Top stories from DAWNS Digest
Joseph Kony Received Aid from Central African Republic Coup Leader
A bizarre but newsworthy tale suggests the regime in CAR is supporting the remnants of the LRA. “Notorious warlord Joseph Kony tried to negotiate food and a safe haven with the president of Central African Republic even as an African force hunted him, a UN envoy told AFP on Wednesday. Amid indications that the Lord’s Resistance Army leader is seriously ill, UN special envoy Abou Moussa and an African Union counterpart called for heightened pressure on Kony. Moussa said in an interview that Central African Republic president Michel Djotodia had told him this month he sent food to Kony.” (AFP http://yhoo.it/17rCHDV)
UNAIDS: Record Number of People on Treatment
This is progress. “Between 2001 and 2012, infection rates fell by 33%, from 3.4 million people to 2.3 million. The number of Aids-related deaths had dropped from 2.3m in 2005 to 1.6m last year.Twenty-six countries have shown more than a 50% decline in infection rates over this period; 17 states have seen a drop of between 25% and 49%. However, HIV infections have increased by 13% in eastern Europe and central Asia since 2006. In the Middle East and north Africa infection rates have doubled since 2001. UNAids said 9.7 million people in low- and middle-income countries were on ARVs by the end of 2012, 1.6 million of whom began treatment last year. This is largely a result of the reduction in price of first-line ARVs, the cost of which have fallen to about $140 per person annually from about $10,000 in the mid-90s.” (Guardian http://bit.ly/17rBRHo)