African Union chief, Jean Ping, dismissed accusations that Ethiopia has blocked the right of Eritrea to establish an office for its mission to the AU in Addis Ababa.

Asmara said in a letter circulated during the 14th AU summit Eritrea has been banned for the last 10 years from its right to participate in African Union summits and other meetings in Addis Ababa by Ethiopian refusal to extend proper diplomatic and security guarantee.

Eritrea also called on the African Union to stop holding its summits and other meetings in Addis Ababa.

In his reply to the Eritrean Foreign Affairs Minister, Osman Saleh, the Chairperson of the African UN Commission said that “Ethiopia should never been accused for Eritrea’s denial using its rights to take part in AU deliberation,” the official ENA reported on Thursday.

Ping said the commission had discussed the issues with government of Ethiopia at highest level and has accepted a categorical assurance that the Eritrean government is free to establish a mission to the AU in Addis Ababa.

Eritrea and Ethiopia fought a bloody war between1998-2000 which killed 80,000 people. The conflict between the two countries started when the two neighbors disputed over the small border town of Badme.

Ping said the former chairperson had also informed Eritrea that it has the right to participate in AU sessions in Addis Ababa.

The AU chief was referring to a letter by the former Chairperson Alpha Omar Konare to the Eritrean government that its mission will be accredit only to the African Union, will not have or carry out bilateral activities and the staff will operate from Addis Ababa only where the AU headquarters is located.

The 14th African Union Summit voiced support to UN imposed sanction and condemned Asmara to its negative roles in regional stability.(Sudan Tribune)

IGAD: A communiqué devoid of any legality

The IGAD Council of Ministers has issued a communiqué on Somalia and Eritrea following a meeting convened in Ethiopia this weekend. Apart from its ill-advised content which can only exacerbate the crisis in Somalia and hamper the objectives of peace and security in the Horn of Africa, the IGAD Communique is devoid of any legality for the following procedural and substantive reasons:

i) Four members of IGAD, namely Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti and Uganda are direct protagonists in the conflict in Somalia in one form or another. Ethiopia is culpable for a flagrant invasion of Somalia in December 2006 under the instigation of the United States and the intermittent incursions thereafter. The other countries have not only endorsed Ethiopia’s invasion of an IGAD Member State but have also sent troops to Mogadishu in contravention of UN Security Council resolution 1725(2006) that barred neighboring countries from involvement in any eventual peacekeeping force in Somalia.

ii) Somalia’s seat in IGAD had remained vacant for most of the 19 years since the country was sadly embroiled in the crisis that continues without let up. It appears that the TFG has now been accorded a seat in IGAD. But in view of the political realities in Somalia(the entities in Puntland, Somaliland etc and the situation in Mogadishu), this short-sighted decision does not only provoke issues of legality but does not augur well for a healthy process of nation reconciliation in Somalia.

iii) As communicated to the government of Eritrea by Dr. Mustafa Osman Ismail, the Special Advisor to the President, the government of Sudan does not support UN Security Council Resolution 1907 imposing sanction on Eritrea.

iv) Eritrea suspended its membership in IGAD in early 2007 in the wake of Ethiopia’s invasion of Somalia and the moral failure of IGAD to condemn the acts of aggression against a fellow Member State.

v) As is well known, Ethiopia continues to occupy sovereign Eritrean territories in violation of international law and its treaty obligations.

vi) In light of these facts, any decision of those States in respect of Somalia does not have validity, as they cannot cast their votes as impartial or neutral parties. In the same breadth, these countries cannot indict Eritrea on account of events in Somalia. These countries, which shoulder primary responsibility for the cause and exacerbation of the crisis in Somalia do not indeed have moral, political or legal authority to indict or punish Eritrea.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Asmara

3 February 2010

Westminster

UK Members of Parliament discussed regional security in the Horn of Africa during a debate in Westminster Hall on Tuesday. Ivan Lewis, Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responded to the debate representing the UK Government.

The debate focused on issues of security and stability in Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Yemen acknowledging the strategic, economic and cultural importance of these countries. However, a great part of the discussion in Westminster Hall centered around the border problem between Eritrea and Ethiopia as a driver of conflict in the region.

Conservative MP Mark Pritchard opened the discussion on Eritrea and Ethiopia by stating, “What happens in Addis Abeba matters”. Mr Pritchard supports his view by arguing that Ethiopia is one of the most stable countries in the Horn. He told attending MPs that he recently made a visit to Ethiopia and that the country reflects stability regardless of ongoing disputes and tensions with Eritrea.

Mr Pritchard was asked by Jeremey Corbyn, Labour MP from the Islington constituency, if he was able to discuss the issue of border dispute with the Ethiopian Government during his visit to Addis Ababa and whether he believes that there is any chance that the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling might be accepted by both parties.

Mr Pritchard replied that he had discussed it with the Foreign Minister of Ethiopia and other representatives of the Government. He said that it would help if the court would make the effort to visit the border rather than making judgments based on a map from a room in a European capital.

Throughout the debate the Conservative MP appeared to support Ethiopia accusing Eritrea of causing instability in the Horn with the support of Libya, Qatar and Iran. While the Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs tried to emphasise the complexity of the forces driving conflict in the Horn.

