All rights are equal but some rights are more equal than others. FIFA and the Qatar authorities are justly under fire for restrictions on LGBT rights and their treatment of migrant labourers. But nothing is said about the abuse of rights to religious freedom, a world-wide problem as well as one local to Qatar and…

The reconfirmation of Xi Jinping as Secretary General of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) opens an unprecedented season for China and the world, as no one before him had been reconfirmed for the third time for this position. This undoubtedly constitutes a signal of internal strengthening of the current leadership, which has managed to prevail…

In recent years, Egyptians seemed to have become resigned to their country’s social, economic, and political trajectory. Under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the country has undergone massive aesthetic changes through an infrastructure overhaul and experienced bursts of economic revival amid a widespread malaise regarding social and political issues. For much of the past decade, Egyptians…

Despite the geographical distance involved, over the last five decades Latin America has become a significant area for the foreign policy of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Chinese expansion in Latin America is strictly interconnected with the country’s rise as a global power. Since the first diplomatic ties were established in the 1970s, the…

The development of nuclear technology to power electricity generation was hailed as a triumph of modern technology. We can never forget and not be on our guard from the history that nuclear power was first used in the atom bomb that wiped out two Asian cities in World War II. The horrific death of almost…

Illegal logging is a growing feature of transnational organized crime in Africa, often facilitated by the collusion of senior officials, with far-reaching security and environmental implications for the countries affected. African countries are estimated to lose $17 billion to illegal logging each year. This is part of a global market with an economic value of…

“Tribal wars”, “ethnic conflicts”, “racial conflicts”. To explain the reasons for the violence between different communities, identity and cultural oppositions are brought up. But there are always economic reasons and ambitions for power at the basis of any disagreement. The divisions of human groups have no scientific basis. According to the French anthropologist Jean-Loup Amselle,…

On November 4, 2020, a new war began in Ethiopia. Just three years earlier, the country had signed a peace agreement with neighbouring Eritrea that earned Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019. The current conflict, which pits the central government against a coalition of its Kililochs (region-states), has caused thousands…

The Colombian presidential election showed a clear victory for the centre-left candidate Gustavo Petro. Although it was by only 3 points, it is a difference that avoids the disputes that would have arisen if it had been closer.  It should be noted that the winning candidate, in the days before the election, mentioned the possibility…

At the height of the numerous protests that have swept through Sri Lanka over the past 4 months, a crowd of protesters stormed the presidential palace in the capital Colombo, forcing President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee. Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is elected as the ninth President via a parliamentarian election. Uncertain future. On Saturday…

Total world military expenditure increased fractionally in 2021 to reach $2 113 billion, surpassing the $2 trillion mark for the first time, new research by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has revealed. Military spending also increased in Africa. SIPRI saw the seventh consecutive year of spending increases, with the five largest spenders last…

An unprecedented initiative that provokes contrasting opinions and evaluations. A double standard in migration policy.  There have been reactions both in favour and against the recent agreement between Great Britain and Rwanda regarding asylum seekers in the United Kingdom and their possible diversion to Rwanda. The agreement was signed on April 14th. Regardless of whether…