Monday, September 16, 2024

Muslim voters in swing states favor Green Party’s Jill Stein, CAIR survey finds

Muslim voters react to Democratic and Republican candidates' Gaza policies in key states where Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein is leading

Islam Dogru and Hakan Copur

|16.09.2024 -

NEW YORK

A new survey suggests Muslim voters in key swing states are leaning toward Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein in the upcoming US presidential election, a shift that could impact the race's outcome.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) conducted the survey between Aug. 25-27, finding that Stein outperforms her Democratic and Republican rivals in three of six critical swing states.

The poll, which surveyed 1,115 registered Muslim voters nationwide, shows Stein leading among Muslim voters in Arizona with 35%, Michigan with 40%, and Wisconsin with 44%.

Stein’s Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, leads among Muslim voters in Georgia with 43% and Pennsylvania with 37%, while Republican candidate Donald Trump trails, only securing the most Muslim support in Nevada at 27%.

“Have you seen the latest CAIR poll? We leading with Muslim American voters by at least 5 points in Arizona, Michigan, and Wisconsin!,” Stein wrote on social media.

Criticism over Gaza war

Muslim voters' growing support for Stein is viewed as a message to Democratic and Republican candidates over their continued backing of Israel amid the ongoing Gaza war, with both parties facing criticism from the community.

“Candidates running for office cannot afford to overlook the issues that matter most to Muslim Americans. Ignoring this community or taking their votes for granted could be a costly mistake, particularly in swing states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and Wisconsin, where elections are often won by narrow margins,” said CAIR’s Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw.

The overall survey shows Harris leading slightly among Muslim voters nationwide, with 29.4%, while Stein closely follows at 29.1%. Trump trails at 11.2%, and The People’s Party candidate Dr. Cornel West received 4.2% of the Muslim vote.

Gender and ethnic differences were also notable in the survey. Harris is favored by 29% of Muslim men, while 34% of Muslim women support Stein.

Harris enjoys strong backing from Black Muslim voters, with 55.3% supporting her. Stein is preferred by 32.7% of white, Arab, and Turkish Muslim voters.

However, 16.5% of respondents said they were undecided about their vote.

The US has nearly 2.5 million Muslim voters, and despite widespread dissatisfaction, over 90% plan to vote in the Nov.election, according to the survey.

The presidential election's outcome will hinge on a handful of swing states, including Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia.

Electoral votes

With the Electoral College system, where delegates determine the winner, a candidate must secure 270 out of 538 electoral votes to win the presidency. The winner-takes-all system in most states means even a slight lead can result in all of a state’s electoral votes.

The close race between Harris and Trump has drawn particular attention to these states. According to Real Clear Politics, Trump leads Harris by less than 1% in five of the seven key swing states.

Nationally, Harris has 48.4% support compared to Trump’s 46.9%, based on a poll average from Aug. 22-27.

While inflation, economic issues, abortion, and border security dominate the concerns of voters nationwide, foreign policy, particularly the US stance on Gaza, is a significant issue for Muslim voters.

Michigan, with its large Muslim and Arab population and its 15 electoral votes, is a key state where this issue is likely to have an impact. In the February primaries, 13% of Michigan voters cast “uncommitted” votes in protest of President Joe Biden’s Gaza policy.

While many of these voters are critical of both major parties, they are closely watching Harris’s stance on Gaza to determine whether to support her.

Papua New Guinea: At least 20 people die in clashes over rich mine

Videos posted online show fires and families displaced by the presence of what the authorities call "illegal miners”, migrants from neighbouring areas who came to dig for gold. Local landowners get proceeds from the Porgera mine, one of the richest in the world, as compensation for environmental damage. Various groups have clashed over the mine, a scourge Pope Francis denounced a few days ago during his visit.

Port Moresby (AsiaNews) – At least 20 people died in violent clashes that broke out about five days ago near the Porgera gold mine, in Papua New Guinea’s Enga province.

The country’s police commissioner, David Manning, issued an emergency order to safeguard infrastructure and residents from "illegal miners" who "use violence to victimise and terrorise local landowners".

Papua New Guinea’s second-largest mine opened in 1990, and has been a source of conflict among tribal groups over land ownership.

Pope Francis touched this issue on several occasions during his recently completed visit to Asia and Oceania. Just a week ago, he urged an end to tribal violence and called for the equitable distribution of wealth from natural resources.

It is unclear how many illegal miners operate in the region, but according to local authorities, since the mine reopened in late 2023, the number of migrants digging for gold at the mine and surrounding areas has increased, clashing with local landowners who, instead, are compensated by foreign mining companies for the environmental damages they cause.

Back in April, following the reopening of the mine, Commissioner Manning labelled migrants from other parts of Papua New Guinea "illegal squatters”.

“These troublemakers are illegally taking up private lands to make illicit profit and they don’t care who they hurt or what they damage. This greed is harming the businesses and communities of the Porgera Valley,” he said.

