CHOOSING SIDES

Sinn Fein leads in poll ahead of Northern Irish election

29.04.2022

Party seeking united Ireland could affect UK-EU negotiations

President of the Irish republican Sinn Fein party Mary Lou McDonald (L) and Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland and party colleague Michelle O'Neill describe their party's election manifesto in Belfast Monday

Photo credit: AFP

Sinn Fein looks set to become the largest party in Northern Ireland’s assembly, potentially marking a historic shift in the region’s political balance, according to a final poll ahead of next week’s election.

The nationalist party, whose ultimate goal is a united Ireland, drew 26% support in a LucidTalk poll for the Belfast Telegraph ahead of a May 5 election. That’s 6 points ahead of the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party, which gained 1 point from a March poll to 20%. Sinn Fein’s popularity was unchanged. 

Such an outcome could result in Sinn Fein choosing Northern Ireland’s First Minister for the first time since the power-sharing government was established following the 1998 Good Friday Agreement -- a seismic shift in a region historically dominated by unionist parties. It could also have wider ramifications for the U.K.’s negotiations with the European Union.

The DUP has campaigned for the removal of the Northern Irish Protocol -- the part of the Brexit agreement which deals with the region. In February, DUP First Minister Paul Givan resigned in protest against the trading arrangement and the party has said it won’t participate in the power-sharing executive if the protocol remains in place. The first minister and deputy first minister have equal powers and one cannot be in place without the other.

Meanwhile, wrangling over how to keep Northern Ireland’s trade flowing with Ireland after Britain’s departure from the EU played into Sinn Fein’s key message and has helped boost nationalist sentiment.

The assembly gets to vote on key parts of the protocol issue in 2024, so this election could be critical to that.

The DUP has also lost support to other unionist parties as well as centrists. The Ulster Unionist Party and Alliance Party were tied in third position at 14% each in the poll conducted April 22-24.

Northern Ireland’s assembly is elected using a system of Proportional Representation known as Single Transferable Vote (STV). Voters can select from five candidates in order of preference. Seats are then awarded in proportion to the number of votes cast, with voters’ lower ranking preferences taken into account.

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Zimbabwe is a beautiful country ruined by greedy clueless people!

This morning when I was listening to the vice president Constantino Chiwenga officiating at a business conference at the ongoing Zimbabwe International Trade Fair - taking place in our second largest city Bulawayo - my mind was carried back three decades ago.

Tendai Ruben Mbofana

I recalled a boy scouting trip we made in August 1989 to the small southern African country of Swaziland (now eSwathini) – whereby, on our way back, we had an overnight stay at a hotel in then apartheid South Africa’s Johannesburg, which was a truly world-class glamorous city at that time.

As we were still young boys (I was 16 years old), and donning scout uniforms – we typically attracted quite a lot of attention, at which some curious South Africans were eager to know more about who we were, what we did, and where we came from.

Of course, they were also itching to hear what we thought about their country – which, they were obviously quite proud of – to which I boldly responded, “South Africa is a very beautiful place, but your politics suck!”

I honestly did not know how they were going to react to such a cheeky statement – considering that this was at the height of political tensions, with the fervent fight against the unjust and cruel segregatory system of apartheid – but, this was me, someone who spoke his mind without any fear or favour, and believed that it was always imperative to say what people needed to hear, not what they wanted to hear.

After gazing at me for what seemed an eternity (although, it probably was just a few seconds) – with expressionless faces, that did not betray what was on their minds – a smile finally began to form on one of the South Africans’ face, which morphed into a hearty laugh, and eventually a friendly pat of my back, at which he simply nodded his head.

These images played out again in my mind this morning, as Chiwenga went on and on about how our country (and, the African continent) were richly blessed with abundant resources, which needed to be shared equitably for all the people’s benefit.

As I listened to these obviously insincere comments, I could not help wondering why we were so poor, to begin with – yet, being in a country possessing some of the most sought-after treasures of this world?

Why were the likes of Chiwenga himself, and those in the country’s ruling elite, filthy rich and rolling in dough (as we would say in our youth) – whilst, millions of Zimbabweans wallowed in abject poverty, and unable to meet even their basic needs?

