Rwandan Opposition Leader Victoire Ingabire, Sentenced to 8 years in Jail

Photo:AFP

Victoire Ingabire, a Hutu Rwandan who fled to the Netherlands during the Rwandan Genocide, was jailed shortly after returning from exile in April 2010 and barred from a presidential election.  Ingabire was found guilty of two of her six charges:  treason for conspiring war against the country by sending money to Hutu extremists, as well as Rwandan genocide belittling. She was sentenced to eight years in jail, but may only serve six years due to time served. Prosecution initially asked for a life sentence.

Her lawyers contest that no true evidence was ever presented to justify charges against Ingabire.

 Terrorism charges were dropped against Ingabire during the two-year trial and her genocide denial charges are a result of her questioning why Rwanda's official memorial to the 1994 genocide does not include any moderate Hutus, who were slaughtered by Hutu extremists.

Ms. Ingabire thinks the true reason for her arrest is that she dared to run in the presidential election as a candidate for the United Democratic Forces party, challenging the sitting president Paul Kagame. Mr. Kagame is the leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, whose military victory ended the genocide in Rwanda. He has been the president of Rwanda since 1994.  His final presidential term ends in 2017.

Ingabire doesn't consider the current Rwandan government under Kagame to be a democracy, but more-so authoritarian.  Kagame has received mixed reviews from observers. Some praising him for his role in Rwanda's recovery after the genocide, but others feel he's sending a grim message to other Rwandan political parties that they could become political prisoners too.

Phil Clark, a lecturer at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, is quoted in the New York Times saying “I think this verdict will certainly cause concerns that if they contest they may find very serious charges brought against them as well,” he said. “It sends a warning to other parties who may want to run in future elections.”  

Ms. Ingabire has 30 days to appeal against the verdict.

Richest Person Who Ever Lived is an African King - (Inflation Adjusted)

Yes, you read this headline correctly, the richest human being in history is indeed an African king.  According to researchers at Celebrity Net Worth, the 14th century West African king,  Mansa Musa I of the Mali had a personal net worth of $400 Billion at the time of his death in 1331.  Celebrity Net Worth explained their findings are based upon them adjusting for inflation "For example, $100 million in the year 1913 is equal to $2.299.63 billion in 2012 dollars thanks to the annual rate of inflation of 2199.6%."

Mansa Musa's immense wealth was due his Malian Empire's production and trade of gold and salt.  He inherited his empire via his role as deputy of the king, when the previous ruler never returned from an expedition on the Atlantic Ocean.  Mansa Musa I, a devout muslim, used some of his wealth to build statuesque mosques that are still standing to this very day and a university in Timbuktu to attract scholars and encourage education.

Legend has it that Mansa Musa I was a generous king who believed in spreading the wealth to the commoners and elders. He put Mali on the map during his hajj/ pilgrimage to Mecca when he gave away gold freely to those he encountered along the way.  Within two generations of Mansa Musa's death, his heirs were unable to successfully defend the kingdom from invading conquerors and civil wars and as such,  his wealth was lost.

Quick Facts about Mansa Musa I

Catalan Map of Mansa Musa 1375, with translation

• Mansa means "king" or "leader."
• Mansa Musa I  lived from 1280-1331.
• Mansa Musa I was a descendant of the Mandingo ruler, Sundiata Keita (Sunjata), who was the founder of the Mali empire.
• He ruled West Africa's Malian Empire  (modern day Ghana, Timbuktu and Mali).
• To manage successfully, his empire was broken into provinces and villages, with each village having a mayor to help manage government.
• He was a devout muslim who allowed freedom of religion and occupation.
• Mansa Musa I's army guarded the gold mines and also guarded the section of the Trans-Sahara Trade Route that passed by Mali.
• He was highly cultured and encouraged education, even building an impressive university in Timbuktu 
• Mansa Musa brought back from hajj/ pilgrimage an Arabic library, religious scholars, and the Muslim architect al-Sahili, who built the great mosques at Gao and Timbuktu and a royal palace.

Mansa Musa's Mosque of Djenne

South Sudan Overwhelmingly Votes for Secession from North, Gains Independence

Year 2011 seems to be starting off as a "year of change" for Africans.The war-torn and oil dependent country of Sudan will undergo significant changes this year amid the results of a landslide vote from South Sudan to secede from the north.  Southern Sudan is jubilant over the outcome of gaining its independence after enduring genocide, oppression and slavery under the regime of wanted war-crimes criminal President Omar Al-Bashir and the Khartoum government. Salva Kiir the President of Government of Southern Sudan urged the Sudanese people to be patient until their independence becomes official on July 9th.

"This is our day for freedom. We are ready to celebrate all night long," Santino Machar, a student, was quoted by the AFP news agency as saying.

Egypt's Modern Day Revolution is Demanding Change

Keep a watchful eye on the ongoing protests, a  Modern Day Revolution in Egypt. Protesters have taken to the streets to protest the rule of President Muburak, whom they consider a dictator.

