KENYA Smashing the fruit bowl 2nd December 2005 The people's rejection of the president's draft constitution has killed the Rainbow coalition To make sense of his defeat in the constitutional referendum on 21 November, President Mwai Kibaki must choose between crushing his opponents or coopting them. The referendum campaign sharpened old political and ethnic grudges between the 'Yes' campaigners (symbolised by a Banana) and the 'Noes' (an Orange). The Orange victory prompted Kibaki to sack his entire cabinet and prorogue parliament on 25 November; the Orange campaigners, led by Raila Odinga, called for new national elections (AC Vol 46 Nos 21 & 23).
KENYA Oranges up, bananas down 2nd December 2005 Image courtesy of Panos Pictures View site The referendum has relaunched or unmade several political careers: Raila Odinga: The referendum brought his rivalry with President Mwai Kibaki to a head. Their 2002 alliance to oust...
SOUTH AFRICA A good week for Mbeki 2nd December 2005 Image courtesy of Panos Pictures View site The ANC's internal battles don't worry the country's foreign economic backers Angry National Party politicians used to say, when the African National Congress won power in 1994, that the definition of a South African optimist was 'someone not in...
NIGERIA Tummy tuck, bellyache 2nd December 2005 The dramatic farce in Bayelsa State is about money, not local patriotism 'Thank heaven for the return of our father,' sang several thousand supporters of the Bayelsa State Governor, Diepreye Solomon Alamieyeseigha, on 21 November, the morning of his return...
TANZANIAAFRICAWATER Privatisation flood 2nd December 2005 The ideology that has taken over Western utilities spreads in Africa In Africa, as across the world, water is a hot topic. The hottest current debate is about whether its supply should be organised by private companies or, as...
BURKINA FASO Five years 2nd December 2005 The election was not democratic but the President's allies go on backing him After 18 years in charge of one of the world's poorest countries, President Blaise Compaoré has won five more, with a declared 80.35 per cent of the vote....
BURKINA FASO Strong boss, weaker party 2nd December 2005 There is no challenger to President Blaise Compaoré's dominance of Burkina Faso's politics. If he chooses in 2010, he may amend Article 37 (2000) of the constitution and...
SIERRA LEONE Counting on oil 2nd December 2005 Donors pledged upwards of US$800 million in reconstruction aid over the next three years at the Sierra Leone Consultative Group in London on 30 November. This far exceeded...
ZIMBABWE Senate subterfuge 2nd December 2005 President Robert Mugabe's plan is well on track for Senate elections to add to his political patronage and weaken the opposition Movement for Democratic Change. Although turnout for...
GABON On the runway 2nd December 2005 The oil on which President Omar Bongo built his power is starting to run out but he carries on as usual after 38 years in the job (AC...
COMMONWEALTH Talking up trade 2nd December 2005 Secretary General Don McKinnon's lobbying for trade reform at the Commonwealth summit in Malta (25-27 November) produced waves in the European Union, which he challenged to meet the...