TRUMP LOCKS HORNS WITH S. AFRICA OVER LAND REFORM

South Africa’s president says he’s ready to school Donald Trump about what his country’s land-reform policy is really about. Cyril Ramaphosa was responding to his US counterpart’s threat to cut aid to Pretoria - over a newly signed law that allows it to seize privately-owned land (in some instances, without compensation).

Trump accused the South African government of ‘confiscating land’ and treating ‘certain groups’ poorly. He was likely referring to White South Africans who, as a result of racist colonial-era laws, own the lion’s share of the country’s arable land (over 72%, according to the last major land-ownership census in 2017) - despite making up less than 8% of the population. Black people, who account for about 80% of the country’s citizens, own less than 4% of the land.

It is these disparities that the new law seeks to address.

Continued……. Ramaphosa said the law is in line with international best practices regarding the need to balance “public usage of land and the protection of rights of property owners.”

It is not the first time that Trump has waded into the controversy over South Africa’s land issues. During his first term, he claimed there was a ‘genocide’ against White farmers in South Africa, a worn-out and refuted talking point by the country’s right-wing forces. Police data shows that 0.25% of murder victims in South Africa are White farmers.

Source

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/world/trump-threat-to-south-africa-over-land-4911560

POISONED APPLE? TIM COOK AND PAUL KAGAME

In this clip, @tatiana_giraud (Instagram) - founder of TG Foundation, a charity helping Congolese survivors of rape - draws attention to possible links between Rwanda’s president Paul Kagame and Apple CEO, Tim Cook. Both Kigali and the multi-billion-dollar tech corporation benefit from illegally-obtained minerals from the resource war in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s east.

Apple has faced legal action over its alleged dependence on conflict minerals, which are used to power its devices - while mounting evidence shows that Rwanda acquires smuggled Congolese resources (often extracted via coerced or child labour), which it then sells to international players on the global market.

Continued………According to the UN, Kigali funds, trains and directs proxies in eastern DRC, such as the M23 rebels, which have seized a number of lucrative mines in the region. The UN also says thousands of Rwandan soldiers are active combatants in east DRC’s war.

The UN has apparently known about Kigali’s involvement in the destruction of Congo since as far back as 2010. In a leaked 600-page investigative report, its experts spoke of a possible genocide in the Congo. At the time, the targets were primarily Hutus who had fled to Congo after the 1994 genocide committed against Rwandan Tutsis: Rwandan forces followed them into the Congo - and, with local allies, allegedly committed numerous atrocities, including massacring hundreds of men, women and children at a time with hoes and axes.

In 2012, another leaked UN report found that there was strong evidence that Rwanda had been behind the creation of the M23 militia.

Nevertheless, in 2013, despite the alarms raised by its own experts, the UN invited Rwanda’s president Paul Kagame to a special dinner - to present Apple boss Tim Cook with an ‘International Quality of Life Award.’ @tatiana_giraud was taken aback when she learned this, and explains here why she smells a rat.

Sources:

https://media.un.org/photo/en/asset/oun7/oun7274712

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/20/why-has-drc-filed-criminal-charges-against-apple-over-conflict-minerals

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-18612612

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/aug/26/un-report-rwanda-congo-hutus

https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/violence-democratic-republic-congo

PUBLIC IN UPROAR OVER COUP ATTEMPTS IN BURKINA FASO

Many people online have expressed concern for the safety of Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traoré, whom the government says has been the target of five covert regime-change operations and regime-change attempts since the 36-year-old and the military successfully ousted a Western-backed leader to set the country on a revolutionary path. 

In December 2022, authorities arrested a senior army officer, Emmanuel Zoungrana, for an attempted coup d’état. Authorities also arrested multiple soldiers in August 2023, September 2023 and January 2024 for plotting to k*ll Traoré. Most recently, on 6 August 2024, Traoré unveiled an elaborate destabilisation plan organised between actors in neighbouring West African countries and locals within Burkina Faso, including ousted President Paul-Henri Damiba, in collaboration with imperialist powers.

Continued……. Mali and Niger, fellow members of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) confederation, face similar threats. Leaders from both countries have denounced French support for t*rrorist organisations, and the European Union has sanctioned both countries. The United States has also sanctioned members of Mali’s government.

