Africa

Guterres calls for action on conflicts, climate, inequality, at UN assembly

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Guterres Outlines Key Priorities at UN Assembly: Conflict Resolution, Climate Action, and Ethical AI This year, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has committed to addressing four critical global challenges: escalating conflicts, rampant inequalities, the climate crisis, and the risks posed by artificial intelligence. Guterres emphasized the urgent need for the UN to prioritize conflict resolution, highlighting ongoing crises in Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Haiti, as a ceasefire in Gaza is set to take effect. He also stressed the failure to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, warning that $4 trillion are still needed to meet the targets with just five years remaining until the deadline. In response to the escalating climate crisis, Guterres called for a 60% reduction in carbon emissions by 2035 and a decrease in fossil fuel production to prevent further environmental damage. Finally, he urged the international community to manage the rapid growth of artificial intelligence, ensuring that its development benefits humanity, promotes equality, and upholds dignity.

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Protests greet new Mozambican president

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Hundreds of supporters of Mozambique’s opposition protested Wednesday as the country inaugurated a new president following disputed elections and deadly unrest. Daniel Chapo took his oath as the country’s fifth president before about 2,500 people who endured intense heat in front of a city hall in the capital, Maputo.  Opposition supporters peacefully protested a few meters away after security forces wielding guns and batons blocked them from getting to the venue.  Security forces sealed several roads and kept a heavy presence in other parts of Maputo. Chapo, a 48-year-old law graduate, acknowledged the need to end the instability rocking the southern African nation. “Social harmony cannot wait, nor can the building of consensus for the matters that worry the Mozambican people, so dialogue has already began and we will not rest until we have a united and cohesive country,” he said. The country’s Constitutional Council in December declared Chapo the winner of the presidential election, with 65.17% of the vote, dismissing a challenge by opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane, whom it said got 24 percent of the vote. A series of protests and a violent crackdown by security forces following the elections have left at least 300 people, including scores of children, dead, according to local and international human rights organizations. Mondlane, a 50-year-old pastor, has been leading the push for protests through messages on platforms such as Facebook to demand “restoration of the electoral truth.” Some western countries, including the United States, have also questiond the credibility of the elections.

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South Africa faces outrage over handling of illegal miners

Africa /

South Africa Faces Backlash Over Handling of Illegal Miners’ Standoff, Death Toll Hits 87 South African authorities are facing mounting criticism over their response to a standoff with illegal miners trapped in an abandoned gold mine, where at least 87 people have died. The miners, suspected to have perished from starvation and dehydration, were reportedly denied assistance by authorities, who initially opted to “smoke them out” by cutting off food supplies. This decision has sparked outrage, with accusations that police and mine owners dismantled crucial rescue systems, such as ropes and pulleys. Community groups, frustrated by the lack of official help, launched their own rescue efforts, while courts later intervened, ordering authorities to allow food and water deliveries and initiate a formal rescue operation. Despite the slow response, Mannas Fourie, CEO of the Mines and Rescue service, praised the “world first” rescue operation using a unique machine developed by South Africa’s mining industry. Many locals had warned of the unfolding disaster, with volunteers recovering decomposing bodies from the mine weeks ago. The incident has led to calls for an independent inquiry, with political leaders urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to investigate the handling of the crisis. Authorities now estimate that nearly 2,000 miners had been working illegally in the mine since August last year.

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