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By P.I. Gomes
The writer is Former Secretary-General of the Organisation of African, Caribbean & Pacific States (OACPS).
GEORGETOWN, 23 May 2023 (IDN) — In the north-east coast of South America, the small and newest petro-state sits the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. With a population of almost 800,000 persons, the former British colony was granted political Independence in 1966, becoming a Republic in 1970 under circumstances that had witnessed years of inter-ethnic and communal conflicts.
By Jonathan Power*
LUND, Sweden, 16 May 2023 (IDN) — Maybe, after all, there is an argument for saying that the world needs more violence not less if we are to make its societies more equal. This is one conclusion we can derive from Walter Scheidel’s important book, “The Great Leveller”.
He starts from what we all know by now: the richest 62 persons in the world own as much net wealth as the poorer half of humanity. This is the number that could fit inside a London double-decker bus.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK, 15 May 2023 (IDN) — An African migrant crisis in southern Maine, the easternmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States?
Newly arrived asylum seekers have been overwhelming several Maine cities, straining municipal budgets to the breaking point. Surprising to some, many of the migrants are from Africa, notes Luc Kuanzambi, a Congolese refugee.
By Jonathan Power*
LUND, Sweden, 9 May 2023 (IDN) — Every developed country is importing cheap labour, yet all too rarely are the pro and con arguments discussed with real profundity.
The path-breaking book “The British Dream” by David Goodhart, the founder of the intellectual magazine, “Prospect”, dared to deal with the shibboleths. There are many commonalities in Britain that apply to countries as varied as France, the US, Thailand and Qatar.
By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS, 1 May 2023 (IDN) — Speaking during the launch of the Special Edition of the SDG Progress Report, UN Secretary-General António Guterres struck a note of pessimism when he warned that most of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will miss their targets by the 2030 deadline.
“Halfway to the deadline for the 2030 Agenda, we are leaving more than half the world behind,” he said, addressing the General Assembly on April 25.
By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS 29 April 2023 (IDN) — India and China, the world’s two most populous nations with over 1.4 billion people each, are expected to be outranked by sub-Saharan Africa in the 2030s.
A new analysis by the Washington-based Population Reference Bureau (PRB) released last week indicates that while India’s population will soon eclipse China’s, its growth is slowing.
By Neville de Silva*
LONDON, 2 April 2023 (IDN) — That was irony surely. Last April Sri Lanka defaulted on its debt payments for the first time in 75 years and declared itself bankrupt.
It was the ignominious result of accumulated loans taken by leaders of successive governments for their lavish spending on wasteful projects and glitterati lifestyles, not to mention bribery, corruption and abuse of state assets.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK, 27 March 2023 (IDN) — In defiance of the United Nations, the U.S. and other world government and human rights organizations, the Ugandan parliament has passed a bill imposing the most severe penalties against its gay community - criminalizing lesbians, gays and bisexuals for simply existing.
Ugandan Members of Parliament tightened up the original text, which provided for up to 10 years in prison for anyone engaging in homosexual acts or claiming to be LGBTQ+.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK | TUNIS, 14 March 2023 (IDN) — A campaign targeting Black migrants in the north African nation of Tunisia has escalated with misleading videos on social media. The African Union has responded—cancelling a major conference on illicit financial flows due to take place in Tunisia this month.
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 indelible mark on South Africa’s constitution and democratic institutions.
IDN-InDepthNews offers news analyses, features, reports and viewpoints that impact the world and its peoples. It has been online since 2009. Its network spans countries around the world.