Christians attacked in Pakistan's Sargodha for ‘blasphemy’

Reuters |

May 26, 2024 

Around 25 protesters have been arrested, police said.

At least 10 members of a minority Christian community were rescued on Saturday after a Muslim crowd attacked their settlement on a blasphemy accusation in eastern Pakistan, police and a community leader said.

At least one house and a small shoe factory was set on fire by protesters (x.com/FarazPervaiz3)

The crowd, which accused the Christian group of blasphemy, also hurled stones and bricks at the police, said Shariq Kamal, the police chief of Sargodha district.

At least one house and a small shoe factory was set on fire by protesters who had gathered after neighbours alleged that the Muslim holy book, the Koran, had been desecrated by a minority community member, according to a police spokesman and Akmal Bhatti, a Christian leader.

"They burned one house" and several Christians were badly beaten, Bhatti said.

A large contingent of police cordoned off the settlement, Kamal said, adding that the crowd had been pushed back. One member of the Christian community who was taken to hospital was later said to be in a stable condition.

Some 25 of the protesters have been arrested, said police official Assad Malhi, adding that 11 police officers suffered injuries during the operation to rescue the Christian community members from the crowd.

The situation had calmed down by late evening, with leaders from both sides calling for peace, police said.

A Christian rights group - Minority Rights March - said a 70-year-old man accused of the blasphemy was beaten and dragged by the mob.

It said video footage showed that the police did not intervene. The police have denied the claim.

Videos posted on social media showed protesters looting items from burning properties. Others were seen throwing the items in a heap on fire in a street.

Bhatti said the videos were images from the scene.

Reuters could not independently verify the pictures.

The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said the Christian community was "at grave risk to their lives at the hands of the charged mobs".

Blasphemy is a sensitive subject in conservative Muslim- majority Pakistan, where just an accusation can lead to a street lynching.

Human rights groups say Pakistan's harsh blasphemy laws are often misused to settle personal scores.

While blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan, no one has been executed by the state for it, though numerous accused have been lynched by outraged mobs.

A Muslim crowd attacked a Christian community in eastern Pakistan last year, vandalising several churches and setting scores of houses on fire after accusing two of its members of desecrating the Koran.

PAKISTAN

DEMOCRATIC BREAKDOWN

Mirza Moiz Baig 

DAWN

Published May 25, 2024

“A state which dwarfs its men in order that they may be more docile instruments in its hands, even for beneficial purposes, will find that with small men no great thing can really be accomplished.” — John Stuart Mill

AFTER blocking social media platforms like X, the state appears to have turned its attention to silencing dissent on other platforms. The hastily passed Punjab Defamation Act, 2024, is the latest in a series of measures curtailing free speech under the pretext of obviating the dissemination of fake news. Does the Act merely address the infirmities underpinning the Defamation Ordinance, 2002, or is it an attempt to muzzle dissent?

Section 8 of the Act establishes tribunals which may comprise non-judicial members appointed by the executive in consultation with the Lahore High Court chief justice. The tenure of such members shall be renewable every 18 months, subject to their performance being satisfactory. Section 8(6) delineates three-pronged criteria to gauge a member’s performance, with 50 per cent marks reserved for adhering to statutory timelines, and 25pc each for competence and integrity.

By placing adherence to statutory timelines on a higher pedestal than competence and integrity, the Act allows a member to pass muster even where his judgements are egregiously unlawful or motivated by extraneous factors.

While trials emanating from the 2002 Ordinance were admittedly marred by delays, the Act’s sole focus on swift disposal without addressing the structural issues contributing to such delays chips away the right to due process and fair trial. Section 23, for instance, excludes the application of the Qanoon-i-Shahadat to proceedings under the Act. Similarly, while claims involving defamation often require voluminous evidence, cross-examination, and a deeper appreciation of the facts asserted by each side, the Act envisages summary proceedings.

With the weightage assigned to adherence to statutory timelines, and given the summary proceedings it envisions, the Act emboldens the tribunals’ members to give short shrift to the principles of due process and procedural fairness, which constitute the cornerstone of any democratic dispensation.

Punjab’s Defamation Act forms part of a series of actions symbolising the breakdown of our democracy.

Such concerns are also aggravated by Section 26 which provides that the high court may only suspend the operation of a tribunal’s decision or stay its execution after the aggrieved party deposits an amount equivalent to the tribunal’s decree with the high court’s registrar. While courts have frequently deprecated placing conditions which stifle litigants’ right to appeal, the Act compels aggrieved parties to comply with the tribunal’s decision before seeking its suspension by an appellate court, even where such decision is bereft of any sound reasoning.

Most disconcertingly perhaps, the Act shields constitutional office holders from legitimate critique. The Act’s ‘Statement of Objects’ state that defamation “damages the reputation and image of public figures or the government”. While the Act creates tribunals for claims instituted by the general public, constitutional office holders can directly invoke the high court’s jurisdiction, thus, implying that holders of constitutional offices require more protection than the general public.

