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Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Opposition wants autonomous Zanzibar

By Our Correspondent, PEMBA Tanzania

Zanzibar presidential candidate for opposition ACT-Wazalendo party, Seif Sharif Hamad, yesterday reiterated the need for the Isles to be a full autonomy government with a seat at the United Nations Assembly, build its own economy and respect the people’s humanity.

Zanzibar presidential candidate for opposition ACT-Wazalendo party, Seif Sharif Hamad

As Zanzibar prepares to vote in general elections this October, one of the burning issues on the archipelago of Zanzibar is the status of it union with the mainland.

The two sovereign states of Tanganyika and Zanzibar came together in the wake of independence from British colonial rule. The 1964 union has allowed Zanzibar to remain semi-autonomous with its own president, the main opposition party is calling for more autonomy and more economic freedoms.

Addressing a campaign rally in his Pemba stronghold at Kiwani, the opposition chief said his party has three strong agendas for the Zanzibar citizens namely; to ensure full autonomy government, to boost Zanzibar economic for the welfare of all citizens and ensure provision of international standard social services.

Members of ACT-Wazalendo

“Our government will ensure Zanzibar acquire a seat at the United Nations and have full autonomy government, have international standard for social services like health and education.” He stressed adding that struggle for those to be achieved needs perseverance, commitment and determination. 

He said to date Zanzibar has had no authority over the country to an extent that even the police force is selected from Tanzania Mainland.

He stressed that in such a scenario Zanzibar needs to have its own police and army force instead of continuing to rely on Tanzania Mainland who do not adhere to the law.

He noted that it was discouraging that the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) was established and headquartered in Tanzania Mainland with only a branch in Zanzibar.

“Since its inception we have never had a governor from Zanzibar. Does this mean we don’t have the capacity to run the institution?” he queried at a fully packed crowd.

Further he noted that the Tanzania mainland was expanding its Ports to other parts of the region including Tanga while the Isles had none stressing that such a situation warranted change that will ensure Zanzibari’s make own decision over the country.

In another development, he assured all public servants that threat they had been receiving warning them they would be sacked if they voted for the opposition was not true.

“I assure you there is no technology that can detect what any person has put on the ballot box, vote for me and any government official who sacks a person for doing that will face the law while paying the salaries of those they sacked,” he said.

Earlier ACT-Wazalendo Deputy Secretary General Nasoro Ahmed called on Zanzibar Electoral Commission to work towards protecting the people to ensure nobody interferes with the elections on October 28, this year.

This is following threats that those who will vote for the opposition especially public servants might lose their jobs.

Zanzibar has a long history of controversial, closely fought, violent elections. The Zanzibar Electoral Commission (ZEC) has played a critical role in sustaining the CCM, the ruling party in both Zanzibar and on the mainland, in power.

This time around, the opposition has vowed to protect their victory by all means.

The controversy has renewed the debate over the extent to which the Zanzibar government and the Zanzibar faction of the CCM are autonomous from the Union Government in Dodoma.

The original 1964 constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania granted almost complete autonomy to the archipelago, which was heavily overrepresented in the Union Parliament, but the revised 1977 constitution increased the authority of the Union, enabling national armed forces to be deployed on the islands and reducing the autonomy of the Central Bank of Zanzibar.

Zanzibar politicians, nevertheless, still play an important role in the internal affairs of the ruling party.

French court approves genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga trial in Tanzania

PARIS, France

France's top appeals court ruled Wednesday that alleged Rwandan genocide financier Felicien Kabuga should be transferred to a UN tribunal in Tanzania to stand trial on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Kabuga, arrested near Paris in May after 25 years on the run, had asked to face justice in France. But the Court of Cassation ruled there was no legal or medical obstacle to executing an international warrant for Kabuga's transfer to the Arusha-based tribunal.

He will be tried for his alleged role in the 1994 Rwanda genocide of some 800,000 people by Hutu extremists targeting minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

Once one of Rwanda's richest men, Kabuga is alleged to have funnelled money to militia groups as chairman of the national defence fund.

He is also accused of setting up the Interahamwe militia that carried out massacres as well as the Radio-Television Libre des Mille Collines whose broadcasts incited people to murder.

In June, a French court ruled Kabuga should stand trial at the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) based in Arusha, Tanzania. The MICT took over the duties of the UN's International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) when it formally closed in 2015.

