Zambia: Guns-for-Hire Legacy of Angolan War (September
29, 2004)
The Angolan civil war has made weapons readily available in neighboring Zambia and brought a new security problem to its villages: Karavinas or contract killers. Fear of the Karavinas who kill to settle scores as minor as suspicion of witchcraft has disrupted whole communities as many leave their villages for larger towns. Especially the elderly are affected as they fear the Karavinas may identify them as sorcerers. The government recognized the extent of the problem and warned to use the army to "crackdown" on illegal firearms.
Sudan: Geneva: Too Little, too Late for the Victims of Darfur (September 17, 2004)
The impact of the conflict in Darfur on the Sudanese population is overwhelming. As little distinction has been made between civilians and combatants, the elderly happen to be among the most vulnerable groups of the one million people who are facing the horrors of this war. Destruction of livelihoods means that they will continue to depend on outside help to survive. Both the International Red Cross and the Sudanese Red Crescent are trying to ease the suffering. So far, the world press has not looked at the underlying international competition over the oil that lies underground in the Darfur area and its responsibility for stoking the conflict. Should the Sudanese brace themselves for a major power invasion masked with a response to human tragedy?
Kenya: Elders Now Rally to Speaker's Defense ( September 14, 2004)
A group of Maasai elders decided that it was their place to intervene into the disagreement between House Speaker Francis ole Kaparo and Cabinet Minister William ole Ntimama. Apparently the House Speaker had urged Maasai to reclaim tribal lands that were given over to white ranchers at Independence decades ago. Left out of the process at that time, the Maasai now want these lands but are divided over methodology. In this article the elders argue that the government must take action
Kenya:Kenya Repulses Land Grabs Akin to Those in Zimbabwe (September 5,
2004)
The land controversy around the 100th anniversary of an agreement reached between British colonialists and Masai elders turned into armed conflict in Kenya. Heavily armed police officers fired tear gas at the demonstrators who were marching to the British High Commission to highlight their rejection of colonial-era agreements that stripped them of their land. The Masai were carrying their traditional wooden staffs, knives and wooden clubs to fight with the well-equipped police forces. An elderly Masai man has died, shot during a confrontation with the police. The government officials justify themselves by the fact that Kenya's economy very much relies on Western assistance and
uprooting the ranchers would be disastrous for it.
Sudan: Darfur Elders Say United States Demonises Sudan to Hurt Islam (August 28, 2004)
The bloody 18-month conflict between the two main rebel groups continues in the Sudan. In an attempt to mediate the problem, the Sudanese government sent 11 elders - tribal chiefs from the war-torn Sudanese region of Darfur -- to Nigeria as part of a delegation to the African Union peace talks. The chiefs criticized the United States for blaming Muslims for the conflict, saying that the superpower has tried to "demonise" Muslims. Information about the underlying international competition over Sudanese oil reserves not emerged in syndicated press reports.
Sudan: Life Gets Harder, as Violence Increases in Darfur (August 22, 2004)
It is difficult for a person fortunate enough to have never been affected by armed conflict to understand the magnitude and depth of human tragedies of the people victimized by violence. The Darfur crisis of a year and a half now has spoiled the relations between the Arab nomads and black African tribes, both earlier relatively peacefully co-residing in Sudan, for several generations. Suliman Hassid, the 87-year-old chief of Shiga Karo, blames Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir for emboldening Arab nomads and escalating long-standing tensions between them and the country's black African tribes.
Sudan: The Meaning of Suffering, From the Farms of Darfur (August 20, 2004)
The Darfur crisis of 18 months has brought about devastation and hundreds of thousands of civilian victims. The whole situation is especially difficult for the old people. In addition to the pain and fear shared by all who have been forced to flee their villages or seen family members killed or assaulted, the elderly carry the fear that they will never be able to return to their homes and land in their lifetime - that they will die in a foreign land. Khamis, a Masalit man in his 70s has lost all of his moveable and immoveable property in repeated assaults of the Arab militia. Now in a hospital in Chad, he is waiting for the recovery and sanity of his son Mohammed - the only one of his four sons still alive.
