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Tag: global issues

  • Pakistani Flood Survivors Welcome Funding, But Demand Immediate Disbursement

    Pakistani Flood Survivors Welcome Funding, But Demand Immediate Disbursement

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    Flood victims in Pakistan would like to see the funding received for Pakistan’s recovery disbursed to them urgently. Many still live in temporary accommodation after they lost their homes and family in the 2022 floods. – Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS
    • by Ashfaq Yusufzai (peshawar)
    • Inter Press Service

    PESHAWAR, Jan 13 (IPS) – People in flood-affected areas of Pakistan have welcomed the pledges at an UN-sponsored donor conference in Geneva on January 9 but want to see an immediate cash flow to facilitate their journeys toward normalcy.

    “We need immediate assistance because we have lost all our belongings in floods. My 14-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter died when our mud-built house caved in. For the past six months, 12 members of our family have lived in a tent,” Altaf Shah, a daily wager in the Sukkur district of Sindh province, told IPS.

    Shah, 51, said he heard from people about the assistance announced at the UN and hoped his house would be reconstructed.

    In June 2022, Pakistan suffered huge losses due to torrential rains, which killed 1,200 people, including 399 children. One-third of the country was submerged, prompting the United Nations to appeal for assistance.

    On January 9, more than $10bn was pledged by international financial institutions, donor agencies, and development partners for flood-affected areas’ rehabilitation, recovery, and reconstruction.

    The major pledges made included $4.2 billion from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), $2 billion from the World Bank, $1.5 billion from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), $1 billion from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and $1 billion from Saudi Arabia.

    Gohar Ahmed, a political analyst at the Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, wants the fair distribution of the amount among the affected population.

    “Still thousands of people are without homes, food, and medicines. They require immediate help,” Ahmed said. According to him, the heavy downpours, described as an “unprecedented climate catastrophe,” has shattered the population.

    He said that Pakistanis aren’t bothered about loans or grants but the reconstruction process in all sectors.

    Ahmed said that the government should devise a transparent mechanism to distribute funds among the people still haunted by the flood’s aftermath.

    Health economists told IPS that UN agencies and USAID have already been working with the government to restore healthcare services. WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, and other international organizations were in the field during the floods and their aftermath.

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told Resilient Pakistan Conference about the country’s Resilient Recovery, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Framework (4RF), which laid out a multi-sectoral strategy for rehabilitation and reconstruction in a climate-resilient and inclusive manner.

    Sharif said the climate crisis had severely threatened the nation’s capacity to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The return to business as usual was out of the question.

    “The world needs to employ vision and solidarity to transition to a sustainable future of hope,” he said.

    Pakistan witnessed a “monsoon on steroids” that affected 30 million people, displaced more than 8 million, and washed away roads over 8,000 kilometers.

    According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), 2,000 health facilities, representing 10% of all health facilities in the country, have been either damaged or destroyed. As a result, over 8 million people in flood-affected districts urgently need health assistance.

    United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that almost 650,000 pregnant women in flood-affected areas require maternal health services to ensure a safe pregnancy and childbirth. Up to 73,000 women expected to deliver next month will need skilled birth attendants, newborn care, and support.

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said that $8.7 (90 pc) of the pledges were project loans.

    Rozia Begum, a resident of Swat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said that she required medical assistance during the flood. Because it wasn’t forthcoming, she lost her premature child.

    “Now, my sister-in-law is pregnant and needs multivitamins and regular checkups to enable her safe delivery,” Begum, 30, a schoolteacher, told IPS. She knew several child-bearing women in her locality were malnourished and couldn’t afford a balanced diet.

    “The grants announced at the (Geneva) moot could help the needy women if made available immediately,” she said.

    Affected people are also thankful to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who urged the international community for “massive investments” to help Pakistan in his opening remarks at the Geneva moot.

    “No country deserves to endure what happened to Pakistan,” the secretary general said.

    But those affected by the floods are anxious the floods reach them.

    Mushtaq Ali, a vegetable vendor, said that the UN should ensure direct financial aid to them. He said he lost his tiny home in Kalam Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and now lives with his father-in-law.

    “The government should compensate people on the pattern of mechanism adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic and affected population received money on data of National Database Registration Authority,” Ali, 42, said.

    UNICEF representative in Pakistan, Abdullah Fadil, told reporters that acute respiratory infections among children, a leading cause of child mortality worldwide, have skyrocketed in the flood-stricken areas.

    The number of cases among children identified as suffering from severe acute malnutrition in the flood-affected areas monitored by UNICEF nearly doubled between July and December as compared to 2021, and estimated 1.5m children still need life-saving nutrition interventions, Dawn newspaper reported.

    “UNICEF’s current appeal of $173.5m to provide life-saving support to women and children affected by the floods remains only 37 percent funded. Children living in Pakistan’s flood-affected areas have been pushed to the brink,” he was quoted as saying.

    The rains may have ended, but the crisis for children has not. Nearly 10m girls and boys still need immediate, life-saving support and are heading into a bitter winter without adequate shelter. He added that severe acute malnutrition and respiratory and waterborne diseases, coupled with the cold, are putting millions of young lives at risk.

    In response to the worsening child survival crisis, more than 800,000 children have been screened for malnutrition; 60,000 were identified as suffering from severe acute malnutrition — a life-threatening condition where children are too thin for their height — and referred for treatment with ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF).

    Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, secretary general Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), told IPS that the warning by UNICEF should serve as a wake-up call for the government.

    “We demand immediate measures to save the lives and health of our children,” he said.

    IPS UN Bureau Report


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  • More Austerity in 2023 Will Fuel Protests

    More Austerity in 2023 Will Fuel Protests

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    Anti-Austerity protests in 2006-2020. Credit: World Protests Platform
    • Opinion by Isabel Ortiz, Sara Burke (new york)
    • Inter Press Service

    NEW YORK, Jan 13 (IPS) – This week world leaders meet in Davos to discuss cooperation to address multiple crises, from COVID-19 and escalating inflation to slowing economic growth, debt distress and climate shocks.

    Only three months earlier, finance ministers had gathered in Washington DC for the same reason. The mood was grim. The need for ambitious actions could not be greater; however, there were no agreements, evidencing the fragility of multilateralism and international cooperation.

    Isabel Ortiz

    Worse, policy makers -advised by the International Monetary Fund- are resorting to old, failed and regressive policies, such as austerity (now called “fiscal restraint” or “fiscal consolidation”), instead of much needed corporate/wealth taxation and debt reduction initiatives, to ensure an equitable recovery for all.

    A recent global report alerts of the dangers of a post-pandemic wave of austerity, far more premature and severe than the one that followed the global financial crisis a decade ago. While governments started cutting public expenditures in 2021, a tsunami of budget cuts is expected in 143 countries in 2023, which will impact more than 6.7 billion people or 85% of the world population.

    Analysis of the austerity measures considered or already implemented by governments worldwide shows their significant negative impacts on people, harming women in particular. These austerity policies are:

    • targeting social protection, excluding vulnerable populations in need of support by cutting programs for families, the elderly and persons with disabilities (in 120 countries);
    • cutting or capping the public sector wage bill, this is, reducing the number and salaries of civil servants, including frontline workers like teachers and health workers (in 91 countries);
    • eliminating subsidies (in 80 countries);
    • privatizing public services or reforming state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in areas such as public transport, energy, water;
    • reforming hard-earned pensions by adjusting benefits and parameters, resulting in lower incomes for retirees (in 74 countries);
    • (6) labor flexibilization reforms (in 60 countries);
    • reducing employers’ social security contributions, making social security unsustainable (in 47 countries);
    • and even cutting health expenditures despite COVID-19 is not over.
    Sara Burke

    Austerity and all the human suffering it causes is evitable, there are alternatives. There are at least nine financing options, available even in the poorest countries, fully endorsed by the UN and international financial institutions, from increasing progressive taxation to reducing debt. Policymakers must urgently look into these. Many countries have already implemented them.

    In recent years, citizens have protested austerity all around the world. A recent study on world protests shows that nearly 1,500 protests in the period 2006-2020 were against austerity. Citizens demand better public services, social protection, jobs with decent wages, tax and fiscal justice, equitable land distribution, and better living standards, among others. Protests against pension reforms, and high food and energy prices have also been very prevalent. Recently, the jobs and cost-of-living crises have been accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in more protests despite lockdowns.

    The majority of global protests against austerity and for economic justice have manifested people’s indignation at gross inequalities. The idea of the “1% versus the 99%,” that emerged a decade ago during protests over the 2008 financial crisis, has spread around the world, feeding grievances against elites and corporations manipulating public policies in their favor, while the majority of citizens continue to endure low living standards, aggravated by austerity cuts.

    Let’s remember that trillions of dollars have been used to support corporations during the pandemic and to support military spending. Now people are being asked to endure austerity cuts, at a time when they are suffering a cost-of-living crisis. The 2023 meetings in Davos are being faced with new protests and demands to tax the rich.

    Unless policymakers change course, we shouldn’t be surprised to see increasing waves of protests all over the world. Clashes in the street are likely to intensify if governments continue to fail to respond to people’s demands and persist in implementing harmful austerity policies.

    Governments need to listen to the demands of citizens that are legitimately protesting the denial of social, economic and civil rights. From jobs, public services and social security to tax and climate justice, the majority of protesters’ demands are in full accordance with United Nations proposals and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Leaders and policymakers will only generate further unrest if they fail to act on these legitimate demands.

    Isabel Ortiz is Director of the Global Social Justice Program at Joseph Stiglitz’s Initiative for Policy Dialogue at Columbia University, former Director at the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNICEF.

    Sara Burke is Senior Policy Analyst at Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) New York

    IPS UN Bureau


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  • Ukraine: ‘Humanitarian and human rights catastrophe’ continues, Security Council hears

    Ukraine: ‘Humanitarian and human rights catastrophe’ continues, Security Council hears

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    Rosemary DiCarlo reiterated the view of the Secretary-General, in reminding that Russia’s invasion of 24 February, was a violation of the UN Charter and international law.

    “It has created a humanitarian and human rights catastrophe, traumatized a generation of children, and accelerated the global food and energy crises”, she told ambassadors.

    “And yet, this grave damage could pale in comparison with the consequences of a prolonged conflict”.

    Deadly holidays

    Many Ukrainians spent the Orthodox holiday season in bomb shelters and mourning the loss of loved ones, she said.

    At year’s end, Russian forces targeted Dnipro, Kherson, Kirovohrad, and Kyiv – with multiple strikes reported in Kharkiv, Odesa, Lviv, Zhytomyr, and the capital.

    By New Year’s Eve all administrative regions were under air raid warnings, continued the peacebuilding chief.

    And the attacks continued in January, threatening all remaining civilians in Kherson, Bakhmut and Soledar.

    Following the most recent fighting, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, verified 18,096 civilian casualties since the invasion began.

    “This total includes 6,952 people killed and 11,144 injured”, said Ms. DiCarlo, adding that “the actual figures are likely considerably higher”.

