Kura ya maoni yafanyika Zanzibar

Kura ya maoni inafanyika Zanzibar hii leo, ambayo inalenga kubadili katiba na kuruhusu uundwaji wa serikali za kuwagawana madaraka.

Zaidi ya wapiga kura laki nne walioandikishwa rasmi wanatarajiwa kupiga kura zao.

Chama tawala CCM na chama kikubwa cha upinzani CUF, vyote vinaunga mkono kura hiyo, ambayo inanuiwa kumaliza ghasia zilizokumba uchaguzi wa siku za nyuma visiwani Zanzibar.
Zanzibar ina utawala wake wa ndani chini ya serikali kuu ya Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania.

Ikiwa kura hiyo ya maoni itapitishwa, Zanzibar kwa mara ya kwanza itashuhudia mfumo mpya wa serikali ambapo kutakuwa na rais na makamu wake wawili.
Makamu wa kwanza wa rais atatoka chama ambacho kitashika nafasi ya pili katika uchaguzi na wa pili atatoka chama kilichoibuka mshindi.

Pia baraza la mawaziri chini ya mfumo huo mpya litakuwa ni la kugawana madaraka.

Mwandishi wa BBC aliyeko Zanzibar anasema matokeo ya kura hiyo ya maoni yanatarajiwa kutangazwa katika muda wa siku moja.

Baraza la wawakilishi

Baada ya wiki moja, baraza la wawakilishi nalo litakutana ili kufanya marekebisho ya katiba kulingana na matokeo ya kura hiyo ya maoni.

Zanzibar ambayo inaundwa na visiwa vya Unguja na Pemba ilitangaza uhuru wake tarehe 12 January, mwaka wa 1964 baada ya mapinduzi yaliyomwaga damu yaliyomaliza karne kadhaa za utawala wa kisultani wa Waarabu.

Baada ya miezi mitatu Zanzibar ilijiunga na Tanganyika kuunda Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania, lakini ikabaki na utawala wa kijimbo, rais, katiba na bendera yake.

Tangu kuanzishwa kwa mfumo wa vyama vingi mapema miaka ya tisini, visiwa hivyo vimekuwa vikishuhudia mapambano makali kati ya chama tawala CCM na chama kikuu cha upinzani cha CUF, haswa wakati wa uchaguzi.

Jeshi la Uingereza lafanikiwa Afghanistan

Majeshi ya Uingereza yanaarifiwa kupata mafanikio katika operesheni mpya ya kuwafurusha wapiganaji wa kundi la Taleban kutoka ngome yao kubwa kusini mwa Afghanistan.

Operesheni ya Tor Shezada ilianza mapema siku ya Ijumaa katika jimbo la Helmand, huku wanajeshi wakidondoshwa na ndege za helicopter karibu na mji wa Saidabad.

Waasi wanadhaniwa kutumia eneo hilo kutengeneza mabomu na kutekeleza mashambulizi.

Major Simon Ridgway, wa jeshi la Uingereza, alisema wanajeshi wao "waliteka" maeneo ambayo waliyalenga hapo awali.
Mamia ya wanajeshi wa Uingereza na Afghanistan wanashiriki operesheni hiyo.

Wanajeshi hao wanajaribu kuwaondoa wanamgambo wa Taliban kutoka ngome yao kuu wilayani Nad Ali.

Eneo la Saidabad ni mojawapo ya maeneo ambayo wanajeshi wa Uingereza walishindwa kuwaondoa wanamgambo katika operesheni ya Moshtarak mapema mwaka huu.

Zaidi ya wanamgambo 180 wanadhaniwa kutumia mji huo kama ngome kuu.
Akitathmini mafanikio ya majeshi katika operesheni hiyo, Maj Ridgway aliambia BBC "tuliteka maeneo ambayo awali tulitaka kurejesha usalama na sasa tunaendelea kufahamu vema mahali ambapo tulipo".



Afisa huyo aliongeza kuwa wanapata mafanikio katika operesheni ya kuwafurusha waasi kutoka Saidabad.



Maj Ridgway alisema kulikuwa na mapambano madogoya kufyatuliana risasi lakini hilo halikuwapa wasiwasi

Kabaka's mother passes away

Nabagereka Sylvia Nagginda at Namirembe Church during the requiem service for the Late Lady Damali Nakawumbe the former Nabagereka of Buganda Kingdom on July 19.

The Clergy pray for the Late Lady Damali Nakawumbe the former Nabagereka of Buganda Kingdom during the requiem mass at Namirembe Church on July 19. The Late was buried at Namirembe church premises. Photo by Joseph Kiggundu

Some of the granddaughters of the Late Lady Damali Nakawumbe lays a wreath on the casket of her Grandmother the former Nabagereka of Buganda Kingdom during her requiem mass at Namirembe Church on July 19. The Late was buried at Namirembe church premises. On right is the Nabagereaka of Buganda Sylvia Nagginda. Photo by Joseph Kiggundu

A Reverend pray for the Late Lady Damali Nakawumbe the former Nabagereka of Buganda Kingdom during the requiem mass at Namirembe Church on July 19. The Late was buried at Namirembe church premises. Photo by Joseph Kiggundu

Funeral Services officials carry a casket of the Late Lady Damali Nakawumbe the former Nabagereka of Buganda Kingdom after the requiem mass at Namirembe Church on July 19. The Late was buried at Namirembe church premises. Photo by Joseph Kiggundu

Bomb scares cause commotion in Kampala

Traffic at the Electoral Commission headquarters on Kampala-Jinja highway was paralysed on Thursday morning when a taxi driver abandoned his vehicle claiming a bomb had been planted in it.

“A driver parked the taxi, moved out and started running away. As I tried to move towards the car to tell him to remove it, he shouted saying I should not come near it because it had a bomb,” a policewoman who refused to be mentioned because she is not authorised to speak to journalists, said.

When police’s bomb squad arrived with sniffer dogs, they discovered a battery with some loose wires in the car.
Police Spokesperson Judith Nabakooba said she was not sure whether it was a bomb.

Similar commotion was reported at Crested Towers building on the 11th floor after rumour that a bomb had been planted in the premises. Security officers who were called in discovered some fuel-like liquids that had spilled in one of the offices on the floor.

A number of bomb scares have been reported since the July 11 bomb blasts that killed about 80 people in Kampala.

Women protesters storm State House

Women from the Interparty Cooperation yesterday vented their anger against the Electoral Commission by placing flyers denouncing the EC boss, Badru Kiggundu, at the State House gate in Nakasero. Some flyers read “Say no to Kiggundu”, “Fire Kiggundu for free and fair elections” .
Soldiers at the gate looked on as the women chanted anti-Museveni and anti-Kiggundu slogans, accusing them of conspiring to rig the 2011 elections. The group was commanded by Forum for Democratic Change Women league chairperson, Ingrid Turinawe and her deputy, Nyakato Rusoke.

“The reason why we have dumped these anti-Kiggundu flyers at the entrance to the State House is to show the boss that we are tired of him and that we want him out,” said Ms Lillian Masia, one of the 33 women who participated in the demonstration.

Court case
Earlier, the same group had appeared before Buganda Road Court to answer charges of unlawful assembly but the trial magistrate was absent, forcing court to adjourn the case to August 27.

“No magistrate, no witness, no court and we cannot do anything in this country,” said Ms Resty Nakitende, who was later arrested and taken to CPS with her one -year-old baby.

As the women moved towards IPC offices on Katonga Road, they were intercepted by four police trucks with anti-riot offcials

. Four of them were arrested but the other 26 disbanded, and later converged at Plot 6 Katonga Road, where they engaged police in a cat-and-mouse game.

Anticipating more chaos, police sealed off Katonga Road disrupting traffic to Hannington, Kyadondo and Yusuf Lule roads. Mr Moses Kafeero, the Kampala South Police commander, who is expected in court next week to answer charges of stuffing the mouth of an opposition women’s leader with pepper spray, offered to mediate.

Mr Ewan Patrick, the anti-Riot police commander said the Force had successfully blocked the women from marching to the Electoral Commission offices on Jinja Road.
“We got information that these women, with their T-shirts on, were trying to march towards the EC offices; that is why we moved in to stop them,” Mr Ewan said yesterday.

