Politics

26, January 2025

South Korean thug charged with insurrection over martial law attempt ⁰

South Korea’s impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol has been charged with insurrection after he attempted to declare martial law in December.

His ill-fated attempt to impose military rule plunged the country into an unprecedented political crisis and he becomes the first sitting president in South Korean history to be charged with a crime.

The indictment comes after a court in Seoul rejected a request to extend Yoon’s detention on Saturday, which meant prosecutors had to make a decision on whether to charge or release him before Monday.

“The punishment of the ringleader of insurrection now begins finally,” Han Min-soo, a spokesman from the main opposition Democratic Party told a press conference.

Fear, fury and triumph: Six hours that shook South Korea

Separately, the Constitutional Court has begun deliberations on whether to formally dismiss Yoon as president or reinstate him.

The impeached president has largely refused to co-operate with the criminal investigation over the martial law declaration.

Yoon is set to stand trial along with his former defence minister and senior military commanders, who are accused of helping him plan and carry out the attempt to seize total power.

In an unprecedented televised announcement on 3 December, Yoon said he was invoking martial law to protect the country from “anti-state” forces that sympathised with North Korea.

At the time, the embattled leader was in a deadlock over a budget bill, dogged by corruption scandals and several of his cabinet ministers were under investigation.

The military announced all parliamentary activity was suspended and sought to impose controls on media outlets.

The opposition’s Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung urged people to protest at the National Assembly and asked his fellow lawmakers to immediately vote to repeal the order.

Less than two hours after Yoon’s declaration, 190 lawmakers who gathered – including some from the president’s party – voted unanimously to block it.

Soldiers equipped with rifles were seen entering the parliament building through smashed windows as a dramatic confrontation ensued.

Thousands of civilians gathered in front of the assembly and tried to block the soldiers.

Yoon was was impeached by parliament and suspended from his duties on 14 December.

The affair has triggered South Korea’s worst political crisis in decades and has polarised the country.

Many of his hard-line supporters have rallied around him. On Friday, tens of thousands gathered to protest, demanding he be released and returned to office.

If Yoon is removed from office, a presidential election would be held within 60 days.

The prosecutors’ office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Source: BBC

24, January 2025

A new unrealistic Biya mandate would constitute a mistake ⁰

Several Cameroonian bishops have taken sides against the possibility of a new candidacy by Paul Biya in the presidential election to be held in October 2025. After 42 years of unchallenged rule, part of the Church in Cameroon wants to turn the page in a country that appears fragmented.

At 91 years old, the “sphinx” is the oldest elected leader in office and the second head of state in the world still alive in terms of longevity in power.

This adds fuel to the fire for Africans who made the ironic statement that Africa is a “young continent led by old people.” To top it all off, add to that the autocratic management of Paul Biya, which has hardened after his last highly contested election in 2018, repressing any dissenting political opinion in the country.

The worrying state of health of the current head of state might have been a intimation that the latter would finally hand over the reins. Alas, during his New Year’s wishes for 2025, Paul Biya kept his political future vague. “I have heard your calls and your encouragement, and I remain devoted to serving our beloved nation,” he declared in response to the cleverly orchestrated messages from his fervent supporters who are asking him to run for office one last time in 2025.

A new “unrealistic” mandate would constitute a “mistake” according to the terms used by the Archbishop of Douala on RFI. “People are worried, we need a peaceful transition,” added Bishop Samuel Kleda. Words little appreciated by the government.

While one of the opposition representatives – Jean-Michel Nintcheu, president of the Front for Change – praised the archbishop and called on Paul Biya to take “a well-deserved retirement,” the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs accused the prelate of having “exceeded his clerical responsibilities.”

“He sometimes feels obliged to take political positions, without analyzing all the consequences. He has therefore taken his position as a citizen, and those among his flock who want to follow him will follow him,” deplored Grégoire Owona.

But Bishop Kleda’s episcopal remarks are far from being isolated within the Cameroonian Catholic Church: on January 1, Bishop Barthélemy Yaouda Hourgo, Bishop of Yagoua (North of the country) denounced, miter on head, the possible candidacy of Paul Biya. “We are not going to put up with any more, we have suffered enough as it is,” exploded the prelate in a message that quickly went viral on social networks.

