by Sophia Tesfamariam

The Systematic Emasculation of Africa’s Leadership-Part One (.pdf Acrobat Reader)

Time and again we have been told that Africa’s leaders were corrupt megalomaniacs that have contributed to the continent’s backwardness, conflict and strife. We tend to believe narratives that assault Africa’s leadership especially when they tell us that Africa’s leaders, who fought for their nation’s liberation were somehow not qualified to lead it when independence came. We believe so cinalled “intellectuals and professionals” who believe they are better poised to govern and lead Africa’s budding institutions. Yet we mourn great leaders such as Congo’s Patrice Lumumba (Congo), Ghana’s Kwame Nkurumah , Egypts’ Gamal Abdul Nasser, Algeria’s Ahmed Ben Bella and Ahmed Sekou Touré of Guinea, who fought to liberate their beloved nations from the yolks of colonialism, only to be eliminated shortly after with help from their own nationals, traitors who sold them out.

Sekou Touré proclaimed, “We prefer dignity in poverty to affluence in slavery”. They wanted to instill pride and confidence in the ability to shape their own destinies, to rely on their own resources, human and material, not to depend on handouts and stipends. They wanted to liberate their lands, but also their minds. They understood Africa’s worth, its vast resources and its potentials. Time and again we have seen great leaders brought to their knees. Sadly, Africa today finds itself in deep poverty, without dignity and with some leaders turned into slaves with affluence…emasculated.

The author traveled to New York in early October 2012 to listen to what was being said by the various leaders who had convened on Turtle Bay for the 67th session of the UN General Assembly. What struck me was the lack of respect shown by the host nation and others to the guests that had flown thousands of miles to present their Statements to the world body. At times, it seemed as if they were talking to themselves, as the Assembly Hall was virtually empty. It seemed the UN envoys showed up only to listen to those “like minded” leaders who shared their world view. While some leaders and their representatives were presenting, the others chose to spend their time in NY visiting high end shops and enjoying fine dining at the expense of their people. I sat in person to listen to some of the addresses, but followed almost all through the UN webcast.

On 1 October 2012, UN News Center[i] reported the following:

“…Eritrea’s Foreign Minister, Osman Saleh, said it is clear that the UN has not succeeded in its paramount purpose of saving humanity from the scourges of war and poverty, and now the threat of global climate change, in the 67 years since its creation…“What is particularly significant is the fact that in most of these wars, it is some of the big powers, who have been the main architects and actors in these wars – the same powers who by virtue of their position in the United Nations Security Council should have shouldered the biggest responsibility for the maintenance of peace and stability,” he said…“The United Nations system, as has been repeatedly pointed out, is indeed outdated. The General Assembly has been emasculated. The Security Council is dominated by one powerful permanent member and increasingly becoming paralyzed,” he added…”

Member states have been calling for reform of the United Nations and the UN Security Council for quite a long time, but because the status quo is preferred by those who wield the most power, reform has been slow in coming. Many have paid lip service to the idea of reforming the outdated Organization and much has been said about its inability to meet its international obligations in the 21st Century. Unfortunately, no concrete steps have been taken as yet. The UN’s credibility and integrity has been eroded and its reputation further undermined when the P-3 have opted to go against decisions taken by the UN General Assembly and the Security Council, and finding ways to evade them. The UN General Assembly is therefore rendered useless-emasculated by the veto wielding countries on the Security Council.

Can an entire nation be emasculated? History shows us that it is possible to emasculate individuals as well as entire populations.

So how does one go about emasculating an entire population?

Stanley Milgram carried out experiments in the 1960s to discover how the Nazis had managed to get ordinary people to take part in the mass murder of the Holocaust. The experiment was created to explain some of the concentration camp-horrors of the World War 2, where Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, Slavs and other enemies of the state were slaughtered by Nazis. The experiment showed that compliance to authority was the norm and not the exception.

In “Obedience to Authority: An Experimental View” Stanley Milgram writes:

· “…Obedience, because of its very ubiquitousness, is easily overlooked as a subject of inquiry in social psychology. But without an appreciation of its role in shaping human action, a wide range of significant behavior cannot be understood. For an act carried out under command is, psychologically, of a profoundly different character than action which is spontaneous…”

· “…The person who, with inner conviction, loathes stealing, killing, and assault may find himself performing these acts with relative ease when commanded by authority. Behavior that is unthinkable in an individual who is acting on his own may be executed without hesitation when carried out under orders…”

· “…It has been reliably established that from 1933 to 1945 millions of innocent people were systematically slaughtered on command. Gas chambers were built, death camps were guarded, daily quotas of corpses were produced with the same efficiency as the manufacture of appliances. These inhumane policies may have been originated in the mind of a single person, but they could only have been carried out on a massive scale if a very large number of people obeyed orders…”

The other factor that enables a legitimate authority to evoke destructive obedience, according to Milgram, is the shift of participants into a different experiential state –the “agentic state” that enables them to relinquish responsibility to the authority and therefore to follow his or her orders without regard to their morality.

