Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are reportedly going to adopt another Ethiopian child this month.

The couple – who already have three biological children Shiloh, two, six-month-old twins Knox and Vivienne, and three adopted children, Cambodian Maddox, seven, Pax, five, from Vietnam and four-year-old Ethiopian girl Zahara – are planning to jet to Africa before the end of January to complete paperwork on the new addition to their family.

A source revealed: “Brad and Angelina have seen pictures of a two-year-old girl they’d love to adopt. If everything goes to plan, Angelina will file papers in person in the capital city of Addis Ababa in the New Year and they will pick up their new daughter two days later.”

Officials in Ethiopia have confirmed they are expecting the family this month as Brad, 45, and 33-year-old Angelina are planning to visit the AIDS/HIV clinic they founded after adopting Zahara.

A clinic source told Britain’s Grazia magazine: “I can’t say anything about when they are coming, but yes, when they come to Ethiopia we will expect a visit from them.”

Brad and Angelina are said to be keen on extending their brood while their other children are still young.

An insider explained: “Angelina gets a kick from saving kids and giving them this amazing life they would have never had otherwise.

“Yes they might be adding to their family fast but they want all their kids to be roughly the same age so they do the nanny stage and get it over and done with.

“Another kid in the house will make no difference to the noise and chaos they already have.”

– Showbiz

By Jason McLure | Bloomberg

Ethiopia’s [rubber-stamp] parliament ratified a law that critics say will prevent groups from promoting human rights and democracy in the Horn of Africa country, strengthening the government’s hand to crack down on dissent.

The so-called “Proclamation for the Registration and Regulation of Charities and Societies” was passed today by a vote of 327 to 79 in Ethiopia’s parliament. The 547-member legislative body is dominated by members of Prime Minister dictator Meles Zenawi’s Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front Woyanne, which has 481 seats.

Zenawi’s party, which has ruled Ethiopia since 1991, backed the law even after Western donors, domestic civil society organizations and members of Ethiopian opposition parties objected. They argue the legislation aims to quash dissent.

“This law goes far beyond any normal effort to regulate civil society,” said Leslie Lefkow, a researcher in the Africa division of New York-based Human Rights Watch. “It’s really an instrument of repression.”

Under the new plan, any charity that promotes ethnic gender and religious equality; human rights; democracy; or conflict resolution and receives more than 10 percent of its funding from overseas, will be banned. Organizations that advocate rights for children and the disabled or promote “the efficiency of the justice and law enforcement services” will also be outlawed unless they source more than 90 percent of their revenue inside Ethiopia.

Blanket Ban

Since nearly all non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, that work in these areas rely on foreign funding, the law is tantamount to a blanket ban, political activists said.

“Ninety-five percent of these organizations will not survive under this legislation,” said Lidetu Ayalew, an opposition member of parliament, during a debate on the law on Dec. 24.

Ethiopia’s government Woyanne says the new law is needed to regulate the country’s more than 3,800 NGOs. It also argues that it’s the role of the state, rather than foreign-backed organizations, to protect human and democratic rights.

“We need social development,” said Berhanu Adelu, chief of Zenawi’s Cabinet, in a forum on the new law on Dec. 24. “We invite NGOs to do this work, but it is not their role to protect the rights of citizens. That is the role of government. It’s an internal issue.”

The government also disputes claims that the law is intended to silence critics or that groups will close as a result.

‘Clearly Specified Duty’

“No NGOs will be closed as a result of this,” Justice Minister Berhanu Hailu said in an interview on the sidelines of the forum on Dec. 24. “They just have to raise funds locally. This is not a closing of political space. We are not undermining civil society in Ethiopia, but their duty area is clearly specified.”

The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa said the law “appears to restrict civil society activities and international partners’ ability to support Ethiopia’s own development efforts.”

“We are concerned that this law may restrict U.S. government assistance to Ethiopia, particularly on promoting democracy and good governance, civic and human rights, conflict resolution and advocacy for society’s most vulnerable groups,” the embassy said in an statement read to Bloomberg.

Amnesty International, the London-based human rights organization, said that while the government had provided assurances that the law was intended to regularize non- governmental activity, it appeared to have emerged out of state fears about political control.

