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SOCIETY

CENTRAL AFRICA: Inter-community violence worries.

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Inter-communal violence continues to worsen in Central Africa. Since the departure of former president François Bozizé in March 2012, driven out of power by the rebel coalition Séléka, the country is doomed to uncontrollable violence for over 5 years.

Seleka Muslims are opposed to anti-balaka who represent self-defense militias. Because of this internal fratricidal war, the population trapped as if in a vise, is defenseless, they are victims of repeated attacks and killings.

It is since March 2012 when President François Bozizé is ousted by the rebel Séléka coalition that the country has sunk into an unprecedented spiral of violence. The rebels had demands on the negotiating table. They wanted and still want to make their voices heard, including the implementation of the 2008 agreements that provided for their reintegration into the army. They also want more investment for the northern regions, completely neglected by the central government.

Since then, a resurgence of violence due to the clashes of the militias on both sides threatens the internal security of the country. Yet, on June 19, 2017 a glimmer of hope finally emerged for the country and its more than 5 million inhabitants. The signing of a peace agreement in Rome that provided for an immediate ceasefire and the final deposit of arms was signed by all political actors but also by the fourteen armed groups. This historic agreement was intended primarily to bring peace to the country but also to curb the unbridled struggle and violence between communities. Unfortunately, the deal quickly shattered in less than 24 hours.

To fight against this insecurity, which disrupts the socio-economic life of the population, between the end of May and June 2017, the Central African authorities set up a disarmament, demobilization and reintegration program for the disarmament of thousands of rebels involved in the Second World War. that shook the country. 1000 people followed the program. However, this commendable initiative has unfortunately not allowed the total demilitarization of the different rebel groups.

Wednesday, October 18, 2017, yet another deadly attack was committed in the south-east of the country, a region long spared by violence. Civilians are always targeted according to their community or religious affiliation. Cars destroyed, motorcycles burned, churches and mosques looted, all acts of violence that testify to the situation of insecurity in the cities.

A renewed tension more and more disturbing. On Sunday, 22 October 2017, two soldiers from Minusca, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic, were killed in the city of Bangassou after firing from the self-defense groups while securing a point of access to water for 2000 civilians displaced by the fighting. 40,000 of the city’s 45,000 inhabitants have been displaced. 90% still have not returned to their homes. A little further in the city of Zemio, 290 kilometers from Bangassou, there is a growing conflict between the Muslim community and the anti-balaka elements. In the city of Bria in the north, the FPRC, a faction of the former Séléka still controls the territory. The turmoil of deadly violence in the cities of Batango, Bria or Bangassou have caused enormous loss of life, caused by massive displacement of people. People who yearn for peace are worried.

There are more than a hundred dead and more than one million displaced, including 600,000 in neighboring countries: Chad, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

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SOCIETY

SENEGAL – Asma Khadija, a dynamic press officer of IBC INVEST

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Asma Khadija! This name evokes a great personality in the Senegalese journalistic world. In fact, it is a hyperbright star in the field of communication in Senegal. Each morning, this charming journalist, armed with her radiant smile and vibrant voice, brightens our first day on the SEN TV morning show “Subaatel”. In addition to that, she is an actress and model. Aware of the aura that it could bring to their association, IBC Invest has attached its services and decided to make her their head of press relations. Basically, she is responsible for all international communication matters of the International Business Conseil Invest (IBC). Each interview is an opportunity to enhance the association’s image.

Asma, front line at IBC
Created in 2019, the International Business Council (IBC) promotes youth and women entrepreneurship, as well as social and solidarity economy. According to Asma Khadija, this association is much more than a network, as it offers African entrepreneurs a space for expression, training and networking with potential investors. As the press relations officer, she explains: “My role is to promote and highlight the activities of the association, notably through the Link Sunugal fair, a European initiative aimed at making African entrepreneurs known and connecting them to diaspora networks.” It aims to “sell the destination Senegal and connect local entrepreneurs with our diaspora.”

