Soon after the Libyan crisis broke, decision-makers and humanitarian workers faced a critical challenge: lack of information about events inside the country. Within hours, Andrej Verity, information management officer at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva, called a meeting with volunteer-based and/or technically focused groups. OCHA activated the Standby task force, comprising more than 150 volunteers skilled in online crisis mapping. The idea was to map out social and traditional media reports from within Libya. That led to the creation of LibyaCrisisMap.net. There are more than 1,000 articles on the platform with some information extracted and placed on maps.

'Egypt is one of only two states to have entered reservations on ratification of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The three reservations concern the guarantee of freedom of conscience, non-discrimination of women and children and the right to receive information...The African Commission has been resolute in rejecting the subjugation of continental human rights standards to restrictive national laws that nullify the human rights guaranteed. This is particularly critical in the context of the current transition in Egypt. It is important that the people access information on the decades of injustice and find the truth about corruption, torture, missing persons.'

Government will pay out millions of rands to compensate victims of apartheid era atrocities, the Sunday Times reported. Those who qualify for financial assistance include victims and their children, even if they were born in or out of wedlock or were adopted. People with parental responsibilities over victims and their children will also be eligible for compensation.

‘Are we witnessing a new era of restricted media, or will Angolans find a way to report their news in an objective and truthful forum?’ asks Rafael Marques de Morais, as government strategies to silence investigative journalists kick into action.

Zogbo Blé Denis of the state-owned Ivorian Broadcasting Service (RTI) and Claude Kipré of Top Visages, a weekly magazine, have gone into hiding after reportedly receiving death threats from unknown persons. The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)’s correspondent reported that Zogbo Blé, a producer and presenter of 'Excellence' a popular programme on RTI, received two calls on 8 May from a caller who only identified himself as 'Commandant F' and threatened to storm his home.

The ongoing public servants' strike in Botswana has seen that country's state-owned media cover only one side of the story, writes Thapelo Ndlovu on Free African Media. 'Despite being denied the opportunity to air their views in the state media, the striking Botswana public service workers have not effectively used the new media, especially social network sites. The Internet is largely available in Botswana, but workers and the public in general don’t yet fully use it. Facebook is the most popular, but largely among the savvy youth, most of whom are not interested in labour or political issues.'

A 13-year-old lesbian has become the latest victim of 'corrective rape' in South Africa, prompting activists to call for direct retaliatory action. The girl, who is said to be open about her sexuality, was raped in Pretoria, a government spokesman said. Campaigners say so-called corrective rape, in which men rape lesbians to 'cure' them of their sexual orientation, is on the increase in South Africa. Last month, a 24-year-old woman who belonged to a gay and lesbian rights group was stoned to death after an apparent gang rape.

In these 1965 writings, Amílcar Cabral, the Guinea-Bissau leader assassinated in 1973, discusses the responsibilities of those involved in revolution.

Kenyans evicted from their homes to make way for new developments routinely have their social and economic rights violated. But these rights are enforceable under the country’s new constitution, which gives people easier access to the courts than ever before. Justice Musinga’s judgement on the Muthurwa case sets ‘the right approach to, and standards of, constitutional interpretation’, write Yash Pal Ghai and Jill Cottrell Ghai.

Wavah Broadcasting Service (WBS) TV journalist Williams Ntege was arrested by anti-riot police on 2 May after he was caught filming the arrest of Kampala female Member of Parliament (MP) Nabirah Ssempala. Ntege says that during his arrest, one armed, plainclothes officer threatened to shoot him on accusations that he was inciting violence.

'The enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression in Southern Africa remains under serious threat, particularly due to repressive legal regimes which are being used as a tool to justify the persecution of journalists and citizens under the guise of due process. Lack of political will to put in place effective measures that enhance the protection and enjoyment of this right, is a common problem particularly in Swaziland, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.'

Kenya’s media regularly reveals itself to be inconsistent in its reporting of issues of justice, writes Tom Maliti.

Ghana has given the assurance that the country was committed to a 'free uncensored and safe cyberspace'. Making the announcement, deputy Information minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa condemned attempts by some countries to clamp down on internet usage through censorship. In a speech to mark the World’s Press Freedom Day, Mr Okudzeto-Ablakwa said: 'We have seen governments engage in online blocking where access to some websites is curtailed. We have observed that some governments are now mounting surveillance on cybersapce so as to track down those who publish what those governments don’t like.'

In the wake of Tunisia’s inspiring revolution, Giuseppe Caruso offers reflections on his involvement in a recent ‘solidarity caravan’ to the country.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its African group, the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) to mark World Press Freedom Day by sending an open letter to President Issayas Afewerki of Eritrea, urging him to release all journalists detained by his government. The IFJ and FAJ say the situation of human rights and freedom of expression has been steadily deteriorating in Eritrea where it is estimated that some 30 journalists have been detained, without charges, since the Eritrean government imposed a ban on independent media in September 2001.

When Malawi's Inspector General of Police Peter Mukhito summoned political science senior lecturer Dr Blessings Chinsinga over an example he gave in the lecture room, he had no idea that the incident will appear on Boniface Dulani's blog. And when it did, Malawi media picked and followed the rest of the developments which have left the University of Malawi's two main colleges closed for a month now. Global Voices author Victor Kaonga interviewed Dulani about his blogging experiences and the movement for academic freedom. You can read the interview on the Global Voices site.

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The International Federation of Journalists says it is mourning the tragic death of photojournalists Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros, killed by a mortar attack in the besieged Libyan city of Misrata, on Wednesday 20 April. Two other photojournalists, Guy Martin and Michael Christopher Brown, were both seriously injured by the same mortar fire along Tripoli Street at the heart of the fight between pro-Gaddafi forces and the rebels for control of Misrata.

The speed with which Facebook has taken off on the African continent in the countries that are a bell-weather for early take-up has been impressive. Twitter is trotting behind but with much smaller number. MXit has impressive up-take in South Africa. What has been missed in this social media explosion is the significance of moving pictures through things like You Tube and Vimeo. Russell Southwood from Balancing Act argues that this surge will happen on mobiles and is not far around the corner.

A Dakar court has given Abdou Latif Coulibaly, the editor of the weekly La Gazette, a three-month suspended jail sentenced and fined him 10 million CFA francs (15,267 euros) for allegedly defaming a Senegalese businessman close to President Wade by accusing him of acting fraudulently in his dealings with the government. Reporters Without Borders condemns the way the Senegalese authorities and several leading figures close to the government are hounding Coulibaly, one of Dakar’s most respected journalists. The lawsuits that keep being brought against him constitute an unacceptable form of harassment