No kids? No cash: Many working Albertans won't receive government's inflation-busting benefits

Story by Michelle Bellefontaine • Yesterday 

Alberta's affordability minister is defending a new program that provides cash for families, seniors and people who receive social benefits but cuts out single working people with low incomes.


Alberta Premier Danielle Smith promised measures to help Albertans deal with the high cost of living during a televised address Tuesday.© Jason Franson/The Canadian Press

On Tuesday, Premier Danielle Smith announced in a televised address that families earning up to $180,000 a year will be given $600 for each dependent child aged six months and older. The benefit will also be extended to seniors and recipients of income support, assured income for the severely handicapped (AISH), and persons with developmental disabilities (PDD) funding.

An adult working 40 hours a week at Alberta's $15-per-hour minimum wage rate takes home about $31,200 a year. However, that person would not qualify for the $600 government payment unless they are a senior or have a child.

"We must target additional supports to where they're needed most," Matt Jones, Alberta's minister for affordability and utilities, said Wednesday.

"Seniors and disabled Albertans and families with a large number of dependents would seem to be worthy recipients of additional targeted supports," he said.

Jones said the $180,000 figure is based on the threshold used for child care supports. He said childless Albertans should see benefits from other affordability measures, such as suspension of the provincial fuel tax and electricity rebates over the winter.

The affordability measures are expected to start in January, with more details coming early next month. Those details will be contained within enabling legislation the government hopes to pass during the four-week fall sitting that starts on Tuesday.

Jones made the comments at a news conference announcing $10 million in funding over two years for Alberta Food Banks. The province will also provide another $10 million in matching funds over the same period toward food banks, charities, not-for-profits and civil society organizations.

Related video: Alberta announces $2.4B affordability package
Duration 4:02
View on Watch


Arianna Scott, president of Alberta Food Banks, said that aside from $6 million in COVID-19 support, this funding is the first food banks have received from the provincial government.

"This is a first," she said. "So this is pretty significant for us."

'Frantic plan'

Smith is facing criticism that the new affordability measures are an effort to buy votes leading up to the next provincial election in May 2023.

Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley called the plan "a pre-election gift card" that was pulled together without much thought.

She said cash benefit plan excludes many Albertans who need help, such as single working adults without children or childless couples who are cobbling together a family income by working multiple minimum wage jobs.

Notley said the measure looks like "a back-of-the-napkin kind of frantic plan that was thrown together by a premier … who's just really not very good at at governing."

In 2019, former premier Jason Kenney and his government removed cost-of-living increases from AISH, income support and other social benefits as a cost-cutting measure.

Since then, high inflation has drastically eroded what people can afford, driving many to seek help from food banks.

While Smith is pledging to bring back indexing starting in January, Notley said the measure still leaves benefit recipients $3,000 short of where they would have been if the government had left payments alone three years ago.

In Smith's nine-minute address on Tuesday evening, she discussed rebates to help people facing high electricity bills and measures to prevent rate spikes over the winter months.

She wants to remove the provincial fuel tax for at least six months to help lower the price of gas. She re-announced former premier Jason Kenney's plan to start indexing tax brackets to the rate of inflation starting with the 2022 tax season.

In addition to helping food banks, Smith said she wants to fund more low-income transit passes.

Cost of affordability measures pegged at $2.8B in Alberta fiscal update

Story by Michelle Bellefontaine • 

Alberta's second-quarter fiscal update puts the costs of the province's new affordability measures at $2.8 billion over three years.

ASSUMING THEY WIN ELECTION NEXT SPRING

Alberta Finance Minister Travis Toews released results of the second quarter of the 2022-23 fiscal year Thursday.© Juris Graney/CBC

The update, released Thursday by Finance Minister Travis Toews, reveals the government will spend $1.3 billion on the affordability package in this fiscal year, $1.2 billion in 2023-24 and $300 million in 2024-25.

Premier Danielle Smith announced the measures in a televised address Tuesday night.

They include cash payments for seniors, families with children and people who receive AISH, PDD and income support; a suspension of the provincial gas tax, and help with electricity bills over the winter.

Officials with the premier's office on Tuesday put the cost of the package at $2.4 billion.

The money is coming mostly from the budget surplus for 2022-23, which is now forecast at $12.3 billion, $900 million less than the $13.2 billion forecast at the end of the first quarter. The government said the drop is due to softening oil prices and demand.

West Texas Intermediate oil is now forecast to average $91.50 US per barrel in 2022-23.

The surplus estimate for 2023-24 is $5.6 billion. In 2024-25, the surplus estimate is $5.3 billion.

The monthly $100 payments to seniors, families with children and others outlined in the affordability measures are set to start in January and continue three months into the next fiscal year.

The costs that carry over into the 2024-25 fiscal year account for the effects of reindexing social benefits and tax brackets to the cost of inflation. They were deindexed in 2019 as a cost-savings measure.

The mid-year update shows the province is forgoing nearly $1 billion in revenues in this fiscal year through the suspension of the 13 cent per litre provincial fuel tax which started April 1. Collection of part of the tax — 4.5 cents per litre — resumed on Oct. 1.

In her address on Tuesday, Smith said the government will suspend the provincial fuel tax entirely for at least six months as part of the affordability measures.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the premier said the affordability program will roll out beginning in January, after the government passes enabling legislation in December.

In presenting the first-quarter update at the end of August, then-finance minister Jason Nixon said the province was saving $1.7 billion of the surplus in the Heritage Fund. However, that figure doesn't appear in Thursday's update.

The government said Thursday that moving money into the Heritage Fund is still on the table but cabinet will soon make decisions on how to use its surplus.

"The merits of reducing debt and debt-servicing costs relative to increasing savings and investment income will be contemplated," the second-quarter report says. "The government will thoughtfully analyze these various uses of surplus cash and make decisions that meet Albertans' priorities."

Spending up

The second-quarter update covers the period from July 1 to Sept. 30 and reflects where the province's finances sit in the middle of the fiscal year. The figures in the quarterly updates are forecasts of how the year will end on March 30, 2023.

Alberta's finances have been buoyed by a surge in world oil prices partly caused by renewed interest in travel, which pushed up demand, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The province is forecasting $79.1 billion in revenue and $64.6 million in expenses.

Spending is up $2.5 billion from the February budget.

