Protesters attend a march against the military coup in Myanmar. Credit: Unsplash/Pyae Sone Htun
Opinion by Jan Servaes (brussels)
Inter Press Service
BRUSSELS, Oct 14 (IPS) – The update on September 26, 2022, of the human rights situation in Myanmar to the UN Human Rights Council says it all: “The people of Myanmar have been caught in a rapid downward spiral, with growing suffering, fear, and insecurity. Urgent action is needed to reverse this catastrophic situation and to restore peace, democracy, and sustainable development”.
Since the military overthrew an elected government on February 1, 2021, and took power in a country ruled by generals for five of the past six decades, the situation for the majority of the population has become increasingly desperate.
The coup, which ended 10 years of provisional democracy initiated by the previous junta, has devastated Myanmar’s economy, leading to mass displacement of people as a result of fighting between armed groups and the military, and relentless bombing on civilian targets of the Burmese Air Force.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a non-profit organization that tracks military action and is frequently cited by the United Nations, 2,343 is the number of opponents of the junta that have been killed since the coup. Killed.
1,5,821 opponents of the coup have been arrested by the junta, the AAPP says.
160 people were killed in one day on March 27, 2021, as the junta celebrated the annual Armed Forces Day, the bloodiest day in its crackdown on democracy activists.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 1,320,000 people have been displaced by fighting. It is estimated that about 14.4 million people—about a quarter of Myanmar’s population—have been displaced from their homes and are in need of humanitarian assistance.
30 is the percentage by which Myanmar’s economy has shrunk as a direct result of the coup, the World Bank says. According to the World Bank, 1 million jobs were lost in Myanmar in 2021.
Potentially $2.8 billion in economic losses from internet shutdowns in Myanmar by 2021.
More than 60 is the percentage of the value of the kyat currency that has been lost against the dollar since the coup. Capital flight and a decline in foreign investment & aid, and money transfers have led to a shortage of foreign currency. The military regime’s attempts to restrict imports and ration foreign currencies have boosted illegal border trade with China and Thailand. A widening disparity between Thailand’s and Myanmar’s trade figures suggests that smuggling from Thailand has not only recovered to pre-coup levels, but also appears to have reached an all-time high. This boom questions the junta’s claim of a trade surplus. Moreover, it has been fueled by the regime’s own heavy-handed efforts to control trade.
Compared to March 2020, poverty is estimated to have tripled. With about 40 percent of the population living below the national poverty line by 2022, nearly a decade of progress in poverty reduction has been undone.
18 was the percentage contraction the World Bank predicted for Myanmar’s economy in the fiscal year starting April 1, 2021. Failure to see a substantial rebound in economic growth – with GDP estimated to remain in 2022 at around 13 percent lower than in 2019 – continues to test the resilience of the Myanmar population. Food insecurity is on the rise and households are increasingly resorting to negative coping mechanisms – including reducing consumption and asset sales – in the face of uncertainty.
The suicide rate has continued to rise since the coup as financial hardship, political repression and the collapse of the health care system are negatively impacting mental health.
26 is the total number of years in prison that deposed 77-year-old Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi will face if given the maximum sentences in the remaining lawsuits against her.
Press freedom regresses fast. The country has become a worse jailer of journalists than China. Since the coup, military authorities have arrested about 142 journalists and media workers, an estimated 57 of whom are still in prison in Myanmar, six more than are believed to be imprisoned in China. The junta has forced at least 12 media outlets to shut down, pushing hundreds of media workers to flee the country and revive the exiled media outlets that reported on the country under the last military junta prior to 2011.
ASEAN is increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress on the Five Point Consensus – a non-binding agreement drafted in April 2021. While many countries have criticized the junta’s lack of “willingness” to comply with the framework, Malaysia has gone a step further and put forward the idea of suspending Myanmar.
Jan Servaes was UNESCO-Chair in Communication for Sustainable Social Change at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He taught ‘international communication’ in Australia, Belgium, China, Hong Kong, the US, Netherlands and Thailand, in addition to short-term projects at about 120 universities in 55 countries. He is editor of the 2020 Handbook on Communication for Development and Social Change. https://link.springer.com/referencework/10.1007/978-981-10-7035-8
A school destroyed during a Russian air strike in Kharkiv, Ukraine. September 2022. Credit: UNICEF/Ashley Gilbertson
by Thalif Deen (united nations)
Inter Press Service
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 14 (IPS) – The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has resulted in a never-ending flow of arms to the battle-scarred country— elevating the besieged nation to the ranks of one of the major recipients of US weapons and American security assistance.
As of last week, the US has provided a hefty $17.5 billion in arms and military assistance to Ukraine.
The five biggest arms buyers from the US during 2017-2021 were Saudi Arabia, which accounted for 23.4 percent of all US arms exports –followed by Australia 9.4 percent, South Korea 6.8 percent, Japan 6.7 percent and Qatar 5.4 percent.
The figure for Ukraine during the same period was 0.1 percent, according to the latest statistics released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
But this measly figure is expected to skyrocket in 2022, judging by the uninterrupted flow of American weapons.
In a statement to reporters October 4, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said pursuant to a delegation of authority from the President, “I am authorizing our 22nd drawdown of U.S. arms and equipment for Ukraine since August 2021.”
This $625 million drawdown, he said, includes additional arms, munitions, and equipment from U.S. Department of Defense inventories.
This drawdown will bring the total U.S. military assistance for Ukraine to more than $17.5 billion since the beginning of the Biden Administration in January 2021.