There was excitement as FDC president Kizza Besigye arrived at Katonga Road. The women narrated their ordeal to him as anti-riot police looked on from a distance. “Which crime does one commit by wearing a T-shirt with words that demand a free and fair election?” Dr Besigye asked.

The women on Tuesday staged country-wide anti-EC demonstrations, which say about 62 arrested. Some where charged with holding an unlawful assembly while others were released without charge.

UPDF kill dozens of Somali fighters

Amisom spokesperson Maj. Ba-Hoku Barigye yesterday said the force had killed scores of al Shabaab fighters in fresh fighting in the Somali capital Mogadishu. UPDF peacekeepers on Wednesday battled and killed dozens of the Islamist group al Shabaab when they attacked African Union peacekeepers’ positions at Ulba and Juba hotels in Mogadishu, Maj. Barigye told Daily Monitor by telephone.

Casualties
“We are not able to establish the number of those killed because we do not do charge [count the dead]. But they were repulsed with heavy casualties,” he said.
Different sources gave different figures of the number of al Shabaab that could have been put out of action by the UPDF fire.

While one source said 18 al Shabaab fighters were killed, others told Daily Monitor the whole group of between 50 to 60 attackers was wiped at in heavy UPDF shelling.
Maj. Barigye said another Islamist Hizbul Islam led by hardliner cleric, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, which has declared war on Amisom was not a new force because it has always worked with the al Shabaab.

“In terms of operations and ideology, they are the same as the al Shabaab,” he said.
He also dismissed Hizbul Islam claims that they attacked Amisom men in Hodon District in south Mogadishu on Tuesday, saying the peacekeepers have no positions in that district.

“Mogadishu is not on fire. We are in charge and everything is in order,” he said.
The al Shabaab, seeking to topple President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed’s Transitional Federal Government, has declared war on the peacekeepers and claimed responsibility for the July 11 bomb attacks in Kampala that left over 76 people dead.

The group’s leadership said the attack was to punish Kampala for UPDF’s involvement in Mogadishu. President Museveni appealed, during the just concluded AU summit, for the Amisom mandate in Somalia to be changed to allow Ugandan and Burundian soldiers there to attack the al Shabaab but the UN blocked the appeal.

The UN Secretary General’s envoy to Somalia, Mr Augustine Mahiga, advised the presidents that the international law is presently on their side to tackle al Shabaab.

Mr Museveni, however, got the goodwill of four other unnamed countries – three in West Africa and another in the southern part of the continent – to commit more troops.

Djibouti and Guinea are said to be two of the four countries. With Uganda committing 2, 000 additional soldiers to Somalia, the number of Amisom troops will increase to 7,000.

Leaders of the Inter-governmental Authority on Development recently agreed to send 20,000 more troops to the war-torn region.

Why maternal deaths have persisted

After a decade of disappointing progress to cut maternal and child deaths, African leaders this week resolved to try again. Concluding the African Union Summit in Kampala on Tuesday, heads of state adopted new resolutions and declared that maternal and child health will remain a standing agenda item for the Union over the next five years-to 2015, which is the deadline to achieve the Millennium Development goals.

More than 500,000 women still die every year in childbirth across the globe, with majority of the deaths occurring in developing countries in Africa-where health systems are weak or non functional and health workers are scarce.

Another 12,000 children-about eight children every minute, including two newborns die on the African continent everyday mainly from treatable conditions like malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea and respiratory tract infections.

Gloomy picture
The grim statistics have persisted despite endless declarations and promises made by governments in the past to tackle the problem-one of the declarations made 16 years ago in Cairo, Egypt agreed to reduce maternal, child and infant mortality in Africa and also increase access to sexual and reproductive health services including family planning.
The picture is not any better in Uganda where maternal mortality stands at 435 for every 100,000 births while under five mortality rate is 76 per 1,000 births.

But to date, efforts to reduce both maternal and child deaths have been slow or off-target-a situation Malawian president and chair of the AU, Mr Bingu Wa Mutharika described as a shameful crisis.

In Africa, one in every 16 women dies in child delivery compared with about one in 8,000 women in the developed world. “Let this not be another song that we are going to sing and forget when we leave this hall. The crisis of maternal mortality is real and we must all take action,” Mr Wa Mutharika said.

He said it was a shame to see African mothers still dying of easily preventable causes.
“Africa’s progress in reducing maternal and child deaths is still slow and today we see more children and women dying needlessly of preventable causes than of conflicts,”said Mr Jean Ping, the chairperson of the AU Commission.

For every woman who dies because of pregnancy related complications, at least 20 others suffer injuries and disabilities, like obstetric fistula. In Africa, complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death for women of childbearing age.

Family Planning
According to Dr Hassan Mohtashami, the deputy representative of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Uganda, women continue to die of simple causes that have been resolved easily elsewhere using cost effective interventions. “Ensuring access to family planning services is one way we can reduce maternal deaths. It’s a simple calculation; the less number of pregnancies, the less chances for death,” he says.
According to him, family planning alone can reduce by a third, the number of women who die every year because of pregnancy related complications.

Cheap intervention
Another cheap intervention, he says, is having a midwife present during delivery. “If you have a skilled health worker with a mother during delivery, it will help her to detect if there is any complication and immediately do something to save the life of the baby and mother.”

This, intervention, he said, has the potential of saving another one-third of the deaths, meaning that the two interventions have the potential of saving up to two-thirds of women who would otherwise have died.

“The remaining can be saved by Emergency Obstetric Care. If a mother needs specialised and sophisticated care by a doctor like caesarean and blood transfusion, then there should be a centre equipped with these facilities where mothers can be referred,” said Dr Mohtashami.
This strategy, he says, was used by Sri Lanka which has the same economic status with many sub Saharan African countries but has now managed to reduce its maternal mortality to 27 per 100,000 live births.

Prohibitive factor
But challenges still abound in most African countries including Uganda. One of the biggest obstacles to reducing maternal deaths here is the shortage of health workers and poor health infrastructure.

To meet the MDG target, Uganda needs to reduce its maternal mortality rate to 132 per every 100,000 live births by 2015- a target that already looks far from being achieved. One of the resolutions made by the heads of state is to strengthen health systems and make childbirth health care services free for women and children under the age of five. Women advocacy groups had argued that cost was a prohibitive factor for many women and had resulted into a number of them giving birth at home without a skilled attendant.

Ms Bience Gawanas, the commissioner for social affairs at the AU said that she hoped that with the heads of state taking a lead on reducing maternal mortality, much more progress will be made in the run up to the 2015 deadline

16,000 children abused last year

When Rosemary was separating from her husband Umaru, it did not occur to her that her two daughters, Ritah, 12 and Mary, 10 (not real names), would be defiled.
The girls claim that their father, started abusing them sexually just two months after their mother left them.

Medical examination done on Ritah proved that she was sexually abused. Fortunately, for Mary, the medical results showed that she was not defiled. However, the girl insists that her father on several occasions, attempted to defile her. The matter is still before court.

Police records show how the girls allegedly suffered silently in the hands of their father who reportedly threatened to behead them if they report him to authorities. It, however, reached a point when the girls could not hide their demise anymore and decided to inform the area LC1 chairperson. The police was then called and Umaru, a 29-year-old taxi driver, was arrested.

Even though the physical and psychological torture the girls underwent will take time to heal, they can for now solace in knowing that their father, if proven guilty, will pay for his crimes in the courts of law. Ritah’s story is just one out of some 16,008 cases of child abuse recorded in 2009 countrywide.

A study done by African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN), shows that 83 per cent cases of abuse were reported to the police, 15 per cent to ANPPCAN and 2 per cent to the print media. Mr Haruna Mawa, the information officer at ANPPCAN, says child abuse cases doubled last year compared to 2008, where about 7,360 were reported.

Child abuse includes; defilement, neglect, desertion, torture, child stealing, abortion, kidnap, infanticide, child sacrifice and child trafficking, among others.
Kasese District registered the highest cases of child abuse among the 10 districts scrutinised by ANPPCAN. It was followed by Kitgum District and Mukono, Apac, Jinja, Rakai, Kampala, Iganga and Arua.Kamuli District had the lowest cases of child abuse.
The volume of calls on the toll free helpline (0800111222) to report child abuse, increased to 6,181 up from 2,636 calls received in 2008.