Extra expenses include $64 million for school bus fuel and negotiated increases to teacher salaries; $340 million for the new agreement with physicians and the resolution of contracts with other health-care workers; and $50 million for victim services, legal aid and compensation for judges.

Revenue from non-renewable resources is forecast at $28.1 billion.

Corporate income tax is projected at $6.3 billion, which the government says is the largest amount it will ever collect. Revenue from personal income tax is expected to be $13.3 billion, $83 million lower than forecast in the February budget.

The province still plans to put $13.4 billion toward debt repayment. The debt is forecast to be $79.8 billion at the end of the current fiscal year.

The budget presented in February predicted a surplus of just $511 million, but that projection soared to $13.2 billion in the first-quarter update on the strength of oil prices in the US$100-a-barrel range.

Alta.'s tactic of doling out cash fuels inflation rather than easing it: economists

Provinces peppering the public with cash to deal with soaring prices compounds inflation rather than easing it, economists say.



They say the tactic used by Alberta this week and B.C. and Quebec earlier this year fails to quell inflation because having extra money means people will continue spending and demand for products and service will stay high, keeping decades-high inflation from budging.

If people had less money to spend while prices were high it would weigh on inflation, they say.

Inflation sat at 6.9 per cent last month down from 8.1 per cent in June.

Giving money to households is "likely to contribute to the problem as opposed to solving it," said Travis Shaw, senior vice-president of public finance at DBRS Morningstar.

"It does contradict what the Bank of Canada is trying to do with monetary policy in terms of trying to take some heat out of the system and ultimately bring down inflation," he said.

His remarks come a day after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced her Inflation Relief Act, which will dole out $600 over six months to families earning less than $180,000 for each child under the age of 18 or senior.

Smith will also index income supports to inflation, provide an additional $200 in consumer electricity bill rebates through the winter months and suspend the entire provincial fuel tax for at least the next six months.

Rounding out the $2.4 billion plan are an investment in food banks and an expansion of a public transit pass program for low-income earners.

Related video: 'Light at the end of the tunnel' on inflation, says OECD's chief economist
Duration 10:15
View on Watch

"Too many moms and dads are having to choose between nutritious food for their children and making their rising mortgage payments. Many seniors are choosing between filling their needed prescriptions and fuel for their vehicles," Smith said during a Tuesday speech announcing the measures.

"As a province we can’t solve this inflation crisis on our own, but due to our strong fiscal position and balanced budget, we can offer substantial relief, so Albertans and their families are better able to manage through this storm."

Shaw noted Smith's announcement comes ahead of Alberta Finance Minister Travis Toews making a mid-year fiscal update and economic statement on Thursday and six months before the province will plunge into an election.

"These payments are going to be $100 payments for six months, which lines up pretty nicely with when the spring election will be taking place," Shaw said.

Smith is not the only premier to turn to payouts for inflation relief.

In September, B.C. Premier John Horgan announced roughly 85 per cent of people in the province would benefit from the government increasing the Climate Action Tax Credit payment, estimated to be worth up to $1,500 a year for a family of four.

At the same time, he said the B.C. Family Benefit, formerly known as the province’s Child Opportunity Fund, would provide increased tax-free monthly payments to about 75 per cent of B.C. families with children under 18.

The family benefit is meant to be a temporary measure spanning January to March, with the increase amounting to $58 a month for a single parent with one child.

Before Horgan, Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard used his spring budget to offer a one-time payment of $500 to every adult earning $100,000 or less.

Shaw thinks other provinces might get inspired by such moves.

He said, "I would expect that, should inflation remain persistently high, we could see additional measures at the provincial level or an extension of existing measures."

—With files from Dirk Meissner in B.C.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 23, 2022.

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press

Alberta government earmarks $20M to help food banks, agencies during inflation crisis

CALGARY — An Alberta cabinet minister says it makes more sense now to help people in the province suffering from an "inflation crisis" and skyrocketing utility bills than waiting for another seven months.


Matt Jones, minister of affordability and utilities, said he's not about to apologize for providing help at this point, even though there's a provincial election expected in the province in May.

"I would say there either is a cost of living and inflation crisis or there isn't. Albertans are certainly feeling it and the next question becomes, should the government respond to address the real needs of Albertans now or wait for seven months?" Jones said Wednesday in Calgary during an announcement that the province is to provide $20 million over the next two years to help food banks.

"I'm not prepared to tell families to wait to feed their families or to get to work. We've been financially disciplined for three years, so we are in a position to do so and I think it's important that we support Albertans in their time of greatest need."

Alberta is on track for a $13-billion surplus this year due to rebounding oil and gas prices, with an update on the budget coming Thursday.

The money is to include $10 million in direct funds and an additional $10 million in matching funds toward food banks, charities, non-profits and civil society organizations.

Jeremy Nixon, minister of seniors, community and social services, said there is an "immediate crisis, so I think that adds to the answer why now."

“Many Albertans rely on food banks, which is why I am so grateful for the work they do in their local communities. It is my goal to ensure that no Albertan ever needs to wonder where their next meal will come from," Nixon said.

"During the pandemic there was also a crisis, so this isn't new. We recently put $6 million into food banks then and we're building on that."

Related video: Non-profits in Alberta calling for cash injection from the provincial government

Duration 1:07 View on Watch

Food Banks Alberta CEO Arianna Scott said the money is critical to meet rising needs from the public.

"When (the) Hunger Count (report) came out nationally in October, Alberta experienced a 73 per cent increase since 2019. So it is the largest increase across the country. It is also the largest increase that Alberta has ever experienced," Scott said.

"We hear from our members every day that the number of new clients coming through the door is increasing exponentially. The majority of our members continue to experience an increase month over month throughout this year."

Premier Danielle Smith announced Tuesday payouts of $600 for middle- to lower-income families in a provincewide TV address. Those with a household income of less than $180,000 a year are to get $600 for each child under 18 over a period of six months. The same income threshold and benefit applies to seniors.

The government is also promising to remove its provincial gasoline tax and to continue providing electricity rebates.

Jones said Wednesday that those not eligible for the $600 payouts aren't being left out.

"The vast majority of Albertans will be eligible for up to $500 in electricity rebates and even more when you combine the fuel tax relief," he said.

"I think we would all agree as the cost of living and inflation crises persist, we must target additional supports to where it is needed most."

In Calgary, Opposition NDP Leader Rachel Notley said she welcomes more money for food banks but hopes it doesn't come at the expense of help for other aid agencies.

