To prove that there's always no shortage of interesting little conflicts around the world that most of us don't really know about, here's a good description of the problem in Western Sahara, a territory in North Africa that has been occupied by neighboring Morocco since 1975. While the main focus is on yet another revelation by WikiLeaks about US international affairs, this post gives a decent overview of what basically amounts to colonization, something the writer says in the 2nd to last paragraph. Morocco is ironically one of the more liberal and stable Muslim and North Africa states, unlike sketchy Libya or Egypt or Saudi Arabia, yet what its actions in the Western Sahara go beyond what any of those other states have done.

Former NY Times foreign correspondent Howard French writes a sad commentary on the decline of the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire). The beleaguered West African country, known for being Dider Drogba's homeland, cocoa and a civil war that raged through the 90s, was in the news recently for its electoral problems. Defeated incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept his loss in the presidential election and claims the results are void. What is especially noteworthy in French's article is his comparison between Ivory Coast and Asian countries, which in the past actually favored the African country. It is hard to believe now that back in the 60s and 70s, West African countries like Ivory Coast were wealthier than China and Malaysia and even South Korea in terms of GDP per capita. While those Asian countries have gone on and become richer and more modern, countries like Ivory Coast seem to have regressed. Still, the instant and critical response of West African and African bodies, as well as the US, to the current power-grab is a sign of hope.

The Prime Minister of an actual country, albeit a tiny and recent one (independent since 2008), is the head of a "mafia-like" smuggling and human organ ring, according to a Guardian story citing a Council of Europe report on organized crime. That's right, Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi is "identified as the boss of a network that began operating criminal rackets in the runup to the 1999 Kosovo war." The report says that a "handful" of Serbs were killed for their organs by this criminal group. This network still holds sway over the country's government. This has to be a new low for a politician in modern times, at least since Liberia's Charles Taylor of the 1990s. While the Serbs, at that time Kosovo was a part of Serbia, did commit significant barbarities including mass killings, little attention was paid on Kosovan fighters who also did some nasty stuff of their own. This is the latest revelation about turmoil and violence in the Balkan region that made up the former Yugoslav Republic. Meanwhile, Kosovo's government denies the allegations.

Here's an interesting story of a Russian self-styled militia group who waged war against police in a remote region near China. They did this because of alleged brutality and corruption amongst police, including against the members of the group. It's quite a crazy and tragic story but they had the support of many members of the public.

In a startling attack yesterday, North Korea bombarded a South Korean island, killing 2 Marines and 2 civilians, raising significant fears of a war. Unlike their previous provocations, this was a direct attack on South Korean soil, and may cause the South to retaliate directly. On the other hand, the sinking of a South Korean warship with the death of 46 crewmen by most presumably, North Korea didn't cause war to break out so if the North backs down then maybe Seoul will not try to push things. This is unfortunate because North Korea seems to have this trend of making threats and carrying out provocations a lot, whether to get attention or aid. Even worse, is that in the past they've carried out much deadlier attacks, even on civilian targets, and Seoul and the West have been reluctant to do much. The North is a true rogue regime, that doesn't care about other countries or its own people, and it's very unfortunate that it has remained in power until now.

UNESCO seems to have come to its sense with this move, but they shouldn't have had a prize named after this dictator in the first place. Equatorial Guinea's leader Obiang has had a lot of human rights abuses happen under his reign, as quite a few non-fiction books on Africa have mentioned him in detail. Would they let Saddam Hussein or Robert Mugabe fund prizes?

The Democratic Republic of Congo has seen a lot of tragedy since what seems like ... forever, and the bad news doesn't seem to cease. Mass rapes has been in the Western limelight recently, but it remains to be seen what action will be taken. It's been deemed as a weapon of war, which seems to be quite obvious, and the sad thing is these aren't new.

