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Unfaire Impfstoff-Verteilung und zu zaghaftes Testen: Der Kanton Zürich hält beim Treffen mit Alain Berset mit seiner Kritik an der Corona-Politik des Bundes nicht hinter dem Berg.

Im norwegischen Spitzbergen ist ein Mann von einem Eisbär attackiert worden, als er die Dicke einer Eisschicht mass. Der Mann wurde leicht verletzt, sein Begleiter erschoss das Tier.

Familie Baldwin ist noch grösser geworden. Auf Instagram zeigt Mama Hilaria ihr sechstes Baby, Papa Alec freut sich. Doch woher das kleine Wunder kam, wollen die beiden nicht verraten.

Es ist eines der bekanntesten Kunstwerke der letzten Jahrzehnte: Banksys «Girl with Balloon». Nun wird es in Basel gezeigt.

Protests against military coup in Kayin State, Myanmar on Feb. 9. This weekend saw the bloodiest day of protests after the police and security forces fired live ammunition into crowds of protestors. Analysts fear that more bloodshed is almost inevitable. Courtesy: Ninjastrikers/(CC BY-SA 4.0)

By Larry Jagan
BANGKOK, Mar 2 2021 (IPS)

Myanmar activists have called on the international community for help as security forces loyal to the military continue their draconian sweep against the civil disobedience campaign that has brought the country to a standstill since the Feb. 1 coup. The pleas come as analysts, commentators and diplomats who know Myanmar fear that more bloodshed is almost inevitable.

This comes in the wake of the bloodiest day of protests on Feb. 28 after police and security forces fired live ammunition into crowds of protestors in Yangon, Dawei, Mandalay, Myeik, Bago and Pokokku.

According the United Nations human rights office, 18 people were killed and over 30 wounded. Local rights’ groups, however, believe the figure is much higher.

Several eye-witnesses have told IPS that police are invading houses, breaking down fences, doors and windows – whatever stands in their way – to conduct searches and carry out indiscriminate arrests without a warrant. Soon after the Feb. 1 coup, military leaders changed the law to allow unrestricted search and arrest, as well as indefinite detention.

“It’s a total war zone,” Walter Khun, a Myanmar citizen and founding partner with financial advisors based in Yangon, told IPS. “Our associates throughout the country are reporting the same: junta troops terrorising civilians.”

Blistering military crackdown

Over the past two days there have been scores of reports of police systematically looting shops and homes, stealing food from markets and commandeering possessions from private homes.

“They’re turning the country into a massive battlefield,” Zaw Naing, a local Myanmar businessman, told IPS. His statement was echoed by many other sources with whom IPS spoke.

Increased troops and police are being deployed across Myanmar, with convoys of soldiers and sailors being sent in as reinforcements to the strategic towns of Mandalay, Mawlamyine, Monywar, Taunggyi and Dawei.

Ruthless police charges with rifles have been filmed and posted on Facebook. In Kalaymyo – in the Sagaing region north of Mandalay – citizens managed to push advancing police with riot shields and a water cannon back. Skirmishes have also be reported in Mandalay and elsewhere.

Today, Mar. 2, the sound of gunfire was heard irregularly throughout the city of Yangon. Eye-witnesses were unable to distinguish whether it was live ammunition or rubber bullets.

In Sanchuang, in the northern-central part of the city, security forces conducted training exercises on the footpaths with snipers lying on the ground and taking aim with their rifles. Videos of the incident flooded Facebook and other social media outlets. 

Security forces have also erected barricades and blockades at strategic roads and thoroughfares to prevent the protestors fleeing from one part of the city to another. As of today, Mar. 2, authorities have ordered all of Yangon’s major shopping centres, including Junction Square, Capital Retail Myanmar and Myanmar Plaza to close indefinitely.

Many big supermarkets are also closed. Some believe this is part of the security forces control and dispersal strategy to prevent protestors taking refuge inside shopping complexes when the police charge.

Condemnation not enough – please for international intervention

While international condemnation has been swift and strong, the protestors are demanding international intervention.

