Africa: Faces in Words

New weekly update on the breaking stories in the African nations.

Courtesy: Faces of Africa by Ruth Palmer Courtesy: fineartamerica.com

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Unseen, unheard; no one should be the bearer of these two words. Unfortunately, Africa is often in the forefront of this association.

Our common humanity should change this; we should never look away because it is too distant. Our commitment to one another, to human rights, and the ability to learn should always keep us connected no matter the severity and complexity of problems.

Important insights from last week, not to be missed:

Guinea Bissau - Army officers in Guinea-Bissau have detained their army chief and briefly arrested Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior, in an apparent coup attempt. Guinea-Bissau leaders held in apparent coup BBC

Rwanda - For any practicing Catholic in Rwanda, this letter must be unbearable. For it tells you how little you mean to the Vatican. Fifteen years ago, tens of thousands of Catholics were hacked to death inside churches. Sometimes priests and nuns led the slaughter. Sometimes they did nothing while it progressed. The incidents were not isolated. Napata, Tamara, Nyarubuye, Cyahinda, Nyange, and Saint Famille were just a few of the churches that were sites of massacres. For Rwandans, the pope's apology must be unbearable Guardian UK

DRC/Uganda - “Wherever the LRA goes we will fight them.” This was the message I took away from Lieutenant Katanga, after spending a few weeks with the Arrow Boys in a makeshift forwarding base outside the town of Soroti, Uganda, in 2003. In that year, the Lord’s Resistance Army left their traditional marauding grounds of northern Uganda and marched east to the region of the Iteso people. The LRA did not encounter passive resistance or support of terrorized citizens there; instead they were attacked by shopkeepers, mechanics, and school teachers. While many of these soon-to-be Arrow Boys fought with spears, arrows, and machetes, some had guns and leadership experience left over from the pre-Museveni years when they fought in the Ugandan army commanded by Tito Okello. The Original Arrow Boys: Fighting Back against the LRA Enough!

Zimbabwe - The construction of a US$600 million ethanol plant in Chisumbanje, Manicaland province has ignited a storm of protests and claims that it could result in thousands of families being evicted from the area. Zimbabwe: Villagers Face Eviction to Make Way for Biofuel Cultivation AllAfrica.com

Sierra Leone - Freetown has become a place of torment for journalists practicing their profession Sierra Leone: Journalists Under Attack AllAfrica.com

Ivory Coast - Defenses minister has said rebels must disarm before elections can be held, a demand which could further delay a poll seen as critical to renewing investor interest in the world's top cocoa grower. Ivory Coast rebels must disarm before polls-minister - Reuters

Nigeria - Abuja, Various international organizations including the European Union (EU), the African Union (AU), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have called on African countries to make concerted efforts to reduce poverty on the continent as a means of tackling the menace of human trafficking. Nigeria: Human Trafficking - International Bodies Identify Poverty As Cause AllAfrica.com

Malawi - The attempt to convict two people whom the government accuses of breaking laws against homosexual conduct after they went through an engagement ceremony violates basic freedoms on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to Malawian authorities. Human Rights Watch called on the prosecutors to drop all charges against Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza and on the government to reaffirm its commitment to all Malawians' right to equality, privacy, and dignity. Malawi: “Marriage Trial” Threatens Rights Human Rights Watch

Tanzania - Fried cassava is a popular breakfast food in East Africa and for Atuna it is her new business opportunity. Like most of her customers, and over half the adults in Tanzania, she has no access to conventional banking services. Small lenders help developing entrepreneurs BBC

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Alysha Atma spends many hours working on projects that support and benefit the beleaguered people of African nations who spend way too much time off the western media's radar. This writer explains that she is a culmination of all her experiences, most importantly knowledge she says, and all that she still needs to learn; lessons of love, laughter and the extraordinary giving of both young and old. She says she has the enormous fortune of learning from the best; every person around her, and the amazing strength and fortitude of those she has never met but will always strive to listen to. "I continue to work and write because I believe in the power of community and the power of one, both contradictory to each other and yet can move together in a very powerful way. I feel a responsibility to use my place, freedoms and connections here in the US to stand up and yell for those who need my voice and actions. I have seen such strength in my fellow humans that I cannot even begin to comprehend, they have traveled distances, have gone without food, water, shelter and safety for days and weeks at a time. I have a responsibility as a fellow human to put our common humanity before anything else. Everyone deserves to look towards tomorrow, to dream of a safe future and to have a peaceful present." You can write to Alysha Atma at: alyshann78@comcast.net