Farm laborers to receive greater protections under Biden administration proposal

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
September 12, 2023

WASHINGTON (AP) — Immigrant farm workers would receive a raft of new protections under a Biden administration proposal to be announced Tuesday, which would boost safety requirements on farms and raise transparency around how such workers are brought to the U.S., to combat human trafficking.

The proposal would reform the H-2A visa program, under which hundreds of thousands of immigrants, mostly from Mexico, take on seasonal jobs in the U.S. agriculture industry. The number of people admitted under the program has soared in recent years, as rapid hiring after the pandemic and a low unemployment rate has left many farmers scrambling for workers.

Last year, about 370,000 people were admitted with H-2A visas, double the number in 2016 and five times as many as in 2005, Labor Department officials said. Yet as the popularity of the program has grown, so have concerns about abuses. Reports of overcrowded farm vehicles and fatalities have increased as the numbers have risen, senior department officials said.

The department is already required to ensure that the H-2A program doesn’t undercut the wages or working conditions of Americans who take similar jobs. Employers are required to pay minimum U.S. wages or higher, depending on the region.

“This proposed rule is a critical step in our ongoing efforts to strengthen protections for farm workers and ensure that they have the right to fair and predictable wages, safe working conditions and freedom from retaliation,” said Julie Su, acting secretary of Labor, in a statement.

The new rule, which is subject to a 60-day comment period, seeks to make it easier for labor unions to contact and interact with the H-2A workers, and to protect the workers from retaliation if they meet with labor representatives. The workers would be allowed to have visitors, including those from labor groups, in employer-provided housing, for example.

The rule would also require farmers who employ H-2A workers to provide seat belts on vans that are often used to transport workers long distances. Transportation accidents are a leading cause of death for farm workers, according to the department.

And in a step intended to counter human trafficking, employers would be required to identify anyone recruiting workers on their behalf in the U.S. or foreign countries and to provide copies of any agreements they have with those recruiters.

Another visa program, the H-2B, which allows temporary workers in fields other than agriculture, already includes similar requirements, department officials said.

“We’re putting together a series of new protections or clarifying protections to make sure that workers in the program can really advocate on behalf of themselves, and that...will help prevent the problems that we’re seeing with exploitative conditions,” a senior Labor department official said.

House Democrats urge Biden to ease work permit rules for migrants, asylum seekers


Hundreds of asylum seekers dwell in a tent city in Tijuana, Mexico, in 2021. In a letter dated Sunday and signed by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the ranking minority member on the House Judiciary Committee, and 102 other Democrats, lawmakers urge President Joe Biden and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to "use all the tools available" to assist migrants who seek but can't obtain work permits as they wait for their immigration court cases to be heard.

 File Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo


Sept. 11 (UPI) -- Dozens of House Democrats are urging the Biden administration to take whatever steps are necessary to speed the process of granting work permits to undocumented migrants and asylum seekers.

In a letter dated Sunday and signed by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the ranking minority member on the House Judiciary Committee, and 102 other Democrats, lawmakers urge President Joe Biden and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to "use all the tools available" to assist migrants who seek but can't obtain work permits as they wait for their immigration court cases to be heard.

The letter, first obtained by Politico, said such migrants are "stuck in limbo" without the ability to obtain work authorizations despite "want[ing] to work and give back to their new communities."

Asylum seekers, the lawmakers wrote, "should be permitted to apply to obtain work authorization from the moment that they file their asylum claim." Instead, under current regulations, they must wait up to six months after submitting asylum applications before work authorizations can be issued.

"As a result, asylum seekers are forced to rely on underfunded community groups to provide them with everything from housing to food to health services," they wrote. "This is particularly troubling given the tight labor market we are experiencing across the country."

The Democrats urged the Biden administration to "ease the undue delays" by adopting a series of available measures, such as the increased use of "humanitarian parole" and "provisional waivers" and decreasing the regulatory 150-day wait period for asylum seekers to apply for work authorization.

The plea comes at a time when the House Republican majority is seeking to clamp down on undocumented migrants and asylum seekers rather than easing their transition into the United States.

Conservative members of the House Freedom Caucus last month threatened to force a government shutdown unless the measures contained in the "Secure the Border Act of 2023" are enacted as part of any stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government functioning amid the debate on appropriations measures.

Among its other provisions, the legislation would restart construction of former President Donald Trump's border wall and slap new restrictions on asylum seekers.

Asylum seekers wait to enter U.S. in Tijuana

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Asylum seekers wait in line for food near El Chaparral plaza in Tijuana, 

Mexico on March 21. 

