WHO urges rich countries to pay up for Covid plan

The WHO Wednesday urged rich countries to pay their fair share of the money needed for its plan to conquer Covid-19 by contributing $16 billion as a matter of urgency.

The World Health Organization said the rapid cash injection into its Access to Covid Tools Accelerator could finish off Covid as a global health emergency this year.

The WHO-led ACT-A is aimed at developing, producing, procuring and distributing tools to tackle the pandemic: vaccines, tests, treatments and personal protective equipment.

ACT-A gave birth to the Covax facility, designed to ensure poorer countries could access eventual vaccines, correctly predicting that richer nations would hog doses coming off the production lines.

Covax delivered its billionth vaccine dose in mid-January.

ACT-A needed $23.4 billion for its programme for the year October 2021-September 2022 but only $800 million has been raised so far.

The scheme therefore wants $16 billion up front from wealthy nations "to close the immediate financing gap", with the rest to be self-funded by middle-income countries.

- Omicron impetus -

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the rapid spread of the Omicron variant made it all the more urgent to ensure tests, treatments and vaccines are distributed equitably.

"If higher-income countries pay their fair share of the ACT-Accelerator costs, the partnership can support low- and middle-income countries to overcome low Covid-19 vaccination levels, weak testing, and medicine shortages," he said in a statement.

"Science gave us the tools to fight Covid-19; if they are shared globally in solidarity, we can end Covid-19 as a global health emergency this year."

Just 0.4 percent of the 4.7 billion Covid tests administered globally during the pandemic have been used in low-income countries.

Meanwhile only 10 percent of people in those nations have received at least one vaccine dose.

The WHO said the vast inequity was not only costing lives and hurting economies, it was also risking the emergence of new, more dangerous variants that could rob current tools of their effectiveness and set even highly-vaccinated populations back by many months.

- Ramaphosa call -

ACT-A has come up with a new "fair share" financing model on how much each of the world's wealthy countries should contribute, based on the size of their national economy and what they would gain from a faster recovery of the global economy and trade.

On the 2020-21 ACT-A budget, only six countries -- Canada, Germany, Kuwait, Norway, Saudi Arabia and Sweden -- met or exceeded what would have been their fair share commitments.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who co-chairs the ACT-A facilitation council, said inequitable access to Covid vaccines, tests and treatments was simply prolonging the pandemic.

"I urge my fellow leaders to step up in solidarity, meet their fair shares, and help reclaim our lives from this virus," he said.

Ramaphosa and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, his fellow co-chair, have written to 55 capitals -- all high-income countries, G20 upper middle-income nations, and two other middle-income states -- outlining their "fair share" and encouraging them to cough up.

rjm/mtp

Anti-vax' trucker protests threaten border trade between Canada, US

Vehicles block the route linking Detroit and Windsor, as truckers and their supporters continue to protest against Covid-19 vaccine mandates, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada February 8, 2022. © Carlos Osorio, Reuters

Text by: NEWS WIRES

Issued on: 09/02/2022 - 

Canadian lawmakers expressed increasing worry Tuesday about the economic effects of disruptive demonstrations after the busiest border crossing between the U.S. and Canada became partially blocked by truckers protesting vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions.

The blockade at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, prevented traffic from entering Canada while some U.S.-bound traffic was still moving, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said, calling the bridge “one of the most important border crossings in the world." It carries 25% of all trade between Canada and the United States.

Canadian Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said such blockades will have serious implications on the economy and supply chains. “I've already heard from automakers and food grocers. This is really a serious cause for concern," he said in Ottawa, the capital.

Added Mendicino: “Most Canadians understand there is a difference between being tired and fatigued with the pandemic and crossing into some other universe.”

Speaking in an emergency debate late Monday in Parliament, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the protesters are “trying to blockade our economy, our democracy.”

Auto parts and other goods were still flowing across the border Tuesday evening, despite the bridge delays. But trucks had to travel almost 70 miles north to the Blue Water Bridge connecting Sarnia, Ontario, to Port Huron, Michigan. Authorities at that bridge reported a nearly three-hour delay for trucks to cross. In total, the trip will take more than five hours longer than normal.
"Anti-government provocateurs"

Flavio Volpe, president of the Canadian Auto Parts Manufacturers Association, said the protesters have no right to park vehicles in the middle of roads. He questioned how many of the protesters were truckers because trucker associations and large logistics companies have disavowed the blockades.

“It is really a collection of kind of anti-government provocateurs,” he said.

The protests also threaten supplies of fresh produce, livestock and other food, Volpe said.

