Zimbabwe: Detainees Remain in Cells

Harare — THE State has launched an appeal at the Supreme Court against the High Court determination ordering the release of former ZBC newscaster Jestina Mukoko and 31 other co-suspects accused of recruiting people for military training in Botswana. The 32 are still in custody.On Wednesday, High Court judge Justice Yunus Omerjee ordered the immediate release of Mukoko and her co-defendants on the basis of a previous High Court order declaring their detention illegal because they had been held for more than the stipulated 48 hours before being brought to court.

Ghana: NDC Hold Big Rally While NPP Takes Regional Rallies Route

Accra — Official campaigning for the second run of Ghana’s 2008 presidential elections ends midnight today – 26 December 2008, with the two political parties in the race, the New Patriotic Party ( NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) undertaking final campaign rallies.While the NDC is holding a big rally in the central region of Ghana, the region the party considers to be crucial to if they are going to win the December 28 elections, the ruling NPP is holding regional and mini rallies across the length and breath of the country in light of their second round strategy of “personal touch” . The party believes big rallies are not effective in carrying their message to prospective voters since it lacks one on one interaction.

West Africa: The Return of the Military Coup

Cape Town — The African Union (AU) has condemned the return of coups d’état to the continent, describing the phenomenon as “a very serious setback in the ongoing democratization process in Africa.”Government ministers attending a meeting of the AU’s Peace and Security Council in Addis Ababa this week issued three separate communiqués dealing with attempted or actual military takeovers during 2008.