Rwandan President Paul Kagame came to power following the 1994 genocide in his country. Before that, starting in 1990, he was the leader of the Tutsi rebel force, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (FPR). Accusing Paris of being “implicated in the genocide,” he has no intention of conceding in a confrontation that, according to him, began more than twelve years ago. Last November, Kigali broke off diplomatic relations with Paris after the French investigative judge Jean-Louis Bruguière recommended that the Rwandan President be tried for his “presumptive participation” in the shooting down of the jet of his predecessor, Juvénal Habyarimana. The [...]
ACCRA, Ghana — The green, red and yellow colors and the black star of Ghana’s flag symbolized the rush of pride felt by many people here as their country celebrated 50 years of independence from Britain. Some sported hats and wristbands, while others wore t-shirts, emblazoned with the government slogan, “Championing African excellence.” A few even donned the flag like a cape as they enjoyed their Mar. 6 holiday, the date of founding President Kwame Nkrumah’s declaration of independence in 1957. The vibrant displays of patriotic fashion certainly pleased the eye, but they could not disguise the dissatisfaction with Ghana’s [...]
Violence and militancy in Nigeria — particularly in the oil-rich Niger Delta — continues to hamper petroleum production in the volatile West African nation and threatens to disrupt upcoming presidential elections, analysts and experts tell World Politics Review. In just the last few days, at least 10 people have been killed in an around Port Harcourt, the de facto capital of the delta, where some 2 million barrels of oil are produced a day, according to independent estimates. Dozens of kidnappings since the beginning of the year by armed militants have prompted foreign oil firms to evacuate thousands of workers [...]