“The most terrible suffering is that Cameroonians are forbidden to express their suffering. . . referring to threats by the Cameroon Minister of Territorial Administration who describes the state as a ‘blender’ that will crush anyone voicing contrary opinions to that of the government. Who are they going to govern when they have crushed all the Cameroonians? Cameroonians are asked to avoid hate speech, but from above we receive words of violence,” stated the Bishop of Yagoua.

With more restraint, Jean Mbarga, Archbishop of Yaoundé, the country’s capital, called on the State “to do everything to ensure that the voice of Cameroonians is heard,” discreetly alluding to the political transition for which a large part of the citizens are calling.

According to Thomas Atenga, professor of communication at the University of Douala interviewed by the BBC, the position of some members of the Cameroon Catholic clergy would reveal the fragmentation between “the real country and its daily sufferings, which the bishops claim to be close to, and the political class that seems disconnected from the reality experienced by Cameroonians.”

Even if the Catholic hierarchy is not unanimous in its rejection of the “sphinx,” according to the professor, the Church – an institution of importance in this African country – “has no other choice but to aspire to greater freedom. Because after 42 years in power, it is high time that Cameroonians experienced other forms of hope, of government, which allow them to think that, the world is different from the one they have known for these years.”

Source: RFI

22, January 2025

Ireland: Election of taoiseach delayed as dáil suspended amid disorder ⁰

The election of a new taoiseach has been delayed after a bitter row in the Dáil (Irish parliament), forcing the suspension of proceedings twice.

The Irish parliament returned to nominate Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin as the new taoiseach (prime minister) before he is formally appointed to the office by President Michael D Higgins.

Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy called for a 15 minute suspension after Teachtaí Dála (TDs) refused to “stop shouting” at her and take their seats.

After it resumed several TDs continued to challenge her over a decision to allow independent TDs who are supporting the government to sit on the opposition benches.

They refused to take their seats and the proceedings were then suspended for 30 minutes.

Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy suspended the Dáil for 15 minutes

Sinn Féin President Mary Lou said it was a “brazen” move by the government to allow this arrangement to happen.

Source: BBC

20, January 2025

US: Trump in Capitol to be sworn in as 47th US president ⁰

Donald Trump has arrived at the Capitol to be sworn in as the 47th US president.

Trump’s incoming administration indicates he will declare a “national emergency” at the US-Mexico border, along with a host of other executive actions – which will be announced later today

Ahead of Trump entering office, Biden issues pre-emptive pardons for several figures “threatened with criminal prosecutions”, including Dr Anthony Fauci and officers who testified over the Capitol riot

Earlier, Trump attended a church service alongside some of the most powerful tech moguls in the world – Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Google’s Sundar Pichai and Apple’s Tim Cook

The inauguration, ceremony which is traditionally held outside the US Capitol, has been moved indoors due to a forecast of freezing temperatures with a wind chill of -13C (9F)

Source: BBC

15, January 2025

Mozambique: new president sworn in despite opposition boycott ⁰

Mozambique’s new President Daniel Chapo has been sworn in at a low-key ceremony in the capital, Maputo, more than three months after heavily disputed elections.

Most businesses in Maputo were shut after defeated presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane called for a national strike to protest against Chapo’s inauguration.

Chapo won the election held in October with 65% of the vote, extending the 49-year-rule of the Frelimo party.

Mondlane – who contested the election as an independent – came second with 24% of the vote. He rejected the result, saying it was rigged.

Mondlane called for a strike on inauguration day “against the thieves of the people”.

Both of Mozambique’s leading opposition parties – Renamo and MDM – boycotted the swearing-in ceremony because they too do not recognise Chapo as the rightful winner.

Even those in Mozambique who do wish Chapo well openly question his legitimacy.

“Chapo is someone I admire greatly,” civil society activist Mirna Chitsungo tells the BBC.

