EDITORS CHOICE - The African Mirror

Oct

21

2024

Who is Tundu Lissu? Tanzania’s opposition leader is fighting for change in the face of fresh attacks on political freedoms

TUNDU Lissu has become the face of opposition in Tanzania following his defiant and unrelenting criticism of the government. Since he came into the national limelight in 1995 when running for a parliamentary seat, Lissu has been a champion of democracy and human rights. He has taken on the ruling elite, exposing corruption and demanding accountability. This almost cost him his life in 2017. In September 2024, new evidence presented at a London tribunal revealed that the telecommunications company Tigo had shared Lissu’s mobile phone data – including his location – with the Tanzanian government. The implication was that the…

May

27

2025

By The African Mirror

Avhatakali Afrika Is Fifty!

HEADLINES, LITERATURE, EDITORS CHOICE

Avhatakali Netshisaulu was born on June 03, 1975. He grew up into a bubbly, intelligent, witty and focused individual. He was a goal driven young man, and in whatever he did, whether it was running the long distance races, his academic work, or his businesses, he excelled. When he was brutally taken away from us, the pain was immense. It was a pain shared by a shocked nation that rallied to assist and comfort us. What pained us even more was that in losing him, we also lost, at a public level, who he really was. He became the posterboy…

May

14

2025

By VICKI SQUIRE

Humanitarian aid depends on good data: what’s wrong with the way it’s collected

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

THE defunding of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), along with reductions in aid from the UK and elsewhere, raises questions about the continued collection of data that helps inform humanitarian efforts. Humanitarian response plans rely on accurate, accessible and up-to-date data. Aid organisations use this to review needs, monitor health and famine risks, and ensure security and access for humanitarian operations. The reliance on data – and in particular large-scale digitalised data – has intensified in the humanitarian sector over the past few decades. Major donors all proclaim a commitment to evidence-based decision making. The International Organisation for…

Apr

23

2025

By FERNANDA PEÑALOZA

To truly understand Pope Francis’ theology – and impact – you need to look to his life in Buenos Aires

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

POPE Francis’ journey from the streets of Flores, a neighbourhood in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to the Vatican is a remarkable tale. Born in 1936, Jorge Bergoglio was raised in a middle-class family of Italian Catholic immigrants. Bergoglio defied his mother’s wish for him to become a medical doctor and chose instead to pursue the priesthood, a calling he felt during confession. The young man joined the Jesuits in the 1950s, attracted to the order’s vow of poverty and its ethos of serving others and living simply. He became a priest in 1969, Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998, and took…

Apr

10

2025

By JIM STENMAN and BONFACE ORUCHO

A conversation with ousted TPLF leader Getachew Reda on war, politics, and the fate of Tigray

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, EDITORS CHOICE

TIGRAY is a mountainous region in northern Ethiopia, holding deep historical, cultural, economic and geopolitical significance. The 'birthplace of the ancient Aksumite civilization,' according to National Geographic, this region is home to archaeological wonders like the towering obelisks of Aksum and the Church of St. Mary of Zion—reputedly the resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. Interview by Jim Stenman with reporting by Bonface Orucho for bird story agency Just northeast lies Adwa, the historic battlefield where Ethiopia’s forces triumphed over Italian colonial troops in 1896. As the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia, the area is highly strategic, bordering…

Apr

08

2025

By PETER VALE

Why was South Africa’s ambassador to the US expelled? A view of the Ebrahim Rasool affair

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, EDITORS CHOICE

IN a rare move, the Trump administration expelled Ebrahim Rasool, South Africa’s ambassador to Washington, in mid-March 2025. In a post on X, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Rasool of hating the US and President Donald Trump, and said the ambassador was “no longer welcome in our great country”. The expulsion came after comments Rasool had made during a webinar organised by a South African think-tank, the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Studies. Rasool had said he thought that Trump was “mobilising a supremacism” and trying to “project white victimhood as a dog whistle” as the white population faced…

Apr

03

2025

By CHRISTOPHER TOUNSEL

Sudan’s civil war: What military advances mean, and where the country could be heading next

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, EDITORS CHOICE

A series of advances by the Sudanese military has led some observers to posit that the African nation’s yearslong civil war could be at a crucial turning point. Even if it were to end tomorrow, the bloody conflict would have left the Sudanese people scarred by violence that has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions of people. But the recent victories by the military do not spell the end of its adversary, a rebel paramilitary group that still holds large areas in Sudan. The Conversation turned to Christopher Tounsel, a historian of modern Sudan at the University of Washington,…

Mar

22

2025

By MAMADOU TAPILY

A Malian journalist, a fabled festival, and a search for truth in a time of crisis

EDITORS CHOICE, HUMAN RIGHTS

This story was originally published by The New Humanitarian.By Mamadou Tapily I can remember many moments of wonder from my youth. I recall gathering by moonlight in my village to hear fireside tales about people singing with trees, and about foxes that somehow spoke our language. It felt like watching television. I remember learning about our culture – our long greetings, our deep ties to the natural world, and the importance of respecting our elderly. But there is one memory that stands out more than most: being told the story of Sigui, the greatest ceremony and one of the most…

Feb

24

2025

By JOAN TAYLOR

What does the Bible say about who belongs in the ‘promised land’? A biblical scholar explains

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

IN current US politics, a “biblical” view of the Middle East informs foreign policy – perhaps more than it has for decades. This makes it very important to understand what the Bible actually says, particularly about the idea of a “promised land”. Biblical scholars and historians like me often observe that the Bible does not provide a full, holistic history. It shines the torch on certain events and memories, for particular purposes. It tells of origins, laws, ethics, divine revelations and a nation’s relationship with God. It does not speak with one voice but with many voices from different times…

Jan

30

2025

By CAROLINE FOWLER

Rereading Rembrandt: how the slave trade helped establish the golden age of Dutch painting

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

THE so-called golden age of Dutch painting in the 1600s coincided with an economic boom that had a lot to do with the transatlantic slave trade. But how did the slave trade shape the art market in the Netherlands? And how is it reflected in the paintings of the time? This is the subject of a new book called Slavery and the Invention of Dutch Art by art historian Caroline Fowler. We asked about her study. What was Dutch art about before slavery and what was the golden age? The earliest paintings that would be called Dutch were predominantly religious.…