AfricanStream

On 21 May, Nigerians rallied against Shell in front of one of its offices in Lagos, demanding the British oil giant pay reparations and clean pollution before it divests by selling $2.4 billion in holdings to an umbrella company led by Africa-based former Shell executives. In January, a Nigerian court rejected the deal, which environmentalists have dubbed another example of greenwashing. However, an April news report indicates Nigeria’s oil regulation agency is reviewing divestments. Protesters like Zikora Ibeh, a member of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (@cappafrica), say Shell isn’t leaving but more so seeking to operate through a shell company (no pun intended) that could alleviate liability. Indeed, of the $2.4 billion deal, Shell is financing $1.2 billion and has agreed to an additional $1.3 billion in future loans. Shell has been trying to sell its Nigerian operations to five companies under an umbrella called Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited. According to the company’s list of its African leaders, at least three have held high-ranking positions in Shell or in a British oil and gas company, BG Group, which Shell acquired in 2015. Shell would hold a 30 per cent stake in the new company. The British oil giant says it will remain a ‘major investor in Nigeria’s energy sector’ because it is transitioning to other extraction activities. Since 1958, Shell’s extraction operations have ravaged land and waters leading into the Atlantic Ocean. While the delta region only makes up 7.5 per cent of Nigeria, it is home to 45 million people or 20 per cent of Nigerians. The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency reported oil companies had spilt 19,058 barrels of oil, or the equivalent of around 95 oil tanker trucks, in 2023 alone. Two Swiss researchers have calculated nearby oil spills that occur before conception double newborn mortality. And, while Nigeria’s life expectancy is 53, Niger River Delta residents only live to 41 years.

Ok, so many of you keep asking why African Stream backs the Palestinian cause and why it’s relevant to Africans? Well, here’s your answer. In this clip @aaprp organiser Ahjamu Umi explains how both share a common fight against Zionist and Western imperialism. And it’s been that way for decades. There’s a long and rich history of solidarity and collaboration between the African and Palestinian freedom movements. Thomas Sankara, Nelson Mandela, Samora Machel, and Julius Nyerere are just a few revolutionary African heads of state who had a great relationship with the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO). Black revolutionaries of the diaspora, including Huey P. Newton and Malcolm X, also worked with and learned from Palestinians. Even in more recent times, Palestinians have taught Black Lives Matter protesters how to stay safe from tear gas and other dangers tied to protesting. However, according to Ahjamu, it’s not down to friendship. Even if Palestinians disliked Africans (which they don’t) he’d still support their struggle as it weakens the common enemy of imperialism. To him it’s logical. Do you see it that way too?

US oil giant Chevron has a long, chequered history in Nigeria dating back to the 1960s. But apart from huge oil fields, it’s also built one the biggest neighbourhoods in Lagos for its workers. The thing is, it’s named it after itself. Another example of shameless imperialism, or just harmless self-promotion? African Stream’s Poloum David takes to the streets of the country’s biggest city to find out.

There were fears of another coup In Burkina Faso last week, after gunshots were heard near the presidential palace. Reports say an individual tried to attack a guard to gain entry. Nothing serious transpired, but the response from locals was eye-catching. Dozens ran onto the streets ready to defend their leader Ibrahim Traoré . African Stream’s Inem Richardson was also there and witnessed the spontaneous show of support.

