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It was during a Saturday rally that Julius Malema, leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), sang "Kill the Boer, the Farmer" to some 90,000 cheering supporters in a crowded stadium in Soweto.
He replaces Debretsion Gebremichael, whose immunity from prosecution was removed Thursday.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International said Thursday that scores of civilians were killed in a \"massacre\" in the Tigray region, that witnesses blamed on forces backing the local ruling party.
The \"massacre\" is the first reported incident of large-scale civilian fatalities in a week-old conflict between the regional ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize.
\"Amnesty International can today confirm... that scores, and likely hundreds, of people were stabbed or hacked to death in Mai-Kadra (May Cadera) town in the southwest of Ethiopia's Tigray Region on the night of 9 November,\" the rights group said in a report.
Amnesty said it had \"digitally verified gruesome photographs and videos of bodies strewn across the town or being carried away on stretchers.\"
The dead \"had gaping wounds that appear to have been inflicted by sharp weapons such as knives and machetes,\" Amnesty said, citing witness accounts.
Witnesses said the attack was carried out by TPLF-aligned forces after a defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian military, though Amnesty said it \"has not been able to confirm who was responsible for the killings\".
It nonetheless called on TPLF commanders and officials to \"make clear to their forces and their supporters that deliberate attacks on civilians are absolutely prohibited and constitute war crimes\".
Abiy ordered military operations in Tigray on November 4, saying they were prompted by a TPLF attack on federal military camps -- a claim the party denies.
The region has been under a communications blackout ever since, making it difficult to verify competing claims on the ground.
Abiy said Thursday his army had made major gains in western Tigray.
Thousands of Ethiopians have fled across the border into neighboring Sudan, and the UN is sounding the alarm about a humanitarian crisis in Tigray.
OVER 350 families close to Gwayi-Shangani Dam are facing imminent displacement to pave way for the construction of the largest water body in Matabelaland North province. BY PRAISEMORE SITHOLE The Gwayi-Shangani Dam pipeline was estimated to provide 147 mega litres a day and, therefore, ensure bulk water supply in the medium term to Bulawayo and Matabeleland North. Speaking during a tour of the project which was organised by Bulawayo Civic Society Organisation, the project’s assistant engineer Lucio Chayeruka said 350 families would be displaced. “I am aware of the 350 families that are going to be affected by the construction of the dam,” Chayeruka said. “We have done a survey and saw that 350 families need to be evacuated as they are going to be affected by the dam construction. “The matter is now with the Lands and Agriculture ministry, but as it stands, the matter is now urgent so urgent intervention is required.” Chayeruka said the Lands ministry would decide the fate of the families. “It is the sole responsibility of the ministry to decide when and where these families will be resettled. Once we start the construction process, the structures will have to be removed,” he said. Chayeruka decried lack of funding for the delay in the completion of the dam which is currently 39% complete after the contractor, China International Water and Electric Corporation, abandoned the project in January due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The project is being constructed to link Cowdray Park and the City of Bulawayo. In 2016, the contractor suspended operations due to lack of funding. “This dam is a US$121 million project. I haven’t seen the bill of quantities, but I know that this is a US$121 million project. Of that US$121 million, so far we have used about 39% of the money,” Chayeruka said. “The issue here is actually of funding as you will see that we have all the materials in place. The only material that we might need to buy is cement and when all funding has been put in place, the dam will only take one year to be completed.” Matabeleland Collectives chairperson Jenny Williams said civil society organisations needed to know if those families were going to be compensated. “It is important for us the civil society to empower the community that is within the 60km radius of the dam and what it will mean for them when the dam is constructed. They need to be empowered to know what is coming their way,” Williams said. “The communities need to be empowered so that people cannot come and take advantage of those communities.” The project is going to help improve the water situation in Bulawayo which is currently facing serious water shortages. lFollow Praisemore on Twitter @TPraisemore
