Stories about Sub-Saharan Africa from January, 2012
South Africa: Student Anti-Racism Poster Causes a Stir
South Africa's Democratic Alliance Students Organisation recently released a controversial poster as part of their anti-racism campaign, which shows a naked mixed-race couple embracing. The poster has caused a huge stir on Facebook, Twitter and blogs and even generated viral spoof posters.
South Sudan: Urgent Steps Needed to Counter Inter-Communal Violence
Urgent steps are needed to counter inter-communal violence in South Sudan: “Inter-communal violence in Jonglei and throughout South Sudan, while traditionally cyclical in nature, is not inevitable. The causes of this violence go beyond the retaliatory nature of cattle raiding and touch upon broader issues of accountability, reconciliation, political inclusion,...
Equatorial Guinea: A Story Idea for Journalists Covering the Africa Cup of Nations
Shelby Grossman shares a story idea for journalists covering the Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea: ” There is a fear among those who have been in the country for a while that after the tournament the government will conduct raids and crack down on illegal immigration. The harassment...
Ethiopia: Standing With Ethiopia's Tenacious Blogger
Standing with Ethiopia's jailed blogger: “It would be hard to find a better symbol of media repression in Africa than Eskinder Nega. The veteran Ethiopian journalist and dissident blogger has been detained at least seven times by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government over the past two decades, and was put...
Africa: How Africa Tweets
Young people Tweeting from mobile devices are driving the growth of Twitter in Africa, according to How Africa Tweets, new research launched by Portland: “In the first ever attempt to comprehensively map the use of Twitter in Africa, Portland and Tweetminster analysed over 11.5 million geo-located Tweets originating on the...
Côte d'Ivoire: The Story of a Cybercrime Victim
Reacting on an article about the spread of cybercrime in Côte d'Ivoire on abidjan.net , Moussa Delafontaine Coulibaly shares his own experience with cybercrime [fr]: “[I think] that these [cybercriminals] ought to be tracked down and persecuted. Because of them, my Paypal account has been blocked since last December and I...
Zambia: When Wikipedia Entry “Kills” a President
On the morning of 22 January, Zambians woke up to a statement from State House rebuking news websites for spreading a rumour that President Michael Sata had been assassinated. However, it emerged later that the rumour stemmed from a Wikipedia entry about Michael Sata.
Portugal: State Radio Silenced after Angola Opinion Piece
A week after the broadcast of an opinion piece by the journalist Pedro Rosa Mendes on public radio, the end of the program was announced. The piece criticized the coverage of an event with several politicians and business men from Portugal and Angola. Bloggers immediately reacted to the "axing of freedom of expression".
Video: Online Media by and for Indigenous People
Intercontinental Cry has a list of 12 recommended films on indigenous issues, some made by indigenous people from Brazil, Australia, Panama, USA, Northern Kenya, Colombia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Djibouti: 2012 Djibouti Whale Shark Expedition
Seychelles Whale Sharks blogs about the the 2012 Djibouti whale shark expedition: “…Gareth has passed on the important statistics for the last week which yielded a further 369 encounters which makes the total of 1077 over the three weeks of expedition…Also, Gareth managed to deploy two satellite tags, one on...
Sierra Leone: Top 5 Revolutionary Election Songs
This is Switmot's list of Sierra Leone’s top 5 revolutionary election songs: “In 10 months Sierra Leoneans will head to the polls to exercise their right to vote…In the last elections, music played an important role in creating political awareness and also to mobilize supporters for the SLPP, and the...
South Sudan: This is Juba
Learn more about Juba, the capital of South Sudan from Jaja: “Day by day, Juba is growing immensely. There is lots of construction, stores and business coming up. The future of this city is bright, not sure about other cities in South Sudan. People are also extremely honest, well mainly...
Sierra Leone: Say Grace Before Drowning
Black Looks writes about “Say Grace Before Drowning”, a film by Sierra Leonean/American Nikyatu Jusu: “The film tells the story about a woman’s struggle to overcome the insanity of war as she tries to adjust to a life in exile.”
Ghana: Attorney General Martin Amidu Fired, Ghana Reacts
These days any major news in Africa quickly torches the web like wild fire, thanks to Twitter and Facebook, as demonstrated by the January 19 announcement of the dismissal of Ghana’s Attorney General, Martin Amidu.
Africa: 2012 Cup of Nations Kicks Off!
The Africa Cup of Nations began in Bata, Equatorial Guinea this Saturday, January 21, kicking off three weeks of fierce competition. The Cup is the most important international football competition in Africa.
Ethiopia: Reflecting on Corruption
Netizens reflect on corruption in Ethiopia following a report by Global Financial Integrity which shows that Ethiopia has lost $11.7 billion to outflows of illicit funds in the last decade.
Ethiopia: How Netizens Reacted to Suspension of Athletes
Did online reactions from Ethiopian netizens contributed to the move by the Ethiopian Athletics Federation to lift the suspension of Ethiopian athletes banned for not reporting for an early pre-Olympic camp?
Madagascar: What Next, After Former President Is Denied Entry?
Malagasy citizens anxiously witnessed former President Marc Ravalomanana's attempt to return home after three years in exile, last Saturday. A few days after the issue, bloggers analyze the state of the nation and what may come next.
Africa: Sex, Love and Magic at the Africa Cup of Nations 2012
2012 is undoubtedly a significant year for football lovers in Africa as Gabon and Equatorial Guinea host the main football competition in Africa, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). After been held every two years since 1968, the tournament will now move to odd-numbered years from 2013.
Zambia: Netizens Abuzz Over Senegal's Loss at AFCON 2012
When Zambia beat Senegal at one of the two opening games of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on January 21, Zambian netizens went abuzz on Facebook and Twitter to celebrate the victory even asking “Demba who?” referring to the Senegalese player, Demba Ba,the second top goal scorer in the Barclays Premier League.
“Teaching through humiliation: tough love or cruelty?”
Rose Kahendi ponders on the role of radio hosts who have public platforms reaching hundreds of thousands of listeners. “Their profession brings with it great responsibility. More so if they take it upon themselves to inform or educate their fans on matters that fall outside their immediate purview. Belittling their...
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