A Grave Injustice Has Been Done To Zambia

A great injustice has been done to the African nation of Zambia by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Even though Zambia have been knocked out of the ongoing African Nations Cup, the elimination has been compounded by the fact that they have been denied the opportunity to represent Africa at the Conferations Cup to be held in Brazil next year. The Confederations Cup is a tournament played by countries that emerge as champions in their respective regional competitions. Traditionally, the country that wins the African Nations Cup, which is a continent-wide tournament, represents the continent at the Confederations Cup. Zambia are the current champions are they are supposed to represent Africa. However, CAF decided to make a change in the tradition.
Traditionally, the African Nations Cup is held every two years. Because the Nations Cup is held every two years, it sometimes coincides with the World Cup, which takes place every four years. Whenever the African Nations Cup coincides with the World Cup, African players are believed to be on the disadvantage with regards to competing in the World Cup. This is so because after competing in the Nations Cup African players are believed to be tired by the time the get to the World Cup competition. To fix this situation, CAF decided to hold the tournament that was supposed to be held in 2014 this year (2013) even though another tournament was held just last year (2012). Zambia won the tournament that was held last year and were therefore supposed to represent Africa at the Confederations Cup. However, since there is another Nations Cup tournament being held this year, CAF has decided that the winner of the current tournament, not Zambia, will be the country to represent Africa at the Confederations Cup. This has led Zambia to cry foul - and rightly so. This is a great injustice. Zambia should be the country to represent Africa. Make your voice heard - tell CAF that Zambia should represent Africa. This is their email: info@cafonline.com and here is their phone number: +20-2/3837 1000.

Is Translation Treacherous?

You would not know that if you hear some scholars (who would remain unnamed) talk of the wonders of translation. This brief piece from The New York Times is a gem! It has all kinds of implications for cultural and literary translations. Give me the original texts, please. I need someone to translate them for me!

Dr. Denis Mukwege Deserves The Noble Peace Prize

Find out why in the video below:

Uganda In My Heart

Please watch this video from the New York Times.

Watch African Nations Cup Free Online

The African Nations Cup has begun and you can watch it free online by visiting this link.

War On Terror Moved From Central Asia To Deserts Of Africa

It is now official: with the active fighting being carried out by French forces in Mali and the kidnap of Westerners in Algeria, the war on terror, if it may be called that, has now moved from the rocky mountains of central Asia to the deserts of Africa. A series of events have led to this point: the killing of Americans in Benghazi, the rise of Boko Haram in Nigeria, the rise of Islamists in Somalia. Now it seems that Islamists are turning the deserts of Africa into their base. Africom now has its work cut out.

Paul Biya, Cameroon's Dictator, Driving A Tractor

Without any pretense to show that he even understands how to drive a tractor, Cameroon's dictator, Paul Biya, strikes a pose in a tractor, in his suit. The man seems to have no sense of what is fitting and this shows in his thirty-year misrule.

What Are The French Doing In Mali?

Ever since the announcement of the overt presence of the French army in Mali to fight against the Islamic fundamentalists who are taking over much of that beautiful country, we at FlourishingAfrica have been torn by what to make of this situation. At first sight it would be a good thing that the French are there to help oust this unwanted group. However, first appearances are not that revealing. France is not in Mali because of love of the Malian people. France is in Mali to defend her own interests. The tentacles of colonialism still runs deep. Since France is still in possession of her French African colonies, it is only fitting that France goes over to help when one of them is going down due the bad policies that were instigated into place by the French themselves. We need to ask ourselves why it is that most of the African countries that still harbor dictators today are countries that were minted by France. We need to ask ourselves why most of the African countries that are far worse off economically and politically today were minted by the French. Asking these questions will lead us to understand that this crisis into which France is wading is partially a product of her own making - her propping up of weak governments that cannot and will not defend their people in French Africa.
Another question that might be asked is whether Mali should be allowed to go down under Islamic fundamentalism. The response to this question is an unequivocal "yes". If Mali cannot defend itself it should go down. Any country that claims to be a country should be able to defend itself from enemies both within and without. Any country that cannot defend itself should be allowed to go down. If Malians cannot fight against Islamic fundamentalists they should be allowed to live under the dictatorship of these fundamentalists. When France goes over to "help", the point is not so much to help as it is to ensure that Mali is controlled by France rather than by the Islamists. In both cases, Mali is still worse off. Unless Mali can fight for itself, Mali will continue to be worse off.

The Exile Of Music From Mali

You know that the days are evil when even music is exiled from a country. Music is thought to lift the human spirit and propel human beings into ecstasies that throw them into the realm of the transcendent. One African philosopher and statesman even described Africans as people whose very lives are characterized by music. God is even believed to be a lover of music! However, in the African country of Mali today, music has been exiled. A musical festival that has come to partly define the Tuareg culture, has been deemed evil by the Islamic terrorists who are now transforming the lives of the people into hell. This year, the festival will be held in Burkina Faso instead. Given that Islamic terrorists hate music, it is no wonder that they live very sad lives characterized by all sorts of brutality.  There will be no peace in northern Mali until music comes back home. Enjoy below what Mali will miss this year.

400 Days Of Protesting Paul Biya's Dictatorship In Cameroon

For four hundred (400) days now, we at FlourishingAfrica have been protesting the corrupt dictatorship of Paul Biya in Cameroon. Paul Biya is one of only a handful of dictators around the world who have been in power for over thirty years! During this time, he has mismanaged and looted the wealth of the country so much that a resource rich country like Cameroon has seen its infrastructures increasingly dilapidated. His constituency is the French government and he recently hinted to a French television network that he plans to remain in power for as long as he is alive. Thus, it is that he has become the law of the land, masterminding changes in the constitution that will enable him stay in power for life, and arresting and jailing all those he fears may challenge him, in the name of fighting corruption. Paul Biya will and forever remain bad news for Cameroon. He is not fit to be the leader of a people because he does not care about people. He needs to be removed!

The Pope Speaks At Christmas

Uncivilized Europe

In the 19th and 20th centuries, Europe taught its children that racism was a good thing. Now that most reasonable people around the world have rejected the idea, Europe's children still do not want to let go of it. This malicious idea is manifested especially on football pitches all over Europe almost every week. Yet, there does not appear to be any stiff penalties against any team whose fans or players behave in this barbaric way. The latest example is the racial abuse of the Ghanaian star, Boateng, in Italy. It is amazing that Europe is still not ashamed of its racist history.

Making Fun Of The President Is No Crime: Morsi Take Note

Making fun of presidents should be and is no crime. Some presidents around the world, especially those in Africa, want to maintain a mystical air around them so that people should only speak about them in a whisper or not at all. However, the art of making fun of presidents tends to cut these figures down to size, showing the sometimes deplorable aspects of their humanity. In Cameroon, for example, fun is made of the dictator only in codes because artists are generally concerned that doing so in an open manner will get them in trouble. In Egypt, however, a brave soul has come out of the need of speaking in codes after the Arab Spring and is now openly making fun of the power grab of Mohammad Morsi. This has landed him in trouble because it is claimed that he is undermining the standing of the president. This is just another demonstration of Morsi's power grab and his wish to return to the time of Hosni Mubarak when the people were afraid of the president. Given that many African presidents tend to rule through fear, Morsi is now concerned that the removal of this fear is not good for him. However, making fun of the foibles of the president is no crime. Morsi should put this in his pipe and smoke it. We are living in a different time now.