In a bold gesture, the Nobel Committee awarded Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo the Nobel Peace Prize. Liu, who helped draft Charter 08, a manifesto which advocates political reform and human rights that was signed by thousands of Chinese intellectuals and activists, is currently imprisoned as part of an 11-year term while his wife is under house arrest. Understadably this infuriated China, but it's also gotten some Chinese upset and brought on some criticism from commentators. Of course, it's also an opportunity for Chinese to mock their government. However, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao made some waves of his own with a surprising call for reform earlier this week. One wonders whether it's genuine or an attempt to mitigate global anger and criticism of China.

The notorious Lord's Resistance Army, the rebel group run by a crazed "Christian" lunatic who kidnaps children as soldiers and sex slaves in Uganda, may be down but it's not out. Unfortunately its dispersed forces have spread to surrounding countries, including Southern Sudan. This area will go to the polls in a referendum to determine whether they'll secede from Sudan and form a new nation. Incidentally, US President Barack Obama warned Sudan's leaders Friday to let the process go along smoothly. Instability and poverty are the main problems, and the first factor is why the LRA can affect proceedings.

There's a storm brewing within India and it's been getting stronger in recent years. No, not Kashmir, but a rejuvenated Maoist Communist insurgency that has seen over 10,000 killed in the past 10 years and compelled the PM Manmohan Singh to send in 2009 "almost 100,000 new paramilitary troops and police to contain" the rebels. Read on in this Foreign Policy piece exploring this civil insurgency driven by socioeconomic inequality and resource-rich but poor areas. If nothing else, at least you'll learn of such a thing as a reporter carrying a gun, 90-year-old underground fires still burning on, and a provincial chief minister who allegedly stole US$1 billion from the state.

Thought to be on the decline, the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda has killed about 2,500 people and abducted almost 700 children in the past 18 months, recently-released human rights reports have highlighted. Some interesting possible scenarios are mentioned, such as the US lending intelligence support, having an international or regional armed force go after LRA leader Joseph Kony and that the LRA might be looking for support from Sudan. Also interesting is the theory that the LRA continues to kill and terrorize civilians simply to maintain itself, "as a way to socialize and indoctrinate their soldiers." The LRA is a brutal rebel group and with not even a pretense of any ideological or territorial goals but killing and kidnapping children, the sooner regional authorities can cooperate to wipe them out, the better.

Three years after the great global financial crisis, what's changed? According to this Guardian opinion piece, not that much. Of course, banks are much more cautious and less free-spending than before, but the overall system remains the same. Would another crisis happen again in the future if no big changes are made to our global financial system, or would the current caution be enough to ensure eternal security? As China and Asia look set to continue their growth and take up a greater role through more local consumption and demand, some might be tempted to think that ensures a rosy future and eliminates the need for any radical rethink in the global economic system. We'll see.

Spain's Catalonia region made headlines earlier this week for officially banning bullfighting from 2012. This act goes beyond just boosting animal rights activists but is a form of defiance towards Spain's central government. This Guardian piece gives an interesting description of the region and its disdain for its own country, with some Catalans even going so far as to hope for a Spanish loss in the World Cup final. It should be remembered that Spain's victory in that final was heralded by some media figures as something to unite a nation that is at odds with itself. This article shows that it'll take more than a World Cup to overcome Catalanonia's sense of separation.

Ghana might be in store for some better times, economically speaking, as production of a large offshore oil field is set to start in 6 months' time but already there are some worrying signs ("illicit capital flight") that the oil bonanza may not benefit the nation as much as expected as the LRB blog post linked above talks about possibly shady offshore ownership.

A leak of over 90,000 internal documents seemingly confirms what many assume in the past few years- that the Afghanistan war is getting worse, not better. Among the negative events revealed in the papers - a secret U.S. task force dedicated to hunting down top Taliban commanders, attacks by Western allies that have killed hundreds of civilians and concrete signs of Pakistan "fueling" the Taliban insurgency, the latter being something that doesn't come as a surprise given the suspicions and strong criticism issued by the U.S. over the years. Read here for how the leak took place, a major event in itself.