To cope with the situation (despite today’s Independence Day celebration), security personnel have been authorised to use force to quell any violence.

Recent videos and pictures posted online show heavily armed men roaming the streets of the city, buildings burning, and displaced families.

Commissioner Manning ordered officers to move against anyone carrying a weapon. This means “that any person carrying an offensive weapon in public will be considered a threat and dealt with accordingly, with force,” he said on Saturday.

An additional 122 officers and some soldiers have been deployed to restore order. “We also call on the landowners to support security force operations for the protection of their people and infrastructure on their land,” Manning added.

According to Benar News, New Porgera, the company that runs the mine, has suspended its activities because it is unable to guarantee the safety of its personnel.

“Over the past twenty-four hours a significant escalation in tribal fighting has impacted many of our employees,” said James McTiernan, the company’s general manager, in a statement.

Local employees were allowed to take unpaid leave to move their families to safety.

The Porgera gold mine is located about 600 kilometres northwest of the capital Port Moresby, at an altitude of over 2,000 metres.

It is among the top 10 gold mines in the world, generating about 10 per cent of Papua New Guinea’s annual exports.

Since May, it is only possible to reach the site on foot or by air after a landslide cut off road links, killing more than 100 people,

The region is home to about 50,000 people in a country of 12 million.

New Porgera Limited is 51 per cent owned by Papuan shareholders (Kumul Minerals, a state-owned holding company, local landowners, and Enga province) while 49 per cent is held by Barrick Niugini, a joint venture between Canada's Barrick Gold and China's Zijin Mining.

In 2019, the Papua New Guinean government refused to renew the license of foreign companies, leading to the closure of the mine in April 2020. But operations resumed on 22 December 2023 after long negotiations.

On several occasions, residents have reported violence by security personnel and tried to draw attention to the problem of mining waste and tailings, which have polluted local rivers for years, and made parts of the land useless.

Rebel army captures major Myanmar navy training base

The loss of the training base for Myanmar’s navy will be a major blow to junta morale, a state politician said.
By RFA Burmese
2024.09.09

Arakan Army forces after capturing the junta's Central Naval Diving and Salvage Depot in Rakhine state on Sept. 5, 2024.
Arakan Army Information Desk

Insurgents in western Myanmar have captured an important military training base after a month of fighting, the rebel army said in a statement, dealing what is likely to be a severe blow to the embattled military.
.Arakan Army troops seized the Central Naval Diving and Salvage Depot between Thandwe township’s Maung Shwe Lay and Kwin Waing village in Rakhine state on Thursday, said the ethnic minority insurgent force battling for self-determination.
The Arakan Army, or AA, said the facility was the last naval base held by junta forces in Thandwe township, and it was defended on a “huge-scale” by the junta’s air force and navy as well as more than 1,200 soldiers, including many new graduates from the base.
“More than 400 junta soldiers were killed during our attack, and junta weapons, ammunition and equipment were seized,” the AA said in its statement.
Radio Free Asia was not able to independently verify that toll and the junta's main spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, did not respond to requests for comment.
The AA posted pictures of its fighters standing by a diving boards at the training center.
The base is a major navy training facility and its loss will be of huge significance for the military, said Pe Than, a former member of parliament for the Arakan National Party, which in the past had affiliations with the AA.
“Losing such a base will affect training as well as fighting. They’ve destroyed the navy and weakened the army, like cutting a man off at the waist,” he said.
He said the Danyawaddy Naval Base in Kyaukpyu township, to the north of Thandwe, was the navy’s last facility in Rakhine state.
“The military is like a bird with one wing now,” he said.
Arakan Army forces after capturing the junta's Central Naval Diving and Salvage Depot in Rakhine State on Sept. 5, 2024 (Arakan Army Information Desk)
The loss of the base will not only dent the junta’s morale and reputation but also bring in more resources for the AA through the control of goods coming through a nearby port, he said.
The AA said it expected junta retaliation against civilians in the area. Human rights investigators say junta forces have been increasingly attacking civilian targets as they lose ground to insurgent forces in different parts of the country. The military denies attacking civilians.
The Arakan Army, which launched a new offensive against the military in November, controls nine townships in Rakhine state and one in neighboring Chin state, and is battling to take full control of three other townships.
Junta forces have launched crackdowns in the north of the state, near the Bangladesh border, and across the neighboring Ayeyarwady region after AA gains in the south of the state.
Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn.

China in delicate dance with Myanmar’s rebel groups

The junta ally is likely trying to end conflict along its borders, but its assets are under rebel control.

By RFA Burmese
2024.09.12

China in delicate dance with Myanmar’s rebel groups

A worker arranges watermelons imported from Myanmar at a wholesale fruit market, Jan. 13, 2023 in Ruili, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province of China.

Kang Ping/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images

Read RFA coverage of this story in Burmese

Nearly 2 million people in Myanmar’s northern Shan state are facing a shortage of medicine and other basic commodities after China shuttered its border, according to residents and ethnic rebels, who said prices for goods have “skyrocketed” in the region over the past two weeks.

