L’information en Afrique mais également l’information de la semaine en Afrique du Sud, en Centrafrique, en Guinée Conakry, en Guinée Équatoriale, au Mali et en Namibie.

Afrique

- Jean-Louis Borloo à la « Global conference » de Deauville, a exposé le plan de financement durable des pays pauvres en marge du Sommet mondial de Copenhague. Ce financement passerait par une taxation de 0,01 % des transactions financières, ce qui représenterait 20 milliards d’euros par an. Salué par les ministres présents à Deauville, qui l’ont remercié et précisé que le continent n’émettait que 2% de gaz à effet de serre.

- L’Afrique va franchir en 2009 le cap du milliard d’habitants atteint par le sida. Ce chiffre représente une personne sept. Le continent possède la plus forte fécondité au monde mais la durée de vie moyenne d’un Africain ne dépasse pas les 53 ans.

- L’assemblée générale de la FAO (Food and agriculture organization) qui s’est déroulée dimanche 29 novembre à Rome, a élu le français Luc Guyau au poste de président. C’est la première fois qu’un agriculteur/paysan/syndicaliste est élu à un poste stratégique au sein de l’ONU, de plus il a été nommé par les 190 membres de la FAO. Quant au Sénégalais Jacques Diouf, il reste le directeur général.

Afrique du Sud

- Selon les dernières statistiques économique diffusée par le gouvernement sud-africain, le PIB de celui-ci est en hausse de 0,5%. Après deux trimestres de contractions, le premier à -7,4% et le second à -2,8%, l’économie du pays se relève petit à petit. L’industrie manufacturière, les services des administrations publiques, l’industrie de la construction et les services personnels sont les principaux responsables de cette hausse.

- Selon Gail Eddy, chercheur à l’Institut des relations entre les races, le nombre d’orphelin du sida est en constante progression, « On estime que d’ici 2015 environ 5,7 millions d’enfants en Afrique du Sud (soit 32% d’entre eux) auront perdu un ou leurs deux parents à cause du sida ». les chercheurs pointent du doigt la politique de Thabo Mbeki (1999-2008) et sa ministre de la santé Manto Tshabalala-Msimang. Ces derniers n’avaient pas jugé bon de mettre en place un programme de lutte contre le sida. Ces décisions ont, selon Gail Johnson, fondateur du foyer d’accueil pour mères séropositives et leurs enfants à Johannesburg, appelé Nkosi’s Haven, fait perdre la vie à plus de 365.000 personnes.

Centrafrique

- Selon les sources proche de l’état major de l’armée de l’AFP, les forces armées centrafricaines (Faca) ont repris le contrôle de la ville de Ndélé, vendredi 27 novembre dans la soirée. La veille, la rébellion de la Convention des patriotes pour la justice et la paix (CPJP) avait pris la ville faisant quelque mort. La CPJP dirigée par Charles Massi, plusieurs fois ministre sous le président Ange-Félix Patassé (1993-2003) et l’actuel président François Bozizé, n’a pas prit en compte le processus de paix dans le pays.

Guinée-Conakry

- La junte au pouvoir a réaffirmé jeudi 26 nombre que le capitaine Moussa Dadis Camara, resterait président lors de la transition et qu’il serait candidat à la prochaine élection présidentielle, en dépit des pressions internationales selon le site internet aufaitmaroc.com. Le colonel Moussa Kéïta, ministre-secrétaire permanent du Conseil national pour la démocratie et le développement (CNDD, junte) a d’ailleurs déclaré, à Ouagadougou que la candidature du chef de la junte « (…) ne fait pas de doute malgré (le fait) qu’il ne se soit pas encore prononcé. Mais s’il se prononçait, sa candidature devrait forcément être acceptée parce qu’il est citoyen comme tout autre mais surtout un citoyen qui a rendu service à sa Nation ».

Guinée- Équatoriale

- Carmelo Mba Bacale, candidat de l’Action populaire de Guinée équatoriale (APGE) a indiqué jeudi 26 novembre qu’il allait « boycotter » le scrutin de l’élection présidentielle du dimanche 29 novembre. Ce dernier a évoqué à l’AFP le manque de transparence du processus électoral. Il a précisé à l’agence de presse que le Parti démocratique de Guinée équatoriale (PDGE, au pouvoir) « a fait ses plans pour remporter de force l’élection en plaçant notamment des membres du PDGE comme présidents des bureaux de vote tandis qu’un membre influent du parti est le président de la Commission électorale ». Human Rights Watch (HRW) a émis mercredi 265 novembre des doutes vis à vis de cette l’élection présidentielle, en estimant que « l’absence d’un organe indépendant et impartial pour surveiller le processus électoral fait douter d’un vote libre et juste ».

Mali

- Prises d’otage, trafic de drogue et armes ont maintenant monnaie courante dans le nord du pays. A tel point que la plupart des ONG ont quitté la région. Selon les rumeurs toutes ces exactions sont l’oeuvre d’Al Qaida au Maghreb Islamique. L’enlèvement, il y a quelques jours de Pierre Camatte a été le signal d’alarme, le ministère des Affaires étrangères et Européennes a demandé expressément aux ressortissants française de quitter les régions de Kidal, de Gao et de Tombouctou.

Il en est de même pour le Niger, selon le communiqué, cette situation n’est pas seulement imputable au Mali mais au « Sahel dans son ensemble est une zone dangereuse ». C’est une première, en temps normal, les précédentes prises d’otages concernées des Allemands, des Britanniques, des Suisses, des Canadiens, des Qataris au Niger et en Algérie. Le Mali n’était alors qu’un territoire de négociation.

