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Morocco and South Africa to Host ACN in 2015 and 2017

The 2015 Africa Cup of Nations will be hosted by Morocco while South Africa will host the 2017 tournament. The 2012 African Nations Cup finals are being co-hosted by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon while 2013 tournament is designated to Libya.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the executive committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in Lubumbashi, DR Congo.

After the DR Congo withdrew its bid, Morocco and South Africa were the only countries bidding to stage the tournament .

The President of the South African Football Association (Safa) Kirsten Nematandani told reporters after the announcement that he was happy that they were awarded the 2017 edition.

Morocco and South Africa were engaged in a fierce battle for the right to host the 2010 World Cup, which South Africa won in a tight 14-10 vote in Zurich in 2004.

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RWANDA: FINALLY HEALED?

The Rwanda Genocide in 1994

The rate at which Rwanda, seem to have achieved social reconciliation after the gory internecine conflict, some prefer to call it “holocaust” that rocked the small central African country almost 17yrs ago is both baffling and encouraging.

This was a nation that literarily went on a self annihilating journey that sent shivers down the spine of all decent people the world over. Somewhere in April 1994, the entire landscape and rivers of Rwanda was riddled with bloated corpses as Hutu extremists went after Tutsi and Hutu moderates. It is hard to imagine that man could exhibit such level of bestiality to fellow man, all as a result of primordial sentiments. Over 1million people lost their lives in that unfortunate episode, the Rwandan genocide.

17yrs later, the scenario has changed so tremendously that unless one was told of the gory events that took place, it is hard to believe that the streets of Kigali were once littered with innumerable corpses and blood.

The recently concluded U17 African Soccer tournament organized in Rwanda, indeed brought out the best in Rwanda, as all Rwandans united behind their country and junior national soccer team. They also proved to be a worthy host during the course of the tournament.

The Paul Kagame leadership in Rwanda should be commended for achieving this level of social transformation within a short time. The world should also come together to say NEVER AGAIN to such human perfidy witnessed in Rwanda in 1994, and any where in the world.

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From Negro History Week to Black History Month

by Louise Fenner

Carter G. Woodson, the son of former slaves in Virginia, realized that the struggles and achievements of Americans of African descent were being ignored or misrepresented. He founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), which supports historical research, publishes a scholarly journal and sets the theme for Black History Month each year.

Each February, Black History Month honors the struggles and triumphs of millions of American citizens over the most devastating obstacles — slavery, prejudice, poverty — as well as their contributions to the nation’s cultural and political life.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, African Americans make up about 14 percent of the U.S. population and comprise the second-largest minority group, after Hispanics.

In 2009, the inauguration of Barack Obama, America’s first African-American president, lent Black History Month a special significance. Obama took the oath of office January 20, the day after Americans honored the memory of Martin Luther King Jr. with a federal holiday and national day of service.

In his inaugural address, Obama acknowledged the historical importance of a moment in which “a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.”

Honoring accomplishments of Black-Americans

Black History Month was the inspiration of Carter G. Woodson, a noted scholar and historian, who instituted Negro History Week in 1926. He chose the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and the abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

The celebration was expanded to a month in 1976, the nation’s bicentennial. President Gerald R. Ford urged Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

Woodson, the son of former slaves in Virginia, realized that the struggles and achievements of Americans of African descent were being ignored or misrepresented. He founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), which supports historical research, publishes a scholarly journal and sets the theme for Black History Month each year.

John Fleming, ASALH president from 2007 to 2009 and director emeritus of the Cincinnati Museum Center, said Obama’s heritage — a black father born in Kenya and a white mother born in the United States — “continues to reflect the contributions Africans and Europeans have made to American history from the very beginning.”

Fleming said he believes Black History Month should focus on positive as well as negative aspects of the black experience. “Certainly, struggle has been an ongoing theme in our history from the very beginning. However, we were not slaves prior to being captured in Africa — and while slavery was part of our experience for 250 years, we have a hundred-and-some years in freedom that we also need to deal with.”