Notley said food banks must remain a last resort and the United Conservative government has accelerated the need for them by cutting supports like rent subsidies. The government also de-indexed benefits for seniors and the vulnerable in 2019 and recently committed to re-indexing them.

"In the long-term, we still need to design our programs to eliminate the need for food banks," said Notley. "That must be a priority for the provincial government."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 23, 2022.

Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press

Danielle Smith Says Financial Relief Is Coming For Albertans & Some Could Get $600 Soon

Story by Charlie Hart • 

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has announced that new measures are coming in the province to help people deal with the cost of living.


Danielle Smith Says Financial Relief Is Coming For Albertans & Some Could Get $600 Soon© Provided by Narcity Québec

In an address to the province on Tuesday, November 22, Smith said one of the main challenges Albertans are facing right now is the "inflation and affordability crisis."

Smith said while Alberta can't solve the inflation crisis on its own, the province is able to "offer substantial relief" for Albertans to help families with rising costs.

While details of the Inflation Relief Act are being finalized, Smith did reveal some of the measures which are set to be put in place in the province.

Families with children under the age of 18 are set to benefit as the Alberta Government could be giving them $600 per child over the course of six months. Seniors in Alberta would also benefit from this act, as they are expected to receive the same amount. It would apply to families with household incomes of less than $180,000.

Those who receive income support such as AISH and PDD would also receive $600, under the new measures.

For the rest of Alberta, there might still be some hope when tax season comes around.

Smith announced that provincial tax brackets would be indexed for 2022, which will mean bigger rebates when taxes are filed in the spring.

Rebates on electricity bills through the winter will also be increased so Albertans will be getting an additional $200 per household.

Other measures included another suspension of the entire provincial fuel tax for the next six months and an increased rebate on consumer electricity bills.

Lose the cowboy hat? Chamber says Calgary needs a rebrand to attract workers

Story by Josh Aldrich • Tuesday- Calgary Herald

TRADE IT IN FOR A TOP HAT

The Calgary Chamber of Commerce says the city needs to rebrand and change its reputation to sell itself to the rest of Canada as a place to live and work.

A man wearing a cowboy hat walks through a Plus-15 ahead of the Calgary Stampede on July 6, 2022.

The chamber on Tuesday released its final report in a series called Unblocking our Talent Potential that looks at solutions to a worker shortage. This fourth report said the city needs to do a better job of telling its story of diversity, economic diversification, and arts and culture to the world.

Deborah Yedlin, president and CEO of the chamber, said it’s about taking control of our own story and not allowing outdated stereotypes to dominate the discussion.

“This is a really, really important part of how we work to increase the talents to the city to support that ongoing diversification, and be able to showcase all the different things that are going on here,” she said.

Despite members of the business community and council members talking at length about how the city has evolved, it’s a separate challenge to get that message to the general population.

According to polling from Maru Public Opinion in 2021 , half of Canadians would not feel comfortable living in Alberta and there is a perception that life in the province runs counter to the common goals of Canadians. For many — even some in Calgary — the city is still dominated by corporate and cowboy culture, and it’s difficult to fit in if you do not identify with either of those segments.

This runs counter to what the city has been preaching and experiencing over the past five years.

Yedlin points to record venture capital investment in tech, millions of dollars being invested into arts and culture, and Calgary being the third most diverse city in Canada.

This message, however, doesn’t appear to be reaching Calgary’s young adults, the demographic the business community is fighting hardest to attract and retain. Eighty-two per cent of those aged 18 to 24 and 68 per cent of those 25 and older believe Calgary needs to address racism and discrimination to attract the workforce it wants.

“Anything that suggests intolerance or racism or discrimination is definitely something we should all be concerned about,” said Yedlin. “And I think, too, as cities grow and demographic composition changes, some people may feel that they’re not as welcome as others. And that really speaks to the importance of making sure we have an open, inclusive city that is really focused on accepting everybody who comes here.”

This is in spite of an influx of people to the city from across Canada, due largely to its affordability. The province’s Alberta is Calling campaign has been selling a lower cost of living and greater opportunity, but Yedlin said a large portion of the country still will not consider the city because of the stereotypes.

Calgary previously went through a rebranding process in 2011 when Calgary Economic Development designed a campaign called “Be Part of the Energy,” discarding the former “Heart of the West” slogan — an unpopular move at the time.

“So much has changed,” said Yedlin. “It was aspirational, we’re changing, everything’s good. And now we can actually say things have changed. And let’s reflect that in our branding, because there’s so much that makes this city what it is today.”

Brad Parry, president and CEO of CED, said the organization has been working on a rebrand for the better part of a year and will be looking to announce new partnerships in the coming weeks with a potential launch in the new year.

For this process, they have engaged fully with the city at large, including underserved demographics and Indigenous communities and have dove in on those coming to Calgary or potentially could be coming to Calgary about how the city is perceived.

He said they are starting to see that narrative change, but it is going to take time to shift what he calls the historical, untruthful conversation about what the city is.

“For me, it’s about getting it right, not rushing it,” said Parry. “I know people are anxious and want it, and so am I. I just want to make sure we do the right thing for our city because this is not a campaign. This is this is the underpinning of how we want people to see our city in the future.”

jaldrich@postmedia.com

Twitter: @JoshAldrich03

NO TO AUSTERITY!
Citizens call for climate action, better transit at Calgary budget public hearings


Citizens, community organizations and interest groups got their turn at the mic on Day 2 of Calgary’s budget meetings, with most looking for funding rather than cuts.


Calgary’s old city hall is framed against the newer building on Monday, November 21, 2022.

Story by Brodie Thomas • Yesterday  Calgary Herald

Mayor Jyoti Gondek warned councillors that more than 100 people were signed up to speak, and presentations could spill over to Wednesday’s meeting. Throughout the morning, transit, climate action and public safety were the common themes as citizens took turns spending up to five minutes at the mic.

Many speakers, including Steve Bentley of the Calgary Climate Hub, were critical of the budget’s lack of funding for climate initiatives.

“This budget is supposed to be our net-zero launch,” he said. “Between this council and the next, that’s us either missing or meeting our 2030 net zero goals. Does this feel like a net-zero launch budget to you? I’m not feeling it.”

Natalie Robertson also spoke about the ways climate change is negatively affecting Calgary, such as with wildfire smoke in the summer.

