Rees,+Griffith

1/24/2010, Last week, an eruption in ethnic clashes in south Sudan took the lives of at least 15 people, sources say. A group called the Dinka people reportedly attacked a settlement of Nuer Thiang people. At least 15 Nuer Thiang people were killed, 16 wounded, and 5 missing. The fighting occurred in Sudan's Jonglei state. There is yet to be information on casualties of the Dinka. Disputes over natural resources and animal herds are often factors in such ethnic clashes as this most recent incident.

The two articles I used for this information were from the BBC and a site called Press TV. One similarity between the two sources was that they both quoted General Kuol Diem Kuol in their articles. Both also state that 16 Nuer Thiang people were wounded. The two sites agree on the fact that disputes over resources and cattle rustling are often causes of these outbursts of violence. There were also a few variances in the coverage between the two articles. The BBC stated that at least 15 were dead and Press TV went so far as to say 24. Press TV mentioned that General Kuol was with the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Party (SPLA) and the BBC did not mention his position like this. The BBC used a map showing the location of the fighting in Sudan while Press TV showed an image of SPLA soldiers. The significance of one of these differences is that it is likely Press TV's coverage was made after the BBC's. I think this because Press TV says at least 24 were killed and The BBC says 15 were, yet both insinuate that there were more deaths to be uncovered. The greater number of deaths reported from Press TV may indicate further progress in this uncovering.

Here are the links to my two sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8475889.stm The BBC http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116801&sectionid=351020504 Press TV

I think these breakouts of violence are inhumane and illegitimate in their justifications. The fact that there has been a lot of fighting in south Sudan concerns me and I don't think a lack of resources is a problem that should cause fighting. These tribal groups and peoples need to settle their disputes as warring will not achieve anything. All the people there should attempt at bringing food or whatever resources are needed to the region together, and find a way to benefit that entire part of the country. If distribution of the resources is uneven in the future, this may only cause more fighting.

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From: warisboring.com

By Griffith Rees

12/17/09, This week, a turn in political events was made when elections were announced on the Island of Madagascar. When looking at a map of Africa, the island is off the coast of Mozambique, a little ways into the Indian Ocean. Though disconnected, Madagascar is part of the continent. But yesterday, the governmental situation shifted and some African political organizations are refusing to recognize the party of Andry Rajoelina, the current leader of Madagascar in it's transitional period of rulership. Rajoelina's rise to power was controversial and some even call it a coup d'etat. Earlier this year, he seized power with the backing of the military. Now, he has stated officially that parliamentary elections will take place for the office of prime minister as well as a change for constitution on March 20, 2010. For now, Rajoelina will remain President. He did not make any mention of a Presidential election. In the mean time, three former presidents of Madagascar had held a meeting out of the country to develop plans to not only split power among themselves but to make room for Rajoelina's party in the government until March. Rajoelina's response was to instruct officers not to allow the three back into the country. He also made it clear that he wished for outside countries not to interfere with political matters in Madagascar, as he thought the election would be the only thing able to fix the problems the country is going through. Rajoelina's actions are being called unacceptable. His boycott of international discussions as well as other separating methods have put Madagascar in a unique state of exile. The wide world will wait until March 20th when Madagascar will, in a sense, emerge, and see what metamorphosis has taken place with election.

The two sources I used to study this event were the BBC's coverage of the news and the news site Voice of America. The BBC provided a good coverage of the news all though Voice of America gave a longer and more detailed response to the information. The BBC used a direct quote from Rajoelina's national television address however, and Voice of America did not have any quotes from the President of Madagascar. Voice of America went into more detail about Rajoelina's background as well as a better record of relevant, recent moves he's made. VOA gave an overall better picture of Rajoelina and his actions than the BBC, even if they did not include any direct quotes from him. The BBC, as usual it seems, decided to focus on the direct effects of the event with only brief background history so that one walks away with a sense of the physical results, but not an extended understanding. This tends to be their strategy sometimes - clear and direct, but not analyzed.

