Tag: Africa

Africa’s Donkeys Are Coveted by China. Can the Continent Protect Them?

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For years, Chinese companies and their contractors have been slaughtering millions of donkeys across Africa, coveting gelatin from the animals’ hides that is processed into traditional medicines, popular sweets and beauty products in China. But a growing demand for the gelatin has decimated donkey populations at such alarming rates in African countries that governments are now moving to put a brake on the mostly unregulated trade. The African Union, a body that encompasses the continent’s 55 states, adopted a continentwide ban on donkey skin exports this month in the hope…

Year of the Dragon Not So Fiery for South Africa’s Taiwanese and Chinese

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With wars raging in Europe and the Middle East, the specter of a clash between China and Taiwan — which could draw the U.S. into a new conflict — is of global concern. But an ocean away in South Africa, which has seen waves of immigration by ethnic Chinese over centuries, there’s unity, not division. Kate Bartlett reports from Chinese New Year celebrations near Johannesburg. Video: Zaheer Cassim. Voice of America

China Circumspect After International Court Ruling on Israel

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Johannesburg, South Africa —  In a carefully worded response this week, China voiced its support of the U.N.’s International Court of Justice, or ICJ, ruling that orders Israel to desist from the killing of Palestinians in Gaza. Experts tell VOA that privately China has reservations about the use of such courts to deal with allegations of genocide, which could have awkward implications for Beijing. “We hope that the ICJ’s provisional measures can be effectively implemented,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin when asked about the issue at a regular press…

Ukraine, Middle East Conflicts Hamper Fight Against Graft

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Global efforts to curb public sector corruption are stalling, even reversing in some regions due to armed conflicts and dysfunctional justice systems, a leading corruption watchdog said on Tuesday. Berlin-based Transparency International’s annual report paints a grim picture, revealing that most countries have made negligible or no progress in tackling corruption. “Both authoritarian regimes and democratic leaders undermining justice contribute to increasing impunity for corruption and, in some cases, even encourage it by removing consequences for wrongdoers,” the company said in a statement. Even while it repels the Russian invasion,…

Uncertainties Remain With Renegotiated Chinese Mining Deal in DRC

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Kinshasa, Congo —  Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has promised to use $7 billion from a renegotiated Chinese mining deal to build roads and infrastructure but his critics say the new agreement lacks transparency and is unfavorable towards Congo. In a surprise announcement last weekend, Tshisekedi said that talks between his government and a consortium of Chinese investors over rebalancing the so-called Sicomines mining agreement would bring in $7 billion to the Congolese treasury. The sum represents a huge and possibly transformative opportunity in the impoverished central African…

Blinken Touts U.S. Investments in Angola

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Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken wrapped up a four-nation tour through Africa on Thursday with a visit to Angola, an oil-rich former Cold War battleground that has become the site of a struggle for 21st-century economic influence. During his visit to the coastal capital, Luanda, Mr. Blinken spotlighted major American investments in Angola, including more than $900 million for solar energy projects and $250 million to upgrade a rail corridor that carries critical minerals, including cobalt and copper, from central Africa to Angola’s Atlantic port of Lobito. Those solar…

Chinese Tourism to South Africa Up, But Visas a Barrier

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Johannesburg, South Africa —  With its rolling winelands, picturesque coasts and iconic wildlife, South Africa is a prime destination for international tourists, but industry experts say the government needs to work on attracting more visitors from one massive market: China. Arrivals from China were up in the first 11 months of 2023 thanks to the Asian giant’s reopening and new direct flight routes, said Thandiwe Mathibela, a spokeswoman for South African Tourism, the tourism marketing arm of the South African government. “China saw a massive 215.7% surge, amounting to 34,669…

Why Chinese Foreign Minister’s Visit Focuses on North and West Africa

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Johannesburg, South Africa —  China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is on a tour of four African countries this week, and analysts say the choice of Egypt, Tunisia, Togo and Ivory Coast indicate Beijing’s current foreign policy objectives, including a desire to play a greater role in negotiating peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Wang has made the African continent his first international port of call at the start of every year since becoming foreign minister in 2013. The only exception was 2023, when his short-lived replacement, Qin Gang, was at…

Human rights in decline globally as leaders fail to uphold laws, report warns

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Human rights across the world are in a parlous state as leaders shun their obligations to uphold international law, according to the annual report of Human Rights Watch (HRW). In its 2024 world report, HRW warns grimly of escalating human rights crises around the globe, with wartime atrocities increasing, suppression of human rights defenders on the rise, and universal human rights principles and laws being attacked and undermined by governments. The report highlights political leaders’ increasing disregard for international human rights laws. The report says “selective government outrage and transactional…