Even a five-hour delay can cause production disruptions because factories are running so lean on part supplies with an already fragile supply chain, said Jeff Schuster, president of the LMC Automotive consulting firm in Troy, Michigan.

“Everything is so ‘just-in-time’ these days,” he said. “We’re still dealing with parts shortages in general and supply chain issues. This is just another wrench in the industry that we’re dealing with right now.”

Trade route blocked

Protesters also closed another important U.S.-Canada border crossing in Coutts, Alberta.

The daily demonstrations staged by the so-called Freedom Truck Convoy are centered in Ottawa, where demonstrators have used hundreds of parked trucks to paralyse parts of the capital for more than 10 days. Protesters have said they will not leave until all vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.

Protest organisers have been calling for weeks for the removal of Trudeau’s government, although most of the restrictive measures were put in place by provincial governments.

On Tuesday, the organisers withdrew an unlawful demand that the nation’s governor general, the representative of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as head of state, force federal and provincial governments to lift all COVID-19 restrictions, including vaccine mandates. They now say they support Canada’s constitution and the democratic process.

François Laporte, the president of Teamsters Canada, which represents over 55,000 drivers, including 15,000 long-haul truckers, said the protests do not represent the industry in which 90% of drivers are vaccinated.

The Freedom Convoy "and the despicable display of hate led by the political Right and shamefully encouraged by elected conservative politicians does not reflect the values of Teamsters Canada, nor the vast majority of our members,” Laporte said in a statement.

Canada’s largest trucking company is virtually untouched by the vaccine mandate for truckers crossing the U.S.-Canada border, said Alain Bédard, chairman and CEO of TFI International Inc.

“Vaccination at TFI is not an issue at all," he said. The company's few unvaccinated drivers are kept in Canada.

Locals say they are being terrorised

The protests have also infuriated people who live around downtown Ottawa, including neighbourhoods near Parliament Hill, the seat of the federal government.

Dave Weatherall, a federal civil servant, lives near the truckers’ prime staging area in a city-owned parking lot outside of the downtown core. “They’re using the lot to terrorise people,” he said.

“It’s the first time since having kids that I’ve seriously wondered about the world we brought them into. I always figured they could handle most things the world will throw at them, but this feels different,” he added.

Ottawa’s city manager said all tow-truck companies on contract with the city have refused to haul away the big rigs.

Joel Lightbound, a lawmaker for Trudeau’s Liberal Party, rebuked his leader Tuesday for dividing Canadians and said his government needs to create a road map for when coronavirus measures should be lifted.

“It is time we stopped dividing people, to stop pitting one part of the population against each other,” Lightbound said.

"We're all tired of Covid"

Trudeau said everyone is tired of COVID-19, and that the restrictions will not last forever. He noted that Canada has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world.

“This government has been focused every step of the way on following the best science, the best public health advice, to keep as many people as safe as possible. Frankly, it’s worked," Trudeau said Tuesday.

Pandemic restrictions have been far stricter in Canada than in the U.S., but Canadians have largely supported the measures. Canada’s death rate is one third that of its neighbor.

Meanwhile, the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan, Quebec, Alberta and Prince Edward Island announced plans to lift some or all COVID-19 restrictions, with Alberta removing its vaccine passport almost immediately. A week ago, Alberta's premier said the vaccine passport could be eliminated by the end of March.

Quebec's plan doesn’t include an end to mask mandates or the vaccine passport system.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault said the demonstrators who descended on Quebec City last weekend calling for an end to health measures didn’t weigh on the government’s decision to offer Quebecers a reopening plan.

"Now, if they (demonstrators) want to take credit for this, and then they don’t come back in two weeks, I won’t object to that,″ Legault said.

(AP)

New Zealand convoy protesters vow to stay 'as long as it takes'

The protest began as a copycat of a "Freedom Convoy" action by Canadian truckers

New Zealand anti-vaccine mandate protesters faced off with police outside parliament Wednesday, as demonstrators camped inside the Wellington legislature's grounds vowed to stay "as long as it takes".

The protest, which began Tuesday as a copycat of a "Freedom Convoy" action by Canadian truckers, turned tense as about 100 police stood guard on the steps of parliament.

Three were arrested after trying to breach the police line as supporters chanted "let them through" but officials said the event remained largely peaceful.

Aucklander Sel Currie said he had no plans to leave the capital.

A "Freedom Convoy" of truckers has gridlocked the Canadian capital Ottawa since late last month, prompting city authorities to declare a state of emergency.

Proof of vaccination must also be shown to enter restaurants, sports events and religious services.

