Global arms suppliers must halt the transfer of small arms, ammunition and other repressive equipment to the Egyptian military and security forces, Amnesty International said after the army again violently dispersed protests in Cairo. The organisation condemned the excessive use of force against protesters and called for a cessation of all transfers of small arms, light weapons and related munitions and equipment to Egypt, as well as a halt to all internal security equipment that could be used to violently suppress human rights, such as tear gas, rubber and plastic bullets and armoured vehicles.

At least 43 journalists were killed around the world in direct relation to their work in 2011, with the seven deaths in Pakistan marking the heaviest losses in a single nation. Libya and Iraq, each with five fatalities, and Mexico, with three deaths, also ranked high worldwide for journalism-related fatalities. The global tally is consistent with the toll recorded in 2010, when 44 journalists died in connection with their work

The Global Campaign 'Violence Is Not Our Culture' has launched a new website, with a variety of new features aimed at making it a hub of information and knowledge on gender based discrimination and violence. 'We want this site to be informative, attractive, and easy to use for readers around the world so that it can stand as a resource to advocates, reporters, and decision-makers, as well as to the general public.'

Rising prices and inflation in Kenya prompted the creation of a movement led by a grassroots civil society group, Bunge la Mwananchi, or The People's Parliament. It staged demonstrations throughout the year to pressurise the Kenyan government to bring down the price of unga, or maize flour. IRIN's latest film, 'Kenya's Unga Revolution', follows one of Bunge la Mwananchi's activists, Emily Kwamboka, as she takes to the streets to demand change in the lives of ordinary Kenyans.

In this week's edition of the Emerging Powers News Round-Up, read a comprehensive list of news stories and opinion pieces related to China, India and other emerging powers...

Clinics and specially trained police units work in conjunction in Zimbabwe to provide medical and legal assistance to rape victims, following a protocol that eventually leads to the justice system. But many victims say that although they make sure to seek medical attention at clinics, they refuse to report the incidences to the police for reasons ranging from fear their family members will find out to a lack of faith in the legal and justice systems.

While over one million refugees suffered under tents following the 12 January 2010, earthquake, 128 newly constructed homes, finished in May 2010, sat empty for 15 months. Today, the majority of these 'social housing' units are occupied, but mostly by illegal squatters who broke in by smashing windows and doors. 'The houses have been finished for almost two years, but they have never been officially delivered,' Jean Robert Charles, one of Cité Soleil’s assistant mayors told Haiti Grassroots Watch (HGW).

Firoze Manji, editor-in-chief of Pambazuka News and publisher of Pambazuka Press, celebrates half a century of Tanzanian Independence with a reflection on the life of Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the first president of Tanzania. 'Nyerere was not simply a player on the national terrain. He was a pan-Africanist and an internationalist - not only in thought and writing, but crucially in his praxis. The support and refuge that Tanzania provided to the liberation movements was unprecedented. His commitment to welcoming and integrating refugees into Tanazanian life was extraordinary. And his willingness to speak out loud against injustices across the world, including Palestine, marks him out from the many so-called leaders who have come to be known more for their betrayal than any commitment to political principles.'

Unemployed young Moroccan graduates hope that once new Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane assembles his government within the next few days, their situation may finally begin to improve. In its electoral platform, the Justice and Development Party (PJD) vowed to reduce unemployment by 2 per cent and to give 100,000 grants to unemployed young people to support them through training courses. The PJD has proposed to introduce jobseekers' allowance and to raise the minimum wage to 3,000 dirhams.

Egyptian clashes entered its fifth day in central Cairo as military leaders struggled to contain a new challenge to its rule, which continues to be dogged by images of savage attacks on protesters. Egyptian health ministry officials announced that 12 people had died and around 500 were injured in the latest round of clashes, which began on Friday when the military - previously seen as custodians of the January revolution - stormed into crowds of demonstrators, swinging clubs and sticks and firing live rounds.

Efforts to integrate and modernise traditional medicines in the country have taken an upward turn with the National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) gearing for mass production of its newly-developed remedies. According to NIMR’s director for research coordination and promotion, Dr Julius Massaga, the agency is about to forward its own developed drugs for approval.