Photo by Ariana Drehsler/UPI | License Photo

Gallup Poll shows sharpest rise yet in workers' fears of obsolescence


Some 22% of U.S. workers told Gallup pollsters they feared being replaced in their jobs by technology, up from 15% two years ago. 

Sept. 11 (UPI) -- While the great majority of U.S. workers do not fear being replaced by technology, the percentage of those who do is rising at its fastest rate ever, according to a Gallup Poll released Monday.

While only 22% of workers are worried that technology will be used to replace them, that's up from 15% in 2021 when the same question was asked -- a jump of 7 percentage points, the polling organization reported.

That's the sharpest two-year increase seen since Gallup began asking the question in 2017. Previous polls had found the rate holding steady at between 13% and 17%.

Breaking down the results further, Gallup found that the jump in "fear of becoming obsolete," otherwise known as FOBO, came almost entirely from college-educated workers, among whom the percentage worried has soared from 8% to 20%. FOBO among without college educations, meanwhile, remained virtually unchanged at 24% since 2021.

"As a result, whereas non-college-educated workers were previously much more concerned about technological replacement than college-educated workers, these groups now express similar levels of concern," the pollster said.

Gaps between younger and older workers, as well as between those making less than $100,000 and those earning $100,000 or more, also continued to widen.

FOBO increased just 2 percentage points among workers over 55 years of age while jumping 11 points among those between 18 and 34. Meanwhile, workers making less than $100,000 recorded a 10-point surge in obsolescence fears, while those making more than $100,000 saw a 5-point rise.

The poll results come as Hollywood writers and actors have focused on producers' use of artificial intelligence as a key factor in their strike against studios. The Writers Guild of America has demanded to "regulate use of material produced using artificial intelligence or similar technologies" in television and movie productions.

Among the array of worries facing U.S. workers, however, FOBO still remains well behind loss of benefits and wage reduction as the top concern, Gallup found.

Nearly a third of respondents, or 31%, said they are worried they could lose benefits in the near future, while 24% indicated they were most concerned about having their wages reduced.

It’s Google versus the US in the biggest antitrust trial in decades


This photo, in New York, Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, shows various Google logos when searched on Google. The U.S. government is taking aim, Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023 in federal court, at what has been an indomitable empire: Google’s ubiquitous search engine that has become the internet’s main gateway. 

(AP Photo/Richard Drew)

The Google sign is shown over an entrance to the company’s new building in New York on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023. The U.S. government is taking aim at what has been an indomitable empire: Google’s ubiquitous search engine and the lucrative digital services hatched by its unwavering status as the internet’s main gateway. 

(AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

BY PAUL WISEMAN AND MICHAEL LIEDTKE
September 11, 2023

WASHINGTON (AP) — Google will confront a threat to its dominant search engine beginning Tuesday when federal regulators launch an attempt to dismantle its internet empire in the biggest U.S. antitrust trial in a quarter century.

Over the next 10 weeks, federal lawyers and state attorneys general will try to prove Google rigged the market in its favor by locking its search engine in as the default choice in a plethora of places and devices. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta likely won’t issue a ruling until early next year. If he decides Google broke the law, another trial will decide what steps should be taken to rein in the Mountain View, California-based company.

Top executives at Google and its corporate parent Alphabet Inc., as well as those from other powerful technology companies are expected to testify. Among them is likely to be Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, who succeeded Google co-founder Larry Page four years ago. Court documents also suggest that Eddy Cue, a high ranking Apple executive, might be called to the stand.


The Justice Department filed its antitrust lawsuit against Google nearly three years ago during the Trump administration, charging that the company has used its internet search dominance to gain an unfair advantage against competitors. Government lawyers allege that Google protects its franchise through a form of payola, shelling out billions of dollars annually to be the default search engine on the iPhone and on web browsers such as Apple’s Safari and Mozilla’s Firefox.

MORE TECHNOLOGY COVERAGE

Google’s search engine dominance is at the center of the biggest US antitrust trial in decades

EU targets Apple, Amazon, Meta and other Big Tech in next phase of digital crackdown

Regulators also charge that Google has illegally rigged the market in its favor by requiring its search engine to be bundled with its Android software for smartphones if the device manufacturers want full access to the Android app store.

Google counters that it faces a wide range of competition despite commanding about 90% of the internet search market. Its rivals, Google argues, range from search engines such as Microsoft’s Bing to websites like Amazon and Yelp, where consumers can post questions about what to buy or where to go.

From Google’s perspective, perpetual improvements to its search engine explain why people almost reflexively keep coming back to it, a habit that long ago made “Googling” synonymous with looking things up on the internet.

The trial begins just a couple weeks after the 25th anniversary of the first investment in the company — a $100,000 check written by Sun Microsystems co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim that enabled Page and Sergey Brin to set up shop in a Silicon Valley garage.

