Month: July 2018

Hundreds Protest Currency Slump in Central Iran’s Isfahan

Posted on by SeeEA

Hundreds of Iranians joined a street protest Tuesday in the central city of Isfahan to denounce the government’s handling of economic problems, including the record low value of Iran’s currency.

Images verified by VOA Persian and sent by Isfahan residents showed protesters marching and chanting anti-government slogans in the city’s New Shapur district.

Residents said they were protesting the rial’s slump to a record low against the U.S. dollar in unofficial trading this week, a decline that has raised prices for many imported products. They said the demonstration also was an expression of anger about electricity outages plaguing Isfahan in the middle of the hot summer season. 

In one video clip, marchers in the New Shapur district chanted: “No to Gaza, No to Lebanon — I give my life to Iran,” a common refrain of many anti-government protests across Iran this year. It is a reference to many Iranians’ disapproval of the country’s Islamist rulers devoting public funds to supporting Islamist militant groups across the region rather than spending those funds to tackle domestic problems.

In another clip, a man said truck drivers were among those participating in the New Shapur protest. 

Other images shared on social media showed demonstrators chanting: “Reza Shah, may your soul be blessed,” a reference to the late monarch whom Iran’s current rulers overthrew in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Praise for the shah also has been a regular feature of recent protests in Iran.

Residents said many New Shapur retailers shuttered their stores and joined the protest as well. 

In an interview with state-controlled news agency ISNA published on Tuesday, the head of Isfahan’s chamber of commerce expressed sympathy with the protesting merchants, saying most of their demands were legitimate.

Rasoul Jahangiri also called on the Iranian government to stabilize currency fluctuations so that merchants and manufacturers can plan their business activities for the coming six months.

But Jahangiri also tried to downplay the significance of Tuesday’s protest, saying most of the participants were concerned with their businesses and should not be considered as part of an anti-government opposition movement. He also said his business association did not support street protests and urged merchants to present their demands through what he called legal channels. 

Since December, Iran has seen frequent public protests against local and national authorities and business owners accused of mismanagement, corruption and suppressing freedoms.

This report was produced in collaboration with VOA’s Persian service.
…

your ad here

Hundreds Protest Currency Slump in Central Iran’s Isfahan

Posted on by SeeEA

Hundreds of Iranians joined a street protest Tuesday in the central city of Isfahan to denounce the government’s handling of economic problems, including the record low value of Iran’s currency.

Images verified by VOA Persian and sent by Isfahan residents showed protesters marching and chanting anti-government slogans in the city’s New Shapur district.

Residents said they were protesting the rial’s slump to a record low against the U.S. dollar in unofficial trading this week, a decline that has raised prices for many imported products. They said the demonstration also was an expression of anger about electricity outages plaguing Isfahan in the middle of the hot summer season. 

In one video clip, marchers in the New Shapur district chanted: “No to Gaza, No to Lebanon — I give my life to Iran,” a common refrain of many anti-government protests across Iran this year. It is a reference to many Iranians’ disapproval of the country’s Islamist rulers devoting public funds to supporting Islamist militant groups across the region rather than spending those funds to tackle domestic problems.

In another clip, a man said truck drivers were among those participating in the New Shapur protest. 

Other images shared on social media showed demonstrators chanting: “Reza Shah, may your soul be blessed,” a reference to the late monarch whom Iran’s current rulers overthrew in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Praise for the shah also has been a regular feature of recent protests in Iran.

Residents said many New Shapur retailers shuttered their stores and joined the protest as well. 

In an interview with state-controlled news agency ISNA published on Tuesday, the head of Isfahan’s chamber of commerce expressed sympathy with the protesting merchants, saying most of their demands were legitimate.

Rasoul Jahangiri also called on the Iranian government to stabilize currency fluctuations so that merchants and manufacturers can plan their business activities for the coming six months.

