Polish editor and former dissident wins top Spanish prize


Michnik spent six years in jail for his efforts to end Poland's repressive regime 

(AFP/JANEK SKARZYNSKI) 

Wed, May 11, 2022,

Polish editor Adam Michnik, a leading communist-era dissident, was Wednesday awarded Spain's prestigious Princess of Asturias communications and humanities prize.

The jury honoured the 75-year-old editor-in-chief of Warsaw-based daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza "for his commitment to quality journalism and for his influence in restoring and defending democracy in Poland".

A member of the Solidarity trade union that led the Polish struggle against communist rule since it was founded in 1980, he spent six years in jail for his efforts to end his country's repressive regime.

After Poland's communist leaders were toppled in a 1989 election, Michnik took a seat in parliament and co-founded Gazeta Wyborcza, which is now one of Eastern Europe's most popular newspapers.

The jury noted that he is an authority on Russian politics who has "closely followed" Russia's invasion of Ukraine, "being highly critical of (Russian President) Vladimir Putin's decisions and acts".

In a statement, Michnik said he saw the award as "an appreciation of the democratic opposition in Poland" as well as "an appreciation of Gazeta Wyborcza, which has learnt a lot from Spanish free media".

Previous winners of the award include US feminist icon Gloria Steinem and Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of "Super Mario Bros".

The 50,000-euro ($53,000) award is one of eight Asturias prizes handed out yearly by a foundation named for Crown Princess Leonor.

Other categories include social sciences, sport and scientific research.

The awards are presented each autumn in the northern city of Oviedo in a ceremony broadcast live on Spanish television.

al-tpe/ds/

Midwives in Senegal birth scandal get suspended terms

AFP - 
© CARMEN ABD ALI


A Senegalese court on Wednesday handed six-month suspended terms to three midwives in the high-profile case of a mother-to-be who died in agony after pleading for hours to be given a caesarean.

The three were found guilty of the charge of failing to assist someone in danger, while three of their colleagues were acquitted, AFP journalists said.

The case involved Astou Sokhna, a woman aged in her thirties who was in her ninth month of pregnancy.

According to local media, she was admitted in pain to a public hospital in the northern town of Louga, begging to be given a caesarean section.

The staff refused, arguing that the operation had not been scheduled and even threatening to remove her from the hospital if she continued with her demand, the reports said.

She died in agony on the night of April 1 after suffering for around 20 hours, according to these reports.

Her death ignited a storm of indignation in the West African state, where many people took to social media to denounce failures in the healthcare system.

The affair quickly gained political traction, with President Macky Sall sending a message of condolence to Sokhna's family and ordering an investigation into what happened.

On April 14, Health Minister Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr acknowledged that her death could have been avoided. The director of the hospital has since been fired and replaced.

Prosecutors at the trial, which began on April 27, had requested a term of one month in jail and 11 months suspended for four of the accused, and recommended the release of the other two.

The three convicted midwives were on night duty while the three others who were released were on day shift.

Abou Abdou Daff, a lawyer for one of the three convicted midwives, said the reasons for his client's sentence had not been given, and an appeal was being considered.

"The accused have denied and continue to deny" the allegations, Daff said. "A medical team has the duty to respond with what is available, not to provide the outcome."

mrb-lp/ri/raz

France’s unprecedented drought shows climate change is ‘spiralling out of control’

Aude MAZOUE 

AFP

As global warming accelerates, the spectre of drought haunts France’s once verdant farmland. Even now, before the start of summer, 15 administrative départements have had to restrict water use while farmers warn that the current situation will have an adverse impact on crop yields.

© Pascal Pochard-Casabianca, AFP

Few people in France are talking about this looming catastrophe – but all the signs of a record drought are there.

“No region has been spared. We can see the earth cracking every day. Yesterday I was at a farmer’s house in the Puy-de-Dôme region [in central France]; he was watering the wheat. If things carry on like this, farmers who can irrigate their crops will be able to deal with it but the others will face a dramatic reduction in their yields,” Christiane Lambert, the head of France’s biggest agricultural union the FNSEA, told AFP on Monday.

Since last autumn we’ve seen “huge droughts” in Spain and Portugal and the same phenomenon has spread to southern France, Lambert said. But “what is unusual this season is that drought is affecting regions north of the Loire”, the river that divides southern and northern France.

