Inside Myanmar with Jason Tower of the USIP
What happened in Myawaddy as the junta saddles up with China.
By Luke Hunt
September 30, 2024
Jason Tower is the country director of the Burma Program at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), where he closely follows Myanmar’s civil war, human trafficking, and the industrialization of scam compounds, which have spread across Southeast Asia in recent years.
He holds unique insights into what is happening on the ground in Myanmar and has authored several reports for USIP over recent years, which include dire warnings about the conflict and the impact this is having on the civilian population.
A veteran with two decades of experience in regional security, Tower also sounded the alarm on the growth of human trafficking and scam compounds in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, which are “rapidly evolving into the most powerful criminal network of the modern era.”
Tower spoke with The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt at length about the fall of Myawaddy to anti-regime forces in April and what actually happened afterwards in regards to the Karen National Union and the local Border Force Guard and why many in the rebel camps felt betrayed.
He also talks about the spectacular failures of the military on the battlefield and China’s expanding role in the conflict as it shores up its own financial and strategic interests – including its oil and gas pipeline that cuts across the country – by drawing ever closer to the junta and its leader Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.
This includes the complex relationship between the Arakan Army and the Rohingya in Rakhine state where the fighting has been brutal in recent months with the military desperately trying to hang on to what few areas it still controls.
Monday, September 30, 2024
New cost of living rallies planned in Nigeria
By Africanews
By Africanews
Nigeria
Nigeria could see new rallies on Tuesday with citizens protesting against a cost of living crisis.
Named 'Fearless October 1', the demonstrations have been timed to coincide with Nigeria's 64th independence anniversary which falls on Tuesday, October 1.
Organisers told local media that rallies would take place in the capital Abuja, the port city of Lagos and in provincial capitals across the west African country.
Similar demonstrations rocked Nigeria in July and August, with protestors demanding the reinstatement of a fuel subsidy, and end to government corruption.
About two dozen people were killed in a crackdown by security forces, according to activists.
On his first day in office, President Bola Tinubu ended a decades-long fuel subsidy that had helped keep prices down. His government also twice devalued the currency, causing prices of just about everything to jump.
In an address to the nation, Tinubu defended his policies but made no concessions to the protestors.
Nigeria could see new rallies on Tuesday with citizens protesting against a cost of living crisis.
Named 'Fearless October 1', the demonstrations have been timed to coincide with Nigeria's 64th independence anniversary which falls on Tuesday, October 1.
Organisers told local media that rallies would take place in the capital Abuja, the port city of Lagos and in provincial capitals across the west African country.
Similar demonstrations rocked Nigeria in July and August, with protestors demanding the reinstatement of a fuel subsidy, and end to government corruption.
About two dozen people were killed in a crackdown by security forces, according to activists.
On his first day in office, President Bola Tinubu ended a decades-long fuel subsidy that had helped keep prices down. His government also twice devalued the currency, causing prices of just about everything to jump.
In an address to the nation, Tinubu defended his policies but made no concessions to the protestors.
All flights canceled at Brussels Airport on Tuesday due to strike
Security personnel will go on strike on Tuesday, October 1 and serious disruptions in operations are expected, say airport officials
Ata Ufuk Weker |30.09.2024 - Update : 30.09.2024
BRUSSELS
All flights scheduled for Tuesday at Brussels Airport in Belgium have been canceled due to a strike by security personnel, airport officials announced Monday.
The strike, set for October 1, is expected to cause significant operational disruptions, according to the airport's statement.
To ensure passenger and staff safety, airlines, in coordination with the airport, decided to cancel all outbound flights on Tuesday.
Affected passengers will be contacted by their respective airlines, and those with departing flights have been advised not to come to the airport.
While some incoming flights may still operate, there is a risk of cancellations, and passengers traveling to Brussels are urged to check their flight status.
The strike is expected to impact around 50,000 passengers.
Security staff have raised concerns about an increased workload and deteriorating working conditions. They are calling for improvements to the airport's infrastructure, public transportation options, and rest areas.
This strike follows a similar walkout at Belgium's Charleroi Airport on Sept. 12-13, which resulted in the cancelation of all flights due to strikes by employees in baggage handling, check-in, refueling, and security services.
*Writing by Merve Berker in Ankara
Security personnel will go on strike on Tuesday, October 1 and serious disruptions in operations are expected, say airport officials
Ata Ufuk Weker |30.09.2024 - Update : 30.09.2024
BRUSSELS
All flights scheduled for Tuesday at Brussels Airport in Belgium have been canceled due to a strike by security personnel, airport officials announced Monday.
The strike, set for October 1, is expected to cause significant operational disruptions, according to the airport's statement.
To ensure passenger and staff safety, airlines, in coordination with the airport, decided to cancel all outbound flights on Tuesday.
Affected passengers will be contacted by their respective airlines, and those with departing flights have been advised not to come to the airport.
While some incoming flights may still operate, there is a risk of cancellations, and passengers traveling to Brussels are urged to check their flight status.
The strike is expected to impact around 50,000 passengers.
Security staff have raised concerns about an increased workload and deteriorating working conditions. They are calling for improvements to the airport's infrastructure, public transportation options, and rest areas.
This strike follows a similar walkout at Belgium's Charleroi Airport on Sept. 12-13, which resulted in the cancelation of all flights due to strikes by employees in baggage handling, check-in, refueling, and security services.
*Writing by Merve Berker in Ankara
Demonstrations in support of Lebanon and opposing Israel's war erupt across US
From New York to California, demonstrators across the US are amplifying their demand for an end to US support of Israel's attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.
Brooke Anderson
Washington, DC
30 September, 2024
Activists draw chalk art in support of Gaza and Lebanon. [Brooke Anderson/TNA]
In cities across the US this past week, Lebanese flags were added to the sea of Palestinian ones, as demonstrators gathered to show their support for the latest victim of Israeli indiscriminate attacks.
After nearly a year of continuous bombings on Gaza, in recent days Israel began a brazen military assault on Lebanon, two weeks ago shocking the world with coordinated exploding pagers targeting members of Hezbollah, while also killing many civilians, then exploding walking talkies, and in recent days and hours hitting residential buildings in the capital of Beirut. All these acts by Israel are considered violations of international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, and other crucial rules in warfare, according to various local and international organisations.
