Amazon birds becoming smaller, longer-winged due to climate change

A Collared Puffbird of the Amazon rainforest (AFP/Vitek Jirinec)

Issam AHMED
Fri, November 12, 2021

Even the wildest parts of the Amazon untouched by humanity are being impacted by climate change, according to new research.

Hotter, drier conditions over the past four decades are decreasing the body size of the rainforest's birds while increasing their wingspans, a study published in the journal Science Advances said Friday.

The changes are thought to be a response to nutritional and physiological challenges, especially during the June to November dry season.

"The biggest takeaway for me is that this is happening far from direct human disturbance, such as deforestation, in the heart of the world's biggest rainforest," Vitek Jirinec, an ecologist at the Integral Ecology Research Center and the paper's lead author told AFP.

"That is something to ponder on the last day of COP26," he added.

Jirinec and colleagues analyzed data collected on more than 15,000 birds that were caught, measured, weighed, and tagged over the course of 40 years of field work.

They found that nearly all the birds had become lighter since the 1980s.

Most species lost an average of two percent of body weight every decade, meaning a bird species that would have weighed 30 grams in the 1980s would now average 27.6 grams.

The data was not tied to a specific site but rather collected from a large range of the rainforest, meaning the phenomenon is ubiquitous.

- More efficient flight -

In all, the scientists investigated 77 species whose habitats ranged from the cool, dark forest floor to the sunlit and warmer midstory -- the forest's middle layer of vegetation.

The birds at the highest sections of the midstory, which fly more and are exposed to heat for longer, had the most pronounced changes in body weight and wing size.

The team hypothesized this was an adaptation to energy pressures -- for example decreased availability of fruit and insect resources -- and also to thermal stress.

"There's good theoretical reasoning why a smaller size is beneficial under climate warming -- you can cool yourself better -- but the larger wings are more difficult to explain," said Jirinec.

"That's why we proposed the 'wing loading' hypothesis," he added.

Longer wings, and a reduced mass-to-wing ratio, produce more efficient flight -- similar to how a glider plane with a slim body and long wings can soar with less energy.

A higher mass-to-wing ratio requires birds to flap faster to stay aloft, using more energy and producing more metabolic heat.

Jirinec added that the study was not designed to tell whether these differences were driven by natural selection resulting in genetic changes, or whether they were the result of different growth patterns based on available resources.

Both are possible, "but there's good evidence that evolution can happen over short intervals," he said. A confirmed example of rapid evolution is the recent emergence of tuskless African elephants, which are poached for their ivory.

The Amazon birds "are fairly fine-tuned, so when everyone in the population is a couple of grams smaller, it's significant," added co-author Philip Stouffer of Louisiana State University, in a statement.

How well they deal with increasingly hotter and drier conditions in the future remains an open question.

The team behind Friday's paper last month published a study showing a dramatic decline in sensitive bird species in the Amazon owing to a warming climate -- particularly those that dwell on forest floor where they forage for insects.

The authors believe other species across the world are likely to be facing similar pressures that have not yet been documented.

"This is undoubtedly happening all over and probably not just with birds," Stouffer said.

ia/dw

US BILLIONAIRE space tourist dies in plane crash


Glen de Vries (R) with fellow Blue Origin crew members at the New Shepard rocket landing pad in Texas on October 13, 2021 (AFP/Patrick T. FALLON)


Fri, November 12, 2021

US businessman Glen de Vries, who flew into space with "Star Trek" actor William Shatner on last month's Blue Origin flight, has died in a plane crash, police said Friday.

The small aircraft came down in Hampton Township, New Jersey, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) west of New York City, shortly before 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on Thursday, a spokesman for New Jersey state police told AFP.

"There are two confirmed fatalities," the spokesman said, naming de Vries, 49, and 54-year-old Thomas Fischer.


"The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) will be the lead investigating agency," he added, without providing more details.

De Vries, the founder of clinical research platform Medidata Solutions, joined Shatner on Blue Origin's second crewed mission on October 13.

