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Thursday, May 7, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
POLITICS: Sierra Leonean Refugees Head Home
”Thank God for arriving home safely,” says 20-year-old Emerson Fowai, who was among 360 Sierra Leoneans evacuated from war-torn Liberia last week.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Whether Taylor Quits, He Must Stand Trial – Court
Whether or not President Charles Taylor leaves office, his indictment will still stand, says the UN-backed Special War Crimes Court.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Pressure Mounts on President Taylor to Resign
Any abrupt exit of President Charles Taylor could leave behind a power vacuum and plunge Liberia into chaos, warns a senior government official.ENERGY-SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE: Oil Raises Hope, Fear
The discovery of oil in the rugged and forested islands of Sao Tome and Principe has raised both hope and fear in the former Portuguese colony located off the west coast of Africa.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Fighting Closes in on Capital
"We know that the insurgents are not just rebels of LURD, but a force backed by Great Britain and the U.S. to remove this (Liberian) government," claimed Reginald Goodridge, information minister of the embattled government in Monrovia, Thursday.POPULATION-LIBERIA: More Refugees Flee into Sierra Leone
The fighting in Liberia has opened the floodgates for more refugees, including soldiers, to cross into Sierra Leone.POLITICS-LIBERIA: President Taylor ‘a Wanted War Criminal’ – Court
Charles Taylor, the first African head of state to be indicted by a U.N. court for war crimes, is a shrew political manipulator and survivor.POLITICS-SIERRA LEONE: Crowds Pour in to View the Body of Notorious Warlord
Crowds have been pouring in at the Choitrams Hospital, in the west of the Sierra Leonean capital Freetown, to have a glimpse of a body believed to be that of rebel commander Sam Bockarie, commonly know as "Gen. Mosquito."POLITICS: Broke, Guinea-Bissau May Postpone Legislative Elections
Legislative elections in Guinea-Bissau, which is scheduled for Jul. 6, may not take place because of the political and economic crisis in the former Portuguese colony.RIGHTS-SIERRA LEONE: War Crimes Court Urges Liberia to Hand over Fugitives
The UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone has urged President Charles Taylor of Liberia to hand over fugitives who "bear the greatest responsibility for war crimes" during the country's decade-long civil war, which ended in 1999.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Soldiers Flee into Sierra Leone as Fighting Intensifies
"I fled across the border into Sierra Leone at the heat of battle in Cape Mount Country in the Northwest Liberia," says Major Wilfred Parson of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL).RIGHTS-SIERRA LEONE: Healing the Wounds of War
"I was grabbed by armed rebels together with nine other civilians and tied like a cow before they started the systematic amputation of our limbs using blunt machetes," remarked Tamba Finnoh, a farmer from the eastern district of Kono.POLITICS-SIERRA LEONE: Threat to Disrupt UN War Crimes Proceedings
"I don't wish the court is moved away from Sierra Leone, but if for security reasons we are pushed to that, then we will," comments Robin Vincent, registrar of the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Ghanian Fishing Families Flee into Sierra Leone
"We were forced to flee our fishing community in Robertsport in north-western Liberia, following heavy fighting there," remarks Edward Kofi-Ansah, a family head who now resides in Sulima, a fishing village on the Sierra Leonean side of the border.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Rebels Closing in on the Capital Monrovia
Rebels of the Liberians United For Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) are closing in on the capital Monrovia, engaging government forces in battles some ten kilometres outside the city, aid workers told IPS this week.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Opposition Leader Calls for Postponement of Elections
''The environment is not conducive now for holding of elections, much more needs to be done about security perhaps putting in place a stabilisation force,'' says Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, leader of the opposition Unity Party.POLITICS-SIERRA LEONE: Prominent Personalities Indicted for War Crimes
Seven prominent persons, including the country's Minister of Internal Affairs, Sam Hinga Norman, were this week indicted and detained ahead of an appearance before a UN-backed Special Court for alleged atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's civil war.POLITICS-LIBERIA: Tension Mounting on the Sierra Leone Border
Tension is mounting on the Sierra Leone/Liberia border as Liberian government forces engage rebels of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Development (LURD) who are seeking to overthrow President Charles Taylor.POLITICS: Guinea Poised to Play a Crucial Role as U.S. Steps Pressure on Iraq
Guinea's presidency of the UN Security Council comes at a crucial moment when attention is focused on Iraq and U.S. preparation for war in the Gulf.POLITICS-SIERRA LEONE: Soldiers, Ex-Combatants Facing Treason Charges
Seventeen people appeared in a Freetown Magistrate Court this week on charges of treason, following a month-long police investigation into an alleged plot to topple the government of Sierra Leone.RIGHTS-SIERRA LEONE: UN Envoy Stunned by Magnitude of Child Slavery
''I cannot believe that in this day and age, so many children could be forced to slave away in the mines earning next to nothing; this is appalling,'' says UN Under Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict, Olara Otunnu, who is visiting the war scarred West African country.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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