On Aug. 25, Chinese authorities closed border gates serving 20 Shan state townships and Myanmar’s junta began restricting trade routes, as a group of rebel factions known as the Three Brotherhood Alliance pushed the military out of major towns in the region.

The alliance, which first launched an offensive against the military in October 2023, now controls 21 townships in northern Shan state, as well as five border gates in the townships of Kyin Sang Kyaut, Chinshwehaw, Yan Long Keng, Mone Koe, and Nam Hkam.

Lway Yay Oo, the spokeswoman of one of the ethnic alliance members known as the Ta’ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, told RFA Burmese that residents of areas under its control no longer have access to the basic necessities they had come to rely on through border trade.

“Since China closed the border gates, and the junta has blocked trade routes, there is a serious shortage of medicine in our area,” she said.

People visit the first Myanmar's Lashio-China's Lincang border economic and trade fair in Lashio, Myanmar, Nov. 21, 2019. (Haymhan Aung/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Residents of northern Shan state said they believe that China – one of the junta’s few international allies and the largest foreign investor in Myanmar – shut down the border as part of a pressure campaign to end armed conflict in the area.

“Some pharmacies have tried to get medicine to sell, but it's not enough,” said a resident of Kutkai township who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns.

“It is difficult to get medicine for the sick and vaccinate the children,” he said, adding that people in the area cannot afford to pay to have supplies delivered from Myanmar’s urban centers, such as Yangon, which are dealing with their own shortages amid the country’s civil war.

Residents said that the prices of remaining stock have “skyrocketed” since the gate closures.

Fighting flares near state capital in north Myanmar

Northern Myanmar residents caught up in fighting, dozens hurt

A pharmacy owner in northern Shan state, who also declined to be named, told RFA that since the junta cut off trade routes, only small quantities of the most important drugs are being transported within the region.

"It is not easy to transport medicine, and we can only smuggle urgently needed supplies,” he said. “Chinese medicine is out of stock now, although we can get B-6 and B-12 [vitamin supplements].”

Attempts by RFA to contact Khun Thein Maung, the junta’s minister of economy and spokesperson for Shan state, for comment on the situation went unanswered Thursday, as did efforts to reach representatives from China’s Embassy in Yangon.

Protecting Chinese interests

China’s border closure follows three separate meetings last month between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Ma Jia and junta representatives, during which Beijing sought assurances that the military regime would protect its projects and citizens in the country.

In response, the junta pledged to prioritize the safety of China’s assets, according to a statement released by Chinese authorities.

But amidst the intensifying conflict in Myanmar, control over at least 10 Chinese projects has shifted from the military to armed opposition groups, including ethnic rebels and the anti-junta People’s Defense Force, or PDF, according to an Aug. 19 report by the Institute for Strategy and Policy – Myanmar.

A woman works at a motorbike factory in China Yunnan Pilot Free Trade Zone Dehong Area in Dehong, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Nov. 4, 2019. (Jiang Wenyao/Xinhua via Getty Images)

They include the Muse Border Economic Cooperation Zone, Kunlong Dam, Kunlong Bridge, Chinshwehaw Border Economic Trade Zone, Naung Pha Dam, Lancang-Mekong Environmental Cooperation Center, Goteik Bridge and New Road Project, Sinn Shwe Li-2 Sugar Factory, Alpha Cement Factory and Takaung Nickel Factory, the group said.

When questioned about the situation, TNLA spokeswoman Lway Yay Oo told RFA that all Chinese projects under her group’s control in northern Shan state are currently suspended.

"Given the ongoing instability in the region, we have temporarily suspended all investments,” she said. “Moving forward, we are working to develop the necessary policies in order to resume operations when conditions allow.”

Junta ‘no longer accountable’

Nay Phone Latt, spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office of Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government, or NUG, told RFA that the junta no longer has the capacity to safeguard Chinese projects.

"The current regime is in a position where it is unable to ensure its own security, let alone protect the citizens of the country,” he said. “I want to clearly state that it can no longer be held accountable for the safety of international investment projects, foreign workers, or the security of those involved."

Nay Phone Latt noted that the PDF is currently providing security for the Takaung Nickel Plant, a US$855 million Chinese-owned mining project. He said that while “discussions have taken place” between the NUG and China regarding the plant, he could not disclose details of the talks at this time.

In addition to the China-Myanmar oil and natural gas pipeline, ethnic rebel groups may partially control railways, roads, waterways and trade routes within the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, which forms part of China’s broader Silk Road infrastructure initiative.

Chinese farmer Yukan who sells vegetables at a market in Myanmar, queues to leave a border crossing in Menghai county, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Jan. 11, 2020. (Hu Chao/Xinhua via Getty)

According to the Institute for Strategy and Policy – Myanmar, at least nine Chinese investment projects in Kyaukphyu and Thandwe townships, located in Rakhine state, are now partially controlled by the Arakan Army, or AA.

