Africa

Pastoralists target private farmland as conflict over land grows, writes Alastair Leithead.

January 3, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese rights defender Mudawi Ibrahim for the second time has gone on hunger strike on Thursday to protest his arbitrary detention, his family said on Friday.

Chairman of the Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO) Mudawi Ibrahim Adam (www.democracyandsecurity.org)

During the last week of January Ibrahim stopped his hunger strik,e which he began on 22 January, upon the insistence of his family after fears for his deteriorating health. The 59-year -old activist suffers from a heart illness.

Adam was arrested on Wednesday 7 December at the Khartoum University, where he works as an engineering professor.

"We declare that Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim will go on an open-ended hunger strike until the authorities respond to this legitimate demands to put him on trial or release him promptly," said a statement extended by his family to Sudan Tribune on Friday.

"We hold the security and state authorities responsible for any harm that befell him," said the family and called on the civil society groups and political forces to pay particular attention to to advocate for his release.

Ibrahim is detained because of his efforts "for better future for the Sudanese people and the Sudan," stressed the statement.

The family pointed that he had given the authorities until the first of February to put him on trial or to release him, adding that he resumed to strike because he sees it as the only weapon to protest his arbitrary detention.

Last December Amnesty International condemned Madawi's arrest saying it "underscores the government's desperate attempts to extinguish the last embers of dissent in the country".

Ibrahim's arrest came after the detention of over twenty political leader and activists last November. All of them have been released.

Also, His detention followed calls for general disobedience in the country to overthrow the government of President Omer al-Bashir. The virtual campaign for general strike had been launched through the social media by unidentified activists.

(ST)

By Andrew Anderson

The recent decision by President Obama to lift sanctions on Sudan might give cause for hope that the human rights situation in the country might finally be moving in a positive direction.

Sadly, the reality is that the situation is going in the opposite direction and the government of Sudan is currently waging a campaign of violence and intimidation to silence the last voices of dissent. The ongoing violence by government forces, pro-government militia groups and anti-government armed groups forms the backdrop to continued harassment, arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detentions and torture of human rights defenders (HRDs) by Sudanese military and security forces.

In November the government arrested 23 opposition activists, 10 of whom are currently on trial, following a three day stay at home strike organised to protest at the rising cost of living and the cutting of government food subsidies. The government's immediate response was uncompromising confrontation. Speaking to supporters at an event in the east of the country, President Bashir said “We want to tell them that if you want to overthrow the regime, then face us directly on the streets. I challenge you to come out onto the streets. But we know you will not come because you know what happened in the past… This regime will not be overthrown by keyboards and WhatsApp.”. In 2013 more than 200 people were killed when the army and police cracked down on protests against a previous round of subsidy cuts.

Meanwhile the government has shut down independent media and has repeatedly seized the print runs of newspapers prior to distribution. In this way the newspapers have to incur the printing costs while being unable to sell any of the papers. It is yet another way to silence independent or critical voices.

One of those voices is that of Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam. Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim is one of the most distinguished human rights defenders in Sudan known for his role in exposing human rights violations in Darfur. He is the founder and former director of the Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO), which works on human rights as well as water, sanitation and health.

Dr Mudawi is a man who has devoted his life to trying to pull Sudan out of the chaos of war and conflict and to building a peaceful prosperous Sudan. He wrote “I think we have no choice. If we want to live a decent life in our own country we have to continue working with the people, struggling with them. We need the support of the international community. We need to feel that there are people behind us. It is a moral support. It is not tangible but it has a deep meaning in the heart. It has something, even when you close your eyes you see people who you haven't seen, you imagine their shapes, but they are holding your hand continually”.

But now it is Mudawi himself who needs this support.

