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Send in by Eugene Garuka

Published by African Press@chello.no tel +47 932 99 739 or +47 6300 2525

Parliamentarians in Kenya want the recognition of Somaliland

Kenya legislators to push for recognition of Somaliland
By Judie Kaberia

A Kenyan Parliamentary delegation to Somaliland on Tuesday said it would push for a motion in parliament to have Somaliland recognized as a sovereign country by the government.

Chairman of the delegation Paul Muite said Somaliland now has ample security and wants it supported to achieve a peaceful government.

He called on the international and regional community to understand the Somaliland people as they have been subjected to hostility for many years.

He said they visited many mass graves with large numbers of humans.

“These people who have been subjected to such intensity of atrocity. How can you ask them to continue being part of their oppressors?” he asked.

Muite also said peace in Somaliland will enhance trade between the two countries as well as bring calmness in East Africa.

He said if Somaliland is peaceful miraa traders will have an opportunity to continue trading with Somalia.

“There are many benefits. Somalia and Kenya sell and buy miraa from each other, when there is peace, the environment is conducive enough for the business,” he said.

The five-member delegation, which arrived yesterday from a four-day visit to Hergeisa, said it would invite Somaliland leaders to visit Kenya to see how parliament works.

____

This article has been mailed to Apn by Ali Mohammed

Lifted and Published by African Press in Norway, apn, africanpress@chello.no, tel +47 932 99 739 or +47 6300 2525

Rape reported again in Oslo

*”A woman has reported being attacked by two en who forced her into her own apartment. One of the men raped her while the other man stole what he could of valuables.

The rape and robbery occurred late last week, but has only now been reported to police. It took place just south of Sofienbergpark, in the Grünerløkka district, where three more attempted rapes were reported last weekend.

It comes on top of a series of rapes and attempted rapes in Oslo during the past several months. Residents are alarmed, but it’s unlikely that the most recently reported attack was committed by the same man or men behind the weekend attacks.

The victim from last Thursday night has seen police drawings of the suspect or suspects in those cases, and has told police her assailants didn’t resemble them.

Rather, the men who attacked her as she was on her way home to her flat in Skjelderups Gate included one ethnic Norwegian man and one foreign man. The weekend suspects are believed to come from Somalia.

Police have received more than 130 tips just since yesterday, nearly 20 of which involve identified suspects.”*

*”/”*Lifted by Korir

Published by African Press in Norway, apn, africanpress@chello.no tel +47 932 99 739 or +47 6300 2525 source.aftenpostenENG 

Congo urged by IMF to cut spending

Kinshasa (DR Congo) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Thursday exhorted DR Congo’s authorities to cut down on public spending to the level of its available revenue, APA learns here.

“The level of revenue is relatively low compared to government spending,” said Cyrille Briançon, the head of the Africa branch of IMF.

Briançon, who is heading an IMF mission to Congo, made the call after meeting with the new Congolese Finance minister Athanase Matenda and the Central Bank (BCC) governor Jean-Claude Masangu.

“There is need to control spending before considering the corrective measures to be taken by the government,” Briançon added.

IMF experts said the country has undergone all kinds of pressures in recent months, especially in the domain of exchange and inflation rates, with the apex bank governor saying a deficit of over 50 billion Congolese francs (1USD = 570 CF) has been observed in the last two months.

The Congolese government has signed an April-December 2006 consolidation relay programme with the IMF, in which the Bretton Woods institution provides technical support to negotiate a medium-term programme.

But the consolidation programme suffered a degradation of its major indicators, which was marked especially by a key monetary expansion leading to strong inflation and exchange pressure affecting the programme.

The Congolese government must therefore immediately implement corrective measures in the budget and monetary policy toward stabilising the macro-economic framework and preventing threats of a fresh flop.

The strong depreciation of the Congolese franc (CF), DR Congo’s national currency, has raised the price of basic goods.

A US dollar currently trades for 570 CF, while in the recent past, the Congolese currency was 538 against the greenback./APA

 

Published by Korir

African Press in Norway, apn, africanpress@chello.no, tel +47 932 99 739 or +47 6300 2525

The parliament of Niger asked to adopt additional protocol to women’s charter

Niamey (Niger) Women’s organisations under the Confederation of the Niger women’s Organisations (CONGAFEN), called on the Nigerien Parliament to adopt the additional protocol to the African Charter on Women’s Rights during its March session, APA learnt from authorised sources.

The next parliamentary session will coincide with the celebration of the International Women’s Day, also celebrated in Niger, on 8 March.

According to Salamatou TraorĂ©, a CONGAFEN official, quoted by the national media Friday, “after the rejection of this protocol by the MPs, we believe there is today a common understanding of this law”.

Several advocacy and sensitisation activities on this law “were undertaken, to disseminate the information to all the layers of the population,” she added, stressing that “this protocol does not go against our socio-cultural realities”.

Since its rejection in June 2006 by the Nigerien Parliament, the protocol of the African Charter on Women’s Rights stirred up tensions between the government and several Islamic associations which considered the law as “anti-Islamic”.

Many Muslim women organised demonstrations followed by meetings in main cities of the country (Niamey , Maradi, Dosso, Tillabery, Zinder, Dosso) to call on the Nigerien government to postpone the ratification of the law.

The CONGAFEN official said “the Women’s affairs ministry pulled out all stops for a participative approach in order to bring together the positions of NGOs and Islamic associations”.

The adoption of this law will enable us to “point out that women’s rights are promoted and considered in a democratic way at state level,” TraorĂ© said.

It will facilitate amongst others, “the promotion of women’s rights to education, health, training, healthy environment, and access to drinking water without discrimination,” she continued.

At the end of December 2006, the Nigerien government and Islamic associations of the country took mutual obligations to create a dialogue framework around the additional protocol to the African Charter on Women’s Rights.

At the end of the consultations initiated by the Women’s Promotion minister and her Interior counterpart, the government pledged to “submit the adoption project of the protocol only during the next parliamentary session slated for March 2007, by taking into consideration observations the Oulemas made on the law”.

A secular state by the Constitution, Niger has a population of 12 million inhabitants with nearly 99 % Muslim. /APA

 

Published by Korir

African Press in Norway, apn, africanpress@chello.no tel +47 932 99 739 or +47 6300 2525