“I worked with him for four years – I am familiar with his willingness to act, his openness to dialogue, and his readiness to follow recommendations from civil society on the ground.

“However, he is assuming an illegitimate power. This stems from a fraudulent electoral process… He is taking power in a context where the people do not accept him.”

‘He will face many enemies’

In addition to winning over a hostile public, Chapo will also have to deliver the economic turnaround and halt to corruption that he promised on the campaign trail.

“Chapo will face many enemies because it looks like Mozambique is run by cartels, including cartels of books, cartel of medicines, cartel of sugar, cartel of drugs, cartel of kidnappings, mafia groups,” says analyst and investigative journalist Luis Nhanchote.

“He needs to have a strong team of experts, willing to join him in this crusade of dismantling the groups meticulously,” he adds.

“But first, he has to calm down Mozambicans and do all in his power to restore peace in the country.”

Daniel Francisco Chapo was born on 6 January 1977 in Inhaminga, a town in Sofala province, the sixth of 10 siblings. This was during Mozambique’s civil war, and the armed conflict forced his family to move to another nearby district.

His secondary schooling in the coastal city of Beira was followed by a law degree from Eduardo Mondlane University then a master’s degree in development management from the Catholic University of Mozambique.

Now married to Gueta Sulemane Chapo, with whom he has three children, Chapo is also said to be a church-going Christian and fan of basketball and football.

Many current and former colleagues describe Chapo as humble, hard-working and a patient leader.

Source: BBC

14, January 2025

US: “Trump would have been convicted if he were not reelected” ⁰

U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith concluded that Donald Trump engaged in an “unprecedented criminal effort” to hold onto power after losing the 2020 election, but was thwarted in bringing the case to trial by the president-elect’s November election victory, according to a report published on Tuesday.

The report details Smith’s decision to bring a four-count indictment against Trump, accusing him of plotting to obstruct the collection and certification of votes following his 2020 defeat by Democratic President Joe Biden.

It concludes that the evidence would have been enough to convict Trump at trial, but his imminent return to the presidency, set for Jan. 20, made that impossible.

Smith, who has come under relentless criticism from Trump, also defended his investigation and the prosecutors who worked on it.

“The claim from Mr. Trump that my decisions as a prosecutor were influenced or directed by the Biden administration or other political actors is, in a word, laughable,” Smith wrote in a letter detailing his report.

After the release, Trump, in a post on his Truth Social site, called Smith a “lamebrain prosecutor who was unable to get his case tried before the election.”

Much of the evidence cited in the report has been previously made public.

A second section of the report details Smith’s case accusing Trump of illegally retaining sensitive national security documents after leaving the White House in 2021.

The Justice Department has committed not to make that portion public while legal proceedings continue against two Trump associates charged in the case.

Smith, who left the Justice Department last week, dropped both cases against Trump after he won last year’s election, citing a longstanding Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president. Neither reached a trial.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges. Regularly assailing Smith as “deranged,” Trump depicted the cases as politically motivated attempts to damage his campaign and political movement.

Trump and his two former co-defendants in the classified documents case sought to block the release of the report, days before Trump is set to return to office on Jan. 20. Courts rebuffed their demands to prevent its publication altogether.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who presided over the documents case, has ordered the Justice Department for now to halt plans to allow certain senior members of Congress to privately review the documents section of the report.

Prosecutors gave a detailed view of their case against Trump in previous court filings. A congressional panel in 2022 published its own 700-page account of Trump’s actions following the 2020 election.

Both investigations concluded that Trump spread false claims of widespread voter fraud following the 2020 election and pressured state lawmakers not to certify the vote, and ultimately, also sought to use fraudulent groups of electors pledged to vote for Trump, in states actually won by Biden, in a bid to stop Congress from certifying Biden’s win.

The effort culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed Congress in a failed attempt to stop lawmakers from certifying the vote.

Smith’s case faced legal hurdles even before Trump’s election win. It was paused for months while Trump pressed his claim that he could not be prosecuted for official actions taken as president.

The Supreme Court’s conservative majority largely sided with him, granting former presidents broad immunity from criminal prosecution.

