

The International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scholarly Societies statement on Sudan (15.03.2019)





“Since the NRM has already addressed the other bottlenecks such as ideological disorientation, a weak state (no Army etc.) and market integration, we are now able to move decisively on building an integrated and self sustaining economy that is independent. Here independence has never meant isolation. It means participation in the World economy on an equal and comparative basis” (Yoweri Kaguta Museveni – ‘Speech at the opening of NRM MPs retreat, 2019’ 15.03.2019).
We have seen this movie before, we have seen the stages of building up a military parastatal organization to ensure and have enough guards in the streets ahead of the General Election. That was the Crime Preventers in 2015 and 2016. Since then it has been disbanded and stopped functioning. Even if it was founded in 2014, it would be fitting to see the similarities.
This happen in 2015:
“President Y.K. Museveni on Tuesday the 18th August 2015, passed out 3,348 crime preventers after undergoing a seven weeks training at Police training school Kabalye in Masindi district under the theme: The fight against unemployment and poverty through enterprise partnership and production. The crime prevention and self-defense course was aimed at equipping the youths with skills necessary for job creation in a bid to fight poverty through enterprise partnerships. The crime preventers were drawn from higher institutions of learning throughout the country” (Uganda Police Force – ‘Pass out of Crime Preventers’ 18.08.2015).
Now in the 2019, the Local Defence Unit (LDU) is being ushered in, even earlier, than the regrouping and the impressive stature of National Crime Preventers Forum (NCPF), which was important and a group cleaning the slate for the state during and before the polls last time. We can anticipate this new unit doing the same. Even if it is more directly with guns and training, as the CP was more of police foot soldiers, whose less training and active by measures of the Police. The LDU is directly under the army and is a outfit directly there.
The President is clearly preparing to ensure the public to know of the amount of security organizations, soldiers and even LDU’s in the streets. This is the same he did with the Crime Preventers. LDU’s in this narrative makes sense. He has used the excuses of street violence and riots to create it, but will use it to intimidate during elections. Just like he did with the Crime Preventers and the President cannot use the same outfit again. Than, he will look ugly to the Election Observers, whose not following it steady.
LDU’s today:
“This evening, I passed out 6,239 Local Defence Unit (LDU) trainees at Kaweweta Military Training School. The recruitees from Wakiso, Mukono and Kampala districts have completed 16 weeks of basic military and tactical training. In defending a country, you must look at the economics and find an affordable formula. You may not have such a big army but you must ensure it has the necessary strategic elements. For the UPDF, these elements are in place and we are enhancing them. We have the infantry which is easier and faster to train. It should have officers and men ready for duty. Then you have the reserves, like these LDUs, from whom we can recruit rifle men and machine gunners when necessary. When not on military duty, these reserves will be into other work like farming. But as the budget improves, we shall ensure they have frequent refresher courses. This LDU training is a robust programme. We focused a lot on the villages and some people thought they could destabilize Uganda by attacking towns because of heavy motor and human traffic” (Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, 15.03.2019).
He calls them reserves, he is calling them an extra army and the training of them must be for some reasons, other than riots and demonstrations. This is a clear vindictive tactic, both to show power over the people. Its not enough with the laws, restricting their political freedoms, liberties or even ability to act upon the supposed multi-party democracy it’s supposed to be. However, that is not enough, how easy it is to be a political criminal. That is why the Police Force doesn’t have enough manpower, neither the Courts or any part of the Legal System is there for citizens, but for the patronage of the President.
That is why he needs more security forces for the elections, to intimidate and show his strength. Because, the President and his Party doesn’t have the popularity or the public support. He needs guns, he needs guns in the streets to show his greatness. Therefore, the LDU’s comes in as a substitute for the Crime Preventers. He just need a new program to be set-off for the old ones.
The LDU’s are reserves now, but will get more vital, more funding and become important in the hot minutes before the polls. The LDU’s will be stationed all across the Republic and with time also get posts where its needed. The LDU’s will not be used for just stopping possible urban demonstrations. Because, the President wouldn’t invest this much, if he couldn’t use it for his needs. They are up and coming.
Don’t get shocked, don’t get confused, this is preparations for the 2021. Mzee has played this game before and the saga continues. Peace.