On Sunday afternoon in San Francisco, several hundred demonstrators gathered in front of the city's Federal Building, as activists gave speeches, people chanted and drew chalk art in support of Gaza and Lebanon.
"We gathered here today in front of the Federal Building because of Israel's escalation in Lebanon. And it's following up to about a year of genocide in Gaza. We are here to demand an arms embargo and to prevent this escalation into a full-out regional war," Laila Ali with the Palestinian Youth Movement told The New Arab.
"I think with this past year how Israel has been able to act with impunity without any sort of reprimand from the West, with a green light to keep going, they have decided to continue and expand their war, to expand their genocide, to expand their attacks against Arab people," she continued.
"They're using the same textbook they used in Gaza, saying there are missiles in civilian homes, saying everyone is a terrorist, to create as much destruction as possible to make it unliveable," she said.
Meanwhile, Dearborn in southeastern Michigan, with one of the highest concentrations of Arabs and Muslims in the US, has held multiple demonstrations in the last week in recognition of Israel's escalation in Lebanon.
In the country's political and economic capitals of Washington and New York, "emergency demonstrations" have been held, often with just hours' notice, as the situation in Lebanon continues to change daily.
Since 7 October, more than 42,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have been killed in Israeli attacks. In late September, more than 1,000 people in Lebanon have been killed by Israeli attacks.
"For the past year, millions across the world have been demanding that Israel end its horrific genocidal war against the Palestinian people and that Western powers cut off all support to Israel. Instead, Israel has been rewarded with more military aid and unanimous support for political leaders of both parties." said Layan Fuleihan of the People's Forum, a New York-based movement incubator for working class and marginalised communities, in a public statement shortly before an emergency demonstration on Sunday.
"We won’t stand by while Biden and Harris continue to fund and expand this genocide. We will take to the streets and say NO to US-support for genocide in Gaza and Lebanon," he added.
More gatherings are planned in the coming days, including musical events, to mark one year of Israel's genocide of Gaza.
From New York to California, demonstrators across the US are amplifying their demand for an end to US support of Israel's attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.
Brooke Anderson
Washington, DC
30 September, 2024
Activists draw chalk art in support of Gaza and Lebanon. [Brooke Anderson/TNA]
In cities across the US this past week, Lebanese flags were added to the sea of Palestinian ones, as demonstrators gathered to show their support for the latest victim of Israeli indiscriminate attacks.
After nearly a year of continuous bombings on Gaza, in recent days Israel began a brazen military assault on Lebanon, two weeks ago shocking the world with coordinated exploding pagers targeting members of Hezbollah, while also killing many civilians, then exploding walking talkies, and in recent days and hours hitting residential buildings in the capital of Beirut. All these acts by Israel are considered violations of international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, and other crucial rules in warfare, according to various local and international organisations.
On Sunday afternoon in San Francisco, several hundred demonstrators gathered in front of the city's Federal Building, as activists gave speeches, people chanted and drew chalk art in support of Gaza and Lebanon.
"We gathered here today in front of the Federal Building because of Israel's escalation in Lebanon. And it's following up to about a year of genocide in Gaza. We are here to demand an arms embargo and to prevent this escalation into a full-out regional war," Laila Ali with the Palestinian Youth Movement told The New Arab.
"I think with this past year how Israel has been able to act with impunity without any sort of reprimand from the West, with a green light to keep going, they have decided to continue and expand their war, to expand their genocide, to expand their attacks against Arab people," she continued.
"They're using the same textbook they used in Gaza, saying there are missiles in civilian homes, saying everyone is a terrorist, to create as much destruction as possible to make it unliveable," she said.
Meanwhile, Dearborn in southeastern Michigan, with one of the highest concentrations of Arabs and Muslims in the US, has held multiple demonstrations in the last week in recognition of Israel's escalation in Lebanon.
In the country's political and economic capitals of Washington and New York, "emergency demonstrations" have been held, often with just hours' notice, as the situation in Lebanon continues to change daily.
Since 7 October, more than 42,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have been killed in Israeli attacks. In late September, more than 1,000 people in Lebanon have been killed by Israeli attacks.
"For the past year, millions across the world have been demanding that Israel end its horrific genocidal war against the Palestinian people and that Western powers cut off all support to Israel. Instead, Israel has been rewarded with more military aid and unanimous support for political leaders of both parties." said Layan Fuleihan of the People's Forum, a New York-based movement incubator for working class and marginalised communities, in a public statement shortly before an emergency demonstration on Sunday.
"We won’t stand by while Biden and Harris continue to fund and expand this genocide. We will take to the streets and say NO to US-support for genocide in Gaza and Lebanon," he added.
More gatherings are planned in the coming days, including musical events, to mark one year of Israel's genocide of Gaza.
VIDEO: Protest held in Paris in support of Lebanon, Palestine
TEHRAN, Sep. 30 (MNA) – People gathered in Paris, the capital of France, to express solidarity and support for the people of Palestine and Lebanon.
Takeaways from AP's report on how shrimp farmers are exploited as supermarkets push for low prices
An investigation focused on three of the world’s largest shrimp producers claims that as big Western supermarkets make windfall profits, their aggressive pursuit of ever-lower wholesale prices is causing misery for people on the bottom end of the supply chain.
ByDAVID RISING
An investigation focused on three of the world’s largest shrimp producers claims that as big Western supermarkets make windfall profits, their aggressive pursuit of ever-lower wholesale prices is causing misery for people on the bottom end of the supply chain.
ByDAVID RISING
Associated Press
September 29, 2024
BANGKOK -- A new investigation focused on three of the world’s largest producers of shrimp released on Monday claims that as big Western supermarkets make windfall profits, their aggressive pursuit of ever-lower wholesale prices is causing misery for people at the bottom end of the supply chain.