“This council declared a climate emergency and I guess it was me that was naive to think that that actually meant something, (and) that the strategic direction given by council to admin would somehow be reflected in the budget,” said Robertson.



The Calgary downtown skyline was photographed on Tuesday, November 22, 2022.

Several speakers pressed for better service and more infrastructure for transit and cycling.

“The most important thing to improve transit in my opinion is to increase frequency across the entire network,” said Sebastien Bergeron. “I live in a one-car household and I’d like to keep it that way. Fast, reliable and frequent transit is a key component to making that happen for me.”

Cycling advocate Brett Bergie said the city should return pedestrian and bicycle co-ordinator positions to the mobility team. She said not having these specialists on the team has cost Calgary momentum in its cycling infrastructure.


A CTrain passes through the City Hall LRT station in downtown Calgary on Thursday, February 3, 2022.© Provided by Calgary Herald

Related video: City of Calgary says it seeks balance with proposed 4.4% property tax hike, rate increases
Duration 1:05  View on Watch

Two speakers from business revitalization zones brought concerns about social disorder. Alison Karim-McSwiney of the International Avenue BRZ said they are employing private security in their area to supplement police officers in dealing with social disorder.

“Our complaint is not with the fine people who serve this area, but with the extreme lack of front-line police resources. We have a deficit of over 35 officers in our district,” said Karim-McSwiney.

Annie MacInnis, executive director of the Kensington BRZ, said social disorder is an increasing problem in her area as well. She said Calgary isn’t alone in this concern — at a recent national conference of business improvement areas, it was the No. 1 concern for groups across the country.

“With our pedestrian-rich environments and greater population density, we are at the forefront of this social disorder, and experiencing more and more disruption of businesses and daily life,” said MacInnis.

Related

'A red flag': Calgarians feel less safe and fear that crime is rising: poll

Calgary city council declares a climate emergency

Multiple organizations had funding requests, including Calgary Heritage Initiative Society which wanted $5 million for a residential heritage tax credit pilot program. Arts incubator cSpace was looking for an injection of $1 million over four years, saying its model had proven to be successful for helping grow the arts and create value for the city.

By mid-afternoon, only two speakers had advocated for lower taxes — both were business advocates looking for lower non-residential taxes. Deborah Yedlin of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce reiterated her call for a rebalancing of the tax share away from businesses.

Guy Huntingford, representing a number of groups, including the chamber and downtown business association, said a rebalancing of the tax share is necessary to keep attracting businesses.

“Calgarians require a healthy and growing job market to pay their taxes that in turn provides the services they desire,” he said.

Coun. Sonya Sharp said she was surprised that so few speakers asked for reduced taxes.

“That’s not what I’ve been hearing through emails and through surveys that I’ve been looking at, plus all the citizen satisfaction (survey) work that the city did,” said Sharp.

She said she expects many people who would have concerns about higher taxes would not be free to speak to council during the day.

The mayor said one thing she noted across most presentations was the desire for sustainability.

“They’re all looking for sustainability in one form or another. And what sustainability looks like for one Calgarian may be different than another, but the message is pretty clear that there are diverse people who live in the city that are seeking diverse investments.”

Argentina’s government agrees with unions to raise minimum wage by 20%.

Argentina's government on Tuesday announced a 20 percent minimum wage hike that will raise the lowest wages stipulated by law to 70,000 pesos (412 euros).


Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez discusses minimum wage hike with labor unions - PRESIDENCIA ARGENTINA

This was agreed by the Executive at the Wage Council with the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) and the Argentine Workers' Central (CTA) unions, with whom it has agreed to address the increase in four monthly tranches until March 2023, reported Télam.

Thus, the minimum wage --which currently stands at 57,900 pesos, about 340 euros-- will go up seven percent in December, six percent in January, four percent in February and another three percent in March 2023, which for the Labor Ministry will mean a 110.5 percent increase in minimum wages in one year.

"Taken with an absolute majority of the members of the Wage Council, it is another sign of the value of our democracy: there is no way to make policy without dialogue. We will continue working for a fairer society where everyone wins," said the President of Argentina, Alberto Fernández, after reaching the agreement.

The President thanked and ratified the importance and the responsibilities that each of the sectors have assumed to carry out a proposal to raise wages in order to combat the high inflation faced by Argentines, so that they can recover their purchasing power.

"We recognize that high inflation goes against wages and that is why it is so important that organized workers and employers have been able to agree", summarized the Argentinean Minister of Labor, Kelly Olmos, in declarations to the above-mentioned agency.

"We are committed to the success of the government's policy, and the current proposal that inflation be reduced, that it be made concrete", in order to "recover purchasing power", she added.

END THE WAR ON DRUGS!

Colombia's drug problem is worse than ever. But it has a radical solution

Story by Stefano Pozzebon • Yesterday CNN


When Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s first progressive president, took office in August, he laid out an ambitious agenda.

His administration would finally achieve a stable peace with Colombia’s multiple rebel organizations; it would fight inequality by taxing the top 1% and lifting millions out of poverty; and it would abandon a punitive approach to drug policing that costed millions of lives around the world to little results, he promised.

Three months later, there are signs for optimism: Colombia and the largest rebel group still active in its territory, the National Liberation Army ELN, have signed a commitment to restart peace negotiations after a four years hiatus; and Congress has passed a fiscal plan that aims to collect almost 4 billion USD in new taxes next year.

But drugs remain perhaps the hardest challenge for Petro.

More cocaine than ever before

Drug production boomed in Colombia during the pandemic.

The total area harvested for coca leaves – the main ingredient for cocaine – grew 43% in 2021 according to a new annual survey by the United Nation’s Office on Drug and Crime. At the same time, the amount of potential coca produced per hectare grew a further 14%, the UN reported, leaving experts to believe Colombia is producing more cocaine than ever in its history.

In many rural parts of the country, the production of illicit drug became the only economic activity during pandemic lockdowns, the UN explains, as markets and agricultural routes shut down and farmers switched from food crops to coca.

According to Elizabeth Dickenson, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, the spike in harvests has become so evident even the casual traveler can see it.

“A few years ago, you’d have to drive for hours to see coca crops. Now they are much more common, less than one kilometer from the main highway,” she told CNN after a recent field trip to Cauca, part of a Colombian southwestern region that has seen a +76% increase in harvested area.

