IPS Inter Press Service - AfricaIPS Africa provides news features and analyses on the events and processes affecting political, economic and social development of people and nations in Africa. In directing this coverage, emphasis is put on not only hearing the voices of those in positions of power and formal authority, but more on providing access for actors in civil society and the majority of the people whose voices have often been silent in the media.RIGHTS-KENYA : Doubly Displaced- (Found June 29, 2008 ) NAIROBI, Jun 28 (IPS) - The Kenyan government says Operation Rudi Nyumbani -- Return Home in Kiswahili -- is almost complete; most of the camps for internally displaced people are closed and the remaining IDPs will be resettled within a week or two. But the hastily implemented programme is being called into question by Kenya's civil society and human rights activists.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43007 SUDAN: Cracks In North-South Peace Deal- (Found June 29, 2008 ) JUBA, Jun 23 (IPS) - Nyandeng Akot rushed out of the rude shelter of thatch and plastic sheeting pinned against the side of a tree with sticks. Grabbing a passing aid worker&39;s arm, she said she has nothing except the four children that she grabbed when she began running from renewed fighting in Sudan&39;s Abyei area a month ago.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42941 POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Knockout or Standing Eight for Democracy- (Found June 29, 2008 ) HARARE, Jun 24 (IPS) - The decision this week by Zimbabwe&39;s opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party to pull out of Friday&39;s presidential run off election will not have surprised many people in Zimbabwe. A growing chorus of doubt regarding the legitimacy of the poll has been raised, which came amid mounting political violence in the country.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42942 DEVELOPMENT: Mobile Phones Soar in Internet-Starved Africa- (Found June 29, 2008 ) UNITED NATIONS, Jun 24 (IPS) - The beleaguered African continent continues to lag far behind the rest of the world in battling poverty, hunger and HIVAIDS, but it is making dramatic progress in the field of information and communications technologies (ICTs).http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42944 POLITICS: U.S. Steps Up Pressure on Zimbabwe- (Found June 29, 2008 ) WASHINGTON, Jun 24 (IPS) - U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe James McGee issued a veiled warning Tuesday that if the Mugabe government goes forward with its planned Friday electoral run-off -- in the absence of an opposition candidate -- the U.S. will view the resulting government as illegitimate and take the "expected" steps.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42946 POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: Media Blackout for Female Candidates- (Found June 29, 2008 ) BULAWAYO, Jun 24 (IPS) - For activists campaigning to put more women into Africa&39;s parliaments, the media has become a key battleground. All too often, female candidates are sidelined in election coverage, or reported on in a way that entrenches stereotypes of women rather than analysing the strength of their political and economic policies.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42948 DEVELOPMENT-GHANA: No Place to Lay Their Heads- (Found June 29, 2008 ) ACCRA, Jun 25 (IPS) - Agbogbloshie Market is a vibrant market in the heart of Accra, Ghana&39;s capital, where one can buy almost anything. But the market is also the stage for a sad tale of many who gain nothing from the commercial bustle: hundreds of young girls from the northern part of the country who work as porters in Accra&39;s markets.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42963 ECONOMY-AFRICA: Russian Tourist Market Ripe For the Picking- (Found June 29, 2008 ) MOSCOW, Jun 26 (IPS) - The number of Russian tourists visiting African destinations is steadily increasing due to rising incomes and the desire to have uncommon wildlife experiences, according to travel agencies.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42974 DEATH PENALTY-GHANA: Public Lets Execution Call Pass- (Found June 29, 2008 ) ACCRA, Jun 26 (IPS) - A senior Ghanaian justice department official has expressed surprise that the government has failed to ban capital punishment, implicitly censuring lawmakers for their recent endorsement of two new pro-death penalty judges to the Supreme Court.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42975 HEALTH-KENYA: Malaria Rises to Highland Areas- (Found June 29, 2008 ) NAIROBI, Jun 26 (IPS) - The end of June marks the start of the malaria season in East Africa. After the long rains, conditions in lowland swamps and coastal regions are more conducive for mosquito breeding. But in recent years malaria has also appeared in the highland areas where it was previously unheard of.http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42976 |