Also on board for the 11-minute journey that took them beyond Earth's atmosphere and back again were Blue Origin executive Audrey Powers and Planet Labs co-founder Chris Boshuizen.

"We are devastated to hear of the sudden passing of Glen de Vries," Blue Origin said in a tweet.

"He brought so much life and energy to the entire Blue Origin team and to his fellow crewmates. His passion for aviation, his charitable work, and his dedication to his craft will long be revered and admired."

pdh/bgs

‘Dolphin Tale’ Star Winter Dies Of Gastrointestinal Abnormality, Aquarium Says
By Giulia Campos
11/12/21 

Dolphin Photo: Pixabay

The 16-year-old female bottlenose dolphin that starred in the popular movie “Dolphin Tale” died of a gastrointestinal abnormality on Thursday evening at Florida’s Clearwater Marine Aquarium.

The prosthetic-tailed dolphin named Winter was being prepared for a procedure by specialists and marine mammal experts from around the country to treat her for a gastrointestinal abnormality. She died while being held by the experts despite life-saving efforts.

“While we are heartbroken by Winter’s death, we are comforted knowing that our team did everything possible to give her the best chance at survival,” veterinarian Dr. Shelly Marquardt said in a statement.

“I’m honored to work alongside such dedicated and talented professionals who gave their all for Winter,” Marquardt added.

Aquarium president James Powell told reporters Winter previously experienced intestinal issues but she was not responding to treatment like she had in the past.

The aquarium will be closed on Friday to provide time for the staff and fans to grieve. Plans for a memorial will be announced soon.

“Many are inspired by her resiliency and this amazing response reminds us of how deeply she has affected millions, including so many on their own health journey,” the aquarium said in a statement.

Winter’s tail had to be amputated when she was 2 months old after she got entangled in a crab trap near Cape Canaveral. “Dolphin Tale,” which was released in 2011, chronicled Winter’s recovery and the efforts to fit her with a prosthetic tail, the Associated Press noted.

The film, which was mainly shot at the Clearwater aquarium, starred Harry Connick Jr., Ashley Judd, Kris Kristofferson, Morgan Freeman and Nathan Gamble. The film brought legions of fans to the aquarium to see the inspiration for the story

Disorder In The Court: ‘Black Pastors’, ‘Asian Food’ Comments Raise Racist Ire In Arbery, Rittenhouse Cases


By Maggie Valenti
11/12/21 

William "Roddie" Bryan listens to opening arguments at his trial for the murder of Black jogger Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick, Georgia

 Photo: GETTY IMAGES / POOL


Two high-profile murder cases are underway, the trials of Kyle Rittenhouse and the three men charged with gunning down Ahmaud Arbery, and those involved in the trials are receiving backlash for racist comments, including a judge and a defense attorney.

During the trial of the three men in Georgia, defense attorney Kevin Gough, who represents co-defendant William “Roddie” Bryan, took issue with the presence in the courtroom of Rev. Al Sharpton, a Baptist minister and civil rights activist who was invited by the Arbery family.

"We don't want any more Black pastors coming in here or other Jesse Jackson, whoever was in here earlier this week, sitting with the victim's family trying to influence a jury in this case," said Gough, adding that he has "nothing personally against" Sharpton. “If we're going to start a precedent, starting yesterday, where we're going to bring high-profile members of the African-American community into the courtroom to sit with the family during the trial in the presence of the jury, I believe that's intimidating and it's an attempt to pressure ... or influence the jury.”

During the trial of Rittenhouse, Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder made a joke about an upcoming lunch break and has come under criticism for heavy-handed behavior during the trial.

He joked, “I hope the Asian food isn’t coming . . . isn’t on one of those boats along Long Beach Harbor.”

The joke plays on stereotypes in the U.S. about Asian cuisine and Asian people. Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, hate crimes against Asian Americans have risen around the globe and in the U.S., many based on harmful stereotypes.

Both trials have come under criticism due to their predominantly white juries. In Kenosha County, Wisconsin, where Rittenhouse’s trial is taking place, the area is 75% white and the jury is overwhelmingly white, according to a New York Times breakdown of the jury selection.