Colombian president Gustavo Petro speaks during a press conference about the first 100 days of his government in office, in Bogota on November 15. - Chepa Beltran/Long Visual Press/Abaca/Sipa USA/AP

In the Indigenous reserve of Tacueyo, Cauca, the increase in coca and marijuana harvests have caused profound concern for the leaders of the community according to Nora Taquinas, an Indigenous environmental defender who has received multiple death threats from criminal organizations.

Two signs show a more sustained drug trade than in recent years, Taquinas says: informal checkpoints on the road leading up to Tacueyo and worrying trends of school dropouts as local children are pressed into service by criminal organizations for menial tasks around the production of narcotics.

“The cartels pay about 15’000COP (about 3USD) to clean a pound of marijuana sprouts. A kid can do up to six pounds per day, and that is solid money down here. It’s hard to stop that.”

The only positive aspect, Taquinas says, is that the increase in drug production and trade in her community has not caused higher levels of violence. “We are on the lookout. But soon enough, the cartels will start competing for the harvests here, and the competition between them is to the death. Right now, it’s like the calm before the storm.”

The proliferation of armed groups in recent years is one of the greatest shortcomings of the Colombian peace process, which in 2016 brought an end to more than half a century of civil warfare.

Before the deal, most of the guerrilla groups were disciplined like a regular army and this helped war negotiations between public officials and rebel groups. Now, the armed actors who didn’t abandon armed struggle have splintered in up to sixty different groups often in competition against themselves, according to the United Nations.

Even if the recently announced peace negotiation with the ELN succeeded, there are at least 59 more groups involved in the drug trade for the government to deal with.

Competing with cocaine


Related video: Colombia's Petro: Ending war on drugs could bring peace to country in matter of months
Duration 1:58  View on Watch

Colombian President Gustavo Petro: ‘The war on drugs was a failure’

Convincing farmers to stop growing coca has been one of Colombia’s largest problems for the last fifty years.

The traditional solution has been to punish the farmers by destroying crops through ever-more sophisticated and forceful measures: aerial fumigations, enforced eradication campaigns, aerial monitoring, and the deployment of troops to coca-growing regions.

But this cost millions of dollars, mostly financed through military aid from the United States to Colombia, and has claimed the lives of thousands of Colombian farmers and soldiers in clashes and drug-related violence. Until this year, few dared to question it from a position of power.

While Petro bears no responsibility for latest the production increases – the report details narcotic trends until December 2021, before this year’s election – his message to ditch the war on drugs resonates with the United Nations’ finding that the billions of dollars invested in preventing Colombian farmers from growing coca could be put to a better use.

“The first thing to notice from the report is the total failure of the war on drugs,” says Colombia’s Justice Minister Nestor Osuna and one of the people tasked with coming up with a new solution to the drug problem.

The government’s plan, Osuna told CNN, is centered on three key moments.

In the immediate, term, Petro’s administration aims to limit the spread of drug-related violence immediately, even if that means allowing further increases in coca harvesting areas might take place in the coming years.

In order to avoid confrontation with coca-growing communities and reduce retaliatory actions from the cartels, Colombia’s coca eradication campaign will be pared-down, although not completely suspended, and the justice ministry would embark in a series of ‘voluntary consultations’ to convince communities to replace illicit crops with legal ones in exchange for financial incentives.

Eventually, crop substitution will take place on a massive scale by expanding the farming frontier of Colombia, he says.

“If we offer a sustainable alternative to the farmers harvesting coca, they will take it. It is true that right now no agricultural product can compete with the revenue coca makes, but it’s also true that coca remains illegal, and we believe the farmers have signaled us they would rather work under the law, even at lower margins, than in illegality,” the justice minister said.

The plan is to relocate thousands of farmers who are currently harvesting coca into unused agricultural for a fresh start with legal crops. Last month, the Colombian government agreed to the purchase of up to three million hectares from the country’s rancher association to expand the agricultural lands.

Colombia has tried crop replacement in the past, but failed to overcome the appeal of coca. The coca bush can produce a harvest up to six times a year and requires minimal care, as an invasive plant that grows even in unfavorable conditions.

Coca buyers, the drug cartels, are willing to pay in advance for a harvest, often in cash, and crucially will also provide transport by picking it up from the farm – a significant incentive for farmers who live hours of unpaved road away from main market towns. That’s why the Petro government wants to relocate the cocaine workforce entirely.



Members of Colombia's anti-narcotics police seize a cargo of molasses mixed with cocaine that was being sent to Valencia in Spain in Cartagena, Colombia on February 4, 2022. - Sebastian Barros/Long Visual Press/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

The areas that are currently devoted to coca, once abandoned, would go through a process of reforestation, Osuna said, thanks to a new public investment fund worth 120 million USD to pay farmers to protect the rainforest for the next 20 years. Each family would receive up to 600 USD per month to launch reforestation projects in areas affected by coca harvesting as well as illegal ranching and logging.

Ultimately, Petro’s ultimate goal is to de-criminalize cocaine. But Osuna is adamant the government would not launch such a move unilaterally – cocaine’s criminal status is globally codified in a series of international treaties.

Petro has made a point of displaying the failures of the war on drugs at any international forum he took part to, from the official visit of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the United Nations General Assembly in September.

It’s a strategy Osuna labelled as “nagging offensive”, with the hope that the world would one day hold an informed debate on whether narcotics should still be considered prohibited substances.

“We must recognize that cocaine consumption takes place all around the world, it’s evident. For many people, that consumption is harmful, and that’s why it would be good if countries employed public health policies to deal with this issue,” said Osuna.

(For his part, Osuna noted that his only experience with drugs was a marijuana joint in his twenties in Amsterdam that left him sick for two days.)

Can it be done?

While many world leaders have urged a global rethinking around the issues of drugs, this is the first time a sitting president of Colombia – the world’s largest cocaine producer – openly calls to give up the war on drugs.

According to a 2019 study from the University of Oxford, the drug trade is worth almost 2% of Colombia’s GDP. Nobody can predict how a Colombia free from the drug trade would eventually look like, and Osuna is well aware of how difficult the task ahead is: “The war on drugs has failed for the past fifty years, it’s not like we can come and solve it in fifty days,” he told CNN.

The government’s critics, such as former Colombian president Alvaro Uribe, who presided over the greatest crop reduction in the country’s history through a controversial all-out military campaign in the early 2000, believe legalizing cocaine would only make the cartels wealthier, not poorer.

