UAE ROLE IN SUDAN WAR IS ‘CRIMINAL’

Commenting on the role of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the destruction of Sudan by funding and supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Sidgi Kaballo calls a spade a spade: “I have no other word to use for the Emirates leadership except they are criminals.”

The academic, economist and leading member of the Sudanese Communist Party did not mince his words. He says the UAE has an economic interest in Sudan’s wealth of resources. The Gulf Arab country’s involvement in the exploitation of Sudan’s resources - and, by extension, Africa - is something that has been well documented over the years. A 2023 report found that Africa lost billions each year in smuggled gold, 85% of which ends up in the UAE’s market - a country with no gold mines.

Continued….. Evidence of the country’s role in exacerbating and escalating the current vicious cycle of war in Sudan has been presented in numerous investigative reports. Yet the group has not been held accountable by any international bodies.

For instance, a November 2024 investigative report by media outlet La Silla Vacia found that Colombian ex-soldiers fighting alongside the RSF in Sudan were being lured by promises of jobs as security guards at UAE oil sites. Another investigative report by the New York Times uncovered through satellite images how the UAE was covertly arming the RSF using the Red Crescent logo to disguise shipments as aid through the Chadian border. These are just a few examples of the UAE’s illicit activities in Sudan at the expense of the Sudanese people.

Thus, there is no word to describe the UAE leadership other than ‘criminals,’ as Professor Kaballo puts it.

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AFRICA’S FABULOUS FABRICS

Sumptuous African fabrics aren’t just beautiful to look at. Every thread weaves a tale of ancient dynasties and cultural rituals. From the geometric Kente cloth of the Ashanti, down to the Lamba Mena in Madagascar, they stitch together the continent’s rich history. Here are some of our favourites. Let us know yours!

Is man’s best friend loyal only because we feed him? Whether your pet really loves you or not, this week’s African proverb reminds us that powerful forces can exert undue influence with their patronage.

SUPPORTERS OF ISRAEL ARE SETTLER COLONIALISTS

While the Gaza Health Ministry estimates Israel’s onslaught in Gaza has k*lled more than 46,000 Palestinians, the Lancet medical journal estimated the death toll by July 2024 to be more than 186,000 people, with many more unaccounted for buried under the rubble.

In this ‘time travel’ clip, Noam Chomsky discusses Israel’s long-standing occupation of Gaza, referring to it as the final phase of European colonisation. He gave this lecture on 14 October 2014 at the UN in New York, pointing out that countries that have consistently supported Israel’s actions are themselves settler-colonial projects.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

Continued….. Source:

https://www.un.org/unispal/lecture-by-prof-noam-chomsky-14-october-2014-general-assembly-hall-united-nations-headquarters
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ROSEWOOD MASSACRE REMEMBERED

In January 1923, the Black community in Rosewood, Florida, faced a horrific tragedy that lasted five days. It all kicked off on the 1st of January, when a mob of over 200 white supremacists invaded the town, looking for a Black man named Jesse Hunter, who had been wrongly accused of assault by Fannie Taylor, a white woman. When they couldn’t find him, the mob went on a rampage, terrorising the community, lynching individuals, and destroying property. For three days, the Black residents fought back, pushing the mob to retreat and regroup. However, on the fifth day, the mob returned with reinforcements, k*lling around 30 to 40 Black men, women, and children, and setting the town ablaze. Many residents fled into the swamps or escaped by train to the northern Florida city of Gainesville, never to return. The following day, about 100 to 150 white men returned to Rosewood to burn properties. People later learned Taylor had made up her story to cover up an affair with a white man.

Continued…….. The Rosewood Massacre didn’t get as much attention as other racial violence events, like the 1921 Tulsa race massacre or the 1955 lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till. That is, until 1982, when journalist Gary Moore brought the tragic story to light through a series of articles. This renewed interest prompted elderly survivors to seek restitution. In 1994, the Florida state legislature passed a bill that provided $150,000 each to nine living survivors, including Minnie Lee Langley (1913-95), while only half of the descendant families received $2,000 each in compensation.

The bill also created a scholarship program for Rosewood descendants, allowing them to attend Florida state universities or colleges without paying tuition. This was a groundbreaking move, as it marked the first time a US legislative body offered reparations to Black individuals. However, survivors said the amount the state set aside to pay for descendants’ education was far too small. 

In 1997, director John Singleton brought the story to the big screen with his film, ‘Rosewood.’

Sources:

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/rosewood-massacre-florida-1923

https://calendar.eji.org/racial-injustice/jan/05

https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1995/12/18/minnie-langley-rosewood-survivor-and-fighter

https://ir.law.fsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1498&context=lr

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2019/05/03/25-years-ago-florida-compensated-survivors-of-rosewood-racial-violence

https://time.com/5887247/reparations-america-rosewood-massacre

TULSA RACE MASSACRE WAS ‘MILITARY-STYLE ATTACK’ - U.S. JUSTICE DEPT.

The US Department of Justice has released a report on the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, often referred to as the Black Wall Street Massacre, referring to one of the most horrific instances of racial violence in US history as a ‘coordinated, military-style attack’ that involved law enforcement’s support.