He said he has seen “substantial progress on many fronts,” but “at the same time there are still major problems that have to be addressed, one being the permanent underclass in urban areas now. We don’t seem to be able to break that cycle of poverty. And there are still some major rural pockets of poverty” such as in the Mississippi Delta.

“I’m glad to see the National African American Museum being developed on the Mall, which will tell a much broader story,” said Fleming. In 2003, President George W. Bush signed legislation to establish the new museum, which will be located on the National Mall near the Washington Monument. Although the new museum has not yet been built, it launched a photo exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery late in 2007 that is traveling to museums around the country through 2011.

“I think that African-American history gets more attention during February than during any other time of year, “ Fleming said, “and I think it’s an opportunity for us in the field to emphasize that it is something that should be studied throughout the year.”

Each year, the U.S. president honors Black History Month, or African-American History Month as it is also called, with a proclamation and a celebration at the White House. States and cities hold their own events around the country, and media feature topics related to black history.

ASALH has its headquarters in Washington, where Woodson lived from 1915 until his death in 1950. His home is designated a national historic site.

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Egypt Calls for Freedom, Day 6: Update Sun, Jan 30, 2011, 9.00 am

Jan 30, 2011, 9.00 am
Today is Day 6, and as expected, protesters have taken over the center of the Egyptian capital Cairo in demonstrations against the rule of President Hosni Mubarak.

The police have largely disappeared from the streets but there is a heavy military presence in the city, even though soldiers are not intervening in the situation.

The Arabic TV network Al-Jazeera which was covering the event has been halted. The Egyptian government had earlier ordered the Arabic TV channel, which has been showing blanket coverage of the protests, to shut down its operations in the country.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr said
A riot is at bottom the language of the unheard.

What are we witnessing?


Jan 29, 2011, 11.30 am

The Egyptian President for nearly 30 years, Mr. Hosni Mubarak, 83, has started appointing a new cabinet for his new government after Egyptian government resigned this morning. So far, appointments made do not show any hope for a change. My. Mubarak is picking and choosing from his comfort zone. He is not in a hurry to reach to read out to the other side. The 83 year-old 3-decades president himself has not shown any indication he will step down.

He has been president for almost 30 years. For most of the protesters, Mubarak is the only leader they have known their entire life.

Any system which promotes the dictatorship of the few privileged instead of the initiative of the millions can never produce a happier and fulfilled people. Mr. Mubarak, as well as others like Mugabe, should know that their systems in essence imprison their people.

There will be freedom.


Jan 29, 2011, 10.15 am

The ancient Greek historian Thucydides once said “The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage.”

This is exactly what is happening in North Africa right now. I’m watching CNN as I write this and I can hear protesters chant ‘Change, Freedom, Mubarak Go” and other anti-government slogans. My heart is in Egypt. I would be on the street if I lived in Egypt.

Happiness in life is an inner desire of the soul. As Thucydides said you cannot acquire this essential ingredient in life in the absence of freedom, and freedom won’t come before courage.

From the Sahara to the West Coast, and to the Southern belt, the African people need to demand for freedom. Let the ordinary people pioneer this movement. I’m glad that this time it is people like me, and not the military, who are calling for change.

There will be freedom on Our Land, in Uganda and in Zimbabwe

Jan 29, 2011, 7.30 am

The Egyptian protests continue today. In fact I would be disappointed if it wasn’t so. For the past three decades, Egypt has been about one person, Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak, 83, just as Zimbabwe has all been about the 87 year old Robert Gabriel Mugabe.

Mubarak’s cabinet resigned this morning but this does not make any difference; Mubarak stays on. Mubarak is the face of Egypt and he should just respect the will of the people. If Mubarak stays on, it will continue to make the situation worse. There is hope on the streets of Cairo that perhaps this could bring about the freedom people have dreamed of for decades.

The book of Proverbs says that ‘Hope deferred makes the heart sick’. It’s for this reason that I believe Mubarak must respect the cry in the hearts of the Egyptian youth.

This revolution was overdue. The combustible material was in stock, it just needed someone to trigger the spark.

There will be freedom at last. In Tunisia, in Egypt and in Zimbabwe


Jan 28, 2011, 9.30 pm

The Egyptian protest continued today. The police were shut up and were replaced by the army to help bring order into the streets of Cairo. President Mubarak eventually came out to address the country.

