News Africa Extended

News Africa Extended

Teen abducted, assaulted by Zanu PF youths

Posted: 10 Oct 2016 12:44 PM PDT

An 18-year-old Zimbabwean girl said she was abducted by Zanu PF youths who took turns to assault her for almost three hours.

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Harare - An 18-year-old Zimbabwean girl on Monday said she was abducted from her house by Zanu PF youths who took turns to assault her for almost three hours.

The young woman, Natasha Bakalia, told reporters in Harare the attack took place in the presence of Ronald Chindengwa, the Zanu PF candidate in a by-election in the small town of Norton, west of the capital.

She said she was taken from her mother’s home in Calf Ward 10 in Norton on Saturday afternoon by young men who arrived in two trucks and a small car. Her mother is campaigning for independent candidate, Temba Mliswa, who was present as she addressed media.

Bakalia said the youths tore her skirt and asked her to change it in their presence before they bundled her into one of the trucks and drove her to a torture base in Ngoni township.

Mliswa will battle it out with Zanu PF’s Chindedza and David Choga of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) in the by-election on October 22.

She said the rowdy youths were singing songs denouncing Mliswa and said they wanted to evict her mother from their lodgings because the house belonged to a Zanu PF member and that they could no longer continue staying there because of who they were supporting.

“They grabbed me my skirt and tore it. One of them kicked me and I fell to the ground.They bundled me into one of the trucks and drove to the base in Ngoni township where they took turns to beat me and forced me to wear a Zanu PF T-shirt,” she said.

Bakalia said the youths wanted her to spy on Mliswa for them.

She said after the beatings, which lasted more than three hours while Chindedwa was present, she was escorted home by five Zanu youths, only to find their house locked.

“They locked the house and went away with the keys and we have been sleeping at a neighbour’s house,” she said.

Another victim of political violence, Violet Masikini, said she was beaten together with her husband until she lost consciousness.

“I sustained injuries to the head, which is swollen and have shaking teeth. They were chanting anti-Mliswa slogans and saying I was sleeping with him,” she said.

Mliswa told the press conference that he was worried about the escalating cases of violence against his supporters, saying they had documented more than 15 cases in the last 48 hours.

He said although the attacks were reported to the police, there had not been a single arrest so far.

The former Zanu PF legislator for Hurungwe West said he was going to take up the case of the abduction of Bakalia with the First Lady, Grace Mugabe.

“A number of cases have been reported within the past few days where we have witnessed the sad and worrying incident of a girl child being abducted, harassed and beaten. The case was reported and is under RRB number 2958846. It was more disconcerting to note that this incident happened in the presence of the Norton Zanu PF candidate,” he said.

He further alleged that members of his campaign team were being arrested on trumped up charges.

Mliswa also said that the special liaison committee, which is a constitutional requirement, was yet to be established, with just 12 days to go before the vote.

“The special liaison police officer and committee’s absence is glaringly obvious and creating a huge gap in the expeditious investigation of reported cases,” he said.

He said Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the police had remained silent.

Police spokesperson for Mashonaland West Province, Inspector Clemence Mabweazara, who is based in the province’s capital Chinhoyi, said he was yet to get reports from Norton police.

“I have not yet received any reports from Norton, if you call me tomorrow I might have the information,” he said.

African News Agency

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Kenya wants Zuma to back their candidate for AUC chair

Posted: 10 Oct 2016 08:53 AM PDT

Kenya is looking to South Africa to support its candidate for the African Union Commission chair, Amina Mohamed.

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Nairobi - Kenya is looking to South Africa to support its candidate for the African Union Commission chair, Amina Mohamed.

Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta discussed by phone with South African counterpart Jacob Zuma the candidature of Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed for the post of Chairperson of the African Union Commission, a statement from Kenya State House spokesperson Manoah Esipisu said.

Esipisu said that Kenyatta reached out to a number of his colleagues, including Zuma, before and after the candidature of Mohammed was made public.

Esipisu said that Kenyatta will host Zuma this week in Nairobi during the first State visit by a South African head of State to Kenya.

“President Zuma will land here in Kenya for a three-day visit, and is accompanied by a large business delegation,” said Esipisu.

He said that Kenyatta and Zuma were scheduled to hold a news conference on Tuesday after holding bilateral talks.

Apart from African Union matters, the two presidents would also discuss issues of trade, immigration, and security during the bilateral talks.

“The Presidents will be seeking to tackle non-tariff barriers, remove barriers impeding greater people-to-people contact between the two countries and examine ways to cooperate and collaborate in the security area in a globalised environment,” said Esipisu.

Esipisu said that that earlier this year, South Africa agreed to introduce visa exemptions for holders of diplomatic and official passports; decrease visa service fees for Kenyans from $71 to $49; issue three-year multiple entry visa for frequent travelers and ten years for frequent business travellers and academics among other agreements.

“What President Kenyatta will now be seeking, is to fast-track implementation, and to ensure that these policy changes are implemented with greater urgency,” said Esipisu.

On the trade front, Kenyatta will specifically be seeking to mitigate high levies facing Kenya’s tea exports and restrictions against other products, including but not limited to soda ash and processed meat.

