Tunisia's waves of political change seem on the verge of drenching unsuspecting old despots across the North African region, says Gado.

With the government moving to protect suspects from the International Criminal Court (ICC), Gado wonders what would happen if Jesus were to be tried in Kenya today.

Côte d'Ivoire's Laurent Gbagbo receives a call from International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

Kenyan writer and poet Khainga O’Okwemba shares insights and experiences gained during a visit to Cairo, for a conference organised by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Culture in collaboration with Egypt PEN.

Adekeye Adebajo’s book is recommended reading for anyone interested both in contemporary Africa and in how the Berlin Conference continues to influence the future of the continent, writes Nilani Ljunggren De Silva.

Laurent Gbagbo has his 'assets' seized by the army.

Poet Khainga O’Okwemba provides insight into the language of poetry.

An African film company is gaining global attention by producing award-winning 3D animation titles made from an African perspective. TransTales Entertainment was started in 2005 on a budget of less than 5 000 dollars by Segun Williams and Obinna Onwuekwe, and is the first film company to produce African themed 3D animation films to fill the void in animation with myriads of authentic African stories.

Ekpo Eyo’s ‘From Shrines to Showcases: Masterpieces of Nigerian Art’ – a book on the country’s myriad artistic works – is a ‘masterpiece in its own right’, writes Kwame Opuku. But while Eyo exhibits masterful knowledge of Nigeria’s rich gamut of artistic endeavour, the fact that so many of these works remain held outside of the country – seemingly not to be returned – is scandalous, Opuku concludes.

Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali flees at the site of popular protest.

Gado wonders what would happen were WikiLeaks to make all phone calls and text messages public.

From African-American gospel music to the soul of James Brown, the reggae of Bob Marley and the Afrobeat of Fela Kuti, Alemayehu G. Mariam charts the rich history of protest music and the need for new battle songs to rally around.

Femi Ojo-Ade’s ‘thought-provoking collection of essays’ and poetry addresses three fundamental questions, writes Peter W. Vakunta: Who is Barack Obama, what makes him tick and what does his victory mean both for the US and for the global community?

‘No Land! No House! No Vote! Voices from Symphony Way’, Sylvia Tamale’s ‘African Sexualities: A Reader’, ‘African Women Writing Resistance: An Anthology of Contemporary Voices’ and Mahmood Mamdani’s ‘From Citizen to Refugee: Uganda Asians come to Britain’ are among the forthcoming titles from Pambazuka Press reviewed by Chuka Nnabuife.

Cre8, a non-profit music project working in southern Africa, discuss their latest tour around Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe. An audio clip from the second movement of their composition 'Notes to Africa' is available .

The United Nations and the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will hold a meeting to discuss ways of better protecting five sites from the vast African nation that are inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. The five sites in danger are Virunga, Garamba, Kahuzi-Biega, and Salonga National Parks, and the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, which are home to a unique range of flora and fauna including the Mountain Gorilla and the Okapi – a forest giraffe only found in DRC.

As the Kenyan government continues its plans for multi-billion dollar port, oil and transport project, Zahra Moloo considers the socio-economic and environmental effects on Lamu and the absence of news coverage on the topic.

Amira Ali's 'Speak no more – let us just make music', originally published in issue (491) – – is now available as a [email protected] or comment online at Pambazuka News.

Gado on WikiLeaks and the US…

The latest UNESCO figures show just five out of ten Liberian women over the age of 15 can read or write. For men it is six out of ten. The West African country now has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world, ranked in the bottom fifteen according to UNESCO. 'Standing before you, my name is Erica. I am nine years old. I go to the Christian Ministry Fellowship international school,' says Erica proudly. Erica is among a new generation of students in Liberia who are being taught to read using new techniques not seen in West Africa before.