    Attacks on health

    Purposeful, systematic targeting of critical civilian infrastructure, including energy and healthcare facilities, has pushed some 5.91 million women and girls to flee internally.

    And 745 recorded attacks on healthcare facilities as of 4 January, were a record for any conflict currently taking place.

    “Reportedly 15 per cent of facilities are either partially or completely non-functional, and up to 50 per cent in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv”, she said.

    ‘Invisible scars’

    “The war is also leaving invisible scars”, she continued, pointing to the long-lasting impacts that the destruction and closing of schools will have on youth.

    An estimated 5.7 million students have been directly affected, including 3.6 million shut out of educational institutions early in the conflict.

    Citing the World Health Organization (WHO), Ms. DiCarlo said that “nearly a quarter of the population is reportedly at risk of developing a mental health condition because of this war”.

    © UNICEF/Christina Pashkina

    Hundreds of displaced and local children in Ukraine celebrated the new year at Kharkiv’s Spilno Child Spot, run by UNICEF and partners.

    Life-saving aid effort

    Meanwhile, as of 5 January, humanitarian partners have provided food and critical healthcare support to almost nine million people.

    Around 7.3 million have received clean water and hygiene products and over three million uprooted people have received emergency shelter or critical household items.

    Since the war began, almost 14 million people have received assistance from over 740 partners, including one million in areas not under Ukrainian Government control. 

    However, severe access constraints hamper the humanitarian response.

    “In line with international humanitarian law, parties must facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for all civilians in need”, said the senior UN official.

    Grave rights violations

    Turning to allegations of grave human rights violations, OHCHR has documented over 90 cases of conflict-related sexual violence since last February.

    Of those, men have been predominantly affected by torture and ill-treatment in detention, while women and girls in areas under Russian control have been sexually violated, including gang rape.

    “It is imperative that all perpetrators of human rights violations are held accountable”, spelled out the senior UN official.

    Since May, the International Criminal Court (ICJ) has continued working inside- the country, focusing on the unlawful transfer and deportation of civilian objects and people from Ukraine to Russia, including children.

    A doctor takes care of patients at a hospital in Kharkiv, Ukraine.

    © UNICEF/Evgeniy Maloletka

    A doctor takes care of patients at a hospital in Kharkiv, Ukraine.

    Black Sea Grain Initiative

    Despite challenges, the Black Sea Grain Initiative meanwhile continues to make a difference, including by helping to lower global food prices.

    The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has reported a continued decline of its Food Price Index.

    Ms. DiCarlo said that more than 17 million metric tons of food have now been moved under the initiative to some 43 countries, roughly 20 per cent of which is for countries under the World Bank category of low-income or lower-middle-income economies. 

    The UN also continues to work towards removing remaining obstacles to Russian food and fertilizer exports as “key to keep prices down and mitigate food insecurity”.

    Military logic

    In closing, the political chief reiterated that there is no sign of an end to the fighting, and that the prevailing logic “is a military one, with very little, if any, room for dialogue right now”.

    “But all wars end, and so too will this one”.

    “Ukraine, Russia, the world cannot afford for this war to continue”, she underscored, reminding that the Secretary-General is ready to assist the parties to “end this senseless, unjustified conflict”, on the basis of the UN Charter and international law.

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  • Indonesia: President’s apology for past rights violations a ‘step on the long road to justice’

    Indonesia: President’s apology for past rights violations a ‘step on the long road to justice’

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    President Joko Widodo reportedly acknowledged “gross human rights violations” during his country’s past, and expressed regret for a dozen past incidents, stretching back more than 50 years.

    These included the 1965-1966 anti-Communist crackdown, the 1982-1985 protester shootings, enforced disappearances in 1997 and 1998, and the Wamena Incident in Papua in 2003.

    “I strongly regret that those violations occurred”, he said on Wednesday.

    “The President’s gesture is a step on the long road to justice for victims and their loved ones”, Liz Throssell, Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told journalists at a regular press briefing in Geneva.

    Historical outrage

    An estimated half a million people were killed in the anti-Communist crackdown of the 1960s and scores of pro-reform protesters lost their lives in killings during the 1980s, she said. 

    The violence was unleashed after communists were accused of killing six generals in an attempted coup amid a struggle for power between Communists, the military and Islamist groups, according to news reports.

    Mr. Widodo is reportedly the second Indonesian president to publicly admit the 1960s bloodshed, after the late Abdurrahman Wahid’s public apology in 2000.

    Moving forward

    The President’s statement came as a result of findings by the Team for the Non-Judicial Resolution of Past Serious Human Rights Violations, which he commissioned last year, fulfilling an election promise from 2014.

    “We hope the report will be made public to encourage discussion and debate”, said Ms. Throssell.

    While noting that the President’s statement “does not preclude further judicial action and commits to reforms that should guarantee non-recurrence”, OHCHR also urged the authorities to build on the “tangible steps” taken, in order to “take forward a meaningful, inclusive and participatory transitional justice process”.

    The OHCHR Spokesperson said this needed to include “guaranteeing truth, justice, reparations and non-recurrence to victims and affected communities, including victims of conflict-related sexual violence.”

    She added that a full transitional justice process “will help to break the decades-long cycle of impunity, advance national healing, and strengthen Indonesia’s democracy.”

    Click here to watch the press briefing in its entirety.

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  • Greece in spotlight over trial of activists, volunteers who rescued migrants

    Greece in spotlight over trial of activists, volunteers who rescued migrants

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    The hearing involving 24 volunteers and activists began on Tuesday on the Greek island of Lesvos, prompting OHCHR to warn of the “chilling effect” that it has had on other rights defenders, who’ve now halted their work in Greece and other European Union countries.

    Those on trial were all associated with Emergency Response Centre International, or ERCI; between 2016 and 2018, the group helped more than 1,000 people to reach safety and provided survivors with medical and other assistance on Lesvos, OHCHR said.

    Voice of reason

    “I think it’s absolutely clear, that you have people who are in distress at sea, people who are on boats that may have capsized, or may have sunk; they are in the water and there is nobody to rescue them,” said UN rights office spokesperson, Liz Throssell.

    “That is why we are saying that this trial, and trials like it, are absolutely concerning because they criminalise actions that save people’s lives.”

    Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Ms. Throssell noted that those on trial included a Syrian refugee and foreign nationals, such as the Irish-German national, Sean Binder.

    The OHCHR official explained that the defendants face charges that include several alleged misdemeanours related to the facilitation of migrant smuggling, and she welcomed the news on Friday that the prosecution had recommended the annulment of some of the accusations.

    Cut adrift

    Today, there are no civil society rescue teams operating in Greek waters, Ms. Throssell reiterated, despite the fact that 492 migrants have either died or gone missing in the Eastern Mediterranean since 2021, according to the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM).

    Similar trials of other rights activists have already taken place in a number of other EU countries including Hungary, Italy and Malta, the OHCHR official continued.

    “The fact of saving lives, providing humanitarian help is crucial and it should never be criminalised by any State, and that is why in this particular case we are saying that that the charges against these defendants should be dropped,” she said.

    IOM’s Missing Migrants project updates migrant fatalities in the region and has recorded nearly 1,700 deaths and disappearances on the Eastern Mediterranean sea route since 2014, including nearly 500 children.

    Many of the victims are known to have come from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

    © UNICEF/Ashley Gilbertson VII Photo

    A large rubber boat filled with refugees is pulled to shore on the island of Lesbos, in the North Aegean region. (file)

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  • Unity in Security Council essential, in face of Taliban rights violations against women and girls

    Unity in Security Council essential, in face of Taliban rights violations against women and girls

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    Addressing a private meeting of the Council, Roza Otunbayeva reiterated to ambassadors that Taliban decisions including the ban on girls attending high school, preventing women from going to university, and barring them from doing humanitarian work, are all “grave violations of fundamental rights”, according to UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric.

    He told reporters at the noon briefing in New York that the Taliban had also “contradicted assurances” given, following their nationwide takeover of Afghanistan, about the role women would play in the country under their fundamentalist rule.

    Aid deliveries thwarted

    “The Special Representative also outlined the potential negative impact of such decisions, including, most immediately, on the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Afghans in desperate need”, said Mr. Dujarric. “She stressed the need for Council unity in the face of these decisions.”

    Following the ban on women from working for non-governmental organisations or other aid sector jobs last month, many NGOs suspended their lifesaving operations, on the grounds that it would be impossible to distribute aid and staff operations, without local women’s participation.

    Distributions ‘severely impacted’

    The UN aid coordination office (OCHA) in Afghanistan, tweeted on Friday that humanitarian partners were providing winterization support to families there, including heating and cash for fuel and warm clothes as temperatures dip towards -35C, “but distributions have been severely impacted” by the ban on female aid workers.

    The UN Spokesperson noted that the Council was also briefed by the Executive Director of UN Children’s Fund UNICEF, “who focused her briefing on the situation of girls and children in Afghanistan.”

    Ahead of the meeting, the Security Council members who are signatories and supporters of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, issued a statement “to express grave concern regarding the critical situation of women and girls in Afghanistan.”

    Measures must be immediately reversed

    The 11 nations urged the Taliban “to immediately reverse all oppressive measures against women and girls”, adhere to commitments made to the Security Council, respect women and girls’ rights, “and their full, equal and meaningful participation and inclusion across all aspects of society in Afghanistan, from political and economic, to education and public space.”

    The statement delivered outside the Council chamber by current president for the month of January, Japanese Ambassador Kimihiro Ishikane, underlined that women are “central and critical” to humanitarian operations and have “unique expertise” to access populations that male colleagues cannot reach.

    The WPS group also reaffirmed their strong support for the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, “not least in their valuable contribution to gender equality”.

    The statement reiterated the demand for full, safe and unhindered access for humanitarian actors, “regardless of gender”.

    Condemnation of deadly ISIL attack

    On Thursday, the Security Council issued a statement condemning “in the strongest terms”, the attack near the Afghan Foreign Affairs ministry on 11 January, which was claimed by the ISIL or Da’esh terrorist group, which news reports  – quoting Taliban sources – said resulted in at least 20 deaths, with dozens more wounded.

    Council members “underline the need to hold perpetrators, organisers financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable, and bring them to justice.”

    News reports said that a suicide attacker blew himself up outside the ministry in Kabul, after he failed to gain access to the building.

     

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  • The Myth of the Moderate Republican — and Why Its So Dangerous

    The Myth of the Moderate Republican — and Why Its So Dangerous

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    • Opinion by Norman Solomon, Jeff Cohen (san francisco, usa)
    • Inter Press Service

    SAN FRANCISCO, USA, Jan 13 (IPS) – The current notion of a “moderate Republican” is an oxymoron that helps to move the country rightward. Last week, every one of the GOP’s so-called “moderates” voted to install House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who won with the avid support of Donald Trump and got over the finish line by catering to such fascistic colleagues as Matt Gaetz and Lauren Boebert.

