By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — A former senior Rwandan official linked to the deaths of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus has been found guilty of complicity in that nation’s genocide, 20 years after the horrific crime occurred. Laurent Bucyibaruta is the highest-ranking Rwandan to face trial in France over the […]
Sharp Rise in Gun Violence Triggers Debate
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | PRETORIA (IDN) — An outbreak of shootings at three different bars over one weekend has rocked the nation. Illegally obtained weapons were blamed for the violence in which 22 people died. According to police, the gunmen in the Soweto shooting used high-calibre rifles, including AK-47s, leaving […]
Nigerian Pop Star Takes Down Air Pollution in Latest Hit
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Grammy-award winner Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has picked a smoking topic for his latest record dubbed “Whiskey”. “Port Harcourt residents dem no dey breathe fresh air, my people! When you wake up in the morning, you cough black soot,” the song begins.
Kenyan Frontrunner in Upcoming Poll Taps Woman Justice as Running Mate
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | NAIROBI (IDN) — The former prime minister and a frontrunner in the August 9 presidential election, Raila Odinga, has tapped Martha Wangari Karua, a former justice and constitutional affairs minister, as his running mate—making her the first woman in Kenya to run on a major political […]
ANC Leader Portrays Nation’s Wealth and Inequality
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | CAPETOWN (IDN) — Almost three decades since the end of apartheid, South Africa remains the most unequal country in the world—where the richest 10 per cent of the population owns more than 85% per cent of household wealth—a gap higher than any other country for which […]
Irregularities Uncovered at State-owned DRC Mining Company
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — The anti-corruption agency of the Democratic Republic of Congo has identified numerous irregularities in the management of the state-owned mining company, Gecamines, which it says has caused the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. The report covered the years 2010 to 2020 and was […]
Some Nigerians Still Harbour Affection for The Queen
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | ABUJA (IDN) — For one Nigerian novelist, the pomp and circuses filling the streets of London on the occasion of Queen Elizabeth’s 70th year on the throne, brought back memories of her parents’ generation, born and raised under colonialism. Thrilled to see the British leave Nigeria […]
Swiss Firm Fined Billion Dollar for Massive Bribery in Africa
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Illicit payments, multiple counts of bribery and market manipulation were among the many misdeeds of Glencore International and Glencore Ltd, a Swiss-based commodity trading and mining company according to numerous reports in the press. Over a 10-year period, bribes worth millions were lavished on government […]
Wole Soyinka Wants Nigeria to End Killings of Women and Children
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — As Americans grapple with the proliferation of guns used against minorities, elders, children, immigrants and victims chosen randomly, Nigerian Professor Wole Soyinka has launched a similar campaign against the rising rate of intentional homicides that the Nigerian government has failed to reverse.
Mali’s Withdrawal from Sahel-5 Joint Force Undermines Africa’s Unity
By Kester Kenn Klomegah* MOSCOW | BAMAKO (IDN) — The Malian Transitional Military Government’s abrupt and unexpected decision to withdraw from the G5-Sahel group and its Joint Force is “unfortunate” and “regrettable”, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council as she urged countries in the region to redouble efforts to protect human rights, […]