Africa press review

In the spotlight: the visit of the American Secretary of State to the continent

Audio 04:11

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Kigali, August 11, 2022. REUTERS - POOL

By: Fanny Bleichner

4 mins

Advertising

Antony Blinken spent his last day in the Democratic Republic of Congo on August 10.

On this occasion, Politico

informs us

, he stressed " 

the need for democratic elections

(...)

in line with international standards

 ", calling on the Congolese authorities to " 

develop a precise registration process with the timely publication of a list election, [to] undertake not to exclude legitimate candidates or voters, guarantee the freedom of campaigning for candidates and parties, and [to] require a transparent counting of the votes and the communication of the results 

”.

Antony Blinken also denounced “ 

the escalating crackdown on activists, protesters and journalists and warned that growing intolerance towards critics risks tainting free, credible and timely elections in 2023 

”.

The American Secretary of State not only spoke yesterday with the Prime Minister, Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde, but also with the President of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Denis Kadima, according to 

7sur7CD.

Meeting with the Rwandan President

Antony Blinken arrived in Rwanda, “a

country coached and loved

 ” by the United States for

Today in Faso,

which predicts that “

in Kigali too, Blinken will play the game of diplomacy to the fullest.

With at the end of the race, a draw between Tshisekedi and Kagame, (…) but basically, one year from the presidential election, the first sees itself being boosted diplomatically, and the second Rwanda, also draws a political usufruct

 ”.

Another article from

Today in Faso

, on the attack on Tessit in Mali.

It was August 7 in the northeast of the country, an attack attributed to jihadists.

The balance sheet has been revised upwards.

It is now a question of 42 soldiers killed.

A three-day national mourning will be observed from August 11.

“ 

What is the invisible hand indexed by Bamako? 

asks the daily, which specifies: “

 Bamako accuses a foreign force of having provided logistical support to the executioners. 

(…)

 All eyes are certainly on the EIGS, 37 of whose fighters were neutralized in this attack, but the identity of its supporters remains to be determined.

And for the moment, no name has been advanced, and it is not known to whom the accusing finger of the Malian authorities will be directed

.

»

The other Burkinabè newspaper, 

Le Pays

 is concerned about the "

 deterioration of the security situation

 " in Mali but also in Burkina.

We can thus read: " 

the danger is today common to all the States of the sub-region whose porous borders are one of the assets of the armed groups which can use one or the other country as a rear base or fallback area after their attacks.

That said, we must go beyond the political squabbles that serve populations linked most often by history and geography to unite forces and definitively drive the terrorist threat beyond our borders. 

»

WakatSéra

, for its part, draws a parallel with the situation in Guinea, due to the coup regime.

Because "

 Colonel Assimi Goïta [is] under acute terrorist threat 

", but "

 he is not the only one 

": "

his neighbour, also a colonel, also a putschist, is in the eye of the storm because the international community, the movements civil society and organizations which have made the defense and protection of human rights their reason for existence, are constantly on the lookout for the Guinean case which concerns them enormously. 

»

In Guinea, the FNDC rejects its dissolution

After the announced dissolution of the National Front for the Defense of the Constitution (FNDC), the latter came out of its reserve on August 10, reports

AfricaGuinée

: “ 

The platform indicates that the decision of the junta confirms the use of threats, techniques of manipulation and injunctions to follow suit implemented by the CNRD a few weeks after taking power

" and " 

reveals that he was asked by the head of the junta to adhere to a plan to eliminate political parties

 " by legal maneuvers.

It is in this context that

Ledjely

publishes a statement by the Deputy Director of Amnesty International's office.

She calls the authorities

“ 

to respect the right of the Guinean population and civil society to freely express their opinions, including in the media

.

»

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

google-play-badge_EN

  • Newspaper

  • Guinea

  • Rwanda

  • United States