In Glynn County, Georgia, where the Arbery trial is taking place, over a quarter of the residents are Black and yet there is only one Black juror, according to an analysis by USA Today.

Sharpton was quick to point this out. He called the Arbery case a lynching in the 21st century.

THAT IS CORRECT

'Ruled By The Capital': Chinese Official Criticizes Western Democracy

By Maggie Valenti
11/12/21

The top leaders of China's ruling Communist Party are set to begin a pivotal meeting expected to further firm President Xi Jinping's grip on power 

 Photo: AFP / GREG BAKER

During a press conference in China on Friday, Chinese officials voiced rare, public criticism of Western democracies ahead of the U.S. “Summit for Democracy” to be held in early December.

The press conference addressed Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vision for a system dominated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Jiang Jinquan, the director of the policy research office for the CCP, made comments critical of Western countries that impose their ideas of democracy on the world, specifically China.

“The electoral democracy of Western countries are actually democracy rules by the capital, and they are a game of the rich, not real democracy,” Jiang said, according to translations.

Jiang also criticized the Summit for Democracy, saying “the US will host a so-called democracy summit and seeks to revive Western democracy, and it’s a huge irony to host it against the mounting problems faced by Western democracy."

The Summit for Democracy in December is the first of two which will bring together leaders from around the world. However, the CCP official cited an unspecified study that 81% of Americans claimed there was a serious threat to U.S. democracy, according to the South China Morning Post. In contrast, Jiang cited a number often provided by Chinese officials that 90% of citizens are satisfied with their government.

“Which is better, and which is worse?” Jiang said. “Anyone with a clear eye can tell themselves.”

The comments come a day after Xi became China’s third leader, including Mao Zedong, founder of the CCP, and Deng Xiaoping, to adopt a “historical resolution” at a CCP meeting. According to Reuters, the resolution has yet to be released in full to the public.

SCHADENFREUDE

GOP Lawmaker Who Organized Anti-Vaccine Rally Gets COVID-19, Misses Own Event

By Danielle Ong
11/11/21 

Anti-vaccine rally protesters hold signs outside of Houston Methodist Hospital in June 2021 - employees had sought to overturn a vaccine mandate, but their case was dismissed in a federal court

 Photo: AFP / Mark Felix

KEY POINTS

The rally aimed to protest President Biden's vaccine mandates

Hoverson was previously accused of having an altercation with a TSA agent

The lawmaker also sponsored a bill making abortion a Class AA felony

A Republican lawmaker who organized an anti-vaccine rally skipped the event after he was diagnosed with COVID-19.

Rep. Jeff Hoverson, R-ND, assisted in the organization of the “We The People rally” that was set to gather at the steps of the state capitol in Bismarck, North Dakota, on Monday. The protest aimed to oppose President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

But while the rally went ahead as scheduled, Hoverson did not make it to the event. On Sunday, a day before the rally, the Republican took to his Facebook account to announce that he had been infected with COVID-19.

“Covid is real and like a really bad flu. I am currently quarantining and each day is getting better,” he wrote in his post.

In the same post, Hoverson said he was taking the deworming drug ivermectin — a drug that some people promote as a treatment for COVID-19.

“Ivermectin, Hydroxychloroquine, vitamins, etc; according to hundreds upon hundreds of medical experts, including in ND, SHOULD BE OUR EARLY AMBULATORY CARE,” Hoverson added.

The Food and Drug Administration has already advised against the use of the drug, noting that many who self-medicated using ivermectin required hospitalization.

The North Dakota Republican also said he was taking hydroxychloroquine, a drug previously touted by former President Donald Trump as the cure to COVID-19. A randomized trial held by the World Health Organization found that hydroxychloroquine did not reduce mortality among COVID-19 patients nor did it reduce the need for a ventilator.

Hoverson has become the topic of several news headlines in the past months. In October, the lawmaker was barred from boarding a flight at Minot International Airport after an alleged run-in with a TSA agent.

