New African articles from February 2007

New African archives from February 2007

Gay marriages are un-African.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... I am writing in response to the article, South Africa: It might be the law, but are gay marriages really African? (NA, Jan 2007). Christians comprise about 77% of the South African population, covering a wide spectrum of ethnic groups....

A very loyal reader.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... Happy 40th anniversary, New African. My country, Botswana, also turned 40 last September--one month older than New African. We hope our country and ourselves will both have glorious achievements in the years to come. I have been reading...

Happy birthday, New African.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... Your 40th anniversary issue was excellent. Congratulations. How interesting to read the various articles by the "old-timers". My first African Development was given to me in the mid-1970s in someone's office in Lagos, Nigeria, and I was so...

We are solidly behind you.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... I would like to join hands with other friends to congratulate you for the tireless efforts done for the past 40 years of struggle together with Africa, from the OAU to AU. Your commitment to African development deserves congratulations....

It's Igbo not Ibo.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... Since I first read your magazine in 1999, my month begins in effect with my buying a copy of the magazine. I am very grateful to New African for undauntedly bringing an African perspective to bear on its articles and, by so doing, correcting...

Blame the system, not the leaders.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... In Africa: The leaders we need (NA Dec), Dr W.F. Kumuyi characterises African leaders as lacking in judgement, integrity, track record, people skills and taste. I am sure the doctor will agree his characterisation does not hold true of...

African v black.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... I appreciate Herman Kwame Afele's letter, Wanted, a new frame of reference (NA Dec). He makes the point not to use the word "black" in reference to Africans and people of African descent, instead lobbying for the term "African". As a...

In defence of Savimbi.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... I want to thank NA for your continual engaging and intellectually scintillating stories. You've provided a new lens from which to view the continent of Africa; it is quite refreshing. I have purchased all but two of your issues since your...

If we should stop exporting jobs ...(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2007... A lot has been said about the need to invest in science and technology in Africa. Experts argue that this is the only way to facilitate the take-off of African economies. This argument is premised on the belief that investment in science and...

After the vision, what next? A leader shouldn't overdrive his workforce lest they grow weary and slide from motivation to indifference. Short-term thinking is an obsession with quick results. But the vision trip isn't a sprint.(Nuggets in a Nutshell)
February 1, 2007... In my last column, I dwelt on the critical presence of vision in the leadership equation. I warned that unless you can articulate visions appropriate for the progress of your organisation, your leadership would mean nothing. I also stressed the...

South Africa: Oprah to the rescue?(Oprah Winfrey's services)(girl education)
February 1, 2007... A hugely significant event happened in South Africa at the beginning of the New Year that should point the way forward. It began with a dream. The African-American billionaire and talk-show host, Oprah Winfrey, dreamt of top quality education...

'Apartheid did not die'.
February 1, 2007... The reason why the benevolence of people like Oprah Winfrey will be needed for a long time (if not forever) in South Africa to improve the lot of black South Africans is finely captured by John Pilger in his 2006 book, Freedom Next Time. In a...

Sierra Leone/Liberia: will Charles Taylor get a fair trial?(Feature)
February 1, 2007... The trial of the former Liberian president, Charles Taylor, is expected to begin in The Hague on 2 April 2007, but administrative and other bottlenecks have prevented his defence team from functioning properly. The defence has not yet been...

Somalia: anatomy of an unending conflict.
February 1, 2007... Ethiopian forces, with American support (if not instigation), moved into Somalia on Christmas Eve and drove away the Islamic militants who, for six months last year, had succeeded in imposing some semblance of order in the war-ravaged country....

Nigeria: the power behind the throne; In this, Part One of our countdown to Nigeria's general elections in April, our associate editor, Ola Sheyin, a Nigerian himself, looks at the power equation in Nigeria and why the same people keep coming up election after election.(Feature)
February 1, 2007... From 30 May 1967, for a period roughly estimated to have lasted the better part of 30 months, Nigerians fought an incredible civil war. The people of the eastern part of the country, "certain" that they could no longer find any justice or room...