If you ever was thinking that President Felix Tshisekedi had any control in the Democratic Republic of Congo. That is only on paper and in title. Because, again it is stated, that the man behind the scenes, the former President Joseph Kabila and his Front Commun pur le Congo (FCC). Who has the power and the people behind him. If not the structure and the reach to rig themselves in overwhelming power. Because that is more natural.
We cannot act surprised, the Ex-President did whatever he could to postpone the elections and configure ways to be dubious, but he has overstepped it. Not only putting his hand-picked judges in the Supreme Court and ensuring laws, which are beneficial for himself. Which means that the Ex-President can be for life Senator in the Parliament. Meaning, he lingers around and can play a fool of the current leadership. Something he does.
Kabila are no so cunning, that he just a moment ago. Had the audacity to officially have a Coalition Government with CACH, the supposed winner of this Election and the Two-Party “opposition”. This coalition became official on the 6th March 2019. Alas, it is so weak, as while the CACH won the Presidency, they had a minority in the house of Representatives. Into a margin, where the FCC and Kabila has 350 Members of Parliament out of 500 MPs. Meaning, they have the solid majority and will follow Kabila orders and his wilful wish to change laws on his behalf.
To continue this path, in the Provincial Assemblies, the FCC got 20 out of 24. Meaning the political landscape is all in favour of Kabila still. The FCC celebrated this and took it all out. This meaning again the President lacks so much popularity, that CACH and the Parties cannot must public support to stand by the Presidency. This happen just days ago on the 11th March 2019.
To top it off, to control both Chambers, the FCC has today officially gotten 24 out of 26 Senators. This means, the Ex-President has all his representatives there too and the CACH, which was the coalition of the current President got none. If you believe this is real elections and real polls. Your wrong, because all these measures fits the Ex-President and his possible future. There is nothing that makes sense.
If the President and his party actually WON the December 2018 elections, wouldn’t they have popularity to win the Provincial Assemblies and Senatorial Seats, alas in this Republic that is not the case. Kabila has all power, even went into a joint operation with the new power. Just to prove, that Tshisekedi is a minor minion of him. Because, he has to beg out of the hand of Kabila. That is why we will see steady meetings and get guidance from the predecessor.
The ones who accepted the outcome of the elections in December 2018 and Announced in January 2019. You have accepted yourself to get tricked by the master himself. He is not even trying to linger in the shadow or lurk slowly. His grabbing power and controlling the legislative, the courts and all parts of government. But with a nicely certified puppet, a man whose is willing to kiss the ring and be loyal to him. Peace.




The greatest concern centres on the neighbouring urban areas of Katwa and Butembo, which continue to contribute about three-quarters of recent cases.
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 15, 2019 – The public health response to the Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak continues to make gains. During the last 21 days (20 February – 12 March 2019), no new cases have been detected in 10 of the 20 health zones that have been affected during the outbreak (Figure 1). There has also been fewer new cases observed over the past five weeks compared to January 2019 and earlier in the outbreak (Figure 2).
Currently, the greatest concern centres on the neighbouring urban areas of Katwa and Butembo, which continue to contribute about three-quarters of recent cases. Clusters in other areas of North Kivu and Ituri provinces have been linked to chains of transmission in Katwa and Butembo, and have thus far been contained to limited local transmissions with relatively small numbers of cases. A total of 74 confirmed cases were reported during the last 21 days from 32 of the 125 health areas affected to date (Table 1). Risk of further chains of transmission and spread remain high, as highlighted by the recent spread to Lubero Health Zone, and reintroduction to Biena Health Zone following a prolonged period without new cases.
Response teams are fully operational in all outbreak affected areas and there are encouraging improvements in community acceptance of the response, despite the challenges of ongoing insecurity caused by armed groups. For example, during the last 21 days in Katwa and Butembo, 88% of the 256 families with a family member who died and was suspected to have EVD, accepted the support from response teams to conduct a safe and dignified burial. Seventy-four new vaccination rings were launched, with over 90% of people eligible for vaccination accepting to do so, and over 90% of these participated in follow-up visits. A total of 5974 people (including 2159 health and frontline workers) consented and were vaccinated this period; overall 87,632 people have been vaccinated to date. Vaccination teams are continuing to follow-up on 12 rings wherein the families have not yet accepted the intervention, and two other rings that are in the process of being defined. Seven field laboratories have remained fully operational, sustaining similar testing rates as previous weeks. During the past week, 1213 samples from new suspected cases, community deaths and previously confirmed cases were tested within 48 hours. Outreach teams made up mostly of local volunteers also met with 6000 households during the past week, building local knowledge of Ebola, and referring sick individuals to either Ebola Treatment Centres (ETCs) or other health facilities as appropriate. In the last two weeks, community dialogues were held in several villages in Katwa and Vuhovi to find ways in engaging community members to build trust and ownership in the Ebola response.
Efforts to strengthen case finding and investigation, and contact tracing activities are also bearing fruit. Of 74 confirmed cases reported in the last 21 days, 83% (62 cases) have been epidemiologically linked to active chains of transmission; either listed as contacts at illness onset (47 cases) or linked retrospectively to other cases or health centre where they were likely exposed (15 cases). Investigations are ongoing to identify links for the remaining cases.
Challenges include further attacks by armed groups on affected communities and ETCs, elements of community mistrust, and persistent delays in getting people into care in ETCs for various reasons. The Ministry of Health, WHO and partners continue to work actively to build community trust and participation in the response, while reinforcing security measures to protect patients and response teams. The ETC in Butembo has been rebuilt following two attacks and is treating patients again, and the Katwa Transit Centre remains operational.
Since the beginning of the outbreak to 12 March 2019, 927 EVD cases1 (862 confirmed and 65 probable) have been reported, of which 57% (525) were female and 30% (280) were children aged less than 18 years. Cumulatively, cases have been reported from 125 of 319 health areas across 20 health zones of the North Kivu and Ituri provinces (Table 1). Overall, 584 deaths (case fatality ratio: 63%) have been reported, and 308 patients have been discharged from ETCs.
*Data in recent weeks are subject to delays in case confirmation and reporting, as well as ongoing data cleaning.