For the past few months, Ivory Coast’s Abidjan - deemed West Africa’s economic capital - has been kicking poorer residents out of their homes. The plan is to build even more luxury hotels and shopping malls. The city is famous for its gorgeous infrastructure and surface-level development. But this has come at a grim cost: the brutal neglect of Abidjan’s working-class majority. From its first decade of independence through the present era, Ivory Coast has had especially close ties to France and the West. More than any other West African country, it’s supported France’s position on nearly every major foreign-policy decision. Ivory Coast’s first president, Félix Houphouët-Boigny, was a staunch anti-communist and opponent of Pan-Africanism. He positioned himself in firm opposition to leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah, Ahmed Sékou Touré and, later, Thomas Sankara. Today, the current president of Ivory Coast continues that legacy by staunchly opposing the Alliance of Sahel States (consisting of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger), which has shown France the door. But the country’s hyper-conservatism is not only hurting neighbouring states. Writing about the inequality in, and European neo-colonial development of, Abidjan, Peter Schwab, the author of ‘Designing West Africa’ states the following: “Abidjan, the commercial centre of the Ivory Coast and until some years ago its capital, is the focus of Ivorian elites, and was where the French ensconced themselves… the metropolis is, in fact, largely divided into an African quarter, Treichville, and a European one, Cocody. In the French quarter sits the Hotel Ivoire, once the outstanding jewel of Ivorian elites, French expatriates and foreign tourists... It stood as a symbol of what Ivorian elites subscribed to, and how European culture impressed itself on Africa.” The question is: when will the Ivorian working-class see the benefits of the country’s proclaimed economic development? Your insights in the comments are appreciated.

A fundraiser dinner attended by lots of wealthy influential high-society types is surely exactly the right place to plead for help for the children going hungry in Gaza. But apparently not - as South African-Canadian author Kagiso Lesego Molope found out when she did just that at the ‘Politics and the Pen’ gala in Ottawa. After she used her time on stage to warn the audience that future generations will condemn our inaction (receiving applause, but also many boos and heckles), security removed her from the plush premises (Chateau Laurier). As she was leaving the building, she told a journalist she didn’t want to stay anyway if the people inside didn’t care that children were dying. Shame on event organisers the Writers’ Trust. One in three children under the age of two in the north of Gaza is severely malnourished, according UNICEF. More than 35,000 Palestinians - many of them women and children - have been kill*d by relentless Israeli attacks since October 7th. African Stream’s Wambura Mwai talks us through what happened. Let us know your reaction to Molope’s treatment in the comments.

Have you heard of the Lion of the Desert? His name is Omar al-Mukhtar, a teacher turned general. He is a Libyan national hero and symbol of resistance against Italy’s fascist-inspired colonialism. Mukhtar fought in two wars against the Italians in Libya, as well as against French colonisation in Chad and the British occupation of Egypt. African Stream’s Ahmed Ghoneim profiles Mukhtar, telling the story of this hero’s struggle to free his native Libya and how, against all odds, he refused to give up. As he once uttered, ‘We do not surrender—we win or die… and I’ll live more than my hanger.’ Indeed, his legacy is revered today. Let us know in the comments of other African revolutionary heroes you’d like to see us include in our new series, ‘Decolonised Minds.’

Kenyans were already pretty angry about their ‘flying president’ clocking up air miles like there’s no tomorrow - at a huge cost to the country’s strained budget. Well, imagine how they reacted to the latest revelation about William Ruto’s extravagance on his travels. Apparently, he hired a private plane from Dubai’s RoyalJet for his visit to the US - for 1.5-million dollars! It adds insult to injury for the millions of cost-of-living affected Kenyans he’s told need to start tightening their belts and living within their means - and on whom his administration intends to impose fresh taxes. And while Ruto flaunts it in front of his people, he’s also being put to shame by other leaders setting a far nobler example. For example, Iceland's Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson recently flew Kenya Airways for his visit to Malawi. You’d have thought an apology was the very least Ruto’s administration could offer after this latest scandal. Instead, it’s defended blowing all that money on a private-jet flight by saying all the contracts Ruto will sign in the US will more than make up for it in terms of economic benefits to Kenya. Do you buy that excuse?

US Senator Lindsey Graham expressed outrage over the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Graham said Washington must oppose the move because, if the ICC finds the Israeli officials guilty, it could also target US leaders. ICC prosecutor Karim Khan has also issued arrest warrants for three H*mas officials for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during and since the H*mas-led 7 October attack. Given the crimes that US leaders have committed against the people of the Global South for centuries—between coups, proxy wars, weapons distribution, military invasions, occupations and economic sanctions—Graham has good reason to worry that US leaders could end up on the ICC’s docket, as it should be if the world had a fair and impartial justice system.

