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Police in Muhanga district has arrested Five suspects in connection with the brutal murder of 9 residents in the district. The deaths have occurred within the past two months.

On August 19, two people including;Bagirubwira Callixte and Niwemfura John Espain were attacked with machetes by unknown people.

Bagirubwira a water technician in Muhanga district was attacked in his area at Biti, Remera in Nyamabuye sector. He told IGIHE that while he was walking back home, he met two unidentified men one was holding a machete and another with a stick.

He says he was beaten with a stick on his face and later the man with a machete tried to cut off his head but Bigirubwira guarded with his hand and in the process one figure was chopped off.

The two attakers thought Bigirubwira had died and left him. After several hours Bigirubwira became conscious and crawled to a nearby home which refused to open for him and later went to the incharge of security in the cell who later took him to the health center.

During the same night, Niwemfura John was found in his home and attacked by two men. His wife said she had seen someone peeping through the door glass.

She later opened the door and was immediately hit with a stick. She struggled with the attacker. Another attacker attempted to cut Niwemfura’s wife with a machete.

Police in Ngororero district is holding Erneste Dufanye 23, found in possession with 86 boules of narcotic cannabis in his house.

The suspect is detained at Gatumba police station.

Natural Balance, a social enterprise and the driving force behind the prodigious Wonderbag – a heat retention cooker which offsets carbon by reducing the use of cooking fuel – will launch in Rwanda today.

The expansion cements the organisation’s vision of an East African head office.

As well as its geographical location, Rwanda’s focus on the environment as a means of galvanising the population perfectly aligns with Natural Balance’s own ethos.

The organisation delivers positive sociological and environmental benefits for families in developing countries, while providing a responsible yet commercial solution to carbon offsetting for global corporations, such as existing partner Unilever.

With regular nationwide clean up and recycling schemes operating in Rwanda, Natural Balance will bring additional sustainable and economic support to the country. Providing bags will impact on the environment andhelp to alleviate poverty – from reducing fuel usage to job creation and freeing up valuable time. Already bags are being manufactured locally in the first Natural Balance factory outside South Africa, established in central Rwanda.

Recent trials across Rwanda found that the average family’s fuel usage is reduced by up to 70 per cent when using the Wonderbag, saving 4.9 trees per household every year.

This is vitally important as the population has limited access to clean and safe cooking fuels and consequently the country’s natural resources are depreciating rapidly, disrupting the balance of the local ecosystem.

The Wonderbag dramatically reduces cooking times on open fires and paraffin lit stoves – on average five hours – saving anywhere from 50-90 per cent of the time food needs to be on an external heating source.

In addition, up to 80 per cent less water is used as there is no evaporation due to the heat retention properties of the cooker. This is the equivalent of five meals cooked with the same amount of water required for one meal using traditional means.

Speaking of the expansion, Sarah Collins, founder, Natural Balance said: “Our business is at a revolutionary point with governments and organisations alike recognising the extraordinary opportunity the Wonderbag provides for them to contribute positively to society.

As Africa’s most densely populated country, Rwanda is a vital territory for our business as we look to continue to promote the benefits of the Wonderbag and set up our central East Africa head office. The expansion marks the start of a global programme of growth across both developing and developed nations in the coming months.”

The launch into Rwanda comes after a year of significant change and continued success for Natural Balancewhich actively seeks to launch in to countries and communities identified with high poverty rates, a shortage of fuel supplies, a high incidence of health problems associated with air pollution, and/or injuries resulting from fuel fires. As of June 2012, 500,000 Wonderbags have been distributed throughout South Africa directly improving the lives of over 2.5 million people.

Furthermore each Wonderbag can prevent the emission of half a ton of C02 each year, even if only used three times a week. This is the equivalent to the annual emissions of over 45,000 European households, or more than 400,000 return flights between London and New York.

Moreover, since September 2011, over 2,000 temporary and permanent jobs have been created in local communities by Natural Balance by establishing factories which produce Wonderbags.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, a regional strongman in power for over two decades, has died in hospital abroad, the government said Tuesday.

“Prime Minister Meles Zenawi passed away yesterday evening at around midnight,” Bereket Simon said, adding that the 57-year-old “was abroad” when he died, without giving further details.

Meles had not been seen in public for two months, and had been reported to have been sick in a hospital in Brussels, although Bereket gave no details of the illness.