‘The water tables couldn’t be filled’

The French agriculture ministry is all too aware of the crisis. “Winter crops such as wheat and barley, currently growing [before cultivation later on], are starting to experience conditions that will affect yields,” a spokesperson said. The hot and dry weather France has seen over the past few weeks could also affect spring crops like corn, sunflower and beet – as well as the fodder needed to feed livestock.

Drought will not only undermine the food supply but has effects further afield. “As well as farming, drought has a huge impact on a lot of other things – like buildings,” warned hydrologist Emma Haziza. “We’re seeing more and more houses collapsing. This is unprecedented in France. The damage droughts create is more expensive to deal with than [the consequences of] floods and it will have huge long-term economic consequences.”

>> 'Code red for humanity': Bombshell UN climate change report shows global warming accelerating

France’s energy flows could also be affected. “What’s more, drought has a negative impact on energy production, as nuclear power plants need a lot of water to cool the reactors.”

A rise in temperatures this April – even after the first day of the month saw snowfall in France – caused a 25 percent drop in rainfall from normal patterns. This heatwave is “remarkable in terms of how early it is, how long it is lasting, and how widespread it is geographically”, France’s Meteorological Office said.

Combined with unusually low rainfall last winter, these conditions have produced the current drought: A deficit of rain over two successive seasons meant “the water tables couldn’t be filled”, Haziza said.

“So very quickly we ended up in a critical situation – before summer has even started.”

For Haziza, who studies how water is distributed and circulated around the planet, the reasons for the current shortage are clear.

>> ‘Humanity is bullying nature – and we will pay the price,’ WWF chief tells FRANCE 24

“The lack of rain is directly caused by climate change; there’s no doubt about that,” she said. “Drought is one of the first consequences we can see. As things stand, this phenomenon is occurring sooner and sooner and becomes more widespread every year.”

Indeed, this is the first time France has endured what meteorologists call a “flash drought” – a phenomenon usually experienced by countries that are more hot and arid, with soil and crops drying up in just five days.

‘Spiraling out of control’

Drought has hit some regions particularly badly – especially in southeastern France, the east of the country and the Poitou-Charentes region in the west. “Some regions’ water tables manage to fill up easily while others don’t,” Haziza said. “But now, even regions that thought they wouldn’t have a drought, like northern France – not to mention large parts of northern Europe, including Belgium – are beginning to suffer from its effects.”

By imposing restrictions on those 15 départements, the French government is managing the crisis – but remains far from tackling its root cause. The measures vary by département – from banning people watering gardens or fields at specific times to a total ban on using water for washing your car.

After talks with France’s water companies and farmers’ representatives, the agriculture ministry announced that the Third Agricultural Revolution, a fund launched in April aimed at helping farmers deal with climate change, will be doubled to €40 million.

The French government also announced in late April that water companies could spend an extra €100 million to help farmers adapt to climate change or to create new reservoirs.

France has done better than most developed countries at responding to the threat of climate change, and began transitioning away from fossil fuels to nuclear power in the 1970s. President Emmanuel Macron has recently reiterated his support for nuclear energy.

>> France unveils nuclear power overhaul – with an eye on China

Even so, measures aimed at dealing with the current drought are nothing compared to the forces of climate change driving it. France must make long-term changes to its agricultural model, Haziza said, including a shift from its current production-oriented paradigm – which fuels the drought problem by driving deforestation.

“The whole system is spiralling out of control,” she said. “We’re running head on into climate change.”

This article was translated from the original in French.

France Opens Torture Case Against Interpol's UAE President: Sources

The case into suspected complicity in torture by the top UAE official has been handed by French anti-terror prosecutors to an investigating magistrate.

Agence France-Presse

Updated: May 11, 2022 

His candidacy for the Interpol job prompted an outcry from activists.


Paris:

French authorities have opened a case against Interpol president Ahmed Nasser al-Raisi of the United Arab Emirates over accusations of torture and arbitrary detention filed by two Britons who were detained in the country, a source close to the investigation said Wednesday.

The case into suspected complicity in torture by the top UAE official has been handed by French anti-terror prosecutors to an investigating magistrate who will now decide whether to press charges, the source, who asked not to be named, told AFP.

The two Britons, Matthew Hedges and Ali Issa Ahmad, accuse al-Raisi of having ultimate responsibility -- as a senior interior ministry security official -- for the torture and arbitrary detention they say they suffered in the UAE.