Implement laws
This trend shows that despite the various interventions by a myriad of actors in the child welfare and protection sector, the number of children subjected to abuse is still unacceptably high.

ANPPCAN says there is urgent need to amend Section 43 of the Evidence Act to allow medical practitioners at a level of clinical officers to examine the victims of sexual abuse.
They also want the government to pass a law which regulates traditional medical practices in its entirety, so that rampart cases of child sacrifice which was at 29 last year, can be curbed.

The group also want an implementation of the Trafficking in Persons’ Act which provides for life imprisonment for a person convicted of aggravated trafficking.
Increasing support to the police and district probation offices is another area that ANPPCAN feels the government should look into.
“The government should allocate resources to construct and facilitate specialised units for abused and vulnerable children in various police stations.”

Why US funds the war in Somalia

Top US diplomat for Africa, Ambassador Johnnie Carson, at a press conference in Kampala on Tuesday, outlined Washington’s key involvement and strategies in Africa. Daily Monitor’s Senior Reporter Tabu Butagira attended the briefing, and below, brings an abridged version starting with what Ambassador Cason said African Heads of State agreed on Somalia during a closed-door session on Monday.

We did hold a very lengthy meeting to talk about Somalia; to express our growing concern about the situation in that country. Somalia is a problem on three dimensions and levels: A domestic problem of an imploded state with a very weak central government with lack of capacity to deliver services and a large number of internally displaced persons.

It’s also an enormous regional challenge because of the large number of its refugees in Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Tanzania, causing enormous social burdens and the collapse of the Somali state has resulted in high levels of smuggling of major contrabands and movement of weapons across borders.

Somalia is also a problem due to the emergence of piracy that affects commerce over the Red Sea. We note with great concern that Somalia has become host to a number of violent extremists and we have seen that extremism play itself out in the July 11 bomb attacks in Kampala.

Our successful discussion gave an opportunity to define a strategy of how we could increase the number of troop contributions to Africa Union Peace-keeping Mission in Somalia or Amisom and supportive resources and materials. I think we now have way forward.

My colleague Scott Gration (US Special envoy to Sudan) was here and spoke with President Museveni and met southern Sudan leadership as well. We are committed to the full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the January 9, 2011 secession referendum in south Sudan and are working to ensure those elections will be held; that they will be held fairly, transparently and in peaceful circumstances.
The US is a strong supporter of the AU, an increasingly more important, sophisticated and mature organisation.

Q: The international community has got to Somalia to resolve its crises a number of times without success. Mogadishu was most pacified under the Union of Islamic Courts. So why do you think it will be different this time?
A: The one thing that has characterised international policy towards Somalia more than anything else is lack of consistency, lack of resolve, lack of commitment and unwillingness to recognise that the restoration of political stability requires a long-term effort - one in which there cannot be constant shifts in commitment and policy.
The period under Islamic Union Courts (2006-2008) saw great draconian punishment in which you had Islamic extremists doing things which we would all regard as ruthless: restricting the rights and liberties of women, the media, access to music and instituting policies and procedures which not only produced calm but also clear violation of human rights.

Q: IGAD wants to move aggressively on Al Shabaab with 20,000 troops. Only Uganda and Burundi and maybe now Guinea are sending troops. Can participation of other Africa countries be secured?
A: The July 11 Kampala bombings were a wake-up call and I think there is more determination than ever before, not only in East Africa, but around the continent to respond to the Somalia crisis.
I heard during Monday’s closed-door meeting mention of at least four states – three in West Africa and one in southern Africa - prepared or seriously thinking of committing troops to Somali peace keeping exercise. These are beginnings of very serious offers.
In addition, Ugandans have indicated the willingness to muster another 2, 000 troops and Burundi is interested in putting in an additional 1,300 troops.

Q. South African Foreign Minister [Ms Maite Nkoana-Mashabane] was in your meeting and AU chairman Jean Ping sent a personal letter to President Jacob Zuma requesting him to send troops to Amisom. Can you talk about that?
A. Chairman Ping has indicated that he has requested that South Africans to be of assistance, and as I understand it, they are still considering this but that was not the country I was speaking of when I referred to a southern Africa country.

Q: The conflict in Somalia seems to have been perceived as a war being fought on behalf of America and against Islam. How are you engaging influential Muslim countries to resolve the conflict?
A: Somalia is a country that requires enormous development assistance and political aid to restore it to a place that is both manageable, peaceful and working normally.
We would like to see a more stable, prosperous and peaceful Somalia. The US [and other international actors] walked away from Somalia in 1993 after the famous Black Hawk downing incident.
All of us probably thought the situation there would stabilise and normalise, and we have [instead] seen Somalia’s problems bleed over into the region. This has had dramatically negative impact on the states of East Africa.
We don’t see this as a US conflict, whatsoever. This is a problem for the international community...This is not, and should not, be where the US is regarded as the villain.

Q: Does the new Somalia strategy include the US providing a bigger budget and military hardware to bolster fighting capability of Amisom troops?
A: The US will continue to be a primary supporter of Amisom as it has been in the past and we have indicated that we will support the augmentation of Amisom troops into Somalia and we hope that others will do the same.
At this juncture, we do have American naval vessels on the Indian Ocean as part of anti-piracy operation. But what is most important now is the augmentation in the number of Amisom troops on the ground and augmentation in the resources - both financial and material.

Q. President Museveni has said for Amisom to be effective in deterring the Al Shabaab, its mandate should change from peace-keeping to peace enforcement. What is the outcome of your discussions on this?
A: There was a healthy discussion of the mandate and the new [UN] secretary-general’s Special Representative for Somalia, Ambassador [Augustine] Mahiga’s view was that the mandate that currently exists is sufficiently broad to provide the Amisom forces with the capacity to do the job that is required. That the mandate is broad enough so that the Amisom troops can in fact act robustly in the defence of their troops; protection of the Transitional Federal Government or TFG; its leadership; its buildings; its key installations and the protection of humanitarian operations.

Q: As we speak, more than 30 people, one of them Arua Woman MP Christine Bako, who were staging peaceful demonstrations to demand for credible elections next year have been arrested by police who say they did not authorise the demonstrations. Is there a worry that terrorism could be used by government as a pretext to suffocate civil liberties?
Secondly, on May 1, 2005, you wrote in the Boston Globe that President Museveni has “thirst for power” for removing presidential term limits. Five years on, do you still consider him a dictator as then?
A. I do not believe that President Museveni is a dictator (laughter). I think that President Museveni is the duly elected leader of the country; that he’s been elected openly and transparently in free and fair elections and he’s the senior representative of the country.
We hope that the elections next year will go extremely well and that political space will be accorded to all including those within the ruling party running for elections as well as all those who are in the opposition who are seeking office as well.
With respect to the article, it was written five years ago. I believe that as I said then that the elimination of (presidential) term limits was not a good idea; I think that in general where they are in place, they provide a useful part of the democratic structure and I think are a healthy thing to have.
For the first question, we want here, as we want around Africa and in general, a continued strengthening of democratic institutions. That strengthening of democratic institutions is essential here as well as in places like the United States in order to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to be able to fulfill both their economic and political ambitions.

Q: The option being pursued in Somalia now is a military one. Why don’t you encourage Muslim religious leaders in the region to pursue another course of action?
Secondly, why don’t you just install a dictator to run Somalia and give him money he can use to buy off the Al Shabaab...?
Third is about Sudan. How prepared are you regarding the almost expected breakup of the country into two autonomous entities and won’t the expected secession repeat itself on the continent?
A. I think that we want to encourage the people of Sudan to fulfil the obligations that they have agreed to under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. That agreement ended two and half decades of conflict between the North and South.
The south felt enormously aggrieved, neglected and disadvantaged by its relationship with the northern part of Sudan. But as a way of ending the conflict, those who were in combat and those who represented the political forces there agreed among themselves that one solution might in fact be the separation of North and South...the people there will have an opportunity to decide in the referendum whether they want to remain as a unitary state or become an independent state.
This is not a precedent for other places; it is unique to Sudan as a result of this long conflict. So it is the best way to possibly find a more enduring solution to what has been a very difficult political history for the country.
With respect to Somalia, I would characterise the efforts there in very different ways; it is not a military solution under way but Amisom’s efforts to stabilise the situation in favour of a political process that was agreed to in Djibouti, an agreement which is under assault by the al-Shabaab, the Hizbul Islam and other violent extremist groups.

