It is not far-fetched to suggest that a significant part of Obama’s special assignment in Africa in 2013 was to clear the way for American bio-tech companies to move along the path of least resistance. Tanzania under Kikwete is an important foot soldier in that broad strategy

It is manifestly impossible to hold free and fair elections anywhere in Africa. And Nigerians should brace themselves for 2015. Progressive forces should vigorously demand fundamental electoral reforms

Robert Mugabe is on a twin mission to challenge Western neo-colonial quests in Zimbabwe and to continue the indigenization of the country’s economy at all costs. For these reasons it is unlikely he will retire from politics in 2018

The African continent accounts for only one percent of global manufacturing. To reverse this dismal state of affairs government must lead the process of industrialisation with political will channelled into education, science and technology, which are the missing links to West Africa’s future

The Insight newspaper is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Its contribution to the democratization of Ghana and its founder’s indefatigable spirit are outstanding

A draconian law passed recently is symptomatic of a larger concern: a shrinking of political space in the country and continued human rights violations that jeopardise the fragile peacebuilding process

This timely book should be required reading on any statistics and media studies programme in African universities, if not everywhere. As an accompaniment to standard statistics texts, it would act as a constant reminder to students as to the limitations of statistical methods without due regard to the socio-economic context in which the data is being collected, analysed and presented

Black stories are in the form of service delivery protests, which are characterized by angry mobs stealing electricity, invading lands and tossing poo. Such stories don’t engage Black politics in any meaningful way – they are not written nor seen through Black people’s experiences

The media in Kenya continues to be the target of intense criticism over its coverage of the elections in March. It is thought to have shirked its watchdog role and focused on peace messages. But supporters say that was necessary, given the circumstances

There is growing fear and self-censorship in Tanzanian newsrooms following violent attacks on journalists in recent months. The country is fast losing its reputation as a peaceful and tolerant society

By easily relinquishing a critical agenda setting role, the mainstream media in Kenya appears to have given up on its well-earned position as an accessory to the second liberation for which it paid a steep price. Today, media content is generally vacuous

One of Africa’s biggest problems is that it is not allowed to tell its own stories. There are imperfect solutions such as content-sharing agreements among journalists but ultimately Africa must set its own news agenda

Whilst The Gambia remains a member of the Commonwealth that affirms freedom of expression as one of its core values, the government of President Yahya Jammeh has been clamping down on newspapers and journalists with zeal

There lies enormous potential in a genuinely independent media in assisting in the development and democratization process in Africa

The mobile revolution. Geopolitical power shifts. A radically altered global economy. The world is changing, and so is the way that people fight for their rights. In order to be effective, Amnesty International’s (AI) International Secretariat needs to adapt to that change. That’s why we’re opening a hub in Nairobi. And why we need your research expertise with us on the ground.

The mobile revolution. Geopolitical power shifts. A radically altered global economy. As the world changes, so does the way people campaign for human rights. To remain effective, Amnesty International (AI) needs to respond and adapt. That’s why we’re expanding our International Secretariat office in West Africa. And why we need your campaigning expertise.

Sources say the peacekeepers are struggling with equipment problems, poor training of some contingents and the reluctance by some governments to send their soldiers into combat zones

The constitution allows Kenyans in the diaspora to vote and there is adequate evidence of the diaspora’s active involvement in national development over the years. What is more, the African Union now recognizes diaspora as its sixth region. But still this writer has his reasons for urging Kenyans overseas to return

For the past 25 years or so, Sudanese women regardless of their race, religion, age or background, have suffered degrading treatment and humiliation under the Public Order Code of 1996, which changed in 2009 to The Society Safety Code

Western Sahara Resource Watch has launched a report detailing how Morocco intends to build over 1000 MW of renewable energy plants in Western Sahara, a territory that Morocco partially occupies

Egypt appears to be following the bloody path of Algeria in the early 1990s. The leaderless revolution of 2011 has been coopted by the military yet requires the demise of the terrorizing capitalist world system that encourages both military regimes and authoritarian populisms

Ethiopia’s elections in 2015 are likely to be similar to the recent Zimbabwean elections that perpetuated a ‘thugtatorship.’ As long as the US and Europe continue to provide endless handouts, Africa is doomed to remain a thugocracy

Successive Nigerian governments have should abysmal disregard for the labour rights of public university lecturers. The state willingly enters into agreements with the workers;, only to fail to implement those commitments

The power sector should be taken out of the hands of private profiteers and corrupt, pro-big business public officers. The sector must be put under democratic public ownership

There is ample evidence from around the world of extreme weather conditions arising from the devastating effects of climate change. But there is still plenty of denial among those who design and implement environmentally sensitive projects

The most powerful – and violent – man in the world was made the star of the commemoration of the March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King

The best way for today’s Freedom Marchers to honour the great legacy of our past is to make specific demands and proposals that will remedy the ongoing racial injustices in the second decade of the 21st century

The African media and AU have paid scant attention to the tragic murder of Travyon Martin in the US. Africans should care about the case because Trayvon could have been any one of the Black African males living in or visiting the US

In his new collection of poems in pidgin English, Agozino invests efforts in eschewing the haughtiness, detachment and pretensions of the ivory tower language in order to better address issues the way they are in Nigeria

11 August 2013

A democratic society is defined as a society in which the public has the means to participate in the management of their affairs, information is open and free and participation is safe for everyone.

