Bahrain: Opposition Fears Effects of Iran-West Tensions

Source: Voice of America
Phillip Walter Wellman | Dubai

Opposition supporters in Bahrain have expressed concern that escalating tensions between Iran and the West may further stifle their calls for democratic reform in the Persian Gulf kingdom.

Bahrain’s majority Shi’ite Muslims took to the streets nearly a year ago demanding a new government and more rights from their Sunni leaders.

The country continues to crack down on pro-democracy demonstrations and blames Shi’ite-ruled Iran for inciting the civil unrest.

Last month, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa alleged that Syria, which is also ruled by Shi’ites, was training young Bahrainis to overthrow the ruling family.

Bahrain’s main opposition party, al-Wefaq disputes the claims.

"We would like to be isolated from the international conflicts," said Matar Matar,a spokesperson for the group. "We are worried about those conflicts and their impact on our country."

Western nations have agreed on sanctions targeting Iran’s lucrative oil industry, hoping they will force the country to abandon its uranium enrichment program.

Tehran insists its nuclear work is for peaceful purposes and has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, a major route for world oil traffic, in response to the sanctions.

The United States says it will use force if necessary to keep the strategic waterway open, sparking fears of a confrontation in the Persian Gulf.

Al-Wefaq spokesman Matar says these tensions may provide an advantage for Bahraini authorities. "It is easy for the regime here to utilize this conflict and blame Iran for everything happening here in Bahrain and such tone can be accepted in the United States," he said.

Bahrain’s opposition has criticized America and its allies for what it sees as a failure to press the Bahraini government to end its deadly assault on civilian demonstrators.

The U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet is based in Bahrain, adding to the complexity of the situation.

Theodore Karasik is director of research at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis.

"Within the U.S. foreign policy establishment there’s a split between those who believe that Iran is behind what’s ongoing in Bahrain and those that do not. Because of the U.S.’s relationship with the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), however, public officials have to go on-record saying that this looks like an Iranian plot," said Karasik.

The oil-producing monarchies of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, both wary of Iran’s nuclear ambitions, sent troops to Bahrain last year to help quell the anti-government uprising.

However, according to Julien Barnes-Dacey, senior policy fellow with the European Council on Foreign Relations, the efforts of Bahrain’s Gulf neighbors were propelled more by fears that the pro-democracy movement would spread to their shores than by fears of Iran gaining more influence in the region.

"This is a domestic issue at the end of the day. Saudis are using, and the Bahraini regime are using this accusation of Iranian involvement to crack down on the protesters, but that’s a false narrative and it’s been quite comprehensively shown that there hasn’t been Iranian involvement," said Barnes-Dacey.

Rights groups say more than 50 Bahrainis have been killed since demonstrations began last February, including four last week. The government denies it was responsible for the latest deaths.

Most analysts like Barnes-Dacey say the situation in Bahrain is likely to continue unchanged unless outside nations intervene.

"The international community really needs to be doing more there to exert pressure and to push the Bahraini government regime to lighten the repressive measures in place and to really give the segment of the population greater political and economic rights," said the analyst.

However, as Bahrain sits both geographically and politically at the center of a geostrategic struggle between Saudi Arabia and Iran, other experts say that increased international condemnation is unlikely to be heard anytime soon.

"It’s just a case of sometimes you’re caught in a bad place and I think they may be," said Jason Naselli, managing editor at the Atlantic Community.

In a bid to improve the political situation in the country, Bahrain's government recently announced a set of constitutional reforms, giving members of parliament more power to question ministers and more protection from dismissal by the king.

Opposition leaders say the changes will do little to stop the unrest.

Russia: Fighting Eviction on Millionaires' Street

Millionaires' Street in St Petersburg, a once glorious row of palatial houses is now in shocking disrepair and subject to the worst elements of predatory property developers and corrupt city officials, with residents facing sudden evictions.

Peru: After publishing document on wiretapping, journalists experience harassment and threats

Source: IFEX

(IPYS/IFEX) - On 27 January 2012, journalist Eduardo García, chief of the investigations unit of Lima TV station ATV+, denounced that he, his camera operator, and the station’s press director, have been threatened, harassed and persecuted after they published an intelligence document about a well-known case of telephone interception involving a former candidate to become mayor of Lima, Lourdes Flores Nano.

García told IPYS that on 23 January, during the program “Primera Noticia”, the journalists published an intelligence document that implicates an important businessman linked to real estate, a former police colonel and a congressman in the 'tapping' of Flores Nano's conversations.

According to García, the sources who leaked the document stated that it had been presented to the prosecutor in charge of the case, Walter Milla, but he had not taken it into account during the investigation. After the document was made public, minister of the interior Daniel Lozada described the material as apocryphal. The journalists also reported that their phones have been intercepted. They suspect the government itself is using this strategy to find out who are the sources that leaked the information.

