EXPROPRIATE PG&E

US power company charged over deadly California forest fire

Issued on: 25/09/2021
The Zogg Fire burned 56,000 acres and killed four people after it was sparked by a power line in September 2020 

Allison Dinner AFP/File


Los Angeles (AFP)

A US power company whose cables sparked a devastating California fire that killed four people has been charged with manslaughter, prosecutors said Friday.

More than 56,000 acres (22,000 hectares) were set ablaze when power lines operated by Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) came into contact with a tree in September 2020, igniting what became known as the Zogg Fire.

Prosecutors said the company knew the tree in Shasta County was dangerously close to a powerline and should have removed it three years earlier.

"We have sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the Pacific Gas and Electric Company is criminally liable for their reckless ignition of the Zogg Fire and the deaths and destruction that it caused," the county's district attorney Stephanie Bridgett said.

"Their failure was reckless and was criminally negligent, and it resulted in the death of four people" including an eight-year-old girl.

The county also levelled charges over three other fires.

PG&E is one of California's biggest power companies, and is responsible for maintaining large swathes of the state's creaking electricity infrastructure.

That includes keeping trees away from powerlines, especially at a time when the region is suffering through a prolonged drought that has left its forests dry and vulnerable to wildfires.

The company on Friday denied it was criminally culpable for the blaze.

"We've accepted (the fire department's) determination, reached earlier this year, that a tree contacted our electric line and started the Zogg Fire. But we did not commit a crime," said chief executive Patti Poppe.

"We've already resolved many victim claims arising from the Zogg Fire... and we are working hard to resolve the remaining claims."

PG&E has already been found guilty of causing the Camp Fire in 2018, the deadliest fire in recent California history.

That fire virtually wiped the small town of Paradise off the map and killed 86 people.

This year the company said it would bury 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) of powerlines in an effort to keep them away from vegetation.

The western United States is suffering through yet another terrible wildfire season.

Scientists say human-caused global warming is making the region hotter, drier and more vulnerable to fire.

© 2021 AFP

Huawei CFO strikes agreement with U.S. over fraud charges, allowing her to leave Canada

Karen Freifeld and Kenneth Li
Fri, September 24, 2021, 

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Huawei CFO strikes agreement with U.S. over fraud charges, allowing her to leave Canada
Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou arrives to attend court in Vancouver

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Huawei CFO strikes agreement with U.S. over fraud charges, allowing her to leave Canada
Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou arrives to attend court in Vancouver

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Huawei CFO strikes agreement with U.S. over fraud charges, allowing her to leave Canada
General view of the Brooklyn Federal Courthouse in New York City



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Huawei CFO strikes agreement with U.S. over fraud charges, allowing her to leave Canada
Assistant United States Attorneys arrive for a hearing for Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou CFO at the Brooklyn Federal District Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York


By Karen Freifeld and Kenneth Li

(Reuters) - Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou has reached an agreement with U.S. prosecutors to end the bank fraud case against her, officials said on Friday, a move that should allow her to leave Canada and relieve a point of tension between China and the United States.

Meng was arrested at Vancouver International Airport in December 2018 on a U.S. warrant, and was indicted on bank and wire fraud charges for allegedly misleading HSBC in 2013 about the telecommunications equipment giant’s business dealings in Iran. The bank questioned her following stories by Reuters in 2012 and 2013 about those dealings.


Her arrest sparked a political storm between the two countries, and drew Canada into the fray when China arrested a Canadian businessman and a former diplomat shortly after Meng was taken into custody.

In an exclusive on Friday, Reuters reported that the United States had reached a deferred prosecution agreement with Meng. Nicole Boeckmann, the acting U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, said that in entering into the agreement, "Meng has taken responsibility for her principal role in perpetrating a scheme to defraud a global financial institution.”

The agreement pertains only to Meng, and the U.S. Justice Department said it is preparing for trial against Huawei and looks forward to proving its case in court.

A spokeswoman for Huawei declined to comment.

At a hearing in Brooklyn federal court on Friday, which Meng attended virtually from Canada, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Kessler said the government will move to dismiss the charges against her if she complies with all of her obligations under the agreement, which ends in December 2022. He added that Meng will be released on a personal recognizance bond, and that the United States plans to withdraw its request to Canada for her extradition.

Meng - the daughter of Huawei founder, Ren Zhengfei - pleaded not guilty to the charges in the hearing. William Taylor III, an attorney representing Meng, said he was "very pleased" with the agreement, adding "we fully expect the indictment will be dismissed with prejudice after fourteen months. Now, she will be free to return home to be with her family."

Beyond solving a dispute between the United States and China, the agreement could also pave the way for the release of the two Canadians, businessman Michael Spavor and former diplomat Michael Kovrig, who have been held in China. In August, a Chinese court sentenced Spavor to 11 years in prison for espionage.

Meng, who has also used the English first names "Cathy" and "Sabrina," is confined to Vancouver and monitored 24/7 by private security that she pays for as part of her bail agreement.

