BOSASSO, Somalia (Reuters) – Gunmen kidnapped a German man and his local wife in northern Somalia on Saturday, a local official said.
“They were heading to visit his in-laws. They took them towards the hills to the east. We have sent many troops to save them,” Muse Gelle Yusuf, governor of the northern port town of Bosasso, told Reuters.
Yusuf said the German had been in the town for several weeks, spending time with his wife’s family. He did not name the man.
Yusub Mohamed, a relative of the abducted woman, saw the kidnappers stop their vehicle.
“They grabbed the German and his wife at gunpoint and drove them away,” he said.
The kidnapping of foreigners and aid workers for ransom is common in lawless Somalia, where the Western-backed interim government is fighting Islamist insurgents.
Last month, pirates from the north of the Horn of Africa country freed two German hostages who they had held hostage since June. A member of the gang said a ransom of $1 million had been paid.
I love Njombe – which is a strong statement for what it is. Njombe is my banking town, which basically just means that it has a bank, which of course my village does not. Njombe is known for being the coldest town in Tanzania and for its sweeping views of hills and hills into the far distance. Mostly, I love Njombe because it is bigger than village- but is still really only one main street where you run into people you know. Njombe is one of the regions that the PC has been in the longest, so Njombe citizens are used to us and there is not the danger of harassment, theft, etc. that there is in other banking towns. Njombe also has a cheese shop/factory, one of the biggest markets I have seen in Tz (where you can get giant avocados for the equivalent of thirty cents), some of the fastest Internet in the country, and the Millimani Hotel, which is the home away from home for PCVs. Basically, no one should really love Njombe, because there is not much here, but I do because it is a chance for a hot shower and to stay up late and speak English with my friends.
I made new friends this weekend in Njombe- I should say there is very little Wazungu (foreigners) in Njombe- pretty much just us. But I was introduced to some through my friend, Josh. Zummi and Adina have been friends of PCVs for over a decade. They are both in their early 30s and have a two year old son. Zummi was born in Tanzania and Kiswahili is his first language, however, he is Austrian and has that citizenship. Adina is Dutch and has lived in Tanzania for 20 years. They both speak multiple languages, and live on a flower farm outside of Njombe. The farm sells roses to European markets. (I am actually going out there tomorrow- so more of an update on that later). It is supposed to be amazingly beautiful and PCVs are always welcome to stay there. Anyways, Adina picked me up from the Milimani in her truck and I had never met her but I figured white woman, must be her. And she took me to the Kibena Club, which is sort of a run down, but fun athletic club/ hangout with a pool, bar, tennis courts, etc. We met Zummi there and they attempted to teach me how to play Squash (I am horrible- but they assure me I will be better in no time.) Then other young European expats started to show up for a bbq. There was probably only about 20 of us total- but some Italians, a couple from Holland, some Germans, etc. And I caught a glimpse of what it might be like to be in the field with money- as they have cars, running water, etc. It was interesting to spend time with Europeans in Africa. They all spoke English for my benefit, as I felt very under qualified in the language category, but I had a great time making new friends
The hard part of Njombe is transport to and from site. Mine sucks. The car leaves at 4.45 AM- it is just pick up truck, that luckily I get the front of. The roads are horrible and the last two times I have been riding in the truck it has broken down. Our driver, Stanley, I have decided, is an amazing mechanic. He hops out into the dark with one tool and some electrical tape and has the car running again- until 15 minutes later when he has to repeat whatever process he goes through. Here, I should say a bit about Tanzanian men. Before I came here many Americans were worried for me- these were Americans who have never been to Africa. Tanzanian men are not like men of Central America or even Europeans. There is no cat calling, there is some respect for white women, and Tanzanians in general are very passive people and rarely say what they mean. That being said, Tanzanian men always propose. Petti, my language teacher in Kilosa, told us to be prepared for this. That they figure they might as well try, and are not hurt or forceful when rejected. After you reject them, they go on to talk with you more about something totally unrelated. Anyways, Tanzanians have a great sense of humor. So when Stanley proposed, I told him that Baba Marekani was planning on being a rich man from my bride price and would retire from farming from this money. (My villagers all think my dad is a farmer, which I haven’t bothered to correct, as being an attorney is too difficult to explain.) Because I am very beautiful so of course I would be very expensive. I also reminded him that American women are unable to cook Ugali and men in America cook, clean and watch kids. I had him cracking up and that was that. Anyways, on this particular trip we were running late, as nothing here runs on time, and breaking down along the way. By 9 PM we were almost back to my village when the car broke down to an unfixable state. I ended up having to walk 6K home in the dark with 4 Tanzanian men that I didn’t know. They carried my stuff and were very chivalrous, but I didn’t get home until after 11 PM. We had left Njombe at 1 PM- so it took over 10 hours to go 60K. And that is why it is difficult to be an impatient American in Tanzania.
