The party of Frances new president unveils a Rwandan-born economist as candidate in polls French president-elect Emmanuel Macron’s party on May 11 unveiled more than 400 candidates who will stand in parliamentary elections in June, with half of them newcomers to politics and half of them women. It includes Herve …
Read More »Trump seeks to win over Muslim leaders with Islam speech
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | US President Donald Trump tells 50 Muslim leaders in Saudi Arabia Sunday of his “hopes for a peaceful vision of Islam” a day after Washington took issue with Shiite Iran. Trump’s major speech on Islam takes place on his first foreign trip as president …
Read More »What might come of Brazil’s latest political crisis?
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | AFP | Brazil is bubbling over the release of a recording that purports to show President Michel Temer approving payment of hush money to a politician jailed for corruption. In a matter of days, eight lawmakers have called for impeachment proceedings against the president, the …
Read More »Under police escort, S.African ambulances brave attacks
Cape Town, South Africa | AFP | When an emergency call comes in from one of South Africa’s most crime-ridden neighbourhoods, ambulances do not rush straight to the scene but to a police station first to request an armed escort. A surge in attacks on ambulance workers has led to …
Read More »Mood at White House grim as sense of crisis mounts
Washington, United States | AFP | Less than four months ago, a keen set of young up-and-comers strode into the White House in their best high heels and power ties, bursting with optimism and pride in serving their country.Now, their stint in the White House — the supposed apogee of …
Read More »Congo Come Back! Why we’re building a new political movement in DRC
Kinshasa, DRC | AFRICAN ARGUMENTS| History tells us that summer months are often eventful in Congolese politics. It was on 30 June 1960 that the country gained independence from Belgium. On that day, Belgium’s King Baudouin declared: “the Congo constitutes the culmination of the work conceived by the genius of …
Read More »Trump takes perilous first steps on world stage
Washington, United States | AFP | From Riyadh to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Rome, Brussels and Sicily, Donald Trump left a swirl of domestic woes behind Friday as he embarked on a first foreign trip that will be closely watched in capitals the world over. Trump’s extraordinarily dense first trip — six …
Read More »Nigeria: After Buhari…?
With president Buhari on medical leave again, ambitious figures are positioning themselves favourably for what might happen next. Lagos, Nigeria| AFRICAN ARGUMENTS| Secrecy creates suspicion. In the cutthroat arena of Nigerian politics, it can also reveal ambition. The ongoing silence around of the health of Nigeria’s president has done just …
Read More »Japan cabinet approves bill allowing emperor’s abdication
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | The Japanese government on Friday approved a one-off bill allowing ageing Emperor Akihito to step down from the Chrysanthemum Throne, in the first such abdication in two centuries. The bill will now be sent to parliament for debate and likely receive swift final approval, Chief …
Read More »Fox News co-founder Roger Ailes dies at age 77
New York, United States | AFP | Roger Ailes, the US media mogul who co-founded Fox News and helped redraw conservative American politics, died Thursday less than a year after he was forced out by a sexual harassment scandal. He was 77. Ailes died of complications from bleeding on the …
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