GRi Newsreel 11 - 09 -
2003
Bagbin and Dzirasah leave for New York
Cartagena protocol comes into force
GJA launches handbook
Public urged not to tag visibly lean persons with AIDS
High commissioner praised Volta Region
People of Kyebi honour Offinso South MP
Memorial services, tributes to mark 11 September
Bagbin and Dzirasah leave for New York
Accra (Greater Accra) 11 September 2003 - Alban Bagbin, Minority Leader and Ken Dzirasah Second Deputy Speaker left Accra on Wednesday for New York at the invitation of Parliamentarians of Global Action (PGA) to attend the second consultative assembly of parliamentarians of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which begins on 12 September, this year.
Bagbin, who is the former chairman of the legal affairs committee of PGA will present a paper on; Towards a Parliamentary Assembly of the ICC. He will also join four panellists to discuss issues and options on the creation of parliamentary assembly on ICC and the rule of law.
Dzirasah, who is the President of PGA will chair the opening session of the
assembly of 140 members, which will be opened by Luis Moreno Ocampo, Prosecutor
of the ICC. Bagbin and Dzirasah will be away for 10 days.
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Cartagena protocol comes into force
Accra (Greater Accra) 11 September 2003 - The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, a legally binding protocol to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) comes into force on Wednesday 11 September 2003 with Ghana as the 49th member state.
The Convention needed at least 50 countries to ratify it before it could come into force and Ghana did that as the 49th state on 30 May, whilst Palau, an Island in the Pacific ratified on June 13th as the 50th member state.
The Cartagena Protocol is a global instrument to assist parties in managing practices in modern biotechnology as well as cross border activities in relation to Genetically Modified (GM) products.
Edward O. Nsenkyire, Chief Director of the Ministry of Environment and Science said Ghana needed to establish a good biosafety policy framework backed by legislation, before it fully adopted the modern biotechnology in line with international obligations.
He was speaking at the launch of the national consultation programme of the national Biosafety framework development process under the theme, " Biotechnology for Sustainable Development in Ghana" organized by the National Biosafety Committee in Accra.
He said Ghana, through the Ministry of Environment and Science had been a firm advocate of the precautionary principle which states that "When embarking on something, we should think very carefully about whether it is safe or not, and we should not go ahead until we are convinced it is".
Nsenkyire said to pursue a proactive programme for biosafety in Ghana it joined 117 other countries to source for funds from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) for the development of the national biosafety framework and to help build national capacity in the management of biotechnology.
Prof Edward H. K. Akaho, Director-General of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission said the commission had established three research institutes and five centres to promote nuclear energy and biotechnology techniques for the sustainable development in Ghana.
He said the benefits of nuclear energy were numerous and would help in areas
such as food security, health, industry and the environment. "We are not
makers of bomb as some Ghanaians perceive but rather committed to the peaceful
application of nuclear energy," he said.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 11 September 2003 - A handbook on the constitution, code of ethics and professional guidelines on journalism was on Wednesday launched in Accra as a prelude to the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) extraordinary congress coming off on Friday 12 September.
The handbook, which has been put together to provide members of the Association with materials to help them make more informed decisions at the congress, contains the GJA Constitution and byelaws, the Code of Ethics and the Rules of Procedure of the Ethics Committee.
It also contains the Guidelines for Coverage of Conflict Situations and the Association's Guiding Principles for Coverage of the National Reconciliation Process.
"This handbook should be a source of reference to journalists in Ghana who wish to make informed pronouncements about the GJA," Mrs Gifty Affenyi-Dadzie, President of GJA, said at the launch. Over 900 copies have been printed to be distributed to paid-up members of the Association countrywide.
The French Embassy sponsored the GJA in printing of the publication with ¢15m. Mrs Affenyi-Dadzie said the Association, over the years has recognised through experience the importance of providing guidelines for media practitioners on how to deal with specific challenges.
