Month: July 2018

Nearly One Million Ethiopians Displaced by Conflict Since April

Posted on by SeeEU

Nearly one million people in southern Ethiopia have been forced to flee their homes since April due to intercommunal violence in the Gedeo and West Guji zones, according to a survey from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

 

The survey found the overwhelming majority of displaced, or more than 800,000, are living in precarious conditions in Ethiopia’s Gedeo zone. The rest are in West Guji’s Oromia region.

It is not known what triggered the outbreak of violence, although disputes over borders and the allocation of pasture and water resources have long been a source of tension between people in Gedeo and West Guji.

The IOM reports most of the displaced in both zones are living within local communities, while the rest are sheltering in ad hoc collective centers, such as schools, disused or unfinished buildings. IOM spokesman Joel Millman calls conditions there abysmal.

“The buildings in the collective sites that we have been visiting generally are not fit for human habitation and are extremely overcrowded — forcing many people to sleep outside on dirt, rarely with anything but a single sheet of tarpaulin shielding them from the rains, which are in season now,” he said. “Food is reported as the primary need in both of these zones that we checked. This is in addition to major shelter needs as well as concerns over the access to safe sanitation.”

Millman said IOM teams were able to go to only four of the six districts in West Guji, where people are displaced because of security concerns. A more detailed assessment of displacement sites in both zones is underway, he said, and this should produce better data in terms of how many people are displaced and their needs.

In the meantime, he said the IOM is scaling up its humanitarian operation. Work on constructing latrines, communal shelters and kitchens is moving ahead, he added.
…

your ad here

Abdul Seeks to Become Michigan’s First Muslim American Governor

Posted on by SeeUS

It’s standing room only in the large ballroom of this northern Michigan resort as people eagerly await the arrival of a young, well-spoken, charismatic Rhodes scholar seeking to reach Michigan’s highest elected office.

“When I graduated college, Bill Clinton asked me why I was going to med school, and he asked me if I ever considered running for office. And at that time, I thought that was off limits to me,” Dr. Abdul El-Sayed told VOA.

Muslim American El-Sayed grew up in Michigan, where he often faced prejudice.

“I was the captain of my football team, and I was a junior in high school. And the week after 9/11, the games were canceled that week, but the week after, we were back on the field. And I remember that football game. For the first time, people were calling me names that I would hear for the rest of my life: ‘Raghead.’ ‘Osama.’ ” he recalls. “Funny thing is, my brother’s name is Osama. And I used to say, ‘You’ve got the wrong El-Sayed.’”

But he could be the right El-Sayed to make history as Michigan’s — and the nation’s — first elected Muslim American governor. One of his biggest challenges is convincing enough voters to support him in a state that narrowly helped Republican Donald Trump win the presidency in 2016.

About 90 Muslim Americans are seeking elected office throughout the United States during midterm elections this year. Many are running as Democrats hoping to be part of a “blue wave” that shifts control of the U.S. Congress.

El-Sayed is among 13 Muslim candidates running for office in the state of Michigan, where his faith and ethnicity have been important facets of his life that are now also fueling attacks and accusations by political opponents.

​A welcome change

For those in Michigan’s large and growing Arab American community, the fact that El-Sayed is a viable candidate at all is a welcome change in politics.

“In the last 10 years, things have changed dramatically for Arab Americans,” said Osama Siblani, publisher of Dearborn, Michigan-based Arab American News. But he explains the path to the governor’s mansion depends on El-Sayed’s overall appeal to a majority of voters.

“When John Kennedy ran, you know, everybody thought, ‘This was the first Catholic, would he make it to White House?’ And he did,” said Siblani. “When Barack Hussein Obama ran, they said, This is the first African-American. Will he make it? Are there enough African-American voters to elect an African- American?’ No. But did he make it? Yes. Twice. So, is there a chance for a Muslim-American to win the governorship? Yes.”

El-Sayed said he isn’t focused on the potential of such a historic moment. He simply wants to give back to the community that shaped him.

“My grandmother was illiterate and never got to go to school. My grandfather had an eighth-grade education. My cousins — just as smart as whatever, as I am — they never got the opportunities that I got. They drive cabs in Egypt, and that’s not my life,” he said. “That’s not my life, because of the opportunities I had here. And I’m watching as we have leaders, whether it be at the city level in Detroit or at the state level, who are making decisions that are taking away access to those basic goods and services from people.”

Water and politics

El-Sayed, who gained recognition as Detroit’s top health official, seeks to lead a state still dealing with a water contamination crisis in the city of Flint that began during current Republican Gov. Rick Snyder’s tenure.

“The responsibility is to promote justice, whether it be with my hands. And if not, then with my mouth. And if not, then at least with my heart,” he told VOA. “That promotion of justice, to address racial and ethnic inequalities, social inequalities, regional inequalities, and access to the basic goods and resources that people deserve in their lives. That has been the work that I’ve committed myself to as a doctor, as an epidemiologist, as a public health practitioner and now as a public servant.”

El-Sayed is among several candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for governor in Michigan’s primary election August 7.

He’s considered a progressive and has the backing of many Michigan voters who supported Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in his bid to win the Michigan presidential primary in 2016.

If Democratic voters ultimately choose him in August, he will have to garner enough statewide support to defeat a Republican opponent in the November general election.
…

your ad here

Abdul Wants to Become Michigan’s First Muslim American Governor

Posted on by SeeUS

About 90 Muslim Americans are seeking elected office throughout the United States during midterm elections this year. Many are running as Democrats, hoping to be part of a “blue wave” that shifts control of the U.S. Congress. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports, among the 13 Muslim candidates running for office in the state of Michigan is a young doctor who is hoping to make history.
…

your ad here

NFL, Players Halt Anthem Rules, Work on Resolution

Posted on by SeeUS

The NFL and National Football League Players Association have agreed to halt enforcement of rules regarding the new national anthem policy while the two sides work on a resolution.

The league and its players union issued a joint statement late Thursday, hours after The Associated Press reported that Miami Dolphins players who protest on the field during the anthem could be suspended for up to four games under a team policy issued this week.

