Tag: GreatLakesNews

{The M23 rebel group in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo says it is ending its insurgency, hours after the government claimed military victory.}

In a statement, the movement said it would adopt “purely political means” to achieve its goals and urged its fighters to disarm and demobilise.

The government said the last remaining rebels had either surrendered or fled across the border overnight.

At least 800,000 people have fled their homes since the conflict began in 2012.

A summit of African leaders on Monday night in the South African capital Pretoria agreed that the M23 should make “a public declaration renouncing rebellion” to allow a peace accord to be signed with the Congolese government.

Congolese Defence Minister Alexandre Luba Ntambo, after the meeting, said once the rebels had publicly abandoned their insurgency the government “would make a public declaration of acceptance of this”. Five days later, a formal peace agreement would be signed, he added.

The BBC’s Milton Nkosi in South Africa says, with its announcement on Tuesday, the M23 appears to have met the conditions of the African leaders.

M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa announced on Tuesday that “the chief of general staff and the commanders of all major units are requested to prepare troops for disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration on terms to be agreed with the government of Congo”.

{In Tanzania, most cases of domestic violence are never reported
DAR ES SALAAM, – Aisha*, a 35-year-old mother of six endured repeated, painful and humiliating violence from her husband until she reported the matter to the local village court, or ward tribunal.}

The husband was fined and warned he would be taken to the police if he continued the abuse.

Ward tribunals were set up in the mid-1980s as part of efforts to devolve governance. They have a legal mandate to “secure peace and harmony… by mediating and endeavoring to obtain just and amicable settlement of disputes.”

Aisha, who lives with her family in Kijitonyama in the outskirts of the commercial capital Dar es Salaam, said she was satisfied with this form of restorative justice.

“I think I won because the beatings not only ended, but he was ordered to pay me money [the equivalent of US$100] to treat my injuries. We are a happy family now.”

It was not always so. “It was bad because he would beat me anytime he came home drunk. He was jobless and I was providing for the family from my small business earnings.

“I decided to report him to these people because I feared the police,” Aisha told IRIN.

“As a woman, you feel helpless when you have nowhere to seek help when battered by a husband or you are raped,” Aisha said.

Ward tribunals are not proper courts: their members are drawn from the local community and need no special training, and there are no rules of evidence or procedure. Their priority is to see litigants resolve their own differences, but if that fails, they can impose measures such as public censures, fines, community work and even detention, although this has to be endorsed by a local magistrate.

“Most people fear the police but feel comfortable reporting to us because we are known to them and we have a legal backing because we are mandated by the government to do what we do. For cases that really need to proceed to the police, we provide the link”

“We don’t go looking for cases, but people come and report to us and we record those cases and carry out our own investigations to ascertain the truth. In cases where we feel the courts should be involved, we report to the police and we help push them forward,” Oscar Meck, chairman of one such ward in Dar es Salaam, told IRIN.

“Most people fear the police but feel comfortable reporting to us because we are known to them and we have a legal backing because we are mandated by the government to do what we do. For cases that really need to proceed to the police, we provide the link,” he added.

“However, we treat rape cases as an emergency and report them straight to the police so that victims can receive adequate and immediate medical attention.”

{{Reluctance to report to the police}}

Gender-based violence (GBV) is widespread in Tanzania, and it is seen as socially acceptable in most rural regions of the country.

Just over half of the 10,000 polled for the 2010 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey, said their husband would be justified in beating them if they did just one of the following: went out without telling him, neglected the children, argued, refused sex, or burnt the food.

According to the same survey, 44 percent of married women have experienced GBV from an intimate partner in their lifetime. Such spousal abuse is rarely reported to the police.

“We have desks where women and girls can report cases of abuse and we even give the option of them being handled by a female police officer. I can’t say things are bad like before, but many women still think the police are not friendly,” Jumbe Makoye, a senior police officer, told IRIN.

There is no legislation in Tanzania which specifically outlaws domestic violence.

“Many women still feel the police will dismiss cases of domestic violence as private or some will ask for a bribe to even open a file,” Juniata Joseph, 27, told IRIN from her tailoring shop in Kariokor in downtown Dar es Salaam.

When the police are involved, cases “frequently follow a circuitous pathway,” according to the International Centre for Research on Women.Ward tribunals have made it easy for survivors to report cases of gender based violence
“The result is an exceedingly slow, cumbersome process that neither prioritizes a survivor’s needs nor responds to violence as an emergency situation.”

