From the Huffington Post.
WASHINGTON — The economy, energy and the environment confront President Barack Obama and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in their White House talks Saturday.
Trade, relations with Latin America and the case of a New Jersey man trying to bring his 8-year-old son back from Brazil may come up, too.
The leaders planned to compare notes on two international forums on their schedules next month _ a meeting of the Group of 20 nations and the Summit of the Americas.
Brazil has become a major U.S. trading partner, and its cautious economic policies have helped South America's largest country weather the global financial crisis better than almost all other major economic powers. Brazil also has huge new sources of offshore oil and abundant ethanol, which could give it an important role in helping the U.S. wean itself from Venezuelan crude and shift to cleaner sources of energy.
Silva, who runs the world's fifth-most-populous nation and ninth-largest economy, has close ties with leaders across the political spectrum. He has been asked to lobby Obama for free trade on behalf of conservatives in Colombia and for dropping the U.S. embargo against communist Cuba.
Even Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who has had a prickly relationship with the U.S., has asked his Brazilian counterpart to put in some good words for him.
"I'm going to ask that the U.S. take a different view of Latin America," Silva said before leaving his country. "We're a democratic, peaceful continent, and the U.S. has to look at the region in a productive, developmental way, and not just think about drug trafficking or organized crime."
The world's largest exporter of ethanol, Brazil has seen little progress on its demand that the U.S. lift a 53-cent-per-gallon import tariff on the gasoline alternative. But in the past two years, Brazil has made offshore oil discoveries of some 80 billion barrels. The find could help turn Brazil into a major crude exporter and become a bargaining chip with the U.S.
The custody issue involves David Goldman of Tinton Falls, N.J., who is trying to bring his young son back from Brazil. The boy was taken there in 2004 by his mother, who died several years later while giving birth. She had divorced Goldman and married a lawyer from Rio de Janeiro. Both children are being raised by the lawyer's family.
This past week, the House unanimously urged Brazil to "act with extreme urgency" to return the boy to Goldman. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said she has discussed the case with high-ranking Brazilian officials.
Thomas A. Shannon, the assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs, said Friday that Obama is aware of the case.
Silva was the first Latin American leader to sit down with Obama. Obama has met with Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
___
Associated Press writer Bradley Brooks in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, contributed to this report.
Showing posts with label International. Show all posts
Showing posts with label International. Show all posts
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
BBC: Why Thailand's King is so revered
From BBC
Not much can bring the life of the noisy, traffic-clogged heart of Bangkok to a halt.
But on Wednesday the streets were hushed, the cars and buses banished.
All you could hear were speakers playing the royal anthem, and thousands of flags fluttering in the breeze, held by people of all ages.
Most were dressed in yellow and had waited for hours for a glimpse of a stiff and stern-faced old man passing in a motorcade, on his way to the gilded halls and temples of Bangkok's Grand Palace.
And as it passed they shouted "Song Phra Charoen", "Long Live Your Majesty". Some had tears in their eyes.
What explains this extraordinary bond between people and monarch?
King Bhumibol Adulyadej is accorded an almost divine reverence, with titles like Phra Chao Yu Hua (Lord Upon our Heads) or Chao Chiwit (Lord of Life).
People prostrate themselves on the ground in his presence. Yet there is genuine affection too, and it goes both ways.
Thais talk of their love for him as though he were a cherished member of the family.
In his speeches to the nation he likes to joke and tease them.
Public relations
Earlier in his reign when he was younger and travelled a lot, he clearly enjoyed meeting and mixing with people from the poorest rural communities.
People often refer to his long life of service to the nation, to his experiments with agriculture and irrigation, many of them carried out on the grounds of his palace in Bangkok.
The formidable public relations machine which manages the monarchy's image makes much of these experiments, as it does of the king's other talents as a jazz musician and sailor.
But the real measure of these achievements is impossible to know in a country where all criticism of the monarchy is curtailed by the draconian lese majeste law (offence against the dignity of the monarch), and only lavish praise for the royal family can be published.
The reverence for the king seems rooted in something less worldly.
Time after time when Thais are asked about the virtues of King Bhumibol they refer to his proper adherence to the principles of "Dhamma", Buddhist teachings and the Buddhist concept of righteousness.
Our political system has been unstable all the time. So whenever there is a political crisis people expect the King to solve the problem
Prof Suchit Bunbongkarn
It is not just his practical deeds they are looking at, but his manner; his modesty, his reserve, his gentleness, and his apparent detachment from the world - qualities he has worked hard to perfect and project.
He is as much a spiritual leader as a worldly one.
During his six decades on the throne Thailand has undergone changes as wrenching as in any other country.
Per capita income has gone up 40-fold. An almost entirely agrarian society has become a substantially urban one. The economy has been swept along by the forces of globalisation.
Political upheaval
There have been other changes as well.
This king has reigned through 17 military coups and 26 prime ministers. The gap between rich and poor has widened, with conspicuous consumption and conspicuous corruption accepted as part of everyday life.
There has been a corresponding decline in traditional community and family values.
Amid this whirlwind, the king has remained a reassuring anchor, a man who embodies Thailand's history but who has also come to embody integrity and detachment from the squalid realities of day-to-day politics and business.
He has lived the myth of the virtuous monarch so well that almost the entire population believes in it and takes comfort from it.
And it gives him a unique moral authority. When he speaks, people listen.
They may, and often do fail to act on his advice. But he has been able to use that authority to settle a number of political crises.
I want to be making suits for him when he is 90 years old, when he is 100 - longer even."
Sompop Louilarpprasert
King Bhumibol's tailor
"If the country were in good shape politically, then the role of the constitutional monarch is not very difficult," explains Suchit Bunbongkarn, professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University.
"But in the case of Thailand it is not easy because our political system has been unstable all the time. So whenever there is a political crisis people expect the king to solve the problem."
Former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun describes King Bhumibol's authority as "reserve power" that, because it has been used judiciously and sparingly, has been decisive in maintaining the country's stability.
This power, he says, has been accumulated through a life of dedication to his job. It cannot, he points out, be inherited or passed on.
Fears and superstition
Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn offers saffron cloth to monks in Bangkok (05/11/2007)
There is quiet concern about the abilities of the heir to the throne
That explains the acute anxiety now over the king's fragile health. Few imagine that any future monarch can match this one.
There are many reservations about the capabilities of his presumed heir, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, although these cannot be expressed publicly because of the lese majeste laws.
The succession itself is not completely clear, with the constitution leaving considerable powers to designate an heir to the 19-member Privy Council of senior advisors to the king.
The opacity that has preserved the mystique of monarchy in Thailand makes it impossible to discuss, let alone plan for the succession.
So Thais prefer not to think about it.
When I saw his tailor, Sompop Louilarpprasert, and asked him about the king's recent spell in hospital, he brushed it aside.
"I want to be making suits for him when he is 90 years old, when he is 100 - longer even."
It was Sompop who made the dazzling pink blazer the king wore when he came out of hospital.
Within hours, pink shirts were been sold in their thousands across the country, and there are days when some streets are a sea of pink.
In this superstitious country they now associate pink with the king's recovery. It will bring him good fortune, they say.
By wearing it they are literally willing him to stay alive for them.
Not much can bring the life of the noisy, traffic-clogged heart of Bangkok to a halt.
But on Wednesday the streets were hushed, the cars and buses banished.
All you could hear were speakers playing the royal anthem, and thousands of flags fluttering in the breeze, held by people of all ages.
Most were dressed in yellow and had waited for hours for a glimpse of a stiff and stern-faced old man passing in a motorcade, on his way to the gilded halls and temples of Bangkok's Grand Palace.
And as it passed they shouted "Song Phra Charoen", "Long Live Your Majesty". Some had tears in their eyes.
What explains this extraordinary bond between people and monarch?
King Bhumibol Adulyadej is accorded an almost divine reverence, with titles like Phra Chao Yu Hua (Lord Upon our Heads) or Chao Chiwit (Lord of Life).
People prostrate themselves on the ground in his presence. Yet there is genuine affection too, and it goes both ways.
Thais talk of their love for him as though he were a cherished member of the family.
In his speeches to the nation he likes to joke and tease them.
Public relations
Earlier in his reign when he was younger and travelled a lot, he clearly enjoyed meeting and mixing with people from the poorest rural communities.
People often refer to his long life of service to the nation, to his experiments with agriculture and irrigation, many of them carried out on the grounds of his palace in Bangkok.
The formidable public relations machine which manages the monarchy's image makes much of these experiments, as it does of the king's other talents as a jazz musician and sailor.
But the real measure of these achievements is impossible to know in a country where all criticism of the monarchy is curtailed by the draconian lese majeste law (offence against the dignity of the monarch), and only lavish praise for the royal family can be published.
The reverence for the king seems rooted in something less worldly.
Time after time when Thais are asked about the virtues of King Bhumibol they refer to his proper adherence to the principles of "Dhamma", Buddhist teachings and the Buddhist concept of righteousness.
Our political system has been unstable all the time. So whenever there is a political crisis people expect the King to solve the problem
Prof Suchit Bunbongkarn
It is not just his practical deeds they are looking at, but his manner; his modesty, his reserve, his gentleness, and his apparent detachment from the world - qualities he has worked hard to perfect and project.
He is as much a spiritual leader as a worldly one.
During his six decades on the throne Thailand has undergone changes as wrenching as in any other country.
Per capita income has gone up 40-fold. An almost entirely agrarian society has become a substantially urban one. The economy has been swept along by the forces of globalisation.
Political upheaval
There have been other changes as well.
This king has reigned through 17 military coups and 26 prime ministers. The gap between rich and poor has widened, with conspicuous consumption and conspicuous corruption accepted as part of everyday life.
There has been a corresponding decline in traditional community and family values.
Amid this whirlwind, the king has remained a reassuring anchor, a man who embodies Thailand's history but who has also come to embody integrity and detachment from the squalid realities of day-to-day politics and business.
He has lived the myth of the virtuous monarch so well that almost the entire population believes in it and takes comfort from it.
And it gives him a unique moral authority. When he speaks, people listen.
They may, and often do fail to act on his advice. But he has been able to use that authority to settle a number of political crises.
I want to be making suits for him when he is 90 years old, when he is 100 - longer even."
Sompop Louilarpprasert
King Bhumibol's tailor
"If the country were in good shape politically, then the role of the constitutional monarch is not very difficult," explains Suchit Bunbongkarn, professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University.
"But in the case of Thailand it is not easy because our political system has been unstable all the time. So whenever there is a political crisis people expect the king to solve the problem."
Former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun describes King Bhumibol's authority as "reserve power" that, because it has been used judiciously and sparingly, has been decisive in maintaining the country's stability.
This power, he says, has been accumulated through a life of dedication to his job. It cannot, he points out, be inherited or passed on.
Fears and superstition
Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn offers saffron cloth to monks in Bangkok (05/11/2007)
There is quiet concern about the abilities of the heir to the throne
That explains the acute anxiety now over the king's fragile health. Few imagine that any future monarch can match this one.
There are many reservations about the capabilities of his presumed heir, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, although these cannot be expressed publicly because of the lese majeste laws.
The succession itself is not completely clear, with the constitution leaving considerable powers to designate an heir to the 19-member Privy Council of senior advisors to the king.
The opacity that has preserved the mystique of monarchy in Thailand makes it impossible to discuss, let alone plan for the succession.
So Thais prefer not to think about it.
When I saw his tailor, Sompop Louilarpprasert, and asked him about the king's recent spell in hospital, he brushed it aside.
"I want to be making suits for him when he is 90 years old, when he is 100 - longer even."
It was Sompop who made the dazzling pink blazer the king wore when he came out of hospital.
Within hours, pink shirts were been sold in their thousands across the country, and there are days when some streets are a sea of pink.
In this superstitious country they now associate pink with the king's recovery. It will bring him good fortune, they say.