Kabuga's lawyers appealed that decision, citing their client's frail health and fears the UN tribunal would be biased.

At a hearing before the Cour de Cassation, France's highest appeals court for criminal cases, Kabuga's lawyer Louis Bore also claimed his client would not receive proper medical treatment in Tanzania for conditions including diabetes, high blood pressure and leukoaraiosis -- an incurable illness that erodes physical and cognitive abilities.

But the judges disagreed, and France now has one month to hand Kabuga, who says he is 87, over to the MICT.

Secrets of the Kenya-Cuba doctors deal

By Verah Okeyo, NAIROBI Kenya

When in early July Kenya Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said 20 Cuban doctors from the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade had been deployed to Kenya to help the country cope with the Covid-19 pandemic, he did not give the finer details. 

The doctors, after arriving at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport with minimal fanfare, joined the other set of 100 Cuban doctors who have been working in Kenya for the past two years.

Ever since the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade was constituted by late President Fidel Castro in 2005 to deal with emergencies and serious epidemics, it has sent thousands of its members abroad as part of its medical diplomacy – or what is known as “white coat army”.

While the arrival of the new Cuban doctors once again raised questions about the impact of their 100 plus compatriots, their terms were shrouded in secrecy.

Members of the more than 7,400 volunteer Cuban health professionals, seen as a positive aspect of the 1959 leftist revolution, are trained in medicine and infectious disease containment and have been deployed to more than 27 countries, including Kenya.

And now, the Nation has followed a trail of documents, emails and text messages, and can make public for the first time, details of the bilateral agreement.

The deal that was signed between Kenya and Cuba commits Kenyans to paying an estimated Sh1 million every month for each of the 100 Cuban doctors. This is equivalent to the pay of five Kenyan medical officers.

Cuba uses its doctors as a source of hard currency and the Kenyan agreement is no exception.

At the time of signing the agreement in October 2018, then-Health CS Sicily Kariuki refused to make public the details of the agreement even though the importation of doctors was being paid for by Kenyan taxpayers.

“This is a bilateral agreement between the Government of Kenya and Cuba that cannot be wholly shared with the public,” she told this reporter.

However, the Nation was able to get a copy of the agreement, which shows that the government committed to paying each of the doctors a monthly stipend of USD1,000 (Sh107,000 at current exchange rates) while an extra USD4,000 goes to the Cuban government for each of the doctors. This was equivalent to Sh396,000 as at June 2018 when the contract commenced.

The amount at the current exchange rate is Sh428,000. The money is paid into the Cuban government-held bank account at the Banco Financiero Internacional S.A, Havana. Deposits are made in euros based on the exchange rate at the time of payment.

The additional 20 doctors, who arrived in July to offer clinical support against Covid-19 pandemic, will be paid as their local counterparts, said CS Kagwe.

Under this agreement, the government is responsible for providing accommodation, furniture, kitchen appliances, kitchen utensils, electricity, water and cooking gas for each of the doctors. These costs are borne by the county governments where the doctors are deployed.

Dr Andrew Mulwa, the chair of counties’ health executive caucus and health executive in Makueni, explained that the county governments provide the Cuban doctors with furnished apartments because they do not get house and commuter allowances. 

“We give them furnished apartments and facilities such as cookers, electricity, washing machines, water and internet access, but we do not run their households, and they will leave everything when their contracts end,” said Dr Mulwa.

In Kenya, entry-level doctors get, among other allowances, Sh6,000 for commuter allowance and Sh15,000 as house allowance. In July, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission also published its revised salary guidelines for health workers in devolved units.

The money paid for the 100 Cuban doctors in Kenya is at least Sh830,000, not counting the cost of living expenses. Keeping one Cuban doctor in Kenya, therefore, costs close to Sh1 million, which translates to Sh1.2 billion for the 100 of them, for a year. This amounts to Sh2.4 billion since 2018 when the doctors landed in Kenya.

Under the contract signed on March 20, 2018 between Ms Kariuki and the Cuban Minister for Public Health, Dr Roberto Thimas Morales Ojeda, the government is required to provide the doctors with newspapers and internet — as well as the costs of their attendance at scientific events to encourage their “professional development”.

While the government also committed to offering security to doctors deployed in insecure areas, two of the doctors sent to Mandera — Assel Herera Correa and Landy Rodriguez — were kidnapped in April last year by suspected al-Shabaab militia who demanded a $1.5 million (Sh150 million) ransom.