Senegal, a land of opportunities
“Senegal is a beautiful country where everything can be done,” says Asma. According to her, Senegal has “resources and talents; what we need now is the involvement of the diaspora for sustainable and prosperous development.” With IBC, she plans to contribute by encouraging young people to engage in training that will help them specialize and meet international challenges. She believes that Senegal could better combat illegal immigration by offering young people a serious alternative. In this sense, IBC, through her, has the mission to show young people that “Senegal can become the Eldorado our youth are looking for in Europe” and that “success is possible here.”

Asma, IBC Ambassador
Asma hopes that Link Sunugal can serve as a model for other countries in Africa, as it is meant to inspire the diaspora to invest in their homeland and build a better future. Embodying the determination and vision of a strong, united Africa, Asma, with IBC, is working to transform the dream of an engaged diaspora that contributes to the prosperity of an entire continent. According to her, “the financing is directed towards economic and productive projects, thus building a solid foundation for local entrepreneurs.” Asma believes that this tour, a first for IBC, represents a unique opportunity to create a sustainable network of exchanges, benefiting entrepreneurs and African communities.

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EDUCATION

AVERROÈS – The first Muslim school under contract in France, is under threat

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Founded 20 years after the ban on veiling in schools, Averroes, the first Muslim high school under contract in France, is threatened, with a favourable opinion on the termination of its contract with the State having been delivered Monday. 

A consultative committee chaired by the Prefect of the North voted on Monday in favor of the termination of the association contract linking the State this Muslim school located in Lille, the big city of northern France, told AFP two sources close to the file, this Monday, November 27, 2023.

Under the terms of this contract, signed in 2008, the teachers of the school are paid by the National Education and the extracurricular staff by the Region. The last word now goes to the prefect, who must make his decision on the future of this contract “in the coming days”, said one of the two sources.

Since 2019, the local authorities have refused to pay the subsidy provided under this contract with the State, accusing Averroès of a Qatari donation of 950,000 euros in 2014.

In filigree is also pointed out the historical link of Averroes with the Muslims of France (ex-UOIF), organization stemming from the Egyptian movement of the Muslim Brotherhood. 

The idea of creating a Muslim high school dates back to 1994, when 19 girls were excluded from a Lille public high school for refusing to remove their veil to go to school, despite a circular prohibiting “ostentatious religious signs”. 

The Lycée Averroès opened in September 2003 with about fifteen students in the premises of the mosque of the working-class district of Lille-Sud, with the support of the UOIF. 

With more than 800 students, including 400 under contract, Averroes remains by far the largest of the six Muslim institutions under contract in France. Only high school is recognized, not college.

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ENVIRONMENT

LIBYA – Storm Daniel: The international community is organizing to send aid

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Emergency services are trying to identify the number of victims caused by the passage of Storm Daniel, Sunday, September 10, 2023 on the east coast of the country. Torrential rains and the collapse of two dams led to the partial destruction of the city of Derna, which has a population of 100,000. The international community is organizing to provide emergency assistance.

Neighborhoods engulfed under water, dams that have broken, mudslides that take away buildings. The situation is dramatic in Libya, after the floods caused by storm Daniel last Sunday in the east of the country.

Libyan relief services under the Tripoli government, recognized by the international community, released a final human toll mid-day. According to their spokesman, Oussama Ali, the storm left at least 2,300 dead and 7,000 injured in the city of Derna alone, clearly the hardest hit.

The government of the East, rival to that of Tripoli, puts forward an even heavier record: it says that more than 5,200 people died in Derna. The Minister of Health even says he expects twice as many victims. The final toll remains very uncertain. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies remains cautious on the numbers, but recognizes a «huge» death toll that can be counted in thousands. There are an estimated 10,000 missing. There are also 65 other deaths in other cities in eastern Libya.

A IFRC official talks about humanitarian needs that far exceed the capabilities of the Federation, and even the government.

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