Africa Up Close

The riots that broke out across South Africa in July, 2021, leaving nearly 350 people dead, marked the worst violence in the country since the end of apartheid in 1994. The immediate trigger of the unrest—former President Jacob Zuma’s jailing for contempt of court amid sprawling corruption charges—belied a much deeper cause fueling the violence: inequality and a lack of opportunity for black South Africans. Though dubbed the “rainbow nation,” the legacy of apartheid in South Africa remains strong, with whites still possessing vastly disproportionate economic influence. As recently as 2016, more than 90 percent of wealth in South Africa was controlled by 10 percent of the population—who were mostly white.

Frederik Willem (‘F.W.’) de Klerk, the last leader of apartheid South Africa, died on November 11, 2021.

Nothing new was expected of de Klerk when he became President of South Africa in 1989. A member of the ultra-conservative “Dopper” wing of the Dutch Reformed Church, he progressed through the strict rites of passage common to Apartheid leaders–membership of the Voortrekkers, the Federation of Junior Rapporteurs, the Afrikaans Student Union, and the supreme accolade of an invitation to join the Broederbond, the elite, secret society dedicated to promoting Afrikaner interests. His father, Senator Jan de Klerk, was almost elected (ceremonial) State President, and he served as Labour Minister under Prime Minister J. S. Strijdom, who was married to F.W.’s aunt. Like them, his politics were hard-line and traditional.

In 2023, Zimbabweans will head to the polls to vote in the general election for the president and both houses of parliament. Many civil society organizations within Zimbabwe fear that the relative peace achieved following the 2018 election is no longer attainable. There is no indication of any changes coming from President Mnangagwa or the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF). So the onus to promote peace falls, somewhat, on regional actors who have historically turned a blind eye to issues within Zimbabwe. Stability in Zimbabwe is no longer a Zimbabwe issue. As insurgencies in Mozambique begin to threaten the region, an unstable Zimbabwe further weakens the security of the neighboring Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. To maintain stability, support democratization, and mitigate electoral violence, key regional actors, specifically South Africa and other SADC countries, have to take a stronger stance on Zimbabwe.

Anti-Blackness is not uniquely American, yet the solution to racism in the United States cannot neatly be transferred to countries in which white supremacy is not the root cause of their own anti-Blackness. This is not to say that white supremacy doesn’t have its tentacles around the whole world, but in most Western countries, the issue is white vs. Black. In other countries, beyond the focus of much dialogue, it’s Black vs. Blacker. Sudan, in particular, is a country in which everyone is Black in appearance, yet the racism many in the region face stems from a complicated history of Arab superiority, which I explored in detail in my last blog. Therefore, understanding how to combat racism in Sudan requires a re-examination of the way anti-Blackness is framed when it is discussed in the country.

Growing up as a Black man in the United States, I am all too familiar with how racism shows up in our society today. From slavery and Jim Crow laws of the past to police brutality and mass incarceration in the present, American racism is well documented. However, a fact that tends to be overlooked is that anti-Blackness is a global phenomenon, present in many countries. One such country is Sudan. Though I’ve grown up in the United States, my family always made sure I was in touch with my relatives overseas, and I’ve grown to love the country my parents were born in. However, as I grew older and participated in discussions with other Sudanese, I began to recognize that Sudan has its own battles when it comes to prejudices, showing up in the form of mass internalized anti-Blackness. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement happening around me in the United States, I decided to explore the issues of colorism that have developed in Sudan over many generations.

Armed conflict is one of the biggest challenges in Africa affecting democracy, development, and the attainment of gender equality. The African Union in 2013 committed to improve the continent and adopted its 50th Anniversary Solemn Declaration, which laid out a strategic framework for Africa’s socio-economic transformation over the next 50 years dubbed “Agenda 2063.” At the center of Agenda 2063 was the aspiration for attaining a peaceful and secure Africa through a flagship campaign, “Silencing the Guns,” the goal of which was to end all wars, civil conflicts, gender-based violence, and genocidal acts on the continent by 2020.

Gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa is a highly prevalent, complex problem affecting not only the individuals involved but also their children and families. GBV and family violence, which includes intimate partner violence (IPV) and violence against children, are intersecting problems.[1] Women and children who live in poverty and adversity are the most vulnerable, facing multiple contextual factors that both increase their risk of experiencing violence and reinforce their marginalized status.[2],[3] These individuals also face the greatest barriers and constraints to accessing support, and are the most disempowered and disenfranchised members of society. In a novel approach to addressing this problem, the Institute for Security Studies’ Justice and Violence Prevention Programme is engaging the private sector to develop a family violence prevention intervention for the workplace.

Nigeria is widely, and perhaps rightly, perceived as a conflict-prone country. In recent times, ongoing violent conflicts centered around the Boko Haram insurgency and farmer/herder tensions have dominated peacebuilding conversations. Even more recently, Nigeria has experienced the EndSARS protest and the civil disturbances that have followed. This latest conflict could nonetheless yield important lessons on crisis mismanagement, especially along the trajectory between peace and violence.

The ranks of journalists covering conflicts and dangerous assignments in Nigeria may be depleted due to a lack of care from the society and media employers. This trend applies in other African countries and is likely to deprive the continent of necessary information that could enhance peacebuilding and nourish the growth of democracy. In the last three decades, there has been a steady escalation globally in the number of journalists jailed, killed, or maimed while covering local wars and violent civil conflicts—more so than during earlier international conflicts that featured high mortality rates among media correspondents in the Cold War decades. Between 1992-2020, about 1,378 journalists have been killed in different countries across the world, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. In essence, there is a clear shift now from the previous assumption that more journalists tend to be killed while covering foreign wars rather than during national crises. Nowadays, more journalists are falling victim to murder and assassination by criminal gangs, as well as to infection by dangerous disease while reporting on regions affected by Ebola, SARs, and other deadly illnesses. According to global data, in 2019, 64 journalists were missing while 246 were imprisoned. So far in 2020, 26 journalists and media staff worldwide have died in the line of duty.

Ethiopia is battling with the multi-dimensional effects of COVID-19 amidst a fragile political transition that began in March 2018. Like many African states, Ethiopia’s healthcare system is quite poor despite improvements in recent decades. The country was not by any means ready and able to tackle COVID-19 by itself when the pandemic broke out across the world. So far in Ethiopia, more than a thousand people have died of the 65,000-plus who have been infected with the virus. However, without the government’s vigorous diplomatic efforts, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Ethiopia would be far higher. Ethiopia is not the only beneficiary of its COVID diplomacy, which has made a small but significant contribution to the overall fight against the spread of the virus in Africa.