In 1998-2000, at the height of the Eritrea Ethiopia border conflict, Meles Zenawi’s minority TPLF regime in Ethiopia decided that it was going to deport Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin because Zenawi decided that he did not like “the color of their eyes”. Young and old, men women and children were taken from their homes and thrown onto buses that dumped them at the mine infested borders. Handicapped persons, the sick and the elderly, nuns, priests and others were forcibly removed from cities across Ethiopia. Breastfeeding infants were snatched from their mothers and left abandoned. Ethiopian responding to orders from the minority regime committed untold crimes against Eritreans living in Ethiopia. Their hard earned belongings were confiscated by Tigrayan cadres loyal to the minority regime. Were Ethiopians put in an “agentic state” by the regime? Was it hate or fear that prompted the ill-treatment of Eritreans? Was it hate or fear that prompted the regime’s forces to destroy the cemeteries of Eritrea’s beloved martyrs? 12 years later, many questions remain unanswered…

As the line between hate and fear intercross in modern Ethiopia, the world witnessed another spectacle in Ethiopia. This time it was the death of Meles Zenawi. While the secrecy surrounding his death remains; it was the orchestrated mourning that garnered the most attention. Those close to the TPLF regime say that Ethiopians were ordered to mourn Meles Zenawi, a leader responsible for the many internal and external conflicts raging in today’s Ethiopia. They were told to mourn for a leader that had massacred their children. Was it an attempt to defect attention away from the domestic upheavals that seemed to be imploding or were Ethiopians genuinely mourning their leader? It is hard to tell as the regime has lied throughout its reign and has lost the trust of the people.

Who was Meles Zenawi and what did he do to warrant such a send off? Much has been said and written about the Tigrayan leader to date. Jean Shaoul sums up Meles Zenawi’s rule quite accurately in the 4 September 2012 article:

“…Meles engineered one-party rule in Ethiopia, over which he dominated, favouring some ethnic groups and regions at the expense of others, clamping down on dissent, forcing oppositionists into exile, and riding roughshod over human rights. Ethiopia is considered one of Africa’s most repressive governments…The 2005 elections were subject to widespread rigging and saw the opposition winning just 23 seats, sparking mass protests. Meles’s regime responded by launching the biggest crackdown seen in Africa since South Africa’s 1986 state of emergency, killing 200 protesters and beating up and jailing some 50,000 oppositionists, a number of whom were tried for treason…He staged-managed the 2010 elections so effectively that his EPRDF coalition won 99.6 percent of the vote, leading to further protests. He arrested more than 100 oppositionists and charged more than 10 journalists under a 2009 anti-terror law. He appointed around himself a small corrupt clique, took all the important decisions, and refused to allow a successor to emerge…”

When the news about the death of Meles Zenawi made the headlines in July 2012, the propaganda machinery in the Ethiopian capital went into full swing. The Information Minister told the people that the Prime Minister was on vacation of sorts, and that he would be back at work in September 2012. Others came out to spin similar stories in what turned out to be a blatant lie, a bid to buy time. When it became impossible to hide the truth, his death was finally announced. The same individuals that had no qualms lying to the people of Ethiopia were back on Ethiopian television telling the people he was in fact dead. Lying outright and without shame has been the norm with the current TPLF leadership in Ethiopia. It is the way they conduct their domestic affairs and it is also the way they conduct their international affairs.

Reminiscent of the public mourning held when South Korean leader Kim Jong-il died, Ethiopians were forced to participate in staged mourning events throughout the country, complete with posters and scarves. It should be recalled that similar staged events were orchestrated when Stalin, Zhou Enlai, and Pol Pot died and in each case, it is safe to say that the people participated out of fear. Not only did Meles Zenawi’s cadres orchestrate a two week long “mourning” throughout the country, they put together an elaborate funeral programme whose remnants are still visible around the capital, Addis Ababa. There were posters (probably done by mass printing) distributed to all neighborhoods. They told the foreign press that it was a spontaneous reaction of the people…That the people went out and made these posters themselves….

What was awful to watch was the sea of Ethiopians waving a white handkerchief as if on cue. The regime wants us to believe that the people of Ethiopia all went out and bought the handkerchiefs themselves…in a spontaneous act of grief! A white handkerchief as far as I know is a sign of surrender. In some religious cults, waving of the white handkerchief is a plea to God to extend His mercy. In Spanish football, white handkerchiefs are waved as a sign of disgust. Elsewhere in the world, waving a white handkerchief is a sign that someone was surrendering or giving up. So what were the Ethiopian people telling us by waving those handkerchiefs?

