Africa- The daily news from Africa

THE centre of Damascus, the Syrian capital, may be quiet but in dense suburbs where most of its 3m inhabitants live, chanting, hand-clapping marches burst out of dozens of local mosques. ?The people demand the execution of the president,? they shout. ?With our blood and spirit we sacrifice for Homs.?The reference is to Syria?s third-largest city, large tracts of which remain in the hands of anti-government rebels despite two weeks of relentless pummeling by rockets and artillery that has left at least 300 dead. Shows of frequently indiscriminate firepower have succeeded in containing opposition and in some cases crushing it. Zabadani, a town of 100,000 near the Lebanese border held by rebels for nearly a month, capitulated to government forces on February 11th. Scores of other unruly towns and cities have been punished, too.The brutal government offensive has encouraged President Bashar Assad to proffer the latest in a series of belated carrots. Receiving the draft of a new constitution from a panel he appointed in October, he declared that it would be put to a referendum on February 26th. The text enshrines such things as civic freedoms, multi-party elections and a limit of two seven-year terms for presidents.The combination of ruthless repression and reform appears to be Mr Assad?s plan for resolving the trouble that has roiled his country for 11 months. It is also...

SIERRA LEONE is regarded as a model of post-conflict reconstruction. An 11-year civil war that left some 50,000 dead by 2002 was overcome with the help of blue-hatted UN peacekeepers. In 2007 power changed hands in fair elections for only the second time in the country?s history and this November citizens will once again go to the polls.But all is not well. Sierra Leone?s president, Ernest Bai Koroma, has forced the UN mission chief out of his job in order to improve his re-election chances, diplomats say. Michael von der Schulenburg was abruptly moved on the orders of UN bosses in New York on February 6th following appeals from the president.On December 22nd Mr von der Schulenburg had warned a senior UN official, Lynn Pascoe, against ?a situation in which I would have to tell everybody that the president wants me out of the country and the UN has readily complied?. That is indeed what happened.Foreign diplomats confirm that in September the president asked the UN to have Mr von der Schulenburg removed, possibly questioning his impartiality. Two months later he repeated the request in writing, though he now denies this.Mr von der Schulenburg is deemed to have done a good job. He vastly reduced the UN presence in Sierra Leone?a rare achievement in an organisation often unwilling to put itself out of business. He also acted as a valued mediator between political parties in an...

A Nigerian Bible scholar once told me as we met for breakfast in Nairobi, "once you drink the waters of Africa, you must return again and again for more."

It has been a little over a year since I've been back for a sip. I cannot believe it's been this long. Priorities have shifted with the new and exciting challenges at CBN News in my professional life and raising my little son in my private life.

I miss Africa so very much; exploring new cultures and meeting new people. And, of course, having a good, strong cup of Kenyan coffee with my friends at Java House.

I carry a bit of Africa in my heart and in my arms?

In my heart, I carry the memories of the past four years of coverage.

The oppressive heat of the Somali winds as they blow across the desert sands. The shock of seeing the bones and dried blood of the massacred in Rwanda. The grief of holding a dying baby. The fear of being a foot from a landmine, knowing little children pass by dozens like it everyday on their way to school. Sitting in the dirt under a scrub brush tree talking with Somali women who have seen horrors I could never imagine.

But for every sad memory, there are two happy memories.

The joy of the Masai dancers as they leapt in to the air with the widest of smiles. The beauty of the early morning mist on the plains. The hope of a South Sudanese teacher as she taught her pupils. Drinking a steaming cup of "coffee sludge" in a small village. Drinking a warm Coke in the desert. Drinking ANYTHING in the middle of nowhere. The naming ceremony a group of Dinka Christians held to "adopt" me into their tribe. The bliss on the face of a young woman holding her first healthy baby thanks to a new local clinic. Getting lost in a Sudanese swamp and walking across dry river bed with my cameraman whose name really is "Moses!"

And the church services! There's nothing like the hours-long worship in African churches. In every country, I met brothers and sisters who have very little, but gladly give anything to their neighbors in need.

