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Love in the Time of Displacement

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 19:51

Mohammed and Marwah married on September 27, along with four other couples living in Haj Ali camp. Photo: IOM/ Sarah Ali

By International Organization for Migration
Mosul, Nov 1 2018 (IOM)

Marwah always dreamed of a big wedding party in a fancy venue and a luxurious white wedding dress with hundreds of family and friends in attendance. But this dream was shattered when ISIL took over the city of Mosul in June 2014, where she was living at the time.

Marwah and her family chose to stay in the ISIL-controlled city. She felt trapped and hopeless, and her wedding plans became an impossible dream. Traditional wedding ceremonies that included music, dancing and mingling between men and women were strictly forbidden by ISIL.

Returnees cross a temporary floating bridge over the Tigris River, which splits Mosul city into East and West banks, after the city was retaken from ISIL. Photo: IOM/Raber Aziz

In mid-2016, when military operations to retake Mosul started, Marwah’s family fled to Hammam Al Alil, southeast of the city — an area under control of the Iraqi forces. The family subsequently moved to Haj Ali camp, farther south, where they were reunited with other family and friends, including Mohammed.

Mohammed and Marwah fell in love. A year later, they got engaged. In stark contrast to the wedding that Marwah had dreamed of, they married in the camp two years after their engagement.

Marwah fell in love with Mohammed while displaced in Haj Ali camp. Photo: IOM/ Sarah Ali

Mohammed in his decorated tent, prepared for the wedding. Beneficiaries of IOM-sponsored carpentry course in Haj Ali Camp built the chest of drawers. Photo: IOM/ Sarah Ali

“I don’t care if we are in a tent. We love each other and that’s all that matters. We agreed to stay together forever and I told him that I would be with him in any situation,” said Marwah.

Mohammed added: “When you live in a camp, it is only logical that marriage is the last thing on your mind, because of the many difficulties of daily life here, such as the lack of job opportunities, limited space, the harsh weather conditions… and not being able to make your dream wedding come true,” he said, “but life must go on.”

Haj Ali camp, built by IOM in 2016 as an emergency site to house people fleeing Mosul, still hosts 15,600 internally displaced Iraqis. Photo: IOM/Raber Aziz

Marwah and Mohammed married on September 27, along with four other couples living in the camp, in a group wedding ceremony in Haj Ali camp, organized by IOM with support from Germany.

Beneficiaries who had participated in a variety of trainings through IOM psychosocial support (PSS) programme contributed to the couples’ big day. Beneficiaries of hairdressing and makeup training courses did the brides’ hairstyle and makeup. Beneficiaries of carpentry courses made chests of drawers, and those who followed the baking courses baked wedding cakes. IOM’s PSS courses were funded by the U.S. Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA)

Beneficiaries of IOM courses in Haj Ali camp baked wedding cakes, helped the brides with hair and makeup and built furniture for the couples. Photo: IOM/Sarah Ali

“Marwah told me that whatever happens, we will still be together, and this means the world to me. It is hard to get married in a camp but she wanted to go ahead, I really appreciate and respect this,” said Mohammed.

The group wedding was attended by many residents of the Haj Ali camp and local community leaders. Photo: IOM/Sarah Ali

Mohammed was in his last year of high school when ISIL took over Mosul in June 2014. Because he is the oldest of seven siblings, he dropped out to support his family. He hopes to go back to Mosul soon to start a new life with his bride, and finish school to become an English teacher.

“We are preparing ourselves to go back home. We need to go back. It’s true that there are not many work opportunities in Mosul and this is a major challenge, but with my wife by my side, I am ready to start a new life and contribute to rebuilding our city,” he concluded.

A scene of destruction from West Mosul. Photo: IOM/Raber Aziz



This article was written by Raber Y. Aziz, Media and Communications Officer for IOM Iraq with contributions from Sarah Ali.

The post Love in the Time of Displacement appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

Zimbabwe 'excited to drill for oil' after new survey

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 18:48
The president said it was an exciting development for the country, which is suffering economically.
Categories: Africa

Gay & Lesbian Rights Prove Divisive at Parliamentarians’ Conference

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 18:45

By Thalif Deen
OTTAWA, Canada, Nov 1 2018 (IPS)

When the International Parliamentarians’ Conference (ICPI) on population and development concluded its two-day forum in the Canadian capital last week, more than 150 legislators from around the world approved a seven page Declaration reaffirming their opposition to some of the culturally sensitive issues, including female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriages.

The legislators pledged to take measures to prevent adolescent pregnancies and unsafe abortions; guarantee access to safe and modern methods of contraception; adopt legislation to eliminate FGM and child and forced marriages; raise the minimum legal age of marriage to 18 years; and enact laws to end discrimination on the basis of gender and sexuality.

Ousman Sillah, national assembly member from Gambia and chairperson of the Select Committee on Health, Women and Children, urged legislators to ensure implementation of the proposals “even if we are to lose our seats—and commit political suicide.”

But one sensitive issue failed to get off the ground: the rights of gays, lesbians and transgender people.

The contentious issue proved divisive– as some of the Muslim and African nations expressed reservations about including LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex) in the text of the final Declaration.