If my ears were not deceiving me, as I watched the revolution, what the protesters were calling for was for Mubarak to step down. The 30 year old dictatorial regime leader rather promised he was going to dissolve the government on Saturday and form a new government. And who will be the president of the new government? President Mubarak. Nothing could be more annoying, more frustrating, and more depressing.

I wish the Egyptian protesters the best I can think of.

We shall be free, one day. May be very soon


Jan 28, 2011 10.30 am

Islamic States in North Africa are on fire. It started with the uprising in Tunisia which was successful in toppling the Tunisian dictator Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali.

Is this the beginning of the new African revolution? It’s exciting time in the North. Perhaps this is the only way we can get rid of tyrants in Africa. I personally prefer the youth fighting for their country than a military regime taking over governance through a coup d’état. Unfortunately there will be casualties: about 78 are reported killed in Tunisia already. But in human history, freedom has never been won without blood. I wish it wasn’t so.

There is a deep seated desire in the human spirit for freedom and sense of dignity, which most African states have not yet experiences. Egypt, Tunisia and Zimbabwe have been held hostage by dictators for decades. “Enough is enough. We have had enough”, this is what the North African protesters are telling their governments.

These countries have one thing in common: They face a lot of challenges, such as high unemployment. Young people who have gone to college in recent years expect a lifestyle that the current political regime is incapable of providing and doesn’t seem to care enough about.

We must hail and pay tribute to the Tunisian youth their successful uprising which sowed the seed for the new African revolution. They showed a way for other African countries to take similar action and tell their long-reigned tyrants that enough is enough.

All eyes are on Egypt now. And as Egypt goes, so……………….

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The African Uprising

FERNY NARH

The African is always left in the dark whiles decisions pertaining to his or her well being are taken by unknown forces. We are then forced to accept because the interest of our leaders has already been secured. I feel no less for my fellow Africans because I am also a victim of the unjustifiable rule or governance we are experiencing these days. Many at times I think and ask why this transpires in this era and I am not made better by this because less and less will my efforts be when I strive for the best.

Recent developments, I think, are a must because the ordinary citizen must realize the politician in whose arms he has devoted his well being. African leaders have for a long time taken Africans for granted and have rather improved their well being and assets. This has been the situation for a long time and it took the courage of just one individual to tell the masses that their lives were being toiled with by these politicians.

I stand to salute this great hero because I do believe in equality and justice for all and this is exactly what the young man proved. I foresee a day when Africa will rise and demand for her fair share of the national cake and the Tunisian uprising has turned the clock towards that direction, and when that day comes, I believe nothing will stop the masses.

This is an opportunity for the governments of African states to be responsive to the aspirations of the African, yet I see no sign of that. They rather put in forces to halt the voices of the masses. Egyptians have spelt out their plight but the best Mr. Mubarak can do is to put bans on protests and gatherings. This can’t stop them from crying out; it won’t keep them from shouting. The dawn of African revolution is about to begin and I advice African leaders to pay heed to the cries of the citizens because we are the voice of God.

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Germany Halts Payment to Malaria Fund Over Corruption Concerns

 Germany has halted its annual payments of 200 million euros ($274 million) to the Global Fund Against AIDS, TB and Malaria due to concerns over allegations of corruption against the Fund.

Announcing suspension of the funds, German Development Minister Dirk Niebel said on Wednesday: “I take the allegations of corruption and breach of trust carried by media against the Global Fund very seriously, and I expect that the fund will promptly clear them up.”

Stressing that an investigation was urgently required into the allegations, Niebel indicated that he had halted all “further payments to the Fund until it is fully cleared up.”

With its annual contribution of 20 million euros, Germany is the third-largest donor to the U.N.-backed Fund that has an annual budget of more than $20 billion. The Fund is the single largest source for fighting AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria across the world.

The latest developments come after an international news agency raised allegations of misappropriation and corruption against the Fund. The news agency alleged in a report that funds might have been misappropriated in several countries where the Global Fund’s controls were poor.

