🔅 UK's Plan to Deport Asylum-Seekers to Rwanda
Plus: Tanzania's Marburg Outbreak, Uganda's Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill Passes, Afrobeats Star Rema Gets Iranians in Trouble, Boeing's Odd Argument Against Ethiopian Crash Victims, And much more... ☕
Photo of the day: New Year Celebrations, Kigali, Rwanda.
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Bill Gates Thinks AI is the Next Big Thing: Bill Gates has declared AI to be the next big thing, calling it “as fundamental as the creation of the microprocessor, the personal computer, the Internet, and the mobile phone.” This statement comes after Microsoft invested billions in OpenAI, the team behind ChatGPT, a human-like chatbot that can answer questions and even write thoughtful answers to queries about sick children. And it seems like Gates’ prediction is on the money, as Google has just released their own AI-powered chatbot, Bard. Gates is urging governments to work with industry to “limit the risks” of AI. Still, he also sees potential for the technology to save lives in poorer countries, especially when it comes to completing mundane tasks like paperwork. Gates believes that market forces won’t naturally produce AI products and services that help the poorest, and so he’s calling on governments and philanthropy to ensure that AIs are used to reduce inequity.
*Data accurate as of the close of markets across the continent
GEOPOLITICS
UK's Controversial Plan to Deport Asylum-Seekers to Rwanda
The UK government is planning to deport asylum-seekers to Rwanda in the next few months—but not without a fight.
Suella Braverman, Home Secretary for the Conservative government, visited Rwanda to discuss the plan with President Kagame and Foreign Minister Biruta.
What exactly is the plan?
The government argues this will smash the people-smuggling gangs and deter migrants from taking risky journeys across the English Channel.
But there are protests:
Human rights groups are citing Rwanda’s poor human rights records and calling the plan inhumane. A group of asylum-seekers have been granted permission to appeal the policy.
The government has also drafted legislation barring anyone who arrives in the UK in small boats or by other unauthorised means from applying for asylum.
If passed by Parliament, the Illegal Migration Bill would compel the government to detain all such arrivals and deport them to their homeland or a “safe third country” such as Rwanda. The UN refugee agency says the law breaches UK commitments under the international refugee convention.
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OTHER HEADLINES
Across the Continent
🇹🇿 Tanzania's First-Ever Marburg Outbreak | Five people in Tanzania’s Kagera region have died after being infected with Marburg, a deadly virus similar to Ebola. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is now on the case, trying to figure out how the virus was spread and how to contain it. Sadly, one of the victims was a health worker. Marburg is spread through contact with bodily fluids of infected people or fruit bats. Symptoms include high fever, severe headache and malaise, and the fatality rate can be as high as 88%. Equatorial Guinea is also dealing with its first-ever outbreak of Marburg, confirmed back in February.
🇺🇬 Uganda's Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill | In Uganda, it’s looking like the LGBTQ+ community is about to get even more criminalised than they already were. Uganda’s parliament recently passed a bill that would criminalise individuals who simply identify as gay, with the penalty being lengthy prison terms. Even those who just support or fund LGBTQ+ organisations could face prosecution. The bill will now go to President Yoweri Museveni, who can choose to sign it into law or veto it (which would make a lot of Western donors and investors happy). Museveni has made some anti-gay comments recently, and criticised Western countries for putting pressure on Uganda over the issue. Some activists say the bill is just a distraction from the country’s real problems, like its failing economy.
🇳🇬 Afrobeats Star, Rema, Gets Iranians in Trouble | Five Iranian ladies got in trouble with the law for dancing to Nigerian Afrobeat artist Rema’s song ‘Calm Down’—without headscarves. The video of the five women showing their stomachs near highrise buildings went viral on International Women’s Day. Unfortunately, authorities responded by allegedly detaining the women and forcing them to make a video expressing regret. In Iran, it’s illegal for women to dance in public without headscarves, so the incident has sparked debate around the country’s dress code and inspired Iranian women to continue fighting for change.
🇪🇹 Boeing's Odd Argument Against Ethiopian Crash Victim Damages | Boeing’s got itself into a bit of a sticky situation. They have set out to prove that crash victims of the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 felt no pain before they died, thus reducing the damages the company will have to pay out to victims' families. To make their case, the company has cited an expert who claims that the speed at which the plane hit the ground was too fast for the passengers to process pain. Attorneys for the families of the victims disagree, saying that passengers were in a state of “horrific emotional distress” and “braced for impact” as the plane crashed. Legal experts are split on whether Illinois case law is clear on this issue, so it looks like we’ll just have to wait and see.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Proverb of the Day
“A low-class man will just talk; deeds are the hallmark of a gentleman.”
— Swahili Proverb.