Press Statement: Unprecedented level of food insecurity in South Sudan, UN agencies warn (29.06.2016)

South Sudan Food Crisis

More than a third of the population in urgent need of food, agriculture and nutrition assistance amid risk of catastrophe in some parts of the country.

NEW YORK, United States of America, June 29, 2016Up to 4.8 million people in South Sudan – well over one-third of the population – will be facing severe food shortages over the coming months, and the risk of a hunger catastrophe continues to threaten parts of the country, three UN agencies warned today.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) stressed that while the deteriorating situation coincides with an unusually long and harsh annual lean season, when families have depleted their food stocks and new harvests are not expected until August, the level of food insecurity this year is unprecedented.

According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) update released today by the government, the three agencies and other humanitarian partners, 4.8 million people are projected to be in need of urgent food, agriculture and nutrition assistance through July, up from 4.3 million in April. This is the highest level of hunger since the conflict in South Sudan began two-and-a-half years ago. This number does not include 350,000 residents of the UN Protection of Civilians areas or other camps for displaced people, who currently are entirely dependent on humanitarian assistance.

“We are very worried to see that food insecurity is spreading beyond conflict areas as rising prices, impassable roads and dysfunctional markets are preventing many families, even those in towns and cities, from accessing food,” said FAO Country Representative Serge Tissot.

Food insecurity and conflict are also forcing many families to leave South Sudan for neighbouring countries. In the last few months alone, an estimated 100,000 South Sudanese people have crossed into Sudan, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, and this number is expected to increase to more than 150,000 by the end of June.

“The levels of malnutrition among children continue to be truly alarming,” said Mahimbo Mdoe, UNICEF’s Representative in South Sudan. “Since the beginning of the year more than

100,000 children have been treated for severe malnutrition. That’s a 40 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, and a 150 percent increase since 2014.”

Working with a large number of international and local non-governmental organizations, FAO, UNICEF and WFP will continue to deliver life- and livelihood- saving support under these difficult circumstances.

“We are now seeing sharp spikes of need in new areas, such as Eastern Equatoria or Western Bahr el-Ghazal, where malnutrition rates in some places are reaching dangerous levels. We have started ramping up food and nutrition support, but much more is needed to keep things from deteriorating even further during the lean season,” said WFP Country Director Joyce Luma.

In 2016, FAO is planning to provide emergency livelihood support to 3.1 million people in South Sudan. It is currently distributing over half a million crop and fishing kits and is assisting livestock production through the vaccination of some 11 million animals.

The dramatic rise in malnutrition rates, means that in the first four months of the year UNICEF has already treated 45 per cent of its planned 2016 caseload of 166,000 children.

WFP plans to assist  3.3 million people in South Sudan this year through a combination of emergency food assistance, lifesaving nutrition support for mothers and young children, community-based asset-creation projects where possible, and safety net programmes such as school meals.

Brexit: Time to reshape and quit the mourning

EU UK Flags

There are these days when the ripple effect of one single vote, of one single event and change that makes such a big difference, not only locally but also internationally. There are these days that have come and gone. One of those days we’re the majority of the United Kingdom citizens vote to ‘Leave’ the EU on the 23rd June 2016. It could been anticipated as the fear of immigrations, the years of fear-mongering and hatred for the control of legal and regulatory affairs happening in chambers of Commission and Bureaucracies in Brussels. While the Conservative Party and Liberal-Democratic Party, together with the Opposition party Labour was all for the ‘Remain’, the government went on all cylinders with arrogance expecting that the numbers and the humanity, solidarity and the European idea would be already installed in the British population.

The reactions on the remain side have been blasting as well, as the Shadow Cabinet of Jeremy Corbyn and his Labour Party, have either been sacked by Corbyn or they have resigned. Right before that, the Prime Minister David Cameron has resigned as Executive and also as the Party Leader of the Conservative Party.  Also the Scottish have reacted as they in the late Independence Vote, voted to remain in the UK as they knew they would have a secure in the European Union. So that the Scottish National Party (SNP) Nicola Sturgeon. She have reassured the Scottish public that because of this they will see into a new Independence Vote for Scotland, as they want to be directly part of the EU and be a Member State.

While the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage have had his best days in his life, he has the smug face when he was saying the day after that the numbers of people voted to get control and the money back from the EU; while he now moments after regress those statements as he knows that the millions of quid’s will not be reversed directly back to access the austerity.

