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First 100 Days of Zimbabwe’s Transitional Government May 28th, 2009
On Sunday May 24, Zimbabwe marked the first 100 days of the Government of National Unity between President Robert Mugabe (ZANU-PF) and Movement for Democracy Change (MDC) under Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangairai. It has a difficult and challenging 100 days of strained relations between rival political factions in Zimbabwe.
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Congo Conflict Mineral Disclosure Act Introduced May 8th, 2009
Companies registered in the US that sell products using columbite-tantalite (also known as coltan), cassiterite or derivatives from minerals from Democratic Republic of Congo or neighboring countries will be required to annually disclose to the Securities and Exchange Commission the origin of those minerals. This provision is contained in new legislation called the Congo Conflict Mineral Act 2009 (S.891) introduced on April 23 the by Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Russ Feingold (D-WI).
The sale of minerals is linked to the funding of killings, atrocities and rapes crimes committed by armed groups in Democratic Republic of Congo. The Congo Conflict Mineral Act brings accountability and transparency to the importation and sale of mineral products from Congo by disclosure of their origin. Cassiterite, Colton and tantalite are minerals commonly used in cell phones, laptop computers and other electronic products used by millions of people in the United States and other developed countries.
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International AIDS Candlelight Memorial Day, May 17, 2009 May 4th, 2009
Mark ‘Sunday May 17′ on your calendar. A candlelight vigil will be held in 115 countries lead by varied coalitions of some 1,200 community organizations. The International AIDS candlelight vigil is a grassroots mobilization initiative against AIDS organized by the Global Health Council.
With 33 million people living with HIV/AIDS today, this event is a global solidarity effort to fight AIDS. The theme for the 2009 International AIDS Candlelight Memorial Day is “Together, We are the Solution”.
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South Africa: Election 2009 April 21st, 2009
South Africa, the economic powerhouse of the continent of Africa, holds its fourth democratic general elections on 22 April 2009.
The Africa National Congress (ANC) which has been in power since the end of the apartheid regime in 1994 is expected to win the election with Jacob Zuma becoming President.
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G20: Prioritize the Needs of the Poor April 7th, 2009
On April 2, the Group of Twenty (G20) World leaders met in London to discuss the global financial crisis and explore ways to address the situation. Created in 1999, the G20 is a meeting of Finance Ministers on matters of global finance. It is composed of a group of seven (G7) wealthy nations, namely Germany, the United States, Britain, Japan, Canada and Italy; 12 members from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and South Africa (the only Africa nation in the G20) and representatives from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union.
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