Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | Viral images of a Tunisian lawmaker allegedly masturbating outside a high school have sparked the country’s own #MeToo moment, with sex abuse victims breaking taboos under the hashtag #EnaZeda. Discussion of sexual harassment had previously been limited to a few edgy TV shows, but now thousands …
Read More »Nigeria targets oil companies for a greater share of profits
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | In a move Nigeria’s president hailed as a “landmark moment”, Africa’s largest oil producer approved legislation this week to bolster its share of revenues from international majors. The authorities say the amendment — heralded as the biggest change in decades to its production sharing deals — will …
Read More »West Africa grapples with piracy in Gulf of Guinea hotspot
Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria | AFP | A Nigerian navy speedboat loaded with special forces troops skims across the waves towards a suspect vessel in the Gulf of Guinea. Guns ready, black-clad officers clamber up a rope ladder and fan out across the decks, looking for pirates believed to have taken …
Read More »Birao’s militia powderkeg in north Central African Republic
Birao, Central African Republic | AFP | A heavy silence hangs in the dusty alleys of Birao, in the extreme northeast of Central African Republic, where figures only rarely wander between the empty houses and reed hedges. Since September, Birao has been hit hard by fighting between armed groups despite a …
Read More »PEACE DEAL: South Sudan’s Kiir vows to form unified army
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Friday said a new delay to set up a power-sharing government was “endurable” as he vowed to honour a peace deal funding pledge for a unified army. Kiir and rebel chief Riek Machar, whose fallout in 2013 sparked …
Read More »EU casts doubt on credibility of Mozambique election
Maputo, Mozambique | AFP | The European Union on Friday cast doubt on the credibility of Mozambique’s ruling party’s victory in last month’s election, saying its observers detected a litany of “irregularities and malpractices” and called on authorities to clarify them. Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi won a new five-year …
Read More »Despair, jihadism and revolt: Mali’s torn heart
Mopti, Mali | AFP | Untroubled by time, the mighty Niger River glides through the Sahel city as women wash their clothes in its brackish waters and cows slumber nearby in the heat. But this peaceful image is an illusion, for Mopti, a city of 150,000 people, is on a dark, …
Read More »I.Coast ex-political leader Ble Goude faces Ivorian trial
Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | Former Ivory Coast political leader Charles Ble Goude faces a fresh trial by an Ivorian court, prosecutors said Thursday, after he was cleared of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court this year. Ble Goude was an aide to former Ivory Coast President Laurent …
Read More »South Sudan rival leaders given 100 days to form unity government
Entebbe, Uganda | AFP -Michael O’HAGAN | South Sudan President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar have been given another 100 days to form a power-sharing government after failing to resolve differences over a peace deal. The two leaders, whose fall out in 2013 sparked a conflict that …
Read More »DEAL: Machar and Kiir agree on way forward
Entebbe, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT & AFP | South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar agreed Thursday to extend by 100 days a deadline to form a power-sharing government, a regional official said, after they failed to resolve outstanding disagreements. The Uganda Tripartite Summit on peace in South …
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The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price