NHS EU Brexit
Nigel Farage of UKIP have forgotten this one…

He said it in this brutal way:

“No, I can’t and I would never have made that claim – it was one of the mistakes that the Leave campaign made” (…)”It wasn’t one of my adverts. I think they made a mistake. They made a mistake in doing that” (…) “We have a £10 billion a year, £34 million day featherbed – that is going to be free money we can spend on the NHS, or schools, or whatever it is.” (Dunne, John & Micklethwaithe, 24.06.2016). So the buses with ‘£350 million a week back to the NHS if they left the EU’… so quickly the words of right-wing politicians change their tune. It’s like their promises and words vanish into thin air.

EU British University Funding

While Boris Johnson the other leader who wants to coup d’état the Conservative Party and become the coming PM, he trying to change his rhetoric and sound more sane and act as a politician and not a megaphone for the fears of immigrations and job-losses for British citizens as he have proclaimed for months.

Therefore Boris Johnson all of sudden wrote this: “It is said that those who voted Leave were mainly driven by anxieties about immigration. I do not believe that is so. After meeting thousands of people in the course of the campaign, I can tell you that the number one issue was control – a sense that British democracy was being undermined by the EU system, and that we should restore to the people that vital power: to kick out their rulers at elections, and to choose new ones” (…) “We should be incredibly proud and positive about the UK, and what it can now achieve. And we will achieve those things together, with all four nations united. We had one Scotland referendum in 2014, and I do not detect any real appetite to have another one soon; and it goes without saying that we are much better together in forging a new and better relationship with the EU – based on free trade and partnership, rather than a federal system” (…) “There is every cause for optimism; a Britain rebooted, reset, renewed and able to engage with the whole world. This was a seismic campaign whose lessons must be learnt by politicians at home and abroad” (Johnson, Boris, 26.06.2016 – ‘I cannot stress too much that Britain is part of Europe – and always will be’ – Daily Telegraph).

So while Boris Johnson thinks he can be giant brute of English man and toy around with the Scots as they have done for 300 years, the reality of the Scottish wish to remain comes to surface as the Scottish voted over 60 % to remain and their leader have also spoken her peace to the world, which does counter Johnson and her words.

SNP Sturgeon

This is the words from the First Minster Nicola Sturgeon: “Looking at it from a logical perspective, I find it hard to believe that there wouldn’t be that requirement” (…) “I suspect that the UK government will take a very different view on that and we’ll have to see where that discussion ends up” (…) “If the Scottish Parliament was judging this on the basis of what’s right for Scotland then the option of saying look we’re not to vote for something that’s against Scotland’s interest, of course that’s got to be on the table” (…) “Ultimately it is parliament’s decision whether we repeal the 1972 European Communities Act or whether we don’t” (…) “Well I don’t know if that will be possible but what I am determined to do is to explore all possible options to give effect to how people in Scotland voted and to protect Scotland’s interests, to avoid us being taken out of the European Union against our will with all of the deeply damaging and painful consequences that that will entail” (…) “I am not starting from the premise of saying it has got to be independence, I am starting from the premise of what do we need to do to protect Scotland’s interests but if it does appear to be obvious that the only way we can protect Scotland’s interests is by looking again at independence then that’s an option that Scotland has to have” (Gardham, Magnus, 26.06.2016 – ‘Nicola Sturgeon: Holyrood could block Brexit’ – Herald Scotland).

So already now can see the stalemate between Holyrood and the Whitehall of London, as Boris Johnson is not in sync with the feeling across the border where the Scottish is unsure of their place little more isolated from the European Union. Though Nigel Farage haven’t commented directly because he just wanted the islands independent, but not knowing to what extent; while the ‘Leave’ campaign doesn’t seem to clearly know the terms and the negotiations, as they have not even cleared the message of the axing the Union.

Old Game Brexit Meme

So here is some brief words on the Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty of 2007 and got ratified in 2009. Says this:

A Member State which decides to withdraw shall notify the European Council of its intention. In the light of the guidelines provided by the European Council, the Union shall negotiate and conclude an agreement with that State, setting out the arrangements for its withdrawal, taking account of the framework for its future relationship with the Union. That agreement shall be negotiated in accordance with Article 218(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. It shall be concluded on behalf of the Union by the Council, acting by a qualified majority, after obtaining the consent of the European Parliament” (…) “he Treaties shall cease to apply to the State in question from the date of entry into force of the withdrawal agreement or, failing that, two years after the notification referred to in paragraph 2, unless the European Council, in agreement with the Member State concerned, unanimously decides to extend this period” (Lisbon-Treaty.org).