Pieter Wezeman, Senior Researcher, Arms Transfers Programme at SIPRI, told IPS arms supplies to Ukraine were very small compared to those of the top-15 recipients of US arms.
This will change in 2022 as Ukraine has received major weapon systems from the US, such as 20 HIMARS long range rocket launchers, close to 1000 older model used light armoured vehicles, radars and 142 M-777 towed guns, he said.
“These are most valuable systems per item which Ukraine has received from the US, but the numbers involved and the military or financial value of these weapons are modest compared to what certain other countries have received in major systems in recent years.”
He pointed out that Ukraine has not received other items that per piece or especially valuable such as modern tanks, combat aircraft, major ships and long-range air defense systems.
Dr. Natalie J. Goldring, a Visiting Professor of the Practice in the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University, told IPS these weapons transfers entail numerous risks.
One significant risk is that the weapons will be captured by Russian forces and potentially used against Western forces. Another is that weapons that remain when the conflict ends will be transferred to other areas of conflict, she warned.
One of the nightmare scenarios, she pointed out, is US weapons being used against US forces. Transferring vast quantities of weapons in such a short period of time increases this risk by making it more difficult to ensure accountability and prevent diversion of the weapons.
Perhaps the largest risk, she said, “is that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not accept the argument that these weapons are only being supplied to help Ukraine defend itself, particularly if we’re supplying weapons that can attack targets inside Russia.”
That may lead to an escalation and expansion of the conflict, and would likely produce even more threats of nuclear weapons use than President Putin has already made she noted.
“Escalating threats in turn increase the risk of actual use of nuclear weapons, whether deliberate or through accident or miscalculation”, said Dr Goldring, who also represents the Acronym Institute at the United Nations, on conventional weapons and arms trade issues.
In the end, she argued, regardless of the outcome of the conflict itself, the military contractors win. The Defense Department has already started ordering replacements for some of the weapons shipped to Ukraine. US weapons manufacturers are profiting from what appears to be an open-ended commitment to supply Ukrainian forces.
Even for weapons that are still in production, supply line challenges may make it difficult to replace the weapons transferred to Ukraine in a timely manner. This raises the question of how long the US military will be able to sustain these shipments without threatening US force readiness, she added.
According to the US Department of Defense, the security assistance package for Ukraine that was announced on 4 October 2022 is the 22nd drawdown from US stocks in less than a year.
In the 4 October 2022 press statement on the additional drawdown authority, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said, “The capabilities we are delivering are carefully calibrated to make the most difference on the battlefield and strengthen Ukraine’s hand at the negotiating table when the time is right.”
“But without an indication of when real peace negotiations will take place, the seemingly unending flow of weapons from the United States is likely to continue and US defense contractors will continue to increase their profits. At the same time, though, the risks of these transfers also increase as the quantity of weapons transferred grows,” she declared.
Justifying US arms sales, Blinken said: “We will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and independence with extraordinary courage and boundless determination. The capabilities we are delivering are carefully calibrated to make the most difference on the battlefield and strengthen Ukraine’s hand at the negotiating table when the time is right. We stand United with Ukraine”.
At the UN General Assembly last month, President Biden made it clear yet again that the US will support the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes.
Blinken said “recent developments from Russia’s sham referenda and attempted annexation to new revelations of brutality against civilians in Ukrainian territory formerly controlled by Russia only strengthens our resolve.”
“United with our Allies and partners from 50 nations, we are delivering the arms and equipment that Ukraine’s forces are utilizing so effectively today in a successful counter-offensive to take back their lands seized illegally by Russia,” he declared.
Wezeman said it is very large numbers of anti-tank missiles, such as over 8,000 Javelin anti-tank missiles, and over a million rounds for heavy artillery and probably thousands of advanced guided rockets for the HIMARS systems that account for the bulk of the US military aid to Ukraine.
Such amounts of ammunition, he said, surpass by far the amount of ammunition normally imported by any recipient of US arms in a given year.
Even though tens of thousands rounds of such ammunition need to be supplied to equal the value of let’s say 1 new F-15SA combat aircraft and related infrastructure, training, munitions spare parts etc., the numbers are so large that they do matter, said Wezeman.
He said there has already been discussions about sending further major weapons to Ukraine, even the possibility of supplying tanks and combat aircraft, as suggested. And if this happens, Ukraine will further rise amongst in the ranks of arms recipients from the US.
Thalif Deen is a former Director, Foreign Military Markets at Defense Marketing Services; Senior Defense Analyst at Forecast International; and military editor Middle East/Africa at Jane’s Information Group, US. He is also the author of a recently-released book on the United Nations titled “No Comment and Don’t Quote me on That” available on Amazon.
Informal sector only received 4 percent of post pandemic funds even though the sector accounts for more than 2 billion workers, many of whom are women. Credit: IITA
by Ed Holt (bratislava)
Inter Press Service
BRATISLAVA, Oct 12 (IPS) – Governments and international financial institutions must adopt new ways of providing post-pandemic support, say campaigners after a report found that in many poorer countries, big business benefitted most from Covid-19 recovery funds. At the same time, vulnerable communities have been “left behind.”
They say the level and distribution of support of these funds has been poor, with the most vulnerable in society, such as informal workers and women, among others, having been especially failed by relief programmes.
And they warn that the measures have actually only deepened inequalities at a time when the UN has warned that up to 95 million additional people could soon fall into extreme poverty in comparison with pre-Covid-19 levels.
Matti Kohonen, Director of the Financial Transparency Coalition (FTC), which was behind the report, told IPS: “The elite have been sheltered from the worst effects of the pandemic. Nearly 40 percent of Covid-19 recovery funds went to large corporations, through measures like loans and tax cuts. This means that social protection for, in particular, women and informal workers, has been inadequate.”