'It is very dangerous for the poor to think that the law will provide all the answers to political questions. It is very dangerous for people to think that they can stop struggling because now they have a lawyer. It is very dangerous for people to allow lawyers to decide for them instead of with them. It can also be very dangerous for the legal system and lawyers to think that law on its own can advance all socio-economic rights of the poor without the organised struggle of the working class, the poor, women, people born in other countries, LGBTI people, people living with AIDS and all other oppressed groups. Victories in court are not always victories in reality. It takes sustained mass based organisation to turn a legal victory into a real victory.'

The journal 'Stichproben. Wiener Zeitschrift für kritische Afrikastudien/Vienna Journal of African Studies' is preparing a special issue on human rights in Africa to appear in fall/winter 2012 (Stichproben No 23/2012) and invites anyone interested in contributing an article, a research note, or a book review to submit proposals by 31st of December, 2011 to the editors of the volume.

Africa-UK is a national programme bringing together members of the African diaspora in the UK to work towards the continent's development. It promotes diaspora activism to ignite, debate and drive positive change through events and training sessions. Topic under discussion include:
- The contribution of the African Diaspora to their countries of origin.
- Engagement with UK development policy.
- Remittances.
- Social investment.
- Volunteering.
- Fundraising.
- Health.
To find out more visit the website:

While most nations are dependent to some extent on the world’s 214 million migrants for skills and labour, few ensure these migrants have access to their health systems, something that could have dire public health consequences, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Describing migrants’ lack of access to health services as 'one of the biggest challenges facing global health today', IOM marked International Migrants Day on 18 December by calling for more migrant-inclusive health policies.

'The magnitude of African capital flight is staggering both in absolute monetary values and relative to GDP. For the thirty-three sub-Saharan African countries for which we have data, we find that more than $700 billion fled the continent between 1970 and 2008. If this capital was invested abroad and earned interest at the going market rates, the accumulated capital loss for these countries over the thirty-nine-year period was $944 billion. By comparison, total GDP for all of sub-Saharan Africa in 2008 stood at $997 billion.' This means, L. Ndikumana and J. Boyce, in their new book 'Africa's Odious Debts', that the rest of the world owes more to these African countries than they owe to the rest of the world. This suggests that Africa could expunge its entire stock of foreign debt if it could recover only a fraction of the wealth held by Africans in foreign financial centres around the world. The latest edition of the Africa Focus Bulletin contains extracts from the book.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has minced no words but directed the Malawi government to institute a liberalised exchange rate regime as a way to manage the overvauled local currency, the Kwacha. This is contained in a report titled ‘Liberalization of the foreign exchange regime for current account transactions and exchange rate flexibility’ on Malawi by IMF’s Mission chiefs Etibar Jafarov, Nadia Rendak and Kelly Eckhold with Morten Jonassen Norges Bank.

The Republic of South Sudan (RoSS) is going through a major displacement crisis. The country is playing host to tens of thousands of refugees who fled fighting in Sudan’s Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile States. In addition to this, hundreds of thousands of people are displaced due to violence within South Sudan itself. The country also has to contend with a large influx of southerners returning from northern cities. This crisis could soon become overwhelming for the world’s newest country – a country already struggling to deliver security and basic services to its citizens.

Pointing to a scarred bald patch above his ear, Lise Dide shows where shrapnel grazed his head when his village in Sudan's Blue Nile state was hit in an air strike. 'The plane came when I was asleep. I was still in my bed, I did not hear the sound,' he said in South Sudan's Doro refugee camp, set up just three weeks ago some 40 km (25 miles) from the Sudanese border. Dide is one of more than 80,000 Sudanese that have sought refuge in South Sudan from clashes between government forces and insurgents on the northern side of the poorly-marked and tense border, according to the United Nations.

On Friday, 9 December, OUT, represented by Webber Wentzel Attorneys, was successfully admitted as amicus curiae in the sentencing phase of a hate crimes trial in the Germiston Magistrates Court. The success of OUT’s application is ground breaking on at least two fronts, firstly OUT is the first organisation to be successfully admitted as amicus curiae in a criminal trial in the magistrates courts; and secondly, this is the first time an Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender (LGBT) rights organisation will be leading expert evidence to ensure that sentencing in homophobia-motivated crimes takes into account the hate element in the commissioning of these crimes.