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Letter from the editor: News24 joins the 100k Club News24. ADRIAAN BASSON, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dear subscriber, Christmas came in January at News24. This week, we became the newest member of an exceptional global group: the 100k Club. This means we are now one of only 40 digital news publications worldwide with more than 100 000 paying subscribers, of which you are one. We couldn't be more grateful and excited. To recap: in August 2020, we came to you, our loyal readers, to explain why News24 was embarking on a subscription journey. The global economics of media has made it impossible to continue with a business only funded by advertising. In return for your hard-earned money, we promised to up our game. Over the past three years, we have grown our newsroom by almost 40%, appointing senior journalists like Karyn Maughan, Carol Paton, Simnikiwe Xabanisa, and Sikonathi Mantshantsha to bolster our investigative, business and sports journalism. The growth of our subscription business enabled us to give our investigations unit the space and time to conduct their probes, leading to agenda-setting scoops like Jeff Wicks' investigation into the assassination of whistleblower Babita Deokaran and the team's exposés of Deputy President Paul Mashatile's financial affairs. We could open new offices in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape to cover the collapsing infrastructure, unstable politics and declining democracy in these vast provinces. We bolstered our sports department by bringing on board some of the country's finest sports writers in Khanyiso Tshwaku, Njabulo Ngidi and Heinz Schenk. Courtesy of your subscription, we could send Khanyiso to Paris for the duration of the Rugby World Cup (hard life, I know!) and Heinz to track the Proteas at the Cricket World Cup in India. As we move closer to the watershed 2024 national and provincial elections, News24's politics team will be your eyes and ears on the road and in the corridors of power. We will be vigilant to ensure elections are conducted fairly and free of political interference; we will tell you who the paymasters are behind the names and logos on the ballot, and we will grill the politicians about their visions and plans for fixing South Africa. Democracy cannot survive without a free and fearless press. As the largest and most trusted news brand in South Africa, we are committed to continue shining a light on dark places. We are in this together, because we are all #TeamSouthAfrica. Kind regards, Adriaan

West Africa-Slamming The Door

Slamming the Door WEST AFRICA Three military-led countries, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso, decided this week to withdraw from the powerful Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), following sanctions from the bloc and allegations of foreign influence, Al Jazeera reported. In a joint statement on Sunday, the three governments said ECOWAS had become “a threat to its member states and its population,” arguing it did not support their fight against “terrorism and insecurity.” Between 2020 and 2023, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger experienced military coups, leading to a suspension from the bloc. ECOWAS also imposed sanctions on Mali, while even heavier sanctions against Niger have left the country vulnerable to defaulting on debt repayments. The 15-nation bloc was formed in 1975 to promote economic integration. However, it has recently faced the opposition of some members, dismayed at the absence of sovereignty over local natural resources. Niger was once one of the West’s closest partners in addressing the rise of violent armed groups in the Sahel area. After the coup, it joined with Mali and Burkina Faso in the so-called “Alliance of Sahel States,” demanding France, the region’s former colonial, withdraw its troops. France’s response – withdrawal and sanctions – have led to concerns that it could further destabilize the region. The stable coastal countries of Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Ivory Coast also face the threat of armed groups destabilizing their countries. West Africa has seen more than 1,800 attacks and 4,600 deaths recorded between January and June 2023. The bloc stressed it had not been notified in advance of the three military regimes’ joint decision to exit. The departure could take up to a year, according to protocol.

Vigilante Justice In South Africa

Law & Disorder SOUTH AFRICA Residents of Rabie Ridge, sick and tired of criminals running rampant through their township outside Johannesburg, South Africa decided to take matters into their own hands. They went house to house and rounded up six people they accused of crimes. Then they stoned five of the alleged criminals to death. “We constantly live in fear,” said a frustrated community leader, according to Independent Online, a South African news website. “One can’t even go to shops in the evening without fearing for our lives. We tried to work with law enforcement, but they always let us down.” One of the victims’ family members insisted that their nephew was not a criminal, or at least had never been convicted of the crime that the mob accused him of committing. Even if he had been guilty, the family member added, he didn’t deserve to die in that manner. Meanwhile, wealthier South Africans have other options. As the Associated Press explained, they have fueled a booming industry of private security firms whose guards often perform many of the functions normally restricted to government-run law enforcement agencies. These days, private security guards outnumber police officers, wrote NPR. Such personnel also protect bank vans and other vehicles from the heists that occur regularly on the country’s dangerous roads. “Robberies can last extended periods, with motorway traffic continuing normally on the other side of the road while gangs prime their explosives and rove about with automatic weapons, sometimes filmed by onlookers,” wrote the BBC. Vigilantism and mercenaries are two strategies that South Africans have embraced as crime hit a 20-year high in Africa’s most developed country but which also has one of the highest violent crime rates in the world. In the last year, murderers have claimed 27,000 lives in the country. The murder rate has increased by 77 percent since 2022. Police, meanwhile, solve only 12 percent of these cases. The police have attempted to crack down. They have asked Google Maps, for example, to reroute folks who might use the app to drive from Cape Town International Airport through a notorious crime spot where tourists have been robbed and shot, noted Deutsche Welle. But Stellenbosch University criminologist Guy Lamb, writing in the Conversation, says the police are losing the country’s war on crime. The crime wave in South Africa reflects deep social, economic, and other structural problems, he explained. Lamb called for government officials, cops, civil society groups, and communities to work together to create better ways to curb the violence: “This is a ‘war’ the police can’t win on their own …”