“I wonder whether we are not sometimes too simplistic in looking at goodies and baddies, and whether a much higher degree of involvement is needed,” Mr Corbyn said for instance.

Moreover, Labour and Liberal Democrats seemed to support the view that the Algiers Agreement and the Court of Arbitration ruling might be key to solving many problems in the region.

Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Ivan Lewis responded to the debate saying,

“To my hon. Friend the Member for Islington, North who raised the issue of the border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea, I have to say that there was arbitration. The Eritrea-Ethiopia boundary commission made a very clear decision on the border.

Despite our friendship with Ethiopia and our tremendous admiration for the progress it has made, we continue to press it to implement the decision following arbitration. The matter will continue to be a running sore and a cause of much instability until it has done so.

I say to the hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr. Davey) who asked the question that we continue to make the case for that recommendation to be implemented, because it is a root cause of the significant instability.”

“We support the sanctions regime against Eritrea because we believe that country has consistently flouted international law, which is why we supported UN Security Council resolution 1907. However, that is not an alternative to engagement. Of course, we want to engage with Eritrea, as well as to insist that it does not behave in a way that undermines stability in the horn. It is very important to get that balance right.”

Watch the debate on link below:

WESTMINISTER HALL VIDEO

Antrim, UK – Commonwealth Games 10,000m champion Boniface Kiprop may be a late withdrawal, but there is still a formidable field for the Antrim International, the sixth IAAF Cross Country Permitrace of the season, which takes place on Saturday (23).

The 24-year-old star was one of the favourites to take the senior men’s title after setting the pace in last year’s event, only to have the misfortune of losing his shoe after four miles and conceding valuable seconds to Imane Merga of Ethiopia.

Having recovered the shoe, Kiprop made the fatal mistake of closing the gap on the leaders too quickly. An exhausted Kiprop was then unable to cover Merga’s sprint finish who won by two seconds over the disgruntled Ugandan.

Despite Kiprop’s absence due to an illness which also sidelined him from the Edinburgh fixture two weeks ago, the race still boasts a high class field, with two of Britain’s top three finishers in the senior men’s event at the recent Europeans in Dublin confirming that they will compete at the Greenmount Campus in Antrim this weekend.

Blackheath’s Mike Skinner was overtaken in last month’s event in Dublin by Andy Vernon, the pair finishing 13th and 12th respectively behind their countryman Mo Farah who claimed second.

Skinner is in a rich vein of form coming in to Saturday’s event, with victories at Gateshead and Liverpool already this season. His performance in Dublin helped the British side to the silver team medals behind winners Spain.

Aldershot native Vernon is equally at home on both cross country and track. A silver medallist at the European Under-23 Championships in 2008, he captured the national 10,000m track title in July to add to a 5000m victory from the previous year.

Other athletes hoping to impress in the Antrim 9km challenge are Mike Clohisey, Tseqi Tewelde of Eritrea, Kenyan Mike Kigen and Youssef El Kalai of Morocco along with local hopefuls Stephen Scullion, Joe McAllister and Ed McGinley.

Focus on Yelling – women’s race

The Women’s 5.6km event is shaping up to be a battle between some of this season’s top international cross country stars, with new European Cross Country champion Hayley Yelling among those set to compete at Greenmount.

Yelling turned 36 this week, and will be hoping for more to celebrate after she caused the biggest European Cross Country upset in years by taking gold at Santry in Dublin.

An elite field of runners was decimated by a devastating display of front running from the Dorchester-born teacher as she secured a memorable seven-second victory over runner-up Rosa Morato of Spain.

Yelling’s achievement was all the more astonishing as she was only back in training for four weeks, having previously announced her retirement in 2008 at the European Championships in Brussels. Yelling’s first place finish and a strong display by her teammates ensured Britain notched a team silver behind Portugal.

Ana Dulce Felix was a member of that all-conquering Portuguese line-up, and travels to Antrim following a sixth place individual finish in Dublin. The 27-year-old is aiming to build on her 2009 success which saw her record 10 personal bests over a range of distances. She was also an impressive 15th in the World Cross Country Championships in Amman.

Meanwhile, a win for European indoor bronze medallist Mary Cullen would bring glory to Ireland for the first time in 16 years. The Sligo athlete is bidding to bounce back from a disappointing 12th place finish in last month’s Europeans before an expectant home crowd in Dublin.

The run was particularly frustrating as Cullen’s previous form showed medal potential. This included a fourth place in the Europeans in Brussels, an Irish indoor 3000m record of 8:43.74 in Boston and a bronze medal in the European indoors in Turin.

In Antrim, Cullen will be targeting both Yelling and Felix in the hope she can improve upon her previous best at the event, a fourth place finish in Stormont four years ago.

Recently-crowned European junior Cross Country bronze medallist Kate Avery will lead the charge in the junior race. The Durham athlete is currently on a high following an unexpected third place in the Dublin event behind Norwegian winner Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal.

Avery also won silver in the 3000m at the European Juniors and joining her at Greenmount is Delilah Dicrescenzo of the USA who was fourth in her national championships this year. She also finished a respectable 33rd in the World Cross Country in Amman.

