Africa 54 - October 27, 2020

You are watching Africa 54, your daily news and feature magazine-style program, from the Voice of America. Host Esther Githui-Ewart and a team of correspondents zero in on the big stories making news on the continent and around the world with context and analysis. Top Stories: The Nigerian judicial panel investigating claims of police brutality and the alleged shooting of protesters in Lagos started its formal proceedings Tuesday, promising neutrality and justice. Independent inquiries into police abuses are a core demand of the protesters who demonstrated nationwide for more than two weeks. Peaceful protests turned violent on October 20th, when witnesses and rights group amnesty international say soldiers opened fire at protesters, killing some of them. The army, however, is denying that its troops were there. Chair Justice Doris Okuwobi says the panel is independent from the government and will ensure justice for victims of police misconduct and for those affected by the unfortunate incident of the alleged shootings by the military. Okuwobi says, so far, none of the 15 complaints received are related to the flashpoint shooting in Lekki. Nigerian Bar Association president Olumide Akpata says his members will represent complainants without charging a fee, but that he had received only a few calls related to Lekki. Zimbabwe authorities are hailing a sustainable farming technique called “Pfumvudza” as a breakthrough to help end the country's long-standing food insecurity.  But as Columbus Mavhunga reports from Harare, some critics point to its limits. The Rwandan businessman suspected of financing the country's 1994 genocide is in the Hague awaiting trial on Tuesday. The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals said in a statement Monday that 87-year-old Felicien Kabuga will soon go before a judge. Kabuga was moved to the Hague Monday from France, where he evaded arrest for more than 22 years before his capture near Paris in May. Healthy volunteers are being deliberately infected with the coronavirus to try to speed up the development of a vaccine, under plans announced by the British government. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, but this year most health care facilities are focused on the coronavirus pandemic. VOA’s Anita Powell spoke to a breast cancer survivor in South Africa who is trying to protect against both COVID-19 and a cancer recurrence. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women globally. The World Health Organization says there were over 2 million new cases of breast cancer in 2018. More than 60 percent of all breast cancer deaths occur in developing countries. Experts say late diagnosis is a serious challenge in the fight against breast cancer in sub-Saharan Africa. VOA health correspondent Linord Moudou spoke earlier this year with Dr. Beatrice Wiafe-Addai, a Ghanaian breast surgeon, chairperson of the Ghana Cancer Board, and founder of Breast Care International, an organization working to fight breast cancer in Ghana and lower the incidence of late stage disease and diagnosis. She elaborates on progress made in the fight against the disease in Ghana and some remaining challenges. Early voting is underway across the United States and the number of people who turned out in Florida last week shattered opening day records for in-person early voting. Liliya Anisimova has more in this story narrated by anna rice. The U.S. Senate approved President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett Monday night. #Nigeria #Protests #EndSARS #Zimbabwe #Farming #Rwanda #Hauge #InternationalTribunal #FelicienKabuga #BreastCancerAwareness #Health #Ghana #UnitedStates #Elections #DonaldTrump #JoeBiden