A total of 176 countries Monday 12 November adopted what World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Margaret Chan called a 'game-changing' global agreement to combat the illegal tobacco trade. PANA reports that the pact was ratified at a meeting in Seoul, South Korea, on WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The agreement came into force in 2005. 'The treaty envisages an international tracking system which aims to halt the smuggling and counterfeiting of tobacco products - a trade which accounts for 11 per cent of the total tobacco market and costs governments an estimated US$40 billion in lost tax revenue,' the WHO said in a statement.

Studies have revealed that residents of Zimbabwe's capital Harare literally drink their waste. A government owned newspaper at the weekend described pollution levels at Harare's water source – Lake Chivero – as comparable to a 'sewage pond'. It said recent tests on water samples detected about 2mg/l (two milligrammes in every litre of water) of phosphates or human and animal waste, exceeding the 0,5mg/l recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

A group of 17 political parties, NGOs and human rights associations in Egypt have called for loan negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to be ended immediately, citing a lack of transparency and the undemocratic nature of the current development. They are continuing their protests of a potential $4.8 billion IMF loan to Cairo in order to allow the Egyptian government to overcome pitfalls in spending.

Sierra Leonean polls slated for November 17, 2012 will be adequately secured. The assuarance came from the country's security chiefs, who also allayed fears of likely intimidation by security agents saying that the decision was a precautionary measures to avoid any likely chaos. According to the security officer, the polls will see over 15,000 security personnel deployed under the Integrated Elections Security Planning Committee.

In the middle of the night on 14 March 2012, the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) abducted a woman named Jalila Khamis Kuku from her home and took her into custody. Denied access to a lawyer and even a change of clothes, Jalila was dragged into a pickup truck in her night gown accompanied by a dozen NISS officers in civilian clothes, reports Global Voices Online. Out of the eight months Jalila has served in jail so far, three of them were spent in solitary confinement. She is now under threat of the death sentence as she has been accused of serious charges under the Sudanese criminal law; namely Article 51, of waging war against the state, and Article 50, which entails undermining the constitutional system.

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and the Department of Home Affairs on Monday (12 Nov) squared off in court over the attempted deportation of more than 30 foreign nationals. On Friday the commission launched a scathing attack on the department, alleging it had acted dishonestly over the issue. About 10 days ago the commission, together with the non-governmental organisation People Against Suffering, Suppression, Oppression and Poverty, brought an urgent application in the South Gauteng High Court to stop the department from deporting 39 asylum seekers detained at the Lindela Repatriation Centre in Krugersdorp.

Sudanese government forces have blocked international peacekeepers accessing the site of an alleged attack that killed up to 10 civilians in the western Darfur region, the peacekeepers said. The African Union-United Nations mission in Darfur (UNAMID) said a team of peacekeepers went to investigate on Saturday after receiving reports of an attack on civilians in Sigili village, some 40km (25 miles) southeast of North Darfur's state capital El Fasher.

Mercy Womeh attends the J Chauncey Goodridge school in Monrovia, Liberia's capital. She pays her school fees by crushing rocks, earning 35 Liberian dollars ($0.47) for each bucket. Three years ago, her family moved from the countryside to the Monrovia suburb of Gbawe Town to find work. But in a country with 85% unemployment, crushing rocks was the only option.

Reporters Without Borders says it is relieved to learn that radio reporter Hassan Ruvakuki was finally allowed to testify to the court in the central city of Gitega that is hearing his appeal against his terrorism conviction, for which he was given a life sentence last June. Prosecutor-general Emmanuel Nyandwi thinks that the mere fact the Ruvakuki entered Tanzania clandestinely, and without getting permission from his employer, shows that he was linked to the 'terrorist' group.

On Monday 12 November police in Bulawayo arrested 79 members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) for staging a peaceful demonstration against the water crisis in the city. All the activists were released after police realized the holding cells at police stations were without running water, a scenario that could have made the situation even worse.