Namibie

- A la suite des élections présidentielles et législatives qui se sont déroulées le 27 novembre, l’opposition namibienne a dénoncé dimanche 29 novembre, jour des résultats définitifs, des irrégularités. Le président Hifikepunye Pohamba, qui brigue un quatrième mandat de cinq ans, est donné favori pour la présidentielle. Son parti, la Swapo, devrait également remporter les législatives. Le parti d’opposition, le Rassemblement pour la démocratie et le progrès (RDP), a précisé que l’encre qui sert à identifier les électeurs était lavable, permettant des votes multiples. Trois autres partis, l’Alliance démocratique Turnhalle, le Parti républicain de Namibie et l’Union nationale de l’Afrique du sud-ouest (Swanu) ont aussi exprimé leurs inquiétudes.

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Violent incidents are focusing international attention on criminality in the Sahel, continuing a trend that has gone on since at least 2007.

Yesterday gunmen stopped an aid convoy in Mauritania and kidnapped three Spanish nationals.

The three Spanish nationals, “two men and a woman, were travelling in a car, the last vehicle of a convoy that was heading from Nouadhibou to Nouakchott” when they were attacked on Sunday afternoon, a Spanish diplomat said.

The convoy had earlier delivered aid to Nouadhibou and was transporting donations that they intended to drop off in various towns along the route, the diplomat added.

A Mauritanian security source confirmed the kidnapping, adding the kidnappers fired several shots to force the vehicle to stop and then took the Spaniards away in a 4×4 vehicle.

A spokesman for the Spanish humanitarian group Barcelona-Accio Solidaria confirmed the three were members of their association and named them as Albert Vilalta, Alicia Gamez and Roque Pascual.

“The found all the supplies only the people were gone,” said the spokesman, adding “we don’t know anything more, if they were bandits or had any political motives.”

A Spanish humanitarian worker based in Mauritania, Montse Bosch, was able to speak by telephone with some of the other members of the aid convoy following the kidnapping.

“A group of armed men stopped and then took them, leaving their vehicle in place and without touching any of the supplies, luggage or money contained in the car,” she said.

Bosch said Barcelona-Accio Solidaria is part of the Caravana Solidaria, or Solidarity Caravan, which distributes aid in Mauritania and other African countries in the region.

The attack took place near the town of Chelkhett Legtouta, 170 kilometres (106 miles) north of Nouakchott, according to the Mauritanian security source.

Reuters adds some political context, saying the incident “will heighten security fears in the West African desert republic where al Qaeda-linked gunmen operate.”

The Mauritanian Sahara

Killings in Trarza on Saturday appeared unrelated to the kidnapping of the Spaniards, but observers are wondering about connections between the incident in Mauritania and the seizure of a French national in Menaka, Mali last Thursday. Over the weekend, a Malian official confirmed that AQIM is holding the victim, Pierre Camatte, after using “intermediaries” to abduct and transfer him.

These incidents will have an immediate and negative effect on aid delivery in Mauritania, Mali, and Niger. France has issued warnings to French citizens resident in Mali, asking them to head back to Bamako. Commenter Wyndham Carter writes, “Our son has just had his Peace Corps service in Niger terminated because of these concerns about AQIM” and that “with the withdrawal of Peace Corps, these people are really left with no economic development support to improve their lives.” If foreign governments and aid agencies perceive a pattern of violence and terrorism in the Sahel, the region could see more military attention – and less humanitarian activity on the ground.

I’ve said this before, but essential for an understanding of what’s going on is the question of AQIM’s coherence. On the one hand, we could argue that AQIM are cold-bloodedly masterminding terrorist attacks from the Atlantic Ocean to the heart of the Malian Sahara. On the other hand, we could argue that AQIM is a loose organization that exploits its relationships with freelance criminals to enhance its political reputation (and income). Or we could argue something in between. The point is, the policy response that Sahelian governments and outside actors adopt with regard to these kidnappings will depend heavily on the way they view AQIM. That’s why it’s essential to work carefully to understand the group and its assorted alliances.

Una ciutat marró anomenada ‘la ciutat dels 333 sants’ sorgeix de sobte en mig del desert, just al costat del colze del Níger. Les grans dunes moren a la vorera del riu que, al torn, s’esforça per sobreviure a la desertificació. “És el lloc on el dromedari es troba amb la canoa”.

Pascal Mater/Cosmos/Cover Revista Altaïr nº11

L’arquitectura característica de la regió, que utilitza el fang dels rius com a matèria bàsica per a aixecar els edificis, complica l’orientació entre els carrers (marrons) i obliga a reforçar periòdicament els edificis que es van erosionant. Tombuctú ha estat declarada Patrimoni de la Humanitat (1988) per la UNESCO i això obliga als seus ciutadans a conservar els edificis i el poc que queda de la seva etapa daurada. No obstant això, es un afer incomprès perquè suposa de mantenir unes runes que els turistes no valora’n.

La biblioteca de Tombuctú apunta discreta entre els carrers de la ciutat. En el seu interior trobem grans tresors, manuscrits sobre medicina, astrologia, comerç, biologia, agricultura, matemàtiques… que romanen emmagatzemats a l’interior de, potser, la primera biblioteca africana.

Però no només trobem documents vitals per a exemplificar el virtuós passat d’Àfrica a la Biblioteca sinó que també a biblioteques privades o a l’Institut d’Alts Estudis “Ahmed Baba” de Tombuctú. La abundància de documents és tan impressionant que els propis investigadors especialitzats es queden sorpresos.

Els manuscrits que han pogut ésser rescatats de l’agressió dels insectes i de la pols de la sorra són un regal per a la vista. La majoria estan escrits en paper d’Orient, però també n’hi ha redactats en pells de xot i escorça vegetal, i inclús en omòplats de camell. Occident ha vacil·lat en exhumar el seu interior en pro de la seva conservació.

