minimizing the maintenance time of our aircrafts to the proximity to our operating hub,” said Mr Aluvale.

ANGOLA :

SOUTH AFRICA:

South Africa celebrates 20 years of Mandela’s walk to freedom

IANS /beta.thehindu.com/ février 11, 2010

Cape Town,

South Africans on Thursday celebrated the 20th anniversary of former president Nelson Mandela’s release from prison by sharing their memories of his triumphant walk to freedom after 27 years behind bars for resisting apartheid.

Veterans of South Africa’s struggle to end racist rule, of which Mr. Mandela became the emblem during his imprisonment, converged on Groot Drakenstein prison near Cape Town from early morning to commemorate the historic event, which laid the ground for the country’s peaceful transition to democracy in 1994.

Groot Drakenstein jail, formerly known as Victor Verster prison, was where Mr. Mandela spent the last year of his imprisonment for sabotage.

A number of Mr. Mandela’s fellow Rivonia trialists — as the eight men, including Mr. Mandela, who were sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964 were known — his ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela joined scores of ANC leaders for a breakfast at the prison.

Later in the morning, Madikizela-Mandela, who was by his side as he took his first steps to freedom on February 11, 1990, was due to lead a crowd in a commemorative 500-metre walk through the prison gates.

Mr. Mandela, who is 91 and frail, will not be participating in the walk but will attend the opening of parliament later on Thursday in Cape Town, where President Jacob Zuma will deliver the annual State of the Nation speech.

Mr. Zuma was scheduled to first address a mini-rally at the prison, which houses medium – and maximum -security prisoners as well as juvenile offenders.

The inmates would not be joining in the celebrations but would be allowed to watch the proceedings on television, a spokesman for the provincial department of correctional services told DPA.

South African and international broadcasters devoted their morning shows to memories of Mr. Mandela’s release, with politicians, journalists, activists and wellwishers recalling their excitement at seeing the man whose image had been banned from publication by the apartheid regime for three decades.

“I expected to see someone who looked like a boxer!,” former telecommunications minister Jay Naidoo said. Instead, he saw a slender, silver-haired statesman.

Speaking to Johannesburg-based The Star newspaper, Madikizela-Mandela spoke of a bitter-sweet moment, when the nation gained a father but the Mandela family lost a spouse and a father to politics.

“Tragically, history marked the end of our lives as a family,” she said, sentiments echoed by her daughters Zenani and Zindzi to the paper in its Thursday edition.

Mr. Mandela, who became the country’s first black president after South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994, began marking the anniversary last week with a dinner at his home in Johannesburg for a group of ANC veterans.

Back-to-the-wall Zuma seeks South Africa’s support

Feb 11, 2010/Reuters

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – For South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma, mired in yet another sex scandal, Thursday’s address to the nation on the 20th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s release, is more likely to be a bid to claw back credibility.

World

Revelations that the polygamous president fathered a love-child with the unmarried daughter of a close friend have drawn fire from allies and enemies alike, and jeopardized his chances of running for a second term in 2014.

The scandal knocks what had been a positive start to his five-year term, with a survey conducted in November showing 77 percent of the population were happy with his performance.

But the imbroglio makes it even less likely that South Africans will take seriously the 67-year-old’s anticipated talk of the need to tackle AIDS and poverty that still blight many black communities 16 years after the end of apartheid.

“It will be yet another set of promises trying to inspire South Africans and saying government is on track to deal with the issues,” said Prince Mashele, executive director of the Center for Politics and Research.

“But to be honest he is a collective embarrassment to the nation,” he said. “South Africans will see him as a naked president.”

Although there have been no opinion polls since the scandal over the four-month-old girl broke two weeks ago, some African National Congress (ANC) bigwigs are privately sharpening the knives for a president they accuse of damaging the ruling party.

“He is becoming too much of a liability,” a member of the ANC’s national executive committee, who did not want to be named, told Reuters this week. “Polygamy and promiscuity is not the same thing.”

PRESSURE FROM POOR

Riots in a township near Johannesburg this week have drawn attention to the plight of millions of blacks who still live in vast shanty towns with inadequate sanitation, electricity and water.

Furthermore, up to a quarter of the country’s 50 million people are unemployed — a statistic that appalls the ANC’s union and communist allies.

Zuma has shown few signs of heeding calls for a more leftist economic policy despite the loss of nearly a million jobs in the recession that hit last year. Nine months into his presidency, he is unlikely to change that broadly centrist stance.

“I don’t think business people with an economic interest in South Africa should lose any sleep over macro-economic policy changes. There won’t be any in this speech,” said Center for the Study of Democracy Director Steven Friedman.

Collins Chabane, the Minister in the presidency responsible for Monitoring and Evaluation, told reporters Zuma will announce measures which the cabinet thinks are needed to help the economy recover.

“The address will look at how we most effectively support an accelerated recovery, and beyond that, sustained growth over the medium to long term,” Chabane said.

Zuma is also likely to discuss efforts to combat notoriously high levels of crime as South Africa counts down to the kick off of the 2010 World Cup in June.

He will also have to explain if power utility Eskom will be able to meet electricity demand and whether tariffs should be hiked.

The 91-year-old Mandela, who was released after 27 years in apartheid jails 20 years ago to the day, will make a rare public appearance at the speech.

(Additional reporting by Peroshni Govender; Editing by Giles Elgood)

Anglo American, BHP, Bidvest, DRD: South African Equity Preview

February 11, 2010/By Janice Kew and Renee Bonorchis/Bloomberg

Feb. 11 (Bloomberg) — The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in South Africa. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names and prices are from the last close.

South Africa’s FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index fell for the first time in three days, sliding 95.93, or 0.4 percent, to 26,359.17.

Anglo American Plc (AGL SJ): De Beers, the diamond company that is 45 percent-owned by the diversified industrial giant, may say today that it is raising $1 billion from its three owners to help it refinance its $1.5 billion debt which is due next month, the Financial Times reported, without citing anyone. The stock fell 2.75 rand, or 1 percent, to 283.75 rand.

Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP SJ): The platinum and palladium producer reports interim earnings. Aquarius said attributable production in the three months through December rose 16 percent. The stock gained 1.77 rand, or 3.9 percent, to 46.77 rand.

BHP Billiton Ltd. (BIL SJ): The world’s largest mining company will increase capital spending 63 percent next year to meet surging demand from India and China, and has left the door open for acquisitions. BHP may also delay the expansion of South Australia’s Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine, which could cost $16 billion to develop, Citigroup Inc. said. The stock fell 2.93 rand, or 1.3 percent, to 224.40 rand.

Bidvest Group Ltd. (BVT SJ): The auto dealer and food distributor said earnings per share fell between 6 percent and 8 percent in the six months through December compared with a year earlier. The share was unchanged at 132.20 rand.

Country Bird Holdings Ltd. (CBH SJ): The chicken producer reports earnings for the six months to Dec. 31. Country Bird eased 5 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 3.50 rand.

DRDGold Ltd. (DRD SJ): South Africa’s fourth-biggest gold producer reports second-quarter earnings. The company said on Jan. 29 that it expects to post a cash operating profit in the three months through December following a loss in the previous quarter. DRDGold rose 4 cents, or 0.9 percent, to 4.50 rand.

Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon Ltd. (WBO SJ): The holding company involved in building contracting, engineering and roads, said earnings per share and headline earnings per share are expected to be between 15 percent and 20 percent higher for the six months through December than a year earlier. The share rose 1.41 rand, or 1.4 percent, to 102 rand.

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

Anglo American Plc (AAUKY US) fell 1.5 percent to $18.30. AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU US) dropped 1.2 percent to $36.97. BHP Billiton Ltd. (BBL US) declined 2.7 percent to $58.34. DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY US) slid 3.4 percent to $5.90. Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI US) slid 0.4 percent to $11.48. Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY US) dropped 3.2 percent to $9.19. Impala Platinum Holdings Co. (IMPUY US) lost 1.2 percent to $24.44. Sappi Ltd. (SPP US) added 0.3 percent to $3.95. Sasol Ltd. (SSL US) was almost unchanged at $35.52. Telkom South Africa Ltd. (TLKGY US) rose 0.7 percent to $17.38.