This morning Augusto Álvarez Rodrich, director and presenter of “Primera Noticia”, arrived at the Prosecutor’s Office with his investigations team to deliver the information that was made public. Álvarez Rodrich denounced the harassment against his journalists stating that “It is not possible that the government itself is harassing and persecuting journalists who are only doing their work by denouncing acts of corruption”.

IPYS condemns the harassment suffered by these journalists and demands that the authorities identify and sanction whoever is responsible for the threats against the ATV+ investigations team.

UK: EU drags Britain into abyss

Source: Pravda

Darya Deryabina

Bignes

Great Britain did not welcome the euro and preferred to keep the good old British pound sterling at some point of its history. However, the country found itself in deep debt, like many of its European partners. Every minute of the EU membership costs London 100,000 pounds. Many Britons pinned their hopes on the Conservatives, but the latter failed to cope with the financial crisis.

Common British people were ready to worship David Cameron after Gordon Brown failed to handle the burden of responsibility, which he had inherited from his predecessor Tony Blair. It became obvious for many that the two-party majority system was unable to handle the financial crisis. The British associate the Conservatives with the deeds of Mr. Winston Churchill. However, it becomes obvious nowadays that the global economic plague has reached the world's most stable reserve currency - the pound.

Surprisingly, Britain suffered from the world financial crisis most in Europe. The GDP of the country has dropped by five percent during the post-crisis period, which became the worst result among all developed countries. There is a list of countries, for which the EU recommends to scrape and save. It particularly goes about the PIGS team - Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain. However, all those recommendations do not touch upon London. The United Kingdom is a member of the European Union, although it does not use the EU currency. Therefore, the problems of the Eurozone are not the problems of the British administration.

It is worthy of note, though, that the difference between the currency reserves and the common debt of the country is immense. Britain's debt obligations make up more than a trillion pounds, which is 64.2 percent of the GDP. EU officials criticize London saying that it was the joint European market that let England become one of the world's financial centers - a quiet harbor which attracts investors from the whole world.

David Cameron faces a tough choice now: either to pull out from the European Union or follow the common rules of the game. London has never been affectionate to other countries of the European Union. Britain is still full of imperialism, no matter how hard British politicians try to cover it. British Finance Minister (the Chancellor) George Osborne hurries to cut the budget deficit to prove to his counterparts that his country has all reasons to veto the innovations of the European Union.

As usual, we can see that the Conservatives are more concerned about the condition of state finances rather than external obligations, which the country has to its creditors.

However, the United States feels more or less ok with its foreign debt of $15 trillion. America continues to give the world a long song and dance about the stability of the dollar. The pound does not have to worry about anything against such a background.

The Labor Party has brought discredit upon itself. Last year's riots in Britain clearly showed that the people were fed up with the governments that tried to play with European neighbors. The Cabinet of Ministers capitulated in the situation when the split in the British society became evident.

As for the public opinion of the British citizens, only ten percent of them want to join the EU. Twenty-nine percent want England to pull out from the shattering organization, a poll conducted by YouGov said. Every minute of membership costs London 100,000 pounds. The budget of the country loses nearly 50 billion every year.

Iran: South Africa to expand economic relations with Iran

Source: IRNA

Arak, Jan 30, IRNA – South Africa is willing to expand economic relations with Iran, South African Ambassador to Iran Ibrahim Mohammad Saley said here Monday/

He made the remarks in a meeting with some Iranian businessman and craftsman in Iran’s Markazi Province.

The official underlined the facilitation of visa issuance for Iranian merchants, adding that South Africa is the gate of Africa continent.

There are good marine potentials for the exchange of goods between the two countries and also good potentials in case of attracting investment for joint cooperation in production of goods.

Arak Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Mines Mohammad-Reza Ja'fari for his part declared that Iran's Markazi Province has good capacities for development of economic ties with foreign countries, including South Africa.

Iran and South Africa relation is both economically and politically quite warm and have continued to expand.

South Africa and Iran share historical bilateral relations and the latter supported the South African liberation movements. It severed official relations with South Africa in 1979 and imposed a trade boycott in protest against the country’s apartheid policies. However, in January 1994, Iran lifted all trade and economic sanctions against South Africa and diplomatic relations were reestablished on 10 May 1994.

Iran supported the African National Congress (the majority party in the South African government) as long ago as the apartheid era and has since been a major supplier of oil and infrastructure aid to South Africa. A decade after the restoration of Iranian-South African diplomatic ties, South African Defense Minister Patrick Mosiuoa Lekota visited Iran to discuss defense related cooperation between South Africa and Iran. In March 2008, the two countries held a meeting in Tehran to discuss shipping and technical cooperation, and in January 2009 they held discussions in Pretoria on increasing bilateral trade, nuclear issues, and regional cooperation.

