February 22nd, 2012 | by Drones Team | The Bureau of Investigative Journalism
Get the data: Somalia’s hidden war
Axe falls on Africa’s big spending despots
By Stef Terblanche, BBQ — Neither popular uprisings nor the increased spreading of democracy’s sweet appeal across Africa have managed to completely rid the continent of all its ‘Big Man’ rulers – the bully autocrats and dictators who rule with iron fists while looting and plundering their way to fabulous wealth. But at last it seems they may be hit where it hurts most: in their pockets.
African media groups oppose UNESCO-Obiang Prize
The UNESCO-Obiang Nguema Mbasogo International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences would recognize scientists for improving the quality of human life. President Obiang, on the other hand, is best known as the leader of one of the most corrupt, oppressive, and undemocratic countries in the world. Read below this open letter to Members of the Executive Board of UNESCO (The United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization) which calls on them to reject the ‘Prize’.
The battle for Mali’s north
By Bram Posthumus in Dakar – Since January 17th this year, the north of Mali is at war. It started as an attack of armed Tuaregs on a Malian army barracks in Ménaka, near the border with Niger and has spread across all of Mali’s three desert regions: Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao. The war zone is hundreds of kilometres large.
Ivory Coast and the problem of chocolate
“Sustainable and fair,” is the label in the supermarket on chocolate, peanut butter, coffee and tea. Dutch consumers prefer “sustainable” sprinkles, because thanks to our buying behavior, as we know, poor farmers in the Third World can develop their farms and send their children to school. But as so often, reality is not so simple. A farmer must fulfill many demands if he wants a “fair and sustainable” label given. One World investigated in Ivory Coast in West Africa, where over 40% of the world’s chocolate comes from, and shows that to many poor cocoa farmers the promises of development are still far way.
CALL FOR PAPERS: ICT’s for better Investigative Journalism / APPEL A COMMUNICATIONS: Les TIC pour mieux faire le journalisme d’investigation
FAIR is calling on members to submit topics for presentations at the upcoming west Africa regional conference. Concept notes should be less than one page, and must show some relevance to the overall theme “ICT’s for better Investigative Journalism: Challenges of Access to Information in West Africa”. Selection of participants will be based on FAIR membership status, current investigations and overall professionalism.
News editor threatened repeatedly in Togo
A Togolese journalist says he has been threatened repeatedly after conducting reporting for an as-yet-undisclosed story involving a top government official. On February 9, Max Savi Carmel, news editor of the private Benin-based bimonthly Tribune d’Afrique, was stopped by gendarmes in Lomé, the capital, and told to follow them to the offices of Intelligence and Investigation Services (SRI), a Togolese security agency, news reports said.
Why Did the African Union Snub Haile Selassie?
African leaders gathered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the Assembly of the African Union this month. The leaders took the opportunity to inaugurate the new Headquarter building constructed at a cost of 200 million US dollars as a donation of the Chinese government. Amidst the many dazzling features enjoyed by the new facilities, striking was the statue in the forecourt of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President.
SA court to hear Zim torture cases
Two civil society groups on Monday launched a legal bid to compel South African authorities to investigate and prosecute Zimbabwean officials accused of crimes against humanity. The Southern African Litigation Centre and the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum (ZEF) said there were 18 high-level Zimbabwean officials in South Africa accused of committing acts of torture.
Ogaden Somalis seek Ethiopia abuse inquiry
The Ogaden Somali Community in South Africa says it has filed a complaint with the country’s top prosecutor and the International Criminal Court (ICC), urging an investigation into the actions of the Ethiopian government against the Ogaden people. In a statement released on Tuesday on behalf of the community, a South African media advocacy group, Media Review Network, called on ICC authorities to probe complaints of alleged crimes in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia.
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Tens of thousands flee Mali rebellion
In the aftermath of the Libyan rebellion, fighters and weapons flood West Africa. Almost a month after Tuareg rebels launched a new assault against the southern government, tens of thousands of people have fled fighting in northern Mali, according to the International Committee for the Red Cross. The ICRC says the fighting has also displaced families in Niger, with already disastrous humanitarian consequences.
South Sudan: Human rights groups call for independent investigation into Jonglei violence
Human rights groups have called on the South Sudanese government to establish an independent body to investigate crimes and abuses allegedly committed in Jonglei state following last December’s tribal clashes. The South Sudan Human Rights Advocacy Association (SSHRA), one of the country’s 23-member civil Society alliance on Saturday has welcomed calls by Human Rights Watch (HRW) for authorities to arrest and prosecute those responsible for the ethnic violence.
The price of free information in Nigeria
“Despite encouraging signs, access to information is still difficult”
Idris Akinbajo is a 30 year-old Nigerian journalist. On the sidelines of a talk in Holland he was giving on the powers of investigative journalism, he took a moment to discuss press freedom in one of Africa’s most dangerous reporting environments with the Doha Centre for Media Freedom. Continue reading
Nigeria: Behind the controversial N2 trillion fuel subsidy
Both the House of Representatives and the EFCC are probing the N2 trillion subsidy payments in 2011. Who are the promoters of the companies that benefitted from this controversial fund? Why is it difficult for some to defend what they ‘earned’? This special report by FAIR member Theophilus Abbah was published in the Sunday Trust newspaper on 5 Feb 2012 in Abuja, Nigeria.
