GUINEA TO VOTE ON NEW CONSTITUTION AFTER MONTHS OF UNREST

Conakry, GUINEA

Guineans will be called to vote Sunday on whether to adopt a new constitution, after months of protests.

The government says the draft constitution will, among other things, codify gender equality and ban female circumcision and under-age marriage in the West African state.

But critics fear the real motive is to reset presidential term limits, allowing Conde, 81, to run for a third spell in office later this year.

The vote is taking place against a background of tension and violence.

Guineans have protested en-masse since mid-October, in rallies that have led to the deaths of 30 demonstrators and one gendarme, according to an AFP tally.

Guinea is an impoverished but mineral-rich nation of some 13 million people who hail from several ethnic groups, and the tensions have stoked concern of violence.

This week, the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF), gathering French-speaking states, said it had problems with 2.49 million out of the 7.7 million names on the electoral roll. - Africa

ZIMBABWE'S PRESIDENT APPEALS FOR HELP TO END COUNTRY'S 'FINANCIAL ISOLATION'

By Nyasha Chingono, Victoria Falls ZIMBABWE

The president of Zimbabwe has appealed for help in pulling his debt-ridden country out of “financial isolation”.

Emmerson Mnangagwa made his passionate call for international funding after he failed to secure new loans from the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, African Development Bank and the Paris Club due to outstanding foreign debts of $8bn (£6.2bn).

Addressing the Africa forum on sustainable development in Zimbabwe’s northern town of Victoria Falls this week he said: “Our five-year national development plans running up to 2063 will endeavour to achieve an upper middle-income status by 2030.

“The need to remain alive to the shocks of drought and the impact of climate change through the necessary social safety nets cannot be overemphasised,” he said. “We appeal for multilateral support to augment our efforts.”

His pleas come amid Zimbabwe’s worst hunger crisis in a decade, with 5.5 million people in rural areas facing starvation. Humanitarian agencies have said $200m (£155m) is needed to ensure people have food.

The country is also facing rising poverty levels and hyperinflation. Mnangagwa knows that only immediate political and economic reforms will secure fresh funding but he has stressed that change will cost money.

“It should be understood that we are undertaking the reforms without the requisite external financial support as is the norm. It is regrettable that the funding gap for the sustainable development goals in Africa remains low and weighs down on the attainment of [the] SDGs in Africa,” he said.

The forum heard that no African country is on track to achieve the 17 goals – the UN blueprint to end poverty, protect the planet and address inequalities – by the 2030 deadline.

Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Rwanda, Kenya, South Africa and Cape Verde have all made significant advances in reducing poverty, improving health, protecting the environment and reducing gender inequalities.

Amina Mohammed, UN deputy secretary general, said climate change had weakened Africa’s chances of meeting the SDGs, citing the current locust outbreak as a threat to food security.

“Major scientific and analytical reviews have made it clear that we are not on track to achieve the SDGs by 2030, and just a few weeks ago the African Union first report on the implementation of agenda 2063 demonstrated that, despite earlier progress, there is still an urgent need for enhanced action,” she told the forum.

“As we begin this exciting decade, it is vital that we recognise the progress being made in Africa on multiple fronts. Africa continues to have some of the world’s fastest-growing economies, and growth is projected to remain stable in 2020.”

She said progress had been made in “the quest for peace and security” but the number of people living in poverty had risen since 2013 and youth unemployment rates are more than twice that of adults.

“There have been considerable gains in health outcomes – with less women and children dying in childbirth or because of diseases; improvements in access to education and electricity; and a dramatic rise in internet connectivity,” she added.

Delegates were lauded for increased commitments on climate action, with most African countries having signed the Paris agreement, and 48 countries have ratified the convention.

Initiatives like the African Continental Free Trade Agreement are also expected to spur growth.

“Since no country is on track to deliver by 2030, every country must increase its ambition,” said Mohammed.

“That starts with national plans, policies, budgets and institutions that are commensurate with what it will take to deliver universal access to quality social services and an economy that provides decent jobs for all. It also requires national financing frameworks that support governments in mobilising and aligning financing from all sources.”

Paul Mpuga, economic affairs officer at the Economic Commission for Africa, said funding was a huge issue for a continent that needs $2.5tn to achieve the SDGs by 2030.

“We have the funding gap challenge because the requirements to realising sustainable development are huge,” Mpuga said. “This is going to be an uphill task. Realising [the] SDGs is not going to be easy. Most countries may not … but the potential is strong if they take action in good governance.” - The Guardian

TANZANIA: RULING PARTY SACKS FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER FOR MISCONDUCT

By Osoro Nyawangah, Dar es Salaam. TANZANIA

Tanzania’s ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has this Friday, February 28 expelled the former Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Minister and the party’s senior cadre, Bernard Membe, and stern warning to its former General Secretary, Abdulrahman Kinana.