“There are certain words – like LGBTI – that are not acceptable in our country,” said a parliamentarian from the Middle East.

The reservations were not surprising considering the fact that 71 countries have either banned or criminalized homosexuals, including lesbians and transgender people.

But this number, according to the annual report of the LGBTI Association, titled “State Sponsored Homophobia”, is really down: from 92 countries back in 2006.

The controversial non-paragraph in the Declaration should have read: …many “who are marginalized or in vulnerable situations face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, including LGBTI, who are still subject to discriminatory laws, policies and harmful practices…”

After a long drawn out discussion, the legislators agreed on a compromise, and adopted the Declaration by consensus, so that the final text would read “including sexual minorities”, instead of “LGBTI”.

Still, some of the other vulnerable groups, like indigenous peoples, have remained marginalized in relation to reproductive health and education.

In an interview with IPS, Rep. Teddy Jr. Baguilat, member of the Philippine House of Representatives from Ifugao’s Lone District, said Indigenous Peoples (IP) of the Philippines, particularly in Central Luzon, the small islands and Mindanao, remain the poorest of the poor with limited access to public health and education.

“While the situation has improved a bit as government strives to conceptualise more social protection programs to the marginalised, including the IPs, a large number of them remain economically dependent on subsistence farming and government dole outs.”

He pointed out that there are still instances of displacement of indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands due to extractive industries, civil war, climactic changes and development projects.

“Some tribal leaders have also been killed because of their defense of their ancestral lands,” said Baguilat, a strong advocate of indigenous rights.

“The law to protect IPs are in place and only its honest-to-goodness implementation and adequate funding can IPs fulfill many of their goals as mandated by our Constitution and the Indigenous People’s Rights Act,” he declared.

Meanwhile, the Philippines, a predominantly Catholic Asian country, has one of the fastest growing populations in the region with the highest total fertility rate among the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)—the other nine being Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

The country’s current population stands at over 107 million with over half of Filipinos 24 years of age or below.

“For this youthful country to reap a demographic dividend, there is an imminent need to invest more in health, education and employability of young people and on gender equality,” says Iori Kato, UNFPA Country Representative in the Philippines.

In the Philippines, 49 per cent of unmarried, sexually active women and 17 per cent of married women have an unmet need for family planning, as the 2017 National Demographic and Health survey revealed, according to UNFPA.

The report found there is no country that can claim that all of its citizens enjoy reproductive rights at all times. Most couples cannot have the number of children that they want because they either lack economic and social support to achieve their preferred family size, or the means to control their fertility. The unmet need for modern contraception prevents hundreds of millions of women in the world from choosing smaller families, according to the report.

Asked how much of progress Philippines has made on the 1994 Program of Action (PoA)– including gains in reproductive health (RH), gender empowerment and reduction in maternal and infant mortality—Baguilat said: “Unfortunately, despite some relevant legislation passed like the Reproductive Health (RH) and Responsible Parenthood Law and the Magna Carta for Women, we have failed to curb maternal mortality and while fertility rates have gone down, it’s still relatively very high in the region.”

He pointed out that budgetary allocations have been insufficient. For RH alone, it is estimated that at least P4Billion is needed yearly to provide the unmet RH needs of the poor and yet our recently passed annual budget only allotted P200Million

“Being a predominantly Catholic country, resistance to contraceptive use and very conservative religious values have led to big families in many poor communities”.

The Philippine legislator also said that HIV AIDS infections, among the highest in the world in terms of increase, and rising teenage pregnancy are among the country’s serious reproductive health problems.

A new HIV AIDS law and an anti-teenage pregnancy bill will hopefully provide stronger legislative mechanism to combat this problem.

“The historic transition to lower fertility has emerged through people claiming their right to make choices about their reproductive lives, and to have as few, or as many, children as they want, when they want,” according to The State of World Population 2018, published last month by UNFPA.

Excerpts from the interview:

IPS: What role have parliamentarians played in helping achieve the ICPD goals since the 1994 Cairo conference?

Rep. Baguilat: Many parliamentarians are unaware of the ICPD goals. The presidential form of government has led to a disconnect, sometimes between government’s commitment to international agreements and Congress’ obligations to actualise these agreements such as the ICPD through budgetary allocations and legislation.

There’s a need for more information dissemination on the ICPD goals for us Parliamentarians to fulfill our duties as legislators

IPS: On average, how much of development funding, including official development assistance (ODA), has the Philippines received from Western donors? What is the gap between needs and deliveries?

Rep. Baguilat: The Philippines has already graduated from a low income country to a middle income country and thus receives less ODA from donor countries despite emerging public health problems.

IPS: On a more wider question, how is Southeast Asia faring in terms of achieving the goals of the ICPD’s Program of Action? Any thoughts?

Rep. Baguilat: Religion and cultural beliefs remain a strong barrier for the region to achieve ICPD targets. Generally, indicators have improved but there are still marginalised sectors which remain poor and under serviced.

