Africa: Faces in Words

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

Image from Tanzania courtesy: sfs.georgetown.edu

(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

120 people squatter in former Somali Embassy in Rome - The former Somali embassy in Rome is now home to more than 120 Somali refugees. Most of them have a temporary stay permit with a request for asylum under consideration. Until the Italian authorities come up with a decision, the refugees can do nothing but wait. http://www.medeshivalley.com/2011/01/120-people-squatter-in-former-somali.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+medeshivalley/JLIj+(Medeshivalley.com)

At least 19 killed in riots in Tunisia, government official says - Nineteen demonstrators protesting high unemployment and poor living conditions have been killed during the past two days in riots that broke out in two Tunisian cities near its border with Algeria, a government official said Monday. http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/01/10/tunis.demonstrations/index.html?eref=rss_world&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+rss/cnn_world+(RSS:+World)

Voting is Peaceful in south Sudan despite Border Clashes - As voters continued flooding the polls Monday for a landmark referendum on southern Sudan’s independence, officials said more than 40 people had been killed over the weekend in intense skirmishes in a contested area along Sudan’s north-south border. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/11/world/africa/11sudan.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

US ratchets up pressure as Ivory Coast leader clings to power - The U.S. government is stepping up pressure on the leader of Ivory Coast to leave office, imposing new sanctions after appeals by President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton failed to resolve an election crisis that is turning increasingly bloody. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/08/AR2011010803499.html?wprss=rss_world/africa

CPJ opposes prison terms for 2 Rwandan Journalists - The Committee to Protect Journalists opposes prosecution demands for lengthy prison sentences for the editor and deputy editor of the independent weekly Umurabyo. State Prosecutor Agustin Nkusi requested a 33-year prison sentence for Editor Agnès Uwimana, at left, and 12 years for her deputy, Saidati Mukakibibi, at a High Court hearing on Thursday in the capital, Kigali. http://cpj.org/2011/01/cpj-opposes-demands-for-prison-terms-for-rwandan-j.php

Algeria, Shops Burn in Riots - Youths attacked a police station and burned shops in Algiers on Thursday, in a second day of protests against rising costs and unemployment. Demonstrators are also protesting against a lack of social housing and allegations of corruption. http://allafrica.com/stories/201101070656.html

Rape and Sex violence on the rise in Haiti - Haitian women displaced by last year's earthquake living in makeshift camps, who are at risk from cholera epidemics, food shortages and political instability, now face an increased risk of rape or sexual violence. http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/africa/110106/women-rape-sex-haiti-earthquake-disaster

Tanzania; Blood, Tears as Police Stop Chadema March - The Leader of the Official Opposition in Parliament, Mr Freeman Mbowe, was among four Chadema MPs detained by police after a demonstration called by the opposition party was violently broken up yesterday. http://allafrica.com/stories/201101060501.html

Mauritania; Activists’ Trial puts spotlight on Anti-slavery Law - Six anti-slavery activists are in prison in Mauritania in a case rights experts say points to the challenges of ensuring a 2007 law criminalizing slavery is more than just words on paper. http://allafrica.com/stories/201101041071.html

Kenya; Famine to get worse as dry Weather sets in - Famine in most arid parts of the country is expected to get worse as the La Nina weather phenomenon start kicks in. As early as November, the Office of the Prime Minister had recommended the buying of livestock before they start dying due to drought. http://allafrica.com/stories/201101050006.html

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: alysha.atma@gmail.com