"HUAWEI CONFIDENTIAL"

Articles published by Reuters in 2012 and 2013 about Huawei, Hong Kong-registered company Skycom and Meng figured prominently in the U.S. criminal case against her. Reuters reported that Skycom had offered to sell at least 1.3 million euros worth of embargoed Hewlett-Packard computer equipment to Iran's largest mobile-phone operator in 2010. At least 13 pages of the proposal were marked "Huawei confidential" and carried Huawei's logo.

Reuters also reported numerous financial and personnel links between Huawei and Skycom, including that Meng had served on Skycom’s board of directors between February 2008 and April 2009. The stories prompted HSBC to question Meng about Reuters findings.

Huawei was placed on a U.S. trade blacklist in 2019 that restricts sales to the company for activities contrary to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. The restrictions have hobbled the company, which suffered its biggest ever revenue drop in the first half of 2021, after the U.S. supply restrictions drove it to sell a chunk of its once-dominant handset business and before new growth areas have matured.

The criminal case against Meng and Huawei is cited in the blacklisting. Huawei is charged with operating as a criminal enterprise, stealing trade secrets and defrauding financial institutions. It has pleaded not guilty.

Judicial hearings in her extradition case in Vancouver wrapped up in August, with the date for a ruling to be set on Oct. 21.

A Canadian government official said Ottawa would be making no comments until the U.S. court proceedings were over. ​Kovrig’s wife declined to comment. Representatives for Spavor could not be reached immediately for comment.

CHINA VS USA

Huawei has become a dirty word in Washington, with a knee-jerk reaction by China hawks in Congress to any news that could be construed as the United States as being soft despite Huawei's struggles under the trade restrictions.

Then-President Donald Trump politicized the case when he told Reuters soon after her 2018 arrest that he would intervene if it would serve national security or help secure a trade deal. Meng's lawyers have said she was a pawn in the political battle between the two super powers.

Senior U.S. officials have said that Meng's case was being handled solely by the Justice Department and the case had no bearing on the U.S. approach to ties with China.

During U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman’s July trip to China, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng insisted that the United States drop its extradition case against Meng.

U.S. officials have acknowledged that Beijing had linked Meng's case to the case of the two detained Canadians, but insisted that Washington would not be draw into viewing them as bargaining chips.

(Reporting by Karen Freifeld, Kenneth Li, Jonathan Stempel, David Shpardson and Michael Martina; editing by Chris Sanders and Edward Tobin)

Michael Kovrig, Michael Spavor freed from China after Meng Wanzhou released: Trudeau


© THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor are on their way back to Canada after spending over 1,000 days in detention in China.

Trudeau said the two Canadians boarded a plane Friday night with Canada's ambassador to China Dominic Barton. The plane is expected to land in Canada Saturday morning.

"These two men have gone through an unbelievably difficult ordeal," Trudeau said.

"It is good news for all of us that they are on their way home to their families."

Read more: Meng Wanzhou to fly to China Friday night after being released by B.C. court

Trudeau made the announcement hours after Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou was released from house arrest in Vancouver and allowed to return home to China after securing a deal to drop U.S. charges against her.

As part of the new deferred prosecution agreement, Meng plead not guilty to charges that she committed fraud by misleading the HSBC bank about the company's business dealings in Iran.

Kovrig, a former diplomat, and businessman Spavor were detained in China days after Wanzhou was arrested at Vancouver's airport in December 2018 on behalf of the United States.

The two men were convicted on espionage charges in separate trials earlier this year. Spavor was later sentenced to 11 years in prison, while a sentence has yet to be issued for Kovrig.

Canada has repeatedly demanded China release the pair, saying they were arbitrarily detained on bogus charges.

Video: China releases ‘Two Michaels’ just hours after Meng Wanzhou plea deal

China has publicly maintained that there is no connection between Meng's case and the men's imprisonment. But Beijing has also dropped broad hints that if she were allowed to go free, that could benefit the two Canadians.

Experts say the timing of the pair's release has made the link with Meng's arrest explicit.

"We always knew that they were linked, it's just that no one wanted to say it out loud," said Yves Tiberghien, a political science professor at the University of British Columbia who specializes in Canada-China relations.

"What this also shows, however, is how hard diplomats have been working behind closed doors. That's I think why we see Ambassador Barton is on the plane."

Trudeau would not give further details about how Kovrig and Spavor's freedom was secured.

MAKE THE POPE APOLOGIZE

Catholic Church apologizes to Canada indigenous peoples for school abuses

Issued on: 25/09/2021 - 

People look at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School where flowers and cards were left in June 2021 as part of a memorial to children whose remains were discovered buried near the facility

 Cole BURSTON AFP/File

Ottawa (AFP)

The Catholic Church apologized "unequivocally" on Friday to Canada's indigenous peoples for a century of abuses at church-run residential schools set up by the government to assimilate children into the mainstream.

But indigenous leaders are still awaiting a mea culpa from the pope himself.

"We, the Catholic Bishops of Canada, express our profound remorse and apologize unequivocally," read a statement, in which they said they were "fully committed" to reconciliation.

The move follows recent discoveries, which convulsed Canada, of some 1,200 unmarked graves at three sites where indigenous children were forced to attend the schools.