The regional analysis of the industry in Vietnam, Indonesia and India, which provide about half the shrimp in the world’s top four markets — the United States, European Union, United Kingdom and Japan — is based on research done by an alliance of NGOs. It found a 20%-60% drop in earnings from pre-pandemic levels as producers struggle to meet pricing demands by cutting labor costs.
In many places this has meant unpaid and underpaid work through longer hours, wage insecurity as rates fluctuate, and many workers not even making low minimum wages.
Supermarkets linked to facilities where exploited labor was reported by workers include Target, Walmart and Costco in the United States, Britain’s Sainsbury’s and Tesco, and Aldi and Co-op in Europe.
The regional report brought together more than 500 interviews conducted in-person with workers in their native languages, in India, Indonesia and Vietnam — published separately as country-specific reports — supplemented with secondary data and interviews from Thailand, Bangladesh and Ecuador.
In Vietnam, Hawaii-based Sustainability Incubator investigators found that the workers who peel, gut and devein shrimp typically work six or seven days a week, often in rooms kept extremely cold to keep the product fresh.
Some 80% of those involved in processing shrimp are women, many of whom rise at 4 a.m. and return home at 6 p.m. Pregnant women and new mothers can stop one hour earlier, the report found.
In India, researchers from the Corporate Accountability Lab found that workers face “dangerous and abusive conditions.” Highly salinated water from newly dug hatcheries and ponds, tainted with chemicals and toxic algae, also contaminate surrounding water and soil.
Unpaid labor prevails, including salaries below minimum wage, unpaid overtime, wage deductions for costs of work and “significant” debt bondage, the report found. Child labor was also found, with girls aged 14 and 15 being recruited for peeling work.
In Indonesia, three non-profit research organizations found that wages have fallen since the COVID-19 pandemic and today average $160 per month for shrimp workers, below Indonesia’s minimum wage in most of the biggest shrimp-producing provinces. Shrimp peelers routinely are required to work at least 12 hours per day to meet minimum targets.
Switzerland’s Co-op said it had a “zero tolerance” policy for labor law violations and that its producers “receive fair and market-driven prices.”
Germany’s Aldi did not specifically address the issue of pricing, but said it uses independent certification schemes to ensure responsibly sourcing for farmed shrimp products, and would continue to monitor the allegations.
“We are committed to fulfilling our responsibility to respect human rights,” Aldi said.
Sainsbury’s referred to a comment from the British Retail Consortium industry group, which said its members were committed to sourcing products at a “fair, sustainable price” and that the welfare of people and communities in supply chains is fundamental to their purchasing practices.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers issued a statement calling the allegations in the report “unfounded, misleading and detrimental to the reputation of Vietnam’s shrimp exports,” citing government labor policies.
The NGO's report stresses that using middlemen to buy the shrimp obfuscates the true sources of shrimp that appear in western supermarkets, so many retailers may not be following ethical commitments they’ve made about procuring shrimp.
Only about 2,000 of the 2 million shrimp farms in the major producing countries are certified by either the Aquaculture Stewardship Council or the Best Aquaculture Practices ecolabel, making it "mathematically impossible for certified farms to produce enough shrimp per month to supply all of the supermarkets that boast commitments to purchasing certified shrimp,” the report says.
U.S. policymakers could use antitrust and other laws already in place to establish oversight to ensure fair pricing from western retailers, rather than imposing punishing tariffs on suppliers, says Katrin Nakamura of Sustainability Incubator, who wrote the regional report.
In July, the European Union adopted a new directive requiring companies to “identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts of their actions inside and outside Europe.”
Officials from Indonesia and Vietnam have met with the report's authors to discuss their findings and look for solutions.
Given the current disparity in retail and wholesale prices, paying more to farmers would not have to mean higher prices for consumers, the Sustainability Incubator report said, but it would mean lower profits for the supermarkets.
“Labor exploitation in shrimp aquaculture industries is not company, sector, or country-specific,” the report concludes. “Instead, it is the result of a hidden business model that exploits people for profit.”
___
This story was supported by funding from the Walton Family Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
September 29, 2024
BANGKOK -- A new investigation focused on three of the world’s largest producers of shrimp released on Monday claims that as big Western supermarkets make windfall profits, their aggressive pursuit of ever-lower wholesale prices is causing misery for people at the bottom end of the supply chain.
The regional analysis of the industry in Vietnam, Indonesia and India, which provide about half the shrimp in the world’s top four markets — the United States, European Union, United Kingdom and Japan — is based on research done by an alliance of NGOs. It found a 20%-60% drop in earnings from pre-pandemic levels as producers struggle to meet pricing demands by cutting labor costs.
In many places this has meant unpaid and underpaid work through longer hours, wage insecurity as rates fluctuate, and many workers not even making low minimum wages.
Supermarkets linked to facilities where exploited labor was reported by workers include Target, Walmart and Costco in the United States, Britain’s Sainsbury’s and Tesco, and Aldi and Co-op in Europe.
The regional report brought together more than 500 interviews conducted in-person with workers in their native languages, in India, Indonesia and Vietnam — published separately as country-specific reports — supplemented with secondary data and interviews from Thailand, Bangladesh and Ecuador.
In Vietnam, Hawaii-based Sustainability Incubator investigators found that the workers who peel, gut and devein shrimp typically work six or seven days a week, often in rooms kept extremely cold to keep the product fresh.
Some 80% of those involved in processing shrimp are women, many of whom rise at 4 a.m. and return home at 6 p.m. Pregnant women and new mothers can stop one hour earlier, the report found.
In India, researchers from the Corporate Accountability Lab found that workers face “dangerous and abusive conditions.” Highly salinated water from newly dug hatcheries and ponds, tainted with chemicals and toxic algae, also contaminate surrounding water and soil.
Unpaid labor prevails, including salaries below minimum wage, unpaid overtime, wage deductions for costs of work and “significant” debt bondage, the report found. Child labor was also found, with girls aged 14 and 15 being recruited for peeling work.
In Indonesia, three non-profit research organizations found that wages have fallen since the COVID-19 pandemic and today average $160 per month for shrimp workers, below Indonesia’s minimum wage in most of the biggest shrimp-producing provinces. Shrimp peelers routinely are required to work at least 12 hours per day to meet minimum targets.