–Editors: Alastair Reed, Paul Richardson.

Probe into deletion of ASA files

11 February 2010/Ramatsiyi Moholoa/www.sowetan.co.za

IN A dramatic turn of events, the South African Sport Confederation and Olympic Committee yesterday announced that computer files at Athletics South Africa have been deleted.

This has resulted in Sascoc top brass considering instituting a commission of inquiry into the finances and administration of ASA.

Criminal charges are also likely to be opened against some of the officials allegedly involved in destroying files dealing with financial matters. The committee has roped in Deloitte and Touche to conduct a forensic audit into the finances and administration of ASA.

“When the forensic audit process is completed, if a commission of inquiry or criminal charges are necessary, this will evolve at that stage,” said Sascoc chief executive Turby Reddy.

“The process has been long and frustrating, for various reasons, including the fact that we had a down period during the festive season.

“We are now in a position to announce that upon taking over the administration of ASA, interim administrator Mr Ray Mali found a number of machines that were used to shred documentation.

“Many files on computers and the server have been deleted by ASA personnel and serious concerns have been raised about the finances of the organisation.

“While Deloitte and Touche conduct the forensic audit into the finances and administration of ASA, Advocate Collins will continue to develop the charge sheets on each of the suspended individuals and continue with the disciplinary hearings that start in March.”

Mali was appointed ASA interim administrator on November 16 after the Leonard Chuene-led ASA board was suspended .

An interim board, which includes Hendrick Ramaala, James Mokoka, James Moloi, Aleck Skosana and Geraldine Pillay, was elected on November 20. Reddy said the world governing athletics body was busy analysing the results of the tests.

South African police work with Interpol on World Cup security

• Moves to counter cross-border crime and terrorism announced

• Police chief will meet all participating nations next week

Press Association /guardian.co.uk/ 11 February 2010

The South African Police Service is co-operating with forces in neighbouring countries and Interpol in a bid to combat the threat of terrorism and other cross-border crime during this summer’s World Cup.

The SAPS commissioner, Bheki Cele, met senior officers from Zimbabwe, Botswana, Angola, Lesotho, DR Congo, Swaziland, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique and Mauritius to improve border management ahead of the finals. Interpol will offer assistance through the use of mobile passport control units at ports of entry, team training camps and stadiums.

The move comes after a terrorist attack on the Togo team bus prior to the Africa Cup of Nations in the Angolan province of Cabinda last month, which left three people dead.

Commissioner Cele said: “The unfortunate incident [involving] the Togolese team has brought much sadness to the football world.

“However, the Angolan authorities have acted swiftly on those assailants by fatally wounding one man and arresting two others. This has undoubtedly reassured the world that Africa will not tolerate cowardly and barbaric actions against the innocent.

“South Africa’s capability and security strength to host a safe and secure World Cup cannot be judged or benchmarked on what happens in another country. We are a sovereign country and we should be assessed on our own merits.”

The Southern African Police Chiefs Co-operation Organisation will establish information centres in each participating country which will report to a main South African information headquarters, with the intention of ensuring the safe movement of teams, heads of state and supporters during the tournament.

Each country will nominate an executive officer to act as a link between South Africa and the regional police committee, while tightening border controls with the assistance of Interpol.

Commissioner Cele will meet police chiefs from all countries competing in the tournament on 18 February in Zurich.

“We have received enormous support from major policing agencies in the world; Fifa has once again declared its full support and confidence to South Africa,” Commissioner Cele said. “Indeed we have re-committed ourselves to carry the tournament with exceptional vigour and excellence – we owe it to South Africa, the African continent and the world.”

AFRICA / AU :

Crises eroding Africa’s gains, Ban warns

;font-size: 9pt; color: black”>Thursday, February 11, 2010 /www.ngrguardiannews.com

Gambari moves to restart Darfur peace talks

From Laolu Akande, New York

WHILE the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, is lamenting that many global crises are eroding the economic and social gains recorded in Africa in the last decade, the UN envoy and former Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, has moved to restart the Darfur peace talks.

The global food crises, energy/climate change and the financial and economic crises have eroded economic and social gains made in Africa over the past 10 years, Ban warned in a new report, calling for a stronger partnership for Africa’s development.

In his report entitled, ‘Social Dimensions of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD),’ released on Tuesday in New York, the Secretary-General wrote that the adverse social consequences of these crises are likely to remain for much longer in Africa, even after the recovery gathers pace in advanced countries.

“African economies will likely experience decelerated growth, high unemployment and poverty rates and diminished prospects for achieving NEPAD goals and other internationally-agreed development goals, including the MDGs,” the Secretary-General wrote.

To mitigate these effects, Ban recommended that African countries bear the majority of responsibility for their own development by continuing to integrate and mainstream NEPAD priorities – such as infrastructure, agriculture and food security, science and technology, trade, and environment – into their national development plans. Governments concerned, he added, should also take advantage of North-South and South-South experiences and best practices.

The report also called on Africa’s development partners to continue to integrate NEPAD priorities, values and principles into their development assistance programmes. In particular, it said, the international community should assist African countries in addressing the challenge of climate change by raising the resources needed to support adaptation and mitigation actions.

“For Africa to leapfrog dirty energy solutions, strengthen its adaptive capacity and pursue sustainable low-carbon growth strategies, it will need financial assistance and technology transfers. The region will need not only additional funding but also timely and predictable delivery on existing ODA commitments,” the Secretary-General wrote.

Meanwhile, Gambari, who recently resumed as the United Nations and African Union Joint Special Representative (JSR) of the UN Mission in the war-torn region of Sudan, is “en-route to Doha to provide his support to the ongoing Darfur peace talks,” according to the UN spokesperson, Martin Nesirky, at a UN’s press briefing at the headquarters in New York.

The UN spokesperson added that Gambari would be meeting “with Joint Chief Mediator Djibril Bassole, members of the Qatari Foreign Ministry, senior Sudanese Government officials and rebel officials. There are also planned discussions that will include Sudanese-Chadian relations as well as regional security.”

This is said to be a determined effort by the UN to re-ignite the peace talks on Darfur as Gambari himself described the UN Mission in Darfur-aka UNAMID as “the first mission where you have a peacekeeping mission without peace to keep.”

Gambari’s effort is to complete consultations initiated with senior officials in the Sudan, according to Noureddine Mezni, the official UNAMID spokesperson.

UNAMID priorities, according to the new JSR, “will focus on enhancing the security of civilians and internally-displaced people in Darfur; continuing to provide proactive support to the ongoing peace process; and assisting in the normalisation of relations between Chad and the Sudan.”

On resumption in Darfur late last month, Gambari outlined a work plan which the UN said has now been welcomed and supported by all parties he met on the sidelines of the African Union summit in Addis Ababa last week.

While at the AU meeting, Gambari, in furtherance of his peace agenda in Darfur, met with the UN Secretary General, AU Commission Chairperson, Ethiopian Prime Minister, and a number of special envoys to Sudan, including U.S. Scott Gration.

Besides, he also held a meeting at the Sudanese capital city of Khartoum with the head of the AU high level panel on Darfur, Thabo Mbeki, former South African President and his Nigerian counterpart, General Abdusalami Abubakar.

UN reports said Gambari is aiming to co-ordinate efforts between the Joint Chief Mediator and the former South Africa president who seeks a holistic solution for Sudan problems.

Black History Month’s broad history spans beyond America’s borders

bgnews.com/By Hamainda Bbela, Copy Editor /Published: February 11, 2010

When we think about Black History Month, we think of things like civil rights leaders and slavery and reflect on the cultural impact of black American culture.

The defiance inherent in the counterculture and Civil Rights movements of the 50s, 60s and 70s reverberated around the world. People oppressed by the yoke of colonialism and racism began to reassert themselves. The world was watching with amazement as icons like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Hue P. Newton and numerous others demanded fair treatment from society.

This call for equality by people in America became a way downtrodden peoples around the world mustered the strength to pull themselves up. In that way, King’s civil rights struggle became one people from everywhere identified with. People around the world tapped into the call for liberation inherent in the music, dress and culture of black America.