Was this not as a result of their proximity to political power, which has enabled them to flex their muscles for their own aggrandizement – grabbing the best land for themselves, ensuring privileged access to crucial inputs and the most sophisticated machinery, as well as forcing their way into huge business deals in diamonds, gold, and other precious minerals?

Is the reason for the untold impoverishment and suffering of nearly 76% of the country’s population (living below the poverty datum line) not the fact that we are no where near the reins of power – and as such, excluded and marginalized from the fat of the land, and this phenomenal wealth Zimbabwe has been endowed?

The main crisis we have in this country is not necessarily economic, but political – originating from a ruling class that is more interesting in enriching themselves at the expense of the rest of the citizenry.

This is no different from the apartheid policies that I came face to face with, on this visit to South Africa in 1989 – whereby, it was glaringly obvious how the vast majority were alienated in their own country, and abandoned on the sidelines of both the economic and political landscape.

This was not an economic issue – but, strictly a political one – as their country was, as still is, also wealthy, but the majority poor.

As I told my small captive audience in South Africa those decades ago – I will repeated it today to my own leaders – Zimbabwe is a beautiful country, but the politics suck!

We are reigned over by a greedy, selfish, and clueless group of people – who do not care about the citizenry’s welfare and wellbeing – rather opting to unleash savage brutality against those who dare speak out, and stand up, as they voice their objection and resistance in the face of unmitigated oppression and subjugation.

Zimbabwe is not in desperate need of sound economic policies – no, not at all – but, desperately needs a new breed of leaders, who put the interests of the people first!

We already have the wealth – so, there is nothing much that is required on the economic front – except, for these riches to be equitably shared, and benefit the wider population.

Our ruling elite is already benefiting – so, why can’t we?

Is it better being oppressed by one’s own race than by those of a different colour?

I found a news report I came across recently - on the outrage surrounding a New Zealand-based "Rhodesia Museum", established in 2018 by a grouping calling itself the Rhodesia Services Association - quite intriguing.

29.4.2022
by Tendai Ruben Mbofana

The historical exhibition, named Lion and Tusk Museum, drew angry criticism from several quarters, especially some Zimbabweans now resident in this Oceanian country – who, understandably and justifiably did not take kindly to what they perceived as the glorification of this colonial period, describing it as “disgusting and offensive”.

They likened the audacious touting of this dark period in our country’s history – which these voices of dissent characterized as “white supremacism” – to apartheid in South Africa, and the Holocaust (whereby, over six million Jews were savagely massacred by the Nazi regime in Germany and other occupied European countries in the 1930s and 40s).

The Lion and Tusk Museum is said to house artefacts including guns, machetes, bayonets, flags, military uniforms, medals, and other memorabilia of the Rhodesian army – which, a spokesperson said was aimed at preserving “the military history of Rhodesia” from its colonial beginnings in the 1890s until its transition to majority rule and name-change to Zimbabwe in 1980.

The main bone of contention against this display of Rhodesian military prowess appears to be the apparent one-sided glorification of the military – with scant acknowledgment of its role in maintaining colonial rule and oppression of the black majority.

As far as I can tell, these arguments against the museum are valid, since they have profound merit.

The reason being that – as someone who loves studying history – I have always been a firm believer in the need for any history to be told in its fullest and entirety, without leaving anything out (be it good or bad), if it is to be taken seriously.

There is no way, for instance, if my history is ever to be recorded or narrated, for this to be done without including everything that I have done wrong, as well as all I did right.

Any biased and managed recording of a past event, period, or the total accumulation of the developments connected with a particular nation, person, or thing – can never genuinely be described as history.

It can be called propaganda – but, definitely not history.

However, what I also find disingenuous is the world’s obsession with racial subjugation as the only purely distasteful, repulsive, and unacceptable type of oppression – that we should all stand up, and speak out against with all our might – at the expense of any other forms, particularly when blacks subjugate other black people.

Although this is only conjecture, I wonder just how “disgusting and offensive” a museum showcasing only the good and beauty of post-independence Zimbabwe would have been considered – yet, failing to honestly touch on the 1980s Gukurahundi genocide (whereby, the military brutally murdered over 20,000 innocent unarmed civilians of Ndebele ethnicity), or the 2008 post-election butchering of hundreds of suspected opposition supporters, or the beating up, abduction, torturing, and raping of perceived anti-government voices.

