Taiwan is refusing to hire new workers from the Philippines after the country's coast guard shot dead a Taiwanese fisherman. That has put huge pressure on Taiwan's industries which are heavily reliant on overseas labour. More than 80,000 Filipinos are working in Taiwan. President Ma Ying Jeou has been criticized by some for setting unrealistic deadlines for action from the Philippines and by others for not being tough enough. Al Jazeera's Rob McBride reports from Taipei.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Africa: Huge challenges ahead as Africa celebrates 50 years of unity
Huge challenges ahead as Africa celebrates 50 years of unity
This week the African Union (AU) is hosting dignitaries from around the world to celebrate 50 years since the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), on Saturday 25 May. The organisers are expecting up to 15 000 invited quests, including 75 current and former heads of state, at the celebrations in Addis Ababa.
According to a project document of the AU’s Executive Council, $1,27 million has been set aside for these celebrations, out of a total of $3,37 million earmarked for various events throughout this year. Is this money well spent by the continental organisation, which is struggling to find funding for other crucial activities?
This comes as ordinary Africans still regard the AU as a distant organisation with little to offer them. The great achievement of the founding fathers of the OAU, created in Ethiopia in 1963, was to provide a platform for newly independent states to come together and support those African states still battling colonialism and apartheid. In the last ten years since the creation of the AU, which replaced the OAU, the organisation has been seen primarily as being responsible for peace and security on the continent – mediating in peace talks, monitoring elections, punishing coup leaders and, in rare cases, sending troops to conflict-ridden countries.
However, the work of the AU in making peace has left many ordinary Africans sceptical of its ability to impose its solutions to conflicts. Even if the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) does often mediate behind the scenes, it has struggled to communicate its role in the conflicts plaguing the continent. Where was the PSC in Mali, for example, where France intervened militarily earlier this year? Its sidelining during the Libyan crisis in 2011 and almost total absence that year during the Arab Spring that engulfed North Africa indicated the limits of the AU’s capacity to play a role in conflicts.
Meanwhile, the role of AU mediators in talks between northern and southern Sudan, as well as the AU’s fairly successful military deployments in places like Darfur and Somalia are not that well known. The AU certainly needs more visibility when it comes to its impact on these crises, which are often relegated to Regional Economic Communities.
The AU Commission’s new chairperson, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, has vowed to take the agenda of the AU further to include socio-economic development: the fight against poverty, the empowering of women and investment by the private sector. Addressing the World Economic Forum in Cape Town earlier this month, Dlamini-Zuma, for example, spoke about the importance of agriculture and the role of the private sector in ‘ensuring a prosperous and peaceful continent’. Since taking up the position of chairperson in October last year she has also stressed the role of women in lifting Africa out of poverty. She called on women to make sure their voices were heard in defining what the AU is calling its Agenda 2063 – a strategy for Africa over the next 50 years.
Is this a change of direction for the AU going forward? Will Africans see the impact of the AU on the continent’s economic development as time goes by? Or is this far too soon for a change of emphasis for the AU, with economic development in so many countries still being held back by political conflict (e.g. Zimbabwe and Côte d’Ivoire); strife from militant groups (e.g. Mali and Nigeria); and coup leaders who fail to leave office (e.g. Madagascar)?
Human rights activists have also emphasised the need for the AU to step up its efforts to ensure individuals in Africa have regional or continental recourse to justice if they do not have faith in their governments to protect them. The African Court on Human and People’s Rights and regional courts like the Economic Community of West African States Court of Justice in Burkina Faso and the Southern African Development Community Tribunal in Namibia still do not sufficiently provide for this. The AU’s lacklustre support for the International Criminal Court (ICC) is also seen as hampering the fight against impunity.
The AU Commission is now asking for inputs from around the continent for its Agenda 2063 project, which is to be presented to the 22nd Assembly of Heads of State and Government at its summit in January 2014, according to AU Commission’s planning documents. This is a complex challenge, since the AU is spreading itself very thin, straddling so many priorities and issues. For Africans to have faith in the AU as Africa’s only continental institution, it should be seen to be trustworthy and inspiring, levering funds for the benefit of all Africans.
Liesl Louw-Vaudran, ISS consultant
Cuba: Havana Evictions Highlight Housing Shortage
This article originally appeared in the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, www.iwpr.net
Havana Evictions Highlight Housing Shortage
Homeless Cubans squat in disused state properties.
By Lisbán Hernández Sánchez - Latin America
Housing is in such short supply in Cuba that many people end up squatting in public buildings. When local government evicts them, it rarely has alternative accommodation to offer them.
In one recent case, three families were left homeless after they were evicted from a disused health clinic in Alamar, a municipality close to the capital Havana. The evictions took place on April 9.
Ailet Hernández and her three children were among those forcibly removed from the premises by local government officers, police and Communist Party functionaries.
Hernández said she had previously applied for housing assistance, but had been fobbed off by officials who told her to wait and see, and her case might be dealt with.