But recent development on marijuana legislation around the world, with countries as far as Germany and Uruguay, as well as more than fifteen US states, passing legislation to allow recreational use, prove that it is possible to turn the tide, Osuna says.

Colombia is also discussing legalizing weed, a move that just three years ago would have been unthinkable and that, if passed, has the potential to legalize the work of dozens of families in Tacueyo.

A pilot project to produce textile fabrics made of hemp is already up and running, though demand for the fiber is very small compared to cartel demand for marijuana, Taquinas says. “What we need is more legal outlets, not fewer.”

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com

Salt, drought decimate buffaloes in Iraq's southern marshes


CHIBAYISH, Iraq (AP) — Abbas Hashem fixed his worried gaze on the horizon — the day was almost gone and still, there was no sign of the last of his water buffaloes. He knows that when his animals don't come back from roaming the marshes of this part of Iraq, they must be dead.



The dry earth is cracked beneath his feet and thick layers of salt coat shriveled reeds in the Chibayish wetlands amid this year's dire shortages in fresh water flows from the Tigris River.

Hashem already lost five buffaloes from his herd of 20 since May, weakened with hunger and poisoned by the salty water seeping into the low-lying marshes. Other buffalo herders in the area say their animals have died too, or produce milk that's unfit to sell.

“This place used to be full of life," he said. “Now it’s a desert, a graveyard.”

The wetlands — a lush remnant of the cradle of civilization and a sharp contrast to the desert that prevails elsewhere in the Middle East — were reborn after the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein, when dams he had built to drain the area and root out Shiite rebels were dismantled.

But today, drought that experts believe is spurred by climate change and invading salt, coupled with lack of political agreement between Iraq and Turkey, are endangering the marshes, which surround the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in southern Iraq.

This year, acute water shortages — the worst in 40 years, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization — have driven buffalo herders deeper into poverty and debt, forcing many to leave their homes and migrate to nearby cities to look for work.

The rural communities that rely on farming and herding have long been alienated from officials in Baghdad, perpetually engaged in political crises. And when the government this year introduced harsh water rationing policies, the people in the region only became more desperate.

Oil-rich Iraq has not rebuilt the country's antiquated water supply and irrigation infrastructure and hopes for a water-sharing agreement for Tigris with upstream neighbor Turkey have dwindled, hampered by intransigence and often conflicting political allegiances in Iraq.

In the marshes, where rearing of water buffaloes has been the way of life for generations, the anger toward the government is palpable.

Hamza Noor found a patch where a trickle of fresh water flows. The 33-year-old sets out five times a day in his small boat across the marshes, filling up canisters with water and bringing it back for his animals.

Between Noor and his two brothers, the family lost 20 buffaloes since May, he said. But unlike other herders who left for the city, he is staying.

“I don’t know any other job,” he said.

Ahmed Mutliq, feels the same way. The 30-year-old grew up in the marshes and says he's seen dry periods years before.

“But nothing compares to this year,” he said. He urged the authorities to release more water from upstream reservoirs, blaming provinces to the north and neighboring countries for “taking water from us."

Provincial officials, disempowered in Iraq’s highly centralized government, have no answers.

“We feel embarrassed,” said Salah Farhad, the head of Dhi Qar province’s agriculture directorate. “Farmers ask us for more water, and we can’t do anything.”

Iraq relies on the Tigris-Euphrates river basin for drinking water, irrigation and sanitation for its entire population of 40 million. Competing claims over the basin, which stretches from Turkey and cuts across Syria and Iran before reaching Iraq, have complicated Baghdad’s ability to make a water plan.

Ankara and Baghdad have not been able to agree on a fixed amount of flow rate for the Tigris. Turkey is bound by a 1987 agreement to release 500 cubic meters per second toward Syria, which then divides the water with Iraq.

But Ankara has failed to meet its obligation in recent years due to declining water levels, and rejects any future sharing agreements that forces it to release a fixed number.

Iraq’s annual water plan prioritizes setting aside enough drinking water for the nation first, then supplying the agriculture sector and also discharging enough fresh water to the marshes to minimize salinity there. This year, the amounts were cut by half.

The salinity in the marshes has further spiked with water-stressed Iran diverting water from its Karkheh River, which also feeds into Iraq's marshes.

Iraq has made even less headway on sharing water resources with Iran.

“With Turkey, there is dialogue, but many delays,” said Hatem Hamid, who heads the Iraqi Water Ministry's key department responsible for formulating the water plan. “With Iran, there is nothing.”

Two officials at the legal department in Iraq’s Foreign Ministry, which deals with complaints against other countries, said attempts to engage with Iran over water-sharing were halted by higher-ups, including the office of then-Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

“They told us not to speak to Iran about it,” said one of the officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss legal issues.

Iraq's needs are so dire that several Western countries and aid organizations are trying to provide development assistance for Iraq to upgrade its aging water infrastructure and modernize ancient farming practices.

The U.S. Geological Survey has trained Iraqi officials in reading satellite imagery to “strengthen Iraq’s hand in negotiations with Turkey,” one U.S. diplomat said, also speaking anonymously because of the ongoing negotiations.

As the sun set over Chibayish, Hashem’s water buffalo never returned — the sixth animal he lost.

“I have nothing without my buffaloes,” he said.

Samya Kullab, The Associated Press

EXPLAINER: Why was Indonesia's shallow quake so deadly?

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A 5.6 magnitude earthquake left more than 260 dead and hundreds injured as buildings crumbled and terrified residents ran for their lives on Indonesia’s main island of Java.


EXPLAINER: Why was Indonesia's shallow quake so deadly?© Provided by The Canadian Press

Bodies continued to be pulled from the debris on Tuesday in the hardest-hit city of Cianjur, in the country’s most densely populated province of West Java and some 217 kilometers (135 miles) south of the capital, Jakarta. A number of people are still missing.

While the magnitude would typically be expected to cause light damage to buildings and other structures, experts say proximity to fault lines, the shallowness of the quake and inadequate infrastructure that cannot withstand earthquakes all contributed to the damage.

Here's a closer look at the earthquake and some reasons why it caused so much devastation:

__

WAS MONDAY'S EARTHQUAKE CONSIDERED “STRONG”?

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake late Monday afternoon measured 5.6 magnitude and struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles).