Burundi: Attack on a Refugee Camp in Burundi Kills at Least 180 (August 15, 2004)
Since early 90s, some 300,000 Burundians have perished in widespread, often intense ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions in this Central African country. In a recent attack on ethnic Tutsi refugee camp located near the border of Congo, the Hutu rebels, the National Liberation forces killed at least 180 people. The attackers claimed that they were pursuing Burundian soldiers who fled to the refugee camp from a nearby military position. However, the eyewitnesses say that they saw no soldier's body among the dead, except those of young children, women and old persons.
Africa: Aged in Africa by Aroun Deen (August 11, 2004)
Aged in many African countries are respected and cared of in peaceful times, when they can bring benefit to their families and society. However, when a war starts, many young members of the family view their old relatives as burden and some might even leave them behind. When stayed behind, the elderly face all the horrors of brutal and inconsiderate behavior of enemy combatants. The peace building potential of the old people is often ignored as well
Sudan: Rain's a Curse for Sudan's Refugees (July 20, 2004)
The rains in Darfur, a city in western Sudan, are a curse in more ways than one. Muddy roads make it difficult for humanitarian aid to get through to the refugees. Heavy rains serve as a fertile ground for the outburst of infectious diseases and epidemics. One year-old Asha lies in a hospital covered in sores and lesions, her skin peeling. Her grandmother who is looking after the child says that their village was burnt to the ground by the
Janjaweeds militia.
Singers of Sudan Study War No More (July 12, 2004)
Sudan: Now in her 70's, Ms. Fatimah Mohamed Sanusi, a traditional Sudanese singer, has sung about love, celebration, and mourning. Of late her songs on war have inspired the militias in the violent clashes in Darfur, west Sudan. After attending a special peace-building workshop, Ms. Sanusi is going to use her considerable power for peace and good. As both nationals and outside commercial interests compete viciously over the oil resources in the region, the news report focuses on old women who sing.
Sudan Refugees Too Scared to Bury Dead (July 6, 2004)
Many of the elderly Darfur Sudanese are unable to bury their family members
for fear of repeated ambush from the Janjaweed militias. A lot of elderly die shortly after they reach the refugee camp and are presumably safe. They die from the fear of not dying in the foreign land.
Sudan: Violence, Food Crisis in Sudan Worsen as Militias Keep Hold (July 1, 2004)
The recent visit of the US Secretary of State Colin Powell has intensified the world media attention to the massive famine of Darfur Sudanese refugees, mostly the elderly, woman and children.
Congo War
Leaves Legacy of Chaos (November 16, 2003)
The war in the DRC has left thousands of women
victim to brutal sexual violence from militiamen from all sides of the
conflict, and the elderly are not spared. This article reports that a
63-year-old grandmother was among many victims of rape in one village,
and humanitarian agencies have seen women as old as 80 sexually
assaulted.
In Congo, Thousands of
Accused "Sorcerers" Suffer Abuse (October 30,
2003)
In the DRC, several years of violent civil war have
torn apart families, disrupted food production, and devastated the lives
of millions of people. In this context, accusations of witchcraft
against children and the elderly are on the rise. Suspected
"witches," usually children or older women, are often abandoned,
abused, and even murdered.
Road
to Recovery in the DR Congo? (September 29,
2003)
Families are slowly trying to rebuild their lives
after years of war in the DRC, but many areas remain highly unstable.
This HelpAge International article features three older women who are
struggling to keep their families safe and healthy in the midst of
appalling poverty and violence.
French
Troops Find 22 Hacked Bodies in Congo (July 22, 2003)
Civilians suffered terribly during the flare-up of
violence in the province
of Ituri during the summer of 2003. French peacekeeping troops found the bodies
of 22 elderly people, women and children in a village near Bunia,
representing one of many civilian massacres in that region.
Displaced
Pygmies from Pool Region, Congo Vaccinated
Against Polio (July 29, 2002)
This UNICEF story highlights a polio vaccination
program for displaced pygmies in Congo-Brazzaville's Pool Region, but it also
provides a glimpse of the struggles of older people caught up in armed
conflict. The village's elderly chief led over one hundred villagers
through the forests to escape the fighting, during which another older
man died of exhaustion.