Switzerland’s Co-op said it had a “zero tolerance” policy for labor law violations and that its producers “receive fair and market-driven prices.”
Germany’s Aldi did not specifically address the issue of pricing, but said it uses independent certification schemes to ensure responsibly sourcing for farmed shrimp products, and would continue to monitor the allegations.
“We are committed to fulfilling our responsibility to respect human rights,” Aldi said.
Sainsbury’s referred to a comment from the British Retail Consortium industry group, which said its members were committed to sourcing products at a “fair, sustainable price” and that the welfare of people and communities in supply chains is fundamental to their purchasing practices.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers issued a statement calling the allegations in the report “unfounded, misleading and detrimental to the reputation of Vietnam’s shrimp exports,” citing government labor policies.
The NGO's report stresses that using middlemen to buy the shrimp obfuscates the true sources of shrimp that appear in western supermarkets, so many retailers may not be following ethical commitments they’ve made about procuring shrimp.
Only about 2,000 of the 2 million shrimp farms in the major producing countries are certified by either the Aquaculture Stewardship Council or the Best Aquaculture Practices ecolabel, making it "mathematically impossible for certified farms to produce enough shrimp per month to supply all of the supermarkets that boast commitments to purchasing certified shrimp,” the report says.
U.S. policymakers could use antitrust and other laws already in place to establish oversight to ensure fair pricing from western retailers, rather than imposing punishing tariffs on suppliers, says Katrin Nakamura of Sustainability Incubator, who wrote the regional report.
In July, the European Union adopted a new directive requiring companies to “identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts of their actions inside and outside Europe.”
Officials from Indonesia and Vietnam have met with the report's authors to discuss their findings and look for solutions.
Given the current disparity in retail and wholesale prices, paying more to farmers would not have to mean higher prices for consumers, the Sustainability Incubator report said, but it would mean lower profits for the supermarkets.
“Labor exploitation in shrimp aquaculture industries is not company, sector, or country-specific,” the report concludes. “Instead, it is the result of a hidden business model that exploits people for profit.”
___
This story was supported by funding from the Walton Family Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Will Americans Pay for Israel’s Crimes Again?
Originally appeared at The Libertarian Institute.
We should never forget that American civilians were blindsided twenty-three years ago this month when a small group of mostly Saudis and Egyptians hijacked our civilian airliners in a kamikaze mission that murdered thousands. Though none of them were Palestinian, the nineteen hijackers’ indefensible terrorist attack was motivated largely by Washington’s unconditional military, financial, and diplomatic support for Israel’s apartheid system, illegal occupations, and myriad atrocities in southern Lebanon as well as Palestine.
By design, that’s a crucial part of the story never included in the “never forget” file. Such a superficial catchphrase, bereft of any meaningful understanding of why the transformative attack took place beyond the usual “they hate us for our freedom” canard, is just cynical.
Our new national mantra was used to psychologically torment survivors, widows, orphans, and the broader public alike into reluctantly accepting or enthusiastically supporting inexcusable and largely predetermined government policies.
As with anything else in life, our affairs would drastically improve with an objective understanding of cause and effect. If we achieved a realistic worldview following that terrible day in September 2001, it would have been impossible for the likes of Vice President Dick Cheney to justify his ostensible solutions to the attack, which included the largest government crackdown on our inalienable rights and doubling down on the same murderous foreign policies that made our waking lives a nightmare.
On both sides of the aisle, our rulers systematically provoked the attacks, supported Al Qaeda fighters in various theaters throughout the 1990s, and failed their most basic obligation – given the regime’s monopoly on security services – to protect its citizens and their homeland.
Still, instead of being punished with life imprisonment, the government officials responsible for the carnage managed to convince the American people – this author included – that they should punish us with a massive police state, effectively eviscerating our constitutional rights forever.
If our citizenry was properly informed regarding our terrorist enemies’ means and ends, it could have rendered impossible Washington’s objective of manufacturing consent for its subsequent series of unnecessary, endless, multi-trillion dollar illegal wars in Afghanistan, across Africa, and throughout the Middle East.
Under the guise of fighting terrorism, these unconstitutional mass murder campaigns killed between four and five million people via direct or indirect violence, sending Al Qaeda recruitment soaring. The administrations of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden went on to actively support Al Qaeda shock troops in Washington’s proxy wars launched against the people of Libya, Syria, and Yemen.
Americans have been so apathetic, demoralized, and propagandized during the last twenty-three years that we are now, in fact, waging wars against groups like the Shi’ite militias of Iraq and Syria, Lebanese Hezbollah, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Yemen’s Houthis. These entities constitute the region’s foremost enemies of Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. But this, like Israel’s artificial intelligence programmed genocide, never seems to trouble the voter base of either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris. We find ourselves in this absurd situation because our government is co-bylining a holocaust on our dime and in our name, unleashed on the Palestinian people by Israel, one of Al Qaeda’s regional benefactors in recent years.
Yet there is no outrage, no national scandal, nor even basic questions being asked. American protesters should be flooding the streets daily demanding answers as to why our government is again switching sides in the so-called “Global War on Terrorism” just so the IDF can safely torture, starve, rape, ethnically cleanse, and exterminate an entire nation of people whose land is coveted by the Israeli settler movement.
When American activists peacefully protest the illegal expansion of ethno-exclusivist colonies or U.S. citizen journalists cover other heinous crimes against the Palestinians, they are liable to be executed with IDF sniper rounds to the head, as occurred earlier this month. On September 6, in cold blood, an Israeli military sniper shot dead 26-year-old peace activist Aysenur Eygi during a demonstration near Nablus.
As if this were a scene in some dystopian novel, a White House occupied by Democrats predictably gave Israel a gentle tap on the wrist while the docile GOP “America First” movement did nothing.
While Israel wages a U.S.-backed war of genocide against Muslims and Christians living in occupied Palestine, its apartheid army concurrently bombs the people and infrastructure of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iran.