The Act, thus, departs from principles entrenched in other jurisdictions where public office holders have to meet a higher threshold to prevail in a claim of defamation since they voluntarily place themselves in positions where their actions may be subjected to heightened scrutiny. Moreover, public office holders often have much greater access to the media than average citizens and can use their access to the media to rebut any defamatory statements without assistance from the courts.

Third, such jurisdictions recognise the importance of allowing citizens to critique policies that deeply affect them and are thus wary of encroaching upon the right to democratic expression through incessant defamation suits.

Following the decision of its supreme court in the New York Times case, for instance, courts in the United States have often held that public officials could only seek damages for defamation if the publisher knew that the information was wholly and patently false or that it was published “with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not”. Nonetheless, the Act, by affording greater protection to constitutional office holders, creates a chilling effect whereby legitimate critique of the government’s policy is muzzled with citizens fearing protracted litigation by those who wield power.

In their seminal work on democratic backslide Levitsky and Ziblatt argued that constitutional protections only endure in a polity characterised by mutual toleration and institutional forbearance. Mutual toleration entails accepting each other’s legitimate mandate and respecting differing political opinions without attacking the patriotism of those we disagree with. Institutional forbearance, on the other hand, demands that each institution adheres to its jurisdictional fetters, cautioning particularly against ‘constitutional hardball’, or using institutional prerogatives unabashedly.

Today, the spirit of mutual tolerance witnessed during the signing of the Charter of Democracy or the restoration of democracy in 2008 appears to be submerged amidst political forces endeavouring to assail each other’s legitimacy. Contempora­neously, parliamentarians have launched scathing attacks on judges who have unruffled feathers, agents of the executive have been accused of attempts to emasculate the judiciary, and rumours about a constitutional amendment tinkering with the retirement age of judges of the Supreme Court remain rife. The Act, thus, forms part of a series of actions symbolising the breakdown of our democracy. Where then do we go from here?

The path to our salvation lies in political parties, the judiciary, and critically the security establishment coming together and acknowledging the follies which have brought us to this juncture. Political parties in particular need to preserve the democratic structures, which are critical to their own survival.

Will our ruling elites shun short-term opportunism in the interest of their own longevity, or will they continue to ingratiate themselves with the actual custodians of power? Will we ever learn from history?

The writer is a lawyer.
X: @MoizBaig26

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2024

ICYMI

Taiwan is a province of China, says UN spokesperson


Source: Xinhua

Editor: huaxia

2024-05-25 

UNITED NATIONS, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan is a province of China, Stephane Dujarric, chief spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, has reiterated.

The United Nations is guided by the General Assembly resolution of 1971, Dujarric told a regular press briefing on Thursday, adding that he made the remarks in terms of the United Nations' standing on Taiwan as a province of China.

On Oct. 25, 1971, the 26th Session of the UN General Assembly adopted, with an overwhelming majority, Resolution 2758, which decides to restore all its rights to the People's Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations. ■

GHOUL CAPITALI$M
Failed Graceland sale by a mystery entity highlights attempts to take assets of older or dead people

AP |
May 25, 2024 09:33 AM IST


Failed Graceland sale by a mystery entity highlights attempts to take assets of older or dead people


MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The catalyst behind the failed gambit to sell off the iconic Graceland property in Memphis is a mystery

The self-styled investment company also is under fire from a lawsuit alleging fraud, an aggressive attorney general and a community of Elvis Presley loyalists who consider the home-turned-museum of the the king of rock n’ roll to be sacred ground.

Among the many questions surrounding the attempt to auction Graceland is how often cases pop up in which an entity emerges to claim assets of older or dead people. Experts say it's more common than one might think.

“I have never heard of a fraud targeting such a well-known institution. So it’s a bit surprising on that end,” said Nicole Forbes Stowell, a business law professor at the University of South Florida's St. Petersburg campus. “But I don’t think it’s surprising to everyday people that are the targets.”

Naussany Investments and Private Lending caused a stir when a public notice for a foreclosure sale of the 13-acre Graceland estate was posted this month.

The notice said Promenade Trust, which controls the Graceland museum, owed $3.8 million after failing to repay a 2018 loan. Riley Keough, an actor and Elvis Presley's granddaughter, inherited the trust and ownership of the home after her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, died in 2023.

Naussany said Lisa Marie Presley used Graceland as collateral for the loan, according to the foreclosure sale notice. Keough filed a lawsuit on May 15 alleging Naussany presented fraudulent documents regarding the loan in September 2023 and asking a Memphis judge to block the sale to the highest bidder.

“Lisa Maria Presley never borrowed money from Naussany Investments and never gave a deed of trust to Naussany Investments,” Keough’s lawyer Jeff Germany wrote in the lawsuit.

“It's a scam,” actor Priscilla Presley, Elvis’ former wife, declared on her social media accounts.

On Wednesday, an injunction by Shelby County Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins halted the sale, which was planned for the next day. Jenkins said in court that Elvis Presley’s estate could be successful in arguing Nausanny's attempt to auction Graceland is fraudulent.

