News - Country profile: Slovenia
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with spectacular mountains, thick forests and a short Adriatic coastline, Slovenia also enjoys substantial economic and political stability.

It was the only one of the former Yugoslav republics to be in the first wave of candidates for membership of the European Union. It joined in May 2004.


Just a couple of months before EU entry, Slovenia became a member of Nato.

OVERVIEW


OVERVIEW FACTS LEADERS MEDIA


Unlike Croatia or Bosnia-Hercegovina, Slovenia’s independence from Yugoslavia was relatively bloodless.

The move was undoubtedly aided by Western European recognition of the Slovenes’ aspirations and the low proportion of other ethnic groups in the country.

Ljubljana, Slovene capital

Ljubljana castle overlooks the capital’s old town

Slovenia has always been the most prosperous region of the former Yugoslavia and has found the transition from a socialist economy to the capitalist free market easier than most.

It became the first former communist bloc country to join the eurozone on 1 January 2007.

Politically, Slovenia was the most liberal republic within Yugoslavia. Throughout the 1980s there was pressure from Slovenia for greater political freedom and pluralism in the federation.

This reputation was tarnished after independence when thousands of nationals of other former Yugoslav republics were removed from population records and lost residency rights.

Parliament later passed a bill restoring their citizenship but a referendum held shortly before EU entry in 2004 overturned it by an overwhelming margin. Human rights groups expressed dismay at the move which embarrassed the leadership as it prepared to celebrate EU membership.

Slovenia has a rumbling dispute with Croatia over sea and land borders dating back to the break-up of Yugoslavia.

OVERVIEW FACTS LEADERS MEDIA

  • Full name: Republic of Slovenia
  • Population: 2 million (UN, 2005)
  • Capital: Ljubljana
  • Area: 20,273 sq km (7,827 sq miles)
  • Major language: Slovene
  • Major religion: Christianity
  • Life expectancy: 73 years (men), 80 years (women) (UN)
  • Monetary unit: Euro
  • Main exports: Machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, household goods
  • GNI per capita: US $17,350 (World Bank, 2006)
  • Internet domain: .si
  • International dialling code: +386

LEADERS


OVERVIEW FACTS LEADERS MEDIA

President: Janez Drnovsek

Slovenian president

Prime minister turned president Janez Drnovsek

Janez Drnovsek won the second round of presidential elections in December 2002 with 56% of the vote. The day after his victory he stepped down as prime minister.

Like his predecessor as president, Milan Kucan, Mr Drnovsek had been a key player in Slovenian politics since independence. He is a former leader of the centre-left Liberal Democrats.

As president, he oversaw Slovenia’s entry into the EU and Nato. His role is mainly ceremonial.

Prime minister: Janez Jansa

Parliament backed Janez Jansa, the leader of the centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party, as prime minister after elections in October 2004 in which the party almost doubled its vote.

Slovenian PM Janez Jansa

Janez Jansa pledged a privatisation drive

The party forged a coalition with three other parties: New Slovenia and the People’s Party - both centre-right - and the centre-left Democratic Party of Pensioners.

Mr Jansa campaigned on a promise to cut the costs of state administration and press ahead with privatisation in anticipation of Slovenia adopting the euro. He also pledged to cut welfare benefits and simplify the tax system.

Janez Jansa was born in 1958. He has a degree in defence studies and was defence minister for a period in the early 1990s.

The Liberal Democrats, the party of his predecessor Anton Rop, had been in government for virtually all of the previous 13 years since Slovenian independence.

  • Foreign minister: Dimitrij Rupel
  • Finance minister: Andrej Bajuk

    MEDIA


    OVERVIEW FACTS LEADERS MEDIA


    After independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 Slovenia saw a spectacular development of its broadcasting market, reflecting the country’s economic success.

    The media scene is diverse and free, and the constitution supports freedom of expression. The main papers are privately owned and support themselves through advertising.


    The broadcasting sector is a mix of public and private ownership. The television market is mainly shared between the public service RTV Slovenia and the private stations Pop TV and Kanal A. There are scores of commercial and public radio stations.


    About two thirds of TV households are connected to cable or satellite.

    The press

  • Dnevnik - Ljubljana-based daily

  • Delo - Ljubljana-based daily
  • Vecer - Maribor-based daily
  • Slovenske Novice - daily tabloid
  • Mladina - weekly
  • Primorske Novice - regional daily

    Television

  • RTV Slovenia - public broadcaster, operates two national TV channels and regional services
  • Pop TV - commercial

  • Kanal A - commercial


    Radio

  • RTV Slovenia - public broadcaster, operates national radio stations A1, Val 202 and Ars, regional services and a tourist station with news in English and German
  • Radio Hit - commercial
  • Radio City - commercial

    News agency

  • Slovene Press Agency

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    News - Algeria strikes deal with Berbers
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    Algeria’s government has signed a deal with ethnic Berber leaders, promising economic aid for the restive minority and more recognition for its language.


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    News - Do inter-racial marriages work?
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Vendredi 23 mai 2008 00:08

    BBC Africa Live! wants to find out what challenges mixed race relationships face. Does it mean a clash of cultures?

    Priti and KV live in Kenya and are planning their wedding for later this year.

    They have been together for nearly nine years but Priti is Asian-Kenyan from a Sikh family while KV is a black Kenyan from the Kikuyu tribe.

    They have faced strong opposition to their union from family members, but finally both their parents have given the couple their blessing.

    Are you in a mixed race relationship or are your parents from different races? What’s been your experience?

    Join the BBC’s Africa Live debate on Wednesday 2 June at 1630 & 1830GMT.

    Use the form to send us your comments - some of which will be published below.

    If you would like to take part in the discussion, e-mail us with your telephone number, which will not be published.


    Your comments:

    I think everyone is missing the point here focussing on the statement “skin colour does not matter”. The reality of inter-racial marriages, or how I would like to call them inter-cultural marriages is the challenges mainly arising from the difference in cultures. I have lived in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia, and I do notice the cultural differences and not the skin colour or tone. I have dated women from all the different cultures, and some I have cared for a lot, but I knew that in the long run it will never work. How do the children get brought up? What religion (if you are from different religions)? What language do you speak at home (if different)? Sometimes you have to let your brain take control of your heart, not the other way round.
    Anonymous, Japan

    I believe in inter-racial marriages though it didn’t work for me. I lived with a Nigerian man for five years. We never had any bad experiences. Everybody from both sides gave us a warm welcome. After five years I can honestly say that I learned a lot about my husbands culture and give my respect to it. Not so my husband. He had zero tolerance for my culture and didn’t make any effort to find out about it. He built up his little “Nigeria” in Germany and isolated me.
    Evelyn Menke, Germany

