The Largest Minority

January 31st, 2008 by Manila Ryce

Alpha Konare, the head of the African Union, said on Thursday that Kenya was facing genocide and that Africa’s leaders must make it a priority to resolve the crisis. On the opening of the three-day summit Konare said, “Kenya is a country that was a hope for the continent. Today, if you look at Kenya you see violence on the streets.” He continued, “We are even talking about ethnic cleansing, We are even talking about genocide. We cannot sit with our hands folded. If Kenya burns, there will be nothing for tomorrow.”

Until a month ago, Kenya was more used to attending summits of the 53-nation AU as a respected regional peacemaker and a refuge for those fleeing wars in neighbouring countries.

Now it is Africa’s biggest crisis, torn by a cycle of ethnic bloodshed that threatens to destabilize a key regional ally of the West and damage the economies of several neighboring countries that are landlocked and rely on the Kenya port of Mombasa for the delivery of much needed supplies.

Over 250,000 Kenyans have fled their homes and 850 people have died since the disputed December 27th re-election of Mwai Kibaki. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also encouraged “the leaders and people of Kenya to calm the violence and resolve their differences through dialogue and respect for the democratic process”. Leaders and diplomats at the AU summit will be addressing peacekeeping operations in Darfur, Somalia, and upcoming elections in Zimbabwe, which is also mired in a political and economic crisis. United States assistant secretary of state for African affairs Jendayi Frazer also referred to the deaths in Kenya as “ethnic cleansing,” a remark which has been distanced by a state department official who said the comment was not that of the government.

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January 27th, 2008 by Manila Ryce

At least 700 people have been killed and 260,000 have been displaced in Kenya since the disputed presidential election on December 27 provoked rioting and ethnic killings.

Raila Odinga, the leader of the opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) who ran against Kibaki in December’s election, alleges that the vote was rigged, thus robbing him of the presidency.

Ethnic violence flared up in Nakuru on Thursday night between gangs armed with machetes, spears and bows and arrows.

Latent ethnic and land disputes have fueled violence between Kibaki’s Kikuyu tribe and members of the Luo and Kalenjin ethnic groups, who supported Odinga in the election.

Amid the continuing violence, Kofi Annan, the former UN secretary-general, met Odinga on Sunday at a hotel in Nairiobi, on the sixth day of his tour of Kenya.

A day earlier, Annan said he saw “gross and systematic human rights abuses of fellow citizens,” after visits to parts of the Rift Valley.

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January 22nd, 2008 by Manila Ryce

Fighting for their rights, Kenyan opposition remains defiant. Grace Akumu, a member of Kenya’s opposition party, The Orange Democratic Movement, speaks with The Real News about their struggle.

January 16th, 2008 by Manila Ryce

November 6th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

An Egyptian court has sentenced Captain Islam Nabih and Corporal Reda Fathi to three years in prison after a video showing the two sodomizing a prisoner with a broomstick was circulated online. The torture victim, Emad al-Kabir, was arrested for intervening to stop an argument between his brother and the officers before he was abused. Both officers are expected to appeal the verdict. Al-Kabir’s trial is a landmark case which has inspired several others to report their own experiences with police brutality.

It is widely known by both the international and local community that torture is systematic in Egyptian jails and police stations. The police department does not comment publicly, but their supporters deny all allegations of systematic abuse and violations of human rights.

Human rights groups have condemned Monday’s ruling, saying that the horrific nature of the crime deserves a much longer jail term. The two officers originally faced up to 15 years in prison. The judge said he was lenient because the accused were “young and inexperienced”. Emad al-Kabir and his lawyer seemed satisfied enough. “Thank God. That’s all I wanted,” al-Kabir shouted as he celebrated the verdict at the courthouse. “I wanted nothing else. It’s justice, finally.” Al-Kabir’s lawyer said the verdict was “the heaviest sentencing of police for torture in 20 years”.

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August 20th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

Israel, a nation founded by Zionists after Nazi persecution was used to justify its creation, has stated that it will turn away refugees fleeing the genocide in Darfur. David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman said anyone entering illegally from Egypt will be returned to Egypt, and that only 500 refugees will be allowed to stay for humanitarian reasons. “The policy of returning back anyone who enters Israel illegally will pertain to everyone, including those from Darfur,” Baker said.

Israel’s typical hypocritical stance has sparked debate within the country. Eytan Schwartz, an advocate for Darfur refugees in Israel, said; “The state of Israel has to show compassion for refugees after the Jewish people was subject to persecution throughout its history.”

