Funeral services were held Monday in Paris for Gaëtan Mootoo, a well-respected French Mauritanian researcher for Amnesty International in West Africa who died on May 25. So many people attended the memorial at the Père Lachaise cemetery that some stood in the rain, crowded around the entrance, according to France’s Liberation….
The global human rights community was in mourning Sunday after hearing the news that Gaëtan Mootoo, a well-respected French Mauritanian researcher for Amnesty International in West Africa, has died. The 65-year-old Mootoo died at the weekend in Paris, according to Amnesty International Benin. His cause of death was not immediately…
Global human rights organization Amnesty International is again pressuring European Union nations to change its policies on migration from Libya, where thousands of refugees and migrants are trapped in shocking conditions. That message comes as EU officials said Wednesday that the central Mediterranean transit numbers remain much lower, but the…
International NGO Human Rights Watch is calling on South Sudan to investigate the forced disappearances of Dong Samuel Luak and Aggrey Idri, who went missing from the streets of Nairobi in January 2017. Luak, left, a human rights lawyer and critic of President Salva Kiir’s government, held refugee status in…
As the political opposition in Guinea plans new protests for next week, the Amnesty International organization has appealed for government forces to show restraint as clashes in the West African nation have become increasingly violent. At least 15 people have died and many more injured since local elections were held…
In South Sudan, the SPLM-IO has called shameful the decision to condemn James Gatdet Dak, a former spokesman for exiled opposition leader Riek Machar, to death by hanging on charges of treason. “When the regime should be working to create a conducive environment for negotiations, they are instead handing down…
International NGO Amnesty International has welcomed the news that political prisoner Eskinder Nega is listed among 746 prisoners in Ethiopia set to be released as part of a government pardon, yet it joined other democracy and human rights advocates in pressing for an end to all such cases. “It is…
The news that Zimbabwean pastor Evan Mawarire was acquitted Wednesday on subversion charges was met with joy from supporters of his #thisflag movement – but not entirely from Mawarire himself. The democracy and good governance activist, arrested under former president Robert Mugabe at least three times this year alone, was…
Mauritanian blogger Mohammed Ould Mkhaitir is now free, after an appeals court reviewed and overturned a death sentence imposed for publishing a 2014 article that challenged the use of religion to support social injustice. Mkhaitir was arrested almost four years ago after sharing his critical views on the way Islam…
In troubled Cameroon, where the government is disputing a death toll of 17 in weekend protests as reported by Amnesty International, a new appeal has emerged – this time from Anglophone journalists complaining of hate speech directed at their communities by their own colleague at Vision 4. Some 45 media…
At least six people have died in Cameroon during a weekend of protests in the troubled Anglophone regions of the West African nation, as reports of fatalities continue to rise. Five were inmates who died when the jail in Kumbo caught fire early Sunday, according to Reuters. Authorities say they…
At least 127 people have been arrested in the ongoing “hirak” protests in Al Hoceima and the wider Rif region of Morocco, including prominent activist Nasser Zafzafi who was arrested on May 29. Zafzafi was severely beaten by police following his arrest, according to an account released jointly by Human…
On Sunday, more than 80 young women kidnapped by Boko Haram from the village of Chibok three years ago were flown to Abuja, where representatives of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari waited to meet them. Buhari’s administration announced Saturday that in exchange for five Boko Haram suspects held by Nigerian authorities,…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Kenyans have joined the list of foreigners living in South Africa who feel they may be targets of angry and xenophobic protesters, and are avoiding the danger of violent protests and street riots. The Kenyan government is monitoring the situation on behalf of its citizens, the Daily Nation reports. Monica…
Pastor Evan Mawarire, founder of the #ThisFlag movement in Zimbabwe, is expected in court Friday after his arrest Wednesday at the Harare International Airport, where he was returning from a trip to the United States. Supporters of the human rights activist gathered to wait for Mawarire’s appearance on Thursday, but…