Another of those evicted was Giorgio Rivera Olivera, who is living with HIV. He said he had written to the Cuban parliament and other state institutions about his housing needs but had received no response.
Rivera Olivera is now sleeping in an abandoned bus near the beach at Alamar, while Hernández and her children are sheltering at local bus terminals and hospitals, according to residents of the area.
An official from the local housing department who asked to remain anonymous said there was no accommodation available for those made homeless in the evictions.
The people evicted from the clinic are among an estimated 100,000 people on waiting lists for land plots or housing. Many squat in abandoned public buildings or on the land. (See also Squatters Take Over State Land in Cuba.)
The government is aware of the acute housing shortage. In a 2005 report, the state housing agency said Cuba was short of over half a million homes, and in order to fill the gap, it would have to build 80,000 homes annually – a quarter of them in Havana – over a ten-year period. But six years later, the housing deficit was officially put at 600,000 – higher than before.
To reduce the burden on the state, the Cuban authorities now subsidise residents to repair existing homes or build new ones.
Although evictions are now quite common, pro-government figures have denied they happen.
On a recent tour of Spain, the deputy head of the Cuban Association of Economists and Accountants, Hugo Pons, told the newspaper Público that in Cuba “the word eviction doesn’t exist – not only does it not exist, it isn’t part of the regulatory framework”. In the same article, state journalist Iroel Sánchez insisted that “they can’t throw you out of your house. Cubans don’t understand that; it isn’t part of their culture.”
Lisbán Hernández Sánchez is an independent journalist in Havana and founder of the Giraldilla Information Centre.
This article first appeared on IWPR's website.
Havana Evictions Highlight Housing Shortage
Homeless Cubans squat in disused state properties.
By Lisbán Hernández Sánchez - Latin America
Housing is in such short supply in Cuba that many people end up squatting in public buildings. When local government evicts them, it rarely has alternative accommodation to offer them.
In one recent case, three families were left homeless after they were evicted from a disused health clinic in Alamar, a municipality close to the capital Havana. The evictions took place on April 9.
Ailet Hernández and her three children were among those forcibly removed from the premises by local government officers, police and Communist Party functionaries.
Hernández said she had previously applied for housing assistance, but had been fobbed off by officials who told her to wait and see, and her case might be dealt with.
Another of those evicted was Giorgio Rivera Olivera, who is living with HIV. He said he had written to the Cuban parliament and other state institutions about his housing needs but had received no response.
Rivera Olivera is now sleeping in an abandoned bus near the beach at Alamar, while Hernández and her children are sheltering at local bus terminals and hospitals, according to residents of the area.
An official from the local housing department who asked to remain anonymous said there was no accommodation available for those made homeless in the evictions.
The people evicted from the clinic are among an estimated 100,000 people on waiting lists for land plots or housing. Many squat in abandoned public buildings or on the land. (See also Squatters Take Over State Land in Cuba.)
The government is aware of the acute housing shortage. In a 2005 report, the state housing agency said Cuba was short of over half a million homes, and in order to fill the gap, it would have to build 80,000 homes annually – a quarter of them in Havana – over a ten-year period. But six years later, the housing deficit was officially put at 600,000 – higher than before.
To reduce the burden on the state, the Cuban authorities now subsidise residents to repair existing homes or build new ones.
Although evictions are now quite common, pro-government figures have denied they happen.
On a recent tour of Spain, the deputy head of the Cuban Association of Economists and Accountants, Hugo Pons, told the newspaper Público that in Cuba “the word eviction doesn’t exist – not only does it not exist, it isn’t part of the regulatory framework”. In the same article, state journalist Iroel Sánchez insisted that “they can’t throw you out of your house. Cubans don’t understand that; it isn’t part of their culture.”
Lisbán Hernández Sánchez is an independent journalist in Havana and founder of the Giraldilla Information Centre.
This article first appeared on IWPR's website.
Bilateral Relations: Pakistan, China sign accords on economic, maritime cooperation
Islamabad, May 22, IRNA: Pakistan and China Wednesday signed several Agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for long-term Economic Corridor plan, maritime cooperation and satellite navigation.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang witnessed the signing ceremony as the representatives of the two countries inked the documents at a ceremony held at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.
These include the agreement on system of border check posts‚ and memoranda of understanding on economic and technical cooperation‚ cooperation in Oceanography and Technology‚ setting up of earthquake warning centers‚ cooperation in maritime traffic management between the countries and purchase of blister.
The MoU on Maritime Cooperation between the two governments, an Agreement on Boundary Management System between Chinaˈs Xinjiang and Pakistanˈs Gilgit-Baltistan area, and another Agreement on Border Ports and their Management System was signed by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Pakistanˈs Foreign Secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani.
The MoU on cooperation for long-term plan on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor between the two governments was inked by Xu Shao Shi, Chairman National Development and Reform Commission, China and Shahid Amjad Chaudhry, Advisor to the Prime Minister.