POLICE are investigating a robbery case in Esigodini, Matabeleland South province, where six robbers walked away with US$87 000 and R38 800 on Monday. BY RICHARD MPONDE “The Zimbabwe Republic Police is investigating an armed robbery case which occurred in Esigodini on November 9, 2020 when a gang of six suspects attacked a family with machetes and a bold cutter,” national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said in a statement. “The suspects used a bolt cutter to break burglar bars of a sitting room window and went on to tie the two complainants with an electric cable and shoelace before ransacking the house. “Complainants were robbed US$87 000 and R38 800 cash which was in a safe, four Samsung Galaxy tablet cellphones, Samsung laptop and a 32-gig flash disk.” The police urged people, including miners to be security conscious and avoid keeping such large amounts of cash in their houses. Cases of robberies are on the rise with the robbers including members of the security such as police and soldiers. This week, a Seke businessman was robbed of US$30 000 by robbers which he was keeping in the house. Meanwhile, leader of an Esigodini notorious gang of gold panners and businessman Baron Dube has been jailed to an effective 10 years for shooting a rival to death in a gold rush in the farming area of Matabeleland South province. Dube (44) of Habane Extension Township pleaded not guilty to murder when his trial started last year, but was convicted on Tuesday by Bulawayo High Court judge, Justice Maxwell Takuva. He was sentenced to an effective 10 years after the court noted that he committed the offence in aggravating circumstances. In sentencing him, Takuva noted that Dube acted out of greed as the offence was committed in a gold rush. “In the first place, you had no right to be at that mine which you claimed the owner tasked you to manage. There was a gold rush at the mine and you were driven there by greed because you are a bully,” Takuva said. In his defence, Dube said he accidently shot the now deceased, Prince Antony Bvundura (22) after he fell down in an attack by his gang, leading in his rifle discharging. Dube’s sworn rival with whom he has had several fights over gold claims and also a gang leader Mkhululi Sibanda was the key witness in the matter.
A NEWLY-ESTABLISHED pharmaceutical company, Pendulum, has donated US$45 000 worth of surgical equipment to Mpilo Central Hospital. BY PATRICIA SIBANDA Pendulum Pharmaceuticals was launched at Ascot in Bulawayo yesterday after making the lifesaving donation at the hospital. Mpilo Hospital acting chief executive officer Solwayo Ngwenya told the media at the handover ceremony that the donation would go a long way in helping provide critical surgical services. “This donation is quite heavy, worth US$45 000 and the quantities are quite massive, they include guedel airways, these ones are used for anaesthetic operations to help patients breathe during anaesthesia, so they are lifesaving and also there are manual resuscitators for babies and these ones are used for emergency situations,” he said. “We also have large amounts of surgical bed sheets. These will help a lot in times of COVID-19. They will be used by patients to reduce infection rates and help fight COVID-19. We also received a vaginal speculum which we use to examine women and for cervical screening.” Ngwenya added: “It is indeed a wide variety of life-saving anaesthetic emergency room equipment, surgical beds cleanliness and infection control.” He said they were facing other challenges, but they were trying by all means to manage the situation. “The situation is always manageable, we buy and the government sends us regular supplies through NatPham. We also, as a hospital, use our own monies but this is going to be a big boost because it will allow us to divert some of the monies to buy other items that will be in short supply like N95 masks, things generally used in fighting COVID-19,” Ngwenya said. He said one of the major challenges was the malfunctioning of radiotherapy machines despite the promise made by government to have them fixed. Ngwenya said the hospital was experiencing an increase in the number of COVID-19 patients.
Analysis - Disputed elections in the Ivory Coast and Guinea, violence in Nigeria: many West Africans hope for foreign support, but the European Union has kept itself at a distance. Publicly, at least.
1. Georgia Secretary of State: Official Recount of 5 Million Votes What You Need To Know: One week after elections, the state of Georgia has not been called for either Donald Trump or Joe Biden. Wednesday Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced the official recount of five million ballots cast in that state during the presidential contest. […]
Production on “Real Housewives of Atlanta” had to shut down recently after one of its crew members tested positive for the coronavirus. According to a JasmineBRAND exclusive, this particular crew member was around the majority of the RHOA cast. A source alleges, “Everything is shut down right now. They’re pausing everything until everyone can be tested and quarantined.” […]
As grief and despair over the racially-disproportionate impact of the COVID pandemic and police brutality erupted in unrest across America’s cities this summer, the National Urban League mobilized to channel the protests in the streets into power at the polls.