The source said the investigating magistrate must also decide if al-Raisi, who was elected Interpol president in November, enjoys diplomatic immunity from prosecution in France.

The Britons filed the complaint on the basis of universal jurisdiction, which allows states to prosecute serious crimes even if they were committed on foreign soil.

The opening of this case against al-Raisi goes a step further than the torture investigation opened against him by French prosecutors in November, over the detention of UAE dissident Ahmed Mansoor.

At the time, the UAE's foreign ministry rejected the complaints over Mansoor's detention conditions as "without foundation".

In the latest case, the inquiry is now in the hands of an investigating magistrate, a step that precedes the pressing of any charges.

This means that al-Raisi could potentially be detained for questioning in France if his visits the country. Interpol's headquarters are in the southeastern French city of Lyon.

He is already believed to have visited Lyon several times since January.

The case was opened at the end of March, the source added.

Both plaintiffs were in Paris on Wednesday to testify before the investigating magistrate.

Hedges says he was detained and tortured in the UAE from May to November 2018 after being arrested on false charges of espionage during a study trip.

Sentenced to life imprisonment, he was eventually released after international pressure led by the UK.

Ahmad, meanwhile, says he was repeatedly beaten and even stabbed during a month in detention in January 2019, allegedly for enthusiastically supporting the UAE's Gulf rival Qatar in a football clash.

In a statement, Hedges said it was a "real moment of pride" to give evidence to the magistrate about the torture he says he suffered.

"Given the human rights record of the UAE it was incredible that al-Raisi was even elected as president. The torture that myself, Ali, and countless other people in the UAE have suffered is unfortunately the norm in the UAE," he said.

Ahmad said: "So many times I have lost hope that al-Raisi and all the other men that did this to me would get away with it with total impunity, but today is a good day."

Al-Raisi's four-year term at Interpol is largely ceremonial, with Secretary General Jurgen Stock handling day-to-day management of the organisation.

His candidacy for the Interpol job prompted an outcry from activists, who pointed to the generous funding Interpol receives from the United Arab Emirates.

Families of trapped Burkina Faso miners still hopeful weeks into rescue effort

Issued on: 11/05/2022 

 

Families of miners trapped for weeks in a flooded mine in Burkina Faso are hopeful their loved ones will be found alive. The eight – six Burkinabe, a Zambian and a Tanzanian – have been missing since an underground section of the mine flooded on April 16 following heavy rain.

BAD CANADIAN MINING COMPANY DID NOT IMMEDIATELY RESPOND TO THE DISASTER TILL

AFTER FIVE DAYS WASTING PRECIOUS RESCUE TIME

SEE

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/05/burkina-faso-trapped-miners-families.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/05/burkina-faso-investigates-b.html

Canada gymnasts sue sport's governing bodies over alleged abuses

A Canadian gymnast performs on the beam during the London 2012 Olympic Games (AFP/EMMANUEL DUNAND) 

Wed, May 11, 2022

A group of gynmasts filed a claim Wednesday against Gymnastics Canada and the federation's provincial counterparts for having tolerated a climate of abuse and mistreatment for decades.

"This action arises from the physical, sexual, and psychological abuse of gymnasts in Canada while they were under the care and control of the provincial gymnastics organisation in their jurisdiction and Gymnastics Canada," says a copy of the legal filing obtained by AFP.

"Globally, the sport of gymnastics has come under scrutiny for its culture of cruelty," the plaintiffs' lawyers wrote, alleging that "a culture of control" and "abusive behaviour have led to the creation of an environment where abuse and mistreatment of athletes are commonplace."

The lawsuit was filed at the Supreme Court of British Columbia in the westernmost Canadian province where lead plaintiff and former gymnast Amelia Cline resides.

Having abandoned competition as a teenager, Cline said she is taking legal action to "hold these institutions accountable" for abuses in the sport.

In an interview with AFP, Cline described "lingering long term effects... from that mistreatment," including chronic physical and psychological pains.

The lawsuit names the national gymnastics federation as well as the federations of six of Canada's 10 provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.

The suit comes just over a month after a group of more than 70 gymnasts, many of whom are no longer in the sport, published an open letter to denounce a "toxic culture and abusive practices that persist within Canadian gymnastics."

The letter, which has now garnered more than 400 signatures, calls on the federal government to order an independent investigation after the Gymnasts For Change campaign group said they have "gotten nowhere" pushing Gymnastics Canada to conduct an internal probe and address their concerns.