Quakes of this size usually don't cause widespread damage to well-built infrastructure. But the agency points out, “There is not one magnitude above which damage will occur. It depends on other variables, such as the distance from the earthquake, what type of soil you are on, building construction” and other factors.

Dozens of buildings were damaged in Indonesia, including Islamic boarding schools, a hospital and other public facilities. Also damaged were roads and bridges, and parts of the region experienced power blackouts.

__

SO WHY DID THE QUAKE CAUSE SO MUCH DAMAGE?

Related video: Earthquake kills more than 160 in Indonesia
Duration 1:19
View on Watch


Hunt for buried survivors after Indonesia quake




More Than 200 Dead After Earthquake in Indonesia Inside Edition


Experts said proximity to fault lines, the depth of the temblor and buildings not being constructed using earthquake-proof methods were factors in the devastation.

“Even though the earthquake was medium-sized, it (was) close to the surface ... and located inland, close to where people live,” said Gayatri Marliyani, an assistant geology professor at Universitas Gadjah Mada, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. “The energy was still large enough to cause significant shaking that led to damage.”

The worst-affected area is close to several known faults, said Marliyani.

A fault is a place with a long break in the rock that forms the surface of the earth. When an earthquake occurs on one of these faults, the rock on one side of the fault slips with respect to the other.

“The area probably has the most inland faults compared to the other parts of Java,” said Marliyani.

She added that while some well-known faults are in the area, there are many other active faults that are not well studied.

Many buildings in the region are also not built with quake-proof designs, which further contributed to the damage, said Danny Hilman Natawidjaja, an earthquake geology expert at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences Geotechnology Research Center.

“This makes a quake of this size and depth even more destructive,” he said.

SO WHY DID THE QUAKE CAUSE SO MUCH DAMAGE?

The country of more than 270 million people is frequently struck by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis because of its location on the arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin known as the “Ring of Fire.” The area spans some 40,000 kilometers (25,000 miles) and is where a majority of the world’s earthquakes occur.

Many of Indonesia's earthquakes are minor and cause little to no damage. But there have also been deadly earthquakes.

In February, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake killed at least 25 people and injured more than 460 in West Sumatra province. In January 2021, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake killed more than 100 people and injured nearly 6,500 in West Sulawesi province.

A powerful Indian Ocean quake and tsunami in 2004 killed 230,000 people in a dozen countries, most of them in Indonesia.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Victoria Milko, The Associated Press

Foxconn offers to pay workers to leave world's largest iPhone factory after violent protests

Story by Nectar Gan • 4h ago

Foxconn has offered to pay newly recruited workers 10,000 yuan ($1,400) to quit and leave the world’s largest iPhone assembly factory, in an attempt to quell protests that saw hundreds clash with security forces at the compound in central China

Video shows workers clash with police at world's largest iPhone assembly factory

Duration 1:55

View on Watch

The Apple supplier made the offer Wednesday following dramatic scenes of violent protests on its campus in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province, in a text message sent from its human resources department to workers.

In the message, seen by CNN, the company urged workers to “please return to your dormitories” on the campus. It also promised to pay them 8.000 yuan if they agreed to quit Foxconn, and another 2,000 yuan after they board buses to leave the sprawling site altogether.

The protest erupted on Tuesday night over the terms of the new hires’ payment packages and Covid-related concerns about their living conditions. Scenes turned increasingly violent on Wednesday as workers clashed with a large number of security forces, including SWAT team officers.

Videos circulating on social media showed groups of law enforcement officers clad in hazmat suits kicking and hitting protesters with batons and metal rods. Some workers were seen tearing down fences, throwing bottles and barriers at officers and smashing and overturning police vehicles.



Foxconn offers to pay workers to leave world's largest iPhone factory after violent protests© Provided by CNNA group of security officers clad in hazmat suits kick and beat a worker lying on the ground. - Obtained by CNN

The protest largely tailed off around 10 p.m. on Wednesday as workers returned to their dormitories, having received Foxconn’s payment offer and fearing a harsher crackdown by authorities, a witness told CNN.

The Zhengzhou plant was hit by a Covid outbreak in October, which forced it to lock down and led to a mass exodus of workers fleeing the outbreak. Foxconn later launched a massive recruitment drive, in which more than 100,000 people signed up to fill the advertised positions, Chinese state media reported.

According to a document setting out the salary package of new hires seen by CNN, the workers were promised a 3,000 yuan bonus after 30 days on the job, with another 3,000 yuan to be paid after a total of 60 days.

However, according to a worker, after arriving at the plant, the new recruits were told by Foxconn that they would only receive the first bonus on March 15, and the second installment in May – meaning they must work through the Lunar New Year holiday, which starts in January 2023, to get the first of the bonus payments.

“The new recruits had to work more days to get the bonus they were promised, so they felt cheated,” the worker told CNN.



Workers throw parts of the metal barriers they have torn down at the police.

 - Obtained by CNN

In a statement Thursday, Foxconn said it fully understood the new recruits’ concerns about “possible changes in the subsidy policy,” which it blamed on “a technical error (that) occurred during the onboarding process.”

“We apologize for an input error in the computer system and guarantee that the actual pay is the same as agreed,” it said.

Foxconn was communicating with employees and assuring them that salaries and bonuses would be paid “in accordance with company policies,” it said.

Apple, for which Foxconn manufactures a range of products, told CNN Business that its employees were on the ground at the Zhengzhou facility.

“We are reviewing the situation and working closely with Foxconn to ensure their employees’ concerns are addressed,” it said in a statement.

On Thursday morning, some workers who had agreed to leave had received the first part of the payment, a worker said in a livestream, which showed workers lining up outdoors to take Covid tests while they waited for departing buses. Later in the day, livestreams showed long lines of workers boarding buses.

But for some, the trouble is far from over. After being driven to the Zhengzhou train station, many couldn’t get a ticket home, another worker said in a livestream on Thursday afternoon. Like him, thousands of workers were stuck at the station, he said, as he turned his camera to show the large crowds.

Zhengzhou is set to impose a five-day lockdown in its urban districts, which include the train station, starting from midnight Friday, authorities had announced earlier.



Workers face off with hazmat-suited security officers.

 - Obtained by CNN

Violent protests

The protest started outside the workers’ dormitories on the sprawling Foxconn campus on Tuesday night, with hundreds marching and chanting slogans including “Down with Foxconn,” according to social media videos and a witness account. Videos showed workers clashing with security guards and fighting back tear gas fired by police.

