The roar of the ocean’s many waters
South Africa’s Constitution begins with a bold statement: “We, the people of South Africa, Recognise the injustices of our past …”
Politics
Ghana’s President and what the West wants to hear
Many social media users have construed Akufo-Addo’s words in the President of France's presence, as somehow radical.
Musical chairs in Angola
Angola's new president may still chart his own political course against party directives and the interests of the Dos Santos family.
The U.S., Uganda, and the War on Terror
The United States' support for “strong man rule” in Africa, if President Yoweri Museveni’s recipe for longevity in Uganda.
Why do so many Western Leftists defend Robert Mugabe?
Mugabe was a neoliberal stooge up until the 2000s and far from being a Pan-Africanist hero sent his army to intervene in the most rapacious war in Africa's history in the Congo.
Thomas Sankara Boulevard
Plus the great novelist Sarah Ladipo Manyika has put together a list of the best books of the Mugabe years.
Seeing is Believing — reassessing Angola’s ‘Implacable Exonerator’
When Angolans went to the polls in late August, many observers felt wary and jaded about the results. Even though President José Eduardo dos Santos was stepping down after 38 years in power, how much could we realistically expect to change? Dos Santos would remain the head of the ruling MPLA party, potentially until 2022, and his appointed successor, João Lourenço, appeared […]
Whose awareness is raised on World AIDS Day?
AIDS interventions are often funded from afar and fail to realize the people they're trying to assist have opinions on AIDS interventions.
The uncertain future for transitional justice in Zimbabwe
Emmerson Mnangagwa, Zimbabwe’s newly inaugurated President, suggests that Zimbabwe is “witnessing the beginning of a new and unfolding democracy”. Many Zimbabweans, and those with an interest in the country, wonder whether that would include openness and some degree of truth and justice for political violence suffered under the 37 year regime of Mnangagwa’s predecessor, Robert Mugabe, and in which the army […]
Discours de Ouaga
Should Africans care for French President Emmanuel Macron's "Africa Speech" in Ouagadougou?
Coups and phalluses
The moral of Grace Mugabe of Zimbabwe: While men continue to share the spoils of their misrule, it seems there must always be a harlot who can be brought to heel.
The slave auction in Libya
Racism and discrimination are central to the social and cultural hierarchy in the Maghreb. Libya is no exception.
The new Old Man in Zimbabwe
From the perspective of the past, there is little evidence to invest much hope in the “successful transition” trope still reverberating in the international media about Zimbabwe.
The Incredible Hulk
What has Angola's President João Lourenço, dubbed the “implacable exonerator,” been up to?
Paul Biya Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Biya did not conceive the system by which he rules Cameroon, but deserves as much credit for the modifications that have enabled his reign.
The Interregnum in Zimbabwe
I write this quick note as an outsider (and well aware of my physical distance from events). I am writing this on the eve of the promised impeachment Tuesday of President Robert Mugabe by his own party’s MP’s. Despite the fact that I went to share the optimism of many Zimbabweans who marched on Saturday, […]
Populism as politics in Southern Africa
In Southern Africa, former liberation movements reclaim ownership over history and society not by seeking but by remaining in power.
Robert Mugabe’s hostage face
And, the terrible experience of Tanzanian women in Oman and the United African Emirates.
Who benefits from the military coup in Zimbabwe?
Zimbabwe is the fourth country in Southern Africa to have a post-independence coup. (The others are Lesotho twice, Seychelles and Madagascar*). The army generals officially announced around 4am (CAT) on November 15, 2017 that its Commander in Chief, President Robert Mugabe and his family were safe and their security was secure. Safe and secure for those of us […]
War begets terror
Since the beginning of 2017, the frequency and lethalness of al-Shabaab’s attacks inside Somalia have reached new levels. This reality was demonstrated for everyone last month, on October 14, when a huge truck filled with explosives detonated at a busy intersection in the capital Mogadishu claiming almost 400 lives. This relentless wave of bombings and assassinations […]