Q. Has the urgency of the situation in Somalia overtaken your government’s earlier interest in ending the Lord’s Resistance Army rebellion and secondly, do you foresee US re-entering Somalia?
A: First, we are committed to working with Ugandan government to do everything possible to eliminate the threat posed in the region by LRA and track down and capture its leaders Joseph Kony.

Q. Amisom has been plagued by a shortage of resources. To what extend is US willing to support an expanded mission in Somalia?
A. We support the views of the Inter-governmental Authority on Development that Amisom should be expanded from its current mandated level of 8, 000 to a much higher level of 20, 000 troops.

Q: (Fairly inaudible) but on where mission resource will come from?
A. This is an issue of international importance and the global community should work with IGAD States to find the resources both material and financial to assist Amisom on the ground. This is not an American project; this is a project for the international community.

Q: AU Peace Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra said at your meeting yesterday that the US government has committed, along with Norway, a direct budget support to TFG. Could you comment on the figure? Secondly, there was report that an AU delegation was calling for dialogue with the Al Shabaab. How realistic is this an avenue for future peace in Somalia?
A: United States has provided assistance to the TFG but it has not been what I would call a budgetary support. It has been project-related assistance given for very specific purposes at very specific times.
The United States government has and will continue in the future to fund a number of programmes that help the TFG to deliver services to the people of southern Somalia. Most of these will go through intermediate organisations that can provide both technical oversight and financial support for whatever is done. I heard absolutely no call, no calls, for any kind of reaching out to al-Shabaab. To the contrary, there was very clear warning about its dangers.

Uchina "ya pili" yenye uchumi bora duniani

Uchina imesema imeipiku Japan na kuwa nchi ya pili yenye uchumi mkubwa duniani kote.

Hatua nyingine ya kihistoria inashuhudiwa katika juhudi za Uchina za kujiipatia hadhi ya kuwa taifa lenye uchumi mkubwa. Kwa ujumla wengi wanakubaliana kuwa Uchina karibu iweze kuipiku Japan na kuwa taifa la pili lenye uchumi bora duniani mwaka uliopita.


Kwa hivyo wanauchumi wachache wataweza kubisha kuhusiana na madai yaliyotolewa na mratibu wa sarafu za nje wa Uchina, kuwa nchi yake tayari imeshafikia hadhi hiyo ya kuwa taifa la pili lenye uchumi mkubwa ulimwenguni.

Lakini hakuna takwimu mpya zinazounga mkono madai hayo wala kuthibitishwa na bodi za kimataifa kama vile Benki ya Dunia na Shirika la Fedha Duniani, IMF.
Kuaga ufukara

Baado maelezo ya Uchina kupiga hatua katika kukua kwa uchumi wake ni muhimu. Uchumi wake umekuwa ukikua kwa takriban asilimia kumi kwa mwaka katika miongo mitatu iliyopita, na kuweza kuitoa nchi katika ufukara.

Ilipiga hatua za kuzipiku Uingereza na Ufaransa na kuwa nchi ya nne bora kiuchumi mwaka wa 2005.

Mwaka wa 2007 ikaipokonya Ujerumani nafasi ya tatu ya kuwa taifa lenye uchumi mkubwa duniani.

Kulingana na Benki ya Dunia na taasisi nyingine, Uchina itaipuku Marekanu na kuwa taifa lenye uchumi bora zaidi duniani mwaka wa 2025.

We have a right to self-defence, says Museveni

Somalia seems to be suffering on account of a confluence of three factors:

A failed government under Siad Barre that could not defeat or keep under check the various rebel groups; incapable resistance groups to that government of Siad Barre; and, more recently, the infiltration into the area of reactionary ideology from the Middle East (what some people call “extremism”, “fundamentalism” etc).
The Siad Barre government collapsed in January 1991. I do not have time to go into why it collapsed. I have not even done enough research into that subject. However, collapse it did. This was factor number one in the Somali problem.

l Factor number two was that the armed opposition groups that were fighting Siad Barre seemed to have been having ideological problems and had also problems in grasping strategy. I visited General Aideed and Al-Mahdi in Mogadishu in 1992. One of the questions I asked General Aideed was: “Why did you attack the city (Mogadishu) if you did not have the capacity to control it?”

Aideed’s mistake
It was clearly a mistake to shift from rural guerrilla operations to attacking the city and attempting to seize power there if Aideed did not have the fire-power and the accompanying organisational capacity to capture it quickly and retain the control. Those Somali groups seem to have been suffering from the mentality of “putschism” – wanting to seize control even when you do not have the capacity.
This is apart from the more fundamental ideological issues of those groups basing themselves on clanism as a base of political organisation. This created a proliferation of warlords based on clans. These warlords disintegrated the unity of the country and turned it into fiefdoms.
At some stage, former President of Kenya, Mzee Arap Moi, started mediating among the Somali groups. After a long time, they agreed to share power in the transitional government that was supposed to last some years and, then, go for elections.
This formula has worked in both Congo-DRC and Burundi. The IGAD countries supported this formula. If any Somali group was interested in helping, this was the easiest way out of the problem. Such a group or groups should have prepared for elections so that legitimacy is re-established.

This, however, was not to be. Some Somali groups, supported by reactionaries from the Middle East and Central Asia, now introduced a new problem. Somalia had to become what they call a fundamentalist Islamic state governed by Sharia.
Women had to cover themselves from head to toe, otherwise they will tempt men into immorality; people must not watch television because that is some form of atheism etc. etc. All this must be achieved by coercion. Besides, this model should be exported to the rest of Africa.
You all remember the problems we had with the tabliques who were being supported by elements from the Sudan. Since fighting is not an easy enterprise, the leaders of these reactionary groups use manipulation and drugs to induce young disadvantaged youth and, sometimes even children, to undertake suicide missions.
You saw one of the children that was on television telling the world how he had been injected with drugs to be “fearless” – attack under intoxication. Apparently, these poor children are told that they will go to heaven if they die as suicide bombers.

Sucide bombing
If suicide bombing is such a good investment, why don’t the leaders of these reactionary groups set the example of blowing themselves up instead of sending children and vulnerable youth? We have seen these so-called “jihadists” on our border and have dealt with them decisively in the past.
The UPDF got involved after the Somali clan factions agreed to form a transitional government. The African Union (AU), the IGAD and the UN gave the mandate to us to help the Transitional Government by doing two things:-
Guarding some strategic points (Port, Airport and State House) as well as help in training the Somali Army, along with others from the rest of the world.
It is, therefore, sacrilege for anybody to fire at, let alone assault, an AU Force on a capacity building mission in Africa. Who are these who dare to fire at an AU Force? They can only be agents of external, non-African forces trying to impose a new colonialism on Africa.

We defeated European colonialism and we are going to defeat this new form of colonialism. The Somalis are part of the ancient African peoples, such as the ancient Egyptians – the ones that built the Pyramids. They are a Cushitic people – part of Nilo-Saharan group of languages. Some of their words are even to be found in the Bantu dialects.
Africans believe in a philosophy of live and let live. They never try to impose anything on anybody if they are really acting in the African traditions. There are many symbiotic groups in Africa, living side by side. Some of the groups from outside Africa talk of “haram” – abominable items. They do not know (and they do not bother to find out) that among the indigenous African people, there are even longer lists of haram (ebihagaro).
In part of my community, for instance, we do not eat pork, chicken, sheep, fish etc. Many of our neighbouring communities, however, eat many of these foods, especially fish. The Banyankore, for instance, would not eat chicken. They would keep the chicken only for divination (kuraguza).

A Munyankore, therefore, would be happy to surrender one of his chicken to a visiting Muganda or Mukooki. That is how the Africans lived. Even today, you can see the sort of freedom we enjoy – trans-night dances etc. I am a tee-totaller, but I further most vigorously the interests of our drunkards by exceeding all previous records of beer production. Africans, therefore, reject chauvinism. We want freedom.