Following the report, the Fund acknowledged that its internal investigations had revealed some minor misappropriation of funds in several cases. But the Fund insists that it has taken strict measures to tackle the problem in all identified cases.

According to the Fund, internal investigations and audits carried out in 33 of the 145 countries where the it has grants have unearthed $34 million in misappropriated or unsubstantiated funds.

The Fund acknowledged that the amount found to be misappropriated was a large enough figure by itself, but pointed out that it amounted to only 0.3 per cent of the $13 billion the Fund has distributed to countries so far.

by RTT Staff Writer

For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com

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Muntari in Sunderland Talk

Ghana Muntari

Sunderland have been granted permission to discuss a deal to sign Inter Milan midfielder Sulley Muntari.

If terms are agreed, the 26-year-old is expected to join the Black Cats on loan until the end of the season.

Muntari played in the Premier League while at Portsmouth during the 2007-08 campaign before leaving for Inter.

The Ghana international has struggled to secure first-team football at the San Siro and handed in a transfer request earlier this month.

Muntari has helped the club to two successive Serie A titles and the 2010 Champions League crown.
Myrtle Pudding

But he was out of favour under Rafael Benitez at the start of the season and has failed to convince new manager Leonardo of his worth, making only one Serie A start this term.

If he does move to the Stadium of Light, he will be joining international team-mates Asamoah Gyan and John Mensah.

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“Passing Gas” in Public to Be Made Criminal in Malawi

A new set of laws that are set to be introduced by the government of Malawi  will be the first of their kind on the globe

There are things we do in life which are just natural responses to biology and we take them for granted. In Malawi, those days are over.

The Bingu wa Mutharika led administration is to introduce a push of legislation that will criminalize the “passing gas”  or flatus in public. And the intention?, to “mould responsible and disciple citizens”

The bill will also punish “any person disturbing religious assemblies, trespassing on burial places,” or “insulting the modesty of a woman”.

The Local Courts Bill of 2010, according to Malawi media reports, is to be presented in the forthcoming Parliament sitting by Minister of Justice, George Chaponda. The bill, reports say, also deals with citizens who hinder the burial of dead bodies as well as people who pretend to be fortune tellers.

Commenting on the bill, a Malawian is quoted as saying: “How can this government criminalize the release of intestinal gases …. Everyone does that, even if it’s in public or it has an accompanying sound which is boring, making it criminal is a joke of democracy”

Public flatus to be criminalized in Malawi

Another said he “support(s) the bill and is welcome. Sometimes breaking wind in public or during meetings is a disturbance of the peace”.

One assembly man who says he supports the bill gave the following reason: “A couple of years ago, before I entered public service, one day I was late for a meeting with my boss and we decided to use the elevator.  In the elevator we met this gentleman who did not even open his eyes to say hi but just gave out this ‘bomb’. It’s so pungent that it left us gasping for air. I believe such a law will reduce this public flatus”.

Do you think making ‘passing gas’ in public a criminal offense is right in Malawi?

 

Update: Feb 4, 2011

Update:

Two of Malawi’s judicial officials are at variance over whether a new bill includes a provision that outlaws breaking wind or passing gas in public.

Justice Minister George Chaponda says the new bill would criminalize public flatus to promote “public decency”.

“Just go to the toilet when you feel like farting,” he told local radio.

However, he was directly contradicted by Solicitor General Anthony Kamanga, who says the reference to “fouling the air” means pollution.

“How any reasonable or sensible person can construe the provision to criminalizing farting in public is beyond me,” he said, adding that the prohibition contained in the new law has been in place since 1929.

The Local Courts Bill, to be introduced next week reads: “Any person who vitiates the atmosphere in any place so as to make it noxious to the public to the health of persons in general dwelling or carrying on business in the neighborhood or passing along a public way shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.”

Mr Chaponda, a trained lawyer, insists that this includes farting.

“Would you be happy to see people farting anyhow?” he asked on the popular “Straight Talk” program on Malawi’s Capital Radio.

He said that local chiefs would deal with any offenders.

When asked whether it could be enforced, he said it would be similar to laws banning urinating in public.[ad#Adsense-200by200sq]