The top United Nations envoy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has paid tribute to a group of Senegalese blue helmets who are the first batch of peacekeepers to leave the country in line with the recent decision by the Security Council to alter the UN mission there.The Council last month agreed to transform the UN peacekeeping mission in DRC (MONUC) into a stabilization mission in the coming weeks, authorizing the withdrawal of up to 2,000 UN military personnel – from an existing strength of 19,815 – by 30 June from areas where security has improved enough to allow their removal.

A circle of women dance to the beat of drums in the morning sun, a crowd of adults and children watching from under tall, leafy trees. After a lengthy roll of beats, the dancing stops and the circle opens to welcome visitors – a group of water-and-sanitation experts.

What’s the best way of investing in the developing world? One organization is empowering families by investing in mothers. Hands to Hearts International (HHI) is a non-profit organization that seeks to provide simple and cost-effective programs with tools for women, caregivers, and organizations to improve the early development of children surviving in orphanages, refugee camps, and severely impoverished or conflict-ridden communities.

In Africa’s Sahel region, even in years of adequate rainfall food insecurity is usually high. Now, as the region enters the precarious “lean season” (the period between harvests that lasts from May to August), the problem is expected to get worse. In recent months, rains have been erratic and scarce, in turn significantly diminishing the crops produced by farmers. Entire communities are without sufficient food reserves to survive until the next harvests in September.

Attempts by President Robert Mugabe and his top aides to wrest control of controversial diamond fields in eastern Zimbabwe could have serious consequences for the peace and stability of the country, a report by a leading human rights group said on Monday.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has appealed for increased local and international support for children in strife-torn Somalia, where basic services such as education, health, nutrition and clean water are limited as a result of two decades of conflict. “Somali communities, families, parents, local administrations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), donors and international organizations should have a collective responsibility to put the best interests of the child first,” said UNICEF’s representative in Somalia, Rozanne Chorlton.

The Southern Africa Resource Watch organized a five day training workshop for SADC journalists at Fatmols Executive Lodge in Ndola, Zambia, from 9-14 May 2010. The training focused on reporting extractive industries and tackled a wide range of issues relating to this subject: policy and regulatory issues on SADC’s mining industry, SADC’s economic development debates, media and development in SADC, understanding corporate social responsibility in SADC mining, issues and debates on African forestry, reporting and writing stories on extractive industries, and promoting purpose-driven journalism in African media.

Kenyan Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta presented the national budget for the 2010-2011 financial year to parliament on 10 June. The budget sees a near doubling of past allocations for HIV treatment, earmarking Ksh. 900 million (US$ 11.25 million) for antiretroviral treatment. Earlier this year UNAIDS Executive Director, Michel Sidibé jointly launched the country’s National AIDS Strategic Plan (2010- 2013) with the Prime Minister, Right Honorable Raila Odinga.

Women and Law in Southern Africa (WLSA) and Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF) is alarmed and concerned over the recent political violence witnessed during the by elections in Mufumbwe, Zambia.

Namibia’s National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) is alarmed by allegations that Namibian and Botswana Governments as well as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are intent on forcibly repatriating some 1 000 Caprivian refugees from Botswana. Concerned Caprivian refugee sources anonymously informed NSHR that they had fear of an “imminent abduction” from Botswana.

An enigmatic, controversial woman returns to Israel after decades away and announces she's running for Prime Minister. She regrets the Holocaust, but after a tour of Yad Vashem, the country's main memorial to the genocide of the Jews, she can't help asking why no one bothers recalling all those good people that were killed by Jews resisting the Nazis. In fact she says not even sure whether more Germans or more Jews were murdered.

On behalf of Activists from Kisarawe, Feminist Activist Coalition (FemAct) and Health Equity Group (HEqG), TGNP is pleased to announce the Gender Festival which will be held in Kisarawe! The theme is Economic Justice: Making Resources Work For Marginalised Women, and will take place from the 22nd till the 24th of June 2010 at Chanzige Primary School. Please View the attached letter for more information.

Oxford Transitional Justice Research (OTJR) is pleased to announce the release of Debating International Justice in Africa: OTJR Collected Essays, 2008-2010, designed to coincide with the ICC review conference in Kampala. Drawing together academic and practitioner contributors from Africa and beyond, this collection highlights the challenges that international justice has faced in addressing atrocities in Africa.

On the 13th of June 2010, the Poor People’s World Cup successfully kicked-off their first day of matches at the Avendale soccer fields, next to Athlone stadium in Cape Town. Early in the morning, the first minibuses with soccer teams arrived from all over Cape Town to play their first games in this Poor People’s tournament. Everybody was excited and the atmosphere was amazing, considering the bad weather forecasts.

Partnership Africa Canada (PAC) has issued a call for the release from detention of human rights activist, Farai Maguwu, and the suspension of Zimbabwe from the Kimberley Process.

The soccer World Cup began this weekend here in South Africa, with the home team playing a 1-1 draw with Mexico before 95,000 fans at Johannesburg’s Soccer City stadium. Regardless of whether South Africa’s Bafana Bafana (our boys), ranked #90 in the world, can survive its next matches against France and Uruguay to advance a round, we know this society is already a big loser. The reason: egregious mistakes made by national and municipal governments, apparently under the thumb of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) concluded its first review of the human rights situation in Egypt under the new Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism. The Geneva meeting on 11 June, in which the Egyptian government pledged to implement 140 recommendations presented by other state delegations, took place only a month after the government renewed the 29 year State of Emergency for another two years, in effect suspending most civil rights throughout the country.

The Human Security Report Project (HSRP) has launched its new website. It can be accessed at . The new website, which replaces four separate sites, is easy-to-navigate and provides access to all HSRP publications, research and data, as well as the eNewletter archive. The new site delivers improved usability, additional features, and significantly more content than the previous sites.

The Labor Council has condemned the May 31st Israeli commando attack on the Gaza Aid Flotilla, which killed at least nine unarmed people and seized and detained some 700 passengers and crew. Many of these labor organizations, as well as the U.N. and Amnesty International, have also called for an independent international investigation of the attack and for a permanent opening of the Gaza border in accordance with international law.

The Second Refugee Film Festival will be held in June 17-20, 2010 at the open air Cinema in Darb 1718 for Contemporary Art and Culture in commemoration of World Refugee Day. The festival will include screenings of 11 documentary and fiction films portraying the resilience of refugees. It will also include a two-day Bazaar of Eritrean, Iraqi, Sudanese and Palestinian food and handicrafts.The festival will end on June 20th with a closing concert by talented Sudanese artists featuring Reggae, blues and folk music.