The emergence The OECD has its origins in the cooperation required to rebuild the severely wounded Europe after World War II. In 1948, 18 European countries, including Sweden, formed the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC) with the task of administering the American Marshall Plan. This financial aid program was used during the years 1948-1952… Read More »
Civil war in Lebanon The Arab League tried early to bring peace to the civil war in Lebanon, which broke out in 1975. The following year, Syria entered Lebanon with troops to end fighting between religious and political groups and to avoid an Israeli invasion. The operation initially met with criticism within the Arab League,… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Zimbabwe. In February, the EU decided to continue the easing of sanctions against Zimbabwe initiated the year before. Now the entry ban to the EU for Zimbabwe’s Foreign Minister, Justice Minister and 49 other people was lifted, and restrictions on 20 companies were lifted. However, restrictions were maintained against President Robert Mugabe. Later,… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Zambia. The nation exploded in wild joy when the Zambia football national team took home the African championship for the first time in February. The copper balls, as the team is called, won after dramatic penalty kicks in the final against big favorite Ivory Coast. The victory gained a deep emotional significance when… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Western Sahara. Forty people were reportedly injured, ten of them seriously, when military forces forcibly dispelled a demonstration in the capital El-Aaiún in January. In February, the official news agency of the Western Saharan Republic reported that residents of parts of Western Sahara and the refugee camps in Algeria had voted in an… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Uganda. In February, two ministers accused of corruption resigned. They claimed that the business they had with an entrepreneur in the capital Kampala had been approved by President Yoweri Museveni, which he denied. The MP who had proposed the death penalty for homosexual acts submitted a revised proposal, where the most severe sentence… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Tunisia. In the aftermath of the so-called Jasmine Revolution in 2011, many Tunisians expressed their disappointment at missing changes. Some, including academics and miners, demonstrated during the spring under the auspices of the union against the high unemployment. At the end of November, police in the town of Siliana, 12 miles south of… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Togo. Parliamentary elections were scheduled in October but postponed due to contradictions between the opposition and the government on the electoral law. Another opposition requirement was that President Faure Gnassingbé should not be eligible for re-election in 2015. Speculation that the election would be held increased when Prime Minister Gilbert Houngbo and the… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Tanzania. During the year, the British defense industry group BAE Systems agreed to contribute to Tanzania’s education system as a form of damages for corruption in the arms trade. BAE would pay the equivalent of over SEK 300 million following a settlement with the country’s anti-corruption authority. The money would be used for… Read More »
Yearbook 2012 Sudan. The division of the country continued to characterize political and economic development. Trouble ensued over transit fees on oil that South Sudan exports through Sudan. South Sudan accused Sudan of stealing oil and shut down its oil production in January. Sudan claimed that the neighbor did not pay fees. With the divide,… Read More »