COLOGNE, GERMANY: Thousands of leftist demonstrators tried to disrupt a party congress by Germany’s right-wing populist AfD Saturday marked by festering internal rivalries five months before a general election.
Around 50,000 demonstrators were expected to mobilize during the two-day gathering of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party in the western city of Cologne, with 4,000 police officers dispatched to keep the peace.
But as the 600 delegates began filing into the congress venue, a hotel in the city center, singing and chanting demonstrators attempted to block them from passing through security barricades, leading to scuffles with authorities.
One police officer escorting party members into the suffered an injury to his face, leading to the arrest of a male protester.
The AfD, now represented in 11 of Germany’s 16 states, aims to sign off on a program for its campaign that it hopes will pave the way for the party to enter the national parliament for the first time in its four-year history.
After weeks of bitter infighting, co-leader Frauke Petry made the shock announcement Wednesday that she would not seek to lead the AfD’s campaign. The news left the party reeling and set the stage for a showdown between populist and more radical, hard-right forces.
“(Petry) has been unable to stop the AfD, which began as a party of euro critics, from becoming more and more a catch-all for racists, right-wing nationalists and the far right,” Cologne’s daily Stadt-Anzeiger said.
“The fight within the AfD rages on.”
Founded in 2013 on a euroskeptic platform, the AfD seized on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision to let in more than one million asylum seekers since 2015, transforming the German political landscape.
But its fortunes have declined as the number of new arrivals has dwindled, and all of Germany’s mainstream parties have ruled out working with it should it clear the five-percent hurdle to representation in the September 24 election.
Opinion polls show the AfD at between seven and 11 percent, a steep drop from the 15 percent support it drew only late last year.
Merkel is seeking a fourth term after nearly 12 years in power and her conservative Christian Democrats are currently leading the polls.
The telegenic Petry, a 41-year-old trained chemist who is pregnant with her fifth child, has aligned herself with kindred spirits across Europe, including far-right firebrand Marine Le Pen, one of the frontrunners for the first round of French elections Sunday.
But given the long shadow still cast by Germany’s Nazi past, Petry has argued the AfD must make itself more palatable with a more moderate-sounding “middle-class” platform she will put to a vote at the congress.
The stated goal is to become Germany’s ruling party by 2021.
Denouncing “provocations” by party officials, Petry has called for the ouster of an AfD state leader, Bjoern Hoecke, who in January sparked outrage by slamming Berlin’s vast Holocaust memorial as a “monument of shame.”
Although Hoecke has been barred from attending the congress, some delegates have said they will put forward a motion to keep him in the party.
Petry’s chief rival, 76-year-old Alexander Gauland, a hard-line defector from Merkel’s CDU, has said he would back the initiative.
Analysts say the vast majority of the AfD’s core supporters are far to the right of the political spectrum.
However they say there is little appetite among most German voters for radical change, particularly after the victories of Donald Trump in the United States and the Brexit camp in Britain.
“In terms of its voters, Petry’s attempt to make the AfD a middle-class mainstream party is a very unrealistic strategy,” Robert Vehrkamp of the Bertelsmann Foundation think tank told Spiegel Online.
The news website said the party’s inner turmoil also diminished the threat it posed to the establishment in Europe’s top economy.
“While in the rest of Europe, opponents of immigration and the EU are on the march, the AfD is busy tearing itself apart,” it said.
“That is good news for the traditional parties and the defenders of liberal values in Germany — at least in its current state, no one needs to fear the AfD.”
Clashes as German anti-immigration party AfD stages showdown
Clashes as German anti-immigration party AfD stages showdown
Nuclear arms more prominent amid geopolitical tensions: researchers
- The nine countries are the United States, Russia, the UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel
STOCKHOLM: The role of atomic weapons has become more prominent and nuclear states are modernizing arsenals as geopolitical relations deteriorate, researchers said Monday, urging world leaders to “step back and reflect.”
Diplomatic efforts to control nuclear arms also suffered major setbacks amid strained international relations over the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in its annual yearbook.
“We have not seen nuclear weapons playing such a prominent role in international relations since the Cold War,” Wilfred Wan, director of SIPRI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme, said in a statement.
The research institute noted that in February 2023 Russia announced it was suspending participation in the 2010 New START treaty — “the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty limiting Russian and US strategic nuclear forces.”
SIPRI also noted that Russia carried out tactical nuclear weapon drills close to the Ukrainian border in May.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has upped his nuclear rhetoric since the Ukraine conflict began, warning in his address to the nation in February there was a “real” risk of nuclear war.
In addition, an informal agreement between the United States and Iran reached in June 2023 was upended after the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October, SIPRI said.
According to SIPRI, the world’s nine nuclear-armed states also “continued to modernize their nuclear arsenals and several deployed new nuclear-armed or nuclear-capable weapon systems in 2023.”
