CLIMATE CHANGE
Is China's five year plan a decarbonization blueprint?

After the world's largest emitter set an ambitious 2060 carbon neutrality target in September, its 14th five-year plan is a tentative roadmap to achieving its climate goals.



Can China break its coal habit?

"We aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060," China's President Xi Jinping told the UN General Assembly in September. "COVID-19 reminds us that humankind should launch a green revolution," he added.

Given that global emissions are still rising — despite the pandemic-related slowdown — and in view of the inadequacy of the Paris climate pledges, China's announcement was widely welcomed as the most important commitment since the 2015 Paris agreement in the push to carbon neutrality by mid-century.

"It's like steroids in the move to decarbonization," said Niklas Hagelberg, coordinator of the Climate Change Program at the United Nations Environment Program, of the pledge from the world's largest carbon emitter.

With China accounting for 28% of global CO2 emissions, its carbon neutral pledge is fundamental to achieving worldwide net-zero emissions. Even without any further commitments from other countries, global heating could now be limited to around 2.35 degrees Celsius (4.23 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100, which is 0.25 C lower than the expected rise, according to Hector Pollitt, chief economist at Cambridge Econometrics, a UK-based economic analysis firm.

In the wake of Beijing's commitment, neighboring countries followed suit, with Japan committing to net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and South Korea to carbon neutrality by 2050 in the ensuing weeks — the three Asian economies together accounted for one-third of all global carbon emissions in 2018, according to Greenpeace.

Factoring in these new commitments, Pollitt calculates that warming could be kept to around 2 degrees by century's end. The Paris agreement aims to keep the increase to "well below" 2 C.

Watch video 01:39 The dark side of China's bike-sharing boom

Five Year Plan offers hope, yet 'old habits die hard'

The Chinese government's 14th Five Year Plan (5YP) has been much-anticipated as the moment the country would consolidate its 2060 commitment, and update its promise to achieve peak carbon before 2030.

Isabel Hilton, journalist and founder of policy blog, China Dialogue Trust, said the 5YP would confirm China's transition to a "supplier of low carbon goods and technology in a carbon-constrained world."

Announced on March 5, the plan made only tepid commitments, however. There was hope that a lower GDP target of 5% over the next five years, as opposed to 6.5% in the last 5YP, would signal a "notable slowdown" in emissions, said Li Shuo, Beijing-based policy advisor with Greenpeace East Asia.

Instead, the plan only includes a GDP target for 2021, which is 6% but is coming off a low base due to the pandemic-related economic slowdown.


Shuo also hoped the nationally determined contribution (NDC) target as part of the Paris climate deal would be updated, meaning the "carbon intensity" reduction target would be raised from an expected 18% to 21%. That did not happen, meaning the further hope that China's peak emissions could be reached by 2025 is now unlikely.

UNEP's Niklas Hagelberg believes that if emissions peak closer to 2030, it will be too late for the world to achieve a 50% cut by 2030, a fundamental target on the road to decarbonization by mid-century.

Unless emissions begin falling by 2025, "it won't be sufficient to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 or '60," he said.

The 5YP "sends an indecisive climate signal," Shuo said. However, a "habit of under-committing and over-delivering five year plans" means that "these targets will hopefully hedge against a surge in further emission growth."

One positive signal in the plan was the raising of the proportion of non-fossil fuel sources in China's energy mix from 15% in the last 5YP to around 20%for 2021-25, according to Shuo.

There was also a commitment to build 1200 GW of wind and solar capacity by 2025 — higher than the coal-fired power capacity of 1100 GW set in 2016.

The plan states a commitment to "make a major push to develop new energy sources," yet also wants to promote "the clean and efficient use of coal." Yan Qin, carbon analyst at Refinitiv Carbon, which analyses carbon markets, tweeted that this "looks contradictory to me."

As attested by the acceleration in the construction of coal-fired power plants in the last two years, Li Shuo said that "old economic habits die hard."

Can China get off coal?

According to Pollitt, carbon neutrality by 2060 will only be achieved if no new coal power plants are built.

With half of China's energy-related CO2 emissions generated by electricity production — nearly 15% of all energy-related carbon emitted globally — and 57% of China's energy coming from coal, transitioning from the fossil fuel will take extraordinary ambition.