This is all headed in one direction: a likely surge of Al Qaeda terrorism at home and the final transformation of the United States into an overtly totalitarian state, all amid a massive and costly war involving multiple nations simultaneously with American troops suffering enormous casualties.
The coming nightmare will surely dwarf the catastrophes already caused by our government alongside its client states across the region this century.
In the name of Aysenur Eygi and the victims of the September 11 attacks, it is imperative that any “America First” movement worth its salt target the heretofore “ironclad” U.S.-Israel partnership. The American people must permanently cut off our government’s military, financial, intelligence, and diplomatic support for this parasitic pariah state immediately.
Connor Freeman is the assistant editor and a writer at the Libertarian Institute, primarily covering foreign policy. He is a co-host on the Conflicts of Interest podcast. His writing has been featured in media outlets such as Antiwar.com, Counterpunch, and the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. He has also appeared on Liberty Weekly, Around the Empire, and Parallax Views. You can follow him on Twitter @FreemansMind96.
FASCISM IS CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
The stakes are high for Marine Le Pen as she and other officials from the French far-right party National Rally go on trial over accusations of embezzling European Union funds
By NICOLAS VAUX-MONTAGNY
Associated Press
September 29, 2024
September 29, 2024
PARIS -- The stakes are high for Marine Le Pen as she and other officials from the French far-right party National Rally go on trial Monday over accusations of embezzling European Union funds. The case has the potential to derail her political ambitions.
The nine-week trial will be closely watched by Le Pen’s political rivals as she remains a strong contender in the race to succeed Emmanuel Macron when the next presidential election takes place in 2027.
It comes as a new government dominated by centrists and conservatives just came into office in the wake of June-July legislative elections. Some observers expect the trial could prevent National Rally lawmakers, including Le Pen herself, from fully playing their opposition role in Parliament as they would be busy focusing on the party's defense.
Since stepping down as party leader three years ago, Le Pen has sought to position herself as a mainstream candidate capable of appealing to a broader electorate. Her efforts have paid off, with the party making significant gains in recent elections at both the European and national levels. But a guilty verdict could seriously undermine her bid to take the Elysee.
The National Rally and 27 of its top officials are accused of having used money destined for EU parliamentary aides to pay staff who instead did political work for the party between 2004 and 2016, in violation of the 27-nation bloc’s regulations. The National Rally was called National Front at the time.
Le Pen, whose party has softened its anti-EU stance in recent years, is denying wrongdoing and claims the case is politically driven.
“Parliamentary assistants do not work for the Parliament. They are political assistants to elected officials, political by definition,” she argued in her defense. “You ask me if I can define the tasks I assigned to my assistants; it depends on each person’s skills. Some wrote speeches for me, and some handled logistics and coordination.”
If found guilty, Le Pen and her co-defendants could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to 1 million euros ($1.1 million) each. Additional penalties, such as the loss of civil rights or ineligibility to run for office, could also be imposed, a scenario that could hamper, or even destroy, Le Pen’s goal to mount another presidential bid after Macron’s term ends. Le Pen was runner-up to Macron in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections.
She served as party president from 2011 to 2021 and now heads the group of RN lawmakers at the French National Assembly.
Despite her denial, her party has already paid back 1 million to the European Parliament, the Parliament’s lawyer Patrick Maisonneuve said. Of that amount, 330,000 euros were directly linked to Marine Le Pen’s alleged misuse of funds.
The legal proceedings stem from a 2015 alert raised by Martin Schulz, then-president of the European Parliament, to French authorities about possible fraudulent use of European funds by members of the National Front.
Schulz also referred the case to the European Anti-Fraud Office, which launched a separate probe into the matter.
The European Parliament’s suspicions were further heightened when a 2015 organizational chart showed that 16 European lawmakers and 20 parliamentary assistants held official positions within the party — roles unrelated to their supposed duties as EU parliamentary staff.
A subsequent investigation found that some assistants were contractually linked to different MEPs than the ones they were actually working for, suggesting a scheme to divert European funds to pay party employees in France.
Alexandre Varault, a spokesperson for the National Rally who was elected to the European Parliament in June, told The Associated Press that Le Pen will attend the first day of the trial, adding that he hopes for the acquittal of all the defendants.
Investigating judges concluded that Le Pen, as party leader, orchestrated the allocation of parliamentary assistance budgets and instructed MEPs to hire individuals holding party positions. These individuals were presented as EU parliamentary assistants, but in reality, were allegedly working for the National Rally in various capacities.
The European Parliament’s legal team is seeking 2.7 million euros in compensation for financial and reputational damages. This figure corresponds to the 3.7 million euros allegedly defrauded through the scheme, minus the 1 million euros already paid back.
During the 2014 European elections, the National Front won a record 24 MEP seats, finishing first with 24.8% of the vote, ahead of the center-right and the Socialists. This surge resulted in a substantial financial windfall for the party, which faced severe financial problems at the time.
An audit of the party’s accounts between 2013 and 2016 revealed that it was running a deficit of 9.1 million euros by the end of 2016. Yet, the party still had a cash balance of 1.7 million euros and had lent 1 million euros to Le Pen’s 2017 presidential campaign, while also holding 87,000 euros in loans to Cotelec, its funding association.
At the time, the party was also indebted to a Russian bank for 9.4 million euros, a loan taken out in 2014 for 6 million euros.
The investigation uncovered many irregularities involving prominent party members.
Thierry Légier, the long-time bodyguard of Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie, was listed as his parliamentary assistant. But his resume did not reference this role, and he made no mention of it in his 2012 autobiography. Légier admitted during the investigation that he was not interviewed and signed his employment contract without fully understanding his official role.
Jean-Marie Le Pen, who led the National Front from 1972 to 2011, will not appear in court alongside his former colleagues due to health concerns. Now 96, he was deemed unfit to testify by a court in June. He has 11 prior convictions, including for violence against a public official and hate speech.
He has denied wrongdoing during his time as party leader, stating that the “pool” of assistants was common knowledge. “I did not choose which assistants were assigned to me. That was decided by Marine Le Pen and others. I only signed the contracts,” he said.