The Belfast International meeting began in 1977 and has seen some of the world’s top athletes take victories at the event over the years. Notable names have included Paula Radcliffe, Paul Tergat, Steve Cram, Steve Ovett, John Treacy, Khalid Skah, Sergey Lebid, Liz McColgan and Brendan Foster, plus a host of other world class Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes. Source: (IAAF)

CHERRY POINT — The Hammerheads are headed for the Horn.

About 70 Marines from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 366 left Cherry Point air station Tuesday morning in route to the Horn of Africa.

It is the first full-term, seven-month deployment for HMH-366, called the Hammerheads, since it was reactivated in September 2008, according to the commanding officer, Lt. Col. Jim Harp.

The Marines boarded two buses and headed for Norfolk, Va., where they will fly on a chartered jet to the small African nation of Djibouti, located at the juncture of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and bordered by Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. Yemen is about 20 miles across the Strait of Bab el Mandeb from Djibouti.

Harp said the personnel would be providing heavy-lift capability for contingency operations in the region as part of a mission that has been ongoing for some time there.

HMH-366 has CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters based at Hangar 250 at Cherry Point, but the detachment is not taking any of the choppers there. There are four Super Stallions already at the base in Djibouti. “Once we fall in on them, the helicopters that are there will become ours,” Harp said.

Harp said that since the standup of the squadron, the Marines have been working hard to attain full operational capability. A small group of Marines from the HMH-366 started a short, three-month deployment in Iraq in November.

The duties around the Horn of Africa will be varied, he said.

“There are a whole slew of different missions they could do over there. Humanitarian assistance may be one of them,” Harp said.

Capt. Doug Given, a CH-53E pilot, said that there would be two basic types of personnel on the mission: air crew and maintainers.

“Aircrews break the birds and the maintainers fix them,” Given said.

Though their exact role has not been determined, Given said the heavy-lifting capabilities of the Super Stallions will likely be used to transport supplies and aid if needed and to support operations by the Navy SeaBees, who are constructing buildings and drilling water wells in remote villages.

“Driving there just takes days and days and days where we can get there in an hour or two,” Given said of flying the helicopters. Given will be leaving behind a wife and 3-month-old baby boy during the deployment. “It’s not fun. It was tough to leave this morning,” Given said.

Staff Sgt. Joe Barkhurst, the crew chief for the flightline shop, was leaving his 6-year-old son Josh and wife Lisa on Tuesday morning. It is Barkhurst’s first deployment in his 13-year Marine career. “It’s going to be tough, especially since it’s the first time,” he said. Josh clung to his dad in the minutes leading up to the departure.

“We spend a lot of time together,” Barkhurst said. “The communication lines are already open, so we should be able to e-mail and talk on the phone.” Source: (SunJournal)

Harry Norman: Hello this is Harry Norman: for Proactive Investors, and welcome to another Proactive audio interview. Today is the 22nd of December 2009 and I’m talking with Bob Foster.  CEO of Stratex International.  Listed on the AIM Market, Mining Sector.  Stock ticker STI.  Share price 3.12 pence. Market cap £7.8 Million Sterling. Web address stratexinternational.com

Harry Norman: Thank you for joining us for this interview Bob.
Bob Foster: Harry it’s always a pleasure to talk to Proactive.

Please give investors a brief introduction to Stratex and the company’s business model.
We formed the company in 2004 and listed in 2006.  The major focus has been on Turkey, primarily gold. The major focus in more detail has been gold exploration.  But more recently we’ve recognised the importance of actually taking some of our projects to production.  That became particularly apparent at the beginning of this year when, like so many small companies, our share price really took a serious hammering.  And we had to remind our shareholders and our investors where we were going.

So effectively we have four strategies:

One is to put key projects into production.

The second is, with some of our better exploration projects, to minimise the exposure and the financial risk by bringing in good joint venture partners.

The third is the early stage exploration projects – to take those forward ourselves and we continually hope that one of these will develop into a major discovery.

And the fourth, and still some way off yet, but clearly it’s something we have an eye on, is the opportunity for some form of merger and acquisition where we can actually move up to the next level and really move things forward much more rapidly and with more substance.

What progress has been made with Stratex’s gold exploration projects at Altintepe and Inlice in Turkey?
Harry, we’ve identified a very appropriate joint venture partner – a Turkish, privately owned company called NTF with major expertise in civil engineering and earth moving and contract mining.  They’re earning into the projects by taking us through feasibility on both – to the tune of $2 Million on Inlice and, subject to a $1/2 Million scoping study, to the tune of $2 ½ Million on Altintepe.  This takes away a considerable amount of the financial and technical risk to us.  We’ve already started scoping studies and pre feasibility studies funded by our partners NTF on the basis of a Memorandum of Understanding.  They’re funding it to the tune of at least $50,000 a month and the work is progressing very well.

We’re close to signing the definitive agreement.  The only delay there has been in relation to tax structures and the capital structure of the joint venture company.  That should be signed early in the New Year.  And they themselves, NTF, are committed to making mining their core business in the future, which gives us a great deal of comfort as well.

What convinced Teck Resources to enter a joint venture with Stratex for the Hasançelebi high-sulphidation gold project in central Turkey and what progress has been made there?
Well Harry you might remember that Teck in fact were a founder shareholder in our company before we even listed – and that was on the basis of a degree of recognition that David Hall the Chairman, and myself had been round the block many times and could contribute something significantly to any future exploration.  Of course we’ve brought on board now Bahri Yildiz in Turkey, our General Manager and Geologist, and we’re moving forward.

