TimeLine Layout

May, 2018

  • 16 May

    628 migrants died at sea so far in 2018, says UN

    According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), there has been a significant drop in the number of migrants and refugees who have travelled to Europe by sea compared to the same period last year. The UN migration agency has just released its numbers on how many migrants and refugees have travelled to Europe so far this year. According to …

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  • 15 May

    Quality of Chinese-built cars better than European ones, Volvo executive admits

    Swedish car maker Volvo says its vehicles built in China might actually be superior in quality to those it makes in Europe. In an interview with Australia’s Go Auto, Volvo’s senior vice-president of design, Robin Page, admitted that some were concerned about the automaker’s decision to build many of its vehicles in China. “What we’re finding is that the quality …

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  • 15 May

    Archbishop Tutu voted most reputable and ethical African

    The South African Anglican cleric and theologian known for his work as an anti-apartheid and human rights activist, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, has been voted Africa’s most reputable and ethical individual, while Gift of the Givers and Botswana were recognised as the most admired organisation and country on the continent respectively. Gift of the Givers Foundation is a South African non-governmental …

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  • 14 May

    AfricanTide Union hosts Africa Day 2018 in Dortmund, Germany

    This year’s Africa Day will be marked for the 8th consecutive time in the western German city of Dortmund with the theme “Global networking & modern economy”. The Day, which commemorates the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (now African Union) in Addis Ababa on 25 May 1963, is marked both in Africa and its Diaspora communities across the …

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  • 14 May

    UN concerned over proposed amendments to Austria’s asylum law

    The UN Refugee Agency UNHCR has urged the Austrian government to keep the protection of refugees at the centre of draft amendments to the country’s asylum law. The UNHCR has presented a juridical analysis of the draft amendments to Austria’s asylum law, urging the Austrian government to uphold its commitment to protect sensitive asylum policies. The organization expressed ”concern” about …

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  • 12 May

    Germany rejects more visa applications from African countries

    The visa rejection rate rose again last year. The German foreign missions mainly rejected applications from African countries. Parliamentarians of the Left in the federal parliament criticize the visa practice. Germany once again rejected more visa applications from foreigners last year. While the rejection rate was 6.7 percent in 2016, it rose to 8.5 percent last year. In 2015, the …

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  • 12 May

    Family reunification hard for Eritrean refugees in Germany

    Germany granted residence permit to some 35,000 Eritrean refugees last year. This entitles them to bring their families over. But not all are successful. Daniel Pelz of Deutsche Welle (DW) reports on the reasons for this. With its population of around five million, Eritrea is one of the main countries of origin of African refugees. Young people especially are among …

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  • 11 May

    UN takes Germany to task on racism and discrimination

    Berlin has admitted shortcomings in its efforts against racism, xenophobia, and discrimination during a UN human rights review. While many UN members raised issues with Germany, others praised it for taking in refugees. UN member states posed critical questions to Germany about its policy against racism and discrimination on Tuesday (8 May), during a regularly scheduled review session of the …

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  • 10 May

    Swahili makes history as first African language recognized by Twitter

    After years of hashtags and outcries, Twitter now recognizes Swahili, one of East Africa’s most common languages. The social media platform now offers translation for the language spoken by tens of millions in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and some parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Most African languages for the past decade and over of social media platform Twitter’s existence …

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  • 10 May

    Germany: Federal Cabinet approves new refugee family reunification law

    The German Cabinet has approved legislation allowing refugees with subsidiary protection status to bring their direct relatives to Germany. Critics say that the bill breaches human rights, and that it will force more migrants to put their fate in the hands of people-smugglers. Marion MacGregor of Deutsche Welle (DW) reports. German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet on Wednesday voted to resettle …

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