The post Gay & Lesbian Rights Prove Divisive at Parliamentarians’ Conference appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

South Korea Looks at How to Accelerate its Transition to Renewable Energy

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 16:45

A night market in South Korea. The country plans to ensure that 20 percent of all electricity generated is renewable by 2030. Credit: Yeong-Nam/CC BY 2.0

By Ahn Mi Young
SEOUL , Nov 1 2018 (IPS)

While major countries have pledged to be powered entirely by renewable energies in order to stop greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, there are a number of states that are investigating ways to implement this transition quickly in order to achieve their goals ahead of this deadline.

At the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Energy Forum held in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, on Oct. 30, GGGI council members, leading energy experts, and policy makers from both the private and public sectors asked precisely that question.

They gathered to share their energy transformation experiences from the United Kingdom, Norway, Japan, Denmark, and Mongolia and discussed how South Korea can emulate them as it transitions from a coal and nuclear-centric energy dependence to renewables.

How to accelerate the transition to Renewable Energy?

“As there is a big global shift towards renewable energy (RE), we may ask questions: How can we accelerate the clean energy transition? Is the Korean target ambitious? How fast can it be transitional?” said Frank Rijsberman, director-general of GGGI in his keynote speech.

Although global decarbonisation on its own isn’t adequate to meet the ambitions of the Paris Agreement, the forum shared renewable transition cases and experiences of how they have accelerated the transition to RE.

The UK is leading the low-carbon transition and has implemented a drastic cut of emissions in the past 18 years while also continuing its rapid economic growth. Norway built the world’s electric car capital, and made the transition from oil to a renewable model. In Denmark, Copenhagen has become the world’s green city, as it uses district heating pipelines to heat houses and aims to become the world’s first carbon neutral city by 2025.

The most drastic turnaround comes from South Korea and Japan, which have been among the world’s major producers of nuclear power in the past. But both countries have joined the global renewable energy transition club in recent years.

100 Percent Renewables South Korea

The forum heard from Hans-Josef Fell, president of Energy Watch Group, an independent global network of scientists and parliamentarians that was founded in 2006 under the direction of Fell while he was still a member of the German parliament. “It is possible to be 100 percent renewable and we can work together with South Korea to reach the 100 percent goal,” he told participants.

Fell forecast that Solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power will be the cheapest energy in G20 states by 2030, noting that RE has created 10.3 million jobs worldwide in 2017, with most jobs being in Asia.

The renewable breakdown of the global energy system in 2050 is forecast as:
• Solar PV: 69 percent,
• Wind power: 18 percent,
• Hydro: 8 percent,
• and bioenergy: 20 percent.

Fell also noted political will should be strong enough to fully embrace the RE transition, as he suggested the need for direct private investment in RE and zero-emission technology, for tenders to be granted only for capacity above 40MW, and the need to phase out all state subsidies on fossil fuels.

Japan transitions to PV

Japan is one of the countries that has shown the will to embrace RE. After committing to reducing its dependence on nuclear energy by 2030, Japan has set targets for becoming an economically independent and carbon-free mainstream power by 2050. Japan has reduced its nuclear power generation following the Fukushima nuclear power plant explosion in 2011.

Izumi Kaizuka, Director of RTS Corporation, a PV consulting company, who presented on the RE policy transition in Japan and the current status and outlook of the country’s PV market, said: “There has been an explosive growth of approved PV projects.”

But Japan has concerns about the future burden of surcharges, installation quality, environmental damage from natural disasters, and the lack of hosting capacity.

“There is a significant cost gap of the PV system between domestic and overseas [prices]. Prices are further decreasing due to global competition. Some emphasise the importance of how installation costs in Japan (not under global competition) will be further reduced,” Kaizuka said.

Japan has tried to address these concerns and introduced a new approval system to deal with delayed or unrealistic projects, to increase transparency for grid connections with disclosure of connection capacity and the price of work, as well as the exemption of surcharge for energy sufficiency efforts.

With these actions taken, Kaizuka had a strong growth forecast for PV-installed capacity in Japan. “Despite these concerns, PV is growing, since PV is stable and affordable,” Kaizuka said.

South Korea to move from coal-nuclear to renewables

Under its Renewable Energy 2030 Implementation Plan to achieve a 20 percent goal of renewable share of total electricity generation by 2030, South Korea is investing in clean energy.

This is a drastic reversal of the country’s previous nuclear-centric energy policy. In 2016, 25 reactors generated one-third of the country’s electricity and made South Korea the world’s fifth-largest producer of nuclear energy, according to the World Nuclear Association.

To reverse its energy mix, Seoul is driving a renewable boom under a private-public partnership.

“Active private investment is supporting the renewable energy transition. More than 95 percent of new capacity is PV and wind, which creates the largest number of jobs,” said Kyong-Ho Lee, Director of the New and Renewable Energy Policy Division, at South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE).

The local government-led, large-scale projects, where local governments play a key role in selecting sites and choosing business operators, are cited as a major driving force of the on-going RE transition in South Korea.

“To encourage citizen participation, the government gives monetary incentives for both urban and rural renewable energy installed, as well as state loans for rural RE installed. Thus farmers can make a double income from both farming and PV power installed,” said Lee from MOTIE.

Seoul has said that by 2030, out of a forecast total 63.8GW to be installed, its RE mix will be:
• 57 percent PV,
• 17.7 percent wind power,
• 5 percent bio, and
• 6 percent waste.