“The NFL and NFLPA, through recent discussions, have been working on a resolution to the anthem issue. In order to allow this constructive dialogue to continue, we have come to a standstill agreement on the NFLPA’s grievance and on the NFL’s anthem policy. No new rules relating to the anthem will be issued or enforced for the next several weeks while these confidential discussions are ongoing,” the statement read.

Miami’s nine-page discipline document included a one-sentence section on “Proper Anthem Conduct” and was provided to the AP by a person familiar with the policy who insisted on anonymity because the document is not public. It classifies anthem protests under a large list of “conduct detrimental to the club,” all of which could lead to a paid or unpaid suspension, a fine or both.

Miami’s anthem policy came after the NFL decided in May that teams would be fined if players didn’t stand during “The Star-Spangled Banner” while on the field. The league left it up to teams on how to punish players. None of the team policies had been made public.

Jets acting owner Christopher Johnson said shortly after the league announced its policy that he will not punish his players for any peaceful protests, and would pay any potential fines incurred by the team as a result of his players’ actions.

When the league announced the policy, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell called it a compromise aimed at putting the focus back on football after a tumultuous year in which television ratings dipped nearly 10 percent.

The NFL started requiring players to be on the field for the anthem in 2009, the year it signed a marketing deal with the military.

In 2016, then-49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began protesting police brutality, social injustice and racial inequality by kneeling during the national anthem and the demonstration spread to other players and teams. It became one of the most controversial and sensitive issues in sports.

Critics led by President Donald Trump called the players unpatriotic and even said NFL owners should fire any player who refused to stand during the anthem. Some players countered that their actions were being misconstrued and that they are seeking social change rather than protesting the anthem itself.

Trump’s criticism led more than 200 players to protest during one weekend, and some kept it up throughout the season.

Kaepernick didn’t play at all last season and hasn’t been picked up by another team. He threw 16 touchdown passes and four interceptions in his final season in 2016. Safety Eric Reid, one of Kaepernick’s former teammates and another protest leader, is also out of work.

Both have filed collusion grievances against the NFL.
…

your ad here

Weird, Nerdy-Cool Comic Con Draws Fans From Around World

Posted on by SeeUS

Fans are bringing comic book and onscreen characters to life at Comic-Con, which Guinness World Records bills as the largest convention of its kind in the world.

From superheroes to villains, fans can be whatever they want to be as they celebrate popular culture and the entertainment industry. The annual convention opened this week in San Diego, California.

“If you don’t feel like you belong in your hometown, you like this nerdy stuff and no one really gets you, here is where everyone understands you and everyone has the same passion. We’re all united together with the same love of pop culture,” said Austin, Texas, resident Santiago Gonzales, who was attending Comic-Con with his friend.

Gonzales was dressed as a colorful hamburger with lettuce, tomatoes, bacon and an egg made of fabric. He made the costume for his love of the animated comedy and TV show Bob’s Burgers.

David Ancheta is a part of the international Star Wars fan club, 501st Legion, where members dress up as their favorite villain and support charities. Ancheta was in full costume that included a silver helmet and armor he had painted and sewn as Star Wars bounty hunter Jango Fett.

“This experience is amazing. I guess you could say I’m a geek and being surrounded by a ton of geeks is definitely an amazing experience,” said Ancheta, a U.S. Navy retiree.

Attending Comic-Con has become a reality for Iranian-American Soheil Behzad. He had tried for years to get a ticket to the convention. Because of constraints on space, organizers limited the size to just more than 135,000 attendees. He finally secured a ticket to this year’s sold-out event.

“It’s always been my life dream to be here because I’m a huge movie buff, comic book, all of that stuff,” said Behzad, who remembered the first comic he read. It was a translated Spider-Man comic in Farsi in an Iranian newspaper.

“It’s cool to see them on live action on the silver screen or like on TV. It’s the time to be alive,” said Behzad, who considers himself a big movie fan.

Adapting comic book superheroes into movie, TV show and video game characters is one reason Comic-Con has grown into a multimedia experience for fans since it began in 1970 with only 300 people.

“I’m really big on graphic novels and comic books and movies, TV shows in general. I grew up on media,” said Jackie DeLeon, a northern California resident who is attending Comic-Con for the second year.

Comic-Con organizers said people from more than 80 countries and media from more than 30 countries are attending this year’s convention.

“I think the United States has always had the wonderful ability to promote film and various forms of art and that has a global audience,” said David Glanzer, chief communications and strategy officer at Comic-Con.

He said it makes good business sense for publishers, toy manufacturers, television networks and movie studios to have a presence at Comic-Con.

“The people that come to Comic-Con are the people who buy a movie ticket on opening night, who tuned into that television station — buy their comic book or video game or whatever it happens to be,” he said.

The convention is where creators can gauge the interest of fans from around the world and get feedback for future content.

“What’s really cool to me is how it transcends language barriers and culture and everything,” Behzad said.

Comic-Con runs through Sunday.
…

your ad here

Comic Con Draws Fans From Around the Globe

Posted on by SeeUS

Comic-Con, which bills itself as one of the world’s largest comic book conventions of its kind, kicks off this week in San Diego. The four-day event has grown to become an entertainment destination that features not only comics, but also film, television and video games. The sold-out event draws thousands of fans from around the world. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee reports on the sights and sounds of a cultural event that has global influence.
…

your ad here

Report: North Korea, Eritrea Have Highest Rates of Modern Slavery

Posted on by SeeAF

North Korea and Eritrea have the highest rates of modern slavery, a global survey released Thursday found.

The Global Slavery Index estimates that 40.3 million people worldwide were subjected to modern-day slavery in 2016. The survey defines modern slavery as human trafficking, forced labor, debt bondage, forced or servile marriage, and the sale and exploitation of children, as well as slavery itself.

North Korea has the highest percentage of its population enslaved, with 1 in 10 people in modern slavery, and “the clear majority forced to work by the state,” the report said.

The report said developed nations bear the responsibility because they import $350 billion worth of goods that are produced under suspicious circumstances. It cites coal, cocoa, cotton, timber and fish among the products that may be tainted by modern slavery.