When asked for comment, AA spokesperson Khaing Thukha said that foreign investment projects will be protected. "All parties involved in the ongoing conflict in Myanmar have expressed the need to safeguard China’s interests,” he said.

RFA contacted junta spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun regarding the Chinese projects now under the control of ethnic groups, but received no response.

Translated by Kalyar Lwin and Aung Naing. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster.

Thailand's longan boom faces uncertain future as Chinese tighten grip on market

China imports 95% of its longan from Thailand, with most local buyers acting as nominees for Chinese merchants.

Wittayakorn Boonruang for BenarNews
2024.09.16
Bangkok, Thailand

Thailand's longan boom faces uncertain future as Chinese tighten grip on market

Workers at a longan drying factory prepare longans to be dried before selling them to Chinese buyers in Phrao district, Chiang Mai, on August 17, 2024.

Wittayakorn Boonruang/BenarNews

In the lush orchards of northern Thailand, a fruit known locally as "lamyai" has become the unlikely star of an international trade saga. Longan, with its translucent flesh and subtle sweetness, has carved out a dominant position in China's fruit import market. However, this success story comes with a complex web of challenges and risks that threaten the long-term sustainability of Thailand's longan industry.

In 2023, Thailand exported 327,296 tons of longan to China, valued at over US$400 million, accounting for 95% of China’s longan imports. While these numbers showcase success, they also reveal Thailand’s heavy reliance on a single market.

Niwat Kantawong, a 42-year-old dried longan exporter from Chiang Mai's Phrao district, offers a glimpse into the intimate relationship between Thai producers and Chinese buyers.

"It's as if they're controlling the production themselves," Niwat told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news organization. "They oversee everything we do, staying for months at a time."

Niwat Kantawong, a dried longan export business owner, prepares documents for Chinese buyers at his office in a longan drying factory in Phrao district, Chiang Mai, on Aug. 17, 2024. [Wittayakorn Boonruang/BenarNews]

According to the Ministry of Commerce, in 2023, Thailand’s global longan exports totaled 16.5 billion baht (US$474 million), with China as the top destination, accounting for 12.9 billion baht (US$370 million) or 78% of the total.

This reliance on China highlights a power imbalance, as Chinese buyers, through local “Lhong” or packing houses, control prices and quality standards, leaving Thai farmers with minimal bargaining power.

"The current state of the longan market is completely controlled by Chinese merchants, both for fresh and dried longan," Niwat explains.

"When demand from China is high, prices are good, and everyone's happy. But when production exceeds their demand, dried longan factories and longan orchard owners struggle. The bargaining power is entirely in the hands of Chinese merchants."

Data from the International Institute for Trade and Development, or ITD, shows that China's fruit imports, particularly tropical fruits, have been steadily increasing since 2016, reaching US$16.85 billion by 2023. ASEAN countries, including Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia, are the main suppliers.

Thailand's longan production for 2024 is projected at 1,438,137 tons, a 2% rise from 2023. The northern provinces, especially Chiang Mai and Lamphun, are the key production areas, expected to produce 994,953 tons, or 69% of the total.

Chawanwit Jaikard, a young longan farmer, inspects his longan orchard in Banhong district, Lamphun, on Aug. 24, 2024. [Wittayakorn Boonruang/BenarNews]

Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai emphasized that the government will plan ahead to address potential agricultural issues, while farmers must take responsibility for maintaining the quality of their produce.

“We aim to solve problems in a timely manner, ensuring people are well cared for and stay competitive in global markets,” told the media in late August.

He noted that Cambodia, Thailand’s main competitor in longan exports to China, increased its market share from 0.5% to 5% in 2023, highlighting the need to maintain high standards for Thai longan to keep prices competitive.

Chinese control the market

Middlemen play a crucial role in Thailand's longan and other fruit markets, operating through fruit packing houses or Lhong. The Office of Farmers' Reconstruction and Development Fund has noted that some of these packing houses are nominees of Chinese merchants, who may be married to Thai nationals or use Thai fronts while the capital remains Chinese. These operations often create problems, particularly in depressing the prices paid to longan growers.

Chawanwit Jaikard, a 27-year-old new generation farmer growing longan in Banhong district, Lamphun, states, "In the longan purchasing market, even though we have Thai-owned Lhongs, most are actually nominees of Chinese capital. Even for truly Thai Lhong, the final destination of the longan is still the Chinese market."

"The prices are set the same whether it's a Thai or Chinese Lhong. We really can't escape their influence, especially with the government welcoming Chinese investment," Chawanwit told BenarNews.

The pricing power of Chinese Lhong creates uncertainty for farmers, who cannot predict whether prices will cover their production costs. If prices fall in a year when they've already invested, farmers may face losses and debt. Given that longan trees take years to mature and produce fruit only once a year, a single misstep in investment can have long-lasting effects.

"For example, in years with high longan production, Lhong lower their purchase prices or, in extreme cases, stop buying altogether," Chawanwit explains.

