Tag: GreatLakesNews

As refugees fleeing violence and communal tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continued to arrive in neighbouring Angola, the United Nations Refugee Agency appealed for more resources to cope with the influx and to provide people with the support they urgently needed.

According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), some 30,000 people arrived in Angola’s Lunda Norte province since April.

There were fears that the number could reach 50,000, with about 300 to 500 people arriving daily.

“Angola is providing a warm welcome, but reception centres accommodating refugees are full beyond their capacity and basic services cannot be maintained without immediate donor support,” said Valentin Tapsoba, the UNHCR’s Africa Bureau Director, in a statement on Monday.

He added that the refugees were traumatised and humanitarian agencies required urgent support to ensure that life-saving assistance and protection could be provided to those in need.

The arrivals were mostly from the Kasai provinces in the DRC, where they were at risk of serious human rights violations and abuses, including physical mutilation, killing, sexual violence, arbitrary arrest and detention in inhumane conditions.

The Kasais were the location of the discovery of some 42 mass graves, in April by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

About 1.3 million people remain displaced internally in the DRC.

Those reaching Angola also expressed fear of going back unless the situation allowed for a safe and dignified return.

Prior to the recent influx, Angola housed some 15,600 refugees – including more than 13,400 from the DRC.

However, with arrivals increasing and fears that the situation could get much worse, additional funding was urgently needed.

“Sustaining life-saving assistance won’t be possible without more funding,” said the UNHCR, noting that together with its partners, some $65-million was required – of which the UN agency needed $35 million (until the end of the year) to reach refugees in remote parts of Angola, who were the most vulnerable.

Current humanitarian efforts were supported with $10-million by the UN Central Emergency Fund, a limited pool of financial resources that provided funding to critical, life-saving humanitarian rapid response and under-funded operations around the globe.

Source:African News Agency

Opposition leaders have criticised President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto for reviving the debate on the International Criminal Court (ICC) cases against them.

The leaders allied to the National Super Alliance (Nasa) accused the duo of seeking to whip up emotions about election violence after Kenyans have already moved on.

The politicians are ODM national chairman John Mbadi, Secretary of political affairs secretary Opiyo Wandayi, Wiper Party vice-chairman Mutula Kilonzo, ODM treasurer Timothy Bosire and Nasa western region presidential campaign coordinator Khalid Njiraini.

On Monday, the Jubilee leaders accused the opposition of planning to revive the ICC cases against Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto, dropped due to lack of adequate evidence.

But on Wednesday, Mr Mbadi said President Kenyatta and his deputy had realised they were losing support in the Rift Valley and were seeking to gain sympathy by claiming the opposition would renew their cases.

Sway voters

“They are losing the Kalenjin vote. They think they can regain the votes they have lost by recreating the ICC story,” he said.

Mr Wandayi said the ICC will not be used to sway voters in this year’s elections.

“Jubilee is drowning politically and wants to clutch onto any straw for mere survival. They are desperate to revive their dwindling political fortunes.

“Kenyans have become wiser and will not be distracted by these diversionary tactics,” he said.

Mr Kilonzo described as careless the statement made by President Kenyatta and Mr Ruto on the ICC.

“Nasa is not the prosecutor or complainant. The revival of the cases (if at all) must be justified on cogent evidence from the prosecutor. [President Kenyatta and Mr Ruto] should not use this as a platform to whip up emotions,” Mr Kilonzo said.

Hague

Mr Bosire said the ICC issue is a sideshow and will not earn Jubilee any votes.

Mr Njiraini threatened to sue the President and the DP for “revisiting the emotive ICC debate.”

He accused President Kenyatta and Mr Ruto of evoking negative emotions ahead of the August 8 elections by revisiting the cases.

Speaking in Kisumu, Mr Njiraini defended Nasa, saying the opposition had no plans to revive the ICC matter.

“We demand an apology from Uhuru and Ruto for lying to Kenyans that it is Nasa presidential candidate Raila (Odinga) who took them to The Hague,” Mr Njiraini said.

He cautioned that revisiting the ICC cases would open old wounds and create animosity among Kenyans.

Source:Daily Nation

The East African Court of Justice (EACJ) has restrained the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) from administering oath of office to its members, hence stalling whatever timetable that would be set for the commencement of the fourth assembly.

The order was delivered by the First Instance Division of the EACJ, as an interim ex parte order restraining swearing-in of new members or otherwise to recognise nominees from the Republic of South Sudan pending the hearing of inter-parties tomorrow.