In total, some 150,000 Indian, Metis and Inuit children were enrolled from the late 1800s to the 1990s in 139 of the residential schools across Canada, spending months or years isolated from the families.

It also comes less than a week before Canadians mark the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30.

The solemn commemoration for the thousands of indigenous children who died or went missing from the schools was set by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who said in June that Canadians were "horrified and ashamed of how our country behaved."

In the statement, the bishops said they "acknowledge the suffering experienced" by indigenous students and the "grave abuses" inflicted upon them, including "physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, cultural, and sexual" mistreatment at the hands of headmasters and teachers.

"Many Catholic religious communities and dioceses participated in this system, which led to the suppression of Indigenous languages, culture and spirituality, failing to respect the rich history, traditions and wisdom of Indigenous Peoples," they said.

A man holds his head as he attends an impromptu vigil at an anti-Canada Day event titled "No Pride in Genocide" in Toronto in July 2021 

Cole Burston AFP/File

"We also sorrowfully acknowledge the historical and ongoing trauma and the legacy of suffering and challenges faced by Indigenous Peoples that continue to this day."

- 'Cultural genocide' -

A truth and reconciliation commission concluded the failed government policy amounted to "cultural genocide."

Today, the residential school experiences are blamed for a high incidence of poverty, alcoholism and domestic violence, as well as high suicide rates, in Canada's indigenous communities.

Searches for more possible grave sites using ground penetrating radar continue after discoveries in British Columbia and Saskatchewan provinces.

Meanwhile, tribes are trying to piece together old documents that might help identify the deceased in the unmarked graves and shed light on the fate of others who never returned home.

The bishops committed to "providing documentation or records (requested by tribes) that will assist in the memorialization of those buried in unmarked graves."

Indigenous groups and leaders have also called for a papal apology for the Church's role in the residential schools, with backing from Trudeau who has said he personally implored Pope Francis to "make an apology to indigenous Canadians on Canadian soil."

Solar lights and flags mark where 751 human remains were discovered in unmarked graves at the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan, Canada in June 2021 

Geoff Robins AFP/File

Indigenous leaders have said an apology from the church is welcomed, but it would be more meaningful coming from the pope himself.

A delegation of Canadian indigenous peoples is scheduled to travel to the Vatican in December to meet with the pope.

In the meantime, the bishops said they would work with the Vatican and indigenous leaders to try to schedule a papal visit to Canada "as part of this healing journey."

© 2021 AFP

Abbas gives Israel 'one year' to quit Palestinian territory

Issued on: 24/09/2021 - 

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, via video link, at UN headquarters on September 24, 2021 in New York 

JOHN ANGELILLO POOL/AFP


United Nations (United States) (AFP)

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas gave Israel one year to withdraw from occupied territory Friday or he said he would no long recognize the Jewish state based on pre-1967 borders.

In a virtual address to the United Nations General Assembly, Abbas called on Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to "convene an international peace conference."

But along with that request he also issued an ultimatum.

"We must state that Israel, the occupying power, has one year to withdraw from the Palestinian territory it occupied in 1967, including East Jerusalem," he said.

Abbas added that the Palestinians were ready "to work throughout the year" on solving the final status of the states of Israel and Palestine "in accordance with United Nations resolutions."

But "if this is not achieved, why maintain recognition of Israel based on the 1967 borders?" he said.

Abbas added that the Palestinians would also go to the International Court of Justice "on the issue of the legality of the occupation of the land of the Palestinian state."

The peace process to achieve a two-state solution between in the Middle East has been deadlocked for years.

Israel immediately brushed aside the Palestinian leader's demands.

Abbas "proved once again that he is no longer relevant," said the Israeli ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan.

"Those who truly support peace and negotiations do not threaten delusional ultimatums from the UN platform as he did in his speech," he added.

© 2021 AFP

Fiery clash at UN as Pakistan, India trade extremism charges

Issued on: 25/09/2021 -

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan addresses the UN General Assembly by video PETER FOLEY POOL/AFP


United Nations (United States) (AFP)

India and Pakistan clashed Friday at the United Nations as Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan accused the rival of a "reign of terror" on Muslims, drawing a stern rebuke.

Even for Pakistan, which routinely castigates India at the world body, Khan's speech to the annual summit was strikingly loaded as he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of a plan to "purge India of Muslims."

"The worst and most pervasive form of Islamophobia now rules India," Khan said in an address, delivered by video due to Covid precautions.

"The hate-filled Hindutva ideology, propagated by the fascist RSS-BJP regime, has unleashed a reign of fear and violence against India's 200 million-strong Muslim community," he said.

Khan was referring to Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party and the affiliated Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a century-old Hindu revivalist movement with a paramilitary component.

Under Modi, India has rescinded the statehood of Kashmir, its only Muslim-majority region, pushed through a citizenship law that critics call discriminatory and has witnessed repeated flare-ups of religious-based violence.

Speaking on the day Modi was visiting the White House, Khan -- who has yet to speak to President Joe Biden -- alleged that commercial interests with billion-plus India were allowing it to "get away with human rights abuses with complete impunity."

