In this video by the Guardian a woman tells the heart-wrenching story of having no money to pay for the drip her sick husband needed: “On Wednesday I had no money. On Thursday he died”. Mugabe’s birthday party is said to cost £350 000.

Not surprisingly, Mugabe also dismissed demands for media freedom in the country.

These are the legacies that the new government of national unity will have to deal with – amid skepticism that the power-wrangling between Mugabe and Tsvangirai will bring about significant change soon enough to stem the tide of disease in the country.

pic Reuters/CPJ.org

It’s an interesting debate.

AP/bbc.co.uk

Journos often regale one another about in-jokes making it into the paper, or on-air glitches that have everyone in stitches except the editor (and eventually the person being called into the boss’ office). This one might be doing the braai or pub rounds for a while: A South African technician working at the television station e-tv might have been too carried away with the post-Obama-election euphoria when he pushed the wrong button.

“The tone is changing and becoming more people-centred [in the Ugandan media]. For example, it’s not reporting about mortality, but writing about a woman who is losing her life for becoming pregnant. I can’t claim the credit, but I am part of a new movement, which is putting people at the centre of development reporting.”

He was speaking at an event in London hosted by the media forum POLIS to discuss The Guardian‘s project in the Ugandan village of Katine. Kavuma also highlighted some of the problems encountered by journalists working in developmental contexts where donors expect to hear feel-good stories about the work they are supporting rather than critical analyses of the situation.  Read a full report of the event here.  For background, see my earlier post here.

(Pic from The Guardian‘s Katine website)

I have on two previous occasions posted items on A24, the new African online news agency. With Obamania still thick in the air after the new US president-elect’s historic victory earlier this week, I took Journalism.co.uk’s advice and listened to the catchy Kenyan reggae song by Ohanglaman „Makadem“ offered on A24′s website.  “Obama be they name” is cool and laid-back, as befits the new prez.

Self-regulation of journalism by professional bodies in Africa (like everywhere) is important, since it helps journalists reflect on their work, improve standards and can act as a deterrent for government interference by creating a power bloc of journalists that can resist outside pressures.  But professionalisation is a double-edged sword – it can also turn journalism into a members-only activity,  from which people practising alternative forms of journalism to the corporate mainstream are shut out. In Kenya, with its vibrant blogosphere, care should be taken that professionalisation of journalism does not become a form of organisational protection offered to elites only.

Not strictly to do with the media, but since the global financial meltdown has dominated world news, yet so little attention has been paid to how this crisis will affect developing countries, I thought it relevant to post this link to an interview that Inter Press Service did with South African Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu on the financial crisis. Tutu is always inspiring, not only for his integrity and wisdom, but also his optimism about the future of South Africa.  On a day when I had to read another story of a white farmer being charged of violence against his workers (in this case leading to the death of a 13-year old girl), Tutu’s quote in the last paragraph seems almost defiantly optimistic: “You see headlines ‘vicious race riots’ and you think that is South Africa. And you read on, you find it is Manchester, England”