Sources:

https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/burkina-faso-un-officier-supérieur-de-l-armée-arrêté-pour-tentative-de-coup-d-etat-parquet-militaire/2775290

https://trtafrika.com/africa/burkina-faso-soldiers-arrested-for-plot-against-traore-led-junta-14878928

https://africa24tv.com/burkina-faso-quatre-officiers-arretes-suite-a-la-tentative-de-coup-detat-dejouee

https://www.theafricareport.com/333448/burkina-faso-four-soldiers-arrested-in-plot-against-ibrahim-traore

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzCHxyrwr5A

https://faso7.com/2024/09/23/burkina-faso-sandaogo-damiba-djibrill-bassole-alpha-barry-newton-ahmed-barry-cites-dans-un-projet-de-destabilisation/

https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1645

https://www.sanctionsmap.eu/#/main

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/exclusive-interview-malian-premier-says-france-responsible-for-mali-s-security-situation-economic-woes/2495064

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWJ0Zg8ja_c&t=694s

PART 2: 'RWANDA IS THE ISRAEL OF AFRICA'

For years, many have wondered how Rwanda, a tiny landlocked country of some 14 million, can continuously cause mayhem in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), home to more than 100 million citizens.

Kambale Musavuli (@kambale on X), an analyst at the Center for Research on the Congo-Kinshasa, recently told Breakthrough News that Western protection and support have enabled the Rwanda-backed M23 militia’s blood-soaked campaign in the mineral-rich eastern Congo. He highlighted how, despite overwhelming evidence of Rwanda's atrocities in the eastern DRC, the West has continued to provide it with sophisticated military equipment, giving it a significant edge over its much bigger neighbour.

Continued……Musavuli said Rwanda also serves as the Western powers' proxy in other parts of Africa, such as Mozambique and the Central African Republic (CAR), where Rwandan soldiers protect Western interests.

He added that the Rwandan-backed insurgency in eastern DRC, which by 2010 had killed more than 6 million people, also allows Western companies to cheaply obtain the minerals they need for the so-called 'green transition.'

Video credit: @btnewsroom 

Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream

PAUL KAGAME IS ‘UNAWARE’ OF 4,000 RWANDAN TROOPS IN DRC

Despite multiple reports of Rwandan troops’ presence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)’s territory, Rwandan President Paul Kagame continues to deny these allegations. The forces are said to be collaborating with the M23 militia, who are armed and trained by Rwanda.

Evidence has indicated that the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) have significant control over M23 operations, with the UN reporting in June 2024 and in December 2024 that 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan troops are stationed in eastern DRC, just west of the Rwanda-Congo border.

Continued……. Further, in the last two weeks alone, UN experts, Security Council and secretary-general have all confirmed Rwandan troop presence in the DRC.

Yet, in this 3 February interview with CNN International correspondent Larry Madowo (@larrymadowo on X), President Paul Kagame feigns ignorance, saying ‘I don’t know’, in response to the former’s question about Rwandan forces in the Congo, adding that he does not know many other things.

Years of impunity and lack of accountability to Rwanda’s role in exacerbating the Western-backed mineral war in the DRC have emboldened the East African head of state, allowing him to get away with giving nonchalant responses to a situation that has k*lled, r*ped and displaced millions of Congolese, whose exploitation continues in the interest of global economic expansion, with Rwanda as a leading gateway for the illicit trade of DRC’s minerals.

Video credit: @cnn on X

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgyzl1mlkvo

https://docs.un.org/en/S/2024/432

https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/violence-democratic-republic-congo

https://africanarguments.org/2012/07/kagame-and-congo-how-long-can-he-deny-rwandan-involvement-in-the-east-by-richard-dowden

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/01/29/congo-kagame-rwanda-m23-goma/8e31e318-de24-11ef-8889-d5c3924edafd_story.html

Our revolutionary forefathers, such as Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72), featured in this week’s Wednesday’s Wisdom, knew that the freedom of the Congo is integral to the rest of the continent’s liberation.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is commonly referred to as the ‘heart of Africa’ given its central position. We must recognise that the DRC is not only an important ecological pillar for Africa, but, more importantly, a country whose pillaging necessitates collective action. By failing to rally and bring an end to the suffering inflicted upon the Congolese people, we are setting a dangerous precedent, whereby Western imperialist violence ultimately trickles down to the rest of the body because we silently or indifferently watched our Western-backed neighbours destabilise our heart.

Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream

WHO IS THE M23?

The M23 militia has cited Tutsis’ long-time marginalisation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with roots in the 1994 Rwandan gen*cide, as its raison d’être. However, M23 appears to serve more so as an economic tool, facilitating the extraction and smuggling of minerals like gold and tantalum, which Rwanda exports despite possessing few domestic reserves. 