In the lead-up to China's 2021-2025 five-year plan, the nation's electricity industry has been lobbying to build hundreds of new coal-fired power plants, with Hagelberg noting that 300 GW of of coal-fired power plants are in the pipeline.

But coal's future is increasingly untenable as the cost of renewables plummet and China itself seeks to confirm its dominance in the burgeoning solar power sector. British bankHSBC forecasts that annual solar installations could rise to 85 GW over the next five years. By comparison, only 30 GW went online in 2019.

"The incredibly fast drop in prices for renewables will increase confidence to increase ambition," said Hagelberg.

A study published in Nature last May showed if renewables continue their downward price trajectory, they could provide 62% of China's electricity by 2030.

Still producing 57% of the nation's energy, coal power is set to be abandoned by mid-century




Solar energy will be vital to decarbonization, with China set to rapidly expand a sector it already dominates globally

With Beijing having shown the political will to tackle its severe pollution crisis in recent years, a rapid shift away from coal is possible, Hagelberg believes. Even if new coal-fired power stations are built, old plants may be decommissioned to offset this increase.

"It's going to have to happen if they're going to meet their targets," he said.

Nonetheless, Li Shuo said in the wake of the 14th 5YP release that there is "still no end in sight for China’s coal plant construction boom." He added that "runaway momentum in the steel, cement, and aluminum sectors suggests China needs to do much better to green its COVID recovery."
Benefits of rapid decarbonization

Christine Loh, chief development strategist at the Institute for the Environment at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, believes the decarbonization target "did not come out of the blue."

Rather, it confirms China's paradigm shift from polluted "factory of the world" to clean, green producer of homegrown high-tech goods, and the world's biggest market for electric vehicles.

Given the scale of China's 2060 pledge, Loh believes that China has not only been planning for a decarbonization revolution, but that it also fears the impact of climate change, including severe flooding. "It believes in the science," she said.

Meanwhile, the massive investments required to achieve decarbonization could boost China's GDP by up to 5% by the end of this decade, and 1-2% in the long run due to the reduction in fossil fuel imports (including oil, consumption of which has tripled in the last decade), according to Cambridge Econometrics modelling. 

But with around 5 million people in China employed in the coal sector alone, job losses remain a problem in the short term. Further research by Cambridge Econometrics shows, however, that the massive infrastructure building that will underpin a clean energy transformation will ultimately create as many jobs as are lost by 2060.

China's renewable investments would not only slash CO2 emissions and lower the price of clean energy, but could create what Pollitt calls a positive "spillover" effect globally.

This is an updated version of an earlier article.

GLOBAL IDEAS

Keeping water clean and waste-free in Costa Rica

With most of its energy coming from renewables, the country has become a model for environmental protection. Now it is setting its sights on improving garbage management.

Watch video 07:01 Costa Rica and water conservation

Every second, an estimated 350 liters of water gush out of the famous Ojo de Agua spring in Belen, an area a few kilometers from Costa Rica's capital San Jose.

Water is recognized as a crucial source of life in Costa Rica. Last year, the right to access drinking water was enshrined in the constitution.

But the country is also working on guaranteeing the sustainable protection of water sources like the Ojo de Agua for future generations.

There are an estimated 30 springs in Belen, which is home to around a million residents. The municipality there is setting its sights on cleaning up the water by improving systems of waste management. They want to avoid rubbish ending up in the soil where it can pollute groundwater or leak into local springs.

Information about climate-friendly composting and waste separation has been sent to hundreds of households. Waste inspectors are also on the road ensuring different materials are disposed of correctly. Sorting through and reselling waste is providing a source of income to some struggling financially in the country.

Project goal: The International Climate Initiative (IKI) project Vertically Integrated Climate Protection (VICLIM) aims to take national climate goals and turn them into concrete measures at the city level that can be measured for their impact.

Project duration: 2016 - 2020 (The project is completed but the measures will continue).

Project funding: Internationally the project was funded with €3.2 million by the German Environment Ministry. The film focuses on the measures in Costa Rica.

Partner organizations: Municipality of Belen, Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) in Costa Rica.

A film by Katja Döhne

Yemen: Several killed in migrant detention center fire

People seeking to find work in oil-rich Gulf states have been killed in a devastating fire at a Yemeni migrant detention center.



Many are feared dead after a fire broke out at a migrant detention center in Sanaa, Yemen

At least eight people were killed and 170 more injured in a fire at a migrant detention center in the Yemeni capital city Sanaa on Sunday, the UN Migration Agency said.