File: Former Tanzania's Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Minister, Dr. Bernard Membe (R) shaking hands with the Chairman of ruling party (ccm) and President of Tanzania, John Magufuli (Courtesy)

The decisions were reached during the Central Committee’s meeting that among other things received and discussed a report submitted by its Ethics and Security committee.

The committee was ordered to summon and question the former Minister together with other former Secretary Generals of the party, Abdulrahman Kinana and Yusuph Makamba for an alleged misconduct indicating serious diversion from party ethics and traditions.

Reading the committee’s resolutions to journalists at the Dar es Salaam offices in the city, party’s Secretary of Ideology and Publicity, Humphrey Polepole, said the decision to strip Membe of his membership was reached after following the trend of his unethical political behaviour since 2014.

“He has been committing ethical violations since 2014 and received various warnings that intended to give him opportunity to change his behaviours something he has not. Therefore, the committee has resolved to strip off his party membership with immediate effect,” said Polepole.

He said the Central Committee has also given stern warning to Kinana shall be under close observation for the coming 18 months.

“During this period he is not allowed to vie for any position in the party, except that he is retains his right to vote,” Polepole said.

Regarding the other former Secretary General, Makamba, he said the party’s committee has collectively resolved to forgive him after displaying a high level of remorsefulness.

“During the whole investigation period, Makamba has been a gentlemen, obedient and humble to the party. Therefore, the CC has collectively resolved to forgive him,” said Polepole.

Former CCM Secretary General, Abdulrahman Kinana (L) and Membe building a water tank (Courtesy)

Membe appeared before the party’s Ethics Committee in Dodoma on February 7, where he was interrogated for five hours while Kinana and Makamba appered before the committee on February 10 this year at the CCM offices in Dar es Salaam.

He vied for presidential nominations within his party in the 2015 general election, He had shown the intention of challenging President John Magufuli in presidential nomination within CCM for this year’s general elections

Dr. Membe served as a national security analyst at the President's Office from 1978 to 1989. He thereafter attended Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C. where he studied international relations from 1990 to 1992.

In 1992, he was assigned to serve as an Advisor of the Tanzanian High Commissioner in Ottawa, Canada, where he served until 2000.

In 2000, he was elected as a CCM Member of Parliament representing Mtama constituency in the general election. He was re-elected in 2005 and 2010.

The 4^th President of Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete, appointed him as Deputy Minister of Home Affairs after the 2005 general election then appointed as Deputy Minister of Energy and Minerals following a cabinet reshuffle in October 2006.

In January 2007, Dr. Membe was appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation after his predecessor Asha-Rose Migiro was appointed as the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General by the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

He has also served as a member of the National Executive Committee of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi party since 2007; having been re-elected in 2012 at the 8th CCM Congress in Dodoma.

EU: AFRICA 'NEEDS GUNS' FOR STABILITY

The EU wants to help provide Africa with weapons to fight terrorists

By Nikolaj Nielsen, BRUSSEL Belgium

The European Union says more guns are needed in Africa to stop terrorism as part of a broader effort to create jobs and growth.

"We need guns, we need arms, we need military capacities and that is what we are going to help provide to our African friends because their security is our security," said the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

"We are not going to grow, we are not going to invest, we are not going to create jobs without stability," he said, adding solutions must be African in nature and that the EU is ready to help.

Borrell made the comments on Thursday (27 February) in Ethiopia's capital city Addis Ababa as the entire college of 22 European Commissioners meet with their African counterparts to kick start and vamp up relations.

The European Commission is set to unveil its strategy on Africa with President Ursula von der Leyen seeking input from the African Union.

Part of those talks involve security and peace, seen as one of the guiding principles between the two sides as conflict spirals out of control in places like Libya and the Sahel.

"It is of upmost importance to enable and empower the African Union and African member states to defend their home country," said Von der Leyen.

The Sahel, an African region south of the Sahara, is a large as Europe. Some 4,500 French troops were deployed in the region shortly after Libya's collapse in 2011, due, in part, to an intense bombing campaign by Nato forces.

The ensuing turmoil in Libya helped generate a massive flow of weapons to Mali, which in turn is fuelling the world's fastest-growing Islamist-led insurgency there.

Islamists linked to al-Qaida had seized control of Timbuktu in 2012, as well as other towns in northern Mali. The French moved into to stop them in early 2013.