CAPITALI$T CULTURAL LOOTING

Citi exit sparks angst for Mexican cultural treasures




Citi exit sparks angst for Mexican cultural treasuresA man takes notes in front of Diego Rivera's "Vendedora de alcatraces" (Calla Lily Vendor) -- part of the Banamex collection, whose impending sale has sparked calls for the cultural treasures to stay in Mexico 

(AFP/ALFREDO ESTRELLA)

Yussel Gonzalez
Tue, February 8, 2022, 10:47 PM·3 min read


Paintings by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera are among the cultural jewels whose looming sale has sparked concerns about the future of one of Mexico's most important private art collections.

US banking giant Citi's decision to exit Mexican consumer banking by selling its Banamex unit has triggered worries not just about the employees but also its treasure trove of art.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador wants the Banamex collection -- comprising hundreds of artworks as well as colonial-era buildings acquired over decades -- to remain in Mexico.

"We're talking about art collections from the best artists, painters in Mexico and the world," he said.

Lopez Obrador has urged Mexican investors to buy Banamex, one of the country's top banks.

Potential buyers include Mexico's richest man, Carlos Slim; controversial businessman Ricardo Salinas Pliego; and Carlos Hank Gonzalez, who runs the Mexican bank Banorte, he said.

The appeal comes at a time when Lopez Obrador's government is seeking to prevent Mexican artifacts from being auctioned abroad.

The Banamex collection "should become national property for its preservation," said Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, who believes it would be recompense for bank bailouts by the government in the 1990s.

- 'Incalculable value' -

Banamex is one of Mexico's oldest banks.

It began operating in 1884 and its art collection has not stopped growing, even when it was sold to Citigroup in 2001.

The collection has an "incalculable value," said Hilda Trujillo, a specialist in 20th-century Mexican art and former director of the Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera Anahuacalli museums in Mexico City.

"It should be treated with the utmost care as part of the country's patrimonial and artistic heritage," she added.

The artworks "are an integral and indivisible part" of the sale, so whoever buys the commercial banking unit must also acquire the collection, said Alberto Gomez Alcala, a director at Banamex.

He declined to put a value on the artwork.

"The number in pesos and cents does not matter. That's why we say that it is invaluable, and we're sure that it will continue to be so," he told journalists.

The collection includes works such as "Vendedora de alcatraces (Calla Lily Vendor)," which Diego Rivera, one of the greatest Mexican muralists of the 20th century, painted in 1942.

The painting occupies a prominent place inside the Foro Valparaiso, an 18th-century building located in the heart of Mexico City that also belongs to the bank.

It is accompanied by equally important 20th-century works such as Frida Kahlo's "Los frutos de la tierra" (Fruits of the Earth, 1938)" and David Alfaro Siqueiros's "Mujer con metate" (Woman with Metate, 1931).

The works date back even further to the 19th century, including landscapes of the Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl volcanoes, painted by the artist Jose Maria Velasco.

"It is without doubt one of the most important collections recreating the history of painting in Mexico," said Angelica Velazquez, director of the Institute of Aesthetic Research at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

"It would seem very difficult to me for the next owners to be insensitive to the value of the collection for the country," she said.

yug/dr/jh/cwl

Sexual abuse victims condemn Australia PM's 'shocking' response to claims


Former government aide Brittany Higgins said "too little has changed" since she went public a year ago (AFP/STRINGER) (STRINGER)

Maddison Connaughton
Tue, February 8, 2022,

Two prominent advocates for survivors of sexual abuse pilloried Australia's prime minister Wednesday, decrying "weasel words" and a response to widespread abuse that had not "measured up".

Former government aide Brittany Higgins -- whose allegation she was raped in parliament sparked national protests -- said "too little has changed" since she went public a year ago.

In a widely watched speech, Higgins was sorrowful and withering about the actions of a conservative government she once served.


Higgins said Prime Minister Scott Morrison's response to her claims, which invoked his own daughters and wife, had been "shocking and at times, admittedly, a bit offensive."

"I didn't want his sympathy as a father. I wanted him to use his power as prime minister," she said.

"But his words wouldn't matter if his actions had measured up."

Higgins said the national conversation about ending abuse, harassment and assault had not progressed beyond "trading off offensive, tone-deaf statements for a convoluted mix of appeasing weasel-words".

Higgins was joined in her address by child sexual abuse survivor Grace Tame, the 2021 "Australian of the Year", who also took aim at the prime minister's leadership over the past year.

"It rots from the top," Tame said.

"Unless our leaders take full responsibility for their own failings, abuse culture will continue to thrive inside parliament, setting a corrupt standard for the rest of the nation."

The plight of both women had fuelled national debate and soul searching in Australia, as well as multiple government investigations.