Stealing a nation, Part 3: this is the third and final instalment of John Pilger's account of how Britain and America robbed the African islanders of the Chagos archipelago in the Indian Ocean of their homeland, and turned it into an American military base. This extract is from Pilger's new book, Freedom Next Time.(Special Report)(Excerpt)
February 1, 2007... The British and American policy of concealing the theft of the Chagos Islands ran almost to the end of the century, with all possible precautions taken to preserve it. A Foreign Office minute recommended to Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd that...

Celtel: ... and the walls came tumbling down; Celtel, the mobile telephone giant, has taken a huge step towards creating a seamless pan-African service for its subscribers. The new One Network service will cover a unified potential market more than twice the size of South Africa's population. Stephen Williams travelled to East Africa to see it in operation.(NA Markets)
February 1, 2007... Celtel's One Network programme is revolutionising Africa's telecom industry. With an unshakable faith in the African market and an ability to identify and adapt cutting edge technology to serve the continent's specific needs, Celtel has created...

Cote d'Ivoire: a French exception; In this column, guests are given the opportunity to express fully their opinions. Mamadou Koulibaly, the writer of this guest column, is the speaker of the Ivorian National Assembly, and is one of the closest allies of President Laurent Gbabgo. He is known to be a staunch adversary of the leaders of the rebellion.(Guest Column)(Column)
February 1, 2007... From Abidjan to Bangui via N'Djamena, the policy of the French president, Jacques Chirac, is full of contortions that bring no grace to French diplomacy. Current events in these three capitals appear to sum up what Chirac's France has been...

Partners in Africa's development.(Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development)
February 1, 2007... The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) was founded in 1961, the year of the State of Kuwait's independence. It set a precedent as the first national institution established by a developing nation to provide support to other...

Protection of the African environment.
February 1, 2007... Environmental impacts feature high on the list of priorities for the Kuwait Fund when considering financing. A good example is the rehabilitation of the Korle Lagoon in Accra, Ghana. The lagoon had been a blight on the lives of some of the...

Somalia: why the new American 'blueprint' is dangerous for Africa; It is important for the AU not to be fooled into sending troops to Somalia, because such a peacekeeping force will ultimately legitimise the American/Ethiopian invasion.(Under the Neem Tree)
February 1, 2007... According to The New York Times of 13 January 2007, the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in December (see p24 of this issue of NA) constitutes a "new blueprint" by which the US military wishes, in future, to conduct "proxy wars" through...

Tony Blair: slavery our shame.(Diaspora)
February 1, 2007... The celebration of the 200th anniversary of the day the Abolition of Slavery Bill was finally passed by the British Parliament in 1807 will kick off in Britain on 25 March. Dubbed "Wilberforce 2007", this major commemoration will run for 34...

Martin Luther King: 39 years on ... 4 April 2007 will be exactly 39 years since Dr Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated in Memphis, Tennesee, USA. Professors A.B. Assensoh and Yvette Alex-Assensoh (both of Indiana University, USA) examine Dr King's legacy by focusing on his archive which was acquired last June for safekeeping by Morehouse College, one of his alma maters.(Diaspora)
February 1, 2007... Civil rights scholars and activists as well as friends of Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr, who was assassinated on 4 April 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, jubilated when it was announced on 27 June last year that the important archive of the...

In DiCaprio's Africa.(The Arts)(Leonardo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond)(Movie review)
February 1, 2007... Blood Diamond is Hollywood's new blockbuster on Africa. But don't count on it to break new ground. Dr Barbara Ransby went to see it and was totally disgusted at the way the movie by Leonardo DiCaprio depicts Africans--bloodthirsty mindless...

Sepp Blatter: come rain or shine, 2010 World Cup will be in South Africa.(Football)(Joseph Sepp Blatter of International Federation of Association Football)(Interview)
February 1, 2007... Football, the world's most popular sport, opened a bold, new chapter in its history on 15 May 2004, when Fifa, the sport's governing body, decided to award the hosting of the 2010 World Cup finals to South Africa. With no African country having...