Without with that in mind, with the crisis in the Labour Party and the Opposition that haven’t been in while, also the Conservative Party where the ‘Brexit regime’ or Brexit Government would be put in place. As they will recharge for a new government who will work on the Brexit and clear the negotiations with the EU, while Jean-Claude Juncker wanted it happen swiftly and also other wanted to make sure it happens quickly, while certain pundits think that the EU Commission and EU Parliament would give them the Greece Treatment where the punishment and economic transgression could be harsh for the British Islands and United Kingdom, as the EU want to set an example, to make sure the other countries does not leave Union.

EU Economicst Greece

With that in mind the Londoners have also reacted to, as the financial center of United Kingdom and the capital, who overwhelmingly voted to remain, are strictly economically connected with EU and Brussels, as they have the same feeling as the Scottish and even Northern Island, that are trading and exporting to the EU. Just as the Stock Exchange also still reeling: “The FTSE 100 index UKX, -1.24%  dropped 0.6% to 6,105.76, building on 3.2% slide from Friday.” (Sjolin, Sara, 27.06.2016 ‘FTSE 100 slides as Brexit continues to spook traders’ – Market Watch).

Certainly the numbers are going up and down, over time they will be clearly when there is leadership certainty on the islands, when the Government, the Shadow Cabinet and the Scottish and Northern Ireland have made their mind up. This together with the possibility of two year long negotiations with the Union to clear the regulations, the status of affairs and the trade-agreement with the European Continent.

While the EU programs in Wales are in jeopardy after the Brexit vote, the nation in the UK who together with England voted majority for the ‘Leave. They have put themselves into a pickle, even if the MPs from Wales haven’t gone out as the Scottish or Northern Ireland to reassess the situation. The EU Programs in question is the Erasmus Program, Horizon 2020, CAP to Farmers and Structural Funds under 2014-2020, all of these programs are giving substantial funds to Welsh public and Welsh government institutions. This is only in Wales; we can be assured that there are programs supported through the EU in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland as well. That no coffers in the British Virgin Island (BVI) can save in a heartbeat.

xenophobia Brexit

That both campaigns seemed to be wrong in the attitude, xenophobia or the scaremongering of defaulting economic prospects as they would leave the Union. That is now proof that there are many questions and many things to clear, as the table are now turning, the cards are played and the people have to react to the result of the vote. Brexit have created a leadership questioning both in government and opposition, as the Labour Party are in shambles as the negative result is used to topple Jeremy Corbyn, while the Conservative Party trying to find their way as the result hit the face of Cameron with an iron fist. The reality is that the mourning of the ‘Remain’ side, just have to stop and the ‘Leave’ side have to be humble, as they have address the new reality and fix the stalemate between the EU and United Kingdom.

Because this will be a saga continuing for two years or longer depending on when they hit the button and start the transition, actually apply for the Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Those who thinks this is just nationalism and xenophobia, this is so much more as the ones who have waited for the crippling EU to run, will see their status unsecured. While the ability to agree on the free-trade and the common-market opportunity and still being on the outside of the Union.

Boris Johnson Feb 2016

The UK, will be turmoil as the strength of the leadership and the fallouts will come forward, the plans to topple the leadership positions and also reaffirming old squabbles just with fresh blood as the Scottish, Northern-Ireland and London even questioning their place as an outsider to Brussels, while the England and Wales voted gladly for the Union. The Remain voters have to live side by side the ones who votes for Leave. The question is how the psychology of the economic market and the acts of European Union Commission. If they will make an example of them or be gentlemen from Central Europe, as Jean-Claude Juncker have not acted gentleman or talked in a fashion of aggression, as he was himself slapped in the face; the Brexit is a bullet to the European Union that he leads, the Luxembourgian who’s pride have to fall and give way to the will of the British people. If the European Union is a peace project and not just a powerful bureaucracy than they have to be gentle and act accordingly, but if they want to fragment Europe more and play hardball with UK Gov. than they certainly will give more way to the Right-Wing nationalistic forces in Europe, instead of finding ways to bring unity of the continent. European Union with this in mind with the current rising of the nationalistic movements and xenophobic fear for the immigrants and the current economic austerity that are hitting the continent and can be either a gift or curse.

