R. Maxwell Bone
@maxbone55.bsky.social
Eyes on all things Africa, Human Rights and Democracy. Recovering Democracy & Governance Practitioner. MPhil from the University of Cambridge. Words in @foreignpolicy.com @wpr.bsky.social @newhumanitarian.bsky.social & elsewhere
This was a good read - however, I think it’s worthwhile to mention that the South African politician under investigation is indeed Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, the daughter of the country’s former President and leader of the third largest party in South Africa …
‘The Death Zone’: How Russia Is Luring Africans to Ukraine
nytimes.com
At nearly 93, Paul Biya is all but guaranteed a victory—but has no successor. foreignpolicy.com/2025/10/07/b...
Cameroon’s Predictable Election Will Produce Unpredictable Chaos
At nearly 93, Paul Biya is all but guaranteed a victory—but has no successor.
foreignpolicy.com
this is a good article about the politics of a country you probably don't know anything about but also this photo of the 93-year-old president and his wife is mildly insane. his daughter has also just condemned him and renounced her family wealth on social media. foreignpolicy.com/2025/10/07/b...
Cameroon’s Predictable Election Will Produce Unpredictable Chaos
At nearly 93, Paul Biya is all but guaranteed a victory—but has no successor.
foreignpolicy.com
Cameroon’s upcoming election will likely produce a victory for incumbent Paul Biya. But at 92 years old, there are concerns about his ability to govern, @maxbone55.bsky.social writes.
Cameroon’s Predictable Election Will Produce Unpredictable Chaos
At nearly 93, Paul Biya is all but guaranteed a victory—but has no successor.
foreignpolicy.com
On Sunday, #Cameroon will hold an election that will certainly return #PaulBiya to power. For @foreignpolicy.com , I examine how the succession battle and election have unearthed societial fissures that will make the post-Biya transition dangerously unstable.
Cameroon’s Predictable Election Will Produce Unpredictable Chaos
At nearly 93, Paul Biya is all but guaranteed a victory—but has no successor.
foreignpolicy.com
When I served as President Biden’s Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council, I had more than a few difficult meetings over whether, and how, to cut foreign assistance. My reflections here: poststrategy.substack.com/p/on-foreign...
NEW: GOP attacks on U.S. elections have clashed with America’s pro-democracy stance abroad. Rubio’s move to silence diplomats on fair elections removes that tension, potentially aiding Trump’s efforts to rig upcoming elections, @maxbone55.bsky.social writes.
Trump’s Voter Suppression Tactics Align U.S. With Overseas Dictators
Read more here.
democracydocket.com
I've been reflecting on how voter suppression in the U.S. mirrors tactics I’ve analyzed & worked w/ civil society combat abroad. In my first @democracydocket.com article, I examine how these tactics are being used to exclude marginalized voters here at home. The fight for democracy is universal.
Trump’s Voter Suppression Tactics Align U.S. With Overseas Dictators
Read more here.
democracydocket.com
I was genuinely pleased to see the leaders of #GuineaBissau, #Mauritania, #Liberia, #Senegal & #Gabon at the White House yesterday. High-level engagement and a focus on commerce have long been lacking from US- #Africa policy, and I will applaud any President who takes action to change that.
Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s efforts to bypass constitutional term limits and extend his term in office until 2030 has spurred calls for a public uprising, writes @maxbone55.bsky.social.
The Perfect Storm Pushing Zimbabwe Toward Crisis
Simmering tensions and an ambitious president could mean wider unrest.
foreignpolicy.com
Over the past few months, a confluence of crises has been simmering in #Zimbabwe: a heated succession battle within ZANU-PF, the most divided opposition in two decades, intensified repression of civil society & a worsening economic crisis. In @foreignpolicy.com , I examine the implications.
The Perfect Storm Pushing Zimbabwe Toward Crisis
Simmering tensions and an ambitious president could mean wider unrest.
foreignpolicy.com
A 249-strong contingent of SANDF soldiers serving with the now-terminated Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo have arrived back in South Africa, with the remainder set to return by month-end. www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/fir...
First batch of South African SAMIDRC troops return home in chaotic repatriation - defenceWeb
A 249-strong contingent of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers serving with the now-terminated Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAM...
defenceweb.co.za
Netanyahu wanted to strike Iran when Obama was president. Obama said no and he didn’t. Netanyahu wanted to strike Iran when Biden was president. Biden said no and he didn’t. Netanyahu wanted to strike Iran when Trump is president. Trump said no and he did.
W.E.B. Du Bois on Robert E. Lee: “Either he knew what slavery meant when he helped maim and murder thousands in its defense, or he did not. If he did not he was a fool. If he did, Robert Lee was a traitor and a rebel–not indeed to his country, but to humanity and humanity’s God.”
The real enemy of this administration is cosmopolitanism. Whether in Los Angeles or South Africa, multiracial pluralistic democracy is a threat to them because it means their “us or them” model of the world is wrong. So they stir up trouble on purpose and gleefully lie.
