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Photo: Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame (Hadrawi) in 2018 against the backdrop of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Somali’s Shakespeare Passes After A Long Illness

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK | MOGADISHU (IDN) — Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame, better known by his pen name Hadrawi, has passed away in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, after a long illness, according to family members. He was 79.

“We have lost an icon in Somali literature," President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said. "A man whom we will remember for his role in peace-building and conflict resolution, building the mindset of many Somalis through his wisdom and poems for the betterment and the unity of Somalis.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 22 August 2022

Photo: King of Amazulu nation Misuzulu kaZwelithini (centre) pictured during his coronation at the royal palace in Kwa-Nongoma, some 300 km north of Durban, on August 20, 2022. © Phill Magakoe, AFP

Son Of 'Goodwill Zwelithini' Ascends to Zulu Royal Throne

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — In the traditional ceremonies of the Zulu people, Misuzulu Zulu, 47, was crowned the new king of the country’s richest and most influential traditional monarchy.

Thousands of people gathered at the Zulu royal palace in South Africa to witness the ceremony.

Misuzulu Zulu ascended to the throne once held by his late father, Goodwill Zwelithini. The ceremonies were partially overshadowed by a bitter succession dispute.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 22 August 2022

Photo: In the Sea of Marmara, UN Secretary-General António Guterres observes the WFP ship SSI Invincible 2, headed to Ukraine to pick up the largest cargo of grain yet exported under the Black Sea Grain Initiative. UN Photo/Mark Garten

UN Chief Visits ‘Vessels of Hope’ Before returning to New York

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres oversaw on August 20 the departure of two ships involved in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, a UN-brokered operation to bring urgently needed hunger relief to the Horn of Africa.

Mr. Guterres flew into Istanbul on August 20 from Chisinau, Moldova—where he was hosted for a working dinner with President Maia Sandu the previous evening—and boarded a pilot boat in the Sea of Marmara.

: Radwan Jakeem; SUSTAINABILITY; Food security, nutrition & sustainable agriculture; 21 August 2022

Photo: India's Foreign Minister speaking at Chulalongkorn University. Credit: Kalinga Seneviratne

India Is Moving Up From 'Look East Policy' To 'Act East Policy'

By Kalinga Seneviratne

BANGKOK (IDN) — External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has emphasized that India is keenly interested in the countries to its East, spreading right across East Asia into the Pacific. Speaking at Thailand's prestigious Chulalongkorn University on August 18, he explained "India's Vision of the Indo-Pacific" and indirectly went on to distance itself from the US military priorities for Indo-Pacific.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; South Asia; 20 August 2022

Photo: Ms. Kekashan Basu, Founder and President of Green Hope Foundation, presented a joint statement of the "Faith Communities Concerned about Nuclear Weapons" during the NGO presentation session at UN Headquarters. Credit: Seikyo Shimbun

Faith Communities Concerned about Nuclear Weapons

Since 2014, SGI has worked as part of the Faith Communities Concerned about Nuclear Weapons, a group of faith-based organizations and individuals committed to a nuclear-weapon-free world, to issue joint interfaith statements at international fora.

Following is the Joint Interfaith Statement to the Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) issued on August 5, 2022.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 19 August 2022

Photo: eyeWitness has helped expose atrocities in countries such as DRC, Ukraine, Senegal, and Palestine. ©Original photos captured by Anastasia Taylor-Lind and TRIAL International

Why We Need to Advance SDG 16 More Than Ever

Viewpoint by Dr Márcia Balisciano

The writer is the Global Head of Corporate Responsibility, RELX. She is also Chair of the UN Global Compact Network UK; Chair of the Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Council of the Conference Board; and a founding member of the Board of the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens.

LONDON (IDN) — The goal in 2015 was to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. We should have been more than halfway there, but given the tumultuous state of global affairs, we are off track.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 19 August 2022

Photo: A collage of pictures of the two leading presidential candidates for 2023—Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the left, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), on the right. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Nigerian Presidential Elections: Politicians and the Jeopardy of Trial by Ordeal

Viewpoint by Azu Ishiekwene

The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of LEADERSHIP newspaper based in Abuja, Nigeria.

ABUJA (IDN) — “I’m going to waste my vote,” a friend told me recently. “And don’t argue with me,” he added. “It’s my right to do so.”

I defied him. Regrettably, even though I also recruited help nearby to press home my point, my unsolicited advice fell on deaf ears.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 18 August 2022

Photo: Interactive Dialogue on “Revenue Generation as a Pathway to Sri Lanka’s Economic Recovery” held with the participation of Members of Parliament on August 10, 2022. Source: Parliament of Sri Lanka @ParliamentLK

Abolish Political Parties in Impending New Sri Lankan Constitution

Viewpoint by P. Soma Palan

COLOMBO (IDN) — I have advocated the abolition of political parties from contesting elections to form a government, in previous articles, both in the electronic and print media. In the present unprecedented political, economic, financial and social instability in the country, the need to revive this plea assumes greater relevance and importance.

My proposal may be dismissed as an absurdity by politicians and others as an impractical, unrealistic and even eccentric idea.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 18 August 2022

Photo: Two young Ukrainian voices, Yelyzaveta Khodorovska and Valeriia Hesse delivered a statement on behalf of ICAN calling for nuclear disarmament at the NPT Review Conference. Source: Arms Control Association.

Old and New Controversies at the 10th NPT Review Conference

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

The writer is a former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), and President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs.

NEW YORK (IDN) — The Tenth Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) takes place in a volatile and unpredictable international context. The danger of the actual use of nuclear weapons was brought vividly to the forefront of international concerns by the invasion of Ukraine by Russia last February. The claim that nuclear weapons have prevented a war in Europe since 1945 has once more been proven false.

: Sergio Duarte; UN INSIDER; 17 August 2022

Photo: Hirotsugu Terasaki, Director General of Peace and Global Issues, Soka Gakkai International. Credit: Seikyo Shimbun.

The Risk of a Nuclear Attack has Risen to its Highest Level Since the Cold War

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — Speaking during a ceremony marking the 77th anniversary of the devastating atomic bombing of Hiroshima, UN Secretary-General António Guterres remarked on August 6 that it is totally unacceptable for states in possession of nuclear weapons to admit the possibility of nuclear war.

“The elimination of nuclear weapons is the only guarantee that the atrocities of Hiroshima will never be repeated,” he declared.