African News Explained

The African Media Leaders' Forum is meeting this week in Addis Ababa. Press rights groups, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, are calling on participants to raise the issue of press freedom in Ethiopia. The CPJ says several Ethiopian journalists are in jail on terrorism charges. Zakes Mda, a South African novelist, poet and playwright, says that Ethiopia's anti-terrorism laws remind him of apartheid-era statutes.

The army in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has defeated the M23 rebels, says it is planning an offensive against other armed groups in the east of the country. Lieutenant Colonel Olivier Amuli said operations are being planned, but they cannot yet be announced. Earlier this week, Congolese government spokesperson Lambert Mende said the M23 was at the top of the list, followed by the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, the FDLR. RFI spoke to Jason Stearns, an analyst with the Rift Valley Institute on the line from Kinshasa. Follow Daniel Finnan on Twitter: @Daniel_Finnan

Somali pirates have taken up to 300 million euros in ransoms over the past seven years.The Pirate Trails report, published last week, tries to trace where the money goes and what it's spent on. The report, by the World Bank and UN Office on Drugs and Crime, says much of the cash is invested into further criminal activities. How do you go about tracing pirate ransom money? Clement Gorrisen, one of the report's researchers, explains. Follow Daniel Finnan on Twitter: @Daniel_Finnan

A coalition of NGOs are calling on European governments to take legal action against companies that are suspected of having looted gold in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The NGOs, including TRIAL, the Open Society Justice Initiative, and the Conflict Awareness Project, argue that looting gold during times of conflict is a war crime. They say Swiss and British companies mined gold illegally during the conflict in Ituri region a decade ago. RFI spoke to Kathi Lynn Austin, a Conflict Awareness Project researcher who believes that the loot allowed warring parties to wage war and to commit human rights violations.  

Kenya's President says he will review a press bill that has sparked controversy. Uhuru Kenyatta says Kenya does not want to "gag" journalists. Under the bill, which has been passed by Parliament, journalists who violate a media code of conduct will have to pay huge fines. But Kenyatta has yet to sign the bill into law. RFI spoke to Moses Kuria, a political analyst who believes that this law, if signed, would be a good idea.  

A man is currently in police custody in Morocco's commercial capital, Casablanca, after tearing down the Algerian flag from its embassy in the city. The man was protesting against comments made on behalf of Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in relation to Western Sahara. Bouteflika reportedly said that Morocco had committed human rights violations against the people of Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara. Morocco illegally occupied Western Sahara in 1975. It is the largest disputed land mass in the world. RFI spoke to expert Jacob Mundy on Morocco's reaction to withdrawing its ambassador.  

Nigerian police on Wednesday raided a "baby factory" where girls as young as 14 were being forced to have babies for sale. Teenage pregnancy is widespread across west Africa. UN expert Benoit Kalasa taks about the Motherhood in Childhood report. Every year almost eight million adolescents have children across the world - with a serious impact on their education, health and employment, he says.

Kenyan police say they are holding five people in connection with last month's attack on Nairobi's Westgate shopping mall. A Norwegian citizen of Somali origin is suspected of being one of the attackers and two soldiers are to be prosecuted for looting stores during the massacre. Wainaina Ndungu, a Kenyan rigthts activist, has been monitoring the situation.

The United States is calling for an end to clashes in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The army, backed by UN forces, has seized control of three rebel positions. A high-ranking official has described the situation in the eastern DRC as a "tinderbox" that could degenerate into a regional war. Russ Feingold, the US Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, said there were "enormous risks" if clashes between the Congolese army and M23 rebels continue. He told RFI that military action sis not Congolese President Joseph Kabila's "first choice".

International election observers have hailed Madagascar's presidential election as credible, free and transparent. It is seen as an important step in restoring democracy after five years of crisis, prompted by the ousting of former president Marc Ravalomanana by Andry Rajoelina, the current president of the transitional government. Denis Kadima, the leader of one African observers' team, comments.

In Kenya, the Daily Nation newspaper reported Thursday that Rose Oyungu, a mortuary worker, was charged with stealing from two people who had died during the Westgate Mall siege in September. Some 67 people were killed by al-Qaeda-linked gunmen during the four-day siege. In the wake of the attack the Kenyan government has threatened journalists with jail if they report on the alleged looting by the Kenyan army in the aftermath of the siege. RFI spoke to Adam Hussein Adam, one member of civil society, who says that the government needs to be more forthcoming with information.  