Somali reactionaries
If the Somali reactionaries want to implement Sharia law in Somalia, let them stop disturbing the peace of their country so that the Transitional Government organises elections and they can put their agenda to the people. If the people decide to impose Sharia law on themselves, that will be their choice.
Anyway, in the immediate, the main issue is our mandate to the AU Force to assist the Transitional Government by guarding the State House, the Airport and the Port. Guarding them well, we have done. The Somali reactionary groups, supported by their foreign leaders, have attacked us many times and we have defeated them.

The cowardly act of attacking our merry-making non-combatants on July 11, 2010, will make their situation worse. In the past, we were only guarding the three (3) installations as per the AU Force mandate. These reactionary groups have now committed aggression against our country. We have a right of self-defence.
We shall now go for them. These agents of mindless, cowardly Middle-Eastern terrorism will discover that Africa has got its defenders if their failures when they attacked us in the past, have not shown them that already.

Anti-colonial wars
In Africa we fought anti-colonial wars. Here in Uganda, we fought some wars for extended periods. Why do we not use terrorism - attacking non-combatants?
Infiltrating into Uganda to plant bombs will not be easy now that we are aroused. However, it will also not be easy for the Somali reactionary groups to stay in Somalia. It is part of the African soil. What we need is World Solidarity.
The Somali people, however, are the ones with the key for the solution to this problem. We can only play a supportive role. Many of the Somali people have voted with their feet by running away from the oppressor. They need to be organised so as to defeat the reactionaries.

The neighbouring countries and the AU, however, also have a responsibility to the people of Somalia when dealing with these murderous groups. If the internal forces are still in formation, it is the duty of Africa to stand with the Somali people. This is the experience of Africa in the last 50 years.

Mwalimu Nyerere stood with us in order to cope with the horrors of Idi Amin. That is how we, the Ugandans, got a new chance to rebuild our country. How can we leave the people of Somalia to adventurers from the Middle East and Asia?
Finally, the people of Uganda in particular and Africa in general need to know that there are heroic fighters in Somalia. These heroic fighters have already avenged the deaths of their innocent loved ones by punishing the killers in Mogadishu who came to attack the TFG and our forces on the 21st of July, a few days ago.

Attackers killed
Scores of the attackers were killed and many were injured. The dead included white-skinned people. Africa should interest itself in knowing where those white-skinned people are coming from. The UPDF will continue to punish these agents of foreign interests if they dare again to attack the positions of the AU Forces, flying the flag of Africa.

I congratulate the heroic fighters of the UPDF and, particularly, their commanders on the ground: Maj. Gen. Nathan Mugisha, Col. Ondoga, Lt. Col. Chemo, etc. I also salute our Barundi compatriots for their courage and Pan-Africanism.
I thank you.

Yoweri K. Museveni
President of the Republic of Uganda
24th July 2010

Did Uganda enter Somalia without an exit strategy?

When Ethiopia routed the Union of Islamic Courts from Mogadishu in December 2006, a lot of footwork followed. President Museveni swiftly flew to Addis Ababa. The then US Undersecretary for Africa, Ms Jendayi Frazer, was in Nairobi a few days into the new year to meet the ‘victorious’ Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and other members of the Somali Contact Group. The Union of Islamic Courts was an alliance of Islamic Somali groups that had managed to bring stability to Somalia for over six months before the US, using Ethiopia as proxy, decided that peace in Somalia was desirable, yes, but not if it was brought about by Islamic elements.
Museveni pledged 1,000 soldiers and later another 1,000 to a Somali peace mission. By the time he did so, he had not yet brought the matter before Parliament. He later did. The NRM-dominated Parliament rubber stamped his decision. But not before intense debate, resulting in a minority report from the Defence Committee by opposition legislators. The deployment had to be done quickly, because each day that passed before a peace force was deployed, Ethiopia got into more trouble in Somalia and at home too.
Zenawi had promised his citizens that he would to pull out of Somalia within days or weeks. The TFG could not hold out in Mogadishu without Ethiopian presence. A prolonged Ethiopian presence would only embolden the UIC fighters and Somali nationalists who harboured deep suspicion of the Ethiopian intervention.
Museveni’s eagerness to contribute troops was understandable. He was keen to be seen as a big player, in the run-up to the East African political federation, then on a fast track. And also as a peace maker for the first time, after years of being labelled a notorious “peace breaker” in the region. His involvement in Rwanda, Congo and southern Sudan had not helped his image. Moreover, in the cutthroat business of jostling for favours from the USA, Museveni could not miss this opportunity to appear useful to America.
Before the Ugandan troops moved in, America’s aerial attacks on Somalia’s southern towns of Hayo and near the Kenyan border targeting ‘wanted terrorists’ complicated matters. The UN expressed concern over the attacks that had killed 70 civilians, nearly the same number that were killed in Kampala this month. IGADD and AU now needed more consultations before deploying troops that they would have required before the American strikes.
Fear of an all-out war was now real, especially as American special ground forces were expected to enter Somalia, as it would be logical after introductory air strikes. This did not happen. Instead, Uganda’s hasty offer came in handy, and the US offered to pick the bills of the ‘peace keeping’ force, which was the lesser risk. The US has intervened before in Somalia with disastrous consequences, leading to a hasty and embarrassing exit in 1994.
After the Kampala attacks, a new urgency has emerged, that plays out well with some vested interests. Uganda is now being encouraged to not only increase troops in Somalia, but to revise its mission to a combat role.
If other African countries don’t contribute soldiers, leaving Burundi and Uganda alone in the Somali desert, a surge in Uganda troops and a revision of the mandate will certainly be interpreted by Somali nationalists, not only the al-Shabaab and global anti-imperialist forces, as an outright invasion of Somalia by America using Uganda as proxy.
This would tremendously complicate matters for Uganda’s internal and external security in an election year. It would also further endanger the lives of Americans living in the region.
Rather than act on emotional considerations, what Uganda’s leadership needs is a well considered multi-partisan exit strategy from Somalia.
Mr Kalinge-Nyago is an independent researcher and e-learning specialist
omarkalinge@gmail.com

Watatu watuhumiwa na shambulio la Uganda

akenya watatu wameshtakiwa kwa mauaji ya watu 76 waliouliwa wakati mabomu yalipolipuka walipokuwa wakitazama fainali ya Kombe la Dunia kupitia televisheni mjini Kampala, Uganda.

Hussein Hassan Agad, mwenye umri wa miaka 27, Mohamed Adan Abdow, 25 na Idris Magondu, 42, nao walishtakiwa kwa ugaidi na mashtaka 10 ya jaribio la mauaji.

Bado hawajajitetea na wataendelea kubaki kizuizini mpaka wafikishwe tena mahakamani Agosti 27.

Al-Shabab, kundi la wapiganaji la kisomali, lilisema lilihusika na mashambulio hayo.

Majeshi ya kutunza amani ya Uganda yapo Somalia, kusaidia serikali dhaifu, inayoungwa mkono na umoja wa mataifa dhidi ya al-Shabab, yenye uhusiano na al-Qaeda.

Umoja wa Afrika wiki hii iliahidi kuongeza majeshi ya kutunza amani Somalia kufikia majeshi 4,000, baada ya mkutano uliofanyika Kampala, mji uliokumbwa na mashambulio.

Mpaka sasa ni Uganda na Burundi tu ndizo zilizopeleka majeshi yake katika mji mkuu wa Somalia, Mogadishu na al-Shabab ilitishia kushambulia nchi zote mbili.
'Mhubiri wa Kiislamu'


Majeruhi wakipatiwa tiba wakati wa shambulio la Kampala

Milipuko ya Julai 11, ambayo pia iliwajeruhi watu 70, iliharibu kabisa klabu ya raga na mgahawa wa Kiethiopia wakati mashabiki wa soka walipokuwa wakitazama dakika za mwisho za fainali ya Kombe la Dunia.

Watu hao, wote wakiwa raia wa Kenya, walifikishwa katika mahakama ya hakimu mkazi siku ya Ijumaa mjini Kampala.

Karatasi ya mashtaka imemwelezea Hussein Hassan Agad kuwa "mhubiri wa kiislamu", huku Idris Magondu akiwa mfanyakazi wa kampuni moja mjini Nairobi, Kenya.

Watu hao walishtakiwa kwa makosa 89. Wanakabiliwa na makosa ya mauaji ya watu 61 kwa wale waliouliwa kwenye klabu ya raga ya Kyadondo na makosa 15 kwa wale waliouliwa kwenye mgahawa wa raia wa Ethiopia.

