France Calls for Morsi's Release

France on Tuesday called for the release of Egypt's ousted president Mohamed Morsi. Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius described the situation on the country as "very critical".

"We condemn the violence ... We call for dialogue and for the release of president Morsi," Laurent Fabius told reporters in Paris. "The situation is very critical. We call for the rejection of violence and for the release of political prisoners including former president Morsi."

Fabius was due to talk to European Union policy chief Catherine Ashton, who is visiting Egypt, by phone later on Tuesday.

On Tuesday she became the first foreign dignitary to meet Morsi since he was detained by the military amid mass demonstrations against his government.

Morsi's supporters have since taken to the streets to demand his reinstatement and a number have been killed by the army.

Ashton called for an end to the violence and a political transition that would include the Muslim Brotherhood, the organisation that provides Morsi's base.

Security Sector Agents Take Over Election Process

Election day in Mbare, Harare. (file photo)

Harare — The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) formation of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Tuesday claimed that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) has been relegated to mere spectators by state security agents that the party says are now in charge of Wednesday's national elections.

Addressing a news conference at his party's Harvest House headquarters, MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said the electoral commission has already failed in its mandate to run the polls in a credible manner.

With only a few hours before the elections, Mr. Mwonzora said the prime minister was yet to get access to the voters roll.

ZEC announced Monday that the roll was now ready to be accessed through the Registrar General's Office. But the MDC-T says they are still to access the voters' register that critics say is littered with irregularities.

Mwonzora also claimed that his party has received information that inhabitants of Nketa and Nkulumane constituencies in Zimbabwe's second largest city, Bulawayo, would be required to cast their ballots in both areas

He said this was being done deliberately to disenfranchise people, especially those living in urban areas.

Due to these and other irregularities, Mr. Mwonzora said it is now clear to the MDC-T that state security agents are now in charge of the running of Wednesday's elections.

ZEC chairperson Rita Makarau could not be reached for comment as she was said to be attending a meeting with representatives of political parties.

Meanwhile, Mwonzora claimed that Zanu PF is using chiefs and other traditional leaders to force villagers in the countryside to vote for the former revolutionary party.

VOA Studio 7 failed to get comment from the president of the Chiefs Council, Fortune Charumbira and Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo.

Mwonzora also accused the intelligentsia of interfering with mobile and internet communication systems ahead of the elections.

Several people failed to communicate for the better part of Tuesday as the mobile networks were congested.

Despite all these claims, Mwonzora said his party remains confident that it will romp to victory in the polls.

He urged his party's supporters to go out in large numbers to cast their ballots, asking them to be patient if they find themselves in long queues.

Police U-Turn Over PM Cross Over Rally

MDC-T President Morgan Tsvangirai addressing a rally.

IN a dramatic u-turn, police have now said Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's so-called 'Cross Over' Harare rally will now go ahead Monday, reversing an earlier decision to block the gathering.

"That rally is going to proceed," said national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba told a press briefing on Sunday.

"Come Monday, MDC is going to hold their rally."

On Friday Harare police boss, Chief Superintendent Titus Alex Chagwedera, had told the MDC-T that the ZRP was short-staffed and could not muster enough security deployments for the event.

Asked why Chief Superintendent Chagwedera had initially banned the rally, Charamba said she did not know.

"l haven't spoken to the Chief Superintendent himself and l am not privy to the reasons that he has given but what l can assure you is that the rally is going to go on and we have enough manpower to cover that rally. We have adequate police officers to ensure the rally is going on," she said.

"Whatever Chagwedera said, l think you can go and ask him but as far as l am concerned, as the chief police spokesperson who speaks on behalf of the Commissioner General, the Commissioner General from the onset has conceded that that rally will go on."

In a letter to Godfrey Koster, the MDC-T national coordinator, Chigwedera wrote: "Be advised that we have already deployed all our personnel to polling stations where they are securing election and government materials.

"We have no extra personnel to spare so that they cover your intended rally. Some of our personnel have been deployed to some other provinces to augment the strength of such provinces.

"In view of the foregoing, holding the intended Star Rally has not been sanctioned and should not be allowed to take place as the absence of Police officers from the rally may culminate in political violence."

The ban invited an angry response from the MDC-T which vowed to challenge the decision in the courts, insisting the police action was unlawful.

"We get shocked when some people say this country is having a free and fair election. What rubbish! This election is illegitimate, is illegal, is unfree, is immoral, is unfair," MDC-T secretary general Tendai Biti said.

"We have already instructed our lawyers to go to court. We are also going to write to our observers."

Climate Change Teaches Some Lessons

Port Louis — Tourism, agriculture, fishing, the water supply - climate change threatens the very foundations of society and the economy in Mauritius. As the Indian Ocean island nation develops its adaptation strategies, it is working to ground the next generation of citizens firmly in principles of sustainable development.