The kidnapping led to the withdrawal of Cuban doctors deployed to counties bordering Somalia such as Wajir, Garissa, Tana River, Lamu, Isiolo and Taita-Taveta.

In other counties, the doctors have opted to commute from the urban centre nearest to the hospital where they work. For instance, doctors assigned to Msambweni hospital in Kwale commute daily from Ukunda and have had their security enhanced.

While healthcare workers, including specialist doctors, who work under county governments do not have health insurance, the Cuban doctors are provided with a “comprehensive” medical cover under the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF).

The head of registration and compliance, Mr Robert Otom, said the Cuban doctors are insured under the Public Service Commission, and enjoy a comprehensive medical insurance cover. The monthly premium for civil servants in Job Group S is Sh200,000, which is what the government is paying for each of the doctors.

The insurance cover provides the doctors’ access to more than 50 services broadly categorised as inpatient, outpatient and laboratory services, including medical evacuation if required.

Outpatient costs are unlimited, with a minimum threshold set at Sh100,000, while Sh300,000 is the minimum threshold set for in-patient costs. The dental and optical cover is capped at Sh50,000 and Sh40,000 respectively.

Health insurance has been a source of contention and frequent industrial strikes, the most recent being this August when health workers went on strike over delayed salaries, inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for handling Covid-19 patients and lack of medical insurance.

The NHIF claimed only 15 of the county governments provided comprehensive medical insurance cover for their medics.

Doctors—human and veterinary—are the only county officers that are not insured; they constitute two-thirds of the workers deployed to the county governments after these services were devolved.

The government also pays for the Cubans’ professional indemnity — the insurance cover taken by doctors to take care of legal fees and penalties that may arise from medical malpractice claims filed against them.

Dr Were Onyino, the chair of Kenya Medical Association (KMA), said this is a legal requirement for any doctor who wants to practise in Kenya. Dr Onyino said Kenyan doctors, including those working in public hospitals, have to pay for this insurance and receive no subsidy from the government.

The Nation could not ascertain how much the government pays for the indemnity, but the rates from Britam, one of the insurance companies that offer this cover, offers an insight on the minimum and maximum that Kenya pays.

Britam has three levels of insurance cover for doctors including non-members of the Kenya Medical Association, the national association of doctors and dentists which seeks to promote the quality practice of medicine in Kenya.

Group A category is for specialists such as surgeons, gynaecologists, anaesthetists, urologists and oncologists. There are 47 specialist doctors from Cuba who fall in this category. The monthly premium for non-KMA registered doctors ranges between Sh14,605 for the minimum insurance cover of Sh1 million and up to Sh95,468 a month for specialists who take the maximum indemnity cover of Sh60 million.

Paediatricians, dentists, pathologists, radiologists and endocrinologists (specialists in glands and hormones) are grouped in Category B and monthly premium payments range from Sh8,277 for Sh1 million indemnity cover to Sh83,414 for the highest cover of Sh60 million. Out of the 100 Cuban doctors, four are radiologists. The 47 general physicians and two dermatologists from Cuba fall in the low-risk category C.

Professional indemnity insurance cover ranges between Sh1 million and Sh60 million and monthly premiums range between Sh7,473 and Sh68,346 respectively.

Apart from medical insurance and housing, the government is also paying for air tickets back home for holidays or a one-way ticket home in case of disciplinary action against any of the doctors.

Kenya agreed that the doctors would only work 40 hours a week, from Monday to Friday (a maximum of eight hours a day) and one 24-hour shift a week. Any doctor who works during days designated as public holidays in Kenya and Cuba is compensated with an equivalent number of days off.

In return, Cuba provided Kenya with documents to certify the qualifications of their doctors and assured the government of an “obedient” workforce.

Egypt to hang 6 Muslim Brotherhood for killing policemen

CAIRO, Egypt

An Egyptian criminal court on Wednesday sentenced six people allegedly belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group to death for the 2016 killing of two policemen, a judicial source said.

The court also handed down sentences of up to 10 years in jail to seven others in the case, in which two policemen were killed in the northern province of Sharqiya and their guns stolen.

Five of those sentenced to death were tried in absentia while one appeared in court in Zagazig, the capital of Sharqiya.