    Recent news reports by many outlets — including the Washington Post, USA Today, The Hill, Bloomberg, CNN, NBC, Reuters, HuffPost and countless others — have popularized the idea of “moderate Republicans” in the House. The New York Times reported on “centrist Republicans.” But those “moderates” and “centrists” are actively supporting neofascist leadership.

    Notably, Joe Biden made this implausible claim while campaigning in May 2019: “The thing that will fundamentally change things is with Donald Trump out of the White House. Not a joke. You will see an epiphany occur among many of my Republican friends.”

    During his celebratory victory speech in November 2020, Biden bemoaned “the refusal of Democrats and Republicans to cooperate with one another,” proclaimed that the American people “want us to cooperate” and pledged “that’s the choice I’ll make.”

    Later, as president, Biden came to a point when – in a ballyhooed speech last September — he offered some acknowledgment of ongoing Republican extremism, saying: “Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic. Now, I want to be very clear up front: Not every Republican, not even the majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans”.

    “Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology. I know because I’ve been able to work with these mainstream Republicans. But there is no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven, and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans, and that is a threat to this country.”

    But as with routine media coverage, Biden does not acknowledge that every Republican now in the House is functionally a “MAGA Republican.” Claiming otherwise — calling some of them “moderate Republicans” — is like saying that someone who drives a getaway car during an armed robbery isn’t a criminal. Those who aid and abet right-wing extremism are part of the march toward fascism.

    If a handful of — by some accounts a half-dozen, by others as many as 20 — House Republicans are “moderates,” then such media framing normalizes and legitimizes their tacit teamwork with the likes of Trump and ultra-right Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene that made McCarthy the speaker. In the process, the slickly evasive language makes possible the continual slippage of public reference points ever-further to the right.

    So, during last week’s multiple ballots that concluded with McCarthy’s win, Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska was portrayed in the news as a “moderate Republican” who talked of seeking Democratic votes to help elect McCarthy and of possibly working with Democrats to find a “moderate” GOP speaker. Bacon labeled the anti-McCarthy holdouts “cowboys” and “the Taliban.”

    But if Bacon is a “moderate Republican,” it’s odd that he would help lead a rally before the 2020 election with MAGA firebrand and Students for Trump leader Charlie Kirk, which ended with a yell from Bacon: “Making America great again!” Or that he voted both times against impeaching President Trump, including after the Jan. 6 Capitol assault.

    Or that he cosponsors the extreme Life at Conception Act. Or that he has questioned climate science: “I don’t think we know for certain how much of climate change is being caused by normal cyclical changes in weather versus human causes.”

    Looking ahead, you can bet that after years of being touted as “Republican moderates” in Congress, a few will be trotted out in prime time at the 2024 Republican National Convention to assure the nation that the party’s nominee — whether Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis or some other extremist candidate — is a great fit for the presidency.

    The impacts of such deception will owe a lot to the frequent media coverage that distinguishes between the most dangerously unhinged Republican politicians who dominate the House and the “moderate” ones who make that domination possible.

    Applying adjectives like “moderate” to congressional Republicans is much worse than merely bad word choices. Our language “becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish,” George Orwell wrote, “but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.”

    And dangerous ones.

    Norman Solomon is the national director of RootsAction.org and the executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy. He is the author of a dozen books, including ‘War Made Easy’ while his next book, ‘War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine’, will be published in Spring 2023 by The New Press.

    Jeff Cohen is co-founder of RootsAction.org, a retired journalism professor at Ithaca College, and author of Cable News Confidential: My Misadventures in Corporate Media. In 1986, he founded the media watch group FAIR.

    IPS UN Bureau


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  • Taking Humanitarianism Hostage the Case of Afghanistan & Multilateral Organisations

    Taking Humanitarianism Hostage the Case of Afghanistan & Multilateral Organisations

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    • Opinion by Chloe Bryer – Azza Karam – Ruth Messinger – Negina Yari (new york)
    • Inter Press Service

    NEW YORK, Jan 12 (IPS) – Can you imagine what it would be like if women were simply not allowed to step outside of their homes, let alone to work for a living? When women choose to do so, and they can afford it, then it is a matter of choice. When women mostly cannot, as is the case in Afghanistan now, not only is half the population imprisoned, but children go hungry, and communities sink deeper into poverty.

    World Bank data (as incomplete as it is), indicates that the average number of female-headed households (i.e. households where women are the primary – if not the only – breadwinners), is around 25%.

    What that means is, that on average, a quarter of all households around the world depend on women earning an income. Children, families, communities, and nations –depend on women’s work, to the tune of a quarter of their labour force.

    Economists are still pointing to the obvious challenges of counting female labour, which often lies disproportionately on the frontiers of the formal economy, such that women continue to serve as reserve armies of labour and frontline workers during industrialization.

    Economists who work to document these specificities, also point out that as soon as these frontiers expand or change, women are expelled or relegated to the shadows of the informal economy and piece-rate labour, identifying this as an all too frequent failure to recognize the importance of the kind of work many women engage in, which both keeps an economy running, and enables its expansion and growth.

    The Covid-19 Pandemic should have resulted in a clear realisation that all hands are necessary on deck, with so many women actually needed as first responders–the backbone of the public health crisis – everywhere in the world.

    As economies take a nosedive and the realities of recession hit many of us, all economies need to be kept running, if not to expand and grow.

    And beyond these very real challenges to counting women’s work – and making that work count – there is another very critical reality: culture. Lest we think only of the vagaries of women who take over “men’s jobs” (whatever that means in today’s world), we need to stop being blind to the fact that women are needed to serve other women.

    In fact, in many parts of the world, including the supposedly liberal and ‘egalitarian’ Western world, many women still prefer to receive life-saving direct services from other women – in public health, in sanitation, in all levels of education, in nutritional spaces, and many, many others.

    Now let us pause a moment and consider humanitarian disaster zones, where women and girls often need to be cared for – and this can only be done by and through other women.

    Then let us envision a reality one step further – let’s call it a socially conservative country, which is facing humanitarian disaster, and is heavily dependent on international organisations (governmental and non- governmental) for the necessary humanitarian support.

    How is it conceivable that in such a context, women can be excluded from serving? And yet this is precisely what the Taliban have decreed on December 24, when it barred women from working in national and international NGOs. And this is after they banned women from higher education.

    Many international NGOs halted their work in Afghanistan, explaining that they cannot work without their women staff – as a matter of principle, but also as a question of practical necessity. Yet, the United Nations – the premier multilateral entity – continues to see how they could compromise with the Taliban rule, for the sake of ‘the greater good – real humanitarian needs’.

    Thank goodness they are letting the UN continue to work with their women employees, runs one way of thinking. We will not fail to deliver humanitarian needs, runs another UN way of thinking.

    Of course, humanitarian needs are essential to human survival – and thus, should never be held hostage. But why is the United Nations being accountable for humanitarian needs only?

    Meanwhile, the Taliban claim that these edicts about womens’ work and education are a matter of religious propriety, a claim which, as of this moment, is not strongly challenged by another multilateral entity – the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), encompassing 56 governments and members of the United Nations.

    While individual governments have spoken out, this multilateral entity has remained relatively silent on the Islamic justice of such a decree. Is it because this multilateral religious entity sees no need to speak to humanitarian needs?

    Or is it because it sees no value to hard economic realities where women’s agency plays a central role? Or perhaps it is because there is no unanimity on the Islamic justification behind such decrees?

    In light of this hostage-taking of humanitarian relief efforts, a group of women of faith leaders, have come together to ask some simple questions of the two multilateral entities involved. They have sent a letter with over 150 international NGO sign ons.

    Multilateralism is supposed to be the guarantor of all human rights and dignity, for all people, at all times. But as governmental regimes weaken, so do traditional multilateral entities heavily reliant on those governments. Time for community based transnational networks based on intergenerational, multicultural, gender sensitive leaders.

    Rev Dr Chloe Bryer is Executive Director, Interfaith Center of New York; Prof Azza Karam is Secretary General, Religions for Peace; Ruth Messinger is Social Justice Consultant, Jewish Theological Seminary; and Negina Yari is Country Director, Afghans4Tomorrow

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  • Indian PhD Students Say Long Australian Visa Delays Have Put Their Lives On Hold

    Indian PhD Students Say Long Australian Visa Delays Have Put Their Lives On Hold

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    Indian doctoral students are stuck due to Australian visa delays. Credit: Unsplash
    • by Neena Bhandari (sydney)
    • Inter Press Service

    Sydney, Jan 12 (IPS) – When Megha Jacob, who had been applying for a doctoral degree at various overseas universities, received an offer from the Australian National University’s Department of Chemistry to do a fully funded PhD, she was thrilled and immediately accepted the position.

    It was January 2022. She submitted her visa application and resigned from her job at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. One year later, she is still waiting for her visa to be processed.

    Several international Indian students enrolled in doctoral degree courses in Australia’s leading universities have been waiting for their visas to be approved for months, some for up to two years. “The protracted delays have put our lives on hold. We seek clarity and a definitive timeline so we can plan our future,” say students from one of the WhatsApp groups formed by Indian doctoral students facing Australian visa processing delays.

    Since the easing of Australia’s stringent COVID-19 restrictions, these students allege, the visa processing time for doctoral degree students has increased. “The median processing time for offshore student visa application was 18 days for the Postgraduate Research Sector in November 2022,” an Australian Department of Home Affairs (DHA) spokesperson tells IPS. However, the most recent processing time on the DHA website for 500 – Student visa (subclass 500) Postgraduate Research Sector shows 90 percent of applications are processed in 10 months.

    Processing times will take some time to improve as the department works through older applications in the backlog, according to DHA. Processing times can vary due to applicants’ circumstances, including how long it takes to perform required checks on the supporting information provided by the applicant; and how long it takes to receive information from external agencies. This particularly relates to health, character and national security requirements.

    Jacob says, “I have been submitting additional information, such as published research papers, but the last updated date on my visa application page on the DHA portal is still nine months old! I wonder if there is a technical glitch in the system or has my application fallen through the cracks.”

    “When I called the DHA last month, I was told that waiting time for 90 percent of applicants is nine months , and for the remaining 10 percent of applicants, we do not know how long it’s going to take. Presumably, some of us are in that 10 percent. But we don’t know why and what has placed our application in that category,” she adds.

    Many students in the WhatsApp group have individually reached out to the DHA through email, the complaints section or via phone, but they have received only generic responses. “I have even written to the Commonwealth Ombudsman and received a similar reply that they are conducting necessary background checks, which can take several months,” says Deepak Chahal, who has a master’s from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala).

    Chahal, who enrolled as a doctoral student in Macquarie University’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics in December 2020, has been waiting for the past two years for his visa to be processed. He says, “I had begun working remotely due to COVID-19 restrictions, but I can’t continue remotely anymore as I need access to Australian observatories to collect data and the lab to analyse it. I’ve already spent two years doing the research, so abandoning it now is not an option.”