    Most Indians are awful towards black Africans and if this relationship was the other way round (Priti marrying a white guy) her parents would not bother at all.
    Jason Louder, Cherry Hill,USA



    Colour has never been an issue in my family


    Kim, USA

    My mom is white and my father is black. There are some who feel an interracial marriage is wrong, because the children are negatively affected. I am 24 years old and working towards my PhD. I am very active in my church, and I volunteer in my community. I feel blessed having been brought up in a home with two loving parents. Colour has never been an issue in my family. I have never felt confused, or out of place. I have always felt love, and I count it as a blessing having been brought up in an interracial family.
    Kim, USA

    I am Ugandan living in the United States, where generation X does not consider race as a factor in falling in love. Love is colour is colourblind. Today people are looking for someone who will respected them, and treats them well when they fall in love with that someone. I would like to congratulate Priti and KV on their coming wedding.
    Peter Waggs, USA

    I agree with Patrick Mangassa of USA whose sentiments are against inter-racial marriages. It is all very easy for two people to fall in love and pronounce themselves ready for matrimony, but does society understand what the children of multiracial marriages go through? I am writing from a country that has (72)seventy two tribes and even though all these tribes are black, it is still hard to merge two tribes by, or through marriage. When a woman marries a white man, out there, she is just treated like a house maid by the man’s relatives. When a black man entices a white woman whilst he is io his ventures as an immigrant, all does go well, but let them now come to mother Africa where poverty will welcome them at the airport. Many a time, these women do not last even half a year because they are not able to cope with our poverty datum line. I am not able to stop this inter racial marriage, but those that are wise should think twice before getting entangled to some other race.
    Shutiie Libuta, Zambia /Central Africa

    After almost nine years of marriage to a Zimbabwean - myself being a white American - I am only grateful to have found the partner I’ve got. If my relatives could only see further than the colour my husband’s skin - or recognise it as being equally acceptable to their own - our lives would be easier. Why do people waste time and energy trying to complicate the lives of others?
    Anne Turner (Dr.), Rwanda

    The success of mixed race relationship depends on the level of literacy and exposure of the families involved. It has worked in a society where the two families are well educated. While others are plagued with problems
    Busola Ande, Lagos, Nigeria

    My father and uncle were both married to Europeans (a German and a Belgian) and both are now divorced. Both relationships broke up for the same reasons other relationships do: a failure in commitment to make the marriage work and not the differences in race.
    Wole Solana, Nigeria



    Why do people waste time and energy trying to complicate the lives of others?


    Anne Turner, Rwanda

    What amazes me most is that despite a man and a woman falling in love and feeling good about it, family and friends often feel strongly against it just because of their racial biases. It’s a shame…let everyone live up to the saying: it’s the wearer who knows best where the shoe pinches!
    Mzee Safari, kenya/uk

    Being white and married to a Black British woman of West Indian decent, I find comments such as those made by Patrick Mangassa staggeringly offensive. What a shame that he feels he’s “lost” North Africa. Adolf Hitler felt much the same way about the Sudetenland in the 1930s. And he had similar ideas on the purity of race. Mr Mangassa doesn’t even have the guts to call himself the racist he so blatantly is, preferring to hide behind the cloak of conservatism.
    Matt, UK

    I think by calling the union a mixed race union is the problem in the first place. I’ve been married for 10 years to a coloured lady from South Africa and apart from the initial first year hiccups of settling in a new country for her and getting to know my mother, it has been smooth sailing. Granted, there are hiccups like in any normal functioning marriage, but none which cannot be overcome by a collective decision to let the marriage work. In hindsight, it is a miracle that it did with the backdrop of apartheid policies in Namibia before independence. Would I marry a person of another race and from another country again? Yep. Would it be my initial goal to go and find one: Nope.
    Ripuree Haakuria, Namibia

    Living in South Africa, the rainbow nation, I expected more open minded people but being white, my wife got classified as a coloured (during apartheid ) and my son, black. Almost everyday is a new challenge. I have a wonderful marriage but the ignorance of some people is a real challenge. When will that change? How many generations do we need, to learn that the separation of skin colour is created by ignorant people .
    Volker, South Africa

    I have realised that interracial relationships last longer when the both partners work but when one partner he is unemployed or has a lower income, the love starts to deteriorate and ends up in divorce. Nowadays, race has no meaning. What is important is money. If you are a monkey and have money the marriage will of course last. That’s been my own experience.
    Sylvain Aristide, Finland

    I personally do not encourage inter-racial marriages, for the reason that they destroy one’s cultural back ground. But as long as the two agree to respect and promote each others tribal and culture back ground, I would give it a green-light. That’s what I’ve been preaching to my three children.
    Ntege Bigali Namutula, Winnipeg, Mb. Canada

    I am a Pakistani muslim involved in a loving relationship with a Phillipino catholic. Our greatest hurdle will be telling my parents that we intend to marry. Until then our relationship remains a secret. Due to cultural and religious differences it will be hard for my parents to accept it: I find it selfish.
    Isha,



    Nowadays, race has no meaning. What is important is money


    Sylvain Aristide, Finland

    I am the result of a bi-racial marriage. I am 32 years old and in all of those years, I have faced different types of discrimination, but none bad enough for me ever to wish I was just one race. I feel I have the best of both worlds. I have been exposed and welcomed into so many communities because no-one ever exactly knows what I am or where I belong. I now work for the UN in Sierra Leone and I believe that my childhood experiences now help me to work in this organisation filled with people from everywhere. One of the dumbest questions I have been asked is which culture do you feel more comfortable in? I am a product of both cultures. A bi - racial friend once told me what her father told her while growing up. “Take vanilla and chocolate ice cream and put it in a bowl and mix together. Then try to take out the chocolate ice cream. You can’t”. We are a product of our parents.
    Rachel Goldstein-Rodriguez, US

    I’m Nigerian. My wife and best friend is German. We tied the knot approximately four years ago, after dating for 2 years. My family adores my wife. My mother in-law is the world’s best mother in-law and, I adore her. My wife and I love and respect each other. The success of a marriage depends, neither on colour nor race but, on the couple. My wife, is the best thing that ever happened to me and, I will do it all over again if I have to.
    Norbert Dwayne Weweh, Germany

    What about the cute kids? The reason I mixed my European genes with my husband’s Korean genes was for the cute kids. So what if he was getting his PhD and we loved each other and he needed his green card - deep down mostly I wanted to have adorable Eurasian kids. If I’d known any Africans in college I might have beautiful Afro-european American children instead!!
    Eve Somers, Redondo Beach, California, USA

