Latest News
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Water for the World Resolution Introduced in House
On December 6, 2007 Representative Jan Shakowsky (D-IL) introduced the Water for the World Resolution (H.CON.RES 266) which defines access to water as a universal human right and suggests that federal funding not be applied to the privatization of water resources. It also promotes environmental concerns of sustainable and unpolluted water. The resolution has been…
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D.R.Congo: Nkunda Regains Power Soon After Defeat
Security, peace and ceasefire continue to be the center of concern in the eastern D.R.Congo. Friday December 14, 2007 the Congolese army fought for five hours in Kazuba locality with Nkunda’s military support from Rwanda descending to Masisi via Runyonyi causing the people in the surrounding villages to run toward Rumangabo, Rubare and Rutshuru. Although…
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Security in the Eastern D.R. Congo
The National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP) of Nkundabatware and the Hutu rebel group FDLR (Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda) remain the central causes of the current insecurity eastern Congo. Nkunda’s profileis long. In short, he joined the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) in Uganda to prepare for the 1990-1994 Hutu-Tutsi Rwandan war and then…
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Somalia Mourns a ‘Golden Era’ as Crisis Worsens
Last year, the people of Somalia caught a glimpse of tranquility. It was fleeting and certainly not without its violent interruptions, but the few months of rule under the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) is now being called Somalia’s ‘golden era’ by top United Nations officials. In recent weeks, the area around Mogadishu has collapsed into a bloodbath that…
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Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Peace and Democracy in the D.R. Congo
On Oct 24, 2007, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on “Exploring the U.S. Role in Consolidating Peace and Democracy in the Great Lakes Region.” The hearing was chaired by Sen. Feingold, D-Wis., and testifying were Jendayi E. Frazer – Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Katherine J. Almquist – Assistant Administrator for Africa…
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U S Involvement in the Peace Process in the D.R. Congo
In the recent months, the US has been surprisingly engaged in the conflict in DR Congo. Ø On September 15-17th, 2007, the US facilitated a meeting between the ministers of Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and the D.R. Congo in Kampala, the capital of Uganda on regional peace threatened by the negative forces present in the Congo. Ø Soon…
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Mauritania and Egypt Attend Hunger Forum
Alliance to End Hunger Leads U.S. Delegation to First Near East Forum Against Hunger Former Congresswoman Eva Clayton, Honorary Chair of The Alliance to End Hunger and Max Finberg, Director of the Alliance, will lead a delegation of interfaith anti-hunger leaders from the United States to attend the Near East Regional Forum on Hunger…
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Roots of AFRICOM
In October 2003, James Jay Carafano, Ph. D. and Nile Gardiner, both from the Conservative think-tank the Heritage Foundation, proposed to the Bush administration the creation of a centralized Africa command for the U.S. military. With this proposal as the basis for the command and adamant support from former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, just four years later AFRICOM became operational.
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Some Perspectives for Peace in D.R. Congo
On November 5th, Archbishop Francois Maroy of the Bukavu, Congo, released a statement concerning the crisis and the responsibility of international, national, and local actors. Afica Faith and Justice Network (AFJN) shares his position and applauds him for taking a strong stance in solidarity with the Congolese people. The full document, translated from French by…
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Sign AFRICOM Petitions Today!
Africa Faith and Justice Network invites you to add your voice to the call for a more responsible US foreign policy that respects the dignity and capacity of our African partners. Together, we can build a movement to halt the further militarization of Africa.The new US Africa Command (AFRICOM) structure involves putting many of State…
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AFJN Hosts Panel on AFRICOM
On Wednesday, November 28th, AFJN hosted a panel discussion on AFRICOM in conjunction with the Council on African Studies at American University in Washington, DC. The event, titled “Africa’s Oil, America’s AFRICOM, and the Global War on Terror” was the first attempt by the AFRICOM Working Group* to inspire the public to action. As we…
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Expulsion of Missionaries in Eritrea
Caught between violence in Ethiopia and Somalia and simmering turmoil in Sudan, Eritrea makes few headlines in the Horn of Africa. But the repressive government in Eritrea ought to sound international alarms – indeed it has for 14 Comboni Missionaries who were recently expelled from the country due to their inability to renew residency permits….
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EU-Africa Summit: Where Are Human Rights?
Prime minister Gordon Brown of England refused to attend the Euro-African summit in Lisbon last weekend because President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe would be in attendance. Recognizing the grave human rights abuses committed by Mugabe’s regime, Mr. Brown wanted nothing to do with a summit that invited such leaders to the party. Omar al-Bashir, President…
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Driven by Faith: Jacques Bahati and His Mission for Africa
“Driven by Faith: Jacques Bahati and His Mission for Africa”Africana Connect Online Magazine, NonProfit Spotlight on AFJN Policy Analyst Jacques Bahati
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Hostilities Costing Africa’s Sustainable Survival
Debt, diseases and war are three major issues affecting the continent of Africa. Development is what is needed and yet hostilities across the continent between 1990 and 2005 have cost Africa’s economies approximately $284 billion, roughly equivalent to the amount of foreign aid given to the continent. This is all according to a report released…
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AFRICOM Gains National Attention and Skepticism; AFJN Takes a Firm Stance
Over the last few weeks, AFRICOM has appeared in several major media outlets. Until now, there has been very little national-level presscoverage of the command, reflecting a lack of knowledge about AFRICOM among the general public. As such, we are delighted to see media exposure that highlights not only the basic facts but also the…
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Floods Create Havoc in Africa
In the past three months, floods have ravaged many African nations including Ghana and Togo in the west, as well as Sudan, Uganda, Somalia, and Kenya in the central and eastern regions. At least 200 people have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced in these countries. Half a million people across the…
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First HIV/AIDS drug plant to open in Uganda
A factory that will produce treatments for HIV/AIDS is set to open in Kampala, Uganda, the first of its kind in the country. It aims to reduce the cost of the vital medication by cutting import costs. According to Uganda’s Health Minister, Dr. Stephen Malinga, locally produced anti-retroviral HIV drugs and anti-malaria drugs should be…
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AFJN Discusses Restorative Justice with Bigombe
On October 4th, AFJN Staff and Interns met with Betty Bigombe to discuss restorative justice. Bigombe, currently a Senior Fellow at the United States Institute for Peace, is renowned for her mediation efforts in northern Uganda. Since the early 1990’s, Bigombe has sought to end the insurgency in the north by engaging in dialogue with…
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Ugandan President Museveni Labels Contracting HIV Treason
On September 24, President Museveni of Uganda was addressing officials from 12 Ugandan universities in Kampala when he compared contracting HIV/AIDS to treason. According to the Monitor, he said to those who contract HIV/AIDS, “Instead of being an asset, you become a burden. … And afterwards, they announce that [the person] has died after a very…