The FTC’s research found that in 21 countries in the Global South, large corporations received 38 percent of recovery funds while small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) got 20 percent. Social protection measures accounted for 38 percent.
Meanwhile, informal workers received only 4 percent of the funds in the countries surveyed, and the research showed that in many of those states, they actually received nothing at all.
Studies have shown that informal workers, and especially women, were globally hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic, and that economic policy measures taken in response have largely been gender-blind, exacerbating existing gender inequality and economic precarity in the sector.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), of the 2 billion informal workers worldwide, over 740 million are women. However, there is a higher share of women than men in informal employment in many of the world’s poorest regions: in more than 90 percent of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, 89 percent of southern Asian countries, and almost 75 percent of Latin American countries.
These women also often have jobs most likely to be associated with poor conditions, limited or non-existent labour rights and social protection, and low pay.
The FTC report points out that while the COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on women’s employment, working hours, and increases in unpaid domestic and care work duties, it found that women received half the funds than men received as most money provided to corporates and also smaller companies predominantly went to men (representing over 59 percent of funds).
Klelia Guerrero, Economist at The Latin American Network for Economic and Social Justice (LATINDADD), who helped with research into the FTC report, said that just doing work collecting data on the distribution of recovery funds underlined how little thought had been given to women in Covid-19 response policies.
It was only in a handful of the countries surveyed (Guatemala, Honduras, Bangladesh, Brazil, and Costa Rica) that partial gender-disaggregated data on Covid-19 grants were made available to analyze Covid-19 support.
“Most countries did not have disaggregated gender data; it was only partial. This in itself should be a red flag – it shows that the people who were implementing these support schemes did not think of women as a priority,” Guerrero told IPS.
And while the report shows that women did receive the majority of social protection funds in the countries surveyed, even some of those programmes “had discriminative aspects”.
“For example, here in Ecuador, we had a scheme where people had to register online and then go at certain times to receive their aid products. This was difficult for a lot of women who had to be in the home at those times, or there was no public transport to get to the places to receive aid. So, women were disadvantaged,” she said.
“Some groups of the population did benefit from Covid relief measures, but the most vulnerable not as much. It was difficult for them to access the aid. The criteria under which aid is given out should include a gender perspective.” she added.
Other equality campaigners agree.
“Numerous research has shown how, especially in Africa, women make up the majority of the informal sector. One of the big takeaways of the report is the poor targeting of women in the support response. Programmes going forward need to take into account the gender dimension of any policy,” Ishmael Zulu, Tax and Policy Officer at the Tax Justice Network Africa (TJNA), told IPS.
Groups like the FTC and its members, including the TJNA, say the report’s findings are important not just in terms of the post-pandemic recovery but in highlighting the need to change how support is given to the most vulnerable communities in developing countries in the long-term future.
Ishmael pointed out that in one scheme in Zambia, the government introduced stimulus to help SMEs and informal workers, but the money was channelled through commercial banks that set specific requirements to access that money, including the need to provide bank statements.
“Of course, that is very difficult for many informal workers. They just couldn’t provide those documents. So, in the end, even money meant for vulnerable groups ended up in the hands of big corporations, which are the ones that can provide those documents,” he explained. “It speaks of the weakness of the system.”
The FTC report has also warned that policies pursued by international financial institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), of pushing countries to introduce austerity measures and cut funding for basic public services in return for debt restructuring is making things worse.
It cites the example of the cuts in public spending and rises in Value-Added Taxes (VAT) being imposed as part of an IMF loan program in Zambia, saying this will have the greatest impact on the poor.
Ishmael said: “Our current financial structures have perpetuated inequality in the way, for instance, financial institutions give loans: several countries have had to reform their tax systems … and these financial institutions say subsidies and spending should be channelled into some areas and not others, and it ends up that money is targeted towards large corporates, and vulnerable communities are left behind.”
He added: “We saw growing inequality , and so when Covid-19 hit, we saw how these vulnerable communities were left behind without safety nets. Governments must put in place sustainable social protection systems providing safety nets to help lift people out of poverty and which won’t just respond to a pandemic or an emergency, but respond to fighting poverty and inequality.”
The FTC is planning to present its findings at the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings later this month.
The FTC’s report calls for all countries and international institutions, including the IMF and World Bank, to implement what it describes as “alternative policies to bring a people-centered recovery instead of austerity”.
These include, among others, taxing excess windfall corporate profits, introducing progressive levels of income and wealth taxes, and increasing social security contributions and coverage.
Kohonen said informal workers and women should be at the heart of any such policies.
“Informal sector and women workers really pulled us through the pandemic, and it is wrong to now impose austerity on them. Support needs to be in place for informal and women workers, people on the front lines, before a pandemic so that support can be then scaled up if needed, in the form of loans, grants or other aid,” he said.
Thousands of Ukrainians seeking safety in neighbouring Poland. Credit: WFP/Marco Frattini
Opinion by Bram Frouws (geneva)
Inter Press Service
GENEVA, Oct 12 (IPS) – Since Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military draft on September 21st aiming to mobilise around 300,000 Russian men to fight in the war in Ukraine, an estimated 400,000 Russians have fled the country, possibly even more.
The United Nations has described as “unprecedented,” the continuing outflow of children and families fleeing the “relentless shelling” of Russian military action in Ukraine – as they await assurances for the safe passage of relief teams to provide urgently needed assistance.