Teck invested in the Konya project and put $1½ Million into that.  No major drill intersections were returned and they decided that it probably wasn’t quite for them.  And also of course Teck themselves have been through a pretty difficult time over the last year, but have restructured and are moving forward pretty positively now.

I think having restructured and taken a new look at life, they’ve always had a major focus on Turkey with a strong team there.

They’ve looked at our Hasançelebi project and they share the view that we have, that it’s a very substantially aerially extensive project and has a lot of gold upside.  800 metres plus of gold-bearing rock.  And they’re committed to spending $1/2 Million by the end of the next year.  This expenditure will include at least 2,000 metres of drilling, which they and we see as key to actually taking this project forward.

They can acquire 51% [50% is as stated in the interview but should have been 51% - up to you if you have to stay with the reported 50%] by expending a total of $2 Million and then taking that to 70% by expending a further $3 Million.

The work has already started.  It will slow down during the winter months.  But they’re very positive about the project.

What progress has been made with Stratex’s joint venture with Centerra Gold for the oxide high-sulphidation gold project in Central Anatolia in Turkey, Bob?
Excellent progress.  Just like Teck Resources, we regard Centerra as an ideal joint venture partner.  Considerable technical expertise and the appropriate cash to help us all go forward.

At this stage they’ve spent their first committed $1/2 Million to undertake drilling and further exploration of the key Ortacam Zone within the project itself.  The outcome of that most recently has been the press release on the 42 metres returning at 2 grams per ton of gold.  We’ve found them very supportive in all we do.  They take an intelligent and direct interest. – technical interest – in what we’re doing.  There will be a slight downtime now as we review data and allow the snows to disappear and in March/April we will be up and running again and we look forward to taking this forward.

They have the option to expending a total of 3 Million to get to 50% – that’s US dollars – and a further 3 Million to get to 70%.

Bob do you still believe there are some significant gold deposits undiscovered in Turkey?
Without doubt – the country is still very under-explored.  It’s a huge country with all the right geology, as geologists will tell you.  It’s probably a case that we’ve found the most obvious gold deposits sticking out at the surface.  And perhaps an element of maturity here now – we have to start looking for signs for what might be beneath the surface.  At this stage it only has to be a few tens of metres.   Subtle geochemical signatures, geophysical signatures.  We believe the upside is still very high and, although we have begun to look elsewhere outside Turkey, it is still our major focus of exploration, and will remain so for some years to come.

Stratex recently acquired 5.6% of Ethiopia-focussed Sheba Exploration plus an earn into Sheba’s Shehagne project and a joint venture with Sheba for other projects in Ethiopia.  What’s so compelling about Ethiopia and Sheba Exploration? Well Ethiopia geology-wise is just as exciting, for slightly different reasons, as Turkey and without doubt it’s more under-explored than Turkey.

It has two different kinds of geological terrains.  One that is very old, that’s 700 to 1,000 million years old, and one that’s very young.  Sheba has been focussing its exploration on the northern parts of Ethiopia and some of the oldest rocks there, with some early discoveries or indications of gold.  We liked what they were doing.  We’d read their press releases.  We’d done a diligence on their projects, obviously with their approval.  And we saw this as an excellent opportunity to establish a firm footprint in the country based on underlying assets, which we would then develop in conjunction with our new joint venture partners, while also looking elsewhere.

I think a key point to make here Harry is that some of the ground held by Sheba in the northern part of the country is just across the border from discoveries in Eritrea, which are of very major significance.  Sunridge’s, base metal and gold discoveries and also of course Nevsun’s major Bisha copper-zinc-gold deposit as well.  So all the indications are very positive.

Stratex recently announced the first discovery of epithermal gold mineralisation in Ethiopia.  What is the significance of this discovery and is this prospect part of your joint venture with Sheba Exploration, Bob? This is outside our current relationship with Sheba.  It actually represents the combination of two years of conceptual thinking, modelling and wondering where to explore for this kind of gold mineralisation.  Our analogy really was some of the gold mineralisation of southern parts of South America, particularly the Cerro Vanguardia gold deposit, a major multi-million-ounce vein-type deposit formed when the Atlantic Ocean began to open.

If you can imagine in Eastern Ethiopia and through Kenya of course we have the East African Rift.  That is a very young ocean attempting to be formed.  It was an obvious place to go and in fact our first visits there by David Hall and our exploration team came up with some strong indications.  And so on that basis we are very very excited about it.

What is Stratex’s financial situation going forward Bob?
Comfortable.  Way back in 2007 we were fortunate enough to raise £7 Million at a time when the markets just began to tremble – and long before the major convulsions of mid late 2008.  Since then of course we’ve been putting the money primarily into exploration in Turkey – in some good exploration projects which we’re now funding by joint ventures, so that minimises our financial risk.  Taking our two gold projects forward in Turkey of course has minimised our financial and technical exposure.

We’re virtually cash neutral in terms of expenditure in Turkey.  This gives us the opportunity to look elsewhere.  Add to this the fact that signing the definitive agreement with our partners NTF will put another $1 Million in the bank. And exploring in Turkey and given a discovery we actually can claim back a significant amount of VAT, so we’re due back the best part of another $1 Million over the next year or so.