On 7 December 2016, Mudawi Ibrahim Adam and his long-time driver Mr Adam El-Sheikh were arrested on the University of Khartoum campus and forcibly transferred to an unknown location. On 12 December, Ms Nora Abaid, an accountant from Mudawi Ibrahim Adam's engineering company, Lambda Engineering, was arrested by NISS agents who approached her in an unmarked car. They all continue to be detained incommunicado. Under the 2010 National Security Act (NSA), detainees can be held in custody for up to four and a half months without judicial review.

On 22 January 2017, Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam started a hunger strike, in protest of his arbitrary detention since 7 December by the Sudanese authorities. Reports received today describe how members of the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) badly beat him and chained him to the wall of his cell. It seems this is an attempt to force him to end his hunger strike. Mudawi has been tortured before. He has now been detained on at least five occasions by the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) since 2003. He has been threatened and he has been subjected to prosecution on fabricated charges. And yet he has refused to flee his beloved country. He has continued to work peacefully for an end to conflict and respect and rights for all in Sudan.

The government of the United States and other providers of significant development aid must send a clear message to the government of Sudan that the lifting of sanctions is not an unconditional act of benevolence. The government of Sudan must honour its commitments to improve the human rights situation. A starting point would be the release of Dr Mudawi and all those jailed for using their right to peaceful protest.

Andrew Anderson is Executive Director Front Front Line Defenders – the International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, based in Dublin, Ireland

February 3, 2017 (EL FASHER) - Two police officers and an army soldier were killed in an ambush by cattle rustlers outside the capital of North Darfur state on Friday.

A UNAMID peacekeeper during a routine patrol in Tawila, North Darfur.(Photo UNAMID/Hamid Abdelsalam)

A government official said the attack occurred when a joint force was returning to Tawila, 60 km west of North Darfur capital El-Fasher, after recapturing the stolen cattle.

The official source who requested anonymity said on Thursday the armed rustlers had stolen the cattle outside Tawila and headed in direction of Jebel Sirginat, in the northern part of the area.

Following what a force from the army, police and Popular Defence Forces, joint by several villagers tracked the raiders, clashed with them and recaptured cattle stolen cattle.

However, the rustlers attacked the force while it was returning to Tawila and killed a soldier, and two police officers, he said.

Also, the assailants wounded two army lieutenant officers and the owner of stolen cattle, Dawod Bosh.

A local leader Ahmed Suleiman confirmed that some villagers took part in the hunting of raiders.

Suleiman further said the rustlers besides the cattle captured a Land Curser vehicle and motorcycle.

(ST)

February 3, 2017 (JUBA) - The governor of Wau state has condemned the killing of a presidential guard, ordering security organs and military intelligence officers to carry out thorough investigations to arrest the criminals .

Wau state governor Andrea Mayar Acho (ST Photo)

“This is really sad and unfortunate development. What such people are doing is to create a bad name for this state, which is the mother of all the states of Greater Bahr el Ghazal. But we will not allow this. Together with our security organs, our military intelligence, criminal investigation department and all the citizens of this state and those living with us will work together to bring the culprits to account”, governor Andrea Mayar Achor told Sudan Tribune on Friday.

Governor Achor said the incident occurred in Gazira, an area located west of Bahr El Ghazal University and south of the main Joh market in Wau town, the administrative headquarters of the new state.

He identified the deceased as Harbi Ramadan. He was one of the Presidential Guard soldiers and drivers who accompanied the first lady, Mary Ayen Mayardit during her recent visit to Bahr el Ghazal.

Ramadan worked as a driver and security guard for President Kiir's wife. He requested to remain behind when the first lady decided to return to Juba, saying he wanted to take some rest and to see some family members before to resume his work.

The victim was killed while he was returning home after escorting people he invited for a get together evening meal at the family house in Gezira area.

“It was not very late. I don't know the exact time but I heard from the relatives that it was some minutes to 8:00pm. It was not actually dark. People were still moving”, a source said Friday.

(ST)

February 3, 2017 (JUBA)- South Sudan president Salva Kiir has been amused by the visit and donation made by Moroccan King Mohammed the VI, describing him as a "true brother".