There are queues of thousands of citizens at land borders, prices for accommodation are soaring and flight tickets out of Russia simply not available anymore or only at sky-high prices.
Compared to the numbers in some of the Central Asian countries, the number of Russian refugees coming to Europe is still relatively low. But it does raise an important question for European countries, a question already raised shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine: what about Russian refugees?
Mixed responses to Russians fleeing conscription
So far, the response has been somewhat mixed. Some countries, like the Baltic countries, were fast in saying they will not accept asylum claims from Russians. For example, Latvia’s Foreign Minister said that since Russians were fine with killing Ukrainians, it is not right to consider them conscious objectors, adding that admitting them is a security risk and there are plenty of countries outside of the EU to go to.
European Council President Charles Michel said, in his address to the United Nations General Assembly that Europe should allow in Russian citizens seeking to flee the country. While the EU already agreed to suspend a visa facilitation agreement with Russia earlier in September, many countries, most notably Finland essentially shut their borders to Russians after the draft announcement by Russia.
Shortly after these initial reactions, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Johansson announced an EU-wide policy towards those fleeing conscription, saying member states should do a thorough security assessment before issuing visa, that visa should not be issued to anyone intending to stay for more than 90 days and that the right to apply for asylum is a fundamental right, which also applies to Russians.
What would be the right approach?
First of all, Europe has been rather united in their responses to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and it would be important European countries remain united on the issue of Russian refugees as well.
The emotions around this issue, however, are very understandable, in particular in Eastern European countries, given their history and proximity to Russia, and given that it is clear who the aggressor is in this unjustified war.
Of course, it is also understandable that Ukrainian refugees evoke far more empathy than Russian refugees, but decisions about asylum should always be based on objective criteria and individual assessments.
It is crucial that emotions are set aside when it comes to defining who is a refugee and who isn’t. All EU countries signed up to international refugee law and European conventions, and there are objective criteria to decide whether someone is a refugee or not.
On a general note, it is highly concerning if decisions on whether we grant refugee status or other forms of protection are increasingly based on whether we – as a population or as policy makers or politicians – feel for a certain group and whether we sympathise with them.
We have also seen this in the striking difference in how Ukrainian refugees were welcomed across Europe, compared to refugees coming from further away. This should never be the case.
It will be challenging, and there will not be a whole lot of empathy among European populations towards Russian refugees. But that is actually the moment where we require and expect from our European leaders to stand up, be rational and objective and lead by example, saying Europe is a safe haven, for anyone who has good reasons to flee their home country, no matter which home country.
The EU’s announcement of its policy towards Russian refugees, as mentioned above, goes somewhat in that direction, though it also remains unclear how Russians – with basically, all routes out of Russia to the EU closed – in practice could even apply for asylum.
What does the law say?
As for every asylum seeker, applications must be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Fear of persecution or punishment for desertion or draft-evasion does not in itself or automatically constitute a well-founded fear of persecution under the refugee definition, according to UNHCRs handbook on procedures and criteria determining refugee status.
However, the same handbook also provides several reasons where it does. For example, when the punishment would be disproportionate, or where it can be proven that soldiers would be forced to participate in war crimes, in this case in Ukraine, or when the type of type of military action, with which an individual does not wish to be associated, is condemned by the international community as contrary to basic rules of human conduct.
With these clauses in mind, it can probably be argued that many Russian men fleeing draft, might be persecuted as understood under refugee law. All European countries signed up to the Refugee Convention and European conventions, which means everyone has a right to seek asylum and have their case assessed.
A straightforward refusal to assess claims would be a violation of international law. In short, all Russians fleeing draft should be treated as asylum seekers if they claim asylum, like anyone else, from any other country in the world.
Moreover, closing the borders and restricting access to visa for all Russians, is not a solution either. This would probably push even more Russians into the asylum system, which is already quite overburdened in many countries. And, as argued above, all these individual claims should then still be assessed.
Of course, keeping borders open to Russians does not, and should not, mean anyone can come in unchecked. The concerns about Russian operatives joining these movements might be genuine, so it should be carefully checked who enters European countries. But again, that is all the more reason to conduct proper individual assessments.
What signal to send to Russia’s population?
Importantly, accepting Russians who are fleeing draft, also sends a clear signal to Russia’s population and leadership, and to the world. It signals that Europe takes the moral high ground, does not let its objective asylum policies be clouded by anti-Russian emotions.
It signals that the EU values human rights and sticks to international agreements, no matter where refugees come from, and even, as in the case of Russia, if they come from the aggressor. It will send a signal to the world that what Russia is doing, is wrong.
Additionally, a large and growing Russian diaspora outside of Russia, with full access to more objective news coverage than what they had at home, could also become a powerful force of opposition to Russia’s leadership, working together from abroad and sharing what they hear and see about the war from outside of Russia, with family and friends left behind in Russia.
Furthermore, if Europe would completely close its borders to Russian men, whether through normal visa procedures of through the asylum process, that will only fuel Putin’s rhetoric about the West waging a war on Russia and might dishearten the many Russians who are probably opposed to this war; if the West opens up its borders to Russians fleeing their regime, that actually undermines Putin’s narrative.
On a more practical note, the more men who are fleeing Russia, the fewer Russia will have to mobilise and fight in Ukraine, which is also why Ukrainian President Zelensky appealed to Russian men to defy the mobilisation and basically offer them asylum in Ukraine.
The need to support non-EU countries in receiving Russian refugees
Finally, as mentioned in the beginning of this article, the number of Russians fleeing to non-EU countries in Eastern Europe, Turkey and Central Asia are far higher than those fleeing towards the EU.