    Being different races has been kind of hard for me because I never feel like I can fit in entirely with one race. People often tap me on the shoulder and say stuff like, “What are you?” or “What’s your nationality?” (often people don’t know the difference between nationality and ethnicity), and they’re usually just complete strangers. Sometimes they think I’m Native American, other times Filipino, Hispanic, Mongolian, half Japanese and half white, or half black and half white… I could go on for hours. (I’m actually half Chinese, a quarter black, and a quarter white.) Chinese people don’t consider me Chinese because I hardly know anything in Chinese; the longest thing I can say in Chinese is “do not sit in my seat,” and it took me three months just to remember how to say that. (I’ve found that I look less Chinese to Asian people and more Chinese to non-Asian people.) I can’t fit in with black people because people seem to think I don’t “talk” black! I know my life would be less complicated if I was just one race, I like being what I am: it makes me glad that my parents didn’t care that they were different races and decided to marry each other and have kids anyway. I wouldn’t trade my ethnicity for anything in the world.
    Madeleine, New York, United States

    I’m a black woman from Kenya and fell in love with a white man from the most obscure of places in the United States. He was clueless about all things African, and we argue about issues all the time. But I wouldn’t have given him up for all the cultural differences in the world. If you’re going to get married, then you are going to get married - not your parents or your friends or the random rubbernecks on the street.
    C.O., USA

    The truth is my mum will not consent to an inter-racial marriage, not even to a person of a different ethnicity of the same skin colour. Do I hurt her or myself (assuming I do love someone of a different race)? I think they would work, a bit more difficult than ‘normal’ ones, but definitely.
    Pari, India/US

    KV and Priti are two young Kenyans obviously very much in love.They are very brave because mixed marriages between Kenyans of African and Asian descent are not very common.The two represent the true face of today’s Kenya and deserve all our support. I see no reason why the marriage should not work.Good luck guys!
    L. Soita, Kenya



    I wonder how much of my love for her is confused with my fascination with the Japanese culture.


    Matt, Australia

    Does it works? Yes. Will everyone accept it? There is always someone who will not. Is mixed race relationship for all? No. Some people cannot even get along with their own. One thing I want to say is that if she loves me and I love her only God can stop us.
    Al, USA

    I am a white Australian and my girlfriend is Japanese. We have been together for almost nine months now and love each other very much. There are lots of challenges for both of us and sometimes I wonder how much of my love for her is confused with my fascination with the Japanese culture. Often the two are inextricably linked. However, being able to recognise this facet also allows me to try to see my girlfriend as just a regular person who is special to me.
    Matt, Australia

    What would the world look like without colour? God made his world beautiful, the heavenly bodies with different shapes and colours, the human race of different colours, the sea and its creatures of different shape, size and colour, also the flowers, trees and animals. Why can’t we love each other, live in peace together and enjoy this beautiful world he made for us to live in?
    George H. Waldron, USA

    I am Indian, and my boyfriend is from Kenya. I’ve learnt a lot more about my own culture and his through this relationship — it’s brought perspective and depth to my relationship with him and with my own culture. It is definitely case-by-case, but ultimately what are now exceptions will enable greater cultural understanding — which can only be a good thing.
    SS, India

    I am hispanic American and my wife is Nigerian. We are both Catholic and by the grace of God our bond has lasted 7 years. If you marry an African woman, strong leadership will bring praise. Respect will bring longevity.
    Peter Riley, USA

    Over 50 years ago my east Indian Hindu mother ran from her father’s London home with only the sari on her back to join my black Egyptian(nubian) muslim father. Eventually they made their way to Trinidad where 6 children where born. Child 1 married a Nigerian, Number 2 married a Russian, Number 3 married a Chinese, Number 4 married an Italian/ Somali, Number 5 married an African American, and I, number 6 married an Afro Hispanic. Almost 60 years later and we are all still going strong. The best part is a picture my mom took with all her grandkids it shows that my family is the world!!
    Faizah Assad, USA

    I’m a British born white woman living in the US in a relationship of three years with a Sierra Leonean black Muslim man. The difficulties have been mainly cultural catholic online dating services
    , but when communication is open and both parties respect and accept the other’s religion and culture, it can prove to be rewarding both intellectually, spiritually, and above all prove that people with all backgrounds can come together as one and learn from one another. May be the old saying is correct, “love conquers all”. Our families have stepped up to the plate and accepted our choices because in the end, they just want to see both of us happy. The world is becoming smaller and smaller and it is time we all started acting like the world is our home, not just the country we reside in.
    Lisa, US

    Being involved in a mixed race relationship has proven to be both difficult and yet extremely rewarding for me. I am a white Canadian woman who has been involved with a black man from Sierra Leone for about a year. During our relationship we have encountered people from both races who don’t like seeing us together in public, including some members of his own family. Thankfully, my entire family adores him and supports us 100%. To be honest I don’t know how things will work out between us in the long run as there are some cultural differences we have to work out, but that aside I am quite determined not to let others tell us we shouldn’t be a couple. Being with him has enabled me to learn about his African culture and he has had to learn about mine as well, although his language lessons are going better than mine! All I can tell others is that no one can determine who they fall in love with and that no one has the right to tell us who we can love and be with.
    Corissa, Canada

    If you are still bound by clan and family, all the better for a steadier relationship. The young may find differences challenging and fascinating, but may lack the patience to overcame some difficulties.
    Marco, Ethiopia



    The world is becoming smaller and smaller and it is time we all started acting like the world is our home, not just the country we reside in


    Lisa, US

    I’ve been in an inter-racial marriage for six years. My husband is Nigerian. If you want it to work, it will work.
    Kari Umana, USA

    The ancestral roots of KV and Priti are of two great countries and peoples. Their union can only strengthen their countries, their peoples, and themselves. They are both wished well and much happiness.
    Wayne A. Philp, US

    The problem with parents of mixed race couples arises because most are not familiar with each other’s culture. Women and men are the same every where. It’s just the social setting that makes the difference.
    Mike, Norwegian/Nigeria

    Mixed marriages never work because one culture will portray itself as superior, sooner or later
    Simon Gath, Belgium

    I am in a mixed race relationship. I think it is idiotic for people to be concerned about something as arbitrary as skin tone. “Race” is an artificial free online dating tip construct.
    Stephanie, USA

    I’ve been in an inter-racial relationship for six years. We dated for five and then got married. We had no problems with our families. We have noticed some people act funny in public and also when we first introduce one another.
    John Craven, USA

    The colour of the skin doesn’t matter when love is there.
    Fodzo Tchemwe, France

    I am a white American and my husband is Nigerian. There have been times when people have said things or given us looks. Someone once asked me if our son was adopted, when I said no, she asked again, in such a way that showed her intentions to make me feel awkward. I always try to think positively about it. Our family tree is diverse and interesting and those who don’t like it were not asked ahead of time, which means that their opinions really don’t have much effect on me.
    Leah Chukwu, USA

    Inter-racial marriages are not a bad thing. However, men involved must be aware of the pressure they would get from society. One may risk isolation from his own people and attract malice from the other side. This can be most severe when a normal domestic issue, typical of husband and wife, is given a racial connotation blowing everything out of proportion.
    Zimbabwe



    I think that those who are against inter-racial marriages have narrow minds and cannot see beyond the simple fact that race is only about skin color.


