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Nato Urged To Commit More Resources To Libya
William Hague will attend a meeting with fellow foreign ministers in Berlin today after David Cameron
promised to leave "no stone unturned" to halt the killing of civilians.
Only six of Nato's 28 member states are currently conducting air strikes in Libya.
Rebel forces in the country received a boost as the international community threw its weight behind demands for Colonel
Gaddafi to surrender power.
Mr Cameron, in Paris yesterday for talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, described the situation in the besieged city of Misratah as "appalling".
"Britain and France are at the heart of this coalition and with President Sarkozy I am going to be sitting down to make
sure that we leave no stone unturned in doing everything we can militarily, diplomatically, politically to enforce the UN
resolution, to put real pressure on Gaddafi, and to stop the appalling murder of civilians.
"It is appalling what Gaddafi is doing in Misratah. He is murdering his own citizens, including children. The orders come
directly from him."
Downing Street said Britain would be sending the rebels 1,000 sets of body armour in "non-lethal" aid from surplus UK defence
stocks, in addition to the 100 satellite telephones already supplied.
Talks are ongoing about whether UN resolution 1973 allows for the coalition to arm rebel fighters in Libya.
And while many countries insist that providing weapons to opposition forces falls outside the remit of the resolution,
others claim doing so is justified.
On Wednesday, Mr Hague co-chaired a meeting of the international contact group on Libya in Qatar.
It backed calls for Gaddafi to step down, warning that his continued presence "would threaten any resolution of the crisis".
The meeting's final statement said "participants in the contact group agreed to continue to provide support to the opposition,
including material support."
Qatari prime minister Hamad bin Jassem al Thani said this refers to "humanitarian means, and also means of defence".
"That means that the Libyan people should get the means that they need to defend themselves," he said.
But he acknowledged that this view was not universally held, conceding "people gathered here have different interpretations".
Meanwhile rebel leadership said in a tweet: "We're discussing weapons deals with countries that officially recognised the
council; we've been getting positive replies."
Family Begs Dewani: 'Give Us The Answers'
Swedish-born Anni Dewani was killed last November after a taxi she and her new husband were travelling
in was hijacked on the outskirts of Cape Town.
Shrien Dewani survived the ordeal but his 28-year-old bride was shot and her body later found in the abandoned vehicle.
The couple's taxi driver, Zola Tongo, was sentenced to 18 years in jail for Mrs Dewani's murder.
But in a plea bargain, he claimed Dewani offered him 15,000 rand (£1,400) to arrange the killing.
South African prosecutors want the 31-year-old Briton, who denies plotting is wife's murder, extradited over the allegations.
The late woman's brother told ITV news Dewani has "many questions to answer".
"There are many accusations against him. I think he has to answer them," said Anish Hindocha.
He went on: "I think he has to clear his name and tell us once and for all what really happened."
Her father, Vinod Hindocha, added: "We beg you Shrien, if you really love her, if you really care for her, please give
us the answers. That's what we beg of you."
Dewani was recently moved to a secure hospital after a further deterioration in his mental state.
The Bristol businessman had been staying at the city's Priory clinic, but was relocated to the Cygnet Hospital in Somerset.
His spokesman Max Clifford told Sky News Online the medication he had been taking was making his behaviour worse and he
had been getting more noisy and disruptive.
Mrs Dewani's family went on to reveal the "very difficult time" they have had since her death.
"It's torn the family apart," her sister Ami Densborg said.
"It's been five months since she died and every day we still think about her: in the morning, in the evening, when we talk
to each other, it's always her.
"She's always on our minds and none of us can let this go."
Responding to the comments, a spokesman for the Dewanis said the Swedish family had turned down the opportunity to meet
the Briton since he became a suspect.
"Immediately after Anni's death, Vinod Hindocha returned from South Africa with Shrien to Bristol," the spokesman said.
"He and his family sat with Shrien to ask about and hear what happened.
"After the allegations were made by the taxi driver the Hindocha family have declined to meet with Shrien."
Earlier this week, Dewani was moved to a secure hospital after a further deterioration in his mental state.
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Corporations Could Do A Better Job Running Corrupt African Governments.
By Tiku Etahoben
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| Tiku Etahoben, middle, flanked by colleagues on a working visit to Obang, Manyu Division. |
Corruption rules in too many of the world's democratically elected governments. From Achocalla, Bolivia, to Mayuge, Uganda,
voters pick their leaders through the ballot box, but an entrenched system of kickbacks, bribes, and graft means that citizens
are cheated out of a fair government that operates efficiently and in the public interest.
It's time to consider a radical idea: Corporations and nonprofit groups, in addition to individuals, should be allowed to
run for office in local elections. Firms such as KPMG, Ernst & Young, or McKinsey should all get a shot at becoming candidates
to run cities and districts with a history of corruption. Entities that are experts at municipal accounting, consulting to
foreign governments, or providing services like procurement support and corruption monitoring might consider becoming candidates.
This is not a call for privatization of services (like trash pickup), which is already widespread. Instead, it's a suggestion
that the job of mayor itself be awarded by voters to a private firm. Unlike other privatizations, this would not be a one-off
event. Every several years voters would get the chance to choose their administrator of choice.
While I am serious about this idea, I know that it can't work without the input of visionary policymakers who would hammer
out all the details. If a company or nonprofit outfit is elected mayor of Lagos, Nigeria, who would do the job? An individual,
a group of people, or some sort of board? Where would those people come from? New York? Nigeria? London? To my mind, it should
be left up to the elected entity. If KPMG wanted to fly in a vice president from the Chicago office, it could do so, or it
could hire a group of three Nigerians. It could lay out its management plan as part of its election campaign, and voters would
take that into account in making their decision.
Why would locals vote for a foreigner? If they felt it was their only option to get out of the high-corruption, low-efficiency
rut. Keep in mind that in African villages, store owners paint Coca-Cola signs on the sides of their tin shacks. These signs
are not sanctioned or paid for by the company. They are seen by locals as a sign of credibility.
Companies and nonprofits have stronger incentives than do individuals to steer clear of bribes and kickbacks. A corruption
scandal in Lagos could harm KPMG's reputation in New York or Shanghai. Moreover, foreign firms are bound by many laws of their
home country and by international laws, notably the anti-bribery convention of the Organization for Economic Co-operation
and Development. In addition, a company or nonprofit must demonstrate to its shareholders or donors that it can perform efficiently.
To state the obvious, companies must make money. How could running a local government be a profitable enterprise? In a word:
taxes. Voters in corrupt municipalities currently pay taxes to finance mediocre government as well as embezzlement. They might
very well be willing to pay the same, or higher, taxes to finance good government, which would include a profit margin to
the elected firm.
Corporations might find that some parts of running a city are less costly than running a business. For example, successful
firms or nonprofits would get free advertising through the popular press, eliminating their need for private marketing while
increasing their ability to win elections in other locales around the world.
Citizens in mismanaged locales deserve to have the option to elect competent, non-corrupt management, from anywhere in the
world, and to remunerate them as the job requires.
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