It remained unclear what caused the fire in the center run by the Houthi rebels.

"We are extremely saddened by the death of migrants and guards resulting from a fire at a holding facility in Sana'a, Yemen, today," director of the UN Migration Agency (IOM), Carmela Godeau, wrote on Twitter.

Although eight people had been confirmed dead, "the total death toll is reported to be much higher," she added

.

More than 90 of the injured are thought to be in a serious condition.

Migrants in Yemen face many dangers

A UN official told the Associated Press that the fire started in a hangar close to where more than 700 migrants were being held. The majority of them had been detained in the northern province of Saada as they attempted to cross the border in Saudi Arabia.

Tens of thousands of migrants continue to make the journey across the waters of the Horn of Africa to try and find work as housekeepers, construction workers and servants in the rich gulf countries, despite the ongoing conflict in Yemen.

Sunday's fire "is just one of the many dangers that migrants have faced during the past six years of the crisis in Yemen. All people, including migrants, should be afforded protection and safety," Godeau wrote.

Migrants traverse war zones in search for a better life

Some 138,000 people made the journey to Yemen in 2019. This number fell to 37,000 in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Watch video 03:04 Ethiopian and Somali migrants face perils in Yemen

The migrants are often vulnerable to trafficking gangs, many of which are believed to be working in cooperation with armed groups involved in the regional conflict.

Earlier in March, at least 20 migrants were killed after smugglers threw 80 people overboard while travelling from Djibouti in East Africa to Yemen.

Yemen has been suffering a devastating conflict between Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and the Saudi-backed government since late 2014.

#BLM 

How George Floyd's death reignited a worldwide movement

The trial of ex-police officer Derek Chauvin starts Monday over death of George Floyd, which sparked an international outcry. With so many fatal police shootings, why did this slaying lead to global protests?


The death of George Floyd saw many Western nations 

forced to reckon with their colonial past

For eight minutes and 46 seconds, police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on the neck of George Floyd, a 46-year old Black man, on a street in Minneapolis on May 25 last year. Another officer, Alexander Kueng, had his knees on Floyd's upper legs whille their colleague J. Thomas Lane gripped Floyd's handcuffed arms.

"Please, please, please, I can't breathe," Floyd gasped, pleading about 20 times. His final words reminded many of those of Eric Garner, who died during a police chokehold in 2014.

When Floyd fell unconscious, the officers didn't move. Chauvin and the other officers released their grip only when an ambulance arrived — nearly two minutes after Keung first reported he could not find a pulse, according to prosecutors. Floyd was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.


George Floyd was unarmed. At the time, according to a statement by the Minneapolis Police Department, he appeared to be intoxicated and "suffering medical distress." The police said they were responding to a call that a man was trying to use a counterfeit $20 bill — and the description matched George Floyd. Floyd was asked to get out of his car, and police said he "physically resisted officers" after he stepped out of the vehicle.

They sat him down on the ground and later tried to place him inside a police car. Eventually, the officers pinned him down on the street in a position that proved fatal. During that time, George Floyd cried out for his dead mother — and pleaded that he didn't want to die.
Summer of global protests

While George Floyd wasn't the only black person to die at the hands of US police officers, the images of him being slowly suffocated were quickly seen around the world. His death sparked renewed protests in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, which was established in 2013 after the aqcuittal of George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teenager, in Florida.

Thousands of people took to the streets in Minneapolis, in cities across the US and around the world, in response to Floyd's death.

At first, tens of thousands of protesters in the US marched peacefully, but a couple of days after George Floyd's death, some demonstrations turned violent. There were reports of lootings, vandalism and even shootings. Cars were set alight and there were clashes with police. The National Guard was mobilized, as government officials — including President Donald Trump — accused some protesters of engaging in "domestic terrorism."

Anti-racism protests went global after George Floyd's death,

 as seen in this Berlin protest in July 2020

Meanwhile, in other countries across the world, statues deemed to symbolize racial injustice were taken down and protesters demanded that anti-racism efforts be stepped up.

In Belgium, protesters defaced symbols of Belgian King Leopold II, who colonized the Democratic Republic of Congo. Under Leopold II's rule, millions of Congolese people were killed. In the UK, demonstrators tore down a statue of Edward Colston, a slave trader in the 17th century. In Germany, some of the largest protests outside the US took place, demanding a reckoning with its own colonial past and its stance on racism in the country.