Recently we had a demonstration in Ext 9 in Grahamstown demanding that the list of beneficiaries for the new RDP houses be made public and people participate in the construction of the low cost houses. To us it was clear that the ruling party is abusing the list for patronage, corruption and elections. Some councillor’s kids are on the list as well as party members and their families.

For this call we were demonized, delegitimized and attacked by the members of the ruling party as opportunists, fronts for other organizations, pawns of white academics and rebels with no cause.

On the 06 August 2013 we convened a meeting at Nombulelo High School and we requested the Mayor to speak on the list. He apologized on behalf of the council, citing the fact that the list was characterized by corruption and irregularities. The Mayor’s admission that the list has been badly corrupted has been prominently covered in Grocott’s Mail.

We have been vindicated and not for the first time. Our adversaries always refuse to engage with us critically. Instead they use slander, class power and at times racist remarks to attack us. All that we are asking is that when we organise and mobilise around an issue we should be engaged on that issue rather than by constantly having our integrity called into question. We may be poor but we are full blown political subjects and that is how we should be engaged.

There’s an outcry all over the country over the corruption of housing lists by the ruling party. We are pleased that we have been able to stop the corruption in Grahamstown and we will continue to organise and mobilise to ensure that the new process is fair and open.

For more information, contact:

Ayanda Kota – 078 625 6462

Gladys Mepo – 060 393 0402

Political opinion polls are controversial in Kenya especially at election time as some of the pollsters are owned by or allied to certain politicians. But more worryingly, poll results have been mentioned in connection with in inter-communal violence

Gay, lesbian and HIV-infected refugees fear violent persecution should they return home

57 years ago women took to the streets challenging national and gender oppression. Today, South Africa requires a transformation of capitalist property relations which inherently oppress, exploit and abuse women. At the same time more women must be brought into the revolutionary movement as organizers and leaders

The rigging mechanism was set up long before the day of election. MDC was strategically advertised as a conspirator in league with the ‘enemy’

For 50 years, we’ve been campaigning for human rights wherever justice, freedom and truth are denied. We’ve reshaped policies, challenged governments and taken corporations to task. In doing so, we’ve changed thousands of lives for the better. Join Amnesty at our new Secretariat office in Johannesburg and you will too.

The government of Paul Kagame continues to relentlessly support, arm and command rebel groups such as the M23, which commit war crimes and human rights violations in Congo

While Africa strives for development it has consistently neglected to prioritise communication. The AU and African governments need to make greater use of the Internet to connect with its citizens such as young people via the African Alliance

Until now, China has resisted continuous pressure to put an end to manipulation of the Yuan. This resistance has allowed China to continuously record the strongest growth rates in the world. There is no reason whatsoever for flexible exchange to encourage foreign trade growth. So why does HSBC Bank insist on this?

The country has remained stable under long-serving President Compaore, but now elections are looming. The transition could be tricky, a new report says, and attempts to amend the constitution to enable Compaore to run again could spark a popular uprising

The new investment code between Tanzania and Canada raises questions as to whose interests the Tanzanian state really serves, why, and to whom the Tanzanian state is accountable. Such a far-reaching investment regime has been adopted with minimal public awareness and debate among Tanzanian citizens

When Western commentators who are supposedly opposed to militarism write in ways that suggest AFRICOM should step up its activities in Africa, citing the failed states index that was prepared by militarists and lobbyists for private military contractors, it is the obligation of people in the peace and justice movements to speak up

Often, rape is systemically used to target male political activists through their wives

Around the world – from China to the US, and Turkey to Brazil – countries are stepping up their involvement in Africa. But what about Russia in all this?

Unity of the left is necessary in Hispaniola if any meaningful change is to happen to the nature of the island’s highly unequal socio-economic and corrupt political systems. The conditions for social change are ripe

The Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network (PAHRD–Net) has opened a call for nominations for human rights defenders awards

The Obama administration is fighting a federal court ruling that would free the remainder of the mostly Black prison inmates convicted under now-defunct, viciously racially disparate crack cocaine laws. The First Black President and his Black attorney general are determined to keep 5,000 people in jail who have no reason to be there