So with all of this in mind, the European Union, the Government of United Kingdom and the British MPs and British bureaucracy have to take steps in negotiations and agreements with the EU, while becoming an outsider to the Brussels, the EU should show character if they are really an organization for European peace and unity, not just their own agenda to control the Continent or be a statutory organization that the people might respect. There are reasons others then border-control, immigrations and economy for why the English and Welsh in majority voted to ‘Leave’, for the simple reason of getting the decisions made from Whitehall instead of Brussels. That is something the EU have to think about because the same feeling might be in Madrid, Lisbon, Rome or anywhere else where the nationalistic and right-wing politicians will use the poor display of EU towards the Brexit, will fuel the fire for yet another separation. Peace.

EU grants €200 millon budget support to Rwanda agriculture (23.06.2016)

Rwanda EU PR 23.06.2016

Press Statement: Malawi – Result of the 2016 Food Security Assessment (10.06.2016)

Malawi June 2016 P1Malawi June 2016 P2

UN report on Eritrean Gov. oppressive behavior towards its Citizens and its Systematic Evidence of Human Rights Violations!

IsaiasAfwerki

“Eritrea will wait three or four decades, maybe more, before it holds elections. Who knows?”President Isaias Afwerki

As you read the quotes from the UN Human Rights Council on Eritrea, the amount of paperwork and people involved in the report, there we’re alone 44,000 submissions and also interviews from the Eritrean diaspora in Europe and United States. Just as the report says: “the Commission received 44,267 submissions from 39 countries. Of these, 30,517 arrived by mail and 13,750 by email. The submissions were mostly in Tigrinya and English but a sizeable number were in Arabic” (UN HRC, P: 11, 2016). So there are lots of material and an edge to the evidence in the report, it is not hearsay when those amounts of people are describing certain situations and the state of affairs in a country. I will take out what I see as most interesting findings in this report. As I am sure I am not alone in discussing the findings.

Why the information came from the Diaspora and not inside Eritrea:

“The Commission recalls that it has repeatedly sought permission from the Government of Eritrea to visit the country. The Government of Eritrea has failed to respond despite calls by the Human Rights Council to cooperate with the Commission of Inquiry. The Commission was nonetheless able to interview Eritreans in 13 countries with significant Eritrean populations” (UN HRC, P: 13, 2016).

Financial transparency:

Eritrea is one of the least developed countries in the world, and most of the country’s economic enterprises are state controlled” (…)”As Eritrea does not publish a budget, it remains to be seen whether this substantial new income will be used to enhance implementation of social, economic and cultural rights in the country” (UN HRC, P: 17, 2016). “With respect to sources of Government income, the source added “that is a mystery. Money is deposited at the National Bank. The Ministry of Finance does not know where the money comes from. Only the President knows.” (UN HRC, P: 37, 2016). “For example, witnesses told the Commission that a bank account with 40 million USD in mining revenue had been opened in Qatar in the name of the Director of the PFDJ Economic Affairs department” (…)”Other information suggests that there may be private accounts belonging to the president or members of his inner circle in the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Cyprus, and /or China” (UN HRC, P: 38, 2016).

Eritrea 25yrs

Freedom of Speech and the independence of the Media:

On Freedom of Speech and Media: “…since the media is Government-owned, you clearly are not supposed to cover anti-government issues. If interviewees say something anti-governmental, you listen but do not use it in your broadcast. A lot of items you didn’t broadcast. At first the bosses told me not to use such material, and then there’s self-censorship.” (UN HCR, P: 34, 2016). “Restrictions on freedom of speech are not limited to just those physically in Eritrea. A witness in Ethiopia told the Commission that after he had participated in a demonstration in Addis Ababa in late June 2015 in support of the Commission’s first report, his mother was arrested in Eritrea” (UN HRC, P: 35, 2016).

On Religious Freedom:

Government control of authorised religious groups also persists. The Government of Eritrea continues to detain under house arrest Orthodox Patriarch Abune Antonio, who was arrested over ten years ago for calling for the release of political prisoners and failing to excommunicate church members opposed to the Government” (UN HCR, P: 30, 2016).

On future Elections:

President Isaias Afwerki has regularly expressed his disdain for what he refers to as “western-style” democracy. In a 2008 interview with Al Jazeera, for example, the President stated that “Eritrea will wait three or four decades, maybe more, before it holds elections. Who knows?” The Eritrean delegation to the 2014 Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review stated that national elections would not be held until “the threats to national security and sovereignty had been eliminated” (UN HRC, P: 19, 2016).

asmara

Rule of Law:

“Although low level community courts exist, most Eritreans interviewed immediately dismissed any suggestion that they could file a complaint for a rights violation. There was a palpable resignation among people towards the endemic injustices in Eritrea, as well as a fear of re-victimisation. In the absence of a constitution, an independent judiciary, a national assembly, and other democratic institutions, the Commission has found no progress in establishing the rule of law” (UN HCR, P: 20, 2016). The Cost of freedom from detention: “Witnesses cited costs of avoiding imprisonment ranging from 50,000 Nakfa to 2,000, 000 Nakfa, as well as confiscation of property, including homes, suggesting that the assessment of “fines” may depend on the wealth of the family” (UN HRC; P: 40, 2016).

