Latest News
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Ivory Coast: US Senator Inhofe To Save Gbagbo, But What About The People?
by Bahati Jacques On several occasions US Senator Inhofe has called for the release of former President of Ivory Coast Laurent Gbagbo and that he be allowed an honorable exit into exile. In his opening remarks during a Senate Foreign Relations hearing on May 19th 2011, Senator Inhofe argued that allowing Gbagbo and his wife…
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AFRICOM’s Headquarters May Not Move After All
Posted May 23rd, this article is cross-posted from the Africa Human Security Working Group site While US Senators from Virginia, Georgia and South Carolina vie to host AFRICOM’s new headquarters, the location is still very much up in the air, even regarding which continent. There has been much resistance in Africa for a headquarters on the…
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U.S. Special Envoy to Africa’s Great Lakes region: Senators’ Letter to Obama.
On May 9th, 19 members of the US Senate sent a letter to President Obama encouraging him to swiftly appoint a Special Representative to Africa’s Great lakes region. Given the multiple challenges in the region, the Senators stated that the appointment of a high level member of the administration who would answer directly to the…
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2011 Meeting
AFJN had its annual member meeting at a well-attended reception. Fr. Rocco Puopolo addressed the audience, highlighting some of AFJN’s Successes and sharing AFJN’s end-of-year financial information.
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US Department of State reacts to NGOs and Congress’s Push for Africa’s Great Lakes Special Envoy Appointment
The Obama administration continues to give excuses regarding the overdue appointment of a special envoy to Africa’s Great Lakes region. Following a strong call for the appointment of a special envoy during a hearing on March 8th and a online petition by Africa Faith and Justice Network, A Thousand Sisters, Enough Project, Falling Whistles, Free the…
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Who’s Denying Genocide?
NEWS ADVISORY -International Humanitarian Law Institute (U.S.A.) – —For the advancement of due process and equality before the law, in the theory and practice of International criminal law— Director: Prof. Peter Erlinder c/o William Mitchell College of Law (est. 1900) Saint Paul, MN 55105, U.S.A. Tel: (1)651-290-6384/Fax: (1)651-290-6406 Contact: Dr. Christine Schoettler, PhD. (fr) cschoettler@comcast.net…
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Congressional Briefing on the UN Mapping Report Exercise
Download PDF file here The widespread impunity in the DRC and the lack of accountability for crimes detailed in the UN Mapping Exercise Report is appalling. Seeking peace, stability and justice in the Congo is not only in the best interest of every nation in the region, but also in line with American democratic values. The seriousness…
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Attorney Sanctioned Despite Medical Symptoms From Rwanda Detention: Consistent with ICTR Cover-up of RPF Crimes
International Humanitarian Law Institute News Advisory Contact: Dr. Christine Schoettler, PhD. (fr) cschoettler@comcast.net Andrea Palumbo, JD. (eng) andrea.m.palumbo@gmail.com St. Paul, MN – April 27 — A 4-hour ICTR Appeal Chamber hearing will complete the 8-year case against Maj. Aloys Ntabakuze, who was acquitted of conspiracy to commit genocide and all incidents but four, that the…
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UN Mapping Report: 34 Congolese Organizations call for an independent and credible Special Court
Driven by the publication of the UN Mapping Report of October 2010, Congolese, international officials and civil society representatives met in Goma from April 6-8th, 2011 “on the establishment of a specialized mixed court for the prosecution of the most serious International crimes committed on Congolese soil since 1990”. Such a mixed court (composed of both Congolese…
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California State on its way to enforce federal regulations on conflict minerals from DRC
On Tuesday April 12th, California Senate’s Governmental Organization Committee furthered the bill SB 861 which aims to enhance the State of California’s compliance with section 1502 on conflict minerals of U.S federal law, N0 111-203 also known as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and the Consumer Protection Act signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. However, this…
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American and European NGOs call for high level diplomatic appointments in Africa’s Great Lakes Region
Humanitarian and advocacy groups in the US and Europe are pressing their respective governments to appoint special envoys to Africa’s Great Lakes region. On the US side, this appointment is long overdue. The necessity for a special envoy was recognized by US lawmakers when they passed the “Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy…
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Global Day Against Military Spending
Africa Advocates can get behind this event, come and show your support! From their website: “We are organizing a Global Day of Action on Military Spending on April 12, 2011to coincide with the release of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) new annual figures on world military expenditures. On this day, people on all continents will…
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AFJN Policy Analyst Jacques Bahati quoted in The Final Call on Justice for Victims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Final Call published an article by Saeed Shabaz titled “Advocates: Six million Congolese war victims deserve justice”.
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AFJN Signs on to Letter Urging Commodity Speculation Regulation
AFJN has signed on to a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission which urges the Commission to implement the financial reforms (Dodd-Frank Act) passed last year in terms of firmer regulations on commodities speculation. Commodities speculation (specifically, buying food or fuel en masse with the intent to sell as prices increase) has been massively…
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California Says NO to Conflict Minerals
California State Senator Ellen Corbett has introduced SB 861, a bill that (if passed) would prohibit the state of California from contracting with companies who do not follow the federal rules of transparency that prohibit the trading of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). AFJN sent this letter of supportto Senator Corbett, and…
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Beyond the International Criminal Court conviction of D. R Congo war lord Thomas Lubanga
Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) convicted Congolese war lord Thomas Lubanga of recruiting children and sending them into battle. The conviction is good news for his victims, but it does not match the scope of his crimes. This is just a drop in the bucket considering the list of people connected to the crimes committed…
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Justice in the World, 40 years Later
From the Jan-March 2011 edition of Around Africa, by Fr. Rocco Puopolo, Executive Director AFJN “If you want peace, work for justice.” This pithy saying can still be found today as a bumper sticker on a number of cars in Church parking lots. It has been a long serving indicator of our desire to reconcile…
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The Softer Side of AFRICOM
From the Jan-March 2011 Edition of Around Africa, by Melaura Homan-Smith, AFJN Staff In 1961, just three days before John F Kennedy was inaugurated, President Eisenhower gave his historic farewell speech where he said: “We must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex.” Fifty years later this…
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Videos of March 2, 2011 UN Mapping Report briefing Capitol Hill
March 2 Congressional Briefing on D.R. Congo – Jacques Bahati’s Introductory RemarksMarch 2 Congressional Briefing on D.R. Congo – Claude Gatebuke’s Introductory RemarksMarch 2 Congressional Briefing – Nita Evele’s Introductory RemarksMarch 2 Congressional Briefing on D.R. Congo – Nii Akuetteh’s Introductory RemarksMarch 2 Congressional Briefing on D.R. Congo – Recommendations for Congress read by Kambale…
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Mining Ban and US law: Cause for Economic Crisis in Congo?
From the Jan-March 2011 Edition of Around Africa, by Bahati Jacques, AFJN Senior Policy AnalystSince President Barack Obama signed into law the Conflict Mineral Act on July 21, 2010 (section 1502, of US public law N0 111-203), non-profit organizations and electronics companies have been working to influence the Department of State and the US Securities and…
