wfn.org | All Africa News Agency April 7 2003 (c)

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

AANA BULLETIN No. 13/03 April 7, 2003  (c)

ALL AFRICA NEWS AGENCY
P. O Box, 66878, 00800 Westlands, NAIROBI, Kenya.  Tel: 254-2-4442215,
4440224
Fax: 254-2-4445847, 4443241; Email: aanaapta@insightkenya.com , 
aanaapta@hotmail.com

AANA Bulletin	 - Acting  Editor -Elly Wamari
Bulletin APTA - Acting Editor - Silvie Alemba

Material contained in the AANA Bulletin may be reproduced with
acknowledgement

FEATURES

Untold Miseries Of Children Orphaned By AIDS

Cases of exploitation of orphans are on the increase in Botswana, a 
phenomenon once unheard of in the Batswana society. But the HIV/AIDS 
pandemic has impacted negatively on the diamond rich economy, totally 
dismantling the cultural practice of extended families caring for orphaned 
children, reports AANA Correspondent Rodrick Mukumbira.

A  Gaborone-based women's rights organisation, Emang Basadi, reports that 
in 2002 alone, 100 cases of relatives forcefully grabbing property left by 
deceased parents reached the Social Welfare Department.

Statistics released by UNAIDS this year, indicate that 39 percent of adults 
aged between 15 and 49, accounting for a third of the country's 1.6 million 
people, are living with HIV/AIDS. Around 15 percent of all children are 
orphans, out of which 70 percent are those put in that situation by AIDS.

With these statistics, the exposed cases of harassment of orphaned children 
are just a tip of the iceberg, reports Emang Basadi.

"This is quite a new phenomenon," Peter Tshukudu, Emang Basadi's 
information officer, says, pointing out that Batswana have always before 
been protective of orphans.

"When parents die of HIV/AIDS, in our culture, it is the duty of the 
extended family to care for the children left behind. Within our 
traditional society, there is a certain standard of care that is expected, 
but people are no longer willing to do this," he states.

Tshukudu says that since independence from Britain in 1965, Batswana have 
always been conscious of children's rights, with regards to death of parents.

Speaking at a launch of a regional orphan-care initiative early this year, 
Botswana's Land and Housing Minister, Margaret Nasha, said that relatives 
often tried to take over homes of deceased parents, as well as their cars 
and bank accounts.

"The care they (orphaned children) receive is unacceptable, and most of the 
time the family members use these children to benefit from government 
orphan packages," says Tshukudu.

The government distributes food subsidies to children orphaned by AIDS, and 
is now working on registering them to ensure they get shelter and basic 
supplies.

Thebogo Nchindo (17), says he returned from school last September to find 
that an uncle had moved all his late parent's property, sold the house and 
disappeared, rendering him and his two siblings aged 12 and eight years, 
homeless.

"He had acted as our guardian after our parents succumbed to illness in 
October 2001," he told a hearing at Social Welfare Department this 
year.  "He did not leave a contact address. We have been reduced to 
paupers, yet our parents left us well covered until we finished school," he 
complained.

Other orphaned children who have sought help from the welfare department 
speak of how relatives made them receive food packs from the government, 
which they were later deprived of.

Naledi Sechele (15), narrates how she would wake up early in the morning to 
queue for government handouts every end of the month, which only her aunt 
enjoyed with her children.

"From the queues I would be told to first sell fries, before I was given 
food," she says.

Social workers have also been enlisted to speak to HIV-positive patients 
before they die, to make proper arrangements for their children, says 
Pelonomi Letshwiti, a social worker with Childline Botswana, a 
non-governmental organisation.

"We get a lot of cases of property-grabbing, which family members divide 
among themselves and leave the children with nothing," Letshwiti says.

"You find [situations where] parents have been productive and have left 
assets for the children, but immediately after their (the parents) deaths, 
relatives squander everything. Those that are left without anything are 
used for [obtaining] food rations," she adds.