India is home to the largest total number, with an estimated 8 million slaves among its 1.3 billion population, according to the Walk Free Foundation, which has published the Global Slavery Index since 2013.

The aim of the index is to pressure governments and companies to do more to end the problem by providing hard data on the numbers of people involved and the impact it has around the world.

After North Korea and Eritrea, the worst offenders are Burundi, the Central African Republic, Afghanistan, Mauritania, South Sudan, Pakistan, Cambodia and Iran, the survey found.
…

your ad here

Suriname Protests Dutch Minister’s ‘Failed State’ Remark

Posted on by SeeEU

Suriname issued a protest note to the Netherlands on Thursday after the Dutch foreign minister said the South American nation was a “failed state” because of its ethnic diversity.

Stef Blok, a member of the conservative VVD party of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, has faced a firestorm of criticism over comments he made July 10 in The Hague that became public this week.

“This coarse accusation against peace and stability in the Republic of Suriname can only be intended to portray Suriname and its population negatively,” Suriname’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry, which summoned Dutch envoy Jaap Frederiks to receive the protest, added that the Netherlands was “seeking to isolate the Surinamese nation, with the possible agenda being the realization of a recolonization.”

Suriname, a former Dutch colony that became independent in 1975, has a mix of ethnicities including people of Indonesian, African and Dutch ancestry, as well indigenous peoples.

Blok had told a gathering of Dutch employees of international organizations that “Suriname is a failed state and that is very much linked to its ethnic composition.”

Lawmakers from several Dutch political parties, including all members of the governing coalition, demanded an explanation for Blok’s remarks.

In a statement issued through his Twitter account, Blok said his language was too strong and he regretted the offense it caused.
…

your ad here

Dervish News Outlet: Iran Gives Long Prison Terms to More Protesters

Posted on by SeeEA

An exiled Iranian news outlet focusing on Iran’s Gonadabi Dervish minority says six community members have received prison terms of five to seven years for joining anti-government protests earlier this year. 

In a Thursday post on its Telegram channel, Majzooban Noor said a revolutionary court convicted the six men to a combined 38 years in prison at the Great Tehran Penitentiary. It named the men as Gholam Abbasi, Mohammad Dalwand, Asghar Ebrahimi, Abdollah Esmaeili, Saleh Kamali and Hossein Soleimani, but did not say when they were sentenced. 

Majzooban Noor said three of the men, Ebrahimi, Esmaeili and Soleimani, also received two-year bans on social activities — a vague restriction on involvement in unspecified community engagements. Another of the men, Kamali, was given a two-year ban on leaving the country. 

The six Dervish men are the latest members of the Iranian Sufi Muslim sect to receive lengthy prison terms for involvement in Tehran protests that escalated into violent confrontations with police in February. Iranian authorities arrested more than 300 people in the February 19-20 clashes, which killed five security personnel. 

In a report published Tuesday, state news agency IRNA quoted Tehran’s chief prosecutor, Jafari Dolatabadi, as saying 258 of those arrested, whom he termed “rioters,” have been convicted so far. It said Dolatababi was speaking to judiciary officials the day before. 

In an earlier Tuesday report, Majzooban Noor said 10 other Dervishes received a combined 69 years in prison in connection with the February protests. The news outlet also reported this week that several detained Dervishes have refused to appear at the revolutionary court, complaining that the judges keep repeating the same accusations against them in order to shame and humiliate. 

Dervishes involved in the February protests had been demanding the release of arrested members of their community and the removal of security checkpoints around the house of their 90-year-old leader, Noor Ali Tabandeh. Members of the community long have complained of harassment by Iran’s Shiite Islamist rulers, who view them as heretics. 

The Trump administration has called for an end to what it calls Iran’s persecution of the Dervishes.

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

your ad here

DRC’s Kabila Gives No Clues of His Future Plans

Posted on by SeeAF

The president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Joseph Kabila, said Thursday that there would be a presidential election on Decenber 23, but did not say what his political plans were.

Kabila told the nation in a televised speech that he “unequivocally respects the constitution.”

But the opposition says it fears he may try to hold on to power.

Kabila’s two-term limit as an elected leader ended in 2016. But violence, armed militias and problems organizing a new vote have twice postponed a new election.

The constitution allows Kabila to remain in office until a successor is elected. But the opposition, along with the United States and others, has expressed dismay at the postponements.

Kabila said Thursday that Congo was “not willing to receive lessons in democracy.”

Kabila has led the Democratic Republic of the Congo since his father, Laurent Kabila, was assassinated in 2001. 
…

your ad here

US Seen Receiving Frosty Reception at G-20 Meeting

Posted on by SeeEU

The financial leaders of the world’s 20 biggest economies meet in Buenos Aires this weekend for the first time since long-simmering trade tensions burst into the open when China and the United States put tariffs on $34 billion of each other’s goods.

The United States will seek to persuade Japan and the European Union to join it in taking a more aggressive stance against Chinese trade practices at the G-20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank presidents, according to a senior U.S. Treasury Department official who spoke on condition on anonymity.

But those efforts will be complicated by frustration over U.S. steel and aluminum import tariffs on the EU and Canada. Both responded with retaliatory tariffs in an escalating trade conflict that has shaken markets and threatens global growth.

“U.S. trading partners are unlikely to be in a conciliatory mood,” said Eswar Prasad, international trade professor at Cornell University and former head of the International Monetary Fund’s China Division. “[U.S.] hostile actions against long-standing trading partners and allies have weakened its economic and geopolitical influence.”

At the close of the last G-20 meeting in Argentina in March, the financial leaders representing 75 percent of world trade and 85 percent of gross domestic product released a joint statement that rejected protectionism and urged “further dialogue,” to little concrete effect.

Since then, the United States and China have slapped tariffs on $34 billion of each other’s imports and U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened further tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods unless Beijing agrees to change its intellectual property practices and high-technology industrial subsidy plans.

Trump has said the U.S. tariffs aim to close the $335 billion annual U.S. trade deficit with China.

U.S. Treasury Minister Steven Mnuchin has no plans for a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart in Buenos Aires, a U.S official said this week.