"In years with low production, like 2024, longan prices are good because overall production is lower, so Lhong have to set higher purchase prices to secure products. Then politicians take credit, claiming prices are better because of the government."

A longan orchard in Saraphi district, Chiang Mai, where Chinese middlemen have purchased the entire harvest, on Aug. 4, 2024. [Wittayakorn Boonruang/BenarNews]

Chinese Lhong can set purchase prices and quality standards as they wish, bearing little risk while monopolizing the longan market. Longan orchard owners must accept the fate determined by these buyers. Chawanwit also notes that this situation is leading to a decline in the number of longan farmers.

"Gen Y and Gen Z, like me, often opt for steady salaried jobs or more stable work than longan farming," he says.

"The memory of family members in debt due to longan farming and the lack of stable income drives younger people to seek work elsewhere. Only some Boomers, Gen X, and a few Gen Y continue longan farming. In extreme cases, some decide to sell their orchards because there's no one to continue the work."

A 2022 research project by Li Jun Wang from Chiang Mai University's Social Science Faculty, titled "'Lhong Jin' and Changing Livelihoods of Longan Farmers in Lamphun Province," found that the entry of Chinese Lhong has greatly impacted local farmers. The study highlights their loss of bargaining power and increased dependence on these buyers.

"While the expansion of Chinese Lhong offered export opportunities, it led to the loss of longan varieties and market monopolization, creating new risks and lifestyle changes for farmers," the study states.

Need for diversification

Donlawat Sunsuk, a researcher at a Thai think-tank, The Glocal, highlights that dried longan has historically been a popular export to China, often seen as a luxury health food and given as gifts during festivals. However, he notes that changing demographics in China may shift consumption patterns, as younger generations may be less inclined to buy longan as gifts.

“The longan export industry must adapt by developing new products and exploring markets beyond China,” Donlawat told BenarNews.

In late July 2024, Rangsan Maneerat, a member of parliament from Lamphun province, proposed a "Longan Strategy Act" in the House of Representatives. This draft law suggests establishing a "Longan Strategy Committee" to address issues in the industry.

"We want to see solutions to unfair longan pricing, the application of scientific research to develop value-added longan products, and relevant ministries negotiating new markets for longan," the Lamphun MP stated while proposing the draft law in the House of Representatives.

A woman selects dried longan at a supermarket in Fuyang, in eastern China's Anhui province on Feb. 9, 2018. China's factory inflation eased to a 14-month low in January while consumer prices grew at their slowest rate in six months, official data showed in February. [AFP]

Niwat agrees that more diverse processing methods and new markets are the way forward for the entire longan industry.

"Currently, dried longan fetches the best price, but it's heavily dependent on the Chinese market," he says.

"If one day they stop buying, the entire Thai longan system could collapse. We should find new processing methods and new markets. I'd like to try making spirits, beer, or wine from longan, so we're not just exporting to China alone."

BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization.

No details offered on Baltimore’s settlement with opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson as civil trial starts

By Alex Mann | amann@baltsun.com
September 16, 2024

BALTIMORE SUN

Baltimore settled with opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals on the eve of its trial against that company and two distributors of opioids that the city accused of aggressively marketing the drugs and pumping them into pharmacies here.

The terms of the settlement were not outlined in a joint Sunday night filing informing the court of the agreement.

Johnson & Johnson declined to comment on the settlement.

Bryan Doherty, a spokesman for Democratic Mayor Brandon Scott, confirmed in an email that the city settled with Johnson & Johnson.

“The City cannot at this time discuss any of the specific terms of the settlement,” Doherty said. “It is one of the stipulations of the agreement that we cannot discuss specific terms until” the cases against the remaining defendants conclude.

Before the latest settlement, Baltimore had secured $402.5 million from settlements with various opioid companies.

Baltimore’s remaining claims against opioid distributors McKesson and AmerisourceBergen appear slated to proceed to trial this week. Jury selection began Monday and it could take several days for attorneys to find jurors who are able to preside over a trial scheduled to go through November.

In its 2018 lawsuit, Baltimore alleged Johnson & Johnson and other opioid manufacturers and distributors falsely advertised their drugs to downplay their addictiveness, bribed doctors under the guise of speaking engagements and ignored suspiciously large orders for their products.

Johnson & Johnson produced two opioid medications cited in the complaint: Duragesic, which was a patch form of fentanyl, and Nucynta.

“Janssen sought to expand the use of Duragesic through, for example, advertisements proclaiming, ‘It’s not just for end stage cancer anymore!'” attorneys for the city wrote in the complaint. “This claim earned Janssen a warning letter from the (U.S. Food and Drug Administration), for representing that Duragesic was ‘more useful in a broader range of conditions or patients than has been demonstrated by substantial evidence.'”

Johnson & Johnson regularly made more than $1 billion annually in sales of Duragesic up to 2009, the lawsuit said. Sales of Nucynta and the extended release version of that drug, Nucynta ER, brought in $172 million in 2014.