But Jahangiri also tried to downplay the significance of Tuesday’s protest, saying most of the participants were concerned with their businesses and should not be considered as part of an anti-government opposition movement. He also said his business association did not support street protests and urged merchants to present their demands through what he called legal channels. 

Since December, Iran has seen frequent public protests against local and national authorities and business owners accused of mismanagement, corruption and suppressing freedoms.

This report was produced in collaboration with VOA’s Persian service.
…

your ad here

Free Ambulance Service Imperiled in Somali Capital

Posted on by SeeAF

Financial troubles, staffing shortages and high demand threaten to halt the only free private ambulance service in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.

“We have been providing this voluntary service for 12 years with the help of friends and other generous individuals in private business, but now the responsibility is greater than our power,” said Abdulkadir Abdirahman Adam, a dentist who founded Aamin Ambulance. He cited a staffing shortage and an inability to cover costs.

At its peak, the service had 53 workers. Now, “only 20 people with 16 vehicles [are] providing 24/7 services to a growing city and huge population,” Adam said, estimating the metropolitan area at more than 2 million people.

Adam, who also teaches at a Mogadishu university, said the service has been running on donations from individuals, such as “students who provided us $1 a month. That is not enough to cover the needs of this city and its residents.”

The service began in 2006 with a single ambulance and a few drivers and nurses in Mogadishu, risking their lives while trying to save victims of mortar fire, artillery shells and random gunfire that have ricocheted around this crumbling seaside city for almost 30 years.

“Before this service, people used to transport the wounded with wheelbarrows and taxis that charged expensive fees,” said Fadumo Nur, who runs a midwifery center. “But now all you need is to call 999 and then there is an ambulance at your door. If we miss this service, we will go back to the dark days.”

The United Nations’ top diplomat in Somalia called for more support during a February visit to the ambulance service office.

Aamin plays “an important role in providing the population a degree of comfort that when something very bad goes wrong, there is someone they can turn to,” said the envoy, Michael Keating, who was quoted by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). 

Aamin Ambulance maintains the only Mogadishu call center with a 24-hour emergency helpline.  

But staffing shortages, along with traffic issues, delay the ambulance service’s life-saving responses, he said. “We have many times witnessed mothers who called us from homes in an active labor and, due to delays, they deliver babies in our vehicles on their way to the hospital.”

Aamin Ambulance is almost always found at sites hit by terror attacks or natural disasters, often as the first emergency responder. Photos from the country’s deadliest assault — an October 14 truck bombing in Mogadishu that killed 512 and wounded more than 300 — showed Aamin’s first responders at the blast scene tending to injuries.

Earlier this month, Aamin Ambulance responded to a blast at Somalia’s ministry of interior affairs compound, transporting 21 people with injuries along with five bodies, the company said in a tweet. 

Somalia has been engulfed by chaos since President Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. Subsequent governments and administrations have not been able to provide basic social services such as health care and education.
…

your ad here

Free Ambulance Service Imperiled in Somali Capital

Posted on by SeeAF

Financial troubles, staffing shortages and high demand threaten to halt the only free private ambulance service in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.

“We have been providing this voluntary service for 12 years with the help of friends and other generous individuals in private business, but now the responsibility is greater than our power,” said Abdulkadir Abdirahman Adam, a dentist who founded Aamin Ambulance. He cited a staffing shortage and an inability to cover costs.

At its peak, the service had 53 workers. Now, “only 20 people with 16 vehicles [are] providing 24/7 services to a growing city and huge population,” Adam said, estimating the metropolitan area at more than 2 million people.

Adam, who also teaches at a Mogadishu university, said the service has been running on donations from individuals, such as “students who provided us $1 a month. That is not enough to cover the needs of this city and its residents.”

The service began in 2006 with a single ambulance and a few drivers and nurses in Mogadishu, risking their lives while trying to save victims of mortar fire, artillery shells and random gunfire that have ricocheted around this crumbling seaside city for almost 30 years.