Today, Google’s corporate parent, Alphabet, is worth $1.7 trillion and employs 182,000 people, with most of the money coming from $224 billion in annual ad sales flowing through a network of digital services anchored by a search engine that fields billions of queries a day.

The Justice Department’s antitrust case echoes the one it filed against Microsoft in 1998. Regulators then accused Microsoft of forcing computer makers that relied on its dominant Windows operating system to also feature Microsoft’s Internet Explorer — just as the internet was starting to go mainstream. That bundling practice crushed competition from the once-popular browser Netscape.

Several members of the Justice Department’s team in the Google case — including lead Justice Department litigator Kenneth Dintzer — also worked on the Microsoft investigation.

Google could be hobbled if the trial ends in concessions that undercut its power. One possibility is that the company could be forced to stop paying Apple and other companies to make Google the default search engine on smartphones and computers.

Or the legal battle could cause Google to lose focus. That’s what happened to Microsoft after its antitrust showdown with the Justice Department. Distracted, the software giant struggled to adapt to the impact of internet search and smartphones. Google capitalized on that distraction to leap from its startup roots into an imposing powerhouse.

Hundreds of Pride activists march in Serbia despite hate messages sent by far-right officials


People hold a large Rainbow flag as they take part in a Pride march in Belgrade, Serbia, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Hundreds of Pride activists gathered in the Serbian capital Saturday amid heavy police presence and anti-gay messages sent by the country’s conservative leadership and far right groups. 

Anti-gay protesters hold crosses and religious banners amid heavy police presence and during a Pride march in Belgrade, Serbia, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Hundreds of Pride activists gathered in the Serbian capital Saturday amid heavy police presence and anti-gay messages sent by the country’s conservative leadership and far rights groups. 

People hold a large Rainbow flag as they take part in a Pride march in Belgrade, Serbia, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Hundreds of Pride activists gathered in the Serbian capital Saturday amid heavy police presence and anti-gay messages sent by the country’s conservative leadership and far rights groups. 

People take part in a Pride march in Belgrade, Serbia, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Hundreds of Pride activists gathered in the Serbian capital Saturday amid heavy police presence and anti-gay messages sent by the country’s conservative leadership and far rights groups. 

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(AP Photos / Marko Drobnjakovic)

BY MARKO DROBNJAKOVIC
September 9, 2023


BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Hundreds of Pride activists gathered in the Serbian capital Saturday amid a heavy police presence and anti-gay messages sent by the country’s conservative leadership and far-right groups.

Last year, the LGBTQ+ event was marred by skirmishes between the police and anti-Pride groups who believe the event goes against traditional Serbian Christian Orthodox values and should be banned.

The participants of the march on Saturday held banners reading “We Are Not Even Close” — referring to the current status of the gay population is Serbia — as well as “Marriage” and “Queer Liberation not Rainbow Capitalism.”

A heavy police presence of officers in riot gear blocked off central Belgrade. In a rally against the march, about 50 anti-gay protesters and Orthodox priests held religious icons in front of a downtown church as the Pride event participants passed by.

A group of anti-gay activists held a banner on the main downtown street that said, “I don’t want a gay parade in Belgrade.”

Before the 11th consecutive Pride event held in Serbia, the country’s populist president, Aleksandar Vucic, said that as long he is in power, he wouldn’t approve a law allowing same-sex marriages or partnerships. He also said that he didn’t allow rainbow colored flags to be placed on flags at his downtown office during the march.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic, a close Vucic ally, is the Balkan country’s first openly gay politician. She has, however, rarely spoken in favor of LGBTQ+ rights in Serbia.

Before the Pride event, the embassies and representative offices of 25 countries and the European Union delegation in Serbia issued a joint statement of support for the values of Pride and urging protection of the rights of LGBTQ+ persons.

“On the occasion of Belgrade Pride 2023, we want to reaffirm our commitment to respecting, promoting and protecting human rights for all,” the joint statement said. “We proudly stand with the LGBTQ+ community in Serbia and strongly support the values that Pride represents — acceptance, inclusion and diversity.”

Serbia formally wants to join the EU, but under Vucic’s more than decade rule it has gradually slid toward Russia and its anti-Western policies, including disrespect for the rights of gay people.

DOLLY'S DADDY RIP 

Ian Wilmut, a British scientist who led the team that cloned Dolly the Sheep, dies at age 79


 Scottish scientist Ian Wilmut is seen in the Pauls Church in Frankfurt, central Germany, Monday, March 14, 2005. Ian Wilmut, the cloning pioneer whose research was critical to the creation of Dolly the Sheep, has died, the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh said Monday. He was 79. 

(AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)

Dolly, the first cloned sheep produced through nuclear transfer from differentiated adult sheep cells, is seen in its pen at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland, in early December, 1997. The British scientist who led the team that cloned Dolly the Sheep in 1996, Ian Wilmut, has died at age 79. Wilmut set off a global discussion about the ethics of cloning when he announced that his team at Roslin had cloned Dolly using the nucleus of a cell from an adult sheep.

 (AP Photo/John Chadwick, File)

September 11, 2023


LONDON (AP) — Ian Wilmut, the cloning pioneer whose work was critical to the creation of Dolly the Sheep in 1996, has died at age 79.

The University of Edinburgh in Scotland said Wilmut died Sunday after a long illness with Parkinson’s disease.

Wilmut set off a global discussion about the ethics of cloning when he announced that his team at the university’s Roslin Institute for animal biosciences had cloned a lamb using the nucleus of a cell from an adult sheep.

Initially referred to as “6LL3” in the academic paper describing the work, the lamb was later named Dolly, after the singer Dolly Parton. The lamb’s cloning was the first time scientists were able to coax a mature adult cell into behaving like a cell from a newly fertilized embryo in order to create a genetically identical animal.

While Dolly’s creation was heralded as a revolution by some scientists, it unnerved many, with critics calling such experiments unethical.

The year after Dolly’s creation, U.S. President Bill Clinton imposed a ban on the use of federal funds for human cloning but stopped short of banning all cloning research.

Dolly’s creation prompted other scientists to clone animals including dogs, cats, horses and bulls. Dolly also spurred questions about the potential cloning of humans and extinct species. In recent years, scientists have proposed bringing back the woolly mammoth by using a mix of gene editing and cloning.

Dolly’s creation was part of a broader project by scientists to create genetically modified sheep that could produce therapeutic proteins in their milk. About six years after Dolly’s birth, it was euthanized by scientists after she developed an incurable lung tumor.

Wilmut, a trained embryologist, later focused on using cloning techniques to make stem cells that could be used in regenerative medicine. His work was critical to research that aims to treat genetic and degenerative diseases by helping the body repair damaged tissue.

The Roslin Institute said Wilmut was knighted in 2008 and retired from the university in 2012. He later researched Parkinson’s disease after he was diagnosed with the condition, it said.

“We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Sir Ian Wilmut,” Bruce Whitelaw, the institute’s director, said in a statement Monday. Whitelaw described Wilmut as a “titan” of science and said his work in Dolly’s creation transformed scientific thinking at the time.

He said the legacy of Wilmut’s work in cloning Dolly continues to be seen.

“This breakthrough continues to fuel many of the advances that have been made in the field of regenerative medicine that we see today,” he said.

Wilmut is survived by his wife, three children and five grandchildren, the University of Edinburgh said. Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.

RIP REST IN POWER
Holocaust survivor Eva Fahidi-Pusztai, who warned of far-right populism in Europe, dies at age 97


 Auschwitz survivor Eva Pusztai-Fahidi from Budapest leaves the court hall during the noon breaks of the trial against former SS guard Oskar Groening in Lueneburg, northern Germany, Tuesday, April 21, 2015. Holocaust survivor Eva Fahidi-Pusztai, who spent the late years of her life warning of the re-emergence of far-right populism and discrimination against minorities across Europe, has died. She was 97.

Auschwitz survivor Eva Pusztai-Fahidi delivers her speech during an event of the International Auschwitz Committee to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Nazi death camp in Berlin, Monday, Jan. 26, 2015. Holocaust survivor Eva Fahidi-Pusztai, who spent the late years of her life warning of the re-emergence of far-right populism and discrimination against minorities across Europe, has died. She was 97.

 (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)

BY KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
September 12, 2023

BERLIN (AP) — Eva Fahidi-Pusztai, a Holocaust survivor who spent the late years of her life warning of the re-emergence of far-right populism and discrimination against minorities across Europe, has died. She was 97.

The International Auschwitz Committee said Fahidi-Pusztai died in Budapest on Monday. A cause of death was not given.

“Auschwitz survivors all over the world bid farewell to their fellow sufferer, friend and companion with deep sadness, gratitude and respect,” the group said in a statement on its website

Fahidi-Pusztai was born in 1925 in Debrecen, Hungary, into an upper middle-class Jewish family. Her family converted to Catholicism in 1936, but that did not shield them from persecution.

After the occupation of Hungary by the German Wehrmacht in early 1944, the family was forced to move to a ghetto.

In June 1944, the Jewish population was rounded up in a brick factory and deported to the Nazis’ Auschwitz death camp in several transports.