The prosecution alleged that all 13 belonged to a Muslim Brotherhood cell in the province, located near Cairo.

Charges against the defendants included murder, joining a terror group, attempting to overthrow the government and fomenting chaos.

Authorities in Egypt outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist political movement, after the 2013 military overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi, who hailed from the organization.

Under the rule of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, hundreds of suspected Islamists have been convicted in mass trials that rights groups have slammed as unfair, with dozens executed in recent years.

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Global Covid-19 death toll passes one million

Baltimore, USA

The number of people worldwide who have died with Covid-19 has passed one million, researchers say, with many regions still reporting surging numbers of new infections.

The tally by Johns Hopkins University shows that deaths in the US, Brazil and India make up nearly half that total.

Experts caution that the true figure is probably much higher.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres called it a "mind-numbing" figure and "an agonising milestone".

"Yet we must never lose sight of each and every individual life," he said in a video message.

"They were fathers and mothers, wives and husbands, brothers and sisters, friends and colleagues. The pain has been multiplied by the savageness of this disease."

The development comes nearly 10 months after news of the coronavirus began to emerge from Wuhan, China.

The pandemic has since spread to 188 countries with more than 32 million confirmed cases. Lockdowns and other measures to try to stop the virus spreading have thrown many economies into recession.

Meanwhile, efforts to develop an effective vaccine are continuing - although the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the death toll could hit two million before one is widely available.

The US has the world's highest death toll with about 205,000 fatalities followed by Brazil on 141,700 and India with 95,500 deaths.

The US has recorded more than seven million cases - more than a fifth of the world's total. After the second wave of cases in July, numbers dropped in August but appear to be on the rise again now.

The coronavirus has been spreading fast in India, with the country recording about 90,000 cases a day earlier in September.

Confirmed infections in India have reached six million - the second-highest after the US. However, given the size of its population, India has seen a relatively low death rate.

Brazil has the highest number of deaths in Latin America and has recorded more than 4.7 million cases, the third-highest in the world.

Elsewhere in the region, newly confirmed infections are also rising quickly in Argentina, which now has more than 700,000 cases.

Because of differences in how countries record cases and deaths - and the sporadic rates of testing in some regions - the true numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths is believed to be higher than reported, experts say.

Kenya borrowed Sh1.7 million per minute last year - Report

NAIROBI, Kenya

Kenya borrowed an average of Sh2.43 billion every day last year and paid commitment fees on loans yet to be disbursed or planned for, pushing total debt to Sh6.69 trillion as at June 30.

This means President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government has multiplied public debt almost four times since it came to power in 2013 when the country’s total public debt was only at Sh1.6 trillion.

The office of the Controller of Budget made this revelation in the National Budget Implementation Review Report dated August was seen by the Star.

According to the COB, Treasury grossly violated the debt management procedures to pile unnecessary debts that will see taxpayers pay dearly.

The Margaret Nyakang'o's office said project planning and approval should precede sourcing for funds. It added that borrowing can only be done when a programme or activity is already scheduled to commence.

"Review of the external debt payments shows instances where the government continued to pay regular loan commitment and management fees for loans that were yet to be disbursed long after the execution of loan agreements,’’ the report notes.

"Continued payment of obligations on undisbursed loans is not prudent and does not meet any value for money considerations".

Disaggregation by external and internal debt reveals that the former grew by Sh492.67 billion while the latter grew by Sh393.1 billion.

Even so, despite the growth in the total loan portfolio, there was a decline in repayment compared to 2018-19 when two commercial loans amounting to Sh179.3 billion became due.

The actual expenditure of public debt amounted to Sh717.65 billion during the year under review, representing 92.1 per cent of the revised gross estimates and 45.6 per cent of the ordinary revenue for the year.

The revised allocation towards repayment of public debt in 2019-20 amounted to Sh778.85 billion representing a decline of 8.2 per cent from Sh848.3 billion allocated in the previous financial year.

This allocation comprised of Sh532.5 billion and Sh253.35 billion for internal and external debt respectively.

The internal debt comprised Sh301.81 billion for interest payment and Sh223.68 billion for redemptions. On the other hand, external debt comprised of Sh131.87 billion towards payment of interest and Sh121.48 billion for redemption.

This is not the first time Treasury has been called out for its debt accumulation.

In 2018, the International Monetary Fund chided the government, saying the structure and volume of the country’s debt have important implications for debt management.

