Reuters: South Africa Threatens Clampdown on Violent Protests
South Africa today threatened to crack down on violent protests which erupted this week over jobs and living conditions, with a top minister announcing the government would deal “ruthlessly” with protestors. Yesterday police fired rubber bullets and teargas at township rioters who were calling for the removal of local officials of the ruling ANC party they accuse of corruption. Reuters writes that tough police measures could alienate residents of poor and neglected townships. They are glaring reminders of decades of apartheid, when angry youths also burned tyres and hurled stones at police. A crackdown could also risk creating the perception of instability and make foreign investors uneasy.

Reuters: WHO May Change ARV Guidelines for Pregnant Mothers
The World Health Organization is reviewing its 2006 recommendations on the use of antiretrovirals (ARVs) to treat HIV in pregnant women. Key findings from a new study show that a stronger drug cocktail administered over a longer period reduced the risk of mother-to-child HIV transmission compared with the current WHO-recommended short-course ARV regimen. It also shows that infection rates are significantly cut when mothers are on the long-term treatment during breastfeeding. A senior WHO official said that the organization’s guidelines for ARV treatment may change by the end of the year as a result of this data.

Washington Post: Programs’ Religious Ties Raise Concerns
According to a new audit, USAID funded programs that used biblical lessons to promote sexual abstinence in Africa, despite a prohibition on the use of taxpayer funds to support “inherently religious activities.” The report focused on projects initiated from 2006 to 2007 under the Bush administration. The audit identified expenditures for the rehabilitation of mosques in Fallujah, Iraq and cited concerns that the use of Christian stories in HIV/AIDS prevention programs in Africa could be seen as showing a “USAID-funded preference for Christianity.” The issues have raised legal questions on whether the constitutional separation of church and state applies to American foreign policy programs abroad.

VOA: Pattern of Prosecutions of MDC Lawmakers Troubles Zimbabwe Government
Zimbabwe’s Movement for Democratic Change, led by Prime Minister Morgan Zvangirai, has accused the opposing party of a campaign of judicial abuse. 13 MDC house members and one senator have been embroiled in the legal system, five of them convicted and sentenced to date. The party said Wednesday that the charges were trumped up and charged that the President Robert Mugabe’s supporters are plotting to whittle away at the MDC majority in parliament. The MDC was also unhappy that the opposition recently blocked its communications reform legislation, which seeks to open up the country’s media and telecommunications.

AP: Report: US, China Must Improve Climate Cooperation
A new Senate Foreign Relations Committee report says that the United States and China should use high-level meetings next week to work toward improved cooperation in curbing greenhouse gases. While the Senate is pressing for cooperation, the House has taken a more confrontational approach by placing trade tariffs in a House-passed bill to limit heat-trapping pollution. The tariffs would impose a “border adjustment” in 2020 on goods from countries that do not limit the gases linked to global warming. Critics say that could undermine U.S. efforts to persuade developing countries to enter into a new global warming treaty.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson