The President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza, died in his home last weekend, just weeks before he was due to give up his 15-year title. In a statement on 9 June, the government confirmed he died from heart failure, although news outlets such as the Guardian have linked his death to
May 17th is recognised globally as the ‘International Day Against Homophobia, Biophobia and Transphobia’ (IDAHOT). This year marks the 15th annual celebration; the first time it was celebrated was in 2005. The date of May 17th itself is significant; it commemorates the 1990 decision of the WHO to declassify homosexuality
With countries around the world developing an ‘exit strategy’ from lockdown, experts worry about the potential of resurgence. Denmark has sent its children back to school. A number of U.S. states have put in place a ‘partial re-opening.’ South Africa, which had imposed one of the strictest lockdowns worldwide, has
Cyclone Harold struck parts of Fiji, Vanuatu, Tonga and the Solomon Islands last week. It is the first category five cyclone of the year, leaving widespread destruction in its wake. The worst-affected areas are in Vanuatu, where the storm made landfall on a number of populated islands, including Santo, the
The COVID-19 pandemic is upending politics worldwide. Global economic activity has slowed to a crawl, causing markets to crumble as millions are made unemployed. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the pandemic will cut working hours by almost 7% worldwide in the second quarter of 2020 alone. Even optimistic
Coronavirus has infected over 600 000 people across over 200 countries and territories worldwide, although this number is likely an underestimate. Reporting on Sunday 29th March, 32 155 people have lost their lives to the disease. The African continent has the lowest number of cases globally; the WHO situation update
This week in Glasgow, a homeless shelter closed its doors after a staff member and a user tested positive for COVID-19, leaving many of its occupants sleeping on the streets. Although the Glasgow City Council asserted it was “busy putting in place contingency plans to reduce risk to vulnerable homeless
Despite the rising panic stemming from the coronavirus, the World Health Organisation (WHO) achieved a small yet momentous victory this week: The discharge of Masika Semida from an Ebola treatment centre in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the last person to be diagnosed with Ebola from the August 2018
Coronavirus is dominating headlines worldwide, having caused over 100,000 infections and 3,500 deaths so far. The stock market has taken a plunge, with the S&P Index falling 12% since mid-February, eliminating roughly $3 trillion in wealth. No signs indicate its impacts will lessen anytime soon. Meanwhile, governments worldwide are grappling
On Saturday 22nd February, the Togolese people went to the polls for the first round of their Presidential elections, but few predict the results to be a surprise. This round will see the 15-year incumbent, Faure Gnassingbé, face off against six opposition candidates. In a new election format introduced in
On the 9th and 10th of February, the African Union (AU) met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for their 33rd annual summit. This summit’s theme was “Silencing of the Guns”, acknowledging the range of devastating civil wars still terrorizing millions of civilians across the continent. The summit saw leaders of the
A Pakistani human rights champion, Manzoor Pashteen, was arrested in Sheentown in Peshawar on Monday. He was charged with several offences including hate speech, incitement against the state and criminal conspiracy. Pashteen is the charismatic leader of the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), which began in early 2018 to condemn the