    Nephat Oliech, USA

    I am a black man married to a white American lady whom I love very much. I think that those who are against inter-racial marriages have narrow minds and cannot see beyond the simple fact that race is only about skin color. What is important is character, somebody who makes you happy and respects you. In my opinion you get the best of both worlds by having a mixed race family. Good luck to both KV and Priti.
    Nephat Oliech, USA

    My mother is an English expatriate and my father is third generation Absolutely free online dating service
    . They met in Africa and moved to California, where I was raised. California has always had an incredible diversity of cultures and ethnicities. But being a mixed race child, even in this jigsaw puzzle of genealogies, still causes a lot of confusion, not only for the individual but also for society. I was never sure which box I should check off on demographic information and census forms, “Asian” or “Caucasian.” People would ask my mother if I was adopted. It was a strange sensation, because I felt as though I was not fully accepted as English or Japanese, and I was ashamed of both. It took me two decades to become comfortable in my own skin.
    Robert Tashima, US

    I am black and have not had a relationship with a person of a different race before, but have closely followed a friend, fellow black, who have had a relationship with a white girl. They live together in America where she comes from. He has told me that he has faced the following challenges from the girl’s family: prejudice, hatred and racial discrimination. The mere fact that he was a black man hanging out with a girl from a well-to-do family made the family all the more furious. On a personal note, I feel that inter-racial marriages can work if the couple accept each other, are sincere with each other, disregard all tenets of prejudice, skin colour, culture and religion. Love is what matters.
    Melvin Nahwo Nye, Harbel, Liberia

    I am against inter-racial marriage. Why? Because if we keep mixing our race with others, 400 years from now, Africa will look like Brazil. We lost North Africa already, please let’s keep the rest of Africa pure “black”. I am not racist but I am conservative.
    Patrick Mangassa, USA

    Multicultural marriages will always have a hard time as long as institutions like yours promotes these out dated divisive concepts and lies. Grow up and take responsibility. These are the kind of ideas fuel conflicts around the word such as in Iraq and Israel.
    Gary Ormsby, USA

    I’m Nigerian and my husband is Irish. We have more in common than others I know from a similar racial background. We’re both Catholic and that helps us see things from the same view point. Also, our families are very similar and share similar aspirations. My tip is, always get your mother-in-law on your side and the rest would be a doodle.
    Anne, England



    You marry whoever you fall in love with and you bring your children up to be stable and multi-cultured.


    Benson Magaba, Zimbabwe

    Out of six boys in one family, this is the current setting:
    Boy 1 married a half South African girl
    Boy 2 married a Botswanan girl
    Boy 3 married an English girl
    Boy 4 married a Malawian girl
    Boy 5 married a Ndebele Zimbabwean girl
    Boy 6 married a Shona Zimbabwean girl
    Nephew married a German girl
    Other nephew married an American girl.
    This is one large and happy family with the longest marriage clocking in at 27 years. No divorce yet in the family. All parents involved are happy with their children. Only our government shouts abuses at us. You marry whoever you fall in love with and you bring your children up to be stable and multi-cultured. The main problem is how to guard against home sickness for those who move away with their spouses.
    Benson Magaba, Zimbabwe

    I think if people around the world inter-marry, there would be no discrimination.
    Michael Nuul Mayen, Manitoba, Canada

    My boyfriend is from Nigeria, is black and a Muslim. I am a white Christian from England. Although there are obviously cultural differences, we find that it does not have to be a barrier between us. I respect that his religion is important to him and it is part of what I love about him. It would be easier if we were of the same race and religion but love crosses those barriers. I think that our families will support us because they know that the love between us makes us happy.
    Helen Watson, England

    Mixed races? What do you mean? Aren’t we told these days that “races don’t exist”? Or is that just a lie, then?
    Ron Brownlow, UK

    Of course interracial couples are subject to all kinds of pressures, both internal and societal. Their successes depend on economic conditions and interpersonal communication. The prejudice of others can compromise inter-racial marriage if the couple are already on a shaky ground. It is beneficial for an inter-racial couple to receive the approval of their respective families, however it is not necessarily relevant all the time. Race is a social construct it is not innate to humanity but rather a tool for conditioning others.
    Emmanuel, USA

    Mixed marriages are like any other marriage: To work you need a combination of good luck, determination and hard work. I am Nigerian and my wife is (White) English. There will, as in all marriages, be hard times - perhaps as a result of “cultural clashes”. Mixed marriages don’t break down as a result of a clash of cultures. They break down because couples can’t choose their families and may forget why they got married in the first place. We have three beautiful children; we are blessed with wonderful families and we keep reminding ourselves everyday why we chose to spend the rest of our lives together.
    Segun, UK

    Inter-racial marriages would work if people looked beyond the colour of one’s skin and see the person for what they are. Bigotry in any form is destructive. Therefore if two people supportive and in love choose to be together, what difference does it make what they look like?
    Bill, US

    Inter-racial relationships are going to happen regardless of what observers think. The fact is we are all in search of peace and happiness. If my family loves me and cares for my well being and happiness then I think I should be supported with my choice of partner that makes me happy not what they think does not make them happy. After-all I will be sharing my life not them.
    Thy Will Koku Amenya, Ghana/US

    My dad was a Dene (native Indian) and my mum was a child of French & Swedish immigrants. They married in the 1960’s - a time of considerable racial prejudice in Canada - particularly against natives. They made it work by understanding that, for them, some of the problems in marriage would be cultural. To make such a marriage strong enough to withstand the outside pressures, a couple needs to assume that they can’t assume - and talk, all the time, about everything.
    M. Thompson, Canada

    Although it makes sense to ask people who are actually in inter-racial relationships about them, that is not the whole story. In some sense it’s like asking gay couples if same sex relationships work. Of course they work on some level for the people in them. That’s why they are in them. However, that says nothing about why humans and other sexually reproducing animals breed preferentially within their own race, variety or subspecies.
    USA



    The key to any marriage is love, compatibility, and respect for each other.


