Africa

A United Nations report on freedom of expression in Somalia released today describes progress in state-building in Somalia, but shows the very challenging environment that continues to confront journalists, human rights defenders and political leaders, including numerous killings, arrests, intimidation and closure of critical media outlets.

September 3, 2016 (YAMBIO) – An unknown woman who refused to give her full name to midwives during her delivery has abandoned her newborn baby in Yambio civil hospital on Thursday morning, state authorities said.

Special protection Unit Office in Yambio Hospital (ST Photo)

The administrator of Yambio State Hospital, John Sangara, said he received a report from the maternity section in the hospital that a certain woman came to the hospital alone in a labor pain without any card and only mentioned one name, Maka, when she was admitted.

Sangara however explained that after she delivered a baby boy at night on Wednesday she left the baby alone in the maternity ward and escaped from the hospital. She is nowhere to be seen and the staff of the hospital are shouldering the responsibility of breastfeeding and taking care of the abandoned baby.

It remains unclear as what prompted the lady to abandon her baby. She came to the hospital without the husband or any relative to help her. Eyewitnesses said she was crying when leaving the hospital.

The hospital administrator said they will continue to take care of the baby as the case has been reported to the police and to the directorate of gender, child and social welfare to intervene so that the necessary support could be offered to the newborn baby.

(ST)

September 3, 2016 (JUBA) -Youth group from Gogrial state, one of the newly created controversial 28 states which President Salva Kiir decreed into being, has petitioned the removal of their Governor Abraham Makuac from the office, citing inability to run the state affairs and lack of cooperation.

Women from a cattle camp walk near Gogrial (Photo Tim Freccia/Enough Project)

“We thank you for the creation of (28) states and for putting to practice the vision of the (SPLM) of taking towns to the people. The Youth Association leadership of Gogrial County and their entirely members are obliged to voice out our grievances due to developing administrative failure by the newly appointed governor, Abraham Gum Makuac,” partly reads the youth letter.

“Our president, as you are aware of communal conflict between Apuk Community of former Gogrial East County and Aguok Community of former Gogrial West County led the priority in selecting for us strong and competent leader who works hard to bring political stability, Peace, law and order in the state. The governor of Gogrial State, Gum Makuac has failed us all including your image as the president of the Republic,” the petition further read.

The widely circulated letter, copy of which was extended to Sudan Tribune, described governor Abraham Gum Makuac as “a very weak in administration, claiming this weakness was openly seen during the formation of his state government.

“Gogrial state government was not formed by Abraham Gum. It was formed as directed by some individuals in fulfillment of their interests in the state,” the youth claimed, citing alleged appointment of incompetent officials.

The youth further argued that governor Gum failed to maintain the security and unity of conflicting communities of Apuk and Aguok since he was appointed as governor. The problem of Apuk and Aguok was contained by then defunct Warrap state government lead by .Akec Tong in which Gum and some of the officials served, they said.

It continued to say “fighting was stopped and compensations were made for people killed in the conflict. Unfortunately, after some months few individuals from Apuk went to Aguok and killed two sons of Sultan Kuec Mayar in cold blood. We all worked hard to convince our people not to take law into their hands but to trust the government to first investigate the killings. The investigation was made and some culprits were found guilty and arrested with the connection but nothing had been done until we heard recently the killing of other three people by the same culprit who killed the first two people last year. This narrative makes us to believe that escape of the culprit from the jail and the new killing is squarely in the hand of governor.”

Peace between the rival Apuk and Aguok communities in Gogrial state, according to the petition, will not come to an end because of inaction of the administration of Gum in the state.

“He failed to set up trial for the perpetrators who murdered the two sons of Sultan Kuech Mayar Yel in Aguok from last year up to now. We have never heard whether the family of the deceased was compensated or not,” they said.

(ST)

September 3, 2016 (NYALA) - Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at a number of camps in Darfur have refused to return to their original villages despite repeated calls by the government saying they wouldn't return until security is being achieved there.

Head of IDPs and refugees association Al-Shiekh Ali Abdel-Rahman told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that IDPs conditions is deteriorating, pointing that displacement continues to take place in Central and North Darfur states due to ongoing clashes around Jebel Marra area.

He said the IDPs can't return to their villages for insecurity, pointing to the humanitarian tragedy in the camps due to the severe lack of food after the aid groups reduced food rations by more than %40.

