Spain govt defends flood response and offers new aid

By AFP
November 27, 2024


Flood-damaged homes line the river in Chiva in Spain's eastern region of Valencia - Copyright AFP JOSE JORDAN

Daniel SILVA

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday announced almost 2.3 billion euros ($2.4 billion) in new aid for Spain’s flood-stricken region and defended his government’s handling of the deadly disaster last month.

The European country is still reeling from the October 29 floods which killed at least 230 people according to the latest official toll, washing away roads and destroying homes and businesses.

The disaster prompted widespread fury at elected leaders over their handling of the crisis which mainly affected the eastern region of Valencia.

Under Spain’s decentralised state, regions are in charge of disaster management, but the events have triggered a blame game between Sanchez’s leftist administration and the conservative regional government of Valencia.

“The question is whether the Spanish government has fulfilled its responsibilities and the answer is that it has done so,” Sanchez told parliament.

“It has done so from the outset and continues to do so and will continue to do so for as long as necessary.”

The central government has said the regional authorities took too long to convene an emergency coordination meeting on the storm and to send out a mass alert.

The regional government sent emergency alerts to mobile phones when water was already gushing through some towns.

But regional government head Carlos Mazon, of the main opposition Popular Party, has said he received “insufficient, inaccurate and late” information from the state weather agency and a central government authority responsible for monitoring flood risks.

Sanchez denied state bodies did not provide enough information, saying the state weather office AEMET had warned for days of the risk of heavy rain.

He also denied that Spain’s decentralised system of government “has failed”.

“I think that some of its parts have failed and above all some people in very high positions who have not lived up to their responsibilities,” he said in what was seen as a reference to Mazon.



– ‘Not admit mistakes’ –



Sanchez announced a fresh package of 60 measures for stricken citizens worth nearly 2.3 billion euros that brought the total aid provided in the wake of the disaster to 16.6 billion euros.

It includes 465 million euros to help people replace damaged cars and 19 million euros to replace textbooks and other school materials.

Outrage over the flood action triggered mass protests on November 9, the largest in Valencia city which drew 130,000 people.

Fresh demonstrations are called for this weekend.

Sanchez said he was “absolutely open” to the creation of a parliamentary commission of inquiry to look into the state response to the floods but that it was “not yet the right time”.

Mazon hit back at Sanchez, saying it was “surprising” that the central government “does not admit any mistakes”, and complained that part of the aid the premier announced is in the form of interest-bearing loans.

Mazon has also come under fire for attending a three-hour lunch with a journalist on the day of the disaster.

Sanchez added that the disaster showed “climate change kills” and lashed out at the scepticism expressed by part of the Spanish right which he said “must be rejected”.

Because a warmer atmosphere holds more water, sci

RIP

Spain factory explosion kills three, injures seven


By AFP
November 27, 2024


A firefighter stands next to a partially collapsed factory after an explosion killed three people in the town of Ibi

 - Copyright AFP Manuel Lorenzo

An explosion in a plastics factory near the southeastern Spanish city of Alicante killed three people and injured seven on Wednesday, emergency services said.

A boiler exploded in an industrial estate in the town of Ibi, triggering “a shockwave” that affected the factory and an adjacent firm, said Alberto Martin, director general of the eastern Valencia region’s emergency service.

One of the victims was from the neighbouring company and three people were in a serious condition, he told reporters at the scene.

Valencia emergency services had written on X that seven people were injured overall.

Firefighters, ambulances and forensics experts were deployed around the partially collapsed factory from which rescue workers carried a body covered with a white sheet, an AFP journalist saw.

A gigantic heap of plastic and wooden pallets had spilled out of gaping holes in the walls of warped metal.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed the government’s “full support” to the victims, workers and rescuers during an address to parliament.

Ibi town council announced three days of mourning.

The company using the factory, Industrias Climber, produces expanded polystyrene, a foam that protects packaged goods.

Hand-built fantasy tower brings value to Tokyo, creator says


By AFP
November 26, 2024

Pedestrians walk past the four-storey Arimaston Building created by Japanese architect Keisuke Oka in Tokyo

 - Copyright AFP Richard A. Brooks

Andrew MCKIRDY

Passers-by stop and stare at the ramshackle, hand-built concrete tower that looks like it has been lifted right out of a Japanese animation and dropped onto a real-life Tokyo street.

Its creator, who spent almost 20 years making the distinctive four-storey Arimaston Building, thinks his slow approach to construction can be an example to the world.

“It used to be that there weren’t enough things in the world, but now there are too many,” 59-year-old Keisuke Oka told AFP inside the building’s curved grey walls.

“We need to stop mass-producing things and find another way, otherwise we’ll be in trouble.”

With its wobbly lines and weird, wonderful ornamentation, Oka’s building has been compared to the animated Studio Ghibli movie “Howl’s Moving Castle”.

The architect himself has been dubbed the Gaudi of Mita, referencing the famed Spanish architect and the Tokyo area where Arimaston Building is located.

Inspired by Japan’s avant-garde butoh dance, Oka made up the design as he went along.

Growing up, he felt buildings in Japan’s towns and cities looked “very sad and devoid of life”, as if they were “all designed on a computer”.

“The person who constructs a building and the person who designs a building are very far apart,” he said.

“In order to give the building some life, I thought I would try to think and build together at the same time.”



– High-rise contrast –



Oka started construction in 2005. Apart from the help of a few friends, he made the entire building himself by hand.

He claims the concrete — which he mixed himself — is of such high quality that it will last for over 200 years.

Oka says the structure is basically finished. He plans to live in the top three storeys and use the ground and basement floors as a studio and exhibition space.

When he started, he had no idea the project would take almost two decades.

“I thought with the ability I had, I could do it in three years,” he said, explaining that the improvised nature of his design brought constant challenges.

Oka grew up in rural Japan and was an exceptional architecture student who was told by his teachers he would go a long way.