By wearing it they are literally willing him to stay alive for them.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Investors flock to Malaysia's Super Corridor
KUCHING, Malaysia (MarketWatch) -- It's called the MSC, the Malaysian Super Corridor, and it's attracting the investment attention of big money and institutions all around the world.
Malaysia is poised for enormous growth. Predictions for the economy in 2008 are robust. Venture capitalists and developers are investing in real estate, technology and communications. The country is looking like it will become a major business hub in years to come.
Take a look at Kuala Lumpur. Built out of the jungle, the city is thriving with shopping malls like the KLCC and the famous Petronas Twin Towers attracting people in droves. When I was there, business meetings and conferences were being held all over. Pete Sampras and Roger Federer were holding an exhibition tennis match and the city pulse was on par with that of New York. The hotels and buildings are sparkling new, and more are going up every day.
If the MSC takes hold it will be a force to be reckoned with. Here's why: Malaysia is just Western enough to attract investors from Australia, Europe and the U.S. And it is just Eastern enough to attract investors from China and Japan. China is already taking the lead. A local businessman told me that Chinese interests control about 50% of the businesses near him.
The Malaysian government and the MSC, an organization in its own right, aren't keeping the place a secret. Advertisements are all over the international news networks and the local papers.
The Malaysian government sees the MSC as its big chance to compete on the international level. It boasts a hub, or corridor, that is being developed rapidly and attracting businesses ranging from real estate to telecommunications to technology. It is sparking job growth, stock growth, economic growth -- growth with a capital G.
To be sure, Singapore, its neighbor, has already proven to be a major business success. Malaysia faces competition from the rest of the world as well as very little infrastructure to begin such a 21st century endeavor.
Jungle transformation
Besides, the MSC will ravage the land here more than it already has. Malaysia is a pristine place, full of jungle and unspoiled natural resources. That will all change if the various stages of the corridor take hold and envelop the states of Sabah and Sawarak, where myriad species roam wild.
Officials from the state of California were visiting when I was in Kuala Lumpur, vetting the MSC. They said they are interested in pursuing relationships in the area -- potential investments and sharing of resources.
What will attract people here are the prices. Malaysia is cheap. A two-story compound of a home on Sawarak is about $100,000. You can get a full dinner, including appetizers, drinks and dessert for a little more than ten bucks.
In terms of stock prices, Malaysia has followed Asia and the rest of the world of late, seesawing. But values are said to be available.
The Malaysian government admits that the MSC will corrupt land, but says the economic benefits of jobs and industry will outweigh that and help its people.
It won't be up to them, however. There isn't enough local wealth to put Malaysia in riches. It knows that. It needs outside investors to reach the type of growth it has in mind.
That means it will have to rely on the business strategies of foreign firms to propel its growth. And that may not so neatly mean jobs for the Malaysian people. There is a huge influx of Indonesian labor in the country. Outsourcing capital also means outsourcing the management of the economy to an extent.
By those rules, the market will win, even if that means at the sacrifice of the people and the land that it is built upon. Whether the MSC will fulfill the high hopes the Malaysian government has remains to be seen. One thing is for sure: It will have a dramatic effect on how things are here.
Malaysia is poised for enormous growth. Predictions for the economy in 2008 are robust. Venture capitalists and developers are investing in real estate, technology and communications. The country is looking like it will become a major business hub in years to come.
Take a look at Kuala Lumpur. Built out of the jungle, the city is thriving with shopping malls like the KLCC and the famous Petronas Twin Towers attracting people in droves. When I was there, business meetings and conferences were being held all over. Pete Sampras and Roger Federer were holding an exhibition tennis match and the city pulse was on par with that of New York. The hotels and buildings are sparkling new, and more are going up every day.
If the MSC takes hold it will be a force to be reckoned with. Here's why: Malaysia is just Western enough to attract investors from Australia, Europe and the U.S. And it is just Eastern enough to attract investors from China and Japan. China is already taking the lead. A local businessman told me that Chinese interests control about 50% of the businesses near him.
The Malaysian government and the MSC, an organization in its own right, aren't keeping the place a secret. Advertisements are all over the international news networks and the local papers.
The Malaysian government sees the MSC as its big chance to compete on the international level. It boasts a hub, or corridor, that is being developed rapidly and attracting businesses ranging from real estate to telecommunications to technology. It is sparking job growth, stock growth, economic growth -- growth with a capital G.
To be sure, Singapore, its neighbor, has already proven to be a major business success. Malaysia faces competition from the rest of the world as well as very little infrastructure to begin such a 21st century endeavor.
Jungle transformation
Besides, the MSC will ravage the land here more than it already has. Malaysia is a pristine place, full of jungle and unspoiled natural resources. That will all change if the various stages of the corridor take hold and envelop the states of Sabah and Sawarak, where myriad species roam wild.
Officials from the state of California were visiting when I was in Kuala Lumpur, vetting the MSC. They said they are interested in pursuing relationships in the area -- potential investments and sharing of resources.
What will attract people here are the prices. Malaysia is cheap. A two-story compound of a home on Sawarak is about $100,000. You can get a full dinner, including appetizers, drinks and dessert for a little more than ten bucks.
In terms of stock prices, Malaysia has followed Asia and the rest of the world of late, seesawing. But values are said to be available.
The Malaysian government admits that the MSC will corrupt land, but says the economic benefits of jobs and industry will outweigh that and help its people.
It won't be up to them, however. There isn't enough local wealth to put Malaysia in riches. It knows that. It needs outside investors to reach the type of growth it has in mind.
That means it will have to rely on the business strategies of foreign firms to propel its growth. And that may not so neatly mean jobs for the Malaysian people. There is a huge influx of Indonesian labor in the country. Outsourcing capital also means outsourcing the management of the economy to an extent.
By those rules, the market will win, even if that means at the sacrifice of the people and the land that it is built upon. Whether the MSC will fulfill the high hopes the Malaysian government has remains to be seen. One thing is for sure: It will have a dramatic effect on how things are here.
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Crisis in Pakistan
The ousted Chief Justice of Pakistan urged lawyers yesterday to defy the government. He was under house arrest and incommunicado, but was able to somehow get a message out.
Supporters of Benazir Bhutto are also demonstrating.
Supporters of Benazir Bhutto are also demonstrating.
Monday, November 05, 2007
Pakistan govt seizes emergency powers, rounds up political foes
From this NY Times article:
Pray for the people of Pakistan.
Despite repeated warnings by the United States and other Western nations over the past several days, the Musharraf government also appeared set to put off parliamentary elections that had been scheduled for January. At a news conference on Sunday, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said that the government was holding internal discussions on the future of the elections. “We are still deliberating,” he said. “In an emergency the Parliament could give itself one year.”
As the Bush administration has seen General Musharraf, one of its closest allies in fighting terrorism, become increasingly unpopular with the Pakistani public in the past several months, American officials have urged the general to abandon his military post and hold fair elections to bolster his standing. But even though he promised from time to time to step down as Pakistan’s military leader while remaining as president, he never did so.
His decision to suspend the Constitution and fire the Supreme Court was taken days before the court was due to decide whether his re-election on Oct. 6 was valid. A close aide to General Musharraf said the Pakistani leader had decided to declare an emergency when he was told last week by a Supreme Court justice that the court would rule within days that he was ineligible to continue serving as president. The ruling would have been unanimous, according to the aide.
Pray for the people of Pakistan.
Panel discussion at Washington National Cathedral: The US and Iran, a difficult history
Congressman Wayne T. Gilchrest (R-MD) served as moderator for a lively evening of respectful engagement and open discussion between representatives from the U.S. and Iran which focused on the historical dynamics that frame the current relationship between the two countries. [Webcast available here.]
Questions for discussion included “How did the relationship get to this point?” and “Is it possible to have honesty in this relationship?” Also explored were Iranians’ lingering grievances with and perceptions of Americans after the 1953 CIA-backed coup and, conversely, the grievances Americans may hold against Iran including and beyond the 1979 hostage crisis.
Representatives from both sides talked openly about what lies behind the antagonism between the two countries and discussed constructive ideas and solutions for moving forward. The event was free and open to the public, and was webcast live. Panelists included:
* Bruce Laingen, former Iran hostage and State Department official.
* Stephen Kinzer, former New York Times bureau chief and author of All the Shah’s Men.
* Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council and author of Treacherous Alliance: the Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States.
* Dr. Abbas Amanat, Iran scholar, professor of history at Yale University and author of In Search of Modern Iran: Authority, Nationhood, and Culture.
Some personal notes on the talk are available here.
Questions for discussion included “How did the relationship get to this point?” and “Is it possible to have honesty in this relationship?” Also explored were Iranians’ lingering grievances with and perceptions of Americans after the 1953 CIA-backed coup and, conversely, the grievances Americans may hold against Iran including and beyond the 1979 hostage crisis.
Representatives from both sides talked openly about what lies behind the antagonism between the two countries and discussed constructive ideas and solutions for moving forward. The event was free and open to the public, and was webcast live. Panelists included:
* Bruce Laingen, former Iran hostage and State Department official.
* Stephen Kinzer, former New York Times bureau chief and author of All the Shah’s Men.
* Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council and author of Treacherous Alliance: the Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States.
* Dr. Abbas Amanat, Iran scholar, professor of history at Yale University and author of In Search of Modern Iran: Authority, Nationhood, and Culture.
Some personal notes on the talk are available here.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Weiwen's World News
Dr James Watson, who co-discovered the double helix of DNA in 1962, recently made derogatory comments suggesting that people of African descent are less intelligent than Whites. Newspapers quoted him as saying, “All our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours — whereas all the testing says not really." He then apologized, saying “I cannot understand how I could have said what I am quoted as having said. There is no scientific basis for such a belief.” Neither he nor his publicist have said directly that he was misquoted. Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory, which employs him, has suspended his administrative responsibilities.
President Bush has imposed new sanctions against the Burmese military junta, and ordered any US assets of Burmese high officials frozen. He also ordered more restrictions on high technology exports to Burma. These are an expansion of existing sanctions.
Government workers are striking in France, in protest against reductions in benefits proposed by Nicolas Sarkozy, the new President. It should be noted that the benefits in question are typically not enjoyed by private sector workers. The privileges allow workers in the transport and utility sectors, as well as other government administrative employees, to retire at age 50 with full benefits. Currently, there is a shortfall of US$7 billion, that taxpayers will have to shoulder.
UAW members in Michigan, Ohio, and Missouri have rejected a labor agreement with Chrysler brokered by UAW leaders, presumably on similar terms to the one with GM (UAW workers there have accepted). This isn't good news.
A suicide bomber in Pakistan killed at least 139 people and wounded at least 325. This attack comes as Benazir Bhutto returns to Pakistan to seek democratic reelection against Pervez Musharraf, who took power in a coup. He recently tried to sack the country's top judge. The high court is hearing a number of constitutional challenges to his government's authority.
Lastly, Turkey is asking the US to take action against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq. The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) has made several attacks against Turkish troops, but Turkey is reluctant to send troops into Iraq for obvious reasons. The PKK is seeking an ethnic homeland in southern Turkey, and is accused of conducting terrorist attacks.
Meanwhile, the US housing secretary, Alphonso Jackson, is facing investigations over cronyism and other questionable conduct.
Lastly, lower-income American families have a partial safety net in the form of privately-run food pantries that distribute donated food to those in need. Food pantries across the US seem to be reporting an increase in requests for aid, both from existing and new clients. For all the brouhaha over the subprime mortgage blowup, the economy as a whole is relatively healthy. Corporate profits are increasing at a decent, although not spectacular, pace. Surely rising interest rates have affected a number of Americans on adjustable-rate subprime mortgages, but I think that's not the sole cause of the increased requests for food pantry assistance. The wages for lower middle class and working class Americans have failed to increase with inflation (and previous articles have argued that the CPI understates inflation for the average person).
President Bush has imposed new sanctions against the Burmese military junta, and ordered any US assets of Burmese high officials frozen. He also ordered more restrictions on high technology exports to Burma. These are an expansion of existing sanctions.