    For students in the field of applied science, technology and engineering, working remotely is not an option as they require access to a host of resources –laboratory, equipment, data, fast internet connectivity, and availability of supervisors to oversee their experiments.

    “We are losing precious research time as we don’t even know if our visa application will be successful after all this waiting. Our lives are hanging in the balance,” says a 26-year-old applicant from Mumbai (Maharashtra), enrolled in The University of Sydney’s School of Chemistry, who requested anonymity. He applied for his visa in August 2022, as his date of joining was October 1. He has had to defer his research until his visa application is finalised.

    Indian High Commissioner to Australia, Manpreet Vohra, tells IPS, “Many Indian doctorate students with admissions secured at various Australian universities have indeed been waiting for a very long time for their visas to be issued. This has delayed their research and, in some cases, has also jeopardised the grants that have been assured to them. We have been raising this matter regularly with Australian authorities and have urged them for early redressal of the difficulties that the doctorate students are facing.”

    The DHA data shows that the higher education sector visa grant rate for 2022-2023 was 76.5 percent to November 30, 2022.

    One beacon of hope, these students say, has been the support from Australian universities and the faculty. Dr Clement Canonne, Lecturer at the University of Sydney’s School of Computer Science, recently Tweeted on his personal account: “My hope for 2023 is not to have to raise the PhD and Postgraduate Research #AustralianVisas processing delays issue anymore, and to see not only the current backlog processed, but also increased transparency & communication from @ausgov for applicants.”

    There were 1608 Indian nationals enrolled in Doctoral Degree courses out of the 96,005 Indian international students enrolled across all education sectors as of the year-to-date October 2022, according to a spokesperson for the Australian Government’s Department of Education. International students from India across all education sectors contributed $3.729 billion to the Australian economy in the 2021-22 financial year.

    Speaking in his personal capacity and not expressing an official university viewpoint, Canonne tells IPS, “Students from India’s premier STEM institutes have many other options. When they, and Chinese and European students, choose to come to work with us, it’s because the research aligns. It’s really disheartening when these exceptional students are accepted, we work hard to apply for funding and get the grant, but then we can’t use the money to do the research for which it is meant because the students’ visa applications are pending for months, even years.”

    The Department of Education data shows that in 2019, internationals accounted for 61 percent of Higher Degree Research students in engineering and related technologies and 57 percent in Information Technology.

    “We chose Australia because it was a “perfect fit” when it came to the high ranking of Australian universities, professors in our field of research, lab facilities and other resources, full scholarship and shorter duration to complete a PhD in 3.5 years as against five years in most other countries,” says Parkarsh Kumar from Ranchi (Jharkhand), who is enrolled in UNSW Sydney’s Department of Material Science.

    He says, “I completed my master’s degree from National Taiwan University on a scholarship and had two job offers, which I declined because I wanted to do a PhD and one day become a professor in an Indian institution. I was a role model in our family and community, but now everyone jokes that don’t be like him because I am sitting at home since January 2022 waiting for my visa application to be processed.”

    Many of these students had left their jobs to pursue research, some against the wishes of their parents and elders. The long visa processing delays have caused them mental and financial stress. “If I apply for a job, I am asked why have I not worked for the past 10 months. If I say it’s because I am waiting for my Australian student visa, they immediately reject, stating that then there is no certainty on how long you will work for us,” says Jacob, who has socially isolated herself because while her family is very supportive, the societal pressure of being constantly asked, “When are you going to Australia?” is too much for her.

    The long visa delay is prompting some to apply for a PhD in other countries or get a job. The Group of Eight (Go8), representing Australia’s leading research-intensive universities, in its submission dated December 16, 2022, to Australia’s 2023-24 Permanent Migration Program inquiry, noted that “visa backlogs are not just about the number of applicants in the queue, but about the critical expertise that Australia is missing out on, or stands to lose, because of avoidable processing delays.” It urged the DHA “to consider ways to improve and streamline visa assessment processes to facilitate migration in areas of priority or strategic need.”

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  • 2022 confirmed as one of warmest years on record: WMO

    2022 confirmed as one of warmest years on record: WMO

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    In an alert, the agency also explained that 2022 was the eighth consecutive year that global temperatures rose at least 1C above pre-industrial levels, fuelled by ever-rising greenhouse gas concentrations and accumulated heat.

    La Niña impact

    The cooling effect of the La Niña phenomenon – now in its third year – prevented 2022 from being the warmest ever.

    “This cooling impact will be short-lived and will not reverse the long-term warming trend caused by record levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in our atmosphere,” the WMO warned, adding that there is a 60 per cent chance that La Niña will continue until March 2023, followed by “ENSO-neutral” conditions (neither El Niño nor La Niña).

    Regardless of La Niña, 2022 was still marked by dramatic weather disasters linked to climate change, from catastrophic flooding in Pakistan, deadly heatwaves in China, Europe, North and South America, and relentless drought and misery for millions in the Horn of Africa.

    In late December, severe storms also began ripping across large areas of North America, bringing high winds, heavy snow, flooding and low temperatures.

    WMO chief: invest in preparedness

    These emergencies have “claimed far too many lives and livelihoods and undermined health, food, energy and water security and infrastructure”, said WMO Secretary-General, Professor Petteri Taalas, who called for all nations to step up preparedness for extreme weather events.

    “Today only half of 193 (UN) Members have proper early warning services, which leads to much higher economic and human losses,” the WMO chief explained. “There are also big gaps in basic weather observations in Africa and island states, which has a major negative impact on the quality of weather forecasts.”

    Data analysis by the UN agency showed that the average global temperature in 2022 was about 1.15C (34.07F) above pre-industrial (1850-1900) levels. This compares with 1.09C (33.96F) from 2011 to 2020 and indicates that long-term warming shows no signs of stopping.

    Scientific approach

    “Since the 1980s, each decade has been warmer than the previous one. This is expected to continue,” the UN agency said, adding that the warmest eight years have all been since 2015, with 2016, 2019 and 2020 constituting the top three. “An exceptionally strong El Niño event occurred in 2016, which contributed to record global temperatures,” WMO explained.

    To reach its findings, the UN agency collated and compared weather datasets from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (NASA GISS); the United Kingdom’s Met Office Hadley Centre, and the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit (HadCRUT); the Berkeley Earth group, the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts and its Copernicus Climate Change Service; and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).

    Millions of meteorological and marine observations were used, including from satellites, said WMO, adding that combining observations with modelled values made it possible to estimate temperatures “at any time and in any place across the globe, even in data-sparse areas such as the polar regions”.

    WMO also cautioned against placing too much importance on individual year rankings, as the “differences in temperature between the fourth and eighth warmest year are relatively small”.

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  • Cuban Innovator Drives Sustainable Energy Solutions – VIDEO

    Cuban Innovator Drives Sustainable Energy Solutions – VIDEO

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    • by Luis Brizuela (havana)
    • Inter Press Service

    HAVANA, Jan 11 (IPS) – Félix Morffi supports the energy needs of his home with the help of the sun, in some cases through handcrafted solutions that make the most of an alternative source that is abundant in Cuba, but still used very little.

    With two tanks, glass, aluminum sheets, as well as cinderblocks, sand and cement, the 86-year-old retiree created, in 2006, a solar heater that meets his household needs.

    “You build it today and tomorrow you have hot water; anyone can do it, and if they have a bit of advice, all the better,” said the retired mid-level machine and tool repair technician who lives in the municipality of Regla, one of the 15 that make up Havana.

    He also designed and made a dryer that uses the heat of the sun to dehydrate fruits, spices and tubers, which he assembled mostly with recycled products such as pieces of wood, nylon, acrylic and aluminum sheets.

    On the roof of his house, 16 solar panels imported in 2019 provide five kilowatts of power (kWp) and help run his small automotive repair shop where he works on vehicles for state-owned companies and private individuals, an independent enterprise that he set up next to his house.

    In addition to covering his household needs, he provides the surplus electricity to the national grid, the National Electric Power System (SEN).

    Morffi said more training is needed among personnel involved in several processes, and he cited delays of more than a year between the signing of the contract with Unión Eléctrica and the beginning of payments for the energy surpluses provided to the SEN, as well as “inconsistency with respect to the assembly” of the equipment.

    Although Cuba has a national policy on renewable energy sources, “there is still a lot of ignorance and very little desire to do things, and do them well. Awareness-raising is needed,” he argued.

    The innovator believes that despite the economic conditions, with a little ingenuity people can take advantage of the natural elements, because “the sun shines for everyone; the wind is there and costs you nothing, but your wealth is in your brain.”

    In his backyard, a small solar panel keeps the water flowing from a well for his barnyard fowl and an artificial pond holding a variety of ornamental fish as well as tilapia for family consumption.

    The construction of a small biodigester, about four cubic meters in size, is also at an advanced stage on his land, aimed at using methane gas from the decomposition of animal manure and crop waste, for cooking.

    Morffi, who manages these activities with the backing of several family members, also plans to import three small wind turbines of 0.5 kWp each and a new batch of 4 kWp solar PV panels.

    His vision is to turn his house into a space for the production and promotion of renewable energies in Cuba.

    To this end, he has the support of the non-governmental Cuban Society for the Promotion of Renewable Energy Sources and Respect for the Environment (Cubasolar), of which Morffi has been a member since 2004.

    Since 2014, Cuba has had a Policy for the Development of Renewable Energy Sources and their Efficient Use. And in 2019, Decree Law 345 established regulations to increase the share of renewables in electricity generation and steadily decrease the proportion represented by fossil fuels.

    According to studies, this archipelago of more than 110,800 square kilometers with an annual average of 330 sunny days receives an average solar radiation of more than five kilowatts per square meter per day, considered to be a high level that provides enormous potential in terms of energy.

    The solar energy program appears to be the most advanced and with the best opportunities for growth. Over the last decade, several solar parks have been built, providing more than 75 percent of the renewable energy produced locally.

    But clean sources account for just five percent of the island’s electricity generation, an outlook that the authorities want to radically transform, setting an ambitious goal of 37 percent by 2030.

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  • An Oil Tanker Grounded Off Yemen Faces a Potential Humanitarian Disaster

    An Oil Tanker Grounded Off Yemen Faces a Potential Humanitarian Disaster

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    • by Thalif Deen (united nations)
    • Inter Press Service

    UNITED NATIONS, Jan 11 (IPS) – The long-delayed salvaging of an abandoned tanker, the FSO Safer off the Yemeni coast, has been described as a humanitarian disaster waiting to happen.

    The rusting vessel, according to the UN, has remained anchored for more than 30 years. But off-loading and maintenance of the vessel ceased back in 2015, following the start of a devastating civil war in Yemen.

    Greenpeace International Project lead Paul Horsman told IPS: “We are staring a major disaster in the face.”

    It is unacceptable, he argued, that UNDP, the UN body in charge of facilitating the Safer salvage operations, is creating delays through their internal bureaucracy, potentially adding massive increase in costs, jeopardising an agreement that took years of negotiations to reach, and putting at risk people of Yemen and the Red Sea.

