CAIRO, EGYPT — Egyptian company ASEC Mining (Ascom) ASCM.CA said on Monday it was taking a 20 percent stake in a new company that will produce cement in Ethiopia.
In a statement released through the Egyptian stock exchange, it said the Ethiopian venture, in conjunction with ASEC Cement, would be the company’s first investment in cement production.
It said the unnamed Ethiopian company would have a capital of $100,000 and would build and run cement plants, own limestone quarries, and export clinker and other products.
Source: Reuters. Writing by Jonathan Wright; editing by Sue Thomas
BEIJING – Marathon world record-holder Haile Gebrselassie regrets pulling out of the 42-km race at the Olympics over fears that Beijing’s air pollution would damage his health.
“I’m surprised. What do you expect from me? I was here in February, I didn’t see no blue sky,” the Ethiopian runner told Reuters on Monday in China’s capital, where the sun was shining in a slightly hazy sky.
“Since I came here everything is perfect. They should tell us,” he added with a laugh.
Asked if he was now sorry not to be running in next Sunday’s marathon, he chuckled again and said: “Don’t push me. Yes.”
Gebrselassie, a 35-year-old who suffers from asthma, announced in March that he would not participate in the marathon and called on China to deal with Beijing’s pollution problem, saying it would be a hazard to athletes.
International Olympic Committee chief Jacques Rogge said last year that endurance events such as the marathon or long-distance cycling races could be rescheduled if efforts to clear Beijing’s polluted skies were unsuccessful.
As it turned out, the opening days of the Games were marred by smoggy skies but the weather has cleared for the second week.
“It’s really good for everybody, good for all … to keep such clean air, that’s fantastic,” Gebrselassie said.
Gebrselassie ran in the men’s 10,000m in Beijing on Sunday, an event in which he has twice won an Olympic gold medal. He finished in sixth place, behind fellow Ethiopians Kenenisa Bekele and Sileshi Sihine, who took gold and silver respectively.
“Getting sixth in 10,000, it was not bad,” he said.
“The only problem I had yesterday … was just the last 250 meters, the last 300 meters. I have no more sprint. My training is mostly for a marathon.”
He said he may return to the 10,000 meters and is also keen to run in the marathon at London’s 2012 Olympics.
-By Vivi Lin Reuters. Writing by John Chalmers; Editing by Ed Osmond
I hope you saw the 10k races from Beijing. Both of them. It was our turn. It was a time to feel good about being an Ethiopian. The whole world was a witness to our unsurpassed endurance and generous manners. It was an emotional moment for Ethiopians around the globe. Wherever life has taken us to, we watched our coronation from Beijing. My phone was ringing off the hook. I got calls from as far away as Dubai and as close as my next-door neighbor. They all said ‘did you see that?’
First it was my beautiful little sisters Tirunesh and Elvan Abeylegesse who kept me riveted to my seat. Small, compact and strong as nail, and graceful at the same time. With her expression so serene, it looked like Tirunesh was out for an evening jog. She ended up setting a new world record. Ethiopians rejoiced all over the world. Our flag flew high, our spirits soared and for a few hours we felt good.
Then came the brothers. Familiar faces that come around every four years and raise our spirits. They don’t fail us. Quiet and dignified you know they mean business. The big smile from Haile is a signal that all is well. Kenenisa with his chiseled face and Sihine with his somber look are formidable competitors. Then started the race full of human color bunched together, watching each other following and looking for a little hole to squeeze thru. Our Eritrean brothers were setting the pace. Kenenisa was staying close; Haile was watching the rear while Sihine kept in the middle. The Kenyans were watching the Ethiopians and the Ethiopians were pushing the Eritreans. After the 5000 meters mark it was time to separate the boys from the men.
Kenenisa looked back. He signaled it is time. Haile started to surge forward. Before you know it he was leading the pack. He was increasing the pace. Kenenisa stayed where he was, Sihine came closer. The Kenyans knew something was up. Haile was relentless. He was taking them to their limit. He looks back making sure his younger brothers are keeping up. Reading their faces, exchanging glances, communicating. The three Ethiopians had their own virtual network with a robust firewall as formidable as the Great Wall. Haile the good shepherd gave the final signal and Kenenisa turned on the turbo. It was a scene to behold. Then Kenenisa and Sihine accelerated as if the race just started. We shouted, we screamed and we cried tears of joy. It feels so good to be number one!
