Feeling Nice at Mr. Price
January 15, 2009 1 min. read

Another example of a ray of hope in the South African economy comes in the news from the bargain retailer Mr. Price, which reported that its third quarter earnings rose more than 20%. Most of this impressive (and perhaps counterintuitive) growth came through clothing sales. Clearly South Africans are being careful with their money, but […]

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The Boy Who Cried 'Pay Up!'
January 15, 2009 3 min. read

  Writing in Grani.ru, a newspaper critical of the Kremlin, Ilya Minshtein has an Aesopian take on the Russia Ukraine gas dispute. Every new year's eve, Russia and Ukraine stage a seasonal pantomime in which Russia threatens to cut off gas or impose market rates unless Ukraine pays off its energy debts and stops tapping […]

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Rebel Breakdowns in the DRC?
January 15, 2009 1 min. read

There are serious divisions between factions in the CNDP, the main rebel group that has been waging war against the Democratic Republic of the Congo's troops and wreaking havoc throughout the eastern DRC. These fissures threaten to break apart the rebel opposition. Although Kinshasa probably sees this as good news — Laurent Nkunda's sometimes-ruthless CNDP […]

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The UN's 2008 HIV/AIDS Report
January 15, 2009 1 min. read

The Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS has released its 2008 report on the global AIDS epidemic. The prognosis for Africa? Real improvement in many ways, but nowhere near enough.

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Gaza's widows
January 14, 2009 1 min. read

via the Jordan Times.

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Tuesday funny
January 14, 2009 1 min. read

This is not a tradition, so don't expect any funny jokes next Tuesday. Quote Peter Feaver, on my new favorite FP blog (or second fave, after Madam Secretary, especially the post about Hillary and knee-high boots): Walt may be guilty of a common academic fallacy of inference: if I did not read about it in […]

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Xinjiang: 'Endangering State Security'
January 14, 2009 3 min. read

The Chinese government released a report in one of their official publications detailing the number of arrests for ‘endangering state security’ in the past year and unfortunately the news was not good for the Uighurs of Xinjiang Province. According to the report 1,154 Xinjiang citizens were indicted for crimes against state security in 2008, which […]

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Graduating from high school in Tyre
January 13, 2009 1 min. read

… the LA Times profiles a teenage girl in Tyre, Lebanon, named Hiba Qassir, who is studying at a high school backed by Hezbollah. She comments on her various ambitions, including becoming a film director, and calls martyrdom “the shortest way to heaven”. The summary bit below the headline (I am not sure what the […]

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Guinea, Ghana, and the Quest for Africa's Future
January 13, 2009 1 min. read

Regional leaders continue to cast a wary eye toward Guinea, where a military junta has taken control after last month's coup. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has condemned the coup and has suspended Guinea's membership in the regional body until constitutional order is restored in that country. ECOWAS follows the lead of […]

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Jacob Zuma v. The World: The Latest Twists
January 13, 2009 1 min. read

So, is Jacob Zuma going to face corruption charges or not? The possibility certainly is still strong, though the ANC has vowed to fight any such reinstatement of graft accusations against their presumed future presidential candidate. But what stands out most in the latest salvos in this increasingly byzantine drama is the absolutely blistering and […]

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Global Post
January 13, 2009 1 min. read

There is a new website, Global Post, committed to international affairs. The Global Post Africa page is well worth your time.

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