The incident occurred after a TSA officer initiated a pat-down when the lawmaker set off the alarm in a screening machine. The agent said Hoverson refused to comply with the pat-down and moved the agent’s hand away. The lawmaker eventually complied when police arrived, but the airline decided to deny him boarding, according to The Associated Press.

Early this year, Hoverson also sponsored House Bill 1313, which would make anyone found to have performed an abortion to be guilty of a Class AA felony. Anyone who aided or facilitated the abortion could also be found guilty of a Class C felony.

In this file photo, a NASA worker is protesting a requirement for federal workers to receive the Covid-19 vaccine 

Photo: AFP / Robyn Beck

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON
Trudeau calls for clearing cyberspace of hate, disinformation at peace forum

OTTAWA — Hate speech, disinformation and online extremism can't be allowed to prevent people from enjoying the freedom that cyberspace offers, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday at an international discussion on the internet.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

"There is no doubt: the digital space has incredible power for good. But from disinformation on vaccines to online extremism, we’ve also seen the threat it can pose to our democratic values, systems and our citizens," Trudeau said via video link from Ottawa to the Paris Peace Forum.

"We can't allow the benefits of the digital space to come at the expense of people's rights or safety."

The forum bills itself as an effort to revitalize global institutions, and is focusing this year on the vast inequalities exposed by the pandemic.

In-person attendees included the host, French President Emmanuel Macron, U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris, and Canada's industry minister, Francois-Philippe Champagne, who is also attending a conference on artificial intelligence in the French capital.

Harris said the U.S. is committed to working with its allies to eliminate online terrorist content.

"For the United States, our approach to the digital domain is rooted in our democratic principles," she said. "We will continue to advocate for an open, secure and interoperable internet and work to ensure that technology helps, not harms, the people of our world."

Trudeau was addressing a panel on the challenges of the digital domain after co-founding a new international program last year with called the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence.

He noted that Canada served as the chair of the partnership last year and "focused on bringing together the international community to ensure AI respects rights and freedoms and doesn't harm democratic societies."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen addressed the gathering from Washington where she has been holding meetings with U.S. President Joe Biden.

She said the EU and U.S. have deepened their co-operation on how to make AI more "trustworthy" for its users.

"AI is without any doubt already changing our lives for the better. It can help for example, detect cyberattack... it can support doctors in more precise cancer diagnosis," said von der Leyen.

"Yet, for people to trust AI, we must also manage the risks."

Before the speeches, Macron welcomed a roomful of masked and physically spaced international politicians and business leaders to a high-ceilinged Parisian conference centre. That included Champagne, one of two Canadian federal ministers travelling in Europe this week, with whom the French president exchanged an extended handshake.

Earlier this week, Champagne told The Canadian Press he is planning to table a new digital charter after the return of parliament to address the issues surrounding AI and the internet-based economy.

Champagne said earlier this week the technology needs to be mindful of protecting privacy and that the government needs to create an overarching framework that reflects Canadian values.

Von der Leyen told the gathering that the EU was joining France in its pursuit of building trust and security in cyberspace.

"Throughout the pandemic, indeed, the internet has been a lifeline for millions of companies, and the only connection to our loved ones for so many of us," she said.

"Yet cyberspace has also become a more dangerous place, with rising threats against our critical infrastructure, our democratic processes, and even our personal health and safety, including our children's."

Trudeau's live video address to the conference also highlighted another challenge that those working through internet have had to rise above during the pandemic — a failing connection that cuts you off from the people you are trying to connect with.

About three minutes into his presentation from Ottawa, Trudeau's screen froze, and then cut out.

The live, onstage moderator back in Paris immediately pivoted back to the attendees.

"He seems to have disappeared. Anyway, thank you very much," he said, calling on the French crowd to give the Canadian prime minister a round of applause — which they did.

"It just goes to show that he really is live, and we're not so showing you pre-recorded videos."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 11, 2021.

Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press

Hatred offences of the Criminal Code

Origin of the provisions

In the early 1960s, concerns were raised by various public groups (such as the Canadian Jewish Congress), by some media outlets, and by some politicians (such as John Diefenbaker, then Leader of the Opposition) about the rise of hate publications in Canada.^{[4]: pp.245–247} The federal government of Prime Minister Lester Pearson responded by appointing a committee in January 1965 to study the issue and make recommendations about legislation: the Special Committee on Hate Propaganda in Canada, commonly referred to as the "Cohen Committee" after its chair, Maxwell Cohen.

The Minister of Justice, Guy Favreau appointed the seven members of the Committee: Maxwell Cohen, Dean of Law at McGill University;^[5] Dr. James A. Corry, Principal of Queen's University; Father Gérard Dion, professor of industrial relations at Université Laval;^[6] Saul Hayes, QC, executive vice-president of the Canadian Jewish Congress; Mark MacGuigan, then a professor of law at the University of Toronto; Shane MacKay, executive editor of the Winnipeg Free Press;^[7] and Pierre-Elliott Trudeau, then a professor of law at the Université de Montréal.^[4]: 248 In Keegstra, Chief Justice Dickson described this group as "a particularly strong committee".^{[1]: pp.724–725}

In 1966, the Committee made its report. It recommended that Parliament enact legislation to combat hate speech and genocide. The Pearson government promptly introduced the legislation, proposing three new offences: advocating genocide; publicly inciting hatred in a way likely to lead to a breach of the peace; and wilfully promoting hatred. The bill then took four years to wend its way through Parliament. The bill finally passed in 1970, under the government of Pierre Trudeau, by that time Prime Minister of Canada.^{[4]: pp.259–264 [8]}

Hate speech laws in Canada - Wikipedia

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rising, despite COP26 pledges

Data from the national space research agency shows deforestation increased by 5 percent from October 2020.

The government's space agency said alerts in October corresponded to 877 square kilometres - the highest indicator for the month in five years [Bruno Kelly/Reuters]

Published On 12 Nov 2021

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest rose in the month of October compared with last year, according to satellite images, in contradiction of pledges by the administration of President Jair Bolsonaro that it would do more to curb illegal deforestation in the area.

The preliminary data from national space research agency INPE showed on Friday about 877 square kilometres (339 square miles) of forest were cleared last month, a 5 percent increase from October 2020. It was the worst October deforestation since the current monitoring system began in 2015.

KEEP READING
Indigenous leaders push new target to curb Amazon deforestation
Amazon’s Carbon Crisis: How fire could accelerate climate change
Landmark pact to protect Amazon rainforest shows little progress

The new data comes at a moment when Brazil’s government has been trying to improve its reputation on environmental issues. At the UN climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland, (COP26), Environment Minister Joaquim Leite announced on Wednesday a target of zero illegal logging by 2028 — pushing up the goal of 2030 that Bolsonaro had presented at the White House-led climate summit in April.

“We are committed to stop illegal deforestation in the Amazon,” Leite said on Wednesday

.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has raised concerns among environmentalists by calling for development within the Amazon region and dismissing global complaints about its destruction as a plot to hold back the nation’s agribusiness. 

[File: Leonhard Foeger/Reuters]

But scientists, diplomats and activists say those promises mean little given how deforestation has soared under Bolsonaro to levels last seen in 2008, as the far-right populist calls for more mining and farming in the Amazon.

“Government announcements are not changing the reality that Brazil is continuing to lose forests,” said Ane Alencar, science director at Amazon Environmental Research Institute, at COP26 in Glasgow.

“The world knows where Brazil stands and this attempt to display a different Brazil is unconvincing, because satellite data clearly shows the reality.”

Bolsonaro has raised concerns among environmentalists by calling for development within the Amazon region and dismissing global complaints about its destruction as a plot to hold back the nation’s agribusiness. His administration has also defanged environmental authorities and backed legislative measures to loosen land protections, emboldening land grabbers.

Bolsonaro has offered a more conciliatory tone on environmental issues since US President Joe Biden took office, promising at a White House Earth Day summit and again at the UN General Assembly to bring down illegal deforestation.