For some odd reason, other than a few officials in the government, ordinary Ethiopians did not speak at the funeral. That was reserved for external mourners, like Susan E. Rice, the US Ambassador to the United Nations and other invited guests. Only leadership that harbored deep seethed hatred and contempt for its own people, a leadership that feared its population would orchestrate such a shameful spectacle and attempt to pass it off as a spontaneous response by the people.

This excerpt from one of the US Embassy cables illustrates the regime’s contempt. It said:

“…Hailemariam Desalegn, chairman of the Southern Ethiopia People’s Democratic Movement (SEPDM), has argued to Post that due to poor education and illiteracy the Ethiopian public is too underdeveloped to make a well reasoned, informed decision, and so Revolutionary Democracy is the political bridge by which the “enlightened leaders” can lead the people to democracy…”

Judging from the spectacle in Ethiopia over the summer, it is obvious that the frightened minority regime in Ethiopia, like Adolf Hitler and the Nazi’s, has mastered the art of fear to garner obedience from the otherwise proud people of Ethiopia. An emasculated regime whose members suffer from debilitating inferiority complex and crab mentality used the only tools it has at its disposal- fear and lies- to garner obedience.

Let us move on…

Are all leaders of nations great and small, rich and poor, the same? Do western leaders view African leaders as equals? The record shows that they are neither viewed as equals, nor treated as such. Judging from the info found in the Wikileaked American Embassy cables, American and European leaders are placed on a different platform than African or Asian counterparts. States have been calling for equal treatment at the United Nations and at other multilateral forums, but to no avail. The rich countries are content in maintaining the status quo and don’t seem to be regarding that as being a problem and sometimes, even the cause of the many international conflicts.

For this sitting, the author will endeavor to present the fundamental causes of Africa’s economic retardation and never ending religious and ethnic conflicts, and the emasculation of the continent and its population. For brevity’s sake, the author will address issues in the Horn of Africa and the role of the leaders in the region. With the exception of the few, for the most part, Horn leaders have betrayed the trust of their people, and by providing critical national security information to US and other western governments have in fact grossly undermined the independence and sovereignty of their nations and governments.

No continent has witnessed the emasculation and humiliation of its leaders more than Africa. Who is to blame for the systematic emasculation of Africa’s leadership? The underlining causes remain varied and there is enough blame to go around.

How many African Ambassadors, or their political officers, in the United States get the opportunity to walk into the White House and chat with the sitting US President on demand? When was the last time that the Djiboutian, Ethiopian, Kenyan, Ugandan and Somali Ambassadors in Washington had an audience with President Barrack Obama?

How many African Ambassadors in Europe get to walk into European State Houses to chat with European Presidents and Prime Ministers on demand?

How often, if they do at all, do Americans and European officials brief African Ambassadors about meetings held by their chief national security and intelligence officers? When was the last time that the Djiboutian, Ethiopian, Kenyan, Ugandan and Somali Ambassadors in Washington were briefed by the FBI, CIA, Pentagon and the White House on issues relating to US national security, the same briefing given to a sitting US President?

How often, if they do at all, do US officials from the White House, Congress and the Pentagon provide African Ambassadors with information and minutes of their official meetings? When was the last time that the Djiboutian, Ethiopian, Kenyan, Ugandan and Somali Ambassadors in Washington were provided with documents related to confidential official US government activities?

How often, if they do at all, do European officials provide regular briefings to African Ambassadors about meetings taking place at the European Commission, European Parliament and in their own State houses?

When was the last time that an African Ambassador or the Djiboutian, Ethiopian, Kenyan, Ugandan and Somali Ambassadors in Washington called to the White House to discuss the Presidents/Prime Ministers of Canada, Mexico, Columbia, Brazil, Venezuela etc. etc.?

When was the last time that an African Ambassador was summoned to the State Houses in Europe, so that European leaders could share their personal attitudes towards other European leaders or to back stab one of their own?

Would American or European officials (State, military, intelligence etc. etc.) discuss the overthrow or assassination attempts of their leaders (Prime Ministers and Presidents) with African Ambassadors serving in their capitals?

While some African leaders contributed to Africa’s economic malaise by engaging in corrupt behaviors and robbing the nation of its resources. There are also those that seek to advance western interests in Africa instead of strengthening Africa’s sovereignty and independence, believing it would somehow elevate their stature in international politics.