The ex parte hearing was before and decided by the Principal Judge Monica Mugenyi; Deputy Principal Judge Isaac Lenaola and judges Faustin Ntezilyayo, Fakihi Jundu and Audace Ngiye.

It comes as a result of an application filed by Mr Wani Santino Jada, a citizen of the Republic of South Sudan against the Attorney General of the Republic of South Sudan, the Speaker of the Parliament of South Sudan and the Secretary General of the East African Community (EAC).

All parties have been served with the ex parte order that was issued by the court.

Mr Jada who represented himself at the ex parte hearing claimed that on or about the 11th of March 2017, the President of the Republic of South Sudan appointed nine persons to represent the said partner State in EALA and that it was in violation of Article 50 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC.

He argued that whereas the swearing-in of EALA MPs that was due to take place on the 5th of June, 2017 and had since been deferred incidentally, it could nonetheless transpire before the hearing of the interim orders of inter parties thus rendering the said application nugatory.

Article 50 of the EAC, on election of EALA members provides for each partner state’s parliament, to elect, not from among its members, nine members of the Assembly, who will represent as much as it is feasible, the various political parties represented in the national assembly.

Among others, it provides that such election should take into consideration gender and other special interest groups in the respective partner state, in accordance with such procedure as the national assembly of each partner state may determine.

The EACJ is one of the organs of the EAC established under Article 9 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the Community. It was established in November 2001 and its major responsibility is to ensure the adherence to law in the interpretation and application of and compliance with the EAC Treaty.

Speaker of EALA, Mr Dan Kidega dissolved the third Assembly on June 2, this year.

Source:Daily News

President Uhuru Kenyatta has declared that he will accept the outcome of the August 8 presidential election.

Speaking at the Eldoret Stage Lodge, the Head of State assured Kenyans of his commitment to ensuring a peaceful transition after the polls irrespective of the outcome.

“We exhibit highest degree of maturity to navigate this country through peace before and after the elections. We should not squander what millions of Kenyans dream of,” said President Kenyatta during an address to the nation.

He was flanked by Deputy President William Ruto

Peaceful transition

“I’m ready to stand aside for a peaceful transition if beaten. I did the same in 2002 by conceding defeat even before the announcement of the final tally. I had to wait for my turn for another 10 years and here we are.

“I urge our competitors to also commit to accept the verdict of the people if beaten,” added the President.

Mr Kenyatta called on all contestants in the coming elections to be at the forefront in preaching peaceful co-existence among Kenyans.

“We should carry out peaceful campaigns. Elections will come and go but we remain as a nation,” said the president.

IEBC

Mr Kenyatta raised concern over constant criticism directed at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) especially by the opposition Nasa and called for respect for independent constitutional bodies.

“We should not engage IEBC in endless political battles. IEBC should be blemish-free and held in high esteem by the people they serve. Those who will not be happy with the outcome of the polls have a constitutional right to appeal. Any attack on IEBC is an attack on the guardian of democracy,” said the President.

He said that the Jubilee Party is committed to ensure peace prevails during the electioneering period adding that the party will sign the peace pledge.

“Kenyans are still suffering from the tragic consequences of the 2007/2008 post-election violence. We as leaders should desist from utterances which may create ethnic suspicion,” said Mr Kenyatta.

“Our democracy was hard-won and should be ashamedly protected. We should show the world that we can govern ourselves,” added the President.

The President and his deputy are on an extensive tour of the North Rift region in a bid to solidify Jubilee Party’s support in the vote-rich region.

Source:Daily Nation

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and partners are seeking US$65 million to help the growing number of refugees arriving in Angola from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since April, some 30,000 refugees have already arrived in Angola’s Lunda Norte province, fleeing violent attacks in the Kasai region since.

Inter-communal tensions, clashes among different militia groups and the Congolese armed forces, have now displaced more than 1.3 million people internally.

Humanitarian agencies fear the situation could develop into a large-scale conflict affecting more civilians. The number of refugees could reach 50,000 according to the government and UN estimates, with 300-500 arriving daily.

“Traumatized refugees need urgent support to ensure provision of life-saving assistance and protection,” said Valentin Tapsoba, UNHCR’s Director for the Africa Bureau.

“Angola is providing a warm welcome, but reception centres – accommodating refugees, are full beyond their capacity and basic services cannot be maintained without immediate donor support.”

Arriving refugees express fear about returning to the DRC unless the situation changes, allowing safe and dignified return. Most civilians in affected areas are at risk of serious human rights violations, including physical mutilation, killing, sexual violence, arbitrary arrest and detention in inhumane conditions.