There comes a time when people simply become fed up with being mistreated, abused, taken for granted and/or disrespected. At some point, one has to stand up for his or her self and DEMAND change; whether it's from a mate, family member or the government.

Americans can actually learn something from these Egyptian civilians. Modern-day American's are hoping and asking for change, instead of DEMANDING change (I'll touch on this in a later post) like the Egyptians and Tunisians are.


I hope people of other African nations on the Great Continent and beyond who are under dictatorships and/or oppression rise up and demand change and fair treatment.

We can all dream... Can't we?



GIFSoup


Stay Aware by watching the Al Jazeera live stream of the current events:click here

or here on LiveStation for live streams from other various foriegn media channels.

We're Back!

Hello Everyone!! Society Noir is happy to say that it become active again. It has been two years since our last post, which was about President Barack Obama's Inauguration.

For a while, I had been going back and forth on whether I should continue publishing Society Noir, as well as the purpose it can & should serve. Not to be a "Debbie Downer,"but as I observed the African diaspora these past two years (especially here in America) it has become painfully clear that mainstream media just refuses to proportionately and objectively cover Black America, the black diaspora and Africa.

So, we're back in action. Look forward to Society Noir still covering charitable causes, the upscale lifestyle, events, black socialites,and business profiles. But also look forward to more serious discussions about our global society, politics and resolutions to the ills in our diaspora.



Happy New Year!

MTV Making the Video with Shell

Music channel, MTV and oil giant, Shell, have partnered to showcase African music. According to Mr Jandre Louw, Marketing Manager of MTV Networks Africa, the MTV Making the Video with Shell initiative has been created to boost Africa's contemporary music industry. Providing the best platform to inspire, encourage and promote filmmakers and artists through creative and technical training workshops, an acquisition of new knowledge and ideas to make their productions more professional for a real visibility on the international scene.

World renowned US video music director Rachel Watanabe-Batton was in Accra to shoot a video for Ghanaian hip-life sensation, Tinny as part of the MTV Making the Video with Shell campaign. Gabonese hip-hop duo Movaizhaleine got to unwrap an early Christmas present when they took delivery of their brand new music video for ‘Nous’ on December 21st. MTV Making the Video with Shell initiative enabled Movaizhaleine to have their music video shot free of charge by legendary Chilean music video director JG Biggs, with a cameo appearance by French-Cameroonian star Pit Baccardi.

The campaign brings together directors from Africa and renowned international directors to work side-by-side through music video workshops and video shoots featuring local and international artists. The project has visited South Africa, Gabon, Kenya and Nigeria.

Commonwealth and the Drama in Uganda

President Yoweri Musevini (right), First Lady Janet Museveni (center), and Queen Elizabeth (left)


Drama ensued during the Commonwealth Summit on Friday as police used batons to beat protestors trying to demonstrate against human rights abuses in Uganda. Protestors complained that police using excessive force against citizens was commonplace. Police said they were acting within the law and the protesters were aware they were not allowed to march out of a suburb where the demonstration was authorized.
Commonwealth’s participants ( Presidents and Prime Ministers of Britain and its former colonies) planned to discuss human rights, democracy, rule of law, climate change, education and trade.
The protesters said the Commonwealth, which began a three-day summit on Friday, had ignored human rights abuses by the government of President Yoweri Museveni. Demonstrators also protested against Queen Elizabeth’s presence at the summit, one waved a banner that said “Queen, you are the head of our problems.”

President Yoweri Museveni has been President of Uganda since 1986 after leading a successful 5 year liberation struggle. He and 26 other young men organized the National Resistance Movement and National Resistance Army (NRM/NRA) to oppose the tyranny of previous regimes. Museveni was one of the leaders involved in the fall of Idi Amin’s regime.

His presidency has been marred, however, by involvement in civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other Great Lakes region conflicts. Rebellion in the north of Uganda continues to be one of the world's worst humanitarian emergencies. Recent developments, including unlimited Presidential terms before the 2006 elections and the harassment of democratic opposition, have attracted concern from the domestic and international community.

The Africa Channel Wants to Dispel Stereotypes

Unfortunately, when the average American thinks of Africa, visions of poverty, famished children, AIDS and violence pops into their minds. Well, The Africa Channel aspires to dispel all of these negative African stereotypes. A native from Zimbabwe, James Makawa is the CEO and co-founder of the African Channel. "The whole idea is that it comes to you from an African perspective, which has been missing from so much news coverage and, yes, entertainment related to Africa," Makawa told Reuters.

The Africa Channel's target audience are those unfamiliar with African culture, but getting support from American cable providers has become a serious challenge for The Africa Channel. Located in North Hollywood California, they made it on air in Atlanta, New Orleans, Ireland and the UK but currently only reach an estimated 2 million homes in the USA through Comcast and Cox cable providers. Nearly 80% of the channel is entertainment dedicated with an African viewpoint( soap operas, reality shows, music, events, travel/lifestyle series etc). All of it family-friendly and in English.

Please contact your local cable provider and request The Africa Channel. It's about time the world sees Africa in a different light.
Visit www.theafricachannel.com