Here are the links to my two sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8417512.stm The BBC http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/africa/17dec09-madagascar-79531047.html Voice of America

My personal opinion on Rajoelina's decisions and even his position in society is that I think it all is a little too fishy. His immediate and forceful origins of power have left many observing him as unworthy. His changes have certainly been revolutionary, though sealing the country off in this way for three months may be excessive. I think he should be on close watch at all times and that the public of Madagascar needs stay on their toes. Rajoelina is in a seat of great power, and though providing a chance for new prime ministry, is leaving plenty of space open for himself. I would not trust a man who is operating in this suspicious and separated manner and will not be surprised to see more sudden and seemingly unjustified power-assumption in the years to come.

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from: cbc.ca

By Griffith Rees

12/5/09, Yesterday, a clash of two cultures took place when the King of the Zulu people was taken to the South African court. Every year, the Zulu people hold a festival called Ukushwama, which has a purpose of thanking the Gods for a good year. In this festival, the young men of the tribe are responsible for killing a bull with their bare hands. The Zulu people have been around for centuries and they hold values very differently than the more "civilized" groups in South Africa. The organization that pressed charges was the animal rights group, Animal Rights Africa (ARA). ARA took the Zulu King to court under the context that the killing was "cruel and protracted". As soon as the news was broke that the ancient and sacred ritual was in danger, locals, animal-rights protectors and others took sides on this controversial case. ARA made claims that the killing of the bull took over forty minutes and that the boys repeatedly trampled the bull, trying to break it's neck. ARA said they took their accusations from eyewitnesses, who attended the festival. Other stories of the event included that the bull's tong was ripped out and sand stuffed in it's mouth, as long as an increasingly vile list of actions. ARA said that they filed their case against the Zulus "as a last resort". But the decision was up to the court. Just yesterday, the South African Government passed it's decision on the case. A cultural expert regarding the Zulus, Jabulani Mapalala said that the accusations made by ARA were based on untrue information and hearsay. The verdict of this expert seemed to influence the verdict of the judge himself, as ARA's charges were overruled. Animal rights activists are outraged as the freedom and cultural rights of the Zulu people were left to continue unchanged.

For this week's report, I used the BBC coverage on the news and the Mail & Guardian Online Website. The Mail & Guardian Online Site is a South African source, so I thought it would be good to get a coverage from the locals. Both sources presented the news frankly, but the Mail & Guardian Website was slightly unclear. I found that their information was organized strangely, but they presented lots of good information some of which the BBC did not have. The BBC focused on quotes by those involved and had direct quotes from those representing the two sides of the issue. I appreciated the fact that they could include some words from representatives of ARA, which Mail & Guardian did not have. Both sources gave generally complete overviews, however.

Here are the links to my two sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8395647.stm The BBC http://www.mg.co.za/article/2009-12-04-bullkilling-can-go-ahead-says-court Mail & Guardian Online

It's a strange situation when someone who you feel has nothing to do with you starts telling you what to do. I think the Zulu people must feel prosecuted and confused as to why they are receiving this kind of attention. To some, this ritual is a part of culture, and to omit it would be to dismiss one's way of life. In this sense, I feel that the Zulus are facing charges that truly threaten them. But I can also see how a group like ARA can want to stick up for the bull. When it comes to their attention that animals are suffering, I think that they should have the right to fight the oppressive forces harming the animals. I firmly believe that the sincere torture of animals is a serious immorality. This case is just so tough to deal with because of how the culture of the people of ARA is so different from that of the Zulu people, and interfering seems both helpful and undeserved. I think the two sides should push for an agreement without taking the situation to court as I don't think that will help the problem properly. They need to search for common ground and make changes both groups can welcome if this is not to cause trouble.

