Africa: How New Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills in Africa Expand Crackdown On Rights

[ad_1] LONDON, Jan 29 (Openly) - Despite the decriminalisation of same-sex relations in Mauritius in 2023, rights groups warn that new laws being considered in several African countries risk eroding LGBTQ+ rights by creating new offences and targeting new groups. Many of the new bills resemble Uganda's draconian Anti-Homosexuality Act, which was signed into law last May and which includes the death penalty for "aggravated homosexuality". Sexual minorities in the east African nation say they have faced a wave of […]

January 29, 2024

News

South Africa: Minister Congratulates Boxer Jackson Chauke

[ad_1] Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Zizi Kodwa has congratulated South African boxer Jackson Chauke for winning the vacant International Boxing Organization (IBO) flyweight title. Chauke defeated British boxer Quaise Khademi to become the latest world titleholder. "I congratulate Chauke for his excellent and inspirational achievement. He has raised the country's flag sky high. Chauke is an inspiration not only to South African boxers but to all athletes for his dedication and commitment to the sport. These qualities have […]

January 29, 2024

Entertainment

South Africa: Is the City of Johannesburg Broke? – South African News Briefs – January 29, 2023

[ad_1] Is the City of Johannesburg Broke? The City of Johannesburg is facing financial turmoil, marked by allegations of non-payment, budget "rebase," and threats to cut off electricity, reports News24. A leaked memo revealed a proposed budget adjustment of R8.7 billion for the 2023/24 fiscal year, and the city's revenue collection fell significantly below the norm at 75%. The centralization of billing, as per a leaked document from City Power, has purportedly led to poor performance, debt, and low […]

January 29, 2024

Africa

Africa: Blinken’s Africa Trip Loops in New Atlantic Ocean Partners

[ad_1] The recently formed Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation looks set to shape US-Africa and north-south relations. United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken has taken time off from his hectic shuttle diplomacy in the Middle East to visit four African countries - Cabo Verde, Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire and Angola. America has many relations with all these countries, including on security matters in light of the violent extremist threat, an epidemic of military coups, and Russia displacing Western influence through […]

January 26, 2024

Africa

Africa: Will the War in Gaza Become a Breaking Point for the Rules-Based International Order?

[ad_1] The scale of death and destruction in Gaza is increasingly viewed as an indictment of a system facing perhaps its most daunting and most stubborn challenge - global perceptions of hypocrisy. As South Africa presents a case to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Israel of carrying out genocide in Gaza - claims it rejects - also on trial is the so-called 'rules-based international order'. This global set of rules, norms and institutions - the ICJ itself being […]

January 26, 2024

Africa

Africa: UN Chief Urges Leaders to Root Out Terrorism in Africa

[ad_1] The UN Chief Mr Guterres says, in just a matter of years, Africa has become the "global epicentre of terrorism". UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called on African leaders to root out terrorism and violent extremism on the continent. Mr Guterres made the call at a two-day top-level meeting of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact at UN headquarters in New York. The meeting, which started on Wednesday, will address rising violence and the spread of terrorist networks. According […]

January 26, 2024

Africa

Africa: Blinken Wraps Up Four-Nation Africa Tour, Commits to Ongoing Security, Economic Partnership

[ad_1] State Department — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday the United States will continue intensive engagement with African partners in hopes of resolving the ongoing conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Blinken held talks Thursday with Angolan President Joao Lourenco in which they discussed "concrete ways" to achieve "a durable peace" in the DRC's conflict-ridden eastern region. These discussions come against a backdrop of escalating tensions between Rwanda and the DRC, marked by several alleged cross-border […]

January 26, 2024

Africa

Africa: Matchmaking for Green Cities? Accelerating Climate Finance in Urban Areas

[ad_1] By Liam O Connor, Francisco Martes Porto Macedo and Omar Siddique BANGKOK, Thailand, Jan 23 2024 (IPS) - Asia and the Pacific is home to 54 per cent of the world's urban population, who are disproportionately vulnerable to the impacts of climate change (ESCAP, 2023; IPCC, 2022). Why then, do climate action projects in cities commonly face delays in implementation? Crucial new developments in mitigation and adaptation including: renewable energy, public transport, and nature-based solutions, are needed to safeguard […]

January 25, 2024

News

South Africa: Singer Kelly Khumalo Implicated in Murder Plot – South African News Briefs – January 25, 2023

[ad_1] Accused in Senzo Meyiwa Murder Case Implicates Kelly Khumalo as Alleged Mastermind In a recent development in the trial of Senzo Meyiwa's murder case, one of the accused, Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, has implicated Kelly Khumalo, the mother of his child, as the alleged mastermind behind the hit on the former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper, reports IOL. The lead investigator, Brigadier Bongani Gininda, revealed this information in the North Gauteng High Court, citing a formal confession made by Sibiya on May […]

January 25, 2024

Governance