___
Documentary praised after U-boat wreck discovery
Elliot Ball
BBC News
Olivia Copeland
BBC Radio Guernsey
Elliot Ball
BBC News
Olivia Copeland
BBC Radio Guernsey
The Hunt for Lady Olive and the German Submarine
A German military historian said Britain dealt with war graves "more respectfully" than other nations
A BBC documentary has been hailed as "exemplary" following the discovery of a German U-boat which was found by a team of Guernsey divers.
The comments were made by Christian Lübcke, military historian and regional director of the German War Graves Commission.
Discussing the film, made by Karl Taylor, he said: "The way he's dealt with the discovery has been exemplary and I hope many other filmmakers, British and German, follow suit."
The vessel UC-18 was lost in 1917 after a battle with a secret Royal Navy ship, Lady Olive, which was also sunk.
Designated war grave
Mr Lübcke also praised the UK for "essentially a greater interest in underwater war graves".
He added that Britain dealt with war graves "more respectfully" than other nations.
The historian also said that he had become worried by the lack of connection European society now had with war graves.
"Older people have passed and younger people don't have a personal relationship with those who died in the World Wars," he said.
"Added to this is that many graves, especially underwater ones, are invisible to the general public."
He added: "That's why it's so important never to forget them.
"Karl Taylor's documentary is part of this reminder and I hope there are more documentaries like this in the future."
All findings made in the documentary have been passed to the French authorities and the German Navy.
The French authorities disclosed the UC-18's location to divers as it is a designated war grave.
The Hunt for Lady Olive and the German Submarine is due to air on Wednesday on BBC Four at 21:00 BST.
A German military historian said Britain dealt with war graves "more respectfully" than other nations
A BBC documentary has been hailed as "exemplary" following the discovery of a German U-boat which was found by a team of Guernsey divers.
The comments were made by Christian Lübcke, military historian and regional director of the German War Graves Commission.
Discussing the film, made by Karl Taylor, he said: "The way he's dealt with the discovery has been exemplary and I hope many other filmmakers, British and German, follow suit."
The vessel UC-18 was lost in 1917 after a battle with a secret Royal Navy ship, Lady Olive, which was also sunk.
Designated war grave
Mr Lübcke also praised the UK for "essentially a greater interest in underwater war graves".
He added that Britain dealt with war graves "more respectfully" than other nations.
The historian also said that he had become worried by the lack of connection European society now had with war graves.
"Older people have passed and younger people don't have a personal relationship with those who died in the World Wars," he said.
"Added to this is that many graves, especially underwater ones, are invisible to the general public."
He added: "That's why it's so important never to forget them.
"Karl Taylor's documentary is part of this reminder and I hope there are more documentaries like this in the future."
All findings made in the documentary have been passed to the French authorities and the German Navy.
The French authorities disclosed the UC-18's location to divers as it is a designated war grave.
The Hunt for Lady Olive and the German Submarine is due to air on Wednesday on BBC Four at 21:00 BST.
A woman stands in the doorway of MSF's clinic to treat victims and survivors of sexual violence in Bulengo displacement camp. North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo, August 2023.
© MSF/PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU
Press Release
30 September 2024
New data reveals that MSF teams treated more than two victims and survivors of sexual violence every hour in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during 2023.
The alarming numbers have continued, with teams having treated nearly 70 per cent of the numbers across all of 2023 in just the first five months of 2024.
MSF is calling on international and national stakeholders to invest in to address sexual violence.
Amsterdam/Barcelona/Brussels/Geneva/Paris РIn a new retrospective report, M̩decins Sans Fronti̬res (MSF) reveals that Рtogether with the Ministry of Health Рwe had treated an unprecedented number of victims and survivors of sexual violence in Democratic Republic of Congo in 2023. This upward trend has continued in the first months of 2024. MSF is calling on all national and international stakeholders to take urgent action to better prevent this crisis and improve care for survivors.
In 2023, MSF teams in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) helped treat 25,166 victims and survivors of sexual violence across the country. That’s more than two every hour.
This figure is by far the highest number ever recorded by MSF in DRC. It is based on data from 17 projects set up by MSF, in support of the Ministry of Health, in five Congolese provinces – North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Maniema and Central Kasai. In previous years (2020, 2021, 2022), our teams treated an average of 10,000 victims per year in the country. The year 2023 therefore marks a massive increase in admissions.
'We are calling for help': Sexual violence in DRCpdf — 2.9 MBDownload
This trend accelerated in the first months of 2024. In North Kivu province alone, 17,363 victims and survivors were treated with MSF assistance between January and May. Not even halfway through the year, this already represented 69 per cent of the total number of victims treated in 2023 in the five provinces mentioned above.
Displaced women are the first victims
Analysed and verified over several months, the 2023 data presented in the report, We are calling for help, show that 91 per cent of victims treated with MSF assistance in DRC were admitted in North Kivu province. Clashes between the M23 group, the Congolese army and their respective allies have been raging in the province since late 2021, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee.
The vast majority of victims (17,829) were treated in displacement sites around Goma, North Kivu’s capital. The number of displacement sites continued to grow throughout 2023.
“According to the testimonies of patients, two-thirds of them were attacked at gunpoint,” says Christopher Mambula, head of MSF’s programmes in DRC. “These attacks took place on the sites themselves, but also in the surrounding area when women and girls – who accounted for 98 per cent of the victims treated by MSF in DRC in 2023 – went out to collect wood or water, or to work in the fields.”
A view of a refugee camp in Goma, where thousands of people have been displaced due to ongoing fighting in North Kivu. Democratic Republic of Congo, February 2024. Marion Molinari/MSFShare
While the massive presence of armed men in and around displacement sites explains this explosion in sexual violence, the inadequacy of the humanitarian response and the inhumane living conditions in these sites fuel the phenomenon. The lack of food, water and income-generating activities exacerbates the vulnerable situation of women and girls (1 in 10 victims treated by MSF in 2023 were minors), who are forced to go to neighbouring hills and fields where there are many armed men. The lack of sanitation and safe shelter for women and girls leaves them vulnerable to attack. Others are victims of sexual exploitation to support their families.