Like many Darfuris, Aziza, 52, has lived for decades in a fragile environment, characterized by growing climatic variability and periods of shortage.
NEW YORK, United States of America, March 15, 2019 – Four years ago, Aziza Mohammed Abdallah Mukhtar was scraping a living growing tobacco in the community of Zamzam in Sudan’s arid North Darfur State.
Like many Darfuris, Aziza, 52, has lived for decades in a fragile environment, characterized by growing climatic variability and periods of shortage. Her crops took seven months to mature under normal conditions, stretching the widowed mother of five’s resilience to breaking point.
Now, thanks to a project that spreads seasonal water to increase agricultural productivity and reduce soil erosion, Aziza has yielded thriving crops such as watermelon, sorghum, tomato, okra and sesame.
“This project has enabled me to finance my children’s education,” she says. Three of her children are now studying at universities in Khartoum.
UN Environment has been implementing the European Union-funded Wadi El Ku Catchment Management Project since 2014, partnering with local organization Practical Action, the Government of Sudan and communities such as Aziza’s.
Before the US$7.7 million project, Aziza’s land, close to the state capital of El Fasher, did not receive water from the wadi (a channel that fills up in the rainy season). The seven-metre-high water spreading embankment built under the project, which extends 1.2 kilometres along the Zamzam administrative area, has helped her and other locals to diversify agricultural output.
Two other embankments, three water channels and two water reservoirs have been constructed or rehabilitated. This has enabled nearly 1,600 households from 34 village councils to triple production of sorghum and millet, and grow vegetables and cash crops well into the dry season.
The benefits are not restricted to increasing resilience to droughts. With resources like water and land increasingly scarce, grievances also often arise between competing communities in Darfur. These lead to local conflicts, and played a major role in the war that broke out in 2003.
The project has helped reduce tensions, especially between pastoralists and crop farmers. Community councils from many villages meet to evaluate the best way of using the water, while committees ensure technical and political engagement at state level.
The second phase, launched in November 2018, aims to expand integrated water resource management to communities upstream and downstream of the Wadi El Ku catchment. It will directly benefit 80,000 households within the area.
“Less water availability impacts on health and food security. It triggers displacement of people and political instability,” says Jean-Michel Dumond, the European Union’s Ambassador to Sudan. “Our hope is that the same model could be reproduced in other regions. This will help local populations to better manage their natural resources in partnership towards a peaceful and profitable future.”
In East Darfur State, meanwhile, another UN Environment and European Union project, implemented by the UN Office for Project Services, is starting to make a similar difference to communities struggling to manage their resources.
“When I was growing up, there were less than 50 households here,” says Abdulrahman Ismail, a cleric who lives in East Darfur’s Bakhiet village. “Now, it has risen to more than 5,000. Trees have been decimated due to cooking energy demands.”
These environmental changes are just as common in other parts of the semi-arid state, which covers an area slightly larger than Greece and is home to about 1.5 million residents.
The East Darfur Natural Resources Management Project supports six communities by increasing their ability to implement natural resource management policy reform. In May 2018, nearly three years since the project’s launch, the East Darfur State Legislature passed the 2018 Council Act for Coordination and Management of Natural Resource Policies for East Darfur State.
The legislation is the first of its kind in Sudan and provides a framework for the joint management of resources by the state government and local communities. Through a separate piece of legislation passed in September, East Darfur is also working to promote the joint management of water yards, dams and other water sources within its Territory.
As climate change bites harder and populations continue to grow—in Darfur and many other regions across Africa—efforts that help communities share their resources will be crucial in preventing conflicts and minimizing the impacts of dry spells.
UN Environment has provided environmental support to Sudan since the 1990s. Its work spans natural resource management, livelihoods, climate change adaptation, environmental governance, peacebuilding and conflict resolution, and strengthening women’s roles in local peacebuilding processes.

ABUJA, Nigeria, March 15, 2019 – The Committee to Protect Journalists this week joined at least 79 rights organizations to urge African Union and United Nations experts to take action to end the government of Chad’s nearly year-long block on social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp. The letters, addressed respectively to the African Union Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, emphasized how network disruptions “limit the ability of journalists to report safely and for citizens to access information,” among other consequences.
“We have to circumvent censorship on social networks using virtual private networks [VPNs]….Journalists have to wriggle for hours to post articles online,” Moussa Nguedmbaye, editorial coordinator for the privately owned, N’djaména-based news website Tchad Infos, told CPJ in January 2019. “Social networks are a way to reach the most readers….Before the block on social networks, each article reached four to five thousand readers. With this block we do not even reach two thousand. The blockage really reduced the traffic.”
The letters to the special rapporteurs can be found here: African Union Special Rapporteur Lawrence Murugu Mute and UN Special Rapporteur David Kaye.