Bush acknowledged that the measures will be less effective without regional powers joining in. "I ask other countries to review their own laws and policies, especially Burma's closest neighbors, China, India and others in the region," Bush said. In the short term, he demanded that Burma provide the Red Cross access to political prisoners, permit opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to communicate with other detained dissidents and allow U.N. envoy Ibrahim Gambari into the country. Ultimately, Bush said, the junta must release all political prisoners and open negotiations for democratic changes.
Government workers are striking in France, in protest against reductions in benefits proposed by Nicolas Sarkozy, the new President. It should be noted that the benefits in question are typically not enjoyed by private sector workers. The privileges allow workers in the transport and utility sectors, as well as other government administrative employees, to retire at age 50 with full benefits. Currently, there is a shortfall of US$7 billion, that taxpayers will have to shoulder.
UAW members in Michigan, Ohio, and Missouri have rejected a labor agreement with Chrysler brokered by UAW leaders, presumably on similar terms to the one with GM (UAW workers there have accepted). This isn't good news.
A suicide bomber in Pakistan killed at least 139 people and wounded at least 325. This attack comes as Benazir Bhutto returns to Pakistan to seek democratic reelection against Pervez Musharraf, who took power in a coup. He recently tried to sack the country's top judge. The high court is hearing a number of constitutional challenges to his government's authority.
Lastly, Turkey is asking the US to take action against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq. The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) has made several attacks against Turkish troops, but Turkey is reluctant to send troops into Iraq for obvious reasons. The PKK is seeking an ethnic homeland in southern Turkey, and is accused of conducting terrorist attacks.
Meanwhile, the US housing secretary, Alphonso Jackson, is facing investigations over cronyism and other questionable conduct.
Lastly, lower-income American families have a partial safety net in the form of privately-run food pantries that distribute donated food to those in need. Food pantries across the US seem to be reporting an increase in requests for aid, both from existing and new clients. For all the brouhaha over the subprime mortgage blowup, the economy as a whole is relatively healthy. Corporate profits are increasing at a decent, although not spectacular, pace. Surely rising interest rates have affected a number of Americans on adjustable-rate subprime mortgages, but I think that's not the sole cause of the increased requests for food pantry assistance. The wages for lower middle class and working class Americans have failed to increase with inflation (and previous articles have argued that the CPI understates inflation for the average person).
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
The International Herald Tribune reports that China is pressing the US not to honor the Dalai Lama (with a Congressional award).
BEIJING: Chinese officials warned the United States not to honor the Dalai Lama, saying a planned award ceremony for the Tibetan spiritual leader would have "an extremely serious impact" on relations between the two countries.
Speaking at a Foreign Ministry briefing and on the sidelines of the Communist Party's 17th National Congress, the officials condemned the Dalai Lama as a resolute separatist and said foreign leaders must stop encouraging his "splittist" mission.
"Such a person who basely splits his motherland and doesn't even love his motherland has been welcomed by some countries and has even been receiving this or that award," the Tibetan Communist Party boss, Zhang Qingli, said during the congress.
"We are furious," Zhang said. "If the Dalai Lama can receive such an award, there must be no justice or good people in the world."
The Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile since the Chinese Army crushed an uprising in his homeland in 1959, is revered as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists. The Nobel peace laureate is scheduled to receive the Congressional Gold Medal on Wednesday after President George W. Bush meets with him at the White House on Tuesday.
China has pressed the United States to cancel the award event for months. A Foreign Ministry spokesman, Liu Jianchao, said Tuesday that Beijing was "strongly dissatisfied" and warned of an "extremely serious impact" if the events are held as scheduled. But he did not say what steps China planned to take.
This week, Beijing pulled out of a meeting at which leading world powers are to discuss the Iranian nuclear program. Chinese officials cited "technical reasons" for not participating, but they left the clear impression that they might downgrade support for international efforts to stop the Iranian nuclear program if foreign powers interfered in China's internal affairs.
China also recently cancelled its annual human rights dialogue with Germany to protest Chancellor Angela Merkel's meeting last month with the Dalai Lama. But Beijing often uses strong language when warning other countries about interfering in its internal affairs without taking strong action. Giving an award to the Dalai Lama is highly unlikely to seriously disrupt relations with the United States, which has often sought to protect Chinese dissidents and has maintained close ties to Taiwan, which China's considers a renegade province.
Both Washington and Beijing say relations between the two countries have been warm, especially after they worked together to bring about an agreement to end North Korea's nuclear program.
In recent months, China has stepped up its attacks on the Dalai Lama even though Chinese officials and envoys from the Tibetan leader have engaged in a on-and-off dialogue over terms of reconciliation.
BEIJING: Chinese officials warned the United States not to honor the Dalai Lama, saying a planned award ceremony for the Tibetan spiritual leader would have "an extremely serious impact" on relations between the two countries.
Speaking at a Foreign Ministry briefing and on the sidelines of the Communist Party's 17th National Congress, the officials condemned the Dalai Lama as a resolute separatist and said foreign leaders must stop encouraging his "splittist" mission.
"Such a person who basely splits his motherland and doesn't even love his motherland has been welcomed by some countries and has even been receiving this or that award," the Tibetan Communist Party boss, Zhang Qingli, said during the congress.
"We are furious," Zhang said. "If the Dalai Lama can receive such an award, there must be no justice or good people in the world."
The Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile since the Chinese Army crushed an uprising in his homeland in 1959, is revered as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists. The Nobel peace laureate is scheduled to receive the Congressional Gold Medal on Wednesday after President George W. Bush meets with him at the White House on Tuesday.
China has pressed the United States to cancel the award event for months. A Foreign Ministry spokesman, Liu Jianchao, said Tuesday that Beijing was "strongly dissatisfied" and warned of an "extremely serious impact" if the events are held as scheduled. But he did not say what steps China planned to take.
This week, Beijing pulled out of a meeting at which leading world powers are to discuss the Iranian nuclear program. Chinese officials cited "technical reasons" for not participating, but they left the clear impression that they might downgrade support for international efforts to stop the Iranian nuclear program if foreign powers interfered in China's internal affairs.
China also recently cancelled its annual human rights dialogue with Germany to protest Chancellor Angela Merkel's meeting last month with the Dalai Lama. But Beijing often uses strong language when warning other countries about interfering in its internal affairs without taking strong action. Giving an award to the Dalai Lama is highly unlikely to seriously disrupt relations with the United States, which has often sought to protect Chinese dissidents and has maintained close ties to Taiwan, which China's considers a renegade province.
Both Washington and Beijing say relations between the two countries have been warm, especially after they worked together to bring about an agreement to end North Korea's nuclear program.
In recent months, China has stepped up its attacks on the Dalai Lama even though Chinese officials and envoys from the Tibetan leader have engaged in a on-and-off dialogue over terms of reconciliation.
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
More on Burma
The Catholic Church in Burma has ordered its clergy not to take part in protests, although laypeople may do so, and all Catholics may certainly offer prayers for their nation. Make of it what you will, but I understand that Pope Benedict has condemned the Junta and asked them to end the violence. The article contrasts them to the Buddhist monks who have spearheaded the protests, but I understand that the activist monks are in the minority (although the country is over 90% Buddhist, so even a minority is a lot of monks).
Additionally, VOA News reported 2 days ago that a UN envoy met with Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's democratically elected leader, and the military junta (which, btw, has placed her under house arrest for over a decade).
Lastly, Madpriest posted this letter (published in the Guardian) on his blog:
YANGON, Myanmar: While thousands of Buddhist monks have marched on the streets to protest against Myanmar's military regime, the Catholic Church has ordered its clergy not to take part in demonstrations or political activities.
Worshippers at Yangon's Catholic churches Sunday read posted bulletins from its hierarchy stating that priests, brothers and nuns were not to become involved in the monthlong protests, but that lay Catholics could act as they saw fit.
But at one Yangon church, a Western priest told a mostly foreign congregation of some 100 worshippers that the international community must speak out against the regime, criticizing those who remained silent.
"The situation now in Myanmar should not be deemed as 'business as usual.' What's happening can be likened to a rape," he said in a sermon, asking not to be identified by name for fear of reprisals.
A handful of Myanmar residents were inside the church, and had apparently been sleeping there in recent days for fear their homes would be raided by security forces which set up a checkpoint about 10 meters (yards) from the church after the Mass.
The bulletins urged all Catholics to continue praying, fasting and offering Mass for Myanmar's welfare.
Myanmar's 450,000 Catholics make up about 1 percent of the population of this predominantly Buddhist country. Christians as a whole comprise about 4 percent.
Additionally, VOA News reported 2 days ago that a UN envoy met with Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's democratically elected leader, and the military junta (which, btw, has placed her under house arrest for over a decade).
Lastly, Madpriest posted this letter (published in the Guardian) on his blog:
As an ordained Anglican, I am appalled that while Buddhist monks are taken from their beds, beaten and imprisoned for peacefully protesting in the name of democracy, Anglican bishops can only concern themselves with the obsession of denying gay and lesbian Christians an opportunity to share their spiritual gifts and experience through ordained ministry. For me it is clear in which of these two groups spiritual authenticity resides. I offer my heartfelt prayers on behalf of the monks of Burma.
Rev Mike Catling
Alnwick, Northumberland
Monday, October 01, 2007
Burma's junta cracks down, toll unknown but suspected to be high
From VOA News, their site contains an audio report
Human rights activists say they fear the numbers of those arrested or killed in a government crackdown on protests in Burma is far higher than the country's ruling military has acknowledged. Trish Anderton reports from Bangkok, in neighboring Thailand.
The Hong Kong based Asian Human Rights Commission says it believes at least 700 Buddhist monks and 500 civilians were spirited away by security forces to unknown locations within the past week. Many observers believe the death toll may have been far higher than the 10 reported.
But in Bangkok, Swedish Ambassador at Large for Human Rights Jan Nordlander says it is impossible to know.
"There is a consensus assessment within the international community that the number of victims is considerably higher than the number that the government of Myanmar has indicated," said Nordlander. "But how many, I think, nobody can say at this time."
U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has headed back to Burma's administrative capital, Naypidaw, in the hope of meeting with junta leader General Than Shwe. A statement from the U.N. makes it clear the world body expects the reclusive general to meet with Gambari before he leaves.
Still, human rights activists in Bangkok say the U.N. is moving too slowly. Dozens of groups throughout Asia have issued a call to Asian governments to support a U.N. fact-finding mission and human rights monitoring system in Burma.
Aung Myo Min is with the Human Rights Education Institute of Burma.
"Last year in Darfur, in Sudan, the fact-finding mission did a great job after submitting the report that is seriously considered by the human rights council and also the Security Council," he said. "So, I think the first step is the fact-finding mission and also that there should be a monitoring system."
Soldiers patrol along the street leading to Sule Pagoda in Rangoon, 01 Oct 2007
Soldiers patrol along the street leading to Sule Pagoda in Rangoon, 01 Oct 2007
In Rangoon, the military removed barbed-wired barricades from around the Shwedagon Pagoda, a focus of the demonstrations, in a move that appeared to signal its confidence that it has put down last week's demonstrations.
Soldiers remain stationed there, however, and Internet access in the country is still disabled.
Human rights activists say they fear the numbers of those arrested or killed in a government crackdown on protests in Burma is far higher than the country's ruling military has acknowledged. Trish Anderton reports from Bangkok, in neighboring Thailand.
The Hong Kong based Asian Human Rights Commission says it believes at least 700 Buddhist monks and 500 civilians were spirited away by security forces to unknown locations within the past week. Many observers believe the death toll may have been far higher than the 10 reported.
But in Bangkok, Swedish Ambassador at Large for Human Rights Jan Nordlander says it is impossible to know.
"There is a consensus assessment within the international community that the number of victims is considerably higher than the number that the government of Myanmar has indicated," said Nordlander. "But how many, I think, nobody can say at this time."
U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has headed back to Burma's administrative capital, Naypidaw, in the hope of meeting with junta leader General Than Shwe. A statement from the U.N. makes it clear the world body expects the reclusive general to meet with Gambari before he leaves.