South Africa has always reiterated its position on Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear technology, stating that the IAEA, not the UN Security Council, should deal with the issue. South Africa has insisted that once Iran’s program is deemed peaceful by the IAEA, the international community should treat Iran with equal nuclear rights

Ethiopia: Ethiopia receives 35,000 Sudanese immigrants - Hailemariam

Government of Ethiopia

Addis Ababa, January 30, 2012 (Addis Ababa) - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said as a result of the conflict and tense situation in the Sudan, an estimated 35,000 people were displaced and entered into Ethiopian refugee camps.

In his keynote address at the launch of the Iinternational Organization for Migrants (IOM) 2011 report here on Monday, the IOM has transported 17,000 Sudanese refugees from the different border enrty points to new transit centers in Ethiopia.

Hailemariam said Ethiopia has received and is providing the necessary care to the immigrants.

He said the IOM has sent 17,000 of the stated number of refugees have been repatriated voluntarily to their homeland recently.

Hailemariam said Ethiopia is pursuing a policy of receiving immigrants that are coming to its land and providing care until their problem is resolved.

According to IOM report, there are 214 million estimated number of international migrants worldwide.

The total number of international migrants has increased over the last 10 years from an estimated 150 million in 20002 to 214 million persons today.

One of out of every 33 persons in the world today is a migrant (whereas in 2000 one out of every 35 persons was a migrant).

The percentage of migrants has remained relatively stable as a share of the total population, increasing by only 0.2 per cent (from 2.9 to 3.1 per cent), over the last decade, however, the percentage of migrants varies greatly from country to country.

Countries with a high percentage of migrants include Qatar (87 per cent), United Arab Emirates (70 per cent), Jordan (46 per cent), Singapore (41 per cent), and Saudi Arabia (28 per cent).

Drought: Drought affects millions in the Sahel

World Food Programme

For the third time in a decade, drought has returned to the Sahel region of West Africa bringing hunger to millions of people across the region. WFP is pre-positioning food assistance ahead of the annual lean season when the vulnerable – especially women and children – are most at risk of malnutrition.

NIAMEY—Drought has hit the Sahel region this year just as many families are still in the process of rebuilding their lives, and re-stocking cattle after the last food crisis which struck in 2010.

The annual lean season - when food supplies run low ahead of the next harvest - is approaching, and WFP is pre-positioning food in areas where people are expected to struggle to feed their families.

Wide-scale drought

Late and erratic rains in the Sahel have hurt crops across a huge swathe of territory that includes parts of Niger, Mauritania, Mali, Chad, Senegal, Gambia, Burkina Faso and northern Nigeria.

Farmers in the region have seen harvests fall by 14 percent in Burkina Faso and 46 percent in Mauritania.

Families who were unable to grow enough food to feed themselves this year will be hard pressed to buy food on local markets and levels of food insecurity are already on the rise.

The government of Niger says that over 5.5 million people in the country are at risk of going hungry and that a rapid response will be needed to avert a full scale food crisis.

In Chad, 6 out of 11 regions in the Sahelian parts of the country are reporting “critical” levels of malnutrition, with the other 5 at levels described as “serious”.

Reaching the hungry

WFP is currently scaling up to reach some 3.3 million people in Niger, 750,000 people in Mali and 400,000 people in Mauritania.

In regions suffering from high rates of malnutrition, that will mean providing small children and their mothers with special food products to protect against the long-term effects of child hunger.

In other areas, it will mean giving their parents food rations in exchange for work on projects like irrigation ditches that will help them to weather the strain droughts in the future.

Myanmar: “An important time in Myanmar’s history”

UN Human Rights Council

30 January 2012

GENEVA – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea Quintana, will undertake a mission to Myanmar, from 31 January to 5 February, at the invitation of the Government.

“We are all witnessing significant developments in Myanmar and this mission will take place at an important moment in the country’s history,” he said. “My main objective is to assess the country’s human rights situation in light of these developments and as a follow-up to my last mission in August 2011.”

During his six-day visit, the independent expert, designated by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor and report on the situation in Myanmar, will meet with Government ministers, members of Parliament, the recently-established National Human Rights Commission and various other relevant stakeholders.

On 5 February, at the end of his mission, Mr. Ojea Quintana will present preliminary observations at a press conference in Yangon, with further details to follow. His full report on the visit will be presented to the upcoming 19th session of the Human Rights Council.

Trade: WTO Rules in Favor of European Union against China's Export Restraints on Raw Materials

SOURCE Delegation of the European Union to the United States

The Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO) confirmed today the findings made by a Panel in July 2011 that China's export restrictions on several industrial raw materials are in breach of WTO rules. The WTO found that China's export restrictions are not justified for reasons of environmental protection or conservation policy.

Today's final ruling was welcomed by Europe's trade chief. "This final ruling is a great success in our efforts to ensure fair access to the much needed raw materials for EU industry," said EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht. "Today's decision has confirmed that China's export restrictions on these raw materials are incompatible with the WTO rules. It sends a clear signal that such measures cannot be used as a protectionist tool to boost domestic industry at the expense of foreign competition. China now must comply by removing these export restrictions swiftly and furthermore, I expect China to bring its overall export regime – including for rare earths - in line with WTO rules."

