SPECIAL ISSUE: MOBILISING YOUTH IN AFRICA AND THE DIASPORA
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/issue/current/
The authoritative electronic weekly newsletter and platform for social justice in Africa
Youth unite for a better world by Ama Biney
Mohamed Bouazizi and Bradley Manning remain powerful symbols of inspiration to progressive forces around the world – particularly young people globally - for their commitment to truth and social justice. Bouazizi was the 27-year-old Tunisian man who set himself alight on 17 December 2010 after being harassed by police for years. Perhaps it was the slap by a female municipal worker who confiscated his fruit and vegetable stall, in addition to the years of personal indignity before the inhumaneness and corruption of the authorities, that was the catalyst for his fatal action on that day. He will never know that he set in motion the Arab uprising and the related Occupy movements in many Western capitals which were led by thousands of young people who inspired hope for a different world. Manning was a 22-year-old American soldier when he leaked a trove of American state secrets to Wikileaks in 2010. He has spent 1,100 days incarcerated; much of that time in solitary confinement, among other forms of degrading treatment. He has pleaded guilty to 10 of the 21 charges facing him. The charge which faces a life sentence is that of ‘aiding the enemy’, which means, assisting al-Qaeda by making intelligence accessible on the internet.
STANDING UP FOR TRUTH
As the black British journalist Gary Younge makes clear in his aptly titled article ‘Hypocrisy lies at the heart of the trial of Bradley Manning,’ [1] the documents leaked by Manning in 2009 revealed how the Americans were aware of the opulent and corrupt lifestyle of the former Tunisian President Ben Ali whilst ordinary Tunisians faced rising unemployment and inflation. Yet the Americans continued to back Ali ‘preferring a dependable dictatorship to an unpredictable democracy.’ [2] As Younge poignantly remarks: ‘WikiLeaks did not cause these uprisings but it certainly informed them.’ [3] On account of Wikileaks, Tunisians (and many other Africans) were now exposed to what they secretly knew the Americans were doing under the cover of democracy with the collaboration of their kleptocratic leaders - thanks to Manning. Yet, Manning is being vilified for being a whistleblower. As his court trial unfolds, it is disturbing that the country that prides itself as the paragon of democratic values on earth, believes there are some truths carried out in the name of the American government that must not be known to the people.
The American writer and journalist Chris Hedges argues: ‘This trial is not simply the prosecution of a 25-year-old soldier who had the temerity to report to the outside world the indiscriminate slaughter, war crimes, torture and abuse that are carried out by our government and our occupation forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is a concerted effort by the security and surveillance state to extinguish what is left of a free press, one that has the constitutional right to expose crimes by those in power.’ [4] read more:
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87927
Get up stand up: Youths in the age of revolution by Horace G. Campbell
This week, as Pambazuka News celebrates the youth of Africa at the same moment that we remember the life and work of Walter Rodney, we seek the inspiration of Rodney and other freedom fighters as we stand up to be counted in the struggles for emancipation and transformation. Drawing from the lyrics of a prophet of emancipation Bob Marley, my message to the youths of Africa today is: stand up, get up! Stand up for your rights. Don’t give up the fight!
When the youths of Tahrir Square were chanting that "the people want to bring down the regime," something had already changed and the world was not anymore the same. It was the outset of a historic shift of human ideational system: ordinary people can make a huge change. This idea of the capabilities of ordinary people slipped through live video footage, and broke in the minds of people all over the world. One writer who had understood the historic importance of revolutionary moments stated that the Egyptian Revolution would change the world. And, two years on, we are still in the embryonic stages of this revolutionary process.
This African Awakening from North Africa, which had started from Tunisia, has inspired other insurrections – and most recently the youths of Turkey have impeded all of the planning of Israel, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the conservative elements within the imperial centers. Brazilian Youths are also registering their opposition to neo-liberalism as the organized and unorganized forces take to the streets to stand up for social justice. Youths from all corners of the planet are standing up for their rights and defying the planners who want to turn them into robotic and mindless consumers. In this process, the youths are divided between the children of the looters and the children of the sufferers. This divide on social lines is visible in the malls and public spaces where the children of the rich parade their consumerism. While the poor yearn for proper public transportation, the children of the rich drive by in their flashy cars. This crude consumerism of the 1 per cent of the youth can be distinguished from the majority of youths who are struggling for a decent life. The more the youths stand up, the more effective the efforts to disarm elements who want to divide, confuse and demobilize agents of transformation.
We are in a revolutionary moment, and as in every revolutionary moment, the whip of counter-revolution rears its head. But it is the self-organization and self-mobilization of the youths that have so far confounded the forward planners and militarists who want to derail the people-centered objectives of the moment. In Libya, the counter-revolutionary forces intervened and established a base for future intervention against the youths in Egypt, when the revolution matures. These plans which include arming youths to kill other youths in places such as Nigeria, Somalia and the Congo are being unmasked as the complicity of the imperial forces in terrorism is being exposed and there are now deep divisions between all the centers of imperial power.