A critical mass saw 'something is wrong'

The reasons why George Floyd's death sparked such a resounding national and international public outcry are manifold, says David Elcott, a professor at the New York University specializing in community building and social movements.

"One reason is cumulative. In enough places around the country," he says, "there were enough circumstances that seemed suspect that a critical mass began to see that something is fundamentally wrong."

TOPPLED MONUMENTS: A SELECTION OF CONTROVERSIAL FIGURES

Edward Colston: slave trader and philanthropist

Controversy over the statue of Edward Colston in Bristol was rife for years. On June 7, demonstrators removed the bronze from its pedestal and tossed it into the water. While Colston was working for the Royal African Society, an estimated 84,000 Africans were transported for enslavement; 19,000 of them died along the way. But he went down in history as a benefactor for his donations to charities.   PHOTOS 1234567

Elcott compares the effect to titration, a chemical method for determining the concentration of a liquid. "You'd have a clear liquid and you add one drop, and two drops and three drops, and nothing happened. But the fourth drop, and suddenly the entire thing changes color."

In addition, the video that circulated of Floyd's death was simply horrifying, says Kenneth Nunn, a professor of law at the University of Florida who focuses on race relations and police brutality. "It's visually horrifying. You truly get the notion that (Chauvin) has been there before," Nunn says.

The video also shows Floyd acting in a calm way. So, factors that would diminish the sympathy of the public were not there, he says.

VIDEO In search of meaningful police reform

Positive reforms to come?

The death and the ensuing protests happened against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic that arrived a couple months prior. In many cities, protesters violated curfews and stay-at-home orders to march in the streets.

The pandemic-related restrictions played into the wider support as well, Nunn and Elcott agree. People had little else to do, Nunn says, and were eager to get outside of their homes.

"You had a whole summer," says Elcott, explaining that, historically, it is not unusual for people to march against racial injustice in the summer months.

But despite the protests and uprisings, not much change has come about within law enforcement, says Nunn. "The problem is so long-standing. In the US, the police are trained like they are at war," he says. "We need to get to a point where the police are no longer trained to do that. But that's going to take some time, in my view, for that to change."

#IWD  #BLM

Black Lives Matter in Brazil: A mother fights for justice for her dead son

A Brazilian mother on a mission: After the death of her 5-year-old son, Mirtes Renata de Souza became an activist committed to fighting racism.



She lights a candle on the second day of each month. Mirtes Renata de Souza, 34, is mourning her son Miguel. Eight months ago, on June 2, 2020, the 5-year-old fell to his death from the ninth floor of a high-rise in the city of Recife, Brazil.

Mirtes Renata, a maid working for a wealthy family, took her son to work that day — she had no one to care for him because of a coronavirus infection. When she went out to walk the dog, she left the child alone with her employer.

The owner didn't bother with the child. Nor did she retrieve him when he left the apartment and got in an elevator to go find his mother. The 5-year-old exited on the ninth floor and ended up in an unsecured part of the building, eventually falling to his death 20 meters (66 feet) below.

The child's story shook Brazil, already reeling from the coronavirus. It also made his mother Mirtes Renata de Souza the face of Black Lives Matter (BLM) in Brazil.

The Black Lives Matter movement that grew relentlessly around the world last year after the death last May of George Floyd in the US. It brought attention to racial discrimination against Blacks in Brazil, too, with media outlets featuring more stories on police violence against Afro-Brazilians as well as their systemic neglect.
Suddenly an activist

"I don't want my son's death to be forgotten. I want justice. No one but I can know the pain that tortures me. It is difficult," Mirtes Renata told DW. She completely ignored her own 34th birthday on February 25, for instance, saying it was meaningless.


An online petition demanding justice for Miguel now has millions of signatures

Still, Mirtes Renata fights on. She fights discrimination against domestic workers, who still have to go to work despite the dangers posed by the coronavirus. She is fighting for the rights of children, regardless of social background. And she is fighting a legal battle in court over the tragic death of her son.

The housekeeper from Recife now has more than 30,000 Instagram followers. And an online petition demanding justice for Miguel (#justicapormiguel) has collected some three million signatures.

