There is lots going on these days across the continent, so without further palaver, I’ll point you in the right directions to catch up.
Your first stop should probably be the latest Pambazuka News, which has useful articles on Chad, Zimbabwe, lots on Kenya, and other important issues. From there you can go to the latest AfricaFocus Bulletin, which casts its gaze on Chad and makes clear that the crisis in that country represents far more than merely a subsidiary crisis of the turmoil in Darfur.
Kenya will likely continue to dominate the news cycle from Africa. Kofi Annan has clarified — some might say backed down from — his “grand coalition” proposal to solve that country's political crisis. At the Mail & Guardian Kwamboka Oyaro wonders whether the Grand Coalition, or whatever one chooses to call it, really is the viable solution to the problems that underlie Kenya's fractured political culture. Meanwhile with an eye toward the future, some Kenyans are preparing for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address the recent violence and other human rights violations. But the devil is in the details, and the question of amnesty will surely prove to be a serious sticking point.
At IOL Chris Chikana tries to figure out whether or not Simba Makoni poses a serious threat to Robert Mugabe's leadership. He elides giving any real conclusions. I maintain that the challenge, whether fruitless or not, is necessary.
Finally, Richard Cornwell, a senior research associate at the Institute for Security Studies, reminds readers of The Mail & Guardian not to overlook Swaziland's upcoming elections, which he believes run the risk of being as beset by violence and perfidy as those in Kenya and which we ought to worry about as we do what may come in Zimbabwe.