So we don’t have to turn to the markets now.  We will turn to the markets when we feel it’s appropriate.  We’ve been given to understand that the markets rather like what we’re doing and we could raise money.  But we’re in a happy position to be able to pick and choose the appropriate time – and perhaps the appropriate events around which to raise money.

What news flow can investors expect over the next twelve to eighteen months from Stratex Bob? I think it’s a very positive view to take here Harry.  Of course the joint venture with our partners NTF with Inlice and Altintepe going through feasibility and, all being well, into production.  There’s going to be a long strand of news flow as we undertake the infill drilling, update resources on both projects, and metallurgical test work etc.

The remainder of the exploration projects in Turkey – things will be a little quiet over the next two to three months.  But come March-April we’ll be seeing a complete ramp-up of the exploration there and, with our two joint venture partners funding projects and our own exploration, there will be a lot to report.

And of course Ethiopia climate-wise at the very least allows us to explore all the year round and, with our two major projects there with our partners Sheba and with our new project in the Rift Valley, there will be a continuous news flow from that region as well – so a lot of news. Source: (ProactiveInvestors)

By Stefano Valentino

“Si, se puede,” “Pabst, please” and now, “African Unity” is the latest political mantra echoing in the Mission.

The African Advocacy Network will hold its inaugural meeting early this year at its headquarters at 522 Valencia Street to explore ways to promote stronger cooperation within the African community and with other ethnic groups in the Bay Area.

To this end, the network has extended an invitation to the leaders of other communities, including the Latino, Asian and Arab communities, as well as to the Oakland-based Black Alliance for a Just Immigration.

“We think we can learn a lot from the experiences of well-established communities and we might better achieve our goals by cooperating with them,” says Adoubou Traore, who was born in the Ivory Coast and is currently a language teacher at Cañada College in Redwood City as well as project director of the African Advocacy Network.

An Afro-ethnic Mosaic

“Coordinating workshops and events can be really challenging because African immigrants are dispersed all over the Bay and are not as tightly connected as Latinos or Asians are,” says Joe Sciarrillo, a paralegal at the network, which was created last June. An estimated 38,000 African immigrants live in the Bay Area, with approximately 4,700 in San Francisco. The largest number of immigrants come from Ethiopia, but there are also substantial numbers from Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa.

Still, creating services that cater to all of them has proven to be difficult, at least partly because local governments frequently fail to identify them adequately.

“The first challenge that African immigrants face is being under-counted, since most local government forms do not list Africa as an option for country of origin, so African immigrants are often counted as ‘African-American,’” explains Tomás Lee, director of the San Francisco Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs.

This social fragmentation also reflects Africa’s cultural and linguistic heterogeneity and the geographical distances within the continent itself.

“Very often it’s only when we come to the US that we meet other African immigrants for the first time outside of our countries of origin,” Traore said.

“It takes time to overcome the anxiety resulting from the contact with individuals who are different from us, learn about each other and focus on what we have in common – being African and away from our homeland.”

Starting Small, Growing Quickly

The organization has a growing number of clients who accept free social services, case management, housing assistance, resources for employment, job searches and legal assistance. A third are from Ethiopia and Eritrea, a third from French-speaking countries in Western Africa, such as Ivory Coast, Togo and Senegal and a quarter are from English-speaking countries, mostly Nigeria and Ghana. Newcomers from North Africa, in particular Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, add to the mosaic of ethnicities that the network is seeking to stitch together.

The majority reside in San Francisco, including a great many in the Mission.

The upcoming meeting will focus on how to support unique ethnic identities while simultaneously forming a greater African movement, helping people resolve immigration issues, organizing joint cultural events, providing educational services and fundraising.

Another key focus will be on promoting business awareness within the community and encouraging people to patronize each other’s services.

“Many Africans we see don’t even realize that some compatriots live in their same neighborhood, thus missing the chance for accessing mutual support,” Sciarrillo says. “For example, few Africans living in the Mission know that one of their community members has a thriving computer repair business (Bay Computers) and that another one runs a taxi service.”

Promoting Dialogue Between Communities

The African Advocacy Network receives funding from the Mayor’s Office of Community Investment, through the San Francisco Immigrant Legal & Education Network, as well as from the California Endowment through Dolores Street Community Services. Both the legal network and Dolores Street are based on Valencia Street.

The way the network operates is a unique example of inter-community collaboration.

“AAN is a project of Dolores Street, which traditionally serves Latinos, and as such it represents the first official form of cooperation between the two communities,” Sciarrillo says. “Up until now, these two communities have collaborated but there has never been a formal organizational integration.”

Many clients who need specialized legal assistance from immigration attorneys are served by the Asian Law Caucus.

The Arab community, through the Arab Resource and Organizing Center, also assists the African network by providing office space at below-market rates.

Another important issue on the agenda is how to work together with the African-American community.

“Our current level of intercultural understanding is not as great as we would like it to be,” Traore says.

“We are different from each other: many African-Americans no longer know much about Africa. Many African immigrants only know of the mass media’s narrative when it comes to African-Americans. It’s going to take a great deal to educate both sides. African-Americans can serve as powerful source of support for newly arrived African immigrants. And we can help them to recover their historic roots.” Source: (Missionlocal)

The African Union is urging the United Nations to boost its support for Somalia’s fragile government in view of the rise of terrorist activity in the Horn of Africa and the Arabian peninsula. AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping calls the overall security situation in the Horn of Africa nation “unstable, volatile and challenging’.