“It is a transitional moment as we continue to improve conditions through deregulation of RE, installing and collecting PV modules,” Lee said.

In Norway, financial incentive was strong enough to drive the electric car boom. About 45 percent of new cars sold in Norway in recent months were all-electric cars. People who buy electric cars pay no import taxes, tolls, parking or ferry costs, and are exempt from a 25 percent sales tax at purchase.

“Nationwide infrastructure is necessary to spread the EV [electric vehicle] boom from cities to rural areas,” said Atle Hamar, Vice Minister, Ministry of Climate and Environment, Norway. “In cities, there are enough charging stations but in rural areas, we need public support [to build more].”

District heating in Denmark

Denmark offers the best conditions for using geothermal heat because of the country’s well-developed district heating. In Denmark, boilers provide heat for entire districts through a network of heating pipes.

“We will be testing new technology to find a cost efficient and easier way of heating houses. For example, we are replacing biomass with geothermal heat pumps, which is easier to heat houses,” Jacob Rasmussen, counsellor, energy & environment, Embassy of Denmark.

How fast can it go from nuclear to renewable?

These countries offer great examples for South Korea. And while the forum generally saw a consensus formed on the country’s need to transition to renewables, it debated how fast the transition should be.

South Korea’s transition may be too fast, according to some experts.

“We must respect the role of the nuclear power source [that has driven our economy as the cheapest energy source],” said Sang-hyup Kim, visiting professor from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and chairman of the Coalition for Our Common Future.

“In fact, nuclear is a reality [in South Korea] based on its [60 years of] science and technology. Why should we give it up so rapidly?”

To others, the transition may be a bit slow.

“Some would say the 20 percent goal is not ambitious enough. But we should manage our satisfaction by setting a reasonable target,” said Sun-Jin Yun, professor of environmental and energy policy at the Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Seoul National University (SNU).

Panelists agreed on the need to increase inter-Korean energy cooperation to bring peace to Northeast Asia. “Increasing energy interdependence is a way to secure peace for the whole of Northeast Asia. For example, a renewable energy-based grid connecting Mongolia and both Koreas and others can be the way to increase interdependence,” said YangYi Won Young, executive director, Energy Transition Forum, a private energy think-tank.

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The post South Korea Looks at How to Accelerate its Transition to Renewable Energy appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

African Champions League: Al Ahly and Esperance set for final

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 16:43
Al Ahly of Egypt and Tunisia's Esperance both expect a tough task ahead to win the 2018 African Champions League title.
Categories: Africa

Zambia FA and Cosafa lead tributes to the late Leah Namukonda

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 15:46
The Football Association of Zambia and Cosafa lead the tributes to referee Leah Namukonda, who died after a car crash.
Categories: Africa

40 cooperation agreements highlight Emirati-Indian strategic partnership: UAEIIC

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 12:52

By WAM
DUBAI, Nov 1 2018 (WAM)

Jamal Saif Al Jarawan, Secretary-General of the UAE International Investors Council, UAEIIC, said that the historic ties between the UAE and India are built on mutual respect and close cooperation, which is reflected by the signing of over 40 agreements and Memoranda of Understanding, MoU, in many areas, especially in investment, under a sustainable development vision.

He added that the historic relations between the two countries share the values of moderation, tolerance, peace and stability, which have strengthened their strategic partnership, through ongoing communication and mutual high-level visits.

During his speech at the two-day 2nd India-UAE Partnership Summit held in Dubai, with the participation of many public and private sector officials from both countries, Al Jarawan said that the strategic partnership between the UAE and India is witnessing ongoing work, with the aim of generating trade worth US$100 billion by 2020. Current levels of trade account for $53 billion, while UAE investments in India account for $10 billion, and the UAE has pledged to provide $75 billion to support India’s infrastructure, as well as $5 billion to the Indian agricultural sector over the next three years, he added.

Al Jarawan highlighted the council’s confidence in the ambitious strategic partnership between the two countries, which has all the components of success, as well as a series of investment reforms in India and its monetary policies, financial system and social security.

Al Jarawan also expressed his confidence in the growing ties between the two countries while noting that India has become the UAE’s second-biggest international economic partner.

A comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between the two countries was signed in January 2017, Al Jarawan noted.

 

WAM/Nour Salman

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Categories: Africa

A “Crisis Point” for Human Rights Defenders

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 12:45

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet highlighted the key role that human rights defenders play in societies. Governments have fallen short on their commitments as HRDs continue to be killed around the world with impunity. Credit: United Nations Women

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
UNITED NATIONS, Nov 1 2018 (IPS)

Globally, the people working to defend our human rights are increasingly under attack, reaching a “crisis point.”

More than 150 human rights defenders (HRDs) from around the world gathered in Paris this week to set out a vision for the enduring fight for human rights at the second Human Rights Defenders World Summit.

Among those who attended was United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet who highlighted the key role that HRDs play in societies.

“When you see someone in chains—someone whose rights are being denied—you don’t turn away. You challenge injustice. You stand up for the rights of others,” she told participants.