Apart from having their property grabbed and undergoing various forms of 
exploitation, orphaned children are also the first to be denied education 
when extended families cannot afford to educate all the children in the 
household.

"They are sent to school very late and receive very little, if any 
attention," Tshukudu of Emang Basadi says.

Emang Basadi has conducted research into the treatment of AIDS orphans.  It 
is also involved in settling these disputes, together with the Social 
Welfare Department,

"First we try and negotiate with all the parties involved. If this does not 
help, we take it to court. What usually happens is that if a child is still 
a minor, the court appoints a guardian and orders them to keep receipts and 
a proper account of how they use the assets in caring for the child," 
Tshukudu says.

According to Tshukudu, care for children orphaned by AIDS needs to be 
"properly managed", as the government encourages communities to provide the 
care, and to rely on institutional assistance only as a last resort.

"The state process is slow, they don't have the capacity to investigate all 
these cases. We need to mobilise communities and go back to the traditional 
way of taking care of orphans," he says.

While the government has called on communities to help in the upbringing of 
orphaned children, Tshukudu feels there is need for countrywide awareness 
programme, to educate people on orphans guardianship.

According to him, there is also need to put up mechanisms to protect 
orphans from relatives who could be after property of the deceased.

He stresses the need to involve police and law courts in solving disputes 
involving deceased property, instead of relying on the Social Welfare 
Department and non-governmental organisations

Efforts by the government to harness the situation by reducing HIV/AIDS 
deaths seem to be hitting a snag. Gaborone introduced anti-retroviral 
therapy last January. The Health Ministry says of the 3,500 that have been 
on the therapy, 560 have so far died.

Tuelo Mphele, the country's anti retroviral therapy co-ordinator attributes 
the deaths to people going to hospitals when it is already to late.

"People still have faith in traditional medicine and by the time they come 
to hospitals, they would be literally dead," she says.

Reflections Of Religious Leaders Over War On Iraq

As war machines roar in Iraq deserts, religious leaders in Kenya are 
getting anxious. Even though they are over 4000 kilometres away, the 
leaders fear that the crisis could trigger off more terrorist attacks, 
erode Christian-Muslim relationship, and impact negatively on the economy, 
reports Muuana Wamuli.

Religious leaders across the world have continued to condemn the war 
against Iraq. Images of little children, elderly men clutching on babies, 
and women running away from smoking tanks and cannons, have only confirmed 
their earlier warning that civilian populations in Iraq would suffer.

 From Durban to Lagos, across the Pacific to the Mediterranean, and in 
villages, church elders have spoken with one voice, disapproving the war as 
evil.

The Vatican, the highest  seat of the Catholic Church, has since made a 
fresh appeal for peace, with Pope John Paul II saying that his heart was 
"oppressed by the war."

World Council of Churches (WCC) has also described the war as "illegal, 
immoral and ill -advised." The WCC Secretary General Dr. Konrad Raiser 
expressed "profound sorrow" at the war through statements.

And standing over 4,000 kilometres away from Iraq, religious leaders in 
Kenya are equally agitated by the on-going war.

Aware of the country's fragile economy, they have expressed fears that the 
crisis will impact negatively on tourism, one of the country's largest 
foreign exchange earner.

They are also concerned that in the long run, there would be a scarcity of 
crude oil and the demand for oil products would push up inflation.  This, 
they say, would also affect their church activities.

But the worst fear is that the war, in spite of the fact that it has 
nothing to do with religion, may cause collision between Muslims and 
Christians.

The leaders are also not ruling out a spate of terrorist attacks as some 
fanatics venture into "revenge" missions.

At the peak of tension last month, top church leaders in the country urged 
the United States of America (US) to exercise restraint, and avoid war with 
Iraq.

"The church wants peaceful solution to the Iraq crisis. It does not want to 
see bloodshed. It is wrong for us to go for war when we have peaceful 
options of solving the conflict," Anglican Archbishop, Most Rev. Benjamin 
Nzimbi, had then said.

