XI JINPING: The relay baton has been passed on to our generation Beijing, China | SPECIAL FEATURE – XINHUA | About five months after his election as general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Xi Jinping won his third term as Chinese president at the annual …
Read More »ARCH KIZITO LWANGA: Prelate who spoke truth to power
Rubaga, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Dr Cyprian Kizito Lwanga, the Archbishop of Kampala Archdiocese who was found dead in his bedroom Saturday morning, was a prelate who always spoke truth to power. Lwanga has always been distinct among his peers who always preferred to stay quiet on critical issues affecting …
Read More »Gideon Saar, the man challenging Netanyahu
Gideon Saar, the man challenging Israel’s Netanyahu for Likud leader Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | He looks more like an accountant than a political predator, but on Thursday Gideon Saar will challenge his former mentor Benjamin Netanyahu for the leadership of Israel’s ruling party. Saar, 53, has been a senior …
Read More »Morales: Indigenous leader brought low by his refusal to yield power
La Paz, Bolivia | AFP | Evo Morales broke down barriers when he became Bolivia’s first indigenous president in 2006, but his refusal to democratically give up power and his tumultuous exit cast a shadow over nearly 14 years of economic progress and poverty reduction. Forced to resign after losing …
Read More »Netanyahu: Israel’s longest-serving premier fights for his future
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Benjamin Netanyahu has become Israel’s longest-serving prime minister with his right-wing leadership and by repeatedly besting rivals with deft political moves, but he will have to pull another rabbit out of the hat in Tuesday’s elections. The 69-year-old is fighting his second election in …
Read More »Ramaphosa: from activism to business, and then to power
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Over the course of his 66 years, Cyril Ramaphosa has experienced the poverty of Soweto, jail for fighting apartheid, trade union activism, fabulous wealth — and now elected leadership of his country. Ramaphosa, who became president last year through internal ANC politics, won a …
Read More »Sudan’s Bashir brought down by people he ruled with iron fist
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir, long wanted on genocide and war crimes charges, was finally brought down in a popular uprising by the very people he ruled with an iron fist for 30 years. One of Africa’s longest-serving presidents, the 75-year-old had remained defiant in the …
Read More »‘Ordinary white man’? Picture of New Zealand accused emerges
Christchurch, New Zealand | AFP | A one-time gym trainer from rural Australia who became steeped in neo-fascist ideology during travels in Europe, Brenton Tarrant described himself as an “ordinary white man” — until he became anything but ordinary. The gunman behind the massacre of 49 people in two New …
Read More »Muhammadu Buhari: Nigeria’s anti-corruption president
Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari was elected in 2015 on a wave of hope that he could defeat Boko Haram Islamists and turn around a country blighted by decades of corruption and poor governance. But while he will go down in history as Nigeria’s first opposition …
Read More »Sudan’s Bashir declares nationwide state of emergency
Sudan’s Bashir stands firm in face of protests Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, long wanted on genocide and war crimes charges, has declared a nationwide state of emergency as he bids to stay in power despite weeks of anti-regime protest. Demonstrators first took to the streets …
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