Police round up opposition leaders in eSwatini

Police round up opposition leaders in eSwatini

In eSwatini, prominent human rights defender Thulani Maseko confirmed Friday that leaders associated with the political opposition party People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) were taken to police headquarters in the Mbabane capital. He was one of a number of activists in the former Swaziland to condemn the action, which they…

Rights groups take Magufuli to task on human rights

Rights groups take Magufuli to task on human rights

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…

ECOWAS welcomes Vaz decision on new Guinea Bissau PM

The 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has welcomed the new appointment of a prime minister in Guinea Bissau, which has remained in a prolonged political crisis that began in 2015. President Jose Mario Vaz announced that Aristides Gomes, a fellow African Party of the Independence of Guinea…

Guinea Bissau: ECOWAS moves on sanctions, PAIGC re-elects Pereira

With no clear end to the Guinea Bissau political crisis in sight, the West African governing body ECOWAS has announced sanctions on “all persons or organizations who impede the process” of its resolution. The 15-nation Economic Community of West African States said the sanctions – a long-discussed measure revisited in…