Omar Bongo, President of Gabon since 1967, died on June 8, 2009 in a hospital in Barcelona, Spain. I had known him in 1966 when I was working in Gabon, and he was the 'directeur de cabinet' - chief administrative officer - of the first President of Gabon, Leon Mba. I was told by a French friend who was an advisor to the President that Bongo was the man to watch and that his power was growing. Albert Bongo
On May 27, 2009, the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva held a Special Session to analyse the human rights situation in Sri Lanka after the military defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). A Special Session is the prime method that the Human Rights Council has to attract attention to a country situation and to give its resolutions added weight as only one country is considered. Sri Lankan Refugees
In Moldova, recent political demonstrations may be the spark needed for serious economic planning, and may help focus the minds of political and civic leaders on the basic issue of the population: a better standard of living. President Vladimir Voronin
After a thorough examination of the evidence presented by the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Luis Moreno-Ocampo, a panel of three judges has issued an arrest warrant against President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan. There are seven charges against al-Bashir including crimes against humanity, murder, extermination, forcible transfer, torture, rape, attacks against civilian population and pillaging. Omar Hassan al-Bashir
The ongoing conflict between the Sinhala and the Tamils that has ebbed and flowed derives its emotional force, in part, from competing beliefs that began during the colonial period about legitimate rule, economic well-being, and sacred authority. Sri Lankan Peace Rally
The Special Session of the Human Rights Council on the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on November 28, 2008 was the beginning of the end for self-proclaimed General Laurent Nkunda and his Congress for the Defense of the People (CNPD).Laurent Nkunda
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