{{A success?}}

Experts like Jovither Barongo, a GBV programme officer at Pathfinder International, a sexual and reproductive health NGO, told IRIN that ward tribunals provided an acceptable source of justice for domestic violence.

“I think the success of such tribunals have been aided by the ease with which they give the victims the opportunity to report. The fact people know they can summon perpetrators is in itself an effective deterrence,” Barongo said.

GBV perpetrators at times do so because they do not adequately understand the legal consequences of their actions, she added.

“If people are able to comprehend the legal repercussions of meting sexual and physical violence against women, they would stop. These committees have the opportunity to explain to perpetrators the consequences of their actions.”

A 2012 survey by the Legal Facility Services says: “Ward tribunals and village committees have limited resources and technical capacity to perform their functions, despite a strong commitment and a willingness on the part of community members to seek settlement of disputes outside the court system.”

Organizations like Pathfinder International have partnered with the government to build the capacity of the tribunals to effectively handle issues related sexual and gender-based violence.

A senior government official in the Ministry of Youth, Children, and Women, agreed.

“They need more support than they are receiving now. The members are there on a voluntary basis and receive no compensation at all. They need training on the relevant laws,” he said.

For some activists, cases such as Aisha’s should not be concluded at the village level.

“I think they [tribunals] should act as an avenue to receive people early enough before they go through the legal machinery. [But] serious cases like wife-battering should automatically be referred to the courts of law if victims are to receive fair justice,” Teodosia Muholo, executive director of the Women’s Legal Aid Centre, a local legal aid services NGO, told IRIN.

*not her real name

Source: African Press International

{Authorities in Kenya have charged four Somali nationals with aiding those who carried out September’s attack on Nairobi’s Westgate Mall that killed 67 people.}

A court ordered the four men, Mohamed Ahmed Abdi, Liban Abdullah Omar, Hussein Hassan Mustafah, and Adan Dheq, imprisoned until a court hearing next week. None are accused of being the gunmen in the mall.

Abdi, Omar and Mustafah were charged with knowingly supporting the attackers. They are also charged with entering Kenya illegally and obtaining false identification documents.

Dheq was accused of harbouring a man authorities say is a senior leader of al-Shabab, which carried out the Westgate mall attack.

The four, who deny the charges against them, are due back in court on November 11.

The charges had to be read to the defendants in Somali by a translator. The suspects, who had no lawyer, were remanded in custody for one week after the prosecution asked for time for further investigations.

{{Norwegian link}}

The four gunmen who carried out the Westgate attack are understood to have died during the four-day siege.

Interpol is assisting Kenya in trying to identify four bodies suspected to be the gunmen, police said last week.

Detectives are continuing to investigate a possible link to Norway, with Ndegwa Muhoro, head of Kenya’s Police Criminal Investigation Department, saying that a telephone call was made to the country from the mall during the attack.

A Norwegian citizen of Somali origin is suspected of planning the Westgate mall attack.

Norway’s PST intelligence agency has said it has investigated the reports, but has declined to comment on his identity.
The Somali group al-Shabab said it carried out the attack and in retaliation for Kenya’s deployment of troops in southern Somalia.

Source: Al Jazeera

{President Yoweri Museveni has ordered for the deployment of heavily-armed soldiers and tanks at the Uganda border with Democratic Republic of Congo following fresh fights between the DRC Army and the M23 rebels.}

During the heavy fighting on Monday morning, the bomb shells landed into Kisoro district injuring several people. At least four people are confirmed dead from the bombshells, several injured and others in critical conditions at Kisoro Referral Hospital. The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) Spokesperson Lt Col Paddy Ankunda also confirmed that several people have been injured by the bombshells.

In response, President Museveni has ordered the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Katumba Wamala to dispatch 1,000 heavily-armed soldiers and armored tanks to the border with Congo.

{{Uganda News}}

{As the three East African Community (EAC) members states of Kenya,Uganda and Rwanda prepare to unveil the join tourist entry Visa at the world’s largest tourism trade fair – the World Travel Market (WTM) in London which gets underway on Monday ahead of its official launch in January 2014, Tanzania has categorically stated that it will not be party to joint tourist Visa agreement.
}

The government of Tanzania has indicated that it will not join the fast tracked East African single tourist visa until the relevant fee collection infrastructure that links member states is in place.

The stand comes even as three other EA members – Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda – are about to launch the visa early next year.

The visa will help to ease movement of tourists across national borders and make it easier for industry players to offer multi-destination packages.