Growth concerns

Rising trade tensions have led to concerns within the Japanese government over currency volatility, said a senior Japanese G-20 official who declined to be named. Such volatility could prompt an appreciation in the safe-haven yen and threaten Japanese exports.

Trump’s metals tariffs prompted trade partners to retaliate with their own tariffs on U.S. goods ranging from whiskey to motorcycles. The United States has said it will challenge those tariffs at the World Trade Organization.

The EU finance ministers signed a joint text last week that will form their mandate for this weekend’s meeting, criticizing “unilateral” U.S. trade actions, Reuters reported. The ministers will stress that trade restrictions “hurt everyone,” a German official said.

In a briefing note prepared for the G-20 participants, the International Monetary Fund said if all of Trump’s threatened tariffs — and equal retaliation — went into effect, the global economy could lose up to 0.5 percent of GDP, or $430 billion, by 2020.

Global growth also may have peaked at 3.9 percent for 2018 and 2019, and downside risks have risen due to the tariff spat, the IMF said.

“While all countries will ultimately be worse off in a trade conflict, the U.S. economy is especially vulnerable,” IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde wrote in a blog post. “Policymakers can use this G-20 meeting to move past

self-defeating tit-for-tat tariffs.”

Trade is not on host country Argentina’s published agenda for the July 21-22 ministerial, which focuses on the “future of work” and infrastructure finance. But it will likely be discussed during a slot devoted to risks facing the global

economy, much as in March, according to an Argentine official involved in G-20 preparations, who asked not be named.
…

your ad here

UK’s New Brexit Envoy Optimistic as EU Warns of Brexit Crash

Posted on by SeeEU

London’s new Brexit minister said he was confident he could reach a deal, on his first trip to Brussels on Thursday as the EU warned business to get ready for Britain crashing out of the bloc without agreed terms to cushion the economic disruption.

Brexit campaigner Dominic Raab, appointed to the government last week after his predecessor quit over Prime Minister Theresa May’s proposals to stay close to EU trading rules, said Britain was ramping up preparations for a “no deal” but focused above all on selling her ideas to EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier.

The resignation of his predecessor David Davis and others, and May’s battles in parliament with pro- and anti-Brexit wings of her own Conservative Party, have led Brussels to wonder whether London is capable of agreeing any deal this year to avoid chaos when it leaves in March.

That, the EU’s executive European Commission insisted on Thursday, was not the reason for its warning on stepping up preparedness for a “no deal” or “cliff edge” Brexit.

Raab said Britain was on track and he would bring new “energy, vigor and vim” to talks as they get down to the wire to find a deal before EU leaders meet at a summit in October.

“We’ve only got 12 weeks really left to nail down the details of the agreement, so I set out our proposals,” Raab said after meeting Barnier. “I’m sure in good faith, if that energy and that ambition is reciprocated, as I’m confident it will be, we will get there.”

EU officials and diplomats still think some kind of deal, including a 21-month status quo transition period to allow further talks, is more likely than not, if only because the cost for both sides would be so high.

The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday EU countries would suffer long-term damage equivalent to about 1.5 percent of annual economic output if Britain leaves without a free trade deal.

“While the EU is working day and night for a deal ensuring an orderly withdrawal, the UK’s withdrawal will undoubtedly cause disruption, for example in business supply chains, whether or not there is a deal,” the Commission said in a statement.

“Preparedness is not a mistrust in the negotiations,” an EU official added, saying big firms seemed to be advancing in their plans but smaller companies which had never traded outside the single market before would face challenges in their paperwork.

A senior British regulator also warned Britain’s banks and insurers on Thursday to plan for a “hard” Brexit.

Barnier briefs

Barnier is due to report back on his meeting with Raab to ministers from the other 27 EU states on Friday.

Ahead of talks with Raab, Barnier said the EU was offering an “unprecedented” partnership on future trade relations and that maintaining a close partnership on security was “more important than ever given the geopolitical context.”

EU officials and diplomats have welcomed last week’s proposals as a welcome if overdue starting point for negotiations on an outline of post-Brexit relations that is to accompany a binding treaty on the immediate aspects of withdrawal. But Barnier will also be posing many questions on just how some issues, notably around customs and sharing regulatory standards would work.

Getting an outline on those is vital to solving the biggest obstacle to the urgent withdrawal treaty — how to avoid customs and other friction on the new EU-UK land border in Ireland.

Dublin and London say they are committed to avoiding a “hard border” but the EU is also determined to avoid creating a huge loophole in the external frontier of its single market and customs union.

With time running short and little sign of May quelling the revolts in her party, there has been renewed discussion among Brussels diplomats and officials about whether a deal can be done by October, or at the latest December, to allow parliaments on both sides to ratify a withdrawal treaty before March 29.

“When I see the dynamics in Westminster, I don’t think that there is, at this stage, a majority for whatever type of thing we could ever agree with them,” one senior EU official said.

However, while EU leaders have made no secret of being ready to extend the deadline for a few weeks, there are reservations about any longer delay, short of a U-turn in Britain and a call from London to call Brexit off.

Among problems for delaying Brexit is a European Parliament election in late May 2019 which would create questions over when  and how it could ratify a late Brexit deal, assuming Britain does not elect members to the new legislature.
…

your ad here

Southern Iraq’s Woes to Continue, Renewed Protests Possible

Posted on by SeeEA

Iraq’s government may have muddled its way through violent street protests in the country’s oil-rich south with promises of jobs and better services, but the root causes of this month’s unrest remain almost intact and it could be just a matter of time before popular discontent boils over again.

In its bid to end the protests, Iraqi authorities have deployed security forces backed by armor and arrested hundreds of protesters in the southern city of Basra, the epicenter of the weeklong demonstrations and the jewel of Iraq’s oil region, according to activists.

The arrests largely quieted Basra and the rest of the south. But what happened there this month has shown that the Shi’ite government is not immune to opposition among its primary constituency — the Shi’ite south — and laid bare the depth of frustration felt by Iraqis who have not seen real improvement in their lives in the 15 years since the U.S.-led invasion rid them of Saddam Hussein.