If we were to have such an exhibition, say in New Zealand, touting the successes and development in post-independence Zimbabwe – glaringly ignoring the dark unenviable side of this murderous past – would we have witnessed the same levels of “disgust and offense” and outrage, as experienced with the Lion and Tusk Museum?

I think not!

This is an issue I have always had with those of us who claim to fight against oppression and human right abuses.

It is rather disturbing that the world we live in today appears more “disgusted and offended” by white-on-black rights violations – yet, exhibit a more laid back, lackluster response, more in the form of a half-hearted slap on the wrist, when it comes to black-on-black repression.

As someone who was born in colonial Rhodesia, and spent my adult life in independent Zimbabwe – subjugation, segregation, and economic marginalization by a whiteman is just as harmful and painful as by a blackman.

The velocity of a bullet from a gun held by a black dictator, is just as damaging as that from a white oppressor.

In fact, it can be more hurtful coming from a fellow black brother or sister – since, these are own kith and kin, from whom we expect better – than someone of a different colour, race, or creed.

I am sure there is nothing more traumatic than being betrayed, made to suffer, and even killed by one’s own family – whom we expect a bond of love and oneness – than an “outsider”.

I actually find it incredibly ridiculous that a white person can call me a “Kaffir” right now, I swiftly post that online, and immediate ignite global outrage and outcry aimed against this racism.

Yet, a black leader can loot (with his family and dubious hangers-on) our country’s resources – leaving millions of Zimbabweans wallowing in abject poverty – and, solicit not much in terms of reaction, should I post that online.

Let us not be hypocritical, and treat the issue of oppression with double standards – since subjugation by a fellow blackman deserves condemnation as that from a whiteman, as they are both “disgusting and offensive”.

© Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice activist, writer, researcher, and social commentator. email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com 

How patents influence access to vaccines


Image: UNSPLASH

This article was originally published by Mint
29 Apr 2022

Ruma Bhargava

Project Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution for Health, India, 

World Economic Forum, C4IR India

Dr Megha Bhargava

Deputy Commissioner Income Tax, Ministry of Finance, Government of India

Explore the latest strategic trends, research and analysis

As the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated, the development of new vaccines plays a fundamental role in the management of infectious diseases. However, grave inequalities exist when it comes to access and availability of the vaccine across the globe.

This is why vaccine patents and ownerships are being criticised by some. While they are needed to create incentives for innovation, they can also limit inclusive access across the globe.

Consequently, national policies and the international collaboration must foster innovation – while at the same time not infringing on technological access for downstream innovations and vaccine accessibility.

In pursuit of a long life that has been well lived, the development of new vaccines plays a critical role to fight infectious diseases and to face the challenges of public health and global bioethics. The issue of patent and ownership rights has been highlighted in the international discourse because there are grave inequalities in vaccine availability and access to the vaccine across different countries.

Data from Oxfam International reveals that as on May 2021, people in G7 countries had a 77 times more likely chance of being vaccinated than the people living in the world’s poorest nations. Around 28% of the total 1.77 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered across the globe by May 2021 were provided in the G7 nations. The share of the low-income countries remained at an abysmal 0.3% of the total vaccinations.

What impact do patents and ownership rights have on the economy?

Public goods often lead to what is known as the Free Rider problem where people who benefit from public goods do not pay or underpay for using the same. This leaves little incentive to the producer to innovate and produce the good. Supporters of patent rights believe that patents are linked to contributing to economic growth by making inventions profitable and preventing infringements. Also, pharma companies are business entities operating for profit and hence it cannot be expected from them to act in a completely altruistic manner.

Despite this, patent holders already have a very strong incentive to innovate and enhance production, as complicated regulatory and licensing frameworks, lack of required capital and technological know-how and demand exceeding supply especially show how important their innovations are.
How ethical are ownership rights and patents?