In a report to the AU Peace and Security Council Friday, Ping notes several tragic security breakdowns in the past few months. The most recent was a suicide attack December 3 on a medical school graduation in Mogadishu that killed 25, including three government ministers. Another suicide attack in September on the headquarters of the AU peacekeeping mission, AMISOM, killed 20 people, mostly peacekeepers, including the deputy force commander.

Acting on Ping’s recommendation, the Council extended AMISOM’s mandate for another 12 months. The U.N. Security Council approved $210 million to fund the 5,200 AMISOM peacekeepers for the past seven months. But as the Council meets next week to review AMISOM funding levels, AU Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra is calling for Somalia to be seen not just as a breeding ground for terrorists, but as part of a region dotted with troubled states such as Eritrea and Yemen.

“We look forward to more bold decisions within the UN Security Council so that engagement of the international community would be commensurate with the challenges. These are not limited to local challenges, they go beyond, to include piracy, international terrorism, and these are of a global nature,” said Lamamra.

U.N. Special Representative to Somalia Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah says several recent events have highlighted the Horn of Africa ’s growing significance as a hub in the global terror network.

“It is today becoming…a global crisis, and the latest developments in Mogadishu with killing of students by a Somali coming from Denmark, or an attempt against a journalist in Denmark, and before that in Kenya is showing that Somalia is a global crisis,” said Ould-Abdallah. “Note the importance British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has attached to Somalia, linking it clearly to developments coming from Afghanistan or Yemen,” he added.

The latest AU report notes security in Somalia is complicated by a fight between two rival insurgent groups for control of a lucrative port city. Both groups, al-Shabab and Hizbul Islam are said to have links with al-Qaida.

Earlier this week, it was reported that the Nigerian man accused of trying to detonate a bomb on a Detroit-bound airliner Christmas Day had met a radical U.S. Muslim cleric in Yemen after being recruited by al-Qaida in London.

Yemen, the ancestral home of Osama bin Laden, is 250 kilometers from the northern coast of Somalia across the Gulf of Aden, the busy waterway that has been the scene of hijackings by Somali pirates. Source: (Voice of America)

U.S. AFRICOM Public Affairs

PARIS, France, — AIDAN O’DONNELL (RADIO FRANCE INTERNATIONALE): Thank you once again for speaking to us.

GEN. WILLIAM E. WARD: Sure.

MR O’DONNELL: Can I just ask you, first of all, you talked about increased professionalization of the various countries you’re working with – presumably better armies, better security. And the suggestion is that this leads to greater stability. Why do you feel that a better army will necessarily lead to greater stability and not to greater instability?

GEN. WARD: Because I think what you have is a – it’s not just a better army; it’s an army that functions in accordance with those things that we see as good principles, how they contribute to good governance, that responds to the legitimate government in ways that are not extrajudicial but are professional in accordance with what goes on.

If you take an example of Kenya, you know, 2 years ago, this time, Kenya was going through a very substantial governance issue associated with their elections. Their professional military stayed out of that because of that very fact — that it’s professional, and they knew how to operate in a democratic society where the army, the military, is not a part of those activities. And so we see a more professional military, not one that’s solely skilled in military tactics, but how it conducts itself – its behavior, its discipline – as a stabilizing factor.

MR O’DONNELL: You mentioned, once or twice, earlier, the question of border patrols. There are numerous clashes between various states on the very question of borders. If you’re helping a country to run a more efficient army along its border, presumably, this is giving an advantage to one country over another, in terms of a potential border dispute.

GEN. WARD: Well, the issue – and that’s why the regional business is so important. That’s why, as these nations work together regionally, that becomes increasingly, increasingly important to preclude the potential for that very thing happening. Recently, we were in East Africa – had an exercise that involved five East African nations – Tanzania, Burundi, Kenya -

MODERATOR: Uganda.

GEN. WARD: Uganda and Burundi?

COL CHILDRESS: Tanzania.

GEN. WARD: Tanzania. And they all worked together. In fact, as they were moving to conduct the exercise – the nations moving across each others’ borders – they were being greeted at the border by the next country and they were traveling together, so they all wound up in the exercise area to conduct a humanitarian assistance exercise — all together — so they get to know each other in a more effective way and their cooperating increases. It is that type of condition that we are supporting the creation of, as the nations have determined that they do, in fact, want to work together as better partners.

MR O’DONNELL: Okay. AFRICOM has asked to set it itself up in Tamanrasset and Gao. Have the respective governments approved this and will there be an installation at some point?

GEN. WARD: No, no, AFRICOM has not asked to set up in Gao or Tamanrasset. We have conducted training activities in those locations, as we have in other parts of the continent, as well. But in no way does it reflect any permanent presence.

MR O’DONNELL: Okay, we have the impression that al-Qaida in the Maghreb has abandoned the North African front to concentrate on the Sahel-Sahara strip. Is this the case and is this, for you, a new strategy on their part?