He suffered a physical breakdown in his 30s and gave up architecture for a while, before his wife persuaded him to buy a small plot and build a house.

He says making Arimaston Building has restored his confidence, and he enjoys the amazed reaction of people walking past.

“It’s very easy to understand the contrast with the high-rise buildings right behind it,” he said.

“I think there is some value that the city can take from it.”


– Throw-away society –


Arimaston Building stands alone on a sloped street, making it all the more striking.

The area is undergoing large-scale redevelopment, and the apartments that once stood next door have been demolished.

As part of the changes, Oka’s building is scheduled to be moved 10 metres backwards in a process that involves transporting the entire structure on rails.

Once that is complete, he intends to move in and continue working on the finishing touches, alongside his university teaching jobs.

Amid all the upheaval in the area, Oka hopes people will be able to see the value of making something by hand.

He says he was inspired by his upbringing, when his mother made clothes for the family because they couldn’t afford to buy them.

“More than half of the clothes we make now, we throw away, he said, describing a world “overflowing with things”.

“We need to start making things at a slower pace,” Oka said.

COP29 president blames rich countries for ‘imperfect’ deal


By AFP
November 26, 2024

COP29 president Mukhtar Babayev conceded that the deal was insufficient to meet escalating needs - Copyright AFP/File STRINGER

The tough-fought finance deal at UN climate negotiations was “imperfect”, the Azerbaijan COP29 leadership has admitted, seeking to blame richer countries for an outcome slammed by poorer nations as insulting.

The contentious deal agreed on Sunday saw wealthy polluters agree to a $300 billion a year pledge to help developing countries reduce emissions and prepare for the increasingly dangerous impacts of a warming world.

COP29 president Mukhtar Babayev conceded that the deal was insufficient to meet escalating needs and suggested that China would have agreed to stump up more cash had others agreed to budge.

Writing in Britain’s Guardian newspaper on Monday he said wealthy historical emitters had been “immovable” until very late in the negotiating process.

“This deal may be imperfect. It does not keep everyone happy. But it is a major step forward from the $100 billion pledged in Paris back in 2015,” he said.

“It is also the deal that almost didn’t happen.”

Azerbaijan, an authoritarian oil and gas exporter, came under heavy criticism for its handling of COP29, notably France and Germany.

Babayev banged the deal through in the early hours of Sunday after nearly two weeks of fractious negotiations that at one point appeared on the verge of collapse.

As soon as the deal was approved, India, Bolivia, Nigeria and Malawi, speaking on behalf of the 45-strong Least Developed Countries group, took to the floor to denounce it.

Finance was always going to be a thorny issue for the nearly 200 nations that gathered in a sports stadium in Baku to hammer out a new target by 2035.

Wealthy countries failed to meet the previous goal on time, causing cratering trust in the UN climate process.

COP29 did set out a wider target of $1.3 trillion per year by 2035 to help developing nations pay for the energy transition and brace themselves for worsening climate impacts.

The deal envisages that $300 billion mobilised by wealthy nations will be combined with funds from the private sector and financial institutions like the World Bank to reach this larger sum.

But Babayev said he agreed with developing nations that “the industrialised world’s contribution was too low and that the private sector contribution was too theoretical”.

Contrasting China’s involvement in the negotiations with that of wealthy historical emitters like the European Union and United States, he said Beijing was “willing to offer more if others did so too (but the others didn’t)”.

China, the world’s second-biggest economy and top emitter of greenhouse gases, is considered a developing country in the UN process and is therefore not obliged to pay up, although it does already provide climate funding on its own terms.

The new text states that developed nations would be “taking the lead” but implies that others could join.

Babayev said the deal was “not enough”, but would provide a foundation to build on in the lead up to next year’s climate talks in Brazil.

Plastic pollution talks must speed up, chair warns


By AFP
November 27, 2024

Plastic production is expected to triple by 2060 

- Copyright YONHAP/AFP -

Sara Hussein and Roland de Courson

Negotiators must move “significantly” faster to agree on a landmark treaty to curb plastic pollution, the diplomat chairing the talks warned Wednesday, as countries lined up to express frustration about the limited progress.

Nearly 200 countries are gathered in South Korea’s Busan city with the goal of agreeing a deal by the end of the week.

The process caps two years of talks over four previous rounds of negotiations that have been stalled by deep divisions about what the treaty should look like.

Addressing negotiators on the third day of talks, Luis Vayas Valdivieso warned work was not advancing quickly enough.

“I must be honest with you, progress has been too slow. We need to speed up our work significantly,” the Ecuadorian diplomat said.

“We must accelerate our efforts to reach consensus on the binding instrument by December first.”

His call was followed by a string of frustrated speeches from countries including Fiji, Panama, Norway and Colombia.

“While we here sit debating over semantics and procedures, the crisis worsens,” warned Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, Panama’s special representative for climate change.

“We are here because microplastics have been found in the placentas of healthy women… We are literally raising a generation that starts its life polluted, before taking its first breath.”

He accused negotiators of “tiptoeing around the truth, sidestepping ambition and ignoring the urgency that demands action” in remarks that received loud applause.

– ‘We are sincere’ –

Other representatives accused some participants of failing to engage in good faith and actively seeking to drag out the talks.

They did not openly point the finger at any countries, but diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity have repeatedly said Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran are consistently holding up proceedings and showing little willingness to compromise.

All three countries took the floor to hit back.

“We are sincere, we are honest and we are ready to cooperate,” said Iran’s Massoud Rezvanian Rahaghi.

“But we do not want to be blamed for blocking negotiations through dirty tactics.”

Russian representative Dmitry Kornilov meanwhile blasted the “unacceptable” accusations and warned delegates to abandon the most contentious parts of the draft discussions.

“If we are serious about this then we must concentrate on provisions that are acceptable to all delegations,” he said.