The ethical principle of non-maleficence and justice are violated if developed countries deprive other countries in getting access to vaccines. The fundamental rights of life and liberty are basic human rights and should take precedence over ownership and property rights, especially in times of emergencies and crisis. A large part of funding is provided by the public sector which is not considered while granting patents for a certain period. These expenses are not accounted for when granting ownership rights to the companies.

In the wake of COVID-19, several companies came together for The Open COVID Pledge which grants a “non-exclusive and royalty-free license” and provides for an open framework where the patent holders could voluntarily pledge not to assert their rights of manufacture, use, sale, reproduction and import of the product. However, it cannot be regarded a long-term solution due to its voluntary nature.

The IBC (UNESCO International Bioethics Committee) and COMEST (UNESCO World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology) advocate access to universal healthcare through international coordination based on equality, justice, and solidarity. They support COVAX which is an initiative led by WHO, GAVI and CEPI.

What role do nations play when it comes to vaccine markets?

There are several mechanisms regulating the patents and ownership rights domestically and internationally.

In order to prevent the patent right abuses, compulsory licensing has been introduced by TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) agreement However, because compulsory licensing regulations are restricted to territorial jurisdictions, they may limit the global access to vaccines and drugs. Many countries have compulsory licensing enacted by their domestic laws but major economies like USA and China lack such a statute.

A major role is played by the national governments in promoting vaccine development domestically. For example, the Indian Council of Medical Research provides major funding for vaccine development in India. It is very important for the state to provide funding for research and innovation like giving grants to academics, building state of the art infrastructure for research, increase public investments in vaccine development and innovation.

However, increased foreign investment and venture capital funding leads pharma companies to look outside for a profitable market. In the last 15 years, there has been a phenomenal growth in the vaccine development by small manufacturers, while growth has stagnated in similar programs in the MNCs. For example, the Serum Institute of India developed a vaccine for meningitis for Africa (with help from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and PATH). In this scenario, governments may commit to purchase the vaccines from the manufacturers in advance, thereby directing the research to more targeted goals and appropriate research projects.

Reaching vaccine equality through international collaboration and national policies

In the case of public health emergencies, direct funding from the governments like Operation Warp Speed in the USA led to rapid development and rollout of COVID-19 vaccines – by assuring the pharma companies decent profits.

In order to counter the effects of monopoly pricing for vaccines, vaccines could be purchased internationally (say by the UN or World Bank) for developing countries at a single price and then payments could be collected from these countries depending on their income levels.

Patent pools can improve access of vaccines by coordinating the behaviours of complementary patent holders and reducing the number of patent licenses, while reference pricing may be used by the governments to reduce the prices for both branded and generic drugs and vaccines.

Most countries have domestic patent acts which deal with the regulation of patents and other IP rights. There are other laws like the Competition Act, 2002 (India) which can be used to examine whether the high price or inadequate availability of a drug is due to anti-competitive practices or due to ‘abuse of a dominant position’.

Another form of incentive can be a cash reward by the government for development of any new vaccine which is made accessible to the public at minimal or zero cost.

Why patents should stay

It is true that patents may restrict the availability of vaccines to developing nations, but other elements like technology transfer or funding the pharma companies by the developed nations can address the problem of vaccine manufacturing and distribution to a large extent and at the same time overcome the negative impacts of patent waivers.

The domestic patent laws and the international conventions must foster innovation but at the same time not infringe on technological access for downstream innovations and vaccine accessibility. These should not be looked as separate government policies but should serve as complementary to one another with the adoption differing as per the status of public health in the country.
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World Economic Forum Type may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.
Written by

Ruma Bhargava, Project Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution for Health, India, World Economic Forum, C4IR India

Dr Megha Bhargava, Deputy Commissioner Income Tax, Ministry of Finance, Government of India

This article was originally published by Mint

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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Egypt’s release of political detainees could signal reform, or merely an economic crisis

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi acting in a bid to court international donors, democracy activist says.

By MINA NADER/THE MEDIA LINE
Published: APRIL 29, 2022

A general view of the Nile River during a cold weather around country in the capital of Cairo
(photo credit: REUTERS)

[Cairo] Last Saturday, Egyptian authorities embarked on a wave of prisoner releases. The Coptic Easter weekend saw the liberation of nine Copts from the Minya Governorate in Upper Egypt. This led to a fury of speculation over what it meant.