South Korea finally came out and stated what seemed to be quite obvious, that the North torpedoed and sank their warship 2 months ago. Now, South Korea is going to take the case to the U.N. and try to take hard action against the North such as imposing unilateral sanctions. The hard part is, that short of some sort of military action or declaring war, there is nothing much the South can do. North Korea is already in such a wretched state, being one of the most isolated nations, if not the most, in the world and it's led by a regime headed by a dictator who doesn't seem to give a damn about his people's welfare. Another factor constricting the South is the North's patron China is very reluctant to accede to any strong actions against Pyongyang. This apparently perplexes the South who feel that their relations with China have been improving, but for Beijing, they probably see the North as being one of the few nations who will side with them no matter what and even upholding good relations with the South, who are an American ally, won't be enough to change that.
However, if China wants to maintain or build up its status as a world power, they need to step up geopolitically and exercise leadership in matters that aren't just about economics and trade such as this crisis between two of their closest neighbors.

After all the fears and worries, the World Cup will soon start in South Africa. In a rather upbeat article, the BBC looks at how Africa managed to finally get this World Cup.

Two leading developing nations have experienced significant problems that raise the deep troubles in their societies, whether it's raced-based or socio-economic.


The killing of a white supremacist leader in South Africa has stirred up tremendous anger and fears of racist violence, providing a stark illustration that racist tensions have still not been entirely eliminated in this diverse but troubled nation.

Speaking about troubled nation, Thailand has been plagued by a continuous large-scale demonstration by opposition "Red Shirt" supporters in the capital that has led to violence and deaths. The situation is tense as the protests show no signs of abating and the protesters appear to have received some sort of support from the military head who has called for parliament to be dissolved. This ongoing protest, the latest in a series of protests from different sides over the past few years, is the result of deep fissures in the country between generally speaking, its rural and lower-income peoples and urban, middle and upper-classes.

The Atlantic's Robert D. Kaplan's latest piece is on the top American general in Afghanistan and why he thinks the country is still salvageable. Stanley McChrystal, a special forces commander who previously served in Iraq with an impressive record, seems to really believe in the possibility of victory, that accomplishing key objectives, such as holding on to areas "where the water and the roads are," and staying for the long-term, will help bring peace and defeat the Taliban. Kaplan, a renowned world affairs expert who has written many books on foreign nations including on Afghanistan and the famous essay The Coming Anarchy, writes some surprising things about Afghanistan, such as its coherent sense of nationalism and the desire of its people for modernity and stability. Not surprisingly, Afghan leader Hamid Karzai is described as weak and incompetent, allowing corruption to thrive due to his dependence on and empowerment of warlords. The article also shows the attempts by the U.S. military to boost the competency of the Afghan military through fostering U.S.-Afghan teamwork and letting the Afghans undertake operations for themselves (a novel concept, I'm sure).

In the form of a book review, Joshua Kurlantzick explains why Thailand is on the verge of possible breakup. He explores the basic conflict between the "Reds" and "Yellows," the mass groups of protesters who respectively, basically support and oppose deposed former Premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Kurlantzick also mentions the growing Islamic insurgency in the southern provinces, who are culturally and religion-wise distinct from the rest of the country. The article does well to explain the nuances of the Red-Yellow division, outlining the shortcomings and wrongdoings in both sides. In the end, this deep chasm, based on socio-economic and urban-rural fissures, may prove too much for the nation to survive, Kurlantzick says in a bleak prognosis.

This Foreign Policy article makes a controversial argument that Africa's wars
are unstoppable, because they're not about fighting for freedom or against oppression anymore, but only for plunder, women and territory. Gone are the great rebel leaders of the past such as southern Sudan's John Garang and Uganda's Yoweri Museveni, instead there are only rapacious and vicious warlords such as the LRA's Joseph Kony in Uganda whose supposedly Christian militia has indulged in rape, child capture and mutilation. The article is compelling though it has a sort of simplistic and sensationalistic style.