One reason is an affidavit from Kimberly Philbrick, the Florida notary whose name is listed on Naussany’s documents. Philbrick indicated she never met Lisa Marie Presley or notarized any documents for her, according to the lawsuit. The judge said the affidavit brought the signature's authenticity into question.

On the relevant documents, the signature blocks were not correct and the paperwork references an online notarization option that was not recognized in Florida until 2020, two years after the alleged notarization, Stowell said.

“That makes me wonder if these documents were created after Lisa Marie passed away,” Stowell said. "The whole thing does not pass the smell test.”

Mark Sunderman, a University of Memphis real estate professor, questioned why the lender would foreclose now if it had not received payments years after the loan was issued.

“If someone starts missing payments or hasn't made a payment, you're not going to sit around for a couple of years and then say, ‘Golly, I think we need to foreclose now,’” Sunderman said.

The lender's legitimacy also is in doubt after unsuccessful attempts by The Associated Press to verify its existence beyond an email address and court filing signed by a Gregory Naussany.

Court documents included company addresses in Jacksonville, Florida, and Hollister, Missouri. Both were for post offices, and a Kimberling City, Missouri, reference was for a post office box. The business also is not listed in state databases of registered corporations in Missouri or Florida.

“I’ve never heard of that business,” Kimberling City Clerk Laura Cather said.

A search of online records for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority showed no registration for the company. No representatives of Naussany appeared in court, though the company filed an unsuccessful motion denying the lawsuit’s allegations and opposing the estate’s request for an injunction.

After the sale was halted, Naussany issued a statement saying it would drop its claim because a key document in the case and loan were recorded and obtained in a different state, meaning “legal action would have to be filed in multiple states.” The statement did not specify the other state.

Naussany has not responded to emailed interview requests from the . Online court records did not show any legal filings suggesting the claim, or the lawsuit, had been dropped.

Sunderman, the Memphis professor, said that apparently fraudulent claims involving real estate asset disputes arise more often than people think, especially in situations involving inheritances.

“It’s very difficult for someone to say, ‘Well, no, I didn’t take out this loan, I didn’t sign these papers,' when they’re dead,’” Sunderman said.

Darrell Castle, a Memphis attorney not involved in the case but monitoring it, said he often sees cases where older people are targets of fraud.

“I get cases quite often where people who are really helpless in the final stages of life in a nursing home are financially victimized,” Castle said. “The human mind will think of some way to cheat and steal if it can."

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said Thursday that his office was looking into the case to determine whether the estate was targeted with fraud.

Skrmetti's office can investigate and bring civil lawsuits, including in instances of alleged consumer fraud. It could turn over evidence of criminal wrongdoing to the district attorney or federal authorities.

Opened in 1982, Graceland quickly became Memphis' most famous tourist attraction and a touchstone for fans of Elvis Presley, the singer, actor and fashion icon who died in August 1977 at the age of 42. Hundreds of thousands of visitors flock annually to the museum and the large entertainment complex across the street.

Who would target it with a scheme that “fell apart with the first email and phone call, or internet search,” and what holes in the legal system let it got closer to the auction block than it should have, should be the focuses of the attorney general, said Nikos Passas, a Northeastern University criminology and criminal justice professor.

“The chance of succeeding in what they were trying to do — that is, to get the property auctioned off and get the proceeds and then use the money — doesn’t seem to be the actual intent, unless they are incredibly stupid,” Passas said. “So, the question is then, ‘What was the intent, and who was behind it?’”

Mattise reported from Nashville, Tennessee. reporter Heather Hollingsworth contributed from Mission, Kansas.

Opinion

Restoring mountain ecosystems in the Himalayas is a global Imperative

The Hindu Kush Himalaya faces a critical need for the restoration of its diverse ecosystems, underpinned by the indispensable stewardship of Indigenous communities and local efforts


Freshwater ecosystems such as lakes, rivers, and wetlands – like these in Band-e Amir National Park, Afghanistan – provide an array of services important to livelihoods, economic development and environmental resilience. (Image: Alex Treadway / ICIMOD, CC BY-NC)


Bandana Shakya

May 25, 2024


Mountain ecosystems, including rangelands, wetlands, peatlands and both alpine and temperate forests, are unique habitats characterised by complex geography and rich biodiversity. These ecosystems are integral to the cultures and traditions of diverse Indigenous communities, providing essential goods and services such as food, water, climate regulation and cultural aesthetics. Despite their high economic value, they face profound challenges, primarily driven by global and local changes.

The degradation of mountain ecosystems poses a direct threat to the sustained provision of crucial goods and services. There is an urgent need for the policy community, national governments, regional bodies and the private sector to come together and significantly invest in the restoration of mountain ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH). While there are several commendable efforts underway, they are not sufficient to address the magnitude and complexity of the challenges at hand. Additionally, there is a global movement to bring mountain-related issues to the forefront of international discourse and to forge robust global partnerships for mountain ecosystems.