GEN. WARD: Well, I think al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb would seek to operate wherever it could find space to do so, and the vast regions of the Sahel there are areas that they would certainly look to move in. That’s why the nations of the Sahel increasing their capacity to have better control, better visibility over their vast territories, is an objective that we have, in working with those nations of the region, as well as working with other international partners.

MR O’DONNELL: Can you tell us something about the use of private military contractors by AFRICOM, or PMCs? They’re being used by African states, they’re being used by American companies and also by AFRICOM. To what extent are they being used, and are you satisfied that the necessary accountability is there?

GEN. WARD: AFRICOM does not use private military contractors.

MR O’DONNELL: Do you feel that this is something that might be used in the future, given that U.S. military resources are strained outside of AFRICOM?

GEN. WARD: I’m not envisioning that.

MR O’DONNELL: Okay. In August 2009, the U.S. assassinated a Shabaab leader using helicopters out of Mogadishu. What kind of information-gathering led to this, and is this something that we can expect to see in the future?

GEN. WARD: Well, I don’t know if I would characterize it as such. There are terrorists that are operating around the world, and our president has said, as well as the current administration, that we will pursue those terrorists, where they may be. And that is something that is an option that remains on the table.

MR O’DONNELL: In Northern Chad in 2008, we’ve seen Navy SEAL units – very small, very mobile – about 15 people – on intelligence-gathering missions. Can you tell us how widespread this kind of operation is around the continent?

GEN. WARD: I would not characterize any particular – I’m not sure what you’re talking about there. So I don’t know if there were Navy SEALS on some intelligence gathering mission at all. We do conduct security assistance and training missions with a range of our forces that operate, again, in these countries to provide training, support and assistance, as is coordinated by those partner nations. And that occurs as a part of our security assistance program in many parts of the continent.

SONIA ROLLEY (RADIO FRANCE INTERNATIONALE): Do you believe that the threat of the Shabaab to go to Yemen and to help al-Qaida there is a real threat, or it’s just talk or for publicity?

GEN. WARD: As I mentioned, I think whenever these groups say that they’re going to do something, we would take them at their word that they would do that. And we would – that would be of a concern. So I take them at their word.

MS. ROLLEY: And you believe that they have the capacity to do it? You believe that they are still an important threat in Somalia, as before?

GEN. WARD: I think so. It doesn’t take a lot to be a threat. And so I think they say that they are going to do that and I take them at their word.

MS. ROLLEY: And what about the role of Eritrea? Do you believe that Eritrea is a key country in the region, with Somalia, for example, but also with Yemen? Do you have evidence that Eritrea is a key player in these terrorist activities in the region?

GEN. WARD: Well, I think it’s a function of how these countries work to help to prevent crisis – help to create stability, as opposed to not. And that is what we would like to see all the countries be active contributors in helping to create stability – don’t see a lot of that evidence from Eritrea.

COL CHILDRESS: We have time for one more question.

MR O’DONNELL: Just to come back, finally, to the question of military contractors, if you are operating in Africa, if the U.S. government is awarding contracts to American security companies who are operating in, say, Liberia, Sudan, Somalia, does this mean that you’re then working around these companies – these entities?

GEN. WARD: I’m not quite sure – you know, we have contractors in Africa. The contractors are there providing logistic support. I’m not aware of American security contractors or companies operating in Africa conducting security activities.

MR O’DONNELL: And do you believe that – are you having to have a closer look on Nigeria, for example, because of what happened with the terrorist attempt on the plane?

MS. ROLLEY: No. There are – we have not done anything different insofar as what we are doing. We work with the Nigerians. But we haven’t done anything different. What was going with the plane – our Transportation Security Administration — and those airport and flight safety requirements — is responsible for coordinating and working those with other nations who have flights that originate in their territories that are bound for the United States.

MR O’DONNELL: Thank you very much.

(END)

Zalambesa, 2 January 2010- Eritrean Ministry of Information Shabait is reporting that in the early morning hours of January 1st 2010, TPLF soldiers launched successive attacks in the Zalambesa front and were swiftly driven back with 10 of their soldiers killed and two captured, leaving six AK-47 automatic rifles, a machine gun and communication equipments. Source: (Shabait)

The European Commission Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) has raised a red flag over the worsening food security situation in the Horn of Africa.

Karel De Gucht, European Commissioner in charge of development and humanitarian aid, attributes the disastrous situation to the terrible potential of climate change.

“Large parts of the Horn of Africa have had less than 75 percent of normal rainfall this year, having already endured a series of severe droughts. The population can no longer cope with such extreme and protracted hardship which often comes on top of conflict situation. As a result, more than 16 million people desperately need help,” he said in a statement released by ECHO.

Initial optimism occasioned by forecasts of El Niño rains were thwarted when November proved largely dry. El Niño refers to a periodic warming of temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, far from East Africa’s shores but with impacts on the country’s rainfall and weather patterns.

Samuel Mwangi, acting assistant director of Kenya’s national weather forecasting services explains that El Niño has been linked with greater rainfall during the annual “short rains” in East Africa, between October and December.

ECHO warns that if the December rains are below average, parts of Kenya may suffer irreparable damage.

ECHO regional information officer Daniel Dickinson told IPS, “In the face of the unfolding drought situation, ECHO is providing 50 million euros in humanitarian aid to vulnerable drought-affected people in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda. The rains have failed and people have exhausted the coping mechanisms which they had and urgently need help.”