Weapons being burnt during the official launch of the Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (DDRR) process in Muramvya, Burundi.

Borrell then seemed to complain that the EU's presence in the Sahel is limited and constrained.

"We the European Union, our missions are mainly training missions, we are not fighting missions, we are not even peace-keeping missions. We are not in the field, we are in the barracks. We are just in Mali, Niger, we are not in Burkina Faso," he said.

He noted some 70 percent of the territory of Burkina Faso is no longer in government hands, large swathes of the population displaced, and that 14,000 schools have been closed due to conflict.

He then made reference to the so-called European Peace Facility, an instrument critics say risk fuelling more instability in the region.

The facility would, for the first time ever, grant the EU the ability to supply outside 'partner' countries and regional military operations with lethal weapons and ammunition.

The whole would fall under the aegis of Borrell, who appears eager to use the new found powers.

Others say success in the region will never be achieved. Among them is the chief of staff of the French armed forces, General François Lecointre.

"We will never achieve final victory," he told French public radio in an interview late November. - Africa

WORLD PREPARES FOR CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC; GLOBAL RECESSION FORECAST

GENEVA/BEIJING

Hopes the coronavirus would be contained to China vanished on Friday as infections spread rapidly around the world, countries started stockpiling medical equipment and investors took flight in expectation of a global recession.

Share prices were on track for the worst week since the global financial crisis in 2008 as virus-related disruptions to international travel and supply chains fueled fears of recession in the United States and the Euro zone.

The U.S. stock market fell into correction territory with the benchmark S&P 500 index down more than 4% on Thursday, extending a market rout that has now sliced more than 10% off of its closing peak on Feb. 19. Asian stocks on Friday tracked Wall Street’s plunge.

“The coronavirus now looks like a pandemic. Markets can cope even if there is big risk as long as we can see the end of the tunnel,” said Norihiro Fujito, chief investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.

“But at the moment, no one can tell how long this will last and how severe it will get.”

Mainland China - where the virus originated late last year - reported 327 new cases on Friday, the lowest since Jan. 23.

But with new infections reported around the world now surpassing those in China, World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said nations should prepare.

“This virus has pandemic potential,” Tedros said. “This is not a time for fear. This is a time for taking action to prevent infection and save lives now.”

A Reuters tally showed about 10 countries reported their first virus cases in past 24 hours, including Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa and the first case in sub-Saharan Africa.

U.S. investment bank BofA cut its world growth forecast to the lowest level since the peak of the financial crisis, and ratings agency Moody’s said a coronavirus pandemic would trigger global and U.S. recessions in the first half of the year.

In addition to stockpiling medical supplies, governments ordered schools shut and canceled big gatherings, including sports events, to try to halt the spread of the flu-like disease known as COVID-19.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration was considering invoking special powers to rapidly expand U.S. production of protective gear, two officials told Reuters.

In Europe, France’s number of reported cases doubled, Germany warned of an impending epidemic and Greece, a gateway for refugees from the Middle East, announced tighter border controls.

“We have a crisis before us. An epidemic is on its way,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.

The death toll in Italy, Europe’s worst-hit country, rose to 17 on Thursday and the number of people who tested positive for the illness increased by more than 200 to 650. Germany has about 27 cases, France around 18 and Spain 15.

Tedros told reporters in Geneva that Iran, Italy and South Korea were at a “decisive point” in their efforts to prevent a wider outbreak.

South Korea, which has the most cases outside China, reported 256 new infections on Friday, bringing the total number of infected in the country to 2,022.

Korean Air Lines Co Ltd said will check temperatures of passengers traveling to the United States and would not allow anyone with a temperature higher than 37.5 Celsius (99.5 Fahrenheit) to fly. One of its flight attendant who worked on Seoul-Los Angeles flights has tested positive.

The country’s top airline said it also planned to expand these procedures to other routes.

There is particular concern over a case in Japan in which a woman tested positive for the virus for a second time. Second positive tests have also been reported in China and could imply contracting the disease does not confer immunity.

Scientists warned that much remains unknown about the virus, including how long it can survive on surfaces.

Hong Kong quarantined a pet dog of a coronavirus patient after it showed “weak positive” results for the virus, even though it did not have any symptoms. Further tests would be conducted to confirm if the dog had been infected.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)director Robert Redfield said the agency was evaluating how long coronavirus could be infectious on surfaces.

“On copper and steel its pretty typical, it’s pretty much about 2 hours,” Redfield told a House of Representatives hearing. “But I will say on other surfaces - cardboard or plastic - it’s longer, and so we are looking at this.”