    Dr. Freddy Kustaa, USA

    I do believe that for an inter-racial marriage to work, it depends on the foundation. If I find someone who really cares about me and doesn’t bother about where I am from, we might end up in marriage. As a Nigerian living in California, all the females I date are from different races; Asians, Mexicans, Whites, etc. We should encourage real love, like that of Priti and KV, who have been together for nine years.
    Stanley Njoku, Nigerian in US

    I am Black and my wife is White. We have been married for 19 years. We have two handsome boys aged 11 and 18. In my view, my wife and I are happily married. Our marriage has gone through a number of problems that all marriages encounter regardless of the racial or ethnic backgrounds of couples. The key to any marriage is love, compatibility, and respect for each other. I think there is no proof that only couples from the same race or ethnic group have happier and lasting marriages than the so-called mixed ones. The divorce statistics in the United States and other countries among same race or ethnic group couples is a good proof of my statement above. Divorce and unhappy marriages occur among all married couples, not just the so-called mixed ones.
    Dr. Freddy Kustaa, USA

    Many inter-racial, inter-cultural, and inter-faith couples still experience a lot of pressures from family and community. Our world is not as open to these types of unions as we would like to believe. It is great that you are offering a chance for your listeners to discuss this important topic. I founded an organisation called Swirl a few years ago. It serves as an educational, social, and support network for mixed race couples, families, individuals, and transracial adoptees. We are now a national organisation with chapters across the US, and even an international chapter in Japan. Although many couples still experience what Priti and KV have faced, there are at least communities and resources out there that couples may contact for advice and support!
    Jen Chau, USA

    Inter-racial marriage has always been subject to challenges both from the boy’s and the girl’s families. But I think it is time to change this view as people are increasingly coming together and building friendship/relationships. It is something that cannot be stopped by traditional attitudes towards such marriages. on the other hand, it is also an important source of harmony and co-operation between two group of people.
    Husein, Ethiopia

    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Algeria strikes deal with Berbers
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Mercredi 21 mai 2008 18:55


    Algeria’s government has signed a deal with ethnic Berber leaders, promising economic aid for the restive minority and more recognition for its language.


    A Berber leader said the deal marked a shift from top rated online dating service review
    to partnership - but that key details remained vague.


    A peace effort last year faltered over demands that the Berbers’ language win official recognition, alongside Arabic.


    Berbers in Algeria’s north-east rioted in 2001, free alternative dating of discrimination by the government.


    At least 100 people died and thousands were hurt in a series of clashes between security forces and Berber youth, which erupted after the death in police custody of a Berber schoolboy.


    Ethnic Berbers claim to pre-date the Arabs, who now account for the majority in Algeria, and are dating free lesbian service in two provinces of the north-eastern Kabylie region.


    According to varying estimates, they account for between a third and a fifth of Algeria’s population of 30 million, and they have campaigned for greater rights since the country won 100 free online dating service
    from France in 1962.


    Detail missing


    Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia said agreement had been reached with the Berbers on the “El-Kseur platform” - a reference to a list of Berber demands drawn up after the unrest in 2001.


    The list includes calls for greater dating find online single site
    in the Kabylie region and for official recognition of Berber music, culture and their language, known as Tamazight.


    Several aspects of the new agreement, such as making Tamazight an official language and cutting the number of security forces in Kabylie, have not been agreed in detail and could take years to implement.


    President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, re-elected last year, has promised to heal the divide between the Berbers and the Algerian state.

    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Are racism and racialism the same?
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Mardi 20 mai 2008 16:23


    After Tory frontbencher Patrick Mercer was sacked for his comments about ethnic minority soldiers, friends have insisted he’s not a “racialist”. Do they mean racist or do the two words mean the same thing?

    Last week Tory MP Patrick Mercer was forced to quit his role as home affairs spokesman over comments he made about black soldiers. The ex-colonel told the Times that he’d met a lot of “idle and useless” ethnic minority soldiers who used racism as a “cover”.

    Party leader David Cameron promptly asked for his resignation, and Mr Mercer said he deeply regretted any offence caused.

    Friends have since jumped to his defence, the latest being former chancellor Ken Clarke, who told the BBC that his colleague was not “condoning racialism” and was not “racialist”.

    Merged meaning

    So do racialism and racism mean the same thing? Yes, says John Simpson, editor of the Oxford English Dictionary Online. They didn’t start out that way, but they are now considered one in the same.

    Racialism and racialist are older terms, dating from the early 20th Century. When the words were first used in the early 1900s, they loosely referred to black free online dating site
    theories about biological differences among races.

    WHO, WHAT, WHY?
    Question mark
    A regular feature in the BBC News Magazine - aiming to answer some of the questions behind the headlines

    It was a way that people tried to african agency specialty dating online
    racist beliefs and practices, but over the years online interracial dating service
    rejected such theories.

    Within 20 years or so, people had begun to shorten the terms to racism and racist, possibly to give the words more impact, says Mr Simpson.

    The newer terms, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, were also distinct from any theories of race. The shorter words soon became more commonly used, but even today racialism and racialist are still mentioned.

    The definition of both words are now identical and interchangeable. They refer to online dating game
    and antagonism based on ethnicity, especially the belief that one race is superior to another.

    The English Oxford Dictionary Online is currently being updated to reflect this merging of meaning.

    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Canadian ‘anger’ at China trial
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Lundi 19 mai 2008 08:25


    The Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is said to be “displeased” that Canadian diplomats did not attend the trial in China of a Canadian Uighur.


    Huseyincan Celil, an ethnic Uighur and a rights activist, is on trial on terrorism charges in Urumqi in Xinjiang, home to a Muslim majority.


    His wife told the BBC that relatives in the courtroom say he told the court he had been tortured by secret police.


    Mr Celil also holds Chinese nationality and is being tried as a Chinese.


    An unnamed official told the Reuters news agency that Canadian Foreign Minister Peter McKay had also said he was unhappy that Canadian diplomats failed to witness court proceedings.


    But Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Helena Guergis said Canada was continuing to make representations to the Chinese authorities.


    “Our requests for 100 free online dating service
    and trial dates have gone unanswered, but embassy officials are in daily contact and they are en route to the province where Mr Celil is being held to deal directly with court officials and secure access to court proceedings,” she said.


    Mr Celil was an imam who left China in the 1990s. He arrived in Canada in 2001 as a refugee and was given Canadian citizenship. This is not recognized by China.

    CHINA’S UIGHURS
    Ethnically Turkic Muslims, mainly in Xinjiang
    Made bid for dating meeting online service
    state in 1940s
    Sporadic violence in Xinjiang since 1991
    Uighurs worried about Chinese immigration and erosion of traditional culture


    He travelled to Uzbekistan last year, where he was arrested and then extradited to China on terrorism charges in March 2006.


    His wife Kamila Adult dating free online personals services
    held a news conference in December about her husband’s plight.


    “It’s very sad. I need to get some information about my husband,” she told reporters.


    Amnesty International says Mr Celil is one of thousands of Uighurs being wrongly prosecuted by China.


    Xinjiang, home to the Uighurs and other online dating service guide
    , has long desired autonomy from Beijing, which regards the province as a home to terrorists.