Military Service:

“On the issue of duration of military/national service, a witness who was conscripted in 2003 and remained in national service until he fled Eritrea in 2015 stated that: “…the national service is still for an indefinite period; in fact when I joined the national service I was never informed as to when I was going to be released from service. The Government has not announced that it will reduce the service period to 18 months; it is still indefinite and we are all very aware of this.” (UN HRC, P: 22, 2016). “According to an expert on Eritrea, those discharged from national service remain in the People’s Army or militia or “reserve army” after their discharge, and must be available at any time the Government chooses to call them. Thus, most cannot qualify for Eritrean exit visas, and those who opt to leave without such a visa remain liable for the crime of “desertion.” (UN HRC, P: 22, 2016).

Military Equipment Eritrea

Using Military Service as a Working force for the state:

“According to one witness, “the Generals receive salaries, but also receive income from agriculture [and other commodities] that is not accounted for. Production costs are low because they use free conscript labour. This income is not disclosed to the Ministry of Defence. The President knows about this but does not interfere” (UN HRC, P: 41, 2016).

““Air Force planes are outdated and there is no proper maintenance. So, the Air Force has shifted to plantation activities. For example, there was a piece of land near the airport… [The Chief of the Air Force] took that land for plantations. [He] would bring almost three quarters of Air Force conscripts to work on the plantations, and the equipment used on the plantation comes from the Air Force and Ministry of Agriculture. It was very hot on the plantations. [Conscripts] were not paid any money for this work. They were told it is part of our duties. If they refused to work there, they would be sent to the [nearby detention facility].” (UN HRC, P: 23, 2016).

Eritrea Army

Generals are handpicking woman who are on subscription to be their “Wife’s” and solitary responsibility to please the General: “One day, …a female soldier…from my unit was…assigned to General […] to prepare food and do cleaning; it was also made clear to her that she [was] supposed to please [the General] in bed whenever he wanted. […] She provided this service to [the General] for many years. [Three years after it started], she got pregnant [from] him and gave birth to a baby girl… She told me that she did not do this voluntarily but [because] she was afraid. She said she was not allowed to leave the house and sometimes she was locked up.” (UN HRC, P: 58, 2016). A former female trainee in Sawa, who described the situation of these young women stated that “[t]hey are their personal slave.” Another female military trainee reported a typical day to her friend: “Dreadful life starts in the morning: I prepare his breakfast, wash his clothes, prepare lunch, prepare coffee ceremony, prepare dinner, and then prepare to be ‘his wife’. I have had this life for the last six years.” And more from the Sawa: “We watched sexual abuses. Systematically, they forced girls to obey their instructions; to have a relationship with them. If she doesn’t obey, they find any kind of military punishment. It is commonly the [d]ivision leaders, the highest ranks who would do that. All people would go back to their [d]ivision at the end of the day. The leaders select girls personally. After six months, he would change her, take a newly arrived. The 11th grade students…have to pass their last year’s exam in Sawa. They take them. Once a woman is assigned to a General, they stay there [to] do office work, chores, etc. ‘there is no rule, no law.’ Sometimes when the girls see the car of the General approaching they hide. What if they become pregnant? […] When it happens, they make abortion traditionally. The girl doesn’t even want to let the colonel know. One of my best friends was a ‘personnel’ of the Colonel. He told me that the nick name used to get a girl is ‘goat’. Sometimes when newcomers arrive they asked assistants to bring new ones.” (UN HRC, P: 56-57).

Another said that “in 2014, there was military training. I was sick and even had papers certifying that I was sick. But they didn’t believe me and I was [detained] for six months without due process.” (UN HRC, P: 23, 2016).

