World in ‘great peril’, UN chief warns, as leaders gather for UN General Assembly meeting

20, September 2022

World in ‘great peril’, UN chief warns, as leaders gather for UN General Assembly meeting 0

Warning that the world is in “great peril”, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged world leaders to tackle conflicts, climate catastrophes, increasing poverty, and inequality, as well as address divisions among major powers.

In speeches and remarks leading up to the start of the leaders’ meeting Tuesday, the top UN official said the planet “is literally on fire” and pointed to the “immense” task of saving it and of dealing with the persisting coronavirus pandemic.

Guterres also referred to “a lack of access to finance for developing countries to recover — a crisis not seen in a generation” that has an adverse impact on education, health, and women’s rights.

His remarks come as leaders are meeting in-person for the first time since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Guterres also urged world leaders to address divisions among major powers that have widened since Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine in February, which saw Western countries slapping unprecedented sanctions on Moscow.

The raging conflict in Ukraine is expected to top the agenda during the 77th summit of the UN General Assembly, where Guterres will deliver his “state of the world” speech on Tuesday.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said it would be “a sober, substantive and solutions-focused report card” for a world “where geopolitical divides are putting all of us at risk.”

“There will be no sugar-coating in his remarks, but he will outline reasons for hope,” Dujarric told reporters Monday.

Sources

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Ambazonia Interim Government honours journalist Wazizi

20, September 2022

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Ambazonia Interim Government honours journalist Wazizi 0

The Vice President of the Southern Cameroons Interim Government has paid tribute to journalist Samuel Wazizi who was killed by Francophone army soldiers while in Cameroon government custody in the capital, Yaoundé, on August 17, 2019.

Dabney Yerima and his entire war cabinet praised the sacrifices of Samuel Wazizi and other Southern Cameroons journalists including reporters, cameramen, technicians and other workers in the Anglophone media sector presently in detention centers in French Cameroun.

In a soul-searching speech, Vice President Dabney Yerima told the family and relatives of the late Samuel Wazizi that they should all be proud that their son’s blood is one of the main reasons why Ambazonians were still in the struggle and resisting French Cameroun military occupation.

News anchor and camera operator Samuel Wazizi, whose legal name was Samuel Ajiekha Abuwe, died in government custody in Yaoundé, on August 17, 2019, according to a statement released on June 5, 2020, by the Francophone dominated Cameroonian military.

Despite knowing the dangers of reporting on the war in Southern Cameroons, many Anglophone journalists are risking their lives to report the truth of events. Many have been arrested and detained defending the principles of journalism and showing responsibility in conveying what truly is happening in Ground Zero.

By Isong Asu with files from Chi Prudence Asong

National mourning ends in Britain after queen’s funeral

20, September 2022

National mourning ends in Britain after queen’s funeral 0

Flags on government buildings returned to full mast and an epic clean-up operation was underway on Tuesday as British public life resumed after the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, although the royal family remains in mourning for another week.

Around a quarter of a million people queued round the clock to view the queen’s coffin as it lay in state in the days leading up to the funeral, the UK government said.

Liz Truss, appointed prime minister by the queen just two days before she died on September 8, flew to the UN General Assembly hours after delivering a biblical reading at the lavish funeral.

En route to New York, Truss praised the “huge outpouring of love and affection” shown towards the late monarch, as well as the “huge amount of warmth towards” her successor, King Charles III.

Charles, 73, and his family will remain in mourning for another seven days.

That means no official engagements after he spent an exhausting week touring his new kingdom and attending to the ornate pageantry of a role that he has spent a lifetime preparing to take on.

The royal Twitter account published a picture of the queen hiking in 1971 at her Scottish retreat of Balmoral, where she died at the age of 96 as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch.

The photograph was accompanied with the words: “May flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest. In loving memory of Her Majesty The Queen.”

The quotation is from the tragic conclusion of Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” and was said by Charles in his first national broadcast as king the day after his mother passed away.

Dramas old and new

Members of parliament were taking an oath of allegiance to their new sovereign on Tuesday, as political life resumed after 10 days of government mourning.

Following a public holiday for the funeral, business life was also resuming, and workers were busy clearing up the debris left by an estimated million-plus people who lined the streets of London on Monday.

The queen’s coffin was on display from Wednesday to early Monday inside parliament’s cavernous Westminster Hall, and the waiting time for public mourners at one point reached 25 hours.

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan told Sky News her government department was still “crunching the numbers”, but she believed that around 250,000 people had passed through the hall in total.