While India often ignores Pakistan's statements at the world body, a young Indian diplomat on the floor exercised the right to respond to Khan.

Sneha Dubey, a first secretary at India's UN mission, accused Pakistan of sheltering and glorifying Al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden who was killed by US special forces in a 2011 raid in the army city of Abbottabad.

"This is the country which is an arsonist disguising itself as a firefight," she said.

"Pakistan nurtures terrorists in their backyard in the hope that they will only harm their neighbors."

She highlighted violence against minorities in Pakistan as well as its "religious and cultural genocide" in 1971 as Bangladesh won independence.

"Unlike Pakistan, India is a pluralistic democracy with a substantial population of minorities who have gone on to hold highest offices in the country," Dubey said.

Her reply triggered yet another response as a Pakistani diplomat, Saima Saleem, took issue with Dubey's contention that Kashmir, which is partially controlled by Islamabad, is an internal issue.

© 2021 AFP

Iceland votes as government hangs by a thread

Issued on: 25/09/2021 -

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir has been hailed for her handling of the Covid crisis Jonathan NACKSTRAND AFP/File
3 min
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Reykjavik (AFP)

Iceland votes on Saturday in an election that could see its unprecedented left-right coalition lose its majority, despite bringing four years of stability after a decade of crises.

With the political landscape more splintered than ever, the process of forming a new coalition could be more complicated than in the past.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir, whose Left-Green Movement had never led a government before, is seeking a second mandate but the large number of parties could get in her way.

Opinion polls suggest a record nine parties out of 10 are expected to win seats in the Althing, Iceland's almost 1,100-year-old parliament.

That makes it particularly tricky to predict which parties could end up forming a coalition.

"It is challenging for the politicians but I think for democracy it is better to have everyone at the table," Thorsteinn Thorvaldsson, a 54-year-old voter, told AFP on the eve of the election.

"When I was younger it was simpler, there were four parties, now we have 10. But it is interesting," he said.

With 33 of 63 seats, the outgoing coalition is a mix of the conservative Independence Party, the centre-right Progressive Party and the Left-Green Movement.

- 'Different opportunities' -

Some opinion polls suggest the current coalition will manage to secure a very narrow majority but others say it will fail.

"Because there are so many parties, I think there will be a lot of different opportunities to form a government," Prime Minister Jakobsdottir told AFP in an interview this week.

This is only the second time since 2008 that a government has made it to the end of its four-year mandate 

Odd ANDERSEN AFP/File

While she is broadly popular, her party is hovering around 10-12 percent in the polls and risks losing several seats.

During her four-year term, Jakobsdottir has introduced a progressive income tax system, increased the social housing budget and extended parental leave for both parents.

She has also been hailed for her handling of the Covid crisis, with just 33 deaths in the country of 370,000.

But she has also had to make concessions to keep the peace in her coalition, including a promise to create a national park in central Iceland which is home to 32 active volcano systems and 400 glaciers.

This is only the second time since 2008 that a government has made it to the end of its four-year mandate on the sprawling island.

Deep public distrust of politicians amid repeated scandals sent Icelanders to the polls five times from 2007 to 2017.

- 'Free-for-all' -

The Independence Party, which polls credit with around 20-24 percent of votes, also risks losing seats but is expected to remain the largest political party.

Its leader, Finance Minister Bjarni Benediktsson, is a former prime minister who comes from a family that has long held power on the right.

He is eyeing the post of prime minister.

Iceland which is home to 32 active volcano systems and 400 glaciers

 Jeremie RICHARD AFP

Benediktsson has survived several political scandals, including being implicated in the 2016 Panama Papers leak that revealed offshore tax havens, and is standing in his fifth election.

"I'm optimistic, I feel supported," he told a campaign rally this week, insisting his party would continue to be "the backbone of the next government".

But there are five other parties all hot on his heels, credited with 10 to 15 percent of votes.

They are the Left-Green Movement, the Progressive Party, the Social Democratic Alliance, the libertarian Pirate Party and the centre-right Reform Party. A new Socialist Party is also expected to put in a strong showing.

"There is not a clear alternative to this government. If it falls and they can't continue, then it's just a free-for-all to create a new coalition," political scientist Eirikur Bergmann said.

Former prime minister Bjarni Benediktsson is eyeing the top job

 Halldor KOLBEINS AFP/File

First early results are expected on Saturday shortly after voting stations close at 10:00 pm (2200 GMT), but a clear picture is not expected to emerge until the next day.

© 2021 AFP

Realist or radical? French Greens pick presidential candidate

Issued on: 25/09/2021 - 

Rousseau, the Greens former deputy leader, sprang a surprise in the first round of online voting, finishing a close second 

STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN AFP

Paris (AFP)

A former Greenpeace campaigner who aims to unite the fractured French left will from Saturday do battle with a self-styled "eco-feminist" radical for the presidential nomination of France's Greens.

Seven months before the polls, Yannick Jadot, a 54-year-old member of the European Parliament, faces 49-year-old economist Sandrine Rousseau in the second round of the primary of Europe Ecologie Les Verts (EELV).