Outlined below are key policy priorities for the HKH:

Strengthening Indigenous stewardship: Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) have been the traditional stewards of these vital resources. Existing practices, including payment for ecosystem services, have incentivised efforts to preserve upstream ecosystem integrity, benefiting downstream areas. Further incentivising landscape practices rooted in traditional ecological knowledge is crucial for securing the rights of local communities and enhancing their leadership and ownership. Supporting slow food movements and ethnic cuisines, along with strengthening herder networks are essential. Efforts to secure conservation corridors, community-conserved areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) are key for promoting IPLC-led inclusive landscape governance.

A herding community, with their pack animals, traverses the rocky and rugged paths of Bhutan’s Laya landscape. This journey highlights the challenging terrain and the traditional modes of transportation that are integral to the region. (Image: Jitendra Bajracharya / ICIMOD)

Scaling nature-based solutions (NbS): NbS such as forest rehabilitation, nature tourism, rangeland restoration and springshed management are long-term integrated solutions that must be scaled up to generate climate, biodiversity and sustainable development co-benefits. The Himalayan Resilience Enabling Action Programme under the Climate Action for Resilient Asia (CARA) initiative is working to scale these solutions to match the rate of degradation and address societal challenges related to water, livelihoods and disaster risk.

Innovating for biodiversity and sustainability: Mechanisms such as payments for ecosystem services, biodiversity grants and impact investments need to be both inclusive and fair to empower local communities and attract private sector engagement. Government incentives, tax credits and green bonds could further stimulate sustainable and inclusive practices. It is imperative to explore innovative policy and financing avenues to ensure the vitality of mountain ecosystems for future generations and balance environmental preservation with socio-economic development.
Global partnerships investments and pooling resources

The recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework emphasises the urgent need for increased financial investment in biodiversity actions. However, the current level of global financing for nature, and particularly for mountain biodiversity investment, remains inadequate. To enhance overall climate resilience, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development for both mountain and downstream communities, it is crucial to boost investments in mountain ecosystems and expand the scope of community-driven actions.

Cross-learning among countries and the sharing of best practices are essential strategies for building and expanding partnerships aimed at mobilising financial resources. The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) Call to Action, endorsed by a ministerial declaration signed by the eight relevant countries, plays a pivotal role in reinforcing regional cooperation for mountain areas and facilitating collaborative actions to tackle transboundary issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, poverty and landscape degradation. The success of such initiatives hinges on the collaborative efforts of governments, non-governmental agencies, the private sector, local communities and international development partners to come together and pool their resources to amplify their joint efforts.

A red panda perched in a tree. The Hindu Kush Himalayan region (HKH) is an important biodiversity hotspot. (Image: Jitendra Raj Bajracharya / ICIMOD, CC BY-NC)
Making the business case for mountain ecosystems

The economic case for conservation: Mountains, recognised as biodiversity hotspots, are crucial for the preservation of Earth’s biological richness. Adopting knowledge-based approaches for biodiversity mapping, monitoring and valuation is essential. These methods provide crucial insights that can drive the adoption of NbS. Economic valuation and natural capital accounting are key tools that can inform investment decisions and help allocate more resources towards the conservation of mountain landscapes, particularly those maintained by IPLCs.

Environmental resilience: Mountain ecosystems serve as systemic enablers that foster positive relationships between nature and people. High-altitude rangelands, peatlands and wetlands play a significant role in climate-related decision-making and investments aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, especially given their role as carbon sinks. Strategic investments are needed to highlight the link between mountain ecosystems and essential resources like food, water and energy security. Moreover, there is a need for incentives to expand mechanisms that prevent human-wildlife conflicts and enhance capacities, as well as to support innovative sustainable land-use practices. These efforts are fundamental in maintaining the ecological balance and ensuring the resilience of these environments

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RECOMMENDEDCan the Himalayan region go green as economies flounder?

Sustainable development: Mountain ecosystems in the Himalayas are fundamental to the traditional livelihoods of mountain communities, offering vast potential for driving green economies. Initiatives from organic agriculture to ecotourism and renewable energy harness these ecosystems’ unique attributes to promote sustainable economic growth. Recognising mountain ecosystems as engines of sustainable development can bolster prosperity both within and beyond these regions, boost the global economy and help attain the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

As we progress through this UN decade on ecosystem restoration, there is a clear urgency for substantial global investment and incentives dedicated to the restoration of HKH ecosystems. Restoring these ecosystems is not just a regional concern but a global imperative. These ecosystems provide not only measurable benefits but also hold immense intrinsic and existential value. Their preservation is crucial for maintaining the natural heritage and cultural significance that enrich our global community.

Innovative financing mechanisms, blending public and private finance, along with other incentive measures, are essential for the effective restoration and regeneration of critical ecosystems in the HKH. Let us act collectively to ensure the resilience of mountain economies and landscapes, from which benefits flow into river basins downstream and extend to the global community at large.