Kristen Clarke, the US assistant attorney general for civil rights, shared the findings of an investigation into a mob of 10,000 white people k*lling as many as 300 Black people and destroying properties along 35 city blocks on 31 May and 1 June in 1921 in the Greenwood neighbourhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. While false allegations of a Black teenager assaulting a white woman in an elevator sparked the massacre, many have alternatively argued the prosperous Black community drew the envy of white neighbours in a society built on racial capitalism.

The US Justice Department said no one involved is alive.

Continued….. The repercussions of this tragedy continue to resonate through generations. In June 2024, the Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit filed by the last two known survivors, Lessie Benningfield Randle, 109, and Viola Ford Fletcher, 110, who sought reparations.

No one has ever been held accountable or prosecuted for these heinous acts, and survivors from Greenwood have not received compensation for their immense losses.

Will there ever be justice for the victims of the Tulsa Race Massacre?

Sources

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-results-review-and-evaluation-tulsa-race-massacre

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/tulsa-race-massacre-probe-finds-1921-horror-coordinated/story?id=117581090

https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=TU013

https://statecourtreport.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/oklahoma-supreme-court-rejects-reparations-tulsa-race-massacre

https://lawrepository.ualr.edu/faculty_scholarship/281

YOUNG DRC RAP SENSATION URGES PEACE

Is the world on the brink of discovering a groundbreaking rap talent from the heart of Africa?

That’s the buzz circulating online as a young boy from the Democratic Republic of Congo captivates audiences with his powerful lyrics highlighting the struggles of his homeland. Social media is abuzz with claims that he embodies authenticity in the rap scene, channelling genuine emotion and lived experiences into his music.

This rising star is nurturing his extraordinary gift at the Invisible Kids Academy, a non-profit institution located in the war-torn eastern region of Congo. The Academy provides orphaned children with opportunities to express themselves through art, dance and music, offering them a glimmer of hope.

Continued……In the viral video, our young rapper is joined by another boy skilfully imitating percussion instruments, creating a performance that resonates with viewers around the world.

His rap tackles harrowing themes such as child soldiers, gender-based violence, displacement, massacres, the exploitation of natural resources and political assassinations.

The history of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been marred by turmoil since King Leopold II’s brutal reign began in 1885. Following its independence in 1960, the country faced the assassination of its pan-African leader Patrice Lumumba in 1961, orchestrated by imperialist forces, and the rise of the Western-backed dictator Mobutu Sese Seko, who exploited the nation’s wealth until his removal in 1997. For three decades, foreign interests have battled for control over an estimated $24 trillion in mineral resources, resulting in the deaths of around six-million people, the displacement of over seven million, and leaving more than 25 million in dire need of food.

In a world that’s grown numb to the ongoing tragedies of the Congo, this vast Central African nation may have just unearthed a vibrant new voice capable of reigniting global interest and compassion for its enduring struggles.

Video credit: invisible_kids_academy on IG

Sources:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-the-invisible-kids-academy-in-the-congo

https://www.wfp.org/emergencies/drc-emergency

https://reporting.unhcr.org/operational/situations/democratic-republic-congo-situation

https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/06/1151516

WHO KILLED TOGO’S OLYMPIO?

Togo President Sylvanus Olympio was the first leader assassinated in post-colonial Africa.

We look back at the circumstances surrounding his killing sixty-two years ago.

But one question remains. Who ordered his murder?

CELEBRATIONS AS SUDAN’S ARMY RETAKES KEY CITY

People in Sudan are celebrating after the country’s armed forces recaptured the strategically important city of Wad Madani, the capital of Al Jazira State.

It’s created hopes that the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary is on the back foot, and that the proxy war, which has been raging since 15 April 2023, can be brought to an end.

Locals welcomed the return of the army, pouring into the streets with cheers and applause, chanting revolutionary slogans and singing songs.

Wad Madani is important because it serves as a gateway to the rest of Sudan, with key road and rail links converging in the city. It’s also a major agricultural and trade hub. The RSF had held it since December 2023

The historic city is fondly remembered as the place where Sudanese revolutionary Ali Abdelatif refused to salute a British officer in 1922, resulting in his imprisonment and culminating in the White Flag Revolt against the British in 1924.

Continued……Sources:

https://www.moore.army.mil/Infantry/Magazine/issues/2004/jul-aug/pdfs/jul-aug2004.pdf

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/12/could-the-sudanese-armys-capture-of-wad-madani-be-a-turning-point-of-war

https://publications.iwmi.org/pdf/H021882.pdf

‘WHY INTEGRATE WITH THE WORLD’S GREATEST CRIMINALS?’

People often speak of racial integration as a solution in both the United States and Europe. Yet, it has failed due to its inability to transform the system, and, therefore, only meets with the majority’s resistance. Even after granting ‘civil rights,’ government policies and structures continued to disenfranchise Africans in the US and Europe.

For example, in the US, the widely publicised Brown versus Board of Education case (1954) ended segregation in public schools by declaring it unconstitutional.