IMF said that although private debt has been a small proportion of total external debt, debt service payments on this debt have been almost as high as those on official debt. Moreover, the terms of payment have become increasingly hard, suggesting that debt service payments will rise in the future.

"On the basis of these observations, Kenya’s debt management should concentrate on removing the possible debt overhang by reducing the debt burden through market-based instruments, available restructuring schemes and appeals for write-offs," IMF said in 2018.

The findings by the budget office put to question rosy debt management policies published by the exchequer annually even as the country continues to wallow in debts that have since hit 64 per cent of Gross Domestic Product.

In the pursuit of reducing vulnerabilities to risks of public debt, the National Treasury formulated a debt policy in November last year that was to see the formation of two bodies to oversee international and local borrowing.

It was to delegate operational decisions on borrowing and debt management to the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO), which has since been created. It was also supposed to set up a Government Securities Auction Committee (GSAC) to review and approve auction results.

Yet the country’s annual borrowing spree is expected to cross the trillion-shilling line this financial year, with over Sh400 billion borrowed in six months since March to absorb coronavirus shocks.

In mid-May, the country received Sh106 billion from the World Bank, a week after the IMF disbursed a Sh79 billion facility to help Kenya fight the effects of Covid-19.

This is likely to push the country’s stock of debt to Sh7.7 trillion by end of June next year, only Sh1.3 shy of the Sh9.1 trillion limit set last year.

 Treasury expects to borrow from both local and foreign investors had initially been estimated at Sh898 billion. The projected fiscal deficit, or budget hole, excludes grants from donors.

But in the draft Budget Review and Outlook Paper (BROP), this has been revised upwards due to the poor business environment that saw Kenya Revenue Authority collect less tax last year. 

The country's budget deficit is expected to rise to 8.9 per cent in 2020-21, which is higher than the eight per cent registered last year, further narrowing the country's borrowing limit. 

The poor debt management and high accumulation continue to expose the country to default, with major international agencies downgrading its creditworthiness.

In May, the IMF raised Kenya’s risk of debt distress to high from moderate due to the impact of the coronavirus crisis. - The Star

Thursday, September 24, 2020

IMF endorses Sudan’s reform plan for battered economy

GENEVA, Switzerland

The International Monetary Fund has signed off on Sudan’s economic reform program, a move that can eventually allow the highly-indebted African country to get debt relief and move ahead with rebuilding its battered economy as it transitions to democratic rule.


Until the end of June 2021, IMF staff will be monitoring the implementation of a “home-grown” economic restructuring program that aims at “stabilizing the economy, removing distortions, improving competitiveness, and strengthening governance,” according to an IMF statement released Wednesday.

Sudan has been ruled by a transitional military-civilian government following last year’s pro-democracy uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir. Elections could possibly be held in late 2022. The current prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, is a former economist with the United Nations.

Battered by decades of U.S. sanctions and mismanagement under al-Bashir, Sudan suffers from high inflation, a huge budget deficit and widespread shortages of essential goods, including fuel, bread and medicine. The country has close to $60 billion in foreign debt, meaning debt relief and access to foreign loans are widely seen as the country’s gateway to economic recovery.

"A key element to the success of the program is sufficient donor funding to support the population through the difficult transition to a well-functioning market-based economy,” said Antoinette Sayeh, IMF Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair.

Earlier this year, Sudan requested the IMF endorse an economic plan that envisages several fiscal adjustments, including further eliminating fuel subsidies and broadening the tax base, the IMF statement added. The IMF’s backing is required for eventual debt relief by official creditors.

"Sudan’s external debt is high and with longstanding arrears which severely limit access to external borrowing,” said Sayeh. “A strong track record of macroeconomic performance and implementation of reforms, together with a comprehensive strategy of arrears clearance and debt relief supported by Sudan’s development partners, is required for addressing Sudan’s high debt overhang.”

In June, the IMF announced an initial agreement was reached with Sudanese authorities on a reform deal. At the time, an IMF official said Sudan’s debt had reached over 190% of its GDP in 2019.

Inflation reached 167% in August, and authorities declared an economic emergency on Sept. 10 following a dramatic plunge in the value of the national currency. The Sudanese pound went from 183 pounds to the dollar on the black market in August down to around 250 pounds to the dollar earlier this month, despite its official rate of 57 pounds to $1.