Still, human rights activists in Bangkok say the U.N. is moving too slowly. Dozens of groups throughout Asia have issued a call to Asian governments to support a U.N. fact-finding mission and human rights monitoring system in Burma.
Aung Myo Min is with the Human Rights Education Institute of Burma.
"Last year in Darfur, in Sudan, the fact-finding mission did a great job after submitting the report that is seriously considered by the human rights council and also the Security Council," he said. "So, I think the first step is the fact-finding mission and also that there should be a monitoring system."
Soldiers patrol along the street leading to Sule Pagoda in Rangoon, 01 Oct 2007
Soldiers patrol along the street leading to Sule Pagoda in Rangoon, 01 Oct 2007
In Rangoon, the military removed barbed-wired barricades from around the Shwedagon Pagoda, a focus of the demonstrations, in a move that appeared to signal its confidence that it has put down last week's demonstrations.
Soldiers remain stationed there, however, and Internet access in the country is still disabled.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Archbishop of Rwanda commands US church to disinvite Rwandan refugee because of politics
Some disaffected US congregations have voted to disaffiliate with the US Episcopal Church, and come under the authority of foreign (so far, all African) archbishops. One particular church affiliated with Rwanda. They invited Paul Rusesabagina, who played a central role in rescuing refugees during the genocide. However, the corrupt Archbishop of Rwanda is in cahoots with the corrupt President of Rwanda, and ordered this church to disinvite Rusesabagina.
Rev Fleming Rutledge has some commentary on her blog about this incident. Rutledge's take is that freedom of speech, an American value, has a place in Christianity. I agree. This also highlights the fact that for some people, homosexuality is worse than genocide.
The Bishop of Rwanda weighs in
According to the Church Times (of England), the Archbishop of Rwanda, the Most Rev. Emmanuel Kolini, has commanded All Souls, Chicago (a schismatic parish now theoretically under his jurisdiction), to cancel its invitation to Paul Rusesabagina, central figure in the movie Hotel Rwanda and recipient of the American Presidential Medal of Honor.
Say what?
The post-movie career of Mr. Rusesabagina has been complicated. He had to flee Rwanda with his family after the genocide, because he had made so many enemies. There is bad blood between Rusesabagina and the president of Rwanda, Paul Kagame. Rusesabagina has accused Kagame of leaning toward the corrupt policies typical of so many African leaders. On the other hand, Rwanda today is being touted in the United States as an economic success story, with Kagame leading the way.
As a close watcher of Rusesabagina, insofar as I am able to be, and as an admirer of the wisdom found in his book An Ordinary Man (see earlier blogs on this subject), I am suspicious. Rusesabagina is not a perfect human being, and he may be hoping for a triumphal return to Rwanda himself, but is it not likely that, as he suggests, Kagame is playing under the table in order to promote economic investment in his country?
But that is not the main point. Imagine an American congregation being told by a Rwandan bishop that they must cancel an invited speaker because of possible strain between Church and State in Rwanda. Strain between church and state in Rwanda??? Can this be believed? If there had been at least a little "strain between church and state in Rwanda" when the genocide was gaining momentum, maybe some lives could have been saved.
Surely this is one of the most sinister bits of fallout from the schismatic Episcopal movement so far. Not to glorify American values unduly, but this is surely one of the most unAmerican of all possible eventualities. More, insofar as American freedom of speech is greatly to be cherished by Christians (try being a Christian in Iraq right now), it seems beyond preposterous for a Rwandan archbishop to be dictating to the American church in this way.
The Church Times identifies John Howe, the conservative-evangelical Bishop of Central Florida, as "resolutely antischismatic." For this courageous stance, our brother John needs our prayers and support.
Rev Fleming Rutledge has some commentary on her blog about this incident. Rutledge's take is that freedom of speech, an American value, has a place in Christianity. I agree. This also highlights the fact that for some people, homosexuality is worse than genocide.
The Bishop of Rwanda weighs in
According to the Church Times (of England), the Archbishop of Rwanda, the Most Rev. Emmanuel Kolini, has commanded All Souls, Chicago (a schismatic parish now theoretically under his jurisdiction), to cancel its invitation to Paul Rusesabagina, central figure in the movie Hotel Rwanda and recipient of the American Presidential Medal of Honor.
Say what?
The post-movie career of Mr. Rusesabagina has been complicated. He had to flee Rwanda with his family after the genocide, because he had made so many enemies. There is bad blood between Rusesabagina and the president of Rwanda, Paul Kagame. Rusesabagina has accused Kagame of leaning toward the corrupt policies typical of so many African leaders. On the other hand, Rwanda today is being touted in the United States as an economic success story, with Kagame leading the way.
As a close watcher of Rusesabagina, insofar as I am able to be, and as an admirer of the wisdom found in his book An Ordinary Man (see earlier blogs on this subject), I am suspicious. Rusesabagina is not a perfect human being, and he may be hoping for a triumphal return to Rwanda himself, but is it not likely that, as he suggests, Kagame is playing under the table in order to promote economic investment in his country?
But that is not the main point. Imagine an American congregation being told by a Rwandan bishop that they must cancel an invited speaker because of possible strain between Church and State in Rwanda. Strain between church and state in Rwanda??? Can this be believed? If there had been at least a little "strain between church and state in Rwanda" when the genocide was gaining momentum, maybe some lives could have been saved.
Surely this is one of the most sinister bits of fallout from the schismatic Episcopal movement so far. Not to glorify American values unduly, but this is surely one of the most unAmerican of all possible eventualities. More, insofar as American freedom of speech is greatly to be cherished by Christians (try being a Christian in Iraq right now), it seems beyond preposterous for a Rwandan archbishop to be dictating to the American church in this way.
The Church Times identifies John Howe, the conservative-evangelical Bishop of Central Florida, as "resolutely antischismatic." For this courageous stance, our brother John needs our prayers and support.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Amnesty Int'l: ask the UN Security Council to do everything they can to avert bloodshed in Burma
"May we be free of torture, may there be peace in hearts and minds as our kindness spreads around the world."
Dear Weiwen ,
Protect the protesters
"May we be free of torture." This was the chant of pro-democracy protesters in Burma (Myanmar) this past week. Yesterday, security forces began a violent crackdown on the protests, led by 30,000 red-robed monks.
The military government's forces clubbed and tear-gassed protesters, fired shots into the air, and arrested dozens if not hundreds of monks. Several people were reportedly shot to death.
You can take action now to prevent more violence by the military government. Send a message today asking the UN Security Council to oppose this violent crackdown and do everything in their power to prevent further bloodshed.
When the people of Burma last staged mass pro-democracy protests back in 1988, the military junta murdered thousands. But history does not have to repeat itself.
Please take action today -- and ask your friends and family to do the same. Together we can act now in solidarity with the brave people of Burma.
Dear Weiwen ,
Protect the protesters
"May we be free of torture." This was the chant of pro-democracy protesters in Burma (Myanmar) this past week. Yesterday, security forces began a violent crackdown on the protests, led by 30,000 red-robed monks.
The military government's forces clubbed and tear-gassed protesters, fired shots into the air, and arrested dozens if not hundreds of monks. Several people were reportedly shot to death.
You can take action now to prevent more violence by the military government. Send a message today asking the UN Security Council to oppose this violent crackdown and do everything in their power to prevent further bloodshed.
When the people of Burma last staged mass pro-democracy protests back in 1988, the military junta murdered thousands. But history does not have to repeat itself.
Please take action today -- and ask your friends and family to do the same. Together we can act now in solidarity with the brave people of Burma.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Pray for Burma's saffron army
Monks command such respect in Burma because some 80-90% of the country's population is Buddhist, and even those who do not choose to become a "career monk" usually enter the orders for short periods of their lives, giving the monasteries a prominent role in society.
There is a monastery in every village, according to Myint Swe of the BBC Burmese service, and monks act as the spiritual leaders of that community.
They give religious guidance and perform important duties at weddings and funerals.
An elder Buddhist monk is escorted on the side of the street by a protester in a street in downtown Yangon, 26 September 2007
Burma's monks have a history of poliltical activism
In return for these duties, they are given donations by laymen. As they are forbidden from handling cash, they are completely reliant on these handouts. Each full moon day, they are also given donations such as robes.
If they refuse these handouts, they are denying the donor the potential to earn spiritual "credit" - "the strongest possible penalty that can be expected from a Buddhist", said Myint Swe.
That is why the announcement by the monks currently protesting in Burma that they would refuse all donations from the ruling military - most of whom would be Buddhist themselves - was so powerful, he said.
"The government wants the image that they are pious and helping the monks," he said.
Monastery 'holidays'
There are 400,000-500,000 professional monks in a country of about 50 million people, but many more laymen worship alongside the monks for a few weeks at a time throughout their lives in order to earn spiritual credit.
Myint Swe said he had himself entered the monasteries three times in his adult life, on each occasion for just a few weeks.
"Buddhism is very individualistic - you have to work for your own liberation," said Aung Kin, a Burmese historian.
A monastery not only provides spiritual guidance, but also fulfils a practical role in Burmese society.
Entering a monastery as a child - or novice - is a cheap way of gaining an education. Although education is free in Burma, extras such as uniforms may still prove a struggle for impoverished families.
And some parents choose to send their children during the school holidays, while they are out at work, Myint Swe said.
Those who choose to adopt Buddhism as a career often do so for financial reasons, Mr Aung Kin said, with donations collected by the monks shared with family members.
In return, however, prospective monks have to pass religious exams and agree to adhere to more than 220 restrictions.
Burmese monks not only play a spiritual role, but also have a history of political activism. They have been at the forefront of protest against unpopular authorities, from British colonial power in the 1930s to the last pro-democracy campaign in 1988.
A Young Buddhist monk looks on following devotional Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2006, at the Sayadaw Bhaddanta Kaveinda orphanage on the outskirts of Rangoon
Many children are sent to monasteries for a cheap education
Their political role stems from the days of the Burmese monarchy, which operated until the late 19th century, under which monks worked as intermediaries between the monarch and the public, and lobbied the king over unpopular moves such as heavy taxation, said Mr Aung Kin.
They became more confrontational during colonial times, in protest at the failure of foreigners to remove their shoes in pagodas, he said.
But the historian stressed that only about 10% of Burma's monks are politicised, and many of the monasteries may be unaware of the scale of the agitation currently under way in the country.
If fully mobilised, however, the monks would pose a major challenge to the military, and their moral position in society could embolden many more people to join the protests.
There is a monastery in every village, according to Myint Swe of the BBC Burmese service, and monks act as the spiritual leaders of that community.
They give religious guidance and perform important duties at weddings and funerals.
An elder Buddhist monk is escorted on the side of the street by a protester in a street in downtown Yangon, 26 September 2007
Burma's monks have a history of poliltical activism
In return for these duties, they are given donations by laymen. As they are forbidden from handling cash, they are completely reliant on these handouts. Each full moon day, they are also given donations such as robes.
If they refuse these handouts, they are denying the donor the potential to earn spiritual "credit" - "the strongest possible penalty that can be expected from a Buddhist", said Myint Swe.
That is why the announcement by the monks currently protesting in Burma that they would refuse all donations from the ruling military - most of whom would be Buddhist themselves - was so powerful, he said.
"The government wants the image that they are pious and helping the monks," he said.
Monastery 'holidays'
There are 400,000-500,000 professional monks in a country of about 50 million people, but many more laymen worship alongside the monks for a few weeks at a time throughout their lives in order to earn spiritual credit.
Myint Swe said he had himself entered the monasteries three times in his adult life, on each occasion for just a few weeks.
"Buddhism is very individualistic - you have to work for your own liberation," said Aung Kin, a Burmese historian.
A monastery not only provides spiritual guidance, but also fulfils a practical role in Burmese society.
Entering a monastery as a child - or novice - is a cheap way of gaining an education. Although education is free in Burma, extras such as uniforms may still prove a struggle for impoverished families.