In a statement before it reached a settlement with the city, a spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson and Janssen said the companies “deeply sympathize with those affected by the impact of opioid abuse and addiction” and cited a 2022 settlement with states and municipalities around the country that “brought immediate financial support to address the opioid crisis.”

Baltimore, hard hit by the opioid epidemic, opted out of that settlement to pursue its claim separately.

The Johnson & Johnson spokesperson said Baltimore’s claims have “no basis in the facts or the law” and that evidence would show “Janssen did everything a responsible manufacturer of these important prescription pain medicines should do.”

The city sued Johnson & Johnson and other opioid companies under the state’s public nuisance statute, arguing that the the businesses manufacturing, marketing and distribution of prescription opioids fueled the illicit opioid epidemic driven by heroin and, later, fentanyl use. The defendants’ actions, the city argues, amount to a level of nuisance that deprived the Baltimore’s residents of public rights.

One of the experts retained by the city, Brendan Saloner, a professor of American health in addiction at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, calculated that “83% of (opioid use disorder) cases in Baltimore in each year from 2010-2021 are attributable to the misuse of prescription opioids prior to any heroin use,” the city’s lawyers wrote in recent court papers.

The city also said it uncovered internal Johnson & Johnson documents that “acknowledge the link between prescription opioid use and subsequent illicit opioid use.”

“Abusers of [Janssen’s] reservoir patch who experiment and in many cases overdose, sometimes die’ and that ‘in the future’ as the Duragesic market grows, Duragesic ‘might not be safe,’” attorneys for the city wrote of one such document.

Originally Published: September 16, 2024

Tunisians protest poor governance as election campaigns get underway

By Rédaction Africanews

Last updated: 15/09 -

Tunisia

Demonstrators took to the streets of Tunisia's capital on Saturday to protest against what they say is the deteriorating state of the country, as the presidential campaign season officially begins.

Samia Abbou, a former Tunisian assembly member who took part in the demonstration, said Saied has failed on many important fronts.

Her and other demonstrators slammed both Tunisia’s economic and political woes, carrying signs that grouped together the growing costs of staple items and growing concerns about civil liberties.

In 2011, longtime Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was toppled by nationwide protests that unleashed revolt across the Arab world.

More than a decade later, demonstrator Sghaier Zakraoui said he was worried about the growing number of political figures who’ve been thrown in jail under Saied and said he wants to ensure that there no more attacks on civil rights.

The protests capped off a week in which the North African country’s largest opposition party, Ennahda, said its senior members had been arrested en masse, at a scale not previously seen.

They come as Saied prepares to campaign for reelection on Oct. 6, when he will ask voters to grant him a second term.

When first elected in 2019, Saied used anti-corruption promises to win over people disillusioned with the political controversies that plagued Tunisia’s young democracy in the years that followed the Arab Spring.

Since taking office, the 66-year-old former law professor has gone to lengths to consolidate his own power, freezing the country’s parliament and rewriting the constitution. Throughout his tenure, authorities have arrested journalists, activists, civil society figures and political opponents across the ideological spectrum.

And though he promised to chart a new course for the country, its unemployment rate has steadily increased to one of the region’s highest at 16%, with young Tunisians hit particularly hard.

Tunisians protest against president ahead of election

By Tarek Amara

September 13, 2024

Demonstrators hold signs and chant slogans during a protest against Tunisia President Kais Saied, whom they accuse of trying to rig the October 6 presidential election by detaining and intimidating his rivals, in Tunis, Tunisia, September 13, 2024.

REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui

REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tabTUNIS, Sept 13 (Reuters) -

Thousands of Tunisians marched in the streets on Friday to protest against President Kais Saied, whom they accuse of trying to rig the Oct. 6 presidential election by detaining and intimidating his rivals.

The march was one of the country's biggest protests in two years since Saied began ruling by decree in 2021 in a move the opposition describes as a coup.
The protesters chanted slogans including "Out with dictator Saied" and "No fear, no terror, streets belong to the people".

The electoral commission in August eliminated three prominent candidatopens new tab

from the race, citing alleged irregularities in their candidacy filings. The court in charge of election disputes ordered the commission to reinstate them on Sept. 2 but the commission rejected the ruling.

Critics say Saied is using the electoral commission, whose members he appointed, to secure victory by stifling competition and intimidating candidates. Saied denies the accusations, saying he is fighting traitors, mercenaries and the corrupt, and he will not be a dictator.The commission's decision to defy the court meant only three candidates are left in the race -- Saied, Zouhair Maghzaoui and Ayachi Zammel.

Zammel was jailed 10 days ago, accused of falsifying voter signatures on his paperwork, charges he said were manufactured by Saied. He faces 25 court cases on the issue, and lawyers say he may be forced out of the race

The protesters demanded the release of Zammel and all political prisoners, activists and journalists detained for criticising Saied.

"We are in the street to defend freedoms and rights which are at real risk", Bassam Trifi, the head of Human Rights League, told Reuters.