Angola, a signatory to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, has historically received refugees from the DRC and other neighbouring countries. Prior to the recent influx, Angola was hosting some 15,600 refugees – including more than 13,400 from the DRC.

UNHCR needs US$35 million till end of the year to continue assisting refugees in remote parts of Angola, but sustaining life-saving assistance won’t be possible without more funding.

Current humanitarian activities are supported with US$10 million by the UN’s Central Emergency Fund.

Source:Relief Web

Gunmen have attacked a prison in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) freeing hundreds of inmates and rebels. It is the third major prison break in the country in the past month.

More than 900 inmates escaped from a prison in the eastern North Kivu province on Sunday after armed assailants stormed the building, the governor of the province said.
Eleven people, including eight security officers, were killed in an exchange of gunfire at the Kangwayi prison in Beni, North Kivu Governor Julien Paluku told reporters.
“Of the 966 inmates who were in the prison, there are still 30 detainees left, which means that more than 930 prisoners have escaped,” he added.

Beni and the neighboring town of Butembo have been put under curfew. “Only police officers and soldiers should be out from this time,” the governor said.

Scores of armed groups operate in mineral-rich eastern Congo, with at least 70 in North and South Kivu province alone, according to the US-based Congo Research Group.

Located near the border with Uganda, Beni and surrounding areas have witnessed a spike of violence in the past several years by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).
Many of the inmates freed from Kangwayi were captured ADF fighters on trial for violence that has killed more than 700 civilians since 2013. More than 60,000 people have been displaced due to fighting and looting.

According to the UN, the ADF has engaged in numerous violations of human rights law including recruitment of child soldiers, abduction, murder, maiming and rape.

The Muslim rebel group first emerged in western Uganda in the 1990s before becoming active in North Kivu province. ADF founder and leader, Jamil Mukulu, was arrested in Tanzania in 2015 and subsequently extradited to Uganda to face trial.
Some intelligence sources have suggested the ADF has links to Somalia’s al-Shabaab.

Third jailbreak in a month

Sunday’s jailbreak is the third to hit the DRC in the past month.

On May 19, dozens of prisoners escaped from a prison in Kasangulu, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of the capital Kinshasa.

Two days earlier, armed militia members belonging to the Bundu dia Kongo (BDK) religious-political sect freed the group’s spiritual leader and dozens of prisoners from an overcrowded Kinshasa prison. BDK seeks to restore a pre-colonial kingdom in the western part of the country, as well as parts of Angola and Gabon.

Political crisis fuels more violence

The prison breaks and rising violence come as the Congo faces a mounting political crisis after President Joseph Kabila postponed elections in November, sparking widespread protests.

Kabila should have stepped down in December under a constitutionally mandated two-term limit.

Elections are now scheduled to take place at the end of this year under a power-sharing agreement. But the opposition questions whether Kabila will yield power.
Earlier this month, Kabila hinted that he would not follow through with the deal.

“I have not promised anything at all,” Kabila told the German magazine “Der Spiegel” in an interview. “I wish to organize elections as soon as possible. We want perfect elections, not just elections.”

Source:DW

The Central Organisation of Trade Unions has offered to mediate in the deadlock between nurses on strike and their employer, which enters the seventh day today.

Acting Cotu Secretary-General Benson Okwaro said the talks will be held in Nairobi tomorrow, attended by officers from the Ministry of Labour and the nurses’ union officials.

Mr Okwaro called on the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) to stick to its advisory role and “stop meddling” with the workers’ welfare.

HOSPITAL DESERTED

The strike has paralysed health care in public hospitals across the country.

Because of the nature of their job, and their constant, close contact with patients, nurses are the backbone of any functioning health care system.

At Nakuru Level 5 Hospital yesterday, the casualties area and the waiting bay, usually busy throughout the week, were deserted. Only a few members of the support staff could be seen.

PATIENTS TURNED AWAY

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a source at the key referral hospital told the Nation that no new admissions were being allowed as there were no nurses to attend to patients in the wards.

Some patients seeking services from doctors were allowed in while the critically ill were turned away by security guards manning the gate.

The hospital acts as a referral facility for more than five counties — Laikipia, Baringo, Kericho, Nyandarua and Samburu.

At Bondeni Maternity, an extension of the hospital, services were paralysed.

All maternity wings were locked, with a security guard at the gate turning away patients seeking services.

HONOUR CBA

In Laikipia and Nyahururu, patients were turned away at key government hospitals.