Donelan said she did not know the final cost of the state funeral at Westminster Abbey, which entailed a vast security operation for hundreds of foreign dignitaries.

But she said the British public would agree that it “was money well spent”.

“You saw so many thousands out there and I don’t think anybody can suggest that our late monarch didn’t deserve that send-off, given the duty and the selfless service that she committed to over 70 years.”

National Grid said there was a drop-off of two gigawatts in usage on Britain’s power network — the equivalent of 200 million lightbulbs being switched off — from 10:30 am to 11:00 am (0930 to 1000 GMT) on Monday.

Disunited kingdom

“This was because people were stopping their usual activities in time for the funeral,” a spokesman told AFP.

Usage picked up again by 500 megawatts during the funeral but dropped off again by the same amount during the two minutes’ silence just before noon.

With the departure of the only monarch most Britons had ever known, attention was turning back to the country’s soaring inflation problem and the crisis stemming from Russia’s war in Ukraine.

There are also deeper fissures over the very future of the United Kingdom, as Scotland’s nationalist government agitates for another referendum on independence, and as Northern Ireland turns majority-Catholic for the first time.

“Is it possible that in the Windsor vault now lies buried the person who, more than any other, served to cohere these islands?” commentator Jonathan Freedland wrote in The Guardian newspaper.

“The last 10 days have been a holiday from the usual political polarisation: admiration for the queen was one of the few things most people could agree on,” he said.

For most UK media, the focus remained on the unquestionable grandeur with which the country and the world bade adieu to Elizabeth.

“An outpouring of love,” the Daily Telegraph headlined, above a picture of Charles draping military colours held in life by his mother over her coffin in Windsor Castle.

Source: AFP

French football to review players’ image rights after Mbappé boycott

20, September 2022

French football to review players’ image rights after Mbappé boycott 0

The French Football Federation said it will review its agreement on players’ image rights following media reports that striker Kylian Mbappe had refused to take part in sponsor activities.

ESPN reported Mbappe refused to participate in a team photo and sponsor activities scheduled for Tuesday because he does not want to endorse some brands, including fast food chains and betting companies, that are under contract with the national team.

“I have decided to not take part in the photo shoot after the French federation’s refusal to change the image rights agreement with the players,” Mbappe said in a statement, according to ESPN.

The French federation said on Twitter on Monday that it held discussions with the team’s executives, the president, the coach and a marketing manager.

“… The French Football Federation undertakes to review, as soon as possible, the image rights agreement between it and its selected players,” the statement added.

“The FFF is looking forward to working on the outlines of a new agreement that will allow it to secure its interests while taking into account the legitimate concerns and convictions unanimously expressed by its players.”

France host Austria in the Nations League on Thursday and play at Denmark three days later.

Source: REUTERS

Archbishop of Canterbury praises queen’s service to UK and Commonwealth

19, September 2022

Archbishop of Canterbury praises queen’s service to UK and Commonwealth 0

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby on Monday praised Queen Elizabeth II’s life of duty and service to the UK and Commonwealth at the state funeral for Britain’s longest-serving monarch. “People of loving service are rare in any walk of life. Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are forgotten,” he said in his funeral sermon.

Culled from France 24

Benin welcomes Hollywood take on women warriors

19, September 2022

Benin welcomes Hollywood take on women warriors 0

Benin’s historic female warriors known as the Amazons of Dahomey are legendary across West Africa, but a Hollywood production is bringing them back into the limelight.

The Woman King, released last Friday and shown at one Cotonou’s few cinemas on Saturday, is inspired by the story of the Agojie women who protected the ancient Kingdom of Dahomey and fought against French colonial troops in the 19th century.

The main character General Nanisca is played by the Oscar-winning American actress Viola Davis, who trains the next generation of recruits against a rival African kingdom and European slave traders.

The production directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood and mainly filmed in South Africa has won praise for its leading roles for black actresses, but has also generated criticism that it glorifies slavery.

At the premiere in Benin’s economic capital, a descendant of Ghezo, a King of Dahomey, who attended the screening at Canal Olympia cinema, shed tears during the viewing.

“For the princess that I am, some of the scenes were very touching. These brave women gave their lives to protect Ghezo’s heritage, which is my own,” said 37-year-old Sylvine Senami Ghezo.

A younger viewer, 15-year-old Bahunde Efanam, was also emotional and said the film gave her “shivers”.

The Amazons of Dahomey have been celebrated many times before, including in the 2018 film Black Panther in which they inspired Wakanda’s Dora Milaje warriors.

More recently, Benin’s President Patrice Talon unveiled a giant 30-metre high bronze statue representing an Amazon in central Cotonou.

The government said it chose the figure as a symbol of national identity and key part of its history to showcase in a bid to attract tourists.

Tourism

Made by Chinese artist Li Xiangqun, “the statue will be, for us and those who visit, a symbol of the Beninese woman of yesterday, today and tomorrow”, the president said of the display in July.

“What is important is that in Benin, the words courage, bravery, strength, combativenesses and honour are not exclusively associated with men,” said the president.

For those working in the nation’s budding tourism industry like Achille Remy Yelouassi who was at the premiere, the hope is also that films like The Woman King “help put Benin on the map”.

Some though said the next film should be made in Benin and not Hollywood since it concerns the country’s history.

In the United States, some have criticised the movie for not addressing the role Dahomey Kingdom played in the slave trade. #Boycottwomanking has been trending on Twitter.

But for some Beninese women, the film can also help tackle issues around women’s rights according to Senami Totin, a lawyer and activist in the country.

“In a patriarchal society like we have in Benin, you need a lot of courage and determination to defend women’s rights,” she said, listing challenges from impunity for rape, forced marriages, exclusion of women from inheritance rights, and a lack of representation in politics.

“We no longer have to fight wars against enemy armies but the fight for women’s emancipation is a daily one, and for that, we have to have an Amazon spirit,” she added.

In addition to celebrating the Beninese woman, actress Viola Davis said she hopes the film also inspires young girls around the world.

“It’s for my six-year old self… the little girl who was traumatised, the little girl who was called ugly, the little girl who wasn’t seen, who was left invisible,” she told reporters before the Toronto premiere earlier this month.

“I see you Viola. I see every chocolate girl who is like you. I’m telling you to stop running. This is my gift to you.”

Source: AFP

Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral service at Westminster Abbey

19, September 2022

Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral service at Westminster Abbey 0

Hundreds of thousands of people have descended on London as Queen Elizabeth II is laid to rest on Monday after a grand state funeral attended by leaders from around the world, and a historic last ceremonial journey through the packed streets of London.

Elizabeth II’s body has been lying in state at Westminster Hall since Wednesday, and people from around the country and overseas have queued for hours to file past her coffin in a constant, emotional stream.

Hundreds of thousands of people have camped out for days to witness the elaborate spectacle of pageantry and to pay their final respects to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan says the funeral is an “unprecedented” security challenge, with crowds packing central London and a guest list of 500 emperors, kings, queens, presidents and prime ministers.

After the funeral, the flag-draped coffin of the queen, topped with the majestic Imperial State Crown, will be taken west to Windsor Castle.

Elizabeth II will be buried alongside her father king George VI, her mother queen Elizabeth the queen mother, and sister princess Margaret, reuniting in death the family who once called themselves “us four”. The coffin of her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year aged 99, will also be transferred to lie alongside her.

Culled from France 24

Ambazonia Interim Government condemns deadly attack on St. Mary’s Catholic Church Nchang

18, September 2022

Ambazonia Interim Government condemns deadly attack on St. Mary’s Catholic Church Nchang 0

The Ambazonia Interim Government on Sunday condemned in the strongest terms the attack on St. Mary’s Catholic Church Nchang that saw five Roman Catholic priests, a Religious Sister and two worshipers kidnapped by unidentified people.

“This cowardly act is rejected by the people of Southern Cameroons and their Interim Government. The Interim Government once again calls on all restoration forces to protect places of worship and prohibit violating their sacredness,” said the Vice President Dabney Yerima statement published by the Southern Cameroons Broadcasting Cooperation (SCBC).

Several attackers stormed the church in Nchang village some few kilometers away from Mamfe the chief town in Manyu Division during mass on Friday, burnt down the building and kidnapped five priests, one Religious Sister and two lay faithful.

Dabney Yerima said the attack on St. Mary’s Catholic Church Nchang only aims to spread sedition and fuel hatred against a genuine struggle for independence by the people of Southern Cameroons.

“This shocking crime reveals the lowness of its perpetrators and those behind them, and we call for the immediate release of the five clerics, our beloved Revered Sister and the two worshippers” Vice President Dabney Yerima said, urging all progressive Ambazonia Self Defense Groups to work decisively and without hesitation to confront terror in Southern Cameroons in all its forms.

