PRO-PALESTINE PROTEST IN KENYA TEARGASSED, SEVERAL ARRESTED

A group of Kenyans held a protest on 25 January at the German embassy in Nairobi to protest the former colonial power’s support of Israel as it bombards Palestinians in Gaza. Like clockwork, the police descended upon the peaceful event, lobbing teargas and making arrests. The organisers say a permit to protest had been obtained. This is not the first time a protest has been broken up. Police were caught on camera disrupting a pro-Palestine event held in October on private premises, where they made arrests.

Germany, like most Western countries, has refused to condemn Israel for killing more than 26,000 civilians in a little more than 3 months in a densely populated enclave, home to more than 2 million people.

Continued….Berlin recently approved a shipment of 10,000 rounds of tank ammunition to Israel, as it unleashes police on pro-Palestine protesters. The country has been accused of using its support for Jewish holocaust survivors in Israel to wash away its guilt. Meanwhile, Germany’s 1904-08 genocide in Namibia has not been fully redressed. Rather, Germany has offered 1.1 billion euros, but only for specific development projects.

Back in Kenya, the president issued a statement in support of Israel shortly after the 7 October escalation in the Palestine-Israel conflict. It diverged from the African Union’s position, which has placed the escalation in the context of decades of Israeli occupation of Palestine. Israel sells Kenya teargas, such as that used on protesters in this video. In 1976, Kenya allowed itself to be used as a launch pad for an Israeli operation into Uganda.

What do you think of this latest police action in Kenya? Let us know your thoughts.

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ANGRY CITIZENS STONE MALAWI PRESIDENTIAL MOTORCADE

The people, united, are unstoppable. And, one man can attest to this: Malawi's president, Lazarus Chakwera.

According to local media reports, funeral-procession mourners in the Ndirande Township, near the second-largest city, Blantyre, refused to give way on 19 January to Chakwera's motorcade. The president was on his way to Chileka International Airport for a flight to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The blockade reportedly led to a scuffle between security forces and the crowd, with a few stones apparently thrown at the convoy. Three people had been arrested, but Malawian Director of Public Prosecutions Masauko Chamkakala dropped the charges on 25 January. All three are now out of jail.

Continued….This incident has raised questions about Chakwera's popularity. The preacher-turned-politician was ushered into office in 2020 after defeating incumbent Peter Mutharika. He was elected on a wave of goodwill that has since crashed after his failure to deliver on campaign promises to end corruption and nepotism, as well as revitalise the economy.

Chakwera's term in office has been characterised by a myriad of economic and social challenges, such as rising unemployment and out-of-control inflation. In November, the country's currency was devalued by 44 percent, catapulting commodities prices.

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KENYA COURT HALTS HAITI DEPLOYMENT

Watch the moment today when Kenya’s High Court judge quashed the government’s attempt to deploy 1,000 cops to Haiti. Justice Chacha Mwita termed the move unconstitutional and, therefore, null and void. This ruling is the culmination of a back-and-forth in the corridors of justice to the president’s frustration. The United States had set aside $200 million to foot the bill.

The deployment has been unpopular both in Kenya and in Haiti. The sentiment has been that Kenya’s police should deal with insecurity at home, particularly in the country’s North Eastern Province, where the militant group Al-Shabaab operates.

In Haiti, the memory of previous interventions is all too fresh. UN peacekeepers have been accused for almost two decades of sexual abuse, killings and for starting a cholera epidemic that killed more than 10,000 Haitians, according to conservative estimates.

Your thoughts? Jot them below.

Video credit: @KTNNewsKe

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ICJ SENDS “CLEAR SIGNAL” ON RESPECTING
INT’L LAW - NALEDI PANDOR

South Africa’s foreign minister says the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has sent ‘a clear signal’ that all states must respect international law.

The court ordered Israel to refrain from committing genocidal acts and to report to it within a month on measures it will take to protect Palestinians. It also ordered Tel Aviv to allow the flow of desperately needed humanitarian aid into Gaza.

South Africa sees the ruling as a victory for its case, given that a large majority of the 17 judges on the panel ruled in favour of its request for provisions to enforce a halt to the ongoing genocide. Though the ICJ stopped short of ordering a ceasefire, many see the fact that Israel has been put in the dock as a step towards making it accountable for its crimes in Gaza.

Let us know what you think of this historic moment by leaving your thoughts below.

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UGANDAN JUDGE AT THE ICJ VOTES AGAINST SOUTH AFRICA

British-educated Ugandan Judge Julia Sebutinde gave one of two dissenting opinions in the International Court of Justice (ICJ)’s 26 January ruling on a case in which South Africa accused Israel of violating the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention. An Israeli judge gave the other dissenting opinion in the 15-2 ruling.

While stopping short of ordering a ceasefire, the ICJ’s provisional ruling asked Israel to refrain from injuring or killing Palestinians and to allow humanitarian aid to flow in. A final ruling may take years.

Israel’s military operation has killed more than 26,000 Palestinians. Plus, 45 per cent of Gazan homes have been destroyed, and 90 per cent of the enclaves’s 2.3 million people have been displaced since the 7 October escalation in the Palestine-Israel conflict.

What do you think about the Ugandan judge deciding to vote with Israel, something even the German and US judges didn’t do?

Leave your thoughts below.

UN COURT RULES ISRAEL MUST PREVENT GENOCIDAL ACTS IN GAZA

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ordered Israel to refrain from genocidal acts against Palestinians and to report to it within one month on measures it will take to do so but stopped short of ordering a ceasefire. A large majority of the 17-judge panel voted in favour of provisional measures that South Africa asked for on the first day of hearings on 10th January 2024 but did not order a halt to Israel’s military operations. Pretoria accuses Israel of committing genocide and has taken the case to the UN’s top court. A final ruling could take months or years. The Palestinian foreign minister, Riyad al-Maliki, says the judges ruled “in favour of humanity and international law”. Meanwhile, South Africa’s Foreign Minister, Naledi Pandor, said: “I was hoping that international justice would issue a ceasefire decision in Gaza.”

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PLO LUMUMBA: NIGERIA’S CRISIS UNTENABLE

Nigeria has long been terrorised by militias, who raid villages and kidnap people for ransom, exacerbating religious and ethnic tensions. Since the conflict began in 2009, about 100,000 people have been killed. The latest available data shows more than 3.9 million people have been forced to flee, with more than 2 million internally displaced. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has promised to tackle the issue since coming to office in 2023.

Professor PLO Lumumba shared his views on Nigeria’s rogue attacks during our January news wrap in our Nairobi studio. He discussed what might work to restore order and Nigerian ethnic-groups’ interest in being part of the Nigerian state.

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SAUL WILLIAMS: AFRICA’S EXPLOITATION UNDISCUSSED IN WEST

Singer-songwriter, musician and poet Saul Williams speaks out about exploitation, from the African continent to Palestine. People living in developing countries rely on many materials extracted from Africa, without stopping to think about the labourers who may be using their bare hands to dig them up. Williams demonstrates in this recent ‘Empire Files’ interview with journalist Abby Martin that Westerners choosing to ignore this exploitation is connected to Israel committing violence against Palestinians.

Video credit: @empirefiles

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IBRAHIM TRAORE: THE HOMELAND OR DEATH

Burkina Faso’s president, Ibrahim Traoré, continues to fight for changes to improve the lives of civilians, especially rural farmers. On 8 January, he organised a special meeting with his personnel. This time, Traoré is cracking down on corruption and overpay within the public sector to increase the quality of life for rural people. He called on public employees to adopt a spirit of sacrifice to help their fellow countrymen in the most dire economic situations.

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