“The protesters are not convinced that the government promises can be met, but they are waiting to see how serious the government is in addressing these problems. The situation could blow up again,” activist Laith Hussein said.

The government has sought to play down the protests and cast doubt on the motives of the demonstrators. It maintains that the protesters’ demands are legitimate, but says infiltrators and saboteurs were behind the violence that left at least nine people dead and nearly 60 injured, according to the Health Ministry.

Here’s a deeper look at why protests erupted in Basra and why they might do so again unless the government’s ruling parties pay attention to the needs of Iraqis who vote them into office every four years and whose homes sit on the country’s biggest asset, oil.

The background

For decades, the residents of Basra have been complaining that they do not get their fair share of the natural resources of their province. That, in turn, has revived their long-sought dream of turning their province into a self-ruled region like the one in Kurdistan in Iraq’s north. But any step taken toward that goal was derailed by the central government or rejected by some of the city’s own residents, who instead want more powers transferred from Baghdad to the local government.

Basra has also suffered from a cutoff of the funds it once got from oil and gas sales. Previously, Baghdad accorded a specific share to Basra and other oil-producing provinces as compensation for environmental damage from the industry and as a boost to local budgets. Basra was getting $1 for each barrel of oil produced or refined and for every 150 cubic meters (196 cubic yards) of gas produced, along with 5 percent from the taxes collected at border-crossings and sea ports.

But that arrangement was removed from the budget in 2014, when the Iraqi economy was shaken by plummeting oil prices and the urgent need to finance an all-out war against the Islamic State group. That translated into a loss of millions for Basra. Last month, an average of 3.5 million barrels a day were exported from the province, with less than 500,000 barrels coming from oil fields elsewhere in the country.

When politics, economy mix

Shi’ites have for years complained about their majority sect’s political elite, staging small protests, mainly in Basra, over the city’s erratic public services and lack of jobs. The protests never captured the nation’s attention or moved the government of the day into action.

But this month’s protests reached new limits. Protesters closed roads leading to sea ports and oil wells and attempted to invade oil fields and, more significantly, attack and torch the offices of almost all the powerful Shi’ite political parties and militias.

Sensing the danger, the government rushed to contain the unrest with promises of 10,000 jobs and the urgent allocation of 3.5 trillion Iraqi dinars ($3 billion) for electricity and water projects.

Many in Basra have long seen their political elite centered in the religious Shi’ite parties as corrupt and unfit to govern. They complain that the parties and their affiliated militias control business and vital government facilities, like the key oil port of Um Qasr and border crossings with Iran and Kuwait. Politicians distribute jobs among supporters and collect “taxes” and commissions on goods at ports.

Moreover, residents say security suffered in Basra after the government redeployed forces from the province to the front lines in the 3-year fight against IS that ended last year. This, they argue, allowed drug trafficking and other crimes to flourish and opened the way for local tribes to gain strength and influence outside the government’s reach.

The massive cost of the fight against IS and the falling price of oil, Iraq’s vital lifeline, meant that the government had little to spend on job-creating projects or improving such basic services as electricity and water. The economic crisis is clearly reflected in the 2018 budget, which stands at nearly $88 billion and runs a deficit of more than $10 billion.

What’s next?

It is unlikely that the government will fulfill its promises to the residents of Basra or elsewhere in the south, at least in the short term, given that the present government is a caretaker administration and a new one is months away following parliamentary elections in May whose results have been legally questioned.

Moreover, the current budget doesn’t have allocations for the job creation promised by the government. The private sector and the international oil companies in the south can help create jobs but not on any significant scale. This is partially true because lower oil prices have pushed the government to revise down its ambitious oil development plans.

Even if the promises of jobs and services pledged to Basra were fulfilled, that would leave the rest of the south even more angry and frustrated.

A fresh round of protests is also likely because the residents of the south have received key backing from the country’s top spiritual leader, Grand Ayattollah Ali al-Sistani, who has called on the government to find immediate solutions to the region’s problems.
…

your ad here

US Weekly Jobless Claims Hit Lowest Point Since Late ’69

Posted on by SeeUS

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped last week to its lowest point in more than 48 years as the labor market strengthens further, but trade tensions are casting a shadow over the economy’s outlook.

Other data on Thursday showed manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region accelerated in July amid a surge in orders received by factories. But the Philadelphia Federal Reserve survey also showed manufacturers paying more for inputs and less upbeat about business conditions over the next six months.

Fewer manufacturers planned to increase capital spending, suggesting trade tensions, marked by tit-for-tat import tariffs between the United States and its trade partners, including China, Canada, Mexico and the European Union, could be starting to hurt business sentiment.

The survey came on the heels of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book report on Wednesday, showing manufacturers in all districts worried about the tariffs and reporting higher prices and supply disruptions, which they blamed on the new trade policies.

“Yesterday’s Beige Book and the recent decline in the investment intentions balance in the Philly Fed survey show that escalating trade tensions are starting to have a material impact on companies’ confidence about the future,” said Brian Coulton, chief economist at ratings agency Fitch.

Increase had been forecast

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 207,000 for the week ended July 14, the lowest reading since early December 1969, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims rising to 220,000 in the latest week.

The second straight weekly decline in claims, however, likely reflects difficulties in adjusting the data for seasonal fluctuations around this time of the year, when motor vehicle manufacturers shut assembly lines for annual retooling.

The four-week moving average of initial claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, fell 2,750 to 220,500 last week.

The dollar firmed against a basket of currencies. Stocks on Wall Street were lower, while prices for U.S. Treasury securities rose.

​Worker shortage

The claims data covered the survey week for the nonfarm payrolls component of July’s employment report. The four-week average of claims dipped 500 between the June and July survey periods, suggesting solid job growth this month.

The economy created 213,000 jobs in June, with the unemployment rate rising two-tenths of a percentage point to 4.0 percent as more Americans entered the labor force, in a sign of confidence in their job prospects.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers this week that with appropriate monetary policy, the job market will remain strong “over the next several years.”

The labor market is viewed as being near or at full employment. There were 6.6 million unfilled jobs in May, an indication that companies cannot find qualified workers.