    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Chinese diaspora: Britain
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Samedi 17 mai 2008 22:47


    Yet the stereotype image of someone in a street-corner takeaway writing down orders for egg fried rice is almost as out-dated as the picture many Britons still have of a China full of peasants in blue tunics, waving little red books.


    Johnny Hon is chairman of a venture capital company based in one of the most luxurious new tower blocks in London’s Canary Wharf district - similar in style to the high-rise temples of finance now to be seen in Shanghai and other Chinese cities.


    In one of his suite of offices, banks of TV screens flash up market figures; in another hangs a picture of Tony Blair with the signed inscription: “To Johnny and all at Global”.


    Hon, who is 33 and came to Britain from Hong Kong at the age of 12, is due to meet at least four other prime ministers on a quick business trip he’s about to make to the Caribbean.

    CHINESE IN THE UK
    Around 250,000 residents
    Among Britain’s highest-earning groups
    About 60,000 Chinese educated in Britain - more than from any other country


    He also makes frequent trips to Beijing - and, naturally, he has friends in the government there too.


    “I help British companies go to China and help Chinese ones looking to raise funds or invest in the UK,” he explained.


    He believes at least part of the reason for China’s dynamic growth is that Chinese are hard workers and good at business - something that also helps explain the rising profile and prosperity of Britain’s Chinese community.


    According to the last census, in 2001, there were 250,000 Chinese in Britain - almost 100,000 more than 10 years previously.


    Today they are among the highest-earning groups in Britain - and the most likely of all groups to do well at school.


    British schools and lonely wifes specialty dating
    now educate more students from China - about 60,000 - than from any other country.


    China’s leaders say they are the cream of the country’s youth and will get good jobs when they return, even though many choose to stay on in the UK.


    Historical links


    The country’s first Chinese immigrants were 19th century sailors who settled in Liverpool and London’s Limehouse district - next door to the gleaming skyscrapers of today’s Canary Wharf, but at that time a rough area of docks, brothels and opium dens.

    Lord Chan

    Chinese have lived and died here for a long time and will continue to do so. But it’s only now that China’s new prominence has finally focused attention on us
    Lord Chan


    In the 1950s and ’60s came a much bigger influx - of farmers from Hong Kong. The collapse of traditional free michigan specialty dating site
    in the colony’s rural New Territories happily coincided with the development of a British taste for foreign food. Soon almost every town boasted its own Chinese restaurant.


    Ethnic Chinese also arrived from all over South East Asia, settling down to make a quiet living in a way that aroused far less attention than has often been the case with other ethnic minorities.


    “We may be from many different countries, but we Chinese all work here together like one family,” said Millie Lee, a restaurant worker who came in the early 1980s along with other “boat people” from Vietnam.


    “It’s as if we got lost and came together,” she said.


    As China opens up, a growing proportion of British Chinese, these days, come from the mainland.


    But even the ones who have never been there still tend to regard China as “home” - if only the home of their ancestors.


    Until recently, many felt sad, or even ashamed, at their mother country’s poverty and backwardness. Fong Fu remembers the southern Chinese province of Guangdong as a place of poor villages with no toilets. Reports of its transformation into the workshop of the world have made her feel proud, and perhaps also more confident and assertive.


    “We Chinese do well wherever we are,” she said, as she outlined her plans to move on from being a waitress.

    CHINA’S DIASPORA
    First major emigration in 14th-16thC by traders and seafarers
    Colonial powers used Chinese as labourers in SE Asia and the Americas
    But also have reputation for business success
    There are about 30m overseas Chinese in total
    Indonesia and Thailand have the biggest numbers - 7-9m each (estimates)
    Singapore has the highest concentration - 3m, or 75% of its population


    “We know how to use our online dating is safe
    . We work for others for the first three years. But after that we become the boss.”


    New mobility


    The Chinese now coming to Britain - as well as the children of those who arrived earlier - no longer feel the need to find work in catering or other parts of an “ethnic economy”, according to Dr Frank Pieke, a specialist on Chinese migration at Oxford University.


    “Chinese, like others, are absolutely free online dating service
    adopting a mobile, top online dating
    lifestyle, moving from one job and one country to another as new opportunities present themselves,” he said.


    True, there are some, like the cockle-pickers who died at Morecambe Bay last year, who pay large sums to come here and then find themselves in jobs at the lowest end of the social scale.


    But some 50,000 of Britain’s Chinese - 20% of the total - now have jobs in law, medicine and other professions. Zhu Yonggen is working as a software engineer in Derby. His lifestyle, food and culture remain Chinese, and he and his family keep a close eye on events at home via the internet and the overseas version of the People’s Daily.


    “We also talk about China with our British friends,” he said. “The British are becoming much more aware about our country”.


    The first Chinese to become a British Lord believes Britain is taking more notice not only of China but also of the Chinese community who live here.


    Lord Chan - honoured for his work in medical science - said it was significant that this year’s Chinese New Year celebrations in London had been attended for the first time by the foreign secretary.


    “We used to be seen as newcomers, only here temporarily,” he said.


    “Chinese have lived and died here for a long time and will continue to do so. But it’s only now that China’s new prominence has finally focused attention on us.”


    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Chinese diaspora: Britain
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Vendredi 16 mai 2008 20:58



    Yet the stereotype image of someone in a street-corner takeaway writing down orders for egg fried rice is almost as out-dated as the picture many Britons still have of a China full of peasants in blue tunics, waving little red books.


    Johnny Hon is chairman of a venture capital company based in one of the most luxurious new tower blocks in London’s Canary Wharf district - similar in style to the high-rise temples of finance now to be seen in Shanghai and other Chinese cities.


    In one of his suite of offices, banks of TV screens flash up market figures; in another hangs a picture of Tony Blair with the signed inscription: “To Johnny and all at Global”.


    Hon, who is 33 and came to Britain from Hong Kong at the age of 12, is due to meet at least four other prime ministers on a quick business trip he’s about to make to the Caribbean.

    CHINESE IN THE UK
    Around 250,000 residents
    Among Britain’s highest-earning groups
    About 60,000 Chinese educated in Britain - more than from any other country


    He also makes frequent trips to Beijing - and, naturally, he has friends in the government there too.


    “I help British companies go to China and help Chinese ones looking to raise funds or invest in the UK,” he explained.


    He believes at least part of the reason for China’s dynamic growth is that Chinese are hard workers and good at business - something that also helps explain the rising profile and prosperity of Britain’s Chinese community.


    According to the last census, in 2001, there were 250,000 Chinese in Britain - almost 100,000 more than 10 years previously.


    Today they are among the highest-earning groups in Britain - and the most likely of all groups to do well at school.


    British schools and universities now educate more students from China - about 60,000 - than from any other country.


    China’s leaders say they are the cream of the country’s youth and will get good jobs when they return, even though many choose to stay on in the UK.