The most affected included Nyahururu County Referral Hospital, which serves patients from as far away as Baringo, Samburu, Nyandarua and Laikipia.

In the western region, nurses in Kisii, Siaya, Kisumu, Homa Bay and Bomet counties planned to demonstrate on the streets today to compel governors and the Ministry of Health to implement their collective bargaining agreement, terming the Sarah Serem-led SRC as illogical.

The CBA was signed in December with government officials.

STRIKE CONTINUES

Mr Benard Cheruiyot, the Kenya National Union of Nurses (Knun) deputy secretary for Bomet branch, said they will not listen to empty rhetoric.

“We signed a CBA with Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto with all the representatives of the health workers to increase our pay by 12.5 per cent, but now, that has been shelved, leaving us wondering about who was fooling whom,” Mr Cheruiyot said.

In Kisii, nurses said they will be back in the streets today for “the mother of all protests”.

The union’s branch secretary, Mr Richard Riang’a, said they are ready “to stay away from our work stations as long as the government is not ready to cede ground and sign the CBA”.

He said: “We will forge on with the demos until we get it signed.”

RESUME WORK

At Kisii Level 5 Hospital, several patients were stranded with no nurse in sight, even though a handful of doctors and clinicians were on duty.

In Siaya, the more than 400 county-employed nurses vowed to stay away despite a return-to-work order.

The union’s branch secretary, Mr Sylvester Ng’anda, said the strike would continue as planned until the national and county governments address their grievances.

He dismissed letters from the county chief officer of health ordering the nurses back to work.

“I am the only one who can call off the strike. I want to call on all our members to stay put and disregard the directive,” Mr Ng’anda said.

ILLEGAL ACTION

On Friday, the county government, through the chief officer of Health, Ms Dorothy Owino, warned in a memo that nurses who failed to resume work would be absconding duty.

Ms Owino termed the strike illegitimate as it contravened the Employment Act and the code of regulation, both of which help in solving labour disputes.

At Baringo County Referral Hospital, patients lay in the wards unattended and only those who cleared their medical bills were discharged.

The maternity wing had two patients under the care of student nurses.

Last week, the Federation of Women Lawyers (Fida) warned of legal action against the government should it fail to end the impasse.

“Maternal and child health care is the most affected. No woman should die while giving life,” Fida Kenya chairperson Josephine Mong’are said.

Source:Daily Nation

The government has banned, for one year, importation of live swine and its products following an outbreak of Africa Swine Fever (ASF) which has hit some regions in the country.

The move is aimed at containing the spread of the disease.

So far, some regions have been hit by the disease, a move which forced the government to announce a special quarantine as a means to prevent it from spreading.

The Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Mr William Ole Nasha, told this paper in a telephone interview, yesterday, that due to the outbreak, the affected areas have been quarantined.

He named some of the affected regions as Mbeya, Rukwa, Dodoma, Dar es Salaam and Kibaha in the Coast Region.

“We have decided to take precautions to prevent further spread of the Africa Swine Fever, thus those areas identified with the disease are on quarantine as well as banning importation of live swine and its products,” said Mr Ole Nasha.

He said that much as banning importation, we have as well, prohibited, transportation of live swine and its products from the locally affected areas.

He however, pointed out that the disease is more of concern because it possesses neither vaccine nor cure; therefore the current measure is to prevent more spread.

“Upon, discovery that some of your animals have been affected, you should isolate them and disinfect the areas with V-RID to prevent contamination,” he said.

The Deputy Minister noted that veterinary officers are imparting knowledge on how the disease should be managed.

In another development, Dodoma Municipal Council has banned any business operations related to pigs and pork meat until further notice.

According to a statement issued by the Municipal Council’s Communications Officer, Mr Ramadhan Juma, such a move comes following the death of 285 pigs in Miyuji and Ipagala wards in the region.

“Pigs and all animals of the same nature will not be allowed to move from one area to anoth-er without authorisation from the Dodoma Municipal Council Director’s office,” noted Mr Juma.

He emphasized besides the animals, movement of related products will also not be allowed.

The African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) is the causative of ASF. It leads to haemorrhagic fever with high mortality rates in pigs.

ASFV is a large, double-stranded DNA virus which repli-cates in the cytoplasm of infected cells, and is the only member of the Asfarviridae family.

ASFV infects domestic pigs, warthogs and bushpigs as well as soft ticks (Ornithodoros), which likely act as a vector.

The virus causes a lethal haemorraghic disease in domestic pigs.

It is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. The disease was first discovered after European settlers brought pigs into areas endemic with ASFV.

Source:Daily News