Month: July 2023

South African athlete Caster Semenya won her legal battle against Switzerland on Tuesday when the European Court of Human Rights ruled that she had been the victim of discrimination.

The 32-year-old runner brought her case against Switzerland’s supreme court after it ruled against her in 2020.

The Swiss court had upheld a decision three years ago by sport’s highest court, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which validated the regulations put in place by the World Athletics organisation (formerly International Athletics Federation).

The athletics body requires athletes like Semenya who have naturally high levels of testosterone to lower their hormone levels through medical intervention.

Only by following these regulations can athletes continue to compete in female track events. The testosterone limits have effectively put a stop to Semenya’s career since 2019.

A divisive issue

Semenya’s case is highly complex. The athlete was identified as female at birth and continues to identify as a woman but, due to naturally high levels of testosterone, she has been at the forefront of the divisive issue of sex eligibility in sports since she first emerged on the track scene in 2009.

Her case, though very distinct, does intertwine with the issue of transgender women competing in sports.

World Athletics argue that high levels of testosterone in athletes like Semenya and those who have transitioned from male to female give them an unfair advantage in women’s competitions, in the same way as a male competing in women’s sports.

The organisation have tightened their rules over the years, lowering the levels of testosterone deemed acceptable. This year, the hormone rules were expanded to include all female track events.

In March, track authorities also banned transgender women from competing in female events.

Discrimination versus fairness

Semenya has argued that her testosterone levels should be considered a genetic gift in the same way as, for example, an athlete’s height or a swimmer’s long arms.

Now, the European rights court have sided with her, essentially underlining a belief that discrimination is not allowed ever, even in a sports context to ensure fairness.

However, it remains unclear how Tuesday’s ruling will affect the current regulations.

While the European court’s ruling applies to Switzerland as a country and its supreme court, Semenya will still need an appeal to succeed at the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport to then get the Monaco-based World Athletics organisation to consider withdrawing the rules.

The Gambia announced on Sunday that it had repatriated nearly 300 of its nationals intercepted on the exile route at the end of June and beginning of July, more than half of whom were stranded in Libya.

Between 21 June and 4 July, Banjul repatriated 140 Gambians intercepted by Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco on board three boats carrying migrants from West Africa, said a spokeswoman for the Gambian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A total of 231 Gambians were in the boats, but some fled before they could be repatriated, according to the ministry.

In addition, 156 Gambians were evacuated on 24 June from Libya, where they were stranded.

In Tunisia, hundreds of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa are in a very precarious situation in a desert area in the south of the country, close to the Libyan border, after having been driven out of the town of Sfax (in the centre-east) in recent days against a backdrop of sharp tensions with the local population, who were demanding their departure, according to eyewitness accounts gathered by Africanewsguru.com.

On Thursday, the human rights NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Tunisia of having moved them there since 2 July.

“In view of the disturbing videos of migrants in Tunisia circulating on social networks, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working hard to authenticate their numbers and nationalities as part of the evacuation procedures”, the Gambian ministry said in a statement.

Earlier this year, West African countries including Burkina Faso, Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali and Senegal repatriated hundreds of their nationals from Tunisia, which was the scene of racist attacks.

An increasingly openly xenophobic attitude towards these migrants has spread since the Tunisian President, Kais Saied, slammed illegal immigration in February.

He accused the “hordes of illegal migrants from sub-Saharan Africa” of fuelling crime and presented them as a demographic threat to his country, hit by a socio-economic crisis that has worsened since he assumed full power in July 2021.

Hundreds of African migrants, including many children, are feared missing as Spanish rescuers intensify their search efforts off the Canary Islands.

The fishing boat, which departed from Kafountine, a coastal town in southern Senegal approximately 1,700 kilometers (1,057 miles) away from Tenerife, carried at least 200 individuals.

Two additional boats, with dozens of people on board, are also reported missing. The aid group Walking Borders has alerted authorities to the dire situation.

In response, Spain’s maritime rescue service has deployed a plane to aid in the search and rescue operation. The vessel carrying 200 migrants set sail from Kafountine on June 27, destined for the Canary Islands.

While there is limited information available regarding the other two boats, Walking Borders’ Helena Maleno disclosed to Reuters that one boat contains around 65 individuals, and the other could have up to 60 on board.

These figures raise concerns about the total number of people missing, potentially exceeding 300 across all three boats.

This distressing news arrives shortly after Europe witnessed one of the deadliest migrant shipwrecks in the Mediterranean, where an overcrowded trawler sank off the Greek coast. Despite 78 confirmed deaths, the United Nations (UN) reported that approximately 500 individuals remain unaccounted for.