Source: Reuters

13, January 2025

Bundes: AfD embraces mass deportation of migrants as election nears ⁰

Germany’s far right is in a buoyant mood.

On Saturday, while its conference was under way in the eastern city of Riesa, in Saxony, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) laid out ambitions to close Germany’s borders, resume buying Russian gas and, in effect, dismantle the EU.

German media reported that party’s agreed manifesto includes plans to quit the Paris climate deal, exit the Euro currency and create a new confederation of states.

The AfD’s leader, Alice Weidel, even publicly embraced the term “remigration” – a word that’s widely understood to mean the mass “return” or deportation of people with a migrant background.

Thousands of anti-AfD protestors swarmed the streets in Riesa on Saturday, seeking to obstruct access to the conference venue.

When Alice Weidel eventually took to the stage, she described the activists outside as a “left-wing mob.”

And, in front a delighted conference hall of delegates, spoke of “large-scale repatriations”.

“And I have to be honest with you: if it’s going to be called remigration, then that’s what it’s going to be: remigration,” she said.

It’s a striking departure from just a year ago when she sought to distance herself from a scandal that centred on the highly controversial concept.

There were nationwide anti-AfD demonstrations after it emerged that senior party figures had been among those at a meeting where “remigration” was allegedly discussed with Martin Sellner, an Austrian far-right activist who has a neo-Nazi past.

Sellner has written about “remigrating” asylum seekers, some foreigners with residency rights and “non-assimilated” citizens.

A buzzword in Europe’s far-right, some claim legal residents wouldn’t be forced to leave. Critics say “remigration” is simply a euphemism for an overtly racist mass deportation plan.

But Alice Weidel’s decision to personally coin the term, weeks out from a snap federal election, demonstrates her party’s growing radicalism and confidence.

She also pledged to tear down wind farms which she called “windmills of shame”, leave the EU’s asylum system and “throw out” gender studies professors.

The AfD is consistently polling second in Germany and made gains in recent regional elections in the country’s east – where the party is strongest.

However, it’s highly unlikely to win power because other parties won’t work with the AfD.

Sections of the AfD have been classed by domestic intelligence as right-wing extremist.

In 2024, a talisman of the AfD’s hard-right – Björn Höcke – was fined twice for using a banned Nazi SA paramilitary phrase, “Alles für Deutschland” (“everything for Germany”).

He’s called it an “everyday sentence” and denied being aware of its origins, despite formerly being a history teacher.

Reports that members of the conference in Riesa this weekend chanted “Alice für Deutschland” drew quick comparisons in German media.

However, AfD figures have frequently complained that they are demonised and persecuted by a biased media and establishment.

And Alice Weidel’s party – of which she is the co-leader and now Chancellor candidate – has ridden out repeated storms to now hover around or even above 20% in national polls.

The 45-year-old economist, who previously worked for Goldman Sachs and is in a same-sex relationship, has sought to polish the rougher edges of her party.

But for those strongly opposed to the AfD she is a fig leaf or – as one Social Democrat put it – a “wolf in sheep’s clothing”.

Regardless, she’s enjoying a new spotlight after being invited by tech billionaire – Elon Musk – for a live talk on his X platform last week, where he wholeheartedly endorsed the party.

Her declaration during this discussion that Adolf Hitler was, in fact, a communist sparked condemnation, given the Nazi leader’s well-known anti-communism.

Critics warned of Nazi revisionism – something the AfD has been accused of before.

Björn Höcke once called for a “180-degree turnaround” in Germany’s handling of its Nazi past while a former co-leader, Alexander Gauland, described the Nazi era as “just a speck of bird’s muck in more than 1,000 years of successful Germany history”.

Nevertheless, the AfD’s anti-establishment, anti-immigration and anti-“woke” agenda is finding followers in Germany who go to the polls on 23 February.

Source: BBC

9, January 2025

“Biya has realized that the time has come to leave” Joshua Osih ⁰

The National Chairman of the Social Democratic Front (SDF), Joshua Osih, met the press on Tuesday 7 January 2025. This is a traditional meeting that the SDF leader honours at the beginning of each year.

