By David Robie, Editor of Asia Pacific Report AUCKLAND. 1 September 2023 (IDN) — The ‘Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG)’ has thrown away a golden chance for achieving a historical step towards justice and peace in West Papua by lacking the courage to accept the main Papuan self-determination advocacy movement as full members. MSG comprises four […]
Thailand Is Open Again for Business and Tourism
By Jan Servaes* BRUSSELS. 31 August 2023 (IDN) — With the arrival of the government of real estate magnate Srettha Thavisin on 28 August 2023, the Thai political theatre seems to be entering the next phase. As I feared in previous posts, this phase makes the 14 May election results look like a joke. The […]
BRICS Jumps to Africa’s Rescue
By Jeffrey Moyo HARARE, Zimbabwe. 29 August 2023 (IDN) — The three-day BRICS Summit from 22-24 August 2023 in South Africa has raised hopes across the African continent that a new deal for development aid to Africa could be taking shape that will be more fair and equitable. For decades, critics have pointed out that […]
Gabonese President Seeks 3rd Term Amidst Questions of Voting Legitimacy
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK. 28 August 2023 (IDN) — As voters went to the polls in Libreville, the capital of the oil-rich nation of Gabon, polling stations were already opening late. Scheduled to begin in the morning of August 26, many sites had failed to open as of 2 p.m. Incumbent […]
Ex-French President Charged as Influence Peddler
Held Racist Views Toward Africa By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK. 27 August 2023 (IDN) — Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has had anything but a stellar record since stepping down from office more than a decade ago. The 68-year-old has already been convicted twice, once for corruption and influence-peddling involving attempts to […]
African Staffers Sue Facbook’s Parent Company
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK. 27 August 2023 (IDN) — Meta, Facebook’s parent company, is facing a $1.6 billion lawsuit from content moderators in Kenya over poor working conditions, insufficient mental health support, and low pay for moderators. The content moderators told the Associated Press that their job required them to watch […]
Pacific Islands at a Cliff Edge
Viewpoint by Professor Biman Prasad* SUVA, Fiji. 26 Aug 2023 (IDN) — The Pacific Islands are now at a cliff edge. As a region, as countries and as peoples, we face some of the hardest and cruellest choices. First is the growing burden of the climate crisis. The climate crisis impacts all areas of life, […]
Fiji: Outrage at Japan Dumping Fukushima Waters into the Pacific Ocean
By Ravindra Singh Prasad SUVA, Fiji. 26 Aug 2023 (IDN) — With Japan announcing that they will start the process of dumping the contaminated waters from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean starting 24 August, island nations in the Pacific are gripped with fear and outrage with a nation that was seen as […]
Afropop Star Appointed ‘Special Advisor’ to Malian Junta
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK. 24 August 2023 (IDN) — Salif Keita, renowned singer-songwriter known as the “Golden Voice of Africa”, has been appointed one of five “special advisors” to the head of Mali’s military junta. Under a decree dated 11 August, the Afropop singer was named advisor to Colonel Assimi Goita […]
U.S. Extends Protected Status as Sudanese Crisis Worsens
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK. 24 August 2023 (IDN) — In a long-awaited acknowledgment of the worsening crisis in Sudan, the United States has extended its temporary protected status to Sudanese nationals for 18 months—from 20 October 2023 through 19 April 2025. Officials of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security cited Sudan’s […]