“Every step towards greater equality, dignity, and rights which has been made…has been achieved because of the struggles and the advocacy of human rights defenders,” Bachelet added.

The meeting marks the 20th anniversary of the U.N. Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the international community during the first summit to ensure all can enjoy “freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want.”

However, governments have fallen short on their commitments as HRDs continue to be killed around the world with impunity.

The U.N. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Michel Forst recently expressed alarm over such trends, stating: “The Declaration has become a milestone in the human rights project…however, I am more concerned than ever.”

“We are facing an alarming panorama for human rights defenders. Their situation is deteriorating all over the world despite States’ obligations to ensure the protection of human rights defenders,” he added.

Amnesty International’s Secretary General Kumi Naidoo said the level of danger facing activists worldwide has reached crisis point. Credit: Amantha Perera/IPS

Amnesty International’s Secretary General Kumi Naidoo echoed similar sentiments during the summit, stating: “The level of danger facing activists worldwide has reached crisis point. Every day ordinary people are threatened, tortured, imprisoned and killed for what they fight for or simply for who they are. Now is the time to act and tackle the global surge in repression of human rights defenders.”

In a recent report, Forst found that at least 3,500 HRDs have been killed since the adoption of the Declaration.

In 2017 alone, over 300 HRDs across 27 countries were killed, double the numbers from 2015, Front Line Defenders found.

Almost 85 percent of the recorded murders were concentrated in five Latin American countries: Colombia, Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.

Colombia, which is currently the deadliest place for HRDs, saw a increase in the number of murders of HRDs following the 2016 peace agreement between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

In 2017, over 120 social and environmental leaders were killed by paramilitary or unidentified armed groups largely in areas where FARC has since left, contributing to struggles for power and land.

In May, Luis Alberto Torres Montoya and Duvian Andres Correa Sanchez were killed. They were a part of the Rios Vivos Movement which has rallied against the Hidroituango hydroelectric dam for its environmental and human rights impacts including the displacement of local communities.

In fact, Front Line Defenders found that 67 percent of those killed in 2017 were defending land, environmental, and indigenous people’s rights, and almost always in the context of mega projects, extractive industry, and big business.

The Wayúu Women’s Force, an indigenous environmental group, have been facing death threats for its opposition to a coal mine operating on their ancestral territory. A right-wing paramilitary group Aguilas Negras, or Black Eagles, reportedly dispersed leaflets promising to “clean” the region of the indigenous Wayúu.

“Every case of an attack on a human rights defender constitutes an attack on human rights – the rights of us all,” Bachelet said.

However, impunity continues to reign in many countries including in Colombia where human rights groups have said the government is failing to investigate crimes and prosecute those behind them, and have urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open a formal investigation.

But even in cases where the perpetrators are brought to a court, justice still remains elusive.

In Guatemala, the head of security of a mine—then owned by Canadian company Hudbay Minerals—was acquitted for the 2009 murder of indigenous activist Adolfo Ich Chaman and shooting of German Chub despite witness testimony and physical evidence.

The 2013 lawsuit also included 11 women who were allegedly raped at gunpoint by the mining company’s security forces during a forced eviction in 2007.

Following the ruling, the judge requested that criminal charges be brought against those involved in the prosecution including Chaman’s wife for “obstructing justice and falsifying information.”

“The systemic, widespread impunity is a very bad signal sent to the families of the victims and to anyone standing up for human rights…beyond these attacks and killings, it is ultimately our rights, our democracies that are in great danger,” Forst recently said to the General Assembly.

There has been some progress in recognising the importance and achievements of HRDs around the world. Most recently, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Yazidi activist Nadia Murray and Congolese gynaecologist Denis Mukwege for their role in the fight to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war.

Both Forst and Bachelet stressed the need to take action and for all stakeholders to use this opportunity to move forward, particularly in the wake of the 20th anniversary of the U.N. Declaration on Human Rights Defenders as well as the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which was adopted at the Palais de Chaillot where the Summit aptly held their closing ceremony.

“The Summit is a key opportunity for human rights defenders around the world, facing vilification and increased attacks, to come to together and discuss next steps on their own terms,” Forst said.

“What human rights defenders teach us is that all of us can stand up for our rights and for the rights of others, in our neighborhoods, in our countries and all over the world. We can change the world,” Bachelet echoed.

This year has seen numerous events focusing on HRDs including the three-day summit and an upcoming high-level meeting to take place in mid-December in New York to address good practices and new opportunities in the Declaration’s implementation.

 

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Categories: Africa

Sierra Leone captain: "We're the ones suffering"

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 11:54
Sierra Leone captain Umaru Bangura says the careers of the nations players are being affected by the current ban from global football.
Categories: Africa

'Lagos landlords think single ladies are prostitutes'

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 10:06
Rose Uwane says she's struggling to rent an apartment in Lagos because she's a single woman and landlords assume she's a prostitute.
Categories: Africa

Geneva Centre Executive Director: We must unmask the greatest scam of the century through the promotion of equal citizenship rights

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 09:20

By Geneva Centre
GENEVA, Nov 1 2018 (Geneva Centre)

Security cannot be achieved by reactivating the armament race and an environment of tension and division, the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue, Ambassador Idriss Jazairy, said during the “A New Human Concept of Security” conference organized by the European Centre for Peace and Development in Belgrade.