"Miguel's case exposes the deep racism of Brazilian society," says Deborah Pinho, who coordinates the campaign. "That's why we really want to help organize support for Mirtes and turn up the heat on politicians."
'Lack of supervision with tragic results'

Still, the wheels of justice turn slowly in Brazil. The trial that Brazilian prosecutors had promised to begin in Recife Juvenile Court on June 12, 2020, got no further than an initial hearing on December 3.

The defendant, Mirtes' former employer Sari Mariana Costa Gaspar Corte Real, is currently free on bail. She is accused of failing to supervise "a helpless person resulting in death," a crime that can carry a sentence of up to 12 years in jail according to Brazil's penal code.

Mirtes Renata's lawyer says the freedom to be out on bail is a privilege that highlights the different ways that wealthy and poor are treated in Brazil. "If every defendant who did not pose a public threat had the right to get out on bail, I could understand," says Eliel Silva. "Unfortunately, the only ones who usually profit from the rule are the ones with economic power."
Expert there to prove innocence

The lawyer is also annoyed with the expert opinion brought in by the defense team, which the defense is using to sow doubt about the crime of failing to supervise the helpless child. The report's author argues that in order for the defendant to be guilty, she would have to have been aware of all the possible dangerous consequences of her actions, and that, the expert claims, was not the case.

YOUNG BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTESTERS: 'ENOUGH IS ENOUGH'

Nathan (16), Sammy (17), Matthew (15), Noel (18)

These schoolboys are taking part in a "big movement," as Noel puts it, for the first time. Noel adds: "The last time we were just a bit too young. But now that we're old enough to understand what's happening, we're out here just doing what we can for the community." Sammy says: "We want to make America a better place for black people."      PHOTOS 1234567

Mirtes Renata doesn't want revenge but justice. She is certain that her son's death could have been prevented. Her employer had promised to keep an eye on Miguel. "But when my son went looking for me and ran to the elevator she didn't go get him. She could have taken his hand and brought him back to the apartment. Or she could have called me. If she had just done one of those two things my son would be here right now."

She fights back her tears. Life as an activist is new to her. "Women's rights and racism are new topics for me, I never really dealt with them before," she says.

That has changed. Meanwhile, she works for the non-governmental organization Curumim, which fights for women's rights and against racism. Moreover, she is studying law. Her mission: "No one should experience the injustice that I have."

This article has been translated from German by Jon Shelton

#IWD

Australians condemn violence against women as they celebrate International Women's Day

People participate in a rally for International Women's Day in Sydney

Mon, March 8, 2021

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Hundreds of mostly female workers gathered outside government buildings in Sydney to condemn violence against women and call for greater gender equality in workplaces, amid growing scrutiny over the treatment of women in Australian politics.

Celebrating International Women's Day, a young woman stood outside the New South Wales state parliament, with the message "My body, my business" written across her body, while another held a placard reading "Equal work deserves equal pay!".

A variety of workers - from nurses and teachers to hairdressers and transport workers - took part in the gathering. It comes as the government launched a A$19 million ($14.57 million) campaign urging people to speak up when they witness disrespect against women.

"Let us all work together ... so that we finally move to a world where sexual violence and sexual assault and sexual harassment is a thing of the past," Jenny Leong, a parliamentary representative from the Greens party told the crowd.

Australia's parliament is under increased scrutiny over sexual assault allegations.

Three female employees of Prime Minister Scott Morrison's Liberal party last month said they had been raped by the same man in 2019 and 2020. One of the alleged victims has lodged a complaint with police.

Last week, Attorney-General Christian Porter, the country's chief law officer, identified himself as the subject of a separate historical rape allegation, declared his innocence and strongly denied the claim.


(Reporting by Paulina Duran in Sydney; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa)

#IWD

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: How she took on an authoritarian leader despite her fears

In just a few months the opposition figure went from unknown stay-at-home mom to the leader of democratic Belarus. She told DW she's proud of both roles, and says that for millions of women, "the inner strength awoke."

VIDEO Women of Power: Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya was a political unknown just one year ago. Today, she has become the leader of the biggest protest movement in Belarus since the country gained independence. The wave of action she led has been awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament, and she has now been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize as well.

"I can do everything. I can do it. I already proved it to the whole world. I'm not afraid. You think I can't take a leadership position? " she said in a DW interview ahead of International Womens' Day, which is observed annually on March 8.