Els habitants i institucions públiques no participa’n en les tasques de conservació i això es deu a un problema de caire polític. És llògic que es prioritzin altres necesitats de tipus més bàsic però al seu torn en complica la feina de restauración i conservación. Els Estats occidentals diuan protegir la cultura a la vegada que exhuman il·lícitament documentació de països desestructurats (com va pasar a Etiópia). No obstant això, si realmente hi hagués una voluntat solidària en pro de la memòria dels pobles hauria’n de traslladar-se i restaurar la cultura allà on fos. Es necesari rehabilitar definitivamente la història d’Àfrica. Es necessari fer-ho a Àfrica.

Suddenly it is end of year poll reflection time again, and the UK Sunday newspaper The Observer has today recommended The Beatles Stereo box set as the box set of the year, obviously. So, what I intend to do here is mashup my favourite ten tracks from the Remasters with my favourite ten tracks from 2009. As you DJs out there know it doesn’t quite work like that as you need to go with the Flow, so this isn’t quite my 10 /10 selection but I think it works as a mix; so lets start with a wake up call! GOOD Morning Beatles Fans…

Love the fade-out of the animals at the end, Johns’ request to Geoff Emerick was to engineer a fade out sequence of animals who would eat the previous one. And in a dog eat dog (!?) world Miike Snow have come out in 2009 with a personal view of what the credit crunch makes them feel like; an Animal right? Sequencers set to stun on this one…

So circling synthesizers courtesy of of a Swedish Rasputin mashup, what can the Beatles say to that? The weathers fine, with swirling Rain, backing tapes and absolutely awesome bass from Paul. If you are reading this Mr Paul McCartney let me say that the revelation of the Remasters for me is your bass; absolutely unbelievable!

Nice alternative Rain video from Filippo Paparelli’s “Art and the Beatles” series, worth a look, but we need another video from a world-straddling four-headed musical colussus with a manager as the fifth member of the band and who want to change the world; that’ll be U2 then. Inspired by Ringo’s Rain drumming? Don’t hold your breathe… Breathe!

So after that we need something else that is uplifting and driving and joyous, so take a deep breathe and you can sing along to the happy guitar riff song… (yeah I know this is the bass and laughter remix) For those of you who want the laughter outtake it is here

OK, you can Ignore the Ignorant after that, even with Crib kids from Leeds, well county town Wakefield actually, as a West Yorkshire boy We Share The Same Skies, even with that Lancastrian loser Johnny Marr, what does he not know about jangly guitar riffs? Here they are ripping up the Letterman Show, whilst David pops out to his private room presumably? Oh yes only we know and “I know”

So if you are” lonely” and “wanna die” HOLD IT! Here are “Yer Blues” from the White Album, remastered and played by that cheap covers band Dirty Mac. John Lennon on rhythm and Boss, Keith Richard on bass and Clapton let out on lead for the duelling guitars section and Mitch Mitchell on drums. Beatles, Cream, Stones and Hendrix sidemen, no wonder they didn’t catch on. I Like It though! Low-fi version here…

And now my own personal favourite track of the year.  My “honesty is concentric” too, as it was created on turntables of course, it is The Invisible now with a Monsters Waltz for all of us. Just brilliant, who are these guys? And a cracking live version here, but this is what I grew up with back in November 2009…

A riffingly thoughtful challenge from The Invisible there, so George what can you come up with to challenge that then? Old Brown Shoe! This was hidden behind The Ballad of The Bagism Duo but is a driving sock that sparkles afresh in the light of Remastering; foot down and drive it away, Georgie boy…

Less original than The Invisible, and with a title like that they must be American, but well Beatlesy on the chorus, Empire of the Sun (is that inspired by Spielberg or JG Ballard, or both) hit minor key majesty with We Are The People which of course is almost the American Constitution; it’s a kicker and you can sing along. Oh I see they are from Oz and their singles flopped! What do I know?

But a definite lead in to The Ballad of John and Yoko. The Beatles were arguably more popular in Australia than anywhere else, having the Top SIX singles there when they had the Top Five in the US, April 1964. And their top single was the All My Loving EP, extra-ordinary stuff, but here is the newspaper ballad instead; just John and Paul in a day. Remaster version here but here is a video cleverly cut to match the lyrics;

And a great 2009 track from Zero 7 which Swings along to the filmic theme of the year. Notice the sweet use of the “Hang” drum towards the end, kind of like an expensive steel drum, and also judiciously in evidence on the Portico Quartet Cittagazze.

You say you want a set of Remasters, well you know, we all want to remix the world. Shooby doo-wop, got to be the live version for me.

So after a Revolution I guess we might all speak Fula like Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni Ba as West African music continues to refresh itself, especially in Mali and Bamako. The sound reminds me of Salif Keita’s classic Soro album. Here they are on Jools Holland’s Later going even faster than the recorded version!

I love the story that The Beatles recorded Hey Bulldog whilst they were filming the video for Lady Madonna, too boring just to mime so lets’ make some new music guys. I think this was the last song they made all together with the four of them, but here is the out-take from the movie.