“We live in troubled and uncertain times. Our era is defined by an environment of tension and division. It is compounded by the manipulation and hijacking of religions, creeds and value systems. For what purpose? For accessing power through violence in some parts of the world or through counter-factual political scheming in other parts,” Ambassador Jazairy underlined in his presentation.

In this regard, the Geneva Centre’s Executive Director highlighted the need to address ominous threats and divisive narratives descending on modern societies in Arab and Western societies alike. The rise of violent extremism on the one hand and of militant forms of nationalism and populism on the other represent a threat to multicultural societies, human well-being as well as world peace and stability.

Exclusion and marginalization of people as witnessed in several countries – he noted – fuel xenophobia, bigotry and racism. Proliferation of crises and conflict have the potential to divide societies and to foster hatred, intolerance and animosity between peoples regardless of cultural and religious origins.

In this connection, the Geneva Centre’s Executive Director said that the “dismal situation undermines the foundations of contemporary society. Outbreaks of endogenous and exogenous violence occur whether physical or verbal in different regions of the world.”

This has given rise to a “pincer movement of two extremes expressed through violent extremism and xenophobic populism.” The “greatest scam of the century”, highlighted Ambassador Jazairy, “is the misuse of universal inclusive values shared by all religions and value-systems to serve the opposite goals of discrimination and exclusion.”

To “unmask this scam”, the Geneva Centre’s Executive Director underlined that the promotion of equal citizenship rights is the silver-bullet. It will eliminate the fear of the Other and prevent potential social and/or religious tension or conflict that prevail within multicultural societies and across diverse nations.

Most of today’s international conflicts are grafted on internal upheavals which themselves spring from the denial of equal citizenship rights. If we can defuse an exacerbation of internal dissent through dialogue and conflict resolution, the temptation for foreign interference will be reduced pari passu. Thus conflict will be circumscribed and peace will be given a chance,” he said.

In addition, Ambassador Jazairy appealed to international decision-makers to sign and endorse the 2018 World Conference declaration entitled “Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights” that has been endorsed by more than 50 international opinion-makers. The latter was adopted at the 25 June 2018 World Conference entitled “Religions, Creeds and Value-Systems: Joining Forces to Enhance Equal Citizenship Rights” held at the United Nations Office at Geneva under the Patronage of HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

He said the World Conference Declaration offers an inspiring ideal of world citizenship that responds to citizens’ aspiration to a sense of belonging which will “foster their unity in diversity.” “A sense of belonging and sharing that extends to the nation and beyond to the world community,” he concluded.

ECPD conference responds to appeal by Executive Director of the Geneva Centre. Adopts a resolution endorsing the World Conference outcome Declaration

The participants present at the ECPD conference on “A New Human Concept of Security” unanimously adopted a resolution welcoming and endorsing the World Conference outcome Declaration entitled “Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights.”

Through the unanimous adoption of the resolution, the participants call on all States to respect the Declaration and to support the implementation of its provisions. The resolution read as follows:

To: the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue,

We the participants of the XIV International Conference on A New Concept of Human Security, 26/10/2018, Belgrade of the ECPD, University for Peace established by the UN, choose to add our support to the outcome Declaration: ‘Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights’ (General, 25/6/2018) that emanated from the World Conference (Geneva, Palais des Nations, 25/6/2018) on ‘Religions, Creeds and Value Systems: Joining Forces to Enhance Equal Citizenship Rights,’

We do so,

• “In recognition of the inherent dignity and of equal and inalienable rights of the members of the human family which is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world and;
• “Within a framework of philosophy, global citizenship and the golden means that spreads equal citizenship rights (ECR) as a gateway to world peace.

“Furthermore, we support its suggested follow-up actions of a periodic holding of World Summit, the setting-up of an International Task-Force on ECR and to include a relevant item in the Universal Periodic Review.

“Agreed by all participants/Signed by Dan Wallace, Roberto Savio, Jeffrey Levett and Negoslav Ostojic.”

The post Geneva Centre Executive Director: We must unmask the greatest scam of the century through the promotion of equal citizenship rights appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

Keeping Journalists Safe Benefits Whole Societies

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 08:12

Journalists covering the arrival of delegations to address the General Assembly’s seventy-second general debate. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

By Sarah Lister and Emanuele Sapienza
UNITED NATIONS, Nov 1 2018 (IPS)

Safety of journalists has featured prominently in international news in recent weeks. And yet, while some cases grab the headlines, many more do not, and the scale of the issue often goes unremarked. On this International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, it is worth pausing to reflect on some facts.

Over the period 2006-2017, UNESCO has recorded 1,010 killings of journalists. A total of 80 journalists and media workers were killed in 2018 as of 9 October. On average, every five days, a journalist is killed for bringing information to the public. Many people operating in the new media ecosystem – such as citizen journalists and bloggers – are experiencing growing harassment, in part due to their ambiguous status under national legislation.

Women journalists and media personnel have also been increasingly exposed to violence, with the number of women journalists killed worldwide rising steadily since 2010. But despite all of this, legal impunity for perpetrators of crimes against journalists remains the norm, as a staggering 90 percent of cases are unresolved.

