Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Blessing wanted to believe the advert on Facebook that promised “a cure for AIDS”. Infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), she felt the ad was her only hope — so against her better judgement, she clicked on the link. The 30-year-old Nigerian had created …

  The Independent ISSUE 498 by The Independent Magazine on Scribd The Independent ISSUE 498 December 1 – December 7, 2017 Share on: WhatsApp

  Paris, France | AFP | To young African migrant women seeking help at a centre outside Paris, AIDS is much more than a disease. It is social death. The women, some of whom were infected after being raped on the perilous journey across land and sea to Europe, complain …

Paris, France | AFP | “It’s magic,” said Francois, smiling. “Every time I take a pill I think about the people who aren’t so lucky as to have this option.” Taking a drug normally prescribed to treat AIDS as a way to shield against the deadly disease — known as …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Eng. Patrick Amuriat Oboi has taken oath of office as president of Forum For Democratic Change (FDC), marking a remarkable rise to the top of Uganda’s leading opposition party. Beaten in the last parliamentary elections in Kumi, Amuriat looked the underdog at the start …

Paris, France | AFP |  Ahead of World AIDS Day on Friday, here is a snapshot in numbers, based on UN data, of the deadly disease which was identified in the early 1980s. – 17 seconds – Roughly 1.8 million people worldwide contracted the virus that causes AIDS in 2016. …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP |  Zimbabwe’s new president named his first cabinet Thursday, appointing two senior military officers to key portfolios and dropping close allies of Robert Mugabe who resigned after the armed forces took control of the country. President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed as foreign affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo, the …

UPDF retires 1101 Officers and men Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A week after making 334 promotions, President and Commander In Chief President Yoweri Museveni has promoted Brig Sam Kavuma and appointed him Deputy Commander of the UPDF Land Forces. According to the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) Spokesperson Brig. Richard …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The top stories in this week’s The Independent. COVER STORY Kutesa’s dodgy deals: How American bribery case sucked in Museveni. THE LAST WORD The meaning of Muntu’s defeat: How Besigye’s hold over FDC has undermined its pretence to be a vehicle for democracy. AFRICA …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Health will this month start registering residents of Wakiso and Kampala as it prepares for distribution of free Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLIN) in a nationwide campaign against Malaria. Village Health Teams (VHT) members accompanied by the area Local Council One (LC1s) …