From martin4@myisp.co.za Sun Oct 7 07:07:12 2001 From: "Marcia Africa" Subject: People of Africa Initiative Your Ref: Commercial Dear Umngane! Well, in Zulu, that means "Dear Friend"...As our initiative is in need of many friends indeed, from all over the world, that would seem to be in place. Basically, our aim is to build a personality gallery - in autobiographical form - of individual Africans - including friends of Africa - who have one way or another made a special contribution to Africa's cultural, economic and spiritual upliftment. This we hope shall serve several purposes, as in instilling pride among Africans (long victims of racism and its pernecious psychological effects); offering role-models to the young; providing a human window on Africa's soul that invites tourism, talent and investments; as a platform for forging common agendas through the easier, more personalised face of our content; and promoting affordable access to the internet among poor as well as rural communities. The last item is of special interest, especially considering the Indian experience, where the internet has even reached illiterate people. The Simputer project is another interesting concept (http://www.simputer.org) Unfortunately, in as many as two weeks, our server has gone done with a misdirected DNS - about which we can only complain on Monday. We are on an alternate site at http://wwww.inforight.net, earmarked for a justice related project. Otherwise the crippled server is at http://www.peopleofafrica.net - it should be up by Monday evening Harare/Pretoria time. The alternate server has caused some glitches too, so some pictures and navigation logos are not "visible", though you can see their place holders. You may click these and it should work. The main thing is to get our message across and form mutually supportive networks, whether with individuals or organisations. If you're curious about how we emailed you, it was from your contact details on a web site with the keyword "Africa" in it. We're against spam and will certainly not send you any info or communicate with you unless you reply. Any complaints may be directed to our ISP at http://www.interprise.co.za. We hope we may find support in you for our initiative, in whatever form or shape. Africa's warmest regards and best wishes, Hamba Kahle (bye in Zulu) Marcia Africa Chairperson PEOPLE OF AFRICA Web http://wwww.peopleofafrica.net (alt. http://www.inforight.net) Email webmaster@peopleofafrica.net (might be knocked out too!) PO Box 28824 Kensington JOHANNESBURG Republic of South Africa 2101 Tel: +27 11 624-0687+Fax/Voice Mail Cell: +27 72 290-2196