Most Recent Ten Issues http://www.africafocus.org/ http://www.africafocus.org/images/aflogo.gif http://www.africafocus.org en-us http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/migr1008.php 6, Aug 010 Aug 6, 2010 - "An astounding 100 deportees a month come to ARACEM [in Mali] for shelter, food and clothing. They are expelled from Libya, Morocco and Algeria as they make the way from Central and West Africa in an attempt to find work. These three North African countries have signed agreements with European countries to act as external border control agents to prevent migrants from reaching Europe." http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/xeno1008.php 6, Aug 010 Aug 6, 2010 - "Virtually every author concludes that violence against African migrants will continue and increase unless some profound socio-economic and attitudinal changes occur. This text thus sounds a loud warning bell to South Africa about our future. And it does so not merely based on the opinions of the authors, but because of the views of ordinary South African citizens that informed the research. ... survey after survey, focus group after focus group, have shown deeply xenophobic attitudes rising steadily over time." - David Everatt in introduction to report on South African Civil Society and Xenophobia, July 2010 http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/lum1007.php 2, Aug 010 Aug 2, 2010 - "A 1975 U.S. Senate investigation of alleged CIA assassinations concluded that while the CIA had earlier plotted to murder Lumumba, he was eventually killed 'by Congolese rivals. It does not appear from the evidence that the United States was in any way involved in the killing.' It is now clear that that conclusion was wrong." - Stephen R. Weissman, author of new article "An Extraordinary Rendition" http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/cgk1007b.php 2, Aug 010 Aug 2, 2010 - For more than a year and a half, UN peacekeepers have continuously supported military operations conducted by the Congolese armed forces (FARDC) against the Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in North and South Kivu. This policy has failed, says International Crisis Group analyst Thierry Vircoulon. Despite pledges to protect civilians and reduce abuses, there has in fact been an increase in human rights violations. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/cgk1007a.php 2, Aug 010 Aug 2, 2010 - There is little doubt that exports of "conflict minerals" -- including cassiterite, columbite-tantalite, wolframite and gold -- controlled by rebel groups and by units of the Congolese army itself contribute to ongoing conflict in eastern Congo. It is more difficult to say how much difference the new legislation requiring transparency from U.S. companies about the supply chain of these minerals will make. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/educ1007.php 20 Jul 2010 Jul 20, 2010 - "Africa is the only continent where the majority of children start school using a foreign language. Across Africa the idea persists that the international languages of wider communication (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese and Spanish) are the only means for upward economic mobility. .. [But] New research findings are increasingly pointing to the negative consequences of these policies ... We recommend that policy and practice in Africa nurture multilingualism; primarily a mother-tongue-based one with an appropriate and required space for international languages of wider communication." - Adama Ouane, Director, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/hiv1007b.php 15 Jul 2010 Jul 15, 2010 - According to a new report from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria, the Fund's efforts have contributed to saving an estimated 4.9 million lives by December 2009. The coming years will see even more results, as half of the total disbursements by the Global Fund were delivered in 2008 and 2009. Much of the US$ 5.4 billion of financing approved in Rounds 8 and 9 will reach countries in 2010 and 2011, and will continue to significantly boost health outcomes. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/hiv1007a.php 15 Jul 2010 Jul 15, 2010 - As donor commitment to the fight against AIDS threatens to falter, UNAIDS, the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS, has issued a new report with ambitious proposals and an upbeat perspective on the prospects for advances in both treatment and prevention. Proposing simplified treatment practices under the rubric "Treatment 2.0," the report also cites significant advances in prevention, particularly among African youth, and widespread global awareness of the importance of the pandemic among issues requiring high priority. http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/d2d1007.php 9, Jul 010 Jul 9, 2010 - "We insist that the right to education, the right to health care, food, the right to work, the right to housing, the right to clean water are inherent and inalienable and that it is the obligation of the State to guarantee access to these rights for all. The legitimacy of the State itself must be derived from its ability to uphold and deliver these rights." - Detroit to Dakar U.S. Social Forum statement http://www.africafocus.org/docs10/bk1007.php 6, Jul 010 Jul 6, 2010 - This AfricaFocus contains a diverse selection of recent books likely to be of interest and new to AfricaFocus readers. You will find, for example, new books by Africa's distinguished elders, such as Achebe, wa Thiong'o, and Mandela. Selected new books from publishers such as Africa World Press, HSRC Press, and Aflame Books. Books on topical themes such as SMS activism and other ICT developments, on India and China's relations with Africa, and on xenophobia and migration. And more.