Michela Wrong makes a strong case for ensuring greater accountability and vigilance when giving aid to Africa. Note: she does not say to stop giving aid or stop the reduction of debt.

Interesting similarities between the US and Iran, aupposedly one of its greatest foes.

An update on the changing American mood towards Iraq.

Strong criticism of the G8's recently-announced plan to cancel debt of poor countries comes from the Guardian's George Monbiot. Here, he denounces the plan because of the "conditionalities" applied to poor countries in order to be deemed eligible to have their debt canceled. What conditions the rich G8 countries pass off as essential for poor countries to have is actually ways that poor countries have to give up control of their general affairs to foreign insititions such as the World Bank.

Some excerpts from the article:
"Never mind that much of this debt - money lent by the World Bank and IMF to corrupt dictators - should never have been pursued in the first place. Never mind that, in terms of looted resources, stolen labour and now the damage caused by climate change, the rich owe the poor far more than the poor owe the rich. Some of the poorest countries have been paying more for debt than for health or education."

"That's the theory. In truth, corruption has seldom been a barrier to foreign aid and loans: look at the money we have given, directly and through the World Bank and IMF, to Mobutu, Suharto, Marcos, Moi and every other premier-league crook."

The article is full of facts and should cause anyone who regards the G8 countries and international institutions like the World Bank as good and saintly to take a second look at them and their policies.
Especially tragic is the case of Uganda which, as the article mentions near the end, in order to qualify for World Bank funding had to undergo privatisation of its water supplies, agricultural services and its commerical bank so that the country no longer had control over its own resources. In addition, Uganda had to impose fees on schools and health services that resulted in drops in attendance and collapse of health for the poor.

Gwynne Dyer, the renowned Canadian columnist and military expert, reviews an upcoming book on Mao that will supposedly expose the notorious Chinese Communist icon and his deceitfulness and cruelty to his people.
While I've always known that Mao was responsible for millions of deaths with his Great Leap forward program and the upheaval during the Cultural Revolution, I at least thought his Long March was heroic, not him personally but those others who marched and survived.

More aid needed though as the recent cancellation of 40b in debt was praised.

Indeed as this press release from the CADTM (Committee for the Abolition of the Third World Debt) says, much more must be done to truly help the poorest nations.
They have a whole list of criticism on the debt cancellation which should be considered carefully before we burst out into exuberance for the 3rd world.
Two of the more valid criticisms: "Only 5 % of the inhabitants of Developing Countries live in these 18 countries"
and "The financial burden of the operation on rich countries would amount to some 2 billion dollars a year, compared to 350 billion the G8 devote to farming subsidies or 700 billion they spend in military expenditure" meaning that clearly the G8 can afford to increase their foreign aid as well cancel more debt.

3 articles from the UK's Independent.

Americans turn against Bush
The first time that a major poll of Americans has registered that the majority do not believe in their administration's reasons and rationales for going to war in Iraq. The article mentions that the poll's result derives also from growing dissatisfaction with Bush and his party's policies including social security, judicial nominees and the terrorism.

For all those who feel that giving aid to African countries is a tremendous waste and undeserved, read this.
Africa cheated by West

Mugabe's actions
Zimbabwean President or dictator Robert Mugabe ordered thousands of shacks destroyed in a move aimed at the main supporters of the opposition. The grip he has over his country is almost absolute and there is no indication that his country can improve while he's in charge. Poverty, unemployment and famine have increased sharply while Mugabe maintains a strong hold on power with his state security forces.
An astounding fact from the article is that only 800,000 of the population of 12 million have "formal" work.

I just visited Arianna Huffington's recently-started but attention-getting blogsite for the first time. This is an interesting post by one of the guest writers on the controversy surrounding the coup that led to then-Prime Minister J-B Arisitide's forced resignation. From his credible account of events, America played a significant role in causing Aristide's removal and "exile".

Interesting, huh. Or rather, sinister. Either way, this is just another way that the US has trampled upon the rights of people whether though unlawful invasions based on false accusations, illegal occupation of a sovereign nation, the torture and molesting of prisoners of war and now, the encouragement of "slavery" by offering large bounties for captured "fighters". Of course, these incidents regarding the round-up of thousands of alleged fighters and sending them off to Guantanamo has been going on for a while now.
Certainly with their government's gungho attitude to fighting the "War on terrorism" the military will resort to anything to get those "terrorists".

Another example of the US military's zealousness in waging war on the terrorists at any cost is the cover-up in the death of their most famous casualty in Afghanistan, former NFL player Pat Tillman.
After releasing statements implying that Tillman was killed while heroically leading his squad in an ambush by enemy fighters, subsequent investigations revealed that Tillman was actually killed by friendly fire, essentially by his own countrymen, in a case of mistaken identity between different American army squads. However instead of telling the family right away, the military delayed and merely told the family the original and false details of his death were "incomplete".
His parents have spoken out against the military, denouncing them for their cover-up of the truth.

Excerpt of his father's remarks:
"I think they thought they could control it, and they realized that their recruiting efforts were going to go to hell in a handbasket if the truth about his death got out."