The Appellate Body confirmed the clear findings made by the Panel in its report last summer. The Panel found that the export duties and quotas imposed by China on various raw materials (various forms of: bauxite, coke, fluorspar, magnesium, manganese, silicon carbide, silicon metal, yellow phosphorus and zinc) are protectionist measures in breach of WTO rules and that China failed to justify them. The Appellate Body in particular upheld the finding that China has committed unconditionally in its Accession Protocol to the WTO not to levy export duties and that this commitment cannot be reduced by reverting to the general exceptions of the GATT.

The EU welcomes today's decision as a significant recognition of the interdependence of all WTO Members – whether developed or developing – when it comes to non-discriminatory access to raw material supplies as a fundamental principle underlying the global trading system.

The EU supports and encourages all countries to promote an environmentally friendly and sustainable production of raw materials. However, the EU strongly believes that export restrictions do not contribute to this aim. There are more effective environmental protection measures that do not discriminate against foreign industry.

Background

China applies export restrictions on key raw materials, some of which cannot be sourced outside China.

Export restrictions create serious disadvantages for foreign producers by artificially increasing China's export prices and driving up world prices. At the same time, such restrictions artificially lower China's domestic prices for the raw materials due to significant increases in domestic supply. This gives China's domestic downstream industry significant competitive advantages and puts pressure on foreign producers to move their operations and technologies to China.

As dialogue has not proven successful, the EU decided to have recourse to the WTO dispute settlement mechanism for an important set of raw materials. Restrictions on these materials have caused concerns for European industry such as the chemical, steel and non-ferrous metal industries, as well as their downstream clients, ranging from producers of beverage cans, CDs, electronics, automotives, ceramics, refrigerators, batteries and medicines and many more.

The export restrictions challenged include mainly export quotas (bauxite, coke, fluorspar, silicon carbide and zinc) and export duties (bauxite, coke, fluorspar, magnesium, manganese, silicon metal, yellow phosphorus and zinc) as well as some claims related to technical aspects of China's administration of export quotas and licenses and to a minimum export price.

The WTO dispute settlement case was initiated on June 23, 2009, by the EU and U.S., followed by Mexico. Consultations were held with China but no amicable solution was found. A WTO Panel was established on December 21, 2009. A first ruling by a WTO Panel was issued on July 5, 2011, upholding most of the EU's claims. China appealed certain aspects of this ruling on August 31, 2011. A hearing took place before the WTO's Appellate Body on November 7-9, 2011.

The Appellate Body upheld all main claims raised by the EU. For procedural reasons, the Appellate Body was not in a position to rule on some additional claims on technical aspects of China's administration of export quotas and licenses and to a minimum export price.

In terms of next steps, the EU (and the co-complainants) will request the adoption of the reports by the WTO Dispute Settlement Body within 30 days. China will then have to bring its measures in compliance with the rulings within a reasonable period of time.

Economy: Zombie Debtors & Clown Bankers

Every week Max Keiser looks at all the scandal behind the financial news headlines. In this episode, Max Keiser and co-host, Stacy Herbert, discuss banking zombies and clowns and their magical thinking on zero rates while starving the economy of interest income. In the second half of the show, Max talks to Ned Naylor-Leyland about the silver, gold, backwardation, manipulation and more.

Darfur: More needs to be done to enhance Darfur’s peace process

A strong political will, adequate financial resources and strengthened operations to help Darfur’s vulnerable population are needed to accelerate the peace and reconciliation process in Sudan, a senior United Nations official said today.

Wrapping up his six-day visit to the African country, Assistant Secretary-General for the Rule of Law and Security Institutions, Dmitry Titov, stressed that efforts need to be increased in the areas of security and justice as well as in the implementation of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) signed in Qatar last year.

Mr. Titov emphasized that the recent positive steps by the Government and one of the rebel groups to implement the agreement represent a new stage for Darfurians and underscored the importance of keeping this momentum going by bringing non-signatory parties into the peace process.

The Sudanese Government and the rebel Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) signed the DDPD in July last year, with the document forming the basis for a permanent ceasefire and comprehensive peace agreement to end the fighting that began more than eight years ago.

During his visit Mr. Titov met with Government officials in Khartoum as well as local officials in North Darfur. He underlined the need to strengthen cooperation between UN Police and local law enforcement forces in conjunction with the capacity of the local judiciary and prosecution service.

He also reiterated the supporting role of the UN-African Union (AU) joint peacekeeping operation in Darfur (UNAMID) to help the country build up its security capabilities, but stated that to do this UNAMID requires freedom of access to all areas concerned, as well as the lifting of restrictions on the movement of UN staff. In this context, he stressed that the AU and the UN are here to assist the authorities of Darfur to establish peace.

“We are here to understand the current needs and priorities of the mission, and provide support and guidance,” Mr. Titov said.