And here is a genius piece of  re-invention, Norah Jones Chasing Pirates. Sexier than Keira Knightley with a great voice and a thumping tune (?) Here is the official video, but still a great studio performance…

As well as coming from Somalia Pirates can be Losers too, even before heading off towards Davy Jones locker. This was written by Lennon in his Fat Elvis period and for some reason they released the great I Feel Fine as the single instead of this Dylan inspired sing-a-long, I’m A Loser; notice Lennon’s sartorial tribute to Dylan hanging off his neck…

Old bands never die, or fade away, they just beget generations of successors. Here is Bad Lieutenant, title by Abel Ferrara (remake by Scorsese soon), yet another bit of genius from the Fact know as Manchester, sounds like The Smiths meet Joy Division on a day off at the Lido; Sink or Swim time guys

And it really reminds me of something, something with a harmonica and that New Order lilt and “little girls” and trains and the invention of the video by Dick Lester and a fade-in groove, what else? I Should Have Known Better! With the Liverpool Shuffle, here they are, “The Beatles”…

More West African Malian music from the tribute album to Ali Farke Toure the late great Mayor of Niafunke, here is Samba Toure (relation) with Goye Kurya. Vieux Farka Toure is the great man’s son and his album Fondo is also worth a listen as well. Here’s looking at you Jimmy…

Magical Mystery Tour is The Beatles (one?) moment of madness when they tried to manage themselves ofter Brian Epstein died, watch out for the upcoming movie about him The Fifth Beatle. I missed MMT as my Dad was in the Army and we were living in Germany so I have always had a soft spot for it, and for the well ‘ard I Am The Walrus, which just seems to get Howlingly better over time for me, and how wonderful to hear a Remaster, despite the endless layers of tape hiss. Well that is what you got from the endless layers of invention involved. Electric Light Orchestra were invented in response to this track, and Oasis did a great version as an early calling card before they became mega. George Martin hated it but it changed the life of my “pornographic priestess” friend. Here is the original, now available in three flavours, original, remastered and Loved Up in Las Vegas…

And in The End, you have to love the trilogy of guitar solos, prefaced by Ringo’s one and only whole kit drum mashup. The Abbey Road song-cycle, pop opera at its most sublime. And by 1′31″ The Beatles have anticipated all of cock-rock, but with precision, inter-play and power. The sequence of three guitar solos lasts just 55 seconds; you can  guess who plays which and then find the answers here.

From the Guardian:

From west African coastal states such as Guinea-Bissau the drugs pass through Mauritania, Mali and Niger before ending up in Libya or Egypt. From there, law enforcement officials suspect the drugs are hidden in containers on board cargo ships, which are less likely to be searched than those from Latin America.

Intelligence agencies are studying claims that the airstrip in Mali is under the control of one of al-Qaida’s most powerful franchises, raising concerns that Africa’s burgeoning role in the cocaine trade is now funding terrorism.

It is not only al-Qaida that may be involved. A briefing prepared for the US Congress speculated that west Africa’s substantial Lebanese trading community – strong supporters of Hezbollah – have been buying the drug from the paramilitary group Farc, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

A Frenchman, Pierre Camatte, has been kidnapped in Mali by Al-Qaeda’s north African branch, a Malian security official said. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) is the group which killed a Briton in May, the first time the Islamists had executed a Western hostage. The kidnapping prompted France to urge its citizens to “immediately leave the area due to a new escalation in the terrorist threat.” French people in Kidal, Gao and Tombouctou regions should “head back without delay to the capital,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement. They also urged its citizens to avoid northern Niger, which borders Mali. Camatte was snatched from his hotel in Menaka in the Sahel region of northern Mali, more than 1,500 kms from the capital Bamako and about 100 kms from the border with Niger, the region is plagued by Tuareg rebels, Al-Qaeda militants and traffickers. Mr Camatte is a regular visitor to Mali, where he is cultivating a plant known for its anti-malarial properties, he also manages a hotel.

News sources yesterday reported that gunmen kidnapped a French expatriate in the Malian town of Menaka. No source could confirm the identity of the kidnappers, but suspicion has naturally fallen on AQIM.

In a statement, the French foreign ministry warned its citizens of the risk of kidnapping in the region and urged those travelling outside of the capital Bamako to be “extra vigilant”.

French embassy staff are working towards the release of Mr Kamatte.

The president of a town-twinning friendship organisation, he is reported to split his time between Mali and France.

In June British tourist Edwin Dyer was killed in Mali by militants. He had been kidnapped in Niger six months earlier close to the border with Mali.

Last month the US said it was preparing to give Mali’s army millions of dollars worth of military hardware to help them fight al-Qaeda’s North African branch.

Malian troops have joined in the search for the Frenchman.

For more on kidnappings and AQIM attacks in the Sahel:

• The Controversies around Robert Fowler
• AQIM Claims Responsibility for Christopher Leggett Murder
• AQIM Suspected in Shooting of Malian Army Officer
• AQIM Executes British Citizen

Those are gloomy titles, but as several outlets have pointed out in the case of the kidnapped Frenchman, almost all AQIM kidnap victims have been released alive.

I’ll post more information as I get it.

View Larger Map

Il était une fois une mouche gourmande qui plongea dans un verre de Castel bien froide.

Elle fut repêchée par une fourchette et déposée sur la nappe de la table.

Il était une fois un lézard téméraire qui grimpa sur la même table malgré la présence d’humains autour de celle-ci.

Il aperçut la mouche et se mit en tête d’en faire son repas.

Le lézard prit le temps d’observer sa proie, se fit tantôt discret, tantôt prêt à passer à l’attaque. Un bon 5 minutes avant de se jeter sur la mouche pour la dévorer, sans jamais se rendre compte que la pauvre bestiole, complètement saoule, ne faisait que tituber en faisant du sur place.

Deux spectateurs en ont profité pour faire une séance de photos avec le lézard en question.

I’ve spent the morning preparing images for a new exhibition at Griffith University’s School of Social Work and Human Services here in Brisbane. These are the images they selected to reflect the nature of the department’s involvement in things like mental health, Aboriginal affairs, community and relationship.