‘Increased Repression’

Those fears “manifested as increased repression of civil society activity after the contested 2005 elections and continue to severely limit space for civil society as Ethiopia heads toward elections in 2010,” Amnesty said in an e-mail today.

Government opponents accused the state of rigging the May 2005 elections, sparking protests in Addis Ababa and other cities. A judicial inquiry after the election concluded that government security forces had killed 193 opposition supporters in the unrest.

In October and November of 2008, the government arrested 15 members of the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement, an opposition party, on suspicion of belonging to a separatist group. Last month, Birtukan Mideksa, the country’s leading opposition politician, was arrested and jailed for life after a dispute with the government over a pardon agreement that had freed her in 2007.

Rights Monitor

Among the NGOs likely to be banned is the Ethiopian Human Rights Council, or EHRCO, a non-profit organization that has issued more than 140 reports detailing summary executions, disappearances and unlawful detentions of Ethiopians over the past 17 years.

More than a dozen of the group’s staff and members were arrested in the wake of Ethiopia’s disputed 2005 elections, during which EHRCO ran voter education programs, Yoseph Mulugeta, the group’s secretary-general, said in an interview

About 99 percent of the 1,500-member group’s 4 million birr ($400,000) annual budget comes from foreign sources, including the U.S. based National Endowment for Democracy, Canada’s overseas aid agency, and the embassies of European governments.

As a result of the law, many of the group’s 60 investigators and administrators across the country have been notified they’re likely to lose their jobs.

“Who watches when the government violates human rights?” Mulugeta said. “In many countries the government is the biggest violator of human rights. There needs to be independent watchers.”

(To contact the reporter on this story: Jason McLure in Addis Ababa via Johannesburg at [email protected].)

Ethiopia’s Haile Gebrselassie doesn’t need to make a New Year’s resolution, in order to break another World record. For a start, the Ethiopian New Year begins on September 11, “so we don’t celebrate the European New Year,” said the man himself yesterday, by phone from his home in Addis Ababa.

And, although the World records have come with the same metronomic regularity that he applies to his marathon running, he won’t be drawn just yet on whether next week’s Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon, on Friday, January 16, will be his 27 (world best or record).

But he says he is in better shape than when he won Dubai last year, in 2:04:53, then the second fastest on record. “Last year, I had a little injury two weeks before Dubai, but this year everything is OK, I feel fine. And I won’t make the mistake of going too fast, like last year.”

Aiming for a first half in 62 minutes in 2008, the pacemakers seared through the 21.1km in 61:27. It probably made the difference between breaking his then World record of 2:04:26, set in Berlin 2007, by half a minute instead of ending up a half a minute outside it, as was the case.

Geb proved that when he went back to Berlin last September, ran the first half in 62:04, and came back in 61:55, to become the first marathoner under 2:04.

If he breaks that record in Dubai, he will win a one million US dollars bonus, in addition to the first place prize of $250,000.

After Berlin, he said he thought he could do “2:03 something” in Dubai. But, “everything has to be perfect for another record, weather, pacemakers. If I don’t get injured, maybe 2:02:59, but considering my shape and my age, 2:03:30, or 2:03:20.”

It is a tribute to his consistency that even aged 35, with a workforce of hundreds in half a dozen businesses in Addis, Gebrselassie still concentrates on running. “It’s my top priority, because without running, I wouldn’t have everything else. I get up at 5.30 every morning, and go training. And it’s cold here in the morning now. At Entoto (hills outside Addis), it’s about plus one (degree centigrade). I go to the office at about 9.30 or ten o’clock, and work until four. Then I train again. I go to bed about 9.30, ten at the latest.”

So there you have it, the ultimate recipe for success. Not forgetting that you needed to have been born and nurtured at altitude, run thousands of kilometres a year for the last 20 years, have endless willpower and a great finishing sprint.

By Pat Butcher for the IAAF

By Sylvia Perez and Christine Tressel | ABC News

An Ethiopian doctor in Chicago says a life saving diagnosis is also wake up call for Americans to start thinking globally when it comes to illness.

Rahel Taye has a smile as big as her appetite. But a year ago her life now would be hard to imagine.

The 26-year-old from Ethiopia had been battling mysterious, crippling pains in her abdomen for months.

“Really, really bad, bad pain,” said Taye.

She was in and out of hospitals. No one had an answer for her but her health kept deteriorating.