Is this world full of war? This photo essay from Foreign Policy magazine shows that
this is an affirmative, at least for 33 places. The usual suspects, such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, the DR Congo, formerly Zaire, and the Central Caucasus are covered, but others like Thailand and Nepal make the cut as well. Insurgencies in Iran and India Kashmir are also included. On the other hand, it is surprising to see Peru and Northern Ireland mentioned, which though they have had long-running civil conflicts, seem to be undergoing periods of relative peace.
There are a lot of stunning pictures, see photo 17, and the captions provide brief but detailed info.

Private armies or militias are still in vogue in the Philippines, as this NY Times piece shows with a little political family feud. While these feuds mostly arise from political battles, these conflicts sometimes grow to include Muslim insurgents. The article suggests that the Arroyo government is not too serious about disbanding these private militias, especially as allies of Arroyo use them. It is a pity, especially in light of the massacre of all those journalists and civilians in Nov.

The country of Niger, located in West Africa, suffered a coup last Thursday that removed the country's president Mamadou Tandja from power. The overthrow was conducted by military officers and is seen as a favorable event by some in the country, including by an opposition leader. This is mainly due to Tandja's changing of constitutional rules to allow him to serve beyond his legal term limit. This audacious move even led to condemnation from its fellow West African nations as it was suspended from Ecowas (Economic Community Of West African States).
It remains to be seen how the military junta that has taken over will react in the coming days and months.

Newsweek has an interview with former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, who now serves as the U.N. special envoy to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It's not too long but one of the best remarks is when Obasanjo is asked on China's "colonization" of Africa. First he directly criticizes the use of the term, then he says "We regard America and Europe as old friends. We keep old friends but we make new friends in Japan, India, and China."
New friends and old friends indeed. A rather smart way of describing relations with the West and Asia in a positive manner without showing any preference, if you ask me.

A perfect graphical representation of why India still lags significantly behind China, much less the developed world. This is a photo essay of child laborers working in the capital city New Delhi on construction sites. The city is undergoing a wave of construction for the Commonwealth Games in October and desperate contractors are using children to finish the sites on time. They work alongside their parents who are also laborers, but still a wretched and disturbing situation nevertheless.

Kind of late, but this piece by Howard French on the Congo war and the role of Rwanda is a very eye-opening read. French reviews three 2009 books on the Congo crisis, that provide a more nuanced and informative explanation of the fighting and instability in that troubled Central African country.

A troubling look into the problems at diamond mines in Zimbabwe, where violence, rape and extortion are alleged to have been committed by government forces to take control of the mining. While attempts have been made by diamond companies to refuse purchasing diamonds directly from these mines, smugglers are able to take them across the borders to neighboring countries like Mozambique and sell them illegally and profitably.

A new report by advocacy group Global Witness states that violence, rapes and forced displacement of hundreds of thousands in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is linked to multinational mining companies. An area rich in minerals and other natural resources, violence, poverty and disaster have been an unavoidable fate of many of its locals.
Here's a good summary on the report on the HuffPost.

Also on the HuffPost, a list of 10 top stories to watch for in Africa.

Paul Krugman sees a bleak immediate future for the U.S. economy-wise in this piece. As he said, blips happen even in the worst economic times, because when economic activity dropped as deeply as it did last year, then a little jump or improvement is not surprising. The question is how sustainable it can be, and my feeling is it's not. It's funny when everytime there is some slight rise, or a decline that is not as deep as expected in the U.S., such as with unemployment figures or holiday shopping, there are industry pundits and media reports that highlight optimism, as if they expect things will return to normal very soon.

The visit by Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to meet Syrian leader Bashar Assad in Damascus a little over 2 weeks ago- sign of great relations between the two neighbors or an indication of how strong and menacing Syria still is to Lebanon, as Michael Totten and this Weekly Standard piece say.