Any scholar of history knows the continent of Africa and parts of Asia and the Americas were in the clutches of colonial rule for decades. In this colonial period, Africans lost much in terms of culture, land and political autonomy. Colonizers from the West came with a philosophy informed by racism and a craving for imperial glory.

Once on the continent, these powers greedily carved the continent without the knowledge or participation of African leaders. The spoils went to the greedy European nations of France, Britain, Portugal and Belgium.

Each colony was run in a different way, but each colonial power had similar motives. They gave Africans a sense of cultural inferiority.

Then, in the midst of the Cold War, a reawakening began in America as people of all races became disillusioned with a political system and society that sanctioned racism. People of color around the world began to reconstitute their ideas of themselves.

Black artforms like music, dance and film reverberated widely and still do today in third world countries. Far-flung corners of the world still have images of pan-African icons like Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X. Icons like King and Malcolm X inspired young thinkers and revolutionaries in parts of Africa. The ’60s and ’70s were a time of countercultural change in America and the West.

This movement also had effects on Africa, as nations began to free themselves from the clutches of colonization. African people began to identify with and acquire a new sense of their own identities through the examples of civil rights figures from America.

In a way, the people of the world reconstituted their views of themselves by watching brash, confident icons like Ali stand up for their beliefs. Icons like James Brown sang songs about unity and pride for all people around the world.

Black History Month has ramifications for people around the world. It’s an important time for people to bare testament to the resilience of the human spirit.

The civil rights struggle informed and advanced protest traditions around the world. Thinkers and philosophers in different parts of the world were inspired to question and prod at the question of civil rights, race and society because of the brave acts of black Americans.

Thinkers like Kwame Nkrumah, Fela Kuti, Steve Biko and Nelson Mandela were inspired by the civil rights marches and protests in the 60s. The speeches and exploits of Malcolm X and Huey P. Newton became essential information for armed liberation struggles in colonial Africa and parts of the Americas.

That’s why I feel it’s important Black History Month be put in its global perspective. It’s important that people realize the civil rights struggle in America is inextricably linked to civil rights struggles around the world.

It’s a time when we celebrate the human spirit’s inert need for freedom and justice, reflected in the bravery of the heroes of the civil rights era.

President Obama and civil rights leaders discuss economy and black Americans

By Michael A. Fletcher/Washington Post Staff Writer /Thursday, February 11, 2010

President Obama hosted a rare Oval Office meeting with civil rights leaders Wednesday to discuss his plans for improving the dire economic conditions gripping much of black America.

Obama had not met exclusively with civil rights leaders since he took office, and he used the occasion to signal his concern about mounting black joblessness while enlisting his guests’ support for his proposals.

Despite a paralyzing blizzard in Washington, Obama brought together the Rev. Al Sharpton, founder of the National Action Network, NAACP President Benjamin T. Jealous and Marc H. Morial, president of the National Urban League, for a conversation that lasted nearly an hour. Dorothy I. Height, the 97-year-old chair of the National Council of Negro Women, was prevented from attending by the severe weather.

The participants emerged from the meeting convinced that Obama is deeply worried about the desperation felt in many communities across the country about the economy.

“You could see that the president felt the gravity of the problem facing not only African Americans, but all Americans,” Sharpton said. “I think he was very clear that he was not going to engage in any race-based programs. But at the same time, he was determined that, going forward, we can correct some of the structural inequalities that are currently in place.”

Jealous said the conversation focused less on race than on the many economically hard-hit areas of the country, from Detroit to rural areas in North and South Carolina. “The reality is that poverty has been greatly democratized by this recession,” he said. “What all Americans have in common is that they are hurting and struggling and want to see the pace of progress quicken.”

The meeting occurred as some African American leaders and scholars are expressing increasing frustration with the willingness of the first black president to directly address the economic problems plaguing black Americans. In December, some members of the Congressional Black Caucus threatened to oppose new regulations for the nation’s financial system unless Obama did more to fight the pressing economic conditions in many black communities.

The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, who has had a sometimes contentious relationship with Obama, has been working to pressure the administration to do more to address home foreclosures, while complaining that the president’s economic advisers have been more responsive to the needs of big business than of struggling individuals.

The leaders invited to the White House had requested the meeting with Obama in a letter two weeks ago, and Jackson was not among them. A spokesman for Jackson would say only that he was not invited.

In January, black unemployment ticked upward to 16.5 percent, while overall unemployment fell to 9.7 percent — a yawning gap that persists in good times and bad. Numerous studies have found that black and other minority homebuyers are disproportionately affected by the home foreclosure crisis, and the rampant loss of wealth that has come with it.

But Obama has refused to separate the economic challenges faced by black and other minorities from the nation’s broader fiscal struggles. Initiatives such as increasing federal financial aid for college, putting huge sums of federal money into public schools, and pushing to expand access to health care would disproportionately benefit working-class people, many of whom are black, he has said.

“Is there grumbling?” Obama asked rhetorically, in a December interview with American Urban Radio Networks’ April D. Ryan. “Of course, there’s grumbling, because we just went through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.”

He went on to say that black people “were some of the folks who were most affected by predatory lending. There’s a long history of us being the last hired and the first fired. As I said on health care, we’re the ones who are in the worst position to absorb companies deciding to drop their health care plans,” Obama said. “So, should people be satisfied? Absolutely not.”

Still, Obama said that he should not tailor policies just to African Americans. “I’m the president of the entire United States,” he said. “What I can do is make sure that I am passing laws that help all people, particularly those who are most vulnerable and most in need. That, in turn, is going to help lift up the African American community.”

The leaders who attended Wednesday’s meeting said that, while they had never before met with Obama as a group, they had good relationships with many of his top advisers and his Cabinet. They added that they plan to meet in the coming weeks with the bipartisan leadership on Capitol Hill to make their case.

“A lot of what we are frustrated by comes down to other actors in the government, not just the White House,” Jealous said.

Report: Mideast, North African countries censor, control media

By Joe Sterling, CNN / February 11, 2010

(CNN) — Despite the rise of the Web and its freewheeling second-by-second ferment, government efforts at control and censorship remain rife across the Middle East and North Africa, a new report said Thursday.

“In the Middle East and North Africa, the Internet has offered many people access to information and the outside world that would have been unimaginable a few years ago,” according to the International Press Institute’s latest report: the IPI Press Review 2009 Focus on the Middle East and North Africa.

“However, government control of the media remains tight in almost all [Middle East and North Africa] countries, and censorship and self-censorship are prevalent throughout the region.”

The Internet has emerged as a challenge to officialdom and its pronouncements and reaction from activists. Journalists say government efforts to stem the flow of information are futile.

Communication on the popular social media sites, where people are attempting to elude the strictures of their governments, is playing a cat-and-mouse game with widespread independent reporting in places like Iran and Egypt.

But, said Anthony Mills, managing editor of the World Press Freedom Review based in Vienna, Austria, “Overall, things are getting worse.”

In Iran, authorities cracked down on journalists after protests surfaced when President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner in the June 12 presidential election, a victory that many in Iran say was fixed.

“Dozens of journalists have been detained without trial, and several sentenced to long prison sentences,” the report said. “As demonstrators took to the streets, a news blackout was imposed on the foreign media. And yet, through social media networks like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, news of a violent government crackdown seeped out.”

With the rise of the Internet, censorship efforts have emerged in Iran and other places across the region.

Iran “also cracked down on online media following the disputed June elections, and arrested online activists in an effort to stop the spread of dissenting information and opinions,” according to the report.

Egypt, for example, uses a law designed to combat terror for arresting and detaining bloggers.

But Abdul Rahman al-Rashed, general manager of the TV network Al-Arabiya, said the resistance to the flood of Internet information from government and other sectors of society is like trying to stop the Nile River from flowing. They can’t halt it.

“A lot of information is getting through to the average person, in Cairo, in Jeddah and Dubai. Censorship will not stop the free flow of information, in my opinion,” he said.

Al-Rashed said the business needs of the telecommunications companies, the integral role the Internet plays in business, and the demand from citizens can’t be thwarted. He said there might be remote regions where censorship can work because there isn’t access to the Internet in such places.

Octavia Nasr, CNN senior editor for the Middle East who monitors social media sites, said young people are boldly circumventing the official media censorship across the Middle East with Twitter, Facebook and alternatives.