Is the M23 a genuine defender of marginalised communities or merely a proxy force for Rwandan economic and geopolitical interests? Here is a history of the group. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Continued……Sources:

https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20250129-dr-congo-and-rwanda-leaders-in-crisis-talks-as-m23-tightens-grip-on-goma

https://archive.ph/XhPq7

https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/opinion/decoding-the-drc-crisis-the-m23-rebellion-and-its-historical-roots-86e1fa7b-f3e5-4cd4-9323-8764befc8ce3

https://clarknow.clarku.edu/2023/06/01/guggenheim-scholars-seek-to-uncover-decades-old-stories-of-rwandans-fleeing-violence-in-congo/#:%7E:text=Hutu%20survivors%20have%20mostly%20remained,Zaire%2C%20according%20to%20Amnesty%20International.
https://www.thecollector.com/mobutu-congo-great-dictator/

https://www.newsweek.com/how-dispute-between-friends-congo-sparked-africas-deadliest-war-534272

https://rwandinfo.com/eng/kabarebe-rwanda-and-congos-killing-fields/

https://youtu.be/mECN7JSsnxY

https://www.newsweek.com/how-dispute-between-friends-congo-sparked-africas-deadliest-war-534272
The Second Congo War: A forgotten tragedy

https://press.un.org/en/2002/sc7479.doc.htm

https://docs.un.org/S/2001/357

https://docs.un.org/S/2001/357

https://www.academia.edu/8011078/From_CNDP_to_M23_The_Evolution_of_an_Armed_Movement

https://www.voanews.com/a/un-experts--fdlr-cndp-still-operating-as-rebel-groups-in-drc-exploiting-minerals-78734072/416241.html

https://www.hrw.org/report/2009/12/13/you-will-be-punished/attacks-civilians-eastern-congo

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/press-release/2008/11/democratic-republic-congo-crisis-north-kivu-20081121/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/ukfs_news/mobile/newsid_7840000/newsid_7846300/7846339.stm

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2012/11/26/qa-behind-the-m23-mutiny-in-dr-congo/

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/28/world/africa/congo-m23-rwanda.html

https://africacenter.org/spotlight/rwanda-drc-risk-of-war-new-m23-rebellion-emerges-explainer/

https://africacenter.org/spotlight/rwanda-drc-risk-of-war-new-m23-rebellion-emerges-explainer/

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/4/24/rwandas-kagame-in-uganda-on-rare-visit-as-ties-warm

https://theconversation.com/rwanda-has-reopened-the-border-with-uganda-but-distrust-could-close-it-again-176861

https://www.capmad.com/mining-en/rwanda-to-overtake-drc-as-coltan-exporter-in-2023/#Coltan_exports_of_Congolese_origin

https://apnews.com/article/congo-mining-m23-un-security-council-b11207ba887b352d702c3e4603d0c891

https://www.ft.com/content/ecf89818-949b-4de7-9e8a-89f119c23a69

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26875506

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223348

The Anglican Church of South Africa (ASK) issued an apology for failing to disclose allegations of sexual abuse against former member John Smyth, which put both congregants and the broader community at risk.

A recent inquiry initiated by Archbishop of Cape Town Thabo Makgoba revealed that the Anglican Church of South Africa did not implement protective measures to prevent child abuse, leading the archbishop to issue an apology.

A 1982 Iwerne Trust report and an independent 2024 report by social care and health executive Keith Makin accused British barrister and Anglican layman preacher John Smyth (1941-2018) of abusing children in the UK and Zimbabwe during the 1970s and 1980s before moving to South Africa in 2001.

Continued……The Catholic Church played no part in his conviction. Instead, it took a former student whom Chaning-Pearce allegedly abused at St George’s School in Zimbabwe recognising the priest while he was in Australia. However, he has never faced accountability.

Will the Anglican and Catholic churches initiate comprehensive investigations into past sexual abuse in their schools across African nations?

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0m1ge1xnm2o?at_campaign_type=owned&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_link_id=072809A4-E30D-11EF-8A43-83B93E175917&at_medium=social&at_format=image&at_link_type=web_link&at_link_origin=BBCAfrica&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_campaign=Social_Flow

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/anglican-church-south-africa-admits-failures-handling-sexual-118443751

https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2024-11/independent-learning-lessons-review-john-smyth-qc-november-2024.pdf

https://lawandreligionuk.com/2024/11/13/makin-review-summary-of-recommendations/

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/15/obituaries/john-smyth-christian-camp-leader-accused-of-beatings-dies-at-77.html

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq6lzeel2e8o

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62lr331lkzo

https://news.sky.com/story/who-was-john-smyth-the-barrister-at-the-centre-of-the-church-of-england-abuse-cover-up-13252818

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/justin-welby-church-of-england-abuse-john-smyth-b2646658.htm l

https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/12/27/african-victims-of-clergy-abuse-deserve-justice-and-accountability-too

MISSION ABANDONED? RUTO’S GAMBLE IN LIMBO!