And some parents choose to send their children during the school holidays, while they are out at work, Myint Swe said.
Those who choose to adopt Buddhism as a career often do so for financial reasons, Mr Aung Kin said, with donations collected by the monks shared with family members.
In return, however, prospective monks have to pass religious exams and agree to adhere to more than 220 restrictions.
Burmese monks not only play a spiritual role, but also have a history of political activism. They have been at the forefront of protest against unpopular authorities, from British colonial power in the 1930s to the last pro-democracy campaign in 1988.
A Young Buddhist monk looks on following devotional Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2006, at the Sayadaw Bhaddanta Kaveinda orphanage on the outskirts of Rangoon
Many children are sent to monasteries for a cheap education
Their political role stems from the days of the Burmese monarchy, which operated until the late 19th century, under which monks worked as intermediaries between the monarch and the public, and lobbied the king over unpopular moves such as heavy taxation, said Mr Aung Kin.
They became more confrontational during colonial times, in protest at the failure of foreigners to remove their shoes in pagodas, he said.
But the historian stressed that only about 10% of Burma's monks are politicised, and many of the monasteries may be unaware of the scale of the agitation currently under way in the country.
If fully mobilised, however, the monks would pose a major challenge to the military, and their moral position in society could embolden many more people to join the protests.
BUDDHISM
Buddhism is non-violent, non-dogmatic and meditative
Not centred on a god
Aimed at gaining insight into life's true nature
There are two schools. One of them, Theravada (S, SE Asia), focuses on freedom from craving and suffering
The other, Mahayana (NE Asia), emphasises helping others achieve that freedom
Burmese observe the Theravada school
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Pray for the people of Burma as government forces crack down on protests
From the Canadian Press
YANGON, Myanmar - Security forces fired warning shots and tear gas canisters while beating Buddhist monks and hauling others away in trucks Wednesday as authorities tried to stop anti-government demonstrations, the first mass arrests since protests erupted last month.
About 300 monks and activists were arrested across Yangon, according to an exile dissident group, and reporters saw a number of monks - who are highly revered in Myanmar - being dragged into trucks.
A Norway-based dissident radio station, the Democratic Voice of Burma, said that one monk was killed and several injured in clashes in downtown Yangon, the country's largest city. The death could not be confirmed by other sources.
"There have been lots of clashes in different places between the demonstrators and the riot police and the troops," said Aye Chan Naing, the station's editor, citing reports from his reporters in Yangon, who were trying to confirm reports of three other monks killed.
"The troops opened fire into the crowd, and they also used tear gas and some Buddhist monks have been beaten up," he said.
The junta had banned all public gatherings of more than five people and imposed a nighttime curfew following eight days of anti-government marches led by monks in Yangon and other areas of the country that have produced the biggest demonstrations in Myanmar in nearly two decades.
A march Wednesday toward the centre of Yangon followed the tense confrontation at the city's famed Shwedagon Pagoda between the protesters and riot police.
"It's scary here. They will kill us, monks and nuns. Maybe we should go back to normal life as before," said a teenage nun, her back pressed against a building near the scenes of chaos.
But a student at a roadside watching the arrival of the demonstrators said: "If they are brave, we must be brave. They risk their lives for us."
Both spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals.
The latest developments could further alienate already isolated Myanmar from the international community and put pressure on China, Myanmar's top economic and diplomatic supporter, which is keen to burnish its international image before next year's Olympics in Beijing.
But if the junta backs down, it risks appearing weak and emboldening protesters, which could escalate the tension.
When faced with a similar crisis in 1988, the government harshly put down a student-led democracy uprising. Security forces fired into crowds of peaceful demonstrators, killing thousands.
On Wednesday, About 5,000 monks and 5,000 students along with members of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's pro-democracy party set off from Shwedagon to the Sule Pagoda in the heart of Yangon, but were blocked by military trucks along the route.
Other blocs of marchers fanned out into streets in the downtown area with armed security forces attempting to disperse them. There were reports of destruction of property but it was unclear whether this was carried out by the demonstrators or pro-junta thugs, who were seen among the troops and police.
About 100 monks stayed behind at the eastern gate of the Shwedagon, refusing to obey orders to disperse after riot police there failed to dislodge them with tear gas, batons and warning shots.
Witnesses said an angry mob at the pagoda burned two police motorcycles.
A branch of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy exiled in Thailand said 300 people had been arrested in Yangon, most of them in a western suburb of the city. The number could not be independently confirmed.
Soldiers with assault rifles had earlier blocked all four major entrances to the soaring pagoda, one of the most sacred in Myanmar, and sealed other flash points of anti-government protests.
In Myanmar's second-largest city of Mandalay, more than 100 soldiers armed with assault rifles deployed around the Mahamuni Paya Pagoda
"We are so afraid; the soldiers are ready to fire on civilians at any time," a man near the pagoda said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The current protests began Aug. 19 after the government hiked fuel prices in one of Asia's poorest countries. But they are based in deep-rooted dissatisfaction with the repressive military rule that has gripped the country since 1962.
The protests were faltering when the monks took the lead last week, assuming the role of a moral conscience they played in previous struggles against British colonialism and military dictators.
The potential for a violent crackdown had already aroused international concern, with pleas from government and religious leaders worldwide for the junta to deal peacefully with the situation. They included the Dalai Lama and South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, both Nobel Peace Prize laureates.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Wednesday called for an urgent UN Security Council meeting on Myanmar and urged the military regime there to be restrained in reacting to the protests.
"The whole world is now watching Burma and its illegitimate and repressive regime should know that the whole world is going to hold it to account," Brown said, referring to the country by its former name.
"The age of impunity in neglecting and overriding human rights is over."
YANGON, Myanmar - Security forces fired warning shots and tear gas canisters while beating Buddhist monks and hauling others away in trucks Wednesday as authorities tried to stop anti-government demonstrations, the first mass arrests since protests erupted last month.
About 300 monks and activists were arrested across Yangon, according to an exile dissident group, and reporters saw a number of monks - who are highly revered in Myanmar - being dragged into trucks.
A Norway-based dissident radio station, the Democratic Voice of Burma, said that one monk was killed and several injured in clashes in downtown Yangon, the country's largest city. The death could not be confirmed by other sources.
"There have been lots of clashes in different places between the demonstrators and the riot police and the troops," said Aye Chan Naing, the station's editor, citing reports from his reporters in Yangon, who were trying to confirm reports of three other monks killed.
"The troops opened fire into the crowd, and they also used tear gas and some Buddhist monks have been beaten up," he said.
The junta had banned all public gatherings of more than five people and imposed a nighttime curfew following eight days of anti-government marches led by monks in Yangon and other areas of the country that have produced the biggest demonstrations in Myanmar in nearly two decades.
A march Wednesday toward the centre of Yangon followed the tense confrontation at the city's famed Shwedagon Pagoda between the protesters and riot police.
"It's scary here. They will kill us, monks and nuns. Maybe we should go back to normal life as before," said a teenage nun, her back pressed against a building near the scenes of chaos.
But a student at a roadside watching the arrival of the demonstrators said: "If they are brave, we must be brave. They risk their lives for us."
Both spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals.
The latest developments could further alienate already isolated Myanmar from the international community and put pressure on China, Myanmar's top economic and diplomatic supporter, which is keen to burnish its international image before next year's Olympics in Beijing.
But if the junta backs down, it risks appearing weak and emboldening protesters, which could escalate the tension.
When faced with a similar crisis in 1988, the government harshly put down a student-led democracy uprising. Security forces fired into crowds of peaceful demonstrators, killing thousands.
On Wednesday, About 5,000 monks and 5,000 students along with members of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's pro-democracy party set off from Shwedagon to the Sule Pagoda in the heart of Yangon, but were blocked by military trucks along the route.
Other blocs of marchers fanned out into streets in the downtown area with armed security forces attempting to disperse them. There were reports of destruction of property but it was unclear whether this was carried out by the demonstrators or pro-junta thugs, who were seen among the troops and police.
About 100 monks stayed behind at the eastern gate of the Shwedagon, refusing to obey orders to disperse after riot police there failed to dislodge them with tear gas, batons and warning shots.
Witnesses said an angry mob at the pagoda burned two police motorcycles.
A branch of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy exiled in Thailand said 300 people had been arrested in Yangon, most of them in a western suburb of the city. The number could not be independently confirmed.
Soldiers with assault rifles had earlier blocked all four major entrances to the soaring pagoda, one of the most sacred in Myanmar, and sealed other flash points of anti-government protests.
In Myanmar's second-largest city of Mandalay, more than 100 soldiers armed with assault rifles deployed around the Mahamuni Paya Pagoda
"We are so afraid; the soldiers are ready to fire on civilians at any time," a man near the pagoda said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The current protests began Aug. 19 after the government hiked fuel prices in one of Asia's poorest countries. But they are based in deep-rooted dissatisfaction with the repressive military rule that has gripped the country since 1962.
The protests were faltering when the monks took the lead last week, assuming the role of a moral conscience they played in previous struggles against British colonialism and military dictators.
The potential for a violent crackdown had already aroused international concern, with pleas from government and religious leaders worldwide for the junta to deal peacefully with the situation. They included the Dalai Lama and South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, both Nobel Peace Prize laureates.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Wednesday called for an urgent UN Security Council meeting on Myanmar and urged the military regime there to be restrained in reacting to the protests.
"The whole world is now watching Burma and its illegitimate and repressive regime should know that the whole world is going to hold it to account," Brown said, referring to the country by its former name.
"The age of impunity in neglecting and overriding human rights is over."
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
UK Prime Minster calls for immediate action on Burma
Brown calls for immediate action on Burma
Deborah Summers and Hélène Mulholland
Tuesday September 25, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Gordon Brown today called for "immediate international action" to stave off a threatened military crackdown on protesters in Burma.
The prime minister called on the ruling junta in Rangoon to "exercise restraint" in its response to demonstrations which have brought tens of thousands of monks on to the streets, demanding democracy.
The foreign secretary, David Miliband, also told delegates at the Labour party conference in Bournemouth that countries like Burma should play by "global rules".
Article continues
He spoke out amid fears of bloodshed after up to 100,000 demonstrators protesting against the Burmese regime flooded the streets of Rangoon in the biggest show of dissent in almost two decades.
In letters today to the current holder of the European Union presidency, the Portuguese prime minister, José Socrates, and the United Nations secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, Mr Brown today called for a warning to Rangoon of tougher sanctions if there is a crackdown.
He told Mr Socrates: "I would strongly support a presidency initiative to warn the Burmese government that we are watching their behaviour and that the EU will impose tougher EU sanctions if they make the wrong choices."
And in his letter to Mr Ban, Mr Brown said: "We need concerted international action, including the UN, to discourage violence. We need to stand together."
Mr Brown said he would support an urgent visit to Burma by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, as well as discussions at the UN security council.
Mr Brown acted after the Burmese government threatened to "take action" against the Buddhist monks who have led the biggest protests in the south-east Asian dictatorship for almost two decades.
Yesterday, the prime minister used his keynote address to conference to highlight the tensions in Burma, insisting: "Human rights are universal and no injustice can last forever."
In today's letters, he wrote: "We have all been watching with concern the unfolding human tragedy in Burma, which requires immediate international action.
"The widespread and growing popular demonstrations, led by Buddhist monks, are unprecedented. They illustrate the failure of the Burmese regime to promote a genuine process of political reconciliation.
"It is vital that the Burmese authorities exercise restraint in the face of the demonstrators and seize the opportunity to launch a process of real political reform.
"It is disturbing that they are now threatening to use force against the demonstrators.
"Violent suppression of the demonstrations would be a tragedy and another missed opportunity for Burma.
"All those with influence on the Burmese government should now use it to deter violence and encourage reconciliation." Mr Brown called for the UN to encourage key regional neighbours of Burma to urge the authorities in Rangoon to pursue reconciliation.
Mr Miliband said he "looked forward" to the day that Aung San Suu Kyi took over as its elected leader.