Mashtaka hayo pia yanajumuisha makosa matatu ya ugaidi na makosa 10 ya jaribio la mauaji.

Watu hao hawakuzungumza lolote walipofikishwa mahakamani.

Mwandishi wa BBC Ignatius Bahizi, aliyekuwa mahakamani, alisema watu hao walikamatwa Julai 12, siku moja baada ya mashambulio hayo.

Alisema, kulikuwa hamna ishara yeyote ya muda gani walikuwepo Uganda kabla ya mashambulio hayo.

Alisema takriban watu 27 walikamatwa na timu ya wachunguzi ya kimataifa, ikiwemo shirika la kijasusi la Marekani FBI.

Polisi wamesema watawafikisha washukiwa zaidi mahakamani katika siku za usoni

Wanne watozwa faini A Kusini kwa 'udhalilishaji'

Waafrika Kusini wazungu wanne wametozwa faini ya dola za kimarekani 2,700 kila mmoja kwa kutengeneza video ya kuwadhalilisha wafanyakazi watano weusi wa chuo kikuu na kuiweka kwenye wavuti.

Watu hao waliokuwa wanafunzi katika chuo kikuu cha Free State wamekubali mashtaka ya uhalifu wa kufanya madhara katika kesi hiyo iliyokuwepo siku ya Jumanne.

Video hiyo imewaonyesha wafanyakazi hao watano wakilazimishwa kupiga magoti na kulazimishwa kula chakula ambacho kilikojolewa na mmoja wa wanafunzi hao.

Video hiyo iliibua maandamano ya kupinga ubaguzi ilipotolewa hadharani mwaka 2008.

Kesi hiyo ilionekana muhimu sana katika nchi inayojaribu kuachana na ubaguzi uliokuwepo miaka iliyopita, miaka 16 tangu utawala wa wazungu umalizike.

Watu hao - - nao pia wamepewa kifungo cha miezi sita gerezani.

Faini za randi 20,000 ni zaidi ya kile kilichoombwa na waendesha mashtaka.

Hakimu Mziwonke Hinxa katika mji wa Bloemfontein wenye wazungu wengi zaidi alisema, " Hatua hii inatuma ujumbe mzito kwa wahalifu wa makosa kama haya."

Iwapo wanne hao hawatolipa faini hizo, watakabiliwa na miezi 12 jela.

Wafanyakazi hao watano wa chuo waliomba watu hao wanne watozwe faini, badala ya kufungwa gerezani.

Lakini wafanyakazi hao- wanaume wanne na mwanamke mmoja-wanatarajiwa kufungua kesi ya madai baada ya kesi hiyo ya uhalifu kuisha.

Wasomali wanaorudi kutoka Saudi hatarini

Shirika la Umoja wa mataifa linaloshugulikia wakimbizi, limeitaka Saudi Arabia kuacha kuwarudisha nyumbani raia wa Somalia kwa lazima.

Shirika hilo la UNHCR, linasema watu 2,000 wamerejeshwa mjini Mogadishu hivi karibuni na sasa maisha yao yako hatarini.

Mapigano yamekuwa yakiendelea kila siku katika mji huo wa Mogadishu kati ya wanamgambo wa kiislamu, na majeshi ya serikali yanayoungwa mkono na majeshi ya Umoja wa Afrika.

Shirika la UNHCR, limetoa wito kwa nchi zote kutowarejesha raia wa Somalia katika maeneo ya Kusini na katikati mwa Somalia.

Baadhi ya maeneo hayo yako chini ya udhibiti wa wanamgambo wa al-Shabab, wanaohusishwa na kundi la kigaidi la al-Qaeda.
Wanamgambo wa Somalia

Wanamgambo wa Somalia

Serikali ya mpito ya Somalia, inadhibiti maeneo machache kati mji mkuu.
''Kutokana na hali machafuko mjini Mogadishu, shirika la UNHCR linatoa wito kwa viongozi wa Saudi kusitisha mipango yote ya kuwarejesha nyumbani raia wa Somalia,'' amesema msemaji wa shirika hilo Melissa Fleming.

Mzozo huo umesababisha raia wengi wa Somalia kukimbilia usalama katika nchi zingine, na baadhi hata huwalipa wasafirishaji haramu wa binadamu ambao huwasaidi kuvuka Ghuba ya Aden na kuingia nchini Yemen.

Baada ya kufika Yemen, kuna wale ambao huamua kuingia nchini Saudi Arabia.

Mji mkuu wa Somalia Mogadishu, na maeneo mengine ya Kusini mwa Somalia yamekuwa katika hali mzozo kwa takariban miongo miwili.

Mugabe aomboleza kifo cha dada yake

Sabina Mugabe, mdogo wake wa kike Rais wa Zimbabwe amefariki dunia akiwa na umri wa miaka 76.

Alikuwa mbunge kwa miaka 23 mpaka mwaka 2008 alivyojiuzulu na alionekana kuwa mshirika wa karibu wa Robert Mugabe, mwenye umri wa miaka 86.

Chama cha Bw Mugabe cha Zanu-PF kimemtangaza kuwa shujaa wa kitaifa.

Hii inamaanisha atazikwa eneo la mashujaa, pahala pa heshima nje ya mji wa Harare ambapo wamezikwa waliopigana katika vita vya miaka ya 70 dhidi ya uongozi wa wazungu walio wachache.

Watoto wake wawili wa kiume nao pia waliwahi kuwa wabunge.

Mmoja ni Leo Mugabe, aliyekuwa mkuu wa chama cha mpira wa miguu cha Zimbabwe, na mwengine na Patrick Zhuwao, afisa mwandamizi wa Zanu-PF.

Amefariki dunia katika kliniki iliyopo kwenye mji mkuu wa Harare, baada ya kuumwa kwa muda mrefu.

Gazeti la serikali la Herald limeripoti kuwa Rais Mugabe aliwaambia waombolezaji kuwa dada yake alipata matatizo ya ubongo baada ya kupata kiharusi mwaka 1995.

Alisema, "Katika familia yetu, licha ya kuwa tumejaa huzuni, tunapata matumaini kwani marafiki zetu wote wako pamoja nasi."

Gazeti la Zimbabwe la Independent limeripoti kuwa chama cha Movement for Democratic Change, inayogawana madaraka na Zanu-PF, hakikushauriwa juu ya uamuzi wa kumpa Bi Mugabe hadhi ya ushujaa.

Alishutumiwa kwa kujinufaisha kutokana na utata wa mabadiliko ya mpango wa ardhi nchini humo na kuunga mkono uvamizi wa mashamba yaliyomilikiwa na wazungu.

Mbunge Apewa Kichapo cha Nguvu na Wenzake

Mwanasiasa mmoja wa nchini India alipewa kichapo cha nguvu na wanasiasa wenzake ambao walikasirishwa na mawazo yake aliyoyatoa.
alishushiwa kipigo cha nguvu na wapinzani wake ndani ya chama chake mwenyewe ambao hawakufurahishwa na mawazo yake.

Kunjir alidondoshwa chini na kutandikwa ngumi pamoja na kushushiwa mvua ya viti kwenye kichwa chake.

Kunjir alinusurika maisha yake lakini alibaki na majeraha makubwa kichwani. Hata hivyo bado hajatoa malalamiko yoyote polisi.

Angalia video ya tukio hilo chini.

140 Wafariki Baada ya Boti Kupinduka nchini Kongo

Watu wapatao 140 wamefariki baada ya boti ya abiria iliyokuwa imejaza watu na mizigo kuliko uwezo wake kupinduka na kuzama kwenye mto uliopo nchini Jamhuri ya Kongo.
Ajali hiyo ilitokea kwenye mto Kasai uliopo katika mji wa Bandundu uliopo magharibi mwa Jamhuri ya Kongo.

Boti iliyopata ajali inasemekana ilikuwa imejaza watu wengi sana kuliko uwezo wake pamoja na mizigo mingi sana.

Boti hiyo ilikuwa ikisafiri kuelekea mji mkuu wa Jamhuri ya Kongo, Kinshasa wakati ilipopinduka na kuua watu waliokuwemo.

