We have witnessed corruption and cannot imagine a Kenya where looters are in charge
We, the leaders from Mt Kenya region, have gathered here for consultations and to take a common position on our shared political future and destiny ahead of the Azimio La Umoja forum on Friday at Kasarani. We want to thank all the stakeholders who have participated in today’s deliberations. We...
Inequality: Punitive laws hit on sexual orientation, gender identity, HIV status, drug use and sex work
From my life, in my own deepest being, I know the power of stigma, discrimination, hatred and exclusion. And, after 25 years as a judge, I have been witness to three facts. First, the destructive power of stigma and shame. Second, the damage punitive and discriminatory laws inflict on public...
Aids inequality: Punitive laws hit on peoples’ sexual orientation, gender identity, HIV status, drug use and sex work From my life, in my own deepest being, I know the power of stigma, discrimination, hatred and exclusion. And, after 25 years as a judge, I have been witness to three facts....
Access to ARVs is linked to democratic values, rule of law, freedom of expression and freedom to protest
On December 1, we marked World AIDS Day. This year marks a sombre anniversary. On June 5, 2021, it was 40 years since disturbingly unexplained cases of illness and death – later called AIDS – were first officially tabulated. These four decades have yielded enormous medical and scientific progress, but...
How HIV activists transformed response to the global coronavirus pandemic; lessons we have yet to learn
It’s over a year since the World Health Organization declared a worldwide pandemic on March 11, 2020, and only a few months since Pfizer and BioNTech released data showing their vaccine was highly effective at preventing Covid-19, with other companies following soon after. Merely weeks after the initial announcements, shots...
UN agencies have become helpless bystanders in crises – refugee situation in Libya tells it all
The situation for asylum seekers and migrants in Libya has been bad for years, but it recently became even worse. I grew up and live in the capital, Tripoli, where refugees and migrants – most of them from sub-Saharan Africa – have been part of our society for decades. Many...
Ethiopia: PM Abiy Ahmed has option of stepping down or being forced to run into nearest tallest grass
About a year ago, Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Amhed declared war on Tigray region to mop up the Tigray People’s Defence Force (TPLF). Prior to the attack, Abiy had accused the Tigrayan forces of launching an offensive against federal army barracks in Makelle, the regional capital. Within three months, Abiy...
Abdul Qadeer Khan: Nuclear bomb scientist idolised in Pakistan for matching richer nations in defence technology dies
Scientists designing weapons of mass destruction are usually hidden from the public, watched by security and intelligence agencies. Rarely are they powerful celebrities who give interviews and publish their research. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the materials scientist who smuggled nuclear-weapons technology into and then out of Pakistan, attended scientific conferences and...
Facebook: Whistleblowers can have their say, but Big Tech will always have their way and money
Truth be told, predicting the future isn’t my strong suit (and I have a trophy to prove it) – but here’s one prediction I make with full confidence: The latest Facebook revelations, courtesy of whistle-blower Frances Haugen, will have zero impact on regulation. No new laws, no new regulations, no...
Reporting on humanitarian crises can be exploitative and offensive, a fount of lazy and racist tropes
You might think that reporting on humanitarian issues is like any other kind of journalism. But after years of being both an aid worker and a reporter at The New Humanitarian, (and before that, IRIN News), I think it has a special set of rewards and difficulties. First, the international...