“People are taking matters into their own hands,” Nasr said. “Traditional media is not necessarily a driving force.”

Azza Matar, translator at the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information in Cairo, Egypt, said governments want the Arab world to use the Internet for fun and not interfere with government and serious issues, but people are circumventing the officials with new media.

“We’re trying to express ourselves and expose the lies,” she said.

People from different countries prefer different kinds of new media, she said. As for Iranians, who are gearing up for a day of protests Thursday against the regime on the Islamic Revolution’s anniversary, she said Iranians prefer Twitter because it can’t be blocked and “is faster than blogs in conveying messages for masses.”

Neziha Rejiba, vice president of the Tunis-based Observatory for the Freedom of Press, Publishing and Creation and editor at Kalima Radio, said that theoretically, the whole world is getting its information online, but in the Middle East, censorship remains a reality, with cyberpolice blocking sites or even, as in the case of Syria, the Internet itself.

There is a dynamic in the Middle East between censorship and self-censorship.

“When journalists sit down to write a piece, they have to keep in mind the reaction to what they’re writing. They’re either scared of sanctions or revenge.”

Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Khalid Al Khalifa said the Internet “has revolutionized the world” and “has helped foster creativity, innovation and freedom.”

There have been complaints there about the recent blocking of Web sites in Bahrain.

While Al Khalifa said regulating different kinds of censorship internationally is impractical, he said in the Middle East, censorship takes forms he has mixed feelings about.

“Censorship can be taken too far to silence dissent and opposing views, but it can also be used as a tool to prevent potentially destructive and damaging ideas and behavior. There is increasing concern about harmful content on the Internet from violence, inciting racial hatred and terrorist activity, to sexual content and pornography, which justifies censorship on moral grounds,” Al Khalifa said.

As for other aspects of the Middle East and its media, the report reveals several relative silver linings when it comes to press freedom: the environment in Lebanon, Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

Lebanon has a “far and more diverse and vibrant media than any other Arab country,” but the institute found that “most of Lebanon’s media outlets are unduly influenced in their journalism content by powerful political figures to whom they are financially and politically beholden.”

Mills said the media in Lebanon can be characterized as “partly free” because there’s a lot they don’t talk about, such as criticism of military intelligence and the head of state, for example.

According to the report, “Israel has one of the most open media environments in the Middle East” for Israeli journalists with a wide range of opinions and commentary.

At the same time, Israeli security policy prevents Israeli journalists from traveling into the Palestinian territories without special permission, and Palestinian journalists are prevented from entering Israel.

The report said both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian security forces interfere with the work of Palestinian journalists, and that journalists in Gaza have to resort to self-censorship.

Freedom of speech and press in the United Arab Emirates gets “some of the highest marks in the Arab world,” but it “still has a long way to go.”

The report cited a “number of taboo topics that journalists in the United Arab Emirates are not supposed to touch and indeed, most of the media do not,” such as criticism of the ruling family. Across the Middle East, criticism of royal families and words perceived as insults to Islam have been criminalized.

In Iraq, violence there has dropped and so has the number of journalists’ deaths, but “the U.S. military continues to imprison journalists without charge” and local security forces have been responsible for beating journalists. There is concern about the rise of proposed legislation stifling media freedom.

In Syria, which has “one of the world’s worst records on media freedom,” the media outlets are owned or controlled by the government. Political unrest elsewhere, the report said, is accompanied by media crackdowns, such as in Yemen, where there has been an insurgency in the north and civil unrest in the south. Elections in Algeria and Tunisia have also led to press freedom violations.

Governments have controlled “moral content” as well, the report said.

“In Saudi Arabia, several people involved in the production of a television show about sexual attitudes were sentenced to flogging and jail terms. In Sudan, journalist Lubna Hussein was sentenced to a flogging for wearing trousers. Following international uproar, the punishment was reduced to a fine, which was then paid by a pro-government journalists’ association.”

AU Lauds Jonathan’s Elevation

02.11.2010/www.thisdayonline.com

Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Dr. Jean Ping, has expressed delight at the appointment of the Vice President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, as the acting president in the absence, due to ill health, of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

“In so doing, the government and people of Nigeria have, again, resolved a delicate and sensitive political situation within the constitutional and legal provisions available and without recourse to violence or unconstitutional means,” the AU statement noted. It added that the development is further evidence that respect for the Constitution, good governance, democracy and the rule of law are being deepened in Nigeria and are becoming irreversible.

It also said it is evident that the higher interests of the nation have taken precedence over any other consideration.

Ping said Nigeria has, once again, proven that it practises at home what it preaches on the continent, and, in so doing, strengthens the African Union’s strong commitment to constitutionality and rejection of unconstitutional means to resolve political problems in Africa.

He said it also shows that Nigeria is a firm believer in the shared values of the African Union, to which it has made very positive and consistent contribution.

He encouraged all the stakeholders in Nigeria, including the military, to continue in their firm support for and practice of constitutionality, a path that Nigerians and other Africans have chosen and which was eloquently reaffirmed by the just concluded session of the Assembly of the Union.

through the strengthening of AU’s instruments relating to unconstitutional changes of government.”The Chairperson wishes President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua speedy recovery. He also wishes the acting president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, every success as he assumes the interim leadership of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Chairperson assures Dr. Jonathan and the government and people of Nigeria of his personal commitment and that of the African Union Commission to accompany them in the noble task of building a strong, dynamic and democratic nation,” the AU statement concludes.

UN /ONU :

USA :

South Africa 20 years after Mandela release

February 11, 2010/CNN

(CNN) — When Nelson Mandela stepped out of South Africa’s Victor Verster prison a free man 20 years ago Thursday, he was his country’s most famous freedom fighter.

Black South Africans and other opponents of apartheid lined streets to see him when he was released, cheering wildly and waving flags. He was a hero, imprisoned for 27 years for the crime of opposing a government that sought to enforce severe segregation laws with brutality.

Once free, Mandela worked with South Africa’s white president, F.W. de Klerk to end those policies, knocking down the pillars of segregation one at a time. Three years after his release from prison, Mandela and de Klerk shared the Nobel Peace Prize.

The African National Congress — once again legal after being banned in 1961 — elected Mandela as its president, and he won South Africa’s presidential election in a landslide in 1994, the country’s first black president.

“We dedicate this day to all the heroes and heroines in this country and the rest of the world who sacrificed in many ways and surrendered their lives so that we could be free,” he said in his inauguration speech. “Their dreams have become reality. Freedom is their reward. We are both humbled and elevated by the honor and privilege that you, the people of South Africa, have bestowed on us, as the first President of a united, democratic, non-racial and non-sexist government.”

And he kept his promise to serve but one term.

Already in prison when convicted of treason in 1964 and given a life sentence, Mandela was a living symbol of the struggle against South Africa’s racist apartheid system enacted when he was 30 years old.

But the African National Congress leader fought for justice long before the National Party’s 1948 election and subsequent introduction of apartheid. And in his last public words before he was whisked off to jail, Mandela spoke of his own dream.

“I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination,” he said. “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony, and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for, and to see realized. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

Rolihlahla Mandela was always meant for great things, but his name — it means “pulling the branch of a tree” or, colloquially “troublemaker,” in the Xhosa language — foreshadowed how that greatness would manifest.

Born into a Thembu royal family — but the wrong branch to be considered in line for the throne — Mandela was the first of his family to attend school, where a teacher gave him the name “Nelson.” He even went to college but was tossed out at the end of his first year for protesting school policies. And he ran away to Johannesburg, where he finished college and began law studies, to escape an arranged marriage.

But 1948 focused Mandela’s life like nothing before. First organizing non-violent resistance to apartheid policies, Mandela and his ANC cohorts were nevertheless hounded — arrested, beaten, followed, spied upon — by the government. When the ANC was formally banned in 1961, the group realized that non-violence wasn’t working.

“It was only when all else had failed, when all channels of peaceful protest had been barred to us, that the decision was made to embark on violent forms of political struggle,” he said in court. ” … the government had left us no other choice.”

Prior to his imprisonment, Mandela was anything but a free man, traveling incognito, organizing the business of the African National Congress without having to bring its members together in one place where they would be vulnerable to government action, spending days and weeks away from his family.