One of those, the 450-page Jenkins Review, found that one-in-three people currently working in parliament and other federal government workplaces have experienced sexual harassment while working there.

- Political pressure -

Tame piled further pressure on the government during her speech by alleging she was asked not to publicly criticise the prime minister.

She recalled a "threatening phone call from a senior member of a government-funded organisation asking for my word that I wouldn't say anything damning about the prime minister" at a recent award ceremony.

Tame said the caller told her the prime minister "would have a fear... with an election coming soon".

Australia's next federal election must be held by mid-May.

Morrison did not attend Higgins and Tame's address, citing other commitments, however several members of his government were in the audience.

Speaking in parliament later Wednesday, Morrison was asked about the progress his government had made on the issue of women's safety.

He cited an upcoming 10-year plan for women's safety, among other measures.

Higgins said the plan's "aims are so lofty and vague that it's impossible to disagree with and equally difficult to examine."

Tame called for more funding for consent training in schools. She said between 2020-22, the government "planned to spend 11 cents per student per year on prevention education".

Both women ruled out any plans to run for political office.

mmc/arb/jfx

Chinese 'space cleaner' spotted grabbing and throwing away old satellite

Last month, a private satellite tracking company spotted a Chinese spacecraft apparently grabbing and throwing a dead satellite away into a "graveyard" orbit.

   

In 2025, the first active debris removal mission, ClearSpace-1, will attempt to "throw away" the upper

 part of a Vespa (Vega Secondary Payload Adapter) from Europe's Vega launcher.

Something out of a Star Wars movie occurred in Earth’s orbit last month. 

A Chinese satellite was spotted in late January grabbing another long-dead satellite and days later throwing it into a "graveyard" orbit 300 km away, where objects are less likely to hit spacecraft.

These rare events were presented by Dr. Brien Flewelling in a webinar hosted by the Center of Strategic and International Studies and Secure World Foundation last month. Flewelling is the chief space situational awareness architect of ExoAnalytic Solutions, a private U.S. company that tracks the position of satellites using a large global network of optic telescopes. 

The Chinese SJ-21 satellite was seen on January 22 changing its usual place in the sky to approach decommissioned satellite Compass-G2. A few days later, SJ-21 attached to G2, altering its orbit.

Chinese officials haven't yet confirmed that the apparent space tug occurred.

Over the course of the next few days, the spacecraft couple started dancing westward, ExoAnalytic’s video footage showed. By January 26, the two satellites separated, and G2 was kicked into oblivion.

The Compass-G2, or BeiDou-2 G2, is a spacecraft from China’s BeiDou-2 Navigation Satellite System that failed shortly after launching in 2009. For more than 10 years, the metal carcass has been wandering around Earth alongside millions of other pieces of space trash.

SJ-21, which launched in October 2021, has now returned to a geostationary orbit (GEO) just above the Congo Basin. GEO happens when a satellite orbits Earth over the equator at the same speed the planet rotates. 

From the Earth's point of view, satellites in GEO seem to be standing still, barring a wobble or two. This type of orbit is sometimes called a Clarke orbit, named after British sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke. He popularized the idea of GEO in a 1945 paper promising to revolutionize telecommunications. 

Less than two decades later, the first geostationary satellite was launched.

China's space tug: A service or a threat?

There’s nothing wrong with throwing out the trash — many other countries have launched or are currently developing technologies to clear space junk. 

Japan launched its ELSA-d mission in March 2021, designed to test space debris capturing and removal technologies. The European Space Agency plans to launch its own trash removal mission in 2025.

However, despite the seeming ubiquity of efforts to develop and implement space junk disposal technology, some U.S. officials have expressed worry over Chinese trash disposal satellites like the SJ-21. 

James Dickinson, commander of the US Space Command said in April 2021 that technology like China’s SJ-21 "could be used in a future system for grappling other satellites."

But is there a real threat?

In its 2021 counterspace report, the Secure World Foundation said that there is strong evidence that both China and Russia are working to develop technology with "counterspace capabilities" — the ability to destruct space systems. 

However, the report said, Chinese official statements have remained "consistently aligned to the peaceful purposes of outer space" and there is no proof that they have facilitated any destructive or counterspace operations.

A 2021 report by the Chinese Aerospace Studies Institute (CASI), a United States Air Force think tank maintained that SJ-21's use will likely be restricted to testing methods of space garbage disposal.

Space maintenance

The CASI report concluded that SJ-21 is most likely one of China's On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (OSAM) satellites.

Many space agencies have been developing OSAM missions for decades. These could be, for example, spacecraft designed for refueling or repairing existing satellites — or disposing of space waste. 

