Ethiopian Leader Meles Dies at 57

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has died at the age of 57, after months of speculation about his health.

State television announced his death Tuesday, saying he died from a sudden infection late Monday at a hospital abroad.

Government spokesman Bereket Simon would not say where Mr. Meles died, or disclose the illness that led to his hospitalization.

“The prime minister had been sick for quite a while,” he said. “And he was attending medical support in, somewhere in, ah, abroad. And he had some chance in recuperating. But ultimately some infection happened to him and doctors couldn't control that infection.”

Mr. Meles had not been seen in public for nearly two months before his death.

Spokesman Bereket said Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn will serve as acting prime minister.

He said Mr. Meles' body will arrive Tuesday in Ethiopia, and officials are making plans for the funeral.

Prime Minister Meles ruled his country for more than 20 years, after the rebel alliance he led, the EPRDF (Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front), seized power in 1991.

Mr. Meles earned praise abroad for improvements in the economy, education and health care. But human rights groups sharply criticized him for various abuses, including restrictions on independent media.

Under Mr. Meles, Ethiopia fought a border war with Eritrea and sent troops to Somalia to fight Islamist militants.

Ethiopia and Eritrea fought from 1998 to 2000 in a conflict that killed more than 70,000 people. Tension between the two countries remained high.

Mr. Meles was also known as an ally to the United States against terrorism.

In 2006, Ethiopian troops entered Somalia to fight Islamist militants allegedly armed and trained by the Eritrean government. Ethiopian forces returned to Somalia last year in a multi-nation offensive against militant group al-Shabab.

Mr. Meles' most serious political challenge came in the 2005 elections, when opposition parties said the government rigged to results to cheat them of victory. Nearly 200 people died in post-election violence and protests.

In the most recent elections in 2010, the EPRDF and its allies took all but one seat in parliament, sparking new accusations of fraud.

The criticism increased in recent years as Ethiopian courts jailed journalists and political activists under an anti-terrorism law that rights groups said was overly vague and broad.

Mr. Meles was born in the northern Ethiopian town of Adwa in 1955. He attended Addis Ababa University for two years before joining the Tigrayan Peoples' Liberation Front, or TPLF, one of several groups that was fighting the government of Mengistu Hailemariam. The TPLF later became the core group within the EPRDF.

After taking power in 1991, Mr. Meles served as president for four years before assuming the prime minister's post in 1995.

(Photo by Monika Flueckiger, 2012.)

Ghanaian President John Atta Mills Dies at 68

Ghanaian President John Atta Mills, who died Tuesday, oversaw a generally peaceful and prosperous time for his country during his one term in office.

Mr. Mills became the country's third democratically-elected president in 2009 after defeating ruling party candidate Nana Akufo-Addo in a run-off election.

In July 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama visited Ghana and proclaimed the country a model for other African countries.

Eighteen months later, Mr. Mills turned the valves at a ceremony marking Ghana's new status as an oil-producing nation. The oil fueled economic growth of more than 16 percent in 2011, though analysts warned that oil production could have harmful effects, as it has in other African countries.

Mr. Mills was born July 21, 1944 in Ekumfi Otuam in Ghana's Central Region.

Before his political career, he was an accomplished scholar receiving both a bachelors and law degree from the University of Ghana, a doctorate from the University of London, and the prestigious Fulbright scholarship to Stanford University in the United States.

Mr. Mills served as Ghana's vice president during the administration of Jerry Rawlings from 1997 to 2000.

He had been nominated by the ruling party to run for president again in an election expected later this year.

The president leaves behind a wife and a son.

Malawi Mourns Death of President Mutharika

Malawi's vice president Joyce Banda has called for calm as the nation mourns its late President Bingu wa Mutharika, who died of a heart attack on Thursday.

Ms. Banda told reporters Saturday that flags will be flown at half-staff and that broadcasters should play “somber” music for the next 10 days.

Malawi State radio confirmed earlier Saturday that President Mutharika was dead, after two days of unconfirmed reports.

Malawi's constitution stipulates that the vice president is to take over the presidency if the president dies, but Ms. Banda has not yet taken the oath of office.

Mr. Mutharika was rushed to a hospital Thursday in the capital, Lilongwe, after falling ill at his home.

He was elected president of Malawi in 2004 and won a second term in 2009.