For more stories from The Media Line go to themedialine.org

Amnesty International noted that the nine Coptic Christians had been “arbitrarily detained after peacefully protesting against the authorities’ refusal to rebuild a church that had burned down more than five years ago.”

Philip Luther, Amnesty’s Middle East and North Africa research and advocacy director, said three months ago, “The Egyptian authorities have for years ignored calls to rebuild the church, leaving around 800 Coptic Christians without a place to worship in their village [of Ezbet Farag Allah]. Now, in their shameful efforts to silence these calls, they are arbitrarily detaining villagers, criminalizing peaceful protests, and slapping ludicrous charges on those who dare to speak out.”

There are tens of thousands of political prisoners in Egypt, rights groups estimate. They include secular activists, journalists, lawyers, academics, and Islamists arrested in a sweeping crackdown against dissent under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. But the government always denies that there are any political prisoners. Some sources told The Media Line that only a few hundred such individuals are currently detained.

Last May, five leading Egyptian human rights organizations published a list of seven measures to be taken to stop the erosion of human rights that Egypt has witnessed over the past years. The first and most urgent was to free all political prisoners. The demands included an end to the state of emergency and to unlimited pre-trial detentions.

Tourists ride on camels next to Pyramid of Khufu on Great Pyramids of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo

 (credit: REUTERS/MOHAMED ABD EL GHANY)

Last October, Sisi announced he would not extend the state of emergency across the country, proclaiming that Egypt had become “an oasis of security and stability in the region.”

The spokesman for the US Embassy in Cairo spokesman told The Media Line, “We welcome President Sisi’s announcement ending the State of Emergency in Egypt, in place since 2017. We look forward to seeing the effects of this decision, including ending civilian trials in emergency state security courts.”

Ezzat Ibrahim, the spokesperson for the National Council for Human Rights, told The Media Line, “There is a very big shift in the political discourse.”

Pointing toward a new phase in Egypt’s development, he added, “We must reach all groups in Egyptian society so that they can have an active and real role in this political dialogue. Since the announcement, all parties have started preparing themselves.”

After last weekend’s releases, many Egyptians posted on social media speculating and hoping for the release of their family and friends.

Since Sunday, about 24 people were confirmed released, including Walid Shawky, a dentist and a former member of the April 6 Youth Movement, whose arrest dates to October 2018, and Radwa Mohamed, who was arrested in November 2019 after she published a video criticizing the Egyptian president.

Hossam Moanis, a journalist and former director of Nasserist candidate Hamdeen Sabahi’s presidential campaign, was pardoned after Sabahi attended the presidential iftar.

During the iftar, Sisi made 13 promises. They included the reactivation of the Presidential Pardon Committee that was formed by the National Youth Conference. “I cannot conceal my immense joy at the release of a batch of our sons over the past days, telling them that the homeland embraces all of us and that differences of opinion do not spoil the homeland’s affairs,” Sisi said in his speech.

Hisham Kassem, a democracy activist and a former publisher of the Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper, told The Media Line, “I know that citizens are imprisoned through the law and released according to the law. What I have seen during the past days is a new way to deal with people’s freedoms. We have a lot of prisoners of conscience, politicians, and activists, and they must be released. It is not right for public figures like Hamdeen Sabahi to attend an iftar party with the president, and then they release his presidential campaign manager. Is it reasonable to see the rule of law − which is one of the pillars of human civilization − trampled on like this?!”

Sisi went on to note that he has directed the National Youth Conference to coordinate with all youth movements and political parties, to conduct political dialogue surrounding the national priorities, and to “submit the results of this dialogue to me personally, and I promise to attend these dialogues in their final stages.”

Tarek Radwan, chairman of the Human Rights Committee in the Egyptian House of Representatives, told The Media Line he welcomed the return of the work of the Presidential Pardon Committee. Radwan added that the president’s assigning the National Youth Conference to coordinate with all political parties and youth currents to conduct political dialogue and giving the matter his personal attention confirms his eagerness to bring all Egyptians together.

