May 2004
Issue No. 367
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The scramble for Africa
Katharine Ainger traces the connections between the Western World’s prosperity and Africa’s misery.

The looting of the Congo
Colette Braekman uncovers what lies at the heart of the world’s deadliest war.

War Crimes
Médecins Sans Frontières medic Helen Clarkson finds sexual violence being used as a weapon of war in the Congo.

Resource Wars: the facts

The arms smugglers
Wairagala Wakabi exposes the lucrative smuggling networks of guns, gold and gems in the Great Lakes region.

Fuelling the Fire
Alice Blondel argues that ’conflict timber’ is as serious an issue as diamonds.

Making a Killing
André Verlöy charts the rise of privatized military corporations.

Diamonds in the rough
The action so far on ’conflict diamonds’ is welcome, but Janine Roberts argues that there is much more to be done – and urgently.

Action
Nobody can do everything, but everybody can do something.

Create
Inspiration from revolutionary Angolan poet Agostinho Neto.

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from
THIS MONTH'S EDITOR

‘PERHAPS you will be surprised to hear from me. But be assured that my intentions are most noble and honest and what I am offering you is a reputable business transaction.

‘I am the long lost daughter of General Sani Abacha of Nigeria / the exiled niece of President Mobutu of Zaire / the prodigal second cousin of Charles Taylor of Liberia / [insert other relative of a deposed African dictator here]. Before my father / uncle / second cousin / [insert putative relationship here] was toppled from office under tragic circumstances, he had concealed $31 million / $ 57 million / $100 million / [insert startlingly high figure here] in off-shore bank accounts.

‘I and my family are now in exile and we cannot access this money. We are prepared to offer half of this money to you, our reliable business partner. You must first provide us with your bank account details...’

If you have an email account, you’ve had one of these fraudulent messages purporting to be from a wealthy African family-member attempting to swindle you out of your ready money by appealing to your lower nature.

While I’ve been doing this magazine, I’ve received messages from the Kabilas, the Abachas, the Taylors and the Mobutus. The emails amuse me in their imaginative narrative range – and the delete button is always near.

It’s no coincidence, though, that the fantastically wealthy African family names the fraudsters use are those of dictators and warlords grown fat from the profits of oil, diamonds or timber exploitation at the expense of their impoverished populations. Most of these resources ended up as Western consumer goods.

Perhaps it is only justice that now African email fraudsters are attempting to rob us a little in return.

Katharine Ainger for the New Internationalist Co-operative kat@newint.org

Poetry Slam in Zimbabwe

The House of Hunger poetry slam held in Zimbabwe in 2006, and organised by the Pamberi Trust, showcased young artists performing inspirational work on issues from corporate power to child soldiers. The video features four of the poets.
Published by Pambazuka News.

Raised Voices video:

Atossa Soltani from Brazil on the Climate Change

Desmond Desai from South Africa on Corporate Power

Iranian women speak out

3 March 2007, London. Women's rights activists marched through the English capital last week to celebrate International Women's Day with a protest against the misogyny of the Islamic regime in Iran and the threat of invasion by the US. Hear the voices of Iranian feminists Azar and Leila Parnian and the sounds of the demonstration as it passed through the heart of the city. Click here to learn more about the campaign.
Produced by Heidi Bachram.

Raised Voices audio:

Benny from West Papua on Corporate Power

Vinayan from India on agriculture