The business tycoon took the opportunity to revisit President Biya’s message to the nation on 31 January 2024, as well as the statements made by Roman Catholic bishops.

According to Joshua Osih, Biya himself has noted that the time has come to leave and this is what the Cameroonian Bishops have noticed, although they are not alone. Joshua Osih stated that the bishops have simply made public what everyone else is thinking.

‘When you listen to the President of the Republic on 31 December, the least you can do is give us an assessment. If you can’t tell us what you’ve done in a year, if you cannot tell us what you’ve done in 42 years. Unfortunately, it has to be said that Biya is incapable of doing so. He has also realised that the time has come to leave. The Catholic Bishops have noticed this, and they are not alone. Everyone has seen it. But they have a platform that others don’t have. That’s why, from this platform, they have said out loud what others think in silence’, Joshua Osih told teleasu.tv journalists.

Hon. Osih described Cameroon as a country at the end of its tether. According to Joshua Osih, the end-of-year celebrations are a clear sign of failure, epitomised by the President of the Republic.

‘The Cameroonian majority has always been a silent majority. When you see how the end-of-year celebrations went today, with deserted streets and very little music, you understand that Cameroon is at the end of its tether. And the person who embodies this failure, all he can do to save us from a bloodbath, is to leave’, said Joshua Osih.

By Rita Akana in Yaoundé

9, January 2025

Coup d’état in Chad: Government says attempt at destabilization thwarted ⁰

The government of Chad has insisted the situation in capitol N’Djamena is stable after gunshots were heard near the presidential palace.

Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah said in a video apparently recorded within the palace complex that there had been a “little incident” but that “everything is calm”.

Sources close to the African state’s government said clashes had occurred between security forces and “terrorist elements”.

The French news agency AFP quoted Koulamallah as saying that 18 attackers and a member of the security forces had been killed.

Chad is a landlocked country in northern-central Africa which, since gaining independence from France in 1960, has seen frequent periods of instability and fighting, most recently between government forces and those of Islamist group Boko Haram.

It is led by President Mahamat Déby, who was installed by the military in 2021 after his father, Idriss Déby, was killed in a battle with rebel forces after 30 years in power.

Following the incident on Wednesday, tanks were seen in the area and all roads leading to the palace were closed, the AFP said.

In the video, posted to Facebook, Koulamallah is seen surrounded by members of the government forces.

“Nothing serious has happened,” he says.

“We are here and we will defend our country at the price of our blood. Be calm.

“This whole attempt at destabilisation has been thwarted.”

He is then seen taking photos and raising his fist with the soldiers.

Koulamallah was quoted by AFP as saying the assault had been launched by a 24-man commando unit, adding that six of the attackers had suffered injuries.

A further three members of the government forces also suffered injuries, he added.

The incident came just hours after a visit to the former French territory by China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, who met Déby and other senior officials.

Source: BBC

8, January 2025

Minister René Sadi says no conflict between government and the Catholic Church ⁰

The Cameroonian government denies any conflict with religious denominations, particularly the Catholic Church, following recent statements by clergy members opposing President Paul Biya’s potential candidacy in the upcoming presidential election (scheduled for October 2025).

In a press release on January 7, Minister of Communication René Emmanuel Sadi reiterated that Cameroon is a secular state where religions coexist peacefully with public authorities. However, he described the stance taken by some Catholic clergy on Biya’s potential candidacy as “pure speculation,” noting that the president has yet to announce his intentions.

The controversy began on December 25 when Archbishop Samuel Kleda of Douala told Radio France Internationale (RFI) that a Biya candidacy in the next election “is not realistic.” President Biya subsequently declared in his New Year’s address that his “resolve to serve” remains strong, a statement widely interpreted as a hint at his intention to run.

Following this, bishops from Yagoua, Bafoussam, and Ngaoundéré used their sermons to call for leadership change in the country. Minister Sadi expressed regret over the “vehemence” of these positions, which he characterized as focusing solely on the presidential race and based on an “unwarranted interpretation” of the president’s remarks.

Source: Business in Cameroon