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon has had a devastating effect on Indigenous people, including the Mura tribe 

[File: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters]

However, the Brazilian president has overseen staffing cuts at environmental agencies, thrown up roadblocks to environmental law enforcement and deployed an ineffective army intervention to disrupt anti-logging operations in the Amazon.

Before Bolsonaro took office in 2019, the Brazilian Amazon had not recorded a single year with more than 10,000 square kilometres (3,861 square miles) of deforestation in more than a decade. Between 2009 and 2018, the average per year was 6,500 square kilometers. It averaged 10,500 square kilometres (4,054 square miles) in the first two full years of Bolsonaro’s term.

“The data from Deter is a reminder that the same Brazil that circulates in the corridors and halls of COP26, in Glasgow, is the same where land grabbers, illegal loggers and miners have a government license to destroy the forest,” the Climate Observatory, a network of environmental groups, said in a statement.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES

AL JAZEERA 

Beyond the media agitation, finger pointing and fake incomprehension

Erudite and committed writings of Tariq Ali on Afghanistan, published at every stage of the calamity, are a illuminating read, suggests ANDREW MURRAY

EARLY WARNING: Stop the War coalition protest in Trafalgar Square in London in 2012


The Forty-Year War in Afghanistan – A Chronicle Foretold
by Tariq Ali
Verso £10.99

THE return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan, amid a chaotic US military evacuation, constitutes the greatest humiliation imperialism has suffered in the 21st century.

One need be no friend of the social agenda of the Taliban — and few are — to recognise the enormity of its achievement and the reverse for the Nato powers, headed by the US.

Even in the bloody debacle of Iraq, the aggressors in the 2003 war have been able to organise something like a fighting retreat and retain the capacity for direct interference.

In Afghanistan, the war begun in 2001 has ended in categorical defeat.

The US and British politicians who hubristically started the occupation of the country and maintained it over 20 debilitating and disastrous years cannot now complain that “nobody warned us.”

They were so warned, from the first days of the Stop the War Coalition in this country. The founders of the movement, including both the author of the book under review and the present reviewer, said loud and clear that the course embarked on in the wake of September 11 by Washington and London would lead to no happy ending.

This book spells out chapter and verse, bringing together the erudite and committed writings of the anti-imperialist campaigner and author Tariq Ali on Afghanistan published at every stage of the calamity.

Compare his judgement on events with those promulgated in the chancelleries of the imperial occupiers — of The Guardian newspaper for example — and it is clear who assessed events the better.

This collection is indispensable for forming an understanding of what has happened and why.

Informed both by a deep understanding of the politics of Afghanistan and its entwined neighbour Pakistan and of the general principles of national liberation, Ali consistently called it right. This from 2007: “The Taliban is growing and creating new alliances not because its sectarian religious practices have become popular but because it is the only available umbrella for national liberation. As the British and Russians discovered to their cost in the preceding two centuries, Afghans never liked being occupied.”

In 2008 he pointed out that the consequences of the US-Nato occupation “creates a thirst for dignity that can only be assuaged by genuine independence.” How much blood might have been spared and treasure saved for better purposes had these simple truths been heeded much earlier. As long ago as 2010 Ali was warning that “the collapse might reach Saigon proportions.” So it proved.

Taken together — and there is inevitably an element of repetition in a volume aggregating separate articles as this does — the book allows one to follow step by dismal step the unravelling of the latest attempt to impose foreign-directed governance on Afghanistan. It shines a particular light on the contradictory, not to say duplicitous, role of Pakistan throughout.

Its leaders and above all its generals both assisted the US operation and simultaneously sheltered and supported the Taliban, a strategic balancing act maintained for a generation.

Present Pakistani premier Imran Khan was one of those who rejoiced in the Taliban victory this summer. Ali’s deep knowledge of Pakistani politics and society is invaluable here.

There is one issue addressed which Morning Star readers might find controversial. As the title of the book indicates, Ali’s sweep encompasses more than just the 20-year Nato war, and goes back to the Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan, which began in December 1979. The first piece in this collection, dated January 1980, is headed Soviet Troops out of Afghanistan!