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By Griffith Rees

11/28/09, Most would agree, in America, that air-travel has come to a point of reliable safety. Putting your life in the hands of a tired man at a steering wheel is something we think little about. With huge industries and ever-criticizing government overwatch, the skies, for some, are as much a high-way as any interstate. But what about the "developing" world, where planes can be out-dated, pilots more seldom, and all-together unregulated rules passively guide a system of air travel? As we see today, the atmosphere above one land can be very different from the next. Just around 8:00 A.M this morning, news reporters followed a stack of billowing smoke to the runway of Shanghai's Pudong Airport. It is reported that there was indeed a fatal crash involving the tail of the plane and the runway itself. While the aircraft was taking off, the tail scraped against the runway, breaking the rear end of the plane into two or three pieces. The plane then failed to hoist itself into the sky, as it flew directly into a storage building near the airport. Several died, including three American citizens, the U.S. embassy in China reports. Others were taken to the hospital in "critical condition" and in conditions of "serious injury" says China's Xinhua News Agency. But the matter ties into Africa not through the take-off site or the intended destination of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, but rather through the plane itself. The MD-11 plane was Zimbabwe-registered and owned by the Zimbabwe-based Avient Aviation Company, says Xinhua News Agency. Another MD-11 crashed in March, earlier this year in Japan, exploding on contact with the ground. Avient Aviation was reported not to be reachable regarding today's sudden news. Finger-pointing and blame fire from all over the world as the crash, in one way or another involving many countries, burns in China.

My two sources for this report were The BBC, and the American group, Fox News. The two were to-the-point and frank with their explanations relative to what happened, though they presented different investigative reports. The BBC focused on the physical mishap of the plane, explaining what happened to it and it's passengers while Fox News studied the international relations involving the crash. In fact, the BBC only described the plane in relationship to Zimbabwe as "Zimbabwe-registered", not stating more detailed matters involving Avient Aviation Company. I have to say that Fox News did a better job of presenting the situation, as they covered the conditions of the passengers and the plane well enough, but explained the political side to what the plane had sparked.

Here are the addresses to my sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8383938.stm The BBC http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,577405,00.html Fox News

Plane crashes are always a big deal. Because of the concentration of people, a single crash can kill lots of people. I think it is awful that the plane went down. I also think that it is fortunate, relatively, that the plane did not make it far before it crashed. If it had gone airborne before crashing, even more people would have died. This is a tragic incident but the thing to focus on is prevention, in my opinion. We need to improve laws and regulations internationally to prevent things like this from happening in the future. This will be difficult, but it will save many lives.

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By Griffith Rees

11/19/09, A popular and notorious subject among news agencies and readers alike, the infamous "Somali pirates" have struck once more. It is reported that just over six weeks ago, a ship fishing the waters of the Indian Ocean, 400 nautical miles NW of the Seychelles island called Mahe, a ship was captured and a heavy ransom was issued. The boat was the Alakrana, a Spanish tuna boat with 36 on board. The only fact sources of the Spanish government, and the faction of pirates, can seem to agree on is the date of the hijacking - the second of October, 2009. From there on, motives and stories diverge, as Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero applies reassuring tones to his own report. It seems a ransom of $3.5 million was demanded. Self-proclaimed advocates for the pirate organization say that this money was received, however the Spanish Prime Minister does not give much specificity in his public statement that: "The government did what it had to do." Zapatero evades giving specific information on whether this money was delivered or not, leaving the possibilities of many events, ultimately ending in a rescue of the crew, open. This creates chaos and unresolved questions, although Zapatero adamantly informed the press that he: "...can confirm that the fishing trawler Alakrana is sailing freely towards safer waters and that all of it's crew members are safe and sound." Warships and naval escorts were also said to be accompanying the Alakrana on it's way back to Spain. The crew is safe, it seems, but the events of the deal remain unsolved. Connections to another recent hijacker story, the incident of the capture of two Somali pirates, now on trial in Spain, have been made by some to this fishing-boat hijacking. Whether purely for money, or a political threat, the pirates patrolling the Indian Ocean have once again shook the stability of sailing the waters near the horn of Africa. Only the two organizations involved know for sure what happened, as the rest of the world searches for more surfacing information on the professional hijacking of the Alakrana.

