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Thursday, July 10, 2003

Don't Cry For Me Nigeria

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Don't cry for me Nigeria
The truth is I barely glimpsed you
All through the whole day
My bored existence
I have no promise
Just keep your distance

And as for Amina, and Karla too
We kill so that women can learn
Though at odds with the world, they deserve all they get

I’ve no illusions
They’re the final solutions they promised to be
Not a thing I can think of to say
I feel nothing but hope you love me

Don't cry for me Nigeria

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NOISE

Bush left Uganda on his Airforce One jet in mid-afternoon and was due to arrive in Abuja around 7:00 pm (1800 GMT), officials said. There was no sign of any imminent protest in Abuja, as squads of riot police swarmed around the city arresting street traders and seizing their stalls in a last minute bid to make the city look neat for the visit. Earlier police backed with bulldozers carried out orders from Bush's host President Olusegun Obasanjo to destroy at least 60 illegally built homes and businesses, leaving hundreds homeless and destitute. Police spokesman Chris Olakpe told AFP that no specific threats had been received in connection with Bush's visit, and that enough men and equipment had been deployed to counter any protests.

Nigeria awaits Bush visit amid protests and tight security, AFP, July 11, 2003


I believe in the justice of God. So if justice is not done to me here on earth it will be done in the hereafter

Amina Lawal, sentenced to death in March 2002 by a Sharia court in northern Nigeria for getting pregnant out of wedlock, Debate rages over women and Sharia, BBC, June 11, 2003


Ziba Mir Hosseini, author of Islam and Gender, says: "We do not have in modern times any state which has introduced Sharia and has been able to respect women's rights." She says nowhere does the punishment of stoning appear in the Koran. She adds that pre-modern interpretations of the Sharia, which often have a heavy overlay of cultural prejudices, are not in keeping with the spirit of Islam, which is about justice and equality.

Jane Little, Debate rages over women and Sharia, BBC, June 11, 2003


Mother-of-four Amina Lawal, 30, was told her case will not be heard by the Islamic appeal court until August 27 -- two days after the date set for her execution. But the court reassured her the execution will not go ahead before the appeal has been heard.

Jeff Koinage, Nigeria stoning appeal adjourned, CNN, June 3, 2003


Because of the circumstances in Nigeria today, which are very volatile, we felt that having a big international campaign and protest letters that were based on inaccurate information and not very carefully worded, would actually be more damaging than helpful.

We decided that we had to put out an international appeal trying to clarify the situation and asking people not, at this moment, to participate in international protest campaigns.

Dr Aisha Imam from women's human rights group Baobab - who are campaigning to defend Amina Lawal, Amina Lawal campaign 'unhelpful', BBC, May 13, 2003


The US First Lady, Laura Bush, had tears in her eyes yesterday as she listened to a performance by the Watoto children's choir - made up mainly of children orphaned by HIV/Aids. Laura, and her husband, US President George W. Bush, were at The Aids Support Organisation clinic in Entebbe on the last stop of their four-hour visit to Uganda...President Bush, who is travelling with wife Laura, daughter Barbara and other senior officials, was in Entebbe for slightly less than the scheduled four hours.

Laura Bush Cries in Entebbe, The Monitor, July 11, 2003


Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer criticized Gov. George W. Bush Tuesday for making fun of an executed Texas woman in an interview Bush gave to Talk magazine. "I think it is nothing short of unbelievable that the governor of a major state running for president thought it was acceptable to mock a woman he decided to put to death," Bauer said of Bush.

Bush is portrayed in Talk as ridiculing pickax killer Karla Faye Tucker of Houston for an interview she did with CNN broadcaster Larry King shortly before she was executed last year. Just before her execution date, Tucker appealed for clemency on the grounds that she had become a born-again Christian.

" 'Please,' Bush whimpers, his lips pursed in mock desperation, 'don't kill me' "

The Houston Chronicle, August 10, 1999


Nigeria presents the best and worst that Africa has to offer. The continent's most populous nation, it is a former military dictatorship that has become a democracy, albeit a flawed one that sometimes barely seems to function. As one of the world's great oil exporters, it is a rich place that is often shockingly poor. It is nationalistic and yet deeply divided by ethnic rivalries. Mr. Bush could see little of this from Abuja, the shiny capital where politicians retreat to "run" the country.

Marc Lacey, The Country That a President Never Gets to See, The New York Times, July 13, 2003

 
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