“There is no other way I can describe the support we have received from His Majesty the King of Morocco than to say he is a true brother. A brother stands with a brother at all times, whether it is good or bad time. On behalf of the government and the people of South Sudan, I extend sincere him appreciation and thanks for support we have received from the people and government of Morocco headed by His Majesty the king. We pledge our support and cooperation with the government and the people of Morocco in all fields,” said president Kiir after visiting Juba military hospital on Thursday.

President Kiir, together with the King Mohammed VI of Morocco, on Thursday held a last meeting after inauguration of a Moroccan mobile clinic in Juba at Dr John Garang Mausoleum.

The South Sudanese leader, also, said that the two-day visit symbolizes the commitment of the Moroccan King and upholds the values of pan-Africanism and solidity.

King Mohammed VI's visit to South Sudan takes palace after the readmission of his country at the African Union more than three decades after it left to protest the recognition of the independence of the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

Juba in the past supported the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic which was among the first countries to recognise South Sudan Independence. However, Rabat, which plans to forge an anti Saharawi front inside the African Union in order to expel them from the African Union, hopes that South Sudan will join this alliance after it refused to oppose its readmission to the regional body.

Several several southern African countries said opposed to the Morocco reintegration in the African Union and condemned "the occupation of Western Sahara by Morocco".

Information minister and the government spokesperson expressed appreciation of support from the Moroccan King Mohammed VI.

“When His Majesty visited the mobile hospital, he found a young sick man, and he decided to take him and that he should be accompanied by a doctor, he decided to go and treat him and take maximum care until he gets well,” Minister Michael Lueth told reporters after the end of the two days visit on Thursday.

Lueth revealed that the Moroccan King has invited President Salva Kiir to visit Morocco. He did not say when the visit would take place but that it would occur when preparations are completed.

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

February 3, 2017 (ADDIS ABABA) - Chairman of the South Sudanese Nuer community in Ethiopia has defected to join President Salva Kiir's government in Juba.

President Salva Kiir addresses the nation from the State House on September 15, 2015, in Juba (Photo AFP/Charles Atiki Lomodong)

The defection of the community chairman, John Jekow, comes after a private meeting with President Salva Kiir in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

Kiir was in the Ethiopian capital earlier this week to participate in the 28th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), which was wrapped up on Tuesday.

Puoch Jal, acting chairperson of the Nuer community on Friday told Sudan Tribune that Jekow flew to Juba on Wednesday along with President Kiir abandoning his post.

The opposition allied Nuer community and Unity state students union in Ethiopia have condemned the defector for meeting Kiir and joining Juba government .

"We can not accept the blood of our people to be betrayed for personal interest," said Peter Thudan, chairman of Unity state students union.

"The government in Juba should instead address the root causes of the conflict and listen to the voices of reason that call for the revival of the peace agreement through a political process instead of resorting to bribing community members which will not help end the conflict" he added.

The Union reaffirmed that the they will firmly continue to stand behind the SPLM In Opposition faction led by former vice President, Riek Machar, until the "objectives of the struggle are met".

"We will not accept those who want to feed on the blood of the innocent people who have suffered and perish in the hands of the regime in Juba" the union said.

NUER YOUTH CONDUCT ELECTION

Meanwhile the Nuer youth Union in Ethiopia on Friday said that it has conducted a successful election and declared Wany Lam as the new chairman the exiled union.

The electoral board of the Union told Sudan Tribune that the election conducted here in Addis Ababa was held in accordance to the election procedures and was fair and free.

"This is the kind of democracy we need. We should not entertain violence as a tool of our social activities," said Lam.

He pledged to serve equally and further vow to unite all Nuer youths of common interest.

"It was in my manifesto that I will unite all youths and I will never allow any politicians to divide us and the organization as political tools" said Lam.

The newly elect is due to shortly make visit to South Sudanese refugee camps in Ethiopia's Gambella region where he will establish a youth coordinator office and further elect a representative who will communicate to make sure the refugees voices are heard.