The Anglican Church of Southern Africa is calling for an end to violence targeting homosexuals. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba tells RFI that ordinary Africans, and theologians, should be more accepting of sexual minorities. His statement came as the trial of a man accused of raping and killing a 26-year-old lesbian woman opened in Johannesburg. Violence against lesbians is widespread in South Africa. Dozens have been murdered in the past decade and at least 10 are sexually assaulted per week in Western Cape alone, according to a charity that helps rape victims. The time has come for the continent to tackle the issue in the spirit of Ubuntu, according to Archbishop Makgoba..  

Relations between Khartoum and Juba have been tense since the independence of South Sudan two years ago. And no issue is more prickly that the status of Abyei, a region that sits on their common border. A proposal to hold a referendum to decide if the oil-rich region should remain in Sudan or breakaway to join South Sudan have run into difficulties. John Young, the author of The Fate of Sudan, who says the issue of Abyei could turn ugly.  

Fourteen Caribbean countries have hired a London law form to win reparations for the slave trade. They have targeted France, Britain and The Netherlands as the main beneficiaries of slavery. Martyn Day, a senior partner at Leigh Day, says the case could one day be heard at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.  

South Sudan insists a controversial referendum on Abyei must be held this month. But observers say the vote is unlikely to go ahead. South Sudan has failed to reach a deal with neighbouring Sudan over who should be eligible to vote, despite efforts by African Union mediator Thabo Mbeki. The dispute focuses on Misseriya nomads. Khartoum believes these herders should be allowed to vote but Juba disagrees. Misseriya tribal leader Sadig Babo Nimir comments.

South Sudan has asked the African Union to hold an extraordinary summit on Abyei region. Abyei residents are supposed to vote this month on whether to stay in Sudan or to join South Sudan. But voter registration has barely started. Khartoum and Juba have failed to agree on who should be eligible to vote. Two groups live there: the Misseriyah who are mainly herders and the Ngoc Dinka who are mostly farmers. Zachariah Bol Deng a prominent Ngoc Dinka who lives in exile in Britain comments.

Kenyan business and government representatives are gathered in Nairobi for a conference aiming to attract more investment to the mining sector. In recent years most of Africa's new mines have opened in the west of the continent and east Africans want to attract more attention to their largely unexplored mineral deposits. Kenya has begun to redraft its colonial-era mining legislation to bring it up to date with modern investment practices. Cliff Otega, a Kenyan consultant who advises mining companies, is taking part in this week's Mining Business and Investment conference.

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila has given the green light to the the creation of a new constitutional court - on the cards since the country adopted a new constitution seven years ago. This new body is set to play a leading political role. It is designed to oversee the electoral process. It will also play a key role if Kabila seeks to run for a third term in office. How independent will it be? Jason Stearns, the research director of The Rift Valley Institute's Usalama Project, gives his thoughts.  

Today is international World Food Day. A report published by Action Against Hunger calls on countries to increase the quality of food production, not only the quantity. Hunger and malnutrition remain global problems. Some countries, including the three mentioned in the report, are beginning to have national policies that focus on the nutritional quality of their agricultural sector. Nutrition expert Etienne du Vachat says international organisations and donors must now work with governments to put good policies into action.  

In the wake of the African Union's decision on Saturday to seek a postponement in the trial of Kenya's president and vice-president before the International Criminal Court, all eyes are now turning to the UN Security Council, which has the authority to grant the request. The trial of vice-president William Ruto started last month and that of President Uhuru Kenyatta is due to open on 12 November. The two leaders are indicted for their alleged involvement in post-electoral violence in Kenya at the end of 2007. But African heads of state argue that cases involving serving political leaders should be deferred to leave them free to run their countries until the end of their term, citing security concerns after the recent deadly terrorist attack on a Nairobi shopping centre. RFI discussed the next steps in the process with Francis Dako, the Benin-based lawyer who coordinates the African activities of the Coalition for the ICC, a global group of NGOs supporting the court.