Citing changing attitudes in the Government’s cooperation with UNAMID, Mr. Titov discussed the need for additional advocacy, awareness raising, training, capacity building and other forms of support in the areas of rule of law and security institutions. Regarding ongoing discussions between UNAMID and the Government on ordinance disposal activities, it was agreed that those activities will continue while discussions proceed on expanded cooperation in this area.

During his visit, Mr. Titov also visited the Abu Shouk community policing centre and Tawila camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs), where he met with IDP representatives and registered their concerns for safety and security at their places of origin and the level of humanitarian support.

Fukushima: UN experts begin assessment of effects of Fukushima nuclear accident

IAEA fact-finding team examines devastation at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in May 2011. Photo: IAEA/Greg Webb

UN - Sixty international experts assessing the radiation exposures and health effects resulting from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan last March kicked off a week-long meeting today in Vienna.

“We are putting together a jigsaw puzzle, evaluating the exposures of the general public, of workers, and radiation effects, and looking for the missing pieces,” said Wolfgang Weiss, Chair of the UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR).

The power plant was damaged following a massive earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011 that knocked out water cooling systems at the plant, contaminating air, water, plants and animals with radioactive plumes dozens of kilometres from the site.

This week’s meeting will explore where there are critical gaps in the data that are available, where additional focus is required, and how to ensure the quality and reliability of what the assessment is based on, according to Mr. Weiss.

Japan is providing data to the Committee together with input from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

A preliminary report will be provided to UNSCEAR’s annual meeting, to be held between 21 to 25 May, and a final report to the UN General Assembly in 2013.

Established in 1955, UNSCEAR is tasked with undertaking broad reviews of the sources of ionizing radiation and the effects on human health and the environment.

Its assessments provide a scientific foundation for UN agencies and governments to formulate standards and programmes for protection against ionizing radiation.

Corruption: Two Japanese Companies, Four Execs Guilty in Automobile Parts Bid-Rigging and Price-Fixing Conspiracies

FBI

On January 30, the Department of Justice and the FBI announced that two Japanese suppliers of automotive electrical components agreed to plead guilty and pay a total of $548 million in criminal fines for their role in multiple price-fixing and bid-rigging conspiracies in the sale of parts to car makers in the United States. Four executives, all Japanese nationals, also agreed to plead guilty and serve prison time in this country.

One of the companies engaged in three separate conspiracies to rig bids and fix prices of automobile wire harnesses, instrument panel clusters, and fuel sends, while the other engaged in conspiracies to rig bids and fix prices of electronic control units and heater control panels. All of these parts are essential to the wiring, circuit boards, gauges, and fuel tanks of automobiles.

According to FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Andrew Arena, “This criminal activity has a significant impact on automotive manufacturers in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Europe and had been occurring for at least a decade.” Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis Pozen said that the subjects “carried out the conspiracies by agreeing during meetings and conversations to allocate the supply of the products on a model-by-model basis and to coordinate price adjustments requested by automobile manufacturers in the U.S. and elsewhere.”

The case—worked by the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, the Department of Justice’s National Criminal Enforcement Section of its Antitrust Division, and the FBI’s International Corruption Unit—was coordinated with international antitrust partners in Japan, the European Union, and Canada. This is the second round of charges in an ongoing international cartel investigation of price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry.

Nuclear Issues: Nuke Free Middle East Meet 'A Priority Issue' - Interview with UN General Assembly President Al-Nasser

2012 IDN-InDepthNews | Analysis That Matters

Interview with UN General Assembly President Al-Nasser
By Ramesh Jaura

BERLIN | NEW YORK (IDN) - UN General Assembly (UNGA) President Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser is committed to convening a conference directed at establishing a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Middle East.

"I continue both personally and through my office to lend all possible support to formal and informal efforts and events dedicated to a timely convening of the 2012 conference. These efforts will continue," Al-Nasser told Global Perspectives, IDN's monthly magazine for international cooperation, in a wide-ranging, exclusive question-and-answer interview.

The conference, he pointed out, is a key interest of the 193-member world body which has on numerous occasions endorsed the importance of keeping the Middle East free of nuclear weapons, "in the context of promoting international peace."

Other highlights from UNGA activities covered in the interview included the Arab Awakening, Palestinian membership of the UN, the Millennium Development Goals, South-South cooperation and aid effectiveness.

Al-Nasser who is from Qatar assumed the UNGA presidency on June 22, 2011 after a rich and varied diplomatic career. He was Qatar’s permanent representative (ambassador) to the UN from 1988 to 2011. During that period, he was president of the UNGA high level committee on South-South cooperation, and chairman of the Group of 77 and China.

The UNGA President's commitment to pursuing the nuclear-weapons-free zone conference falls within the four priority areas he has selected for emphasis during his term in office: mediation and the peaceful settlement of disputes, UN reform and revitalization, improving disaster preparedness and response, and sustainable development and global prosperity.

In other comments related to the Middle East he said that the international community has “a moral and practical duty” to support the Arab Awakening.