The author is coordinator for the Action Area on Restoring and Regenerating Landscapes at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). The views expressed are her own

Italian anti-fascist activist Ilaria Salis stands trial in (FASCIST) Hungary

Copyright / Roberto Monaldo/LaPresse

By Euronews

Published on 24/05/2024 - 

The case of Ilaria Salis - a candidate in the European Parliament elections in June - has sparked tensions between Hungary and Italy.

The trial of Ilaria Salis continued on Friday in Budapest.

The 39-year-old activist is accused of deliberately travelling to Budapest to attack neo-Nazis after being arrested in February 2023 following a counter-demonstration for a rally by far-right extremists.

During the court session, neither the victims of the masked attackers nor the present witnesses could identify her as the perpetrator.

The case has made headlines in Italy after Salis previously appeared in court with handcuffs and her feet chained.

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, has made several official complaints on behalf of Salis, sparking tension between her and ally Viktor Orban.

• Salis under house arrest in Hungary pending trial and EU elections

The teacher who is originally from Monza is currently under house arrest as she awaits the end of her trial. 

The Italian Green and Left Alliance (AVS) have nominated Salis as their lead candidate for the upcoming European elections.

She may be able to claim parliamentary immunity if she receives enough votes at the ballot, which would lead to the suspension of criminal proceedings against her. 

If found guilty, she could face up to eleven years in prison. 

Hungary to seek to opt out of NATO efforts to support Ukraine, Orban says

PUTIN'S LAP DOG

May 24, 2024 
By Associated Press

F

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban speaks during a press conference at the Carmelite Monastery in Budapest, Hungary, on Feb. 23, 2024.

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY —

Hungary will seek to opt out of any NATO operations aimed at supporting Ukraine, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Friday, suggesting that the military alliance and the European Union were moving toward a more direct conflict with Russia.

Orban told state radio that Hungary opposes a plan NATO is weighing to provide more predictable military support to Ukraine in coming years to repel Moscow's full-scale invasion, as better armed Russian troops assert control on the battlefield.

“We do not approve of this, nor do we want to participate in financial or arms support (for Ukraine), even within the framework of NATO,” Orban said, adding that Hungary has taken a position as a “nonparticipant” in any potential NATO operations to assist Kyiv.

“We've got to redefine our position within the military alliance, and our lawyers and officers are working on ... how Hungary can exist as a NATO member while not participating in NATO actions outside of its territory,” he said.

Orban, considered Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest partner in the EU, emphasized NATO's role as a defensive alliance, and said he doesn't share the concerns of some other Central and Eastern European countries that Russia’s military wouldn't cease its aggression if it wins the war in Ukraine.

“NATO’s strength cannot be compared to that of Ukraine,” he said. “I don’t consider it a logical proposition that Russia, which cannot even deal with Ukraine, will come all of a sudden and swallow up the whole Western world.”

Hungary has refused to supply neighboring Ukraine with military aid in contrast to most other countries in the EU, and Orban has vigorously opposed the bloc's sanctions on Moscow though has ultimately always voted for them.

The nationalist leader is preparing for the European Parliament election on June 6-9 and has cast his party as a guarantor of peace in the region. He has characterized the United States and other EU countries that urge greater support for Ukraine as “pro-war” and acting in preparation for a global conflict.

AMLO WAS AND IS A NEOLIBERAL


Mexico's poorest receiving less government funds under president who brought poor to the fore

May 25, 2024
By Associated Press

 

People gather in the Zocalo to celebrate Mexico's newly sworn-in president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in Mexico City, Dec. 1, 2018.


MEXICO CITY —

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador swept into office nearly six years ago with a simple motto laying out his administration's priorities: "For the good of all, first the poor."

His administration scrapped a host of existing social programs and installed their own, quickly increasing overall social spending to unprecedented heights for senior citizens, unemployed youth, students, farmers and people with disabilities.

But less noticed was that the new roster of social programs dramatically shifted who was getting that money. Suddenly, Mexico's poorest citizens were receiving a smaller portion of the spending and less money than under previous administrations.

Meanwhile, some of Mexico's wealthiest started getting money they didn't really need.

The shift owed largely to a massive "universal" pension benefit for seniors that López Obrador launched on a chilly January day outside Mexico City in 2019, just weeks after taking office. He announced he was more than doubling the existing federal pension — it has since doubled again — and expanding it regardless of income to people who previously didn't qualify, like those who received another pension from their former employer.

If much more money isn't poured into the system, "universal programs spread benefits more thinly over the whole population with the result that the people who were most in need get worse," said Robert Greenstein, a fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. "Poverty can go up. Inequality can be greater than it would be under a more targeted scheme."

But López Obrador's social programs have proven so popular that even the opposition candidates running to replace him in the June 2 election have promised to expand them. Some 28 million Mexicans will benefit from one of the programs this year. In Sunday night's final presidential debate, candidate Xóchitl Gálvez said she would lower the minimum pension age to 60 from 65.