The numbers might soon become overwhelming for some of these countries, with prices for hotels and other commodities soaring. In most of these countries, the general population is opposed to this war as well, some countries may fear a future Russian invasion or already have, like Georgia, part of their territory occupied by Russia.
With such large numbers from Russia fleeing to these countries, it is a key moment for the EU to offer strong support and show that Europe is with them, as well as with the Russians who fled to these countries, who oppose Putin and refuse to fight his war in Ukraine.
Experts say pastoralists are at the edge of climate change adaptability due to perennial prolonged dry spells and occasional drought. Credit: Joyce Chimbi/IPS
by Joyce Chimbi (nairobi)
Inter Press Service
Nairobi, Oct 04 (IPS) – The sight of children begging for water from motorists along the Garissa highway in the northeastern part of Kenya signals that all is not well. Unable to go to school on an empty stomach, drought-affected children wait for good Samaritans along the road, begging for water and food.
Despite very high temperatures, drought-impacted children wait under the scorching sun for left-over food items and drinks from travelers. Animal carcasses and goats on the verge of death from lack of water and pasture can also be seen along the highway. For even in the face of a looming threat to life from a most prolonged dry spell, pastoralists do not consume dying livestock.
The area is sparsely populated, and the highway is far from busy, but the potential danger facing children on the lonely highway pales in comparison to the possibility of starving to death.
Thirteen-year-old Leah Kilonzi paints a dire picture of a severe food and water shortage, “we have nothing to eat when we wake up in the morning or during lunchtime. We have to wait for nighttime to have a small cup of porridge and boiled maize.”
Younger children lie down a few meters from the road, too hungry to cry and hoping silently that the older children will get something.
Garissa is one out of 23 Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL) counties ravaged by an ongoing severe drought as three years have gone by without a drop of rainfall. Children, pregnant and lactating women are severely affected by the acute food shortage, and diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, and malaria are on the rise across drought-stricken regions.
Government data shows that the ongoing drought situation is the climax of four consecutive below-average rainy seasons in ASAL regions of this East African nation. As a result, an estimated 4.2 million people are in dire need of humanitarian assistance, according to the Kenya Drought Flash Appeal.
“The most recent data from the government shows that from March to June 2022, at least 942,000 children under the age of five years living in ASAL regions were suffering from malnutrition. More than 134,000 pregnant or lactating women were malnourished and requiring immediate treatment,” Kariuki Muriithi, a food security expert in northeastern Kenya, tells IPS.
“Overall, at least 229,000 children were suffering from severe acute malnutrition as of June 2022. The situation has since escalated, and the burden of malnutrition is heavier.”
The National Drought Management Authority drought update for the month of September 2022 confirmed that the drought situation continued to worsen in twenty 20 of the 23 ASAL counties.
Putting into perspective the degree and magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in the ASAL region, counties such as Mandera have reached critically alarming levels of malnutrition. The prevalence of global acute malnutrition in the County is 34.7 percent, more than double the emergency threshold of 15 percent.
An estimated 89 percent of Kenya’s land area is classified as ASAL or drylands and is home to about 26 percent of Kenya’s population, according to the state department for development of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands. ASAL regions are dominated by pastoral communities, their lives characterized by prolonged dry spells and occasional drought, heightening levels of destitution and impoverishment.
The ongoing drought is the most severe in four decades, prompting the government to declare a national drought emergency.
David Korir, a senior officer in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, says across Kenya’s ASAL regions, the number of people classified as being in an emergency drought situation is at least 785,000, or five percent of all people affected by the drought. At least 2.8 million people, or 18 percent, are classified as being in crisis.
He says nine out of all 23 ASAL counties, including Garissa and Mandera, have over 40 percent of their population classified as being in crisis or worse.
Government projections show that the food security situation is likely to worsen between October and December 2022. As such, at least 3.1 million people are likely to be classified as being in crisis, and another 1.2 million in an emergency.
“Of particular concern is the fact that pastoralists have been pushed to the edge of climate change adaptability. Across ASAL regions, we have about 13 million pastoralists and agro-pastoralists,” he tells IPS.
Pastoralists sustain domestic, regional, and international livestock markets but with more than 1.5 million livestock dead thus far and the cost of surviving livestock declining by up to 40 percent, their livelihoods now hang in the balance.
“Levels of vulnerabilities from prolonged dry spells and droughts are so high that an increasing number of pastoralists can no longer cope with the deepening famine,” he expounds.
Their adaptive capacities are further compromised by perpetual political and socio-economic marginalization.
Faced with rising temperatures, dry wells, and an unyielding sky, Korir speaks of a precarious pastoral economy. He says pastoralists are unable to re-stock animals lost to drought or to explore alternative feeding models such as harvested fodder or commercial feed because natural pasture is no longer an option.
Similarly, they are unable to keep livestock and, particularly, camels, which are more drought resistant because camels are too expensive. A young camel calf that has just been born goes for around $500 to $600, pastoralist Fred Naeku tells IPS.
“Pastoralists have coped with drought by moving from place to place in search of pasture and returning to their home areas when drought situation improves. This is no longer a viable option because the entire horn of Africa is affected, and pastoralists cannot run to neighboring Ethiopia or Somalia for relief,” Korir observes.
“We are increasingly seeing pastoralists with herds of cattle within the City of Nairobi. They are desperate, stranded, and in dire need of a solution and are hopeful that their presence inside one of Africa’s leading cities will provoke their leaders into offering much-needed relief in form of sustainable coping mechanisms.”
