Stories about Sub-Saharan Africa from July, 2006
DRC: Candidates’ Last Minute Punches
Light in the Heart of Darkness chronicles what she calls “last minute punches” by various presidential candidates including interim vice-President Bemba, Ruberwa and interim President Joseph Kabila. Strategies include marches to the capital and burning of campaign headquarters among others.
Zimbabwe: The Royal Mugabes
The Bearded Man stands amazed as Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe gives the office of president something of a face-lift, endowing it with what looks a lot like the trappings of monarchy.
South Africa: World Cup 2010
“We, as Africans should not under-estimate the pessimism, especially in Europe, that surrounds 2010 FIFA World Cup scheduled for South Africa,” writes Matters of the Mind.
Liberia: Firestone under fire
In honor of Liberian independence day, Black Looks highlights a campaign to persuade U.S. tyre maker Firestone to clean up its operations in Liberia, spearheaded by the Friends of the Earth.
Middle East reaction: Petition
Aba Boy links to a petition called “Save the Lebanese Civilians”.
Somalia, Ethiopia: Mystery plane
Reject the Ethiopian Invasion! picks up on reports of a mystery aircraft which landed at Mogadishu, rumored to be carrying arms from Eritrea. “The last thing Somalia needs is more arms,” the blogger writes. There is also part of a transcript of the U.S. State Department media briefing which dealt...
DRC: Catholic Church Favoring Boycott of Election
English-language DRC blogger Le Salon counts down to the July 30th election by reporting on a lukewarm response to Joseph Kabila's visit to the UDPS opposition party stronghold of East Kasai province and by estimating that the Congolese catholic church is by and large encouraging a boycott of the election.
DRC: “The Burning has begun”
Light in the Heart of Darkness, an english-speaking expat blogger based in the DRC, says Kabila's popularity in Kinshasa is waning and fears that if he is elected, “the country is going to burn.” She points to yesterday's UDPS-led poster-snatching protests as evidence that the burning may have begun.
France, DOM-TOM: Victory against housing discrimination
Reunion-based Pierrot Dupuy, himself the father of a victim of housing discrimination in France announces (Fr) advocacy group CollectifDOM’s legal victory in the area of housing discrimination against French citizens from the French Overseas Departments and Territories (DOM-TOM) living in France. From here on, landlords can no longer ask for...
Light in darkness, Petroleum prices in Ghana, Famine and Education in Cameroon
Read about Light in darkness, Petroleum prices in Ghana, Famine and Education in Cameroon.
DRC: Poster Snatching Protests
Le Renouveau Congolais posts a (Fr) photo-essay showing protesters tearing down presidential candidate posters in the DRC days to the July 30th election. From Azarias Ruberwa to Interim President Joseph Kabila to Professor N'Goma, the photos show a broad cross-section of political candidates are being targeted while slogans seem to...
Uganda: Death of detainee
Human Rights Watch calls on the Ugandan government to investigate the alleged torture and electrocution of a security detainee in a government “safe house” in Kampala on May 4.
Somaliland, Somalia: Journalistic criticism
Guest-blogging on the Voice of Somaliland Diaspora, Faysal Diriye launches an attack on journalistic standards among Somali Web sites which he describes as Siadist. “Cheap shot journalism! Too subjective, too emotional, and as boring as hell! They often shed more tears than thunder clouds could spill,” he writes.
Liberia: Lights on in Monrovia
Yebo Gogo takes note of the restoration of street lighting in the Liberian capital of Monrovia for the first time in more than a decade, under the watchful eye of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. “Rebuilding the nation's shattered infrastructure is the first step to rebuilding Liberia. So far, Johnson Sirleaf's...
Ethiopia: Eritrean weapons
Ethioblog posts news reports quoting the Somali government as saying that Eritrea has sent a plane full of weapons to the Islamists who now control the southern part of the country, attracting a wide range of opinion from commentators.
South Africa: Racial categories
Farrel Lifson writes at politics.za about recent allegations that the African National Congress (ANC) is bringing back the language of racial categorisation.
Nigeria: Sheraton lobby
Naijablog is in the lobby of the Sheraton, taking advantage of the wifi: “Behind me, a noisy group of slavic-speaking men are getting more and more drunk and voluble. Prostitutes wander in in preparation for the night's arrangements. Elegant African women in native saunter past. Business men arrive for meetings....
DRC: As Elections Approach, the Congo's Bloggers Discuss Recent Violence, Media Repression and the Limits of Foreign Aid
With the July 30th elections just days away, many pro-opposition Congolese bloggers remain deeply cynical about the prospects of a free, fair and peaceful electoral process. Violent repression of opposition demonstrations and the killing of several journalists in the last few months have left many wondering whether, even if successful,...
Nigeria: Fear of science
Of all the science-related fears Chippla has encountered, none seems greater than the fear of mathematics, he writes, among other musings on the discovery of the cause of malaria and Nigeria's Diaspora Day.
Appeal for Ethiopians in Lebanon
Ethiopian Politics is in the processes of contacting the Red Cross, Amnesty International and UNHCR regarding the problem of Ethiopian nationals trapped in Lebanon. “We ask all concerned Ethiopians to join us in voicing the plight of our brothers and sisters to anyone who may be in a position to...
Africans in Lebanon
Black Looks reports that an estimated 20,000 Ethiopians as well as Nigerians, Ghanaians, Sudanese and Somalis working in Lebanon, many of whom were trafficked there, are being “left to fend for themselves without money or papers.”
About our Sub-Saharan Africa coverage
