Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | President Omar al-Bashir on Saturday accused Amnesty International of spreading “lies” that Sudanese government forces had used chemical weapons against civilians in war-torn Darfur. Last month, Amnesty said in a report that Sudanese forces had carried out more than 30 suspected chemical weapons attacks in …
Read More »Burundi declares UN rights investigators persona non grata
United Nations, United States | AFP | Burundi on Monday barred three United Nations rights experts who had accused the government in Bujumbura of being responsible for abuses and warned of a danger of genocide from the violence. In a letter sent by Foreign Minister Alain Aime Nyamitwe and seen …
Read More »Burundi wants to quit ICC to avoid possible charges
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Burundi announced plans Friday to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), a week after the UN began an enquiry into human rights abuses committed since April 2015. “It is perfectly clear that this is a plot to do harm to Burundi,” said Gaston …
Read More »‘Philippines’ Duterte not Hitler, but wants to kill millions’
Manila, Philippines | AFP | Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte does not want to be branded another Hitler but he is willing to kill three million people in his crime war, his spokesman said Saturday. Duterte has faced international condemnation after on Friday likening his anti-drugs crackdown, which has left more …
Read More »UN launches high-level probe of Burundi rights abuses
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The UN decided Friday to send a high-level team of investigators to Burundi to probe rights violations after a report warned of possible “crimes against humanity” and the risk of genocide. The UN Human Rights Council voiced “grave concern” at soaring violations seen in …
Read More »Egypt freezes assets of human rights defenders, NGOs
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | An Egyptian court froze assets of five prominent human rights defenders and three non-governmental organisations on Saturday, provoking fears of an intensified crackdown on civil society. They had been under renewed investigation for allegedly receiving foreign funds in a case that stretches back to 2011 …
Read More »South Sudan paper shut down after it headlines govt corruption
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | The South Sudan government has shut down the country’s main English-language daily, which headlined news on a war profiteering report commissioned by actor George Clooney, the paper’s editor told AFP on Wednesday. Nation Mirror editor Simon Aurelious said officials from the National Security Service …
Read More »Kenya security accused of murder and abduction: report
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Security agencies are killing and abducting men in north-east Kenya who they suspect of links to Islamist extremists, a rights group said Wednesday. Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented 34 “enforced disappearances” and 11 suspected “extrajudicial killings” over two years in Garissa, Mandera and Wajir counties …
Read More »People as guarantors of peace and stability
People must conceive missions about the nation, not about individuals using the nation for their ends, writes Morris Komakech Post-election time in Africa is difficult to fathom as it often erupts into vexatious disputes and violence. Democracy itself has proven a costly practice everywhere in Africa. The democratic societies seemed …
Read More »Know your rights as a patient
By Flavia Nassaka Ask questions and demand answers from your doctor Robinah Kaitiritimba, the Executive Director of Uganda National Health Consumers’ Organisation (UNHCO) is helping those whose rights have allegedly been violated seek justice but she is faced with a tough situation – gathering proof. Earlier in the year, the …
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