“On paper, there seem to be many programmes to prevent and respond to the needs of victims of sexual violence,” says Christopher Mambula. “But on the ground in displacement sites, our teams struggle every day to refer victims who need help.”
“The few programmes that do exist are always too short-lived and grossly under-resourced,” says Mambula. “Much more is needed to protect women and meet the urgent needs of victims.”
Much more is needed to protect women and meet the urgent needs of victims.Christopher Mambula, head of MSF’s programmes in DRC
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Urgent calls for action
Based on the needs expressed by the victims, and building on previous work to solve this long-standing problem in the country, the report lists some 20 urgent actions to be taken by the parties to the conflict, the Congolese authorities – national, provincial and local – as well as international donors and the humanitarian sector. For MSF, there are three main areas of urgent action.
Firstly, we call on all parties to the conflict to ensure respect for international humanitarian law. In particular, we call for the absolute prohibition of acts of sexual violence, but also respect for the civilian nature of displacement sites. The protection of people caught up in the fighting must be a priority. The call to protect civilians from abuse is also addressed to those involved in humanitarian programmes.
Second, MSF calls for the improvement of living conditions in sites for internally displaced people. Access must be improved to meet basic needs – food, water, income-generating activities – as well as improving safe and well-lit sanitation and shelter. These investments must also be accompanied by increased efforts to raise awareness of sexual violence. While humanitarian funding must be sufficiently flexible to respond to emerging and urgent needs, implementing partners must also demonstrate accountability in delivering interventions.
A woman stands in front of the camps of Bulengo and Lushagala. Democratic Republic of Congo, August 2023.MSF/Alexandre MarcouShare
Finally, we call for specific investment in better medical, social, legal and psychological care for victims of sexual violence. This requires long-term funding to improve medical training, the supply of post-rape kits to care facilities, legal support, as well as the provision of shelters for survivors. Funding is also needed for awareness-raising activities to prevent stigmatisation or marginalisation of victims, which sometimes prevents them from seeking help. Given the high number of requests for abortion from victims, MSF is also calling for the adaptation of the national legal framework to guarantee access to comprehensive medical abortion care.
Sexual violence is a major medical and humanitarian emergency in DRC. According to the latest Gender-Based Violence Area of Responsibility DRC information, which compiles data from various humanitarian organisations offering gender-based violence care services in 12 provinces of DRC, 55,500 survivors of sexual violence received medical care in the second quarter of 2024.
Botswana to Germany: Accept 20,000 elephants or we will kill them, distribute meat to hungry citizens
Botswana's President Mokgweetsi Masisi has said his government will kill 20,000 elephants and distribute their meat to starving locals if Germany does not accept his proposal to send as many jumbos to the European country, Tass reports.
In April 2024, he offered 20,000 elephants to Germany as a way to manage their population in his country.
"When people are starving," the Russian publication wrote on September 27, citing a report by Bild, a German paper, "we must feed them. […] I’m afraid we will have to feed some of those elephants or even all of them to the people."
The southern African nation has about 130,000 elephants, the world's largest number in any country. His government has been trying to convince Western conservationists including German authorities, to support its plan for a more robust approach to reduce the elephant population. The animals, his government says, are posing an environmental catastrophe as they eat up people's crops, outcompete them at water points and destroy their homes.
The human-elephant competition for food and water is worse this year, as Botswana and other elephants range states in southern Africa, is facing their "worst drought" in 50 years.
Botswana has previously translocated 8,000 elephants to neighbouring Angola and 700 to Mozambique.
"We would like to offer such a gift to Germany," Masisi told Bild in April.
A month earlier, Botswana’s wildlife minister Dumezweni Mthimkhulu had offered to send 10,000 of the giant herbivores to London’s Hyde Park so, BBC wrote then, British people could "have a taste of living alongside" them.
UK legislators had just voted to support a ban on hunting trophies.
Namibia and Zimbabwe announced in August and September, respectively, their intentions to kill hundreds of animals, including the huge herbivores, to not only manage their booming populations but also feed the people who are hungry following the regional drought.
A bloc of 16 southern African nations issued an international appeal in May for $5.5bn to help mobilise food aid for about 68mn people rendered food-insecure by the drought.
Namibia said it would cull 723 animals among them 83 elephants, 30 hippos, 60 buffalo and 300 zebras and distributing their meat to the needy.
Zimbabwe has an estimated 100,000 elephants, up to 45,000 of which are in Hwange National Park, west of the country. The total population is twice as large as the country should optimally have to ensure environmental sustainability, the government says.
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, has restrictions on the culling and trade in elephants and elephant products on Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia.
Germans should "live together with the animals, in the way you are trying to tell us to," Masisi noted in April. "This is no joke."
September 30, 2024
Bison in Grand Teton National Park. Photo: Jeffrey St. Clair.
While this article will be nowhere near a comprehensive review, a sampling of just three studies offers an introductory glimpse into heat’s broad capacity to govern and regulate behavior, health and death across the realm of Earth’s land animals. Some further detail will surface in subsequent paragraphs.
For a first example of heat’s broad impacts across animal species, the October 13 2008 issue of Science published an informative review article under the title, “Physiology and Climate.” The authors remind readers that “All organisms live within a limited range of body temperatures. They further explain that “the direct effects of rising temperatures include “impairments in growth, reproduction, foraging, immune competence, behaviors and competitiveness.”
The Journal of Animal Ecology picked up the story in January 2014. The authors confirm that “organisms have a physiological response to temperature, and these responses have important consequences.” “They go on to explain that “biological rates and times (e.g. metabolic rate, growth, reproduction, mortality and activity) vary with temperature.”
A third and final example comes from the September 20, 2024, issue of Science. Authors traced the history of CO2 and temperature across the last 485 million years. Authors discovered that our current era is cooler than much of this history, and C02 levels lower.
In a plain language news release, one of the authors explains that, because we are addling 40 billion tons of CO2 to the atmosphere, “We are changing the climate into a place that is really out of context for humans. The planet has been and can be warmer – but humans and animals can’t adapt that fast.”