Abdel-Rahman stressed that several IDPs were killed on their way back to their homes at the hands of the armed militias that seized control over their villages.

He pointed that voluntary return could be carried out only after establishing security and ensuring safety of IDPs' lives and property besides removing the new settlers who controlled their villages and farms.

Abdel-Rahman also stressed the need to compensate the IDPs in a fair way and to provide them with the basic services, underscoring importance to achieve transitional justice and social reconciliations as well as bringing perpetrators of genocide to trial.

He said that government moves to convince the IDPs to engage in the voluntary return programs is nothing but an attempt to put their lives and property in danger of genocide, pointing the IDPs are forced to stay in the camps despite their miserable conditions because they have no other option.

The government seeks to dismantle IDPs camps that have been established on areas around the capitals of Darfur's five states since the eruption of the armed conflict in the region.

An official source told Sudan Tribune Friday on the condition of anonymity that the government of South Darfur state intends to dismantle IDPs camps by the end of this year, saying these camps tarnish the reputation of the region.

He pointed that all parts of the state are secure and stable, stressing there is no need to keep these camps.

Governor of South Darfur state Adam al-Faki had previously said their top priority now is to dismantle IDPs camps after they crushed the rebellion and achieved reconciliation and peaceful coexistence among the various tribes.

He offered the IDPs three options, saying they should either be integrated into existing towns, stay in the camps after they are being planned or return to their original villages voluntarily.

South Darfur government has reconstructed a number of villages but failed to convince to return particularly following the killing of several of them at the hands of armed groups affiliated with the government who claim ownership of the land.

Also, nine IDPs from Hashaba village for voluntary return, 86 km south of Nyala, South Darfur capital were killed last Sunday which raised IDPs fears about moving to these villages.

UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in Darfur conflict since 2003, and over 2.5 million were displaced.

(ST)

September 3, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese government has reiterated its call to the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) to accept the tripartite initiative to deliver humanitarian assistance to civilians in the conflict affected areas of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Girls sit in front of their shelter in Bram village in the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan April 28, 2012. (photo Goran Tomasevic Reuters)

In August 2012, the African Union (AU) announced the signing of an agreement with Sudanese government and SPLM-N over the humanitarian access to the rebel held areas.

The two parties accepted a tripartite initiative to provide humanitarian aid to the affected civilians in the areas controlled by the SPLM-N rebels in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.

But, Khartoum had refused a deal the tripartite team signed with the SPLM-N on 18 February 2012 based on its sovereign right to control the whole operation that the United Nations, African Union and Arab League proposed to conduct.

In a press statement on Saturday, Sudan's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed Adam has accused the SPLM-N of using the humanitarian aid issue as a tool to achieve political goals.

He pointed that the affected population including children, women and the elderly has nothing to do with the differences between the government and the SPLM-N, stressing the government seeks to deliver aid to the affected according to the humanitarian principles and away from the political agendas.

Adam pointed out that insistence of the SPLM-N to deliver aid directly to the rebel-held areas via airplanes and without following the proper customs and health procedures is inconsistent with the principles established by the United Nations especially with regard to demonstrating respect for the sovereignty of nations and their national laws.

He added the movement's demand also raises suspicions that it seeks to fulfill other objectives beyond the humanitarian assistance, saying only three out of the 17 localities in South Kordofan fall fully or partially under the control of the SPLM-N while the movement doesn't control any locality in the Blue Nile.

He pointed that the SPLM-N controls %10 of the population and territory of the Two Areas, stressing his government's keenness to deliver humanitarian aid to look after every citizen living within Sudan's territory.

The Sudanese official added that his government accepted the tripartite initiative since 2012 and the fourth item of the UN Security Council resolution 2046 which supports the initiative besides accepting UN initiatives in 2013 and 2014 to carry out children immunization campaigns in the war-affected areas.

He pointed that the government has launched a unilateral initiative to complete children vaccination in the Two Areas but the SPLM-N refused despite the fact that the movement had signed the tripartite initiative in August 2012.

Last month, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Marta Ruedas said that South Kordofan and Blue Nile suffer from real humanitarian problems that must be addressed as soon as possible.