A meeting of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. Credit: UN / Jean-Marc Ferré
Opinion by Meenakshi Ganguly (new delhi)
Inter Press Service
NEW DELHI, Oct 03 (IPS) – Meenakshi Ganguly is South Asia director at Human Rights WatchThe economic, political, and human rights calamity gripping Sri Lanka has made news around the world, but its roots go back years – or even decades. In September, the former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, underscored in her report on Sri Lanka that “impunity for serious human rights violations created an environment for corruption and the abuse of power.”
The UN Human Rights Council will soon consider a resolution to address this issue. Countries in the global south that serve on the council, – —including Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Namibia and Senegal, have an important role in supporting the people of Sri Lanka to address the current crisis and its underlying causes.
Between 1983 and 2009 Sri Lanka endured a devastating civil war between the government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The decades of brutality against civilians and the government’s continuing attempts to shield those responsible from justice, have cast a long shadow over the country. Both sides committed widespread violations of international law.
In the final months of the conflict in 2009, the LTTE used human shields, while tens of thousands of Tamil civilians were killed when government forces shelled no-fire zones and hospitals. As the war ended with the defeat of the LTTE and the destruction of its leadership, government forces were implicated in summary executions, rape, and enforced disappearances.
Since then, many Tamils have sought to learn what happened to those who did not return. In August, a group known as the Mothers of the Disappeared passed 2,000 days of continuous protests demanding to know the fate of their loved ones. Instead of receiving answers they have been subject to intimidation and surveillance by the government’s security apparatus. Nevertheless, representatives of the group have travelled to Geneva to ask the Human Rights Council to keep their hopes of justice alive.
Over many years, people from all of the country’s faiths and communities have taken their accounts of suffering and their search for justice to the Human Rights Council. As the prominent Sri Lankan activist Ruki Fernando recently wrote, “It is the inability to get truth and justice in Sri Lanka despite many efforts, and the subsequent loss of confidence and hope in domestic processes, that drive many Sri Lankans to Geneva.”
Successive Sri Lankan governments have appointed people allegedly responsible for these atrocities to high office, and blocked investigations, undermining the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law. In one rare case in which a soldier was convicted of murder, the president pardoned him.
Earlier this year, following years of mismanagement and corruption, Sri Lanka ran out of foreign exchange – meaning that it could no longer finance essential imports such as fuel, food and medicine, causing the government to default on its foreign debts. As inflation spiralled and people were unable to obtain basic necessities, massive protests broke out leading to the resignation of the prime minister in May and of the president in July.
On the streets, huge numbers of ordinary Sri Lankans called for constitutional reform and action to address corruption. A 2020 amendment to the constitution weakened human rights institutions and gave the president the power to appoint senior judges. It also undermined institutions such as the Bribery Commission that are responsible for combatting economic crimes.
The use of the this law shows that the government’s assurances to the international community on human rights cannot be trusted. As recently as June the then-foreign minister told the Human Rights Council that there was a moratorium on the use of that law, which has repeatedly been used to enable arbitrary detention and torture, and which successive governments have promised to repeal.
The resolution currently before the Human Rights Council extends the mandate of a UN project to gather and analyze evidence of war crimes and other crimes under international law that have been committed in Sri Lanka and to prepare them for use in possible future prosecutions. It also mandates the UN to continue monitoring and reporting on the human rights crisis in Sri Lanka. As people struggle for daily necessities and the government cracks down on dissent, that is more important than ever.
The Sri Lankan government has opposed these measures, falsely claiming that it is already acting to protect human rights. To support Sri Lankans who are calling for change and accountability, Council members from the global south should fully support the resolution.
UNITED NATIONS, Sep 30 (IPS) – The Kremlin has announced that a ceremony will take place Friday in Moscow that will launch a process of annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
In this moment of peril, I must underscore my duty as Secretary-General to uphold the Charter of the United Nations.
The UN Charter is clear.
Any annexation of a State’s territory by another State resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the Principles of the UN Charter and international law.
The United Nations General Assembly is equally clear.
In its landmark Friendly Relations Declaration of 24 October 1970 —repeatedly cited as stating rules of general international law by the International Court of Justice — the General Assembly declared that “the territory of a State shall not be the object of acquisition by another State resulting from the threat or use of force” and that “no territorial acquisition resulting from the threat or use of force shall be recognized as legal”.
And I must be clear.
The Russian Federation, as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, shares a particular responsibility to respect the Charter.
Any decision to proceed with the annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine would have no legal value and deserves to be condemned.
It cannot be reconciled with the international legal framework.
It stands against everything the international community is meant to stand for.
It flouts the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations.
It is a dangerous escalation.
It has no place in the modern world.
It must not be accepted.
The position of the United Nations is unequivocal: we are fully committed to the sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders, in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions.
I want to underscore that the so-called “referenda” in the occupied regions were conducted during active armed conflict, in areas under Russian occupation, and outside Ukraine’s legal and constitutional framework.
They cannot be called a genuine expression of the popular will.
Any decision by Russia to go forward will further jeopardize the prospects for peace.
It will prolong the dramatic impacts on the global economy, especially developing countries and hinder our ability to deliver life-saving aid across Ukraine and beyond.
It is high time to step back from the brink.
Now more than ever, we must work together to end this devastating and senseless war and uphold the UN Charter and international law.