He said infections contracted from surfaces rather than through the air could have contributed to the outbreak on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan, where about 700 passengers and crew caught the disease.

Japan is scheduled to host the 2020 Olympics in July but the head of the WHO’s emergency program, Dr. Mike Ryan, said discussions were being held with organizers about whether it should go ahead.

The coronavirus has played havoc with global aviation and tourism as airlines cancel flights, countries ban visitors from hot spots and nervous passengers put off travel.

California-based Facebook Inc said it would cancel its annual developer conference and Microsoft Corp followed suit by withdrawing from a gaming conference scheduled for next month.

The WHO’s Ryan said Iran’s outbreak may be worse than realized. It has suffered the highest death toll outside China, with 26 dead from 245 reported cases.

U.S. intelligence agencies are monitoring the spread of coronavirus, including in Iran and India, sources familiar with the matter said.

The virus has so far mainly battered China, causing nearly 80,000 infections and almost 2,800 deaths, according official Chinese figures. It has spread to another 46 countries, where about 3,700 cases and 57 deaths have been reported, according to the WHO.

There is no cure for the coronavirus, which can lead to pneumonia, and a vaccine may take up to 18 months to develop. - Reuters

S. SUDAN: DISAGREEMENT EMERGES OVER SELECTION OF MINISTERIAL PORTFOLIOS

JUBA, South Sudan

South Sudan President Salva Kiir's group and the main opposition SPLM-IO have disagreed on how to divide up the ministries for the new power-sharing government.

According to the peace deal, the unity government will have 35 ministries split up between the group of Salva Kiir, the SPLM-IO of Riek Machar, the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), the SPLM-FDs, and other political parties.

Kiir's side will take 20 ministries, while Machar's group will take nine ministries. The SSOA will take three ministries, the SPLM-FDs will be given two ministries and other political parties will get one ministry.

The South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) and the Other Political Parties (OPP) said they had chosen their ministerial portfolios in a meeting held in Juba.

In an interview with our reporter this afternoon, SPLM-IO Deputy Spokesman Manawa Peter said they disagreed in a meeting as Kiir's side wants to retain key ministries in the coalition government.

Manawa says that the previous government's insistence to retain key ministries is hampering direct negotiations. "Our negotiations with the government since yesterday reached a deadlock because they want to retain key ministries,” Manawa said.

“Kiir's side wants to retain finance, petroleum, defence and interior. The government wants to allocate ministerial portfolios to the other parties in order to control the ministries it wants,” he added.

The main opposition criticized the previous government for giving some ministerial portfolios to the parties without consultations.

“We are aware that the government has already allocated some ministries to the other parties without consultations with us. The move is against the peace agreement and we don’t recognize the process that took place. The key ministries must be split up between the parties to the peace agreement equally so that we can achieve reforms,” he said.

He added,” We have another meeting later today to discuss the same issue. So, if we fail to agree on the matter, we will follow what the peace agreement says.”

SPLM officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

The peace deal explains that each party to the peace agreement will nominate a minister on a rotational basis if the parties fail to agree on the allocation of ministerial portfolios. It means the government chooses the first ministry that it wants, followed by the SPLM-IO which chooses next, then the opposition alliance, and so on. - Africa

HOW KENYAN POLICE GET AWAY WITH MURDERS – REPORT

File photo of GSU Officers beat up one of the protesting youths at Kondele in Kisumu. 

By Sigomba Ramadhani, Nairobi KENYA

At least one person is killed in cold blood every two days in Kenya’s city of Nairobi, a rights lobby has revealed in a damning report.

Released last week, the Human Rights Watch’s report documented eight extrajudicial killings in three weeks between December 25, 2019 and January 17, 2020.

Five of the cases were in the crime-ridden Majengo slums.

The report titled No letup in killings by Nairobi Police, reveals how police officers cover their tracks after shooting civilians at will – walking away with slaps on their wrists.

In one of the cases reported on January 16, two police officers on patrol killed 24-year-old Ahmed Majid at Majengo.

Majid was shot as he protested the arrest of his friend Yassin Athuman, 20, who was being dragged on the ground by the charged officers.

HRW said a witness told them the officers attempted to plant marijuana on a defiant Yassin who declined to part away with a bribe.

Protests over Majid’s killings ensued the following day and police responded with excessive force that saw four other people killed.

“Police used a lot of force to suppress the demonstrations. They were using live bullets, in most cases just shooting inside people’s houses or aiming at people who were not part of the demonstrations,” the report reads.

The officer who allegedly pumped the killer bullet into Majid’s body was arrested.

Some 7.9 kilometres from Majengo in Mathare, two other extrajudicial victims were clawed from Good Samaritan Children’s Home on Christmas Day and executed at Amana Petrol station terminus in Mathare.