I used two sources in my research for this piece, one was the BBC News report on the event, and the other was by a news group called The Times of India. I thought it important to include the views and reports of a group specializing in the area of the event, as the boarding of the Alakran occurred in the Indian Ocean. Both groups presented similar organization and approach to the event, yet the BBC had more of a focus on the political side of the topic, while still providing good coverage on the other elements. The Times of India focused more on the route of the Alakrana, passing hands between controllers. They explained the conditions of the occupants of the ship itself. I think that both sources gave important details, as well as an informative and broad overview of the topic and it's contributing factors.

Here are the links to these two informative sources (please read!):

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8364530.stm The BBC http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Somali-pirates-free-Spanish-boat/articleshow/5240517.cms The Times of India

Situations like this are really hazy, and sometimes the most reassuring thing for the people to hear is the good side, a more palatable version of the story. Zapatero gave just this, certainly stating that the crew is safe, which is the important part, but not giving a full or even trustworthy recap of the results. There is the possibility that the pirates lied, thus creating more fear and anxiety around the supposed upper hand the Spanish government had over the situation. This could be used to their advantage in numerous ways, that's for sure. It would not be completely just for me to make a prediction on the journey of that money, if there was a journey at all. More information needs to be uncovered, and a more honest report from the Spanish Prime Minister would be most appreciated. However, I understand his goal to keep the matter safe and softly-spoken towards the press, as more hype on this increasingly relevant issue would only cause more trouble. We just don't understand the whole picture here, and we would need that to understand the reasoning of whatever happened.

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By Griffith Rees

11/12/09, Two days ago, a drought in Tanzania reached a notorious end when great rainfalls struck villages located around the base of the great mountain of Kilimanjaro. For the past two years, the East-African country of Tanzania had been experiencing a blistering drought, but on the night of 11/10/09, a sudden downfall occurred. Though joyous in most lights, the rainfall has severely moistened soil around the earthy base of the 5895-foot mountain. No less than a day after rains soaked the area, a landslide gave way, plummeting down to the village of Goha, Kilimanjaro Province, burying, according to local news agencies, 7 houses. Efforts were made to recover those entombed within, however an estimated 20 lives have been lost. On the day of the disaster, seven schoolchildren were estimated to have been in the way of the collapsing landmass. Today's more developed report has confirmed the deaths of no fewer than 11 children, along with a set of 9 adults. It is not confirmed however, that only 20 died in total. Only time will tell as local forces collaborate to remove the mud from the beautiful village of Goha, at the base of Kilimanjaro.

The two sources I derived my information from were The BBC, and MSNBC's Africa section. Both gave sharp, quick explanations of the story, however one major difference can be found between the two - the BBC's coverage was from the day the accident happened, therefore giving it only so much opportunity to posses information. Although I appreciate the BBC's fast journalistic reflexes, MSNBC was able to provide the news of the forthcoming day of the accident, which of course had greater detail. The two major Western news sources gave important information and gave the classic, brisk, news-report-style manner of putting the information through. Both had the necessary and important statistics included in the story. It is my understanding that they both obtained their information from the same local African news source.

Here are the links to my sources:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8355793.stm The BBC Site http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33878510/ns/world_news/ MSNBC's Coverage

This article really caught my eye because of how ironic and depressing the news is. In a time of fading draught, the last thing a thirsty village would think about is the sentinel mountain dropping a pillar of rock and dirt upon them. It is too bad the nourishment of this season would have to come with trauma. The fact that 11 children were victims of this natural catastrophe, and still counting, only made the story more depressing. Another depressing fact is that although prophylactic measures could be taken in supporting the towering pillars of ground that surround the area, mudslides are difficult to predict and very sudden. I would hope that the villages around the area will stay vigilant and prepared to dig out some more villages. It is just as likely if not more so that another mudslide would hit tomorrow, as monitoring the conditions of the mountain is difficult.

