Quote of the Day

We all know the end of the story as it's now being written with an overpriced rescue of the banks. When it comes time for health care reform, education funding, infrastructure rebuilding, and (heaven forbid) help for the world's poor and dying people, there will be no fiscal space. Budgets will be tight. Spending that helps make rich guys richer while leaving the poor to die of hunger and disease seems to be par for the course in our Wall-Street-besotted public policy.
--Jeff Sachs

Mining Companies Cheating Africa out of $ Millions

A new study by SARWatch says that African governments are bribing African officials to get easy access to the minerals. Or as they write:

Our analysis, drawn from research conducted in Ghana, Zambia, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Malawi, DRC and South Africa, shows that African governments are foregoing millions of dollars in tax revenue from the mining industry. This is largely because of overly generous tax concessions, usually granted discretionarily in secret mining contracts, as well as tax avoidance and illegal tax evasion practices by multinational mining companies. Fuelling these losses is a lack of transparency and oversight of the financial remittances from mining companies to government institutions, coupled with the inability of government institutionsto audit the complicated accounts of multinational mining companies.

In other news, teenage boys like looking at cute girls.

NYT: China Quitting Africa

The New York Times says that China is backing out of Africa, but goes on to give as an example the DRC:

In 2007 China announced a $9 billion deal with Congo for access to its giant trove of copper, cobalt, tin and gold in exchange for developing roads, schools, dams and railways needed to rebuild a country roughly the size of Western Europe and shattered by more than a decade of war.

But that deal is now in doubt as falling prices have left Congo in a much weaker negotiating position.

Query: Didn't Congo signal that it was about to sign that deal with China on Monday?

Tullow Oil Likely to Win Congolese Bid

From Dow Jones:

U.K.-based Tullow Oil PLC, which operates two blocks on the Ugandan side of the oil-rich Albertine Rift, is close to acquiring rights on two more blocks on the Congolese side of the rift, the company's vice president in charge of African business told Dow Jones Newswires Wednesday.

This deal will enable Tullow to develop the oil reserves from both sides of Lake Albert.

Sarkozy to Visit Congo, Irritate Congolese

From the Financial Times:

Mr Sarkozy will hold talks with Joseph Kabila, the DRC president, in Kinshasa to persuade him to back a controversial plan to put mines in the east of the vast country under some form of supranational authority, with resources shared with neighbouring Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda.

T'es pas serieux? On what conceivable grounds should the Congo "share" its resources? Their resources belong to them. Maybe they should sell rights to exploit those resources to companies of neighboring countries; maybe they should establish some mechanism to pay for transhipment fees. But on no basis should they simply share them. The idea would be too ridiculous to be insulting, were it not for the fact that Rwanda is establishing just such an arrangement right now. Sakorzy's simply give them cover.

The annexation of the Grand Sud of North Kivu continues apace.

Global Downturn Shutters Zambian Copper Belt

Excellent story in the Washington Post about how the global downturn is affecting Zambia's copper belt:

A plunge in global trade has slashed demand for the copper used to construct electronics and houses in the United States and Asia. That is prompting mines here to slow and shut, limiting tens of thousands of Zambians' access to schooling, health care and regular meals.

Obviously, the downturn will hit the DRC even harder, since the infrastructure to develop and transport copper is that much more underdeveloped.

Photo Caption: The Indian-owned Konkola Copper Mines in Zambia employs more than 12,000 people, but it plans to lay off nearly 1,100 to cut costs. The mining industry employs 10 percent of Zambia's workforce. (By Karin Brulliard -- The Washington Post)

Kamerhe Resigns

The Belgian news agency RTBF confirms that Vital Kamerhe has resigned as president of the national assembly.

"I ask you to accept my resignation without a debate or a vote," he declared, to the applause of the parliament.

Kamerhe had earlier insisted on holding a debate in full session about his resignation; there is no word on why he may have changed his mind.

Kamerhe had been under severe pressure to resign after criticizing the deal allowing Rwanda to enter Congolese territory on Radio Okapi in late January. Kamerhe represents Bukavu, one of the towns affected by the Rwandan incursion. His resignation is a sharp reversal of fortunes for Kamerhe, who as an ally of Kabila was once hailed as one of the country's leading promoters of peace.

It may also represent a serious curtailment of political space in the DRC. Yesterday, a coalition of 200 NGOs deplored the effort to dismiss Kamerhe, saying it represented a setback for democracy and human rights.

Has Kamerhe Resigned?

Rumors are beginning to come in that Vital Kamerhe has just resigned as president of the lower house of parliament.

Desperately Seeking . . . the Accord de Ihussi

Anyone know where I can find a copy of the Accord de Ihussi, the peace agreement signed by the government and the CNDP?

NGOs Defend Kamerhe

A group of local NGOs defends Vital Kamerhe and says that his dismissal as head of parliament would be a setback for democracy and human rights.

Along with our fellow citizens and international observers, we are monitoring with great apprehension the current political crisis engendered by the efforts of the AMP to force the resignation or dismissal of the president of the National Assembly. ...
This conflict has already given rise to human rights abuses by the government, such as the arbitrary arrest, on Sunday, March 15, of human rights defenders who were planning a demonstration to denounce the destabilizing actions against the parliament. ...
Contrary to the usual practice, representatives of the judiciary joined members of the government and deputies of the AMP in their decision to not attend the official opening ceremony of the parliamentary session. This absence calls into question the independence of the judiciary. The national broadcaster, RTNC, was also prevented from broadcasting the opening speeches. These incidents seem to indicate that if the AMP's efforts to force Mr. Vital Kamerhe to resign are not immediately stopped, they could create a climate conducive to the use of repression by the security forces and police. ...
In the two years of its operation, the legislative output of the current parliament has been quite remarkable. Parliament has voted for an impressive number of laws that are essential in creating an environment conducive to respect for human rights, as well as an independent judiciary and the promotion of good governance.... None of these accomplishments, however minimal they may be, would have been possible without a measure of institutional independence for parliament and without the individual freedom granted to each of its members, regardless of their political ties. Yet this very independence and freedom were directly threatened by the political action of members of the AMP against the president of the National Assembly and the parliamentary institution. ...
Several deputies have reported receiving individual threats in recent weeks, including death threats, if they do not follow the instructions given by political leaders of the AMP. Such tactics are in clear violation of the law and threaten democracy.