Lam called on Nuer Youth groups in Diaspora to support the Union in Ethiopia so that it could manage to assist the refugees in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia currently hosts around 300,000 South Sudanese refugees, mainly Nuer who fled home to escape civil war which erupted in December 2013.

(ST)

Herdsmen are moving their cattle to private land, bringing them into conflict with security forces.

Thousands of Zimbabwean widows are forced out of their homes by their in-laws each year.

By Eric Reeves

Among the myriad Executive Orders that President Trump has inherited from the Obama administration is one essentially lifting sanctions on the regime in Khartoum, Sudan. During his last week in office Obama declared there had been sufficient “positive action over the past six months” by the very regime regime the former president had repeatedly accused of genocide—both before and after taking office. Obama used his UN ambassador, Samantha Power, to make the case in detail: during her last press conference, Power declared, falsely, that a “sea change” in improved humanitarian access throughout Sudan justified the administration's decision. She cited one unrepresentative example, even as every humanitarian and human rights organization that has spoken about Power's claim denies its validity. Human Rights Watch declared Obama's decision simply “inexplicable.”

So it falls to the conspicuously dysfunctional Trump administration to decide whether during the upcoming six-month “testing period” Khartoum deserves to see a finalizing of this lifting of sanctions. It can choose to ignore realities on the ground, as the Obama administration did in its assessment of the past six months; or it can take a hard look at what is widely reported from those on the ground and in the Sudanese diaspora. Humanitarian embargoes, imposed by Khartoum, continue to affect many hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians in the long-marginalized regions of Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile. The “sea change” Ambassador Power spoke of is certainly not visible in South Kordofan, where an experienced and highly informed humanitarian wrote to me, declaring: “there's been absolutely no change in humanitarian access. Not a single grain of sorghum nor one tablet of medicine has entered Nuba Mountains from any of the usual humanitarian agencies.”

The new administration can look at compelling evidence that an epidemic of rape continues to be part of Khartoum's genocidal counter-insurgency campaign in Darfur, now in its fifteenth year. It can look at the continuous shelling and bombing of clearly civilian targets in the three regions. It can look at overwhelming evidence that chemical weapons were used in Jebel Marra, Darfur last year—evidence assembled assiduously by Amnesty International. It can look at the rapidly escalating and increasingly violent repression by the regime in suppressing civil discontent—discontent that follows from an economy imploding not because of U.S. sanctions but because of massive corruption and self-enrichment that have always defined what is essentially a kleptocracy. “Shoot to kill” orders have been both given and threatened in the face of rising unrest.

In light of Trumps immoral and badly confused Executive Order on refugees coming to the U.S. from Sudan and six other countries—affecting countless real or potential Sudanese refugees—there is precious little reason for optimism.

Moreover, the Trump administration, burdened by its policy myopia, is unlikely to understand that the effectiveness of U.S. sanctions—particularly financial sanctions—has been undermined by massive money-laundering on the part of French banking giant BNP Paribas, which pled guilty to criminal violations of U.S. financial laws in 2015, primarily because of activities that directly benefited the Khartoum regime. A civil suit filed on Federal District Court (Southern District of New York, Case 1:16-cv-03228-AJN) lays out in highly revealing detail the way in which BNPP served (in the words of the former U.S. Deputy Attorney General) “as a de facto central bank for the Government of Sudan.”

Despite the declaration today (Sudan Tribune, February 3, 2017) by President al-Bashir that the Obama administration lifted sanctions on Sudan because of their “futility,” the truth is that their efficacy has not been tested: BNP Paribas saw to that during their long tenure as “central bank” for al-Bashir and his genocidal regime. Those in the world of Washington-based pundits who proclaim their agreement with al-Bashir only reveal their ignorance of the potency of the U.S. financial sanctions that BNP Paribas so effectively undermined.