According to a spokesman for Tanzania’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, Mr Chikandi Rumisha, the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure is an important prerequisite to any agreement because it will enable the exchange of fees, data and other information on tourists.

Mr Rumisha said on Friday in Dar es Salaam that Tanzanian government has also considered other issues including security as verification of visitors will only be done at any entry point among the member states.

“The proposed network of sharing data on tourists and fee collection, as well as security issues leaves a lot to be desired,” Mr Rumisha said.

“For instance, when a tourist pays entry fee in Kenya, and he or she gets security problems here, we ( Tanzania) will incur costs?” he said.

The single tourist visa has been the subject of discussion for a number of years, with security issues, how to split revenues and visitor screening being among the major issues.

But Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya have seen that the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages, according to Ms Waturi Matu, a coordinator (Kenya) of the East African Tourism Platform.

Moves to facilitate tourists across EAC borders were given fresh impetus in June under what has come to be termed as ‘the coalition of the willing, when the presidents of Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda met and agreed to strengthen integration and cooperation.

“Rwanda will be in charge of designing the visa, and the plan is to have it launched in January next year with Tanzania and Burundi free to join at any time,” Ms Matu said.

Source: Standard Digital News

{Regional leaders under the Inter Conference on Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) are set to meet their Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) counterparts in Pretoria, South Africa from today to find a common ground in putting an end to the DRC crisis. }

President Kabila’s military operations are being backed by Tanzania and South Africa – all members of SADC while the ICGLR is advocating for a political solution to the crisis that has left thousands of refugees stranded in deplorable camps in Uganda and Rwanda.

While SADC believes M23 should be crushed with military means, ICGLR leaders insist war has never been a solution to DRC’s problems and that both parties must resolve their issues on a round table.

The summit is expected to consider a report of the Joint Ministerial Meeting on the Implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Region.

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) said South Africa continues to play a significant role in peace and security activities at regional and continental levels in operations, both strategically and financially.

“This is based on the belief that regional peace, security and stability are key determinants for socio-economic development and a critical factor for regional integration. Regional integration is critical if we are to expand intra-Africa trade,” DIRCO said.

The summit, which takes place in Pretoria, will be preceded by ministerial and senior officials’ consultations today and tomorrow.

Meanwhile, South Africa will host a Consultative Summit on the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC) on Tuesday. The summit will be held at DIRCO’s OR Tambo Building in Pretoria.

The purpose of the summit will be to consult with volunteering countries that have expressed willingness to contribute to ACIRC. The meeting will consider the modalities for the operationalisation of ACIRC, said DIRCO.

During the May 2013 AU Summit, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government decided to establish ACIRC as a transitional arrangement pending the full operationalisation of the African Standby Force (ASF) and its Rapid Deployment Capability (RDC). This is within the framework of the agreed upon African Peace and Security Architecture.

The summit will be the first round of informal consultations between like-minded and willing contributing countries on the issue of rapid response to crises within the context of the proposed ASF. It is an interim measure to deal with conflict on the continent in the context of African solutions for African problems.

The expected outcome of the consultations is an agreed upon framework for modalities and to identify a roadmap for a way forward.

{At least two people have been injured after rockets fired from an area controlled by the international community-backed DRC forces landed in Kisoro Town on Monday morning. }

Uganda army spokesperson, Lt Col Paddy Ankunda, said the UPDF was reviewing the situation and that it would make an appropriate comment soon.

The shells which landed near Muyenga Hotel sent several Ugandans packing in fear of losing their lives.
This is not the first time DRC forces are bombing Uganda. Last week, over 20 people were injured in the attacks.

UPDF said it would investigate circumstances under which the explosives hit Kisoro.

It is also understood that the DRC ambassador in Uganda has since been summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where Kampala is expected to express its outrage over the bombings.

DRC accuses Rwanda and Uganda of backing the M23 rebels, a charge both countries deny.

Chimpreports

{Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has pledged to review a media law passed by parliament that has sparked outrage among the media.
}

Kenyatta asked journalists on Saturday to report more responsibly, but said he would closely examine the law, which will only become effective once he signs it.

“I shall look at the bill once it is forwarded to me with a view to identifying and addressing possible grey areas to ensure the new media law conforms to the constitution,” a statement from the presidency said, quoting Kenyatta at a public rally near the capital Nairobi.

Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Kenyatta’s defeated rival for the presidency, urged him to throw out the new law.

“We can only ask him to have a change of heart and refuse to sign it because it is bad for the country and goes against the constitution,” Odinga said in a statement.