He was credited with improving food security in Malawi and, at one time, making his country a political and economic model for other African countries. But in more recent years, the economy has stumbled and unemployment has been high. Critics of the late president say he had become increasingly autocratic. Nineteen people were killed last July in anti-government protests.

An economist by education, Mr. Mutharika was a World Bank official and served as a civil servant in Malawi. He was appointed minister of economic planning and development in 2002, and then-President Bakili Muluzi nominated him as his successor.

He later broke away from Mr. Muluzi and formed the Democratic Progressive Party, which has the majority in parliament.

Malawi's vice president Joyce Banda:
“Ladies and gentlemen and members of the press, I call upon all Malawians to remain calm, and to keep the peace during this time of bereavement. Further, I wish to direct that all national flags at public buildings be flown at half-mast and that the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation and private media of goodwill play somber music as we honor this mourning period, which is for 10 days.”
“I don't think there is any way we can discuss who is caretaker and who is not. Because that is what I was saying. And I think that is what the chief senator said. That the constitution is prevailing right now. But the purpose of this meeting this afternoon is for us, and I want to repeat this: is that we should focus on the funeral. That right now, what is paramount is that we should focus on the father of the nation.”

Malawi Confirms Death of President Mutharika

Malawi State radio is confirming President Bingu wa Mutharika is dead.

Saturday's official announcement follows multiple reports quoting medical and government sources on the president's death.

Mr. Mutharika was rushed to a hospital Thursday in the capital, Lilongwe, after falling ill at his home.

On Friday, medical and government sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the 78-year-old president died of a heart attack, but the government would not confirm the reports.

Mr. Mutharika was elected president of Malawi in 2004 and won a second term in 2009.

He was credited with improving food security in Malawi and, at one time, making his country a political and economic model for other African countries. But in more recent years, the economy has stumbled and unemployment has been high. Critics of the late president say he had become increasingly autocratic. Nineteen people were killed last July in anti-government protests.

An economist by education, Mr. Mutharika was a World Bank official and served as a civil servant in Malawi. He was appointed minister of economic planning and development in 2002, and then-President Bakili Muluzi nominated him as his successor.

He later broke away from Mr. Muluzi and formed the Democratic Progressive Party, which has the majority in parliament.

Photo: Bingu wa Mutharika at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, 23 September 2009. Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson

Cape Verde's 'Barefoot Diva' Dies

Cesária Évora, the Cape Verdean singer known as the “Barefoot Diva” because she performed without shoes, has died at the age of 70.

The singer, who won international acclaim with her sultry voice and melancholy ballads of lost love, died Saturday in a hospital on her native island of Sao Vicente.

Évora retired in September because of health problems. She underwent open heart surgery last year.

Évora was the best-known performer of “morna,'' Cape Verde's national music.

Her 1995 album, Cesaria, was released in more than a dozen countries and brought the entertainer her first Grammy award nomination. She won a Grammy in the World Music category several years ago for her album, Voz D'Amor.

Photo by Bremond: Cesária Évora in concert, 14 November 2009, at the Rockhal of Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg.

Kenyan Nobel Laureate Maathai Dies

Kenya's Wangari Maathai, the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, has died. She was 71.

The organization she founded, the Green Belt Movement, said in a statement that Maathai died Sunday at a Nairobi hospital after a long struggle with cancer.

The Nobel Committee awarded her the peace prize in 2004, citing her stand against Kenya's former oppressive government and work to encourage women to improve their lives.

Maathai started the Green Belt Movement in 1977 to help poor women in rural communities meet their basic needs for firewood, food and clean drinking water through a tree-planting program. The effort later grew to include focusing on issues of democracy, human rights, women's rights and peace.

The organization says it has mobilized hundreds of thousands of men and women to plant more than 47 million trees.

Maathai also served as a member of the Kenyan parliament, and as the country's deputy environment minister.

She attended college in the United States during the civil rights era in the 1960s, and said that experience inspired her to return home and do something positive for the people of Kenya.

Maathai was one of the founding members of the Nobel Women's Initiative, joining other female peace prize winners to support women's rights advocacy around the world.

(Photograph of Wangari Maathai by Martin Rowe)

Cape Verde's Former President Aristides Pereira Dies

Cape Verde's former president Aristides Pereira, a leader in the country's fight for independence from Portugal, has died. He was 87.