"All disciplines, rhythmic, acro, artistic gymnastics, tumbling and trampoline, they all are, to some extent, impacted by this culture... and dominance that coaches have evolved over the decades," the group's spokeswoman Kim Shore said.

"The system of accountability has to change," she added.

gen/amc/sw

REST IN POWER

Al Jazeera's Shireen Abu Akleh: pioneering Palestinian reporter


Palestinians hold posters displaying veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, in the West Bank city of Hebron 

(AFP/HAZEM BADER)

Wed, May 11, 2022, AFP

Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed Wednesday while covering clashes in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was among Arab media's most prominent figures and widely hailed for her bravery and professionalism.

In the hours after her death, young Palestinians described Abu Akleh, 51, as an inspiration, especially to women, many of whom were motivated to pursue journalism because of her.

"She never tired," Al Jazeera senior international correspondent Hoda Abdel-Hamid told AFP by phone from Ukraine. "She was always there whenever anything happened... She wanted to be there, to tell the story, constantly," she added.

In an interview shortly before her death, Abu Akleh, who was also a US citizen, described herself as a "product of Jerusalem," with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict shaping much of her life.

She was born in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem to a Palestinian Christian family. Her mother was born in west Jerusalem, before the creation of Israel in 1948, and her father was from Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank.

She graduated from university the year the Oslo peace accords were signed and then joined the nascent Voice of Palestine radio, before switching to Al Jazeera in 1997, where she went on to become an iconic personality in Arab media.

In a sign of her importance to Palestinian audiences, flowers were placed on the side of the road by West Bank residents as the vehicle carrying her body moved towards Nablus, where an autopsy was scheduled before her burial in Jerusalem.

This handout picture obtained from a former colleague of Shireen Abu Akleh shows her reporting for the Doha-based news channel Al Jazeera from Jerusalem on July 22, 2017 (AFP/-)

- Breaking gender roles -

Journalist Muhammad Daraghmeh, a close friend who teaches at Birzeit University in the West Bank, said Abu Akleh was "one of the strongest journalists in the Arab world".

Her prominence grew through her coverage of the second Palestinian intifada, or uprising, from 2000 to 2005.

Senior Al Jazeera journalist Dima Khatib tweeted that Abu Akleh was "one of the first Arab women war correspondents in the late 1990s when the traditional role of women was to present from the television studio".

"Shireen was a pioneer in a generation that broke stereotypical gender roles in TV journalism."

Al Jazeera, the Palestinian Authority and witnesses said she was shot by Israeli forces while covering an Israeli army raid in Jenin.

Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said it was "likely" that she was killed by indiscriminate gunfire from Palestinian militants.

Abdel-Hamid said: "We need investigation and accountability, not just investigations that lead nowhere."

People mourn Al Jazeera journalist killed during Israel West Bank raid 

(AFP/Jaafar ASHTIYEH)

In a recent interview, Abu Akleh said she was often afraid while reporting but made sure to avoid unnecessary risk.

"I don't throw myself at death," she told an outlet in the West Bank city of Nablus. "I search for a safe place to stand and how to protect my crew before worrying about the footage."

Last year, Abu Akleh wrote in the publication This Week in Palestine that Jenin, the place where she died, was not just "one ephemeral story in my career or even in my personal life".

"It is the city that can raise my morale and help me fly. It embodies the Palestinian spirit that sometimes trembles and falls but, beyond all expectations, rises to pursue its flights and dreams."

bur-yz/bs/fz/dv

Al Jazeera reporter killed: 'Independent investigation' is necessary, says Reporters Without Borders

Veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American who was among the network's most prominent figures, was shot dead Wednesday as she covered an Israeli army raid in the occupied West Bank. Pauline Ades-Mevel, Reporters Without Borders's spokeperson, says that an "independent investigation is necessary to avoid impunity".

Al Jazeera pays tearful tribute to journalist killed in Israeli raid

Shireen Abu Akleh, 51, was shot dead as she covered an Israeli raid on Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank - -
by Tim Witcher

May 11, 2022 — Doha (AFP)

Al Jazeera's newsdesk told Shireen Abu Akleh they would keep a spot for her "at the top of the hour" after she said in an email she was going to cover an Israeli operation in the Palestinian town of Jenin.