That was reinforced by the Beige Book, which showed worker shortages persisting in early July across a wide range of occupations, including highly skilled engineers, specialized construction and manufacturing workers, information technology professionals and truck drivers.

Thursday’s survey from the Philadelphia Fed showed its business conditions index jumped to a reading of 25.7 in July from 19.9 in June. The survey’s measure of new orders increased to 31.4 from a reading of 17.9 in June.

Prices paid index jumps

But its gauge of factory employment fell, as did the average workweek. Manufacturers also continued to report higher prices for both purchased inputs and their own manufactured goods. The survey’s prices paid index soared to 62.9 this month, the highest level since June 2008, from 51.8 in June. The index has risen 30 points since January. Sixty-three percent of manufacturers in the region reported paying more for inputs this month compared with 54 percent in June.

The price increases are likely related to tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, which were imposed by the Trump administration to protect domestic industries from what it says is unfair foreign competition.

Wednesday’s Beige Book mentioned a machinery manufacturer in the Philadelphia area who described the effects of the steel tariffs as “chaotic to its supply chain, disrupting planned orders, increasing prices and prompting some panic buying.”

The Philadelphia survey’s index for future activity decreased for the fourth straight month. Capital spending plans over the next six months also fell as did intentions to hire more factory workers. 

“Further escalation could create worse conditions and this remains a downside risk to the otherwise positive outlook over the next year,” said Adam Ozimek, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
…

your ad here

Pompeo to VOA: China on Wrong Side of Religious Freedom

Posted on by SeeUS

Days ahead of the first-ever ministerial talks hosted by the State Department to advance religious freedom around the world, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sat down with VOA State Department correspondent Nike Ching on Thursday, addressing pressing issues including the plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya, the repression of Uighurs Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists in China, and Russia’s activities in eastern Ukraine. Below is an edited transcript.

Question: On the ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya Muslims with the Buddhists being the majority in Myanmar, the purge against Rohingya sometimes is characterized by some as religious cleansing. At the same time, killing is the worst crime for Buddhism and for many religions. Would you go further to identify the Rohingya crisis as religious cleansing?”

Answer: Well the State Department made a decision at the end of last year to make the important statement about ethnic cleansing and we know that there is a religious connection there. It is incredibly important to be careful of the language that we use, so we will continue to review it but as you well know, the State Department considers religious freedom at the center of its activity, we make that a priority in all of the work that we do and in places in Asia, that is absolutely no exception.

Question: Would you consider a comprehensive arms embargo and more targeted financial sanctions against top Burmese military leaders for their involvement of the Rohingya purge.”

Answer: I don’t want to get out of hand with the president on this but you should know we take these issues incredibly seriously and your viewers should know that as well. There are many things that are under consideration by this administration. We want to see the course changing, we want to see the directional change here. We’ve not seen that yet. And so there are many things that are being considered by the United States government to ensure that everyone understands that their behavior is not acceptable.

Question: In China, the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report documented the repression against the Uighur Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists. First of all, how would you respond to the assertion from the Chinese government that some of the groups are separatists? And secondly, would you consider a travel ban or working with the Treasury Department to freeze the U.S. assets of those Chinese officials who are involved in such repression.”

Answer: So the State Department has made clear that with respect to this issue we think they are on the wrong side on religious freedom, that they are a country of concern connected to that. We understand that religious freedom is at risk in many places in the world and yet the United States has complex broad relationships with many countries, including China across economic and military and political sets of issues. Your viewers should know the United States also puts religious freedom as a fundamental human right at the very center of discussions with every country with whom we interact.”

Question: Religious freedom is a universal value as you mentioned. How would you respond to the Chinese assertion that some of the surveillance programs are to prevent a terrorist attack?”

 

Answer: Well I don’t to want comment. Every country does work to make sure that their citizens are safe, but we should never – no country should ever use that effort – [under] the guise of a counter terrorism investigation to persecute religious freedom. Religious freedom is separate and apart from that. Every human by nature of their dignity as a human being deserves the capacity to worship in the way that they want to worship, or if they chose not to worship at all so be it. No one should be punished by their government for their religious beliefs or their religious activities connected to those beliefs.

 

Question: While we are sitting here, critics, including State Department’s own report, said that in Eastern Ukraine, Russia-led forces continue to occupy religious buildings of religious minority groups for the use of military facilities. You were at Helsinki. Was that a good meeting? How were Russia’s activities in eastern Ukraine being discussed?

 

Answer: “So I’ve seen those reports about the Russian’s use of religious facilities. That’s never acceptable. It violates all sorts of central premises about nations ought to be able to use religious facilities to protect your forces, creates real challenges. With respect to Helsinki, President Trump made clear to Vladimir Putin that their activities in eastern Ukraine weren’t in Russia’s best interest. This administration has been incredibly tough. We’ve provided support to the Ukrainian forces there in southeast Ukraine, that the previous administration – who repeatedly refused to do. We think this creates a space for the Ukrainian people to have a successful election come 2019 and we are very very hopeful that that situation will resolve itself as America has made its continued commitment to support the Ukrainian people’s desires.”

 

Question: Speaking of Russia, Mr. Secretary, there has also been a lot of concern over the Russian proposal to question former ambassador McFaul. Do you have anything on that topic?

 

Answer: Yeah, I’d like to stop you. It’s not going to happen. The Russians made a proposal about a number of things during the course of the conversation between President Trump and President Putin. There were suggestions, comments, thoughts by President Putin with respect to that inquiry. President trump was very clear – we’re not gonna force Americans to go to Russia to be interrogated by the Russians. There’s been a lot of noise about that, I don’t know why. Just the American people should rest assured.”
…

your ad here

Pompeo to VOA: US Won’t Allow Russian Questioning of Former US Ambassador

Posted on by SeeUS

The U.S. has no intention of allowing Russia to question Michael McFaul, Washington’s former ambassador to Moscow and a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told VOA on Thursday.

“It’s not going to happen,” the top U.S. diplomat said in an interview at the State Department.

Pompeo said Putin “made a proposal about a number of things during the course of the conversation” he had Monday at his Helsinki summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.