In it, Ali warns that the Red Army was propping up a regime which had forfeited its initial public support through factionalism and unreralistic policies. “Genuine revolutions can only succeed with mass support. Any attempt to substitute Russian soldiers for the people of Afghanistan can end only in disaster. Either the Russians will have to withdraw in any event and accept a government of a different complexion, or they will get bogged down in a long war,” he wrote. As it turned out, over the next decade the Soviets got both.

The Communist Party in this country took the same view as Ali, albeit for rather more legalistic reasons, but many in the party, including the reviewer, and some on the left outside it did not.

Our view was not informed by any particular knowledge of Afghan affairs, but by the supervening requirement, as it seemed to us, to support the Soviet government as a principle of international class struggle, the more so when it was under attack by the imperialists.

We were also concerned to support a regime in Kabul that seemed to have progressive achievements, although we understood little about it. I was, I recall, working in the Star’s newsroom as part of a skeleton Sunday shift in April 1978 when news came through of the revolution which brought the People’s Democratic Party to power in Afghanistan.

The paper’s then-foreign editor, Sam Russell, having consulted with the CPGB’s international savant Jack Woddis, declared confidently that this event could not be considered a socialist revolution “because there is no Communist Party in Afghanistan.”

A couple of hours later, time clearly spent by Woddis immersed in his archives, the line changed — Russell announced that investigation had established that there were in fact two communist organisations in Kabul, so the revolution could be correspondingly upgraded.

Alas, the two communist factions spent much of the next few years at each other’s throats, mediating their differences through persecution, exile and murder.

The regime’s second leader, Hafizullah Amin, who had had the first bumped off, may in fact have actually been some sort of CIA asset. He in turn was killed by the Soviets on their arrival.

The People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) regime did have many progressive achievements in terms of social modernisation, as Ali acknowledges. There was no talk from the imperialists, who hypocritically funded and armed the fundamentalist mujahidin fighting the regime, of protecting the rights of Afghan women then.

However, the PDPA’s lack of political judgement in tackling a conservative rural society, the intrigues of its enemies and its reliance on foreign military support sealed its fate, even if it lasted rather longer on its own two feet, after Soviet withdrawal, than the debased Ghani regime managed after the US bailed on him.

Looking back, I do not regret supporting the Soviet endeavour in Afghanistan, for the same reasons that I had at the time. However, on the substance of the matter — the wisdom of the intervention and its baleful consequences for both Afghanistan and the USSR itself — it should be acknowledged that, here too, Tariq Ali was right and has been vindicated.

Support Us | Morning Star (morningstaronline.co.uk)

The solutions to the climate emergency won't come from the colonisers, Indigenous groups say


Minga Indigena delegates in Glasgow Photo: 350.org

INDIGENOUS groups that have travelled to Glasgow for the crucial Cop26 summit have said they will not look to their colonisers for answers to the climate emergency, hitting out at the world leaders’ proposed solutions.

Representatives from the Minga Indigena, a collective of indigenous peoples from the Americas, as well as others who have travelled from across the world for the talks, marched during the summit today.

They presented a list of demands, having been largely excluded from talks in the past fortnight.

Despite their history of responsible environmental practices, most indigenous groups have not been represented during Cop26 at the summit, instead attending fringes.

Hundreds of elders and other representatives from tribes and indigenous families were also left without official accommodation, turning to local Glaswegians for spare rooms or makeshift accommodation with the support of activists.

Speaking at the SEC conference today, representatives from the Minga Indigena said colonialism was at the root of the climate crisis.

“Climate change is not a blameless phenomenon. Colonialism is what caused climate change,” the group said in a statement.

“I don’t believe in the power of colonial systems to transform. I don’t believe in the power of colonialism that has killed us and stolen our lands.

“We cannot be comfortable at Cop26. We have to continue our fight. We come from the people and we have to protect our peoples and our sisters.

“We will outlive this. We will outlive these empires.”

Support Us | Morning Star (morningstaronline.co.uk)