“Protestors are being shot. We are very angry, we are very upset,” Ma Myint, a 30-year-old young communications graduate from north of Yangon, told IPS. “How many dead bodies does the UN need to act?” she asked after Sunday’s deaths.

Reuters reported that today, Mar. 2, that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations held discussions with the military, urging them to release civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and leaders from her National League for Democracy (NLD).

“The UN is watching, the US is watching, the whole world is watching but when will they act? We need international intervention based on the ‘right to protect,’” young professional, Thiri Kyaw Nyo, told IPS. “The must act otherwise there will be more bloodshed in the coming weeks.”

Dr Sa Sa, Myanmar’s Special Envoy to the UN – who represents the elected MPs — called on the international community to bring the authorities to justice for “crimes against humanity”.

“It’s time for the international community to act to protect our innocent, defenceless people who dare to stand up to these thugs who now controlling our country,” Dr Sa Sa told IPS in an extensive interview.    

Fears that more bloodshed is inevitable.

Analysts, commentators and diplomats fear that more bloodshed is almost inevitable.

According to military sources the security forces standing orders and rules of engagement are to respond if attacked and the use of lethal force is permitted. 

Regional military analysts believe the security forces have been relatively restrained compared to their past practices, including the crushing of the 1988 democratic uprising. The fear is the closer it gets to Mar. 27, Armed Forces Day – the anniversary celebrations for the military — the more they will not tolerate the continued civil disobedience campaign and protests in the street. Some analysts expect the army to deploy its full military might against the protests before then.

The military have been progressively ratcheting up their response – highlighted by Sunday’s tragic events.

Protests will continue

Sa Sa vowed the protests would continue despite the security forces crackdown.

“We must continue to remind the army that we are not giving up, we are not going away, and we will continue to frustrate their efforts to run the country at every turn,” said Sa Sa.

The protest movement is having a dire effect on the junta’s ability to rule. Banks are closed, government offices empty and the country’s fuel supplies are running dangerously low. Hospitals, universities and schools are mostly closed, and most factories have also been idle for the last four months.

Myanmar is virtually at a standstill.    

But Sa Sa insisted the protests must remain non-violent. “We are a non-violent movement, our weapons are our voice, our mobile phones and social media,” Sa Sa said.

“It’s the army that are committing crimes.

“These are the ones who facing real criminal charges and international justice at the Hague [at the International Court of Justice], they are the ones who should be in prison … not our leaders [referring to Suu Kyi and other NLD leaders] … they must be made accountable for their crimes.”

Suu Kyi appeared in court on Feb. 16 on charges of violating import restrictions after walkie-talkies and other foreign equipment were found in her villa compound. She and other senior leaders, as well as human rights activists have been detained under house arrest since the coup.

Protests about more than release of Suu Kyi

On the surface the protests seem to be leaderless and an expression of aspirations of the young – most of the protestors are under the age of 30.

But the civil disobedience movement encompasses more than the street campaigners.

While the movement is largely galvanised around releasing Suu Kyi, and a call for the military to abide by the election results of the November polls that saw Suu Kyi’s NLD convincingly win the majority vote, the campaign is much broader.

Myanmar’s civil servants — the doctors, nurses and health workers who initiated the civil disobedience campaign four weeks ago — are still on strike despite the junta’s threats and intimidation, according to a young doctor heavily involved in the movement in Mandalay.

The doctor, who did not want to be named, told IPS: “They are serious about protecting democracy, and have vowed not to stop till the coup commander is defeated and the culture of coups eradicated forever.”

Myo Win, activist and executive director at Smile Education and Development Foundation, told IPS: “It’s much broader: it’s about completing the transition to democracy, ripping up the 2008 constitution and replacing it with a democratic, federal state, and ending military dictatorships forever.”

The 2008 constitution allows for the military commander-in-chief to take power in extreme cases.

A cat and mouse game between security forces and protestors

Meanwhile, local community neighbourhood watch teams have cordoned off areas in Yangon’s townships, built their own makeshift barriers and mounted 24-hour guard, to prevent the police venturing into their townships and impeding their advance charges.