EMANCIPATE YOURSELVES FROM MENTAL SLAVERY.. read more:
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87928
See more: http://www.pambazuka.org/en/issue/current/
I BELIEVE IN AN AFRICA FIT FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS
Yemurai NyoniBeing a young African woman is perhaps the most perilous form of identity in the continent. But there is growing recognition that Africa’s progress will be directly determined by how well it performs in improving the lives of its women and girls
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87919
******DIALOGUE, NOT A MONOLOGUE
Liberia, Africa youths yearning to be heard
Robtel Neajai PaileyAfrican youth have been the drivers of revolutions in the past two years. However, to be more effective in bringing about desired change in their nations and the continent, they must listen, learn and earn their right to make meaningful contributions
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87917
******FEAR AND FREEDOM IN AFRICA
H. Nanjala NyabolaThe biggest problem facing African youth today is not a lack of opportunity, or poverty, or whatever. Our biggest problem from where I stand is our inability to see ourselves with unfiltered honesty and a raw love
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87934
******SOUTH AFRICA YOUTH DAY 2013
Linda Frances MusabayanaThe Soweto student protests in 1976 marked the high point of youth revolt against the oppression of the apartheid regime. Today, young people in independent South Africa face new enemies arising from poverty and lack of access to opportunities necessary for a dignified life
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87926
******CRISIS OF YOUTH OR CRISIS OF SOCIETY IN SOUTH SUDAN?
Christopher ZambakariThe newly independent nation is beset by a host of problems of underdevelopment arising from slavery, wars and fragmentation of society. The serious hardships facing young people, who are the majority of the population, should be seen in this context and addressed urgently
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87916
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MULTIPLE MODES OF LIVELIHOOD AND SURVIVAL STRATEGIES OF NIGERIAN YOUTH
Adelaja Odutola OdukoyaContemporary socio-political and economic conditions engendered by poor governance and the contradictions of decadent capitalism have led the youth into unemployment, underemployment, idleness, and unproductive and criminal activities for survival
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87921
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A BLEAK FUTURE FOR DRC YOUTH
Theodore Menelik-MfuniYoung people have paid an extremely high price for the fragile state the DR Congo finds itself in, especially as large numbers of them are uneducated, unemployed and with no skills. As a result, many have become dangerous delinquents
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87913
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REVISITING AND REBRANDING MALAWI YOUNG PIONEERS
Sitinga KachipandeThe Malawi Young Pioneers Movement, which unfortunately became a terror militia to prop up the Banda regime, should be revisited by the Malawi government with the goal of involving youth in the county’s development
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87925
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YOUTH OF SOMALIA: FROM HEROES TO CRIMINALS AND VICTIMS
Mohamud M UlusoThe prolonged civil war changed everything for Somali youth. Hopeless, they became prey to a host of unscrupulous warlords, politicians and religious fanatics. Hundreds of young Somalis are today languishing in jails all overall the world
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87930
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UGANDAN YOUTH IN BOSTON
How youth are coping in the diaspora
Odomaro MubangiziThey provide a model for other youth in diaspora to emulate: keeping in touch with one’s culture and religion; how to settle in a foreign land; creativity in employment; long-term investment in education
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87922
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ENCOURAGING DIASPORA YOUTH TO CONTRIBUTE TO NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: THE ERITREAN CASE
Rahel WeldeabThere is a need to teach African youth in the diaspora to keep their identity while also providing them with opportunities to play a role as active citizens in their countries of origin. Eritrea has vibrant examples of this
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87924
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YOUNG AFRICANS LIVING ABROAD AND THEIR ENGAGEMENT IN AFRICAN POLITICS
Divine MuragijimanaAfrica is moving forward and with it are young, bright and innovative people who are positioning themselves to take a creative, critical and concrete role in its development. Young Africans in the continent and the diaspora can play a crucial role in shaping the future
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87931
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KENYA AT 50: YOUTH HAVE NOTHING TO SMILE ABOUT
Raphael ObonyoWill the much-vaunted new Constitution change the dismal fortunes of the youth for the better? It provides that the State shall take measures to ensure that the youth have access to relevant education and training; are accorded an opportunity to be represented and participate in political, social and other spheres of life; have access to employment and are protected from harmful cultural practices and exploitation
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87933
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GIVING SHAME TO WHOM HONOUR IS DUE
Chika EzeanyaThere is much to celebrate among young people of Africa. Despite some serious setbacks, the results are encouraging and the prognosis is good, very good
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87914
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EDUCORRUPTION AND THE MISEDUCATION OF ETHIOPIAN YOUTH
Alemayehu G. MariamThe rulers in Ethiopia continue to use higher educational institutions not as places of learning, inquiry and research but as diploma mills for a new breed of party hacks and zombie ideologues doomed to blind and unquestioning servility
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87918
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THE SKIPPED GENERATION
Delphine SerumagaAnyone who has aspirations of becoming a president or prime minister in their country has a steep hill to climb. The liberators/revolutionaries are still sitting pretty and in some cases claim they still have years to go
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87932
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YOUTH AS ASSETS? IF YOU SAY SO…
Patrick MpedzisiWhile it is key that youth who are vulnerable and marginalized are protected, brought to the mainstream and essentially empowered, it is also important to locate the assets within the youth body and create an enabling environment for their participation
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87929
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WHY MALAWI MUST CONSIDER FREE SECONDARY EDUCATION
Steve SharraThe question of whether or not Malawi should start considering the feasibility of providing free secondary school education is really one of whether or not Malawi should consider strengthening its human capital
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87923
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CV AND COVER LETTER TRAININGS IN FREETOWN
Imma MaderSierra Leone is emerging from a decade of civil war and although education and training opportunities for young people are expanding, there is a clear gap in enhancing job candidates' chances of success upon applying for a position
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87915
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