“There were suggestions, comments, thoughts by President Putin with respect to that inquiry,” Pompeo told VOA. “President Trump was very clear – we’re not gonna force Americans to go to Russia to be interrogated by the Russians.”

The Russian leader proposed to let U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators fly to Moscow to interview 12 military intelligence officials indicted in connection with hacking into computers of Democrats working to defeat Trump in the 2016 election in exchange for Russian interviews of McFaul; an American-born British businessman, Bill Browder, who worked to get legislation passed in the U.S. and elsewhere to sanction Russia for human rights violations, and other Americans.

Browder was convicted in absentia for tax fraud in Russia and Putin claimed, without any evidence, that Browder laundered $400 million out of Russia and gave it to Trump’s 2016 opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton. No such political donation occurred.

McFaul, who served as the U.S. ambassador to Moscow from 2012 to 2014 during the administration of former President Barack Obama, said on Twitter, “I hope the White House corrects the record and denounces in categorical terms this ridiculous request from Putin. Not doing so creates moral equivalency between a legitimacy U.S. indictment of Russian intelligence officers and a crazy, completely fabricated story invented by Putin.”

On Wednesday, there was a high-level disconnect within the Trump administration over a possible Russian interview with McFaul.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert called the unspecified Russian crimes against the Americans “absurd,” suggesting that no questioning would be permitted. But White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the idea of each country’s investigators questioning people it wanted to in the United States and Russia was being weighed.

“The president’s going to meet with his team, and we’ll let you know when we have an announcement on that,” Sanders said, adding that no one had made any commitment to accept Putin’s offer.

By Thursday, Sanders said, “It is a proposal that was made in sincerity by President Putin, but President Trump disagrees with it. Hopefully President Putin will have the 12 identified Russians come to the United States to prove their innocence or guilt.”

Russia and the U.S. do not have an extradition treaty and the 12 accused intelligence officials are not expected to be turned over to the U.S. for trial.

The reason for the confusion about questioning officials from the two countries came because Trump said Putin had made “an incredible offer” to him.

During Thursday’s interview with VOA, Secretary of State Pompeo sought to clarify the U.S. stance on the issue, repeating such questioning would not be permitted.

“There’s been a lot of noise about that, I don’t know why,” Pompeo said. “Just the American people should rest assured.”

Ken Bredemeier contributed to this report

 

 

 
…

your ad here

Commerce Secretary: ‘Too Early’ to Say if US Will Impose Auto Tariffs

Posted on by SeeUS

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Thursday it was “too early” to say if the United States would impose tariffs of up to 25 percent on imported cars and parts, a suggestion that has been met with harsh criticism from the industry.

The department opened an investigation in May into whether imported autos and parts pose a national security risk and was holding a hearing on the probe Thursday, taking testimony from auto trade groups, foreign governments and others.

Ross’ remarks came at the start of the public hearing, which he said was aimed at determining “whether government action is required to assure the viability of U.S. domestic production.”

A group representing major automakers told Commerce on Thursday that imposing tariffs of 25 percent on imported cars and parts would raise the price of U.S. vehicles by $83 billion annually and cost hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Automakers say there is “no evidence” that auto imports pose a national security risk, and that the tariffs could actually harm U.S. economic security.

They are also facing higher prices after tariffs were imposed on aluminum and steel.

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, whose members include General Motors Co, Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp, warned on the impact of the tariffs.

“Higher auto tariffs will harm American families and workers, along with the economy” and “would raise the price of an imported car nearly $6,000 and the price of a U.S.-built car $2,000,” said Jennifer Thomas, a vice president for the group.

She noted that the U.S. exports more than $100 billion of autos and parts annually to other countries, while “there is a long list of products that are largely no longer made in the U.S., including TVs, laptops, cellphones, baseballs, and commercial ships.”

No automaker or parts company has endorsed the tariffs, and they have pointed to near-record sales in recent years.

Warnings

Jennifer Kelly, the United Auto Workers union research director, noted that U.S. auto production has fallen from 12.8 million vehicles in 2000 to 11.2 million in 2017 as the sector has shed about 400,000 jobs over that period, with many jobs moving to Mexico or other low-wage countries.

“We caution that any rash actions could have unforeseen consequences, including mass layoffs for American workers, but that does not mean we should do nothing,” she said, suggesting “targeted measures.”

Many firms that sell vintage vehicles also warned that the tariffs could devastate the industry because many older cars need parts that are only made outside the United States. Polaris Industries Inc warned that off-road vehicles could also be inadvertently covered by the tariffs.

A study released by a U.S. auto dealer group warned that the tariffs could cut U.S. auto sales by 2 million vehicles annually and cost more than 117,000 auto dealer jobs, or about 10 percent of the workforce.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested he would move quickly to impose tariffs, even before the government launched its probe.

‘Tremendous retribution’

“We said if we don’t negotiate something fair, then we have tremendous retribution, which we don’t want to use, but we have tremendous powers,” Trump said Wednesday. “We have to — including cars. Cars is the big one. And you know what we’re talking about with respect to cars and tariffs on cars.”

The European Union, Japan, Canada and Mexico, along with many automotive trade groups, are among 45 witnesses scheduled to testify during the daylong hearing.

The Commerce Department said earlier this week it aimed to complete the investigation “within a couple months.”
…

your ad here

Trump ‘Not Thrilled’ With Fed’s Decision to Hike Interest Rates

Posted on by SeeUS

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he was not pleased about the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to increase interest rates.

“I’m not thrilled,” Trump said in a CNBC interview that aired Friday. His remarks followed two interest rate hikes this year and Fed suggestions of two more increases before the end of the year.

“Because we go up and every time you go up, they want to raise rates again. I don’t really — I am not happy about it,” he said. “But at the same time, I’m letting them do what they feel is best.”

Presidents rarely intervene in developments involving the Fed, which sets the benchmark interest rate. Higher interest rates make it more expensive to borrow money, which slows economic activity. The rate hikes are intended to keep inflation from damaging the economy. Earlier, during a severe recession, the Fed slashed interest rates nearly to zero in a bid to boost economic growth.

