http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/447/58608_barefoot_students_tm… is the engine of freedom, Roland Bankole Marke tells Pambazuka News, but with Sierra Leone’s public schools in a state of decay, the country’s poorest children are unlikely to break their way out of a life of deprivation. Given the lifestyles of politicians and their cronies, writes Bankole, the argument that the ‘government has no money to fund education in this donor driven economy, is bogus’. ‘If education is cumbersome or expensive,’ says Bankole, ‘who wants to try ignorance?’

Responding to an article by that calls for former president Daniel arap Moi to be ‘arrested and prosecuted’, Arap Rotich says the roots of the Kenya’s ‘diverse and divisive’ problems lie deeper in the country’s history.

The death of Nigerian human rights lawyer and social justice activist Gani Fawehinmi, continued political violence in Zimbabwe, the deportation of African workers from Israel, and a rallying call for South Africa’s men to start speaking out against rape are among the stories covered in Sokari Ekine’s fortnightly round-up of the African blogosphere.

Dani Wadada Nabudere's 'The Crash of International Finance-Capital and its Implications for the Third World' is now available from when placing your order.

'The Crash' was first published in 1989 in the wake of the 1987 'Black Monday' financial crash. In this new edition featuring both the original and new chapters, Nabudere provides an updated analysis of the 2007–08 international financial crisis and draws out the likely implications for the Third World, a perspective that has received little attention elsewhere.

The following is an extract from the first chapter of the 1989 original in which Nabudere discusses the history of commodity production and the self-serving efforts of bourgeois capitalists to obscure the true function of money.

Sokari Ekine recently Abahlali baseMjondolo, Mnikelo Ndabankulu, a founding member and spokesperson, and Zodwa Nsibande, the general secretary of the Abahlali Youth League. In their interview they were joined by David Ntseng of the Church Land Programme, an NGO based in KwaZulu-Natal province which works on land rights issues. They discuss a range of issues from movement building and successes and the 2008 'Slums Act', to the decision not to vote in national elections and combating xenophobia in South Africa.

With much of Africa facing an effective re-colonisation in the wake of the global financial crisis, William Gumede underlines the importance of ever increasing cooperation and trade between African countries. As forces to the east and west alike plunder the continent's mineral wealth, it remains the task of African countries themselves to develop a continental common market and political union based on sound democratic foundations, Gumede concludes.

The recent death of Senator Edward Kennedy marked the end of the long dynasty of the Kennedys, who were not only prominent in domestic US politics but also on the world stage. In this week's Pambazuka News, John Otim reflects upon the relationship that Africa had with the Kennedys. Arguing that much has changed since the decolonisation process and the subsequent Cold War, and most importantly with Africa’s relationship to the US, Otim writes that Africans will mourn the death of a figure who recalled a 'glimmer of hope in a still colonial world'.

Freedom of expression is one of the main pillars of democracy, argues the Africa Free Media Trust (AFMT) in this week's Pambazuka News. Although freedom of the press and expression are theoretically guaranteed in Kenya, AFMT stresses that the reality is different and indeed wonders whether the country is reverting back to the old days under President Daniel arap Moi. The existence of multiparty elections and the right to speak out should not be taken for granted, AFMT concludes, and Kenya must not allow freedom of expression to be jeopardised any further.

Appealing to the UN secretary general, Isaac Newton Kinity makes the case for former Kenyan president Daniel arap Moi to be tried at the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the use of thousands of imported poison arrows in the 1991 killings of 800 pro-democracy activists.

Chased Chased by bullets In fumigated environment
Instinctually they run
Without a shelter.
Not knowing
What is ahead In that dark world.

My boys
Where are you running
Without knowing
What is ahead?
My boys
Do not be deceived
You can not
Outrun the bullets.

One of them uttered,
I run
To grow up somewhere,
With the hope
To return and pay back
With a barrel of a gun.

My boys If I take you out
From the fumigated environment
Which is full of hate and deceit,
Would you have a heart
To forgive and
A mind to forget?

One of them uttered,
I am that boy
Chased by a bullet
No doubt.
It is a promise not to forget,
But to pay them back. Here is my plea to the almighty,
To intervene and have mercy,
To stop such madness
Without divine interference.
The cycle continues In the name of nationalities
And boundaries.

An African group participating in the two-day informal ministerial meeting in New Delhi has stated that a rapid conclusion to the Doha world trade talks should not come at the cost of developing countries’ concerns. “We should not lose sight of the development aspects for the round which ensure the integration of African and developing countries, particularly the least developed countries, in a fair multilateral trading system”, said Rachid Mohamed Rachid, trade and industry minister of Egypt, which is heading the African group at the Delhi meeting of the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha Round.

Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has said he is frustrated with the unresolved disputes with President Robert Mugabe which he said were still pushing the development of the country down. Tsvangirai and Mugabe who entered into a government of national unity early this year have continued to disagree of several issues which have forced donors to fail to commit funds.

Guinea’s coup government should respect the rights of demonstrators and end intimidation and threats against those who express dissent, Human Rights Watch has said. Opposition politicians and at least one human rights activist who have criticized the presumed candidacy of the coup leader, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, for the upcoming presidential elections have been threatened in recent days.

A night-time curfew has been declared in Gabon's Port Gentil after violence by opposition activists and attacks on French interests in the city. Earlier, opposition groups clashed with security forces in the capital, Libreville, after presidential election results declared Ali Bongo the winner. France, Gabon's former ruler, has told its 10,000 citizens to stay inside.

South Africa wants long-running power sharing negotiations in Zimbabwe to move ahead more quickly, a senior member of South Africa's ruling ANC said. Thandi Modise, deputy secretary-general of the African National Congress, said her country wanted to see a recovery in Zimbabwe that would allow millions of Zimbabweans who have fled economic meltdown in their country to return home.

The International Monetary Fund has given Zimbabwe a windfall of more than US$500 million (Sh39bn) after almost a decade of financial restrictions imposed on the economically troubled country. This follows the injection of US$283 billion into the global economy to boost member countries dwindling foreign exchange reserves due to recession.

Madagascar's opposition said on Thursday the military should take the top three posts in a power-sharing government after they failed to reach an agreement with the current leader on who should have control. Andry Rajoelina, a 35-year-old former DJ who ousted former leader Marc Ravalomanana with the aid a dissident army faction in a March coup, has until now remained steadfast in demanding his party retains the presidency and post of prime minister.

The special session of the African Union's Conference on the examination and resolution of conflicts in Africa opened in Tripoli, Libya. This special session presided over by the chairman of the African Union, the Libyan Guide Mouammar Kadhafi, will examine the crisis and conflicts occurring in some parts of the continent, such as Somalia, Darfur and the Great Lakes region. Twenty-seven African heads of state attended the opening session.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has condemned what it called "Gabonese government censorship and restrictions on media coverage of the presidential election, including denial of accreditation to at least four international journalists". In a statement from its headquarters in New York, US, the CPJ said that prior to the election, Gabonese government authorities denied accreditations to international journalists from French media outlets, including international broadcaster France 24 and weekly L'Express, which were known for their probing coverage of late President Bongo's health and wealth.

Benin's main opposition political parties will field a single candidate in the 2011presidential elections, according to a protocol signed in Cotonou. The protocol said the African Movement for Democracy and Progress (MADEP), the Party for the Democratic Renewal (PRD), the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the Party of Benin's Renaissance (RB) and Key Force (FC) had decided to select a candidate for the 20 11 presidential election and future polls.