Sisi continued in his remarks, saying, “On a personal level, I desire political reform and am keen to achieve it, but the priorities had been postponing this matter. But now we are releasing [detainees] and allowing dialogue for all political forces without exception or discrimination. After that, the outcomes of this dialogue will be presented to Parliament in both chambers for approval and work on the required laws.”

Ibrahim added, “President Sisi was very clear about the necessity of political reform. And that it was a priority after eliminating terrorism.

“There are specific criteria established by the National Human Rights Strategy, which include the release of those who did not adopt or practice violence,” Ibrahim said.

Radwan explained that “the new republic welcomes a constructive national political opposition, which works for the advancement of the Egyptian state,” adding that the series of releases that took place and additional ones that are expected confirm that Egypt is a state that respects rights and freedoms.

Kassem argued, “Sisi and the political system are strangled. There is an economic and political crisis as a result of his lack of experience and poor statesmanship. His international image has become that of a pariah. And this image will not help him navigate the economic crisis that he dragged the country into.

“No one from the international community will help him. And in order to improve the economic situation, the international community must help him. We are on the cusp of the complete collapse of the public sphere and increased suppression of freedom of opinion and expression,” Kassem said.

Ibrahim noted that “political transformation is not an easy issue, and it is a continuous process. All free and democratic countries talk about political reform when new issues emerge, such as the reform of the electoral system and the party process. We need all the different and diverse voices, and benefit from the experiences of other countries.”

Ibrahim maintained, “There are some who talk about external pressures such as the war in Ukraine and economic causes, but if we go back to 2021, we will find that there is a clear vision regarding progress in the file of civil, political, and economic rights.”

 

Facebook Algorithm Drives Sceptics Towards Climate Denial - Study

In their latest study, Global Witness simulated the experience of a climate-sceptic user on the social media platform. Within a few clicks, the algorithm recommended content that denied the existence of man-made global warming and attacked measures aimed at mitigating the climate crisis. The experiment indicates that the Facebook algorithm directs climate-sceptic users to more disinformation affirming their beliefs and finding community amongst others who are disdainful of climate science.

In April 2021, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted during a U.S. congressional testimony that climate disinformation is 'a big issue' on the platform. Facebook then promised to stamp out climate disinformation. In an effort to combat this, Facebook said it would expand its climate science centre to provide more reliable information and launch a video series to highlight young climate advocates on Facebook and Instagram. They also promised to expand their flagging of posts regarding climate with information labels linking to their climate science centre and announced a one-million-dollar grant programme to support organisations working to combat climate misinformation - a sum akin to about thirty minutes of company profits, according to Global Witness.

But critics say the new push has fallen short and allows vast amounts of climate misinformation to slip through the cracks.

Kenya: Machakos Level 5 Hospital Cleaners on Strike Over Unpaid Dues

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27 APRIL 2022

Capital FM (Nairobi)

Machakos — Cleaners at the Machakos Level 5 hospital have gone on strike even as they called on their employer to pay up their accrued dues of more than 10 months.

The cleaners said they had been engaged on casual basis by a company known as Diana King which is owned by one John Kioko.

They said the hospital administration was aware of their plight, but no one was willing to address their grievances.

"The hospital administration is aware of our grievances and should compel the contractor to pay our dues," said an aggrieved worker.

She pointed out that they had been assembling at the hospital every day seeking for help, but no one would listen to their cries.

"I have a child in form four and I do not have school fees in addition to many other household needs. We are asking the authorities to come to our aide," said another cleaner.

The cleaners said they had been engaged on a sh1,500 per day but the contractor hired other cleaners when they demanded their pay.

The Auditor General in the latest report flagged the procurement of cleaning services at the hospital as irregular as the procurement records examined indicated that the county government awarded a contract for provision of cleaning services at Machakos Level 5 hospital in October 2018 and the contact was valued at Sh2.5 million per month or Sh30 million for a period of two years to October 2020.

However, the firm continued to provide the service after expiry of the contract.

Further, the annual bill of Sh30 million was above the legal threshold amount of sh3 million for use of request for quotation method for procurement of services set out in the public procurement and use(Amendment) regulations 2013, according to the Auditor General's report.