Fahidi-Pusztai was 18 years old when she and her family were deported in the last transport to Auschwitz, on June 27, 1944. Her mother and little sister Gilike were murdered immediately after their arrival. Her father succumbed to the inhumane camp conditions a few months later, the Auschwitz Committee said on its homepage.

Six million European Jews were murdered by the Nazi Germany and its henchmen across Europe during the Holocaust — including 49 members of Fahidi-Pusztai’s family, Germany’s news agency dpa reported. She was the only one who survived.

Fahidi-Pusztai was deported from Auschwitz to a subcamp of the Buchenwald concentration camp in the town of Allendorf, in Hesse province. For 12 hours a day, she had to work as a slave laborer in an explosives factory at the Muenchmuehle concentration camp there.

In March 1945, only weeks before the end of World War II, she managed to escape on a so-called death march taking concentration camp inmates to the west as Soviet soldiers approached from the east. It was then that she was freed by American soldiers.

“It was only many years after her liberation, that Eva Fahidi began to speak about her memories of the murder of her family and her existence as a slave laborer,” Christoph Heubner, Executive Vice President of the International Auschwitz Committee, said in Berlin.

“Her life remained marked by the loss of her family, but nevertheless, with an infinitely big heart, she persisted in her joy of life and trusted in the power of memory,” Heubner added.

After the war, Fahidi-Pusztai moved back to Hungary. She later wrote two books about her experiences and visited schools in Germany to share her traumatic experiences from the Holocaust with students and warn of the re-emergence of far-right populism in Europe.

Fahidi-Pusztai also worked closely together with the Buchenwald Memorial at the former camp site near the city of Weimar in eastern Germany, to ensure that especially the fate of Jewish women is not forgotten, the memorial wrote on its website.

“Eva Fahidi’s books, which show her to be a great stylist and clear-sighted storyteller, will remain as will her fears and warnings in the face of populist tirades and right-wing extremist violence against Jewish people and Sinti and Roma not only in her native Hungary but in many European countries,” the International Auschwitz Committee wrote in its farewell message.

Sinti and Roma minorities were also persecuted during the Nazi era.

UN food agency warns of ‘doom loop’ for world’s hungriest as governments cut aid and needs increase

 The agency said the more than 60% funding shortfall this year was the highest in WFP’s 60-year history and marks the first time the Rome-based agency has seen contributions decline while needs rise.  

An Afghan school girl, right, walks past sacks of milled wheat on the main road in the city of Kandahar province, south of Kabul, Afghanistan on Sunday, June 29, 2008. The World Food Program warned Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, that humanitarian funding cuts by governments are forcing the U.N. agency to drastically cut food rations to the world’s hungriest people, with each 1% cut in aid risking to push 400,000 people toward starvation. The agency said the more than 60% funding shortfall this year was the highest in WFP’s 60-year history and marks the first time the Rome-based agency has seen contributions decline while needs rise.
 Laborers unload a consignment of food aid from the World Food Programme (WFP) in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Monday, Aug. 8, 2011. The World Food Program warned Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, that humanitarian funding cuts by governments are forcing the U.N. agency to drastically cut food rations to the world’s hungriest people, with each 1% cut in aid risking to push 400,000 people toward starvation. The agency said the more than 60% funding shortfall this year was the highest in WFP’s 60-year history and marks the first time the Rome-based agency has seen contributions decline while needs rise. 

A view of the exterior of the headquarters of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), in Rome, Friday, Oct. 9, 2020. The World Food Program warned Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, that humanitarian funding cuts by governments are forcing the U.N. agency to drastically cut food rations to the world’s hungriest people, with each 1% cut in aid risking to push 400,000 people toward starvation. The agency said the more than 60% funding shortfall this year was the highest in WFP’s 60-year history and marks the first time the Rome-based agency has seen contributions decline while needs rise. 

AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File)

 September 12, 2023

ROME (AP) — The World Food Program warned Tuesday that humanitarian funding cuts by governments are forcing the U.N. agency to drastically cut food rations to the world’s hungriest people, with each 1% cut in aid risking to push 400,000 people toward starvation.

The agency said the more than 60% funding shortfall this year was the highest in WFP’s 60-year history and marks the first time the Rome-based agency has seen contributions decline while needs rise.

As a result, the WFP has been forced to cut rations in almost half its operations, including in hard-hit places like Afghanistan, Syria, Somalia and Haiti. In a statement, WFP warned that 24 million more people could slip into emergency hunger over the next year as a result.

WFP’s executive director, Cindy McCain, said with starvation at record levels, governments should be increasing assistance, not decreasing it.

“If we don’t receive the support we need to avert further catastrophe, the world will undoubtedly see more conflict, more unrest, and more hunger,” she said. “Either we fan the flames of global instability, or we work quickly to put out the fire.”