She finally ended up at the emergency room of a prominent Chicago hospital where she says doctors delivered the devastating news: that she probably had ovarian cancer.

“The doctor told me she had two months to live,” said Solomon Melesse, Taye’s husband.

She was advised to have surgery which meant she might never have children. Rahel and her husband were stunned and in disbelief.

“I know they are wrong. I feel it,” said Taye.

Rahel trusted her instincts and was recommended to Ermias Tilahun, a specialist in internal medicine at Swedish Covenant Hospital. It was April of 2007. By then, Rahel was in very bad shape.

“She was less than 80 pounds when I saw her,” said Dr. Tilahun.

Like Rahel, Dr. Tilahun wasn’t convinced it was cancer. He had a hunch as a result of working with other immigrants and being Ethiopian himself. Dr.

At the time, Rahel was only 26, a very young age for ovarian cancer.

He ran several tests and then he discovered some white looking nodules all over the inside of her abdomen. That led him to suspect something no one else had; tuberculosis.

“After listening to their story, she migrated from Ethopia,” said Dr. Tilahun. “The probability for TB goes up.”

Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium. It primarily attacks the lungs but doctors say the disease can affect other organs and tissues. That’s apparently what happened to Rahel. She was diagnosed with peritoneal TB, an unusual infection that some doctors may not know can mimic ovarian cancer.

Rahel was started on anti-TB medications. Within two weeks, they say she was eating and smiling. Since then the couple hasn’t looked back.

“Now we can have a family and live to have a family and kids,” said Rahel.

Dr. Tilahun says Rahel’s case is a perfect example of why U.S. doctors need to start looking beyond America’s borders in diagnosing illnesses.

As more people travel, different forms of disease are making their way to this country. TB is just one of them. In this case, a late diagnosis almost cost Rahel her life.

“If we didn’t consider TB for her she would not be around,” said Dr. Tilahun.

Rahel is now going to school and planning to have a family.

And even though it’s been more than year and half, the gravity of her ordeal is still overwhelming.

Dr. Tilahun says Rahel’s form of TB was not highly contagious. He is not sure how she got it but suspects she may have picked up the bacterium after drinking raw milk.

He also says that if he had used the gold standard test for TB which takes about four weeks, Rahel probably would have been dead. Dr. Tilahun says instead he used a test not well know here in the U.S. which got him results within a couple days.

For more information:
Dr. Ermias Tilahun
Swedish Covenant Hospital, Internal Medicine
2740 W. Foster Ave., Chicago, IL
773-907-3550

Find Out How Tory Johnson Started Her Own Business With Virtually No Money

By TORY JOHNSON

If you can’t find someone to hire you, consider hiring yourself. Not only can entrepreneurship bring great personal fulfillment, but launching a small business doesn’t have to break the bank.

Here’s my story and some of my favorite resources to help get you started.

My story. In 1999 I started Women for Hire to put on career fairs. I worked from home with no experience running a business, but I had a serious entrepreneurial itch — that burning desire to run my own shop, do my own thing, be my own boss and provide what I thought was a much-needed service to the workplace.

I didn’t have a lot of money and I didn’t have much time. Because my household very much relied on my income, I had three months to launch the company and generate a profit. If the venture failed, I’d have to quickly get a traditional job, which of course I didn’t want to do.

Instead of spending months and months writing a business plan, I put my thoughts on one sheet of paper and I dived in. That’s also the impatient side of me; I didn’t want to think or talk about starting a business, I just wanted to do it.

With a background in corporate communications, I knew the importance of establishing immediate credibility. I’d be targeting human resource professionals to use my services, yet nobody in human resources departments knew my name. My company was totally unknown.

I bought 100 copies of Star Jones’ new book at wholesale from the publisher and I arranged for Jones, who was debuting on “The View” at the time, to do a free book signing at my very first career fair. I also formed a marketing partnership with Mademoiselle magazine, allowing it to distribute copies to my career fair attendees.

Those two names — Star Jones and Mademoiselle — were very well known, even though I wasn’t, so I benefited instantly from that borrowed recognition.

Incidentally, Jones moved on from “The View” and Mademoiselle went bust, but Women for Hire is still going strong! Knock on wood.

My focus from Day 1 has remained the same: provide a top-notch service, get the word out to the target audience and sell it. If you’re thinking of starting a business, that’s what you should do too.