Egypt has stepped up efforts to prevent illegal migrants crossing its border into Israel, a source of tension between the two countries. Egyptian police shot at a group of African migrants trying to sneak into Israel in July, killing one woman and wounding four, including a child.

“We can blame them [the Sudanese refugees] but we should condemn the governments. Oppression and injustice made those people look for salvation even if it was in Israel,” Gamal Eid, head of Egypt’s Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, said.

Escaping persecution and injustice, more than 2,000 illegal migrants from Africa have entered Israel from Egypt over the past year. Israel has already handed over 48 Sudanese to Egyptian authorities. The Jewish state has also jailed dozens of refugees from Sudan simply because the state identifies the Sudanese as enemy nationals. 2.5 million people have been driven from their homes in Darfur since the conflict began.

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August 13th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

As they headed back from the funeral of a tribal sheikh on Saturday, the governor and chief of police of the southern Iraqi province of Qadisiya were killed by a roadside bomb. Hundred of mourners set out from the Shia Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) officers to bury the two bodies yesterday.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered an investigation into their killings, which he called “a seditious act”. Iraq�s president further stoked the flames of division by saying the attack was a “cowardly terrorist act” by Sunnis fighters who had been displaced by the current security crackdown.

Residents of Diwaniya, the provincial capital, said they now fear an all-out war between different Shia factions in the region. SIIC controls the police which are fighting Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr�s al-Madhi militia.

Also on Sunday, al-Maliki said a much-anticipated summit to try to end political deadlock among the country’s leader could begin in the next two days.

The politicians at the meeting are expected to include al-Maliki; Talabani; Tareq al-Hashemi, the Sunni Arab vice-president; Massoud Barzani the Kurdish regional leader; and Abul Aziz al-Hakim, the SIIC leader.

Al-Maliki, whose national unity government has been in crisis since the main Sunni Arab bloc pulled out, said he would either lure it back or find other Sunni Arabs to replace it.

He said: “The first meeting may happen tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.”

Nearly half of the cabinet is no longer participating in its meetings.

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June 22nd, 2007 by Calypso

Children with physical and mental deformities in the Nigerian town of Kano are considered the lucky survivors of a controversial 1996 drug trial by Pfizer. The pharmaceutical giant used hospitalized children, sick with meningitis, as guinea pigs for an experimental and unregistered antibiotic called Trovan. While Pfizer claims that the survival rate for the drug trial was at 94 percent, with only 11 out of 200 children dying, Kano officials state that over 50 children actually died.

The Nigerian government started an expert medical panel to review the drug trial after being pressured by families affected and rights groups. The panel concluded that the experiment was “an illegal trial of an unregistered drug”, and a “clear case of exploitation of the ignorant”.

Anas Mohammadu who was 3-years-old at the time of the trial fell ill and was taken to hospital by his parents. His father still burns with anger over the situation. “My son was ill and we took him to the hospital like any other family would. Then the Americans and some local Nigerian doctors injected Anas with this evil drug.” Anas, now 14-years-old, dreams of becoming a soldier but his dream seems unlikely as the trial left him with weak, wobbly legs, and a permanently drooling mouth. He is made fun of in school, and even daily tasks like getting water from a well can be difficult as he gets tired easily and can be pulled by the slightest weight.

Hassan Sani described how his daughter Hajara, now 14-years-old as well (pictured above left), became deaf and mute thanks to Pfizer. Mr Sani said “the American doctors took advantage of our illiteracy and cheated us and our children. We thought they were helping us.”

Many blame Pfizer’s experiment for the mass rejection of polio vaccinations in many northern Nigerian areas. Some Muslim preachers think it was a western plot to sterilize Muslim women. Pfizer denies any wrongdoing, saying that “verbal consent” was given by the parents, and that the trial was medically, scientifically, regulatory, and ethically “sound”. They added that the experiment followed Nigerian regulations and saved many lives. Moreover, they argue that such allegations are “highly inflammatory and not based on all the facts”.

A decade onwards, the Nigerian government is suing Pfizer for $7 billion in damages suffered by the families of the children who passed away and those still suffering from side effects. The Kano state government is filling separate charges against Pfizer. However, money will never be enough to compensate for dead or disabled children. Mr. Sani expressed his anger, saying; “In addition to the compensation, they should be killed like the children they have killed.”

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