Launched on Jul. 5, the country's National Climate Change Adaptation Policy Framework (NCCAPF) included familiar but worrying predictions for the future. Half of this tourist destination's beaches could disappear by 2050, swallowed by rising seas and increasingly violent and frequent storms. Fresh water resources could shrink by as much as 13 percent while demand will rise steadily.

"We are shocked to learn that our beautiful island - or part of it - may disappear because of a rise in sea levels," student Felicia Beniff told IPS as she emerged from a class on the environment and climate change with four friends. "We are afraid. We have many more years to live. Where will we go?"

The teenage students at MEDCO Cassis Secondary School in the Mauritian capital Port Louis are among a quarter of a million students across the island that will be exposed to principles of sustainable development.

Mauritius is working hard to correct unsustainable practices, notably through the Maurice Île Durable. Educating youth about sustainable development is part of this long-term vision to establish a new, ecologically sound economy.

At Rabindranath Tagore State Secondary School in Ilot, northern Mauritius, students put organic waste into a compost bin.

"We collect plastic bottles. We turn off the lights and the air-conditioners when we leave the classroom. We open the windows to aerate the classes. This reduces the school's expenses. We also plant trees," one of the students, Ashootosh Jogarah, told IPS.

His friend, Varounen Samy, told IPS that they have "now changed our attitude towards the environment."

Mahen Gangapersad, the school's rector, believes Mauritians have taken the environment for granted for too long without realising the harm they cause to natural resources. The new education programme aims to correct this. "Better late than never," he told IPS.

Tree planting, the installation of photovoltaic cells for renewable energy, endemic gardens, backyard gardening, waste segregation, compost-making, rain water harvesting and water control are now a reality at many schools. The plan is to expose the entire student population.

"So we are reaching out to 250,000 plus people," Veenace Koonjal, special adviser to the Minister of Education told IPS. He believes this training will have a great impact on awareness among the country's population of 1.2 million as students take what they learn home to their families and communities.

"Climate change is weakening the economic, social and environmental pillars of the island," said the Mauritian Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development Deva Virahsawmy, at the launch of the NCCAPF.

The launch of the newly-completed policy framework was accompanied by the opening of a Climate Change Information Centre in Port Louis, an initiative that will gather local and regional information on climate change and make it available to everyone - scientists, engineers, architects, as well as farmers and students.

Strengthening and broadening knowledge, awareness and information about climate change is a key part of this island nation's response to global warming. Mauritius, like other island states, can expect to bear the full brunt of climate change despite contributing very little to the greenhouse gas emissions that cause it.

Further, the policy framework acknowledges that the island's geography and topography limit what can be done to counter harmful impacts of global warming on fishing and the coastline, tourism, or agriculture.

Khalil Elahee, chairperson of the government's Energy Efficiency Management Office, believes the population has begun to realise the very serious impact that climate change is already having.

"People want sustainable development. So it is essential we start a new way of living and developing our island, climate change or not," he told IPS.

"Whatever we do may not be enough but the measures taken by Mauritius in its climate change education programme help to mitigate the impact of climate change on the island," Elahee said.

Virahsawmy said that climate change education would enable Mauritius to strengthen its resilience in key sectors of its economy and mitigate the risks and prevent losses of lives and property.

Mauritius has already received three million dollars from the Africa Adaptation Programme - funded by the Government of Japan's Cool Earth Partnership for Africa - to integrate and mainstream climate change adaptation into its institutional frameworks and core development policies.

An official from the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development told IPS that a Technology Needs Assessment (TNA) project is also being implemented this year. It will receive technical support from the United Nations Environment Programme's Division of Technology, Industry and Economics, and its Risoe Centre in Denmark. It is funded by the Global Environment Fund (GEF) to the tune of 120,000 dollars.

The key aim of the TNA is to bridge the gap between identifying appropriate technologies and the design of action plans. The aim is to allow Mauritius to implement technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support adaptation to climate change that is consistent with national development priorities.

The government hopes to secure more funding for adaptation and mitigation efforts from the Green Climate Fund, the U.N. Adaptation Fund and the GEF.

Beyond the classroom, several other programmes run by NGOs complement what young people are learning at school. The Youth be Aware programme of the Mauritius Red Cross, for example, engages 600 young people on the risks posed by climate change to the island.

Govt to rein in on cars with toxic emissions

Motorists have been urged to be more responsible with regard to their vehicles. Saturday Times/File.

Vehicles that emit high concentrates of dangerous gases will, in the near future, not be permitted on Rwandan roads as a measure against air pollution that may have adverse effects on people and the environment.

But this will be a gradual process, officials said this week.

“Much as we would love people to import only new cars with very low levels of gas emission, we know it is not cheap and, therefore, many people will always rely on second hand cars in Rwanda, just like in other developing economies,” the Minister for Natural Resources (Minirena), Stanislas Kamanzi, said on Thursday.

“However, what we are calling for is responsibility. Every car owner should be careful as to when their car is due for servicing because not doing this not only affects the vehicle, but also our environment,” he said.