    For over a year, everyone has been warning of the imminent danger presented by the Safer. The solution is clear, the technology and expertise are available, ready and able, and the money is there, he added.

    “If the Safer leaks or, worse, explodes, it is the UNDP that will carry the blame. They should just get out of the way and allow those who do know what they are doing to get on with the job,” declared Horsman.

    Asked for a response, Russell Geekie, Senior Communications Advisor to the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, told IPS under the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinator, UNDP has been working with other UN specialized agencies and partners to urgently implement the UN-coordinated plan to prevent a massive oil spill from the FSO Safer, off Yemen’s Red Sea coast.

    The salvage operation, he said, will take place within the context of the crisis in Yemen, which greatly complicates the work to prepare and implement the operation.

    “The salvage operation can only begin once a suitable vessel is in place to receive the oil from the FSO Safer”.

    At present, he said, the main challenge to the start of the operation is the limited availability of suitable vessels to store the oil. The price in the global market for these vessels has sharply increased – largely as a result of the war in Ukraine.

    “UNDP is working with a maritime broker and other partners to find the most suitable solution, fast-tracking processes whenever possible”, he added.

    At a UN press briefing last September, David Gressly, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, said the long-delayed salvage operations can begin, now that more than $75 million had been pledged to carry out the vital operation.

    The briefing, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. was co-hosted by partners in the proposed rescue effort, namely, the Netherlands, the United States, and Germany.

    Gressly said that once the pledges are fully converted into cash for the initial salvage operation, with more than $77 million promised from 17 countries, an extra $38 million was still needed for phase two – the installation of safe replacement capacity to secure the one million barrels of oil on board.

    The UN plan is for this to be done through transferring the oil to a secure double-hulled vessel, as a permanent storage solution, until the political situation allows it to be sold or transported elsewhere, said Gressly.

    But Greenpeace International has remained sceptical because the issue of the FSO Safer, it says, should have been dealt with months ago, before weather conditions deteriorated.

    Last autumn, all seemed set fair for the salvage operation, and Smit Boskalis, one of the world’s most experienced salvage companies, was all set to get the operation underway, Greenpeace said.

    “But this momentum appears to have now ground to a halt as the UNDP, who are supposed to be coordinating the operation, are creating serious and more expensive delays through their internal bureaucratic processes”.

    Greenpeace said it has been campaigning for over two years to get the UN to deal with the FSO Safer and avoid a devastating oil spill in the area.

    “We understand the UN FINALLY has the money, but UNDP (who are supposed to be coordinating the multi-donor effort but have no expertise in the oil/shipping issue) are going through internal bureaucratic processes which are creating serious delays and more expense due to daily inflating costs,” Greenpeace said.

    According to the UN, fears have grown that unless the vessel is secured, it could break apart causing a devastating oil spill and other environmental damage, which the UN estimates would cost at least $20 billion just to clear up, as well as devastate the fragile economy of war-torn Yemen – triggering a humanitarian catastrophe.

    Geekie said donors have generously deposited $73.4 million for the project, with another $10 million pledged. While preparatory work has begun, additional funds are still needed to fully implement the operation, which has the support of both the Government of Yemen in Aden and the Sana’a authorities.

    Ensuring that the right team of experts is in place is critical to the operation’s success.

    He said UNDP has already procured all the services of relevant experts and operational partners including a top-rated marine management consultancy company, a salvage operation company, a shipbroker, a maritime legal firm, an insurance broker company and oil spill experts for contingency planning to support this crucial mission.

    Other UN agencies are also providing technical support to the operation.

    Given the high potential environmental and humanitarian risks, the United Nations, including UNDP, is sparing no effort to address the challenges faced off the coast of Yemen and is dealing with this situation with the utmost urgency, he declared.

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  • Security Policy is more than Defence with Weapons

    Security Policy is more than Defence with Weapons

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    • Opinion by Herbert Wulf (duisburg, germany)
    • Inter Press Service

    DUISBURG, Germany, Jan 11 (IPS) – If our societies are to become resilient and sustainable, our priorities must change towards de-escalation, including in diplomacy and economy.

    Putin’s war against Ukraine has not only damaged the international cooperative security architecture, it has permanently destroyed it. The Helsinki Act of 1975, the Charter of Paris of 1990 and the NATO-Russia Founding Act of 1997 created a basis for security cooperation in Europe – even ‘a new era of democracy, peace and unity’, as the Charter of Paris was euphorically titled. At least, that is how the heads of state saw it in the decade after the end of the Cold War.

    Today, the war in Ukraine casts a long shadow over European and global security. Cooperation and collaboration have been replaced by military confrontation. Economic cooperation has been shattered, fear of dependency in the energy sector has led to a turning point and the concept of the positive effect of economic interdependence (‘change through trade’) has proven to be a misperception not only in the case of Russia but also with respect to the relationship of the USA and its Asian and European allies against China.

    On the contrary, the turn towards confrontational, essentially military-based defence policies can be felt all over the world. Global military spending is at an all-time high of over two trillion US dollars.

    Given the budget announcements for the next few years, this sum will continue to rise rapidly in the future. Nuclear weapons have come back into focus. After Russia’s surprising attack, which was hardly considered possible, it is understandable that now – as a first reflex – arms are being upgraded, that economic dependencies are being reduced and, of course, there are concerns about critical infrastructure.

    It is not only about traditional military threats. The boundaries between war and peace have become blurred. Hybrid warfare, the use of mercenaries, cyber warfare, destruction of critical infrastructure, undermining social cohesion with disinformation campaigns and election interference, sanctions and other measures of economic warfare have become the standard of international conflict.

    De-escalation on three levels

    Is there a way out of the constant political, economic and above all military escalation? Despite the apparent hopelessness of an end to the power struggle with Putin, despite the escalated situation in East Asia, despite the many now less noticed wars and conflicts – be it Yemen, Syria, Afghanistan or Mali – it is necessary to think about the possible end of these wars. This should happen in parallel on three levels: security, diplomacy and economy.

    With all understanding for the hectic procurement of new weapons now being commissioned in the sign of the turn of the times, it should be noted that security policy is more than defence with weapons. Even if there is currently no path in sight for a negotiated solution to the Ukraine war, such a solution should still be considered.

    Ultimately, this war can only be ended through agreements at the negotiating table. Even though Russia started the war in Ukraine in violation of international law and is obviously committing war crimes, in the long term there can be no peace in Europe without Russia and certainly not against Russia.

    Respect for Russian security interests, however difficult this may be because of Russian aggression and Putin’s fantasy ideas of Russia, is a prerequisite for de-escalation and serious negotiations.

    Geopolitics that maximises only one’s own advantages leads to a dangerous dead end: the clash is pre-programmed.

    Many countries rely on a militarily supported geostrategic foreign policy. China’s assertive military, foreign and economic policies are rightly viewed with concern. But the EU also wants to become militarily autonomous.

    The US is trying to find partners for its policy conducted in competition with China. Other powers such as Australia, Japan or India are also positioning themselves in rivalry to China.

    Instead of focusing on geopolitics, it is necessary to focus on values (democracy, human rights) and binding rules (international law), even if Putin is blatantly violating international law and ‘democracy’ is a foreign word in China. It is necessary to change the narrative significantly.

    ‘The West’, which demands rule of law and democracy with rigour, has all too often emphasised these values and principles in a know-it-all manner – ‘the West against the rest’. Often enough, double standards were applied and these values were not observed by ‘the West’ itself, such as in the so-called war on terror and the war in Iraq.

    If these principles and projects for democracy and against autocracy are to be convincing, then one must completely abandon the concept of ‘the West’ and try to cultivate partnership-based – and not Euro-centric (or ‘Westro-centric’) – relations with democratic countries. In short, geopolitics that maximises only one’s own advantages leads to a dangerous dead end: the clash is pre-programmed.

    Is the sole answer of ‘the West’ to keep the upper hand in the geopolitical competition by military means? Economically, it makes sense to reduce dependencies and diversify supply chains. This cannot be done through radical decoupling, but must be done gradually.

    Obviously, the shock of the pandemic, but above all Russia’s possibilities to blackmail by stopping energy deliveries, have changed the priorities a little. But by no means all priorities. At no time since the early 1990s has the military burden on global income been as high as it is today: well over two per cent with a trend towards further increases.

    The need for timely disarmament

    Should the new era (Zeitenwende) consist only of a return to old-fashioned patterns of the military-supported use of force? Arms control is not taking place at the moment. The United Nations and other arms control forums have been pushed to the side. But arms control and de-escalation must already now be considered, even if the Kremlin is still opposed to them and the Chinese leadership is hardly responsive to them at present.

    The continuation of the current course leads globally to a situation that is becoming more dangerous than the confrontation in the heyday of the Cold War, since the world is now also seriously endangered by the climate crisis.

    Almost all arms exports are accounted for by the G20 and 98 per cent of nuclear warheads are stored in their arsenals.

    Although the risks of climate change and armament are well known, there is currently no reversal of this trend in sight. The two crises are heading towards a seemingly unavoidable catastrophe. After the old-world order – with a halfway functioning multilateralism, compromises and give-and-take – was replaced by nationalist aspirations, which then led to a breach of international law in the case of Russia, by an emphasis on nuclear weapons and by the pursuit of supposed self-interest, the goals of the climate agreements are being missed and arms control treaties are being ground down.

    Geopolitically ambitious powers such as China, India, Turkey, Brazil, South Africa or Saudi Arabia must be integrated into arms control efforts. Almost ‘naturally’, the G20 summits offer themselves as a forum for this.

    The G20 initially focused their talks primarily on macroeconomic issues, but have since also negotiated on sustainable development, energy, the environment and climate change – but not seriously on global security policy.

    However, the G20 member countries are responsible for 82 per cent of global military spending. Almost all arms exports are accounted for by the G20 and 98 per cent of nuclear warheads are stored in their arsenals. Today’s military-based arms efforts are concentrated in the G20.

    Since the members of this exclusive G20 club are also the main perpetrators of climate change, they bear the main responsibility for the two current catastrophic trends.

    Moreover, there are links between climate and arms policy that are most clearly reflected in the wars and violent conflicts of the last decades, the movements of refugees, migrant flows and corresponding counter-reactions.

    If our societies are to become more resilient and more ecologically sustainable, then priorities must be changed, and then such a large share of resources cannot be permanently poured into the military – without any prospect of de-escalation. Our current shift must therefore contain more than the present rearmament.

    Since the members of this exclusive G20 club are also the main perpetrators of climate change, they bear the main responsibility for the two current catastrophic trends. So, it is time to remind them of their responsibility and urge them to turn back. Perhaps the fact that India is chairing the G20 this year can be used to put security policy prominently on the forum’s agenda.