“It’s a ‘cat and mouse’ game between the security forces and the protestors,” said one of the 1988 protests veterans who is involved in organising logistics — communicating over walkie talkies with protestors.

At street corners in Yangon, protestors are reportedly keeping watch and warning others when police enter nearby streets. Upon alert, many take refuge to wait until the police pass before reemerging, singing songs and shouting.

“They’re organised in small groups of protestors throughout the city and are keeping the revolutionary flame alive,” Nyein Chan Aung, a veteran activist from the 1988 protests, told IPS.    

The campaigners are determined to continue irrespective of what the security forces throw at them.

“This is about our future,” said Ma Myint. “Our future is being taken away from us … we feel like that: we do not want to go back to the darkness. We were looking forward to a brighter future, now suddenly it’s gone dark.”

“I am very sad, and filled with grief for those who have died already in the struggle,” Sakura Ra, a young advertising professional who has given up her job to join the protests every day, told IPS.  “But we’re fighting for freedom and democracy – we are fighting for our future – we are fighting for our children’s future: we will fight to the end, we will never give up,” she told IPS.

 

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The post Myanmar: Protestors Plea for International Help as Analysts Fear Full Military Might appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Daniel Koch, der frühere «Mister Corona» im Bundesamt für Gesundheit ist überzeugt: Auch in der Schweiz werden Covid-Selbsttests bald zum Einsatz kommen. Er kritisiert, es werde nach wie vor viel zu wenig getestet.

Le président sortant du Niger Mahamadou Issoufou dresse le bilan de ses 10 années passées au pouvoir et estime avoir tenu ses engagements faits au peuple nigérien

Les Écureuils et les Super Eagles s'affrontent le 27 mars prochain dans le cadre des éliminatoires de la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations 2021. Dans la pré-liste des Écureuils retenus, le nom du défenseur béninois du Paris Saint-Germain Collins Dagba semble y figurer.

Pré-liste des écureuils
Gardiens de but
1- Saturnin ALLAGBE
2- Hariston HESSOU
3-Marcel DANDJINOU
Défenseurs
4- Khaled ADENON
5- Youssouf ASSOGBA
6- Cédric HOUNTONDJI
7- David KIKI
8- Olivier VERDON
9- Emmanuel IMOROU
10- Nabyl YAROU
11- Collins DAGBA ( à confirmer)
Milieux
12- Sessi d'ALMEIDA
13- Jérôme BONOU
14- Jordan ADEOTI
15- Rodrigue COSSI
16- Anaane TIDJANI
17- Cébio SOUKOU
18- Jodel DOSSOU
Attaquants
19-Mickael POTE
20- Marcellin KOUKPO
21- Jacques BESSAN
22- Rudy GESTEDE
23- Steve MOUNIÉ

Assassinat d'un paysan à Ofia Toumbi dans l'arrondissement de d'Okpomèta, commune de Kétou. Le drame a eu lieu dans la nuit du 1er mars 2021.

Selon le Potentiel, le paysan a été égorgé alors qu'il dormait dans sa chambre. L'auteur de cet homicide serait un peulh. La même source informe que deux suspects ont été arrêtés par la police républicaine. Une enquête a été ouverte afin de clarifier les motifs de ce drame.

A.A.A

Les artisans qui n'avaient pas pu se faire recenser lors de la phase nationale de 2019 pourront le faire très prochainement. Le ministre de l'emploi des jeunes et des petites et moyennes entreprises, Modeste Kérékou l'a fait savoir le weekend écoulé à Lokossa au cours d'une séance d'échanges avec les populations.