In 2019, the world produced around 460 million tonnes of plastic, a figure that has doubled since 2000, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Plastic production is expected to triple by 2060.

But just nine percent of plastic is recycled globally.

– ‘Bold moves’ –

The main faultline in talks lies over whether the treaty should address the full lifecycle of plastic, including potential limits to its production, chemical precursors, and certain products considered unneccessary, including many single-use items.

The UN decision that kicked off the negotiating process explicitly refers both to the full lifecycle of plastic and sustainable consumption, but countries including Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran have consistently rejected calls to limit supply.

Saudi Arabia has warned supply restrictions “extend beyond” the treaty’s focus on plastic pollution and risk creating “economic disruptions.”

Iran meanwhile has called for an article on supply to be removed entirely from the treaty text.

There are other sticking points, including financial support for developing countries to implement any treaty, and how a decision to adopt a deal should be made.

The UN standard is consensus, but there are fears that a unanimous deal may be out of reach.

A European diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the divisions were such that an agreement would only be possible if “bold moves” were taken in the final stretch to “unblock” things.

The question, he said, was “whether those moves, at that stage, will arrive too late.”

“Four days to get to all that seems to me to be too little,” he warned.

Plastic pollution talks: the key sticking points

By AFP
November 26, 2024


People look through plastic and other debris washed ashore at a beach on Indonesia's resort island of Bali - Copyright AFP SONNY TUMBELAKA

Sara HUSSEIN

Nations gathered in Busan, South Korea have a week to agree the world’s first treaty to curb plastic pollution, a gargantuan challenge given the major divisions that remain.

Here is a look at the key sticking points:

Consensus or majority

Divisions between nations are so deep that they have not yet agreed on how any decision will be adopted — by consensus or majority vote.

Consensus is the standard for many UN agreements, but it has also hamstrung progress on other accords, notably climate.

To avoid gumming up discussions, negotiations are proceeding without resolving this question.

But that creates something of a landmine that could detonate at any point during the talks, particularly if countries feel they are losing ground, warned Bjorn Beeler, executive director of the International Pollutants Elimination Network.

“Because of the consensus decision-making process, the oil states could still blow up the potential final deal,” he told AFP.



Production

The resolution that kicked off the talks urged a treaty that would “promote sustainable production and consumption of plastics”.

But what that means is a key point of difference among negotiators.

Some countries want the treaty to mandate a reduction of new plastic production, and the phase-out of “unneccessary” items, such as some single-use plastics.

They note many countries already limit items like plastic bags or cutlery.

But other nations, led by some oil-producing states like Russia and Saudi Arabia, have pushed back against any binding reduction call.

They insist nations should set their own targets.

Saudi Arabia, representing the Arab group of nations, warned in its opening statement against “imposing rigid and exclusionary policies to address complex global issues”.

They urged members to focus on a treaty “that balances environmental protection with economic and social development”.



‘Chemicals of concern’

The alliance of countries called the High Ambition Coalition (HAC), led by Rwanda and Norway, is pushing for specific measures on so-called chemicals of concern.

These are components of plastic that are known or feared to be harmful to human health.

The HAC wants “global criteria and measures” for phasing out or restricting these chemicals.

But some countries also reject that approach.

And lists are also firmly opposed by the chemical and petrochemical industry, which points to an array of existing international agreements and national regulations.

“A new global agreement to address plastic pollution should not duplicate these existing instruments and voluntary efforts,” warned the International Council of Chemical Associations.

The auto industry says any broad-stroke bans could affect its ability to comply with safety regulations.



Finance

Implementing any treaty will cost money that developing countries say they simply do not have.

India insists the treaty should make clear that compliance “shall be linked to provision of the incremental cost” and backs the creation of a dedicated multilateral fund for the purpose.

That position may struggle to gain traction, particularly after the hard-fought battle at COP29 climate talks to extract more finance from developed countries.

But that is unlikely to sway countries advocating for the funds.

Developed countries “have historically benefited from industrial activities related to plastic production”, noted Saudi Arabia, speaking for the Arab group.

They “bear a greater responsibility in providing financial and technical support as well as capacity-building for developing countries”.



Globally binding or nationally determined?

Will the treaty create overarching global rules that bind all nations to the same standards, or allow individual countries to set their own targets and goals?

This is likely to be another key sticking point, with the European Union warning “a treaty in which each party would do only what they consider is necessary is not something we are ready to support”.

On the other side are nations who argue that differing levels of capacity and economic growth make common standards unreasonable.

“There shall not be any compliance regime,” reads language proposed for the treaty by Iran.

Instead, it urges an “assessment committee” that would monitor progress but “in no way” examine compliance or implementation.

To tackle plastic scourge, Philippines makes companies pay

By AFP
November 26, 2024

Long one of the top sources of ocean plastic, the Philippines is hoping new legislation requiring big companies to pay for waste solutions will help clean up its act

 - Copyright AFP/File Jam Sta Rosa

Cecil MORELLA

Long one of the world’s top sources of ocean plastic, the Philippines is hoping new legislation requiring big companies to pay for waste solutions will help clean up its act.

Last year, its “Extended Producer Responsibility” (EPR) statute came into force — the first in Southeast Asia to impose penalties on companies over plastic waste.

The experiment has shown both the promise and the pitfalls of the tool, which could be among the measures in a treaty to tackle plastic pollution that countries hope to agree on by December 1 at talks in South Korea.

The Philippines, with a population of 120 million, generates some 1.7 million metric tons of post-consumer plastic waste a year, according to the World Bank.

Of that, a third goes to landfills and dumpsites, with 35 percent discarded on open land.

The EPR law is intended to achieve “plastic neutrality” by forcing large businesses to reduce plastic pollution through product design and removing waste from the environment.

They are obliged to cover an initial 20 percent of their plastic packaging footprint, calculated based on the weight of plastic packaging they put into the market.

The obligation will rise to a ceiling of 80 percent by 2028.

