Africa Is a Country

Emmanuel Macron’s Twitter fingers

Africa Is a Country Podcast
African Five-a-Side Podcast

Emmanuel Macron’s Twitter fingers

By
Anakwa Dwamena

The stuff we couldn't cover the second week of December, so we compiled them here in byte sizes.

Emmanuel Macron, French President.

First up, Emmanuel Macron continues his streak of African agitation. This week his target –on Twitter — was Algeria. Previously, Macron acknowledged that France’s colonial war in Algeria was “a crime against humanity.” He didn’t give specifics or apologize to Algerians for atrocities committed during the war (during one French military airstrike in 1945, over 40,000 Algerians were bombed to death), Now he wants Algeria to allow the return of “thousands of Algerians who fought for the French army against Algeria during the war of independence from 1954 to 1962” and who have lived in France since then.

Speaking of Algeria: December 6 was the anniversary of Frantz Fanon’s death from leukemia at the age of 36. Some thoughts on a couple new books (published here on Africa is a Country) that seek to present the philosopher to us in a new way.  [A few, older pieces that are also worth revisiting on Africa is a Country about Fanon’s legacy are here, here, here and here–Ed]

Regarding the ongoing migrant crisis in Libya, we must look to countries of origin, destination, and transit to bear a joint responsibility for the migrants.

In fact, it is better looked as a confluence of many displacements and migration crises.

Muammar Gaddafi’s son is coming back to Tripoli and could stand for next year’s Libyan elections. 

Has Angola had a revolution of its own? Or are the new wide-ranging reforms still in the context of a political “musical chairs”?

It appears that in Soviet Russia, sorry, modern-day Nigeria, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad is extorting, assaulting and intimidating citizens. People have had enough, and there is widespread call for wider Nigerian police (ranked worst in the world) reform. #EndSARS

After paying $700m for the last 10 years, in installments, the Swiss government will return the final $320m money the late Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha stashed away between 1993 and 1998.

Another leader from Kano, Sanusi Lamido, puts forth another way to look at the Sahel and how West African nations and North African one can work together. 

Kenyan’s national elections made all the headlines. But the down-ballot votes show the success of devolution and suggest a path for addressing the ever-widening inequality; and

As international pressure grows on tax-dodging and financial havens, Mauritius looks to diversify its economy. 

Further Reading

Repoliticizing a generation

Thirty-eight years after Thomas Sankara’s assassination, the struggle for justice and self-determination endures—from stalled archives and unfulfilled verdicts to new calls for pan-African renewal and a 21st-century anti-imperialist front.

Drip is temporary

The apparel brand Drip was meant to prove that South Africa’s townships could inspire global style. Instead, it revealed how easily black success stories are consumed and undone by the contradictions of neoliberal aspiration.

Energy for whom?

Behind the fanfare of the Africa Climate Summit, the East African Crude Oil Pipeline shows how neocolonial extraction still drives Africa’s energy future.

The sound of revolt

On his third album, Afro-Portuguese artist Scúru Fitchádu fuses ancestral wisdom with urban revolt, turning memory and militancy into a soundtrack for resistance.

O som da revolta

No seu terceiro álbum, o artista afro-português Scúru Fitchádu funde a sabedoria ancestral com a revolta urbana, transformando memória e militância em uma trilha sonora para a resistência.

Biya forever

As Cameroon nears its presidential elections, a disintegrated opposition paves the way for the world’s oldest leader to claim a fresh mandate.

From Cornell to conscience

Hounded out of the United States for his pro-Palestine activism, Momodou Taal insists that the struggle is global, drawing strength from Malcolm X, faith, and solidarity across borders.