    Historical links


    The country’s first Chinese immigrants were 19th century sailors who settled in Liverpool and London’s Limehouse district - next door to the gleaming skyscrapers of today’s Canary Wharf, but at that time a rough area of docks, brothels and opium dens.

    Lord Chan

    Chinese have lived and died here for a long time and will continue to do so. But it’s only now that China’s new prominence has finally focused attention on us
    Lord Chan


    In the 1950s and ’60s came a much bigger influx - of farmers from Hong Kong. The collapse of traditional agriculture in the colony’s rural New Territories happily coincided with the adult dating free online personals
    of a British taste for foreign food. Soon almost every town boasted its own Chinese restaurant.


    Ethnic Chinese also arrived from all over South East Asia, settling down to make a quiet living in a way that aroused far less attention than has often been the case with other ethnic minorities.


    “We may be from many different countries, but we Chinese all work here together like one family,” said Millie Lee, a restaurant worker who came in the early 1980s along with other “boat people” from Vietnam.


    “It’s as if we got lost and came together,” she said.


    As China opens up, a growing proportion of British Chinese, these days, come from the mainland.


    But even the ones who have never been there still tend to regard China as “home” - if only the home of their ancestors.


    Until recently, many felt sad, or even ashamed, at their mother country’s poverty and dating free jewish online personals
    . Fong Fu remembers the southern Chinese province of Guangdong as a place of poor villages with no toilets. Reports of its alternative com dating into the workshop of the world have made her feel proud, and perhaps also more confident and assertive.


    “We Chinese do well wherever we are,” she said, as she outlined her plans to move on from being a waitress.

    CHINA’S DIASPORA
    First major emigration in 14th-16thC by traders and seafarers
    Colonial powers used Chinese as labourers in SE Asia and the Americas
    But also have reputation for business success
    There are about 30m overseas Chinese in total
    Indonesia and Thailand have the biggest numbers - 7-9m each (estimates)
    Singapore has the highest concentration - 3m, or 75% of its population


    “We know how to use our opportunities. We work for others for the first three years. But after that we become the boss.”


    New mobility


    The Chinese now coming to Britain - as well as the children of those who arrived earlier - no longer feel the need to find work in catering or other parts of an “ethnic economy”, according to Dr Frank Pieke, a specialist on Chinese migration at Oxford University.


    “Chinese, like others, are increasingly adopting a mobile, transnational lifestyle, moving from one job and one country to another as new opportunities present themselves,” he said.


    True, there are some, like the black and asian specialty dating
    who died at Morecambe Bay last year, who pay large sums to come here and then find themselves in jobs at the lowest end of the social scale.


    But some 50,000 of Britain’s Chinese - 20% of the total - now have jobs in law, medicine and other professions. Zhu Yonggen is working as a software engineer in Derby. His lifestyle, food and culture remain Chinese, and he and his family keep a close eye on events at home via the internet and the overseas version of the People’s Daily.


    “We also talk about China with our British friends,” he said. “The British are becoming much more aware about our country”.


    The first Chinese to become a British Lord believes Britain is taking more notice not only of China but also of the Chinese community who live here.


    Lord Chan - honoured for his work in medical science - said it was significant that this year’s Chinese New Year 100 dating free internet online
    in London had been attended for the first time by the foreign secretary.


    “We used to be seen as newcomers, only here temporarily,” he said.


    “Chinese have lived and died here for a long time and will continue to do so. But it’s only now that China’s new prominence has finally focused attention on us.”


    Ajoutez votre commentaire »




    News - Commission for Africa: Godwin Emejuobi
    dans Online dating » Ethnic dating Jeudi 15 mai 2008 20:42



    Godwin Emejuobi:
    Port Harcourt, Nigeria

    “Everything depends on leadership”

    Kasozi Lubega

    Kasozi Lubega:
    Kampala, Uganda

    “Trade is at the heart of everything”

    Ousman Njie

    Ousman Njie:
    Cairo, Egypt

    “No actions, only words”

    Samantha Smit

    Samantha Smit:
    Lusaka, Zambia

    “Ambitious in its timeframe”
    Iqbal Jhazbhay

    Iqbal Jhazbhay:
    Pretoria, South Africa

    “World peace and security”

    Yared Mussie

    Yared Mussie:
    Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    “All looks good on paper”

    Trevor Simumba

    Trevor Simumba:
    Freetown, Sierra Leone

    “Improving communication”

    Amboka Wameyo

    Amboka Wameyo:
    Arusha, Tanzania

    “More discussion on HIV/Aids”

    Read Godwin’s first African voices contribution

    Most teachers and lecturers have taken up corrupt practises in order to survive.

    For example students not only have to read their books but go as far as doing funny things to get good results.

    For students to do well in their results they must pay a token.

    There are no good books, there are no libraries in the schools.

    If the Commission for Africa do what they say they will and help African governments to deliver quality education then that will be wonderful.

    Everyone will have an equal opportunity to go to school.

    African voices: See where our panel live

    Enlarge Image

    At present most people in Africa are willing to leave the continent because they know they will have a better education and they can find sponsorship.

    Despite the Commission’s intentions there are some things that only God will be able to change.

    The debt our countries have, because of our corrupt leadership, is so deep that only God can lift us out of it.

    It really has affected every arm of the continent.

    Only God can change Africa through our leadership because for a man to be changed he has to be shown and convinced that he is doing wrong.

    God will salvage the situation.


    Your comments:

    I’m afraid the African commission might not achieve its set objective unless true democracy is made to reign in Africa, where incumbent corrupt leaders can be voted out via the ballot box. As opposed to the present reality where incumbents organise sham elections merely to appease the dating online service sex
    community and then declare themselves victorious.

    Thus, the same failed and corrupt politicians are ‘democratically’ perpetuated against the people’s will. Former army Generals shall continue to rule Nigeria irrespective of what the voters’ verdict say. Imagine another cheat like Robert Mugabe who rigged his country’s elections, imprisoned the opposition leader and ruined Zimbabwean economy calling Dr Rice a slave girl in 2005!

    That reveals the mindset of these so-called African leaders who are expected to lift Africans out of poverty according to Mr Blair’s African Commission.
    Okechukwu Ibiam, Onitsha, Anambra state, Nigeria.

    You made a great point about leadership across mother Africa. The Commission as you noted will only make a difference once we have good leadership across the continent. I think Tony Blair and his allies should first help with having good governance across the continent, before implementing the great commission.