Kenya’s minister for special programmes, Naomi Shaban, issued a similar warning in mid- December over the worsening food security situation across the country.

Speaking as she flagged off relief food worth $80,000 donated by Telkom Kenya and World Vision Kenya, Shaban said ten districts across the country are facing an imminent crisis in relation to food insecurity.

“Unfortunately, the country has experienced another season of failed rains which is expected to increase the current levels of food insecurity. Although Kenya’s food security is still on the borderline, many districts are at risk of sliding into an acute food and livelihood crisis. This situation is made worse by high food prices,” Shaban explained.

In Kenya, Dickinson says it is estimated 3.8 million people currently rely on humanitarian aid and the situation is worsening. with acute malnutrition above 20 percent in five districts.

The government of Kenya has increased its monthly spending on relief food to $1.3 million per month to assist those facing starvation. In early 2009, the government declared the unfolding food security situation a national disaster, stating that 10 million Kenyans were unable to access food.

In Ethiopia, ECHO reports indicate with several consecutive crop failures, the nutritional situation in that country has deteriorated badly and is expected to worsen further.

The story unfolding in Somalia is similar, with the situation aggravated by ongoing conflict. In Uganda, ECHO indicates 2.2 million people in northern Acholi and Karamoja regions face food insecurity.

According to Famine Early Warning Systems Network (which issues alerts on food insecurity) poor rains in November have revised prospects for widespread food security improvements that were expected to manifest toward the end of December in Kenya.

Those set to be adversely affected include pastoral households who already face unrelenting prices for food, an outbreak of cholera and heightened conflict over limited pasture and water in drought conditions.

However, Mwangi says sections of the country have experienced increased rainfall as predicted, which means good harvests will be recorded in certain areas.

“It must be pointed out that the poor performance of rainfall is not widespread across the country. There are areas that will still record good harvests from the rainfall received during the season.

In Coast, Northeastern, Eastern and Central Provinces, the rainfall was characterised by heavy storms in the second half of the month. This significantly enhanced the total rainfall amounts recorded in these provinces,” Mwangi says.

It is not clear whether good harvests in these areas will cover the predicted shortfalls in the rest of the country. Source: (IPS)

Concluding our globetrotting review of the decade, Lonely Planet’s European Travel Editor Tom Hall takes us through his highlights of the past ten years.

Best place visited in the past ten years?

Echoing Frances, it’s another vote for Ethiopia. Nowhere else comes close for the sense of adventure, amazing history which still feels hidden and unsurpassed scenery. Lalibela’s rock churches are the highlight of a country stuffed with surprises.

Asmara’s Tagliero Building

Eritrea is a close second, even if it is a mess at the moment. Asmara is an astonishing city, stuffed full of wonderful modernist buildings and superb cafes If only the two country’s governments would open the border: Addis Ababa to Asmara would be a road trip to beat anything in Africa.

Biggest let-down?

I splashed out on a first-class sleeper from Brussels to Hamburg (a bargain at €49, in fact) expecting to have some kind of fancy night train compartment to myself. Instead, I got a five hour delay followed by a grubby berth shared with a very smelly naked man. He at first refused to unlock the door to let me in and then talked loudly on his phone in the middle of the night. Then, after only two hours sleep I was told to get off in Dortmund and transfer to a series of increasingly crowded and slow trains. I arrived in Oslo, my final destination, a whole 24 hours late and exhausted.

Biggest surprise?

St Enoch’s Station building, Glasgow

I went to Glasgow for an evening football match and wished I was staying  a week. The city centre is stuffed full of great buildings, interesting shops and cafes. A special shout to the 1%ABV ginger beer brewed at the Mono bar. There’s a circular railway which is fast and fun, a brilliant football museum and the rejuvenated Clyde riverside. Edinburgh seemed a bit tame after that.

Best or funniest single moment on the road?

The long road to Namibia

Entering a Lonely Planet relay team on the Tour d’Afrique bike ride was astupendously silly idea, but one that came to glorious fruition. The ribbing I took for getting lost* on the longest straight road in Botswana gave my fellow riders plenty to laugh at, especially when I spent the night in sweaty lycra as all my gear was a hundred miles behind me.

There’s a video about this stage of the Tour d’Afrique.

Name one way travel has changed in the past decade

Budget flights transformed getting around Europe. Despite gripes about service and being dumped at obscure airports a long way from town centres have largely been a boon to travellers. Ten years ago I paid £99 to travel from London to Stockholm and thought it was a bargain. Today the same flight is less than a third of that price.

Thing you most wanted to do, but missed?

My brother and I were going to spend a week in Iceland, trekking round glaciers and sleeping in our hire car. Work commitments meant the trip was cancelled at the last minute and we haven’t been back. In the meantime Iceland has got more and more popular and I’ve got a little bit older, meaning the idea of sleeping in a car with my brother has lost some of its charm. There’s always the next decade.

First thing you’re going to do in 2010?

After thirteen countries in 2009 I’m going to spend much of 2010 revisiting old favourites at home, which means Devon, the Lake District and Northumberland.

*I should point out that I was, in fact, not lost. I knew where I was at all times. I just managed to overshoot our bush camp by 80 miles and end up in the next town. Source: (Lonelyplanet)