Regardless of who is on top when results are announced on Tuesday, neither is tipped to be among Emmanuel Macron's top challengers in the race for the presidency.

The Green political movement in France so far lacks the national firepower of counterparts in Germany, where Greens have a chance of featuring in a coalition government after Sunday's polls.

But after spectacular gains made by the EELV in municipal elections last year -- the party swept the boards in several big cities -- the environment was confirmed to be a major concern among voters.

Jadot, the only Greens member with nationwide name recognition, had been expected to easily win the nomination on a promise of pragmatic "solutions-driven" environmental policies.

But Rousseau, the party's former deputy leader, sprang a surprise in the first round of online voting last week, finishing a close second out of five candidates with 25.14 percent, compared to Jadot's 27.7 percent.

Jean-Daniel Levy of the Harris Interactive polling institute told AFP its studies showed that Rousseau would win only two percent of votes cast nationally if she was chosen, compared to six percent for Jadot.

He said within the wider left, Jadot was neck-and-neck with Hidalgo whose candidacy bid has got off to a slow start.

"The potential is greater for Jadot because he can rally disappointed Macron supporters, who would find it difficult to return to a Socialist candidate," Levy told AFP.

- Feminist credentials -

Analysts have credited the strong performance to Rousseau's feminist credentials after she went public with allegations of sexual harassment against a Greens leader during the #MeToo movement.

Her radical proposals on the economy and environment -- she wants to introduce a minimum living wage and significantly increase fuel prices and hike taxes on the rich -- have also mobilised the party base.

Yannick Jadot is the only Greens member with nationwide name recognition 

STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN AFP

In a sign of the interest generated by the contest, over 122,000 people have registered to cast a vote between September 25 and 28 -- four times the number that took place in the Greens primary of 2012.

The race is being closely watched by the two main parties of the left, the Socialists and far-left France Unbowed, both of whom fear losing votes to the Greens.

While Rousseau is seen more likely to take votes from France Unbowed's firebrand leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, the more moderate Jadot is seen as more of a threat to Anne Hidalgo, the Socialist mayor of Paris, who is also running for president.

Most analysts expect the April elections to be a duel between Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen while emphasising that the emergence of a strong contender on the traditional right could yet upend these calculations.

© 2021 AFP

Denmark's 'freetown' Christiania hangs onto soul, 50 years on

Issued on: 25/09/2021 

Nestled in the heart of Copenhagen, Christiania is seen by some as a progressive social experiment, while others simply see it as a den of drugs 

Mads Claus Rasmussen Ritzau Scanpix/AFP


Copenhagen (AFP)

A refuge for anarchists, hippies and artists, Denmark's 'freetown' Christiania turns 50 on Sunday, and though it hasn't completely avoided the encroachment of modernity and capitalism, its free-wheeling soul remains intact.

Nestled in the heart of Copenhagen, Christiania is seen by some as a progressive social experiment, while others simply see it as a den of drugs.

On September 26, 1971, a band of guitar-laden hippies transformed an abandoned army barracks in central Copenhagen into their home. They raised their "freedom flag" and named their new home "Christiania, Freetown" after the part of the city where it is located.

They wanted to establish an alternative society, guided by the principles of peace and love, where decisions were made collectively and laws were not enforced.

Soft drugs were freely available, and repurposing, salvaging and sharing was favoured over buying new.

It was a community "that belonged to everybody and to no one", says Ole Lykke, who moved into the 34-hectare (84-acre) enclave in the 1970s.

These principles remain well-rooted today, but the area has changed in many ways: tourists weave through its cobblestone roads, and the once-reviled market economy is in full swing.

The area has changed in many ways: tourists weave through its cobblestone roads, and the once-reviled market economy is in full swing 

Mads Claus Rasmussen Ritzau Scanpix/AFP

Perhaps most importantly, it is no longer a squat. Residents became legal landowners when they bought some of the land from the Danish state in 2012.

Now it is home to some 900 people, many artists and activists, along with restaurants, cafes and shops, popular among the half a million tourists that visit annually.

"The site is more 'normal'," says a smiling Lykke, a slender 75-year-old with ruffled silver hair, who passionately promotes Christiania, its independence and thriving cultural scene.

Legislation has been enforced since 2013 -- though a tongue-in-cheek sign above the exit points out that those leaving the area will be entering the European Union.

- 'Embrace change'-

It is Christiania's ability to adapt with the times that has allowed it to survive, says Helen Jarvis, a University of Newcastle professor of social geography engagement.

"Christiania is unique," says Jarvis, who lived in Christiania in 2010. "(It) endures because it continues to evolve and embrace change".

Some of those changes would have been unthinkable at the start.

Residents secured a bank loan for several million euros to be able to buy the land, and now Christiania is run independently through a foundation.

A parade in Christiania to mark 50 years since its founding Mads Claus 

Rasmussen Ritzau Scanpix/AFP

They also now pay wages to the around 40 people employed by Christiania, including trash collectors and daycare workers.