Tsikhanouskaya holds a picture of activist Nina Baginskaya during the EU Parliament's 2020 Sakharov Prize ceremony

'I was a housewife ... What should I be ashamed of?'

Tsikhanouskaya emerged in 2020 as the face of the opposition to longtime authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko, and subsequently as the self-styled "leader of democratic Belarus." In May, when her husband Sergei Tsikhanousky, a well-known blogger and democracy activist, was barred from challenging Lukashenko for the presidency and arrested, she ran instead.

The strongman president, who had been in office since 1994, did not take her seriously as an opponent and claimed publicly that "a woman can't be a president." He attempted to demean her experience as a stay-at-home parent: "She just cooked a tasty cutlet, maybe fed the children, and the cutlet smelled nice."

But Tsikhanouskaya's determination to hit back at institutionalized misogyny struck a chord with millions of women in Belarus and abroad. Asked about Lukashenko's insults, she spoke of how he mocked "that I'm a housewife, I belong in the kitchen. He was trying to make fun of me," she said in a DW interview. But Tsikhanouskaya refused to even acknowledge the premise of his derision. "I was never offended by that because it is what it is. I was in fact a housewife for a number of reasons. That's true. Yes. If he wanted to insult me, he didn't succeed. It's the truth. What should I be ashamed of?"

WOMEN FIGHT FOR BELARUS' FUTURE

With flowers and earrings

For months now, women in Belarus have been protesting for democracy and the resignation of the autocratic president, Alexander Lukashenko. Nadia, the young woman who is looking into the eyes of the policeman, spent 10 days in jail, according to a description of the image at the exhibition "The Future of Belarus, Fueled by Women," in Vilnius, Lithuania.

PHOROS 123456789

It may be beyond Lukashenko's imagination that a woman could rule the country. But the opposition leader has no doubt that her country disagrees with his sexist rhetoric about a woman taking over the office of president. "Yes, I'm more than convinced that it's possible. Because my allies and I, and all Belarusian women who took to the streets have proven their resilience, their strong character. So Belarusians won't have any doubts that a woman can become the future president of Belarus."

2020 marked a turning point in many ways for the former Soviet republic — and especially for Belarusian women. Lukashenko's security forces initially spared women, but that changed once they became the driving force during democratic protests. Images and reports emerged of women — from teenagers to grandmothers — being arrested, beaten and even tortured. Several prominent women activists were detained and driven into exile.

Tsikhanouskaya said it was "an impulse of the heart" that propelled millions of Belarusian women to protest the electoral fraud. "Going out against violence — it was like an instinct. When we saw how many we were, we started being proud of ourselves. 'Here I am, I did it.' The inner strength awoke." 

Police across Belarus have made mass arrests at pro-democracy marches; reports of violence and torture have emerged

'The fear was always there'

Tsikhanouskaya described her remarkable ascent to leadership as that of having no choice. "The fear was always there: that you end up in prison, what would happen to your children then? Every morning you live with a feeling of fear. It doesn't mean that I have overcome my fear. It means that you do something in spite of your fear, because there is no other way."

Tsikhanouskaya and her children were put under immense pressure and were forced to flee the country. She has been living in exile in Lithuania since the election, from where she keeps on fighting for democracy.

The European Union and the United States have not recognized Lukashenko's claim that he won the election. Meanwhile, Tsikhanouskaya has become her country's representative on the international stage. Several world leaders have met with her — among them German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Tsikhanouskaya met with Merkel in Berlin in October and described the longtime leader as "extremely friendly" during the conversation. "It was obvious that she has a sense of empathy, that she understands our pain, that she would really like to help us."

Tsikhanouskaya and Merkel discussed the democratic movement in Belarus at their October meeting in Berlin

The opposition leader said that the 30-minute meeting focused on how Germany could help broker a possible dialogue between demonstrators and Belarusian authorities. "She's so straightforward," Tsikhanouskaya said of the longtime chancellor. Merkel shows "absolutely no arrogance and there's a sense of warmth coming from her. That doesn't contradict the notion of the strong woman she is known to be ... And it doesn't take tough talk to understand that she is a strong leader."

Yet like the German leader, who has famously said she does not view herself as a feminist, Tsikhanouskaya said the term does not particularly apply to her, either. She emphasized her recent actions as instead being out of circumstance and necessity after her husband's arrest: "I wouldn't consider myself a feminist," she told DW.