The regime in Khartoum has not changed in the 27 years since it seized power in a military coup as the “National Islamic Front.” It continues to wage genocidal counter-insurgencies against the marginalized regions of the country in order to maintain a monopoly on national wealth and power. And the regime has assessed with uncanny skill the willingness—or lack thereof—by the international community to confront the regime over these multiple genocidal assaults—in what is now South Sudan, in the Nuba Mountains during the 1990s, in Darfur beginning in 2003, and now South Kordofan and Blue Nile. If it believes that refusing to acknowledge a cholera epidemic in these regions serves its purposes, it will deny—until facts become so overwhelming as to compel acknowledge of this vast threat to hundreds of thousands of civilians, especially in the eastern regions of Sudan.

The Trump administration looks at once badly confused and dismayingly indifferent to all but major geopolitical events—and here Sudan clearly does not qualify except as a resource for counter-terrorism intelligence, “red meat” for the wolves in the intelligence community that increasingly dominates U.S. foreign policy. Moreover, the odds-on favorite to become Trump's Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Peter Pham, has put himself decisively on record—even before Obama's Executive Order—as strongly favoring the lifting of sanctions against Khartoum.

Congress, which once took Sudan seriously on a bipartisan basis, is presently nowhere to be found in responding to the Executive Order. It was not always so: in July 2004 every member of Congress—in both houses and from both parties—declared that Khartoum was committing “genocide” in Darfur. But the present wait-and-see Congressional attitude only makes more likely a de facto lifting of sanctions (without another Executive Order they will disappear on July 13)—or encourages the Trump administration to believe it can not only lift sanctions but proceed apace with the rapprochement the U.S. intelligence community strongly favors—a supremely callous trade-off in which U.S. favors are given to Khartoum in return for counter-terrorism intelligence—in many cases about the very terrorists previously supported by the regime, which hosted Osama bin Laden during the formative years of al-Qaeda (1992 – 1996).

Just this week Sudanese intelligence General Hanafi Abdallah boasted of Khartoum's important to American counter-terrorism intelligence:

"There is communication between the two bodies and regular meetings. The CIA office in Khartoum is the largest office in the Middle East. Because the United States is aware of the Sudan strategic importance in the region, it has established one of the largest diplomatic missions in the region, even they had to expand their buildings," said Hanafi in an interview with the Khartoum based Al-Sudani newspaper published on Tuesday. (Sudan Tribune, January 31, 2017)

Although the regime lies shamelessly, there is on this occasion little reason to doubt the truth of this statement, which has not been denied by the U.S. State Department. For a long time the Khartoum regime held hostage the opening of CIA operations in the new building and embassy in Khartoum, knowing how desperate the agency was to gain access to what was designed to be the premier listening post in North Africa. The date of the Obama administration's gaining operational permission from Khartoum was never publicized, but clearly—whenever the final terms of the quid pro quo were settled upon—things are humming for the CIA in Khartoum now, and this more than any other factor governs any future decision by the Trump administration concerning reinstating sanctions and Sudan policy generally. And it will be a decision only nominally made by the State Department.

It is hard to be optimistic, with Washington-based pundits lauding Obama's Executive Order, and an incomprehensibly thoughtless Trump administration that gives no sign of heeding Sudan's agony as it pushes for “America First.” This may well be Sudan's darkest hour.

Eric Reeves has written extensively on Sudan for almost two decades; he is a Senior Fellow at Harvard University's François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights

Condemning attacks on civilians and non-governmental organizations in a town in Central African Republic (CAR)’s Ouham-Pendé province, a senior United Nations humanitarian official has called for protecting civilians as well as for unhindered relief access to the affected areas.

As Europe Union leaders gather today in Malta to discuss new measures on migration, including increased cooperation with Libya, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and UN rights experts underlined the need to ensure that children are protected and that migrants should not be pushed back to places where their safety is at risk.