"But she never turned up," said Mohamed Moawad, the Arabic channel's head of output, fighting back tears as he told of the final contacts with the veteran journalist on a typically risky mission.

"The last communication was 20 minutes before this heinous crime happened," Moawad told AFP shortly after staff held their own broadcast tribute to the 51-year-old.

"She sent an email that said 'Hi, there is an Israeli intervention in Jenin and I am heading there now. I am almost there. I will send you details'."

Instead of her live report from the raid, Al Jazeera staff were shaken to see social media images indicating she had been shot.

Moawad said another journalist soon sent a message informing them she had died three kilometres (nearly two miles) from the edge of Jenin in the West Bank.


She had been with four other journalists, all wearing blue press vests and helmets, according to the Al Jazeera chief.

The Qatari state-owned channel said Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American, had been killed "in cold blood" and demanded Israeli forces be held accountable.

Israel said it was investigating the death but denied Abu Akleh had been deliberately hit. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said it was "likely" Palestinian gunfire had hit her.

- 'Extremely brave' -

"We consider this something intentional because the bullet hit exactly the area below her ear where there is no cover," said Moawad, who added that "reckless" comments had been made in Israel about the killing.

Al Jazeera journalists shed tears during the minute when its broadcasts were silenced as a tribute to the journalist who joined the channel shortly after it opened in 1996.

Many who had worked with Abu Akleh embraced in the newsroom, clutching portraits of the journalist and sheets stating "Journalism is not a crime", as images showing the latest violence in the Palestinian territories flashed up on their work screens.

Abu Akleh -- the second journalist hired by Al Jazeera in the Palestinian territories -- became the 12th journalist from the channel to be killed on duty since it started broadcasting.


"She was everywhere where there was a story. She has been everywhere to give voice to the voiceless," said Moawad.

"There are so many videos showing Shireen getting attacked by Israeli forces, getting attacked by bullets and other stuff."

Abu Akleh had never complained about her own safety though, he added.

"She was always there covering the story without any kind of fear. We never assigned Shireen to do a story, she was just there. She showed up."

Hoda Abdel-Hamid, a senior correspondent at Al Jazeera, said Abu Akleh was "extremely brave".

"But she was also a very experienced journalist, she was not one to take stupid risks for the hell of it," she told AFP from her mission in Ukraine.

"I am pretty sure that today she was in a safe place, in a place that was for journalists and she was clearly marked.

"She wouldn't be jumping in the crossfire just for the hell of it. She wouldn't do that."

Shireen Abu Aqla: Palestinians’ 'voice and face' to the Arab world

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH - 
© (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
The Jerusalem Post

For many Palestinians, Shireen Abu Aqla, the veteran Al-Jazeera reporter who was killed during an IDF operation in Jenin on Wednesday morning, was more than a journalist.

For the past two decades, Abu Aqla, a resident of east Jerusalem, became known as one of the main voices and faces of the Palestinians in the popular Qatari-owned TV network.

She was one of the few Palestinian female journalists who reported from the field, especially in Jerusalem and the West Bank. Some of her colleagues described her as the “Palestinian war correspondent.”

“She was a fearless reporter,” said one of her colleagues. “She never hesitated to go to places where clashes were taking place. She loved her work.”

Many of her colleagues appreciated her courage for reporting from the scenes of clashes between Israeli policemen and soldiers. They also described her as one of the most professional female journalists.


© Provided by The Jerusalem Post

Joint LIst MKs Ayman Odeh, Aida Touma-Sliman and Ofer Cassif visit the family of killed journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on May 11, 2022.

 (credit: JOINT LIST SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)

Abu Aqla, 51, reported extensively on the situation in the city, including the violence that erupted at the Aqsa Mosque compound, the Old City’s Damascus Gate and the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

She also reported on the situation in the West Bank with a focus on clashes between IDF soldiers and Palestinians. She often appeared on Al-Jazeera wearing a helmet and a vest with a “press” sign.

When she was once asked about the dangers she faces while covering the violence, Abu Aqla replied: “Death was always a short distance away. During the difficult moments, I overcame the fear. I chose journalism to be close to the human being. It’s probably not easy for me to change the reality, but at least I was able to communicate that voice to the world.”

Abu Aqla rose to stardom during the Second Intifada, which erupted in 2000. Her reporting on the daily violence turned her into one of the most popular reporters in the eyes of Al-Jazeera’s millions of viewers in the Arab world.