DAR ES SALAAM — Tanzania has banned all Chinese milk products to safeguard against poisoning by the toxic industrial chemical melamine, a statement said Saturday.
The Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TFDA) ordered “government officials at all border points to be extra vigilant with all dairy products from China including yoghurt, ice-cream powder and chocolate.”
TDFA said it had dispatched experts “to check retail and wholesale outlets for any possible traces of tainted milk that had made its way” into the east African country.
China said this week that milk powder contaminated with melamine, which is used in plastics, had made at least 6,200 babies ill nationwide and killed four over a period of many months.
Yili, Mengniu and Guangming — big brands consumed and trusted by hundreds of millions of Chinese — were affected by the recall after authorities checked their products and found traces of melamine.
Melamine added to milk and other food products gives the appearance of higher protein levels.
A leader of Sudan’s southern rebels has returned from a sojourn in Denver resolved to force a regime change in Africa’s largest country.
When Sudan People’s Liberation Movement Secretary General Pa’gan Amum landed last week in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, he quit his seat in a shaky coalition government set up under a cease-fire deal.
Instead of working with Sudan’s northern Arab rulers, Amum said Tuesday he’ll focus on leading southern Sudan people into elections next year and a 2011 referendum on whether war-ravaged Sudan (population 40 million) should stay together as one country.
Peaceful progress “requires a change in the government,” Amum, 50, said during an interview in Denver, where members of his family live.
“Sudan’s at a crossroads between a road to imminent collapse and disintegration, and a possible road to be a free, peaceful and prosperous society,” he said.
The northern regime “wants to keep the status quo, so it’s a matter of political struggle” and, if necessary, force, Amum said. “If they start fighting, we will fight them back. We aim at building a free society which is at peace with itself.”
Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir — targeted by the International Criminal Court for possible war crimes and genocide — cast Amum’s departure as a dismissal. Amum now will work from southern Sudan while another SPLM official sits in coalition meetings.
Amum led an SPLM delegation to U.S. political conventions in Denver and St. Paul seeking support. Sudan’s rulers since independence from Britain in 1956 have sanctioned slaughters of ethnic African Sudanese in the south and western Darfur provinces.
The next U.S. president must “support the democratic forces in Sudan,” Amum said following meetings with Obama and McCain advisers. His spouse, Dr. Suzana Deng, who fled Sudan to Denver a decade ago as a refugee, met with Michelle Obama.
Now SPLM leaders are turning to China, which wields the real clout in Sudan. A delegation next month will visit China and try to build relations with officials allied with Sudan’s rulers, Amum said.
China produces oil in Sudan — at least 500,000 barrels a day. Sudan’s vast reserves are located largely in southern Sudan, giving resource-hungry China an interest in better relations with the SPLM.
“We hope we can win over China and for China to become at least a neutral force,” Amum said.
SPLM leaders also are forging relations with Americans in Denver and elsewhere. A growing number of private aid projects deliver water and school help to southern villagers.
This work is useful “treating the symptoms,” Amum said. “The solution to the Sudan problem is not sending in peacekeepers to protect the civilians. It is not peace by force. It is not sending in humanitarian agencies, though that does save lives. The solution is having a democratic system that puts power in the hands of the people. We aim to release the energy of the Sudanese people.”
ORLANDO, FLORIDA – An unidentified man was severely injured when he was struck by a hit-and-run driver early this morning.
The crash occurred about 3:20 a.m. on U.S. 441, south of Oak Ridge Road. Sgt. Kim Miller of the Florida Highway Patrol said that Haile Workie, 34, of Orlando was driving a taxi cab north when he struck a pedestrian who was crossing the road. Workie fled the scene, but he and his car were later located.
The pedestrian was transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center, where he is in critical condition.
Charges against Workie, an immigrant from Ethiopia, are pending.
By Debbie DeVoe
CRS Regional Information Officer, East Africa
www.crs.org
TIGRAY, Ethiopia – As we crest the mountain top, a sweeping view of emerald fields, soaring mesas and scattered farms spreads in front of us. I’ve been told to expect scenery like Arizona, but it’s still hard for me to believe this is Ethiopia. It’s even more difficult to believe that the farmers in the distance are facing a critical food shortage.
