Sub-Saharan Africa has been subject to grave human rights violations in multiple nations, according to a new State of the World’s Human Rights report released by Amnesty International on Tuesday. The report authors say it highlights “the failure of global and regional institutions, including the UN Security Council and African…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
A newly filed lawsuit in Kenya seeks US$1.6 billion from social media giant Meta, in order to establish a victims compensation fund on behalf of people targeted for violence in Ethiopia because of widely shared Facebook posts. Amnesty International announced Wednesday that it filed the suit along with six other…
Africa’s struggle with the coronavirus, including the lack of COVID-19 vaccine access, was the focus of a blistering Amnesty International report released Tuesday. Just 8% of the 1.2 billion people on the continent were vaccinated by the end of 2021, with multiple waves of the pandemic having a “devastating impact”…
Nigeria has suspended the use of Twitter across the country, just days after a tweet posted by President Muhammadu Buhari was removed for what the social media platform said was a violation of its rules. Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture, announced the decision in a…
The surveillance society in South Sudan is harnessed by the state in service of repression, according to a new report from Amnesty International that focuses on impacts to journalists and opposition groups critical of the government. The report, called “These Walls Have Ears” – The Chilling Effect of Surveillance in…
The International Criminal Court based in The Hague announced it will move forward to investigate crimes against humanity and war crimes in Nigeria, where Boko Haram’s activities and other attacks have gone on for years. The announcement was made Friday by ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. “My office has concluded…
The United Nations human rights chief warned Friday that allegations about mass killings in the northern Tigray region of Ethiopia, if confirmed, may amount to war crimes. Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, called for a full inquiry as the fighting between the Ethiopian military and Tigray’s…
Authorities in Guinea confirmed on Friday the death of Colonel Mamady Condé, the head of a special forces battalion who was fatally wounded in an overnight attack on the Samoreyah military camp in Kindia. The statement from Guinea’s Defense Forces said Condé died when a group of armed men opened…
The struggle against extremism in northern Mozambique has escalated since 2017, notably as local fighters claiming alignment with Islamic State seized the strategic port at Mocimboa da Praia in August – a development the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) called a milestone for the insurgents, and their ability…
Human rights activists are pressing Ethiopian authorities to properly investigate the shooting of a popular Oromo singer whose death has sparked protests in parts of the country. Hachalu Hundesa, who spoke out publicly last week on the tense political situation in Ethiopia, was shot around 9:30 p.m. Monday in Addis…
Human rights advocates with Amnesty International warn that the COVID-19 pandemic is sparking oppressive government responses in southern African nations, just as national lockdowns affect millions of vulnerable people who are losing incomes and fighting off hunger. “With inequality and unemployment so high across Southern Africa, the majority of people…
In the year since he took office in a bitterly contested election, President Felix Tshisekedi hasn’t done enough to advance human rights in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Amnesty International said Friday. The international NGO cited last week’s ban on meetings called by opposition leader Martin Fayulu, the Engagement for…
Two reports on Tanzania, released separately by the Amnesty and Human Rights Watch NGOs, charge President John Magufuli’s government with stifling the free press, opposition politicians and NGOs. The reports follow several years of progressively harsher laws and penalties since Magufuli was elected in 2015. The country has seen routine…
Human rights organization Amnesty International has raised the alarm over political tensions in Guinea, where at least four people died Monday during demonstrations in Conakry. The National Front for the Defense of the Constitution (FNDC) in Guinea said another 50 others were injured, some of them critically, but called for…
Young climate change activists from across the globe have received Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience Award for 2019, for their work in the Fridays for Future movement spearheaded by Greta Thunberg of Sweden. “We are humbled and inspired by the determination with which youth activists across the world are challenging…