She was also known for her criticism of Israel. In one of her recent tweets, she wrote: “No Arab will be able to ignore the Palestinian issue, no matter how much Israel tries to marginalize this issue.”

Abu Aqla, whose family is originally from Bethlehem, was raised in east Jerusalem, where she went to the Rosary Sisters’ School.

After completing her studies in journalism in Jordan, she returned to the city, where she initially worked for the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). She was later hired by the PA’s Voice of Palestine radio station and Monte Carlo radio’s Arab news department. In 1997, she began working for Al-Jazeera’s newly established bureau in Jerusalem.

Read more on the death of journalist Shireen Abu Aqla in Jenin:
Journalist killed in Jenin, investigation opened by IDF
Who killed Shireen Abu Akleh, IDF soldiers or Palestinians?
Israeli leaders react to the death of the journalist
Arab world condemns Israel over death of Al Jazeera journalist
Who was Shireen Abu Aqla?

SEE

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/05/shireen-abu-akleh-outrage-grows-over-al.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/05/palestinians-honour-slain-journalist.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2022/05/al-jazeera-reporter-killed-during.html

THIRD WORLD USA
High inflation leaves food banks struggling to meet needs

By THALIA BEATY and GLENN GAMBOA

Sgt. Kevin Fowler organizes food at a food bank distribution by the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021, in Cleveland. Food banks across America say these economic conditions are pushing demand for their support higher, at a time when their labor and delivery costs are climbing and donations are decreasing. 

The problem has grown to the point that President Joe Biden called for a Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in September, the first since 1969

(AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)

Kendall Nunamaker and her family of five in Kennewick, Washington, faced impossible math this month: How to pay for gas, groceries and the mortgage with inflation driving up prices?

Like many other working families, the Nunamakers are grappling with the 8.3% inflation in the consumer price index in April announced Wednesday — slowing slightly from the March figure which was the largest year-over-year increase since 1981, according to the Labor Department. The national average gas price reached a record high Wednesday of $4.40 a gallon. And global food prices are climbing after shortages caused by Russia’s war against Ukraine and other supply chain problems.

Food banks across America say those economic conditions are intensifying demand for their support at a time when their labor and distribution costs are climbing and donations are slowing. The problem has grown to the point where last week President Joe Biden called for a Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in September, the first since 1969.

For many families like the Nunamakers, food insecurity became a painful surprise.

“There’s no reason us as a couple and a family should be struggling so hard,” Nunamaker said. “We make decent money.”

She works three days a week at a home décor store for $15.25 an hour; her husband, Nick, works a full-time union job as a paratransit driver at $27 an hour. Though they receive some money from a state nutrition program for young children that their two youngest qualify for, they still spent $360 on groceries last week.

Because of inflated prices, those groceries didn’t go far enough to feed everyone. And the family still lacked money to pay other household bills, leaving Nunamaker wondering how she would stretch their next paychecks to cover those bills and their mortgage this month.

In the past, to bridge the gap, the family sold off possessions like VR headsets and firearms.

“At some point,” Nunamaker said, “we’re not going to have anything because we would have sold everything.”

So Nunamaker and her husband visited two local food banks for the first time last week.

The pandemic forced roughly 60 million Americans to seek help for food insecurity, according to Feeding America. At the end of 2021, as hiring boomed, demand for food banks returned to regular levels. But the relief was short-lived.

“In the last few months, with this increase in inflationary pressures, we’re seeing 95% of our 200 member food banks saying that they have seen either leveling or an increase in need,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America.

In the area along the Columbia River where Nunamaker lives, the number of clients seeking food aid at a church pantry jumped 40% between December and March, according to Eric Williams, director of community partnerships at Second Harvest, an organization that works to supply local pantries with food.

He said his organization must make more happen with less because its suppliers are subject to the same cost increases. The price that Second Harvest pays for obtaining donated produce has risen from about 6 cents a pound a year ago to about 10 or 11 cents a pound now, Williams said.

Some of Feeding America’s food pantry partners have closed because of dwindling donations and higher costs for receiving and delivering food. Others have less food on their shelves even though they have higher demand.

“Our network emphasizes access and equity,” Babineaux-Fontenot said. “So we are working extra hard to reach people who have the deepest food insecurity rates. Well, how far out can we go when gas prices are high? We have data that shows that race and place are significant indicators of whether or not you will be food insecure and how deeply you will be food insecure.”

