Month: November 2021

Ugandan officials are rejecting reports that China could take control of the country’s only international airport because of a failure to honor a loan agreement. China’s embassy in Uganda also dismissed the report. But analysts note the loan deal could become a problem if Uganda ever has trouble paying it back.

Local media reports had indicated that Uganda risked losing its only international airport to China over a $200 million loan to expand the facility.

According to documents shared with local media, China rejected Uganda’s request to re-negotiate some clauses in the 2015 loan deal.

This included a clause that required Uganda’s civil aviation authority to set up an escrow account to hold all of its revenues. Under the clause, the revenues in this account cannot be spent by the aviation authority without approval from Beijing.

Vianney Luggya, the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson, told VOA that the Ugandan government has no intention of defaulting on loan repayments to China.

“It is not true that Uganda is going to lose Entebbe International Airport in any way whatsoever. This is not the first time that this allegation is coming up. Uganda is not about to default in honoring the loan obligation. We are still within a grace period of seven years and during that period we have been paying interest,” said Luggya.

The loan agreement also gives China’s Export-Import Bank oversight over monthly operating budgets for the airport.The bank is also authorized to inspect both the Aviation Authority and Ugandan government books of accounts, which some see as eroding the sovereignty of the state.

When VOA contacted the Chinese Embassy in Uganda, they said they were not in position to comment and referred VOA to a statement they issued Sunday.

In the statement, the embassy said the loan agreement between China Exim Bank and Uganda was signed voluntarily through dialogue and negotiation on equal footing without any hidden terms or political conditions attached.

They said China-Uganda economic and trade cooperation and financing in the field of large-scale infrastructure follows the principle of equality and mutual benefit and has been conducted in accordance with the laws and rules of the international market and strictly abided by the laws of the host country.

Economic analyst Fred Muhumza explains that technically, any loan received from an EXIM Bank is not treated as a loan but as an export, thus making it difficult to renegotiate.

Muhumuza said it is time for the government and its lawyers to re-examine how it handles its agreements with donors.

“These loans are reviewed by solicitor general’s office, who are the lawyers. It also indicates, in case of arbitration, we go to China. We are really at the mercy of China. They have an upper hand on this,” he said.

Uganda currently owes China $1.6 billion in loans extended to the East African country for financing of major infrastructure development projects.

In a 2018 report, Uganda’s auditor general raised concern that Uganda had agreed to several stringent conditions in the loans and these had not only increased the cost of borrowing but also exposed Uganda’s sovereignty to risk.

Source: Voice of America

Security is getting worse in Burkina Faso, with the deadliest attacks by Islamist militants in the West African country in years on civilians and security forces. People are protesting the failure of Burkinabe and international forces to stop the violence, with some calling for change at the top.

In downtown Ouagadougou early Saturday police fired tear gas into crowds of protesters calling for the resignation of Burkina Faso’s President Roch Kabore.

Around 400-500 people were assembled before the tear gas forced them to disperse. An eerie silence followed.

Journalists were hit with tear gas too, even after identifying themselves as press. One local radio journalist was injured after being hit in the face with a tear gas canister.

In recent days, protests have spread across several cities in Burkina Faso.

Demonstrators were angry at what they say is the government’s inability to counter terrorism, after an al-Qaida-linked terror group attacked a military outpost in the north of the country, killing at least 50 military police.

Mamadou Drabo, who is a protest leader, said, “We want the departure of Roch by noon, we want the resignation of Roch, his government and the MPP regime.”

By early Saturday, the police had blocked entrances to the square where protesters were due to meet. Some protesters began shouting at military police, others approached them with their hands up to show their support for the security forces.

Not all demonstrators were peaceful, however. Some attacked a pickup truck carrying members of a local militia known as the Koglweogo. Others set fire to tires and threw rocks at security forces, as well as journalists.

Maman Flora Pascalina is a Burkinabe blogger and activist who goes by the nickname Flo Flo. She said she supports the FDS, the Burkinabe security forces, and therefore Saturday’s protests against the government.

Flo Flo said her heart aches for her people who are dying before her eyes. She can’t stand it, she says. “I’ve thrown myself into this and I fight, night and day for the Burkinabe people, for the FDS,” she added.

Protests against French military intervention in Burkina Faso have also taken place in the last ten days. Demonstrators blocked a French convoy traveling through the country, claiming the soldiers were aiding terrorists.

Many Burkinabes believe in conspiracy theories like this, spread over social media.

Starting November 20, the government shut down mobile internet for eight days, in part to stop the spread of misinformation, but also to suppress protests.

The government came under pressure from lawmakers about its handling of security and the internet shutdown at a special session of the national assembly on Friday. The defense minister, Aime Simpore, voiced support for the shutdown.

He said, “Regretfully, some uses of social networks compromise national security and contribute to the weakening of our country to the point of making it vulnerable.”

Analysts say the threat of protests may force the government to make concessions.