Even before his release, Mandela had moved beyond freedom fighter to statesman, a position he still holds despite retiring from public life in 2004 to spend more time with his family. He spoke out for democracy, human rights and peace. He fought against AIDS but admitted he probably could have done more to stop the spread of the disease. He created foundations to carry on his legacy, spoke around the world and tirelessly told the world that the end of apartheid was not his doing but the work of many others who shared the same dream.

But Mandela is not remembered simply for ending apartheid. He was also behind reconciliation, a painful and lengthy process that attempted to hold those responsible for the brutality accountable for their acts without alienating the other white South Africans.

In nearly every speech, Mandela pushed this concept. He urged black South Africans to support the South African national rugby team — hated by many blacks because they viewed it as the sport of their oppressors — in 1995. And when the team won the 1995 Rugby World Cup, team captain Francois Pienaar received the trophy from the president himself, wearing a duplicate of Pienaar’s jersey.

Pienaar, after the release of the movie “Invictus” that tells the story, said of his first meeting with Mandela — when the president described his plan to use the team to help bring white and black south Africa together — “I left that first meeting with the feeling that we were in good hands in South Africa. I felt safe with him.”

And Mandela was instrumental in bringing soccer’s World Cup to South Africa — finally arriving this year, six years after soccer’s world body awarded the event.

Now 91, Mandela rests in the company of his family, including his third wife, Graca Machel. The accolades have been heaped upon him. He is a hero to his people, and to much of the world.

But 15 years into democracy, South Africa still faces rife poverty, unemployment and crime. Many people do not enjoy the benefits of freedom — there is more to be done, but no one pretends otherwise.

“I’ve been amazed that they haven’t said to hell with Mandela and Tutu and all these people who talk about reconciliation and go on a rampage,” Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu said of the patience of South Africa’s poor.

Tutu also won a Nobel Peace Prize — in 1984 — and was one of many who carried on Mandela’s work through the late 1960s, the 1970s and the 1980s. He was chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee and is now chairman of The Elders, a group he, Mandela and Machel founded to provide a mechanism for world leaders to share their wisdom.

F.W. de Klerk is not a member of that group. But he recognizes both the transformative work he and Mandela did in the 1990s and the troubles the country still faces.

“We have averted a catastrophe, the new South Africa with all these big problems is a much better place than it would have been had we not taken the initiatives we did in the early 1990s,” he said. “We are back in the international community; we play a positive good role on the problematic continent of Africa. So life is good but not for the poor.”

And no one is more keenly aware of those “big problems” than Rolihlahla Nelson Mandela, now known fondly in South Africa by his clan name, Madiba. He saw it clearly in 1994, when his autobiography, “Long Walk to Freedom,” was published.

“I have traveled this long road to freedom,” he wrote. “I trust I did not falter. I made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that, after crossing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to cross.”

Twenty years ago, there was no freedom for Mandela, no freedom for black South Africans. There may be more hills to cross, but those black South Africans are no longer strangers to freedom.

Diageo Profit Misses Estimates on U.S., Europe (Update1)

February 11, 2010/By Andrew Cleary/Bloomberg

(Adds CEO’s comments in sixth paragraph, currency swings and marketing spending in eighth, dividend in last.)

Feb. 11 (Bloomberg) — Diageo Plc, the world’s largest liquor maker, reported first-half profit that missed analysts’ estimates as weaker consumer demand in the U.S. and Europe offset improving sales in Latin America and Africa.

Diageo generates 70 percent of earnings in North America and Europe, where volume sales fell 4 percent and 2 percent, respectively, as consumers drank less premium spirits amid a shaky economic recovery. The maker of Smirnoff vodka and Captain Morgan rum sold more products at a discount in the U.S. to stem the flow of drinkers switching to cheaper competitor brands.

“Abating the promotional activity and actively getting price increases through is the single most important driver” for Diageo, Melissa Earlam, an analyst at UBS AG in London, said in a note before the statement. “There appear to be no signs of improvement in either Spain or Ireland,” two of Diageo’s three biggest markets in Europe, Earlam said.

So-called organic operating profit, which excludes currency swings and acquisitions, declined 3 percent in the first half. The distiller maintained its target for full-year organic operating profit to grow by a “low single-digit” percentage.

‘Return to Growth’

Diageo fell as much as 37 pence to 988 pence in London trading and was at 1,001 pence as of 8:04 a.m. The stock has climbed 10 percent over the past year, compared with a 27 percent increase in Pernod Ricard SA, its biggest competitor.

“The economic and consumer environment remained weak in many markets and we faced a difficult comparison,” Chief Executive Officer Paul Walsh said in a statement. Even so, the second quarter “did show a return to growth,” he added.

“We expect the first half to be a turning point for Diageo,” Trevor Stirling, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein in London, said in a Feb. 9 note. He has an “outperform” rating.

Diageo said currency swings added 75 million pounds to operating profit and reduced interest costs by 5 million pounds. The distiller reduced costs by about 60 million pounds through plant closures and job cuts, and also lowered marketing investment by 5 percent as it cut back on activity in weak European markets.

Liquor Volumes

The total amount of liquor sold in the half fell 2 percent, beating the median analyst estimate for a 2.8 percent decline. Volume sales at the international unit rose 2 percent helped by the performance of Guinness in Africa and Johnnie Walker whisky in Latin America. Profit in the region rose 16 percent.

Asia Pacific volume fell 1 percent, compared with an 11 percent drop last year, while operating profit rose 5 percent.

Diageo’s first-half net income declined 10 percent to 1.02 billion pounds. The distiller increased the first-half dividend by 5 percent to 14.6 pence a share.

–Editors: Paul Jarvis, Chris Staiti.

CANADA :

Remembering Canadian Black Heritage

Alex Clarke/www.smujournal.ca/11022010

February is the month of love. Romance is in the air and couples all over are planning how to celebrate the upcoming weekend. However, students also must remember that February is the month of celebration of Black History for Canada and the United States. The remembrance was founded in 1926 by Carter G. Woodson and was chosen in February because it marked the birthdays of two people who greatly influenced the lives and social conditions of African American: former slave and abolitionist Fredrick Douglas and former President Abraham Lincoln.

African-Canadians have contributed to all areas, enriching the Canadian educational, political, business, religious, and cultural landscapes. Early contributors worked within the Black community, without much public recognition. Sometimes, a Black person would gain high office due to their skill, experience, wealth, or commitment that made their race less of an issue. Later, as more opportunities were fought for, or opened up, more African-Canadians could enter a wider range of public positions.

Those who went where no other African-Canadian have paved the road for the present. As co-workers, colleagues, and the broader community interacted with the new “coloured” person, the process allowed them to face head-on their own preconceived notions based on race and possibly replace them with realistic knowledge about the individual’s ability, interests, and strengths.

African-Canadians were at the forefront of the anti-slavery movement in the 1800s and were equally involved in human rights struggles in the 1960s and 1970s. Following the Black Power movement and the many incidents of violence directed at the African-American community through church bombings, and violent reactions to non-violent protests, African-Canadians were also compelled to look critically at this society and to seek justice. Canadian segregation was addressed, and dealt a severe blow through the Viola Desmond incident, but more work had to take place across the country to loosen the hold of negative laws, behaviors, and practices. Those who worked to create change and who have taken a risk on behalf of the rights of others have helped to recast Canadian society.

One fact we can recall is that the first African arrival took place over 400 years ago with interpreter Mathieu da Costa. Since that time, Black people have been constantly coming into Canada helping to build it. Many people perceive that Black people have not “paid their dues,” have not served in any military defense of Canada, that Black people are not pulling their weight or taking the level of responsibility that they should as good citizens of Canada.

However, the reality is that African-Canadians have volunteered in every case for active duty, and persisted even when they were not wanted. In order to help defend Canada, separate Black units were created, the first one, on the initiative of African-Canadian Richard Pierpoint. Black people have consistently defended the interests of Canada, or the British controlled territory of Canada from the time of the American Revolutionary War through to the Mackenzie Rebellions and the present. Whether they were born in Canada, or newcomers supporting the direction that Canada was taking, African-Canadians have been ongoing defenders of this nation, allowing us all to experience the freedoms that we have today.