Wizara ya habari ya Kongo, imethibitisha vifo vya watu 80 kati ya watu 140 ambao wanahofia kupoteza maisha ndani ya boti hiyo.

Hili si tukio la kwanza kutokea katika mji wa Bandundu, mwezi novemba mwaka jana, boti nyingine ya abiria ilizama kwenye ziwa Mai-Ndombe lilipo kwenye mji huo na kupelekea watu 73 kupoteza maisha yao.

Avaa Gauni la Spinachi Kupinga Watu Kula Nyama

Mwanamama wa nchini Kenya ambaye anapigania watu waache kula nyama na badala yake wawe wanakula mboga za majani, alikuwa kivutio mitaani alipovaa gauni lililotengenezwa kwa majani ya spinachi.
Michelle Odhiambo alivaa gauni refu lililotengenezwa kwa majani ya spinachi na kupita kwenye mitaa ya Nairobi akipiga kampeni ya kuwahamasisha watu waache kula nyama choma.

Michelle ambaye ni mwanaharakati wa shirika la kutetea haki za wanyama alisema kuwa aliacha kula nyama za aina zote miaka minane iliyopita.

Michelle aliwahimiza wamiliki wa mahoteli waache kupika vyakula vyenye nyama na badala yake watumie mboga za majani.

Hata hivyo kampeni yake ya kupinga ulaji wa nyama inakabiliwa na upinzani mkubwa hasa kwa kuzingatia kuwa mapishi bila nyama huhusishwa na umaskini nchini Kenya. Watu wenye pesa hupenda kujionyesha kwa kula nyama katika vyakula vyao.

Michelle alisema kuwa chakula ambacho hutumiwa kulisha wanyama wanaochinjwa kinaweza kutumiwa kulisha watu wengi.

Michelle pia alihoji tabia ya watu kuwahasi wanyama na kuwachinja bila ya kutumia dawa za kupunguza maumivu.

"Hii ni haki kweli?", aliuliza Michelle.

Sitta akamatwa na Takukuru

WAZIRI wa Maendeleo ya Jamii, Jinsia na Watoto, Margaret Sitta, amekamatwa na Taasisi ya Kuzuia na Kupambana na Rushwa (Takukuru) mkoani Tabora, akikabiliwa kutaka kugawa rushwa katika maandalizi ya uchaguzi.
Kwa mujibu wa taarifa iliyotolewa jana na Naibu Kamanda wa Takukuru mkoani Tabora, Bruno Rwenyagira, ilisema kuwa Waziri Sitta alikamatwa juzi, majiara ya saa 7.45 mchana baada ya maofisa wa Taasisi hiyo kumfuatilia nyendo zake toka alipowasili mkoani humo.

Rwenyagira alisema kuwa, Sitta alikamatwa juzi akiwa na simu zipatazo saba aina ya NOKIA, bahasha 147 pamoja na fedha taslimu Shilingi. milioni moja na elfu kumi na tano 1,015,000.

Taarifa hiyo iliendelea kusema kuwa kutokana na Takukuru kumfatilia kwa kipindi kirefu toka alipowasili mkoani humo na kufatilia gari alilikuwa akilitumia aina ya Toyota Surf lenye namba za usajili T339ANL walibaini hayo na nWaziri huyo alipogundua hayo alihama hoteli aliyofikia na kuhama hapo.

Hata hivyo maofisa hao waliendelea kumfuatilia na kufanikiwa kumkamata majira ya saa 7.45 mchana juzi na taarifa hiyo kurushwa kwenye vyombo vya habari.

Waziri Sitta ni mke wa Spika wa Bunge la Jamuhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania, anawania uongozi ndani ya Umoja wa Wanawake Tanzania [UWT]

Housegirl auwa mtoto wa bosi, kisha na yeye kujinyonga

KATIKA hali isiyo yakawaida mfanyakazi wa kazi za ndani, aliyetambulika kwa jina moja la Zaina (16), amemuua mtoto wa bosi wake, Set Steven (2) kwa kumnyonga kisha naye kujinyonga.
Tukio hilo la kusikitisha lilitokea jana, maeneo ya Uwanja wa Ndege, mjini Morogoro.

Kamanda wa Polisi mkoani Morogoro, Bw. Thobias Andengenye, alisema kuwa, tukio hilo lilitokea majira ya saa 2:45 usiku, katika nyumba ya Steven Kapombe ambapo binti huyo alipokuwa akifanya kazi za ndani.

Alisema, Zaina alianza kumnyonga mtoto huyo kwa kutumia kipande cha kanga na baada ya kufanya mauaji hayo na yeye aliamua kujinyonga mwenyewe kwa kutumia kipande cha kanga pia alichokining'iniza juu ya dari.

Andengenye alisema, hadi sasa chanzo cha kufanya mauaji hayo bado hakijafahamika na polisi wanaendelea na uchunguzi kugundua chanzo cha vifo hivyo.

Mtikila jela miezi sita

MAHAKAMA ya Wilaya ya Ilala ya jijini Dar es Salaam, imemuhukumu kutumikia kifungo cha miaka sita jela Mchungaji Christopher Mtikila, baada kushindwa kulipa fedha anazodaiwa.
Hukumu hiyo ilitolewa jana ,mahakamani hapo na Hakimu Mfawidhi, Bi. Joyce Minde na kutakiwa kutumikia kifungo hicho ndani ya gereza la Ukonga.

Wakati hukumu hiyo ikitolewa Mtikila hakuwepo mahakamani na Hakimu kusema Mtikila ataanza kutumikia kifungo hicho mara tu mlalamikaji Bi, Paskazia Matete atakapowasilisha shilingi laki moja kwea ajili ya kumhudumia mdaiwa atakapokuwa gerezani.

Minde alimtaka mdai, kuwasilisha kila mwezi kiasi cha shilingi laki moja kwa ajili ya fedha ya kumkimu mdaiwa atakapokuwa gerezani.

"Mtikila ataanza kutumikia kifungo mara tu mdai atakapowasilisha fedha za kumhudumia katika matatizo mbalimbali likiwemo chakula," alisema Hakimu Minde

Hakimu Minde alisema kwa kuwa Mtikila muda mrefu hakulipa deni hilo na malalmikaji alitaka mdaiwa afungwe hivyo kutokana na kwa mujibu wa sheria mlalamikaji atawajibika kutoa kiasi hicho kwa ajili ya kumuhudumia Mtikila atakapokuwa gerezani na akitumikia kifungo hicho hatatakiwa kulipa deni analodaiwa.

Hakimu Minde alisema, kwa mujibu wa sheria mdaiwa hafungwi na alimtaka mlalamikaji kama endapo anafahamu mali za Mtikila anazozifahamu anaweza kuzikamata ziuzwe ili afidie fedha anayomdai na endapo angeweza kukamata na zikiuzwa na kufikia fedha anazomdai basi Mtikila hatotumikia kifungo hicho.

AWali Mtikila na mwenzake Mariam Issa, walidaiwa kumkopa malalamikaji Paskazia Matete kiasi cha shilingi milioni 9 na kisha wawili hao kushindwa kulipa deni hilo .

Mbali na hukumu hiyo Mtikila anakabiliwa na shataka lingine katika Mahakdama ya Hakimu Mkazi Kisutu ya kudaiwa kumkshifu Rais Kikwete kwa kumuita gaidi na kutoa maneno ya uchochezi.

Jana Mtikila aliwasili Mahakamani hapo na usafiri aina ya Bajaji kuwasilisha ombi la kutaka hakimu anayesikiliza shauri hilo afukuzwe kazi.

Wawili wafikishwa mahakaman kwa mauaji ya Prof. Mwaikusa

WATU wawili wakazi wa jijini Dar es Salaam, wamefikishwa Mahakama ya Hakimu Mkazi Kisutu jana, wakikabiliwa na tuhuma za mauaji yaliyotokea ya aliyekuwa Mhadhiri wa Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam Kitivo cha Sheria, Profesa Jwani Mwaikusa.
Waliofikishwa katika mahakama hiyo jana ni, Joseph Merema Machecho na mwenzake Jackson Zebedayo Chacha wote wakikabiliwa na mauaji ya profesa huyo.

Watuhumiwea hapo walifikishwa mbele ya Hakimu Gabriel Mirumb na kusomewa mashtaka na matatu yaliyoongozwa na Mwendesha Mashitaka wa Serikali, Anne Mwaipula.

