Kenya has banned flights to Somalia, the Nation news reports.

Kenya is considered by the British as a soft target for terrorist. The US also warned recently that Kenya and Ethiopia could be attacked by terrorists and extemists from Somalia.

According to the Daily Nation, “The British minister of State, Dr Kim Howells, who visited Kenya early this month also warned that the threat of terrorism targeting British interests in Kenya was real.”

By Korir, APN

africanpress@chello.no

Source of the story: Daily Nation (Kenya) 12.11.06. 

Children who come to Norway on their own to seek asylum will from now and on be taken care of by, “barnevernet”, the Norwegian Child Protection Unit.

The Unit cooperates a great deal with the Police when dealing with crisis in the Norwegian homes if they discover children in such homes are not well cared for by the families.

Sometimes they have a tendency to split families by taking over children by force even if there is no good reason to remove them from their biological parents.

In this case of asylum children, however, it may be a good step in the right direction because asylum children suffer a lot in the asylum reception centres where they may stay for years, waiting for the decision on their cases to be taken by the Immigration department. 

Norwegian government minister in-charge of children matters has now promised to relax the laws so that children are given priority care by the Protection Unit.

Many of the children come from African countries send by their parents, who want them to travel to Norway, only later to apply for family re-union enabling the parents to follow and settle in Norway.

The question now is whether this step, where the government protection unit takes over the care for the minors, will encourage people in Africa and other countries to send their children in advance to Norway to apply for asylum as minors, opening a way for a future re-union enabling the parents to get asylum as well.

By Korir, APN

africanpress@chello.no

source of the story: ANB 12.11.06

United Nations humanitarian coordinator Jan Egeland today met with Lord Resistance Army (LRA) head Joseph Kony.

It is reported that this is the first time a senior UN representative has met the rebel leader who has waged war in the bush against Museveni’s government in Uganda.

The rebels have now agreed to release information on the situation of the women and children they are holding in their custody.

Egeland has told ANB/AP media that the meeting he had with Kony today was a success.

The meeting took place in the jungle in Southern Sudan.

Kony has a arrest warrant on him issued by the International human rights court and can be arrested any time. He has been accused of murder, torture and kidnapping of children. It is reported that his soldiers sexually molested many children.

By Korir, APN

africanpress@chello.no

source of the story ANB-AP

ODM-K releases a “top secret document” to closest and most trusted loyalists abroad”

African Press in Norway has done some research and interviewed many ODM-K supporters abroad in an effort to understand ODM-K leaders and their intentions should they take over power in the coming general elections next year.

We can now reveal that there is a “top secret document” that the leaders have finalised while dividing positions in government among themselves.

Mr Kalonzo Musyoka, one of the strong ODM-K leaders has been kept out of the deal.  His name appears no-where in the secret document that African Press has obtained.

The first step the ODM-K leadership will take if Raila Odinga becomes the next president, according to a “top secret document” being circulated  abroad is to declare Kisumu the Capital of Kenya replacing Nairobi.

In the same document, positions will be divided among the ODM- K leadership as follows:

Raila Odinga becomes the President,

William Ruto becomes the Prime Minister,

Uhuru Kenyatta becomes first Vice-President,

Musalia Mudavadi becomes second Vice-President,

Henry Koskey becomes Foreign Minister,

Chris Okemo becomes Finance Minister,

Julia Ojiambo becomes Minister of State for Security,

Dr Oburu Odinga becomes Local Government Minister.

The rest of the leaders will get ministerial positions. The ministries will be reduced by 5.

The document emphasises the need to have a mini constitution before the elections.

The document promises dual citizenship to be given to all Kenyans abroad who have obtained foreign citizenships.

By Korir, African Press in Norway (APN)

africanpress@chello.no

Raila Odinga, a former Kenyan minister knows how to seek publicity when there is not much being mentioned about him in the media.

When things are quiet around him, he knows how to pull attention towards himself. Now it is reported  by the media that he is claiming that some senior people in Kibaki’s government are plotting to eliminate him and other ODM-K leaders before the next general elections.

Government minister Michuki has dismissed Raila’s claims.

The Standard reports Michuki dismissing such claims as baseless saying “This is not true. Are you surprised that he can talk that way?”

According to the report, Dr Oburu Odinga, who is blood brother to Raila, has said that his brother is a target for assassination.

While in Kisumu yesterday, the paper reports that Raila claimed “that senior Government officials held a secret meeting in Kilimani area in Nairobi last Sunday to organise the “assassinations”.