    Without that, the commission will just help in causing more chaos and confusion. Most African governments are characterized with corruption, embezzlement, lack of transparency, abuse of human rights and finally inefficient leadership. Tony Blair should first help salvage Africa from bad governance.
    Binneh S Minteh, New York University, USA

    Some of the comments already submitted address western banks refusing to take money from obviously corrupt African leaders. I absolutely concur. The fact that corrupt officials are confident that they can siphon away millions of dollars of a nation’s cash, they will continue to do so. No doubt that officials in the receiving country’s banks also gain online dating uk
    from such transactions.

    I though money laundering was meant to be high on the agenda to avoid drug/people smugglers from benefiting from their ill gotten gains. Perhaps pilfering a nation’s entire budget and storing it in a foreign bank is not considered laundering, besides, I suppose drug money does not compare to the financial wealth of a nation, and sadly, money talks

    I am sure that this stolen money, if returned, will go a long way in solving a lot of financial problems in Africa, never mind foreign aid. Also as long as there are corrupt officials in Africa and the West, no amount of foreign aid will make a difference. It is one thing to blame African leaders of being corrupt but it does take two to tango!
    O James, Leeds, UK

    I disagree entirely with your assumption that good things will come out of the Commission aiding the African continent. What the Commission will achieve once again is the further enrichment of African corrupt, inept and visionless so-called leaders or how else can we explain the non-accountability of previous aids and grants for the eradication of poverty in African countries.

    Before I was born over forty or so years ago, there had been grants in the form of aid by the western world particularly Britain through the United Nation’s agencies for the provision of pipe-born water (clean tap water) for the people of Nigeria in order to reduce or eradicate certain diseases.

    To date, 80% of the population in Lagos state alone are without tap water. Must the western world continue to donate their hard earn monies through taxes to enrich the pockets of few rouges called leaders?
    Bola Olurebi, Lagos, Nigeria

    The problem is not education, it’s a decent leader who believes in his won people. Who does not see fit to steal 99.9% of the country’s wealth, store it in foreign banks that boost someone else’s economy, buy 30 Rolls Royce’s (even though he is too ignorant to drive it) and park it in front of your house while you’re starving because of this ignorant illiterate’s greed. To add insult to further injury, this moron will see you starving/struggling.

    For him to give $10 out of his own pocket (even though money is not his), this sadistic, ignorant being of a person would rather rob you of your pride/dignity by watching you beg before he even considers giving you the money. Yet this is supposed to be your brother/sister. Unity among our people, and a better brand of leadership is needed, not aid, not debt relief, but leadership and unity.
    Moyo, UK

    I completely agree with your comments on the corrupt leaders of Africa. The same holds true for most African countries. To add more, the bad records of developed world puts me on the pessimist’s side as I have strong suspicion over Mr Blair’s move to ‘alleviate’ Africa’s problems which are already deepened by him and his allies through history.

    Unless we are able to learn from history, we are still prone to the worst whatever it is. It never came to my mind that the market and cheap labour-hungry world would favour Africa’s poor.

    The solution is only in the hands of the ordinary Africans to stand on their corrupt systems in a systematic way. Or, God himself has to come and pass the world! Our leaders are as cruel as hyenas. What can I say…
    Dodge, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    The monster that has caused intractable abject poverty in Africa is corruption. However, as the Nigerian finance minister has rightly challenged the rich nations to ratify the UN anti-corruption treaty if they are really not privy to encouraging more looting from Africa into their nations.

    If the UK, US and indeed the G8 were truly morally unhappy with the stashing of stolen African money in their banks they should then emulate the Switzerland example to freeze those accounts and repatriate the stolen funds as part of foreign aid to the affected African nations.

    They can even insist on certain dating love online site
    that the affected countries should allow them use the funds to directly or indirectly (using UNICEF or relevant UN bodies) to fund universal basic education projects or communities portable water supply schemes or primary/tertiary healthcare equipment projects etc.

    This will guard against the sure risk of a second looting of the funds in the hands of corrupt state officials.
    Madam Ijeoma Uwah, Nnewi, Nigeria

    Godwin, what a joy to see you unequivocally mention God as the only ultimate answer, although, as you say, we must do things in the natural realm, such as education, to take responsibility. If only the media had the sense to study the effects the massive Christian revivals amongst millions of Africans are having on communities, and sometimes, whole nations. Thank God Africa can tell the truth!
    Steven McDaniel, Sand Springs, OK, USA

    The UK led commission report sounds too good to believe; but if I must, the driving force behind this new approach must be clear in my mind. What has touched Tony Blair and his likes this time about Africa? Is this a move toward globalization or an attempt by Blair to save face for the mistake of the pass? Whatever the case is, the realization of the report lies in the application and not the documentation alone.
    Emmanuel Ammah, Monrovia, Liberia

    You have said education is the key ingredient here but what about basic necessities like food, water and shelter? The government has not allocated the resources efficiently. We have resources and funds which are not channelled to the right direction. The people in the remote areas are getting absolutely nothing.

    God has given us intellect and wisdom but we do not want to repent and recant from our bad practises. We need not drift away from Nigeria because it is a rich country that needs to wake up, because God has given us that power. We need to work before we ask for God’s protection but everyone wants to be rich in a twinkle of an eye.

    We have to start from somewhere. All individuals need not only think about themselves but society as a whole because that way Nigeria will survive. I have plans for this great economy which is rapidly dwindling. May God Guide us all. Amen.
    Hawa Ocheni, Kogi, Nigeria

    How does Mr Tony Blair imagine to bring development money into Africa without tackling the biggest African challenge of official corruption and accountable democracy? I don’t personally share his optimism about this African Commission. As long as the dating free online personals site
    nations permit corrupt African officials to own choice estates and operate fat bank accounts from questionable sources of wealth, the status quo would remain even with Mr Blair’s goodwill notwithstanding.

    If President George W Bush could trace, disrupt and freeze terrorist funds stashed in hidden bank accounts worldwide, why can they not freeze the stolen billions from Africa? The billions Mr Blair is campaigning for would still ultimately end up one way or another in state officials’ private bank accounts right there in UK, USA, Swiss or Asia.

    The African leaders would use all sorts of arguments on national sovereignty etc to compel those funds into their own hands. Thus Blair’s dream would die like others have before as the funds fade into thin air from complex African bureaucracy.
    Brendan Ibay, Nigeria

    Giving handouts to Africa will not solve African problems. The root cause of the whole problem in Africa is the never ending ethnic conflict aggravated by religion. If Mr Tony Blair wants to solve the problems in Africa then, he should be bold to advise African leaders to revisit colonial boundaries. Secondly, western nations should enact a law stopping their financial institutions to accept looted funds from Africa.
    Nanu Nanu, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

    Ever since I can remember the world has been pouring money and resources into Africa with little or negative change. I totally agree with Nanu Nanu (above) that the never-ending ethnic and religious conflicts simply soak up the effort that goes in and deepen the requirement for further aid. What a totally astute and realistic individual Nanu Nanu is.
    John Graham, London

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