"While I'm at it," he said. "Wasn't it brilliant to see Aung San Suu Kyi alive and well outside her house last week? I think it will be a hundred times better when she takes her rightful place as the elected leader of a free and democratic Burma."
The last great pro-democracy uprising in 1988 led to a military crackdown on demonstrators which resulted in an estimated killing of 3,000 students and some monks.
Deborah Summers and Hélène Mulholland
Tuesday September 25, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Gordon Brown today called for "immediate international action" to stave off a threatened military crackdown on protesters in Burma.
The prime minister called on the ruling junta in Rangoon to "exercise restraint" in its response to demonstrations which have brought tens of thousands of monks on to the streets, demanding democracy.
The foreign secretary, David Miliband, also told delegates at the Labour party conference in Bournemouth that countries like Burma should play by "global rules".
Article continues
He spoke out amid fears of bloodshed after up to 100,000 demonstrators protesting against the Burmese regime flooded the streets of Rangoon in the biggest show of dissent in almost two decades.
In letters today to the current holder of the European Union presidency, the Portuguese prime minister, José Socrates, and the United Nations secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, Mr Brown today called for a warning to Rangoon of tougher sanctions if there is a crackdown.
He told Mr Socrates: "I would strongly support a presidency initiative to warn the Burmese government that we are watching their behaviour and that the EU will impose tougher EU sanctions if they make the wrong choices."
And in his letter to Mr Ban, Mr Brown said: "We need concerted international action, including the UN, to discourage violence. We need to stand together."
Mr Brown said he would support an urgent visit to Burma by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, as well as discussions at the UN security council.
Mr Brown acted after the Burmese government threatened to "take action" against the Buddhist monks who have led the biggest protests in the south-east Asian dictatorship for almost two decades.
Yesterday, the prime minister used his keynote address to conference to highlight the tensions in Burma, insisting: "Human rights are universal and no injustice can last forever."
In today's letters, he wrote: "We have all been watching with concern the unfolding human tragedy in Burma, which requires immediate international action.
"The widespread and growing popular demonstrations, led by Buddhist monks, are unprecedented. They illustrate the failure of the Burmese regime to promote a genuine process of political reconciliation.
"It is vital that the Burmese authorities exercise restraint in the face of the demonstrators and seize the opportunity to launch a process of real political reform.
"It is disturbing that they are now threatening to use force against the demonstrators.
"Violent suppression of the demonstrations would be a tragedy and another missed opportunity for Burma.
"All those with influence on the Burmese government should now use it to deter violence and encourage reconciliation." Mr Brown called for the UN to encourage key regional neighbours of Burma to urge the authorities in Rangoon to pursue reconciliation.
Mr Miliband said he "looked forward" to the day that Aung San Suu Kyi took over as its elected leader.
"While I'm at it," he said. "Wasn't it brilliant to see Aung San Suu Kyi alive and well outside her house last week? I think it will be a hundred times better when she takes her rightful place as the elected leader of a free and democratic Burma."
The last great pro-democracy uprising in 1988 led to a military crackdown on demonstrators which resulted in an estimated killing of 3,000 students and some monks.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Oil in the Arctic Circle
[This article is dated Aug 8 at CNN Money.]
(Fortune Magazine) -- It's an irony that even Al Gore might appreciate. As global warming causes the polar icecaps to recede, potentially oil-rich seabeds are being uncovered beneath the Arctic Circle in the suddenly navigable -- and drillable -- territory.
The area has long been thought to hold substantial reserves: Some say up to 25% of the world's undiscovered oil and natural gas may lie below the thawing ice.
Russia will put an undersea flag near the North Pole and may extend a legal claim to the area. CNN's Mary Snow reports.
But as the countries bordering the Arctic hammer out who can lay claim to what parts of the ocean, one major player is missing: the U.S. Why? Because of an unlikely spat between Big Oil and a group of Republicans over the UN treaty that governs who can claim rights to those waters.
Back in 1982, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea went into effect, a treaty that defined ocean boundaries and set up regulations for ship traffic. The U.S. signed the treaty in 1994, but the Senate refused to ratify it, opposing the idea of UN sovereignty.
But what was then just a diplomatic absence is now seen as a lapse in judgment that could cost billions of dollars. Under Law of the Sea, countries are entitled to control any waters above landmasses that extend from their continental shelf.
If the U.S. were to claim that entitlement, it would gain Arctic territory roughly half the size of Alaska. But since the U.S. is not a party to the treaty, many worry that it won't have a say before the North Pole is sliced up for good.
What's in the way? A small but vocal group of Senate Republicans who are fiercely opposed to participation -- and the notion that UN panels could trump U.S. control over resources.
Frank Gaffney, a former Reagan advisor and current president of the Center for Security Policy, has called the treaty the "most egregious transfer of American sovereignty, wealth, and power to the UN." Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) has said he'll use "whatever means it takes" to keep the U.S. from joining the treaty. That included leading the charge to kill a bill that surfaced for ratification in 2004.
While there has been little commercial Arctic exploration so far, the potential is huge. London-based consultancy Wood Mackenzie estimates that at least 166 billion barrels of oil and gas might lie undiscovered in the near-shore Arctic. There could be much more in areas closer to the North Pole.
In potential U.S. territory alone there could be 15 billion barrels. With global reserves falling, any sizable field would be a prize.
An Arctic land grab is already well underway. In early June, Russian scientists claimed they found evidence of 70 billion barrels of oil and natural gas reserves on the Lomonosov Ridge, a huge rock formation that extends through the North Pole from Siberia to Greenland.
Russia has slapped a claim on nearly half the Arctic -- a territory of half a million square miles -- and granted a monopoly to its own companies to exploit it. Denmark is crying foul, saying it, too, has rights to the ridge.
The U.S. could play a huge diplomatic role in any negotiation, and without its involvement, many feel the borders will never truly be settled. "It makes exploration a lot more risky," says Paul Kelly, former general counsel at drilling firm Rowan Cos., since bankers, he says, won't put up the money for ventures in "murky waters."
The oil lobby has been working furiously to push past its Senate detractors -- and it is making some unlikely bedfellows in the process.
Lobbyists representing companies including Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips are allying with environmental groups, who want UN protection for Arctic wildlife and ecosystems, as well as with the U.S. Navy, which says it won't be able to patrol the Arctic effectively without the rights the treaty provides to the territory.
The consortium got a big boost in May when President Bush came out in support of ratification, breaking ranks with many members of his own party. New hearings in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee are set for this fall. Should things go well, a bill could hit the Senate by the end of the year.
Advocates are hopeful. "We've been pushing for this for years," says Brian Petty, a drilling industry lobbyist, "and I think now we'll finally get over the goal line."
The region's recent turf wars, they say, may give the issue a new sense of urgency. "The Russians have made their claim," says a committee aide. "If we don't act fast, we're missing the boat."
[Russia has already planted the aforementioned flag. There may be disputes over this region in the future. A snippet:]
Other northern countries are getting into the race. Canada, which has the second-longest Arctic coastline, is currently conducting a $70 million project to map the seabed on its side of the Lomonosov Ridge, in what experts suggest is a prelude to making its own submission to the UN. Earlier this month Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged to build eight new ice-capable patrol ships and a deep water Arctic port to defend Canada's stake.
"Canada has a choice when it comes to defending our sovereignty over the Arctic: We either use it or lose it," Mr. Harper said. "And make no mistake, this government intends to use it."
Norway and Denmark (because of Denmark's claim over Greenland) are also possible entrants. The US could claim Arctic territory adjacent to Alaska, but is hampered by Congress's failure so far to ratify the Law of the Sea Convention.
Three years ago, US lawmakers were already warning of the detrimental impact of failing to ratify the Convention. In a May 2004 speech advocating ratification, Sen. Richard Lugar (R) of Indiana – then chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee – told his audience at Washington's Brookings Institute that the UN "will soon begin making decisions on claims to continental shelf areas that could impact the United States' own claims to the area and resources of our broad continental margin."
He specifically mentioned Russia's ambitions, as well.
"Russia is already making excessive claims in the Arctic," said Senator Lugar. "Unless we are party to the Convention, we will not be able to protect our national interest in these discussions."
The Associated Press reports that Congress is considering an $8.7 billion budget reauthorization bill for the Coast Guard that includes $100 million to operate and maintain the nation's three existing polar icebreakers. The bill also authorizes the Coast Guard to construct two new vessels. According to a report from Russian press agency Novosti, a senior US official said Tuesday that Congress would ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in order to join a commission to examine Russian and other nations' claims to Arctic territory.
The US Coast Guard says that an icebreaker, the USCGC Healy, will leave Seattle for the Chukchi Cap above the Artic Circle, for research purposes, on Aug. 6.
[PS, Inhofe is a racist bigot and a religious ideologue as well as a moron.]
(Fortune Magazine) -- It's an irony that even Al Gore might appreciate. As global warming causes the polar icecaps to recede, potentially oil-rich seabeds are being uncovered beneath the Arctic Circle in the suddenly navigable -- and drillable -- territory.
The area has long been thought to hold substantial reserves: Some say up to 25% of the world's undiscovered oil and natural gas may lie below the thawing ice.
Russia will put an undersea flag near the North Pole and may extend a legal claim to the area. CNN's Mary Snow reports.
But as the countries bordering the Arctic hammer out who can lay claim to what parts of the ocean, one major player is missing: the U.S. Why? Because of an unlikely spat between Big Oil and a group of Republicans over the UN treaty that governs who can claim rights to those waters.
Back in 1982, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea went into effect, a treaty that defined ocean boundaries and set up regulations for ship traffic. The U.S. signed the treaty in 1994, but the Senate refused to ratify it, opposing the idea of UN sovereignty.
But what was then just a diplomatic absence is now seen as a lapse in judgment that could cost billions of dollars. Under Law of the Sea, countries are entitled to control any waters above landmasses that extend from their continental shelf.
If the U.S. were to claim that entitlement, it would gain Arctic territory roughly half the size of Alaska. But since the U.S. is not a party to the treaty, many worry that it won't have a say before the North Pole is sliced up for good.
What's in the way? A small but vocal group of Senate Republicans who are fiercely opposed to participation -- and the notion that UN panels could trump U.S. control over resources.
Frank Gaffney, a former Reagan advisor and current president of the Center for Security Policy, has called the treaty the "most egregious transfer of American sovereignty, wealth, and power to the UN." Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) has said he'll use "whatever means it takes" to keep the U.S. from joining the treaty. That included leading the charge to kill a bill that surfaced for ratification in 2004.
While there has been little commercial Arctic exploration so far, the potential is huge. London-based consultancy Wood Mackenzie estimates that at least 166 billion barrels of oil and gas might lie undiscovered in the near-shore Arctic. There could be much more in areas closer to the North Pole.
In potential U.S. territory alone there could be 15 billion barrels. With global reserves falling, any sizable field would be a prize.
An Arctic land grab is already well underway. In early June, Russian scientists claimed they found evidence of 70 billion barrels of oil and natural gas reserves on the Lomonosov Ridge, a huge rock formation that extends through the North Pole from Siberia to Greenland.
Russia has slapped a claim on nearly half the Arctic -- a territory of half a million square miles -- and granted a monopoly to its own companies to exploit it. Denmark is crying foul, saying it, too, has rights to the ridge.
The U.S. could play a huge diplomatic role in any negotiation, and without its involvement, many feel the borders will never truly be settled. "It makes exploration a lot more risky," says Paul Kelly, former general counsel at drilling firm Rowan Cos., since bankers, he says, won't put up the money for ventures in "murky waters."
The oil lobby has been working furiously to push past its Senate detractors -- and it is making some unlikely bedfellows in the process.
Lobbyists representing companies including Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips are allying with environmental groups, who want UN protection for Arctic wildlife and ecosystems, as well as with the U.S. Navy, which says it won't be able to patrol the Arctic effectively without the rights the treaty provides to the territory.