The new Gambian president introduces a five-day week, axing an order to keep Fridays for praying.

South African entrepreneur Jabu Stone is aiming for "painless beauty" with his natural hair care range.

The BBC's Matthew Davies looks at the possible effects of President Trump's policies on Africa.

A selection of the best photos from across Africa this week.

Darfur groups welcome new African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki

February 3, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - Two Sudanese rebel groups from Darfur region Thursday welcomed the election of Moussa Faki as new chairperson of the African Union Commission.

Faki who last week was picked by the African leaders for the position, vowed to place development and security at the top of his agenda. As former Chadian foreign minister he was involved in the regional efforts to end the Darfur crisis since several years.

In separate statements the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and Sudan Liberation Movement - Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) extended a warm welcome to Faki and wished him success as the new Head of Africa's executive body.

"The SLM expect him, as a new Commissioner, to use his august office and exhibit more earnest steps to judiciously expedite and enhance AU's efforts in resolving Sudan's long standing conflict particularly in Darfur and the two areas," said Trayo Ali, SLM-MM chief negotiator in a statement extended to Sudan Tribune

JEM's leadership "wishes the best of luck and success to Minister Faki and hopes that his choice contributes to the transition of the African Union to new diplomatic spaces and to achieve (regional) security, stability, peace-building, development and democracy," said Ahmed Tugud Lissan JEM top negotiator.

During his campaign, Faki said that he harboured dreams of an Africa where the “sound of guns will be drowned out by cultural songs and rumbling factories”. He pledged to streamline the organisation during the course of his four-year term in office.

In statements to the Radio France Internationale (RFI) on 23 January, Moussa Faki said that AU needed strong leadership from someone who could “refocus on the basics”, adding that the regional body had only implemented less than 15% of the 1,800 resolutions adopted since 2002.

The African Union is brokering peace talks between the Sudanese government and opposition including the armed groups.

(ST)

Hundreds of Congolese gathered in Kinshasa’s Limete neighborhood after news broke last night that the Democratic Republic of Congo’s long-time opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi passed away on Wednesday in Brussels. He had left Congo last week for medical treatment.

Police deployed to control the crowds outside Tshisekedi’s home and the headquarters of his party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS). Things grew tense, with protesters throwing rocks and shouting slurs against President Joseph Kabila; police responded with rounds of teargas. But grief and sadness were also palpable. Many of those gathered were in tears, others wrote messages for Tshisekedi’s family in a book of condolences; some wondered aloud what Tshisekedi’s death meant for the ongoing Catholic Church-mediated dialogue and Tshisekedi’s struggle for democracy and the rule of law in Congo. Congolese leaders and citizens of all political stripes, as well as foreign dignitaries paid tribute to Tshisekedi.

Expand

Congolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi attends a political rally in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital Kinshasa, July 31, 2016. 

© 2016 Reuters

Known as the “Sphinx of Limete,” Tshisekedi had become a symbol of peaceful resistance and fighter in the struggle for democracy in Congo. He was one of the rare Congolese politicians who had always been on the side of the opposition, leading peaceful resistance for the past three decades – first against the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko before taking on President Laurent Kabila and then his son and the current president, Joseph Kabila. Following the 2011 presidential elections, marred by allegations of widespread fraud and brutal repression, many Congolese believed that Tshisekedi was the real winner even though the official results put him in second place with 32 per cent of the vote. Tshisekedi never officially recognized Kabila’s victory. 

Tshisekedi was also one of the few – if not the only – Congolese political leaders who could mobilize people to the streets. When he returned to Kinshasa last July, following two years abroad for medical treatment, hundreds of thousands gathered to catch a glimpse of him and hear him speak. Despite his age and deteriorating health, it’s largely thanks to Tshisekedi’s leadership and his willingness to ally with others that the opposition remained somewhat, and unusually, united in their 2016 struggle to resist attempts by Joseph Kabila to extend his presidency beyond the constitutionally mandated two-term limit, which ended on December 19, 2016. 

