Africa+2011+Public+Service+Announcements

=Africa 2011 Public Service Announcements=

__**Somalia/Somalia Pirates**__ : Despite a strong sense of national identity among Somalis, clan-based rivalry has completely destabilized the country since early 1991, when dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown. In addition to fighting one another, the rival Somali factions have also battled United Nations (UN) peacekeeping troops first sent to the country in the early 1990s for humanitarian reasons. Modern-day piracy off the coast of Africa, it's been on the rise for several years and reaching new heights now. Gangs of armed Somalis are paralyzing a key international shipping route off Africa's coast. Country Overview: []

**__ Rwandan Genocide __** (especially the influence of the Belgian colonization) and its aftermath. Between April and June 1994, an estimated 800,000 Rwandans were killed in the space of 100 days. Most of the dead were Tutsis - and most of those who perpetrated the violence were Hutus.

Could the U.N. have done more to stop the genocide in Rwanda? [] Rwanda: Country Overview: []

**__ Blood (Conflict) Diamonds __** - **blood diamond** is any diamond that originates from the war affected area. Many rebels use these **blood diamonds** to fund their cause and they use civilian population (mostly children) to work for them as slaves and prisoners. These children have been taken from their families and forced to dig alluvial pits just so they could get their hands on precious diamonds and thousands of children in Africa are suffering because of this precious gemstone. Beyond Blood Diamonds: [] Conflict Diamonds: []

**__ Poverty in Africa __** - Africa includes some of the poorest countries in the world. In much of Africa south of the Sahara, harsh environmental conditions exacerbate the conditions of poverty. Dry and barren land covers large expanses of this region. As the poor try to eke out livings through farming and other subsistence practices, they exhaust the land, using up the soil nutrients needed to grow crops.

**__ Darfur Crisis __**** - ** More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced during three years of ethnic conflict in Darfur. Now, the violence is spreading and threatening the stability of neighboring countries. Darfur: [] Is the Crisis in Darfur Genocide? [] Sudan: Country Overview: [] ** Never Again, for Real: []** **Darfur****: The Genocide Continues: []** ** The Genocide in Darfur: []** ** The Charge: Genocide : []**

**__ Nelson Mandela/Apartheid in South Africa __**** - ** A white minority had both dominated and segregated blacks and other nonwhites since the Dutch and British settled what is now South Africa in the late 1600s and 1700s. South Africa's race laws were abolished after a long, sometimes violent struggle. Nelson Mandela, who led the military wing of the leading anti-apartheid group, the African National Congress (A.N.C.), was arrested and sent to jail with a life sentence in 1962. On June 17, 1991, South Africa's Parliament voted to repeal the legal framework for apartheid. Three years later, Mandela was elected President. South Africa: Country Overview: [] Apartheid: [] End of Apartheid in South Africa: [] How Soccer Helped Defeat Apartheid: [] How successful was South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission in reconciling the nation's divided population in the post-apartheid period? [] **Tree Shaker: The Story of Nelson Mandela: []** **1991: The End of Apartheid: []** **Apartheid's Long Shadow: []** **Beyond Apartheid: South Africa's Long Journey: []**

**__ AIDS in Africa and the UN’s response __** - In countries in Africa most heavily affected by HIV, the epidemic has reduced life expectancy by more than 20 years, slowed economic growth and deepened household poverty. However effective, sustainable AIDS responses offer an opportunity to overturn the critical development challenges to overcoming poverty, improving education, extending life expectancy and reducing child mortality. HIV/AIDS: []

**__ Mugabe in Zimbabwe __** - Robert Mugabe once was hailed as a symbol of the new Africa, but under his rule the health and well-being of his people have dropped dramatically, which is as much an abuse of human rights as arbitrary arrest and torture. According to the World Health Organization, Zimbabwe has the world’s shortest life expectancy—37 years for men and 34 for women. It also has the greatest percentage of orphans (about 25%, says UNICEF) and the worst annual inflation rate (1,281% as of last month). Zimbabwe: Country Overview: [] Robert Mugabe: []

**__ Human Trafficking – modern day slavery __** - It is widely recognized that human trafficking within Southern Africa is a bustling trade but, one that is difficult to track because of its clandestine nature. Men, women and children are enticed across the region's borders with promises of a better life elsewhere only to find themselves, sold into sexually slavery or used as mules in other forms of criminal activity.

**__ African Educational System __** - In Africa, thirty-eight percent of school-aged children, mostly girls, do not attend primary school. Education in Africa is still less developed than other parts of the world and many African countries have low rates of participation. Schools often lack many basic facilities, and African universities suffer from overcrowding and staff being lured away to Western countries by higher pay and better conditions.

**__ Failed States/Terrorism __** - Failed states can no longer perform basic functions such as education, security, or governance, usually due to fractious violence or extreme poverty.// When a government ceases to properly function, that country can become prey to both outside interference and lawless internal forces. //

**__ Children Soldiers __** - The practice of child soldier use is pervasive throughout many parts of the world; Burma, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Uganda and Nepal have been singled out by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as some of the worst offenders in this realm due to the military and non-state armed group exploitation of children. ** Armed & Underage: []** ** Armed and Underage 2: []**