Statistics from Minirena indicate that in 2005, vehicles contributed to 52 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in Rwanda.

No single car has been impounded or stopped from accessing the transport system due to emitting worrying levels of gases by the Police eventhough the Rwanda Bureau of Standards (RBS) set standards on air pollution for industries and cars.

This is because police has no equipment to monitor and measure car emissions on the road, according to the Police Commissioner for Traffic and Road Safety, Felly Bahizi.

The budget

“We have impounded about 40 cars with terrible mechanical conditions but not on the grounds of emitting toxic gases. We are, however, working with Minirena and RBS on acquiring machines that our traffic officers can use; so soon, we shall be able to impound such cars,” Bahizi said.

According to Rose Mukankomeje, the Director General of Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), Rwf650 million is earmarked to protect the environment against pollution, including purchasing gas emission analysers this financial year.

“We are working with Police and RBS and are on course to introducing these mobile analysers that will facilitate traffic officers in carrying out roadside emission tests on cars and motorcycles,” Mukankomeje said

She was, however, quick to highlight that the state of the environment in Rwanda is “nothing to worry about” and that the development is aimed at protecting Rwandans against consequences of pollutions in the long run.

Latest statistics show that Rwanda’s traffic has over 60,000 vehicles and out of these, 80 per cent circulate inside Kigali.

Simphorien Kamanzi, the vice president of Iark Consessioner, a car importing company, said many investors in the trade are cautious about the cars they import.

“We look at the mechanical condition as well as the levels of emissions of the cars. May be the government should start looking at the age and model of the cars imported in the country and if they say they don’t want us to import a certain model, then we will adhere to the regulations,” Kamanzi said.

Police, Kigali earmark 700 parking stages for motocycles

Rwanda national Police, in partnership with the City of Kigali, have announced plans to set up 700 parking stations for commercial taxi-motorcycle operators in the capital.

According to SP Jean Marie Vianney Ndushabandi, the Traffic and Road Safety Spokesperson, this will help motorcyclists become more organised and reduce accidents in the city.

“This exercise will continue country wide. The budget for this project is still being mobilised and the space will be allocated in partnership with the local authorities, meaning there is no need to apply for it because they will be in public areas,” explains Ndushabandi.

Complaints

But a number of motorcyclists and users are not happy with the changes, arguing that some people who stay in residential areas will have problems accessing public transport.

“We have no taxis in our neighbourhoods and our only means are motorcycles, which may not work for us if they are grounded in one place.  Unless these stages are also extended to neighbourhoods,” Ronnie Twahirwa, a resident of Kanombe in Kicukiro District told Saturday Times.

It is not only Twahirwa complaining about transport difficulties in the city, but a number of people around town say that these motorcycles find them at convenient places and the moment they are stationed at parking stations it will be difficult to access them.

The taxi-moto operators are also not pleased with the news of parking stations saying that their clients are too lazy to move and a number of them just wait at their door steps.

They further noted that this will be limiting their options, saying that moving around looking for clients makes those who had not planned to take a motorcycle end up on one.

Two dead, over 30 injured in Nyabugogo grenade blast

Theos Badege, RNP Spokesperson

Two people died on the spot while several others sustained injuries in a grenade blast yesterday evening in Kigali.

The incident took place at Ubumwe Village, Kabahizi Cell in Gitega Sector of Nyarugenge District at about 6:50pm near Nyabugogo abattoir better known as “marathon,” at about 6:50 pm.

According to police, two people were seriously injured, while 30 others sustained minor injuries. There was quick intervention of security organs and medical services shortly after the explosion, police said in the statement.

“The injured were immediately evacuated to the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK) and Kacyiru Police Hospital (KPH), where they are under intensive care,” it added.

One in custody

Police said it had arrested one person in connection with the blast as investigations continue.  By press time the blast scene had been cordoned-off to allow security organs to gather more evidence.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Theos Badege, the Rwanda National Police Spokesperson urged the public to remain calm and to cooperate with security organs to ensure that whoever is behind the blast is brought to book.

“Rwanda National Police stands with the bereaved families and works round the clock to bring to justice all those responsible for this criminal act like it has been the case in the past,” he said.

In March, this year,   a similar incident happened when a hand grenade exploded near Kimironko market in Kigali, killing one person and seriously injuring six others

Women Parliamentarians Forum celebrates achievements

Women have played a great role in building the nation, through empowering their communities, the Prime Minister, Pierre Damien Habumuremyi has said. The Prime Minister made the remarks yesterday during celebrations by the Rwanda Women Parliamentarians Forum to mark achievements for the 2008 – 2013 parliamentary term. Habumuremyi urged the women legislators not to relent on their efforts and to focus on empowering young girls to be responsible leaders in the future. Held under the theme ‘Women in Decision Making Positions, more insight for Sustainable Development’, the event took place at the Parliamentary Buildings in Kimihurura. Saturday Times

WFP boss commends Rwanda’s Rural Development initiatives

Ms Cousin during one of the upcountry visits

Head of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Ertharin Cousin has commended the Rwanda’s rural development initiatives that have improved the lives of Rwandans by making sure no one goes hungry.