He added: "America has the power and the weapons and it appears Bush has 
resolved to go to war. We urge United Nations to do what it can to avert 
the war."

But that was not to be heeded, for soon after, they could only watch 
helplessly as American and British war machines rolled across the desert 
into Iraq.

Holding similar views is Catholic Father, Emmanuel Ngugi, the priest in 
charge of Holy Family Basilica in Nairobi.

He says that even though the American government was still hungry for 
revenge over the September 11 attacks, it could have solved the present 
crisis through peaceful means.

"Terrorism at all costs is bad, and any kind should be stopped.  We achieve 
little by seeking revenge. The world should listen to the UN's non-violent 
approach." says Fr. Ngugi.

He goes on: "It looks to me that there is more to the Iraq war than just 
disarming the country. It looks as though it is being driven by economic 
interest on oil."

Reaffirming the Catholic stand on the matter, Archbishop of Mombasa, John 
Njenga, had warned just before war broke out, that it would spell disaster 
to world peace. The archbishop had said the Church advocated a non-violent 
resolution to conflicts.

"We advocate for the plea sent out by his Holy Father, issued during Ash 
Wednesday (March 5). War in the Middle East would have serious 
repercussions on the entire world," he said then.

British and the US governments have already warned their citizens against 
travelling to East Africa over possible terrorist attacks in the region. 
The Kenya government has however, maintained that the country is not under 
any particular threat.

"There is heightened terrorism around the world. I do not believe we are in 
any particular danger," said Christopher Murungaru, the Minister in charge 
of national security.

Observers say that terrorists may strike western interests in other places, 
as America and Britain continue to strike Iraq.

Kenya is said to be vulnerable to terrorists since it neighbours Somalia, a 
state with no formal authority, and where terror cells are believed to exist.

"If Kenya was to support an attack on Iraq, it is likely that terrorists 
seeking revenge will go after American interests world-wide, including 
those in Kenya," Sheikh Ali Shee, the chairman of the Imams Council in 
Kenya says.

The country has suffered two terrorist attacks in the recent years. An 
attack on US embassy in Nairobi in 1998 left 220 people, mainly Kenyans, 
dead, and another 5,000 injured.

An Israeli-owned tourist hotel known as Paradise, at the coastal town of 
Mombasa,was hit last November.	Fifteen people died and another 80 got
injured.

Muslims in the country say they feel the attack on Iraq is unjustified and 
is being propelled by hidden agenda. "The war will have serious 
ramifications on a poor country like ours," Sheikh Shee says.

Executive director of Muslims for Human Rights (Muhuri), Khelef Khalifa, 
says the attack on Iraq without a UN mandate has set a bad precedent on 
world peace.

He had earlier warned that, if US assault on Iraq went on without a UN 
mandate, it would open room for military powers to stage attacks on weaker 
countries.

According to him, the war may create instability in the Middle East, a 
situation that might affect many world economies, especially those in Africa.

Govt Faces Strong Opposition To Privatisation Policy

Malawians have launched a campaign against moves by the government to 
privatise the sole state corporation responsible for distribution and 
marketing of agricultural produce.  Through civil society groups, they have 
expressed fear that the move would threaten an already shaky food security 
situation in the country, and might endanger availability of maize, their 
staple food, reports AANA Correspondent Hobbs Gama.

Malawi is among southern African countries hard-hit by hunger.	Factors 
blamed for this include erratic weather, low investment in the agricultural 
sector, and poor food security policies, worsened by unfavourable donor 
conditionalities.

Last year, 500 people were reported to have died as a result of 
famine.  Seventy percent of the population faced starvation.

The country had a 600,000 metric tonnes of cereal deficit, and is now 
importing up to 250,000 metric tonnes, mostly from South Africa.