Journalists are targeted for many reasons, and by many people. Some are investigating corruption and abuse of power. Some are expressing political or social views which others wish to silence. Some simply stand as a voice of peace in times of war. Irrespective of the motive, however, the systematic targeting of journalists is a telling reflection of how important – in fact, vital – their work is.

The intimidation, harassment and killing of journalists are – no doubt – extreme forms of censorship, and a violation of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which, among other things, recognizes the freedom to “seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers”.

But they also erode the conditions for peaceful and inclusive societies. For this reason, Goal 16 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – agreed in 2015 by more than 150 world leaders – has an indicator that tracks cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture of journalists and associated media personnel.

United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has spoken out on many occasions about the importance of governments ensuring accountability for crimes against journalists and the UN, across its agencies, funds and programmes, has committed to a comprehensive Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) engages in work to strengthen free and independent media, including in places where the media and journalists face pressures and threats of all sorts. In fact, a stock-taking exercise currently underway shows that, in the past few years alone, UNDP has implemented over 100 interventions in 60 different countries to enhance the media’s role in peace and development.

This work has taken many forms: from facilitating a “Journalists’ Pact for Strengthening Peace” in Lebanon, to promoting a balanced media coverage of elections in Georgia; from supporting insightful reporting on the extractive sector in Kenya, to providing training to journalists on how to make the most of open data in Moldova – just to mention a few examples.

A free and independent media sector is the bedrock of informed societies. It can support accountable and plural governance, it can provide a space for healthy public debate and dialogue and, under appropriate circumstances, can also play a role in reducing violent conflict.

In recent years, technological developments, including the rise of social and digital media, and the liberalization of media markets have fuelled a significant change, with profound implications on how people are informed and ways they can participate in governance.

Growing manipulation of public opinion is distorting political incentives in ways that are contrary to the public interest. Divisions in society are likely to become more easily exploited for political gain and the prospects for social cohesion look less promising, as public spaces become more fragmented and echo chamber effects become more intense.

These trends are extremely worrying and must be addressed urgently. But how can we protect the quality of public debate, and ensure the broader benefits to societies, if we do not defend independent media and public service journalism?

Journalists and other media workers must be protected from threats, violence, arbitrary detention and death. And those who perpetrate crimes against them must be brought to justice. Because information and ideas should be shared freely, without fear of repercussion for the benefit of whole societies.

The post Keeping Journalists Safe Benefits Whole Societies appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Excerpt:

Sarah Lister is Director, UNDP’s Oslo Governance Centre, and Emanuele Sapienza is, Policy Specialist, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, UNDP.

The post Keeping Journalists Safe Benefits Whole Societies appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

'Fish are vanishing'

BBC Africa - Thu, 11/01/2018 - 02:12
Foreign trawlers and fishmeal plants are increasingly threatening the livelihood of Senegal's fishermen.
Categories: Africa

Malawi court halts work on Gandhi statue after critics brand him racist

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 22:58
Work is suspended on a statue of Gandhi in Malawi, after campaigners argue he used racial slurs.
Categories: Africa

“Governments are Starting to See that Organic Food Policy Works”

Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 19:22

According to ‘The World State of Agriculture 2018’, India is the country with the highest number of organic producers (835'000). This is a woman cultivating her tea plantation in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala. Credit: Ilaria Cecilia/IPS

By Maged Srour
ROME, Oct 31 2018 (IPS)

Many countries and farmers around the world are not readily making the switch to organic farming. But the small Himalayan mountain state of Sikkim, which borders Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan, is the first 100 percent organic farming state in the world. 

Earlier this month, Sikkim, won the Future Policy Award 2018 (FPA) for being the first state in the world to declare itself, in 2015, 100 percent organic.

Its path towards becoming completely organic started in 2003, when Chief Minister Pawan Chamling announced the political vision to make Sikkim “the first organic state of India”.

The FPA, also known as the ‘Oscar for Best Policies’ is organised every year by the World Future Council (WFC). The aim of the FPA is to investigate solutions to the challenges in today’s world. The WFC looks at which policies have a holistic and long-term outlook, and which protect the rights of future generations. And once a year the WFC awards showcases the very best of them.

This year, in cooperation with IFOAM-Organics International (IFOAM) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the FPA decided to focus on the best policies to scale up agroecology.

In 2004, one year after the vision was announced, Sikkim adopted its Policy on Organic Farming and in 2010, the state launched the Organic Mission, an action plan to implement the policy. In 2015, thanks to strong political coherence and strategy planning, the goal was achieved.

Among the noteworthy measures adopted by Sikkim during that decade, the fact that 80 percent of the budget between 2010 and 2014 was intended to build the capacity of farmers, rural service providers and certification bodies. The budget also supported farmers in acquiring certifications, and had various measures to provide farmers with quality organic seeds.

Best practices on agroecology: Denmark’s Organic Action Plan

The WFC has also rewarded other government policies with Silver Awards, Vision Awards and Honourable Mentions. Among the Silver awardees was Denmark’s Organic Action Plan, which has become a popular policy planning tool in European countries over the last decade.