 The comments came following her visit to various projects funded by WFP including Rukozo, Nothern Province where she visited the Watershed Management Project. Cousin was in Rwanda for a three day visit.

The Watershed Management Project is working to control soil erosion and creating cultivable land terraces.

She also visited a cooperative that specializes in growing maize and beans in Kirehe District, Eastern Province.

“When speaking with small-scale farmers and rural families, I could see very clearly the difference that rural development initiatives have made in helping people improve their lives.

 I met one woman farmer who started with nearly nothing, and now has become so successful that she’s been able to build her family a new house, and put her children though school,” narrated Cousin.

“The progress that is being made on development in Rwanda illustrates the importance of close and effective partnerships between UN agencies, communities and governments in helping people lift themselves out of poverty,” she said

The WFP chief also visited Girinka (One Cow Per Poor Family) beneficiaries to see how giving cows to the poorest families have helped fight malnutrition especially among children, have provided opportunities to earn income, as well as increased fertility of farm land.

WFP provided 300 cows in support of Girinka in January 2011 and a further five cows were donated this month during Cousin’s visit.

WFP also partners with the Rwandan government on various development programs including feeding primary school children, fighting acute malnutrition, linking farmers to markets, as well as providing support for the Rwanda’s food security analyses.

Ngoma: PM urges religious leaders to participate in Poverty reduction programs

The Prime Minister Dr. Damien Habumuremyi wants the religious  leaders to do all they can to support their followers to get into projects for poverty eradication and attain self reliance.

The prime minister said this during the ceremony of inaugurating the Episcopal of Kibungo Catholic Diocese on the 20^th.July 2013. He appealed to religious leaders to participate in the social and economical development of their followers.

He called upon the religious leaders to create programs that support the youth to develop themselves. “The youth need vision and values both religious and Rwandan, you should play a role in ensuring the youths are safe and reliant” the PM told religious leaders.

In the speech by the Christian that represented fellow believers during the inauguration of the Episcopal, he said Christians in all parishes of Kibungo Catholic Diocese are working towards self reliance through creating projects to help many.

“Though believers still have limitations, we are working on projects together as a team. The priests and believers have new goals with vision to develop people for example we are almost done eradicating fibro-cement on our houses.”

Dr. Damien Habumuremyi also appreciated the collaboration between religious leaders including Catholic Church and the government of Rwanda in promoting Rwandans in education and health among other things.

Up to today, the Catholic Church has many primary, secondary schools, seminaries and Hospitals as well as financial institutions among many things in Kibungo Catholic Diocese not to say in all of Rwanda.

Mushikiwabo reiterates Rwanda’s efforts to end Congo conflict

Foreign Affairs Minister: Louise Mushikiwabo

The Minister of Foreign Affairs Louise Mushikiwabo has reiterated Rwanda’s backing for the UN peace process designed to end decades of conflict and instability in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Addressing a UN Security Council debate chaired by US Secretary of State John Kerry, Minister Mushikiwabo said that time for the practical action that will bring peace to the Eastern DRC.
“The Framework of Hope, along with regional peace efforts, offers a realistic path to lasting peace and security. There has been more than enough grandstanding by unaccountable actors who seek profit and publicity from the region’s misery,” said Mushikiwabo.
While endorsing Secretary Kerry’s Presidential Statement on the Great Lakes Regional Framework, Mushikiwabo said that Rwanda would have liked to see more support of regional initiatives such as the peace talks at Kampala sponsored by the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).
“Rwanda’s future prospects are inextricably tied to the outcomes of the peace process,” Mushikiwabo told international diplomats and senior government officials who converged on the UN’s New York headquarters for Secretary Kerry’s inaugural appearance as Security Council President.
“Let me put it in the clearest possible terms: in order to secure long-term peace and prosperity for Rwanda into the future, we need a peaceful and prosperous DRC.
As long as conditions persist that allow more than thirty rebel groups to roam Eastern DRC with impunity — or as long as men and boys see nothing in their futures beyond crime, violence and conflict — such a transformation will remain beyond reach.”
Mushikiwabo outlined ways Rwanda has begun implementing recommendations contained in the Peace and Security Framework conceived by UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon and overseen by Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, Mary Robinson.
These include; Disarmament of M23 fighters who have crossed into Rwanda as a result of infighting in March this year, as well as reporting sanctioned high ranking officers.
Rwanda has also cooperated with UN agencies to accommodate roughly 70,000 Congolese nationals who have sought refuge in Rwanda as a result of instability in the Kivus.
There have been efforts to support to the deployment of the Intervention Brigade to allow MONUSCO to carry out its Protection of Civilians responsibility.
There have also been efforts to boost regional cooperation through enhanced economic integration and tackling the exploitation of natural resources, including the seizure of 8.4 tons of smuggled minerals which are being to DRC authorities.