Currently, the government of Malawi is undertaking privatisation of its 
loss-making entities as recommended by the International Monetary Fund 
(IMF) and other western donors.

Since its launch in 1996, the privatisation process has already had adverse 
impact, evident in massive job losses, skyrocketing prices of goods and 
services, and scarcity of some basic commodities.

The programme is now confronted with strong opposition.  Plans to privatise 
State-run Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (ADMARC), the 
sole distributor and marketer of all agricultural produce, have raise some 
eyebrows.

Malawi's Privatisation Commission (PC) has made attempts to convince 
critics, saying the parastatal, which markets subsidised maize (staple food 
for the 10 million Malawians), was making huge losses and burdening 
government's budget through subventions.

The commission also cites its poor performance, which it says, could be 
improved if the parastatal was commercialised towards privatisation.

The country's civil society, through 18 organisations, have formed a task 
force to block the sale of ADMARC, charging that the government had a 
social responsibility to feed its people and guard against transferring 
maize distribution into private hands.

World Vision International, Consumers Association of Malawi (CAMA), the 
Malawi Congress of Trade Unions (MCTU) and Churches Action in Relief 
Development (CARD), are some of the organisations.  They are supported by 
British-owned Oxfam, a non-governmental organisation.

The task force argues that the moment ADMARC goes into private hands, 
interests of disadvantaged people, especially in remote rural areas, will 
be overshadowed by profit-driven managers.

It also warns that private traders might not be interested in venturing 
into rural areas, for fear of lack of good business, which would result in 
food deficits to the rural poor, who make up over 80 percent of the
population.

The task force commissioned Dr Khwima Nthara, an economics consultant with 
the University of Malawi, to determine the impact of privatisation, prior 
to setting resolutions to counter the move.

"It would be folly to rush for wholesale privatisation," notes Dr Nthara, 
adding that there was need to strike a balance.

"We recommend that ADMARC should not be privatised. Instead, it should 
operate as a commercial entity under the current status of a statutory 
corporation," he asserts.

Oxfam programme representative, Nellie Nyang'wa, says the speedy 
privatisation will disadvantage the poor.

She reasons that privatisation of ADMARC would pose a food security threat. 
"Oxfam is therefore protecting the underprivileged from private traders 
manipulation of the price of maize, should subsidies be removed," she says.

"The basis of taking maize as a commercial product is not understandable. 
The issue of ADMARC is therefore central to the lives of the people of 
Malawi," Nyang'wa emphasises.

She joins the list of other stakeholders who blame the West for imposing 
privatisation on other countries, while protecting their own generously 
subsidised farmers and agricultural sector.

Reports from neighbouring Zambia, where the state is also set to shed off 
its grain-handling parastatal, indicate strong opposition from activists, 
who have termed the plan as "immoral".

Zambia is among Mozambique, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Lesotho, as 
countries facing food crisis.

A report released by Dr Nthara, titled	What Needs to be Done to Improve 
the Impact of ADMARC on the Poor, proposes checking of political influence 
on the board of directors of ADMARC, which it claims, was behind the poor 
performance of the corporation.

As a tentative programme, Malawi government once granted private businesses 
mandate to embark on maize distribution.

But it did not take long before people complained of exorbitant prices, and 
lack of the commodity in many rural parts.

Senior government officials, including cabinet ministers, used their 
influence to purchase large quantities of the cereal, which they hoarded 
for several months.

This prompted the government to rescind its decision, passing back the 
responsibility to ADMARC, while deliberating on its privatisation.

The development also affected the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA), 
which was implicated together with ADMARC, when managers from both 
organisations were accused by the official Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of 
indulging in maize rackets.

Henry Gaga, NFRA general manager was relieved of his job, pending more 
investigations, after former agriculture minister, Leonard Mangulama, was 
dropped from cabinet for the same scandal.

Incumbent finance minister, Friday Jumbe who is former ADMARC general 
manager, is also being probed by the ACB, following allegations of abuse of 
office while at the corporation.