The stand-off lasted into Wednesday morning. The situation quickly escalated when a large number of security forces, most covered in white hazmat suits and some holding shields and batons, were deployed to the scene. Videos showed columns of police vehicles, some marked with “SWAT,” arriving on the campus, normally home to some 200,000 workers.

More workers joined the protest after seeing livestreams on video platforms Kuaishou and Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, the worker told CNN. Many livestreams were cut or censored. Online searches for “Foxconn” in Chinese have been restricted.

Some protesters marched to the main gate of the production facility compound, which is located in a separate area from the workers’ dorms, in an attempt to block assembly work, the worker said.

Other protesters took the further step of breaking into the production compound. They smashed Covid testing booths, glass doors and advertising boards at restaurants in the production area, according to the worker.

Having worked at the Zhengzhou plant for six years, he said he was now deeply disappointed by Foxconn and planned to quit. With a baseline monthly salary of 2,300 yuan, he has been earning between 4,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan per month, including overtime pay, working 10 hours a day and seven days a week during the pandemic.

“Foxconn is a Taiwanese company,” he said. “Not only did it not spread Taiwan’s values of democracy and freedom to the mainland, it was assimilated by the Chinese Communist Party and became so cruel and inhumane. I feel very sad about it.”

Although he was not one of the new recruits, he protested with them in support, adding: “If today I remain silent about the suffering of others, who will speak out for me tomorrow?”

Protesting workers beaten at Chinese iPhone factory
Yesterday 

BEIJING (AP) — Police beat workers protesting over a pay dispute at the biggest factory for Apple's iPhone, whose new model is delayed by controls imposed as China tries to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases.




Foxconn, the biggest contract assembler of smartphones and other electronics, is struggling to fill orders for the iPhone 14 after thousands of employees walked away from the factory in the central city of Zhengzhou last month following complaints about unsafe working conditions.

China’s status as an export powerhouse is based on factories such as Foxconn's that assemble the world’s consumer electronics, toys and other goods.

The ruling Communist Party is trying to contain the latest wave of outbreaks without shutting down factories and the rest of its economy as it did in early 2020. Its tactics include “closed-loop management,” under which workers live in their factories with no outside contact.

Foxconn offered higher pay to attract more workers to the Zhengzhou factory to assemble the iPhone 14, which sells starting at $799 in the United States.

On Tuesday, a protest erupted after employees who had traveled long distances to take jobs at the factory complained that the company changed terms of their pay, according to an employee, Li Sanshan.

Li said he quit a catering job when he saw an advertisement promising 25,000 yuan ($3,500) for two months of work. That would be a significant hike over average pay for this type of work in the area.

After employees arrived, the company said they had to work two additional months at lower pay to receive the 25,000 yuan, according to Li.

“Foxconn released very tempting recruiting offers, and workers from all parts of the country came, only to find they were being made fools of,” he said.

Videos online showed thousands of people in masks facing rows of police in white protective suits with plastic riot shields. Police kicked and hit a protester with clubs after he grabbed a metal pole that had been used to strike him. People who shot the footage said it was filmed at the site.

The protests in Zhengzhou come as the ruling Communist Party faces rising frustration about restrictions in areas across China that have closed shops and offices and confined millions of people to their homes.

That has boiled over into protests in some cities. Videos on social media show residents tearing down barricades set up to enforce neighborhood closures.

The ruling party promised this month to try to reduce disruptions by shortening quarantines and making other changes. But the party is sticking to a “zero-COVID” strategy that aims to isolate every case while other governments relax controls and try to live with the virus.


Related video: Violent protests break out at China's biggest iPhone factory
Duration 1:27
View on Watch


Workers at Chinese Apple iPhone Factory Protest Shutdowns




The protest in Zhengzhou lasted through Wednesday morning as thousands of workers gathered outside dormitories and confronted factory security workers, according to Li.

Apple Inc. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company earlier warned iPhone 14 deliveries would be delayed after access to an industrial zone around the Zhengzhou factory, which Foxconn says employs 200,000 people, was suspended following outbreaks.

Other videos showed protesters spraying fire extinguishers toward police.

A man who identified himself as the Communist Party secretary in charge of community services was shown in a video posted on the Sina Weibo social media platform urging protesters to withdraw. He assured them their demands would be met.

Foxconn, whose headquarters are in New Taipei City, Taiwan, said that its contractual obligation about payments “has always been fulfilled.”

The company denied what it said were comments online that employees with the virus lived in dormitories at the Zhengzhou factory. It said facilities were disinfected and passed government checks before employees moved in.

“Regarding any violence, the company will continue to communicate with employees and the government to prevent similar incidents from happening again,” a company statement said.

Foxconn offered up to 10,000 yuan ($1,400) to newly hired employees who wanted to quit and return home, the finance news outlet Cailianshe reported, citing unidentified recruiting agents.

Foxconn didn't respond to a request for confirmation or details.

Protests have flared as the number and severity of outbreaks has risen across China, prompting areas including Beijing, the capital, to close neighborhoods and impose other restrictions residents say go beyond what the national government allows.

More than 253,000 cases have been found in the past three weeks and the daily average is increasing, the government reported Tuesday. This week, authorities reported China’s first COVID-19 deaths in six months.

The government will enforce its anti-COVID policy while “resolutely overcoming the mindset of paralysis and laxity,” said a spokesman for the National Health Commission, Mi Feng.

Early Thursday, the government reported a total of 31,656 cases found over the past 24 hours, including 27,646 without symptoms and 212 infections it said were acquired abroad. The total was up about 10% from the previous day.

Also Thursday, people in eight districts of Zhengzhou with a total of 6.6 million residents were told to stay home for five days, going out only to buy food or for medical treatment. Daily mass testing was ordered in what the city government called a “war of annihilation” against the virus.

The city government of Guangzhou, the site of the biggest outbreaks, announced Wednesday it opened 19 temporary hospitals with a total of almost 70,000 beds for coronavirus patients. The city announced plans last week to build hospital and quarantine facilities for 250,000 people.

Also Wednesday, Beijing opened a hospital in an exhibition center and suspended access to Beijing International Studies University after a virus case was found there. The capital earlier closed shopping malls and office buildings and suspended access to some apartment compounds.

___

Zen Soo reported from Hong Kong. AP news assistant Caroline Chen contributed.

Joe Mcdonald And Zen Soo, The Associated Press