    After all, India has refused to adopt Western sanctions against Russia, citing its own interests. In doing so, the government in Delhi – similar to some other countries in the G20 group (Brazil, South Africa and Turkey) – has kept an open door for potential talks. In order to enable a turning point towards a global security order and cooperation in the climate crisis, more is needed than the current clear military positioning of ‘the West’ in confrontation with Russia.

    It is to be hoped that the leading powers of the Global South will strive for a rules-based, multilateral world order within the framework of the G20 talks. That there are possibilities for a security order that looks beyond Europe, as hinted at by Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar, when he confidently stated: ‘Europe’s problems are the world’s problems, but the world’s problems are not Europe’s.’

    Herbert Wulf, Director of the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) from its foundation in 1994 until 2001, is currently a Senior Fellow at BICC and an Adjunct Senior Researcher at the Institute for Development and Peace, University of Duisburg/Essen where he was previously a Deputy Director.

    Source: Source: International Politics and Society (IPS)-Journal published by the International Political Analysis Unit of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Hiroshimastrasse 28, D-10785 Berlin

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  • Why U.S.-Africa Relations and Africa Matter More Now Than Ever

    Why U.S.-Africa Relations and Africa Matter More Now Than Ever

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    To achieve a strong partnership with Africa, the U.S. administration will need to demonstrate that it is interested in Africa because the continent itself matters, not merely to address other U.S. international objectives. Djibouti Port. Credit: James Jeffrey/IPS
    • Opinion by Philippe Benoit (washington dc)
    • Inter Press Service

    A strong Africa working in partnership with the U.S. is an important and all too often overlooked element of a robust U.S. geopolitical strategy. But to achieve this strong partnership, the U.S. administration will need to demonstrate that it is interested in Africa because the continent itself matters, not merely to address other U.S. international objectives.

    Unfortunately, there is skepticism within Africa, founded in historical precedent, as to U.S. intentions. For many years, as European powers withdrew from Africa following the decolonization of the continent, the U.S. and Soviet Union stepped in seeking to install “friendly” regimes.

    Africa was an area of interest more because of its importance to the U.S./Soviet Union Cold War than on its own merits. The result was often misguided policies focused on political alignment rather than promoting improvements on the continent. As the Cold War waned, arguably so did some of the U.S. interest in Africa.

    2008 saw the election of an American president of African descent, Barack Obama, generating excitement across the continent. In 2014, President Obama convened the inaugural U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, the largest gathering at that time of U.S. and African leaders.

    Unfortunately, there followed a general sense of disappointment as the summit failed to translate into strong action. Interestingly, the U.S. president at times most often praised for his support to Africa is President George W. Bush, who launched PEPFAR, the large-scale effort to fight AIDS focused on Africa that is also considered by some historians to be his greatest achievement.   

    Last month’s summit took place on a complex international and geopolitical backdrop for the U.S., marked by the growing competition with an emerging China and, more recently, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. For some American commentators, the summit provided an opportunity to draw Africa closer to the U.S. in countering these challenges following a period of inactivity.

    But Africa’s leaders have signaled that they don’t want to be viewed as mere tools for other geopolitical dynamics — including tensions with China and Russia — they want their concerns addressed on their merits. And the Biden administration was careful to not present last month’s summit as China/Russia-oriented. As explained by a CNN commentator: “In previewing this … summit, American officials have been careful to avoid framing Africa as a pawn in a larger geopolitical strategy.”

    This represents a wise strategy, especially as Africa has grown substantially both economically and politically over the last several decades and is poised for further growth. The GDP of Sub-Saharan Africa has grown five-fold from $400 billion 20 years ago to nearly $2 trillion today, and Africa’s total GDP now reaches nearly $3 trillion when North Africa is included. Similarly, a Brookings report estimates that the middle class of Sub-Saharan Africa will grow from 114 million in 2015 to 212 million in 2030. It is also the region where the largest growth in population is expected going forward: by 2050, an estimated quarter of the world’s people will be African.

    African leaders themselves are not oblivious to the growing strategic importance of their own countries. Rich in agriculture, mineral and energy resources, and with a growing diaspora that funneled over $83 billion in remittances back to Africa in 2020 (far more than the $65 billion the continent received in official development assistance that same year), Africa has become an attractive destination for the astute investor. 

    Newly empowered by the growth potential of their countries, many African leaders are demanding a stronger voice and greater respect internationally — and they’re getting it from China whose presence in Africa is ubiquitous. Similarly, Japan is re-asserting its engagement with Africa.

    Last month’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit is a welcome effort in this context and there is much room for strengthening ties. For example, Africa accounts for only 1 percent of U.S. foreign trade, most of which is in petroleum imports from two countries. But African governments, for their part, will need to demonstrate their openness to advancing inclusive growth and political rights domestically.

    Just as Asia has dominated the growth story of the last 50 years, will Africa be the emerging engine of growth for the next 50? This is something that analysts are contemplating. The recent analysis of the continent by the International Energy Agency posits a possible high growth “Africa Case” scenario in which the continent is able to exploit effectively its potential. 

    Arguably, the U.S. and other advanced economies were caught off-guard by the rapid economic growth that took place in Asia. They were slow to anticipate it, recognize it and integrate its implications into their strategies. This is not to predict when it comes to Africa that it will inevitably replicate what Asia has done; however, the reality is: “maybe, who knows?” That’s a potential outcome that the U.S. should prepare for, and even nurture. 

    What might Africa look like 20 years from now? A real possibility is a 2.4 billion-person continent with significantly diminished poverty and a large and growing middle class that can provide a vibrant economic partner for the U.S. To achieve this, a strong partnership between the U.S. and Africa is key and in the interest of both their peoples.

    Philippe Benoit has over 25 years of experience working on international development, including previous positions at the World Bank where he focused on Africa.  He is currently research director for Global Infrastructure Analytics and Sustainability 2050. 

    Bayo Oyewole, CEO of BayZx Global Strategic Solutions, currently provides independent advisory services to the African Development Bank. He previously held senior positions at the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation, including in the office of the Executive Director representing several African countries on the World Bank Board.

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  • Rebuilding Climate-Devastated Pakistan will Run in Excess of 16 Billion Dollars

    Rebuilding Climate-Devastated Pakistan will Run in Excess of 16 Billion Dollars

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    A flooded village in Matiari, in the Sindh province of Pakistan. Credit: UNICEF/Asad Zaidi
    • by Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General (geneva)
    • Inter Press Service
    • An address to the International Conference on a Climate-Resilient Pakistan

    GENEVA, Jan 10 (IPS) – For decades, I have been privileged to witness the boundless generosity and resilience of the Pakistani people amidst grave threats and upheaval.

    From earthquakes and floods. To years of relentless terrorist attacks. To geopolitical nightmares like the wars in Afghanistan that have sent millions fleeing across the Pakistani border in search of safety over the decades — a trend that continues today.

    But even through the darkest moments, the giving spirit of the Pakistani people has shone brightly. I have seen neighbours helping neighbours with food, water and shelter.

    And I have seen Pakistani communities welcome Afghan refugees with open arms despite their scarce resources So my heart broke when I saw first hand the utter devastation of last summer’s floods.

    No country deserves to endure what happened to Pakistan. But it was especially bitter to watch that country’s generous spirit being repaid with a climate disaster of monumental scale.

    As the video we just watched showed, the epic floods were nothing short of a “monsoon on steroids” – as I mentioned in my visit – submerging one-third of the country, three times the area of my own country, Portugal.

    A terrifying “wall of water” killed more than 1,700 people, injured thousands more, and affected a total of more than 33 million, displacing 8 million people.

    It swept over roads, ruined millions of acres of agricultural land, and damaged or destroyed 2 million homes. And it pushed back 9 million people to the brink of poverty.

    These are not numbers on a page. They are individual women, children and men. They are families and communities.

    And under the leadership of the Government of Pakistan, the United Nations, donors and friends rallied to assist.

    Tents, food, water, medicine and cash transfers were distributed. And a humanitarian response plan of $816 million was launched.

    But all of that is just a trickle of support in the face of the growing flood of need.

    At the same time, the people of Pakistan met this epic tragedy with heroic humanity.

    From the first responders rushing to affected communities. To the doctors and nurses I met, fighting against time to save lives in overcrowded hospitals.

    And I will never forget hearing the personal testimonies of women and men I met in September in the wake of the ruins.

    They left their own homes and all their worldly possessions to help their neighbours escape the rising waters. They sacrificed all they had to help others and bring them to safety.

    We must match the heroic response of the people of Pakistan with our own efforts and massive investments to strengthen their communities for the future.

    Rebuilding Pakistan in a resilient way will run in excess of $16 billion — and far more will be needed in the longer term.

    This includes not only flood recovery and rehabilitation efforts. But also initiatives to address daunting social, environmental and economic challenges.

    Reconstructing homes and buildings. Re-designing public infrastructure — including roads, bridges, schools and hospitals.

    Jump-starting jobs and agriculture. Ensuring that technology and knowledge are shared with Pakistan to support its efforts to build a climate-resilient future.

    And throughout, supporting women and children, who are up to 14 times more likely than men to die during disasters, and face the brunt of upheaval and loss in humanitarian crises.

    Women are consistently on the front lines of support during times of crisis — including in Pakistan. Their efforts are essential to a strong, equal, inclusive recovery.

    It is crucial that women play their full part, as leaders and participants at every level, contributing their insights and solutions.

    We also need to right a fundamental wrong. Pakistan is doubly victimized by climate chaos and a morally bankrupt global financial system.

    That system routinely denies middle-income countries the debt relief and concessional funding needed to invest in resilience against natural disasters.

    And so, we need creative ways for developing countries to access debt relief and concessional financing when they need it the most Above all, we need to be honest about the brutal injustice of loss and damage suffered by developing countries because of climate change.

    If there is any doubt about loss and damage — go to Pakistan.

    There is loss. There is damage.

    The devastation of climate change is real. From floods and droughts, to cyclones and torrential rains.

    And as always, those developing countries least responsible are the first to suffer.

    Pakistan — which represents less than one per cent of global emissions — did not cause the climate crisis.

    But it is living with its worst impacts.

    South Asia is one of the world’s global climate crisis hotspots — in which people are 15 times more likely to die from climate impacts than elsewhere.

    At the recent UN Climate Conference in Egypt, the world made some important breakthroughs.This includes progress on addressing loss and damage, speeding the shift to renewables, and an unprecedented call to reform the global financial architecture, particularly Multilateral Development Banks.

    It also includes accelerating efforts to cover every person in the world with early warning systems against climate disasters within five years.

    But we need to go much further. Countries on the frontlines of the climate crisis need massive support.

    Developed countries must deliver on their commitment to double adaptation finance, and meet the $100 billion goal urgently, without delay.

    And we need to reverse the outrageous trend of emissions going up, when they must go down to prevent further climate catastrophe.

    Today’s conference is the first step on a much longer journey towards recovery and reconstruction in Pakistan.

    The United Nations will be there for the long haul. The world must be, too.