If passed into law the bill would lead to huge fines against journalists and media organisations that violated a code of conduct.

MPs voted in a late-night sitting on Thursday to set up a new Communications and Multimedia Appeals Tribunal with the powers to impose penalties of up to $234,000 on offenders and even bar journalists from working.

The bill would also herald strict controls on radio and television broadcasts, with stations obliged to ensure that 45 percent of programme content and advertising is locally-made.

{{Media critical}}

The passing of the bill comes as Kenya takes a string of measures to reinforce national security in the wake of the September attack by gunmen on the Westgate shopping mall.

Kenyan media drew the ire of authorities by broadcasting security camera footage of troops who were dispatched to the scene of the attack purportedly looting the upmarket mall.

Cyrus Kamau, managing director for Capital Group – home to CapitalFM, one of Kenya’s most respected independent radio stations and news websites – called the law “draconian and very punitive”.

The Daily Nation newspaper splashed its Saturday front page with the bold headline “No, Mr President!”.

The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called on Kenyatta to block the bill entirely.

“This draconian bill realises the media’s worst nightmare, where government makes itself both judge and jury of what journalists say and how they say it,” said CPJ East Africa representative Tom Rhodes.

“President Uhuru Kenyatta must veto the bill and safeguard Kenya’s vibrant press,” he added.

Source: Aljazeera

{{DRC soldiers are fighting off some 200 M23 rebels who are hiding after being ousted from their last stronghold.}}

The Democratic Republic of Congo army said Sunday it has launched a new offensive against rebel fighters who fled to the hills after being ousted from their last stronghold.

“We are pounding Mbuzi, one of three mountains in eastern DRC where the rebels are hiding,” General Lucien Bahuma told AFP by telephone. “After the artillery we will send in the troops.”

Some 200 die-hard fighters of the M23 rebel group have been holed up in the mountainous region bordering Uganda since their base in the town of Bunagana was seized on Wednesday.

“They are claiming back the hills. There is shooting in the mountains of Ntamugena, Mbuzi and Runyonyi. The rebels are fleeing,” a DRC captain told AFP.

The sound of heavy artillery could be heard from Kiwanja, a town around 20 kilometres away.

The M23 movement was founded by ethnic Tutsi former rebels who were incorporated into the Congolese army under a 2009 peace deal but then defied in April 2012, claiming that the pact had never been fully implemented.

At their strongest in November last year, M23 marched into Goma, a mining hub and city of one million people, and took control for 10 days, before regional leaders persuaded them into fresh peace talks.

But the stop-start talks fell apart last month when Kinshasa refused amnesty for about 80 rebel leaders and the Congolese army- backed by a special United Nations force- went on the attack in a bid to end the rebellion once and for all

Mail Guardian

{Exiled fugitive Coordinator of Intelligence Organs, Gen David Sejusa, has spoken out on the death of his younger brother, Dan Mutungi.
}

Mutungi was found dead in a pond on his father’s farm in Sembabaule District on Friday morning. Police officials say they are investigating a case of suicide. However, Sejusa said in a statement seen by Chimpreports on Sunday that “What is certain is that he (Mutungi) was under intense psychological torture since I left the country. And he did air out his frustrations.”

“No one knows how he ended up there. This is a man who was a graduate of American University in Cairo Egypt. In birth, he comes right after me. He was 56 years old having been born on 14.11.1957. I am told the police are trying to establish cause of death. Whatever the outcome, the abusive nature of the Museveni government is squarely to blame,” said Sejusa.

It remains unclear why Sejusa suspects that government had a hand in his brother’s death. Family members say Mutungi could have taken his life by throwing himself in a pond. He had earlier tried to use a rope to hang himself in vain. “I am strong and firm. His death only gives me more resolve to ensure that we struggle to ensure our people live and die in dignity they deserve,” said Sejusa in a statement.

“That never again shall the state directly or indirectly be complicit in the killing of its citizens. That never again should Ugandans fail to return home to bid farewell to their departed ones. To this struggle I commit myself.”

Observers are likely to argue that Sejusa could be politicizing his brother’s death to win public sympathy for his ‘struggle.’

Sejusa fled Uganda in April before announcing plans to topple President Yoweri Museveni, whom he accuses of grooming Brig Muhoozi Keinerugaba to take over presidency in the near future. Government says Sejusa is a deserter facing treason and other criminal charges. Mutungi is expected to be laid to rest today.

Chimpreport