The law covers a broad range of plastics, including flexible types that are commercially unviable for recycling and thus often go uncollected.

It does not however ban any plastics, including the popular but difficult to recover and recycle single-use sachets common in the Philippines.

So far, around half the eligible companies under the law have launched EPR programmes.

Over a thousand more must do so by end-December or face fines of up to 20 million pesos ($343,000) and even revocation of their operating licences.



– ‘Manna from heaven’ –



The law hit its 2023 target for removal of plastic waste, Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones told AFP.

It is “part of a broader strategy to reduce the environmental impact of plastic pollution, particularly given the Philippines’ status as one of the largest contributors to marine plastic waste globally.”

The law allows companies to outsource their obligations to “producer responsibility organisations”, many of which use a mechanism called plastic credits.

These allow companies to buy a certificate that a metric tonne of plastic has been removed from the environment and either recycled, upcycled or “co-processed” — burned for energy.

PCX Markets, one of the country’s biggest players, offers local credits priced from around $100 for collection and co-processing of mixed plastics to over $500 for collection and recycling of ocean-bound PET plastic. Most are certified according to a standard administered by sister organisation PCX Solutions.

The model is intended to channel money into the underfunded waste collection sector and encourage collection of plastic that is commercially unviable for recycling.

“It’s manna from heaven,” former street sweeper Marita Blanco told AFP.

A widowed mother-of-five, Blanco lives in Manila’s low-income San Andres district and buys plastic bottles, styrofoam and candy wrappers for two pesos (3.4 US cents) a kilogram (2.2 pounds).

She then sells them at a 25 percent mark-up to charity Friends of Hope, which works with PCX Solutions to process them.

“I didn’t know that there was money in garbage,” she said.

“If I do not look down on the task of picking up garbage, my financial situation will improve.”



– ‘Still linear’ –



Friends of Hope managing director Ilusion Farias said the project was making a visible difference to an area often strewn with discarded plastic.

“Two years ago, I think you would have seen a lot dirtier street,” she told AFP.

“Behavioural change is really slow, and it takes a really long time.”

Among those purchasing credits is snack producer Mondelez, which has opted to jump directly to “offsetting” 100 percent of its plastic footprint.

“It costs company budgets… but that’s really something that we just said we would commit to do for the environment,” Mondelez Philippines corporate and government affairs official Caitlin Punzalan told AFP.

But while companies have lined up to buy plastic credits, there has been less movement on stemming the flow of new plastic, including through redesign.

“Upstream reduction is not really easy,” said PCX Solutions managing director Stefanie Beitien.

“There is no procurement department in the world that accepts a 20 percent higher packaging price just because it’s the right thing to do.”

And while PCX credits cannot be claimed against plastic that is landfilled, they do allow for co-processing, with the ash then used for cement.

“It’s still linear, not circular, because you’re destroying the plastic and you’re still generating virgin plastic,” acknowledged Leones of the environment ministry.

Still, the law remains a “very strong policy”, according to Floradema Eleazar, an official with the UN Development Programme.

But “we will not see immediate impacts right now, or tomorrow,” she said.

“It would require really massive behavioural change for everyone to make sure that this happens.”

The birth of humanoid agents: The convergence of AI, mechanics, and humanity


By Dr. Tim Sandle
DIGITAL JOURNAL
November 27, 2024


A robot bartender developed by Spanish food tech group Macco Robotics serves drinks -- but also speaks a dozen languages and recognises customers by their faces - Copyright AFP Josep LAGO

As 2025 approaches, the landscape of technology is rapidly evolving. This includes a spotlight on humanoid agents. This past year, the development of robots has surged with innovations that once seemed far-off now becoming imminent. The long-anticipated release of fully autonomous humanoids—previously confined to industrial settings—is possibly approaching.

This is the view of deep tech investor Anders Indset, who has told Digital Journal: “We stand on the brink of a new era as these machines become increasingly sophisticated and capable.”

Indset argues: “Humanoid robots like Tesla’s Optimus are designed for industrial applications, capable of performing tasks in manufacturing and logistics. Elon Musk has indicated that Optimus will become a cornerstone of the company, with Optimus Gen 3 likely to debut by the end of 2024. With the integration of advanced software, visuals, and cameras tied to the Tesla ecosystem—similar technologies pushing for autonomous vehicles and robot taxis—the possibilities for these robots in 2025 are limitless.”

The focus on AI agents has attracted significant investment, according to Indset, with record-high “dry powder” of $250 billion in the Bay Area alone directed toward the convergence of AI models and robotics.

Indset explains: “Boston Dynamics is not alone in this race; they have introduced fully autonomous working partners that move beyond pre-programmed functions. The humanoid’s shift from hydraulic systems to electric capabilities indicates a move toward enhanced physical and mental performance, closely mimicking the human musculoskeletal system.”

Notable examples in humanoid robotics include Boston Dynamics’ Atlas, which has demonstrated impressive agility, and Hanson Robotics’ Sophia, known for her advanced conversational abilities and emotional expressions.

These robots, Indset thinks: “showcase the potential for humanoid agents to engage meaningfully with humans, enhancing customer service, healthcare, and education. Similarly, UBTech’s Walker and Agility Robotics’ Digit highlight the industry’s push towards creating robots that can navigate complex environments while performing intricate tasks.”

The cost of employment is likely to be a driver. Indset observes: “Today, human labour accounts for approximately 50% of the global GDP, a staggering $42 trillion. As humanoid robots begin to take on roles in construction, logistics, and manufacturing, they will also address the needs of a growing aging population—estimated at 700 million individuals requiring home care in 2.3 billion households worldwide. The demand for assistive technologies will drive the integration of humanoid agents into daily life, providing support to the elderly and enhancing their quality of life.”