Let me know what you think of the images!

——–

Feel free to email Jo at admin@visitedplanet.com with your comments/thoughts/photo aspirations.  See and learn more at www.visitedplanet.com

Dogs and owner, New South Wales

Sunset on the Oodnadatta track, South Australia

Hands reaching out over the fire, India

Aboriginal child, Queensland

Canoe at Lawn Hill Gorge, Queensland

Mother and baby in Segou, Mali

Karnatika girls selling cloth on a Goan beach, India

Footprints in the dune near Birdsville, Queensland

US foreign policy in Africa IS military policy. The US State Department is starved for money. The Pentagon’s gargantuan budget is still largely unquestioned and treated politically as free money. Major portions of the State Department budget are allocated for military activity and support instead of traditional diplomacy. This picture illustrates the institutional problem US policy has created, and that it faces.

BAMAKO, Mali - U.S. Army Master Sergeant Robert Price stands with Malian soldiers he helped train as he is congratulated by Malian Minister of Defense Natie Pleah during a Counter Terrorism Train and Equip (CTTE) transfer of equipment ceremony in Bamako, October 20, 2009. Price, a logistics NCO with Special Operations Command Africa's Joint Special Operations Task Force-Trans Sahara, supervised maintenance and supply accountability training provided to Malian soldiers for tactical vehicles and communications equipment transferred to Malian units. Under the U.S. State Department's Trans-Sahara Counter Terrorism Program (TSCTP), U.S. Africa Command's Operation Enduring Freedom-Trans Sahara (OEF-TS) Counter Terrorism Train and Equip initiative provided 37 brand-new Toyota Land Cruiser pickup trucks and high-tech communications equipment that will allow Malian military units to move, transport and communicate across vast expanses of open desert in the northern region of the country. In addition, replacement parts, clothing, individual equipment and other supplies will be provided in the next few weeks as part of a U.S. government capacity-building equipment transfer totaling more than $5 million. The CTTE program is designed to develop stronger military-to-military relationships while underscoring U.S. support for partner nation sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. (Photo by Max R. Blumenfeld, JSOTF-TS PAO)

State Department money and contracts are paying for the equipment and the training described in this picture. The only significant budget the State Department has, particularly regarding African affairs is money that is spent on military supplies and activities, and therefore supplements the Pentagon’s already bloated military budget. In these circumstances the only possible product of US foreign policy is increased militarism.

Vijay Prashad recently published an article at Pambazuka that describes the ongoing effect of US policy on Mali:
Counterterrorism’s blindness: Mali and the US

Describing the military expenditure pictured above:

[T]he US government will provide US$5 million in trucks and military equipment to Mali. The aim of this donation is to help the Malian military fight the group known as al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). Last December, AQIM kidnapped two Canadian diplomats, who were released after four months. This is what they do these days: kidnap, extort, run guns and drugs. Islam is a veneer.
…
The association with al-Qaeda is a propaganda coup … AQIM is a small shop with a large sign, paying its franchise dues without increasing its own business. But since AQIM operates on the border between Algeria and Mali, and does some of its business in Mali, the US government decided to help fortify Mali’s military. US$5 million is not much money for the US, but for a country with total revenues of US1.5 billion, with a military budget of about US$70 million per year, this small disbursement is considerable. And it is set to increase – keep an eye on that.

…

Through the TSCTP, the US government wanted not only to fight the Islamists on the battlefield, but also take on their extremist ideology. To this end, USAID got some funds to help revise textbooks, pay for schools that teach a ‘tolerant ideology’ and run rural radio stations ‘by broadcasting moderate views and providing information on government services’. The money for these non-military functions was available in 2005 and 2007, but not in 2006. Because of this fluctuation, according to the General Accounting Office of the US government, ‘the mission suspended its peace-building program in northern Mali‘.

All attention was focused on the military aspect, although even here there is some uneasiness. The US Embassy in Bamako was quick to point out that the US$5 million for trucks and other military hardware comes not from the US military, but from the US State Department.

The fact that this money comes from the State Department is not a mitigating factor. It only makes the situation worse. The principal US institution that should be working for peace and democracy, that should be working to strengthen civilian institutions, becomes just another tool to subsidize military activity and war.

Although, the State Department is not the only one involved; from April to June this year, 300 US Special Forces ‘advisers’ trained the Malian military at three of its bases. These Sahelian initiatives are now run through AFRICOM, the US African Command, set up in October 2007. It operates a programme called ‘Joint Task Force Aztec Silence’. … The ’silence’ after Aztec is chilling.

The insurgents in northern Mali are various. The longest tension is between the Malian government and the ‘Tuareg rebels’.

Prashad goes on to describe the tensions between Mali’s government and the Tuareg over the years. And as Keenan points out, quoted below, in 2006 US Special Forces worked with the Tuareg and the Algerians to destabilize Mali. Now in 2009 the US is backing Mali’s current government.

Prashad provides a summary history of Mali since independence. It came out of colonial rule almost completely dependent on cotton.

… a popular government led by the charismatic Modibo Kéita came to power. But the country was dependent on one crop (cotton) for more than half its GDP (gross domestic product), it had little processing and industry and almost no sources of energy. … Further, the cotton subsidy regime in both Europe and the United States strikes at the heart of Mali’s attempt to grow its already dismal economy.

Prashad recounts the changes in Mali’s leadership, and that immediately following Kéita, Mali came under military government:

Traoré had none of Kéita’s imagination, and none of the socialist movement’s patience with the devolution of power. When things turned bad, he went to Washington. The World Bank welcomed him in 1981, and Mali became the test case for its ’structural adjustment’ policies.

