By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Nigerians planning to visit the US will be barred from entry if officials believe they pose a threat to upcoming elections in Nigeria, according to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement. The announcement also extends to the families of those accused of […]
Killing Of Prodemocracy Activist in Eswatini Condemned
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Hundreds of mourners around the world paid tribute to a renowned human rights activist, Thulani Maseko, brazenly shot dead in front of his wife and two children at their home in Eswatini, formerly Swaziland, on January 21. His murder drew widespread condemnation, including from the […]
What the Resignation of New Zealand’s Inspirational Prime Minister Means
By David Robie* AUCKLAND (IDN) — Aotearoa New Zealand has been shaken to the core by the sudden resignation of one of its most iconic and revered prime ministers amid a fierce controversy over misogyny and death threats stirred by the global coronavirus pandemic. Jacinda Ardern, the world’s youngest female prime minister at 37 when […]
Heated Debate on Giving a Constitutional Voice to Indigenous Australians
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) — Each year on January 26, Australians celebrate “Australia Day”, a national holiday that marks the day Captain Arthur Phillip sailed into Sydney Cove in 1788, planted the Union Jack and proclaimed the continent for the British Crown. Later it was enshrined in the Australian constitution that it was “terra […]
Split in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church
By Karen Smith BRUSSELS (IDN) — Three months after the two-year Ethiopian civil war came to an end, displacing millions, the Orthodox Church is facing a split. Three bishops have announced that they will form a separate church with its own decision-making body. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali has criticised “bigotry by religion and […]
Anti-French Sentiment Boils Over in West Africa
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | OUAGADOUGOU (IDN) — French flags were set ablaze in the streets of Ouagadougou as hundreds of citizens of the West African nation of Burkina Faso gathered in the capital city on January 20. Many carried placards with the message “French army, get out!” Anti-French sentiment has […]
Spectacular Boom in Crypto Market in Africa
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Why is cryptocurrency booming in Africa but sinking in rich western countries, including the U.S.? For starters, cryptocurrencies have gained acceptance among a large proportion of the low-income population that was, previously financially marginalized. Most banks in Africa were not accessible to this segment. Even […]
Amnesty International Condemns Atrocities in Mozambique
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — A 20-second video showing soldiers throwing dead bodies onto a pile of burning rubbish in northern Mozambique gives just a glimpse of what is happening far from view in this “forgotten war”, the human rights group Amnesty International has declared. It is the “latest evidence […]
Early Anti-Apartheid Activist Passes At 90 Years of Age
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — “Too often, democracy is seen as an event which happens once in five years.” Thus spoke Frene Noshir Ginwala, a South African of Indian descent who was the first speaker of the country’s democratic parliament. While she was modest about her achievements, she left an […]
MLK Urged Americans ‘Not To Rest’ While African Nations Struggle For Freedom
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Africa was ever on the mind of Martin Luther King Jr. and his concerns for the continent appear in in his many papers in the King Institute. MLK spoke out about the Congo at an event celebrating the independence of Kenya. “There are many problems […]