Mwaipula alidai kuwa, washitakwia hao walitendakosa hilo la mauaji Julai 13, mwaka huu, nyumbani kwa profesa huyo maeneo la Salasala mtaa wa Mkonde, majira ya saa 3:40 usiku.

Washitakiwa walimuua Profesa Mwaikusa.
Pia washitakwioa hao waliweza kuua mwingine aliyetambulika kama Gwamaka Daudi na shtka la tatu pia kwa wakati huohuo walimuua mtu wa tatu ndani ya familia hiyo aliyetambulika John Mtui.

Kesi hiyo itatajwa tena Agosti 10, mwaka huu.

Mhadhiri huo aliuawa nyumbani kwake Julai 13, mwaka huu, baada watu wanaosadikiwa kuwa majambazi kufika na silaha za moto na kumuua.

Ahukumiwa kunyongwa kwa kuua ablino

MAHAKAMA Kuu Kanda ya Mwanza, imemhukumu adhabu ya kifo baada ya kupatikana na kosa la mauaji ya mtoto aliyekuwa na ulemavu wa ngozi, Mariam Emmanueli (5).
Aliyehukumiwa kifungo hicho ni mshitakiwa wa kwanza katika kesi hiyo, Kazimili Mashauri, huku mshitakiwa wa pili atika kesi hiyo aliachiwa huru na mahakamda hiyo.

Hukumu hiyo ilisomwa asubuhi jana, na Jaji Projest Rugazia baada ya kuridhishwa na ushahidi uliotolewa na upande wa mashtaka. .


Jaji alisema kautokana na ushahidi uliotolewa na shahidi wa pili uliridhisha wazi kwua mshitakwia huyo alihusika na kitendo hicho moja kwa moja kwa kuwa kabla ya siku ya tukio la mauaji, mshtakiwa huyo alimuuliza mshitakwia wa pili ni wapi mtoto huyo analala.

Na kuongeza siku ambayo mshitakwia huyo wa kwanza ali[pokwenda kukamatwa alionyesha dhahiri kuwa muoga kwa kuwa alijikojolea baada ya kuona askari wanakwenda kumkamata.


Hivyo kwa maelezo ya shahidi wa pili yaliyotolewa mahakamani hapo hayakuwa na shaka na alidai kuwa mara baada ya kuchinja marehemu huyo, mshitakiwa huyo alikinga damu kwa kutumia sufuria na ushahidi huo uliridhishwa kwa kuwa mama wa mtoto huyo alikiri kutoona damu alipoingia chumbani na ushahidi huo kudhihirisha wazi kuwa damu hiyo haikumwagika na ilikingwa kwa kutumia chombo hicho.


Mauaji hayo yalitokea Januari 21, mwaka 2008, majira ya saa 10 usiku katika kijiji cha Nyangh’olongo wilayani Misungwi, mkoani Mwanza.

Aomba mahakama impunguzie adhabu kwa kuwa ana majini

MAHAMOUD SALUM (18), mkazi wa Tandika, amehukumiwa kifungo cha miezi sita jela baada ya kupatikana na kukiri kosa la kutishia kuua.
Hukumu hiyo ilitolewa jana, katika Mahakama ya Mwanzo Temeke,na Hakimu Mwinyiheri Kondo huku ikongozwa na Karani Blandina Haule, na hukumu hiyo kutolewa mara baada ya kukiri kosa hilo.

Mshitakiwa huyo alitakiwa kujitetea na Hakimu Kondo ili asimpe adhabu kali kwa kuwa aliirahisishia mahakama kukiri kosa hilo na ni moja ya taratibu za mahakama kabla ya kifungo mshitakwia anatakiwea ajitetee ili asipewe adhabu kali.

Mshitakiwa huyo alijitetea kama ifuatavyo ''Mheshimiwa hakimu naomba unipunguzie adhabu mbele ya Mahakama yako tukufu, naomba inipunguzie adhabu utakayonipa kwa kuwa mimi huwa ninasumbuliwa na majini, na mashetani muheshimiwa” hivyo gerezani yakinipata yaatanipa tabu kwa kuwa hawatajua wafanye nini” alijitetea mshitakiwa huyo.

Hata hivyo Hakimu hakuridhishwa na sababu hiyo na kuamua kumtwanga kifungo hicho ili iwe fundisho kutoa kauli za vitisho katika jamii na kunmuondolea uhuru mtu wa kuishi kwa sababu ambazo hazina msingi.

Awali hati ya mashitaka ilipofika mahakamani hapo, ilidaiwa kuwa, Julai 19, mwaka huu, majira ya saa 7 mchana, maeneo ya Mamboleo Tandika, mshitakiwa alimtishia mama yake mdogo aitwae Zeyanah Sultan kuwa lazima atammaliza kwa njuia yeyote ile yaani atamtoa uhai.

Maafisa Afya kizimbani kwa kupokea rushwa

MAAFISA Afya Wilaya ya Kinondoni wamepandishwa kizimbani kwa tuhuma za kuomba na kupokea rushwa ya kiasi cha shilingi laki moja kutoka kwa muuza duka.
Watuhumiwa hao walipandishwa kizimbani jana kusomewa maelezo ya awali ni Ezra Gula (28) na Gelma Chifunda (39) ambao wote ni waajiriwa wa Serikali kitengo cha afisa afya Wilaya ya Kinondoni.

Watuhumiwa ambao wote ni wakazi wa Mbezi walikamatwa Julai 21 na Taasisi ya kuzuia na kupambana na Rushwa (TAKUKURU) baada ya kuwekewa mtego.

Wakisomewa maelezo ya awali na Mwanasheria wa TAKUKURU mkoa wa Kinondoni Ronald Manyiri alidai kuwa watuhumiwa hao walitenda kosa hilo Julai 21 huko Mwananyamala Kinondoni.

Watuhumiwa walikiuka majukumu yao kwa kuomba hongo, baada ya kufanya ukaguzi wa duka la Simon Shilayo ambapo walipokagua walibaini baadhi ya bidhaa zilikuwa zimekwisha muda wake (zimeexpire).

Watuhumiwa walimtaka Shilayo awape kiasi cha shilingi laki moja ili wasimchukulie hatua hata hivyo baada ya kukubaliana muuza duka huyo aliweka mitego ya TAKUKURU na kufanikiwa kuwakamata.

Watuhumiwa hao walikana kosa hilo ambapo waliachiwa kwa dhamana ya shilingi laki mbili kila mmoja pamoja na wadhamini wawili wawili ambapo kesi imeahirishwa hadi Agosti 16 mwaka huu.

WFP kununua chakula kutoka Afrika

Shirika la chakula duniani WFP, linasema linajitahidi kuongeza kiwango cha chakula, ambacho huwa linanunua, kutoka kwa wakulima barani Afrika.

Mkuu wa shirika hilo Josette Sheeran, amesema wanajitahidi kuhakikisha kuwa nchi kumi na sita kutoka barani Afrika, zitafaidika kutokana na mpango huo.

Katika nchi nyingi barani Afrika, wakati kuna uhaba wa chakula mashirika ya misaada ya kimataifa huanza kuleta chakula ambacho hununuliwa katika nchi za kigeni.

Hili ndilo tatizo ambalo shirika la WFP linajaribu kumaliza.

Uganda ni moja wapo ya nchi ambazo shirika hilo lina mpango wa kununua chakula.

Mkrugenzi wa WFP nchini Uganda Stanlake Samkange, amesema fedha nyingi zitatumika kununua vifaa vitakavyoliwezesha shirika hilo, kununua kiwango kikubwa zaidi mahindi na maharage.

Vifaa hivyo vitatumika kuhifadhi na kusafisha chakula hicho, ili kiweze kufikia kiwango cha kimataifa.

Mwaka jana Shirika la WFP, lilitumia dola millioni mia mbili na ishirini kutoka barani Afrika.

Wakulima kutoka Uganda, ni baadhi ya wale waliofaidika.

Hii ina maana kwamba maharage waliyopewa watu wa Karamoja,kaskazini mashariki mwa Uganda yalinunuliwa kutoka Kusini-Magharibi mwa Uganda, na wala sio kutoka mashamba ya Marekani au Ulaya.