The perilous journey from West Africa to the Canary Islands is regarded as one of the most treacherous migration routes. Migrants typically brave the powerful Atlantic currents on simple dugout fishing boats, making the passage incredibly dangerous.

According to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM), last year alone, at least 559 lives were lost at sea in attempts to reach the Spanish islands.

The death toll in 2021 reached 1,126 individuals. Unfortunately, accurate data on the number of departures from West Africa is scarce, and shipwrecks often go unreported.

The migrants undertaking this hazardous journey primarily originate from Morocco, Mali, Senegal, the Ivory Coast, and other sub-Saharan regions. Spain’s Interior Ministry records indicate that in 2022, 15,682 people arrived in the Canary Islands without permission, reflecting a decrease of over 30% compared to 2021.

However, the IOM warns that despite this decline, the flow of migrants along this perilous route remains significantly higher than previous years.

The ongoing search for the missing migrants in the waters surrounding the Canary Islands highlights the urgent need for enhanced efforts to address the humanitarian crisis and prevent further loss of life in the region.

The newly elected ECOWAS Chairperson Bola Tinubu reaffirmed Sunday (Jul. 09), the bloc’s commitment to democracy as the best form of governance.

The Nigerian president who was in Bissau with fellow west African leaders promised firmness in the face of coups.

The 15-member bloc has witnessed a total of five coups in 3 member countries since 2020.

“Without democracy there’s no governance, there’s no freedom, there’s no rule of law. We will not allow coup after coup in West Africa sub-region,” Tinubu declared to thunderous applause.

A press statement from Dele Alake, special adviser to the president on special duties, communications and strategy, which was made available to Anadolu said that Tinubu warned that the threat to peace in the sub-region had reached an alarming proportion with terrorism and an emerging pattern of military takeover that demanded urgent and concerted actions.

He said insecurity and creeping terrorism were stunting the progress and development of the region.

Tinubu called for collective action from member states, pledging that under his leadership, frameworks would be harmonized to actualize the dreams of ECOWAS.

The president noted that ECOWAS had developed a security architecture that covers a wide range of areas that involved kinetic and non-kinetic operations, including preventive diplomacy. There is also the Regional Plan of Action on the Fight Against Terrorism 2020-2024 as well as the operationalization of the ECOWAS Standby Force on the Fight Against Terrorism.

“I will ensure that we immediately harmonize these plans and mobilize resources as well as the political will towards the actualization of the initiatives. As terrorists do not respect boundaries, we must work collectively to have an effective regional counterterrorism measure,” he said.

‘We must not sit as toothless dogs’

On his election as chairman in his first time participating at the summit, having just been elected president of Nigeria, Tinubu said he was humbled and honored by the move.

“Indeed, I’m humbled and honored by this trust and want to assure you of my unalloyed commitment to provide the necessary leadership with dedication to serve the interests of the community,” he said.

He declared that he would prioritize political stability, peace and security, regional economic integration and the strengthening of ECOWAS institutions, declaring that democracy and good governance remain the cornerstone of peace and sustainable development.

While decrying the emerging pattern of coups d’etat in West Africa, where soldiers have truncated the popular mandate, Tinubu charged ECOWAS to stand firm in defense of democracy.

“We must stand firm on democracy, he said.”

“There is no one here among us who did not campaign to be a leader. We didn’t give our soldiers resources, we didn’t invest in them, in their boots, in their training to violate the freedom of the people. To turn their guns against civil authorities is a violation of the principles upon which they were hired, which is to defend the sovereignty of their nations. We must not sit in ECOWAS as toothless bulldogs,” he warned.

“We must strengthen our democratic institutions and ensure the respect for human rights and the rule of law.”

Tinubu promised to “enhance engagements with authorities” in Mali, Burkina and Guinea “to ensure a quick return to democratic rule.”

The Ecowas commission chief, Omar Alieu Touray, urged these countries to keep their transition timelines or face sanctions.

The death toll from a toxic gas leak linked to illegal mining has risen to 17, including three children.

The deaths occurred on Wednesday in the informal settlement of Angelo in Boksburg, on Johannesburg’s eastern outskirts.

Authorities believe the toxic nitrate gas came from canisters kept in shacks within the settlement, used by illegal gold miners who use the gas to separate gold from rock and dirt.

In addition to the 17 deaths, 10 people were hospitalised, including a two-month-old baby, two 4 year-olds and a 9 year-old, according to officials. The three children who died were aged 1, 6 and 15.

Police on Thursday began the task of finding evidence and removing remaining gas canisters they found.

In addition to the 17 deaths, 10 people were hospitalised, including a two-month-old baby, two 4 year-olds and a 9 year-old, according to officials. The three children who died were aged 1, 6 and 15.

Police on Thursday began the task of finding evidence and removing remaining gas canisters they found.