Ricksani Alice, 19, who was married at a young age but is now back in school hoping to complete her education thanks to the Spotlight Initiative talks with UNFPA Gender Programme Officer Beatrice Kumwenda at Tilimbike Safe Community Space in Chiludzi village, Dowa, Malawi on November 2, 2020. Credit: UNFPA ESARO
by Cecilia Russell (johannesburg)
Inter Press Service
Johannesburg, Sep 29 (IPS) – Child marriage continues to be a scourge in many African countries – despite legislation and efforts of many, including parliamentarians, to keep girls in school and create brighter futures for them. This was the view of participants in a recent webinar held under the auspices of the African Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (FPA) and UNFPA East and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO).
The webinar, supported by the Asian Population and Development Association (APDA) and the Japan Trust Fund, heard how progressive legislation prohibiting marriage for adolescents under 18, and in one case, 21, was not enough to stop the practice.
Dr Kiyoko Ikegami, Executive Director, and Secretary General, APDA, noted in her opening address that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected child marriage prevention programmes and increased poverty and inequality, which was a driving force in child marriages.
Chinwe Ogbonna, UNFPA ESARO Regional Director a.i, said while there had been considerable achievements since the 1994 ICPD conference in Egypt – the work was not yet done.
She encouraged the parliamentarians to commit themselves to actions they agreed to at a regional meeting in Addis Ababa in June, which included “amplifying evidence-based advocacy.” In Africa, she said, teenage pregnancy and HIV prevalence are high. Gender-based violence was on the rise, and femicide and the harmful practices of child marriage, and female genital mutilation continued.
The webinar heard from members of parliament in various countries across the African continent.
Fredrick Outa, from Kenya, FPA Vice-President, told the delegates that while Kenya had made ambitious commitments, FGM was an area of concern. Kenya was committed to strengthening coordination in legislation and policy framework, communication and advocacy, integration and support, and cross-border cooperation to eliminate FGM.
Kenya aimed to eliminate GBV and child and forced marriages by “addressing social and cultural norms that propagate the practice while providing support to affected women and girls.”
An MP from Zambia, Princess Kasune, said it was of concern that the Zambia Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS) of 2018 indicated that 29 percent of women aged 20-24 reported being married before 18. The country had various programmes to address this, including partnering with traditional rulers and civil society to fight early child marriage.
“Chiefs and headmen have made commitments in the fight against child marriage …. Traditional rulers are themselves champions in the fight against child marriage,” Kasune said.
She said the practice continues even though the Marriage Act prescribes 21 as the minimum age for marriage.
However, customary law differed, and there needed to be consistency in legislation.
The other crucial campaign against early marriages was to keep children in school. While the government had employed 30 000 teachers in rural areas, more was needed.
“Keeping children in school was critical to lowering the incidence of child marriage,” Kasune said.
Muwuma Milton, MP Uganda, agreed that culture played a part in eliminating harmful practices like child marriage. The country was applying a multifaceted approach to eliminating this – including school feeding schemes, providing sanitary packs for girls, and encouraging young mothers to return to school after delivery.
“A challenge is that the country has unmet needs for family planning services, which stands at 30%, and there is a culture that believes that once a girl reaches menstruation age, they are old enough to get married,” Milton said.
Matthew Ngwale, an MP from Malawi, noted that his country adhered to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) protocol that condemns the marriage of people under 18. The Malawian constitution, Marriage, Divorce, the Family Relations Act (2015), and the Childcare Justice and Protection Act all reinforce this policy.
But, Ngwale said, despite “progressive legislation, Malawi has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world, where approximately 42% of girls get married before the age of 18, and 9% are below the age of 15. Approximately 7% of boys marry before the age of 18.”
He also noted that child marriage is higher in rural than urban areas. Rural girls are 1.6 times more likely to marry early than their urban counterparts.
Poverty is a clear driver, with women in the predominantly ‘poor’ south marrying at a slightly lower age than those in the ‘wealthier’ north and central regions.
“In Malawi, children from more impoverished families are twice as likely to marry early than those from wealthier families,” Ngwale said, and in a country where data shows that 51.5% of the people live below the poverty line, which is higher in rural areas at 60% compared to urban areas at 18%.
Traditional initiation practices, done as part of a rite of passage when a girl reaches puberty, encouraged early sexual activity, Ngwale said, and the prevalence of child marriage is higher among matrilineal than patrilineal groups.
“Due to food insecurity, child marriage often becomes a more likely coping mechanism as families seek to reduce the burden of feeding the family,” he said.
Climatic challenges, such as droughts and floods, have become more frequent and catastrophic.
Child marriage impacts secondary school completion rates. In Malawi, only 45% of girls stay in school beyond 8th grade.
“Most young girls who leave school due to child marriage have few opportunities to earn a living, making them more vulnerable to GBV. Child marriage lowers women’s expected earnings in adulthood by between 1.4% and 15.6%,” he said.
However, the Malawi government had created a conducive environment for civil society organizations to work with the government to end child marriage – including the official Girls Not Brides National Partnership.
Pamela Majodina, MP Republic of South Africa, told the webinar the country was committed to the objectives of ICPD25. It has passed laws, including the Domestic Violence Act, Children’s Act, Sexual Offences Act, and Child Justice Act, where it is a criminal offense to have sex with a child under 16 – regardless of consent.
Goodlucky Kwaramba, MP Zimbabwe, said her country was committed to reducing teenage pregnancies from 21.6% to 12% by 2030 and delivering comprehensive Family Planning services by 2030.
An MP from Eswatini, Sylvia Mthethwa, said her country, with 73 percent of the population below 35 and youth unemployment at 47 percent, was committed to ensuring that youth was front of mind. While senators were mobilizing financial resources, the National Youth Policy and National Youth Operational Plan had been developed.