Botswana is facing stiff resistance from lobbyists who say that Southern African Development Community (SADC) nations should impose an air blockade on Botswana if it agrees to host United States Africa Command (Africom).

Botswana political analyst on African affairs, Dr Honourable Saka, spearheaded the call for a Botswana blockade if Botswana goes ahead to give Africom a base.

“I am appealing to the governments of SADC to impose sanctions on Botswana if it goes ahead with the measure and ignores the position of the SADC community,” he said.

On August 11, the deputy secretary-general of South Africa’s ruling ANC, Thandi Modise, said “leaders want to host people who want to hurt us. They think as long as they can get funding from these Western people they are fine. But I can tell you that we are not happy at all”.

Between August 1-17, Botswana defense Forces BDF and Africom held a joint military exercise at Thebephatswa Air Base outside Molepolole in south-east Botswana, 60 km from the capital Gaborone.

The joint military drills were sponsored by Africom dubbed Southern Accord 12.

Afircom Commander General Carter F. Ham’s has also visited Botswana Capital Gaborone last week.

SADC and the African Union have made it clear that they do not want a permanent US military base on the continent.

But there have long been suspicions that Botswana and Liberia are amenable to hosting the unit.

Botswana’s hosting AFRICOM would directly suck SADC into the orbit of Pentagon and NATO military adventures, while indirectly affecting the rest of Africa.

Major-Gen David Hogg of the US Army says that America would soon begin regular deployment of a brigade of 3 000 or more troops to Africa.

The unit is the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, which “will be the main force provider for security co-operation and partnership-building missions in Africa”.

It is Feared that this unit will form the core of AFRICOM and will be stationed in Botswana.

US has more than 187 000 soldiers based in nearly 160 countries.

PRIOR

Leaked diplomatic cables from the US Embassy in Gaborone, Botswana gave Washington the green light to explore the possibility of establishing an AFRICOM base on its territory.

A cable sent by America’s Ambassador in Botswana, Katherine Canavan, to the US Secretary of State in Washington in October 2007, shows senior embassy officials met then Vice President Mompati Merafhe to discuss the matter.

Canavan said Botswana and other unidentified African countries were being considered for hosting elements of AFRICOM.

Dorothée Nyiranzabarantumye was found dead in her bed after three days. she was killed by unknown people.
She was a resident of Gahogo at Nyamabuye sector in Muhanga district.

Nyiranzabarantumye is said to have been engaged in prostitution for the past two years as confirmed by about ten prostitutes IGIHE talked to.

These prostitutes told IGIHE that Nyiranzabarantumye had been waiting for two men (clients) on August 15. That day she was with a fellow sex worker identified as Clarisse. She later agreed to one man with whom she went to her house.

The following day, she was not seen as her house door was locked with a padlock from the outside. Neighbours thought she had travelled somewhere. Some thought she had travelled to meet her two children living in Kamonyi district.

Neighbours remained suspicious of the whereabouts of Nyiranzabarantumye because whenever she travelled somewhere, she could leave her house Keys with the neighbours and would also tell them where she had gone. However, this time it was different.

Neighbours further say Nyiranzabarantumye had no dispute with anyone.

They notified local authorities and Police who later broke the padlock and entered the house only to find the naked lifless body of Nyiranzabarantumye in bed covered with bedsheets.

She had been strangled using a bedsheet. The person who strangled her took her telephone and switched it off. The Killer later locked the house with a padlock.

However, others suspect Habineza the father of her two kids to have had a hand in this murder. efforts to reach Habineza for comment were futile.

Mugunga Jean Baptiste,the Executive Secretary of Nyamabuye sector said, they learnt of the death of Nyiranzabarantumye late.

He further said that the local leadership had on many occassions urged prostitutes to stop their trade and engage in other developmental activities.

The Mozambican President, Armando Guebuza also the chairperson of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) has said he will be visiting Rwanda for talks seeking to better understand the conflict between Rwanda and the DRC.

“I believe that there is always room for dialogue between the two: Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo,” SADC chairperson said at the end of the 32nd Summit of Heads of State and Government held in Mozambique’s capital Maputo.

Guebuza, did not specify the date for the visit. The main purpose of his visit is to give contribution as SADC chairperson, Radio Mozambique reported on Sunday.

During the two-day summit leaders of the SADC discussed, political instability in DR Congo, the issue over Madagascar, the recent war allegations between Malawi and Tanzania over the lake Niassa, and others.

Xinhua