…

In 1995, Howard French reported from Bamako for The New York Times, ‘Diplomats also speak of this large landlocked country as a bulwark against the spread of Islamic militancy from its northern neighbor, Algeria. Already Mali faces a destabilizing conflict involving Tuareg tribesmen in the north, but any settlement has been thwarted by a lack of resources. At the same time, Mali’s debt burden, contracted under years of dictatorship, consumes so much of the country’s revenues that there is little left for development needs.’ The point was clearly made. No one listened.

…

Washington’s counterterrorism spectacles see only al-Qaeda. The debt burden and the impossibility of governance are not on the agenda. Whether the State Department or the Defense Department give arms to the Malian military says more about anxiety in the US than about the dynamic in Mali. Once more the US will strengthen the military against civil society, and once more we might see Mali fall the way of Guinea and others in the region that were set up to become dictatorships.

I have quoted from Demystifying Africa’s Security by Jeremy Keenan before, but he makes a number of points that are particularly relevant to Mali:

Beginning in early 2003, the US, in collusion with Algeria, its key regional ally in the GWOT, fabricated a string of false flag ‘terrorism’ incidents in the Algerian Sahara and across much of the Sahel (Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad) in order to justify the launch of a new or ‘second’ African front in the GWOT.

…

US presence sought to resolve conflicts in Africa by brute military intervention. Post-2006 interventions by US troops in the Sahara-Sahel have been widely documented(Keenan, 2006d, 2008b, 2009b). In May 2006, for example, US Special Forces, flown secretly from Stuttgart to Tamanrasset, accompanied Algeria’s secret military services into northern Mali to give support to the Algerian-orchestrated Tuareg rebellion designed to destabilise northern Mali. In February 2008, US Special Forces (possibly contractors – PMCs) accompanied Malian troops on a vindictive raid on a desert town in the same area, at the same time as AFRICOM’s commander, General William ‘Kip’ Ward and US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for African Affairs, Theresa Whelan, were promoting AFRICOM at a RUSI meeting in London and at which Ms Whelan denied the presence of US ‘troops’ in northern Mali.

…

Since 2005-6, justification for the US’s militarisation of the continent has shifted from the GWOT and straightforward counterterrorism to the more humanitarian security-development discourse. The fundamental question with regard to AFRICOM is whether its website news headlines and its ‘peace and development’ oriented mission statements really do reflect a paradigm shift in US military thinking, or whether they are merely good PR, a further twist in Washington’s ‘information war’: a deceptive mystification process that enables AFRICOM to be portrayed as more benign than it really is. The answer is found on the ground – in Africa. Whether couched in the language of the GWOT or the security-development discourse, local-regional outbreaks of civil unrest and rebellion (‘incursions’) by minority-cum-opposition groups, frequently provoked by local US supported politico-military elites, continue to help legitimise the US military presence in Africa and are being dealt with by military means. Far from bringing ‘peace and security’ to Africa, AFRICOM is directly instrumental in creating conflict and insecurity.

…

Does AFRICOM have any prospect of bringing peace, security and development to Africa? While AFRICOM’s commanders have been preaching ‘security and development’, their operations on the ground have so far created insecurity and undermined democratic expressions of civil society.

…

… many [African regimes] are now using the pretext of the GWOT to repress legitimate opposition by linking it with ‘terrorism’

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new global version of Amazon’s Kindle for Christmas, be aware that there are still quite a few places that the global version will NOT work.  I was disappointed to find that the new version still will not work in my country.

Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.   I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in (below).

It’s also interesting to note the PATTERN of groups of countries where the Kindle doesn’t work–some countries probably lack satellite coverage or delivery systems, while others probably don’t WANT readers to be able to download whatever they want by satellite.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka,  Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S.,  Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009) the following countries:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan,  Yemen.

Nature and Animal Conservation

 

     Preserving species and their habitats is important for ecosystems to self-sustain themselves. Yet, the pressures to destroy habitat for logging, illegal hunting, and other challenges are making conservation a struggle.

Visit : http://www.globalissues.org/article/1…

 What is Biodiversity ?

 

    The variety of life on Earth, its biological diversity is commonly referred to as biodiversity. The number of species of plants, animals, and microorganisms, the enormous diversity of genes in these species, the different ecosystems on the planet, such as deserts, rainforests and coral reefs are all part of a biologically diverse Earth.

   

    Appropriate conservation and sustainable development strategies attempt to recognize this as being integral to any approach. Almost all cultures have in some way or form recognized the importance that nature, and its biological diversity has had upon them and the need to maintain it. Yet, power, greed and politics have affected the precarious balance.

Does it really matter if there arent so many species?

Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play.

For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Who Cares?

  Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play. For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Loss of Biodiversity and Extinctions

It is feared that human activity is causing massive extinctions. From various animal species, forests and the ecosystems that forests support, marine life. The costs associated with deteriorating or vanishing ecosystems will be high. However, sustainable development and consumption would help avert ecological problems.

 

  

November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The white ribbon has become the symbol for the day.

Click on the picture to join the Community

Una nueva entrada se ha incluido en el blog

www.hombrerrante.blogspot.com

The Los filos Project borders Gleichen to the south!!

If GRL can pull holes like this i will certainly have that Ferrari!

gold continues to reach for 1200 .. 1195 tonight!

Los Filos

Exploration drilling at Los Filos in 2009 focused on drilling the Bermejal extension to the south and on adding reserves in the 4P area. Assay results during the year demonstrate progress on both fronts, with 102.16 metres of 1.41 g/t gold and 99.25 metres of 1.40 g/t gold in the Bermejal south extension, as well an exceptional intercept of 84.27 metres true width at 14.91 g/t gold in the 4P area. The objective of further drilling at 4P is to develop an open-pit mine to be integrated into the existing Los Filos operations.