The post Black Lives, And Black Livelihoods Were At Stake In This Election. Black Votes Determined Its Outcome. appeared first on Los Angeles Sentinel.
A MUTARE man lost his vehicle and some belongings to two machete-wielding robbers who pounced on him last Friday. BY KENNETH NYANGANI Manicaland police spokesperson Inspector Tavhiringwa Kakohwa yesterday confirmed the incident to NewsDay. He said on November 6 at around 4pm, the complainant, Marshal Jujuwa, was at Dangamvura bus terminus in Mutare when he was approached by two unknown persons who requested to hire his vehicle. The two said they wanted him to take them to Zimunya township claiming they wanted to consult a prophet there. At around 6pm when they were in Zimunya at a secluded place, the two produced a machete and threatened to kill Jujuwa. They tied his legs with electric cables and gagged him with insulation tape. The robbers then took his money and other belongings and drove off. The complainant untied himself before making a police report. The assailants are still on the run. Follow Kenneth on Twitter @KennethNyangan1
Three Guinean opposition figures surrendered to the police on Thursday after being put on a wanted list for their alleged role in post-election violence, one of their lawyers said.
Officers questioned Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, Abdoulaye Bah - both members of Guinea's leading opposition party, UFDG - and Etienne Soropogui separately, lawyer Salifou Beavogui said.
Police on Wednesday also arrested UFDG vice president Ibrahima Cherif Bah as part of a sweep targeting mainly opposition politicians and activists.
At a press conference on Thursday, opposition leader Cellou Diallo called for their immediate release.
The arrests came after President Alpha Conde, 82, won a controversial third term after topping an October 18 poll with 59.5 percent of the votes.
The country slipped into violence in the aftermath of the poll, when UFDG leader Cellou Dalein Diallo, 68, proclaimed himself victorious and alleged voter fraud.
The government said at least 21 people died in subsequent clashes between Diallo supporters and security forces. The UFDG party put the death toll at 46, however.
While observers from other African countries have backed the official election results, France, the European Union, and the United States have cast doubt.
In a statement on Tuesday, a public prosecutor in the capital Conakry said police had detained or tried 137 people.
It said police were actively searching for six people accused of having made \"threats likely to disturb public security and order\".
Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, Abdoulaye Bah, and Etienne Soropogui were among those six people. Only Soropogui, who is from a minor opposition party, is not a UFDG member.
Ibrahima Cherif Bah was also on the wanted list.
Political tension in Guinea centers on Conde's third term, against which there have been rolling protests since October 2019.
The president pushed through a new constitution in March which he argued would modernize the country. But it also allowed him to bypass a two-term limit for presidents.
A former opposition leader, Conde became Guinea's first democratically-elected president in 2010 and won re-election in 2015, but critics accuse him of veering towards authoritarianism.
AP reports that Texas is the first state to reach over one million confirmed cases of COVID-19 according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Texas has now surpassed California, the most populous state, and reportedly has the 10th most cases in the world.
By ZEN SOO Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Pro-democracy legislators in Hong Kong began resigning Thursday to protest the expulsion of four other lawmakers, heightening a conflict with Beijing over the semi-autonomous Chinese territory's future. Pro-democracy activists say China's ruling Communist Party, which has tightened control in Hong Kong in response to demands for more democracy, is destroying the civil liberties and rights that were promised the territory when Britain returned it to China in 1997. The 15 remaining lawmakers in the pro-democracy bloc said Wednesday they will resign en masse after China's central government passed a resolution this […]
The post Hong Kong pro-democracy legislators hand in resignations appeared first on Black News Channel.
President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation on Wednesday, 11 November 2020, giving an update on the country’s efforts to counter the spread of COVID-19