The consortium got a big boost in May when President Bush came out in support of ratification, breaking ranks with many members of his own party. New hearings in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee are set for this fall. Should things go well, a bill could hit the Senate by the end of the year.
Advocates are hopeful. "We've been pushing for this for years," says Brian Petty, a drilling industry lobbyist, "and I think now we'll finally get over the goal line."
The region's recent turf wars, they say, may give the issue a new sense of urgency. "The Russians have made their claim," says a committee aide. "If we don't act fast, we're missing the boat."
[Russia has already planted the aforementioned flag. There may be disputes over this region in the future. A snippet:]
Other northern countries are getting into the race. Canada, which has the second-longest Arctic coastline, is currently conducting a $70 million project to map the seabed on its side of the Lomonosov Ridge, in what experts suggest is a prelude to making its own submission to the UN. Earlier this month Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged to build eight new ice-capable patrol ships and a deep water Arctic port to defend Canada's stake.
"Canada has a choice when it comes to defending our sovereignty over the Arctic: We either use it or lose it," Mr. Harper said. "And make no mistake, this government intends to use it."
Norway and Denmark (because of Denmark's claim over Greenland) are also possible entrants. The US could claim Arctic territory adjacent to Alaska, but is hampered by Congress's failure so far to ratify the Law of the Sea Convention.
Three years ago, US lawmakers were already warning of the detrimental impact of failing to ratify the Convention. In a May 2004 speech advocating ratification, Sen. Richard Lugar (R) of Indiana – then chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee – told his audience at Washington's Brookings Institute that the UN "will soon begin making decisions on claims to continental shelf areas that could impact the United States' own claims to the area and resources of our broad continental margin."
He specifically mentioned Russia's ambitions, as well.
"Russia is already making excessive claims in the Arctic," said Senator Lugar. "Unless we are party to the Convention, we will not be able to protect our national interest in these discussions."
The Associated Press reports that Congress is considering an $8.7 billion budget reauthorization bill for the Coast Guard that includes $100 million to operate and maintain the nation's three existing polar icebreakers. The bill also authorizes the Coast Guard to construct two new vessels. According to a report from Russian press agency Novosti, a senior US official said Tuesday that Congress would ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in order to join a commission to examine Russian and other nations' claims to Arctic territory.
The US Coast Guard says that an icebreaker, the USCGC Healy, will leave Seattle for the Chukchi Cap above the Artic Circle, for research purposes, on Aug. 6.
[PS, Inhofe is a racist bigot and a religious ideologue as well as a moron.]
Friday, August 10, 2007
Gay Metropolitan Community Church pastor opens church in Malaysia, homophobe Christians send hate mail
By LOONG MENG YEE writing for the Star, a Malaysian newspaper
KUALA LUMPUR: A controversy has erupted among the Christian community over what they claim is an attempt by a self-confessed gay pastor to set up a church here.
For the past week, protest e-mail and SMSes have been sent to Rev Ou Yang Wen Feng, a Malaysian pastor who serves at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in New York. He has been back here for about a week.
According to the MCC homepage, the church is part of an international movement of Christian churches reaching out to all, including homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals.
Ou Yang, 37, has drawn much flak from Christians for his plan to hold a Sunday service at a hotel this week.
He came out of the closet about his homosexuality last year and is said to be the first pastor in Malaysia to do so.
A columnist in Sin Chew Daily, Ou Yang went to further his studies in the United States on the daily’s scholarship in the 90s.
When contacted yesterday, Ou Yang said he was merely trying to set up a church “where everybody felt safe and welcomed”.
It is unfair to label it a gay church, he said, adding that the hate-mail had hurt him.
“This church is not limited to gays but serves all people. This will be an active church. We have so many community-centred plans, such as assisting the poor, charity work and upholding justice,” he said.
Ou Yang noted that the New York church served food to 5,000 homeless people and hoped to launch similar programmes here. He plans to return to Malaysia for good in 2010.
He credits his former wife for giving him strength to be true to himself, acknowledging that she had endured much anguish during their seven-year, childless union.
Asked if his church would solemnise same sex marriages, he replied: “Same sex marriages are illegal in Malaysia, so how can I perform them? However, I will bless the union.”
Ou Yang said that his talk in Penang last week received much opposition from “faceless parties”. However, the talk saw a full house of about 200 people instead of the initial estimate of 60.
“Many are just curious about me. They ask me many things about homosexuality and my life. They just want to know more and not to be converted by me,” he said.
The National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Malaysia secretary-general Rev Wong Kin Kong, when contacted, acknowledged the proposed worship on Sunday had sowed anxiety among Christians.
“One of the reasons for the emotional reaction is because Christians do not want others to assume they condone such a thing,” said Wong.
He added that the churches could not accept Ou Yang’s version of the church because “it is clear that the Bible prohibits a sexual relationship between people of the same sex. If a person condones same sex marriages, it is definitely violating Christian principles.”
Wong said the churches had always welcomed all kinds of people, including homosexuals.
“It is the deviant sexual behaviour we do not condone. We cannot stop him wanting to set up such a kind of church, but the evangelical churches will inform followers of our stand and advise them not to follow this teaching,” he said.
[Thanks to Jim for the article. Prayers for Wen Feng (that's his given name). Prayers that Christians in the region won't catch anything homosexual and start going at it like young gay rabbits.]
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Georgia (the country): Russian warplane launched missile into our territory
[This article is from the Telegraph. It is not clear that the Russian government was actually behind this attack; it could have been rogue Russian military units. However, there are existing tensions between the two countries. If Russia is behind this, it represents a significant escalation of the conflict. Russian officials have so far denied that this was done on government orders.]
Despite categorical denials from the Kremlin, Georgia seems convinced that the missile which struck a vegetable field near Tbilisi last night was fired by a Russian warplane.
It is not the first time that there have been reported violations of Georgian airspace this year.
In March, Russian helicopters were accused of opening fire in the remote Kodori Gorge, close to the lawless breakaway region of Abkhazia, which is backed by Moscow.
A report by United Nations observers concluded that it was unclear who was behind the incident. If it is shown that yesterday's attack was carried out by the Russian military, it would represent a significant escalation in the diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
Georgia has already called the strike "an act of aggression". The question is why Russia would carry out so provocative an attack.
There is no doubt how serious is the rift between the two countries since Mikhail Saakashvili, the westernizing president, was swept to power in the Rose Revolution of 2003.
Russia has deeply resented its loss of influence in the country of Stalin's birth and is determined to halt Mr Saakashvili's ambitions for Nato and EU membership.
Moscow showed its displeasure by banning exports of Georgian wine and mineral water, vital sectors of an economy still heavily dependent on Russia.
Tensions erupted last September after Georgia expelled four Russian officers it accused of espionage. The Kremlin's excessive reaction raised eyebrows around the world. Moscow withdrew its diplomats from Tbilisi, severed trade, transport and postal links and deported thousands of Georgians living in Russia.
With a fierce anti-Georgian campaign being waged in the Russian press, some commentators suggested that a group of Kremlin hardliners were intent on provoking a military confrontation to provide an excuse to change the constitution and allow Vladimir Putin to stay in power.
The president is due to step down next March after completing his second term.
Alexei Malashenko, an expert on the Caucasus at the Moscow Carnegie Centre, said it was possible that this faction had ordered the firing of a dummy missile in a bid to fuel the crisis.
But he and other analysts said it was more likely that the missile attack could have been carried out by local Russian army units without the knowledge of the Kremlin.
The location of the air strike was close to South Ossetia, another Moscow backed breakaway region. Georgia and Russia have been at loggerheads over the tiny region — which is about the size of Suffolk — for years.
Tbilisi has accused Moscow of arming the rebels and firefights between separatists and Georgian soldiers have increased since 2004.
There have been signs, however, that Russia is finally willing to negotiate a settlement. Moscow has opposed the West's backing for independence of Kosovo, arguing that Serbia's territorial integrity should be inviolable and has threatened to veto a UN resolution that backs Pristina's position.
As a result, the Kremlin has had to temper its support for Georgia's breakaway regions or risk being accused of hypocrisy. But for Russian military units stationed in South Ossetia as peacekeepers and their commanders across the border in southern Russia, a peace accord would be highly undesirable.
As it has descended into lawlessness, South Ossetia has become a haven for smugglers and counterfeiters. According to western diplomats, a significant proportion of the fake dollar bills in circulation on America's east coast were manufactured here.
According to analysts, those profiting the most are Russian officers — many of whom hold posts in the South Ossetian administration.
Despite categorical denials from the Kremlin, Georgia seems convinced that the missile which struck a vegetable field near Tbilisi last night was fired by a Russian warplane.
It is not the first time that there have been reported violations of Georgian airspace this year.
In March, Russian helicopters were accused of opening fire in the remote Kodori Gorge, close to the lawless breakaway region of Abkhazia, which is backed by Moscow.
A report by United Nations observers concluded that it was unclear who was behind the incident. If it is shown that yesterday's attack was carried out by the Russian military, it would represent a significant escalation in the diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
Georgia has already called the strike "an act of aggression". The question is why Russia would carry out so provocative an attack.
There is no doubt how serious is the rift between the two countries since Mikhail Saakashvili, the westernizing president, was swept to power in the Rose Revolution of 2003.
Russia has deeply resented its loss of influence in the country of Stalin's birth and is determined to halt Mr Saakashvili's ambitions for Nato and EU membership.
Moscow showed its displeasure by banning exports of Georgian wine and mineral water, vital sectors of an economy still heavily dependent on Russia.
Tensions erupted last September after Georgia expelled four Russian officers it accused of espionage. The Kremlin's excessive reaction raised eyebrows around the world. Moscow withdrew its diplomats from Tbilisi, severed trade, transport and postal links and deported thousands of Georgians living in Russia.
With a fierce anti-Georgian campaign being waged in the Russian press, some commentators suggested that a group of Kremlin hardliners were intent on provoking a military confrontation to provide an excuse to change the constitution and allow Vladimir Putin to stay in power.
The president is due to step down next March after completing his second term.
Alexei Malashenko, an expert on the Caucasus at the Moscow Carnegie Centre, said it was possible that this faction had ordered the firing of a dummy missile in a bid to fuel the crisis.
But he and other analysts said it was more likely that the missile attack could have been carried out by local Russian army units without the knowledge of the Kremlin.
The location of the air strike was close to South Ossetia, another Moscow backed breakaway region. Georgia and Russia have been at loggerheads over the tiny region — which is about the size of Suffolk — for years.
Tbilisi has accused Moscow of arming the rebels and firefights between separatists and Georgian soldiers have increased since 2004.
There have been signs, however, that Russia is finally willing to negotiate a settlement. Moscow has opposed the West's backing for independence of Kosovo, arguing that Serbia's territorial integrity should be inviolable and has threatened to veto a UN resolution that backs Pristina's position.
As a result, the Kremlin has had to temper its support for Georgia's breakaway regions or risk being accused of hypocrisy. But for Russian military units stationed in South Ossetia as peacekeepers and their commanders across the border in southern Russia, a peace accord would be highly undesirable.
As it has descended into lawlessness, South Ossetia has become a haven for smugglers and counterfeiters. According to western diplomats, a significant proportion of the fake dollar bills in circulation on America's east coast were manufactured here.
According to analysts, those profiting the most are Russian officers — many of whom hold posts in the South Ossetian administration.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Investor's Business Daily
[I'd take this with a small pinch of salt based on their comments about Cuba, but Investors Business Daily tells us why they think Mugabe is still in power in Zimbabwe.]
Tyranny: As Robert Mugabe's nightmare rule pulls Zimbabwe down a vortex, it's tempting to think his end is near. Maybe not. Foreign leaders are buttressing his rule. It's a weapon that must be turned against him.
On the surface, many wonder how much longer the 84-year-old dictator can rule the once-vibrant country he has turned into a smoking ruin.
The country's productive farms, confiscated since 2000, now lie fallow. His recent program to confiscate the country's remaining businesses has triggered huge food shortages and panic. The country's last 500 mines are creaking to a halt.