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By Griffith Rees

11/5/09, Today, in the south-African country of Zimbabwe, a controversial decision has officially been passed involving some tension around recent violence reports in the diamond mines of Eastern Zimbabwe. Different sources report instances of government soldiers killing and abusing mine workers. The situation is a complicated one, and one must understand an amount about the political atmosphere in the country for this all to make any sense. First of all, Zimbabwe is in a Unity Government Agreement, a situation that merges major political parties in a way aimed at implementing strategies for the common good of the nation, rather than parties striving for political seats and dominance among themselves. (If an agreement like this were to happen in America, it would look something like the Democrats and Republicans forming a single party together.) This system often used in post-war or otherwise particularly struggling times, sounds like a great idea, but sometimes these parties will have problems maintaining the balance of power. There are different arguments made involving this shared state of power in Zimbabwe, and to what means the power is focused, but the idea is that this is a very difficult position to maintain, and the path towards turmoil lays on a slippery slope. The diamond field that has been responsible for all the brouhaha is located in Eastern Zimbabwe. The diamond industry in Zimbabwe is internationally recognized as a primary source of revenue, and a threat to it's monetary success has become, in todays world, a threat to government. And this is exactly what the issue is about - the diamond industry there has been accused of breaking a code of mining conventions. Zimbabwe is officially a part of a diamond-regulating organization called the Kimberley Process. The duty of the Kimberley Process is to regularly test and inspect facilities that wish to receive its certification of legitimacy. It works to ensure that mining operations do not fund wars and involve violence in their extraction. The organization, in other words, fights against the crime of "Blood Diamond" sale and production. But recently, Zimbabwe was encouraged to suspend its participation in the organization. Prosecuting reports lacked supposed rock-solid legal proof, but contained a force of many witnesses and self-proclaimed victims, all sharing similar stories of sexual assault among the female workers, and several deaths dispersed throughout the history of the Marange Diamond Field's opening. Between 1 and 7 deaths were reported by confirmed employees of the mine, and women report multiple cases of rape and general sexual abuse, all said to be committed by over-watching government soldiers. The Zimbabwean Government's stance on this issue was that the reports were false. Human Rights Groups in Africa are representing the issue on the mine workers' side, while a fractured government attempted to mitigate the allegations. But this news is old - just today, the Kimberley Organization decided to drop all emphasis on encouraging the Zimbabwean government to suspend itself. The news is shocking to some, as seemingly legitimate cases were made by mine workers and it is clear Human Rights activists were on top of the issue the whole way through. The agreement was that the government is now on close watch, developing a new system, (no, not the Kimberley Process but the very own government in Zimbabwe) for it to monitor it's mines. The mines will need to prove a meeting of Kimberley standards over the course of the next few weeks in order for the case to once-and-for-all have closure. I think it is safe to say that activists involved are overall surprised, and files for new cases are anticipated with an itchy trigger finger. Zimbabwe miraculously dodged this particular bullet, but attention has been brought to yet another possible case of crime in the diamond industry, this time occurring in the Eastern mines of Zimbabwe.

I used two internet sources in my research and as I was previously uninformed the ongoing issue, used these solely, with no other means of research on the topic. I have to say, they informed me well and I am excited by the issue. The trusty internet division of the BBC provided one pool of information while a much smaller Canadian news paper called the Amherst Daily News gave a different side on the issue. I decided to pick this smaller-scale, obscure news group because of the fact that Canada is known as one of the leading world producers of diamonds. I thought an opinion coming from a more relevant position would be fitting. The fact that Canada is an official participant of the Kimberley Process and that the UK (as it does not produce diamonds) is not, gave this small paper a nice comparison beside the British Broadcasting Corporation. Both papers described the position adequately, describing the issue well and providing the different sides working on the conflict in Zimbabwe. The BBC report focused much more about the politics influencing and surrounding the issue, while the Amherst Daily News described the Kimberley Process' part in it all. I think both articles describe the news well. Here are their addresses:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8343710.stm The BBC http://www.amherstdaily.com/index.cfm?sid=300483&sc=514 Amherst Daily News