Mushikiwabo urged all parties to adhere to the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework, saying that after nearly two decades of armed conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Catching up with Male Circumcision Advocate Chief Mumena

STAFF BLOG

Photo: Melody Wilson/International Reporting Project

As the influential leader of Zambia's Kaonde people, Chief Jonathan Eshiloni Mumena's decision to undergo male circumcision was nothing short of a public health practitioner's dream. Since undergoing the procedure two years ago at the age of 47 and breaking with tribal custom, Chief Mumena not only kicked off a vibrant discussion about circumcision's role in HIV prevention, but he got men - by the thousands - to act.

AllAfrica first spoke to Chief Mumena last July at the International Aids Society Conference in Washington, DC. We checked in with him again to learn how he is continuing to spread his message and what challenges lie ahead. 

You've been traveling around Africa to get people to understand the benefits of HIV transmission. How has that been going?

So far, so good. I realized that there was something we needed to scale up - the uptake of male circumcision and create demand as a way of finding a solution to the HIV/Aids pandemic and to discover that HIV/AIDS is across all cultures and therefore cultures are trying to find a lasting solution. We still do not have a cure so we need to take practical steps, and one of those practical steps is male circumcision.

Is there a particular country or region that needs the most work to progress regarding male circumcision?

East Africa and southern Africa - these two regions need a lot of help, a lot of scaling up. They have a lot of work to do because they are the epicenter of the HIV/Aids pandemic. So this being an epicenter, we need to find means and ways and perhaps think outside the box to see how best we can bring about innovations to respond to the pandemic.

You took a bold step as a leader being one of the first in your community to do get circumcised. How do you find other traditional leaders respond when you discuss this?

After I took the step that I did, then I realized many others wanted to find a way of resolving this issue. As I went public about the issue, and remember that I am from a non-circumcising tribe, and therefore there were issues on how best we were going to do that [go public], especially because I was a traditional leader. I'm a custodian of custom and culture and therefore male circumcision not being one of our practices means that you're challenging the powers that be, challenging the history, challenging who we are as a people.

But after going public about it, one thing I realize is that every culture today is threatened by HIV and Aids. And therefore, it is necessary that we as leaders, even those from the non-circumcising [tribes], must be able to look at this and find a practical solution.

And male circumcision is one such practice. As a result of that, I've been talking to the village communities, the men and women, and also to the traditional leaders from other cultures that are non-circumcising and even from those who are circumcising so they can be able to share their secret. In Zambian regions like northwestern province and eastern province, which have circumcising tribes, you will also discover that the prevalence rate is very low. Perhaps we can suggest that male circumcision - where it has been practiced whether traditionally or otherwise - has been helping to reduce the incidence of HIV/Aids.

I've been talking to many others and thankfully I think that we've been scoring a lot of successes and many other chiefs are coming on board and influencing communities. Others have gone public about it, others are doing it quietly, but you see that the impact is there. Not only in the traditional areas. We've reached the people in the urban setting by radio and TV programs and adverts and taking the discussion there and also making sure that people phone in on the [national] toll-free line 990 to be able to ask their questions. So I think that whether it's at the traditional level or in the urban setup, the message is running like wildfire.

You did got circumcised in 2011 and said that August has become "male circumcision month" in Zambia. Have you been surprised at how quickly that has caught on?

I must say I was shocked because I didn't know the response was going to be so good and so big. I didn't realize that so many people - they may not talk about it publicly - have actually been trying to find solutions.

So when I went on TV with the help of Society for Family Health, we carried out these interviews and adverts. In August 2012 when we thought we were targeting about 30,000 people nationwide [to get circumcised], by the end of August 2012, we were already at 37,000. So by popular demand, we had to extend the period into September 2012. By the end of September, we were already at 68,000. And it has been like that since then. Every day we have people queuing up.

I think what I look forward to is a situation where the male circumcision services are provided every day and everywhere, just like we do for under fives and antenatal. I think we need to reach a stage where male circumcision services are provided that way. Notwithstanding, I am aware that we have challenges with personnel, human resources and facilities. I look forward to a moment when anybody can walk to a health centre any time and be able to say, 'I demand to be circumcised', and they should be given that opportunity.

And at the same time, just as much as we have HIV/Aids corners, we also need a reproductive health corner, which looks at reproductive health, motherhood, male circumcision, information for cancers, cervical cancer, voluntary counseling and testing so that we are the one-stop-shop for all these programs. I think above all, when we look male circumcision, we have mostly the policy in Zambia where one goes through surgery but I think there's a need to scale up most of these other services, so that we can also provide it through the PrePex http://www.prepex.com/and other tools that are coming on the market.

This is going to help us as we fight the stigma, but one can use the PrePex for instance and still go about their business. They don't need a service provider. So where we have challenges with health providers, gadgets like the PrePex could ensure that the men could go ahead and do it on their own.