According to the recently released American Embassy cables, from providing critical national security information to providing reports and minutes from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and meetings held by heads of states at the African Union, the leaders of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia have divulged critical information their own citizens are deprived from having. They have wittingly or unwittingly, compromised the credibility, integrity and independence of the regional and continental organizations and reduced them to becoming foreign policy tools of the external powers.

The Wikileak cables are replete with evidence of African Presidents and state officials, head of regional and continental wide organizations, academics and intellectuals, who have succumbed to western ideology and are found shamelessly sharing sensitive and critical information with western Ambassadors and low level Embassy staff serving in African capitals.

More on the emasculation of Africa’s leadership in Part Two…

[i] http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=43176&Cr=general+debate&Cr1=#.UJUDQm-unSg accessed 22 October 2012

DALLAS, Sept. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — In a civil trial that sounded like a real life James Bond spy novel, a Dallas County Jury awarded Southlake Aviation, owned by Dallas business executive David Disiere, $32.4 million in damages against Houston based oil company, CAMAC International, its subsidiary CAMAC Aviation, and Mickey Lawal CAMAC’s Vice President of African Operations.

The case stemmed from a scheme in which CAMAC International and its officers used a Gulfstream V jet leased from David Disiere’s Southlake Aviation to try to spirit more than ten thousands pounds of gold bullion out of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with help from General Bosco Ntaganda, a notorious Congolese warlord.

Following the verdict, Southlake Aviation’s President, David Disiere praised the jury’s decision, “twelve citizens saw through a smoke-and- mirrors defense put on by the CAMAC’s attorneys and clearly found that CAMAC caused my company to loose a $43 million dollar aircraft in a greedy scheme that violated the U.S. Trading With The Enemy Act.”

The jury heard riveting testimony from a diamond trader involved in the scheme describing how CAMAC executives Kase Lawal, Mickey Lawal, and Kamoru Lawal arranged to exchange two-oversized suitcases stuffed with six-and-half million dollars in cash for ten boxes of gold delivered by General Bosco Ntaganda’s armed forces.

An investigation of the smuggling incident by the United Nations Security Council found that CAMAC and its three top executives, Kase Lawal, Mickey Lawal, and Kamoru Lawal were dealing with “individuals operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and committing serious violations of international law involving the targeting of children or women in situations of armed conflict.”

Kase Lawal, Mickey Lawal, and Kamoru Lawal who are Nigerian American brothers invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination hundreds of times during their testimony in the case.

Houston energy executive, Kase Lawal the former CEO of CAMAC International and the current CEO of the publically traded CAMAC Energy Inc. was appointed to a White House Trade Advisory position by President Obama and serves on the boards of the Houston Port and Airport Authorities.

David Disiere, the Dallas business executive and owner of Southlake Aviation, told the jury how he was shocked to get a call in the dead of night informing him that his company’s 43-million dollar Gulfstream V jet aircraft loaded with ten boxes of gold had been confiscated in Goma by authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on February 5, 2011. The jury’s verdict also included compensation of more than 535-thousand dollars for repairing damage done the to the aircraft’s interior passenger compartment during the loading of the gold.

Because Southlake Aviation’s aircraft was confiscated in the Congo, VFS Financing a subsidiary of General Electric, automatically placed Southlake Aviation’s loan to purchase the Gulfstream V in default, accelerated the entire balance, and repossessed the aircraft.

Testimony in the case and the investigation by the United Nations also indicated that former Houston Rocket’s basketball star Dikembe Mutombo acted as an intermediary in the gold smuggling scheme.

Testimony in the case showed that David Disiere had never met the Lawal brothers. Disiere testified that CAMAC had signed a three-year lease for Southlake’s Gulfstream V jet and claiming it would use the jet was to travel between its Houston headquarters and oil operations in Nigeria.

The jury agreed with David Disiere’s testimony that CAMAC and its officers violated the terms of the aircraft’s lease by using it in an outlaw region of Africa.

Case Information: CAUSE NO. DC-11-04005, 134th Judicial District, Dallas County, Texas

SOURCE Southlake Aviation

“With so much for the G8 leaders to discuss,” said AfDB President Kaberuka, “I commend President Obama for putting agriculture investment in Africa on the agenda.”

WASHINGTON, May 21, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ – African Development Bank President Donald Kaberuka (http://www.afdb.org) capped a visit to Washington with a landmark meeting at the Group of Eight (G8) Summit on Saturday.

Photo Donald Kaberuka: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/donald-kaberuka—afdb-president.jpg

Photo Camp David: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=191

The special session focused on agriculture policy in Africa, and in particular, a fresh initiative called the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition.

The meeting was hosted by U.S. President Barack Obama at Camp David near Washington, where this year’s G8 Summit of the world’s largest economies took place.

Participants included the G8 leaders, four African heads of state and executives from the private sector.