Continued……. However, Black students still face inequalities, with research showing that our children are worse off now. According to a UCLA Civil Rights Project 2019 report, despite an increasingly diverse US population 65 years after the Supreme Court ruling, segregation is ‘expanding.’

Similarly, European countries have instituted policies that more closely resemble forced assimilation, no education on historically racist structures, and laws like the UK’s stop-and-search that disproportionately affect Black people.

Given how these attempts at integration have played out, it would seem accurate to say that integration with those who have systematically worked to marginalise the oppressed is a mere ‘fantasy’, as psychologist Dr Amos Wilson (1941-1995) said in this clip. He offered we should focus on nation-building, with the question being: What kind of systems should we build, so our people can thrive?

Video credit: TransAtlantic Productions (YouTube)


Sources:

https://www.civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/news/press-releases/press-releases-2019/brown-at-65-no-cause-for-celebration

https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/crime-justice-and-the-law/policing/stop-and-search/latest/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBryieHyFeI

https://www.epi.org/publication/schools-are-still-segregated-and-black-children-are-paying-a-price/

WHEN CHE GUEVARA VISITED GHANA

On this day (14 January) in 1965, Ghana welcomed the Argentine-born revolutionary Che Guevara (1928-67) during his three-month journey across Africa.

Guevara’s mission was to forge connections between the liberation movements of Africa and those in Latin America. In Ghana, he met Pan-Africanist leader Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72), who, at the time, held the dual roles of president and prime minister. Together, they toured development initiatives, including the Volta Dam, which can power 207,600 homes, and the 19-kilometre Accra-Tema highway.

This visit helped establish Cuba’s commitment to internationalism. The Caribbean island has provided vital personnel, resources and logistical aid to support Africa’s fight against imperialism. Guevara’s impact inspired countless Cuban medical professionals who have dedicated themselves to enhancing health programmes across the continent.

Continued….. The bond between Guevara and Nkrumah’s revolutionary ideals did not escape the world’s attention.

Many believe the CIA played a role in the 1966 coup that ousted Nkrumah, followed by the assassination of Guevara.

Now, 60 years later, as Ghana grapples with a debt crisis fuelled by reliance on International Monetary Fund bailouts, a fragile currency, and governance challenges, perhaps the newly inaugurated president, John Mahama, can channel Guevara’s enduring spirit to breathe new life into the country.

Sources:

https://www.ice.org.uk/what-is-civil-engineering/infrastructure-projects/akosombo-dam

https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/expert-speaks-on-how-many-homes-can-be-powered-by-1-mw-when-peak-demand-sits-at-85000-mw

https://www.historyworkshop.org.uk/communism-socialism/radical-objects-che-guevaras-africa-notebook

https://misiones.cubaminrex.cu/en/articulo/tribute-che-guevara-ghana-strengthens-solidarity-cuba

https://ucl.scienceopen.com/document_file/a63d40e9-0352-42cb-8f80-9e026983b8e7/ScienceOpen/41945988.pdf

https://www.marxists.org/history/erol/ncm-1a/atm-cuba-africa.pdf

$25M BOUNTY FOR VENEZUELA PRESIDENT!

At his inauguration on 10 January, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro declared that the Venezuelan people had ‘defeated imperialism and its sly diplomacy.’ On the same day, the United States increased a $15 million bounty for information leading to his arrest to $25 million. It imposed sanctions on eight Venezuelan officials, ordering financial institutions to freeze their US-based assets.

Continued…….. This follows the US charging Maduro and 14 current and former Venezuelan officials with narco-terrorism in 2020. However, Maduro has maintained the move was simply a tactic to force regime change in Venezuela. 

Once among the wealthiest countries in Latin America, Venezuela’s GDP ranking has dropped to number 10 due to global oil prices tanking in the early 2010s and Western economic sanctions imposed in 2017. The Center for Economic and Policy Research estimated that sanctions killed 40,000 Venezuelans between 2017 and 2018. In 2021, UN special rapporteur Alena Douhan warned that 2.5 million Venezuelans suffered food insecurity. Douhan also reported that government revenue had declined 99 per cent compared to pre-sanction levels, leading to a near-complete breakdown of public services. Furthermore, about 7.1 million Venezuelans migrated out between 2015 and 2023 because of the dire financial situation.

Whether it’s through sanctions, coups, or financial rewards for information, the United States has repeatedly sought to destabilise countries that challenge its hegemony. By placing the bounty on Maduro’s head, the US wants to isolate him globally and increase political unrest, which will continue to impact the poor people of Venezuela.

Sources:

https://korbel.du.edu/regional-studies/news-events/all-articles/how-sanctions-contributed-venezuelas-economic-collapse

https://www.cfr.org/blog/chavezs-troubled-legacy-venezuelas-oil-industry

https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/2025/01/10/us-offers-25m-bounty-for-nicolas-maduro-as-venezuelan-president-begins-third-term/

https://www.weforum.org/stories/2017/08/venezuela-economic-woes-2017-explained

https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/us-sanctions-are-killing-venezuelans

https://www.humanrightspulse.com/mastercontentblog/humanitarian-impact-of-sanctions-on-venezuela