News Wrap – 7th May
May 7, 2008
1. Aid agencies battle to help Burma
“Up to 60,000 people killed and one million left homeless by Burmese cyclone – but ruling junta obstructs global aid efforts”
Travel documents are proving a major obstacle. This, according to one aid worker:
“Today a team called in and said they’ve arrived on the tip of the [Irrawaddy] delta; 40,000 dead in one village (Pyin Su La in Labutta). Corpses everywhere. Stinking. No food. No water. And the government won’t allow NGOs to work in areas where they don’t have official permission. Of the 40 NGOs working in Burma, only four have permission to work in the affected area.”
2. Landslide victory for Obama in North Carolina
“Clinton had needed to win both North Carolina and Indiana, the last two big states left in the contest, to stand a chance of reining in Obama.”
Could this be the end?
Clinton: “It is full speed to the White House,”
Damn.
Still, reality may soon bite:
“As of Tuesday morning, most people were expecting a narrow Obama win in North Carolina and a handy Clinton victory in Indiana. But just the opposite happened, and dramatically so. Her campaign had been building up expectations that they had Obama on the run and the momentum was all her way. Now she has no momentum. Or, as it happens, money.”
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/michael_tomasky/2008/05/the_end_of_the_line_1.html
3. More on the Food Crisis
The Herald Tribune carries an interesting opinion piece on food aid and subsidies. Apparently, while European countries provide all their food aid in cash,
“The United States… still buys all of its aid from American farmers and then pays to ship the food overseas. This wastes millions on overhead and shipping costs, and farmers in the developing world are discouraged from investing by the competition with subsidized American food.”
Eh?
Apparently the charity CARE rejected American food aid in 2007:
“CARE’s decision is focused on the practice of selling tons of often heavily subsidized American farm products in African countries that in some cases, it says, compete with the crops of struggling local farmers…
“If someone wants to help you, they shouldn’t do it by destroying the very thing that they’re trying to promote,” said George Odo, a CARE official who grew disillusioned with the practice while supervising the sale of American wheat and vegetable oil in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.
But..
“The Christian charity World Vision and 14 other groups, which call themselves the Alliance for Food Aid, say that CARE is mistaken; they say the system works because it keeps hard currency in poor countries, can help prevent food price spikes in those countries and does not hurt their farmers. Not least, they argue, it also pays for their antipoverty programs.”
However…
“Peter J. Matlon, a Nairobi-based agricultural economist: converting American commodities into cash for development was a case of “the tail wagging the dog,” with domestic farm policies in the United States shaping hunger-fighting methods abroad.” http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/14/news/food.php
More here on how US imports of maize have destroyed Malawi’s farming economy: http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/story/0,,2086467,00.html
4. More immigrant backlash in England.
“South American, African and other non-European footballers who cannot speak English will be barred from joining Premier League clubs from the autumn under the new points-based immigration system detailed by ministers yesterday.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/may/07/immigration.immigrationpolicy
Labour are setting things up nicely for the Tories.
5. While America continues to shine as a beacon for Human Rights
“An inmate at the US-run Guantanamo Bay prison camp in Cuba is set to be the first child soldier to go on trial for war crimes since Nuremberg, after a military judge ruled that there were no legal obstacles preventing the camp’s special military commissions from prosecuting him..Omar Khadr, a Canadian national, was 15 at the time of his alleged crimes.” http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/canadian-becomes-first-child-soldier-since-nuremberg-to-stand-trial-for-war-crimes-822165.html
6. Zimbabweans head for Mozambique after meltdown
Eduardo Koloma, the Mozambican Deputy Foreign Minister, said there was no question of trying to close the border to Zimbabwe.
“We have a lot of Zimbabweans entering the country, some settling in the country while others come in search of jobs,” said Koloma. “We cannot close our borders, our people interact so much.” http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=338573&referrer=RSS
At least the blockade on the arms ship is still working
“A Chinese ship loaded with arms destined for Zimbabwe has left Luanda, Angola, after unloading construction material, two trade union federations said on Tuesday…The ship was carrying a consignment of arms destined for Zimbabwe. The ship was authorised to unload in Luanda only “merchandise destined for Angola”, after it was barred from offloading in South Africa following a court banning the arms from being transported through the country’s territory to Zimbabwe, three weeks ago.” http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=338571&referrer=RSS
7. Sting’s rainforest charity given a zero rating by NGO watchdog
“Based on assessments of how the financial assets are managed, the watchdog gave the US branch zero stars out of four for 2004, 2005 and 2006 – the latest year for which the assessment has been completed. (Less than 2% of the charities it monitors fall into the zero-star category.)”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/may/07/conservation.endangeredhabitats
8. Cowen becomes Taoiseach
“Brian Cowen will be voted in as Taoiseach to succeed Bertie Ahern when the Dáil meets this afternoon.”
I failed to find a single article of criticism or debate regarding the above. Check out the front of the Irish Independent for a picture of Bertie raising a pint to victory.
Next week, we examine Irish Journalism…