The WFP warned that if the trend continues, a “doom loop” will be triggered “where WFP is being forced to save only the starving, at the cost of the hungry,” the statement said.

Nobel winner Maria Ressa acquitted of tax evasion though she faces 2 more legal cases

Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Rappler CEO, gestures as she talks to reporters after being acquitted by the Pasig Regional Trial Court over a tax evasion case in Pasig city, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023.

Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Rappler CEO, gestures as she talks to reporters after being acquitted by the Pasig Regional Trial Court over a tax evasion case in Pasig city, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. 

Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Rappler CEO, gestures as she faces reporters after being acquitted by the Pasig Regional Trial Court over a tax evasion case in Pasig city, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. 

Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Rappler CEO, waves from her car after being acquitted by the Pasig Regional Trial Court over a tax evasion case in Pasig city, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. 

Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Rappler CEO, gestures as she talks to reporters after being acquitted by the Pasig Regional Trial Court over a tax evasion case in Pasig city, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023.

 (AP Photos Aaron Favila)

 September 12, 2023

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa was acquitted of a final tax evasion charge Tuesday though she still faces two remaining legal cases she believes the former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte used to muzzle her critical reporting.

Ressa and her online news organization Rappler had faced five tax evasion charges but a court acquitted her of four of the charges in January. A different court heard the fifth charge and acquitted her Tuesday.

“Facts wins, truth wins, justice wins,” she told reporters outside the courthouse.

Ressa and Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov were awarded the 2021 Nobel for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression by fighting for the survival of their news organizations and defying government efforts to shut them.

She had said the charges against her were politically motivated as Rappler was critical of Duterte’s brutal crackdown on illegal drugs that left thousands of mostly petty drug suspects dead. The International Criminal Court is investigating the crackdown as a possible crime against humanity.

Rappler also criticized Duterte’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic including prolonged lockdowns that deepened poverty, caused one of the country’s worst recessions and sparked allegations of corruption in government medical purchases.

Ressa also said there appeared to be a “lifting of fear” under the Philippines’ new leader — Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is the namesake son of the dictator overthrown in the army-backed “people power” uprising in 1986.

Ressa is still appealing to the Supreme Court against an online libel conviction, while Rappler is challenging a closure order issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“You’ve got to have faith,” Ressa said. “The acquittal now strengthens our resolve to continue with the justice system, to submit ourselves to the court despite the political harassment, despite the attacks on press freedom. It shows that the court system works and we hope to see the remaining charges dismissed.”

In Iran, snap checkpoints and university purges mark the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini protests


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An Iranian woman without wearing her mandatory Islamic headscarf walks her dog at a park with graffiti against the government which is painted over in black, Monday, March 6, 2023. Iranians are marking the first anniversary of nationwide protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law that erupted after the death of a young woman detained by morality police. 

An Iranian woman without wearing her mandatory Islamic headscarf walks in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Iranians are marking the first anniversary of nationwide protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law that erupted after the death of a young woman detained by morality police. 

A woman without wearing her mandatory Islamic headscarf walks in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Iranians are marking the first anniversary of nationwide protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law that erupted after the death of a young woman detained by morality police

Iranian women, some without wearing their mandatory Islamic headscarves, walk in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Iranians are marking the first anniversary of nationwide protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law that erupted after the death of a young woman detained by morality police.

 (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

BY NASSER KARIMI AND JON GAMBRELL
T, September 11, 2023

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Snap checkpoints. Internet disruptions. University purges.

Iran’s theocracy is trying hard to both ignore the upcoming anniversary of nationwide protests over the country’s mandatory headscarf law and tamp down on any possibility of more unrest.

Yet the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini still reverberates across Iran. Some women are choosing to go without the headscarf, or hijab, despite an increasing crackdown by authorities.

Graffiti, likely against Iran’s government, is rapidly painted over in black by Tehran’s municipal workers. University professors have been fired over their apparent support for demonstrators.

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A US Navy veteran got unexpected help while jailed in Iran. Once released, he repaid the favor

International pressure remains high on Iran, even as the administration tries to deescalate tensions with other nations in the region and the West after years of confrontation.

“The weaponization of ‘public morals’ to deny women and girls their freedom of expression is deeply disempowering and will entrench and expand gender discrimination and marginalization,” independent United Nations experts warned earlier this month.

The demonstrations over Amini’s death that erupted after her arrest a year ago by the country’s morality police, allegedly over the hijab, represented one of the largest challenges to Iran’s theocracy since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. A security force crackdown that followed saw over 500 people killed and more than 22,000 people detained.