Acyn@acyn.bsky.social · last yr.Kristi Noem calls Los Angeles a “city of criminals” “They are not city of immigrants, they are a city of criminals”
I have admittedly not been following the New York Mayoral race closely, but I just realized that one of the main candidates is Mahmood Mamdani’s son! If it means anything for NY-Africa relations is another question, but still very neat! pix11.com/news/politic...
Cuomo’s lead narrows as Mamdani gains ground in NYC mayoral race: poll
NEW YORK (PIX11) — An internal poll from Zohran Mamdani’s campaign obtained by PIX11 News shows he is gaining on former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the race for mayor, although Cuomo remains t…
pix11.com
This is a five-alarm fire not getting sufficient attention. #PEPFAR funding in #SouthAfrica funded small clinics for key populations. If the figures are this high in RSA, where the public health system is more robust, they are likely much higher elsewhere. www.reuters.com/business/hea...
Exclusive: HIV patient testing falls in South Africa after US aid cuts, data shows
South Africa has the world's highest burden of HIV, with about 8 million people living with the virus.
reuters.com
My phone was buzzing nonstop with messages from Abidjan about a coup- which was bogus. It is imaginable to see such messages leading to ppl pouring into the streets & subsequent unrest. This raises real questions of how to address information integrity in real time businessday.ng/africa/artic...
Coup rumours debunked as Côte d'Ivoire's President chairs cabinet meeting - Businessday NG
President Alassane Ouattara of Côte d'Ivoire on Wednesday presided over a council of ministers meeting at the presidential palace in Abidjan, the Ivorian capital.
businessday.ng
IMHO: stop calling the meeting an ambush. Ramaphosa had a plan: - staffing his delegation (golfers, a billionaire, and a white minister of ag.) - asking a few Trojan Horse Q’s (where is the video from?) - letting POTUS spew without interruption - letting the press ask the hard Q’s, rather than him
Last week I posted my first substack on U.S. strategies toward Africa. What worked and what didn’t — including the one I wrote for President Biden. open.substack.com/pub/poststra...
On Strategies
I wrote President Biden's Africa Strategy. What went wrong?
open.substack.com
Some rare positive news for the global order from @edwardluce.bsky.social and @financialtimes.com, reinforced in #Canada and #Australia: "America’s 47th president plays unwitting ally to democracy everywhere except at home." www.ft.com/content/f063...
Mark Carney: democracy’s unTrump
America’s 47th president plays unwitting ally to non-populists everywhere except at home
ft.com
This is two global elections in ONE WEEK where the conservative candidate trying to become prime minister not only led his party to a big loss but lost their own seat in parliament (!) in huge upsets. We are global pariahs unseen since the end of the Cold War and need stronger domestic opposition.
Australia re-elects Anthony Albanese as Labor rides anti-Trump wave to seal crushing win
Opposition leader Peter Dutton fails to dissociate himself from Trump-like rhetoric and policies – and loses his seat
theguardian.com
Military drone acquisitions have surged in Africa, but any decisive advantage drones provide may be further negated by the dynamics of proxy warfare. africacenter.org/spo...
Military Drone Proliferation Marks Destabilizing Shift in Africa’s Armed Conflicts – Africa Center
A revolution in unmanned drone systems is reshaping the dynamics of Africa’s conflicts, providing militaries tactical advantages but also risks.
africacenter.org
This is an example of how the misguided tariffs are already having a massive impact on Lesotho- one of the poorest (but in my mind most beautiful) countries on earth. This will push people into poverty & Impact companies from allied countries.. www.news24.com/fin24/econom...
'Shocked and scared': US clothing contracts killed as Lesotho faces 50% tariff | Business
With the US set to slap a 50% tariff on Lesotho this week, the country's textile workers have warned that thousands of jobs will be lost. Meanwhile, Taiwanese garment maker, Hippo Knitting said its sh...
news24.com
South Africa-U.S. relations hit new hurdles. The latest on hits to trade and HIV programs – and a controversial refugee program for white Afrikaners. goodauthority.org/news/south-a...
South Africa-U.S. relations hit new hurdles
The latest on hits to trade and HIV programs – and a controversial refugee program for white Afrikaners.
goodauthority.org
Many assumed in 2020 that Malawi’s democratic triumph would create the political will to address the country’s challenges. Five years later, though, most of the country’s major issues remain unchanged, @maxbone55.bsky.social writes.
Chakwera Has Wasted Malawi’s Democratic Breakthrough
Malawi’s presidential election will be a repeat of the 2020 vote that earned it plaudits. But the race is highlighting the same challenges for its democracy.
worldpoliticsreview.com
Amazing interview with South African jurist Albie #Sachs on @africasacountry.bsky.social africasacountry.com/2025/04/what...
What comes after liberation?
In this wide-ranging conversation, the freedom fighter and former Constitutional Court justice Albie Sachs reflects on law, liberation, and the unfinished work of building a just South Africa.
africasacountry.com