Watch video 04:57 Belarus: Protesters dance against Lukashenko

What does the future hold for Belarus?

Will Tsikhanouskaya continue her own quest for the presidency? At the beginning of March, Belarusian authorities put her on a wanted list for allegedly "preparing for unrest." She told DW that "she is ready to be with the Belarusians for as long as they need me" but that she will not necessarily pursue the job herself. "If circumstances change and we'll have new elections — that's our goal — I don't plan to run again. But we don't know what the situation will be. It could be that ... the people will decide that, yes, we trust her again. I always say: 'If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.'"

#IWD
Ofelia Fernandez: Inspiring young women all over Latin America

A determined feminist, Ofelia Fernandez is the youngest lawmaker in Latin America. The 20-year-old is an icon for many, but she has a few detractors.


The young says she's always sought the reasons for social inequalities,

 even as a child


Ofelia Fernandez is certainly not shy. The 20-year-old is keen to share her opinions about the deeply-rooted macho culture in Argentina and Latin America as a whole,women's rights, and how the younger generation needs to be able to shape the world of politics more. Right now, she believes, it is rusty and out of touch.

"I don't expect anyone to pretend to be generous by telling us about our future," she said in a campaign video in June 2019 that was posted on Instagram. "They have to accept that we are the damned present and it's our turn now."

She was running to become the youngest ever member of the Buenos Aires city legislature and she succeeded and at the same time became the youngest lawmaker in Latin America.
A Next Generation Leader

Last year, Time Magazine selected her a Next Generation Leader and she has been compared to the US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

When she was 17, she put a considerably older expert in his place after he interrupted her and dismissed her as "chiquita" (little girl) during a television debate. "Don't you call me chiquita," she told him. The scene went viral. That was three-and-a-half years ago, when students protested en masse against neoliberal education reforms.

But she really made a name for herself as a prominent figure in Argentina's "Revolution of the Daughters" movement, in which women donned green scarves and waved green flags to campaign for abortion rights.

Abortion is a very controversial subject on the majority Catholic continent, where it is illegal in a number of countries, even if a woman was raped or is in mortal danger.

Fernández with a banner carrying the feminist slogan 'Now is the Time'


"We're the ones who have abortions, and now it's up to you to give us the right to decide," Fernandez told lawmakers as Congress debated a bill to legalize abortion, a year before her official political career began. "If you don't, just know that you're sending us to die in your war, without our permission."

"You have to get used to the fact that we ourselves decide what life we want to lead," she said.

The bill was defeated in the senate, a slap in the face for Fernandez and the women's movement. Illegal abortions continued, however, in poor hygienic conditions and often with fatal consequences.

Fernandez' success eventually came when the bill was passed at the end of 2020. Abortions were made legal until the 14th week with the state footing the bill. Thousands of women poured out onto the streets to celebrate this victory against the patriarchy, hugging each other and crying for joy.
Early questions about equality

From a middle-class background with a musician father and office-worker mother, Fernandez has said that she became a feminist by chance. In a television interview, she said that she had always sought the reasons for social inequalities and as a child she had asked why she had food to eat while others didn't.

She was 15 when she became the first female president of the student council at her school, one of the best state schools in Argentina. This was the time when the feminist "Ni una menos" ("Not one woman less") movement kicked off in Argentina. Fernandez protested against feminicides, sexual abuse and the gender pay gap. She says that this is when she began thinking about feminism and her worldview changed: "Feminism is one perspective and I had to rethink my logic and priorities."

Today, Fernandez has become an icon for many, offering hope to a whole generation which does not feel sufficiently represented. She is honest and approachable, and also very direct. She has said in interviews that it was not easy to run for the leftist "Frente de Todos" (Everybody's Front) coalition, but that she was not able to resist the opportunity: "I didn't want to be responsible for changes not happening. For them to keep delaying the actions young people are calling for on the environment, on feminism."

Some see the young lawmaker as a nuisance, with her demands that officials be taught about gender issues or her campaigns for free and healthy school meals. She has also received a lot of online abuse. Her Instagram account has almost half a million followers but not all are fans. She told Time Magazine that the abuse upsets her but that she had to "resist."

"I have to remind myself that they're doing this not only so that I resign, but also to put off any girls who see me and feel inspired to step up and get involved in student activism or unions or politics."