"Money is now very important," admits Lykke, who is an archivist and is currently exhibiting 100 posters chronicling Christiania's history at a Copenhagen museum.

But it hasn't forgotten its roots.

"Socially and culturally, Christiania hasn't changed very much," he says, noting that the community's needs still come first.

- 'Judged a little' -

Christiania has remained a cultural hub -- before the pandemic almost two dozen concerts were held every week and its theatres were packed.

But it is still beset by its reputations as a drugs hub.

Though parts of Christiania are tranquil, lush and green with few buildings, others are bustling, with a post office, minimarket, healthcare centre, and Pusher Street, the notorious drug market.

Lykke says it's a side of Christiania most could do without.

"Most of us would like to get rid of it. But as long as (marijuana use) is prohibited, as long as Denmark doesn't want to decriminalise or legalise, we will have this problem," says Lykke.

While still officially illegal, soft drugs like marijuana and hash are tolerated -- though not in excess.

Since early 2020, Copenhagen police have seized more than one tonne of cannabis and more than a million euros.

"Sometimes I don't tell people that I live here because you get judged a little bit. Like, 'Oh, you must be into marijuana and you must be a smoker'," says Anemone, a 34-year-old photographer.

For others, Christiania's relaxed nature is part of the appeal.

"It's different from what I know, I really want to see it," laughs Mirka, a Czech teacher who's come to have a look around.

© 2021 AFP

Clashes as Chile police evict migrant squatters

Issued on: 24/09/2021 - 

Thousands of illegal migrants, mainly Venezuelan families, started arriving in Iquique a year ago

 MARTIN BERNETTI AFP

Iquique (Chile) (AFP)

Chilean police clashed with undocumented migrants in the Pacific port city of Iquique Friday as authorities evicted hundreds who have been squatting in a public square for months.

About 100 police took part in the operation that left one person injured and resulted in five arrests on the Plaza Brasil, officials reported.

Thousands of illegal migrants, mainly Venezuelan families, started arriving in Iquique a year ago, living on the streets in tents and surviving through charity donations, begging or doing odd jobs for cash.

Many of them arrived on foot after an exhausting journey via Bolivia. Many had lived in Peru before coming to Chile, and told AFP they left there due to heightened anti-Venezuelan xenophobia.

As police moved in to expel the migrants, some resisted. One injury and five arrests were reported 

MARTIN BERNETTI AFP

As police moved in to expel them on Friday, some resisted as residents of the neighborhood looked on -- some in support of the police, others denouncing the action.

"It cannot go on like this," said one neighbor, who identified herself only as Mariela.

"I had to move and I have not been able to rent out my house (because) our square has been taken over: there they eat, they go to the bathroom. One cannot live like this," she told AFP.

"The authorities have not come up with a solution for them or for us."

- 'Like we're animals' -

The authorities did not respond to AFP's attempts to find out where the migrants were taken.

The evacuation took place on the eve of a march planned in the city against undocumented migrants.

Joselyn, a 30-year-old Venezuelan who would not give her surname, said many among the squatters had sought to rent accommodation legally, "but the owners said no, simply because we are migrants."

The evacuation took place on the eve of a march planned in the city against undocumented migrants 

MARTIN BERNETTI AFP

Luis, another Venezuelan migrant aged 24, wondered what would happen to them.

"They are not giving us any papers, they are kicking us out like we're animals. Animals are not even treated like this," he said.

Local authorities and residents claim crime has increased since the arrival of the migrants.

"The evacuation of these spaces has to do with the fact that it is not allowed to use public spaces with a recreational purpose to put up temporary housing," said Interior Minister Rodrigo Delgado.

Many of the migrants who enter Chile from the north are headed for Santiago or further south with the help of family or friends already there, but others without resources or even identity papers get stuck in mining or industrial cities in the north.

© 2021 AFP

Migrants leave US-Mexican border camps

Issued on: 25/09/2021 - 

A United States Border Patrol agent on horseback tries to stop a Haitian migrant from entering an encampment on the banks of the Rio Grande in Texas 

PAUL RATJE AFP/File

Ciudad Acuña (Mexico) (AFP)

Almost all of the mostly Haitian migrants who had gathered on both sides of the US-Mexico border have left their makeshift camps, ending a standoff that had provoked a major border crisis for the Biden administration.

At Ciudad Acuna on the Mexican side, AFP saw migrants packing up their belongings and getting into vans taking them to a shelter, after a deal struck with the Mexican government.

Just hours beforehand the United States had announced that the last of the migrants who were camping illegally under a bridge on the Texas side of the border had either left 

"As of this morning, there are no longer any migrants at the camp underneath the Del Rio bridge," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told reporters at the White House.

Around 2,000 were flown to Haiti on 17 expulsion flights, Mayorkas said, while "others have been moved to processing facilities along the border."

"Many of them will be returned to Haiti from there," he said.

The Homeland Security chief said an estimated 8,000 had voluntarily returned across the border to Mexico, some 12,400 individuals will have their cases heard by an immigration judge, and another 5,000 are being processed to determine if they will be removed or not.