The Catholic Church-mediated dialogue late last year gained its legitimacy in large part due to Tshisekedi’s blessing and the participation of his UDPS political party and the Rassemblement opposition coalition he presided over. This led to the signing of a deal on New Year’s Eve, which defused a potentially explosive situation and ostensibly set the country on the path toward elections in December 2017 and the country’s first democratic transition of power. But implementation of the deal has been painfully slow, raising doubts whether Kabila and those loyal to him are really committed to organizing elections.

Tshisekedi was due to lead a council to oversee implementation of the deal and the organization of elections. It’s now hard to imagine who will fill this void, and it remains to be seen whether the opposition will be able to maintain enough unity and legitimacy to see the deal through and maintain the pressure on Kabila.

Congo’s political leaders would perhaps pay the best homage to Etienne Tshisekedi by putting the interests of the country first and working together to fulfill his long-time dream of a truly peaceful and democratic political transition.

Hundreds of Congolese gathered in Kinshasa’s Limete neighborhood after news broke last night that the Democratic Republic of Congo’s long-time opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi passed away on Wednesday in Brussels. He had left Congo last week for medical treatment.

Police deployed to control the crowds outside Tshisekedi’s home and the headquarters of his party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS). Things grew tense, with protesters throwing rocks and shouting slurs against President Joseph Kabila; police responded with rounds of teargas. But grief and sadness were also palpable. Many of those gathered were in tears, others wrote messages for Tshisekedi’s family in a book of condolences; some wondered aloud what Tshisekedi’s death meant for the ongoing Catholic Church-mediated dialogue and Tshisekedi’s struggle for democracy and the rule of law in Congo. Congolese leaders and citizens of all political stripes, as well as foreign dignitaries paid tribute to Tshisekedi.

Expand

Congolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi attends a political rally in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital Kinshasa, July 31, 2016. 

© 2016 Reuters

Known as the “Sphinx of Limete,” Tshisekedi had become a symbol of peaceful resistance and fighter in the struggle for democracy in Congo. He was one of the rare Congolese politicians who had always been on the side of the opposition, leading peaceful resistance for the past three decades – first against the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko before taking on President Laurent Kabila and then his son and the current president, Joseph Kabila. Following the 2011 presidential elections, marred by allegations of widespread fraud and brutal repression, many Congolese believed that Tshisekedi was the real winner even though the official results put him in second place with 32 per cent of the vote. Tshisekedi never officially recognized Kabila’s victory. 

Tshisekedi was also one of the few – if not the only – Congolese political leaders who could mobilize people to the streets. When he returned to Kinshasa last July, following two years abroad for medical treatment, hundreds of thousands gathered to catch a glimpse of him and hear him speak. Despite his age and deteriorating health, it’s largely thanks to Tshisekedi’s leadership and his willingness to ally with others that the opposition remained somewhat, and unusually, united in their 2016 struggle to resist attempts by Joseph Kabila to extend his presidency beyond the constitutionally mandated two-term limit, which ended on December 19, 2016. 

The Catholic Church-mediated dialogue late last year gained its legitimacy in large part due to Tshisekedi’s blessing and the participation of his UDPS political party and the Rassemblement opposition coalition he presided over. This led to the signing of a deal on New Year’s Eve, which defused a potentially explosive situation and ostensibly set the country on the path toward elections in December 2017 and the country’s first democratic transition of power. But implementation of the deal has been painfully slow, raising doubts whether Kabila and those loyal to him are really committed to organizing elections.

Tshisekedi was due to lead a council to oversee implementation of the deal and the organization of elections. It’s now hard to imagine who will fill this void, and it remains to be seen whether the opposition will be able to maintain enough unity and legitimacy to see the deal through and maintain the pressure on Kabila.

Congo’s political leaders would perhaps pay the best homage to Etienne Tshisekedi by putting the interests of the country first and working together to fulfill his long-time dream of a truly peaceful and democratic political transition.