Humans as a species of special interest
As a first example, little is more certain than that heat can kill us, and many, if not all, outdoors-minded readers have noticed news reports of hikers dying during a heat wave. Reports have included the 10-year-old boy who died after he suffered a heat-related medical emergency during a hike in Arizona.
Given the headline stories of heat-driven human mortality in the great outdoors, it’s likely no surprise that The Outdoor Industry Association would ask ”Why Does Climate Change Matter to the Outdoor Industry?”
Candidly answering its question, the Association says, “Climate change is having a direct impact on outdoor recreation. The quality of outdoor experiences are suffering as summers grow longer and hotter, winter and snowpack become more unpredictable, river flows are diminished, and devastating natural disasters become more frequent.”
The risks don’t end there.
Heat steals our food
The authors of a January 9, 2009 Science article cited evidence that “In temperate regions, the hottest seasons on record will represent the future norm in many locations.” They add, “Coping with the short-run challenge of food price volatility is daunting. But the longer-term challenge of avoiding a perpetual food crisis under conditions of global warming is far more serious.”
A Nature journal, Communications Earth & Environment, went to the heart of the pricing matter in a study titled, “Global warming and heat extremes to enhance inflationary pressures” in its March 21, 2024 issue. The article’s authors found that “Higher temperatures increase food and headline inflation persistently over 12 months in both higher- and lower-income countries.”
To the inflation of food prices, add the risk involved in simply eating and digesting it. Because digesting forces body temperature higher, how much we eat on a hot day can push our temperatures toward lethal levels.
Hail batters our solar energy
A study by Northern Illinois University researchers projects that the frequency of hailstones roughly 1½ inches or larger will rise by 15% to 75%, depending on how much greenhouse gas pollution humans emit.
Risk and Insurance journal cites researchers who found that “The solar panels rapidly being deployed across the country are vulnerable to damage from hail.”
Similarly, the Department of Energy reports that “Hail can cause invisible damage through solar cell cracking at hail diameters and speeds less than that which would break the glass..”
Heat can abort human pregnancies
Some disruptions are more pressing than others. Right alongside the prospects for pricier food, and costly hail damage to solar panels, we have to include risk of aborted pregnancies. According to the National Institute of Health’s National Library of Medicine, one research team “observed that exposure to high ambient temperature (mean > 25°C) in early pregnancy increased unobserved pregnancy loss rates. In a case–control study conducted in Nanjing, Zhao et al. found a non-linear association between high ambient temperature and increased risk of spontaneous abortions.
Heat is already forcing costs on human health and mortality
As of January 30, 2024, Nature Medicine could run a report under the title, “After millions of preventable deaths, climate change must be treated like a health emergency.”
The urgency of these findings was underscored in an Energies article, “Quantifying Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Human Deaths to Guide Energy Policy,” in which the authors report that “Several studies are consistent with the ‘1000-ton rule,’ according to which a future person is killed every time 1000 tons of fossil carbon are burned (order-of-magnitude estimate). If warming reaches or exceeds 2 °C this century, mainly richer humans will be responsible for killing roughly 1 billion mainly poorer humans through anthropogenic global warming, which is comparable with involuntary or negligent manslaughter.”
Similarly, authors of a 2024 Harvard Law Review analysis conclude that “in jurisdictions across the United States, fossil fuel companies could be prosecuted for every type of homicide short of first degree murder.”
We humans aren’t the only ones we’ve put at risk
A broad trend was underscored in June 13, 2022, when The Conversation published “We know heatwaves kill animals. But new research shows the survivors don’t get off scot-free.”
The authors report that “Extreme heat waves can cause birds and mammals to die en masse. But it’s more common for an animal to experience relatively mild heat stress that doesn’t kill it. Our new findings suggest that unfortunately, these individuals can suffer long-term health damage.”
Authors of a related 2024 study on the effects of hot nights conclude that “ Given the major role of sleep in health, our results suggest that global warming and the associated increase in extreme climatic events are likely to negatively impact sleep, and consequently health, in wildlife.
Bison, grizzlies, and moose
A December 2022 Ecology and Evolution study found that temperature predicted bison movement better than any other factor measured. It increased movement, but only up to a point where it put on the brakes.
Authors suggest that increased movement was driven by searching for grasses that grow better with heat, which is important if only because the bison get much of their water from foraging. However, once the temperature rose above 83F, bison movement stopped, and they rested in the shade or near cooling water, which may have saved them from heat stroke.
It’s likely not a coincidence that grizzlies choose well-shaded daybeds in the thick cover of dense forest. Under protective canopy, temperatures are at lease a bit cooler than out under direct sunlight. According to studies referred to by Western Wildlife Outreach, “In the heat of the day, grizzly bears will rest in day beds in dense vegetation.” Moreover, a Functional Ecology article reports that grizzlies can dissipate excess body heat by taking a dip in chilly water.
Reducing body heat is just as crucial to moose. A recent study in the Journal of Animal Ecology tested the hypothesis that a moose’s allocation of energy to the likes of foraging and travel can face a barrier in the form of heat dissipation limit. Under this limit, feeding and movement are impaired until an overheated animal can lose, shed, or dissipate at least some body heat.
Up to a point, a moose will be able to shed some heat in the shade alone. However, beyond that point, they narrow their bedding choice to shaded surfaces with moist soils because those soils facilitate the release of body heat. However, the authors point out that “… the importance of dissipating endogenous heat loads conductively through wet soil suggests riparian habitats also are critical thermal refuges for moose.” They quickly add that “Such refuges may be especially important in the face of a warming climate in which both high environmental temperatures and drier conditions will likely exacerbate limits to heat dissipation, especially for large, heat-sensitive animals.”
While the above strategies can save these four species from heat-determined mortality, their usefulness seems likely to diminish as heat and, with it, drought become more extreme. A 2013 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences study found that if the surrounding air temperature gets hot enough, an animal could die of starvation — as a consequence of trying to avoid overheating.
Plainly enough, things won’t have to go that far to start getting ugly. Still, the extreme case cuts to the chase, and the risk of heat-driven mortality across a wide range of domestic and wild animals is a factor even now.
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