Because of inflation and a reduction in aid, a food bank that serves three counties in Ohio — also called Second Harvest — is facing a drop in the amount of food it’s able to provide.

“Compared to last year at this time, we’re about 50% down in what we have received in the past in federal food donations and then about 20% down from food drives in our collection of food at the grocery stores,” Executive Director Tyra Jackson said. “All of that combined is truly having an impact on our budget because we’re needing to purchase more food outright.”

The struggles of families are heightened by the fact that government benefits that were increased during the pandemic like food stamps or unemployment insurance have stopped or will end shortly.

“Our work is always important,” Babineaux-Fontenot said. “It’s increasingly important when we have all of these headwinds.”

Williams, of Spokane, extended gratitude to the donors and volunteers that keep his organization running, some of whom worked more than 100 shifts last year. He said it can be difficult to witness first hand the scale of the food insecurity in his community when helping with distributions at a mobile food bank.

“You see the need and you just go, ‘Oh God, oh my God,’ ” Williams said. “But then as you hand somebody a box of food and they drive off: ‘Yeah, we were able to help,’ which is heart-wrenching on one hand and heartwarming on the other.”

Because it upsets her so much, Nunamaker said, she hasn’t discussed her family’s struggles with her three children, age 2, 4 and 7, or her network of friends and relatives. She said the food banks helped her family last week.

“People should know that just because you have to go to a food bank or you have to seek assistance, that doesn’t make you any less of a parent or a person,” she said. “Because everybody needs help sometimes.”

___

Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

CAPITALI$M IS ADDICTION

US overdose deaths hit record 107,000 last year, CDC says

By MIKE STOBBE

 Deb Walker visits the grave of her daughter, Brooke Goodwin, Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021, in Chester, Vt. Goodwin, 23, died in March of 2021 of a fatal overdose of the powerful opioid fentanyl and xylazine, an animal tranquilizer that is making its way into the illicit drug supply. According to provisional data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, more than 107,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, setting another tragic record in the nation’s escalating overdose epidemic. (AP Photo/Lisa Rathke, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — More than 107,000 Americans died of drug overdoses last year, setting another tragic record in the nation’s escalating overdose epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated Wednesday.

The provisional 2021 total translates to roughly one U.S. overdose death every 5 minutes. It marked a 15% increase from the previous record, set the year before. The CDC reviews death certificates and then makes an estimate to account for delayed and incomplete reporting.

Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, called the latest numbers “truly staggering.”

The White House issued a statement calling the accelerating pace of overdose deaths “unacceptable” and promoting its recently announced national drug control strategy. It calls for measures like connecting more people to treatment, disrupting drug trafficking and expanding access to the overdose-reversing medication naloxone.

U.S. overdose deaths have risen most years for more than two decades. The increase began in the 1990s with overdoses involving opioid painkillers, followed by waves of deaths led by other opioids like heroin and — most recently — illicit fentanyl.

Last year, overdoses involving fentanyl and other synthetic opioids surpassed 71,000, up 23% from the year before. There also was a 23% increase in deaths involving cocaine and a 34% increase in deaths involving meth and other stimulants.

Overdose deaths are often attributed to more than one drug. Some people take multiple drugs and inexpensive fentanyl has been increasingly cut into other drugs, often without the buyers’ knowledge, officials say.

“The net effect is that we have many more people, including those who use drugs occasionally and even adolescents, exposed to these potent substances that can cause someone to overdose even with a relatively small exposure,” Volkow said in a statement.

Experts say the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the problem as lockdowns and other restrictions isolated those with drug addictions and made treatment harder to get.

Overdose death trends are geographically uneven. Alaska saw a 75% increase in 2021 — the largest jump of any state. In Hawaii, overdose deaths fell by 2%.

Sri Lanka leader vows to shed powers, appoint prime minister

By KRISHAN FRANCIS

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Sri Lankan army soldiers patrol during curfew in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, May 11, 2022. Sri Lanka's defense ministry ordered security forces on Tuesday to shoot anyone causing injury to people or property to contain widespread arson and mob violence targeting government supporters. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka’s president on Wednesday promised to appoint a new prime minister, empower the Parliament and abolish the all-powerful executive presidential system as reforms to stabilize the country engulfed in a political crisis and violence triggered by the worst economic crises in memory.