Chinaˈs Minister for Commerce Gao Hucheng and Pakistanˈs Secretary Economic Affairs Division Shahzad Arbab signed the Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation and the handing over certificate of Seismographic Network.
The MoU on cooperation in the field of marine science and technology between the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) of China and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Pakistan was signed by Administrator SOA and Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology Akhlaq Ahmad Tarar.
The Agreement between China Satellite Navigation Office (CSNO) and Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission for Cooperation (SUPARCO) was inked by Director CSNO, Ran Chengqi and Major General (r) Ahmed Bilal.
Nepal: In Nepal, press faces litigation for critical coverage of courts
IFEX
Committee to Protect Journalists
Judicial authorities in Nepal should stop targeting outlets of the Kathmandu-based Kantipur Publications and dismiss a case filed against the organization and one of its journalists that accuses them of contempt of court, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on May 16, 2013.
On Monday May 13, lawyer Anjani Kumar Pokhrel filed a case against Kantipur Publications and journalist Vijaya Kumar Pandey in connection with a critical column published on Saturday May 11 in the daily Kantipur, news reports said. Pokhrel also named Kailash Sirohiya, chairman of Kantipur Publications; Swastika Sirohiya, its director; and Kantipur Editor-in-Chief Sudheer Sharma as defendants, news reports said. Sharma told CPJ that this was a politically motivated case to suppress their media freedom. The media organization owns several widely circulated print publications, a national television network, and a radio station.
Pandey's article criticized a decision by a judge to expel journalist Ghanashyam Khadka from a courtroom on April 30 because of the journalist's attire, according to news reports. The Kantipur daily also said on May 3 that the Nepali judiciary had restricted reporters from its sister publications from covering open court sessions the day before.
Journalists with Kantipur Publications say they believe they are being targeted in retaliation for critical coverage by the organization's publications. In addition to Pandey's article in the Kantipur daily, several other Kantipur publications have also criticized the courts in recent weeks for clearing the way for the controversial appointment of a government official who has been accused of corruption and helping to suppress the 2006 Democracy Movement in Nepal.
In his complaint against Kantipur Publications, Pokhrel said that media criticism of the courts could cause the public to distrust the judiciary and the judges, and that the defendants should be punished to discourage the trend of interfering with the activities of the judiciary, news reports said. He urged the Supreme Court to impose a one-year jail term and a fine of Rs. 10,000 (US$114) on each defendant for tarnishing the image of the judiciary under section 7 of the Supreme Court Act, reports said.
On Wednesday May 15, the court ordered a review of Pandey's article, along with several other judiciary-related news reports published by Kantipur Publications since Khadka's expulsion from court.
"The media in Nepal must be free and unrestricted to report on the judiciary and its decisions," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "The judiciary must halt such attempts to obstruct and intimidate the press, which runs counter to democracy in Nepal."
Committee to Protect Journalists
Judicial authorities in Nepal should stop targeting outlets of the Kathmandu-based Kantipur Publications and dismiss a case filed against the organization and one of its journalists that accuses them of contempt of court, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on May 16, 2013.
On Monday May 13, lawyer Anjani Kumar Pokhrel filed a case against Kantipur Publications and journalist Vijaya Kumar Pandey in connection with a critical column published on Saturday May 11 in the daily Kantipur, news reports said. Pokhrel also named Kailash Sirohiya, chairman of Kantipur Publications; Swastika Sirohiya, its director; and Kantipur Editor-in-Chief Sudheer Sharma as defendants, news reports said. Sharma told CPJ that this was a politically motivated case to suppress their media freedom. The media organization owns several widely circulated print publications, a national television network, and a radio station.
Pandey's article criticized a decision by a judge to expel journalist Ghanashyam Khadka from a courtroom on April 30 because of the journalist's attire, according to news reports. The Kantipur daily also said on May 3 that the Nepali judiciary had restricted reporters from its sister publications from covering open court sessions the day before.
Journalists with Kantipur Publications say they believe they are being targeted in retaliation for critical coverage by the organization's publications. In addition to Pandey's article in the Kantipur daily, several other Kantipur publications have also criticized the courts in recent weeks for clearing the way for the controversial appointment of a government official who has been accused of corruption and helping to suppress the 2006 Democracy Movement in Nepal.
In his complaint against Kantipur Publications, Pokhrel said that media criticism of the courts could cause the public to distrust the judiciary and the judges, and that the defendants should be punished to discourage the trend of interfering with the activities of the judiciary, news reports said. He urged the Supreme Court to impose a one-year jail term and a fine of Rs. 10,000 (US$114) on each defendant for tarnishing the image of the judiciary under section 7 of the Supreme Court Act, reports said.
On Wednesday May 15, the court ordered a review of Pandey's article, along with several other judiciary-related news reports published by Kantipur Publications since Khadka's expulsion from court.
"The media in Nepal must be free and unrestricted to report on the judiciary and its decisions," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "The judiciary must halt such attempts to obstruct and intimidate the press, which runs counter to democracy in Nepal."
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