    And at every step, we will be inspired by the endurance and generosity of the people of Pakistan in this critical and colossal mission.

    IPS UN Bureau


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  • COVID in Europe: China’s surge not a cause for concern ‘at this time’ says WHO, as XBB.1.5 virus spreads

    COVID in Europe: China’s surge not a cause for concern ‘at this time’ says WHO, as XBB.1.5 virus spreads

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    Dr. Hans Kluge, head of the World Health Organization for Europe, explained that this is because the two variants circulating in China are already present in European countries, according to data provided by the Chinese authorities.

    “We share the current view of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) that the ongoing surge in China is not anticipated to significantly impact the COVID-19 epidemiological situation in the WHO European Region at this time.”

    Restrictions ‘not unreasonable’

    The WHO senior official acknowledged that China had shared virus sequencing information, but he appealed for more “detailed and regular information”, especially concerning local epidemiology and variants “to better assess the evolving situation”.

    Dr Kluge also said that travel restrictions by European countries on visitors from China were “not unreasonable…while we are waiting for more detailed information that is shared through publicly available databases”.

    But he said it was important for the precautionary travel measures being introduced by European countries “to be rooted in science, to be proportionate and non-discriminatory”.

    Visas halted

    The message comes as Chinese embassies suspended issuing new visas for South Koreans and Japanese visitors on Tuesday. The announcement covered tourist, business and some other visa categories.

    The move appears to be in response to COVID-19 testing requirements recently imposed by those countries on travellers from China.

    A notice posted in Seoul reportedly said the ban would continue until South Korea lifts its “discriminatory entry measures” against China. 

    At least ten countries in Europe, North America and Asia have announced new virus testing requirements for travellers from China, with officials expressing concern about a lack of adequate information about rapidly spreading virus outbreaks in China.

    UNICEF/Bruno Amsellem/Divergence

    A three-year-old child at home in Lyon, France, during a COVID-19 lockdown.

    Warning against complacency

    In two further messages to the WHO European Region, Dr Kluge warned against countries greatly reducing their surveillance capacity for COVID-19.

    In the first five weeks of 2022, variant information on 1.2 million cases was submitted as part of weekly surveillance data to the WHO and the ECDC.

    However, this declined to about 90,000 cases in the last 5 weeks of the year. 

    Dr Kluge stressed that countries must build upon the lessons learned over the last three years and be able to anticipate, detect and respond in time to SARS-CoV-2, and any emerging health threat. 

    XBB.1.5 spreading

    He commended European countries, including Denmark, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, that have maintained strong genomic surveillance and pointed out that their recent data has started to indicate the growing presence of the new XBB.1.5 recombinant virus, derived from the Omicron variant, that has already been spreading rapidly across the United States. 

    The new strain is being “picked up in small, but growing numbers, and we are working to assess its potential impact,” he said. “With many countries grappling with overstretched health systems, shortages in essential medicines and an exhausted health workforce – we cannot afford more pressures on our health systems.” 

    Finally, Dr Kluge urged countries across Europe and Central Asia to step up efforts to put effective strategies in place to combat the spread of COVID-19 and avoid being complacent. 

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  • Greening the City Gets Community Treatment in Zimbabwe

    Greening the City Gets Community Treatment in Zimbabwe

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    Mariyeti Mpala (56) runs a thriving vegetable garden on a former dumpsite and its proceeds assist the community in creating incomes of their own. Credit: Ignatius Banda/IPS
    • by Ignatius Banda
    • Inter Press Service

    Jan 10 (IPS) – It’s a typical story in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-largest city. With the failure to provide services such as refuse collection by the local municipality, township residents dump garbage wherever they fancy, and with time, dumpsites become “official.”

    For 56-year-old Mariyeti Mpala, however, a community dumpsite on land that belonged to the local municipality a stone’s throw away from her residence presented an opportunity to turn what had become an accepted eyesore into a thriving greening project.

    She purchased the land in 2006, and it is here on a section of the former dumpsite where she has grown indigenous wild fruit trees at the one-hectare piece of land and runs a thriving vegetable garden.

    She rotates planting tomatoes, peas, cabbages, onions and lettuce, with aquaculture being the latest addition to her project.

    “I have put up three thousand bream fishlings,” Mpala said as she explained her long-term ambitions for the local community.

    “I decided to apply for this piece of land as it was clear no one imagined the land was of any use as it was being used as a dump site,” Mpala told IPS.

    While she may not be aware of it, Mpala’s project fits snugly into the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Green Cities initiative, which among other things, “focuses on improving the urban environment, ensuring access to a healthy environment and healthy diets from sustainable agri-food systems, increasing availability of green spaces through urban and peri-urban forestry.”

    “Urban agriculture is, therefore, an important part of the urban economy contributing significantly to urban food and nutrition security as the produce is less subject to market fluctuations,” said Kevin Mazorodze, FAO spokesperson.

    And now, as more and more people in the country require food assistance, Mpala’s project comes as a relief for members of her community.

    “I especially cater for the elderly who have no source of income and cannot fend for themselves,” Mpala told IPS.

    “I sell some of the produce at low cost to those elderly women who buy in bulk so they can sell at a markup, so they raise funds for their own private needs,” she said.

    FAO’s Green Cities Initiative seeks to promote more such activities, said Mazorodze.

    “Urban and peri-urban agriculture is one of the key pillars of the initiative through which FAO intends to foster sustainable and climate-resilient practices and technologies to improve local food production,” Mazorodze told IPS.

    Mpala sunk a borehole powered by solar energy in a country where abundant sunlight has been touted to promote clean energy.

    Her work has not gone unappreciated by locals.

    “She is a hard worker and has always looked out for us old people,” said Agnes Nyoni, a 70-something-year-old granny who lives not far from Mpala’s green project.

    “I first knew her a few years ago when she collected our names to register for food parcels that included mealie meal, cooking oil and beans,” Nyoni told IPS.

    Mpala’s work has also reached city offices, with the local councillor lauding her contribution towards uplifting the lives of the poor and food insecure.

    “We actually need more of such initiatives being done by Mrs. Mpala as she is uplifting the lives of our people,” said Tinevimbo Maphosa, the local councilman.

    “I understand she has also set up a fisheries project which I see as a sign of her community-building commitments. People need to be productive and stop complaining all the time about the situation in the country, and Mrs. Mpala’s work is part of what we need to see happening in our communities,” Maphosa told IPS.

    The city already has numerous community gardens dotted across the city, with Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) supporting the municipality through the Green Cities Network.

    The food she grows is organic, Mpala says, and local nutritionists believe at a time, food is becoming more expensive, and where people now eat whatever is available, consumers need healthier diets.

    “Food grown in such nutrition gardens as that run by Mrs. Mpala is encouraged because it is fresh straight from the garden, and the elderly people she caters for certainly need healthier diets,” said Mavis Bhebhe, a government hospital nutritionist.

    “What is required is to encourage such initiatives to spread the variety of the food they grow so that consumers get the most out of locally grown foods,” Bhebhe told IPS.

    These sentiments come at a time when humanitarian agencies have raised concerns about levels of malnutrition across Africa as some parts of the continent battle acute food shortages.

    In a country such as Zimbabwe, where formal jobs come far in between, homegrown initiatives such as the Dingindawo Gardens offer hope for young people seeking opportunities to take idle time off their hands, Maphosa believes.

    “There is too much crime and drug abuse here, and with more projects from individuals like Mrs. Mpala, we could solve the community’s many problems,” Maphosa told IPS.
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  • Biden to Democrats: Nominate Me– Whether You Like It or Not

    Biden to Democrats: Nominate Me– Whether You Like It or Not

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    • Opinion by Norman Solomon (san francisco, usa)
    • Inter Press Service

    SAN FRANCISCO, USA, Jan 09 (IPS) – With 2023 underway, Democrats in office are still dodging the key fact that most of their party’s voters don’t want President Biden to run for re-election. Among prominent Democratic politicians, deference is routine while genuine enthusiasm is sparse.

    Many of the endorsements sound rote. Late last month, retiring senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont came up with this gem: “I want him to do whatever he wants. If he does, I’ll support him.”

    Joe Biden keeps saying he intends to be the Democratic nominee in 2024. Whether he will be is an open question — and progressives should strive to answer it with a firm No.

    The next presidential election will be exceedingly grim if all the Democratic Party can offer as an alternative to the neofascist Republican Party is an incumbent who has so often served corporate power and consistently serves the military-industrial complex.

    The Biden administration has taken some significant antitrust steps to limit rampant monopolization. But overall realities are continuing to widen vast economic inequalities that are grist for the spinning mill of pseudo-populist GOP demagogues.

    Meanwhile, President Biden rarely conveys a sense of urgency or fervent discontent with present-day social conditions. Instead, he routinely comes off as “status-quo Joe.”

    For the future well-being of so many millions of people, and for the electoral prospects of the Democratic Party in 2024, representing the status quo invites cascading disasters. A few months ago, Bernie Sanders summed up this way:

    “The most important economic and political issues facing this country are the extraordinary levels of income and wealth inequality, the rapidly growing concentration of ownership, the long-term decline of the American middle class and the evolution of this country into oligarchy.”

    Interviewed days ago, Sanders said: “It pains me very, very much that we’re seeing more and more working-class people voting Republican. Politically, that is a disaster, and Democrats have to recognize that serious problem and address it.”

    But President Biden doesn’t seem to recognize the serious problem, and he fails to address it.

    During the last two years, domestic policy possibilities have been curbed by Biden’s frequent and notable refusals to use the power of the presidency for progress. He did not issue many of the potential executive orders that could have moved the country forward despite Senate logjams.

    At the same time, “bully pulpit” advocacy for workers’ rights, voter rights, economic justice, climate action and much more has been muted or nonexistent.

    Biden seems unable or unwilling to articulate a social-justice approach to such issues. As for the continuing upward spike in Pentagon largesse while giving human needs short shrift, Biden was full of praise for the record-breaking, beyond-bloated $858 billion military spending bill that he signed in late December.

    While corporate media’s reporters and pundits are much more inclined to critique his age than his policies, what makes Biden most problematic for so many voters is his antiquated political approach.

    Running for a second term would inevitably cast Biden as a defender of current conditions — in an era when personifying current conditions is a heavy albatross that weighs against electoral success.

    A Hart Research poll of registered voters in November found that only 21 percent said the country was “headed in the right direction” while 72 percent said it was “off on the wrong track.”

    As the preeminent symbol of the way things are, Biden is all set to be a vulnerable standard-bearer in a country where nearly three-quarters of the electorate say they don’t like the nation’s current path.

    But for now’ anyway, no progressive Democrat in Congress is willing to get into major trouble with the Biden White House by saying he shouldn’t run, let alone by indicating a willingness to challenge him in the early 2024 primaries.

    Meanwhile, one recent poll after another showed that nearly 60 percent of Democrats don’t want Biden to run again. A New York Times poll last summer found that a stunning 94 percent of Democrats under 30 years old would prefer a different nominee.