The issue of technological innovation is not without its concerns. Drawing these out, Indset says: “However, the reliance on foundational AI models presents risks for these companies. The integration of self-hosted models and the potential for AI errors remain significant challenges. If AI fails, the humanoids, while designed to replicate human capabilities, may not achieve the desired outcomes. The ethical and social implications of humanoid agents must also be addressed, particularly concerning job displacement, privacy concerns, and the potential misuse of technology.”

So, what does the future hold for humanoid robots? Indset’s view is: “As we approach 2025, we can anticipate the widespread adoption of AI in robotics, enhanced human-robot interactions, and the rise of Robotics as a Service (RaaS) models, making advanced robotic solutions accessible to more industries. These developments indicate a transformative period for the robotics industry, where humanoid agents will reshape our interactions with technology and expand the possibilities for AI applications across different domains.”

Germany's conservatives want to cut benefits for Ukrainians

Ben Knight

November 23, 2024

DW

Germany's CDU party, currently the favorite to win Germany's upcoming election, wants to cut unemployment benefits for Ukrainian war refugees. The conservatives argue that the benefits discourage them from finding work.

Friedrich Merz, CDU chairman and Germany's likely next chancellor, wants to revisit social welfare payments for Ukrainian refugees

Image: Steffen Proessdorf/foto2press/Imago Images

Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU) — currently leading in polls ahead of the election on February 23 next year — want to cut welfare benefits and get more of the country's 5.5 million long-term unemployed into the labor market.

They are also openly questioning whether Ukrainians should receive the standard unemployment benefit, called Bürgergeld ("citizens' income") rather than the lower asylum-seeker benefits. Following Russia's full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, refugees arriving in Germany and were subject to an EU Council Directive for temporary protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons for whom the regular asylum procedures do not apply. They were granted temporary residency status and entitled to full social welfare benefits.

The CSU's Stephan Stracke, social policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU's parliamentary group, told DW that while anyone fleeing "war and violence" had a right to protection, "This does not mean, however, that there must be an automatic entitlement to the citizen's income in Germany." Instead, Stracke said, newly arrived Ukrainian war refugees should receive asylum-seeker benefits "at first."

Political row breaks out in Germany over Ukrainian refugees  02:32

Integration into the job market

Germany is currently home to around 1.2 million Ukrainian refugees, around 530,000 of whom are classified by the Federal Employment Agency as eligible to work and entitled to citizens' income (as of May 2024).

That means they receive an unemployment benefit of up to €563 ($596) per month plus their rent and heating costs paid by the state. There is an extra allowance for children, staggered by age, and around 360,000 of the Ukrainian refugees in Germany are children. Stracke's proposal — for Ukrainians to receive the standard asylum seekers' benefit instead — would mean that Ukrainians would receive only €460 per month.

The CDU's move is part of a general planned overhaul of the Bürgergeld system if they get into power, which will include tougher sanctions for refusing work and more mandatory visits to the authorities.

The tougher comments on Ukrainian refugees are not new among German conservatives: Two years ago, CDU leader Friedrich Merz, who is predicted to head Germany's next government questioned the Ukranians' need for protection: "We are now experiencing a form of social tourism among these refugees: to Germany, back to Ukraine, to Germany, back to Ukraine," Merz told the Bild TV outlet in 2022, triggering widespread outrage.
Ukrainians across Europe

In a newly updated study, the German Institute for Employment Research (IAB) found that Germany was struggling to integrate Ukrainians into the job market, at least compared with other countries — but also that the situation was improving: Only 27% of Ukrainians in Germany had found work as of March this year, compared to 57% in Lithuania and 53% in Denmark (though that was still ahead of Ukrainians in Norway, Spain, and Finland, where only around 20% had found work). — and finding childcare and schooling has become increasingly difficult.

According to Germany's right-wing parties, like the CDU and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the high number of refugees living off social welfare is partly down to the amount of money they receive. "Germany has obviously not been particularly successful in getting Ukrainian refugees into work so far," said Stracke. "Other European countries are doing much better. That is why we in Germany have to give more weight to the principle of supporting and challenging people to find work."

Getting qualifications recognized

But the IAB study also shows that the proportion of Ukrainians in work is steadily rising in all the European countries — and that there is little evidence to show that there is a correlation with the amount of state help they receive. More significant factors than benefits, the IAB said, were language barriers and demand for labor in the low-wage sector, where it is easier to find work.

Iryna Shulikina, executive director at the Berlin-based NGO Vitsche, which supports Ukrainian refugees in Germany, said Ukrainians encounter several obstacles to finding work in Germany, most notably getting through the bureaucratic process. According to the IAB, some 72% of Ukrainian refugees have either a university degree or a vocational qualification — more than other refugees or the German working population in general.

"When they come here, they face the difficulties of getting their diplomas approved here," Shulikina said.

To name one example: Though Germany faces a shortage of medical workers, Shulikina said she had spoken to Ukrainian medical workers who needed two and a half years to get to the stage where they could work: Applying for work, getting their documents and qualifications approved, doing the necessary tests, learning the language. "It's a real challenge," she said.

Talk about sending Ukrainians back plays into Putin’s hands: Fabian Funke, German MP 04:27

Election puts pressure on refugees

Whether a likely CDU-led government will succeed in changing conditions for Ukrainian refugees will depend also on its coalition partners: The center-left Social Democrats (SPD) are less inclined to crack down on social welfare recipients, while leading members of the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP), have already expressed their support for recategorizing Ukrainian war refugees — even though the party's parliamentary group declined to state an official position to DW for this article.

Shulikina put the current political debate on the issue of Bürgergeld down to election campaigning and did not accept the argument that the citizens' income was keeping Ukrainian refugees at home.

"All the people I know who are refugees and have anything to do with the Job Center are doing everything possible to end this relationship," she said. "It's very humiliating and annoying. You are very dependent, and you are not perceived as an equal part of society — you're asked about every cent you spend and how and when. I don't believe there are a lot of people who enjoy getting Bürgergeld."