So I think that the future looks very bright. And I can see that once this becomes part and parcel of our culture, I'm looking forward to the day when we'll say bye to HIV/Aids.

Sisi Calls On Egyptians to Protest Friday, Mandate the Army to Confront Violence

Supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi clash with riot police (file photo).

Egypt's Army Chief and Defence Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on Egyptians to protest on Friday to mandate the army to confront violence and terrorism, in a televised speech on Wednesday.

He stressed that the army will do what it deems as necessary for such a confrontation, adding, "That does not mean that I am advocating for violence."

Sisi added that there will be no retreat on the roadmap, which was put forth by the army following its ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on July 3, for political transition.

Libya Prepares Constitution Amid Insecurity

Tripoli and Asmaa Elourfi in Benghazi — Libya on Saturday (July 20th) took the first step towards drafting its new democratic constitution.

Interim Prime Minister Ali Zidan, former National Transitional Council President Mustafa Abdel Jalil and other dignitaries were on hand in al-Bayda as General National Congress (GNC) President Nouri Abu Sahmein formally authorised a panel to create the historic document.

The 60 seats on the new Libya constitutional commission will be equally distributed among the country's three main regions. Six seats will be reserved for women and six for ethnic minorities. The panel members will be decided through an election.

Speaking at the al-Bayda signing ceremony for the constitutional commission draft law, former GNC President Mohamed Magarief called on Libyans not to let the historic opportunity slip through their hands.

"We must free ourselves from the constraints of ignorance, backwardness, tyranny, oppression, corruption, chaos, envy and hatred. We must resolve never to go back to them," Magarief said.

In his address, Prime Minister Zidan also focused on the security crisis, describing the "easy shedding of Libyan blood, senseless violence and lack of respect for responsibility".

"This matter calls for an enhancement of our interdependence and cohesion and to stand in front of all those who want to destroy what we are building. I call on the Libyan people to persevere," Zidan told attendees.

One of the men who contributed to writing the 1951 constitution, Taher Alem, agreed that a modern Libya required peace and security.

But even as Libya moved forward with the democratic transition, violence continued across the country.

The same day as the constitutional panel ceremony, the Libyan military mourned a senior Libyan Air Force officer found dead Friday in Benghazi.

Colonel Aqila Mailoud al-Obeidi, head of the Search and Rescue division, was kidnapped Thursday evening while returning from al-Bayda, where he had been visiting the family of a colleague murdered earlier in the week in Derna.

Al-Obeidi, a skilled linguist, worked as a translator for Kadhafi interior minister turned rebel military chief Abdel Fattah Younes, who was assassinated in 2011.

Also on Saturday, the son of the Western region military chief and two of his friends were murdered in Tripoli. Mukhtar Fernana, known to be close to the Zintan tribe, was targeted by unidentified gunmen while driving.

Then in Benghazi, military explosives experts dismantled two bombs placed inside the medical college complex at the university.

The explosives were the same type used in all the previous explosions in the city, Benghazi Joint Security Room spokesman Mohammed Hijazi said.

"What is happening in Benghazi is a settling of scores, in the absence of law and efficient justice," commented Ali Ben Youssef, a 37-year-old electricity engineer.

"We await the establishment of the constitution for these problems to disappear," he said. "What we fear is the approval of the constitution at gunpoint."

Court Challenge for Museveni Over Minister

Opposition deputies in Uganda plan to petition the Constitutional Court later this week over a key ministerial appointment. Some see grounds for impeaching President Museveni.

Opposition politicians in Uganda say the constitution clearly stipulates that a serving army officer cannot hold political office.

They object to the appointment of General Aronda Nyakasirima as minister for internal affairs, saying he is still a serving officer.

Nyakasirima was transferred from his post as Chief of Defense Forces to internal affairs in a cabinet reshuffle in late May. He officially takes up his ministerial duties on Wednesday (24.07.2013).

Opposition parliamentarian Mathias Mpuga told Deutsche Welle President Yoweri Museveni could have sought advice before confirming this particular appointment, but chose not do so.

"The fact that he has gone on to confirm it and did not wait to get sound advice means that his action was willful breach of the constitution," he said.

Hidden agenda

The opposition say they want the constitutional court to clarify whether - in a multiparty democracy - a serving army officer can enter politics without resigning, and then return to a post as army commander after having left a cabinet post.

DW correspondent in Kampala, Leylah Ndinda, said the government is confident it is doing the right thing, but the subject has not been welcomed by many Ugandans. "They think Museveni has a hidden agenda. Why he is appointing a former army commander to be in charge of internal affairs."

Meanwhile police arrested a leading opposition figure, Kizza Besigye, on Monday claiming he was about to stage illegal rallies. He was scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.

Opposition activists said last week they were planning rallies against what they saw were unfair taxes on water and kerosene.

But even if there is a ground swell of discontent with the country's leadership, the chances of Museveni being removed from office by impeachment appear remote.