Full text of the interview follows.

Q: What would you describe as the highlights of your term as president of the UN General Assembly until now?

Al-Nasser: Since I took over the Presidency, it has been a very busy period not only for the United Nations but also the international community as a whole, with the UN General Assembly getting increasingly vocal on issues of democracy and human rights. This is particularly relevant in the context of the countries experiencing the Arab Awakening. The Assembly has been active in encouraging the necessary global partnership to assist the governments and people in the Arab World to benefit from this Arab Awakening.

I have enjoyed very close collaboration with the UN Secretary-General Mr. Ban Ki-moon. We had two important joint visits to Libya and Somalia to show the UN working as one to help address the challenges facing millions of people, especially women and children, in these two countries. In the context of Libya, I effectively used my authority and leadership as President of the General Assembly to restore the legitimacy of the Libyan people’s representation at the UN by inviting the Transitional National Council to take the Libyan seat in the General Assembly.

Another significant moment has been to preside over the General Assembly’s General Debate in September when we all watched Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas articulate Palestine’s case for recognition as a Member State of the UN and submitted its application amidst thunderous applause. This is undoubtedly a high point of my Presidency.

During my Presidency of the GA so far, the GA has adopted a much-welcomed resolution on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases. Its particular importance lies in the fact that these diseases are now the biggest cause of death worldwide, with millions of people in the developing countries being the victims. But many of these deaths are preventable and this resolution is aimed at addressing this unacceptable situation.

I also travelled to Finland, Switzerland, Japan, and Korea in the context of various dimensions of the work of the General Assembly, especially those related to the four key themes I have chosen for the on-going session of the General Assembly, namely, Mediation and the peaceful settlement of disputes; UN reform and revitalization; Improving disaster preparedness and response and Sustainable development and global prosperity.

There is still much more work to be done in the remaining eight months of this session. The complexity of the multilateral process, political sensitivity of the member-states, big or small and the elaborate maze of responsibility that the President has to undertake in steering smoothly the work of the world’s most universal and highest-level forum is difficult to outline in an interview like this.

Q: Do you expect the Arab Spring to profoundly impact the work of the UN in general and of the General Assembly in particular?

Al-Nasser: I would describe the events that are unfolding in the Arab world as the Arab Awakening rather than the Arab Spring as that is much better forward-looking description of what has happened and is ongoing. I believe that the Arab world is going through a very significant moment in the history of the Middle East, perhaps more significant than the decolonization era. At this point, the international community has a moral and practical duty to support the call for equality, social justice and a better future coming out of the Arab world. But it is essential to point out that the democratic transformation should be accompanied by an economic and social transformation that is home-grown and that asserts national ownership. The UN has a central role in building consensus and galvanizing collective political will in favour of this transformational process. The UN can provide capacity development opportunities to these countries. In fact, the UN has dispatched its experts to Tunisia, Egypt and Libya in exploratory missions to assess the areas where UN assistance is needed and could be provided upon request of these countries. Anyone who has been following last September’s General Debate at the UN would have realized that the majority of world leaders were supportive of this on-going wave of freedom and democracy in the Arab world.

Q: Are there any realistic prospects of Palestine becoming a full member of the UN in the near future – by 2014, for example, 40 years after PLO was given an observer status at the UN?

Al-Nasser: I cannot see any reason why this shouldn’t be the case. The Palestinian people have the right to pursue or seek the membership of any international body including that of the General Assembly as sovereign peace-loving state. We have all witnessed the very supportive response that Member States and delegations gave to the speech by President Abbas on Palestine’s application for full UN membership.

As you may well know, already many countries have recognized the state of Palestine. A Security Council Committee has submitted its report to the Council on this matter. The Palestinians have not announced their plans yet about the next course of action that they would prefer. If the Palestinians take their bid to the General Assembly seeking a permanent observer status as a state, then just a simple majority of those present and voting (out of the total UN membership of 193) is required. Let us see what the Palestinian leadership decides.

Q: The UN Millennium Development Goals envisage eradication of extreme poverty and hunger by 2015. But on all accounts very little has been achieved by now to fulfil that ambitious goal. On top of it, according to a UN report, the US-EU financial crisis is threatening to spill over to developing countries. Is there anything the GA can do, has done and plans to do to avert things getting from bad to worse?

Al-Nasser: The Millennium Developments Goals (MDGs) are very practical benchmarks in measuring progress of the global development cooperation, as identified by the United Nations. It was under the auspices of the General Assembly that world leaders gathered in New York in September 2000 and agreed on these very important landmark goals. A lot of work has gone into the achievement of the MDGs and a number of countries have done well in making progress with regard to one or more goals. I am, of course, aware that a lot more needs to be done by all of us if we are to achieve these goals.

I would urge all Member States to double and intensify their efforts as the 2015 deadline approaches fast. Despite the worldwide economic and financial downturn, I believe it is in our best collective interest to do our best for the achievement of the MDGs.