What the Government says about the Military Service and their work:

“Indeed, Presidential Advisor Yemane Gebreab himself has stated that: “the challenge for us is to be able to find jobs, skills, training, and business opportunities for [conscripts] when they are released,”100 suggesting that prolonged military/national service is not, or is no longer, motivated primarily by national security concerns” (UN HRC, P: 24, 2016).

eritrean_troops_control_ministry

Shoot-To-Kill Policy:

The Commission received credible evidence that a shoot-to-kill policy was issued and that it has not been rescinded. The writers denying the existence of a shoot-to-kill policy did not explain the basis on which they concluded that such a policy does not exist. Very few, for example, said that they had passed through a border without interference or without the assistance of smugglers. The Commission is aware that the policy has been implemented in a less rigorous manner in recent years” (UN HRC, P: 15, 2016). “An example of extrajudicial killing reportedly took place on 3 April 2016, as military/national service conscripts were being transported through the city centre of Asmara. When several conscripts tried to jump from the trucks, soldiers reportedly fired into the crowd, killing and injuring a considerable but unconfirmed number of conscripts and bystanders” (UN HRC, P: 32, 2016). A witness said this: ““In September 2015, the battalion commander told me if anyone attempts to cross the border to Ethiopia just shoot at them. He told us to shoot people down if we see them crossing. I couldn’t ask about this order because I would have been killed or jailed; I had to implement it. If you don’t implement it you won’t be seen again. I know 3 soldiers who spent 20 years in service. They told me I had to implement the order.” (UN HRC, P: 33, 2016).

This happen to some of fleeing Eritreans:

On May 22 2016, Sudan collectively expelled 313 Eritreans back to Eritrea. Another 129 were similarly sent back from Sudan several days earlier. According to UNHCR, the prior to the forcible returns, the Eritreans had been tried and convicted in Sudanese courts of “illegal entry” into Sudan. According to corroborated reports by unrelated witnesses, in the days prior to the expulsions, Eritrean authorities visited Eritreans in a Sudanese prison to register the identities of those to be returned. The witnesses also reported that upon arrival in Eritrea, the returnees were arrested and detained. They further indicated that those who were in the national service, prior to leaving the country, were detained at Adi Abeito prison on the outskirts of Asmara, and that those who had not yet undergone military training are currently detained elsewhere, including in Tessenei and Hashferay, apparently awaiting transfer to military training centres” (UN HRC, P: 25, 2016).

asmara

Afterthought:

There is so much evidence that come into a 94 page UN report; this one shows so much of it, I have focused on the witness reports and their testimonies, as this is Eritrean citizens who have fled the regime in haste to Europe or America. There even some men and woman who are creating issues for their families left behind.

The Eritrean state is all controlled around the President Isaias Afwerki, as he knows all about the finances, state media and the military. The Military or the Army is both “free working force” as the extensive breaches human rights and committed to keep away the state from lawful activities, as the Generals and Army Officials are themselves skimming of the system and use woman and men, as they please. This creates unlawfulness in the militarized society of Eritrea. The witness reports are a sad sight and the totalitarian control from the President Afwerki shows the extent to how they control their citizens and uses their manpower to earn money for the Government, but not support or being there for their citizens.

And if they try to flee or desert from the military or the country, the other army command can shoot-to-kill fellow citizens, as they do not follow orders from above, as they are in the hands of the government and the army. This together with the torture of fellow citizens; they are detained without trial and kept in jail to infinite, as there are no constitution or rule of law in the nation.

150423183001-pkg-elbagir-djibouti-eritrean-refugees-00001711-exlarge-169

The damning evidence is clear, the Eritrean government cannot just silence this, as there are over 400,000 who has fled from the country, and 44,000 have written in to the United Nation Human Rights Council, with their experience and witness reports shows the level of system behind these actions, it is not just one rare coincidence that certain people are detained, tortured or becoming slaves for the Generals of the Military. That even the Air-Force is so depleted that the men who are assigned work on labor unites instead of becoming air-men for the Eritrean Air-Force.

That is enough for now. It is not grand state of affairs, the level of impunity and lawlessness and the attitude of how the Eritrean State are treating their fellow citizens and keeping their records only in the hand of the President Afwerki and nobody else. Peace.

Reference:

UN Human Rights Council – ‘Detailed findings of the commission of inquiry on human rights in Eritrea’ (08.06.2016) – A/HRC/32/CRP.1

Van Rees – Tea Market Report 30 May – 3 June, 2016

Tea Market 30-3.6. 2016 P1Tea Market 30-3.6. 2016 P2

UNHCR and FAO help vulnerable refugees and South Sudanese families strengthen their food security (02.06.2016)

05-14-fao-south-sudan

ROME, Italy, June 2, 2016The UN Refugee Agency and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations have distributed seeds and agricultural tools to 200,000 refugees and their host communities across South Sudan to help them become more self-sufficient in a country facing a serious food crisis.