In a televised address, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that he without partisanship condemns attacks on peaceful protesters by mobs who came to support his brother and former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who resigned Monday.

“I am taking steps to appoint within this week a new prime minister who has the trust of a majority in Parliament, who can win over the confidence of the people and a new Cabinet to control the current situation, to stop the country from falling into anarchy and to continue the government’s functions that are at a standstill,” Gotabaya Rajapaksa said.

“I will make way for the new prime minister to present a new program of work and implement it.”

Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he will also give away much of his powers to Parliament and when some normalcy returns, take steps to abolish the country’s powerful executive presidential system.

The president’s speech came as authorities deployed armored vehicles and troops in the streets of the capital Wednesday, two days after pro-government mobs attacked peaceful protesters, triggering a wave of violence across the country.

Security forces have been ordered to shoot those deemed to be participating in the violence, as sporadic acts of arson and vandalism continued despite a strict nationwide curfew that began Monday evening.

A Sri Lankan family watches the wreckage of buses burnt in clashes in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, May 11, 2022. Sri Lanka's defense ministry ordered security forces on Tuesday to shoot anyone causing injury to people or property to contain widespread arson and mob violence targeting government supporters. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Anti-government protesters have been demanding the resignations of President Rajapaksa and his brother, over a debt crisis that has nearly bankrupted Sri Lanka and left its people facing severe shortages of fuel, food and other essentials. In the past few days, nine people have died and more than 200 have been injured in violent attacks in which mobs set fire to buildings and vehicles.

Armored trucks with soldiers riding on top rolled into some areas of Colombo. Defying the curfew, some protesters regrouped opposite the president’s office to continue demonstrations that began over a month ago. Police announced over loudspeakers that it is illegal to stay in public places during the curfew.

Videos posted on social media showed lines of military trucks moving out of the capital, along with soldiers riding on motorbikes and setting up checkpoints across the country amid fears that a political vacuum could pave the way for a military takeover.

The Defense Ministry’s top official, Kamal Gunaratne, denied speculation of a military takeover at a news conference held with the country’s army and navy chiefs.

“None of our officers has a desire to take over the government. It has never happened in our country, and it is not easy to do it here,” Gunaratne said. President Rajapaksa is a former top army officer and remains the country’s official defense minister.

Gunaratne said the army will return to its barracks once the security situation normalizes.

The U.S. State Department expressed concern over the military deployment, with spokesman Ned Price saying it was “closely monitoring” the situation.

The prime minister’s departure has created an administrative vacuum with no Cabinet, which dissolved automatically with his resignation.

Navy commander Nishantha Ulugetenne said the former prime minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, is being protected at a naval base in Trincomalee on the northeastern coast.

After Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned, he and his family were evacuated from his official residence through thousands of protesters trying to break into the heavily guarded colonial-era building.

The Indian Embassy denied social media speculation that “certain political persons and their families have fled to India,” and also rejected speculation that India was sending troops to Sri Lanka.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs affirmed its support for Sri Lanka on Tuesday, saying it had extended $3.5 billion to help overcome the economic crisis and had sent essential items such as food and medicine.

On Monday, supporters gathered at the prime minister’s official residence to urge Mahinda Rajapaksa to stay in office. After the meeting, mobs backing the government beat peaceful protesters who had camped out near the prime minister’s residence and president’s office demanding their resignations, as police watched and did little to stop them. Across the country, angry citizens responded by attacking government supporters and ruling party politicians.

Nine people including a ruling party lawmaker and two police officers were killed and 219 were injured in the violence, the defense ministry said. In addition, 104 buildings and 60 vehicles were burned.

Pro-government mobs were chased, beaten and stripped. Homes of government supporters were attacked, and some businesses were set on fire.

The European Union called on the authorities to initiate an investigation into the events and hold accountable those who instigated and carried out the violence.

Sri Lanka is nearing bankruptcy and has suspended payments on $7 billion in foreign loans due this year out of $25 billion due by 2026. Its total foreign debt is $51 billion.

The Central Bank on Wednesday urged the president and Parliament to quickly restore political stability, warning the economy faces a threat of further collapse within days.

“Even for us to make progress on debt restructuring, we need a stable kind of a government. A Cabinet, a Parliament, a prime minister, a finance minister are all needed,” Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said.

“Without that kind of an administration, it is very difficult for us make any progress.”