Morocco's Prince Moulay Hicham, King Mohammed VI's first cousin, has said in a television interview the spirit of a new constitution adopted last year in a bid to stifle Arab Spring protests remains 'frozen'. The constitutional changes, introduced by the king to curb his near-absolute powers, followed mass protests in the north African country, and as similar unrest toppled regimes in Tunisia and Egypt.

The Civil Society on Monday launched a campaign against corruption which they said would go on until Government takes action on corrupt public officials. Representative s of various civil society organizations converged at Uganda Manufacturing Association Hall in Nakawa dressed in black T-shirts wielding placards with anti-corruption slogans. Leading the group, Irene Ovonji-Odida from Action Aid International Board of Trustees, said wearing black symbolized they had started mourning and mobilizing citizens to rise up against the evil of corruption.

The Tanzanian Budget Explorer is an initiative to make information about the way the Treasury allocates taxpayers money more accessible: transparent, easy to understand and exciting to follow. Public access to information about how the government spends money in Tanzania is beginning to improve. When available in reports or budget books, however, this information often is too bulky and complex to grasp. It can be a time consuming job to understand, and many people simply don’t have time to invest in doing it.

West African nations have agreed to send a 3,300-strong invasion force to take back northern Mali from Islamists. The agreement occurred at an emergency summit of ECOWAS, a bloc of West African nations that has been discussing military actions in Mali for the last several months.

Zimbabweans providing cheap labour in the fast-growing Chinese mines bear the brunt of extremely harsh conditions and low wages, a Johannesburg-based advocacy group, Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW) reveals in its research, the first such report detailing China's labour practices in the country. Hard labour, exposure to risky conditions, violation of labour laws, long working hours, non payment of overtime, disregard of public holidays and use of Chinese language in corporate literature were among extreme conditions faced by workers at most Chinese interests in Zimbabwe, the report said.

The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Cameroonian officials to drop criminal charges against a journalist arrested last month in the southwestern town of Buea for covering a secessionist gathering. The journalist is free on bail but faces a fine and up to six months in jail. Baature Edua Mvochou, a Nigerian national and editor of African Drum magazine published [in] Jos, Nigeria, still faces a charge of unlawful assembly.

In this blog entry, Julia Farrington, Head of Arts at Index on Censorship, reports on the launch of Arstfex, the first international civil society network dedicated to promoting free expression for artists. 'There are clearly parallels between investigative journalists and artists who reveal uncomfortable truths. But when controversy breaks, artists are much more exposed because they use their own personal language to tell the story, and bring their own experience and imagination into the narrative.'

With a plan to create documentaries on woman's justice issues through local participation of partnering organisations, this video advocacy initiative was launched in 2010 by the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice and WITNESS. The project is producing six gender justice films highlighting sexual and gender-based violence and other gender issues in armed conflicts, fragile states, and post-conflict environments. The first two videos posted are Our Plea, which exposes the attacks of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) on communities in the Central African Republic (CAR), and Our Voices Matter, which highlights the multiplicity of perpetrators operating in Eastern Democratic of the Congo (DRC), the lack of accountability for these crimes, and the medical services, psychosocial assistance, and economic support needed by victims/supporters.

The UN refugee agency on Friday welcomed Brazil's recent decision to grant permanent residency to nearly 2,000 former Angolan and Liberian refugees. Brazil's Ministry of Justice issued a decree on October 26 confirming the new status for this group. The measure was adopted by the Brazilian migration authorities following a global UNHCR recommendation in January this year, asking states to apply the cessation clauses on the two refugee situations and recommending countries of asylum to pursue local integration or an alternative status for former refugees.

A new report by the UN Commission on Life-Saving Commodities for Women and Children details how we can save six million lives over five years simply by improving access to 13 vital products. Using standard UN language, the report focuses on tearing down barriers that limit access to these products by solving regulatory and supply chain issues. The solutions it proposes aren’t simple, but they’re also not controversial, says this article on the site.