Scientists identify 100 crucial research questions on climate change in Himalayan region

Raising awareness will encourage researchers, policy makers to address the issues

By PTI 

Updated: April 27, 2022 

View of beautiful Panchchuli Peaks of the Great Himalayas as seen from Munsiyari, Uttarakhand | Shutterstock

Scientists have identified 100 pressing research questions on climate change and water resources in the Upper Indus Basin (UIB), which they say must be answered to protect the communities living in the region.

The UIB is located in the mountainous Hindu-Kush Karakoram Himalaya (HKH) region, of which Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh is a part, and which feeds the river systems that supply the world's largest network of irrigated agriculture.

Hundreds of millions of people across Pakistan, India, China, and Afghanistan depend on these water resources and so adapting to climate change is essential, the researchers, including those from the University of Kashmir in Srinagar, noted.

The study, published in the journal Earth's Future, employed a 'horizon scanning' technique to identify 100 essential questions required for successful adaptation to ongoing and future climate change in the UIB.

The aim of the study is to identify knowledge gaps and opportunities in social and natural sciences to help inform climate plans, water management, and development policy, the researchers said.

The questions identified push the boundaries of current thinking and are grouped into overarching topics of governance and policy, socioeconomic processes, and earth system processes, they said.

Raising awareness of these pressing knowledge gaps will encourage researchers, funding bodies, practitioners, and policy makers to address them.

"Water resources in the UIB are under a range of ever-increasing pressures including population growth, industrialisation and of course the serious threat posed by climate change," said British Antarctic Survey climate scientist Andrew Orr, who led the study.

"If we are going to successfully adapt to ongoing and future hydrological and climate change in the UIB we must address pressing knowledge gaps in social and natural sciences," Orr said in a statement.

The researchers noted that the coming years will likely see dramatic changes to this region, and the questions they have identified must be addressed to prepare for such changes.

"The Top 100 research questions identified in the study would inform policymaking for developing strategies and action plans to combat climate change and hydrological extremes in UIB, of which Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh is a part," said Professor Shakil Ahmad Romshoo, from the University of Kashmir, who participated in the study.

"The study demonstrates a collaborative role for stakeholders within and outside the UIB to develop climate change adaption plans, and policies which will secure and protect the UIB communities that live there," said Romshoo, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST) in Awantipora, Jammu and Kashmir.

The authors noted that one of the main priorities of the study was to emphasise the importance of identifying knowledge gaps in both the natural and social sciences, as research efforts to identify the impacts of climate change on the latter have for a long time often been neglected in favour of the former.

The consequences of neglecting social sciences are that the understanding of the dynamics and impacts of climate change are often limited, they added.

South Asia Cranking Up Dirty Power Plants With Gas Too Pricey

Ann Koh and Elizabeth Low, Bloomberg News

(Bloomberg) -- South Asia’s emerging economies are cranking up older power plants that burn highly-pollutive fuel oil as rising liquefied natural gas prices put cleaner energy sources out of their reach. 

Bangladesh is generating 5,000 megawatts of electricity from fuel oil-fired power stations this month, about 25% more than a year earlier, said Muhammed Aziz Khan, the chairman of Summit Power International Ltd., which owns utilities in the country. More than a third of the 40 LNG cargoes the nation has tendered over the past year were canceled due to elevated prices, he said. 

“At one time Bangladesh was encouraged to switch to gas, but the government kept the fuel plants,” Khan said in an interview. “This has come as a huge upside during the Russia-Ukraine war.”  

North Asian benchmark LNG prices have tripled over the past year -- and spiked dramatically after the invasion of Ukraine -- while gains in fuel oil have been more modest. Pakistan has also been struggling to buy enough gas and has been forced to cut electricity to households and industry. India, meanwhile, phased out most of its fuel oil-fired plants, although it remains heavily reliant on coal and is grappling with a shortage of that fuel at the moment.

Seasonal demand for fuel oil is rising in Asia and the Middle East due to the higher LNG prices, industry consultant FGE said in a note this week. Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are forecast to import about 680,000 tons of fuel oil in April, the highest since June 2018, said Roslan Khasawneh, a senior analyst at Vortexa Ltd.

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.