Assessments have shown that the food and nutrition security situation is worrying in many parts of the country, including in Upper Nile – a region hosting four refugee camps and South Sudan’s largest refugee population of 134,000 Sudanese refugees. A nutrition survey, conducted in late 2015, found that Upper Nile’s Maban refugee camps registered higher levels of malnutrition compared to 2014. This was particularly the case in Doro camp, where the rates of Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) and Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) were respectively 15.5 percent and 2.6 percent – above UNHCR standards of 10 percent and 2 percent.

“To quickly respond to high malnutrition rates we are distributing nutritious food for children under five years and all pregnant and breast feeding mothers. We are pleased to announce that these interventions are working well, but we are also looking beyond quick-fix solutions that help refugees become more self-reliant and less dependent on humanitarian assistance in the long run. This is the essence of the UNHCR-FAO partnership,” says Ahmed Warsame, UNHCR Representative.

This year, the two UN agencies have jointly contributed 186 tons of crop seeds, assorted vegetable seeds, hand tools and fishing kits for refugees and local communities in Unity, Upper Nile, Jonglei, Central Equatoria and Western Equatoria. This donation will enable communities to start planting their cereals and replenish their stocks, in so decreasing food shortages.

“People here lack the resources to buy the things they need to start planting and need support to be able to produce their own food. These distributions have been very timely since the planting season has just started,” says Serge Tissot, FAO Representative. “It is vital to strengthen the livelihoods of vulnerable communities in the long-term so that they can become more resilient, absorbing shocks and increasing their access to food through their own means.”

While many have received assistance through direct distributions in the past, in 2016 refugees in Central Equatoria were invited to attend seed fairs for the first time. With this FAO, in partnership with UNHCR, strives to help transform agriculture in South Sudan by facilitating the sale of high quality local seeds instead of imported seeds. At the fair, vulnerable farmers were issued with vouchers to be exchanged with local traders for seeds which directly injected cash into the local economy.

“Without seed distributions we cannot survive. Not all of us are able to maintain seeds for next year, some people do, but because of a lack of food, sometimes we are forced to eat the seeds maintained for planting,” Michelle, Sudanese refugee from Blue Nile State. “We hope for peace so that we can return home, where we can be free,” she added.

FAO and UNHCR are committed towards increasing refugees’ access to livelihood opportunities and reducing dependency on humanitarian aid. Of late, a joint livelihood strategy for South Sudan was launched looking to address this issue with a clearly defined action plan. The strategy targets both refugees (70 percent) and local communities (30 percent) in refugee-hosting areas across the country.

Museveni State of the Nation Address 2016: Guns and Glamour, but nothing worth listening too…

museveni and his gun

“I’ve been dealing with guns a long time, I know the cost of an AK47 in China and Yugoslavia. You can’t cheat me of that” – Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

I should listen and care about what President Museveni says in the State of the Nation Address today, well, I don’t he will proclaim to be the most genuine democrat, the grand master who have made such progress, and on the way to middle Income Country. He will proclaim the soon added revenue of Petroleum Money. That he and his cronies are fighting corruption, while buying suits to vote in Hon. Oulanyah for Deputy Speaker in Parliament.

He will say that Uganda is the epitome democracy, where we all can learn from and where Human Rights are respected. When he speaks of democracy is that his words are law and his action becomes regulation of state. That has secured the nation and boundaries. The level of growth, the growing levels of cash crops like Coffee, Tea and others are steady growing.

State of Nation 2016 Uganda

“IN PROTEST: Opposition MPs Allan Ssewanyana (Makindye West) & Mubarak Munyagwa (Kawempe South) walk out of the hall after being ordered by the speaker to put down their placards. The placards had words “Release Besigye”” (Daily Monitor, 31.05.2016).

As he continues he will speculate and say that it’s the citizens or politician that is the blame for the corrupt behavior, not him or his allies. Because the resistance will clear that out in the Army, civil servants or politicians; Well, he have run the nation for 30 years, but still have issues with the same as when he came in. Now the name has changed, it isn’t Yugoslavia anymore. President Museveni either buys from Serbia, Montenegro or Croatia for instance, but that European Politics isn’t important. The place only matter as long as he gets his weapons to a fair price. And can use them against opposition or made-up opponent in the land. Maybe even for some of African Union Peacekeeping missions.

Not forget every-time he speaks he have to come with close advice for small acre farmers who needs to handpick certain vegetables to become wealthy, as the Operation Wealth Creation and other schemes he have made and hired Gen. Salim Selah to run is the best option for the Nation.