It is in this vein that the handbook has been compiled to provide journalists with some of the basic information about the Association, within the context of its basic aims and objectives, she said. She expressed the hope that with the publication, members would respond more to the challenges of the times.
"The publication should further strengthen the Association in recognition of the vital role it is playing in the development of the fearless but responsible media in Ghana."
Denis Decraene, Co-operation Attaché at the French Embassy, commended the GJA for its strength and for supporting good governance in the country. He expressed the hope that the Association would continue to grow and perform its watchdog role in society.
Kwasi Afriyie Badu, Chief Executive Officer of the KAB Government Consult, who chaired the launch, described the current developments in the association arising from the recent elections as a very positive sign that would enable members to reflect upon its administration.
He said the profession would continue to be a noble and responsible one in
the world and members of the association should study the constitution for them
to make responsible remarks about its operation. "The GJA Constitution is
bigger than any individual of the Association. So we should respect it and
perform according to its provisions," he said.
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Public urged not to tag visibly lean persons with AIDS
Anomabo(Central Region) 11 September 2003 - The Mfantseman District Coordinator of HIV/AIDS Miss Christine Antor has cautioned Ghanaians against the practice of tagging visibly lean persons with the AIDS disease.
Miss Antor, a Principal Nursing Officer said the status of HIV/AIDS patients could only be determined through medical test, adding that there are other diseases which show similar symptoms as AIDS.
"We should be careful we do not drive our sick neighbours into their graves earlier by associating them with the diseases they may not be suffering from," she said.
She sounded the caution at an HIV/AIDS workshop for 30 peer educators organised by Fed Kastle Promotions, a Saltpond based non-governmental organisation (NGO) at Anomabo in the Central Region, with funds provided by Ghana AIDS Commission.
Miss Antor urged members of the trained peer groups to regard their selection as a call to national duty and to be devoted to championing the fight of the pandemic.
She urged the participants to be polite in delivering the message to the people and advised female students to be content with what their parents provide for them and desist from soliciting help from men who could take advantage of them and infest them with the HIV virus.
Francis Ejaku Donkoh, Executive Director of the NGO exhorted the participants to embark on house-to-house education to bring the anti-AIDS message to the doorsteps of the people.
Ejaku Donkoh, a member of Mfantseman District Assembly said the organisation
had put in place a mechanism to monitor the work of field workers and said hard
working members would be rewarded.
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High commissioner praised Volta Region
Accra (Greater Accra) 11 September 2003 - Isaac Osei, Ghana's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom has praised the people of the Volta Region for the spirit of togetherness and fellow-feeling, which continues to bind them as a people.
"This spirit ought to permeate the activities of the entire people of Ghana so that we can move forward as one people with a common destiny".
A statement from the High Commission in Accra on Wednesday said he made the remarks during the celebration of this year's Hogbetsotso Cultural Dance and Music by the members of the Noviha (UK), in London. He said those characteristics, underpinned by loyalty and all Ghanaians should emulate respect for the elderly.
He therefore, urged all Ghanaians to embrace the spirit of unity and togetherness in all national endeavours to move the development agenda of Ghana forward.
The occasion was also used to raise funds for the education of the under-privileged Ghanaian children in the Volta Region. The High Commissioner outlined a number of development projects, which had been undertaken by the Government since January 2001 and added that the government was committed to the completion of the Keta Sea Defence project to enhance the economic and social activities for the benefit of the people of Keta and its environs.
He said it was the determination of the government to ensure that the people of the Volta Region have a fair share of development projects.
Osei urged parents to endeavour to impart their rich culture to their children who were born in the UK and stressed that as a first step, they should encourage their children to speak their own native language.
The President of Noviha (UK), B. B. K Ayivor told the gathering that, through
the contributions of members, a consignment of medical equipment and drugs would
be sent to Ghana for use at the Keta District Hospital. He announced that plans
were far advanced to launch an Ewe language scheme for children in the Diaspora
and a new radio station, dubbed, Radio Hogbe, to cater for the needs of the
people in the area.