Ethiopia-The Coming Storm

The Coming Storm ETHIOPIA When Eritrea won independence from Ethiopia in 1993, the latter retained access to a port on the former’s Red Sea coast. But five years later, Ethiopia lost access to this port during a war between the two countries that lasted until 2000. Today, Ethiopian trade flows through Djibouti. Wanting to change this situation, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed hoped to reach a deal with Somaliland, an independent but unrecognized republic within Somalia, to allow more Ethiopian trade to travel through the port of Berbera, reported Agence France-Presse. Berbera would also allow Ethiopia to trade with the Middle East and Europe to the north via the Suez Canal, and east past the Horn of Africa to India and China. Many Ethiopians feel this arrangement makes perfect sense, the Washington Post noted. Their country, a growing regional power, was never previously landlocked and should not be so today, they reason. In ancient times, for example, Ethiopia was a stop on sea routes that stretched from Rome to India. In return for its port access, Ethiopia promised to conduct an “in-depth assessment” of Somaliland’s bid for sovereignty, a milestone for Somaliland, explained Al Jazeera. No country recognizes the self-declared breakaway state. Additionally, Somaliland would receive a stake in Ethiopian Airlines, a state-owned company that could help Somaliland make connections worldwide. Importantly, as part of the agreement, Ethiopia will also occupy a naval base in Somaliland. Forces deployed to that base presumably could come to Somaliland’s aid in the event of a conflict with officials in Mogadishu. Somaliland was a British colony until 1960. The territory enjoyed five days of independence before voluntarily uniting with Somalia, a former Italian colony. It was a bumpy union that ended with Somaliland breaking away in 1991, after a decade-long liberation struggle against a Soviet-backed military regime. Today, Somaliland is a de facto independent state, with its own currency, a parliament and overseas diplomatic missions. Reflecting the import of this diplomatic turn – a foreign power brokering a deal with rebels to use a military post on land they control but which others claim – Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud condemned the agreement, signing a new Somalian law to nullify it, added Reuters. It’s not clear if this nullification will do anything, however. “Somalia belongs to Somalis,” Mohamud told lawmakers recently, according to the New York Times. “We will protect every inch of our sacred land and not tolerate attempts to relinquish any part of it.” Now, Somalia says it is prepared to go to war to stop Ethiopia from recognizing Somaliland and building a port there, a senior adviser to Somalia’s president said, according to the Guardian. Declaring the deal void, Mohamud has called on Somalians to “prepare for the defense of our homeland,” while protests have broken out in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, against the agreement. At the New Arab, Abdolgader Mohamed Ali, an Eritrean journalist, wondered whether the deal would set in motion events that might ultimately lead to conflict in one of the world’s most volatile regions. Abiy has hinted at resorting to violence to regain Ethiopia’s historical access to the Red Sea. Eritrean officials, who have been Abiy’s allies – he won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for finalizing a peace deal with Eritrea – are preparing for a potential outbreak of war over the issue. Djibouti faces economic repercussions from the deal, too, Bloomberg noted. Ethiopians want access to the sea. The question now is, how far are they willing to go to get it?

Fair Elections In The Congo?

Free + Fair = Do-Overs DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO The Election Commission of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) invalidated 82 candidates in December’s general election last week, amid claims of fraud and irregularities and calls to re-run all the elections, including the presidential race, Reuters reported. The list of disqualified candidates included three ministers and four governors, but noticeably not President Tshisekedi. He secured a second term after a landslide victory on Dec. 20, the same day as other national and local votes. However, turnout was low: fewer than one registered Congolese voter out of two was able to cast their ballot, the BBC reported. Election day was marred with irregularities at polling stations throughout the country. Two-thirds of them did not open, and violence and technical malfunctions led to a controversial extension of voting. The election commission said it was investigating “acts of violence, vandalism and sabotage” committed by candidates, a statement seen by the opposition as evidence of widespread fraud. “By what magic … (that) only the legislative elections were corrupted and not the presidential one?” asked Martin Fayulu, who came third in the presidential election and asked for a do-over of all the races. The commission maintained that the elections were free and fair. Its statement did not calm the opposition, who called on the international community to probe the vote. There is little trust in the DRC in the country’s institutions. While the commission was accused of siding with the government, only one candidate took the matter to court, as the others said they had little faith in the judicial system to correct injustices. Meanwhile, the controversy over the elections threatens to further destabilize the country, which is already experiencing a deadly conflict in the east. Millions are thought to have died in a three-decade conflict tearing apart a region holding 70 percent of the world’s reserves of coltan, a mineral used in the manufacture of mobile phones, the BBC explained.