The pension is the largest social program by budget in López Obrador's slate of handouts, far surpassing the also well known Youth Building the Future, which pays young adults who neither study nor work to apprentice, and Sowing Life, which pays farmers to plant fruit or lumber-producing trees on their land.

Combined with the elimination of predecessors' more targeted programs that had focused on Mexico's most in need, experts say the pension dramatically shifted the distribution of government funds.

Four months from the end of López Obrador's six-year term, several million people have escaped poverty. But factors beyond the social programs are involved, including López Obrador's nearly tripling of the minimum wage and Mexicans abroad continuing to send home record amounts of money to relatives.

Curiously, there are about 400,000 more Mexicans in extreme poverty than at the beginning of his term, according to government data.

A government report published every two years that divides Mexico's population into 10 segments by income says the very poorest segment in 2018 received about 19% of social spending. Just two years later, that poorest group was receiving only about 6%, said Manuel Martínez Espinoza, a researcher at Mexico's National Council of the Humanities, Sciences and Technologies. For reasons unknown the government has not published the 2022 report.

Cash to families, but with a catch

At a counter in a central Mexico City market, Arturo García leaned over a steaming bowl of tripe stew on a recent morning. The 73-year-old retired cab driver said he stopped taking fares during the pandemic.

Now the $362 (6,000 pesos) he receives from his universal pension every two months and some money he gets renting out a storage space in his home to street vendors are his only sources of income.

"You have money or you don't have money, they give it to you," García said of the pension. "The government is trying to make us all equal."

One of the programs López Obrador ended when he took office was called Prospera. It had targeted Mexico's poorest families for some two decades under various names with what were known as conditional cash transfers. Poor families received money, but it was restricted by income level and recipients had to meet some requirements to get it, like taking their children for medical checkups.

The president said the program was clientelist and suffered from systematic corruption, though instances of corruption have also been found in López Obrador's programs.

Targeted social programs like Prospera attempt to be more precise in steering public funds to specific segments of the population. For that reason they tend to be less expensive than universal programs.

Critics, however, say they stigmatize the poor; have less political support, which makes them vulnerable to being cut; require more administration to determine eligibility and fewer people enroll, said Greenstein, the fellow at the Brookings Institution, adding that those risks are not inherent in targeted programs.

Mexico's Welfare Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Prospera's funding was redirected to López Obrador's programs, principally the universal pension, signaling an important shift from a means-tested program that largely benefitted poor children to one that provided cash to all senior citizens.

One of the more cynical criticisms of the shift is that children don't vote, but seniors do.

People who don't really need it are getting more

The other side of Mexico's poorest receiving a smaller proportion of social spending under this administration is that people who don't really need it are getting more.

One morning in late April, César Herrera brought his elderly mother to a branch of the Banco Bienestar, or Welfare Bank, in Mexico City to withdraw her pension payment. The bank was created by López Obrador as a vehicle to get payments from his administration's programs directly into the hands of Mexicans.

Herrera said he and his mother had driven by in February when the last pension deposit was made and saw the line stretching down the street. But unlike many seniors who live payment to payment, Herrera said his mother didn't need the money, so they left.

"However, it's there," he said when they returned a month and a half later. "Of course you have to take it."

The ninth out of 10 income strata, or the second highest, analyzed by the government went from receiving about $4.40 of every $100 in social spending in 2018 to getting about $10 in 2020, said Martínez, the researcher at the humanities, sciences and technologies council.

Martínez said his field work in Chiapas, Mexico's poorest state, found many people who were not receiving as much money as they had previously under Prospera, but who nevertheless fervently supported López Obrador.

"I've talked with a lot of people in my field work, they feel valued, they feel the president values them, which they didn't feel before," Martínez said.

Martínez hypothesizes that the growth in extreme poverty during this administration was due in part to the elimination of Prospera but also the fact that people in extreme poverty tend to work in the informal sector — which would not have benefited equally from the increased minimum wage. Another factor was the COVID-19 pandemic forced a lot of families to exhaust their limited savings on health care.

Much of the back-and-forth between López Obrador's anointed successor Claudia Sheinbaum and the opposition candidate Gálvez has been the president and Sheinbaum insisting that Gálvez will end the social programs if she wins — and Gálvez promising that she won't. Much of that debate is unnecessary since the pension is now enshrined in the constitution.

Martínez said that even at the current 65 minimum age the program is burning through public funds too rapidly.

"In the short term, it's a time bomb because it's going to generate problems because it isn't fiscally sustainable," he said

US MISSIONARIES KILLED BY HAITI GANGS

WILL THIS BE USED TO JUSTIFY INVASION?!

DW

A US missionary couple were among three people killed in gang violence in Haiti. Violence and political turmoil has gripped the country for months.

A Haitian gang killed three missionaries, including a married couple from the United States,  in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti.

Missions in Haiti, an Oklahoma-based nonprofit founded in 2000, said Davy and Natalie Lloyd and the local director of the mission group, Jude Montis, were killed by armed men on Thursday evening.