Selon le ministre Modeste Kérékou, nombreux sont les artisans qui, au décompte, n'avaient pu participer à l'opération d'enregistrement biométrique organisée en 2019. Ces artisans selon le ministre, ont été victimes des conflits au sein de leurs regroupements ou des manipulations des adversaires politiques du gouvernement.
La décision relative à la relance de l'opération de recensement prise par le gouvernement, répond à la volonté de ratisser large pour le projet Assurance pour le renforcement du capital humain (ARCH), a-t-il justifié.
Selon Modeste Kérékou, l'artisanat fait l'objet d'une attention particulière au niveau du gouvernement. C'est le deuxième gros employeur de main-d'œuvre au Bénin derrière l'agriculture, a-t-il informé.
Le secteur de l'artisanat selon le ministre, est animé par la moitié de la population béninoise, et contribue à près de 13% du produit intérieur brut (Pib) du Bénin.
Les objectifs visés à travers le recensement biométrique des artisans sont, entre autres, de disposer d'un registre biométrique de métiers, de délivrer aux artisans une carte professionnelle biométrique et de faciliter leur accès aux services du projet ARCH, notamment en ses volets assurance maladie, microcrédit et formation.
L'opération se déroule dans les 546 arrondissements et concerne tout artisan intervenant dans l'un des métiers de l'artisanat, renseigne La Nation.
Selon la nomenclature des métiers adoptée par le décret nº176 du 24 mars 2017, le Bénin compte 311 métiers de l'artisanat répartis en 40 corps de métiers et 08 branches d'activités.

F. A. A.

Australien hat dutzende Flüchtlinge aus seinen umstrittenen Lagern auf pazifischen Inseln entlassen.

Am Mittwochmorgen diskutiert der Nationalrat die Öffnung der Restaurants, Fitnesscenter und Kultureinrichtungen am 22. März. Im Programm der Frühlingssession ist um 8 Uhr eine Erklärung des Nationalrats mit den entsprechenden Forderungen traktandiert.

The recent overhaul of Italy's Five Star Movement (M5S) and its likely stable positioning on the centre-left side of the political spectrum could open the door for them to join the socialist group in the European Parliament.

Die Europäische Kommission hat "Zweifel" an der geplanten Entschädigungsregelung für deutsche Energieunternehmen in Höhe von 4,35 Milliarden Euro geäußert.

Dans les prochains jours, l'exécutif européen fixera les critères qui détermineront s'il convient de prolonger la suspension des règles relatives au déficit et à la dette. Concernant la révision du pacte de stabilité, les points de vue divergent toujours. Un article d’Euractiv Italie.

Ammonia has until now been used chiefly in the fertiliser industry as a way to return nitrogen to the soil. But it also has potential in boosting renewables – both as a replacement for hydrogen in long haul shipping and as a way of storing and transporting hydrogen.

L'ancien ambassadeur, Lalèyè Mouftaou vient d'être reconnu coupable dans l'affaire exportation de volaille au Nigéria à la Cour de répression des infractions économiques et du terrorisme (CRIET). Il serait accusé de faux et usage de faux en écriture publique.

En poste au Nigéria, au moment des faits, l'ancien ambassadeur selon nos sources, aurait délivré de fausses attestations à la société Cajaf de Sébastien Ajavon. Ce qui lui a valu son interpellation.
Selon le magazine Jeune Afrique, (…), le groupe Cajaf était détenteur de 50% des parts du marché de la réexportation de poulet vers le Nigéria.

F. A. A.

La souveraineté européenne n'est pas morte, bien au contraire. 73% des sondés parmi la population de huit pays européens — France, Allemagne, Italie, Espagne, Pologne, Roumanie, Suède et Lettonie — souhaiteraient renforcer la souveraineté de l'UE, d'après une nouvelle étude.

By Matteo Marchisio
BEIJING, Mar 2 2021 (IPS)

Five years ago, at the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the United Nations, world leaders adopted the ambitious Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development. The Agenda was to be accomplished through the achievement of 17 Sustainable Development Goals by 2030: eradicating poverty, ending hunger, addressing climate change – just to name a few.

Matteo Marchisio

The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 suddenly disrupted advancement toward meeting this goal, in many cases rolling back years of progress. The World Bank, for example, estimated that COVID-19 has pushed an additional 88 to 115 million people into extreme poverty last year, bringing back the total number of poor in the world to the level of 2014-2015.

According to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020 report, the pandemic may have added between 83 and 132 million people to the total number of undernourished in the world in 2020. It is as if COVID-19 had suddenly brought the world back to 2005, eroding in a few months 15 years of progress in food security.