"The electoral commission should respect the court ruling and end restrictions against candidates. Otherwise, it means an undemocratic election", he added.

Major political parties, many of whose leaders are in prison, say Saied's years in power have eroded the democratic gains of Tunisia's 2011 revolution.

CLIMATE CRISIS

What is causing the Biblical deluge in Central Europe?

Central Europe has just seen off-the-scale amounts of rainfall that has flooded cities across the region in an unprecedented extreme weather event. The combination of the hottest summer on record and freezing cold air swirling out of the Arctic created a lethal weather bomb that has just detonated. / bne IntelliNews

By Ben Aris in Berlin September 16, 2024

Central Europe is underwater as it grapples with a Biblical deluge, with record rainfall smashing all records and across countries in what experts are calling a “historic flood event.”

And this torrential downpour didn’t come out of the blue; meteorologists had predicted the disaster days in advance, with weather models flagging an extreme combination of variables leading to severe flooding.

As bne IntelliNews reported in February, torrential rainfall is one of the consequences of the accelerating Climate Crisis. The cause of the flooding has its roots in this year’s hottest summer on record. That has heated both the Mediterranean and the Black Sea to the temperature of bathwater. (video)

That abruptly changed on September 11 when very cold air started pouring out of the Arctic, covering northern Europe and spreading as far south as the Mediterranean and into the Black Sea, where it got trapped by a ridge of high pressure over southern Europe. (video)

Adding to the complexity of the weather pattern, a surge of atmospheric moisture originating from the Black Sea, which is significantly warmer than usual and has created the conditions for a perfect storm of cold, heat and moisture.

“This plunge of cold was part of a cyclonic wave break, essentially cutting off a low-pressure system from the main background flow,” says Scottish meteorologist Scott Duncan, who posted a series of simulations on social media. “This means a low pressure (storm) can get trapped and sit in the same place for days.”

Duncan added that the situation has been exacerbated by high-pressure systems lingering in the region, effectively trapping the storm over Central Europe. “We should never forget about the proximity of the high pressures. They are really crucial players holding this weather event over Central Europe,” he said.

Austria has been among the worst-hit, with rainfall records shattered across the country, while the higher altitudes have seen heavy snowfall, unseasonably early.

“The rain is still falling, but we already know Austria’s rainfall records are being pulverised,” Duncan said, as torrential rain continues to cause widespread flooding and disruption. In the centre of Vienna the normally placid River Danube has become a torrent of white water barely restrained between its banks as it rages through the city centre.

Austria has been especially hard hit due to “orographic enhancement,” a process where air pushed up the side of a mountain has its moisture squeezed out of it like a sponge, intensifying the rainfall.

“Rain (or snow) events can get an extra kick when there are mountains involved,” Duncan explains.

While the immediate focus remains on managing the flood’s impacts, the scale of the disaster has set alarm bells ringing as this weather event is off the scales. Central Europe has never recorded such extreme weather like this before – not just in September, but for any month of the year.

Rain fall was concentrated in Central Europe

Op-Ed

Is Joe Biden the “Drill, Baby, Drill” President?

By Benjamin Zycher

The Honest Broker

September 16, 2024

My AEI colleague Roger Pielke Jr. argues in a recent post that “Joe Biden Is the ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ President,” by virtue of the time trend for U.S. oil production on federal lands (onshore and offshore) for 2008-2023. In summary, Pielke reproduces the data on oil production from federal lands as reported by the U.S. Department of the Interior, showing that such oil production increased by about 129 percent during 2008-2023, over 46 percent during 2017-2023,¹ and by 25 percent in 2023 relative to 2020. Table 1 presents those production data for calendar years 2016-2023 for crude oil (and associated liquids) and natural gas.

Fossil energy production from federal lands is the end result of a lengthy process comprising complex preliminary analyses, leasing, exploration, permitting, and development, Pursuit of a lease on specific federal acreage is highly speculative, driven by some perceived potential for fossil production years in the future, under market conditions that are uncertain at best, and which may or may not yield an actual resource economically viable.

After a lease is obtained, geologic analyses — complex, time-consuming, and expensive — proceed, the central purpose of which is a determination of whether a drilling permit is worth pursuing. As a rough approximation, this process of geologic investigation consumes 2-4 years for onshore leases, and 7-8 years for offshore leases because of the enhanced attendant difficulties of engineering and logistical analyses.

Administrative, regulatory, and litigation challenges can lengthen the process, the end result of which might be a determination that a given lease on a given geological formation offers a resource sufficient in size and cost characteristics to be economically viable. Moreover, horizontal drilling requires leases and permits on contiguous parcels, an additional complication often forgotten in the public discussion of federal leasing policies for federal lands.

Accordingly, the mere observation that production on federal lands has increased sharply during the Biden administration period after 2020 provides less support for Pielke’s assertion than one might conclude at first glance. Table 2 presents for fiscal years 2016- 2023 data for federal lands on total leases and acreage, new leases and acreage, and number of drilling permits approved by fiscal year, all as of October 1, 2023.