Government officials say Mr. Pereira passed away Thursday at the University of Coimbra Hospital in Portugal, where he had been hospitalized since early August. Early reports did not indicate a cause of death.

The Lusa News Agency says Mr. Pereira was initially hospitalized for a fractured femur complicated by diabetes.

The former president co-founded the African Party for Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde in 1956. Cape Verde won independence in 1975 and Mr. Pereira became the first president of the the island country, located off the coast of West Africa.

He remained in the post until 1991 when he lost in Cape Verde's first democratic elections.

The Lusa News Agency quotes Minister of Health Cristina Fontes Lima as saying Mr. Pereira's death is “a major loss for the nation of Cape Verde” and that details about his funeral will be released soon.

Photo: President Aristide Pereira of Cape Verde departs after a state visit. Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland (MD), United States of America (USA), 4 October 1983. Photo by U.S. Military.

Ex-Zimbabwean Military Chief Dies

General Solomon Mujuru, Zimbabwe's retired military chief and husband of the current vice president, has died at his farm outside Harare.

Initial reports say Mujuru, who was in his mid-to-late 60s, was killed in a house fire.

Mujuru led the guerrilla war that won Zimbabwe its independence from Britain in 1980, and served as military commander under President Robert Mugabe for more than a decade.

He was married to Vice President Joice Mujuru, the leader of a faction of Zimbabwe's ruling party who is vying to succeed the 87-year-old Mugabe once he steps down from office. The other faction is led by Defense Minster Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Mr. Mugabe entered into a power sharing agreement with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai in 2008 after disputed elections were held.

Apartheid-Era Defense Minister Malan Dies in South Africa

Monday, 18 July 2011

A South African defense minister who led military efforts against the anti-apartheid movement has died.

A statement released by the family of General Magnus Malan says he “died peacefully” early Monday at his home in Cape Town. He was 81.

Malan served as South Africa's defense minister from 1980 to 1991 and before that as army chief.

As defense minister, Malan organized the government's response to what he saw as a “total onslaught” against South Africa and its white-minority rule.

He deployed troops to control unrest in South African townships, and also sanctioned raids against anti-apartheid fighters in neighboring countries.

Later, Malan went on trial for the 1987 murders of 13 people in KwaZulu-Natal province. Malan and 19 others who were tried with him were eventually acquitted of those charges.

Malan is survived by his wife, three children and nine grandchildren.

Ex-Zambian President Chiluba Dies

Saturday, 18 June 2011

Former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba died early Saturday at his home in Lusaka. He was 68-years old.

Mr. Chiluba's spokesman, Emmanuel Mwamba, said the country's first democratically elected leader suffered a heart attack after spending most of Friday with members of parliament and his lawyers. Mwamba said Mr. Chiluba became ill Friday evening and died five minutes after midnight.

Mr. Chiluba led Zambia from 1991 to 2002.

In 1990, he helped found the Movement for Multiparty Democracy, leading it to victory the next year in the first multiparty post-colonial elections in Zambia.

The son of a copper miner and former union leader, Mr. Chiluba took office after almost three decades of one party rule by Kenneth Kaunda. He began his tenure by allowing greater political freedoms and liberalizing the country's economy.

But his administration became increasingly bogged down by allegations of corruption and mismanagement. He was also the target of personal criticism for his lavish lifestyle.

After he left office, his hand-picked successor Levy Mwanawasa instituted anti-corruption probes and Mr. Chiluba was charged with misappropriating $500,000 to his personal account, but was acquitted in 2009.

However, state prosecutors also filed civil charges against him in Britain. A court in London convicted him of stealing $46 million in state funds while president of Zambia. He was ordered to repay 85 percent of the money but the court order was never enforced in Zambia.

Mr. Chiluba is survived by his second wife and nine children.

South Africa Mourns Anti-Apartheid Icon 'Ma' Sisulu

Friday, 3 June 2011

South Africa is grieving the loss of a woman many consider to be the mother of the modern country.

Albertina Sisulu, known as Ma Sisulu, died late Thursday at her home in Johannesburg. She was 92.

Following the announcement, the Nelson Mandela Foundation issued a statement saying, "South Africa has lost a treasure."