Almost 80 percent of Danes purchase organic food and today the country has the highest organic market share in the world (13 percent).

“What has made Danish consumers among the most enthusiastic organic consumers [in the world], is that we have done a lot of consumer information and we have worked strategically with the supermarkets to place organics as part of their strategy to appeal to consumers on the value of food, putting more value into food through organics,” Paul Holmbeck, Political Director of ‘Organic Denmark’, told IPS.

The importance of being organic and agroecological

The policies of Sikkim and Denmark, as well as those of Ecuador and Brazil — countries that also received Silver Awards — are steps towards a world where agroecology becomes widespread and practiced globally. In fact, to conceive cultivated land as ecosystems themselves, in which every living and nonliving component affects every other component, is vital to obtain not only healthy and organic food, but also to preserve our environment.

Indeed, it would be a mistake to think that having organic products on our tables necessarily means having solved all problems related to intensive agriculture and to the damages on the environment.

“Agroecology is one approach that applies ecological concepts and principles to food and farm systems, focusing on the interaction between micro-organisms, plants, animals, humans and the environment, to foster sustainable agriculture development, in order to ensure food security and nutrition for all, now and in the future,” Maria Helena Semedo, FAO Deputy Director General, told IPS. “It is based on co-creation of knowledge, sharing and innovation, combining local, traditional, indigenous practices with multi-disciplinary science.”

Emerging trends on organic

According to the report, The World of Organic Agriculture 2018 – Statistics and Emerging Trends, released earlier this year and authored by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) and IFOAM, 57.8 million hectares (ha) worldwide were farmed organically in 2016. This is an increase of 7.5 million ha (or 13 percent) compared to the previous year.

In 2016, the share of land dedicated to organic farmland increased across the globe: Europe (6.7 percent increase), Asia (34 percent increase), Africa (7 percent increase), Latin America (6 percent increase), North America (5 percent increase).

Australia had the largest agricultural area farmed organically (27.2 million ha), followed by Argentina (3 million ha), and China (2.3 million ha).

In 2016, there were 2.7 million organic farmers. Around 40 percent of whom live in Asia, followed by Africa (27 percent) and Latin America (17 percent).

According to the report, the total area devoted in Asia to organic agriculture was almost 4.9 million ha in 2016 and there were 1.1 million organic producers in the region, with India being the country with the highest number of organic producers (835,000).

So the success of Sikkim is not surprising considering that the Asian continent can be considered among the regions at the forefront of organic production.

Perspectives about the future

However, favouring the scale up of agroecology, which includes producing organic products, is unfortunately not that simple.

“To harness the multiple sustainability benefits that arise from agroecological approaches, as enabling environment is required, including adapted policies, public investments, institutions and research priorities,” said Semedo.  “However, this is not yet a reality in the majority of countries.”

Indeed, poverty, malnutrition, unfair distribution of wealth, decreasing of biodiversity, deterioration of natural resources like soil and water, and climate change are significant challenges in most countries.

Agriculture will become one of the greatest challenges, if not addressed properly. Therefore, moving towards more sustainable agriculture and food systems is certainly a potential part of the solution, not only for our health and wellness but for the planet itself.

“It’s vital for everyone to be organic [and] for every person to eat organic because otherwise people would eat poison and basically writing a recipe for chronic diseases. It could be cancer [as well as] neurological problems,” warned Vandana Shiva, a food and agriculture expert and member of the WFC, told IPS during the ceremony of the Future Policy Award 2018 at FAO headquarters in Rome this October.

“Organic is the only living solution to climate change. Chemical farming is a very big contributor to greenhouse gas emissions but organic farming takes the excess carbon out of the atmosphere and puts it in the soil,” she added.

However, there seems to be a large consensus with the fact that the planet needs to move towards a more sustainable way of living and this is a reason for optimism.

“I’m very optimistic about organics [because] we are creating new solutions for climate and animal welfare, sustainability and good soil every single day,” said Holmbeck. “Governments are starting to see that organic food policy works: it is good for farmers, for consumers and for the planet.”

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The post “Governments are Starting to See that Organic Food Policy Works” appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Categories: Africa

Tanzania: Anti-gay crackdown in Dar es Salaam

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 17:47
The team has been tasked with identifying and arresting gay people on social media.
Categories: Africa

Steve Mounie suggests the Pythons as a new nickname for Benin

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 17:36
Benin striker Steve Mounie backs his country's plan to change its nickname from the Squirrels and suggests the Pythons.
Categories: Africa

Former Ghana FA boss Kwesi Nyantakyi to appeal against life ban

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 17:17
Ex-Ghana FA president Kwesi Nyantakyi will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport over his life ban from the sport.
Categories: Africa

Benin players and ex-FA boss given prison sentences for age cheating

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 15:39
Prison sentences are given to 10 Benin youth players and former football federation president Anjorin Moucharafou for age cheating.
Categories: Africa

Nigeria arrests 400 Shia Muslims after deadly clashes

BBC Africa - Wed, 10/31/2018 - 15:01
The pro-Iranian sect was protesting in the capital to demand the release of their detained leader.
Categories: Africa

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