By Leonard O. Akwany

Natural hazards such as floods and drought have become more prevalent in the Nile River Basin - as a result of climate and weather changes - resulting in massive disasters which drain communities economically, physically and environmentally.

Wetlands are naturally productive ecosystems which are capable of managing the risk of disasters to communities. They can contain flood water, which helps cushion communities against floods. When there's drought, they release the water which supports livelihoods. Aside from their buffering effects, wetlands also act as water purifiers.

The Nile river basin has a complex system of wetlands in 11 countries, namely; Burundi, DR Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, The Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. These wetlands provide not only physical benefits but also ecosystem services, which sustain the local communities directly or indirectly dependent on wetlands. They supply water for both domestic and commercial use and provide food including fish and wild plants. The wetlands are also home to charismatic birds and wild animals and give authentic aesthetic experiences, which are key to the development of tourism.

The Sudd Wetland, which is the largest freshwater wetland in the Nile Basin and is also one of the largest flood plains in the world, extending up to 130,000 square kilometers during rainy seasons, boasts over 100 fish species, 400 bird species and an important stopover site for water birds including a significant number of migratory bird species.

The Sudd wetland has been designated as one of the wetlands of International importance and has a large natural resource base which supports agriculture, livestock, fisheries and wildlife. Additionally, Sudd Wetland is critical for the basal water flow of river Nile benefiting associated biodiversity and livelihoods, especially of downstream communities.

Despite all the benefits offered by these wetlands, they continue to be heavily fragmented, degraded and reclaimed due to human activities such as encroachment for settlement, conversion into agricultural lands owing to population pressure, grey infrastructural development and poor implementation of policies protecting wetlands.

The continued destruction of wetlands only works to compromise their health and integrity and consequently, are unable to execute their functions as natural buffers against natural disasters.

The Nile Basin Initiative is working towards the maintenance of healthy wetlands and restoration of degraded ones as this is imperative to disaster risk reduction. At the 2016 inaugural Nile Basin Wetlands Forum, which was attended by representatives from 10 member states and other key stakeholders, participants identified a number of challenges. These range from inadequate governance instruments, infrastructural and agricultural encroachment, minimal trans-boundary collaborations within the Nile Basin trans-boundary wetlands and inadequate baseline information.

The possible inspiring interventions proposed include building baseline information, restoration of the wetlands, development of a Wetlands Atlas, wetland management and investment plans, economic valuation of wetlands and their associated resources, enactment of national policies and legislations and re-awakening of dry land wetlands. These interventions would boost wetlands' capability in disaster risk reduction and ultimately build resilience. NBI will be working towards scaling and replicating these interventions in trans-boundary wetlands and wetlands of regional significance.

Nile Basin Initiative in collaboration with German Development Agency (GIZ) is implementing a programme under the theme of Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of Ecosystem Services of Wetlands of Trans-boundary Relevance in the Nile Basin. The main goal of this programme is to strengthen the technical and institutional capacities of riparian States and other stakeholders for sustainable management of these wetlands for benefits stated herein.

Strategically NBI Wetlands work is anchored on The Wetlands Management Strategy developed in 2013 and focused on providing direction on sustainable utilization of Nile Basin Wetlands. Additionally, Nile Basin Initiative Wetlands work is geared towards supporting the riparian states meet their obligations under Ramsar Convention, Convention on Biological Diversity, Climate Change Adaptation and Sustainable Development Goals.

Finally, NBI is establishing a NileWet Network Platform as regional forum linked to Ramsar convention to provide a platform for collaboration between governments, technical experts, international NGOs, local communities and private companies working on wetlands in the Nile Basin for desired critical mass in working towards enabling healthy River Nile Basin wetlands for disaster risk reduction and general Nile Basin wetlands sustainability.

The writer is a Regional Wetlands Expert at Nile Basin Initiative Secretariat