Get the Word Out

First step, put it in writing. Write a brief plan outlining your goals. You don’t need anything formal unless you’re going to seek substantial capital. In fact, researchers at Babson College found that in businesses started between 1985 and 2003, there was no difference in the performance of those that launched with or without a written business plan.

Go through a simple exercise of putting a few things on paper for your own good: describe your business in one sentence. Who will buy your products or service? How much money do you absolutely need to get started? How much can you realistically charge for your product or service? What will it cost you to deliver that product or service? In the worst-case scenario, how much can you make?

Don’t assume the best-case scenario because more often than not, you won’t meet those projections. A baker may dream of selling 100 cakes a week, but is five more realistic to start? A dog walker might assume he can handle 10 customers a week, but is two more realistic to start?

Know the competition. Don’t worry about reinventing the wheel. Chances are you’re going to provide a service or product that already exists. That’s OK. There are multiple banks, coffee shops, clothing stores and restaurants on every street. There are thousands of doctors and dentists in every major city. It’s wise to know your competition, but don’t be intimidated, especially if you offer a quality product or service.

Create marketing materials. You need a marketing plan to target the right people about your business. Because you aren’t going to run expensive newspaper ads or Super Bowl commercials, think free and inexpensive.

Web site. When you’re looking to buy something — from a haircut to a custom cake — you likely hit the Internet. So even if you’re not selling online, every business should have a Web site. Before you decide on a name for your business, check the availability of domain names, because it could affect the name you choose.

A Web site can cost as little as $10 a month and many hosting companies offer free site-builder templates to get you up and running in a few hours. Register.com and GoDaddy.com are two services I’ve used.

Google’s AdWords program is an affordable and measurable way to attract visitors to your Web site. Sign up for free and set a budget for how much you want to spend to appear in search results when Google users look for content related to yours.

Network

Print business cards and flyers. I use both VistaPrint.com and GotPrint.com for high-quality printing at affordable prices.

Phone system. If you worry about your kids answering your business calls but you don’t want to install a dedicated phone line, consider a service like RingCentral.com to have calls routed to an 800 number with voice mail exclusively for your business starting at $10 a month.

Use free social and business networks. Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace and others are valuable tools for spreading the word about your business.

Establish mutually beneficial partnerships. Recently a “Good Morning America” viewer asked me for ideas on how to spread the word quickly — without spending a dime — about her new pet massage business. I suggested partnering with the most popular pet store in her area to host in-store events every Saturday where owners could bring their animals for on-the-spot mini massages. It’s good for the store because it brings new and existing customers into the shop, and it’s good for attracting awareness — and customers — for this new pet massage business. A cake baker might offer to do fundraisers for her kids’ school. She could talk to wedding vendors about offering affordable alternatives to new brides. She can visit local coffee shops with samples of her baked goods to persuade them to carry her stuff.

Generate free media coverage. One of my favorite new resources is Help a Reporter Out, which enables anyone to sign up for a free e-mail alert, delivered three times daily, listing the immediate needs of writers and producers from major TV and print outlets to blogs and books. By registering for the daily e-mails, you can respond to queries from journalists that relate to your business and your expertise — without hiring a publicist to do the work for you.

Free Resources

Find free helping hands. When you have little to no money to start, you have to be resourceful to get as much as you can for free. In addition to begging family and friends, contact colleges in your area to post internship opportunities (or post them on Craigslist) for students who’d welcome a compelling role in assisting with your start-up.

Tap free expert resources. Contact the Chamber of Commerce in your area, Small Business Association or SCORE, which provides free and low-cost advice on every aspect of your business, including the licenses you may need to operate and the tax and insurance considerations.

Among my favorite resources for small-business owners: Make Mine a Million, StartupNation, Small Business Television, and Collective-E. Finally — just do it. If you can’t get out there and sell your product or service, you don’t have a business. It doesn’t matter how fabulous your offering, your expertise or your Web site, if nobody will pay you for it, there’s no business. Get your ducks in a row and then get in front of your target audience. Nobody will have the same passion and enthusiasm as you, and your passion is priceless.

Tory Johnson is the workplace contributor on “Good Morning America” and the CEO of Women for Hire. Visit her Web site at www.womenforhire.com.