Lyudmyla Mlosch, chairperson of the Central Council of Ukrainians in Germany (ZVUD), said many Ukrainians she knows in Germany don't want to be here at all. "I know a lot of people here who are dreaming of going home, but they have no home — they've lost everything," said Mlosch. "Of course they need support."

But Mlosch did admit that some Ukrainians are more desperate than others: Those from the regions in the east that are under almost continual bombardment from Russia are more in need of state help, for example, as are older or sick people, or people who have no savings. "They don't need to all be put in the same bracket. But younger people who can work, they could have their money reduced, I could admit that," she said.

Edited by Rina Goldenberg

'Do They Know It's Christmas?': Band Aid benefit at 40

Silke Wünsch

11/25/2024

DW

Bob Geldof's charity hit was first recorded in 1984. New versions have marked various anniversaries, but now Ed Sheeran and others are distancing themselves from the song.

November 1984: Bob Geldof brings superstars into the recording studio for a good cause

Image: Brian Aris/Band Aid/PA Wire/picture alliance

In 1984, Ethiopia was hit by a devastating drought that destroyed most of the African country's harvest. Almost 8 million people were affected by famine. The number of dead could not be counted, but estimates vary between 500,000 and a million.

Images of starving people, especially children, were beamed around the world and triggered an unprecedented willingness to donate.

Among those touched by the reports was British musician Bob Geldof, who immediately decided to take action. Together with his fellow musician Midge Ure, singer of Ultravox, he assembled an all-star supergroup to record a benefit song for the victims of the famine.

Recorded on November 25, 1984, the single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" was released at the beginning of December that year, accompanied by a music video with all the participants.

It brought together the greatest British pop stars of the era: Sting, Paul Young, Boy George, George Michael, Phil Collins, Annie Lennox, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, U2, Bananarama and many more.




The single exceeded the producers' expectations and reached the top of the charts in 14 different countries, including Germany.

Geldof's idea of ​​gathering superstars in the studio for a good cause caught on.

It inspired entertainer and peace activist Harry Belafonte to record another charity single in January, 1985. This one would, however, include Black singers, who, Belafonte noted, were largely absent in Geldof's project.

He was joined by Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones as producers.

"We Are The World" was created in just a few days and brought together stars such as Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Tina Turner, Cindy Lauper, Al Jarreau, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson and many others.

Germany also came up with its own offering. The charity song titled "Nackt im Wind" (Naked in the Wind) was recorded by the hitmakers of the time: Herbert Grönemeyer, BAP, Wolf Maahn, Nena, Heinz Rudolf Kunze, Alphaville, Klaus Lage, Udo Lindenberg, Peter Maffay and more.

Many of these musicians came back to the studio in 2014 to record a German version of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for the 30th anniversary of the original song.

Several new versions of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" have also been re-recorded with new stars over the past four decades.

A stereotypical image of Africa

Despite all the enthusiasm for the benefit project, the lyrics of the song also drew criticism from the beginning — starting with the title of the song. Ethiopians do know it is Christmas; they were among the earliest adopters of Christianity in the world, and it is still the country's most important religion.

Critics claimed the song had a colonial perspective and employed condescending generalizations about Africa. The line sung by Bono of U2 about those affected by the famine seemed somewhat callous: "Well tonight, thank God, it's them instead of you." Bono didn't want to sing the lyric, but others have pointed out its sarcasm, with the line highlighting selfish Western views of distant tragedies.

Midge Ure, who co-wrote the lyrics, wrote in his autobiography that we should rather focus on what the song achieved: It collected more than 8 million British pounds (today's equivalent of more than €13 million) to aid disaster victims.

A highlight of the charity campaign was the Live Aid famine relief concert in 1985Image: Joe Schaber/AP Photo/picture alliance

The 'white savior' anthem

Nevertheless, criticism persisted over the years, whether with the 2004 version recorded with Paul McCartney, Robbie Williams and Dido, or with the updated 2014 version, which raised funds for the Ebola crisis in West Africa.

Among the stars invited for the 2014 version was British-Ghanaian musician Fuse ODG, who refused to join the project. He "worried that this would play into the constant negative portrayal of the continent of Africa in the West," he wrote in The Guardian at the time.

Fuse explained that even though campaigns like Band Aid collected huge donations, they also reinforced harmful stereotypes about Africa and thus stifled economic growth, investment and tourism in the region.

Now, 10 years later, a special remix version of the single is being released on November 25.

Fuse hasn't changed his position about the song, which has been referred to as the "white savior anthem," condemning it for fueling "pity rather than partnership."

"As Africans, we don't want other people to tell our story," Fuse wrote on Instagram. His posts have since sparked a larger public debate.

Ed Sheeran now longer feels comfortable with the song, even though he took part in a 2014 versionImage: Peter Cziborra/REUTERS

Ed Sheeran also distancing himself

Fuse's arguments have convinced Ed Sheeran. The singer was part of the anniversary recording 10 years ago, together with One Direction, Angelique Kidjo, Chris Martin of Coldplay, Bono, Sinead O'Connor and other stars.

Sheeran, however, no longer wants to be included in the 2024 version, which remixes voices from the past four decades' recordings.

But that will be difficult, since the single is already completed and ready to be released.

If he had been asked, Sheeran wrote on Instagram, he would have "respectfully declined" to have his vocals used on the new Band Aid single.

Bob Geldof, however, never tires of defending the song and the idea behind it. He told 1News: "This little pop song has kept hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people alive."

Nevertheless, radio stations such as the Swiss broadcaster SRF are currently thinking very carefully about whether or not to include the song in their Christmas program this year.

This article was originally written in German.



Silke Wünsch Reporter and editor at DW's culture desk

GLOBALIZATION

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

Has Congo's cobalt boom caught Europe off guard?

