Neglected News

In today's world, news is strongly filtered into a 'soundbitesize' chunk of evening news. Even respected, in-depth news agencies such as BBC World rarely report on national politics or events in, say, Uruguay or Laos. Feeling somewhat frustrated that there are vast parts of the world that I'm clueless about, I decided to check things out. As it turns out, World Newspapers is an excellent portal for this sort of thing. I used it to find the following top stories for the countries of Africa:


Algeria
A Saudi prince was killed in the Algerian desert (29 Nov)
Angola
President defends anti-HIV/AIDS law (27 Nov)
Benin
Benin Republic Accuses Nigeria of Breaking Trade Treaty (26 Nov)
Botswana
3-meter high electric fence raised to keep Zimbabweans out (30 Nov)
Burkina Faso
President of Cote d'Ivoire visits for peace talks (26 Nov)
Burundi
UN Team pleads for help to this now peaceful country (25 Nov)
Cameroon
Nigeria won't hand over disputed border area (26 Nov)
Cape Verde
Getting poorer despite growing economy, says report (24 Nov)
Central African Republic
South African Foreign Minister promises reconciliation help after civil conflicts (28 Nov)
Chad
Government gets World Bank money for oil, under condition of constructive spending (27 Nov)
Congo
200 die in boat accident (29 Nov)
Cote d'Ivoire
Human Rights Watch says government supports militia groups (27 Nov)
Djibouti
Country Set to Become Biggest US Aid Recipient in Africa (11 Nov)
Egypt
Arsenal soccer team trains in Cairo (24 Nov)
Equatorial Guinea
French journalist released with no charges after 8 days (12 Nov)
Eritrea
Troops marching toward Ethiopia (28 Nov)
Ethiopia
Ethiopian UNAIDS head gives interview (29 Nov)
Gabon
Foreign Minister to go on African tour (24 Nov)
Gambia
Director of Operations for National Intelligence Agency fired on fraud charges (17 Nov)
Ghana
Anglican Church opposes unnatural carnal behavior (26 Nov)
Guinea
Soccer team to play other African teams (22 Nov)
Guinea Bissau
UN Peace-Builder to stay around for another year (20 Nov)
Kenya
Business tycoon accused of murder (29 Nov)
Lesotho
Union sues government for shooting at demonstrator (26 Nov)
Liberia
Capital has electricity and the airport is open again, say UN (29 Nov)
Lybia
Gadaffi asked to help in Ethiopian/Eritrean peace talks (24 Nov)
Madagascar
Receives grant to protect biodiversity (24 Nov)
Malawi
President asked to help in internal Zimbabwean conflict (25 Nov)
Mali
Cholera outbreak kills 82 in 4 months (26 Nov)
Mauritania
Soccer supporters went on looting spree (18 Nov)
Mauritius
Association for Development of Education in Africa holds Biennial Meeting (26 Nov)
Morocco
Baja Casablanca soccer teams wins last ever CAF Cup (24 Nov)
Mozambique
Attorney general's office denounces crime and media's pressure on a trial (29 Nov)
Namibia
Anonymous letter circulates calling for President Sam Nujoma to be impeached (27 Nov)
Niger
Nigerian state repatriates beggars from Niger (20 Nov)
Nigeria
BMWs donated to government by local industry (30 Nov)
Rwanda
Four Rwandan officers on trial before UN Tribunal (29 Nov)
Sao Tome and Principe
Working together with Nigeria on mutual development plan (17 Nov)
Senegal
Youssou N'Dour releases Islamic album (22 Nov)
Seychelles
Murder of three women raises women's issues in parliament (25 Nov)
Sierra Leone
Police confiscates newspaper's equipment as damages for libel case (25 Nov)
Somalia
UN pleads for funds to fight what is feared to be worst drought in 2 decades (26 Nov)
South Africa
Well-known musician will take public AIDS test on World AIDS Day (30 Nov)
Sudan
Heavy fighting between rebels and militia forces --210 dead (28 Nov)
Swaziland
New prime minister considered good businessman (17 Nov)
Tanzania
Received $20 million for vaccination (27 Nov)
Togo
Elections announced, to be boycotted by opposition parties (11 Nov)
Tunisia
UN Human Rights envoy concerned by harassment of Tunisian lawyer (26 Nov)
Uganda
Army representative in parliament quits amid corruption charges (29 Nov)
Western Sahara
Western Sahara UN representative, Alvaro de Soto, holds talks today in Algeria (18 Nov)
Zambia
Parliament moves to castrate child rapists (29 Nov)
Zimbabwe
Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) has all but collapsed due to political differences (30 Nov)


There are definitely stories here that I'd liked to have heard. What's more, some items are intriguing and put Africa in a new light. I'll try to check out another continent soon. And let's all thank the Internet for making this information accessible.

Posted by cronopio at 01:21 AM, December 01, 2003