---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Pambazuka Editor <[email protected]> Date: Thu, May 19, 2011 at 8:55 PM Subject: Pambazuka News 530: Memory, history and transformation: 'Time future contained in time past' To: pambazuka-news <[email protected]>
PAMBAZUKA NEWS 530: MEMORY, HISTORY AND TRANSFORMATION: 'TIME FUTURE CONTAINED IN TIME PAST' The authoritative electronic weekly newsletter and platform for social justice in Africa Pambazuka News (English edition): ISSN 1753-6839 CONTENTS: 1. Features, 2. Announcements, 3. Comment & analysis, 4. Advocacy & campaigns, 5. Pan-African Postcard, 6. Books & arts, 7. Letters & Opinions, 8. African Writers’ Corner, 9. Highlights French edition, 10. Highlights Portuguese edition /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 1 Features THE MOST TRAGIC DAY OF IGBO HISTORY: 29 MAY 1966 Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe 29 May 1966, the Igbo Day of Affirmation, marks both the start of the 1966 genocide against the Igbo people and the day they decided to survive the violence unleashed against them, writes Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73417 ****** MAKE A DIFFERENCE: SAY SOMETHING International Day Against Homophobia Esther Adhiambo ‘I challenge every one of us to at least talk to one person you know about homosexuality. I’m not asking you to come out, just yet, even I am struggling with that. But just try and communicate our fears and insecurities as a minority group,’ writes Kenyan sister Esther Adhiambo, in a piece marking International Day Against Homophobia on 17 May. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73421 ****** MY LOVE For David Kato and Eudy Simelane Musa Okwonga Musa Okwonga performed his poem 'My love' at a memorial service for murdered Ugandan LGBTI activist David Kato on May 18. Originally written for Eudy Simelane, the South African lesbian footballer who was gang-raped and murdered, the poem also features in the forthcoming 'African Sexualities: A reader ( http://bit.ly/ltdQd9 ) ', published by Pambazuka Press. Watch the animated version of 'My love' here ( http://bit.ly/iyptFd ) . http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73438 ****** HAITI: REPARATIONS AND RECONSTRUCTION Horace Campbell The process that brought Michel ‘Sweet Micky’ Martelly to Haiti’s ‘presidency was a farce that will 'force popular forces to distinguish between processes of democratisation and pseudo-elections without democratic participation’, writes Horace Campell, in an article on the people of Haiti’s two-hundred year struggle to reconstruct their society. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73445 ****** MELES ZENAWI’S SUBTERFUGE ON PASTORALISM Abebech Belachew ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/clpmag/4819727024/ ) Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi needs to seriously rethink his ideas around the ‘backwardness’ of pastoralism and the need for ‘modernity’, argues Abebech Belachew. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73410 ****** FROM NOBEL TO NOBEL: A LETTER TO BARACK OBAMA Adolfo Perez Esquivel ‘How can you speak of human rights and the dignity of peoples when you perpetually violate them and block those who don’t share your ideology and must endure your abuses?’, asks 1980 Nobel Prize winner Adolfo Perez Esquivel in an open letter to US President Barack Obama. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73422 ****** THE GODS OF AFRICA ARE NOT ASLEEP AFTER ALL Cameron Duodu With the IMF’s (International Monetary Fund) Dominique Strauss-Kahn in hot water over accusations of sexual assault in a New York hotel, Cameron Duodu revisits the effects of the fund’s structural adjustment programme in his home country of Ghana. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73442 ****** MEMORIES ON AFRICAN LIBERATION (1956 - 1975) A personal experience from Egypt Helmi Sharawy Helmi Sharawy takes Pambazuka News back to 1950s Cairo, remembering the host of African liberation movements that had offices in the Egyptian city. In part one of this two-part article, the second of which will be published by Pambazuka News next week, he reflects on the role of Egypt in the liberation struggle. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73404 ****** TANZANIA: KILLINGS AND TOXIC SPILL TARNISH BARRICK GOLD Zahra Moloo Zahra Moloo investigates the impact of a Canadian-based gold mine on the North Mara region in Tanzania. Villagers in the area complain about deaths and ill-health due to pollution of the Thigithe River. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73405 ****** ANC YOUTH LEAGUE AND ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION OF SOUTH AFRICA Sehlare Makgetlaneng South Africa continues to be the most unequal social formation in the world. Sehlare Makgetlaneng reviews proposals by the African National Congress Youth League to radically overhaul the economic structure of the country. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73407 ****** CAN YOUTH SHOW THE WAY? Zodwa Nsibande The fall of apartheid in South Africa has not yielded genuine representation and opportunities for the country’s poor majority, writes Zodwa Nsibande. With political parties happy to remain ‘anti-poor’, it falls upon South Africa’s youth to revolutionise wider society in the struggle for equality and opportunities for all, Nsibande stresses. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73436 ****** WAL-MART SOUTH AFRICA DEAL 'A RACE TO THE BOTTOM' Khadija Sharife Multinational Wal-Mart is trying to acquire South African retailer Massmart. Khadija Sharife explains why the deal would be bad for the country and bad for workers. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73408 ****** TAKING LAND AND VOTES WITHOUT PAYMENT Ronald Wesso ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema can only get away with unconstitutional statements calling for black South Africans ‘to take the land without payment’ because there are no social movements strong enough to put his words into action, writes Ronald Wesso. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73419 ****** 'HOW TO INSULT YOUR OWN PEOPLE' Random notes from across the continent Dibussi Tande Ethiopia’s abortion laws, Uganda’s walk to work campaign, the Zambian Patriotic Front’s new manifesto, why Gbagbo’s statues had to go, Malawi’s ‘grumpy old man in State House’, and the plight of Gambia’s Hassan Touray feature in this week’s review of African blogs, compiled by Dibussi Tande. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73416 ****** JOURNALIST IN A PAPER DEMOCRACY Interview with Eskinder Nega Ron Singer In a series of two interviews, Ron Singer engages with dissident Ethiopian journalist Eskinder Nega about the EPRDF (Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front), how his wife was forced to give birth while in prison and the politics of identity. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73174 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 2 Announcements EVENT: ‘OUT IN AFRICA: CHANGING ATTITUDES TOWARDS LGBTI ISSUES’ Friday 20 May 2011 – 6pm The Africa Centre brings together an expert panel of African activists who have been instrumental in pushing forward a progressive agenda in support of the rights of LGBTI people to discuss their work, including: Frank Mugisha - director of Sexual Minorities of Uganda (SMUG) Joel Gustave Nana - director of African Men's Sexual Health and Rights (AMSHeR) Mia Nikasimo - activist, writer and contributor to Black Looks Sibongile Ndashe - Equality lawyer at Interights ADDRESS: The Africa Centre, 38 King Street, London WC2E 8JT (Map ( http://bit.ly/iIgvuC ) ). Free admission but a £3 donation is recommended. Please RSVP to ensure your place by emailing [email protected] Doors will open at 6pm for a 6:30 start http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/Announce/73414 ****** HUBERT HARRISON: IN TRIBUTE Event in London Karia presents an 'in tribute' event featuring a presentation by Dr Jeffrey B. Perry based on his biography 'Hubert Harrison: The Voice of Harlem Radicalism, 1883-1918'. During the discussion he will refer to Theodore W. Allen’s work 'The Invention of the White Race', which he edited. Centerprise 136-138 Kingsland Road Dalston, London, E8 2NS Friday, 20th May, 2011 7:30 – 10:00PM Donations: £3.00 Restaurant on site Bookings, and other information from Karia Press: [email protected] Tel: 0750 4661 785 Books will be available for sale at the event. If you wish to order a copy(ies) of the book(s) in advance, please email or call for availability and prices. To get to the venue: London Overground: Dalston Kingsland or Dalston Junction. Buses: 149, 76, 243, 67, 236. ****** EVENT: TAJUDEEN ABDUL-RAHEEM: 2011 MEMORIAL Venue: Cyprian Ekwensi Cultural Centre, Garki, Abuja Date: 25th May 2011 MEMORIAL SYMPOSIUM THEME: “Linking Elections to Good Governance – Don’t Agonise, TIME: 9:00am to 1:00pm PANEL CHAIR: Mallam Kabiru Yusuf KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Governor of Ekiti State SPEAKERS: Dr. Chidi Odinkalu (Open Society Justice Justice Initiative), Dr. Hussaini Abdu (ActionAid Nigeria), Hajiya Saudatu Mahdi (Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternative), Dr. Siddique Abubakar (A. B. U. Zaria), Amb. (Hon). Nkoyo Toyo (Member House of Representatives), Dr. Otive Igbuzor (African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development), Oronto Douglas (Presidency), Dr. Mohammed Kuna (INEC) and Dr. Abubakar Momoh (Lagos State University). Chair Organising Committee: Dr Kole Shettima http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/Announce/73437 ****** WHY THE PROTOCOL ON THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN IN AFRICA IS IMPORTANT TO YOUTH Essay competition SOAWR coalition In Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, this June, African heads of state and government will gather at a summit with the theme, ‘Youth empowerment for sustainable development’. Youth action is critical to the continent’s development, and more specifically, in ensuring that girls and women can make equally valued contributions to this development. As such, the Solidarity for African Women’s Rights (SOAWR) coalition would like to invite youth to reflect on the importance of the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa. Contestants are asked to respond to the question (in French or in English), ‘Why is the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa important to you?’ in an essay of a maximum of 2000 words. The competition is open to citizens of all African countries aged between 18 and 25. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/Announce/73411 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 3 Comment & analysis AFRICA CENTRE POLITICS: MICROCOSM OF FAILED DEMOCRACY Chipo Chung With London's Africa Centre faced with the threat of closure, Chipo Chung stresses that the centre's board ignores 'the social contract between themselves and the community they serve'. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/73441 ****** BURNING OF SHOPS IN ZANZIBAR Abdul Sheriff While the burning of shops in Zanzibar is being interpreted as a criminal and political act, ‘nobody has asked where the root of the problem may lie in the economic and social sphere,’ says Abdul Sheriff. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/73406 ****** KENYA: CITIZENS HOLD POLITICIANS TO ACCOUNT Kamukunji constituency by-election debate Odhiambo Okecth In what is possibly ‘the first session of its kind in Kenya’s election history’, Bunge La Mwananchi (People’s Parliament) brought together aspiring candidates for Kamukunji constituency at a forum where people could question their would-be MPs. The '[t]ime for lethargic service for Political Leaders and Public Officers is up,’ writes Odhiambo Okecth. (Coverage of the debate is available from Kenya Citizen TV ( http://bit.ly/lezWKX ) ). http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/73425 ****** WHY HIGH FOOD PRICES WILL CONTINUE IN KENYA Okoth Osewe As Kenyans take to the streets in protest against the high cost of living, Okoth Osewe lays the blame for the food crisis on the government’s ‘liberalised’ economic policy. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/73446 ****** WHY THE EDUCATED AFRICAN STANDS ALONE Neema Ndunguru ‘The educated African is the selfish philanthropist. Touched by the turmoil surrounding her, she longs to “do something” to help those in need. But first, her needs must also be met. For how can she help others when she has not yet helped herself?’ writes Neema Ndunguru. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/73448 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 4 Advocacy & campaigns 12 BURKINABE MPS CALL FOR INQUIRY INTO SANKARA ASSASSINATION Since October 1997 – for more than 13 years – the International Justice Committee for Thomas Sankara has called for judicial procedures to be launched in Burkina Faso around the assassination of Thomas Sankara. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/73391 ****** BACKYARDERS HOSTING 'ANTI-VOTE ELECTION SUMMIT' ON 14 MAY Mandela Park Backyarders With South Africa's municipal elections taking place this week, the Mandela Park Backyarders hosted an 'Anti-Vote Election Summit' on 14 May. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/73392 ****** SOUTH AFRICA: ROAD BLOCKADE IN GRAHAMSTOWN Unemployed People’s Movement Five hundred people from eThembeni and Transit Camp in Grahamstown blockaded a national road on Tuesday, in a demonstration for housing, electricity and water, the Unemployed People’s Movement reports. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/73449 ****** KENYA: DISRUPTION OF STAREHE UNGA RALLY Open letter to the Commissioner of Police On 8 May, Kenyan police officers illegally cancelled a rally to campaign for economic and social rights in Starehe constituency. This could 'set a bad precedence for future engagements between peaceful citizens and law enforcement officers; in as far as exercising of democratic rights is concerned,' write campaign coordinators the Unga Revolution, in an open letter to the Commissioner of Police. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/advocacy/73434 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 5 Pan-African Postcard THE RESURGENCE OF THE ‘HOTTENTOT VENUS’ H. Nanjala Nyabola Shocked by the publication of an article claiming black women are inherently less attractive than other women, H. Nanjala Nyabola considers Satoshi Kanazawa’s ‘study’ and underlines a key historical parallel. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/panafrican/73388 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 6 Books & arts WHEN THE DEVIL PLAYS HUMAN WHAT DO YOU EXPECT? Ebrahim Hussein’s ‘Mashetani’ Anthony Muchoki Tanzanian playwright Ebrahim Hussein’s ‘Mashetani’ woke Kenyans up to the Moi regime’s repressive ways, becoming ‘a bible of a kind for the Mwakenya movement’. But the themes in the book are being replayed today as coalition politicians grapple for power, writes Anthony Muchoki. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/books/73426 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 7 Letters & Opinions STATEMENT ON THE REOPENING OF THE LAND CLAIMS PROCESS Association for Rural Advancement (AFRA) The Association for Rural Advancement (AFRA) supports the demands of South Africa’s landless people for the land claims process to be re-opened, and supports the suggestion that this process should include restitution of land lost prior to 1913. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/letters/73390 ****** JUSTICE FOR THE PEOPLE OF KENYA Daisy Diaz I hope Kenya people could solve all the issues ahead ( http://www.pambazuka.org/en/issue/528 ) , and everything will come down, I can see there still some problems unsolved since the elections in 2008, but I hope reason will prevail in the solution of your most crucial issues. My solidarity to the people of Kenya gets to you all. ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 8 African Writers’ Corner I AM REVOLUTION Lance Constantine I am revolution, I am change. Effortlessly, I spring out as a tree, fruit representing the degree of the greatness within me. I am revolution, consistent in the movement, so history will change itself fluently. A speech can transform a country, and a deed can change the heart of a man, just like a seed of greatness will blossom even though there is famine in the land. Time waits for no one but it waited for me. I am revolution. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/African_Writers/73389 ****** MY SWEET BABY, MY WIFE Dennis Dancan Mosiere aka Grand Masese 'I was eleven perhaps ten when I met her When I was introduced to her She whose voice was rhythmic In the mountains of Gusiiland When she spoke, she drew people from far and wide They came running and walking Standing and sitting down, listening To her soothing rhythmic voice…' http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/African_Writers/73447 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 9 Highlights French edition PAMBAZUKA NEWS 189: DE SOWETO 1976 À TAHRIR 2011 : LES CONTINUITÉS D'UNE LUTTE « Aller au travail à pied » : Les leçons de Soweto et de la place Tahrir ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/category/features/73311 ) Mahmoud Mamdani Les crises civiles et le crime social ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/category/features/73313 ) Pascal Oudiane Quand le négationnisme tue à petit feu ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/category/features/73318 ) Jacques Depelchin Nigeria : Élections sur fond de tension sociale ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/category/features/73319 ) Paul Martial Madagascar : Passer de la crise à la transition ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/category/features/73316 ) Charlotte Larbuisson ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ 10 Highlights Portuguese edition PAMBAZUKA NEWS 38: A FALÁCIA DA TRANSIÇÃO DEMOCRÁTICA EM MOÇAMBIQUE & ANGOLA A democracia em Angola, uma ilusão? ( http://pambazuka.org/pt/category/features/73365 ) E.S.Newmann Será que em Moçambique existiu uma transição democrática completa? ( http://pambazuka.org/pt/category/features/73199 ) Joaquim M. Maloa A pobreza e a cor da pobreza no Brasil ( http://pambazuka.org/pt/category/comment/73364 ) Luiza Bairros UNITA propõe autonomia para Cabinda ( http://pambazuka.org/pt/category/comment/73366 ) Orlando Castro A peleja da Mulher Melancia com o Bispo Macedo em Moçambique ( http://pambazuka.org/pt/category/comment/73198 ) Marílio Wane http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/summarypt/73387 ****** /\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\/\/\//\ Fahamu - Networks For Social Justice http://www.fahamu.org Pambazuka News is published by Fahamu Ltd. © Unless otherwise indicated, all materials published are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. For further details see: http://www.pambazuka.org/en/about.php Pambazuka news can be viewed online: English language edition ( http://www.pambazuka.org/en ) Edição em língua Portuguesa ( http://www.pambazuka.org/pt ) Edition française ( http://www.pambazuka.org/fr ) RSS Feeds available at http://www.pambazuka.org/en/newsfeed.php Pambazuka News is published with the support of a number of funders, details of which can be obtained here ( http://www.pambazuka.org/en/about.php ) . To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE go to: http://pambazuka.gn.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/pambazuka-news or send a message to [email protected] with the word SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line as appropriate. The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of Pambazuka News or Fahamu. 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