Meanwhile, in Tanzania, some successes were already recorded Dr Thea Ntara, MP Tanzania, said rural areas were fully supported in the rollout of free ARVs, and adolescent and youth-friendly SRH services have been available in more than 63% of all health facilities since 2017.
Note: The webinar series is based on a recommendation of the African and Asian Parliamentarians’ meeting to Follow-Up on ICPD25 Commitments held in June 2022 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Opinion by Gina Ziervogel (cape town, south africa)
Inter Press Service
CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Sep 29 (IPS) – Equity and justice feature prominently in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 6th (IPCC) Assessment Report Working Group II, published in 2022. The report focuses on the impacts of climate change, as well as vulnerability and adaptation.
In its summary for policymakers, the report states: “Inclusive governance that prioritizes equity and justice in adaptation planning and implementation leads to more effective and sustainable adaptation outcomes (high confidence).” This is a welcome, albeit long overdue development.
The report offers widespread evidence in support of a focus on justice across different sectors and regions. It reflects rapidly mounting concern for climate justice — in both advocacy circles and in the public discourse — and a sharp increase in the volume of information on this topic.
Arguments concerning climate justice include the need to address historical inequities, contest established power, and consider diverse perspectives and needs in planning and delivery. Only by confronting these issues directly can we deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals and climate goals.
Gina ZiervogelAfrica’s cities need to respond better
As outlined in the Africa chapter of the IPCC, Africa is highly vulnerable to climate risk. The continent features strongly in discussions on equity and justice, which argue for low carbon development without interfering with the economic growth.
With their concentration of people and growth, African cities are particularly important places to focus climate action. They have been slow to develop adaptation and mitigation policies and practice, but there are ample lessons worldwide and within the continent from which to draw motivation.
Organisations such as 350.org and Climate Justice Alliance, are fighting for equity and justice locally and internationally. We can glean approaches by studying and understanding these efforts, but we need to make them locally relevant.
Across the globe, cities are rapidly integrating climate action in their plans to reduce emissions and the impacts of hazards, such as droughts, floods, fires and heatwaves.
A few African cities have made progress by building justice and equity into climate response programs. Kampala is converting organic waste into briquettes for cooking. This provides an alternative livelihood strategy, reduces the number of trees cut for charcoal, and decreases the amount of waste going to landfill.
In response to neighbourhood flood risk, residents in Nairobi have invested in reducing their exposure. In addition, they have mobilized youth groups to disseminate environmental information and engage in activities such as tree planting to stabilize riverbanks.
Some local governments are ramping up their climate change management efforts. Yet, city government responses are often sector-specific and can’t succeed by themselves — the challenge is too massive and urgent.
More projects and programmes are needed that use a collaborative or co-productive approach for meeting equity and justice goals. We must have innovative ways of bringing in different sectors and actors— to really hear their perspectives and explore potential solutions. Such an approach might require safe space for experimentation.
In addition, we have to develop methods for scaling urban solutions that ensure adaptation responses meet the needs of the most at-risk groups across cities and institutionalize strategies in city planning and implementation.
Epistemic justice
Epistemic justice refers to the extent to which different people’s knowledge is recognized. Scientific evidence abounds that solving complex problems benefits from multiple types of knowledge bases. Yet city governments provide little opportunity to integrate diverse viewpoints.
In the context of inequality, ensuring that the voices of marginalized and at-risk people are included is crucial for generating appropriate locally owned solutions.
The FRACTAL project (Future Resilience for African Cities and Lands) engaged a trans-disciplinary group of researchers, officials and practitioners that worked across six cities in southern Africa between 2015 and 2021.
FRACTAL exemplifies how city stakeholders and researchers can co-produce knowledge around climate impacts and potential adaptation responses in cities such as Lusaka, Maputo, and Windhoek.
Although climate science was an important part of the project, the initial stages provided time and space for participants to share “burning questions” in their cities and collaboratively decide how to address these.
Some cities developed climate risk narratives to guide future decisions. Others developed climate change planning documents and platforms that thought about adaptation projects through a holistic lens. Importantly, participants, built trust and capacity, for city actors to take this work forward collaboratively.
When prioritizing adaptation actions at the city level, local governments have tended to use criteria based on their frameworks and data, providing just one perspective. However, more bottom-up data is required to meet the needs of those most at risk.
Arguments concerning climate justice include the need to address historical inequities, contest established power, and consider diverse perspectives and needs in planning and delivery. Only by confronting these issues directly can we deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals and climate goals.
Such data can better capture challenges that citizens face, such as accessing water during droughts or recovering from flooding that might have washed away homes and possessions.
A recent project in Cape Town sought to do this. Local activists from low-income neighborhoods collected data on issues around water services and explored diverse ways, including film, comics and maps as ways to share this information with other residents and city officials.
Collaborations between NGOs, researchers and local governments can strengthen the type of data available and contribute to more nuanced understanding.
The National Slum Dwellers Federation of Uganda, for instance, collected local data that informed planning and the development of solutions to reduce climate risk with sustainable building materials and improving water and sanitation services. This work positioned them to negotiate effectively with local government to support further efforts.
Across the globe, cities are rapidly integrating climate action in their plans to reduce emissions and the impacts of hazards, such as droughts, floods, fires, and heatwaves. They also are rapidly expanding opportunities to access climate funding.
The time has come for African cities to determine how they will engage in the climate action and justice space to ensure they meet the serious challenges they are confronting.
Gina Ziervogel is Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Geographical Science at the University of Cape Town.
Source: Africa Renewal, United Nations, September 2022