Philipp Sandner

11/25/2024

DW

Surging demand for materials key to enhanced electromobility has given the Democratic Republic of Congo newfound negotiating leverage as Europe struggles to secure supply.

In Kolwezi, both industrial and small-scale mines abound

In Brussels, European Parliament member Marie-Pierre Vedrenne explains her position on the bloc's raw materials policy, thus.

"France, Germany and the whole European Union must act together to secure a sustainable and reliable supply," Vedrenne, of the pro-European liberal political group, Renew Europe, tells DW.

"How the raw materials are extracted should live up to our vision of avoiding exploitation, and ensure children don't work under horrendous conditions."

MEP Marie-Pierre Vedrenne recognizes Europe's need for cobalt but wants to avoid exploitation in cobalt-producing countries

7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) south of Brussels, near the mining town of Kolwezi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Paul Zagabe Nbanze works in a copper and cobalt mine. His baseball cap is his only protection against the blazing sun. Here, miners work with their hands and carry 50-kilo (110-pound) sacks of rocks on their backs.

One hears the ceaseless, rhythmic beat of heavy hammers breaking the rock. Nbanze holds up two pieces, bashed from the ore.

"The white people buy this. We sell it, but we don't really know what exactly they do with it," he says.

Paul Gazabe Nbanze digs in an artisanal mine near Kolwezi, DRC

No way around Congolese cobalt

The dusty red earth of Congolese mines and the air-conditioned halls of the Europe Union couldn't be farther apart. But surging demand for cobalt connects them. Cobalt is a vital component of batteries, which are key to Europe's energy transition and its aim of acheiving climate neutrality by 2050.

Two-thirds of the world's cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo. After producing just 800 metric tons in 1994, yearly output was up to 98,000 metric tons by 2020. Meanwhile, cobalt production in the rest of the world has also doubled but growth remains comparatively small.

Dependencies reversed

Europe needs what Congo has but the equation is not straightforward. "75% of cobalt processing happens in China. So if you want to actually use the cobalt, you must do business with China," says Cecilia Trasi, climate and energy analyst for the European think tank Bruegel.
Energy expert Cecilia Trasi says access to cobalt and other minerals involves doing business with ChinaImage: Johannes Meier/streetsfilm

MEP Vedrenne is aware of this imbalance and explains that China currently controls most of the value-adding industries related to raw materials, from extraction to recycling. She says China's methods in the DRC are exploitative, "with no intention of building capacity for adding value in Africa, even if that should be the goal."

Few European players are visible in DRC's mining areas, and, after refinement in China, the cobalt comes to Europe after making at least 5 to 6 more stops, Trasi estimates.

Businessman Simon Tuma Waku says it is only logical that the DRC would shun European countries as partners. Tuma Waku was the DRC's minister of mines and hydrocarbons and sponsored the country's first mining code in 2002, in the wake of the Second Congo War.

"African nations are saying you must also consider our wishes and feelings," he says.

"Don't force us to do something that you think is best for us. Rather, ask us what we want to do. And we'll tell you how you can invest your money."

Congolese confidence

Over 100 years ago, slaves in the Congo Free State, effectively a private colony of Belgian King Leopold II, produced rubber for the European market under inhumane conditions and suffered unimaginable cruelties.

After the Congo gained independence in 1960, Mobutu Sese Seko took power in 1965. A system of nationalization, lack of investment and exploitative cronyism meant that hardly any profits remained in the DRC and production eventually collapsed. Only under Joseph Kabila, the predecessor of current president Félix Tshisekedi, did attempts to regulate the mining industry begin. Kabila also sought to woo important companies and even collaborate with neighboring Zambia with the aim of entering the battery manufacturing industry.

"We opened the mining sector to private investors to save it from decay because the state was unable to attain large profits," Tuma Waku says on the sidelines of a mining trade fair in Lubumbashi.

He praises his own mining code from 2002 for resuscitating the industry. Against the backdrop of gleaming new machinery and a host of international guests, Tuma Waku seems to have a point. The law was updated in 2018 to focus more on mining's environmental sustainability.

Cobalt is in demand in Europe

European ideals

If one looks closer, there are signs of European projects in the DRC. For instance, the much-hyped Lobito Corridor infrastructure project, which aims to link Kolwezi with the Angolan coastal town of Lobito. New power lines, roads and railways would give mineral rich areas in southern DRC improved and direct access to the Atlantic Ocean and Western-oriented markets in Europe.

In Brussels, outgoing EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, points out successes. She says the EU and its member states have found new self-confidence under the slogan "Team Europe," launching the Global Gateway Initiative in response to China's Belt and Road infrastructure drive.

"It's important to invest in development cooperation, and that Europe remains a champion of climate financing, human development and global investment," Urpilainen says, which is something that African partners expect.

But despite these efforts, Europe is unlikely to become the DRC's number one trading partner anytime soon. China still receives the lion's share of Congolese exports, and responding to the whims of former colonial powers is far from a priority for regional and industry power brokers. Even the so-called advances made possible by Congo's updated mining law remain so many words on paper — with local NGOs complaining that the government is making no effort at all to enforce the law.

While Europe frets over working conditions for cobalt extraction in the DRC, miners lift sacks of ore to be prcessed

All Images: Johannes Meier/streetsfilm

Additional reporting: Jan Philipp Scholz, Johannes Meier, Kahozi Kosha. Editing by Sarah Hucal.

biblical character who goes ‘down the rabbit hole’ into an alternate reality − just like Alice in Wonderland

Stained glass designed by Geoffrey Webb depicts Lewis Carroll’s characters in All Saints Church in Daresbury, Cheshire, England. Peter I. Vardy/Wikimedia Commons


The Conversation

November 24, 2024


The Bible’s Book of Job opens on an ordinary day in the land of Uz, where a man carefully performs religious rituals to protect his children. This routine has never failed Job, who is described as the most righteous person on the planet. But on this particular day, every one of his children is killed when a powerful wind brings down their house.