Since the beginning of space activities in the '60s, more than 6,000 launches have delivered over 50,000 objects in orbit, according to the US Space Surveillance Network. More than 30,000 artificial objects are orbiting our planet, of which only about 5,000 are functioning, according to the ESA's Space Debris Office. 

The European Space Agency's Sentinel-6 satellite, which measures sea levels, is just one of the thousands

 of European satellites orbiting through the universe.

And that’s just counting the objects large enough to be tracked. The US, Russia, China and India have all blown satellites in space generating huge amounts of new smaller debris. 

ESA numbers show that more than 300 million smaller objects are flying through space at incredible speeds of up to 30,000 km/h, almost 5 times the speed of the fastest bullet. 

The ESA started testing OSAM projects in 1990 with the GSV (the Geostationary Servicing Vehicle) program, which was intended to grab and repair broken satellites in GEO. 

The famous and successful optics repair of the Hubble Space Telescope in December 1993 is another example of an OSAM mission at work.

NASA has plans for several more OSAM missions, including OSAM-1 and OSAM-2. The latter is designed to 3D print components in space, with the hope of one day being able to build, directly in space, parts too big to fit inside any rocket.

COVID: Chinese researchers develop 4-minute PCR test

Researchers at Fudan University in Shanghai say they have developed a technology combining the speed of the rapid antigen test with the accuracy of PCR testing.

    

PCR tests need to go to a lab, and can take days to process

Chinese scientists say they have developed a COVID-19 test that can process results as accurately as PCR tests in less than four minutes.

PCR tests are the most accurate on the market, but must be processed in a lab, which so far takes a few hours at minimum. When labs are overwhelmed by local surges in infection, processing can last days.

Quicker, 15-minute rapid antigen tests are less reliable than the PCR alternative.

Researchers at Fudan University collected nasal samples from 33 PCR-positive COVID-19 patients, 23 PCR-negative patients, six influenza-positive patients and 25 healthy volunteers. The test accurately processed all cases without error in under four minutes, according to a peer-reviewed study published Mondayin the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering.

PCR tests are more precise than antigen tests because they are more sensitive. Antigen tests require a higher concentration of the virus than PCR tests to show a positive result. This means antigen tests are more likely to show a false negative.

Antigen tests seek pieces of virus-infected proteins, while PCR tests search for viral genetic material like nucleic acids and RNA.

Until now, no technology has been created to properly detect COVID-infected nucleic acids and RNA without using extraction and amplification methods, for which you need a lab environment.

The Fudan University research was conducted on a small sample, said Andrew Ching, a professor of economics jointly appointed to the Johns Hopkins Department of Economics and the Bloomberg School of Public Health.

If the 100% accuracy rate were to hold up in a larger test sample, Ching said, "it could be a game changer."

However, he said, if the accuracy rate doesn't hold up at a larger scale and becomes similar to that of the antigen test, it won't make a difference. 

May allow on-site testing at airports, clinics, at home

Ching said that because the structure of China's government places more authority toward the top, if the test is able to be produced at a large scale, he wouldn't be surprised to see manufacturers coming out with versions by the summer. 

"China tends to be more open to experimental methods," he said, allowing approval processes to move more quickly than they would in Europe or the US.

The test developed at Fudan University uses a hypersensitive electromechanical biosensor to detect nucleic acids previously difficult to identify due to their low concentration in test samples.

Researchers said the development of portable tests featuring such technology could enable on-site testing at airports, clinics, emergency departments and at home. They added it could also be used for the quick diagnosis of other types of diseases.

There are countless brands of COVID-19 rapid at-home tests currently on the market, which vary in accuracy.

Edited by: Carla Bleiker

This article has been updated to include statements by Andrew Ching, a professor of economics jointly appointed to the Johns Hopkins Department of Economics and the Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Germany taps Greenpeace head Jennifer Morgan as climate envoy: reports

The head of Greenpeace International, Jennifer Morgan, is expected to become Germany's new climate envoy. Her links to Germany, and the country's environmental policies, go back more than two decades.

    

Jennifer Morgan has led Greenpeace since 2016, and is set to become Germany's next climate envoy

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has recruited the chief of Greenpeace International as a special envoy for international climate policy, German media reported on Tuesday.

It's thought that Morgan could play a leading role in Germany's efforts to curb global warming on the international stage — particularly as the country takes presidency of the G7 group of leading world economies.

Baerbock, of Germany's environmentalist Green Party, is expected to introduce Morgan to the media on Wednesday, once her appointment is approved by the German Cabinet.

According to Germany's Spiegel news magazine, which first reported the news, Morgan will initially become a special envoy and later state secretary in the Foreign Office. In the interim, the US-born campaigner must first acquire German citizenship.