In Ciudad Acuna, city council secretary Felipe Basulto said migrants currently at the shelter would not be detained or deported, and that they could move around the city "with complete confidence."

He said they would be able to try and resolve their immigration status while at the shelter, which is being administered by the National Migration Institute "precisely so that they can offer them an alternative of legally staying in the country."

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said all migrants had been removed or had left the Del Rio bridge in Texas 

MANDEL NGAN AFP

The relocation came hours after Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he did not want his country to become "a migrant camp."

"We want the underlying problem to be addressed," he said, urging the United States to invest in economic development in Central America so people do not need to flee poverty.

- 'Outrageous treatment' -

Despite the camps' emptying, some Haitians continued to arrive in the US city of Monterrey on Friday.

"If I find work to live here, to support my family, I have no problem staying," Joseph Yorel told AFP on Friday.

The sudden appearance of thousands of desperate Haitians, who traveled through much of Latin America to reach the United States, has caused a major headache for President Joe Biden's administration.

The issue was brought into sharp relief after uproar over photos of confrontations between border patrol officers on horseback and Haitians on foot.

Showing officers wielding long leather reins and dressed in some cases in clothing reminiscent of Westerns, the photos for many evoked distressing images of vigilante justice or even the US slavery era.

In his first comments on the disturbing images, Biden said it was "outrageous" and promised "consequences."

"It was horrible... to see people treated like they did: horses nearly running them over and people being strapped," Biden said. "It's outrageous. I promise you, those people will pay."

President Joe Biden said confrontations between border patrol agents on horseback and Haitian migrants were 'outrageous'

 Anna Moneymaker GETTY IMAGES/AFP

He added: "An investigation is underway now, and there will be consequences."

- Biden in a bind -

Biden took office in January vowing to reverse what he called his Republican predecessor Donald Trump's inhumane policies at the southern border.

Trump, who regularly warned that US borders were being overwhelmed and claimed falsely that immigrants were bringing large-scale crime and disease, focused much of his presidency on promises to control the frontiers.

Biden finds himself in a bind eight months into his presidency, with huge numbers of would-be migrants being apprehended after crossing illegally from Mexico, including 200,000 people in August.

The government had allowed some of the more vulnerable migrants to register and enter the United States.

However, many of the Haitian migrants were ordered to be flown immediately back to Haiti, the country they'd fled in some cases years earlier.

The US special envoy to Haiti resigned in protest Thursday, citing the "inhumane, counterproductive decision."

At the same time, Biden is hammered daily by Republicans and the Fox News network which portrays the southern border as out of control and the White House as surrendering American security.

© 2021 AFP

For Haitian migrants, Mexican reality replaces US dream

Issued on: 24/09/2021 -

A Haitian migrant bathes in the Rio Grande river in Ciudad Acuna at the Mexican-US border 

Ciudad Acuña (Mexico) (AFP)

The American dream is fading for Haitian migrants confronted with the harsh reality at the US border with Mexico, where some are considering staying and getting a job to survive instead.

"I'm not in a hurry to enter the United States. If I find an opportunity, yes, but if I can't, I'm not going to risk crossing there," said 29-year-old mother Yslande Saint Ange.

"If I can't and the Mexican authorities can help us with papers to be allowed to look for a job, rent a room, then we can stay with no worries," she added.

Around the park in Ciudad Acuna where they have set up a makeshift camp, men and women gathered discussing what to do given the US repatriation of Haitians trying to cross over.

They were still recovering from the fright caused by the sudden arrival of dozens of Mexican police officers before dawn on Thursday, in what initially appeared to be a massive raid.

"I got up running and told my husband to run because the migration authorities are going to take us," Saint Ange said.

- 'Like hell' -

Mexican immigration officials then entered the camp to announce that the operation was to "protect" the migrants and "invite" them to return to the southern city of Tapachula while their refugee applications are processed.

A man carries a child on his shoulders as Haitian migrants cross the Rio Grande river between Ciudad Acuna in northern Mexico and Del Rio, Texas 

PEDRO PARDO AFP

Tapachula, located near the border with Guatemala, is already crammed with tens of thousands of Central Americans and Haitians.

Many of the Haitians had been living in Chile and Brazil, which gave them refuge after the 2010 earthquake that left around 200,000 people dead in their country.

Most of those in Ciudad Acuna left Tapachula because they were tired of the daily struggle to survive there.

"If I go to Tapachula, what can I do? I left my country four years ago... I have nothing -- nothing!" said Hollando Altidor, 25.

"Tapachula looks like hell for us, with deportation in the future too," added a young man sitting next to Altidor who did not want to give his name.

Marc Desilhomme, 29, said he was ready to stay in Mexico if he can send money to his daughter who lives in Chile.

"For now I don't have anything. I don't have money and I have a girl to help. Before that I need papers to work, because you know that migration hassles you if you don't have papers," he said.

- 'Not on vacation' -

The situation is more urgent for people traveling with children.

When the police arrived, Etlover Doriscar grabbed his son and wife by the hand and fled with just the clothes on his back, fearing that they would be detained.