In all my meetings with world leaders, ministers and other high officials I continue to urge them to do more for “Sustainable Development and Global Prosperity” which is one the four areas of special focus of my Presidency. This is why the upcoming UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in June in Brazil is very important. It can surely give an extra push to efforts towards the achievement of the MDGs and take the UN’s development agenda forward.

Q: You are known to be a champion of South-South cooperation. Is there any prospect of such cooperation preventing an MDG fiasco, influencing public opinion and impacting life on the ground as North-South development cooperation has done all these years?

Al-Nasser: Yes, I have been personally deeply interested and involved in issues pertaining to South-South and Triangular Cooperation. In fact, I have had the honour of serving as the Chairman of the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Committee on South-South Cooperation, until the successful outcome of the High-Level UN Conference on South-South Cooperation in Nairobi in 2009.

I have a strong conviction that South-South cooperation has the real potential of tackling the development challenges of our time and triggering sustainable development in the developing world.

As I have underlined many times, I would also like to emphasize again that South-South cooperation does not replace North-South cooperation. They complement each other. South-South and Triangular cooperation are more relevant today than ever before, especially when you consider the economic successes of some key countries in the South as well as some of the successful innovative solutions that are being shared, replicated and scaled-up among nations of the global South.

Q: Have any new signals emerged for South-South cooperation from the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan?

Al-Nasser: I welcome the Busan Outcome Document adopted by ministers and high-level officials of developed and developing nations including emerging economies as well as civil society organizations. It is important that the document pledged to “establish a new, inclusive and representative global partnership for effective development co-operation”. We should always recognize that development aid becomes effective when it engages communities, civil society, the private sector and government, to collaborate and seek synergies based on national development priorities and framework.

It is encouraging that the Busan Forum agreed to "broaden support for South-South and triangular cooperation, helping to tailor these horizontal partnerships to a greater diversity of country contexts and needs." It is good that the international community agreed to make "fuller use of South-South and triangular cooperation, recognizing the success of these approaches to date and the synergies they offer".

Q: What role do you think the GA could possibly play in ensuring that the conference on a nuclear-weapons-free Middle East takes place this year as scheduled and that it brings forth positive results?

Al-Nasser: The General Assembly has identified nuclear disarmament as one of its top priorities since 1978, at its First Special Session on Disarmament. A good number of resolutions presented to the Assembly for endorsement include clear cut references to the importance of the goal to establish a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in the Middle East in the context of promoting international peace and security.

This year, in addition to the adoption of its annual consensus resolution entitled "Establishment of a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in the Region of the Middle East", the General Assembly adopted another resolution, entitled "The Risk of Nuclear Proliferation in the Middle East", where specific reference has been made to the 2012 Conference on the establishment of a Zone Free from Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Middle East and where the Conference has been strongly endorsed.

On various occasions, including through my statement before the First Committee of the General Assembly, I welcomed the appointment by the UN Secretary-General of a Facilitator from Finland, Mr. Jaakko Laajava. I have offered the support of the General Assembly as a whole to facilitate his task in convening of a successful conference this year, in line with the consensus outcome document of the 2010 Review Conference of States Parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

To demonstrate the importance of this issue on my agenda, I dispatched a senior representative from my office to participate, as an observer, at the Forum convened in November 2011 by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Relevant Experiences of Other Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones to the establishment of a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in the Middle East. I continue, both personally and through my office, to lend all possible support to formal and informal efforts and events dedicated to a timely convening of the 2012 Conference. These efforts will continue.

Q: The GA has been labouring hard for years for reform of the UN Security Council as much-needed re-calibration in response to geopolitical transformation. Do you see any prospects of such a reform by 2015, 70 years after the founding of the UN?

Al-Nasser: I believe reform of the Security Council lies at the heart of revitalizing decision-making on international peace and security by the United Nations. This is one of the four priority areas I have chosen for my Presidency. The first meeting of the 8th round of intergovernmental negotiations took place last November, chaired by Afghan Ambassador Zahir Tanin, in whose leadership I have full confidence. I believe these negotiations are sending a clear message to the Member States about the need for achieving this long-overdue reform. As President of the General Assembly, I stay committed to a solution that reflects the collective will of all Member States. There was a new dynamic during the negotiations so I intend to capitalize on that by hosting a retreat on Security Council Reform in the coming few weeks. [IDN-InDepthNews – January 30, 2012]

Picture: UNGA President Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser | Credit: UN

Aid: Islamic agencies battle the odds in Gaza

Photo: Erica Silverman/IRIN. Homes destroyed during Israel's Operation Cast Lead have been reconstructed by Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH)

Source: IRIN

GAZA CITY, 30 January 2012 (IRIN) - Secours Islamique France is a respected aid agency, part of the global Islamic Relief network based in the UK, but when it comes to helping Palestinians in Gaza, its operations are challenged by both Israeli bureaucracy and its own “no-contact” policy with the Hamas officials who control the territory.