LOS FILOS DRILLING RESULTS
Approximate True
Drill hole Area From (m) To (m) width (m) Au (g/t)

EG39-09 4P 25.30 109.57 84.27 14.91
EG30-09 4P 92.57 107.74 15.17 5.25
EG46B-09 4P 71.45 172.45 101.00 0.97
BSG30-09 Bermejal 48.74 151.00 102.16 1.41
BSG28-09 Bermejal 126.30 171.45 45.15 1.83
BSG56-09 Bermejal 143.35 242.60 99.25 1.40

The world will always be the same. Palagi ko ng sinasabi ang mga salitang ito na totoo naman talaga. sinusulat ko ito sa mga oras na stranded kami sa UP Manila dahil sa hagupit ng hindi ko pa nakikilalang bagyo( na si Ondoy pala yun). Halos hanggang baywang na ng kaibigan kong 6-footer ang baha sa may taft ave. at kahit noong bumaba ang lalim nito ay wala ring dumadaang dyip kaya hindi pa rin kami makakauwi. Siguro, isang dahilan na din na ayaw pa din naming umuwi dahil isang naiibang pangyayari na naman ito na pwedeng hindi na maulit muli. Great adventure with spectacular experience kung maituturing siguro.

Kasabay ng pagtatayo ng kablockmate ko ng isang tore ng playing cards, lalong lumalalim ang gabi, inumaga na pala kami at hindi ko namalayan ang oras. Umuulan pa rin kaya sa labas? Malakas pa din kaya ang hangin? Natanong ko sa sarili ko hindi lang dahil sa naririnig na pagpatak ng ulan sa bubungan kundi pati na rin sa buhay na kinakaharap ngayon. Malapit na matapos ang semester, wala pa ding kasiguraduhan ang lahat ng bagay, sa sarili at sa paligid.

Makailang beses bumagsak ang tore ng palaying cards at makailang beses din niyang sinubukan pa ito patayuin, kahit ano pa mang bagay ang gumambala sa kanya- isa na ko doon. Naisip ko lang, parang sa pangyayaring bumagsak ang tore ng mga baraha na iyon, naihalintulad ko na naman ito sa buhay ko, sa buhay naming ngayon.

Mga mugtong mata ngunit ayaw pa ring magpaawat ng aking sarili para makapagsulat ng kahit ano ngayon.

Sa pagtingin ko sa sarili ko ngayon, iba na talaga ako. Naging mas mayabang siguro, mas masama at suwail na anak, mas naging manloloko sa tingin ng nakararami at kahit ano pa mang mga masasamang bagay na kahit sobrang sama at hindi na appropriate sakin ay sige lang, tanggap ko.

Nagging mas makasarili na siguro ako ngayon. Mas iniisip ko na ang gusto ko at mga bagay na sa tingin ko ay tama ang ginagawa ko. Wala naman akong magagawa kung ganito na ko ngayon.

Bakit ko nasasabi ito? Dahil hindi nila ako maintindihan. Walang nakaiintindi sakin. Maging ako, na sariling may katawan hindi na rin kilala kung sino ba talaga ito.

Ang pinapalabas sakin ng pangyayari ay parang naglalaro lang ako sa tingin ng aking mga magulang. Hindi nila ko maintindihan. Siguro, natural ng sabihin na magulang ko pa din sila, kaya kailangang sundin, sige lang, totoo naman ang lahat ng iyon, ang hindi ko lang matanto ay kung paano ko ba masasabi ng harap-harapan sa kanila na hindi ako isang bata lang na anak nila at magiging sunud-sunuran sa bawat utos na kanilang sasabihin. Isa din anman akong taong may damdamin, alam ang mga bagay na dapat tama sa mali at masama.

Oo, mahal ko sila.

Pero hindi natatapos ang pagmamahal na iyon sa pagsunod lang sa kanila. Hindi mo maipapakita ang pagmamahal sa apgiging masunurin sa kanila. Gusto kong ipakita din sa kanila na kaya kong mabuhay na mag-isa, na malakas at hindi kailangan ng ulong sa kanila in a way na babalik akong malakas at magiging proud sila sa kin na napalaki nila akong matatag.

Pero hindi eh, ganito talaga ang buhay, mahirap ispelengin ang mga tao sa paligid.

Speaking of pag-ibig, hindi ko din maintindihan ang tadhan, kung mayroon nga ba o talagang pinaglalaruan lang niya ako. Wala na kong maintindihan sa pag-ibig nay an kaya wala na kong magiging panahon diyan.

Hindi naman ako magiging pari o pastor na walang asawa, ang gusto ko lang ay maipakita sa akin kung ano ba talaga ang tunay.

Hindi naman ako nagmamadali kaya hihintayin ko ang tamang oras. Sana..

Sa mga sinasabi kong ito, siguro,malamang, masasabing galit ako o may pagkainis, nalilito at kung anu-ano pang pakiramdam dahil may maling pananaw akong nasabi. Hindi ko alam, iyan ang nararamdaman ko. Pero sana kahit si ondoy man lamang, sa bagyo na dumating, sana kahit ang hangin na dala niya ay magbigay daan sa pagbabago ng isip ng mga taong hindi nakaiintindi kung sino ba talaga ako.

Everything in this world is connected with each other. Hindi lang natin narerecognize ang mga tila taling nagbubuklod sa isa’t isa, mga bagay, mga tao, pangyayari at kahit ano pa mang nakikita o nararamdamn ng bawat isa sa atin.

Siguro ,ganoon lang talaga, siyempre, minsan, walang pagkakaintindihan ang natutunghayan , kailangan lang siguro ng pagbubukas ng kanya-kanyang isipan para matuloy sa pagkakaunawaan.