Trump expressed frustration in the interview that the central bank’s actions could disrupt U.S. economic expansion.

Trump sought to give the economy a boost when he signed into law a major tax cut late last year. The law cut the corporate rate from 35 percent to 21 percent and lowered taxes on individual incomes as well.
…

your ad here

Russia, China Delay US Push for Halt of Refined Petroleum to North Korea

Posted on by SeeEU

Russia and China have requested more time to consider a U.S. request to stop deliveries of refined petroleum products to North Korea, diplomats said Thursday.

 

The U.S. asked a U.N. sanctions committee last week to halt the shipments after accusing North Korea of exceeding a U.N. limit on fuel deliveries through illegal imports.

The U.S. claimed the imports go beyond the quota of 500,000 barrels per year allowed under U.N. sanctions and asked the committee to inform all U.N. member nations and the public that North Korea has violated the quota.

 

The U.S. also asked the committee to urge member states to exercise “enhanced vigilance” against Pyongyang’s attempts to obtain the products and to prevent ship-to-ship transfers.

The quota was among the sanctions imposed by the Security Council last December in response to North Korea’s launch of a missile North Korea said is capable of striking anywhere on the U.S. mainland.

At the June summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, Kim agreed to denuclearization. The Trump administration, however, has said sanctions will remain in place until the denuclarization process, which has yet to begin, is completed and verified.

 
…

your ad here

Uganda’s Social Media Tax to Stay Despite Protests

Posted on by SeeAF

The Ugandan government says it will keep a social media tax in place despite an uproar.

Users of social media in Uganda will continue paying the daily tax of 53 cents to access online services such as Facebook, Google, Whatsapp and Skype.

On Wednesday, President Yoweri Museveni summoned legislators of the ruling National Resistance Movement party to discuss the tax. Finance Minister Matia Kasaija introduced an amendment to the law Thursday, but only to reduce a tax on mobile money services by a half-percent.

The social media tax, which went into effect July 1, will remain, he said. 

Museveni said the tax was aimed at curbing gossip online. However, users of social media and other online services have described it as an infringement on the right to freedom of expression and freedom to access information.

Legislator Robert Kyagulanyi, commonly known as Bobi Wine, is facing charges of inciting the public for leading a protest against the tax.

He says young Ugandans will not be placated by a reduction in the mobile money tax.

“Now, it is evident that government is only trying to buy time so that Ugandans become complacent and used to this oppression which we refuse,” Kyagulanyi said. “This time, as leaders, we are only coming to join Ugandans because the people raised their voice — which has been and still stands — that this tax must go.”

The Finance Ministry says it has collected about $1.8 million from the social media and mobile money taxes. Many Ugandans are attempting to avoid the taxes by staying offline or using virtual private networks.
…

your ad here

No New Pentagon Guidance on US-Russian Military Cooperation in Syria

Posted on by SeeEU

The commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East says he has not received new guidance from the Pentagon on military cooperation with Russia in Syria following the Helsinki summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We have received no specific direction at this point,” U.S. Army General Joseph Votel, who leads U.S. Central Command, told reporters at the Pentagon via teleconference from Tampa, Florida, Thursday.

Votel added that his forces are continuing communications to deconflict operations with the Russian military in Syria in order to “ensure protection” of U.S. forces.

“For us right now, it’s kind of steady as she goes (continuation of regular routine),” he said.

The U.S. is currently fighting remnants of Islamic State fighters in Syria while Russian forces are attacking anti-Assad groups in the country.

On Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that it was ready to implement what it claimed were agreements reached by Trump and Putin on increased cooperation with the U.S. military in Syria.

General Votel reiterated on Thursday that U.S. law, adopted following Russia’s annexation of Crimea, prohibits bilateral cooperation with the Russian military. Exceptions “would have to be created by Congress or a waiver,” he said.

 
…

your ad here

Homeland Security Extends Legal Protections for 500 Somalis in US

Posted on by SeeAF

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) decided Thursday to extend temporary legal protections to about 500 Somalis who sought refuge in the United States.

The majority of those affected live in Minnesota, home to the nation’s largest community of Somali-Americans.

Twenty-two  U.S. senators had sent a letter to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen urging the extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali nationals who have taken refuge in the U.S. after escaping conflict and violence in Somalia.

In the announcement, Nielsen determined “the ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions that support Somalia’s current designation for TPS continue to exist.”

Democratic Senator Tina Smith of Minnesota, who has led the effort to extend humanitarian protections, told VOA Somali the danger still exists in Somalia. 

Taking to Twitter, she later added, “We must work to find a long-term solution. Without it, hundreds of our Somali neighbors who fled violence, human rights abuses, and who call this country home could face deportation.”

Though Somalia’s TPS designation was renewed for 18 months — until March 17, 2020 — it was not redesignated, meaning only current beneficiaries can re-register.

In a statement, Scott Paul, who leads Oxfam America’s Humanitarian policy advocacy, said he was grateful for the extension, but called the lack of redesignation a disappointment, “leaving many Somalis in the U.S. at risk of forcible return to one of the world’s longest running conflicts.”

According to UNHCR, more than 2 million Somalis remain displaced by ongoing conflicts that span more than two decades, including nearly 900,000 refugees in the region.

VOA’s Mohamed Hassan and Ramon Taylor contributed to this report.
…

your ad here

Artist Captures War as Seen by Children — Toys Included

Posted on by SeeEA

Brian McCarty is a war photographer. But his pictures are not of bombed-out buildings or mangled bodies. His images show the horrors of war through the eyes of children and re-created with toy tanks and tiny dolls. Faith Lapidus has his story.
…

your ad here

State Department Denounces Russia’s Demand to Interrogate Americans, Trump Does Not

Posted on by SeeEU

The U.S. State Department denounced Russia’s request to question several U.S. citizens in exchange for allowing a U.S. investigator to interrogate 12 Russians indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller for their efforts to derail the 2016 presidential election. Among the Americans the Kremlin wants to interrogate is a former U.S. ambassador to Russia. The White House said Wednesday the president has not ruled out allowing Russian officials to question Americans. VOA’S Zlatica Hoke reports.
…

your ad here