“With so much for the G8 leaders to discuss,” said AfDB President Kaberuka, “I commend President Obama for putting agriculture investment in Africa on the agenda.”

One of the main objectives of the new initiative is to encourage the private sector to invest more in the continent’s agriculture sector.

Indeed President Obama has announced that more than $3 billion has already been pledged in private sector investments. African and G8 governments will also commit funds to spur growth.

“This is a win-win proposition,” said Kaberuka. “A prosperous, growing Africa is good for the global economy.”

He went on to say: “This is a collective endeavour involving governments, the private sector and public investment to spur economic growth on the continent.

The African Development Bank is ready to play its part by ensuring conditions such as reliable infrastructure are in place.”

In a statement released on the eve of the Camp David meeting, the White House said that it would work with the people and leaders of Africa to “Increase responsible domestic and foreign private investments in African agriculture, take innovations that can enhance agricultural productivity to scale, and reduce the risk borne by vulnerable economies and communities.”

The White House statement went on to welcome the support of the African Development Bank and other development agencies.

In the last few days there has been an intense focus on ways to encourage greater innovation and private sector investment in the agriculture sector across Africa.

The New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition was launched at a symposium in Washington on Friday, bringing hundreds of individuals and organizations together to discuss the way forward.

In a nod to the high-level support for the initiative, speakers at the symposium included President Obama, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the leaders of Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana and Tanzania, and AfDB President, Donald Kaberuka.

They spoke about the opportunities that exist in Africa and the yields that greater agricultural output could bring, not just in the food sector.

“This is not only a moral imperative, but an economic and security imperative as well,” said President Obama.

He added that the overall goal is to bring 50 million people out of poverty. This, he said, would improve lives, economies and security around the world.

AfDB President Kaberuka told the audience that although African agriculture has underperformed for many years, that’s beginning to change as many governments put market policies and conditions in place.”

Through improved infrastructure, transportation and trade, Africa can make significant headway, he said.

The African Development Bank Group’s mission is to help reduce poverty, improve living conditions for Africans and mobilize resources for the continent’s economic and social development.

Current and future projects and priorities will be discussed at the organization’s Annual Meetings in Arusha, Tanzania from May 28th to June 1st.

The theme of the meetings will be “Africa and the Emerging Global Landscape: Challenges and Opportunities.”

Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of the African Development Bank.

Contact : Magatte Wade – m.wade@afdb.org – + 216 71 10 29 16

SOURCE

African Development Bank (AfDB)

NEW YORK, April 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ –

Leaders in Energy and Economics Will Meet April 11 to Discuss Fueling the World’s Energy Needs

U.S. Secretary of Energy, energy economist Daniel Yergin and former Petrobras CEO Jose Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo are among the speakers at tomorrow’s (Wednesday’s) The New York Times Energy for Tomorrow conference. The conference has been created in collaboration with Richard Attias and Associates.

More than 400 corporate and political leaders, as well as NGOs, academics and energy experts will debate the most pressing issues and opportunities facing the energy sector today. GE is the founding sponsor of The New York Times Energy for Tomorrow, with BMW and Louisiana Economic Development as supporting sponsors.

Gerald Marzorati, editor for The New York Times who is responsible for creating The Times’s conferences, said: “With rising prices, energy is at the top of the agenda – both economically and politically – around the world. The supply picture is changing in the United States, with new sources of oil and natural gas.

“There is also the debate over the environmental impact of energy extraction and production, and the role of efficiency in making sure there will be enough energy to meet growing global needs.”

Richard Attias, chairman of Richard Attias and Associates, said: “A reimagining and rebuilding of the global energy sector could provide the necessary stimulus to propel global economic growth. The conference will spotlight the choices we face on energy supply, the impact of globalization on demand, and the geopolitical risks, as well as the question of from where investment in new energy will come.”

The conference will host a wide-ranging scope of debates, panel discussions, keynote addresses, case studies and insight-gathering sessions.

Key sessions will include:
Daniel Yergin, chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and celebrated energy economist, will explore what the energy landscape might look like in 2030 during the opening keynote.
Dr. Steven Chu, U.S. Secretary of Energy and co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics (1997), will join New York Times Op-Ed columnist Thomas Friedman in The Columnist Conversation.
José Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo, chief planning officer of the state government of Bahia, Brazil, and former C.E.O of Petrobras, will deliver the afternoon’s keynote address.