Malay ko ako mali, naiiba lang siguro pakiramdam ko ngayon sa mga bagay-bagay, malay ko naman dahil kahit ako, ikaw o kahit sino, tanungin mo sarili mo, kilala mo batalaga sarili mo?

Swerte kung oo, pero sa mga hindi, normal lang iyan, kya nga tayo nabuhay, para malamn ang mga di alam, at maintindihan ang mga malalabong mga bagay.

Wala lang, nagsulat lang ako para ang oras na habang tinatayo ang tower ng playing cards na iyon ay naging masaya ako sa pagtingin ditto at sa buhay na ito.

Ang buhay ay parang tore ng mga baraha. Ginagawa natin ang lahat para mapatayo ito ng maayos, matatag at hindi basta-basta babagsak dahil sa mga bagay na hindi natin gusto, mga hangin o pagihip ng ibang tao sa tore, mga yanig ng upuan na nagsisilbing mga suliranin sa pagtatayo ng tore natin. Bawat barahang ginagamit natin ay may kaukulang kailangang gawin upang mapatayo iyon. Minsan nahuhulog sa umpisa pa lamang, minsan , akala mo tapos na ngunit bumagsak na lamang sa di malamang dahilan.

Pero, isa ang tiyak at sigurado tayong ginagawa natin, ang buhay ay lagging may patutunguhan, gaya ng pilit nating pagtayo sa tower of playing cards na iyon. Bwat pagsubok ay hinaharap, bawat paghihirap at tinatanggap, at sa huli, mabigo man tayo o hindi, masaya pa rin tayo dahil nagawa at nagamit natin ang buhay na nahiram sa paraang gusto at pagkakuntento natin dito.

Random thoughts lang ngayon until maipahatid ko sa lahat, kahit kay ondoy na maging siya, marami mang masawi sa ginawa niya, may dahilan pa rin para mangyari ang lahat ng bagay, may dahilan pa din kung bakit nararamdaman ang mga bagay-bagay.

At sa huli, babalik na naman tayo sa konklusiyon na:

The world will always be the same. No matter how things change in every way they want…

Umuulan pa din, bumabaha pa din, mahangin pa din,

They're not trying to save the world, they're just trying to dig a well. I like tangible goals.

I’m a little weird when it comes to charities.  I enjoy giving money to worthy causes but I don’t like giving to large, faceless organizations, and for that reason I tend to shy away from organized charity drives like the Combined Federal Campaign.  Fortunately, this year I learned that a friend of mine who I work with runs a non-profit charity for Malian orphans.  (Mali is a landlocked country in the Northwest portion of Africa – yeah, I had to look it up too)  She started the charity because she was once a Malian orphan, but with the proper support and education she has earned a commission as an officer in the United States Navy.  I don’t want to say (and nor would she) that her story is any more heroic than other peoples who have overcome significant hardships to make a better life for themselves, but the fact that she devotes a significant amount of her free time to running a charity for which she cares very deeply while still carrying all the responsibilities of a naval officer is quite special.  If you’re looking for a charity to donate to but, like me, don’t feel comfortable giving money to charities that have large overheads because you don’t really know where your money is going, take a look at these links: 

http://www.globalgiving.com/projects/build-a-home-for-orphans-in-mali/

http://www.acfacorp.org/index.php/founders-message.html

If I didn’t know the person who runs this charity I would probably not pay it any more attention than any of the thousands of other charities that are out there but given that I know the founder and how capable she is at managing large projects, I feel that this is a charity I can trust to send my money where it is needed, which in this case is a run down section of a poor country that just happens to have had the good luck to produce a highly competent and caring naval officer, one who devotes the majority of her free time to helping a part of the world that most of us have to google in order to find out where it even is!

There is much to see in Mali, and although you will be disappointed if you arrive in the country expecting an African experience in the traditional sense of the word, since Mali has almost nothing in the way of preserved wildlife, but is essentially a cultural destination that, if this is your field of interest, could absorb and fascinate you for a lifetime.Mali has two international airports, Senou International Airport serving the capital city Bamako, and Gao International Airport serving the city of Gao. The principal carriers offering flights into the country from Europe are Air France from Paris, and Royal Air Maroc via Casablanca. There are also smaller and seasonally orientated charter flights such as Point Afrique that offer cheaper flights to and from Bamako.

Both Air France and Royal Air Maroc land in Bamako at night.There are a number of regional carriers offering regional and pan-African onnections, the main ones being Kenya Airways from Nairobi via Dakar; Ethiopian Airlines from Addis Ababa via Abidjan, Dakar and N’djamena; Interair South Africa from Johannesburg, and several others. Mali, although poorly connected internationally, is extremely well connected regionally and locally.

January is at the outer limit of the comfortable time to visit Mali, however, after which the summer heat becomes oppressive.The best time to visit is between November and January, before the searing summer and after the rains which run from June to September.

If you do not have time constraints then choosing last-minute reservation deals will be the best option if you want to find cheap flights to Mali. Sometimes you are required to travel on a very short notice, in these cases buying a last-minute deal online will save you a lot of money. Lets find out how to find such deals online.

Last-minute deals are offered by most of the airlines in order to sell all their tickets for a particular flight. Mostly they advertise such deals on their websites. Some airlines hire consolidators who in turn try to locate target customers and sell them tickets at very low rates. You have to be a member of one such online consolidator website in order to benefit from this opportunity.

Book your cheap flights to Mali today and enjoy the low air fares offered by Travelhouseuk.co.uk . Don’t miss the opportunity to go to Mali, you will enjoy a lot.