As discussed above, the number of new drilling permits issued in a given year is driven heavily by leases approved in prior years, followed by the geologic and other analyses needed to determine if a drilling permit is worth pursuing. Accordingly, it is leasing activity in prior years that is the central driver of fossil energy production on federal lands during the current year. Analogously, it is leasing activity in the current and/or most recent years that will prove the central determinants of such fossil energy production in future years.²

The increase in fossil energy production on federal lands observed during the Biden administration clearly is the result in substantial part of strong leasing and leasing acreage activity in 2019-2020. Both fell dramatically during the 2021-2023 period. The central conclusions to be drawn are that Mr. Biden is not the “drill, baby, drill” president, and that fossil energy production on federal lands is likely to decline during the next two to four years.

——

1. It is not clear whether Pielke is reproducing the data from the Department of the Interior for fiscal or calendar years, but the differences are unimportant.

2. Obviously, market conditions — prices, input costs, etc. — also drive production activity.

African free trade pact gives China a chance to deepen its engagement

Expert comment~ Written by Linda Calabrese

16 September 2024

Africa’s continental trade pact offers significant opportunities not only for African economies but also for their foreign trade partners – none more so than the largest, China.

While China is perhaps best known in Africa for funding infrastructure megaprojects, its spending on infrastructure has decreased in recent years, even as it maintains its foreign direct investment (FDI).

To take full advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), both elements will be necessary. While tariffs and other trade barriers have fallen, African economies still need the productive capacity to make desirable goods at competitive prices, and the logistics to export them efficiently, if intra-African trade is to increase.

For African countries, the benefits are obvious. Currently, most of the continent’s exports consist of commodities and raw materials that are then processed elsewhere. A larger continental market will have more capacity to process these resources and use them for manufacture, meaning more of their value – and associated job creation – will stay within Africa.

China can also win from this development. By investing in Africa, Chinese companies get a return on their investment; and the opening up of the intra-African market allows them to sell beyond the borders of the country where they set up. We are yet to see any moves in this direction by China, but the AfCFTA becoming operational could be the trigger for such a strategy.
Trade imbalance

China has been Africa’s main trade partner for over a decade. Since 2012, most African imports come from China, and most of Africa’s exports go to China. But China has maintained a trade surplus since at least 2015. In 2023, the value of its exports to Africa was $173bn, and the value of imports was $110bn – with a trade deficit of $63bn, more than half of the value of its imports.

And, while China’s imports from Africa are largely minerals, oil and gas and other commodities, its exports include manufactured products, machinery and equipment.

This imbalance isn’t to China’s advantage. It is becoming a point of tension with African leaders: Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, for example, last year noted these skewed trade patterns.

“I would like to encourage China to open their market more for processed coffee and other products, not only raw materials,” he said in November.

Keenly aware of this, Chinese leaders are encouraging more exports from Africa through China, through initiatives like the establishment of ‘green lanes’, or electronic trade platforms to boost the sales of African agricultural products in the Chinese market, thus diversifying Africa’s exports.

The AfCFTA eliminates many tariffs between African countries and removes other barriers to trade. Africa’s internal trade is already more diversified – involving more manufactured products – than its trade with the rest of the world, meaning that the continent’s value-adding industries stand to gain the most from this liberalisation.

Therefore, even though the trade pact is directly concerned only with internal trade, its effect will be to lengthen African value chains and make manufacturing more efficient, serving as a launchpad for countries to export more manufactured products outside the continent, including to China. This will not be an immediate effect but may happen in the longer term.
How China can help

As China stands to gain from this development, there are several things it can do to speed the process along.

First, it can continue to invest in African industry, particularly in value chains that the African Union has identified as particularly promising for the AfCFTA, namely agroprocessing, automotives, pharmaceuticals, and transport and logistics.

This is already underway. Chinese automotive producer BAIC has set up a plant in South Africa. BYD, the world’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles, plans to set up factories in Morocco (though this may serve to maintain access to the EU market). Fosun Pharma, in partnership with the International Finance Corporation, wants to establish antibacterial and antimalarial production in Côte d’Ivoire.

Chinese capital is also still needed in infrastructure, and here the picture is more mixed. Chinese banks are major financiers of infrastructure in Africa, but in recent years, this finance seems to be drying up. This is due to many reasons, but challenges with debt repayment by many African countries are certainly an important one.

China frames this change as the pursuit of ‘small and beautiful’ projects, intended to be more impactful and sustainable than the mega-infrastructure financed in the past. This is, in principle, a good thing: some of the infrastructure previously financed by China did little to improve trade or economic development.

The AfCFTA presents a unique opportunity for both Africa and China. With well targeted FDI and infrastructure investment from China, the two sides can create a more balanced and mutually beneficial trade relationship that will boost economic growth and development for both sides.

This opinion piece was first published in African Business Magazine on 27 August 2024.

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