Other renowned speakers at the conference will include:

Lester R. Brown, founder and president of Earth Policy Institute; Carol Browner, Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress and former ‘energy czar’ to the Obama administration; Lee Edwards, president and chief executive of Virent, Inc.; Marvin Fertel, president and chief executive of the Nuclear Energy Institute; Jochen Flasbarth, president of the German Federal Environment Agency; Robert A. Hefner III, founder and owner of the GHK Company; Amy Myers Jaffe, director of the Energy Forum at the Baker Institute; John Krenicki Jr., vice chairman of GE, and president and chief executive of GE Energy; Michael Levi, Senior Fellow for energy and the environment at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and director of the CFR program on energy security and climate change; Dave McCurdy, president and chief executive of the American Gas Association; Steve Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy; T. Boone Pickens, chairman of BP Capital Management; Jim Prendergast, executive director of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE); Phil Radford, executive director of Greenpeace; Jim Rogers, chairman, president and chief executive of Duke Energy; and Manuel Camacho Solis, Mexico’s former secretary of Urban Development and the Environment, and former mayor of Mexico City.

New York Times moderators will include:

Richard L. Berke, assistant managing editor; Helene Cooper, White House correspondent; Thomas Friedman, Op-Ed columnist; Clifford Krauss, energy correspondent; Joe Nocera, Op-Ed columnist; Ashley Parker, Metro reporter; and Jeff Zeleny, national political correspondent.

Energy for Tomorrow is one of a series of topical conferences produced by Richard Attias and Associates, designed to focus on areas of the global economy that are key to economic growth and social development. It follows: Doha GOALS, held in Qatar in January to look at sport’s role in society; Global Competitiveness Forum in Riyadh; and Global Food Security Forum in Rabat last month.

The company will host a special edition of the New York Forum, focusing on immigration and US-China business opportunities, in New York on May 22, followed by the New York Forum Africa (June 8-10) in Libreville, Gabon, under the High Patronage of H.E. President Ali Bongo Ondimba.

There are two more conferences in collaboration with The New York Times, to be held later this year: the second Schools for Tomorrow, on September 13, and then the first-ever DealBook conference, Opportunities for Tomorrow, on December 12.

Admission is by invitation only; the conference will be streamed live on http://www.NYTenergyfortomorrow.com.

About Richard Attias & Associates:

Richard Attias & Associates is a strategic communications firm that provides private consultancy, idea initiatives and live experiences. Our mission is to help leaders, corporations and nations build their global influence, catalyze innovation and lead the global exchange of ideas.

http://www.richardattiasassociates.com

For more information please contact:

Richard Attias & Associates
Josh Harris
555 Madison Avenue, 17th Floor
NY 10022, New York
Josh.harris@richardattiasassociates.com
+1-212-794-8802, +1-917-822-1631

SOURCE Richard Attias & Associates

by Benjamin Fishman
March 08, 2012
03:12 PM EST

Source (http://www.whitehouse.gov/)

President Barack Obama meets with Prime Minister Dr. Abdurrahim ElKeib of Libya in the Roosevelt Room of the White House March 7, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Yesterday, President Obama welcomed Prime Minister Abdurrahim ElKeib of Libya to the White House, kicking off three days of meetings for the Libyan leader in New York and Washington with U.S. officials, members of Congress, and business and policy leaders. Dr. ElKeib was the first Libyan prime minister to visit the White House in nearly 60 years, indicating a new era of friendship between the United States and Libya.

During yesterday’s meeting President Obama applauded Dr. ElKeib’s leadership and encouraged his government to make continued progress with the country’s democratic transition. He pledged the support of the United States to the people of Libya as they work to hold the country’s first free and fair national elections later this summer. Rebuilding their country and establishing security will take time, and the President encouraged Prime Minister ElKeib to take full advantage of American and international expertise as the Libyan people address the challenges of the days ahead.

Given the President’s leadership mobilizing the international community last year to protect the Libyan people, it was particularly moving to see how warmly the Libyans greeted President Obama and their eagerness to forge a close partnership with the United States after so many years of limited contacts. Prime Minister ElKeib captured this spirit again this morning when he said at the State Department, “In the past year, the dynamics between the U.S. and Libya has been dramatically transformed for the better. We look forward to the continued strengthening of this relationship as Libya moves forward with its democratic transition and rebuilding its economy.”

Benjamin Fishman is the Director for Libya at the National Security Staff.

by Matt Compton (source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/)
March 08, 2012
06:20 PM EST

President Barack Obama and Professor John Evans Atta Mills, President of the Republic of Ghana, hold a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office, March 8, 2012.(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Today, President Obama welcomed the President of Ghana, John Atta Mills, to the White House where they discussed the growing commercial and economic ties between the two nations.

Ghana was one of the first nations to host the President and First Lady Michelle Obama in 2009.

After their meeting, they spoke briefly with reporters, where President Obama outlined a number of initiatives where our countries are working together:

[The] President’s government recently is collaborating with a number of American businesses to build infrastructure inside of Ghana, which will create thousands of jobs here in the United States. And the trade that we engage in creates jobs for tens of thousands of people back in Ghana.