The country's economy has blown out, with Zimbabwe's currency in ruins. A new 200,000 currency note fresh off the press purchases just $1 worth of goods on the black market amid capital controls. The IMF forecasts 100,000% inflation by the end of the year.
The U.N.'s World Food Program forecasts about 4 million Zimbabweans likely to be in critical need of food aid by 2008. Electricity and water are flickering or gone for half of the 11 million population.
Hospitals cannot even hydrate patients, let alone put bandages on them. The army is restless. Businessmen who refuse to cut prices in half are being arrested.
National Geographic reported 90% of all ranched animals slaughtered, and 60% of all rare wildlife gone. Each month, thousands of Zimbabweans flee to neighboring South Africa.
It's tempting to think this can't go on. Yet it does, just as Fidel Castro's regime does. A tight little party elite keeps itself fed, clothed and loyal to the Mugabe regime, wallowing in luxury. Their only imperative: Stay in power. Three forces help them do that.
One, Mugabe's control of his country's strategic resources.
As hellish as operating conditions are in Zimbabwe, Mugabe has gotten his hands on the only resources of critical value to global industries that always have willing buyers.
Just as Venezuela's Hugo Chavez seized control of Venezuela's oil to secure his power by 2003, so Mugabe is taking over Zimbabwe's platinum mines as a means of securing his rule. These mines generate income of about $700 million a year. Mugabe is calculating that foreigners will buy no matter what he does to his country.
He can go on a long time with this setup, without worrying about what he's doing to his people. That's why, as of now, he doesn't.
The second global force is the poor country's weapon — the threat to send waves of refugees into neighboring countries.
Using the misery of his own countrymen as a weapon, Mugabe's fearful neighbors prop him up at regional conferences and flatter him in the international arena — with U.N. committeeships, for instance.
They're only offering the tyrant tribute in an effort to keep him from playing the refugee card.
Mugabe also is confident nobody is going to come looking for him for his crimes against humanity because he has seen full-fledged genocide two times in the last 15 years on the African continent — in Rwanda in 1994, and now in Darfur — with very little response from Africa or the West.
Third, the Mugabe regime has cultivated the goodwill of other rogue states, like Iran, Venezuela, China and Libya. Petro-tyrannies like Iran and Libya reportedly provide oil in exchange for Zimbabwe's mine output, which no longer attracts legitimate investment. This props up his regime financially, when the free market won't.
Mugabe has mocked those who question his expropriations of investments. He gleefully states that he has plenty of potential for investment, just by dealing with rogue states.
All of this shows a regime that is hardly stupid, even as it runs its economy in the ground. In fact, it's more evil than crazy. Cutting off Zimbabwe's access to global forces is critical to shutting him down.
Tyranny: As Robert Mugabe's nightmare rule pulls Zimbabwe down a vortex, it's tempting to think his end is near. Maybe not. Foreign leaders are buttressing his rule. It's a weapon that must be turned against him.
On the surface, many wonder how much longer the 84-year-old dictator can rule the once-vibrant country he has turned into a smoking ruin.
The country's productive farms, confiscated since 2000, now lie fallow. His recent program to confiscate the country's remaining businesses has triggered huge food shortages and panic. The country's last 500 mines are creaking to a halt.
The country's economy has blown out, with Zimbabwe's currency in ruins. A new 200,000 currency note fresh off the press purchases just $1 worth of goods on the black market amid capital controls. The IMF forecasts 100,000% inflation by the end of the year.
The U.N.'s World Food Program forecasts about 4 million Zimbabweans likely to be in critical need of food aid by 2008. Electricity and water are flickering or gone for half of the 11 million population.
Hospitals cannot even hydrate patients, let alone put bandages on them. The army is restless. Businessmen who refuse to cut prices in half are being arrested.
National Geographic reported 90% of all ranched animals slaughtered, and 60% of all rare wildlife gone. Each month, thousands of Zimbabweans flee to neighboring South Africa.
It's tempting to think this can't go on. Yet it does, just as Fidel Castro's regime does. A tight little party elite keeps itself fed, clothed and loyal to the Mugabe regime, wallowing in luxury. Their only imperative: Stay in power. Three forces help them do that.
One, Mugabe's control of his country's strategic resources.
As hellish as operating conditions are in Zimbabwe, Mugabe has gotten his hands on the only resources of critical value to global industries that always have willing buyers.
Just as Venezuela's Hugo Chavez seized control of Venezuela's oil to secure his power by 2003, so Mugabe is taking over Zimbabwe's platinum mines as a means of securing his rule. These mines generate income of about $700 million a year. Mugabe is calculating that foreigners will buy no matter what he does to his country.
He can go on a long time with this setup, without worrying about what he's doing to his people. That's why, as of now, he doesn't.
The second global force is the poor country's weapon — the threat to send waves of refugees into neighboring countries.
Using the misery of his own countrymen as a weapon, Mugabe's fearful neighbors prop him up at regional conferences and flatter him in the international arena — with U.N. committeeships, for instance.
They're only offering the tyrant tribute in an effort to keep him from playing the refugee card.
Mugabe also is confident nobody is going to come looking for him for his crimes against humanity because he has seen full-fledged genocide two times in the last 15 years on the African continent — in Rwanda in 1994, and now in Darfur — with very little response from Africa or the West.
Third, the Mugabe regime has cultivated the goodwill of other rogue states, like Iran, Venezuela, China and Libya. Petro-tyrannies like Iran and Libya reportedly provide oil in exchange for Zimbabwe's mine output, which no longer attracts legitimate investment. This props up his regime financially, when the free market won't.
Mugabe has mocked those who question his expropriations of investments. He gleefully states that he has plenty of potential for investment, just by dealing with rogue states.
All of this shows a regime that is hardly stupid, even as it runs its economy in the ground. In fact, it's more evil than crazy. Cutting off Zimbabwe's access to global forces is critical to shutting him down.
Friday, July 27, 2007
Evangelical Alliance: “How do you cook a turkey for Christmas?” asked as evidence of religious conversion
Evangelical Alliance, based in the UK, are not on my Christmas card list. However, they do highlight the fact that those who seek asylum in the UK based on conversion to Christianity often face injustice. UK officials have been insensitive, and have often rejected applications that result in the applicants being deported and persecuted.
The plight of a woman under threat of being deported home to Iran, despite fears she will be stoned for converting to Christianity, is being repeated across the country, according to a new report.
The 29-year-old, known as Samar, converted to Christianity before leaving Iran, and says a death warrant for her has been issued in her homeland.
Her church in Bournemouth and MP Tobias Ellwood have campaigned on her behalf, but despite a temporary reprieve on Friday, immigration officers have again issued her with deportation papers to return to Iran tomorrow.
The report, issued today by the Evangelical Alliance, says that a lack of understanding of conversion, translation problems and ludicrous questioning by Home Office staff or the judiciary has led to asylum seekers being refused asylum from dangerous home countries.
One asylum seeker told the Alliance that Home Office interviewers asked her to prove her Christianity by describing how to cook a turkey for Christmas.
A key theme of the report is that inadequate country information leads to people being sent home because the country is wrongly seen as safe for converts.
In the case of Iran, the UNHCR has reported that conversion from Islam to another religion will lead to execution for a man or life imprisonment for a woman, but all appeals against Samar’s deportation there have been refused.
John Dallison, who travelled to Downing Street today to hand in a 1,000-name petition on behalf of Samar, said, “This is a key issue which only really came home to us when we encountered it personally with Samar. She is a committed Christian and I baptised her. It is so important that immigration officials better understand the issues around religious conversion so that nobody has to go through what Samar has gone through again.”
The report, by the Evangelical Alliance, was compiled using evidence from translators, pastors, asylum seekers and transcripts of asylum interviews and legal appeals.
It also takes into account information reported at a symposium on the persecution of Christian asylum seekers, hosted by Lord Anderson of Swansea in June.
The report includes a survey of Evangelical Alliance members, more than 90 percent of whom said a sample of questions asked of asylum seekers could not prove their faith.
Among its recommendations are that caseworkers and adjudicators are given training in the Christian faith and understand that conversion is a complex decision, which does not necessarily result in detailed Biblical or doctrinal knowledge.
Evangelical Alliance Parliamentary Officer Gareth Wallace said: “The stories we were told of Christian asylum seekers and their experience of the asylum process give an indication of the fear and trepidation with which they apply for asylum in the UK, knowing that admitting conversion will result in imprisonment or the death penalty in countries like Iran and Afghanistan.
“Many are new Christians, with limited knowledge of the Bible and even less of British religious tradition.
“Given the stress they are under, it is entirely understandable that they struggle to give the right answer when met with a long list of questions – in some cases fifty or sixty – about their new Christian faith.”
The report includes guidance for MPs and their case workers to give them a better understanding of asylum claims on religious grounds.
Simon Hughes MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs/Justice, who attended the symposium in June, commented, “When interviewing those who have converted from one faith to another immigration caseworkers need to be as sensitive about faith as they are about gender. This is an issue that won’t go away and MPs need to be better informed on all its implications and I am sure this report will be a useful aid.”
Read the full report: All Together for Asylum Justice
The plight of a woman under threat of being deported home to Iran, despite fears she will be stoned for converting to Christianity, is being repeated across the country, according to a new report.
The 29-year-old, known as Samar, converted to Christianity before leaving Iran, and says a death warrant for her has been issued in her homeland.
Her church in Bournemouth and MP Tobias Ellwood have campaigned on her behalf, but despite a temporary reprieve on Friday, immigration officers have again issued her with deportation papers to return to Iran tomorrow.
The report, issued today by the Evangelical Alliance, says that a lack of understanding of conversion, translation problems and ludicrous questioning by Home Office staff or the judiciary has led to asylum seekers being refused asylum from dangerous home countries.
One asylum seeker told the Alliance that Home Office interviewers asked her to prove her Christianity by describing how to cook a turkey for Christmas.
A key theme of the report is that inadequate country information leads to people being sent home because the country is wrongly seen as safe for converts.
In the case of Iran, the UNHCR has reported that conversion from Islam to another religion will lead to execution for a man or life imprisonment for a woman, but all appeals against Samar’s deportation there have been refused.
John Dallison, who travelled to Downing Street today to hand in a 1,000-name petition on behalf of Samar, said, “This is a key issue which only really came home to us when we encountered it personally with Samar. She is a committed Christian and I baptised her. It is so important that immigration officials better understand the issues around religious conversion so that nobody has to go through what Samar has gone through again.”
The report, by the Evangelical Alliance, was compiled using evidence from translators, pastors, asylum seekers and transcripts of asylum interviews and legal appeals.
It also takes into account information reported at a symposium on the persecution of Christian asylum seekers, hosted by Lord Anderson of Swansea in June.
The report includes a survey of Evangelical Alliance members, more than 90 percent of whom said a sample of questions asked of asylum seekers could not prove their faith.
Among its recommendations are that caseworkers and adjudicators are given training in the Christian faith and understand that conversion is a complex decision, which does not necessarily result in detailed Biblical or doctrinal knowledge.
Evangelical Alliance Parliamentary Officer Gareth Wallace said: “The stories we were told of Christian asylum seekers and their experience of the asylum process give an indication of the fear and trepidation with which they apply for asylum in the UK, knowing that admitting conversion will result in imprisonment or the death penalty in countries like Iran and Afghanistan.
“Many are new Christians, with limited knowledge of the Bible and even less of British religious tradition.
“Given the stress they are under, it is entirely understandable that they struggle to give the right answer when met with a long list of questions – in some cases fifty or sixty – about their new Christian faith.”
The report includes guidance for MPs and their case workers to give them a better understanding of asylum claims on religious grounds.
Simon Hughes MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs/Justice, who attended the symposium in June, commented, “When interviewing those who have converted from one faith to another immigration caseworkers need to be as sensitive about faith as they are about gender. This is an issue that won’t go away and MPs need to be better informed on all its implications and I am sure this report will be a useful aid.”
Read the full report: All Together for Asylum Justice
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