Missouri State Senator's children among the dead

Natalie's father is Missouri State Senator Ben Baker , and Davy is the son of David and Alicia Lloyd, who started the organization Missions in Haiti in 2000.

"My heart is broken in a thousand pieces. I've never felt this kind of pain," Baker said in a Facebook post. He later posted that their bodies had been retrieved, and they are working to repatriate them to the US.

Missions in Haiti said the couple was leaving a church when they were ambushed by three trucks full of gang members. They took David to a house and assaulted and robbed him.

As people were helping untie Davy Lloyd, another group of gunmen showed up and "went into full attack mode." 

The couple and Montis fled to a house connected to the mission. "They tried to take cover in there, but the gang shot up the house."

The missionary group later confirmed that all three were dead.

Security situation in Haiti

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said it was "just another example of the violence that spares no one in Haiti."

Haiti has seen months of unrest and violence under an unstable political situation. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the country is close to becoming a failed state.

Haiti finally reopened its international airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince, after months of closure due to gang violence. But gangs are still in control of many parts of the country.

The gangs' biggest demand was the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who has since stepped down from his position. Haiti has not had a sitting president since the assassination of Jovenel Moise in 2021 and has no sitting parliament.

A transitional council has been appointed to hold elections, the country's first since 2016. Meanwhile, food scarcity, a collapse of the healthcare system and violence has forced thousands to flee their homes.

Responding to the deaths, the White House called for the swift deployment of a Kenyan-led multinational force in Haiti to tackle rampant gang violence.

"The security situation in Haiti cannot wait," said a National Security Council spokesperson, stressing that President Joe Biden had pledged to support the "expedited deployment" of the force in talks with Kenya's president on Thursday.

A young couple from the U.S. were among 3 missionaries killed in Haiti violence

MAY 25, 2024
The Associated Press

Davy and Natalie Lloyd were among three missionaries killed in Haiti after being ambushed at the Port-au-Prince, officials with the mission organization said Friday, May 24, 2024. The third victim was Jude Montis, who was the country's director of Missions In Haiti Inc.

Brad Searcy Photography/via AP

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A U.S. missionary couple and a Haitian man who worked with them were shot and killed by gang members in Haiti's capital after they were attacked while leaving a youth group activity held at a local church, a family member said Friday.

The attack happened Thursday evening in the community of Lizon in northern Port-au-Prince, Lionel Lazarre, head of a Haitian police union, told The Associated Press.

The slayings occurred as the capital crumbles under the relentless assault of violent gangs that control 80% of Port-au-Prince while authorities await the arrival of a police force from Kenya as part of a U.N.-backed deployment aimed at quelling gang violence in the troubled Caribbean country.

Two of the victims were a young married couple, Davy and Natalie Lloyd, according to a Facebook posting from Natalie Lloyd's father, Missouri state Rep. Ben Baker. The third victim was Jude Montis, who was the country's director of Missions In Haiti Inc.

Haiti's notorious gang leader, Barbecue, says his forces are ready for a long fight

"My heart is broken in a thousand pieces," Baker wrote on Facebook on Thursday. "I've never felt this kind of pain. Most of you know my daughter and son-in-law Davy and Natalie Lloyd are full time missionaries in Haiti. They were attacked by gangs this evening and were both killed. They went to Heaven together."

Hannah Cornett, Davy Lloyd's sister, told the AP that her brother was 23 years old and Natalie Lloyd was 21. They were going to celebrate their two-year anniversary in June and his birthday in early July.

Cornett said her parents are full-time missionaries in Haiti, and that she and her two brothers grew up there.

"Davy spoke Creole before he spoke English. It was home," she said in a phone interview. "Haiti was all we knew."

Cornett, 22, said her parents run an orphanage, school and church in Haiti, and that she and her brothers grew up with the orphans: "It was just one big happy family there."

The announcement of a new prime minister divides Haiti's transitional council

She said her older brother was outgoing, had built a garden and raised a lot of animals. While he went back to the U.S. for Bible college and then got married, he returned to Haiti with Natalie Lloyd to do more humanitarian work.

"They just had a lot of love for Haiti, and they just wanted to help the people there," Cornett said. "That's their calling."

Cornett noted that Montis worked with her parents for 20 years and left behind two children, ages 2 and 6.
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She said the night of the attack, three vehicles carrying gang members stopped the Lloyds and Montis as they crossed the street, hitting her brother in the head with the barrel of a gun. They forced him upstairs, stole their belongings and left him tied up. As people were helping untie Davy Lloyd, another group of armed gunmen showed up.

"Nobody knows what happened," she said.

An unidentified person got shot and the gunmen opened fire as the Lloyds and Montis fled to the house where her parents live, Cornett said.

A portrait of Haitians trying to survive without a government

"They tried to take cover in there, but the gang shot up the house," she said, adding that they were killed and their bodies set on fire.