So that’s a good-news story. And what we’ve also been able to do is collaborate with the Ghanaian government through the Millennium Challenge Corporation — they are a grant recipient — and it has helped to improve a wide range of infrastructure and institutions inside of Ghana. Our Feed the Future program — we’ve been able to help increase productivity there, and the Partnership for Growth — that is also another mechanism where we’re collaborating, for example, on power generation and credit to small businesses and medium-size businesses inside of Ghana.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
March 08, 2012
Remarks by President Obama and President John Atta Mills of Ghana

Oval Office

3:55 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Well, it is a great pleasure to welcome President Mills and his delegation from Ghana. This gives me the opportunity to return the extraordinary hospitality that they showed not only me, but also Michelle and Sasha and Malia when we had the opportunity to visit last year.

There are sometimes — there’s sometimes a tendency to focus on the challenges that exist in Africa — and rightfully so. But I think it’s important for us to also focus on the good news that’s coming out of Africa, and I think Ghana continues to be a good-news story.

This is a country that has established a strong tradition of democracy, and President Mills and I were comparing notes — we’re both up for reelection — but what we agreed to is the fact that regardless of who wins and who loses, our countries’ commitment to making sure that the people have a voice and determine who it is that represents them in their government is what gives both our countries such strength.

And Ghana has proven, I think, to be a model for Africa in terms of its democratic practices. And I very much appreciate the efforts that President Mills has taken not only to ensure fair and free elections, but also to root out corruption, increase transparency, make sure that government is working for the people of Ghana and not just for the few. So we’re very appreciative of those efforts.

In addition, Ghana has become a wonderful success story economically on the continent. In part because of the initiatives of President Mills, you’ve seen high growth rates over the last several years. Food productivity and food security is up. There’s been strong foreign investment. That trade and investment benefits folks back home here in the United States as well.

In fact, the President’s government recently is collaborating with a number of American businesses to build infrastructure inside of Ghana, which will create thousands of jobs here in the United States. And the trade that we engage in creates jobs for tens of thousands of people back in Ghana.

So that’s a good-news story. And what we’ve also been able to do is collaborate with the Ghanaian government through the Millennium Challenge Corporation — they are a grant recipient — and it has helped to improve a wide range of infrastructure and institutions inside of Ghana. Our Feed the Future program — we’ve been able to help increase productivity there, and the Partnership for Growth — that is also another mechanism where we’re collaborating, for example, on power generation and credit to small businesses and medium-size businesses inside of Ghana.

Ghana has also been a leader, a responsible actor on the international stage, working in the region to help stabilize and reduce conflict there. They’ve been strong partners with us in the United Nations on a whole range of international issues. And as important, President Mills has consistently spoken out on behalf of human rights and making sure that everyone is treated fairly and not discriminated against inside of his country.

So I am very proud of the friendship and the partnership between Ghana and the United States. I am confident that it will continue well into the future, beyond the tenures of these two Presidents. And I’m looking forward to having an opportunity to visit Ghana once again sometime in the future.

But in the meantime, Mr. President, welcome to the United States, welcome to your delegation, and we wish you all the best.

PRESIDENT MILLS: Thank you, Mr. President, for this very warm reception. My delegation and I are really honored to be here with the press to say a big thank-you to you, Mr. President, for the honor done us by singling us out for your first visit to Africa — it’s really inspired us.

And I’m also here to also thank you for the help that we have been enjoying and for the high level of cooperation and collaboration that exists between our two countries. We share the same values of democracy. We have come to accept that democracy is the only way.

And democracy goes with development. And if you come to Africa, our people are yearning for only one thing — improvement in their daily lives. And there can be no development without peace, which means that we should do the things which will ensure that there is peace and that there’s no room for conflict.

The United States has been a model, and I’m happy that we are cooperating with one another on all kinds of fronts and they are yielding results. And I was telling Mr. President that when one of the roads was commissioned, and it was built with money provided by the MCC under our first compact, you should have seen the joy on the faces of the Ghanaians because there had been a radical transformation in their lives. I mean that is what governance is all about — to see people happy because they now have what they did not have.

So I assured the President that we have elections this year, but we are going to ensure that there is peace before, during, after the election, because when there is no peace, it’s not the elitists who will suffer, it’s the ordinary people who have elected us into office.

So we have a big challenge, and we know that some of our friends in Africa are looking up to us, and we dare not fail them. I have no doubt at all that we have embarked on a useful journey, and we’ll get to the very end. I told you that both of us are facing elections, but our ships will be able to sail safely to their final destination, I want to assure you.