In terms of security, the two heads of State will be seeking to consolidate and expand their counter-terrorism efforts, in a bid to more effectively and strategically push back against the twin threats of violent extremism and radicalisation.

They will also discuss Kenya’s progress in the matter of refugee repatriation, and Kenyatta will be seeking Zuma’s support towards expediting the safe, voluntary and humane repatriation process of Somali refugees.

African News Agency

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WATCH: Ugandan cop takes to breakdancing

Posted: 10 Oct 2016 01:43 AM PDT

A Ugandan policeman has turned to music and breakdancing in a music video extolling the virtues of the police service.

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Kampala, Uganda - A Ugandan policeman has turned to music and breakdancing to win over a sceptical public in a popular music video extolling the virtues of the police service.

Scroll down to watch video

Inspector Samuel Ojobira, known as "OJ", is making waves with his hit song "Physically Fit", although some Ugandans feel officers should spend more time enforcing the law than singing about it.

"The police of today is not like the past," Ojobira croons in the catchy video, featuring uniformed officers breakdancing, and an obligatory troupe of good-looking women writhing in camouflage trousers and berets.

The officer, a member of the police's music, dance and drama department, sings in both Luganda and English while the video plots how heavily armed officers foil a child kidnapping following a tip-off from a member of the public.

"I wanted to bridge the gap between the public and the police to let the public know we are now a professional force," said Ojobira.

"I also wanted to boost the morale of my fellow officers with patriotic music that encourages them to serve the country despite the fact that we have difficult working conditions."

Indeed the president and inspector general of police both get special praise and thanks in the song.

"It took some time to convince my superiors to let me go ahead," explains Ojobira.

The production cost about $1,500 (1,300 euros), with Ojobira contributing about $600 of his own money, a significant sum given the low wages of a Ugandan police officer.

Ojobira hopes that the song will change public perception of a force that has often been criticised for corruption and heavy handedness.

"The public have been surprised because some people think the police is only about tear gas and baton charges but we are a service for all Ugandans," he said.

National police chief Kale Kayihura is pleased that Ojobira's project has been a success.

"We are proud of him. Singing is a means for community mobilisation and sensitisation of communities," he said in a statement.

Out on the streets of Kampala, rank and file police officers agreed. Sitting in the repurposed shipping container that serves as the police post in Kamwokya market officers praised the video.

"It's the mission of the police to bring Ugandans together and this will help them understand us better," said one officer, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Elsewhere in the market, however, ordinary citizens were less convinced.

"They should be sorting out law and order, not trying to be artists," said Rona Tumuhairwe, who sells vegetables from a dilapidated wooden stall.

"I'm not happy about it. It's a lot of taxpayers' money being wasted."

Telecoms engineer Derek Ayese said the song was catchy but he did not think it would "enter the mainstream."

"It's called 'Physically Fit' but the reality is more complex because many police officers are not in good shape."

Such lukewarm reactions are unlikely to discourage Ojobira, who is already thinking big.

"I would like to do some collaborations with officers and artists in Kenya and Tanzania as part of an east African initiative creating awareness of how to fight terrorism," he said.

AFP

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Ethiopia declares state of emergency

Posted: 10 Oct 2016 01:19 AM PDT

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has declared a six-month nationwide state of emergency in the country.

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Addis Ababa - Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn declared a six-month nationwide state of emergency on Sunday, saying months of unrest threatened the nation's stability.

Rights groups say more than 500 people have been killed in protests in the Oromiya region since last year, when anger over a development scheme for the capital turned into broader anti-government demonstrations over politics and human rights abuses.

The government says the death toll is inflated.

"A state of emergency has been declared because the situation posed a threat against the people of the country," Hailemariam said on state-run television.

"Vital infrastructure, businesses, health and education centres, as well as government offices, and courts have been destroyed," he said.

He also repeated earlier promises of reform and plans for dialogue with the opposition.

The state of emergency was effective from October 8.

The violence in Oromiya, Ethiopia's largest and most populous region which surrounds the capital Addis Ababa, and to a lesser extent in the Amhara province, has cast a shadow over a nation where a state-led industrial drive has created one of Africa's fastest growing economies.

But the government also faces rising international criticism and popular opposition to its authoritarian approach to development.

The unrest has included attacks on businesses, many of them foreign-owned, including farms growing flowers for export.

Attorney General Getachew Ambaye said the decree would permit authorities to stop and search and also detain suspects without court authorisation, as well as carry out house searches.

It also bars the "preparation, distribution and exhibition of material that could incite chaos", he said in an official announcement.

The measures did not contain curfews, but Getachew said the command post set up to oversee the implementation of the legislation and chaired by Hailemariam would determine where and when to impose curfews "should the need arise".

"Failure to observe the measures would lead to imprisonment for a period of five years," he said.

Mulatu Gemechu, deputy chairperson of the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress, told Reuters that the unrest could worsen if security forces were to be granted more powers and expand their presence in Oromiya.

"These are peaceful protesters who have been demanding that soldiers are pulled out. This could intensify anger," he said.

Last Sunday, scores of people were killed in a stampede triggered when police used teargas and shot in the air to disperse anti-government protesters at a religious festival in the town of Bishoftu.

A US researcher was killed on Tuesday when her car was attacked by stone-throwers near Addis Ababa.

Reuters

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