She said that children in the Two Areas have not been vaccinated for five years, adding that people suffer from severe acute malnutrition due to lack of food and agricultural land.

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) proposed to the warring parties to hold a one week moratorium on fighting in the two states to enable aid workers to carry out a polio vaccination and Vitamin A distribution campaign for about 150,000 children under the age of five years.

Here also the parties failed to agree on from where the operation would be conducted as the SPLM-N asked the United Nations agencies to conduct this campaign from Ethiopian and Kenya, while the Sudanese government said this operation should be carried out from the Sudanese territory.

The Sudanese army has been fighting SPLM-N rebels in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states since June 2011.

The latest round of talks between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N in Addis Ababa last month failed to reach a cessation of hostility agreement as the talks are stalled over the humanitarian access from outside Sudan.

(ST)

September 3, 2016 (JUBA) - Members of United Nations Security Council have warned South Sudan against rejecting the 4,000 troops to boast peacekeepers in the country.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power speaks to reporters after a meeting with the South Sudan's cabinet on 3 September 2016 (UNMISS Photo)

Addressing to reporters in the capital, Juba on Friday, the United States permanent representative to the world body, Samantha Power said an outright failure to cooperate would lead to "Plan B", which could be a disappointment to South Sudan as a country.

“So, we are here as the Council to not get to plan B. It would be a great disappointment not merely for the UN Security Council, but for the people of this country who count on the government," said Power.

Last month, the Security Council passed a solution to draw 4,000 soldiers from countries neighboring South Sudan to be deployed in Juba to monitor implementation of the August 2015 peace agreement that ended the 21 months of war between forces loyal to President Salva and his former Vice President Riek Machar.

The agreement suffered a set back in July when clashes erupted between the country's forces, forcing Machar to flee before he was eventually replaced by Taban Deng Gai.

Power said the UN was on mission to convince South Sudan overnment into accepting the force.

“We really need to see progress on the deployment of the regional protection force and the lifting obstruction of humanitarian actors and of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan and hopefully of moving forward under the political agreement which is going to [...] be the foundation for stability," said the senior US official.

“We expect the government of South Sudan as the newest member-state to the United Nations to want to end the culture of impunity, to want to end killings and sexual assaults and ethnically-based attacks and political attacks,” she added.

The Security Council members met President Kiir and his ministers in a closed door.

Meanwhile, members of the Security Council conclude their visit on Sunday with a visit to the UN camps, which currently hosts ten of thousands of civilians displaced by conflict.

(ST)

The Premier League has released the official 25-player squads for the 2016/17 season. The BBC's Stanley Kwenda looks at seven things about the African players in the Premier League.

Rescued African migrants express relief at having escaped daily brutality in Libya.

Ivory Coast will defend their title at next year's Africa Cup of Nations after qualifying with a draw against Sierra Leone.

On the second day of its visit to South Sudan, a delegation from the United Nations Security Council today met with displaced people living in camps, known as &#8220protection of civilians&#8221 sites, seeing first-hand &#8220the human consequences of the failure of political leaders to bring peace back to their country.&#8221

Together with its partners, the United Nations health agency has vaccinated more than 7.7 million people in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in less than two weeks.

In Kenya the cost of borrowing has come down because the government has passed a law limiting how much banks can charge customers for loans.

A delegation from the United Nations Security Council today arrived in South Sudan, where it will reinforce recent messages made to the authorities as well as discuss how the UN peacekeeping mission there can help them improve the security and humanitarian situation in the wake of recent violence.

A United Nations human rights expert today said that despite all the success in tackling crimes against persons with albinism in Mozambique, their situation remains precarious as the authorities have yet to identify and arrest the masterminds behind such crimes.

There have been protests about the economy in Zimbabwe and hair in South Africa but we start this week’s satirical report with an investigation into a sex talk-show in Kenya.

Five Botswanans tell the BBC's Lerato Mbele about their working lives in Gaborone.

Senegal forward Sadio Mane says he understands the fans' recent disappointment but believes the national team can win the Africa Cup of Nations.

A Kenyan MP is pushing the country's parliament to pass a law to recognise a third-gender to end discrimination of some 100 citizens who identify as intersex.

A selection of the best photos from across Africa this week.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has taken note of yesterday&#39s launch of the national dialogue in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and urged more inclusive process towards elections, his spokesman said today.