“There’s some sense politically that there was a need to concede something to some of these demands.”

More demonstrations are scheduled for the 10th and 11th of December.

Source: Voice of America

Botswana's government has lost a bid to overturn a 2019 court ruling that decriminalized same-sex relations. Human rights groups have welcomed the decision, saying it opens the door to challenge what they say are other discriminatory laws in Botswana.

The five judges on Botswana’s Court of Appeal were unanimous in upholding the June 2019 landmark decision which recognized homosexuality.

Court of Appeal president Ian Kirby said criminalizing same-sex activities violates the constitutional right of lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender persons.

He said the offending sections of the penal code have outlived their usefulness and only serve to encourage law enforcement agents to become keyhole peepers and intrude into the private space of citizens.

The government wanted the 2019 court ruling overturned, arguing that the majority of people in the country did not agree with it.

Representing the LGBTQ community, lawyer Tshiamo Rantao said the matter has been finally laid to rest.

“It is indeed a great victory for the nation, for the lovers of human rights, for my clients. It is a decision of the highest court that will reverberate around the world. It did not have its impact [only] in Botswana but all over the world because the issues before the court were not just local but universal issues. It is a victory that will live with us as a nation for many, many years to come,” said the lawyer.

Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals of Botswana (or LEGABIBO) chief executive Thato Moruti said the development will add impetus to advocacy on human rights issues.

"What is quite interesting and evident is that Botswana needs to realize even more the importance of adhering or understanding human rights first. Specifically to today’s judgment, I am quite excited because I believe this judgement has not only challenged us as a people in Botswana, but has also challenged leadership from an engagement perspective, and even from a policy standpoint,” said Moruti.

Moruti said the judgement will spur them to challenge what they say are other discriminatory sections of Botswana’s laws.

“We are continuing with the war. From an organization standpoint, there are legislations or litigations opportunities that we have identified and we are working around the clock to ensure that after this we look at what is next," said Moruti.

The Southern African Litigation Center executive director, Anna Mmolai-Chalmers, said the court victory is not just for the LGBTQ community, but all vulnerable groups.

"What it [the judgement] does as well is, [it has] given the activists the tool to talk to the public to change public opinion, to talk to traditional and religious leaders. There are a lot of human rights clauses that also talk to persons with disabilities, to use the case, because it is not just for LGBTQ, it’s for a whole vulnerable community," she said.

Under the previous law, those caught engaging in same-sex activities faced up to seven years in imprisonment.

Homosexuality remains forbidden in most African countries.

Source: Voice of America

From navigating shopping centers to government offices, South Africa’s “little people” say public spaces aren’t designed to be accessible for them. One advocacy group in Johannesburg is calling for better support to help them live independently.

“Different,” “abnormal” and “very small.”

Those are just some of the words Olivia Radebe — who was born with a condition that restricted her growth — says have been used to describe her.

The 27-year-old writer says her late grandmother encouraged her to persevere with her studies and with living independently — and she has. But Radebe says she still faces practical challenges navigating life in Johannesburg.

“You cannot ask help and not pay someone, you know. … Because I’m not on a permanent job and also the money that I get from the government is not enough to sustain me to that certain level whether I can afford to pay everyone and anyone, like it’s a bit of a challenge. So, in other words, I have to beg someone to help me,” Radebe said.

There are hundreds of causes for restricted growth — the most common being achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism that results in short arms and legs. Radebe was never diagnosed as a child.

Now, she says it would be too costly to go to a private specialist to find out. Radebe says she sometimes wonders what her underlying health issue is.

“Because at a later stage, I might be having other complications. … So, if I was diagnosed earlier, maybe I would have known that, okay, fine, in 10 years’ time, I should expect this, I should live like this. There are certain things that I need to avoid in order for me to [have] a long life,” Radebe said.

Specialized health care isn’t evenly available across the country. Parents have to look to big cities like Cape Town and Johannesburg to find the best resources for their children who show signs of restricted growth.

Rachelle Petersen, a member of Little People South Africa, has a son with achondroplasia.

“Our hospitals in areas, like impoverished areas, where there’s a day hospital. So, a parent will go and take the child but the nurses, the doctors are not aware of the condition that the child has,” Petersen said.

Raising awareness about people with dwarfism is one of the main reasons why Piet Nel established the non-profit Short Statured Persons South Africa.

“We can share ideas and come together and also that the public can know what we are about,” Nel said.

The 57-year-old says he has struggled with accessibility and discrimination throughout his life. Nel says the organization gives people like him more power to advocate for themselves and their unique needs.

“That’s why they say, ‘Nothing about us without us.’ You can’t do for us; we must talk for ourselves. Like I say, we must stand together and fight for our rights,” Nel said.

And the country, he added, is starting to listen. Nel’s group met with South Africa’s social development minister to discuss their health and reproductive needs that go unaddressed. He hopes it will be the first step toward bringing more support within their reach.

Source: Voice of America