Peter Irungu, 19 and Brian Mung’aru, 20 were shot dead by plain clothed officers, HRW notes, adding that witnesses said the duo was pleading with the officers before they were killed.

The rights watchdog reports that police profiled them as robbers but gave conflicting accounts of the killings.

“The Pangani Police Station record says the two were killed in a violent robbery incident in Mathare, but three days after the killings, the Nairobi county police commander described the incident as ‘a shootout between police officers and three thugs’” reads the report.

At least 10 people were injured in the demonstrations over the murders.

“Anti-riot police violently suppressed a protest over the young men’s killings, using live ammunition, tear gas, and beatings. They blocked media outlets from accessing Mathare to cover the demonstrations,” a witness told WRW.

Another victim was a 19-year-old transport worker, Stephen Machurusi, who was killed on January 17 during protests over poor road in Kasarani.

A witness said he was shot at close range by a police officer. 

“He was unaware of the protests. He told the police that was on his way to work but one officer just shot him in the chest”.

In the said cases, the report notes that police used tricks like tampering with the scenes to cripple investigations.

It says they deliberately failed to file a preliminary report on the killings or initiated the process of an inquest as stipulated by the Police Service Act.

The Act requires police officers who use lethal fire to explain the circumstances that necessitated the use of such force.

Police are only allowed to use excessive force when it is unavoidable to protect human life as guided by the National Police Service Act of 2011.

“Police officers also are required to report for investigation any use of force that leads to death or serious injury to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA),” the report explains.  

The report further notes that the police did not allow the victims and their family members to file reports over the incidents.

HRW also notes that police collected and hid bullets casings before investigators arrived at the crime scenes. 

The rights agency says that IPOA only launched investigations into the Mathare killings and Majid’s while other cases are not being investigated.

Since IPOA’s inception in 2011, the oversight agency has only convicted six of the over 2000 cases in its desk.

HRW opines that police do not cooperate with IPOA in identifying rogue officers.

The World Internal Security and Police Index (WISPI) have ranked Kenya Police 125 out of 127, making them the 3rd worst police force in the world with Nigeria being the worstest.  - The Standard

WRESTLERS FIGHT FOR PEACE IN RAVAGED SOUTH SUDAN

South Sudan's traditional wrestler Alijok Nhial (R) from Yirol reaches out to Majolot Mayom Macher from Terekeka as they compete in a peace match during national championships in Juba, South Sudan February 1, 2020. 

JUBA, South Sudan

South Sudanese wrestler Kur Bol Jok strode into the arena, his chest - smeared with ashes and dust - puffed out as he faced his opponent, bracing for the fight.

Wrestling is a hugely popular sport in the world’s youngest nation which has been devastated by five years of civil war. Athletes say it is one of the few outlets where ethnic groups who have fought each other can engage in friendly competition.

“Wrestling brings peace as different people come from different places to meet and create friendship,” Jok told Reuters before the match, a white plastic crucifix around his neck. “Winning brings joy and losing is normal because it is not a real fight.”

Matches draw huge crowds across the country and carried on sporadically during the conflict.

Some wrestlers, from pastoral communities where cows play a critical role in livelihoods and culture, smear their faces and chests with white ash from fires of cow dung. Bright animal print cloth, slashed into ribbons, dangles over their shorts.

Jok, dressed for combat in leopard-print, strained as he grappled with opponent Mar Jalot before flipping him over in the red dust and putting his hand on Jalot’s chest to signify victory. There’s no hard feelings.

“We came here for peace with all the tribes gathered to witness the game,” said Jalot, whose outfit was decorated with cow-print cloth.

The carnival atmosphere, where wrestlers break out in dances to celebrate victories and women chant the names of the victorious athletes, is a welcome respite from the hardships of daily life.

Conflict and corruption have destroyed the oil-producing East African nation. It won independence from neighbouring Sudan in 2011 after decades of scorched-earth warfare.

Then civil war broke out two years later, killing an estimated 400,000 people before the warring sides signed a peace deal in 2018. On Saturday, the president and former rebel leader formed a long-delayed unity government.

The civil war forced a third of the population to flee their homes; many have not returned. Last year’s unusually heavy rains brought widespread flooding, and the currency fell off a cliff during the war. More than 5 million people need food aid, according to the United Nations.

Sports is one of the few distractions: in a nation with few roads, little electricity and where most schools don’t function. Most importantly, it unites young people divided by war, said wrestling coordinator Limor Joseph.

“It is ... the games that brings them together,” he said. - Reuters