Cape Town mayor Hellen Zille has announced that she will be running for the Democratic Alliance's (DA) national leadership title, which will then put her in place to be the DA's candidate for the presidency. Zille hopes to replace Tony Leon, who announced last year that he would not seek another term as party leader. Zille […]
The impact of President Bush's Mexico visit remains to be seen, but while some are hopeful for immigration reform and increased emphasis on the region during the remainder of his presidency, expectations are not very high. Though some see Mexican President Calderon as a potential counter to leftist Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, it is not […]
One strength of the English language has been its incredible ability to assimilate any noun from any language–and then, through mispronunciation, claim it for itself. This characteristic is undisputably useful, but can also institutionalize translation errors. The yurt is not a yurt. Yurt means “homeland”. Wikipedia says: In Kazakh (and Uyghur) the term for the structure is kiyiz uy (úøіÃ· үù‚ lit. […]
Constitutional Crisis to Prime Minister Crisis, continued. . . . Though the first two assassinations of legislators were alarming, the third execution, of Akmatbaev, has been the most troublesome for Kyrgyzstan's domestic order. During the incident, after Mr. Akmatbaev had been killed, Prime Minister Kulov came to the prison and negotiated the release of hostages […]
Simply put, Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution of March, 2005, saw the ouster of President Akaev for one political and two economic reasons. Politically, he was consolidating the power of his presidency and weakening the legislature. Constitutionally-mandated term limits were extended under Akaev's rule. As Akaev neared the limit of his last extended term, he began grooming two […]
The situation in Zimbabwe is intensifying following a firebomb attack against the Marimba police camp in Harare by suspected opposition activists, most likely from the Movement for Democratic Change. The descent into violent response was probably inevitable. Even the most rightoeus opposition movement will only be able to resist through the political system for so long when […]
The cricket World Cup is underway. Among the African entrants: Kenya won its first match against Canada by seven wickets. Zimbabwe will face Ireland later today. South Africa will start things off against the Netherlands in a match they should win handily. The Proteas are one of the favorites, so most South African fans are torn […]
The news on AIDS from Africa is rarely good, and southern Africa usually offers the grimmest tidings. Nonetheless, the feedback from what is being billed as “the most representative HIV/AIDS meeting ever held in” South Africa hints that perhaps things will improve. The meeting, opened in Pretoria today, and will debate the new HIV/AIDS national strategic plan for […]
President Bush concluded his Latin America tour with a meeting in Mexico with President Felipe Calderon — their first meeting since Calderon took office in December. Bush has been the target of demonstrations throughout his trip, and many in Mexico are disappointed in the Bush Administration's policies, particularly as they relate to immigration, as well […]
One of the major reasons why this blog, putatively devoted to South Africa, has so emphasized Zimbabwe thus far is that beyond the obvious significance of Zim right now, the country also represents South Africa's biggest foreign policy challenge. It is too facile to assert that South Africa is doing nothing as so many obeservers have […]
On January 26, 2006, the Eurasian Economic Security Council (EAEC or EurAsSec) announced the inception of a new development bank that aims to improve economic issues for its member states. According to Vladimir Putin, the Eurasian Development Bank (EADB, or sometimes EDB) was proposed by Nursultan Nazarbaev in 2004, in order to create regional economic […]
What in the West we consider to be the Central Asian state furthest from international access, India is calling "the fulcrum of regional geopolitics." In a move little noted elsewhere, India has developed its first foreign air base‚ in Tajikistan. The Ayni base is a former Soviet airbase used to supply the Soviet-Afghanistan war, but […]
Eighty years ago, Stalinists attempted to eradicate specific Central Asian religious and cultural practices: one such undesired practice, again relevant, concerned the customary headcoverings for Islamic women (hijab). According to articles by Douglas Northrop in 2000 and 2001 (see Worth Reading: Uzbekistan), Bolsheviks in Uzbekistan began korenizatsaiia (nativization) in the early 1920's. By 1926, they had identified traditional Islamic […]
The International Crisis Group has posited a possible solution to the Zimbabwe stalemate. Their outline has garnered the general support in principle of both factions of the divided Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Zimbabwe's major opposition party, as well as members of President Robert Mugabe's own Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) whose dissatisfaction with the status quo is growing. The plan […]
According to the Wall Street Journal, Wal-Mart now accounts for half of all retail sales in Mexico. Wal-Mart de Mexico reported net sales in 2005 of $164.3 billion pesos (or $15.4 billion U.S. dollars). The American retailer has expanded to several countries, and its success in Mexico has encouraged it to seek out other developing […]