Hamas is branded a “terror” organization by most western countries, despite their victory in the 2006 Palestinian legislative council elections. That requires Secours Islamique France, and all other international charities working in Gaza, to tread extremely carefully to avoid falling foul of anti-terror legislation.

US rules, specifically their definition of providing support to terrorism, are the most stringent, according to a paper on Counter-terrorism and Humanitarian Action by the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG), part of Britain’s Overseas Development Institute. “In the US, no knowledge or intention to support terrorism per se is required [for criminal responsibility] if support is knowingly provided to a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization,” says the report.

In the UK, “having reasonable cause to suspect” that support will contribute to terrorist activity is enough to attract criminal responsibility.

This notion of "support" under US and UK anti-terror legislation means that, for example, when Secours Islamique France distributes milk and fortified biscuits daily to 10,000 pre-school children in Gaza, the INGO must only deal directly with the schools, to avoid any contact with the Education Ministry.

The Israeli blockade of Gaza, tightened after Hamas seized power in 2007, is an additional impediment to INGOs operating in the territory, increasing costs and affecting project oversight.

In terms of access by international staff, Secours Islamique France has repeatedly applied for permission to enter Gaza via Israel, but is refused each time, according to country director Adel Kaddum. The group is still awaiting the verdict on its 2010 request to officially register as an INGO in Israel; Islamic Relief UK, which delivers aid in 25 countries, applied several years ago but has yet to be approved.

While all INGOs operating in Gaza face similar frustrations, an aid worker, who asked not to be identified, said Israel’s objection to assistance reaching Hamas was sharpened by “Islamophobia” when that aid was delivered by Muslim charities.

At the practical level, Islamic INGOs face greater movement and access restrictions than other agencies because some are banned by the Israeli authorities, according to Ahmed Shurrab, including his own agency, Interpal.

But the restrictions are not insurmountable. “Israel has denied requests for permits for humanitarian staff to enter Gaza, but with the Rafah crossing [along the Gaza-Egypt border] functioning better, we [expect] international staff may be able to enter,” Muslim Hands International director Saed Salah told IRIN.

Financing, however, can be a problem, with US anti-terrorism legislation complicating transfers to NGOs operating in Gaza. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), under the US Treasury Department, administers and enforces economic sanctions against countries, groups and individuals deemed a threat.

“Banks are very sensitive, particularly in Gaza, and even if an entity is not marked by OFAC, it can still be assessed as a risk,” says the governor of the Palestine Monetary Authority, Jihad Al-Wazir.

Blacklisted

Interpal was defined as a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" that aids Hamas and was blacklisted by OFAC in 2003.

“Due to the banks being threatened by the US that they will lose their US operating licence if they deal with ‘terrorists’, we do not have full and open banking facilities,” Interpal’s Gaza field office manager, Mahmoud Lubbad, told IRIN. “That makes life difficult, but not impossible.”

Interpal’s UK headquarters are able to make Euro-denominated transfers directly to its implementing partners in Gaza.

The UK’s Charity Commission has launched two investigations into Interpal, and on both occasions concluded that the evidence did not substantiate (p.14) Washington’s claim that the organization was linked to political or militant activities.

In an out-of-court settlement in 2005 the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Britain’s leading Jewish organization, said it should not have described Interpal as a “terrorist organization”, in response to a libel suit filed by Interpal against the Board.

“We believe it was a political decision made at the request of the Israeli Foreign Ministry,” said Lubbad. “There was no due process, no investigation beforehand (and despite subsequent open invitations for the US government to send investigators to look us over, they have never been taken up) and it is a costly exercise to even request to be removed from the ‘terrorist’ list.”

Numbers increasing

However, despite the movement and access restrictions on humanitarian staff and supplies, and obstacles to the transfer of funds into Gaza, the number of Islamic INGOs working with the vulnerable in Gaza is actually increasing.

Ten new Islamic agencies have opened offices in Gaza since Israel’s large-scale military operation in Gaza – Operation Cast Lead - ended in January 2009, bringing the total to 24, according to Ayman Ayeish, information director of the Hamas-led Interior Ministry in Gaza. A total of 75 INGOs, and about 900 local NGOs, maintain offices in the territory.

Islamic aid groups based in Europe are noticeably more active than their counterparts from the US, a reflection of the different history and demographic of the two communities.

“The Muslim community in the UK works in local politics and has representation in Parliament, giving them more influence over policy,” said Muslim Hands director Saleh. “Most Muslims living in the US are more recent immigrants and less integrated into the community.”

According to an American-Muslim aid worker in Gaza: “The relationship between the US and Israel discourages US-based Islamic INGOs from delivering aid to the OPT... They may choose other areas to help people, due to the political sensitivities of the OPT, and the poor track record of receiving Israeli permits.”

Hitch's Thought For The Day: Jan 31, 2012

It is the duty of society to protect the vulnerable, not for the vulnerable to be sacrificed to protect society's elite