South Africa chief rabbi’s ‘blind spot’ to Israeli apartheid
In South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent weekly column, the former anti-apartheid activist expressed his angst at the “total disregard for successive United Nations Security Council resolutions that call for an end to the occupation (by Israel) of Palestinian land and the denial of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.” The South African president added, that without a willingness to...
Zimbabwe unveils statue honoring anti-colonialist heroine
HARARE, Zimbabwe—Zimbabwe’s president on May 25 unveiled a towering bronze statue in the center of Harare, the capital, honoring a 19th-century Black anti-colonialist heroine who was hanged for leading a rebellion against White occupation. President Emmerson Mnangagwa vowed to press for the return of her skull from Britain. Nehanda Charwe Nyakasikana, more widely known as Mbuya (grandmother in Shona) Nehanda, was hanged...
Thousands in path of erupting volcano in Congo flee to Rwanda
(GIN)—An erupting mountain of fiery red flames from one of the world’s most active and dangerous volcanoes shook residents of the city of Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, sparking a panicked exodus by thousands to neighboring Rwanda. A din of people and honking horns could be heard in videos taken early May 23 of the red-glowing eruption shared on social...
Internal emails reveal WHO knew of sex abuse claims in Congo
BENI, Congo—When Shekinah was working as a nurse’s aide in northeastern Congo in January 2019, she said, a World Health Organization doctor offered her a job investigating Ebola cases at double her previous salary—with a catch. “When he asked me to sleep with him, given the financial difficulties of my family … I accepted,” said Shekinah, 25, who asked that...
Africa, the internet and youth organizing
Autocratic leaders in Africa are increasingly relying on internet shutdowns to mitigate young people’s use of social media to mobilize against post-colonial political structures across the continent. The internet continues to grow and “gain considerable power and agency around the world,” noted The Conversation, a research-based online publication. The internet is perceived to be a threat by governments that have...
Latest deadly Ebola virus outbreak in DR Congo declared over
The 12th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), was declared officially over on May 3, just three months after the first case was reported in North Kivu, but it marks the end of the country’s fourth outbreak of the deadly disease in less than three years, said the World Health Organization (WHO). The virus—an often-fatal illness spread through...
AFRICA WATCH Death of President Idriss Deby signals uncertain future for the Sahel, Chad
What are the chances in 2021 of a world leader dying on the battlefield? asked France24 news commentator Francois Picard. Chad’s longtime president and military leader for 31 years recently died from wounds sustained after going to a military front. President Idriss Deby, who received military training as a pilot in France and last year took on the title of...
The ongoing tragedy in Zimbabwe
Writer, film maker, playwright and activist Tsitsi Dangarembga recently appeared on BBC’s HARDtalk with host Zeinab Badawi. The 62-year-old Zimbabwean is one of Southern Africa’s most acclaimed cultural figures. Jailed for her political activism at one point, the content creator says her art provides a platform for her activist views and an opportunity to be listened to when she calls...
Mozambique crisis fueled by corporate, government greed not Isis
Recent attacks by armed insurgents, or Al-Shabab, near Mozambique’s $20 billion liquefied national gas project under development by French company Total SE may have more to do with a history of local grievances than a war by terrorists. A private security army has also been on the ground to protect the project and the interests of Total SE investors. The behavior...
France to open archive for period covering Rwandan genocide
PARIS—France’s role before and during the 1994 Rwandan genocide was a “monumental failure” that the country must acknowledge, the lead author of a report commissioned by President Emmanuel Macron said, as the country is about to open its archives from this period to the public. The report, published in March, concluded that French authorities remained blind to the preparations for genocide...