France is scrambling to quell unrest in New Caledonia, which has been rocked by riots over constitutional reforms approved in Paris. These will expand the electoral roll in the overseas territory to include newcomers - diminishing the political representation of the indigenous Kanak people, who largely want independence. (Newcomers tend to come from mainland France and favour union.) Six people have already died in the upheavals. Paris has now sent out an extra 600 gendarmes and police - adding to the more than 2,000 troops already there. The new deployment comes as video emerges of French gendarmes in the capital Nouméa quashing pro-independence protests. In this clip, you can see one of their armoured cars ramming burnt-out vehicles. President Emmanuel Macron is on his way to New Caledonia to try resolve the crisis with local leaders. It’s a clear sign of how serious the situation is on the island, which is 17,000 km from France. France annexed New Caledonia in 1853 and gave the colony the status of overseas territory in 1946. It boasts huge nickel reserves, which France is very keen to keep making money off. Pro-independence movements have been active, but the ongoing riots are the worst in 40 years. Matai Seremaiah, the foreign minister of the neighbouring island of Vanuatu, has urged France to "do the right thing, to resolve all outstanding decolonisation issues" and seriously engage with Kanak leaders. How do you see this playing out? Will France ride this one out or is it time to say ‘adieu’?

The leaders of Spain, Ireland and Norway have announced that they will formally recognise the state of Palestine on 28 May. The three leaders made the announcements in their respective capitals. In Dublin, Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris described the decision as ‘historic’ for his country and Palestine. He also announced that leaders of many other countries have indicated they would be taking similar steps soon. From Madrid, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who had spent months touring European and West Asian states to garner support, said the decision is the ‘only way’ to achieve peace and security as Israel has occupied Palestine for almost 76 years. Spain has long had cultural ties to Arab countries. Meanwhile, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced in Oslo that recognising a Palestinian state is essential for attaining regional peace. The Israeli government is outraged at the three states’ decision. Tel Aviv has recalled its envoys to Ireland and Norway for what it termed as ‘urgent consultations,’ adding the ambassador to Spain would also be called back to Israel if the country followed suit. As of 22 May, 142 of the United Nations’ 193 member states recognise Palestine.

As African people, we often feel a close connection with others fighting colonialism and imperialism. But the anti-Zionist current within the Pan-African movement is not only about empathising with Palestinians, it’s about Israel's role as an oppressive power on the African continent. In this video, Ahjamu Umi of @aaprpinternational, gives some clear examples of both. From Uganda’s clash with Israel in the 1970s to Tel Aviv arming Ethiopia to counter a pro-Palestinian Eritrea. He also highlights how Israel, along with the US, arms and trains African police. That’s why you’ll see them kitted out like the Israeli Defence Forces. Israel's links to the continent run deep and Ahjamu ends by saying, 'a conscious African needs to be anti-Zionist.' Do you agree?

On 15 May, 10 police agencies arrested several people, including Professor Tiffany Willoughby-Herard, at the University of California, Irvine, during a pro-Palestine protest that began occupying a university building. Police also cleared a more than 2-week-old student encampment outdoors. UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman’s statement said students’ escalation required police action. The demonstrators, like many across the US, demand the University of California (UC) system divest $32 billion, or 18 per cent of its $175 billion in assets, from Israel. The system invests in weapons manufacturers, asset manager BlackRock, Coca-Cola, Disney and 22 other companies that either do business or invest in Israel, according to an EdSource.org review of the UC system’s investments. In April, Gillman stated the institution would not boycott or divest from Israel. The UC system educates 280,000 students on 10 campuses in California and other facilities outside the US state.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has blasted a bid for his arrest for war crimes. The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court wants him detained, along with his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, for a list of alleged atrocities. They include the ‘starvation of civilians’ and ‘intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population’. Netanyahu accused the ICC of creating ‘a twisted and false moral equivalence’ with H*mas. Karim Khan also filed applications for the arrest of three H*mas leaders, accusing them of murder, taking hostages, rape and other acts of sexual violence. The resistance group also hit back, saying Khan was trying to ‘equate the victim with the executioner.’ US President Joe Biden doubled down on support for Tel Aviv, saying the allegations against its ally were ‘outrageous’. In terms of what happens next, ICC pre-trial judges will now weigh up if there’s enough evidence to issue arrest warrants. It could take months before a decision is made. Meanwhile, the death toll in Gaza has hit 35,562 - mostly women and children- since the October 7 escalation in the 76-year occupation of Palestine by Israel. Over 7,000 are missing, believed to be buried under the rubble. Ninety-seven journalists and 224 humanitarian aid workers, including 179 staff from UN relief agency UNRWA, have also been killed. Israel’s 17-year blockade of the strip has caused a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, where the entire population is starving, and one in three children is severely malnourished. On Friday, a UN agency report said only 300 aid trucks had entered Gaza since Israel began its recent assault on Rafah. Its population of 1.3-million desperate Palestinians are trapped on the border with Egypt. Whatever Netanyahu says, he cannot hide the scale of devastation he’s unleashed.