“Before this service, people used to transport the wounded with wheelbarrows and taxis that charged expensive fees,” said Fadumo Nur, who runs a midwifery center. “But now all you need is to call 999 and then there is an ambulance at your door. If we miss this service, we will go back to the dark days.”

The United Nations’ top diplomat in Somalia called for more support during a February visit to the ambulance service office.

Aamin plays “an important role in providing the population a degree of comfort that when something very bad goes wrong, there is someone they can turn to,” said the envoy, Michael Keating, who was quoted by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). 

Aamin Ambulance maintains the only Mogadishu call center with a 24-hour emergency helpline.  

But staffing shortages, along with traffic issues, delay the ambulance service’s life-saving responses, he said. “We have many times witnessed mothers who called us from homes in an active labor and, due to delays, they deliver babies in our vehicles on their way to the hospital.”

Aamin Ambulance is almost always found at sites hit by terror attacks or natural disasters, often as the first emergency responder. Photos from the country’s deadliest assault — an October 14 truck bombing in Mogadishu that killed 512 and wounded more than 300 — showed Aamin’s first responders at the blast scene tending to injuries.

Earlier this month, Aamin Ambulance responded to a blast at Somalia’s ministry of interior affairs compound, transporting 21 people with injuries along with five bodies, the company said in a tweet. 

Somalia has been engulfed by chaos since President Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. Subsequent governments and administrations have not been able to provide basic social services such as health care and education.
…

your ad here

S. Africa’s ANC to Amend Constitution to Allow Land Expropriation

Posted on by SeeAF

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Tuesday that the ruling African National Congress would push ahead with plans to amend the constitution to allow for the expropriation of land without compensation.

The comments come after the ANC said in May that it would “test the argument” that land redistribution without compensation is permitted under current laws, a move that would have avoided the risky strategy of trying to change the constitution.

The proposal was first adopted in December by the party.

In a recorded address to the nation, Ramaphosa said it had become clear “that our people want the constitution to be more explicit about expropriation of land without compensation, as demonstrated in the public hearings.”

He said the ANC would go through the parliamentary process to finalize a proposed constitutional amendment “that outlines more clearly the conditions under which expropriation of land without compensation can be effected.”

Most land remains in white hands, making it a potent symbol of lingering inequalities 25 years on from the end of apartheid.

Since white minority rule ended in 1994, the ANC has followed a “willing-seller, willing-buyer” model whereby the government buys white-owned farms for redistribution to blacks. Progress has been slow.

The ANC has said it will not pursue land reform in a way that threatens food security or economic growth.
…

your ad here

S. Africa’s ANC to Amend Constitution to Allow Land Expropriation

Posted on by SeeAF

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Tuesday that the ruling African National Congress would push ahead with plans to amend the constitution to allow for the expropriation of land without compensation.

The comments come after the ANC said in May that it would “test the argument” that land redistribution without compensation is permitted under current laws, a move that would have avoided the risky strategy of trying to change the constitution.

The proposal was first adopted in December by the party.

In a recorded address to the nation, Ramaphosa said it had become clear “that our people want the constitution to be more explicit about expropriation of land without compensation, as demonstrated in the public hearings.”

He said the ANC would go through the parliamentary process to finalize a proposed constitutional amendment “that outlines more clearly the conditions under which expropriation of land without compensation can be effected.”

Most land remains in white hands, making it a potent symbol of lingering inequalities 25 years on from the end of apartheid.

Since white minority rule ended in 1994, the ANC has followed a “willing-seller, willing-buyer” model whereby the government buys white-owned farms for redistribution to blacks. Progress has been slow.

The ANC has said it will not pursue land reform in a way that threatens food security or economic growth.
…

your ad here

Yemen’s Houthis Halt Red Sea Attacks for Two Weeks

Posted on by SeeEA

Yemen’s Houthi group said Tuesday that it would unilaterally halt attacks in the Red Sea for two weeks to support peace efforts, days after Saudi Arabia suspended oil exports through a strategic Red Sea channel following attacks on crude tankers last week.