The nine countries are the United States, Russia, the UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel.
In January, of the estimated 12,121 nuclear warheads around the world about 9,585 were in stockpiles for potential use, according to SIPRI.
Around 2,100 were kept in a state of “high operational alert” on ballistic missiles.
Nearly all of these warheads belong to Russia and the United States — which together possess almost 90 percent of all nuclear weapons — but China was for the first time believed to have some warheads on high operational alert.
“While the global total of nuclear warheads continues to fall as Cold War-era weapons are gradually dismantled, regrettably we continue to see year-on-year increases in the number of operational nuclear warheads,” SIPRI director Dan Smith said.
He added that this trend would likely continue and “probably accelerate” in the coming years, describing it as “extremely concerning.”
Researchers also stressed the “continuing deterioration of global security over the past year,” as the impact from the wars in Ukraine and Gaza could be seen in “almost every aspect” of issues relating to armaments and international security.
“We are now in one of the most dangerous periods in human history,” Smith said, urging the world’s great powers to “step back and reflect. Preferably together.”
Austrian minister defies coalition ally to back EU nature restoration law
- Gewessler’s announcement angered Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s conservative People’s Party (OVP), which opposes the law
VIENNA: Austria’s environment minister, Leonore Gewessler of the Greens, defied her conservative coalition partners on Sunday by pledging to cast Austria’s vote in favor of adopting a European nature restoration law, potentially tipping the balance in Brussels.
European Union countries’ environment ministers will discuss the bloc’s flagship policy to restore damaged nature at a meeting in Luxembourg on Monday and potentially hold a final vote on whether to enact it.
The law would be among the EU’s biggest environmental policies, requiring member states to introduce measures restoring nature on a fifth of their land and sea by 2030.
“The time for decisiveness has come. I will vote in favor of the EU Nature Restoration Law on Monday,” she told a news conference called at short notice.
EU countries had planned to approve the policy in March but called off the vote after Hungary unexpectedly withdrew its support, wiping out the slim majority in favor.
Austria’s change of position would give the policy enough support to become law if no other countries switch.
Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium, Finland and Poland have previously said they will not support the policy but without Austria they would be one country short of being able to block it.
“This law is on a knife-edge. A majority at the European level is in no way certain,” Gewessler said, adding that some countries were hesitating to support it.
Gewessler’s announcement angered Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s conservative People’s Party (OVP), which opposes the law. It controls the Agriculture Ministry and says that since that ministry is partly responsible for this issue, Gewessler needs its backing.
The OVP minister for EU and constitutional affairs, Karoline Edtstadler, said that if Gewessler voted in favor without the Agriculture Ministry’s approval it would be unconstitutional.
“That must and will have legal consequences,” Edtstadler said on X.
Senegalese eye elegance for Eid at half the price
- People used to be ashamed to wear second-hand clothes for fear of being mocked or denigrated
DAKAR: In a second-hand shop in the suburbs of Senegal’s capital, Seynabou Sarr was inundated with orders days before West Africa’s largest Muslim festival.
Sarr, 30, constantly answers calls while showing customers second-hand boubous — a traditional robe worn by both men and women at religious or ceremonial occasions.
Tabaski — marked by most Senegalese on Monday — is celebrated with great pomp but can put families under pressure over the need to spend on food and new clothes.
Wearing the same outfit two years running is frowned upon.
“People used to be ashamed to wear second-hand clothes for fear of being mocked or denigrated,” Sarr, also known as Nabou, said.
“But increasingly, many are becoming aware of their benefits.”
For Tabaski — the West African name for Eid — customers want boubous made from luxury fabrics adorned with pearls and embroidery — but not with a luxury price tag.
When new, some boubous can cost up to 250,000 CFA francs ($405), a small fortune in a country with a median monthly salary of 54,000 ($88).
But at the boutique, finding one for as little as 90,000 CFA francs or less is possible.
Nabou launched her business online in 2018 before opening the shop in 2022. She now has more than 80,000 followers on TikTok.
Abdou Fall has opted for a second-hand tunic — an elegant three-piece with beautiful embroidery around the neck this year.
He bought it for 60,000 CFA francs, but it would have cost 130,000.
“It was not in my plans to buy a boubou this year as I already had a lot to do with other expenses,” he said.
“But the price was so affordable that I thought I would not deprive myself.”
Another customer, Matar Sarr, says that with a little money, “you can look as good as everyone else.”
“Who can tell that it is not new? Nobody,” Sarr said.
In Senegal, second-hand success is often less due to environmental concerns and more to financial motives.
Khady Djiba is looking for a wedding dress for her sister.
She examines the quality of the fabrics, runs her hand over the seams, lingers over the beading, and finally chooses a tunic with a long train adorned with glittering pearls.