When it comes to Israel and Palestine, which side is Egypt on? Cairo says it will join South Africa’s case of g*n*cide against Tel Aviv at the International Court of Justice. But at the same time, pro-Palestinian protesters have faced a crackdown in the North African country. According to the Egyptian Network for Human Rights, dozens of citizens have been detained. On top of that, Gazans seeking refuge in Egypt are reportedly being charged $5,000 dollars to cross the border. Ahmed Gonheim looks at the duplicitous stance of Israel’s neighbour.

Spread the word - Burkina Faso is a wonderful place that‘s rich in culture and well worth visiting and living in. That was the message of the country’s president Ibrahim Traoré to a delegation from the African Diaspora Development Institute, led by Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao. They had been invited to experience the sights and sounds of Burkina’s Week of Natural Culture. In his address to the guests, Traoré said the world’s media had it in for his country and Africa in general, painting our continent as a bad place where only terrible things happen. He urged his audience to counter that narrative by acting as ambassadors for Burkina back at home and telling the truth about what they experienced during their stay. His message is that Burkina Faso is home to all Africans, including in the diaspora. Traoré isn’t blind to Burkina’s - or Africa’s - problems. But he’s clear that outside meddling has fanned divisions - and that Pan-African unity is the best way forward. See you in Ouagadougou?

In this exclusive African Stream interview, Pan-African organiser with @aaprpinternational, Ajamu Umi, argues Zionism was created and used AGAINST Jewish people. He says Zionists believed the persecution of Jews and expulsion from Europe strengthened the case for a Jewish national state in Palestine. On that basis, the movement’s founders encouraged countries, including N*zi Germany, to target them. Ajamu mentions Lenni Brenner’s book, Zionism in the Age of Dictators. It sheds light on the movement’s relationship with f*scist and N*zi regimes in the early 20th century. And this clip certainly spells out what it’s about. A history lesson you won’t get in school.

After overcoming multiple obstacles, the United Kingdom will begin deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda within several weeks. Housing the first 300 deportees in the African state may cost the UK more than 600 million pounds. Human-right organisations have criticised the scheme as a violation of human rights, while the UK Supreme Court ruled in November that the initiative is ‘unlawful’ and raised questions about the safety of deportees. Here, African Stream reacts to two videos. One is of a British reporter from The Sun tabloid newspaper visiting a Rwandan hostel set to receive deportees. Another is of a British minister defending the scheme despite admitting to not knowing the difference between Rwanda and Congo.

Before slavery, Africans ate healthy organic foods from the land. However, colonial powers changed that and fed slaves high-starch foods in the belief it would boost labour output. Unfortunately, high levels of carbs remain in many people’s diets, generating a tonne of health problems. Listen to holistic health expert Dr Llaika Afrika explain the history behind what we eat.