    Although leaning favorably toward Biden overall, mass-media coverage has occasionally supplied the kind of candor that Democratic officeholders have refused to provide on the record. “The party’s relief over holding the Senate and minimizing House losses in the midterms has gradually given way to collective angst about what it means if Biden runs again,” NBC News reported days before Christmas.

    Conformist support from elected Democrats for another Biden campaign reflects a shortage of authentic representation on Capitol Hill. The gap is gaping, for instance, between leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and the constituency — the progressive base — they claim to represent. In late November, CPC chair Pramila Jayapal highlighted the gap when she went out of her way to proclaim that “I believe he should run for another term and finish this agenda we laid out.”

    Is such leadership representing progressives to the establishment or the other way around?

    Norman Solomon is the national director of RootsAction.org and the executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy. He is the author of a dozen books including War Made Easy. His next book, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine, will be published in Spring 2023 by The New Press.

    IPS UN Bureau


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  • Malawi Suffers Worst Cholera Outbreak in Decades

    Malawi Suffers Worst Cholera Outbreak in Decades

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    Cholera ward in a health centre in Blantyre. Malawi has experienced a massive rise in cholera in the past year. Credit: Charles Mpaka/IPS
    • by Charles Mpaka (blantyre)
    • Inter Press Service

    BLANTYRE, Jan 09 (IPS) – On March 3, 2022, Malawi declared a cholera outbreak after a district hospital in the southern region reported a case. This was the first case in the 2021 to 2022 cholera season.

    That single case was a warning for what would become Malawi’s worst cholera outbreak in decades.

    For nearly a year now, cholera has gripped the country, with cases reported in all 29 districts and rising.

    In an unprecedented occurrence, the cases rose sharply even through the summer months when cholera is least expected and the country least prepared for it.

    As of January 4, 2023, up to 640 people were killed, and 19,000 cases were registered, government data shows. The case fatality rate stands at 3.4 percent, higher than the recommended rate of less than one percent.

    Maziko Matemba, Executive Director for Health and Rights Education Programme (HREP), a local civil society organisation, says the situation is alarming and keeps the country in a “spiral of health crisis”.

    “We started the year 2022 hoping to recover from the devastation of Covid-19. Then Tropical Storm Ana knocked us back in January. In March, cholera hit, and it hasn’t left for ten months, worsening as time passes. We have not had this kind of cholera outbreak for a long time,” Matemba tells IPS.

    And there are growing fears that the disease could spread further now that the rainy season when it usually breaks out in Malawi, has begun.

    Tropical Storm Ana has played a significant part in this outbreak, experts say. The rainstorm affected 16 districts, including Machinga, where the first cholera case was reported in March, and Nsanje, a flood-prone district and one of the first areas to report cholera cases in this outbreak.

    A final situation report on the impact of the storm by the Department of Disaster Management Affairs found that over 53,000 latrines collapsed, while 337 boreholes, 206 water taps and eight gravity-fed water schemes were damaged in those 16 districts.

    The department said this resulted in low sanitation coverage, limited access to safe water and poor hygienic practices, with some sites and communities reporting open defecation and contamination of the few available water sources.

    The report said the situation increased the risk of cholera and other communicable diseases.

    “As such, safe water supply, sanitation and hygiene services are immediately needed to address water, sanitation and hygiene issues. Furthermore, there is a need for rehabilitation of toilets to avoid infectious and waterborne diseases,” it said.

    But Malawi has not fully recovered from this disaster since, Matemba says.

    “So lack of recovery on water and sanitation infrastructure destroyed during that time have created good conditions for cholera to thrive. That comes into an existing frame of a weak prevention system. We usually take prevention rather casually,” he says.

    Save Kumwenda, an environmental health expert, says alongside the water, sanitation and hygiene issues, there is also evidence of temperature and precipitation being influential in cholera outbreaks – with temperature driving epidemics and rainfall acting as a dispersal mechanism.

    “Then there are also socio-economic conditions which are key drivers for outbreaks, as these increase pathogen exposure,” says Kumwenda, an associate professor at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS).

    He says the situation could worsen as the rainy season spreads the bacteria through contamination of water bodies and food.

    The outbreak has hit the hardest Malawi’s two major cities of Lilongwe, the capital city, and Blantyre, the commercial city.

    For instance, in the 7 days between December 29, 2022, and January 4, 2023, the country recorded 2,773 cases and 137 deaths. Out of these, Blantyre and Lilongwe contributed 47 percent of the new cases and 53 percent of the new deaths.

    Kumwenda says this is the case because the two cities, struggling with solid waste management and aged sewer systems, have large peri-urban areas where residents depend on wells, boreholes and river water which is highly contaminated by faecal matter from toilets, broken septic tanks, broken sewer pipes and open defaecation.

    He says most houses in these areas do not have adequate toilets, and many depend on sharing.

    In addition, most of these households cannot afford to pay for water from waterboards for both drinking and domestic use. They, therefore, prioritise safe water for drinking only and unsafe water for other uses, which leads to contamination of foods and utensils and also contamination of the available safe water.

    “The other reason for the high numbers of cholera cases in these cities is the high number of people who rely on piece works, and these rely on foods sold in markets where hygiene and sanitation conditions are compromised,” he says.

    In response, the government has delayed by two weeks the opening of schools in the two cities and surrounding areas. Malawi opened the 2022 academic year on January 3.

    Minister of Health Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda says in a statement that opening schools in the two cities would affect containment efforts for the outbreak, considering that cholera is passed from one person to another through contaminated food, water and inadequate sanitation facilities, a feature that exists in school settings.

    “The converging of learners, especially in the nursery, primary and secondary schools, increases the chances of uncontrolled spread of the vibrio bacteria that causes cholera disease,” she says.

    During the two weeks delay, the government will be conducting a thorough assessment and improving the water and sanitation situation in the schools in both cities.

    For a national response, among other measures, the government says it will be opening more treatment centres in the cholera hotspots, employing more staff in the treatment centres, intensifying hygiene promotion and undertaking water quality assessments in targeted areas.

    In November last year, Malawi rolled out the oral cholera vaccination reactive campaign targeting 2.9 million people aged one year and above.

    Kumwenda says Malawi needed to act quickly to stop the outbreak before the onset of the rainy season as there was clear evidence of the impending emergency due to the rising of the cases through the hot months.

    But for long-term control of the disease, Malawi needs to invest in research in order to come up with interventions based on evidence.

    “This will ensure that we always invest in interventions which yield maximum benefits. We need to understand the main drivers of the epidemic and also identify reservoirs of the bacteria causing cholera. The knowledge of the reservoirs will help us to easily prevent the re-occurrence of the outbreak,” says Kumwenda, president of the Malawi Environmental Health Association, a group of environmental health experts.

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  • Guterres urges radical global finance shake-up to help Pakistan after deadly floods

    Guterres urges radical global finance shake-up to help Pakistan after deadly floods

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    “If there is any doubt about loss and damage, go to Pakistan,” he told delegates at the International Conference on climate resilient Pakistan. “There is loss. There is damage. The devastation of climate change is real. From floods and droughts to cyclones and torrential rains. And as always, those countries least responsible, are the first to suffer.”

    33 million-plus impacted

    More than 33 million people were affected by the flooding in Sindh and Balochistan, which is widely regarded to have been Pakistan’s greatest climate disaster.

    Even today, months after the initial emergency, the floodwaters have only partly receded and the disaster is far from over for some eight million who were forced to flee the rising waters, which also killed more than 1,700 people.

    Catastrophic damage

    More than 2.2 million homes were destroyed along with 13 per cent of all health facilities, 4.4 million acres of crops, and more than 8,000 kilometres of roads and other vital infrastructure – including around 440 bridges.

    The cost of helping communities hit in every conceivable way by the unprecedented monsoon rains in Pakistan that began last June, “will run in excess of $16 billion, and far more will be needed in the longer term”, the UN Secretary-General said.

    Vulnerable children impacted

    In parallel with the conference in Geneva, UN children’s fund UNICEF underlined the ongoing human cost of the emergency in Pakistan.

    “Up to four million children are still living near contaminated and stagnant flood waters, risking their survival and wellbeing,” the UN agency said.

    Acute respiratory infections had “skyrocketed” in areas affected by flooding, UNICEF continued, while the number of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition in the same areas nearly doubled between July and December, compared to 2021, leaving some 1.5 million youngsters still in need of lifesaving nutritioninterventions.

    UNICEF/UN0730552/Bashir

    On 3 November 2022 in Jacobabad, Sindh province, Pakistan, 15-year-old Sugra, whose home was destroyed in recent floods, holds her brother, Fayaz.

    Paying over the odds

    Reiterating the need to help developing countries such as Pakistan become more resilient to the impacts of climate change, the UN chief insisted that the international banking system needed reform “to right a fundamental wrong”.

    He added: “Pakistan is doubly victimized by climate chaos and a morally bankrupt global financial system. That system routinely denies middle-income countries the debt relief and concessional funding needed to invest in resilience against natural disasters. And so, we need creative ways for developing countries to access debt relief and concessional financing when they need it the most.”

    At Mr. Guterres’s side, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif explained why his country needed international solidarity now, more than ever.

    “We need to get 33 million people who are deeply affected by the floods their future back,” he said. “Their families must stand on their feet and they must come back in life and earn their livelihood.”

    UNICEF's Chief of Field Office in Sindh - Prem Chand observes 11-year-old Rahman wear a jacket provided by UNICEF during the winter kits distribution in Mitho Babbar Village, Dadu District, Sindh province.

    UNICEF/Arsalan Butt

    UNICEF’s Chief of Field Office in Sindh – Prem Chand observes 11-year-old Rahman wear a jacket provided by UNICEF during the winter kits distribution in Mitho Babbar Village, Dadu District, Sindh province.

    ‘Tomorrow, we could be the ones’

    Representing conference host country Switzerland, Federal Councillor for Foreign Affairs Ignazio Cassis, reasoned that supporting those countries impacted by natural disasters was enlightened common sense: “Today, it’s you, Pakistan, that needs help. But tomorrow, it could be us, all of us. One thing is certain: none of us is safe. We are all concerned by climate change, a global threat that requires a global response.”

    Echoing that appeal for solidarity among nations, French President Emmanuel Macron joined the conference by video link to announce that €360 million had been pledged by France “to respond to the challenge of resilience rebuilding and climate adaptation”.

    But the French President also noted that only 30 per cent of the UN’s emergency funding appeals had been provided, just as winter temperatures have plunged.

    Profound change

    UN Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Achim Steiner highlighted the scale of the global threat posed by climate change and the relevance of the need to find climate adaptation funding for developing countries:

    “Look to the east, in Australia, extraordinary flood events; look to the west in California, extreme weather events, look to Europe, and people are wondering what happened to snow in winter, we are living in profoundly changing times.”

    Watch a joint press stakehout held by the UN Secretary-General and Prime Minister of Pakistan on the conference, below:

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