By Kalinga Seneviratne KATHMANDU (IDN) – The democratically elected Communist Party government in this former Hindu Kingdom is trying to change decades old media laws that were enacted before the digital age and is running into opposition from journalists who fear that the government is trying to muzzle a free media. “The communist party came […]
UN Denies Endorsement of India in Nuclear Suppliers Group
By Shanta Roy NEW YORK (IDN) – India, Pakistan and Israel, three countries armed with nuclear weapons, are not recognized as nuclear weapon states by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) – a “privilege” bestowed only on the world’s five major nuclear powers: the U.S., UK, Russia, France and China, which are also members of the […]
After Kashmir Sikkim Buddhists Fear Losing Their Special Constitutional Rights
By Kalinga Seneviratne This article is the 34th in a series of joint productions of Lotus News Features and IDN-InDepthNews, flagship of the International Press Syndicate. Click here for previous articles. GANGTOK, Sikkim (IDN) – Since the special status accorded under section 370 in the Indian constitution to Jammu and Kashmir was abrogated by the […]
Violence Hits Nigerian and Other Businesses in Jo’burg
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – As state-sponsored violence threatens Latinos in the U.S., xenophobia is again threatening Nigerians and other Africans whose shops in Johannesburg are being targeted for looting and destruction by unknown groups. The latest spate of violence broke out in suburbs south of Johannesburg’s city center and […]
Whereabouts of Ailing Gabonese President Being Debated
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – Gabonese President Ali Bongo is receiving medical treatment in London after his health deteriorated during a visit to the city, according to people familiar with the matter. But news of the absent president was immediately contradicted in an official press release this week in a […]
UN Chief Applauds Japan-Africa Partnership Through TICAD
By Taro Ichikawa YOKOHAMA (IDN) – “I see Africa as a dynamic continent of opportunity where winds of hope are blowing ever stronger. TICAD has played a critical role in focusing international dialogue on Africa, built on the twin principles of African ownership and international partnership,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres kicking off the 7th […]
Peace Through Jazz Music
The Trumpet Is a ‘Cool’ Instrument to Unite People By Franck Kuwonu from Africa Renewal NEW YORK (IDN) – Each year, on April 30, music lovers around the world celebrate International Jazz Day to “honour jazz and its enduring legacy, as well as its power to bring people together,” says Audrey Azoulay, the director-general of […]
Reframing the History of Slavery in Angola and the U.S.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – If the U.S. has 35,000 museums, a writer asked in 2014, why is only one about slavery? And if the wealth of this country was built on the backs of enslaved people from Africa, why has that story been vastly under-reported in our media, in […]
Mozambique Embraces Russia’s Investment Efforts
By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW (IDN) – Keen to intensify and widen bilateral relations, Russia and Mozambique have signed several intergovernmental documents as well as business agreements during President Jacinto Filipe Nyusi’s visit here. Its highlights were talks with President Vladimir Putin and the Russian-Mozambican business forum, the first gathering of businesspersons from Russia and […]
Asia-Pacific Faces a Daunting Spectrum of Natural Hazards
New UN Report Warns of Huge Economic Losses By Devinder Kumar NEW DELHI | BANGKOK (IDN) – Vulnerable and marginalized communities are among the hardest hit by natural disasters that occurred in a relentless sequence in Asia and the Pacific in the past two years, beyond what the region had previously experienced or was able […]