Baerbock and Morgan are said to know each other personally from having attended numerous international climate events.

The portfolio of international climate policy has moved from the Environment Ministry to the Foreign Office under Germany's new ruling "traffic light" coalition. 

Germany's new government — composed of the Greens, the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) and, as senior partner, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) — has promised to put fighting climate change at the heart of its agenda. 

Who is Jennifer Morgan?

The US-born campaigner has co-led Greenpeace since 2016 and has been a leading figure in international climate diplomacy for years.

It's expected that a major component of her job as Germany's climate envoy would be preparing for international climate conferences.

Ahead of the UN climate conference in Glasgow last year, Morgan warned that the summit could be used by countries and companies to "greenwash" their environmental records.

Morgan graduated from Indiana University with a BA in Political Science and Germanic Studies.  It was during this time she read the book "Fighting for Hope" by Petra Kelly, a founding member of the German Green Party, which Morgan has said inspired her and changed her life.

From 1996-97, Morgan spent a year in Germany as a Bosch Fellow and worked for the German Environment Ministry under then Environment Minister Angela Merkel.

She joined the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in 1998 and headed its delegation to the Kyoto Protocol climate negotiations. She has also worked for the Climate Action Network, and the World Resources Institute, among others.

In a 2020 interview with DW, Morgan spoke of the dangers of not addressing climate change on an international level.

"I think if you look into the future... where the world hasn't gotten its act together and temperatures continue to rise, you're going to see more conflicts, more refugees and less stability," she said.

rc/rs (AFP, Reuters, dpa)

Germany: Bremen museum returns human skulls to Hawaii

The Übersee-Museum has "no longer any justification" to keep human remains from colonial contexts, its director said, as she sought "righting the wrongs of the past."

    

Members of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs are also set to receive remains from other institutions in Germany

Bremen's Übersee-Museum held a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the handover of human remains that had been long kept at the museum to the US state of Hawaii.

In total, eight human skulls were received in Bremen by a delegation from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) in a traditional ceremony.

Hawaii had requested the return of the remains in 2019. The museum launched an investigation to find the origin of the skulls, with the help of the German Lost Art Foundation. 

'Righting the wrongs of the past'

The skulls had been brought to Germany over 100 years ago, when colonial expeditions frequently brought back artifacts from areas occupied by Europeans.

"For ethical reasons, there is no longer any justification for continuing to keep the human remains in our collection," said Wiebke Ahrndt, director of the Übersee-Museum Bremen. "Our task is to play our part in righting the wrongs of the past," she added. 

Wiebke Ahrndt spoke at a ceremony during which human remains from the Übersee-Museum's collection were handed over to a Hawaii delegation

Ahrndt has also served as the chair of the German Museums Association working group, which has advocated for returning collections from colonial contexts, especially human remains, to the countries and communities of origin.

In Berlin alone, some 7,700 human remains from almost all parts of the world are stored at museums and other institutions. 

They were all collected in the 19th and 20th centuries, with some 40% originating in former German overseas territories in Africa and the Pacific region.

Hawaii gets remains from Berlin, Göttingen and Jena 

The Übersee-Museum has actively participated in the push to return remains to their countries of origin. In 2006 and 2017 the museum returned the remains of the Maori and Moriori, New Zealand's indigenous people, and in 2018, two skulls from what is now Namibia were handed over.

"We acknowledge the anguish experienced by our ancestors, and take responsibility for their well-being (and thereby our own), by transporting them home for reburial," OHA's Edward Halealoha Ayau said. 

"In doing this important work, we also acknowledge and celebrate our respective humanity – Germans and Hawaiians together in aloha – as we write a new chapter in our historic relationship as human beings," Ayau added. 

A delegation from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs signed the handover documents during a ceremony

On Friday, the OHA delegation will receive the remains of 32 people from a Berlin museum, according to the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation.

They are also set to receive skulls and bones come from collections of German universities in Göttingen and Jena, as well as the Natural History Museum in Vienna.

"Human remains from colonial contexts have no place in our museums and universities, their return must be a priority," said Claudia Roth, the German government's commissioner for culture and media.

Colonial history had left many wounds, Roth said. "We must do our part to ensure that these wounds can be healed - through restitution, through a consistent reappraisal and confrontation with our colonial past and through greater international cultural exchange," she added.

jcg/fb (dpa, EPD)

Burkina Faso: Ex-leader Blaise Compaore faces 30 years over Sankara murder

Ex-leader Blaise Compaore is on trial for the 1987 murder of Thomas Sankara, a revered revolutionary leader. Sankara's death coincided with a coup that installed Campaore in power for 27 years.

