KENYA: Gathering Storm of Expectations in Nairobi Slum
By Najum Mushtaq
NAIROBI - For the first time in its 60 years of existence, there is a ray of hope for the one million inhabitants of Kibera, one of the world's most densely-populated slums. After spending most of his life on opposition benches -- or in prison -- as a champion of the poor, the member of parliament for this desperately poor constituency is now the prime minister of Kenya.
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AFRICA: Proving Ground For International Criminal Court?
By Miriam Mannak
CAPE TOWN - The International Criminal Court (ICC) is using Africa as a guinea pig, and is too selective when it comes to arresting, indicting and prosecuting perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity. This was one of the opinions raised during a recent seminar in Cape Town organised by the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR).
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ZAMBIA: Mwanawasa Leaves Mixed Legacy
By Nixon Chisonga
LUSAKA - More than two months after suffering a stroke while at the African Union (AU) summit in Egypt, Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa died Monday in hospital in France.
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DEVELOPMENT: South Africa Beats Deadline on Water, Sanitation
By Thalif Deen
STOCKHOLM - South Africa and Madagascar, two African nations participating in the Stockholm International Water Conference currently underway in the Swedish capital, provide a contrasting picture of where they stand -- or fall -- in achieving the U.N.'s heavily-trumpeted Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
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TRADE-TANZANIA: Cheap Imitation Goods Are Flooding Markets
By Sarah McGregor
DAR ES SALAAM - The mishmash of shops in Tanzania's central Kariakoo market in Dar es Salaam stock an infinite array of brand name fakes. Throngs of customers snap up mobile phones, designer gear, high-tech electronics and gadgets -- all imitations being sold at unbelievably low prices.
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REFUGEES-ZAMBIA: Making a Home For Themselves
By Danstan Kaunda
LUSAKA - Zambia is home to over 90,000 refugees, many of whom have been in the country for up to 15 years. A voluntary repatriation programme is now drawing to a close, but many of the refugees will likely remain in a country where they have established themselves.
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DEVELOPMENT-ZAMBIA: Sharing the Copper Windfall
By Danstan Kaunda
LUSAKA - Australian mining giant Equinox Minerals is developing the Lumwana Copper Mine (LCM) to take advantage of strong prices for copper on the international market. When it opens later this year, the mine will be the largest in Africa, but critics say Zambia's share of the profits of minerals is smaller than it should be.
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ZIMBABWE: Farmers Can't Afford to Leave Markets -- Literally
By Tonderai Kwidini
HARARE - It is a wintry Tuesday evening at one of the tobacco auction floors in the Zimbabwean capital Harare. A group of small-scale tobacco farmers are preparing food for the night.
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RIGHTS-MOROCCO: Firing Squads Silent - But Death Hovers
By Abderrahim El Ouali
CASABLANCA, Morocco - Morocco's death row prisoners -- some 150 inmates -- are living in sub-human, "life-threatening conditions", according to leading NGOs and rights activists.
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EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Human Rights Drowning in Oil
By Mario de Queiroz
LISBON - The oil interests of Angola, Brazil and Portugal could pave the way for former Spanish colony Equatorial Guinea to become the ninth member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) two years from now, despite the country’s poor human rights record.
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