Ugandan state is good, as long as they don’t question his government. As long as they are nodding to his words of wisdom; because his vision and his changes is the healthy ones, not what the other people they are talking nonsense, they are not resistance fighters! You need Resistance Fighters and need Bush War ego to run Uganda and President Museveni have that.

Just as he was saying this today:

“Some commercial banks and money lenders use unethical methods to steal Ugandans, we will deal with them” (…)”There is the problem of Government not paying arrears of private companies that supplied to Government” (…)”Companies that supplied to the Government of South Sudan but were not paid, I’ve already directed government to help them” – Yoweri Kagtuta Museveni

Because it is not the Ugandan Government who is the problem and how they are handling their procurement or the use of money, it is the banks that are the problem in Uganda. If not there are examples of South Sudan Government that have not made amendments with their imports from Uganda. So the President Museveni and his regime have to clear the slate for their misgivings, because he doesn’t make anything wrong, it is everybody else. He is never at fault and that is consistant with every move he have ever done. It was Idi Amin who was the problem, it was Obote who was the Issue. Now it is the Western Powers and Aid that is the issue, while he doesn’t complain with new-money and aid from South Korea or others as long as they doesn’t put strings on the money!

I will not release the whole State of Nation this year, because, why bother? He is a blatant totalitarian ruler, who uses his police state to apprehend opposition and detain his arch-enemy in Luzira while he proclaims democracy. A man who does that does not deserve to get his voice and his whole speech delivered online. That is waste of energy, right?

So he would speak of what I talked about and I found some wonderful quotes that shows the arrogance and the rigid mind of Museveni of 2016. Who has all the answers and blames others when the system doesn’t work, even if he has been behind the project since 1986. That is the irony and sadness of the matter. Peace.

Press Statement: Coalition of activists chart Bidco abuses on new platform No2Bidco.org (31.05.2016)

IFADPalm P1

Bidco Truth Coalition unites groups to demand accountability for Bidco

KAMPALA, Uganda, May 31, 2016 –  The Bidco Truth Coalition, an online activist organisation, has launched No2Bidco.org, a platform dedicated to charting the human rights and environmental violations of Bidco Africa, the Kenya-based edible oil producer headed by CEO Vimal Shah.

No2Bidco.org includes a catalogue of Bidco’s violations, including illegal labour practices in Kenya, deforestation in Uganda and tax evasion across East Africa. The platform also provides visitors with the ability to add their voices to a global campaign of petitions and letter-writing to reveal Bidco’s business practices.

No2Bidco.org’s central archive of independent reports about Bidco provides activists, businesses, governments and NGOs unfiltered access to information free from Bidco’s influence on the media.

No2Bidco.org includes a catalogue of Bidco’s violations, including illegal labour practices in Kenya, deforestation in Uganda and tax evasion across East Africa

The platform’s anchor organisation is the National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE), the respected Uganda-based Friends of the Earth affiliate. Other organisations include the Bugala Farmers Association, a Ugandan group of more than 100 farmers who lost their land to Bidco; Citizens for Tax Compliance, a Kenya-based group that advocates corporate tax compliance; the Association of Non-aligned Bidco Workers.

Founded in 1997, NAPE has been instrumental in giving a voice to farmers displaced by Bidco’s deforestation on Uganda’s pristine Ssese Islands. NAPE and its dedicated staff have a history of exposing corporations and governments that collude to earn vast sums of money at the expense of poor individuals.

The Bugala Farmers Association, which has successfully challenged Bidco in court for more than a year over its members’ loss of land, recently submitted a petition to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for partnering with Bidco. As a result, UNDP has launched an investigation into its partnership with Bidco.

The Association of Non-aligned Bidco Labourers is a group in Kenya and Uganda that gives informal representation to aggrieved casual workers at Bidco’s factories. Most workers supported have been terminated illegally, experienced abuse by Bidco management or been injured at the workplace.

The Bidco Truth Coalition invites other like-minded organisations to join the No2Bidco.org platform to demand change at Bidco and accountability for those who support the company.

UNDP to Investigate Rights Violations at BIDCO (Youtube-Clip)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0ifty2XUTw

The United Nations development program has deployed a team of experts to Kalangala district to investigate allegations of human rights violation by BIDCO Palm Oil Company. This follows the farmers’ petition to UNDP in November 2015 upon learning that the oil firm had been requisitioning for money from the UNDP for expositions. Now the investigative team says money will not be advanced till further notice” (NBS TV Uganda, 2016)