So thanks a lot for the wonderful reception. We will go back with happy memories. And of course, this will also reassure our people that the kind of cooperation we started — from our first President — is growing from strength to strength.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you, Mr. President.

PRESIDENT MILLS: Thank you, Mr. President.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you, everybody.

END
4:03 P.M. EST

ATLANTA, Feb. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Friendship Force International, an Atlanta-based organization promoting friendship and goodwill among people in more than 50 countries, is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year with plans to grow new chapters and add more citizen exchanges to parts of the world it has never been before.

Each year, about 5,000 people take part in Friendship Force International home-stay exchanges, living in the homes of chapter members in a different country for a week or two. These grassroots, people-to-people experiences help eliminate cultural barriers and often result in friendships that last for years.

And now, plans call for enhanced cultural, professional and educational exchanges and more new chapters around the world as FFI begins its 35th anniversary year on March 1, 2012.

“This milestone is a testament to the enduring relevance of our mission to promote global understanding across the barriers that separate people,” said George Brown, president of Friendship Force International. “Our mission is just as important today as it was 35 years ago, and maybe more so.”

Ensuring a strong future for the organization requires a new generation of volunteers to carry forward its important mission. With this goal in mind, Friendship Force has just launched a three-year expansion that will create 45 new clubs/chapters around the world. As a result, Friendship Force will surpass 400 clubs for the first time in its history.

There will be new clubs in Mexico, Japan, Colombia, Russia, Turkey, Indonesia and the United States. Part of the expansion also focuses on East Africa, where there are clubs in Tanzania, Kenya and Burundi, and plans call for new programs in Uganda and Rwanda.

In addition, a people-to-people program to Cuba is being launched in June 2012.

As Friendship Force celebrates this anniversary, it has touched 1 million people. About 225,000 ambassadors and 750,000 hosts have participated in Friendship Force programs since the organization was founded in 1977.

“A million people around the world have benefited from the legacy provided by those who built the Friendship Force 35 years ago,” Brown said. “Now, it is our turn to build for the future.”

Friendship Force was founded by Wayne Smith and introduced on March 1, 1977, by President Jimmy Carter at a White House gathering of state governors. At that time, President Carter asked the governors to identify a volunteer leader who would serve as state director for the Friendship Force in their state. Rosalyn Carter served as Honorary Chairperson until 2002.

Expansion plans also call for more specialized and themed exchanges, which are becoming increasingly popular with members. Recent themed exchanges included a cycling tour in Canada, eco-exchanges and a multi-generational exchange where grandparents and grandchildren traveled together.

ABOUT FRIENDSHIP FORCE
Friendship Force International organizes an extensive program of international exchanges with home-stays. In addition to exchanges between established Friendship Force clubs, Friendship Force International conducts a variety of specialized cultural travel programs. These include the “discover” series that introduces Friendship Force members to new countries and cultures; humanitarian and educational exchanges; and Friendship Festivals that include participants from many countries.

Friendship Force is currently active in 365 communities in 57 countries — with more than 18,000 members worldwide.

To learn more, visit http://www.thefriendshipforce.org or http://www.facebook.com/friendshipforce.

SOURCE Friendship Force International
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http://www.thefriendshipforce.org

Abbottabad, Pakistan (CNN) — The trove of materials collected from the compound in which Osama bin Laden was killed includes 10 hard drives, five computers and more than 100 storage devices, a senior U.S. official told CNN Tuesday — material that investigators hope will yield clues to help break the al Qaeda network and thwart future terrorist attacks.

Among the storage devices are disks, DVDs and thumb drives, the source said.

“We were on the compound for about 40 minutes and we were able to acquire some material that was there. A lot of that is currently being exploited and reviewed,” the White House senior adviser on counterterrorism, John Brennan, told CNN Tuesday.

Please read more: http://www.cnn.com/

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WASHINGTON — After playing nine holes of morning golf, President Obama joined his senior aides in the White House Situation Room at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday to go over final preparations for that day’s top-secret raid on a complex 35 miles outside Islamabad that those in the room believed was built to hide Osama bin Laden.

Source: www.usatoday.com
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While keeping close watch of events in Egypt, President Obama made a phone call to President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen on Wednesday to discuss the situation in Yemen.

“President Obama asked that Yemeni security forces show restraint and refrain from violence against Yemeni demonstrators who are exercising their right to free association, assembly, and speech,” the White House said in a written statement. “The President also told President Saleh that it is imperative that Yemen take forceful action against Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to protect innocent lives in Yemen as well as abroad. Finally, President Obama expressed concern over the release of Abd-Ilah al-Shai, who had been sentenced to five years in prison for his association with AQAP.”

Please read more: http://whitehouse.blogs.cnn.com

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