As we wind down the hill though, we get a closer look at the fields and what Ethiopians call “green hunger.” Corn stalks are one half the height they should be, and under the green tops are drooping brown leaves. Rip open an ear, and the inside rows of anemic kernels grin up like ghastly smiles of broken teeth spaced much too far apart.
A little further, we pass a field of wheat that looks like an abandoned meadow of prairie grass. “Complete crop failure,” Alem Brhane says, shaking his head in dismay. A program coordinator with the Adigrat Catholic Secretariat for development projects supported by Catholic Relief Services, Brhane knows that these spindly sprouts mean the farmer will harvest absolutely nothing — not even feed for his livestock.
A Growing Crisis
Drought in Ethiopia comes every few years. But in early 2008, a poor rainy season took many farmers by surprise, occurring in pockets where families are usually able to grow enough food. By May, thousands of children were showing signs of malnutrition as farming families were left with little or nothing to eat.
Resulting delays in planting long-cycle crops coupled with continued poor rains are now exacerbating the situation. Millions more farmers are facing potential crop failures during the upcoming October and November harvest — drastically reducing expected food stores for the coming year.
“The food shortage in Ethiopia could get much worse,” explains Lane Bunkers, CRS’ country representative in Ethiopia. “Already, the government of Ethiopia and aid agencies have exhausted local supplies feeding those most in need. More food is needed as soon as possible to distribute to growing numbers of people facing empty cupboards and — more concerning — empty grain stores.”
In early September, CRS signed a $53.4 million agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide almost 3 million drought-affected Ethiopians with 75,140 metric tons of food — enough to fill an entire oceanic freighter. As CRS did in other critical emergencies, the agency will again lead the relief activities of six Joint Emergency Operational Plan consortium partners.
Shipments of sorghum, wheat, legumes, corn-soy blend and vegetable oil are already on their way, expected to begin arriving in late October. The consortium will transport and distribute the U.S.-donated food to people identified as being most in need.
CRS has also received three emergency grants totaling over $1.75 million from the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. This funding has supported distributions of seeds in August and September to 16,000 farmers in need and will fund in coming months the rehabilitation, development and expansion of water sources in severely affected communities.
Defying Drought
Not all communities in drought-affected regions are facing hunger, however. Some have received precious bursts of rain that have kept their crops alive. Others have undertaken development projects to break out of the cycle of drought and despair.
“Though my rain-fed field crops will suffer, compared to others I won’t be as affected as much by the drought because of this irrigation,” says Leteyohanes Yohanes, a farmer in the village of Kokeb-Tsibah. For the past two years, Leteyohanes and her neighbors have been growing vegetables on small plots of land irrigated by a water system constructed with CRS’ support. Her family now supplements their standard fare of barley, peas and beans with vegetables from their garden. She is also able to buy additional food and care for her parents using the income she earns selling any excess vegetables.
Teklu Madgu — a spry 67-year-old father of eight — practically jumps up and down when he explains the benefits irrigation has brought to his life. Running to show off his large garden, he explains how he now harvests vegetables three times a year. This last harvest alone despite the drought, Teklu earned about $155 selling tomatoes, green peppers, garlic, onions, beans, oranges and more — in a country where the average annual income is estimated to be less than $125 per person. He used his most recent earnings to buy corn for his family to eat and to put down a down payment on a beehive to earn additional income.
In another village nearby, Yihdega Tesfay may be mute, but the smile that spreads across her face says it all. As she shows me her large hand-dug well and irrigated garden plot, Brhane explains that she cares for her three children alone. Due to the high premium she earns selling vegetables instead of more common grains, Yihdega can now afford to send her children to school. When she calls her eldest son over, her pride is palpable.
Helping Farmers Help Themselves
The government of Ethiopia and aid agencies must take every measure to help those facing hunger. As CRS waits for additional food shipments to arrive, the agency is working with USAID to move 1,500 metric tons of corn-soy blend from Djibouti for distribution in September to the elderly and to pregnant and nursing mothers in the most drought-affected regions.
CRS previously provided $125,000 of private funds to the Ethiopian Catholic Secretariat and $150,000 to the Missionaries of Charity to support emergency feedings and other services wherever needs are greatest.
But tomorrow can’t be ignored.
“Communities where we have implemented long-term agricultural and irrigation projects over the years are withstanding the drought significantly better than their neighbors,” CRS’ Bunkers notes. “We will continue to do everything we can to provide emergency relief, and we also urge donors to fund long-term development projects to prevent future crises.”
