Social distancing was enforced as the envoys made short speeches expressing wishes of broadening and deepening bilateral relations with South Africa before presenting the president with the letters from their heads of state.

Some of the ambassadors managed to make powerful use of the two minutes allotted to them.

Sweden’s Håkan Joholt recalled how he’d become an anti-apartheid activist at age 25 before serving 23 years as a member of parliament.

“I have come here to build bridges and to forge people-to-people ties between Swedes and South Africans,” he said. “What we can do together is fight for democracy, human rights, peace and a sustainable environment,” he said.

Entering his second term as ambassador of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, Mohammed Beissat said Polisario and the ANC forged ties as liberation movements at the most difficult times for their countries.

He recalled how Oliver Tambo visited the Western Sahara and returned to South Africa with apartheid-built tanks captured by the Saharawi from the Moroccan.

“Now Mr President the Western Sahara faces fresh aggression from Morocco,” he said referring to the kingdom breaking the 30 year old truce signed under UN auspices that ended the war that followed Morocco’s 1975 invasion of the former Spanish colony.

“We are confident we can overcome yet another challenge from the illegal occupier, especially since we are assured of your support and the solidarity of your government and people,” said the ambassador.

Braving a heatwave that took the mercury into the thirties, the ambassadors were greeted by a guard-of-honour before entering the guest house to have their exchange with the President.

In addition to the Western Sahara and Sweden, Ramaphosa received credentials from the ambassadors of 

Vietnam, North Korea, Iran, Botswana, Cote’Ivoire, Bangladesh, Ukraine, Egypt, China, Sweden, Mauritius, Pakistan, Sudan and South Sudan, Slovenia, Finland.

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The World Press Freedom Index puts it top of the continental list and ranks it 23rd in the world.

The Paris based non-profit organisation Reporters Without Borders has been publishing its annual world press freedom index for 25 years.

This year the Scandinavian countries Norway, Finland, Denmark and Sweden are judged to be the freest in the world.

For the eighth successive year Eritrea is at the bottom of the list of 180 countries.

South Africa is in 31st position – the same place it occupied last year.

The organisation calls 2020 a decisive year for the world media and says its difficulties have been exacerbated by the COVID 19 pandemic.

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The process was brisk and efficient with voters says they felt a sense of excitement.

My daughter Aimee Welander is one of 140 South Africans registered to vote in the Swedish capital.

She went to the South African embassy with a group of friends early this morning and said they were greeted with typically friendly |South African smiles.

The process from start to finish took less than five minutes

There are about 800 South Africans resident in Sweden.

Voting started at 7 am and the polling station will stay open until 7 pm.

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He’s draw heavily on his experience as one of South Africa’s top trade unionists before becoming a billionaire businessman.

At the headquarters of the International Labour Organisation, President Cyril Ramaphosa and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven  are chairing the Global Commission on the Future of Work.

They’re presiding over a meeting of academics and technical experts in the economy and social fields and of government, business and labour representatives.

They are considering the rapid changes in the labour market and key challenges facing the world of work ahead of the landmark ILO report due to be published in January.

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Former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf insists the money did not disappear on her watch.

Cash-strapped Liberia had new bank notes  printed in Sweden, Lebanon and China.

The missing notes appear to have  been part of the consignment from the Scandinavian country.

Officials said initially it came in last year, when Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was still President.

Website Frontpage Africa claims it has documentary evidence that the missing notes actually were signed for in March and April this year, after President George Weah was at the helm.

Weah has made fighting corruption a cornerstone of his presidency. 

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It says the appointment reflects its big responsibility as a global brand.

The advertisement showing a black child dressed in a hoodie reading coolest monkey in the jungle drew a violent response in South African and anger in other countries.

H&M insists it was unintentional.

It maintains its commitment to addressing diversity and inclusiveness is genuine.

So it’s appointed a global  leader, in this area, to drive its work forward.

The monkey hoodie case highlights how important it has become for multinationals to take into account differences in cultural views and sensitivities between the markets it sells in.

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Reporters Without Borders says Apartheid era legislation and the 2004 terrorism laws are used to limit South African media  coverage of institutions in which national interest is supposedly at stake.

Reporters Without Borders’ annual barometer says Norway, Sweden and Finland have the freest media on the planet.

Namibia number 24, Ghana at number 26, Cape Verde, one place below that, and 31st placed South Africa are the top scorers on the continent.

At the bottom of the 180-nation table is North Korea with Eritrea only just place ahead.

Fifty two journalists died doing their jobs during 2017 and 178 were jailed by angry authorities.

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At the world’s largest gathering of conservation leaders now underway in Honolulu she says some of the biggest groups claiming to work for endangered species should account for what has happened the people who were moved.

ends intro

UN special rapporteur Victoria Tauli-Corpuz documents killings, evictions and lands being used for resource extraction without native consent.

In the past year, Tauli-Corpuz traveled to Honduras, Brazil, and to the Sami people in the Arctic regions of Finland, Norway and Sweden.

Other unresolved rights violations include the eviction of local people in India’s Kanha tiger reserve, even though evidence suggests people and tigers can co-inhabit the same area.

Local people have also been forced from their homes in Cameroon and Kenya.

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Abbas is on a state visit to South Africa where he received a 21 gun-salute as he arrived at the Union Buildings for talks with President Jacob Zuma.

In the absence of a political solution between Israel and Palestine, governments and parliaments in Europe
are moving towards recognising Palestinian statehood.

President Mahmoud Abbas says this is increasingly the position being taken by the international community opposed to Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

France’s National Assembly is set to vote on recognising Palestine next week.

Sweden’s announced it will recognise Palestine and
non-binding votes have passed in the British and Spanish parliaments in favour of recognising Palestinian statehood.

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