It is obvious that such a month still sparks a controversy and annual debate about the continued fairness of forcing a month dedicated to the history of one race. Many still wonder if it is still relevant. However, the reason Black History month must still be a subject of study is because of the impact it has had on all races not just blacks. Due to this argument, the Journal decided to sit down with the Saint Mary’s University Black Student Advisor, Avrian Dolcy, to discuss the role of black students in the student body.

The role of the black student advisor is to provide education, support and referrals to students of all races. Students who need help in dealing with course information, student services financial aid, program tutorials and job opportunities can set appointments and meet to resolve all issues. The Advisor helps to resolve any concerns insuring that a permanent relationship exists between the governing body of Saint Mary’s University, and the resources that are available to Black students. Avrian explained to me that Black History month is very important to him and the advisory centre. He is using this opportunity to show students that it is a hub that can provide multiple resources for all students.

The centre is currently putting together a Black Student Database to distribute information concerning scholarships, job opportunities and other areas pertaining to black students. The Black Student Advisor centre will also be presenting an information table in the student centre on Wednesday giving away prizes and offering refreshments. One of the most anticipating events to look out for this month will be the filming of Amistad through the Saint Mary’s University Film Society next week Thursday. If you are interested in attending the film then you can sign up to be on the mailing list this Wednesday (today) in the student centre at the information table.

AUSTRALIA :

EUROPE :

EU leaders to discuss Greek crisis

Thursday, 11 February 2010/www.rte.ie

EU leaders meeting in Brussels today will attempt to formulate an aid package for the Greek economy, which is struggling with a mounting debt.

Germany and France are expected to take the lead in promoting the rescue deal for Greece.

Ireland’s new EU Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn has said no EU member country would be left on its own to face a serious financial crisis.

Although the informal summit of EU leaders in Brussels is being dominated by the Greek deficit crisis, it was originally supposed to address Europe’s medium and long-term economic problems, made worse by the recent financial crisis.

It was to showcase ideas by the new president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy, against a backdrop of mounting debt and public deficits.

How to reform, or even rescue, the European economy in the wake of the crisis is enshrined in the Europe 2020 strategy, which has just been launched by the European Commission.

This is the successor to what was called the Lisbon Strategy, which is not to be confused with the Lisbon Treaty.

That strategy set out in 2000 to make Europe the most dynamic, knowledge-based society in the world by 2010.

It is generally accepted that the target was not met, mainly because of the crisis which struck in 2008.

At today’s summit, Mr Van Rompuy will present his ideas on how to make the Europe 2020 strategy work better than its predecessor.

Effectively the plan is for Europe’s prime ministers to improve economic co-ordination, and for member states to have a more targeted approach.

The idea is that Europe defines five targets for growth, and that these targets will be translated to national level, taking account of the different starting positions of each member state.

Each year the national plans would be updated to ensure that the EU targets are being adhered to. There are unlikely to be penalties applied to member states if targets are not met, but there may be inducements in the shape of structural funds.

The plan envisages each country having the flexibility to have the right mix of policies – as far as possible – to suit its own economy.

The strategy also envisages the removal of specific bottlenecks or barriers to competitiveness and productivity, or deficiencies in infrastructure.

In the meantime, the European Commission would set up a programme to set out in operational terms how EU policies can help member states meet targets and reduce bottlenecks, using existing tools like the CAP, structural funds or research programmes. Mrs Geoghegan-Quinn will have a key role in the latter.

The plan would also mean countries keeping a closer watch on how their labour market policies fit in with the plan, given that across the EU there are many diverging labour markets. This area could be politically sensitive.

The overall plan would also have a bearing on how the EU manages its five year budget programmes.

When the Lisbon Strategy was launched in the year 2000 it followed a period of sustained growth in the global economy. The outlook is much bleaker now.

The financial crisis has pushed up unemployment and left EU member states with high levels of public debt and growing budget deficits. Debt levels have increased by 20% in the past two years.

Ten years after the Lisbon Strategy, too, the reality of Europe’s ageing population is starting to have an impact on pensions and public finances.

And the threat posed by emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil and South Africa is more acute today than it was in 2000.

Today’s summit was to have spelled out the urgency with which Europe needs to address these problems. The crisis in Greece may well dominate the headlines, but it may also focus minds.

ZIMBABWE: Little to celebrate after a year

11 February 2010/ IRIN

HARARE ,

– A year after a political pact was forged in the hope of answering Zimbabwe’s myriad social and economic problems, the country remains trapped in the same quagmire, with few signs of progress.

On 11 February 2009, with nearly 7 million people dependent on food aid and a cholera epidemic that had killed more than 4,000 and infected nearly 100,000 others sweeping across the country, bitter political rivals President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to form a Government of National Unity (GNU). They have since agreed on little else.

The deal, facilitated by former South African President Thabo Mbeki and guaranteed by the Southern African Development Community, was touted as a new beginning for the once prosperous nation, but in reality simply moved the animosity from the street to the cabinet. Constant bickering has become the order of the day, and poverty and food insecurity are the nation’s constant companions.

Mugabe, who has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980 and is leader of the ZANU-PF party, retained the presidency; Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), was appointed Prime Minister; Arthur Mutambara, leader of an MDC break-away party, became Deputy Prime Minister.

Tsvangirai claims Mugabe is failing to abide by the Global Political Agreement (GPA) – signed in September 2008 – which constitutes the basis of the unity government.

Mugabe has unilaterally appointed ZANU-PF stalwarts as attorney-general and governor of the Reserve Bank, but has refused to appoint five MDC provincial governors.

He has also refused to swear in MDC treasurer Roy Bennett as deputy agriculture minister. Bennett has been in a long-running legal battle, in which a variety of charges have been levelled – and then dropped – including sedition and a conspiracy to assassinate Mugabe.

In turn Mugabe claims that Tsvangirai has failed to persuade the US and European Union (EU) to lift targeted sanctions against him and more than 200 other ZANU-PF members.

Justice minister Patrick Chinamasa said after a recent meeting of the party’s Politburo that there would be no concessions from ZANU-PF until “Tsvangirai and his Western allies remove their sanctions so that children can go to school, the sick can be attended to in hospitals, people can find jobs and farmers produce.”

Tsvangirai has routinely said that the decision to lift US and EU sanctions, which include travel restrictions and the freezing of bank accounts under their jurisdiction, rested with those that had imposed them.

However, a recent statement by Britain’s foreign secretary, David Milliband, that the removal of sanctions would be determined on the advice of the MDC, is seen as undermining Tsvangirai’s stance.

The MDC won a parliamentary majority in the 2008 elections but Mugabe won a run-off presidential poll unopposed when Tsvangirai withdrew in protest over the political violence; the run-off was declared unfree and unfair. ZANU-PF has been accused of ongoing violence and intimidation.

In 2000 Mugabe launched the fast-track land reform programme, in which white-owned farms were seized and redistributed to landless blacks. The chaotic programme led to the collapse of the agricultural sector and contributed to the dire food shortages in Zimbabwe during most of the past decade.

Farm disruptions

“Two of the key provisions under the GPA are that there should be a land audit to bring sanity and order to the farming industry, but there are continued invasions and disruptions on farms,” said Morgan Komichi, the MDC’s deputy organising secretary.

There have been persistent allegations that farms were being given to senior ZANU-PF members and high ranking officials in the security services. “Those with multiple farms are probably behind the chaos, as they have violated the principle of ‘one person, one farm’,” said Komichi.

“Another key provision is the constitution-making process, which has again been stalled. ZANU-PF fears that a new constitution would make them lose power. We believe a new people-driven constitution is part of a democratisation agenda.”

The unity government ended hyperinflation, which was being measured in the quintillions of percent, by abolishing the Zimbabwe dollar and allowing the US dollar, South African rand and Botswana pula to be used as currency.

After a year, “Other than the cosmetic changes that you see, whereby people are generally free to meet in some areas, and a slight improvement in terms of the availability of goods … we have no currency of our own,” said Wellington Chibhebhe, secretary-general of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, the country’s largest labour federation.

