The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) has called for a commission of inquiry into allegations that members of the Durban organised crime unit operated as a 'death squad', while the Police Ministry said it had opted to leave the matter to the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD). The comments followed a Sunday Times report that the unit was operating as a hit squad in KwaZulu-Natal. It said the unit was guilty of assassinations related to taxi wars and in retaliation for 'suspected cop killings'.

tells the story of ten of Kenya’s unsung heroes who carry forward the tradition of the thousands of nameless freedom fighters of Kenya’s long path to liberation. These activists were part, over the last year, of the inaugural Fahamu Pan-African Fellowship (FPAF) programme. With local action and an African vision, the FPAF aimed to support a cadre of energetic, visionary and innovative activists.

[PDF] record the contribution of ten of Kenya’s community activists who daily resist oppression and dare to build alternatives. These are the Kenyans who organise rather than agonise.

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A couple of weeks ago, newspaper editor Dawit Kebede, an International Press Freedom award winner, fled Ethiopia. Sadly, Dawit's Awramba Times is the latest in a long list of Amharic-language private publications to vanish from the market following the incarceration or flight into exile of their editors. Awramba Times was a breeding ground of young Ethiopian columnists. Apart from the usual news and sports reporters, the weekly had correspondents specialising in parliamentary affairs, health issues, women's issues, satire, and folklore. There were also featured guest columnists such as university professors and opposition party members.