The measures implemented to contain the COVID-19 spread (i.e. lockdown and movement restrictions) affected the entire food systems, disrupting production, processing, marketing and distribution. Rural communities and smallholder farmers– particularly in developing countries – were the most affected by the implementation of such measures; their livelihoods primarily depend on agricultural production and sales.

Considering that smallholder farmers produce over 70% of the world’s food needs, the impact of COVID-19 on smallholder farmers may possibly have severe repercussions on global food security eventually. It is thus our joint interest (beside our joint responsibility) to support developing countries – and, within developing countries, rural communities and smallholder farmers – to recover from the pandemic.

International development cooperation is an important channel for the global community to support developing countries. Within this framework, South-South cooperation – that is to say cooperation among developing countries (‘the Global South’), has increasingly emerged as a form of international cooperation that complements the traditional North-South cooperation. South-South cooperation enables developing countries to share with each other knowledge, practical experience, development solutions and investment opportunities.

South-South cooperation is a particularly suitable cooperation modality for developing countries, as many developing countries share similar development pathways, and many experiences, solutions or innovations can be relevant or more easily adopted in similar contexts.

What role can South-South cooperation play in supporting developing countries in their post COVID-19 recovery? An interesting example is offered by the South-South Cooperation Facility managed by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a UN multilateral development organization whose mission is to promote inclusive rural development in developing countries.

The South-South Cooperation Facility at IFAD was established three years ago with a contribution of US$ 10 million from China to mobilize expertise, knowledge, and resources from the Global South to reduce poverty and enhance the livelihoods of poor people in rural areas.

The Facility finances competitively-selected proposals submitted in response to periodic call for proposals. Since the establishment of the Facility, 15 proposals for a total amount of about US$ 7 million have been approved and are currently under implementation. The proposals promoted cooperation between countries in different regions and covered a broad range of themes, from value chain initiatives among farmer groups and enterprises in Cambodia, China, Laos and Vietnam, to the transfer of sustainable aquaculture technologies in Ghana and Nigeria – just to name a few.

The third call for proposals for the Facility was launched precisely at the time of the COVID-19 outbreak. Given the magnitude of the challenge presented by the pandemic, it was decided that the Facility would be used to contribute to the global response to COVID-19. The remaining funds of the Facility were therefore designated to facilitate the exchange of approaches, solutions, innovations that could be of value for developing countries to build more resilient societies, and recover from the impacts of the pandemic.

Considering one of the major impact of COVID-19 was the disruption of food systems, the Facility intended to specifically support rural communities and smallholder farmers to cope with situations of disrupted access to agricultural inputs or labour, or disrupted markets. The Facility will support activities aimed at diversifying income-generating opportunities, thus reducing the dependence on agriculture as main source of livelihoods, or facilitating access to markets – including through the adoption of innovative digital solutions. The proposals submitted in response to the third call for proposals are currently being appraised, and will be selected soon.

Effectively coping with the impact of the pandemic will require even greater international cooperation. As a complement to traditional North-South cooperation, South-South cooperation is arguably more important today than ever. Knowledge about solutions to COVID-induced problems, such as food system disruptions, are as important as financial support.

Across the world, every country has unique experiences of the direct and indirect impact of the pandemic, and the experiences of developing countries are different from those of the Global North, and may be more suitable to other developing countries. Only by learning from these experiences can effective solutions be found, and the international community successfully deliver the Agenda 2030.

The author is Country Director and Representative for China, and Head of the East Asia Regional Hub and South-South Cooperation Center, UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

 

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The post What Role Can South-South Cooperation Play in Post COVID-19 Recovery? appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Âgé de 44 ans, ce ressortissant Algérien en situation irrégulière en Espagne, est l’auteur de plus de 150 vols, selon la police espagnole. 38 mandats de perquisition et d’arrêt pèsent également sur ce sans papier Algérien, qui vit depuis 20 ans en Espagne.  Selon le journal espagnol El Mundo, le voleur de 44 ans a […]

L’article Espagne : longtemps recherché, un ressortissant Algérien enfin arrêté est apparu en premier sur .