Speaking on our recent Pan-African Attitude podcast, Kambale Musavuli, analyst at the Center for Research on the Congo-Kinshasa, argued Rwandan President Paul Kagame is a modern-day Belgian King Leopold II, who was known for maiming Congolese as he colonised the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to exploit its natural resources. @kambale, a Congolese native and one of the DRC’s leading cultural and political voices, told African Stream’s team on 22 April that Rwanda is the central transit hub of Congo’s mineral wealth, a fact that Kagame himself has admitted to. And, just as Leopold ruthlessly extracted Congo’s rubber to supply the United States’ booming automotive industry more than a century ago, Musavuli said Kagame ensures the West’s environmentally friendly transition by allowing the smuggling of Congolese minerals to power electric vehicles (EVs) that don’t emit greenhouse gases. According to UN reports, the smuggling business is an economic incentive Kigali uses to finance and arm the M23 militia group.

Donisha Rita-Claire Prendergast, Jamaican actress, model, dancer and poet, is the granddaughter of the late reggae icon, Bob Marley (1945-81). In this interview with @inweblood_, she spoke about the political power of Rastafari. The Afrocentric Abrahamic religion began in Jamaica and served as a counter-culture under British colonial oppression. Calling reggae music a ‘child of Rastafari,’ Prendergast said anti-apartheid fighters referred to her grandfather’s songs during the struggle in South Africa. @iamdonisha went on to say colonial culture has long ostracised Rastafari because its goal is African and human liberation.

Dr. Claud Anderson discussed the state of Black people in the United States and his book, ‘A Black History Reader,’ on the Rock Newman Show. During this clip from the 2018 interview, Anderson highlighted the remarkable resilience of Africans who survived slavery and apartheid. They achieved a feat that stands as one of the world’s most outstanding academic achievements: Reducing the nearly 100 per cent imposed illiteracy rate by half in the first 30 years after slavery’s abolition. What do you think of the feats Black people have achieved in the United States despite centuries of slavery and apartheid? Let us know in the comments.

Malcolm X would have turned 99 today. It’s as good excuse as any to revisit this gem of a clip. In it, X explains why it is so vital that “so-called Negros” in the US identify as AFRICANS. It’s part of his famous 1964 ‘Ballot or Bullet’ speech, in which he argued that voting rights are a potent weapon if exercised right - and that unity amongst Africans in America can be leveraged to force politicians to accept their demands and agenda once in office. However, despite his rhetoric, he was also sceptical about whether the electoral process could really bring about genuine racial justice for Africans in America. His speech was made in the same year as his trips to Africa, which gave him a greater understanding of the need to internationalise the struggle and connect it to the independence of continental Africans. Do you think Africans in America have a real chance of achieving their aims through elections in the US today, or do X’s words still ring true?

Here’s a question: should Black Americans support NATO? We’d love to hear your answers in the comments, but before posting, have a listen to TikTok commentariat member @prodigalsun3. In this clip, he answers that question with a rather good (in our book) analogy.

It’s difficult to watch this heartbreaking interview of a traumatised girl in a displacement camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Fighting back tears, she tells how even here isn’t safe, with rebels frequently carrying out kidnappings. She bears what can best be described as the ‘face’ of the Congo. An innocent child scarred by the daily horrors of the long-running conflict that’s impacted millions of defenceless Congolese. The country’s east is one of the most dangerous places in the world for women and girls. There’s the ever-present danger of rape, abduction or murder as they go in search of food and other essentials. As as this sister reveals, conditions in displacement camps are no better. They’re often overcrowded and unhygienic, with inadequate facilities for the protection of vulnerable refugees. More than 25 million people – a quarter of DR Congo’s population – don’t have enough to eat. Cholera and measles are spreading, worsened by floods induced by an El Niño weather pattern. Over seven million have been displaced, and millions of children cannot go to school due to threats to their safety and forced recruitment by rebels. A December 2023 UN report found Rwanda responsible for arming and funding the M23 militia, one of the groups fighting to control the mineral-rich eastern region of DR Congo. Western multi-nationals have also been accused of fuelling and profiting from the conflict, by purchasing illegally extracted minerals from the country.