Museveni has large majority in parliament

Henry Kasacca is a Uganda-based political analyst. He told Deutsche Welle that even though the constitution provides for the impeachment of the president, civil society in Uganda is currently extremely weak.

He added President Museveni's political party, the NRM (National Resistance Movement) commands over two thirds of parliament and more than 90 percent of all elected positions at local level.

Kasacca also questions whether the opposition has made any plans to impeach the president.

"Those going to court right now are going to challenge the appointment of one single minister, but that is not necessarily impeaching the president, he said.

Mpuga appears undeterred. "I can only speak with certainty that we shall get the requisite numbers... to impeach the president. Whether we succeed or not, the sticking matter is to get a judgment that agrees with our point of view that it is unconstitutional to appoint a serving officer in a partisan government," he said.

Ruto Accuses NGOs of Coaching ICC Witnesses

Deputy President William Ruto now claims that he has strong evidence to show that local and international NGOs have a scheme to fabricate evidence against him at the ICC.

Ruto has now applied to the Trial Chamber V(a) to compel Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda put eight witnesses, whom he accuses of being coached to lie against him on the witness stand immediately after the opening statements at the onset of the trial.

"By calling these witnesses first, the Chamber will be able to chart the proper and just course of this trial from its outset and help prevent a miscarriage of justice," Ruto argued.

The Deputy President also wants the Prosecution's lead investigator put on the witness stand, as the ninth witness, for overseeing the selection process of the eight witnesses.

"This scheme links all eight witnesses. It has been years in the making and has been, or still is, supported by various international and domestic Kenyan organisations," Ruto's lawyer Karim Khan told the judges on Friday.

Khan added that the witnesses were part of a scheme to cook evidence against Ruto saying they must testify first so that the alleged scam can be unmasked at the earliest opportunity.

"To use a Kenyan colloquialism, based on witness statements and documents, the Defence has substantial grounds to believe that these eight key prosecution witnesses have been part of a deliberate and concerted scheme to "cook" evidence against Mr. Ruto," Khan said.

Ruto's defense lawyers also argued that the trial was likely to take a lot of time and that it would therefore be necessary to test the core of the case from the onset.

Khan added that the order that Ruto is proposing will protect the integrity of these proceedings and, thus, better assist the Trial Chamber to discharge its truth finding mandate.

"Defence investigations have revealed that these eight witnesses are engaged in a concerted process to contaminate Prosecution investigations to a significant extent through the deliberate and organised fabrication of evidence," Khan said.

The Deputy President further observed that it would be unfair to wait for a minimum of 160 hours as prosecution witnesses testify before even one defense principal witness is heard.

"The Prosecution case is scheduled to take approximately 726 hours, which, if the Court sits for five hours per day, amounts to 145.2 days. Accordingly, the Defence submits the core of the Prosecution case should be tested at the outset of trial particularly when the Defence has sound reasons to believe that this core is rotten," Ruto said.

Ruto and former journalist Joshua Sang trial is due to open on September 10 at the Hague while that of President Uhuru Kenyatta is expected to kick off on November 12.

The prosecution has already dropped some of its witnesses due to inconsistencies in their testimonies with some coming out to say that they lied in their initial statements.

Last week, Bensouda notified the judges of the withdrawal of three witnesses in the case against Uhuru with the ICC saying that the prosecutor may have to look for new witnesses in the future.

"The prosecutor might seek to add other witnesses in the future if suitable replacements for these witnesses are forthcoming," ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah said.

Morsi's Family Threatens Egypt's Army Over "Kidnap" of Ex-President

Mohammed Morsi's family has vowed to take legal action against Egypt's army for "kidnapping" the former president.

The army has held Morsi since it overthrew him on July 3 following mass anti-government protests.

Several countries, including the United States and Germany, have called for Morsi's release. However, Egypt's interim authorities have rejected those calls, claiming that they have kept him in a "safe place" since his overthrow earlier this month (pictured).

"We are taking local and international legal measures against [army chief] Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the leader of the bloody military coup, and his putschist group," the president's daughter, Shaimaa Morsi  told reporters.

Concerns over Sinai becoming new terrorist base

The situation in Sinai has been escalating: Militants are attacking on a daily basis and new extremist groups emerging. Security experts can only speculate about how strong these groups are, and how they're linked.

"We hold the leader of the military group and the whole of his putschist group responsible for the health and safety of president Morsi," she added at the family's press conference in Cairo.

The statement represents the first public communication from Morsi's family since the military overthrew the president on July 3. Morsi himself has been held incommunicado and at an undisclosed location for that entire stretch. Officials in the interim government have said the measures mean to protect Morsi.

Ruto - ICC Witnesses Are 'Cooking' Evidence

Nairobi — Deputy President William Ruto now claims that he has strong evidence to show that local and international non governmental organisations have hatched a scheme to fabricate evidence against him at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Ruto has now applied to the Trial Chamber V to force the Prosecutor put eight witnesses, whom he accuses of being coached to lie against him on the witness stand immediately after the opening statement at the onset of the trial.

