Latest News
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National Catholic Reporter: AFJN’s Fr. Okure on Kidnapped Nigerian Girls
On May 9, 2014 AFJN Executive Director Fr. Aniedi Okure, OP was quote in Michael Sean Winter’s “AFJN’s Fr. Okure on Kidnapped Nigerian Girls” article feature in National Catholic Reporter. Read it here: https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/distinctly-catholic/afjns-fr-okure-kidnapped-nigerian-girls The original statement: We gather here to demand the safe and unconditional return of the kidnapped girls to their families so…
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Bring Back Our Girls
We gather here to demand the safe and unconditional return of the kidnapped girls to their families so they can continue their education. Education is a human rights issue; it should never be denied to anyone. We unequivocally call on Boko Haram to release them now. We believe that Boko Haram has succeeded in its…
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May 9: DC Vigil for Nigerian Girls
AFJN and other groups are holding a vigil on May 9 in solidarity with the abducted girls of Nigeria. Join us tomorrow in DC! Joint Statement in Support and Solidarity with the Abducted Girls of the Government Girls School, Chibok, Nigeria May 8, 2014 – On May 9th a coalition of faith based and human rights groups and members…
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Ethiopian Security Forces: Stop Arresting and Killing Peaceful Demonstrators
News reports from East Africa indicate that Ethiopian Security Forces are using live bullets against unarmed students and farmers who are protesting against Ethiopian authorities’ plan to extend the boundaries of the capital city Addis Ababa to surrounding areas. The protest included university students in Addis Ababa, Ambo, Jimma and other cities and towns. It…
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US Foreign Aid: The Power of the Purse to Influence Africa Policy
As the saying goes: put your money where your mouth is. The latest appropriations bill, section 7042 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 (US Public Law No: 113-76) contains important general and country-specific Africa policies. Supporters of foreign aid believe that the aid money allocated for Africa in this year’s US budget is insignificant…
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Kleptocracy: US Won’t Be a Harbor for Stolen Assets
We are encouraged by the US Justice Department announcement, made on March 5, 2014, about the asset freeze of “$458 million in corruption proceeds hidden in bank accounts around the world by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha and conspirators” under the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative. Anyone with information about suspicious assets in the US (money in bank…
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Sowing Seeds for Justice: The Empowerment Project in Ghana
In May Father Aniedi Okure will travel to Accra, Ghana to help launch the first pilot project in AFJN’s Empowerment program. AFJN has received initial grant funds from the Institute for Policy Research at Catholic University and Be The Change Foundation to support this initiative. Accra Catholic Archbishop, Charles Palmer-Buckle, is keen on having his…
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Central African Republic and Witnessing to Religious Values
March 18, 2014 at the White House Conference Center, three prominent religious leaders from Central African Republic (CAR), Archbishop Dieudonne Nzapalainga of Bangui, Chief Imam Omar Kabine Layama, President of CAR Islamic Community and Reverend Nicolas Guerkoyame Gbangou, Chair of Executive Committee of the Alliance of Evangelicals in CAR, held a roundtable conversation with religious…
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Sharing in the Grief, Anxiety and Hope of the People An Account of War Conflicts In Leer Mission
“Local Christians were collecting food to feed us. We got four goats and a bull which we shared among all. The same we did with dry fish. Hunt was also part of the menu (buffalo, hippo and crocodile). We drank from the same swampy water we bathed with, we just boiled it.” The narrative that…
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La Crise Centrafricaine: Analyse des Responsable Religieux
Interview réalisée par Barthelemy Bazemo, Analyste politique March 24, 2014 Un an après le putsch du 24 Mars 2013 en Centrafrique, la situation est des plus préoccupantes. Le calme est loin d’être rétabli à Bangui et dans certaines contrées du pays. Et la paix, cette denrée essentielle au développement et à l’épanouissement des peuples, manque…
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Central African crisis: Analysis by Faith Leaders
Barthelemy Bazemo Interview and Translation from French by Barthelemy Bazemo, AFJN’s Policy Analyst (download PDF File here) A year after the coup of March 24, 2013 in Central African Republic (CAR), the situation has become more concerning. Calm is far from being restored in Bangui and other parts of the country. But the leaders of the…
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Fighting Grain-Killing Mold
A young woman from Kenya received an international award for innovation in food security. Charity Mutegi, a 38 year old agricultural scientist from Kenya, was the 2013 winner of the Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application. Mutegi led efforts to develop a biocontrol solution to reduce aflatoxin, a deadly mold that occurs in…
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AFJN Event: Seeking Peace and Forgiveness
Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation in Africa What is “restorative justice”, and how is it different from punitive (criminal) justice? How are these methods used in Africa to heal communities after conflict, and how can faith communities in the U.S. integrate these ideas into their communities? Come see the amazing story of Sierra Leone’s “Fambul Tok” documentary Organized…
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CTFA Resource Guide to Bishops’ Letter on Africa
Walking with the Peoples of Africa A CTFA Resource Guide to Accompany the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops Statement “A Call to Solidarity with Africa“ The Catholic Task Force on Africa (CTFA) is pleased to offer a resource packet, entitled “Walking with the Peoples of Africa,” which provides information and action suggestions on issues of major…
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Catholic Task Force on Africa: Mission
The Catholic Task Force on Africa (CTFA) was founded almost a decade ago as a coalition of Catholic religious communities and organizations seeking to analyze and influence U.S. policy toward Africa based on principles of Catholic social teaching. It represents a collaborative effort to win Africa higher policy priority among U.S. government policymakers. It is…
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Catholic Task Force on Africa Prepares for Synod
The Catholic Task Force on Africa (CTFA) has announced that it will continue its work of making the US Catholic Bishops’ letter, “A Call to Solidarity with Africa,” better known in dioceses and parishes. The CTFA has already produced a resource guide for Catholics interested in using the Bishops’ letter. The resource guide can be dowloaded…
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Washington Must Reexamine its Relations with Kigali
Congressman Ed Royce, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued a press release today (March 12, 2014) to bring attention to the “Killings of Rwandan Regime Critics Abroad”. In a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, he writes: “Allowing President Kagame’s violent rhetoric and the slaying of dissidents abroad to go unchecked will…
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US aid to DR Congo: No more free rides for corrupt government officials!
Did you know your tax dollars are subsidizing corrupt bureaucrats in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)? Instead of subsidizing millions of dollars in theft, fraud and unpaid taxes, the US should support civil society which is demanding transparency and good governance. Pouring US tax dollars down the drain doesn’t help us, and it doesn’t help…
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In Memoriam, Scott and Jean Adams
The crisis off the coast of Somalia has become personal for the Africa Faith and Justice Network. On February 18th, 2011 Scott and Jean Adams, members of St. Monica’s Parish in California, were captured by Somali pirates and were killed on February 22, 2011. St. Monica’s Parish is an institutional member of the Africa Faith…
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The U.S must stop subsidizing corruption and impunity in DRC Congo, the case of 3.7 billion in fraud
As the country’s chief financial officer warns Congress that the U-S Treasury will shortly run out of money to pay the nation’s bills, the United States Treasury is preparing to send millions to the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a nation with billions of dollars from the US, the World Bank,…