Former President Blaise Compaore is currently in exile in Ivory Coast

Former president of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore, faces a lengthy prison sentence if he is found guilty of the murder of revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara, after military prosecutors called for 30 years in prison for the crime.

Compaore's trial, which began in October, comes as the West African country reels from its latest military coup last month, brought on by protests and public anger over jihadist attacks in the country.

Prosecutors asked a court to find Compaore, who is currently in exile in Ivory Coast, guilty of an "attack on state security," "concealment of a corpse" and "complicity in a murder." They accuse the Compaore of being the mastermind of the killing.

Thomas Sankara was gunned down during a meeting along with 12 associates

The 'Che Guevara of Africa'

Sankara has long been revered among African revolutionaries. He was a 33-year-old army captain, when he came to power in a coup in 1983.

A fiery Marxist-Leninist, he was a strong voice against imperialism and colonialism, often at odds with Western leaders at the time. Advocating for radical reforms to help the poor, he was known as the "Che Guevara of Africa." 

Sankara and 12 of his associates were gunned down by a hit squad on October 15, 1987, during a meeting.

Some 14 people stand accused in the trial, with 12 of them appearing in court. Prosecutors have requested 30 years in jail for the commander of Compaore's presidential guard, Hyacinth Kafando, who is accused of having led the hit squad.      

A 20-year sentence is also sought for Gilbert Diendere, one of the commanders of the army during the 1987 coup, who is already serving a 20-year sentence over a separate attempted military coup in 2015.

Killing led to Compaore's rise

The assassination coincided with a coup that brought Compaore, who was Sankara's former comrade-in-arms, to power.

Compaore went on to rule the country for 27 years before being deposed by a popular uprising in 2014 and subsequently going into exile.

Prosper Farama, the Sankara family lawyer said the trial's upcoming resolution was providing some relief to the families affected by the killing, but he bemoaned that "during this trial, no one confessed or repented. No one!"

"We ask the court to give the families justice," Farama said. "We don't want revenge, we're simply asking for justice," he added.

jcg/rs (AFP, epd)

Turow coal mine: EU to withhold Poland funds over dispute

The European Commission said it would deduct money earmarked for Poland from its budget to collect a €15-million fine. The unprecedented measure follows Warsaw's refusal to close a coal mine.

Turow open-pit mine and power station are located only few kilometers from both German and Czech border

The European Commission took the unprecedented decision to withhold millions of euros in budget funds from Poland on Tuesday over unpaid fines related to a long-running coal mine dispute.

The EU funding earmarked for Warsaw that will now be held back amounts to some €15 million ($17 million). 

Upon hearing the news, Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller hit back, saying his country would deploy "all possible legal means to appeal against this," Poland's PAP news agency reported.

Czech and German complaints

The dispute is over a European Court of Justice (ECJ) case relating to the Turow mine near Poland's border with the Czech Republic and Germany. Both countries had complained of environmental damage caused by the mine.

In 2020, Prague argued that Warsaw's expansion of operations there without environmental checks went against EU law, amid fears of polluting drinking water.

These complaints underpinned the ECJ's interim decision in May 2021 for mining to be stopped until the EU's highest court issued a final ruling.

Poland refused, and in September 2021, the ECJ imposed daily fines of €500,000 for as long as Warsaw ignored the interim decision. 

Deal signed too late to avoid fines incurred, EU says

Last week, Poland reached an agreement with the Czech Republic to end the dispute over the coal mine.

The prime ministers of both countries ended the bitter battle over the Turow mine, but it doesn't erase the financial penalties previously incurred. While the deal between Warsaw and Prague stops additional court fines from accruing, the outstanding amount still remains.

jsi/fb (AFP, dpa)

Africa embraces Huawei technology despite security concerns

Shunned in the Global North due to privacy and security issues, Huawei is a front-runner in Africa. But the Chinese giant's data collection methods may also appeal to authoritarian regimes as a way to cling to power.

Chinese company Huawei dominates the telecoms market in Africa

Chinese technology giant Huawei has been battling headwind in the Global North: Sanctioned by the United States , it also faces legal obstacles in the United Kingdom and European Union countries, meaning Huawei parts cannot be used in technical infrastructure like mobile networks. In Lithuania, the government even appealed to citizens to give up their Huawei smartphones.

But it's a different story in Africa: Components from the Chinese multinational Huawei make up around 70% of 4G networks across the continent.

Many areas are upgrading to 5G technology, with Huawei firmly ahead in supply. In Nigeria's economic capital Lagos, the first 5G masts are already set to enter service.