Iran’s government, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have blamed the West for fomenting the unrest, without offering evidence to support the allegation. However, the protests found fuel in the widespread economic pain that Iran’s 80 million people have faced since the collapse of Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers after then-President Donald Trump in 2018 unilaterally pulled America from the accord.

As Western sanctions came back, Iran currency — the rial — cratered, decimating people’s lifesavings. Prices of food and other essentials skyrocketed as inflation gripped the nation, in part due to worldwide pressures following the coronavirus pandemic and the launch of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Unemployment officially stands at 8% overall, though one out of every five young Iranians is out of work.

Videos of the demonstrations last year showed many young people taking part in the protests, leading authorities to apparently focus more closely on Iran’s universities in recent weeks. There’s historic precedence for the concerns: In 1999, student-led protests swept Tehran and at least three people were killed while 1,200 were detained as demonstrations rapidly spread to other cities.

Though university campuses have largely remained one of the few safe places for students to demonstrate, even campuses have felt the latest crackdown. Over the past year, the Union Council of Iranian Students has said that hundreds of students faced disciplinary panels at their universities over the protests.

During the same period, at least 110 university professors and lecturers have been fired or temporarily suspended, according to a report by the reformist newspaper Etemad. The firings have been primarily focused at schools in Tehran, including Tehran Azad University, Tehran University and Tehran Medical University.

Etemad said those who were dismissed fell into two groups: teachers concerned by the election of hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi and those who supported the protests that followed Amini’s death.

But there were firings at other schools as well.

At Tehran’s Sharif University of Technology, outspoken artificial intelligence and bioinformatics professor Ali Sharifi Zarchi, who backed his students taking part in the protests and later faced interrogation by Iranian security forces, was among those laid off.

A petition urging the university to overturn his firing was signed by 15,000 people.

“Putting pressure on professors and students is a black stain on the proud history of #Tehran_University and it must be stopped,” Zarchi wrote online before his dismissal.

University teachers who were dismissed also included Hossein Alaei, a former commander in the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and vice defense minister, and Reza Salehi Amiri, a former culture minister. Alaei had once, a decade ago, compared Khamenei to Iran’s former shah, while Amiri was a former official in the administration of the relatively moderate President Hassan Rouhani.

Rouhani, whose government reached the nuclear deal with world powers in 2015, has criticized the university firings.

“Destroying the prestige of the universities and their professors ... is a loss for the students, science and the country,” Rouhani said, according to a report by the online news site Jamaran.

The head of Tehran University, Mohammad Moghimi, had tried to defend the dismissals, describing professors as facing “ethics problems.” Some hard-liners also have tried to insist the firings weren’t political, though the hard-line newspaper Kayhan directly linked the dismissals to the demonstrations.

“It is not logical to allow someone to propagate against the system under the direction of foreigners,” the newspaper wrote.

Those on the streets of Tehran say the governments’ move will likely make the situation worse.

“They want to insert their own people in the university in hope of stopping the protest, but we students will show our objections in a way that they cannot imagine,” said Shima, a 21-year-old university student. “They failed to prevent last year’s protests since nobody can predict earthquakes.”

Authorities “are fighting against windmills using wooden swords,” added Farnaz, a 27-year-old university student. Both women gave just their first name for fear of reprisals.

The government has been trying to stay publicly quiet about the anniversary. Raisi never said Amini’s name during a recent news conference with journalists — who also only tangentially referred to the demonstrations. State-run and semiofficial media in Iran as well have avoided mentioning the anniversary, which typically signals pressure from the government.

But privately, activists report a rise in the number of people being questioned and detained by security forces, including an uncle of Amini.

Saleh Nikbakht, a lawyer for Amini’s family, faces a court case accusing him of spreading “propaganda” over his interviews with foreign media.

More police officers have been noticed on Tehran’s streets in recent days, including snap checkpoints for those riding on motorcycles in the country’s capital. Internet access has been noticeably disrupted over recent days, according to the advocacy group NetBlocks.

And abroad, Iranian state media reported that someone set tires ablaze in front of the Iranian Embassy in Paris over the weekend. Demonstrations marking the anniversary on Saturday are planned in multiple cities abroad.
___

Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

CHAUVINISM & SEXISM IN SOCCER

UEFA hosts women soccer stars for expert advice. Then it thanks ousted Luis Rubiales for his service


Spain’s Veronica Boquete celebrates after scoring a goal against the South Korea during the first half of a FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer match, Wednesday, June 17, 2015 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. European soccer body UEFA has hosted a storied group of women players and coaches for a conference Monday, Sept. 11, 2023 to help shape a brighter future for their game. It was held one day after disgraced Spanish official Luis Rubiales resigned from his leadership jobs including as a UEFA vice president.

