The outlook for human rights in Africa at the close of 2002 was more hopeful than it had been for several years, says Human Rights Watch in its World Report 2003, released this week. During the year, there were significant moves towards resolving longstanding conflicts in Angola, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and African leaders made significant commitments to transparent and accountable governance and respect for human rights. But HRW notes that African leaders had promised reform on many previous occasions while continuing to embezzle national funds and to violate human rights. New or ongoing crises and longstanding repression in some countries continued to undermine progress towards respect for human rights and the rule of law across the continent.