Cornett said her mother flew back from Haiti about a month ago, and that her father and younger brother flew out Wednesday because things had been so calm in the neighborhood.

"Nobody expected this to happen," she said between tears.

On Friday afternoon, Baker posted on Facebook that the bodies of Davy and Natalie Lloyd were safely transported to the U.S. Embassy.

The couple worked for Missions In Haiti Inc. The Claremore, Oklahoma, organization was founded by David and Alicia Lloyd, Davy Lloyd's parents. Natalie Lloyd's Facebook page said the couple married on June 18, 2022, and she began working with the missionary organization in August 2022. She frequently posted photos of Haitian children on her page.

A Facebook posting on the Missions In Haiti page late Thursday read: "Around midnight: Davy and Natalie and Jude were shot and killed by the gang about 9 o'clock this evening. We all are devastated."

Alicia Lloyd, mother of Davy Lloyd, told the Oklahoma-based Claremore Daily Progress newspaper that her son "was one of these people who could do anything."

"I hope something good can come out of this. We don't see it now, but we don't want (their lives) to be in vain," she was quoted as saying.

U.S. Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller said the ambassador in Haiti was in touch with the families "who we know are experiencing unimaginable grief."

"Unfortunately, this serves as a reminder that the security situation in Haiti cannot wait – too many innocent lives are being lost," he said in a statement as he noted the U.S. government's commitment for a swift deployment of the Kenyan-led mission.

It wasn't immediately clear which gang or gangs were responsible for the fatal shootings.

However, a gang leader called Chyen Mechan, which means "mean dog" in Haitian Creole, controls the area where the shooting occurred. His real name is Claudy Célestin, and he is a dismissed civil servant from Haiti's Ministry of the Interior.

The leader of another gang known as General Jeff also controls territory near the neighborhood where the couple was killed. Both gangs are part of a coalition known as Viv Ansanm, which means "Live Together."

The coalition is responsible for launching large-scale attacks on key government infrastructure starting Feb. 29. Gunmen have attacked police stations, opened fire on the main international airport that remained closed for nearly three months before opening earlier this week and stormed Haiti's two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates.

Gangs also are blamed for killing or injuring more than 2,500 people across Haiti from January to March, a 50% increase compared with the same period last year, according to the United Nations. In addition, more than 360,000 people have been forced to flee their homes by gangs who control 80% of Port-au-Prince.

Kidnappings also are rampant, with targets including U.S. missionaries.

In October 2021, gang members kidnapped 17 missionaries, the majority U.S. citizens. Many in the group, which included five children, were held captive for more than two months before escaping.

Then in July 2023, gangs kidnapped a U.S. nurse and her daughter from the campus of a Christian-run school near Port-au-Prince. They were released nearly two weeks later.
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The U.S. Department of State has long had a "do not travel" advisory for Haiti and urges any U.S. citizens in the country to depart as soon as possible.

On the Missions In Haiti website, the founders wrote that the organization was founded in 2000. It said it aimed to help with "the country's biggest need — its children."

A May 2023 newsletter posted on the mission website said Natalie "has been helping with the kids at the House of Compassion and assisting in our ACE school. Davy has been working on a lot of badly needed projects around our compound," including building a laundry room and repairing bathrooms.

Canadian school issues notice for pro-Palestinian protesters to pack, leave

Be out by 8 a.m. Monday or face ‘consequences … under the law,’ University of Toronto tells protesters

Barry Ellsworth |25.05.2024 -



TRENTON, Canada

A showdown may be in the works as pro-Palestinian protesters vowed Friday to ignore a University of Toronto trespass notice to pack and leave by 8 a.m. Monday.

If the protesters remain past the deadline, university officials said the trespassers will face “consequences under university policies and the law,” according to a statement posted online by the school.

Those who remain could face up to a five-year suspension or expulsion from the university. Dozens of faculty members and staff who have joined the pro-Palestinian encampment could face “disciplinary measures up to and including termination of employment,” said the school.

The university’s administration refused protesters’ demand to end partnerships with Israeli universities and cut ties with Israel and companies profiting from the onslaught in Gaza.

But it did offer students the chance to present their demands at a June 19 university board of governors meeting. As well, the administration said it would form a group to consider disclosure and investment terms.

The protesters were defiant in the face of the trespass notice.

“We’ll continue to be here, and we’ll continue to demand divestment,” said Erin Mackey, an encampment spokesperson, according to the National Post.

“That is an ultimatum,” encampment organizer and fourth-year student Kalliope Anvar McCall said at a news conference Friday, said CBC News. “They’re trying to force us to accept these outrageous terms by threatening to clear us out at the same time.”

But despite the trespass notice, a lone media outlet, the National Post, reported that an encampment organizer said the administration agreed to meet Sunday to continue negotiations.

The encampment at the university, the largest school in Canada with an enrollment of nearly 62,000 students, was set up May 2.

Encampments were also established at other major Canadian post-secondary schools, including the University of Ottawa, University of British Columbia and McGill University.