New, the dress would be out of reach, but for 75,000 CFA francs, Djiba can buy it from Nabou.
It has a few flaws, but with a couple of alterations and dry cleaning, it will be as good as new.
“It’s a good deal,” she said, smiling.
Frustrated Ghanaians brace for more power cuts
- Nigeria provides Ghana with a percentage of the gas it needs to fire its power-generating plants
ACCRA: Exasperated Ghanaians already grappling with frequent, unplanned power outages are steeling themselves for more misery after electricity distributors announced increased disruption to the grid in the coming weeks.
The blackouts, known as “dumsor” in Ghana’s Akan language, are making it harder to run businesses that are already struggling due to the country’s economic crisis — the worst in a decade.
On Thursday, the Ghana Grid Company and the Electricity Company of Ghana, which distribute power throughout the West African country of 33 million people, said there would be three weeks of load management because of maintenance work by a gas supplier in Nigeria.
FASTFACT
The erratic power supply is tipped to become a key topic in the December presidential election campaign.
Nigeria provides Ghana with a percentage of the gas it needs to fire its power-generating plants.
The announcement came a day after WAPCo, the operator of the pipeline importing gas from Nigeria, also warned there would be a drop in the quantity of gas available because of maintenance work in Nigeria.
The news has exasperated Ghanaians, who are already dealing with frequent power cuts.
“The current unannounced power cuts are already making it very hard to keep my poultry frozen,” said Judith Esi Baidoo, a 50-year-old frozen poultry vendor in Accra.
She added: “Now, with this three-week load management plan, I fear my stock will spoil. I don’t know how my business can survive this.”
The erratic power supply is tipped to become a key topic in the December presidential election campaign.
Timothy Oddoye, who repairs mobile phones in the Accra suburb of Kokomlemle, said: “The government had failed us. They’ve had years to fix these problems, yet we still suffer from the same issues.
“How can we grow our businesses when we can’t even rely on basic electricity?”
Despite being one of the African countries where electrification is most advanced, Ghana continues to experience chronic power shortages.
Domestic electricity production — generated by power plants that are often old and poorly maintained — has struggled to expand in line with rising demand.
According to International Energy Agency figures, Ghana generates 34 percent of its electricity from hydropower and 63 percent from gas.
The country produces oil and gas but still needs to import gas from Nigeria via the 678-km West African Gas Pipeline through Benin and Togo.
“The reliance on gas, especially from external suppliers, leaves us vulnerable,” said Ben Boakye, the Africa Center for Energy Policy executive director.
“The government must prioritize investments in renewable energy and upgrade our existing hydro and thermal plants to ensure consistent power supply.”
Public frustration at the power cuts erupted on June 8, when hundreds of Ghanaians, led by prominent celebrities, took to the streets of Accra to protest against the erratic supply under the slogan #DumsorMustStop.
These power cuts are all the more disturbing for Ghanaians as the country emerges from an economic crisis that saw inflation soar to 54 percent in December 2022.
It fell back to 25 percent in April 2023 but the population still suffers.
Ex-leader Jacob Zuma’s party says it will join opposition in South Africa’s parliament
- ANC and largest rival, the white-led, pro-business Democratic Alliance, agreed on Friday to work together in a coalition
JOHANNESBURG: South Africa’s uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) party will join an alliance of smaller opposition parties in parliament in a bid to take on the African National Congress and Democratic Alliance-led coalition government, it said on Sunday.
The ANC and its largest rival, the white-led, pro-business Democratic Alliance, agreed on Friday to work together in a coalition it called “government of national unity,” a step change after 30 years of ANC rule.
Two smaller parties, the socially conservative Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and the right-wing Patriotic Alliance, will also take part in the unity government.
Former president Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto we Sizwe party came in a surprisingly strong third in the May 29 election which saw the ANC lose its majority. MK won 14.6 percent of the vote which translated into 58 seats in the 400-seat National Assembly.
However, MK lawmakers boycotted the first sitting of the National Assembly on Friday after filing a complaint at the country’s top court alleging vote-rigging, which the court dismissed as without merit.
Spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela told reporters that the MK party will join the alliance called the “Progressive Caucus,” which includes the Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the center-left United Democratic Movement.
This alliance commands close to 30 percent of the seats in the National Assembly, Ndhlela said, sitting next to Zuma and the leaders of a number of small parties.
“This united effort is necessary because the 2024 election has also resulted in the consolidation of right-wing and reactionary forces who are opposed to economic freedom, radical economic transformation, racial equality and land repossession,” he said.
Ndhlela said that MK had decided to take up its seats in the National Assembly after receiving legal advice and that it would continue to raise its allegations of a rigged elections in parliament and in courts.