The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the economic despair, throwing millions of laborers out of work.

Flashfloods have also struck much of Sudan since late July, killing more than 100 people and inundating over 100,000 homes. Authorities declared the country a natural disaster area earlier this month and imposed a three-month state of emergency.

Saturday, September 19, 2020

Tanzania and Burundi to construct a joint nickel plant

KIGOMA, Tanzania

Tanzania and Burundi are in talks over the construction of a joint nickel processing plant, Tanzania's President John Magufuli said on Saturday.

Magufuli revealed the deal shortly after he had introduced visiting Burundi's President Evariste Ndayishimiye to a public rally at Lake Tanganyika stadium in Kigoma region.

"Today we will hold talks with the Burundian leader to see how we can speed up the construction of the joint nickel processing plant," Magufuli told the rally.

"Tanzania and Burundi are producers of nickel that is exported unprocessed," he said.

Magufuli said the one-day working visit by Ndayishimiye was aimed at strengthening investment and trade relations between the two east African countries.

Magufuli said the Tanzania Investment Center has registered Burundian investments worth about 29.42 million dollars with 544 employment opportunities, adding that more than 10 Tanzanian companies have invested in Burundi.

For his part, Burundi's President Ndayishimiye commended President Magufuli for transforming Tanzania within a short period of time, saying the transformation was a lesson to his country.

"My visit will help Burundi to learn Tanzania's experience towards the transformation process," said the Burundian leader. 

Uganda registers highest daily increase of new COVID-19 cases

KAMPALA, Uganda

Uganda’s Ministry of Health on Saturday recorded 423 new cases of COVID-19, the highest daily increase since the outbreak, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 6,017.

Out of the 2,320 samples collected over the past 24 hours, 411 contacts and alerts cases, 12 returnees from Saudi Arabia, India and Jordan tested positive for the novel coronavirus, said a ministry in a statement.

Out of the 411 contacts and alerts that tested positive for COVID-19, 166 are prison inmates under quarantine in Moroto,it said.

Out of the 306 samples collected from cargo truck drivers, none of the foreign cross-border truck drivers tested positive for COVID-19 at Uganda’s common border point of entry, it said.

Two new COVID-19 deaths were reported in the capital, Kampala and central district of Mpigi, bringing the death toll to 63 in the east African country.

So far, Uganda has recorded 2,581 recoveries since the index case was reported on March 21, according to the ministry.

UN Tribunal Rejects Laurent Semanza’s Early Release

The United Nations Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) has rejected an appeal case of a Rwandan genocide, Semanza-Laurent who had requested the court to consider his provisional release.


Semanza, former bourgmestre of Commune Bicumbi, now Rwamagana district is accused of committing genocide against Tutsi in 1994 with 14 counts and was sentenced in Benin to 34 years and six months imprisonment affirmed on appeal on 20 May 2005.

Semanza was accused of organizing, directing, and personally participating in attacks, which included killings, serious bodily or mental harm, and sexual violence at four locations in Bicumbi and Gikoro communes during the month of April 1994.

The suspect, now 76 years is currently serving his sentence in Benin and due to Coronavirus in the country, he had in March 2020 submitted an appeal to be released on grounds that his life was in danger due to his age and life in prison.

After assessing the request, IRMCT Court President, Judge Camel Agius stated this weekend that there was no strong ground to grant the request based on the gravity crimes that the suspect was convicted of.

“The convict (Semanza) cannot be released until he completes his sentence and in my opinion his appeal is not convincing to take this decision, since there is not enough proof to base on his claims,” Agius said.

The judge said that in Semanza’s appeal, he had also not shown a tendency to regret committing the crimes he was sentenced for and basing on the request of the Rwandan government, he had to serve a full sentence as it is.

With this standing decision of which Judge Agius requested the court clerk to inform the government of Rwanda of, it means that Semanza, who has already served more than 22 years, will have to remain in jail.

The decision is contrary to those taken during the reign of Judge Theodor Meron who released indicted and arrested genocide suspect at the IRMCT without completing almost two-thirds of their sentences.

Out of a total of 96 Rwandan individuals indicted by the former International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)-now IRMCT, 61 have been convicted, 31 of whom are currently serving sentences while 22 of whom have completed their sentences. Another eight convicts died while serving their sentences.

Another 14 people were acquitted. The court also transferred the cases of 10 individuals to national jurisdictions.