I saw our potential when we work together. It was a testimony that when we are focused on a goal nobody equals an Ethiopian. It was not the first time. Our past is full of glory like last Wednesday and Sunday. When Italy tried to invade our country the first time Emperor Menilik summoned the nation to stand as one. Menilik marched north with all Ethiopians and dealt a heavy blow to the invading army. The Fascist wanted to revenge their humiliation and came back. Emperor Haile Sellasie gathered his people and stood up against an army that was far superior. For five years Ethiopian patriots fought back and did not allow the enemy a single day of peace. When our own homegrown fascist Derg was escorted out of our life, the Ethiopian people kept the peace and the faith in each other with no authority in sight. We were our brother’s keeper. Our unity is our only strength.
We thank our dear brothers and sisters for a job well done. We thank you for letting the world know that famine is not the only product coming out of our ancient kingdom. We know how to work together. We learn from big brother Haile that group reward is a precious as individual glory. We learn from Haile that our nation is bigger than an individual that sacrifice for the good of the many is a sign of deep love for one’s country.
The last week has been kind to our country. The famine is taking center stage. The whole world is made aware of our dire situation. We hope the food aid will come on time and save our people. We hope those in authority will acknowledge this human catastrophe and cooperate with the aid agencies. The resignation of Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan is another good news for our country. Mr. Musharraf came to power nine years ago after a military coup. The Bush administration crowned him as a fighter of terrorism and kept his regime supplied with arms and financial aid. Mr. Musharraf was the darling of the west but a despot at home. He ruled by decree, used State of Emergency to imprison and exile his opponents and destroyed the judiciary. Time run out on Mr. Musharraf when his opponents created a united front. His American benefactors left him high and dry. Mr. Bush wouldn’t even return his calls the last few days. He was given a choice of impeachment and public humiliation or quiet resignation and may be an exile to another country. He will be free for a while, but all those under him who did all the dirty work would have to answer to a court of law. Dictators have no heart. Their method of operation is use and discard. They negotiate a safe exit for themselves and their family. Their advisors, their partners in crime and their mouthpieces are left behind to face the music. In today’s small world the saying ‘you can run but you can’t hide’ is truer more than before. Our humble advice will be to ‘do the right thing’ and you would have no worry in the world. It is never too late.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY (Reuters) — Sudanese president Omar Hassan al-Bashir arrived in Turkey on Monday for a summit of African leaders this week in his first trip abroad since an international court moved to indict him for genocide.
International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo last month asked the court to issue an arrest warrant for Bashir on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur, saying his state apparatus had killed 35,000 people and indirectly at least another 100,000.
Bashir has said he would not cooperate with the ICC and called the court’s move part of a neo-colonialist agenda to protect the interests of developed countries.
Asked about the possibility of an ICC warrant being issued while Bashir was in Istanbul, a Turkish Foreign Ministry official declined to speculate on what Turkey would do.
“Bashir was invited to the summit as an African country leader and there is no arrest warrant against him at this moment. If there are any requests, we will evaluate them then,” the official said.
NATO member Turkey has not ratified the treaty forming the ICC but is under pressure to become a member as part of negotiations to join the European Union.
ICC judges could take weeks or months to issue a warrant, but have never failed to issue one after it was requested by the prosecutor. The court returned from recess on Monday.
International experts estimate some 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million were driven from their homes since mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms in early 2003 accusing central government in Khartoum of neglect.
Sudan blames the Western media for exaggerating the conflict and puts the death toll at 10,000.
CONCERN OVER MEETINGS
U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said on Friday it was “concerned” by Turkey’s decision to welcome Bashir, who is expected to hold bilateral meetings with Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of a summit focusing mostly on energy and trade.
“The Turkish government should reject efforts by Sudan’s President Omar Bashir to secure a suspension of the International Criminal Court’s investigation against him,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement.
“Turkey should also convey a clear message that Khartoum must not respond to the investigation with retaliation against civilians, peacekeepers, or humanitarian workers.”
The summit in Istanbul is expected to be attended by leaders from 40 African countries, as energy-thirsty Turkey seeks to tap into the African continent’s vast resources.
Media reports said the prime ministers of Ethiopia, Morocco, Niger, Togo, Rwanda and Uganda would attend.
Turkey, which has signed liquefied gas agreements with Algeria, is seeking to boost investments and trade with sub-Saharan Africa, following similar moves by emerging powerhouses China and India.