"You can never fight with the police or immigration. They know what they can do with us and there's nothing we can do," the 32-year-old said.

Tens of thousands of migrants, many of them Haitians previously living in South America, have arrived in recent weeks in Mexico hoping to enter the United States PEDRO PARDO AFP

Attempting to cross into the United States and risk deportation back to his country is out of the question for Doriscar.

Nor does he plan to return to Brazil, where he worked for seven years as an Uber driver -- a job that he said did not pay enough to support his family.

The Mexican refugee commission is struggling with a backlog of requests for documents, and some of the migrants in Tapachula have been waiting for months for their papers.

Sonja Pierre, who arrived at the border a week ago, said commission officials should come to Ciudad Acuna to help the migrants with documents instead of sending them back to Tapachula.

"We're poor. We're looking for work. We're not on vacation," the 43-year-old said.

'They won't stop me': Haitians stuck in Colombia keep sights on US

Issued on: 25/09/2021 - 

Haitian migrants Benedictine Point Du Jour (R) and her son Roberth are undeterred in their quest to make it to the United States, come what may 

Raul ARBOLEDA AFP

Necocli (Colombia) (AFP)

Halfway on their perilous journey to the United States, news reaches a Haitian mother and son near the Colombian border with Panama that American officials are deporting their newly arrived compatriots by the thousands.

But Benedictine and Roberth Point Du Jour are undeterred by the disturbing images of Haitian border-crossers being detained on arrival in Texas from Mexico.

"My goal is to get there and they cannot stop me," said the mother, 42, who began the journey with her son on August 6 from Chile, where many Haitians found refuge after a devastating earthquake in 2010.

With economies struggling from the fallout of the coronavirus epidemic and travel restrictions being lifted, many are now making their way north through Central America with dreams of a better life in the United States.

The Point Du Jours find themselves stuck in the coastal town of Necocli in northwest Colombia with some 19,000 other undocumented migrants, mainly Haitians, trying to enter Panama.

Some have been stranded here for weeks, waiting for seats on boats that cross the Gulf of Uraba to Acandi on the Panama border.

There are only 250 boat tickets available every day.

The migrants are waiting for limited places on a boat to Acandi, on the Panama border Raul ARBOLEDA AFP

From Acandi, they will start on foot -- and armed with machetes, lanterns and tents -- the dangerous trek of at least five days to Panama through the Darien jungle, battling snakes, steep ravines, swollen rivers, tropical downpours and criminals often linked to drug trafficking.

In a recent report, Doctors Without Borders (known by its French acronym MSF) said criminal gangs in the jungle prey on migrants, and assaults and rapes are common.

- Fear of drowning -

Still in Necocli, Roberth Point Du Jour on Thursday recounted his biggest fear: drowning on the 40-mile (60-kilometer) journey across the gulf.

"The second (fear) is that they will deport me," he said, "because the thing I want most is to make something of myself in life."

Nearly 20,000 undocumented migrants, mainly Haitians, are stuck in the northwestern Colombian town of Necocli, trying to make their way to Panama and ultimately the United States

 Raul ARBOLEDA AFP

The US government came in for much criticism over images of mounted border patrol officers wielding long leather reins and confronting a slew of migrants crossing the border from Mexico.

Many have been driven back, and some 1,400 others repatriated to Haiti on a series of flights.

"It's a shame but my goal is... to get there, no matter what," Benedictine insisted, stubbornly.

Waiting their turn, she and her son are renting accommodation in Necocli -- a town of some 45,000 people -- for $10 a night.

Many other migrants have no choice but to camp on the beach.

"It's too late to go back now," said Frank, a 38-year-old Haitian who also made the trip from Chile and withholds his family name for fear of reprisals from authorities along the way.

Six countries still separate him from the United States, where friends and family await.

So far this year, an estimated 60,000 people have crossed the Colombia-Panama border Raul 

ARBOLEDA AFP

Frank is travelling with five relatives including a baby of six months.

Under an agreement between the governments of Panama and Colombia, no more than 650 migrants are allowed to cross the border every day, contributing to the bottleneck.

Some 11,500 people have managed to buy tickets to make the boat trip to Acandi by October 13, and a further unknown number of people are trying to make the crossing on "illegal" vessels, according to Colombia's human rights ombudsman Carlos Camargo.

- 'Do not come' -

All this despite US officials insisting in recent months that undocumented migrants will not be allowed entry.

"Do not come," Vice President Kamala Harris said in June. "You will be turned back."

But officials say there have been several thousand new arrivals at Necocli in recent weeks.

So far this year, an estimated 60,000 people have crossed the Colombia-Panama border -- a key crossing for migrants fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries in search of a better life up north.

Many did not make it through the forest, according to their fellow travelers.

Those who make it to Panama, MSF said in a report last month, are generally held for processing and deportation.

Those with pending administrative or judicial processes -- refugee applications, for example, or giving testimony against human traffickers -- can be held at a migrant reception center for weeks or months.

"The centers are a source of complaints, as those who are held there face inadequate food and shelter, a lack of clean water and showers, and no means to communicate with their families," MSF said.

© 2021 AFP