He wants the witnesses called to testify first so that the Trial Chamber can determine their validity and chart a proper way forward so as to prevent what he calls 'a miscarriage of justice'.

The Deputy President also wants the Prosecution's lead investigator put on the witness stand, as the ninth witness, for overseeing the selection process of the eight witnesses.

"This scheme links all eight witnesses. It has been years in the making and has been, or still is, supported by various international and domestic Kenyan organisations," he alleged.

In an application dated July 19, the Deputy President added that the witnesses were part of a scheme to cook evidence against him saying they must testify first so that the alleged scam can be unmasked at the earliest opportunity.

"To use a Kenyan colloquialism, based on witness statements and documents, the Defence has substantial grounds to believe that these eight key prosecution witnesses have been part of a deliberate and concerted scheme to "cook" evidence against Mr. Ruto," argued Ruto's lawyers.

Ruto's defense lawyers also argued that the trial was likely to take a lot of time and that it would therefore be necessary to test the core of the case from the onset.

The Deputy President further observed that it would be unfair to wait for a minimum of 160 hours as prosecution witnesses testify before even one defense principal witness is heard.

"The Prosecution case is scheduled to take approximately 726 hours, which, if the Court sits for five hours per day, amounts to 145.2 days. Accordingly, the Defence submits the core of the Prosecution case should be tested at the outset of trial particularly when the Defence has sound reasons to believe that this core is rotten," urged Ruto.

Several witnesses have dropped out in the first case, where Ruto and former journalist Joshua Sang are co-accused, and case II against President Uhuru Kenyatta.

The most recent drop out was once again in Kenyatta's case where the Prosecution has so far lost a total of 25 out of 30 key witnesses.

"The prosecution hereby notifies the chamber of the withdrawal of three witnesses from its list of witnesses to be relied on at trial," asserted the ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda in an earlier notification to the Trial Chamber.

Ruto and Sang trial is due to open on September 10 at the Hague while that of Kenyatta is expected to kick off on November 12.

Military, Police Take Over Security in Prisons

The federal government has overhauled security system in Nigerian prisons to curb recurring incidence of jail breaks and attacks on the facilities by gunmen suspected to be insurgents.

Unlike the past where only prison officials kept vigil in and around the prisons, the government has set joint military and police task forces to shield the prisons from invasion by gunmen and jailbreaks by inmates and their collaborators outside the prison.

At the two prisons in Yola and Jimeta, Adamawa State, LEADERSHIP Sunday observed water-tight security around the formations. It was gathered that the measure was informed by the incessant attacks on prisons formations in some states in the North East geo-political zones of the country.

In the serial attacks on the prison formations in the state, many people including prison officials and inmates have been killed while several others have escaped.

LEADERSHIP Sunday also learnt that the new arrangement is aimed at strengthening the emergency rule imposed on the state by the federal government.

The prison authorities have also adopted other measures including blocking of roads that lead to prison formations with the assistance of military and police personnel.

During a visit to the area, men of the task force were seen to have blocked the road that connects the Jimeta Prison. This affected traffic flow from the two ends of the town.

Another joint patrol teamwas seen manning the YolaPrison although it did not bar motorists from plying the road due to what an insider source said was the close proximity of the prison formation to the palace of the Lamido Adamawa.

In Ondo State, the June 30, 2013 jail break at the Olokuta Minimum Security Prisons in Akure, has also forced the government to beef up security in the facility.

About 175 inmates escaped from the prison located on the Ondo/AkureRoad in in the state capital.It was learned that men of the Nigeria Police, the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other security agencies have moved to secure the prison.

The Nigerian Army, 32 Artillery, Owena Barracks, Akure had also deployed men to the premises immediately after the incident to support armed policemen who were drafted to the place.

Since the incident, visitors to the prison have been made to pass through rigorous screening before being allowed access to their relatives who are inmates of the prison.

Two road blocks have also been mounted on the Ondo-AkureRoad by the Nigerian Army. One is at the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) before the prison and the other at Olokuta village after the prison.

The state command police public relations officer (PRO), Mr WoleOgodo,confirmed that various steps have been taken to secure the prison

He said that, "What I can say now is that necessary security mechanism has been put in place which is not for public consumption".

In Katsina State, prison warden still man the 10 prisons with capacity for about 1,543 inmates, which however host more than 2,000 inmates.

In spite of all the challenges, it is observed that the prisons in the state has not witnessed incidence of jail breaks. This may not be unconnected with the tightened security within and around the prisons.

In all the formations, heavy presence of prison wardens was noticedwiththe entrances and exit routes barricaded.

A top officer of the state prisons command who sought anonymity attributed the frequent cases of jail breaks and attacks to the worsening insecurity situation, but quickly added that the state has not experience any jail break in recent time.