I also carry a bit of Africa in my arms. Although he is now an American citizen, my Ethiopian son will always know his heritage. I need only look into his face to see the beauty of his race. The hope, joy and potential of the many I've met and, God willing, will meet again.

There is a part of me that will always remain scattered amongst the acacia trees. And the longing to return is too strong not to return.

Africa Matters is not gone. The column will only be on hiatus for a while as things settle down around here. Keep an eye out for my byline. I will continue to write news analysis pieces in the coming months and warmly welcome your comments and story ideas.

Also, thank you to all the Africa Matters readers who sent e-mails over the years. You have shared your wisdom and insights; the good, the bad and the critical. All have been appreciated. Please, please feel free to e-mail me anytime.

I remain your faithful correspondent, dedicated to covering news around the world... especially on the African continent.

(Editor's Note: This submission is from Tony Das. He will continue as a guest contributor to Africa Matters from time to time.)

Many Westerners believe Africa is a continent of animists who worship multiple gods, and a smattering of Muslims. In fact, Christian website www.the-tidings.com http:/www.the-tidings.com/ reported that "Christian growth in Africa is nothing short of astonishing" and that Africans represent 33% of the planet's Christians. Europe, by contrast is the only continent where Christian numbers are declining "and will likely decline for the foreseeable future."

I belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Martin Luther started the Protestant reformation in Wittenberg, Germany where only one-in-four citizens now call themselves Christian (undoubtedly due to generations of atheistic communism in that former East German city).   

In America, the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reports that "the US is on the verge of becoming a minority Protestant country". However, that report concedes that Catholics have been able to maintain a "steady" percentage of the Christian population due to the impact of Latino immigration.

Christianity is nothing new to Africa. By 500 AD there were three African-born Catholic Popes, all of whom made significant marks on Christianity.

Pope Victor I (AD 189-199), born in the Roman Province of Africa changed the liturgical language from Greek to Latin.

Pope Militiades (AD 311-314) was a North African Berber, a people who live west of the Egyptian Nile Valley. His Edict of Milan in 313 forced Roman Emperors Constantine and Licinius to tolerate Christians and return their confiscated lands.

Pope Galasius I (AD 492-496), also a North African commanded that the Eucharist be celebrated with both bread and wine; the latter had been prohibited by Persian Manicheans who claimed "dual identity" with the Christian church.

To escape King Herod's thugs Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to Egypt, an African state for refuge. One of the first to be baptized a Christian by the Apostle Philip was a eunuch and aide to Ethiopian Queen Candace. Acts 8:39 says Philip went "on his way rejoicing."

In more recent years, Christian missionaries in Africa left local populations understanding that Christian charity is based upon providing those things that God has deemed necessary for what we now call "quality of life." Food, clean water, medical care and pastoral ministry during Africa's too-frequent natural and man-made disasters are not lost on the recipients.

I have been working in some of the most remote African locations - and some of the most violent - since 1978. I find that Christian clergy, missionaries and aide workers are among the most respected people on the continent. In 1982 as a foreign news correspondent, I covered the first Africa trip of the late Pope John Paul II. In Onitsha, Nigeria -- a country with the largest Muslim population in sub-Sahara Africa-- more than one million people walked as long as two weeks to attend his outdoor mass.

Nigerian Cardinal Francis Arinze, who in 1965 became the world's youngest bishop at the age of 32, was by all accounts a serious contender to replace John Paul II after his death. Cardinal Arinze said at the time: "the great St. Augustine of Hippo, Algeria (again, an African nation), son of St. Monica was the earliest philosopher/theologian to ?re-interpret the teachings of Christ, the Epistles and the Old Testament, thus welding together the old and new in honor of Christ".

To turn Western preconceptions of Africa's religious demography on its head: African Protestant and Catholic clergy have raised the concept of "re-evangelizing the West" by sending African missionaries to under-served Christian communities in Europe, their former colonial masters.

Tony Das has 30+ years of experience as a U.S. diplomat, foreign news correspondent and businessman in Africa. Now President/COO of Global Markets Consulting Group he has just been elected to Church Council at Prince of Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Orkney Springs, VA. He can be reached at: tonydas@shentel.net

Earlier this week, we carried a report about seven Somalis beheaded by Islamists with links to Al-Qaeda in Baidoa, Somalia.  The murderers accused the seven of everything from being "spies" to leaving Islam to become "Christians."

