May 15 (Reuters) - Anger over high food prices has sparked protests in several countries. Surging food prices have posed a particular risk to poor economies. Here are some details of recent price rise protests and disturbances: * BURKINA FASO -- Unions began a three-day general strike on May 13 against soaring prices for food and fuel products. Several thousand demonstrators later marched through the capital Ouagadougou in a noisy protest. Protests had already triggered riots and looting in February during which more than 300 people were arrested. The government has moved to cut import duties and to subsidise cereals to try to cushion the effects of high prices. * MOROCCO -- Four unions staged a one-day strike in state schools and other public services on May 13 to protest against soaring food prices but the impact was mixed. The strike was seen as a test in a showdown between the government and trade unions over a food prices crisis ahead of a general strike planned for May 21. * CAMEROON -- At least 24 people were killed in protests that erupted in February and were linked partly to rising living costs. Human rights activists put the death toll at 100. The government raised state salaries and suspended customs duties on basic foodstuffs. * IVORY COAST -- Police in Ivory Coast fired teargas at the end of March to disperse demonstrators protesting against steep price rises in the commercial capital, Abidjan. * MOZAMBIQUE -- At least six people were killed in Mozambique in protests in February over high fuel prices and living costs. The government agreed to cut the price of diesel fuel for minibus taxis. * SENEGAL -- More than 1,000 people, some carrying empty rice sacks, marched through Senegal's capital Dakar on April 26 to protest against rising food prices. * SOMALIA -- A young man was shot dead when thousands protested in Mogadishu earlier this month over Somali food traders' refusal to take old currency notes amid spiralling inflation. A shopkeeper shot the young man dead after dozens of protestors carrying clubs and stones broke into his store. * SOUTH AFRICA -- Thousands of members of South Africa's powerful labour federation marched through Johannesburg in April to protest against higher food and electricity prices. * HAITI -- Protests in Haiti over high rice prices brought down the prime minister in April. At least six people were killed in two weeks of riots and demonstrations in the poorest country in the Americas. * ARGENTINA -- Striking farmers could lift their latest protest for 24 hours, if the government offers to negotiate. Farmers in Argentina, a leading exporter of soy, wheat and corn, are locked in a two-month standoff with the centre-left government over a tax hike on soy exports. Farmer have already been on strike for three weeks until early April over tax policies and other government measures, including export bans, aimed at taming food price inflation. * PERU -- More than 1,000 women protested outside Peru's Congress earlier this month, to demand the government do more to counter rising food prices. Upset by rising fertiliser costs and seeking debt relief, farmners blocked rail and road links in February. They said a free trade deal with the United States would flood markets with subsidized agricultural imports. * BANGLADESH -- In April factory workers protested at Fatullah, 12 km (8 miles) east of the capital, Dhaka, against rising food prices, leaving at least 50 people injured. Retail prices of wheat, edible oil and pulses had doubled over the previous 12 months. * VIETNAM -- Vietnam moved to quell panic over rice supplies on April 28, banning speculation in the market after a "chaotic" buying binge highlighted growing global fears about food security. * AFGHANISTAN -- In the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad some 300 protesters took to the streets in April over prices. * RUSSIA - Thousands of people protested against rising food prices across Russia in May, highlighting one of the biggest challenges before new president, Dmitry Medvedev. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com) (Writing by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
U.S. Marine Corps Lance Corporal Eric Clamor (L) and Sergeant James McCarty, both assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, fill boxes with 5-gallon bags of drinking water while en route ...
Food and hunger