Personally, I think issues like this are extremely important in the news behind Africa. Diamonds and the corruption behind them cause many of the troubles and fatalities we hear of today. I think that in this very case, the government is trying to cover up a plan gone bad, and that they are trying to maintain good sales while evading the overwatch of law. I believe that these citizens faced murder and assault coming from the government itself. It is cases like this where a government turns on it's own people that fuel the wars and brutalities we see throughout our world today. These mines must at bare minimum be banned from Kimberley Process certification. I don't think that they deserved that second chance, yet if they can firmly prove that they have a legitimate mining field operation, they will be able to stay up-and-running. I sadly wait for the day that this case throws itself into another episode of reported crime, and I know this day won't be far off. Although the case has temporarily cooled down in terms of legal battle, the case is a ticking time bomb. I do not see truthful resolution in the near future.

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By Griffith Rees

10/29/09, The issue I became interested in while searching for a topic was an issue in the country of Uganda. For more than a decade, a corrupt governmental system has had overwhelming and consuming power over the estimated population of 27.2 million. An astounding 84.6% of this population is considered to be living in rural areas. Though the vast majority of Ugandans apparently live far from cities, the government there (of course city-based) is considered a corrupt association by political inspectors and citizens alike. Lead by President Yoweri Museveni, officials have started a trend among themselves of outright stealing money - money that is intended to go to services such as public health funds, educational budgets and even such necessities as as road building. Museveni and his greedy underlings have failed constantly over these years in stating their annual incomes and more importantly, where those salaries are derived from. It is Ugandan law for officials, every few years, to report personal budget information such as these statistics. Recently, the chief accountant for the country, and only one of many, was caught falsely reporting personal income levels. He was of course, making drastically more money than he had stated. The issue is that, in correlation with the government's power, no one is there to stop them. In a country where one is lucky to make more than $1 per day (literally), money meant for aiding the people is now going towards re-decorating politicians' offices. In 2008, many of the rurally located schools failed to produce even a single candidate for a second school e.g. college or anything beyond an obviously lacking high school curriculum. This is all but ensuring that power remains in similarly greedy hands in following generations. The government of Uganda is facing pressure from all sides as it casually disregards the needs of Uganda itself.

The two online sources I took my information from were out of The Guardian, a news agency from the U.K, and a group called "allAfrica.com". The article from The Guardian, titled Corruption Endemic in Uganda and written Friday, March 13, 2009, gave clear information as well as most of the numbers I used in my summary. While it covered the issue in a well-organized and informing manner, it did not name names and examples of this corruption as well as the allAfrica.com site's Uganda: Corruption - Time to Touch the Untouchables article, written on October 29, 2009, did. This article gave more detailed examples of these "untouchable" government officials' crimes, and thus was useful in putting a summary together. Both sources were helpful to me.

I believe that the Ugandan government has reached a point of abominable and un-policed crime, obviously taking advantage of the millions of dollars going into the government every year. As unbelievable as it may sound, however, I think this problem can get worse. The Ugandan people as well as Human Rights Groups and National Crime organizations need to put an end to this corrupt state the country is in as we speak. In this case, I would support an overthrowing of most of the political leaders in this country. People are more important than diamond-studded office chairs.

Here are the addresses to my sources: http://allafrica.com/stories/200910290276.html http://www.guardian.co.uk/katine/2009/mar/13/corruption-endemic-in-uganda

Photos related to the issue:

1. 2.

1. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni giving his country the thumbs up 2. Ugandan farm workers

By Griffith Rees