Gbenga Adebayo, the leader of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), points to the reasons for the popularity of Huawei's devices.

"Traditionally, they come with low prices. They come with terms that are very attractive to operators, and it's easy for people to work with them," Adebayo told DW.

Huawei has expanded across most African countries, including South Africa

All of Huawei's transactions are handled directly by the Exim Bank, responsible for Chinese foreign investments. Adebayo points out another critical reason why Huawei is so popular on the continent. 

"In terms of reliability, their systems tend to give some measure of performance guarantee," he explained. 

So why do African consumers embrace Huawei so much more fully than their counterparts in the Global North?

When infrastructure is not neutral

This is partly because such nations seek to strengthen their own telecommunications systems, Arthur Gwagwa from the Ethics Institute at Utrecht University told DW.

But concerns surrounding Huawei and security are well placed, added Gwagwa, who has worked on multiple African cybersecurity projects and specialized in the topic as a lawyer in Zimbabwe.

Huawei can impact a country's security, exposing military or other sensitive information to theft, Gwagwa said. But not only that — "It also has equipment that is manufactured, sometimes I think negligently, that allows vulnerabilities for cyberattacks for military and industrial espionage," Gwagwa added. 

He describes some governments as being naive: "The issue of digital foreign interference is a new phenomenon that many Africans, especially the leadership, don't really understand because the digital sphere is something that is not tangible."

Gwagwa pointed to the Chinese secret service law implemented in 2017 as a potential danger for users. "Some of the vulnerabilities in the Chinese equipment are intentional, they are introduced for malicious purposes," he explained. 

"For example, China's national intelligence law, enacted in June 2017, requires Chinese companies to collect secret information."

Gwagwa interprets this law as requiring intelligence services to cooperate with Chinese companies, including compelling installation of "backdoors" and providing private data to the government.

Hidden from the end-user are so-called middleboxes: These distribution stations forward information and are capable of filtering and manipulating information.

Valentin Weber, a cybersecurity expert from the German Council on Foreign Relations, and colleague Vasilis Vesveris analyzed data streams around Huawei's middleboxes. They found that in 17 countries, the device blocked certain websites. Senegal, Nigeria, Egypt, Burundi, and South Africa were affected.

Burundian outlet blocked

In Burundi, the online content of several critical media outlets has been blocked, including that of DW partner Iwacu. Weber told DW that the local media watchdog had promised to allow access to the sites again. "But we can see that those websites are still being blocked, despite the efforts of the media watchdogs."

Iwacu's editor-in-chief, Leandre Sikuyavuga, confirmed that the outlet's website is still not accessible in Burundi.

"It's damaging because it limits freedom of expression generally — a fundamental principle in a constitutional state," Sikuyavuga told DW.

Huawei did not respond to a DW query about whether the telecom company knew about the events in Burundi or censorship in other African countries using Huawei hardware.

Huawei components are attractive in this context, said Gwagwa: "Authoritarian African governments see the benefit of customized censorship mechanisms in the Huawei infrastructure. They can use the vulnerability of the Chinese equipment for surveillance and other malicious purposes for them to hold on to political power."

Smarthphones form just a portion of Huawei's technology interests

Uganda: eavesdropping on Bobi Wine

In 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported that Huawei employees were directly involved in obtaining messages from the smartphone of Ugandan opposition leader and presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine.

Police had stormed a concert where opposition politicians were set to appear. Wine and dozens of supporters were arrested. Huawei later denied it had anything to do with the events.

Meanwhile, surveillance in Uganda with help from the Huawei middleboxes could be far more wide-reaching. According to Weber and Ververis, the capital Kampala is one African location designated as a future destination for "safe city" technology from Huawei. "Safe city" is a byword for a network of surveillance cameras that use facial recognition technology. The justification for this is crime prevention.

"Safe city" tech could mean trouble in countries without strong constitutional standing."If you consider that websites can be blocked, that all streets can be watched, you can imagine that the government has more power to stamp its authority and do whatever it wants," Weber said.

Huawei did not respond to an inquiry about other African locations with "safe city" technology. However, Weber and Ververis believe Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Accra could be being monitored. 

Uganda has shown interest in Huawei's 5G technology

Technology-decisions could affect generations

Huawei's market power in Africa puts the group in a favorable position to provide the next generations of technology. 

"People often buy 'legacy systems': they want the new devices to be compatible with the old ones," said Weber. In addition, such devices must continue to be maintained by Huawei, providing a continued foot in the door for the Chinese company.

For this reason, Gwagwa wants to see Africa's civil society ensure that "a Chinese digital Silk Road, which will affect generations to come, is being deployed with due respect to human rights."