Hurriyat protests ban on key Ramazan/Ramadan prayers in occupied Kashmir

#KASHMIR IS #INDIA'S #GAZA

The Newspaper's Correspondent

Published April 29, 2022 -

NEW DELHI: Kashmir’s All Parties Hurriyat Conference on Thursday appealed to the Indian government to let Muslim worshippers offer the important last Friday prayers of Ramazan — Jummat ul Vida — at Srinagar’s central Jama Masjid as per tradition, but there was no sign of New Delhi yielding.

India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s watch has come under severe criticism for abuse of its religious minorities, which includes censure of its treatment of Kashmiri Muslims. Secular and democratic lobbies in the US have urged US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to accept the report of the alleged mistreatment of Muslims filed in the annual report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). The report for 2022 on religious freedoms and human rights the world over was released on Monday.

“Given the worsening human rights and religious freedom situation for minorities and the Modi government’s lack of actions, it is important that USCIRF’s recommendation to include India to be a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) be accepted by Sec. of State Blinken,” American Muslim Institution said in an appeal.

The group said it applauded the decision of USCIRF to designate India as a CPC country, given that “religious freedom conditions in India significantly worsened in 2021.” It said systemic intimidation and violence has moved from the real world and has substantially increased online by “both official and non-state actors...to spread hatred and misinformation.”

Furthermore, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led “government, leaders emboldened Hindu-nationalist groups have advocated, instituted, and enforced sectarian policies seeking to establish India as an overtly Hindu state, contrary to India’s secular foundation and at grave danger to India’s religious minorities.”

In Srinagar, APHC chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, denounced the repeated closure of Srinagar’s central Jama Masjid by the Indian government.

“Not allowing congregational prayers on the occasion of Jumatul Vida at the central Jama mosque of the valley, which is thronged by lakhs of valley Muslims on this blessed day — when offering prayers at Jama Masjid has greater blessings for the namazis, is outrageous, and against the fundamental human right to religious practice.”

The Mirwaiz said in a statement that the same holds true for barring people from praying at Jama Masjid on the holy occasion of Lailatul Qadr. APHC said that such orders against Muslims and circulars being issued by authorities in valley school asking the staff members not to wear hijab, “in a place where Islam is the religion of the vast majority is deeply distressing, causing great angst and hurt to people and further deepening the conflict.”

The statement said Mirwaiz asked the authorities to revoke the ban on prayers and allow Muslims across the valley access to central Jama Masjid on these very important and holy days of Ramzan.”

APHC said that, people as in the past, will observe Jumatul Vida as ‘Youm e Quds’ and Youm e Kashmir’ to stress “the urgent need for a peaceful resolution of the lingering Palestinian issue and the Kashmir conflict and the human lives they consume.”

Published in Dawn, April 29th, 2022

Landslide kills 12 women at illegal gold mine in Indonesia

Informal mining operations are commonplace in Indonesia
By PTI 

Updated: April 29, 2022 

A miner breaks stones containing gold in Poboya in Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province April 12, 2012 | Reuters

Rescuers retrieved a dozen bodies of women buried under tons of mud from a landslide that crashed onto an unauthorised gold mining operation on Indonesia's Sumatra island, police said Friday.

About 14 women were looking for gold grains Thursday in a pit roughly 2 metres (6.5 feet) deep at a small and unauthorised traditional gold mine in a remote village of North Sumatra's Mandailing Natal district when a landslide plunged down surrounding hills and buried them, said local police chief Marlon Rajagukguk.

A two-hour search and rescue operation managed to rescue two injured women and pulled the bodies of 12 other women from the rubble, Rajagukguk said.

He said authorities have closed illegal gold pits in the area, which was a main source of gold to be panned traditionally by villagers before Thursday's landslide happened.

Informal mining operations are commonplace in Indonesia, providing a tenuous livelihood to thousands who labour in conditions with a high risk of serious injury or death.

Landslides, flooding and collapses of tunnels are just some of the hazards facing miners. Much of gold ore processing involves highly toxic mercury and cyanide and workers frequently use little or no protection.

The country's last major mining-related accident occurred in February 2019 when a makeshift wooden structure in an illegal gold mine in North Sulawesi province collapsed due to shifting soil and the large number of mining holes. More than 40 people died, buried in the mine pit.