Who has told Raila that the meetings took place. Can Raila go to the police and write a statement to that effect instead making noise in public.

The police boss in-charge of Kilimani told the Standard that he was not aware of such claims.

Why is Raila panicking? Is he seeing signs of the collapse of ODM-K, or is he now realising that his ODM-K friend Kalonzo Musyoka is beginning to pull the longest fishing rope netting more votes to become ODM-K flag bearer.

When the government sacked Raila and other ministers from the LDP zone, they claimed their security was being put at risk. Nothing has happened to them to this day. They are alive and flying all over across the universe publicising their presidential ambitions while discrediting Kibaki government and the Kenyan people.

When they were in government, having top security as ministers with comfortable vehicles, they claimed that some people in government were tailing them.

Why this panicky wolfy-cry attitude? It does not make sense anymore.

To elaborate further on the mudslinging of Kenya’s reputation abroad by some leaders including Raila, go to the Kenya Times link below. In a commentary story, we are taken through many stages by the writer who can also see the good work President Kibaki did when he travelled to China recently, returning home with Chinese goodies that will help the country, while Raila may have travelled back to Kenya from abroad with money that he will spend in the campaign for presidency.

The Kenya Times link:

http://www.timesnews.co.ke/12nov06/nwsstory/opinion2.html

And further coverage by the Standard on Raila’s utterances, and Ministers rebukings calling him a sensationalist. Go to the link below to learn get more out of Raila’s assasination claims!

http://www.eastandard.net/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143961034

By Korir, APN

africanpress@chello.no

Source of the story: The Kenya Times 12.Nov (Kenya) and the Standard (Kenya) 

A deported female asylum seeker believed to be of African or Asian origin is reported to have been sexually abused by a senior police officer who had her in his custody in Oslo, Norway.
The woman placed in the police cells awaiting deportation may have accepted to have sex with the policeman, thinking her actions could make the policeman to reconsider her case and put a stop to the deportation.

According to reports in the Norwegian newspaper VG on 10.November, Mr Arne Jørgen Olafsen, Oslo police boss in-charge of Police Immigration Unit has delivered a report on the matter to the Special Unit that investigates police officers who misuse the powers vested upon them.

In his comment to VG, Police boss Olafsen still considers what he has heard as rumours, although he has already passed on the report to the Special Unit that will decide on the way forward. His report was delivered to the Unit on Tuesday the 7th November.

VG reports that the Chief Investigating Officer Liv Marit Sylliåsen has looked into the case and decided that the senior police officer in question must face investigation in an effort to determine what happened.

The accused senior police officer denies to have done anything wrong. This may easily be understood to mean, however, that sexual contact may have taken place, but with the consent of the woman in question.

If sexual contact took place, the officer must know that he abused his powers, because the woman was in his custody and the woman was in a weaker position at the time.

While the investigation is on, the officer should be suspended so that he does not interfere with his colleagues, who may have witnessed the incident, from giving evidence to the Special Unit. Being a senior officer, he can easily intimidate those who would like to talk.

Police boss Olafsen has not removed the accused officer from active duty. This is not a good signal to send out to other officers in the department.

Any officer misusing his powers must be dealt with severely in order to maintain discipline in the police force.

If the act took place with or without the woman’s consent, she must be compensated by the Norwegian State even if she is already deported.

Should the investigation determine that the officer indeed violated the woman he faces up to 5 years in jail.

By Korir, African Press in Norway (APN)
africanpress@chelo.no

Should immigrants, especially those of African origin be scared of the Norwegian police force? In all countries the role of the police is very important, without the preservation of law and order a country would fall into chaos.

Unfortunately in Norway Africans feel that they have a reason to fear and even hate the police. They have complained of constant harassment but the authorities have never reacted positively. Some of the Africans APN talked to in Trondheim believe that matters are getting worse and Africans should know that their lives are considered worthless.

They are concerned because of the events that took place on the sixth of September, this year. On that day that many will never forget, Eugene Ejike Obiora, a Norwegian of Nigerian origin visited the NAV offices in central Trondheim to seek help. Instead of receiving help the social workers called the police.

A witness recounts seeing four huge muscular policemen dragging the slightly built Obiora down the stairs as if he was a sack of potatoes. He was then rushed to the local hospital.

St Olavs hospital records show that he was admitted at 14.40 and at 15.20 he was declared dead. APN will reveal what happened on that day when the police release their final report.

The arresting officers are under investigations.
 

By Eman Emali, African Press in Norway

africanpress@chello.no

emali@2ci.net