Trade between Turkey and African nations rose to $13 billion last year from $5.4 billion in 2003, state-run Anatolian news agency quoted Trade Minister Kursad Tuzmen as saying.
He said he believed trade would rise to $50 billion in 2012.
ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA — Improved sanitation Ethiopia could save lives of millions of children and raise the status of local women, only if its policymakers and the general public collectively took up the challenge to bring about change, a UNICEF official said here Monday.
Belinda Abraham, sanitation and hygiene specialist with the UN children’s agency, said that many children in the East African country die needlessly daily because of diarrhoeal diseases and lack of sanitation.
Generating momentum behind global sanitary transformation would lead to better health for children as well as social and economic development, personal dignity and protection of the environment to break the cycle of poverty, according to UNICEF.
Observing 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation (IYS), the UN children’s agency Monday challenged the media in Ethiopia to help promote public sanitary habits.
The UN General Assembly has designated the year to create awareness of the plight of more than two billion people who lack access to sanitation worldwide.
“Lack of sanitation and water is a major issue in human development indicators. It is something that UNICEF holds to the heart because it affects millions of children,” said Abraham.
Spearheading the International Year of Sanitation, UNICEF along with other UN partners have come together to engage people, decision makers, the media, school children, parents and teachers to discuss the issue.
Noting that 35 million people in Ethiopia, about half of the total population, have no toilet, Abraham said the situation concerned everybody to bring about the necessary change.
“These people defecate in the bush. They do not have a toilet. This is not only lack of dignity but it also destroys the environment.
“Imagine the millions who are going out into the bush, defecating into the environment. Where does that lead?
“That defecation leads itself into the water areas, the water that we use to water vegetables that are sold in the market and it is a cycle that we all endure.
“We know that we have the technology to handle this. We have low-cost toilets, we have legislation in place, but what is really needed is about changing practices and behaviour,” she explained.
According to the official, the key message of the IYS is that sanitation is vital to health and important for the social and economic development of any society.
The Ethiopian government estimates that it would cost US$650 million to provide 100 percent universal access to sanitation in the country. [The stupid government spends much more than that for buying weapons to terrorize its people and invade neighboring countries.]
But, on the economic point of view, UNICEF maintains that Ethiopian households spend a lot of money to take care of children suffering from preventable diseases that are caused by lack of sanitation and water.
“Sanitation is a very cost-effective intervention. Something simple like hand washing can save 47 percent of the diarrhoea episodes in this country.
“Money saved in health care costs can go into other economic productive areas,” Abraham added.
ASMARA — President Isaias Afwerki today held talks at the Denden Hall with a delegation from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) that comprises the foreign ministers of Sudan and Kenya, as well as the Executive Secretary of the organization.
In the meeting, the President indicated that Eritrea suspended membership in IGAD in view of the fact that the organization violated of its own resolutions and that of the United Nations. He further pointed out that IGAD’s support to Ethiopia’s Woyanne’s invasion of Somalia, a member state, and its little role in other issues of the region fully attest to the weakness of the organization. President Isaias elaborated that instead of trying to resolve some issues, IGAD has been complicating matters.
Noting that Eritrea from the outset has been supporting regional integration and that it has played active role in reactivating the organization, the President underlined the need for reorganizing IGAD, as it could not achieve its set objectives the way it stands at present.
Stating that if at all this region is to tackle the problems of the people through creating a common market and regional integration, he underscored that peace and security should prevail in the first place. In this regard, President Isaias stressed the need for IGAD not only to get restructured but also introduce a new mechanism. He further asserted that Eritrea supports regional integration even if undertaken through IGAD.
In a press conference he gave at Asmara International Airport, the Kenyan Foreign Minister, Mr. Moses Wetangula, said that the meeting with President Isaias was fruitful and that conducive ground has already been created. He indicated that they have agreed the need to restructure the organization so that the programs of the IGAD Secretariat could correspond with the current wishes and aspirations of the people in the region.
The Kenyan Foreign Minister also noted the significance of Eritrea’s re-joining the organization.
The delegation that includes the Kenyan Foreign Minister, Mr. Moses Wetangula, the Sudanese Foreign Minister, Mr. Deng Alor, and the Executive Secretary of IGAD, Eng. Mahbub M. Maalim, arrived here to hold talks on Eritrea’s rejoining in the organization in line with the mission they have been assigned at the IGAD meeting last June.
It is to be recalled that Eritrea suspended membership in IGAD in April 2007.
