By Fresh Polutele* NUKU’ALOFA, Tonga, 23 June 2023 (IDN | Wansolwara) — The kingdom of Tonga in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean was known as a “paradise” island. But not anymore. Plastic and glass waste is an ongoing problem in Tonga’s environment and it has created a dilemma for the government. How will […]
South Pacific Is Not in Good Shape Because of Other Peoples’ Wars
By Kalinga Seneviratne SUVA, Fiji, 20 June 2023 (IDN) — In a keynote speech at the annual Pacific Update conference at the University of the South Pacific (USP), the university’s former Dean of the Business and Economic Faculty, and now the Deputy Prime Minister and Economics Minister of the island country, Professor Biman Prasad told […]
Ugandan Children Targeted in Attack by Known Terror Group
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 19 June 2023 (IDN) — Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is struggling to defend his security forces that failed to block an attack on a secondary school where some 39 students were brutally murdered and others were abducted. Museveni, who is also the commander in chief of armed […]
African Plan to End Ukraine War Turns Out to be a Non-Starter
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 19 June 2023 (IDN) — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, among a group of seven African leaders meeting on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, presented an African plan to end the ruinous war between Russia and the Ukraine.
Corruption Is a Growing Threat to Africa’s Precarious Economies
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 12 June 2023 (IDN) — Declining profits from oil and gas production may no longer be sufficient to cover up weaknesses in African economies, including surging food prices, high rates of food insecurity particularly among the rural population, and corruption. With its once abundant oil fields, Equatorial […]
Another Rwandan Warlord to be Put on Trial
Liberia Fails to Try a Single One By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 3 June 2023 (IDN) — After WWII, international, domestic, and military courts conducted trials of tens of thousands of accused war criminals. Efforts to bring to justice the perpetrators of Nazi-era crimes continued well into the 21st century.
Senegal: Arrest of Popular Opposition Leader Triggers Protests
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | DAKAR, 3 June 2023 (IDN) — Are Senegalese President Macky Sall’s moves against a credible opposition candidate sparking an uprising among Senegalese youth that has already cost more than a dozen lives and the deployment of Army soldiers and riot police?
Uganda Courts Condemnation After Signing World’s Toughest Anti-LGBTQ Laws
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 30 May 2023 (IDN) — In a move sure to invite condemnation and risking sanctions, Uganda has approved a new, stricter anti-LGBTQ law that includes the death penalty. President Yoweri Museveni signed the world’s toughest anti-LGBTQ legislation, first proposed back in March but sent back to lawmakers […]
The Murder of Chris Hani That Brought the Nation to the Brink of War
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 30 May 2023 (IDN) — On Easter weekend 1993 Nelson Mandela was engaged in slow-moving power-sharing talks with President F.W. de Klerk when a white supremacist shot Mandela’s heir-apparent, Chris Hani, in the hope of igniting an all-out civil war. The story of nine tumultuous days, as […]
Dangerous Growth of Violent Groups Confront New Nigerian President
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 30 May 2023 (IDN) — Bolu Ahmed Tinubu, who eked out a controversial win in the nation’s recent elections, now faces a near insurmountable challenge—to quell the violence gripping the country, wielded by various groups of assorted loyalties. “The degree of insecurity in Nigeria is unprecedented,” wrote […]