One issue you never thought about, and neither did I, is the fact that after the post-election violence in Kenya there are a lot of new weapons. I wish I had something more clever to say than: How very frustrating. Yet anything more clever would involve gun control policies that would seem uniliateral, or punishment […]
The ongoing xenophobic violence in South Africa has now spread beyond Johannesburg and may well explode into a national crisis. Metrorail authorities are beefing up security in anticipation that the trains are ripe for attacks on presumed foreigners and others. The recriminations, of course, have already begun, with many pointing fingers at Thabo Mbeki's government. For a […]
As I’ve feared all along, it appears quite clear that Robert Mugabe and his supporters in the military, police, and among the “veterans” are not about to yield power. Violence against the opposition continues to escalate. The International Crisis Group has concluded that the military will either engage in pre-emptive action prior to the runoff […]
Yet another indicator of how bad things are in Zimbabwe? Even with the recent explosions of xenophobic violence aimed at foreigners and especially Zimbabweans in South Africa, huge numbers of immigrants continue to cross the border and head directly for the maelstrom in Johannesburg and its environs. They have undertaken the quick calculus and decided […]
Is Guinea headed for political chaos? Recent events indicate as much. In recent days President Lansana Conté fired his prime minister Lansana Kouyaté, who enjoys international support, on 20 May, replacing him with Ahmed Tidjane Souaré.
In sub-Saharan Africa crises will come and crises will go but it seems, tragically, that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and especially that country's eastern regions, will constantly be beset with chaos.
This Kevin Cullen op-ed in The Boston Globe is so badly argued, so dumb and shallow, that I hardly even know where to begin. And what probably vexes me more than anything is that I agree with the fundamental premise behind the argument. But it is so terribly done that it does an injustice to […]
How's this for a worrisomely cryptic announcement?: Harare – Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai will not return home on Saturday as expected to prepare for the second round of elections against Robert Mugabe, his party said. “We apologise to advise that Morgan Tsvangirai is no longer expected to return today. We can't say why he […]
Crime is the domestic issue that evokes the most handwringing in South Africa, especially among a certain segment (read: affluent) of the white population. And crime certainly is bad, especially in the most highly populated areas. Virtually (and perhaps literally) all South Africans of every race and social class knows someone who has been victimized by crime, and while crime, and […]
Given the ever-shifting nature of the economy, variations on prices rising and occasionally falling, and the fact that in the case of Zimbabwe the numbers become meaningless, or at least mind-boggling, it is nearly impossible to know precisely what the rate of inflation is in that beleaguered country. But we do know this: Zimbabwe has […]
At The American: A Magazine of Ideas Marian L. Tupy has a perceptive piece on the stark differences between Botswana and Zimbabwe. Tupy's conclusion is a bit prosaic: “It turns out that much of the difference stems from the degree of freedom that each populace enjoys.” (Really? It turns out that way, does it? Well […]
Chaos in Alexandra continued to escalate through the weekend, though people are doing the best they can to live their lives as normal and many claim not to have noticed the violence that has largely been driven by xenophobia. Calm prevailed on Tuesday morning, but one wonders if the tenuous peace will hold. Stranded and fearful, […]
With the caveat that news from Zimbabwe these days is increasingly sketchy, it is clear that things there continue to fester. Agustino Zacarias, the United Nations senior representative in Zimbabwe, declared on Tuesday that the escalating violence is expanding countrywide, in rural and urban areas, and could reach crisis levels. Supporters of the Movement for Democratic Change […]
With 2010 and the World Cup, and thus South Africa's global close-up, fast approaching, the country's tourist industry will become increasingly prominent. Moeketsi Mosola, chief executive of South African Tourism, is worried that crime is South Africa's Achilles’ heel and that all of the work going into preparations for 2010 will be for naught if […]
Now that the Movement for Democratic Change has declared that it will contest the runoff election Zimbabweans have reached the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end of this seemingly interminable election issue. It appears that the MDC announcement has fueled increasing political violence that is likely to continue until the polling […]