Fernandez turns 21 in April, so she has plenty of time to continue inspiring others and campaigning for a more equal world.

VIDEO
Protesters practice shield formation before clashes

Sat, March 6, 2021,

Protesters practice shield formation before clashes

Video obtained by Reuters showed anti-coup protesters practicing retreating and advancing with the makeshift shields, one of an increasing number of ways protesters have used to protect themselves from security forces.

Protesters have also used longstanding superstitions like the idea that it is bad luck to walk under women's clothing to stop police from charging at them.

Security forces have opened fire with stun grenades, rubber bullets and live rounds since the start of the coup in February, causing the deaths of more than 50 protesters, according to the United Nations.
Video Transcript

[NO SPEECH]

Mexican Americans are the largest Latino group in the U.S. but lack political power



Russell Contreras
Sat, March 6, 2021, 5:30 AM·4 min read

Data: Pew Research Center, U.S. Census Bureau; Chart: Michelle McGhee/Axios

Mexican Americans make up the nation's largest Latino group, yet they remain politically outshined by more recently arrived Cuban Americans.

Why it matters: The disparities in political power between Mexican Americans and Cuban Americans reflect the racial, historical, geographical and economic differences within Latino cultures in the U.S.

For the first time in U.S. history, the Senate includes three Mexican Americans — Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), and Alex Padilla, (D-Calif.). — as the Mexican American population overall nears 37 million people.

Cuban Americans, who number just 2 million, are also represented by three Cuban American senators: Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.).

Between the lines: Today, the majority of Mexican Americans reside either in deep-blue California or in reliably red Texas. Neither state attracts many presidential candidates campaigning for the general election.

The political core of Cuban Americans live in swing-state Florida, making them more attractive to presidential candidates who often visit and play to the anti-communist passions of Cubans and Venezuelans.

The two groups helped deliver Florida and its 29 electoral votes for President Trump in the 2020 election.

How it works: Mexican Americans' concentration in non-swing states and weak political fundraising put them at a disadvantage to gain the political power that reflects their numbers, said Las Vegas-based Mexican American political consultant Eli Magaña.

The Democratic Party also hasn't invested in training Mexican American candidates or developing a pipeline for elected office, New Mexico political consultant Sisto Abeyta said.

The Koch-funded Libre Initiative trains Latinos to be activists on tax and immigration issues but doesn't train candidates to run for office.

Once-promising Mexican American political stars, like former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former California lieutenant governor Cruz Bustamante and former Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros, flamed out amid scandal, clearing the bench of potential national figures, wrote Los Angeles Times columnist Gustavo Arellano.

People of Mexican ancestry have been here since before the U.S.' founding and today represent 60 percent of the 61 million Latinos. But their political power is limited.

Nearly one-third of Mexican Americans are under 18 and can't vote, according to Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

One in four adults of Mexican descent in the U.S. is not a citizen, Vargas said.

Most Mexican-American elected officials come from poor, majority Mexican-American districts because of racial segregation and gerrymandering.

Flashback: President John F. Kennedy galvanized Mexican-American voters during his 1960 presidential run through "Viva Kennedy!" clubs, in the first massive effort by a presidential candidate to reach out to Latino voters.


The Congressional Hispanic Caucus credits that 1960 outreach as the impetus that got Mexican Americans involved in politics. Since then, more Hispanics, mostly Mexican-American Democrats, have been elected to Congress than in the previous 140 years, according to the Caucus.

A generation later, Texas Republican Gov. George W. Bush courted Mexican Americans during his gubernatorial and presidential races, and drew record numbers of Republican votes from Latinos.

By contrast, large numbers of Cubans, many from elite, mostly white wealthy families, started arriving in the 1960s after Fidel Castro overthrew dictator Fulgencio Batista.

Unlike Mexican Americans, Cold War Cuban refugees were given clear and quick paths to U.S. citizenship, including voting privileges, said University of Houston political science professor Jeronimo Cortina.

Anti-communist Cuban Americans joined the Republican Party following the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, and formed coalitions with some Republicans and conservative Democrats against civil rights and anti-poverty initiatives.

Some Mexican Americans embraced the struggles of African Americans while some Cuban Americans would later snub South African anti-apartheid revolutionary Nelson Mandela for his relationship with Castro.

Those actions of Cuban Americans angered moderate-Democratic-leaning Mexican Americans and led to political tensions between the two groups that linger today.

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