This makes no sense! Job did nothing wrong. Three friends visit Job and mourn with him. But an epic debate erupts when they claim that, if Job is the target of God’s wrath, it must have been deserved.

Job, on the other hand, says God has deprived him of justice and demands an explanation from the Almighty. He and his friends argue through poetry – a “rap battle” with beautiful imagery, eloquent wordplay and sarcastic insults.

Job mourns with his wife and friends. William Blake/The Morgan Library via Wikimedia Commons

The Book of Job is frequently touted as a literary masterpiece for the way it challenges foundational beliefs. Many stories have been written about characters like Job, thrust into a topsy-turvy world where nothing works the way it should. Suddenly, they must rethink their understanding about how the universe operates.

As a scholar of the Hebrew Bible, I see the closest parallels in another classic book – but perhaps not one you’d expect.

Down the rabbit hole

Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” published in 1865, is a hallmark of children’s literature because of the way it encourages curiosity. Like the Book of Job, the novel upends literary conventions and mocks elders, teachers and religious leaders – really, anyone who tries to tell you that life will be OK if you stop asking questions and follow the rules.

It opens with a little girl named Alice, who is bored one afternoon until she sees a rabbit check its pocket watch and declare that it’s running late. She follows it down a rabbit hole and into Wonderland, a dreamlike place where cats vanish into thin air, babies turn into pigs and caterpillars smoke hookah

.
Catching sight of the white rabbit is just the start of Alice’s unnerving adventures. John Tenniel/The British Library via Wikimedia Commons

Everyday logic no longer applies. Like Job, Alice must question her assumptions if she is to make sense of what is happening around her. Other fantasy worlds require swords, but Alice battles the fantastical creatures of Wonderland with words. As with Job, her ordinary day has gone upside-down, and she finds herself in a debate about reality.
Method to the madness?

Each of these books pushes back against easy answers and heavy-handed morals, which were expected in both ancient wisdom literature and Victorian children’s stories.

Proverbs in Job’s day taught that wickedness leads to punishment. Bestsellers in Carroll’s day included the “Fatal Effects of Disobedience to Parents,” a story about a little girl who burned herself to the ground after her parents told her not to play with fire.

The characters who debate Job and Alice are desperate to find these kinds of lessons in the midst of chaos.

Job’s friends claim that “upright” people never suffer and always enjoy divine protection – unaware that God has already acknowledged Job is “upright.” They look silly as they search in vain for a sin that explains Job’s suffering and scoff when he suggests there is none.

Job’s friends torment him about what he could have done to deserve such ruin. William Blake/Lithoderm/Wikimedia Commons


Alice, meanwhile, squares up against characters such as the Duchess, who offers ridiculous suggestions about the moral of Alice’s story. The Duchess scoffs when Alice suggests that there is none.

Wordplay, not swordplay

Job and Alice, on the other hand, make fun of society’s rules – as when they sing parodies of religious songs.

Psalm 8, a hymn of praise in the Bible, waxes eloquent about how beautiful it is that the almighty God spends time caring about insignificant humans. Job recites his own version, which complains that it is petty for an infinite creator to spend so much time testing humans.

Carroll grew up singing songs like “Against Idleness and Mischief,” composed by minister Isaac Watts to teach children that they should work hard like an innocent, busy bee. When Alice tries to remember this song, it comes out in Wonderland logic, where a sinister crocodile eats little fish.

Both parodies sarcastically question the underlying assumptions of the original poem. Is it always good to have God’s attention? Is hard work always good?

This shows how both books play with style, including intentional misspellings, rare and even made-up words, and elements borrowed from other languages. They coined enduring phrases such as Job’s “by the skin of my teeth” and “the root of the matter,” or Wonderland’s “down the rabbit hole.

”
The King and Queen of Hearts preside over an absurd trial in Wonderland. 

John Tenniel/The British Library via Wikimedia Commons

These techniques add an otherworldly texture to the language of Uz and Wonderland, far from the books’ original readership in Israel and England. The diction opens countless possibilities for puns and wordplay and forces readers to question basic assumptions about language.

Order in the court

Ultimately, these stories make readers consider a fundamental desire: justice. The adventures of Alice and Job both culminate in epic trials, dominated by stormy authority figures. But if the protagonists can’t even rely on words’ meanings, how can they rely on the law?

When Alice meets Wonderland’s ruler, the Queen of Hearts, she is “frowning like a thunderstorm,” and Alice is “too much frightened to say a word.”

But she is displeased with the queen’s arbitrary distribution of justice and summons the courage to challenge her during a trial for the Knave of Hearts, who stands accused of stealing the sovereign’s tarts.

Throughout the trial, Alice becomes more and more bold. While everyone else cowers in fear, she is willing to question court conventions when they are manipulated by those in power.

Voicing her protest seems to awaken her from Wonderland and back to the “real” world. The book ends with a note about how she will never lose “the simple and loving heart of her childhood” – that is, she won’t forget that kids can have fun for fun’s sake.
God storms into the conversation. William Blake/The Morgan Library via Wikimedia Commons

Back in the land of Uz, Job wishes that a court judge would compel God to explain why he is being punished. Certain he did nothing wrong, he says he would wear the accusations like a crown and refute every charge.

God, aware of Job’s innocence the entire time, was never trying to punish him. The deity finally appears in the middle of a whirlwind, and Job puts his hand over his own mouth. It is difficult to argue with the Almighty.

Job had accused his friends of merely flattering God when they insisted his “punishment” was the result of divine wisdom. In the end, God blesses Job for speaking honestly – using a Hebrew word, “nekhonah,” that appears only one other time in the Bible, where it stands in contrast to flattery.

It turns out that God is pleased by those who are honest when a moral agenda doesn’t fit reality – people who, like Job and Alice, speak truth to power.

Ryan M. Armstrong, Visiting Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, Oklahoma State University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.