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People of Kyebi honour Offinso South MP
Kyebi (Ashanti Region) 11 September 2003 - The chiefs and people of Kyebi in the Offinso District on Tuesday honoured Kwabena Sarfo, Member of Parliament (MP) for Offinso South, in appreciation of his contribution to alleviating some of the hardships in the area.
They said the MP has fulfilled most of the promises he made during the electioneering campaign and are therefore grateful to him. Nana Kwaku Acquah, Ahotie chief of Kyebi, speaking at the ceremony said, for instance that Sarfo has built a teachers' quarters for the town and also constructed a bridge to link Kyebi to the outlying communities.
He said before the construction of the teachers' quarters, most teachers refused postings to the town due to accommodation problem. This situation, Nana Acquah said, led to the mass failure of the junior secondary school pupils who took the Basic Education Certificate Examination last year.
He said with the construction of the bridge the people could now easily transport their farm produce to the markets. Nana Acquah also expressed satisfaction with the mass cocoa spraying exercise but appealed to the MP to help them with their electrification project.
Sarfo expressed his appreciation to the chiefs and people of Kyebi for honouring him and assured them that the other things, which had not yet been provided, will definitely come. He told them that the roads in the town would soon be rehabilitated while the roofing sheets he promised them will also come.
Sarfo announced that when the Post Graduate College of Physicians is opened a satellite campus would be opened at the Offinso Saint Patrick's Hospital to specialise in Urology. Appiah Ofori, MP for Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa in the Central Region who accompanied Sarfo, appealed to the people to join the National Health Insurance Scheme when it becomes operational and asked them to continue to support the NPP to pursue its policies.
Prince Oduro Mensah, Member of Parliament for Techiman South, called for
unity to ensure the development of the town.
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Memorial services, tributes to mark 11 September
New York (USA) 11 September 2003 - Memorial events and remembrances will be
held throughout the United States on Thursday, 11 September, to honour the
victims of the terrorist attacks that occurred on that day two years ago.
A statement issued in Accra by the US Information Service quoted White House spokesman Scott McClellan as saying that 11 September 2003, will be a "sombre day" in the United States to remember, reflect and honour victims of the "horrific and brutal attacks of 11 September 2001".
The attacks struck the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon just outside Washington, and that resulted in the crash of a United Airlines plane in Pennsylvania.
The statement said on 11 September, President and Mrs Bush would participate in a service of prayer and remembrance at St. John's Church in Washington that would be followed by a moment of prayer on the South Lawn of the White House with staff and invited guests. A moment of silence is scheduled for the exact time when the first plane struck the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre.
Across the Potomac River from Washington, Secretary of Defence, Donald Rumsfeld will commemorate the occasion by participating in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.
Rumsfeld, Air Force General Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the House of Representatives, will join Pentagon chaplains and employees in a flag presentation and stained glass window dedication ceremony in the Pentagon Chapel.
New York City will commemorate the second anniversary of the terrorist attack with ceremonies at the World Trade Centre site on the morning of 11 September.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, New York State Governor George Pataki, former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Vice President Dick Cheney will participate in this event.
Bloomberg said: "On the second anniversary of this fateful day, we will look to our children, through whose eyes we can see the true promise of our state and our nation. And through whose eyes we will continue to see hope and have optimism for a lifetime of brighter days."
At sundown, the "Tribute in Light" will return for one night to depict the two fallen towers, pay tribute to the memory of those lost, and symbolize the spirit of New York City.
The statement said another memorial ceremony would take place in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, near the site of the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, which was taken over by terrorist hijackers on 11 September and may have been headed for another target in Washington, such as the White House or the Capitol. Passengers on that plane apparently overpowered the hijackers, causing it to crash in a rural area. Gale Norton, Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, will attend that remembrance.
The statement said cities and towns throughout the nation have planned
candlelight walks, interfaith services, recitals, and memorial dedications to
honour the fallen and pray for international understanding.
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