Cabinda-some background

The attack on the Toga football team as it entered Angola to take part in the African Cup of Nations has highlighted one little known area of the country and why conflict still rages in the country.

Cabinda is an enclave of Angola separated from the country's mainland by the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo. While it's a part of Angola, local rebels dispute its status, and battle for independence.

It's been part of the country since 1975 but various armed and political groups have vied for Cabinda's independence since its absorption.

At the centre of the dispute is oil of which Cabinda is home to a considerable majority of Angola's oil reserves.The rebels believe that far too much of the profits from these fields ends up in Luanda.

The group FLEC-PM (Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda - Military Position) have claimed responsibility for the attack,issuing a statement saying that

"The CAF (Confederation of African Football) was warned repeatedly that this was a country at war. They had documents explaining this, but they wouldn't heed the warnings. They must take responsibility. We are not rebels, but a military and political movement originating in Cabinda. We're not rebels, but resistance fighters. Cabinda is a territory illegally occupied by Angola, and we are fighting for its liberation..

Witches in Gambia

The Independent carries a story this morning that there is a search for witches going on in the African state of Gambia.

The paper reports that

A state-sponsored witch-hunt has begun in Gambia where as many as 1,000 people have been kidnapped from their villages and taken to "secret detention centres" then stripped, beaten and poisoned.

adding that

the campaign is the latest manifestation of the increasingly brutal and bizarre rule of President Yahya Jammeh, who has claimed he can cure people of Aids. Now the President is thought to believe he is under attack from witches.

The report comes from Amnesty International but has been quickly denied by the authorities.

President Jammeh took power in a coup 13 years ago, and claims to have outstripped the scientists and discovered a cure for HIV/AIDS. His secret concoction of seven herbs can annihilate the virus, he says, within three days.

A future legacy

Prince Charles came across in a new light on the Today programme this morning,interviewed about green issues and his concerns for the rain forest.

One of the questions he was asked was how could be interested in green issues when economic troubles are their first priority.

It is a good point and this article by Philip Emeagwali should make us realise that we must also plan for the future.Philip writes

Imagine that it is May 25, 2063, the 100th anniversary of Africa Day, a day for reflecting on Africa’s successes and failures. The newspaper headline announces, “Last Remaining Oilfield in West Africa’s American Territory Dries Up.”

....... “The last patch of rainforest will soon be empty land scarred by oil pipelines, pumping stations, and natural gas refineries. Wholesale pollution will be the environmental legacy for future generations

And continues

“Africa’s offshore oil reserves will ebb away. Abandoned oil wells could well become tourist attractions, and oil-boom settlements will be transformed into derelict ghost towns......

“In a world without oil, air travel will disappear, and people will voyage overseas on coal-powered ships. Farmers will use horses instead of tractors, and scythes instead of combine harvesters. As crops diminish and populations soar, famine will grip the globe. With no means to power their vehicles, parents will be housebound, without jobs, and children will walk to school.”

Well worth a read