By Isong Asu

War in Southern Cameroons: A burnt Church, 8 hostages including 5 Reverend Fathers

18, September 2022

War in Southern Cameroons: A burnt Church, 8 hostages including 5 Reverend Fathers 0

Five Roman Catholic priests, a Religious Sister and two worshipers were kidnapped by unidentified people who set fire on the ST. MARY’S CATHOLIC CHURCH NCHANG some few kilometers from Mamfe, the chief town in Manyu Division, South West on Friday.

Murders, lootings and kidnappings are frequent in Southern Cameroons, where Ambazonia Restoration Forces regularly target schools and teachers in particular, but also Catholic and Protestant churches and their prelates. But local bishops say Friday’s kidnapping is “completely unprecedented” in its scale and five priests, a Religious Sister and two faithful were kidnapped,” lamented the Episcopal Conference of Bamenda Province in a statement made public by His Grace Archbishop Andrew Nkea.

Attacks and kidnappings have not been claimed but are frequently perpetrated by separatist groups and most often end with the release of hostages for ransom or negotiations with local traditional and religious leaders.

Southern Cameroons populated mainly by Cameroon’s English-speaking minority, have been the scene for nearly six years of a very deadly conflict between armed groups demanding the independence of a state they call “The Federal Republic of Ambazonia” and massively deployed security forces under the power of 89-year-old President Paul Biya, who has ruled Cameroon with an iron fist for nearly 40 years.

The two camps are regularly accused by international NGOs and the UN of committing crimes and atrocities against civilians, the main victims of this war, and Mr. Biya of showing intransigence and carrying out relentless repression, in English-speaking Cameroon but also against any political opposition in the country.

The conflict has claimed more than 46,000 lives since late 2016 and forced more than a million people to move, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank.

By Rita Akana with files from AFP and Camcordnews

The schedule for Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral

18, September 2022

The schedule for Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral 0

Two thousand guests, including several hundred presidents, heads of state and monarchs, will attend Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday. She will then be buried at Windsor Castle in the evening.

Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral, which is one of the biggest logistical challenges in British history, will take place on September 19 in Westminster Abbey, London.

US President Joe Biden, the Emperor of Japan Naruhito and French President Emmanuel Macron are among the 2,000 guests attending this historic event. More than 10,000 police officers from all over the country will be stationed in the capital as the authorities expect record crowds along the funeral route.

In the afternoon, Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin will travel to Windsor Castle for a church service. She will then be buried in a private ceremony. FRANCE 24 outlines the programme for this extraordinary day. 

Procession with music

On Monday morning, the royal coffin, which is currently on display at Westminster Palace in London, will be moved to Westminster Abbey where the state funeral will take place. The procession will begin at 10.35am (11.35am in Paris) and the coffin will be placed on a gun carriage towed by 98 naval officers, in a tradition dating back to Queen Victoria’s funeral in 1901. 

The procession, followed by the king and members of the British Royal Family, will be led by a band of 200 pipers and drummers from the Royal Air Force to Westminster Abbey Gate at 10.52am.

State funeral

Although the state funeral service, led by the Dean of Westminster David Hoyle, will begin at 11am, the Abbey’s doors will open three hours earlier to welcome the 2,000 people who have been invited to the event.

While the final list of invitees is being kept secret for security reasons, several heads of state, political representatives and monarchs have already said that they will be attending. These include President Biden, President Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Indian President Droupadi Murmu.

Members of the Belgian, Dutch, Qatari and Saudi royal families will also be present, as well as several hundred anonymous people who were decorated by the queen, including social workers and carers.

After the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s sermon, the Last Post will be sounded, followed by two minutes of silence to be observed in the Abbey and throughout the UK.

The Reveille, national anthem and a lament performed by the queen’s piper will conclude the state funeral service at around noon.

Foreign heads of state and government representatives will then attend a reception hosted by the British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly at Church House, the headquarters of the Church of England, next to Westminster Abbey.

The queen’s coffin will be paraded through the capital to Hyde Park Corner, to the sound of the bells of Big Ben, where it will be loaded into a hearse and driven to Windsor, a town in south-eastern England, some 30km from London.

Religious ceremony and burial at Windsor

From 3pm, a new procession, preceded by members of the Royal Cavalry, will cross the ‘Long Walk’ leading to Windsor Castle, the British Royal Family’s famous residence. The Royal Family will then join the procession to St. George’s Chapel.

Some 800 guests, including the queen’s personal staff, will attend the service, led by the Dean of Windsor David Conner.

Finally, at 7.30pm, the queen will be laid to rest in a private funeral service held in the presence of the king and members of the Royal Family. 

Queen Elizabeth II will be buried with her late husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, in the King George VI Memorial Chapel.

Culled from France 24

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