South Sudan’s war horrors in Equatoria: Unborn babies were ripped out of women’s womb, bodies being dumped in wells
Politicians from South Sudan capital, Juba, have accused of supporting the formation of an Avungura-led militia in Western Equatoria reportedly backed by troops loyal to President Salva Kiir’s party, while a mostly Balanda militia was created with alleged support from opposition forces. Both sides want to manage the state ahead...
How South Sudan’s peace deal between President Kiir and his deputy Machar sparked conflict in town spared by civil war
The remote county of Tambura, in the breadbasket state of Western Equatoria, went largely unscathed during five years of devastating conflict in South Sudan that killed almost 400,000 people. But the county that survived a civil war has fared less well in a time of peace, as a fragile 2018...
Coming to America II: Tales of broken dreams, despair and attempted suicide in US refugee centres
Between 2017 and 2020, however, the Trump administration slashed refugee admissions to historic lows and starved resettlement agencies of funding. Around 130 resettlement agency offices – or nearly 40 per cent of the total in communities across the US – closed their doors, and many others had to lay off...
Coming to America: The shattered dreams of Afghan refugees running away from despotic Taliban regime at home
As the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan late last summer, Qassim Rahimi packed the odds and ends of his life into bags and joined the crowds forming at the gates of Hamid Karzai International Airport in the capital, Kabul. Forty-eight hours later, the 33-year-old left his lifelong home behind in...
Voices from Africa: Sall says ‘Black Panther’ inspired integration of culture and indigenous knowledge in science
In this article of this eight-part series about the career experiences of African women scientists, Khady Sall explains how seeing the 2018 superhero film Black Panther contributed to her decision to return to her native Senegal and develop her career there. The film depicts an African nation, posing as a...
Voices from Africa: Moruping tells fellow women to ask mentors specific questions, not use them as sounding boards
Pontsho Maruping, deputy managing director of operations and business processes at the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) in Cape Town, describes a career transition from mining to space, and how she juggles the expectations of male and female colleagues. I call myself a career nomad. I started out in...
Voices from Africa: Policy committees of Kenyan universities are typically dominated by men, young female researchers are excluded
Some Kenyans have a tendency to equate quietness with being nice, says analytical environmental chemist Veronica Okello at Machakos University in Kenya. She urges young researchers to be less timid, air their views and approach their professors for professional opportunities. In this seventh article of eight describing the career experiences...
Dying in Haiti: A gangland where UN and International aid agencies hire armed criminal escorts to ferry food to the needy
United Nations relief organisations occasionally in Haiti employ armed escorts to cross gang-blocked roads, such as in Martissant. But getting commercial security companies to help train aid groups in hostile environments and driver safety in Haiti has been a challenge. Many firms have refused to work here, or charge exorbitant...
In Haiti, when nature is not violent it’s armed criminal gangs that dish out violence, render government irrelevant
Haiti’s surge in gang violence and kidnappings is forcing aid organisations to rethink shipment routes, staff risks, and security costs – and to consider the ethical and safety implications of trusting leaders of armed gangs who say they can help. This phenomenon isn’t unique to Haiti, and is notably prevalent...
35 years after nuclear leak, some animal and plant species in Russia seem to be faring well after adapting to the radiation
The debate n Chernobyl radiation accident in Russia is largely in the gray area in between: At what radiation levels does significant harm kick in, and for which species? Since different species may respond very differently to radiation, “it’s not black and white,” says radioecologist Christelle Adam-Guillermin of France’s Radioprotection...
