Dossier articles from the past 3 months
Suriname is a unitary Republic with executive power vested in the President of the Republic, who is elected by the members of parliament for a five-year term; while the Chamber, composed of 51 seats, has legislative power. The 51 members of the assembly are chosen from the ten electoral districts into which the country is…
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It is the smallest country in South America with a population of just over 600,000 inhabitants and a population rate that has been steadily decreasing since 1970. About 245,000 people live in Paramaribo, the capital. Located near the mouth of the 480 km long Suriname River that crosses the country from south to east, colonial…
Read moreThe period of Dutch colonization made the country one of the main crossroads of both the slave trade and the migration of labour to be employed in plantations and mines, leaving as a legacy the multi-ethnicity dictated by the mixing of cultures, languages, and religions. This, however, has had little effect on the divisions between…
Read moreSuriname is a country rich in natural resources in terms of biodiversity, fresh water, raw materials, and cultural heritage. The mining sector is linked to the extraction of bauxite, gold (which is extracted from the alluvial deposits of Saramacca and Lawa), silver, nickel, and crude oil (which is extracted from an offshore field off the…
Read moreThe oil industry is at the heart of the Angolan economy. But it benefits only the political business elite; it has a great impact on the environment and reserves will run out by 2050. The Angolan model of economic development – as ‘extractivist’ – based on the exploitation of natural resources, in particular oil, diamonds,…
Read moreSince independence, the Church has been somewhat close to the MPLA, although it has always opposed civil war and worked for reconciliation. A turning point in relations between the Church and the MPLA took place in 2015 when protesters who supported the activists of the Angolan Political Prisoner Support Group tried to gather on the…
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The result of next August’s elections cannot be taken for granted. About 14 million Angolans will be called to choose the president of the republic and their parliamentary representatives for the next five years. It is estimated that at least a fifth of the young voters will go to the polls for the first time;…
Read moreIn the African context, Angola, a country with a population of over 33 million inhabitants, has always represented in one a mirage and a contradiction: the mirage of overflowing riches from oil and diamonds but also a contradiction due to the poverty of its peoples. War has always been the master: from 1961 to 1975…
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They have lost the prophetic voice they had in the days of apartheid. They have no longer been able to effectively guide the action of politics. Too many gaps to bridge. The death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu on St Stephens Day 2021, occasioned many reflections on his public witness, his prophetic leadership in the anti-apartheid…
Read moreThe country is divided between two worlds, the world of the poor and the world of the middle class. To understand South Africa, it is important to recognise this. The economy, health care, education and the social life of South Africa is divided into these two worlds. When COVID struck, the impact on these two…
Read moreThe former president faces two important trials. At the moment, he has only been in prison for three weeks. The strategy is to extend the trial time in order to prevent him from returning to prison because of his advanced age. In June 2021 Jacob Zuma, President of South Africa from 2009 to 2018, was…
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Next December, the African National Congress will hold its five-yearly elective conference. President Cyril Ramaphosa will be looking for a second term as party leader, in view of the 2024 general elections. Weakened by internal struggles and weak governance, the African National Congress may split in two at the December congress. For many political parties…
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When asked how a farmer’s daughter who became a Catholic nun ended up as one of Brazil’s most influential refugee advocates, Sister Rosita Milesi, 79,…
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Vusi was an honest man and a hard worker. He had cleared a large piece of moorland and turned it into a beautiful fertile field. He…
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On 24 November, the Solemnity of Christ the King, on the occasion of World Youth Day in the Particular Churches, in St. Peter's Basilica the traditional…
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