I do not know whether these victims were indeed Christians or not.  It's very hard to confirm.  The families are probably not volunteering that information for fear they, too, may be killed. 

What we do know is that, according to Open Doors, there are only 4,000 Christians in the predominantly Muslim country of more than 10 million.  And Somalia is ranked fifth in the world by the organization for persecution against believers.

"Christian" = Criminal

Unfortunately, calling someone a Christian has become the "accusation du juor" that leads to persecution and death in many Muslim countries-whether or not the accused is indeed a Christian.  It seems the term has become an easy way to make sure someone is convicted.

It's kind of like a reverse of the American "Salem Witch Trials" in the late 1600s.  When many good and honest people were accused of being witches and killed by hanging.  The meer accusation often led to death.

"They even called me a 'Christian!'"

When I was in the Dadaab refugee camp on the border between Somalia and Kenya, I interviewed a young Somali girl regarding the awful practice of female genital mutilation (FGM).  Her father, a devout Muslim holy man (imam), stood up in his mosque to denounce the practice.  He refused to let his daughters be mutilated.

As I talked with the beautiful young refugee, she said she had been beaten and called vicious names, because of her father's unpopular stand against FGM. 

"They even called me a Christian," the Muslim girl said with eyes downcast.

Even though this girl's family is obviously Muslim, the easiest way to persecute them without just cause is to call them Christians.

Radical Islam

To be fair, those that beheaded the seven in Somalia do not represent the majority of Muslims.  Most of the Muslims living in the neighboring countries of Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan are followers of Sufi Islam, a more contemplative "denomination," if you will.

The brand of radicals that killed these Somalis come straight from Saudi Arabia.  Hard-liners that believe those who disagree with their point of view are worthy of death.

"To live is Christ, to die is gain."

Early believers were ripped to shreds by lions and  persecuted beyond imagining simply because they were called "Christians."  And Acts 11:26 says the term "Christian" was first used by believers in Antioch.  For more than two thousand years, people have lived and died for being associated with the label.

Murdering people, Christian or Muslim, is against everything Scripture dictates.  Persecution of any kind is wrong.  We are told to treat others the way we want to be treated, regardless of their race, gender or creed.

However, if someone must die for being a "Christian," at least let it be one who believes in Christ.  One who has promise of a better life; for whom death is considered "gain." 

On the heels of the G-8 summit, President Obama is making his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa since he assumed the presidency.

The G-8 leaders have earmarked $20 billion to help poor African farmers boost their productivity.  That may sound like a lot of money, but it really isn't.  A good portion of that figure had already been tagged to go to the continent anyway.  And many countries are far behind in paying the money they had already promised to give four years ago.

Also, if you compare the more than $48 billion President Bush set aside for Africa during his administration to this $20 billion cumulative donation from some of the richest countries in the world; their promise seems very small indeed.  It almost seems a nice symbolic gesture.  If history is our guide, this is a promise many countries may never keep.

Make sure to tune in to special coverage of the President's trip to Africa on the CBN Newschannel and Christian World News next week.

NAIROBI ? The United Nations on Friday declared Somalia?s famine over, but officials warned that more than 2 million Somalis are still in dire need of assistance and that conditions could again slide by May.

LIKUANGOLE, South Sudan ? Nothing is intact in this town, save the memories. Every hut was burned to the ground. The only health clinic and the only school were torched. Hundreds were killed or injured. Thousands more fled.

HONG KONG ? More than 20 Chinese road builders have been captured by rebels in Sudan, highlighting the growing risks faced by Chinese companies that have poured billions of dollars and thousands of workers into some of Africa?s most volatile areas.

U.S. Special Operations forces rescued an American hostage and her Danish colleague in Somalia early Wednesday in the kind of daring raid that the Obama administration has said will be the hallmark of future U.S. military missions.

TUNIS, Tunisia ? A year after Tunisia?s president fled a revolution fueled in part by his government?s corruption, huge amounts of the money controlled and invested by his family and allies remain out of the reach of the country?s people and new government.