Disregarding the widespread opposition in his country to the Kenya-led, UN-authorised and US-backed Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti, Kenyan President William Ruto deployed the first group of 400 Kenyan police officers on 25 June 2024.

Shortly after, news outlets reported the officers had not received salaries and that the mission was under-resourced, leading some to desert their posts and hand in resignations, a claim the Kenyan government denied.

Continued….. Moreover, security experts, such as former Haitian Army colonel Himmler Rébu, have said that the Kenyan officers in Haiti lack the capacity to face Haitian gangs, whose violence has destabilised the country. In fact, Rébu referred to Kenyan officers as no more than ‘tourists.’ Further, a 13 January joint investigation by The New Humanitarian (@newhumanitarian on X) and Kenya’s Nation newspaper (@nationafrica on X) found Haiti is worse off now than it was before the arrival of the mission. Their investigation concluded that the Kenya police were ‘unfit for purpose.’

Despite all this, Kenya deployed an additional 217 police officers to Haiti on 18 January. Now, with the US pulling the plug on the already under-capacity mission by announcing a $13.3-million funding freeze of a promised $15 million, the fate of hundreds of Kenyan officers remains unknown.

Foreign interventions since the 1804 Haitian revolution that overthrew French enslavers have continued to destabilise the Caribbean nation, with gangs unleashed by the country’s bourgeoisie that collaborates with foreign powers.

Sources:

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-freezes-funding-security-mission-tackling-haitis-gangs-2025-02-04/

https://haitiantimes.com/2025/01/19/217-kenyan-police-officers-arrive-in-haiti

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

https://apnews.com/article/kenya-police-haiti-salaries-peacekeeping-5f2f71318f6025939f1f7c99633d80d1

https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/investigations/2025/01/13/haiti-depth-why-kenya-led-security-mission-floundering

https://marxist.com/the-gangs-of-haiti-and-the-failure-of-bourgeois-rule.htm

SOUTH AFRICA: ‘WE ARE NOT BEGGARS’

South African Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe says Africa does not need the West’s philanthropy as it possesses enough natural resources to meet its people’s needs.

Addressing the 2025 Africa Mining Indaba (summit) in Cape Town, South Africa, Mantashe said that if African countries united to reclaim control of the mining industry, they could reap massive returns from the enormous mineral deposits across the continent. Mantashe said Africa needs to stop allowing the West to cheaply get our minerals, only for them to turn around and call us ‘beggars.’ 

Continued……His comments came after US President Donald Trump threatened to end aid to South Africa in response to a newly signed law allowing it to seize privately owned land (sometimes without compensation) to address land ownership imbalances caused by colonial and apartheid-era laws. Trump accused South Africa of ‘confiscating land’ and treating ‘certain classes of people very badly.’

Many say Trump’s threat is the result of lobbying by South African right-wing organisation AfriForum and individuals, such as Trump’s confidant, major campaign donor and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk. On 3 February, Musk claimed in a reply to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on X that South Africa has racist laws.

In 2018, Fox News’s ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ hosted Afrikaner Foundation Executive Director Ernst Roets to talk about South Africa allegedly persecuting white-settler farmers and about an alleged ‘white gen*cide.’ The term ‘white gen*cide’ refers to a state-backed plot to k*ll white farmers to drive them off their land. However, numerous studies have debunked this theory.

Video credit: @sabcnews

Sources:

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1886321811937189902

https://apnews.com/article/69edd18af846491fa2c27b5bd3d483d4

https://x.com/kalliekriel/status/994001002591289344

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/3/south-africa-rejects-trumps-accusations-over-expropriation-act

https://harpers.org/archive/2019/03/the-myth-of-white-genocide-in-south-africa

https://africacheck.org/fact-checks/reports/are-sa-whites-really-being-killed-flies-why-steve-hofmeyr-wrong

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2019-04-01-dissecting-white-genocide-what-is-to-be-feared-and-why

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/23/us/politics/trump-south-africa-land.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dMYhLZb96Q