Sisulu was born in the Tsomo district of Eastern Cape in 1918 and moved to Johannesburg in 1940 to train as a nurse. There she met anti-apartheid leader Walter Sisulu. The two married in 1944, with former president Nelson Mandela serving as the best man.

When South Africa's apartheid government jailed Walter Sisulu and Mr. Mandela in 1964, she took up the cause. Sisulu continued to lead despite being jailed, tortured and even banned from meeting with more than one person at a time.

In 1983, Sisulu formed the United Democratic Front, helping to revitalize the anti-apartheid movement.

Sisulu capped off her political career by formally nominating Nelson Mandela for president in 1994 and then serving one term as a legislator in the new democratic government.

Veteran activists say despite facing many hardships, Ma Sisulu kept her family together and always carried herself with grace and dignity.

South African Cabinet Minister Collins Chabane said Friday the state will give her an official, special funeral.

Part of Ma Sisulu's legacy are her children, who continue to play an active role in South African politics.

Her daughter Lindiwe Sisulu is the country's defense minister. Her son Max Sisulu is speaker of the National Assembly. And her other daughter, Beryl Sisulu, serves as South Africa's ambassador to Norway.

The family said Ma Sisulu had been in good health and was at the center of family activities at the time of her death.

(Photo: Dawidl)

South African Anti-Apartheid Veteran Albertina Sisulu Dies at 92

The University of Johannesburg confers an honorory doctoral degree (Doctor Litterarum et Philosophiae (honoris causa)) to Albertina Sisulu in acknowledgment of her revolutionary role in pre-1994 South Africa. (Photo: Dawidl)

South African Anti-Apartheid Veteran Albertina Sisulu Dies at 92
Thursday, 2 June 2011

A veteran of South Africa's anti-apartheid movement, Albertina Sisulu, had died in her Johannesburg home. She was 92.

Sisulu was an important figure in the ANC Women's League at the height of apartheid and was the widow of Walter Sisulu, one of Nelson Mandela's mentors. Walter Sisulu died in 2003.

The ruling African National Congress said Thursday that Albertina Sisulu dedicated all her life to the ANC and to the defeat of apartheid in South Africa.

Sisulu reared five children while her husband spent 25 years in prison on Robben Island alongside Mr. Mandela. Albertina Sisulu also spent months in prison and often had her movements restricted by the apartheid government.

Albertina Sisulu held leadership posts in the ANC and served in parliament, taking a seat after the first all-race elections in 1994.

She lived to see her children take prominent positions in post-apartheid South Africa. Her daughter, Lindiwe Sisulu, is defense minister and her son, Max Sisulu, is a member of parliament.

Anti-Apartheid Activist Who Shielded Mandela Dies

Wednesday, 25 May 2011

An old friend of Nelson Mandela who once helped hide the anti-apartheid leader from the South African white minority government has died.

The Nelson Mandela Foundation says Arthur Goldreich died in Israel on Tuesday. He was 82.

In the early 1960s, Mr. Mandela posed as a worker for Goldreich at the white activist's farm near Johannesburg.

The Liliesleaf Farm served as a base for the anti-apartheid movement. While there, Mr. Mandela took the name David Motsamayi and pretended to be a black servant who often wore simple blue overalls.

In 1963, police raided the farm and arrested Goldreich and other anti-apartheid leaders. Goldreich later escaped from police and eventually moved to Israel.

Goldreich returned to South Africa for a reunion at Liliesleaf Farm after Mr. Mandela became South Africa's first democratically-elected president in 1994.

Besides being an activist, Goldreich was also an artist. He designed the set for “King Kong,” a popular musical in South Africa about the life of a real-life black boxer.

Ugandan IOC Member Dies at 72

Wednesday, 16 February 2011

Longtime International Olympic Committee member Major General Francis Nyangweso of Uganda has died at the age of 72. The IOC announced his death Wednesday.

Nyangweso had been an IOC member for the past 23 years, serving on the Culture and Education Commission and the Olympic Solidarity Commission.

He spent 28 years as the head of Uganda's National Olympic Committee, from 1975-2009. He was also vice president of the International Amateur Boxing Association from 1986 to 2006 and the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa from 1974 to 1978.

Nyangweso competed in boxing at the 1960 Rome Olympics. He later worked as a banker and had a long and distinguished military and political career.