Yemen — where a Saudi-led coalition has been battling the Iranian-aligned Houthi movement in a three-year-old war — lies on one of the world’s most important trade routes for oil tankers, the Bab al-Mandeb strait.

“The unilateral halt in naval military operations will be for a limited time period and could be extended and include all fronts if this move is reciprocated by the leadership of the coalition,” the head of the Houthi supreme revolutionary committee, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, said in a statement.

A statement from the Houthi-controlled defense ministry said the movement planned to halt naval operations for two weeks, starting at midnight Wednesday (2000 GMT Tuesday).

“We welcome any initiative to spare bloodshed and stop aggression against Yemen,” the statement published on the state news agency SABA said, quoting a defense ministry official.

Saudi Arabia said on Thursday that it was suspending oil shipments through the strait after the Houthis attacked two Saudi oil tankers, one of which sustained minimal damage, until the waterway was safe.

Analysts say Riyadh is trying to encourage its Western allies to take the danger posed by the Houthis more seriously and step up support for its war in Yemen, where thousands of airstrikes and a limited ground operation have produced only modest results while deepening the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

A coalition spokesman did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The Houthi leader said the group’s initiative aimed to support efforts to find a political solution to the conflict, which has killed more than 10,000 people, according to the United Nations.

U.N. special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths has been shuttling between the warring parties to try to avert a coalition assault on the main port city of Hodeida. The U.N. fears that such an attack would risk causing a famine.

Hodeida port is the main port of the impoverished Arab country, where around 8.4 million people are believed to be on the verge of starvation.

The Western-backed coalition of Sunni Muslim Arab states intervened in Yemen’s war in 2015 to restore the internationally recognized government in exile and thwart what Riyadh sees as Iran’s expansionary ambitions in the region.
…

your ad here

Yemen’s Houthis Halt Red Sea Attacks for Two Weeks

Posted on by SeeEA

Yemen’s Houthi group said Tuesday that it would unilaterally halt attacks in the Red Sea for two weeks to support peace efforts, days after Saudi Arabia suspended oil exports through a strategic Red Sea channel following attacks on crude tankers last week.

Yemen — where a Saudi-led coalition has been battling the Iranian-aligned Houthi movement in a three-year-old war — lies on one of the world’s most important trade routes for oil tankers, the Bab al-Mandeb strait.

“The unilateral halt in naval military operations will be for a limited time period and could be extended and include all fronts if this move is reciprocated by the leadership of the coalition,” the head of the Houthi supreme revolutionary committee, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, said in a statement.

A statement from the Houthi-controlled defense ministry said the movement planned to halt naval operations for two weeks, starting at midnight Wednesday (2000 GMT Tuesday).

“We welcome any initiative to spare bloodshed and stop aggression against Yemen,” the statement published on the state news agency SABA said, quoting a defense ministry official.

Saudi Arabia said on Thursday that it was suspending oil shipments through the strait after the Houthis attacked two Saudi oil tankers, one of which sustained minimal damage, until the waterway was safe.

Analysts say Riyadh is trying to encourage its Western allies to take the danger posed by the Houthis more seriously and step up support for its war in Yemen, where thousands of airstrikes and a limited ground operation have produced only modest results while deepening the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

A coalition spokesman did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The Houthi leader said the group’s initiative aimed to support efforts to find a political solution to the conflict, which has killed more than 10,000 people, according to the United Nations.

U.N. special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths has been shuttling between the warring parties to try to avert a coalition assault on the main port city of Hodeida. The U.N. fears that such an attack would risk causing a famine.

Hodeida port is the main port of the impoverished Arab country, where around 8.4 million people are believed to be on the verge of starvation.

The Western-backed coalition of Sunni Muslim Arab states intervened in Yemen’s war in 2015 to restore the internationally recognized government in exile and thwart what Riyadh sees as Iran’s expansionary ambitions in the region.
…

your ad here