“What that means is that only a few can afford those goods, which is why the entire public workforce has gone on strike. There are people out there who have never handled a US$20 bill. Our industries have not been revived, so we are essentially a supermarket economy where goods are brought in from South Africa,” he told IRIN.

“The two main political parties have benefited immensely from the marriage of convenience. The GNU helped to resuscitate ZANU-PF, which was on the verge of extinction, while the MDC has benefited from the visibility that comes with being in the inclusive government, which they were denied in the past,” Chibhebhe commented.

In a bid to kick-start the ailing economy and salvage public services, the unity government lured civil servants back to work with an across-the-board hard currency salary of US$100, which has increased incrementally over the year.

In February 2010 public servants began an indefinite national strike, demanding a monthly salary of $502. They have been offered an extra $17 on their current $160 monthly salary.

Beasts of burden

“Why do we, as teachers and other civil servants, have to sacrifice all the time? We are told that we have to be patient because the economy is not performing well,” said Raymond Majongwe, secretary-general of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe.

“We are tired of this, because we also have bills and rentals and transport costs. We are therefore not going back to work until there is seriousness on the part of the government in terms of giving workers realistic salaries,” he told IRIN.

Pedzisayi Ruhanya, programme manager of the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, a non-governmental organisation advocating human rights and democratisation, told IRIN: “Certainly, there are measures of success in that before the GNU, schools had closed while hospitals had also closed, but they were revived following the GNU.”

He told IRIN: “As a transitional government we should have been moving towards a new democratic culture with new institutions, but that has not happened. The constitution-making process has been stalled at each and every opportunity, media reforms have not been undertaken … [and] the security forces continue to operate from ZANU-PF’s armpit as a partisan force.”

dd/go/he

President Traian Basescu to attend European Council informal meeting

Date: 11-02-2010 /www.actmedia.eu

Romania’s President Traian Basescu will attend on Thursday an informal meeting of heads of state or government of the European Union member states, the first such meeting to be organised by President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy.

EU leaders to meet amid fresh institutional doubts

A meeting of European Union leaders on Thursday (11 February) will attempt to breathe new life into the bloc’s reformed institutions, which have recently suffered a series of setbacks, including the cancellation of a planned EU-US summit and criticism that the Union’s new foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, was not visible enough after the Haiti earthquake.US President Barack Obama dealt the EU a blow last week when he declined an invitation to attend a planned EU-US summit.The cancellation was in large part triggered by European squabbling over whether to hold the summit in Spain, which holds the rotating EU presidency, or Brussels, where the bloc’s new president, Herman Van Rompuy, is based .

“Figure it out and let us know,” a US State Department official answered bluntly, echoing an old EU leadership problem that the newly-established Lisbon Treaty was in fact supposed to solve.

Obama’s summit snub left Europeans wondering whether their new institutions were working as intended and truly allowing the EU to “speak with a single voice” on the world stage.”The wrangling over the next EU-US summit shows that the EU won’t get its act together until the egotism of member-state leaders is brought under control,” says Stanley Crossick, founding chairman of the European Policy Centre, a Brussels-based think-tank. For Crossick, this “pathetic” episode of “egotistical wrangling” raises the question of whether the Lisbon Treaty is actually “creating more difficulties than it is resolves,” he wrote on his blog.

EU setbacks in Copenhagen and Haiti

But the US summit snub was not the only setback for the EU’s reformed institutions.

Catherine Ashton, the Union’s new foreign affairs chief, was criticised by French Europe Minister Pierre Lellouche last month for missing an opportunity to ‘fly the flag’ in earthquake-hit Haiti, at a time when the Lisbon Treaty was supposed to give Europeans a single voice in world affairs .

Joseph Daul, leader of the European Parliament’s largest political group, the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), relayed those criticisms on Tuesday (9 February).”From Haiti to Iran, from Afghanistan to Yemen, from Cuba to transatlantic relations, the European voice has not, to date, met our expectations,” Daul said in a statement.”The High Representative must embody a presence, an ambition and a reality that is the Union: a Union that is first in global GDP, has the largest market and is the world’s largest contributor to international aid,” he added.

The UN climate conference in December, which failed to live up to Europe’s expectations, seemed to serve as another example of the EU’s declining influence in world affairs, despite its widely-touted new treaty. The final text of the conference was negotiated betweena US-led group of five nations, including China, India, Brazil and South Africa, leaving the Europeans largely sidelined (EurActiv 19/12/09).

The Liberal group leader in the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, recently echoed Daul’s concerns about Europe’s lack of influence, saying “it would not be an understatement to say that the Union is not faring well”.

“We need only refer to the dramatic result of the Copenhagen conference, where an agreement was concluded without the European Union, the lack of a coordinated response to the relief effort in Haiti, or the descending spiral that the euro zone has been drawn into following the difficulties encountered by Greece,” he wrote in an open letter addressed to Van Rompuy ahead of Thursday’s summit.

Verhofstadt, who was seen by many as a better choice for the EU’s new president job, says Copenhagen may well have produced a different outcome had Europe been represented by a single person, instead of eight (Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen who hosted the summit, José Manuel Barroso representing the European Commission, Frederik Reinfeldt representing the Swedish EU Presidency, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero representing the incoming Spanish EU Presidency, Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy chief, and national leaders Gordon Brown, Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel).

Diplomat calls for time

Speaking to Brussels-based journalists, an ambassador from one of the EU’s large member states said it was “quite natural that the treaty creates expectations”. “But it is also natural that its implementation takes time,” he added, citing as an example the new diplomatic corps, the European External Action Service (EEAS), which is to be headed by Ashton.Putting in place such a service “represents considerable work,” the ambassador stressed, saying “it will be the big project of the coming years”.

The setbacks in Haiti and Copenhagen, he added, “showed that we need a new system but do not mean the new system doesn’t work. Instead of saying that the EU was not up to the task in Haiti and Copenhagen, recent events give further justification for putting in place the new system”.

Positions

“At the very moment when the Lisbon Treaty was meant, at long last, to be introducing a new dawn of unity and effectiveness in European foreign policy, exactly the reverse seems to be happening,” writes Nick Witney of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), a UK-based think-tank.

“It is not just the obvious set-backs – the Copenhagen summit debacle, the appointment of two virtual unknowns to the new post-Lisbon leadership roles. Even more worrisome has been the sense of collapsing discipline and cohesion, exemplified by a wholly pointless French campaign to undermine Catherine Ashton and the egregious Spanish effort to ingratiate themselves with the Chinese by hinting at a lifting of the European arms embargo.”

Speaking to the European Parliament on his inauguration on Tuesday (9 February), José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, said the EU could no longer continue with “business as usual” after the Lisbon Treaty had come into force.”I refuse to believe – and our citizens wouldn’t understand – that after these years of institutional debate we would pursue, for the most part, like before.””This is a time for boldness. This is a time to show our citizens that we care, and that the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty will make a real difference in our ability to serve their interests. I believe that our economic and social situation demands a radical shift from the status quo. And the new Treaty allows this.””So let’s get away from the intellectual glamour of pessimism and constant denigration of the European Union that is doing so much damage to Europe’s image.”

“Let’s move the discussion from institutional input to policy impact.”

CHINA :

China and EU Make Diplomatic Moves

By Chris Green /www.dailynk.com/2010-02-11

China has named a special representative covering Korean affairs, while a UN delegation in Pyongyang has met with the North Korean foreign minister.

Contrary to reports suggesting that China’s chief Six-Party Talks negotiator, Wu Dawei, was set to retire at the age of 57, the Chinese government “has decided to appoint Wu Dawei special representative of the Chinese government on Korean Peninsula affairs, to be in charge of the Six-Party Talks and related issues,” according to a statement put out by the Chinese Foreign Ministry yesterday.

Yonhap reports that the appointment is being viewed positively by the South Korean government, which is accustomed to doing business with Wu. “It is far better for us in the sense that he has long been working closely with us,” in the words of one, anonymous official.

However, Seoul is seeking clarification of what “in charge of” means, and whether Wu will continue with the day-to-day business of the Six-Party Talks, or act as an overseer.

Meanwhile, a UN delegation led by Lynn Pascoe, which is on a four-day trip to Pyongyang, has met with North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun, according to the Chosun Central News Agency (KCNA).