 (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

 Spain’s Jennifer Hermoso holds the trophy as they celebrate their Women’s World Cup victory on stage in Madrid, Spain, Monday, Aug. 21, 2023. Spanish state prosecutors say soccer player Jenni Hermoso has accused Luis Rubiales of sexual assault for kissing her on the lips without her consent after the Women’s World Cup final. 

(AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File)

 President of Spain’s soccer federation, Luis Rubiales, left, stands stands next to Spain Head Coach Jorge Vilda after being received by Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez at La Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. Rubiales has resigned, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023, from his post after a kiss scandal which tarnished Spain’s victory at the Women’s World Cup. 

(AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, file)

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, left, applauds as Spain’s Aitana Bonmati, right, holds the UEFA Women’s Player of the Year award and Norwegian’s Erling Haaland holds the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award after the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League group stage draw at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, Thursday, Aug. 31, 2013. 

(AP Photo/Daniel Cole)

Pachuca’s Jenni Hermoso smiles during a tribute before a Mexican Women’s soccer league match between Pachuca and Pumas at the Miguel Hidalgo stadium in Pachuca, Mexico, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023.

 (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

BY GRAHAM DUNBAR
 September 11, 2023

NYON, Switzerland (AP) — One day after Spanish official Luis Rubiales finally resigned from his leadership jobs, European soccer body UEFA hosted a storied group of women players and coaches for a conference Monday to help shape a brighter future for their game.

And when it was over, UEFA thanked its now-former vice president “for his many years of service” in its first major statement since Rubiales’ conduct at the Women’s World Cup final three weeks ago that is now under criminal investigation in Spain.

Three Ballon d’Or winners joined the UEFA meeting in person or online. They included Alexia Putellas, one of Spain’s World Cup-winning team whose triumph has been tarnished by the furor since Rubiales kissed her teammate Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the trophy ceremony. Hermoso said it was without her consent.

At UEFA’s headquarters was Veró Boquete, who as Spain captain eight years ago joined a player revolt that removed the long-time and unpopular male coach of the national team.

“Today, this subject obviously came up,” Boquete told The Associated Press when asked if the Rubiales controversy was on the agenda. “A little bit (of) specifics but also in general, what we can do to protect players or to give them a safe space.”

UEFA launched its Football Board for women’s soccer this year to create “an institutional yet independent voice of experience and expertise” on subjects including player welfare.

Its first meeting Monday afternoon in Switzerland opened less than 24 hours after Rubiales resigned. He accepted the inevitable end of his soccer presidency in Spain after three weeks of defiance and hostility toward his critics and at times Hermoso.

Rubiales, who said the kiss was consensual, is suspended by world soccer body FIFA during its disciplinary case against him and also accused of sexual assault by Spanish prosecutors. He has denied any wrongdoing.

His resignation late Sunday — which appeared coordinated with an interview on a British cable news channel — offered no apology to Hermoso. He did stress not wanting to distract from Spain’s bid to host the men’s 2030 World Cup in a UEFA-backed project with Portugal, Morocco and possibly Ukraine.

UEFA was silent on Rubiales, one of its six vice presidents each paid 250,000 euros ($270,000) annually, for 10 days after the final in Australia. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin then told French sports daily L’Equipe the conduct was “inappropriate.”

In the statement Monday noting Rubiales’ resignation, after Ceferin had lunched with the women delegates, there was praise but not words of solidarity toward the Spanish players or women’s soccer in general.

“UEFA acknowledges the public discourse surrounding Mr. Rubiales and his recent actions but would also like to thank him for his many years of service to European football,” it said. “In view of the ongoing legal proceedings, UEFA has no further comments to make on this matter.”

Speaking before UEFA’s comments were published, Boquete described the situation as “a mess” though was optimistic

“What happened in the last three weeks is a mess, but at the same time it can be the right push,” the 36-year-old player told the AP. “How you use a bad situation, bad actions, to change something for good?”

“We have the opportunity here,” said Boquete, whose 38 goals for Spain is second on its all-time women’s list behind Hermoso.

One positive is that Spain’s players should end their refusal to represent their country now Rubiales has gone and the coach he supported during a player rebellion last year, Jorge Vilda, was fired last week.

“In theory, all the players should be back with those demands they (made),” said Boquete, whose national-team career was ended six years ago by Vilda not selecting her. “It’s a good start, we hope that now also the players can be heard more.”

After playing soccer for clubs in the United States, Russia, China and across Europe, the former Women’s Champions League winner was a natural choice for the UEFA advisory panel. She also has been educated with UEFA’s help on its Masters course to help players build careers in the industry.

“If you want to have a place that everyone can hear you or listen to you, you need to know what you’re going to say,” Boquete said.

UEFA did not make any senior manager available for interview at its event Monday.