Africa's COVID-19 cases surpass 1.39 mln as death toll passes 33,626

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases in Africa has reached 1,390,560 as of Saturday, the Africa CDC said.


Thecontinental disease control and prevention agency said in a statement that the death toll due to illnesses related to COVID-19 in Africa has reached 33,626 as of Saturday.

TheAfrica CDC said the number of people who recovered from the virus across the continent reached 1,140,980 so far.

Notingthe uneven impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on African countries, the Africa CDC also disclosed that the most COVID-19 affected African countries in terms of the number of positive cases include South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Ethiopia and Nigeria.

During the past one week period, Morocco reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 14,603 new cases, followed by South Africa and Ethiopia with 11,013 and 4,742 new cases, respectively.

The war-torn nation of Libya and neighboring Tunisia round up the top five African countries reporting the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the past week. 

Thursday, September 17, 2020

No bail for 'Hotel Rwanda' hero Rusesabagina

KIGALI, Rwanda

Hotel Rwanda ‘hero’ Paul Rusesabagina will be put on remand for 30 days pending trial after the Kicukiro Primary Court ruled on Thursday that there are strong reasons to believe that he committed the alleged crimes and releasing him would jeopardise investigations. 

Judges said that given the nature of charges Rusesabagina faces, which attract more than two years each and considering that investigations are still ongoing, releasing him would affect the process, basing on Article 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedures to rule against Rusesabagina’s bail request. 

“After assessing the charges brought forward by Prosecution and after hearing the arguments of the defence, court found strong reasons to believe that the defendant committed the alleged crimes, hence he will continue to be detained for 30 days, pending trial,” 

“Court also found no proof to suggest that he will not continue to receive medical care while in detention,” the Judge said in a brief session, adding that the defendant has five days to appeal this decision.

Rusesabagina, flanked by his lawyers David Rugaza and Emeline Nyembo, immediately put up his hand and said that he had appealed the decision. 

The 66-year old, who faces 13 charges including terrorism, conspiracy to create an illegal armed group, forcefully recruiting underage children into armed groups, murder, conspiracy to murder and arson among other charges preferred not to plead guilty or not, on the charges during the pre-trial hearing at Kicukiro Primary Court, stating that he would prefer to explain himself on each charge when the trial goes into substance. 

Particularly judges based on terrorism charges and offences against the state to deny him bail because they are of serious nature. 

Judges also dismissed Rusesabagina’s Lawyer’s arguments that releasing him would not jeopardise investigations. 

On Monday, Prosecutors pinned Rusesabagina on the alleged crimes, based on the activities of National Liberation Front (NLF), the armed wing of Rusesabagina’s Rwandan Movement for Democratic Change (MRCD) coalition.

The coalition launched terror attacks on the southwestern part of Rwanda, between June 2018 and April 2019, killing at least 9 people, injuring many, and ransacking homes and businesses. 

Rusesabagina, who was presented to the media on August 31 upon arrest, faces a number of charges including treason and inciting others to commit treason, complicity in involuntary manslaughter, kidnapping, armed robbery and complicity to harm or injure others, among other charges.

Naked Uganda prison break: 3 escapees shot dead, 7 recaptured

MOROTO Uganda

Three naked inmates have been killed in a fire exchange with Uganda security personnel following a prison break at Singila prison in Moroto district.

Wednesday september 16 evening more than 200 inmates escaped after overpowering prison staff. 

They accessed the armoury and stole 15 rifles

The Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) spokesperson 3rd Division Major Peter Mugisa says that the three inmates were killed when joint forces that included the police, prison warders and the UPDF followed the inmates on the steeps of Mount Moroto.

According to Mugisa, at least 7 inmates were also recaptured with security personnel still pursuing the other missing inmates.

UPDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Flavia Byekwaso said last night that at least one Uganda People’s Defence Forces soldier was also shot dead in the fire exchange.

North Karamoja Regional prisons officer, Sam Edotu said they were still compiling a report on the escape.

According to prison authorities, most of the escapees were hardcore criminals and cattle rustlers who were arrested last month. 

After the prison break, gunfire rocked Moroto town for at least 30 minutes as security personnel engaged the armed inmates, bringing business in the area to a standstill.

Moments later two military helicopters were seen hovering over Mount Moroto where the inmates are believed to have been hiding.