The KCNA report, typically vague, simply reported that on Wednesday a meeting between the delegation and the Foreign Minister had occurred at the Mansudae Assembly Hall, the building which houses North Korea’s rubber stamp legislature, the Supreme People’s Assembly.

Pascoe embarked on the trip with the intention of covering the full range of issues with North Korea, including nuclear and humanitarian concerns.

INDIA :

UPDATE: Venezuela Awards Two Oil Blocks, Leaves One Unassigned

online.wsj.com/By Dan Molinski and Darcy Crowe /FEBRUARY 11, 2010

(Adds comments from India’s ONGC on expectations for the block to be developed by the consortium with Repsol, Petronas, Indian Oil and Oil India)

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

CARACAS (Dow Jones)–Venezuela on Wednesday awarded two of the three oil blocks in its much-anticipated and long-delayed Carabobo oil auction, winning a vote of confidence for new investment in the country by attracting major foreign players.

Doubts have lingered over whether foreign companies would bring new funds into the country as long as President Hugo Chavez is at the helm. During his 11 years in power, Chavez has nationalized the assets of scores of foreign companies, including those of U.S. oil majors Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and ConocoPhillips (COP).

The auction was the biggest such bidding process in 11 years and the government is hoping it will help boost production levels, which have begun to dwindle in recent years.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez said a consortium of companies led by U.S.-based Chevron Corp. (CVX), and including Mitsubishi Corp. (8058.TO) and Inpex Corp. of Japan, was awarded the “Carabobo 3” block.

The consortium paid $500 million for drilling rights to the block, and another $1 billion for financing to state-run oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, he said.

A consortium that includes Spain’s Repsol YPF SA (REP), India’s Oil & Natural Gas Corp. (500312.BY), Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd. and two other Indian firms was awarded the “Carabobo 1” block, Ramirez said.

The consortium paid a $1.05 billion signing bonus and will pay another $1.05 billion to PDVSA for financing. That block is considered the most promising of the three.

The third area up for bidding, “Carabobo 2,” wasn’t assigned, and Ramirez said Venezuela would have to wait until a later time to determine how it would be developed.

Ramirez didn’t mention whether any other offers were made for the oil blocks, but sources have said the two consortiums that won were the only parties to submit official bids.

The three projects up for auction, all located in the oil-rich Orinoco region of eastern Venezuela, are expected to produce at least 400,000 barrels a day each when developed, and will require investments of $15 billion.

Early production could begin in a couple years at the two awarded blocks, but peak production won’t be reached for five years.

The two winning consortiums will each enter into a 60%-40% arrangement with PDVSA, in which PDVSA will have the majority stake.

In the Repsol consortium, the Spanish company, Petronas and ONGC will all each have an 11% stake, while Indian Oil Corp. (530965.BY) and Oil India Ltd. (533106.BY) will each hold 3.5%.

ONGC said in a statement Thursday from New Dehli that the term of the consortium’s license will be for 25 years, with a potential 15-year extension.

The winning bidders are each expected to build upgraders that can refine the tar-like crude found in the Orinoco into a more marketable, lighter crude. Each upgrader could cost $6.5 billion.

ONGC said the consortium’s upstream production facilities are expected to produce around 400,000 barrels a day of extra heavy crude oil, of which about 200,000 barrels a day would be upgraded into light crude oil in a facility to be located in the Soledad area.

In the Chevron-led consortium, California-based Chevron will hold a 34% stake, while the Japanese firms its partnering with will share 5%. The other 1% will be held by a Venezuelan firm called Suleopetrol.

Though Venezuela was unable to award one of the three open blocks, the fact that it awarded two, and that the consortiums included top-notch firms such as Chevron and Repsol means the auction was a success, Chavez said.

“They say there’s no type of judicial security here in Venezuela, and stuff like this, but it’s not true,” he said, addressing top executives from Chevron, Repsol and the other firms involved in the auction.

“You have all the guarantees for your investments, your profits and the capital that you want to repatriate.”

Chavez said he wants foreign investment in Venezuela, while adding that companies also want to be in Venezuela as they can’t ignore the massive amounts of reserves in this South American country, where crude oil accounts for 93% of exports.

“You need to be here,” he told the leaders of the foreign oil firms.

For his part, Ali Moshiri, Chevron’s chief for Latin America and Africa, expressed faith in his company’s decision to invest in Venezuela.

“We have confidence in Venezuela,” Moshiri said.

Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a statement issued in Tokyo it welcomes the choice of the Inpex-Mitsubishi consortium as a developer, as it will help the country secure stable energy supplies.

Speaking to reporters after the results were announced, Chevron’s Moshiri said it would be several years before the reserves from the project could be registered in Chevron’s books.

-By Dan Molinski and Darcy Crowe, Dow Jones Newswires; 58-414-120-5738; dan.molinski@dowjones.com

(Mari Iwata in Tokyo and Rakesh Sharma in New Dehli contributed to this article)

Coal India Chairman: May Invest $2B To Buy Stakes In Overseas Assets

online.wsj.com/FEBRUARY 11, 2010

NEW DELHI (Dow Jones)–Coal India Ltd., the world’s single largest coal producer, may invest about $2 billion over the next four years to buy stakes in overseas coal assets as it wants to boost local availability of the fuel to meet rising demand, its chairman said Thursday.

Coal India, which floated a tender in July seeking joint business initiatives in coal mining in Australia, the U.S., South Africa and Indonesia, has received about 17 proposals to buy stakes in coal producing areas or to form joint ventures for greenfield projects, Partha S. Bhattacharyya told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview.

“We want to enhance the availability of coal in this country by getting coal from overseas, but on terms that are distinctly better than term imports,” Bhattacharyya said.

Coal India, which contributes more than 80% of India’s total coal production, is doing due diligence on ten proposals from companies including Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) and Massey Energy Co. (MEE), Bhattacharyya said.

– By Rakesh Sharma, Dow Jones Newswires; +91-11-4356-3334; rakesh.sharma@dowjones.com

Rough year for diamond producer De Beers

Plunging consumer demand and glut of diamonds pushes De Beers $220m into the red

Simon Bowers guardian.co.uk/Thursday 11 February 2010

A glut of diamonds in wholesale markets and plunging consumer demand for luxury goods pushed De Beers, the world’s largest diamond producer, $220m (£140m) into the red last year.

The sharp slowdown has left the group’s balance sheet in urgent need of repair and this morning the company confirmed it had secured support for a $1bn rights issue from its three shareholders – London-listed Anglo American, the South African Oppenheimer family and the government of Botswana, where De Beers’s most important mines are located. Proceeds will be used to reduce the group’s $4bn debt.

However, the lengthy process of renewing a $3bn borrowing facility – half of which falls due for repayment on 23 March– appears to be going down to the wire. De Beers today said “term sheets have been agreed and credit approval granted by the syndicate of lending banks”. The group, which controls about 40% of the rough diamond market, is confident a replacement facility will be fully in place when existing loans fall due next month.

Underlying profits of $515m in 2008 were wiped out last year, replaced with losses of $220m as sales sank 44% to $3.84bn. Plunging demand, particularly in the West, had forced De Beers to cut output in early 2009, including the mothballing of its largest operation in Botswana for several months.

In a statement today the company said: “In the consumer markets we believe global demand for diamond jewellery declined for the full year in the low single digits, although the fourth quarter showed an improved and positive trend on 2008. Demand remained strong in the developing markets of India and China with US Christmas trading results likely to show the first year-on-year increase since September 2008.”

De Beers’s three shareholders have committed to take part in the group’s equity raising in proportion to their existing holdings. This will see Anglo contribute $450m, the Oppenheimers put in $400m and Botswana add $150m.

In a statement to the stock exchange Anglo said it would report an underlying loss of $90m from its holding in De Beers.

Looking forward to the current year De Beers remained cautious. “Consumer demand for diamond jewellery is beginning to recover, driven in part by the strength of the developing markets of China and India. However, with the fragility of the world economy and perceived weakness of the global recovery post recession, the company would only expect a gradual increase in production levels, sales and prices.”

BRASIL:

EN BREF, CE 11 février 2010 … AGNEWS / OMAR, BXL,11/02/2010