21st Century Vision

Jack The Moralist!

In a speech this week Jack Straw the Foreign Secretary appealed to the Iranian people saying they “deserved better” than their current government. Well maybe they do and maybe they also think the same of us.

Moral posturising by Western politicians when there are serious problems with the very essence of Western democracy is no help. In our own democracy as with many around the world, people are getting disillusioned and distanced because they do not see democracy working at all. Unelected global bodies such the World Bank and WTO are increasingly making decisions, and the American version of liberalised economies makes it increasingly difficult for national politicians to shape the future.

Insult is added to injury when some leaders like Tony Blair slavishly follow the American flag even when opposed by a majority of his own electorate. Despite two million people on the streets opposing the war against Iraq and opinion polls showing how unpopular both the war and the occupation is, the Prime Minister follows the increasingly unpopular American administration rather the will of his own people.

So when we accuse other governments and tell their people they deserve better then we should consider putting our own house in order as well. We should also realise that our democracy grew up over centuries and that Iranian democracy is expected to be there in an instant. It will take years for the Iranians to establish a model that balances the role of state and religion as it did with Western Europe. They are making a start and doing it far faster than we ever did.

So we need to give support and provide understanding whilst still supporting the cause of human rights. However we cannot support that cause when we still have a few skeletons in our own cupboard. Double standards should not allowed to be the parlance of Western politicians nor moral indignation an excuse for honesty.

And you thought Iraq was bad!

New report reveals northern Uganda is three times worse

A report published today by the Civil Society Organisations for Peace in Northern Uganda reveals that the violent death rate in northern Uganda is 146 per week, or 0.17 per 10,000 people per day. In Iraq the figure is 0.052 deaths per 10,000 people per day.

The 20-year brutal insurrection by the so-called Lord's Resistance Army has cost 100,000 lives, while 25,000 children have been kidnapped, the boys to be pressed into military service, the girls to be used as sex slaves. It has cost Uganda an estimated $1.7 billion, equivalent to the whole of US aid to the country from 1994 to 2002.

The report is issued as Jan Egeland, the UN's humanitarian chief, is due to arrive in Uganda. He has been pressing the Security Council to take action, but with a predictable lack of success. Kevin Fitzcharles, Director of Care International, describes the failure of the Security Council to act as "undermining its credibility". He wants them to pass a resolution urging the government of Uganda to protect its own people - though it is hard to imagine why the Ugandan government should need any such urging.

Click here to read the Independent's coverage of the story, or here for Reuters' background to what's going on, or here to read the CSOPNU report.

Climate and Collapse

Can people power beat climate change … Or will our greed overcome us?

Who cut down the last tree in Easter Island?  Who will take the last cheap flight to Fun Valley?

The first few years of this government saw definite progress in reducing carbon emissions. There was a new political and scientific consensus that climate change was a major yet avoidable threat.  However the last two years have seen a faltering in good practice and carbon emissions have been on the rise again.   

Yesterday the government announced a review of progress on climate change.  This drew a range of comments reported by the BBC.

“The review does not offer an effective solution for controlling total UK emissions. The government needs to address this now by setting a Carbon Budget, a comprehensive framework covering emissions across the whole economy.” Ashok Sinha, Stop Climate Chaos Coalition. 

Most notably the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, said the public had a moral responsibility to change lifestyles. The consequences if they did not, the Archbishop warned, would be the deaths of billions of people worldwide from the effects of extreme climate change, suggesting that simple things like enforcing to the 70mph speed limit on motorways radically reduces the release of carbon dioxide.

Chelsea Tractors and cheap flights are some of the villains, but all of us want more travel, more goods from distant parts, cheaper clothes, cheaper holidays.  These all have a carbon cost and are damaging the climate.  Are we prepared to give some of this up?

In his visit to Australia and New Zealand Tony Blair has been sitting on a fence, speaking out for nations to take responsibility for their actions but not criticising those who fail to sign international agreement. His Australian counterpart John Howard, non signer of the Kyoto agreement, has the same view as the US administration, that whilst China and India are forging ahead it is not in their interests to curb their own carbon emissions. 

As one US official put it, “We’re not going to close down our factories just so the Chinese can open one to produce the same amount of carbon”… This is plainly the road to disaster … A race to the end …

“Who cut down the last tree on Easter Island?”  This question is posed by Jared Diamond in his book “Collapse” which looks at why societies have failed to manage environmental change.  On Easter Island the whole population died because it was unable to stop its pattern of consumption. He traces the collapse and final struggles of many social groups that continued to consume and pollute long after it had become common knowledge that to do so meant the end. 

He concludes that enlightened strong government or collective consensual government are best to manage environmental crisis.  The worst is bickering power groups bent on self interest.  Remind you of anything?

Who took the last cheap flight to Fun Valley?  Will that be our epitaph?  Or will we start telling our politicians it really is time to think of tomorrow.

For useful climate info see:  Stop Climate Chaos

Seeds of conflict

People power can win.

Last week the issue of Terminator crops (or “suicide seeds”) reached the negotiating floor of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) meeting in Curitiba, Brazil. Pioneered by companies such as Monsanto, Terminator crops are genetically modified to create sterile seeds at harvest so that farmers must buy new seed every season. They may also be used to introduce specific traits only triggered by the application of proprietary chemicals patented by the same companies.  If Terminator were commercialised, it has been calculated that the extra seed costs for farmers in just seven countries could exceed $1.2bn per year, or about half the yearly Canadian aid budget.

Yet this is just a fraction of the full financial windfall the seed industry could hope to extract from farmers if they could apply Terminator technology to all their seed lines worldwide. This figure is thought likely to run to billions of extra dollars per year. In Brazil, host country to the CBD, soybean farmers could face US$407m in extra seed costs if they were unable to  re-use harvested seed.  Even Canadian wheat farmers, whose government is one of the leading proponents of Terminator at the CBD, could be stung with an annual bill of US$85m.

Four rich countries promoted "case by case risk assesment" for Terminator technology: Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the UK (supported on the sidelines by the US, which is not a party to the CBD). This "case by case" clause would open the door to field trialling and commercialisation of sterile seed technology.

Roberto Requião, Governor of Brazil's Paraná state, opened the CBD conference with a strong condemnation of Terminator: “Suicide seeds are the next step in the transnational industry's strategy to control the production and commercial use of seeds," he told the opening plenary of 3000 delegates. "It is one more step by transnational industry to obtain total control over the production of grain."

But in a development which ought to hearten those seeking to give full effect to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation or Kyoto Climate Change Treaties, the “terminators” failed. Following last Friday’s decision by the CBD to refuse to end the moratorium on Terminator technology, Francisca Rodriguez of Via Campesina, a worldwide movement of peasant farmers, said: "This is a momentous day for the 1.4 billion poor people worldwide, who depend on farmer saved seeds. Terminator seeds are a weapon of mass destruction and an assault on our food sovereignty.”

Benedikt Haerlin, Director of Save our Seeds and the Foundation on Future of Farming, Germany, said: “This victory today marks the beginning of the end of Terminator technologies, not so much because of the text adopted and rejected, but because it has been won by a uniquely broad and diverse coalition of peasants, farmers, social movements and environmental organisations who are supported by the vast majority of delegates.”

Go to the Action Group on Erosion, Technology and Concentration website

The US & International Law

The Bush administration has embarked on a strategy of hard line unilateralism, disregarding the UN and international law. The Bush doctrine of pre-emption defies the UN Charter by allowing the US to use illegal force against other states.

Furthermore, Washington ignores, blocks, violates or even unsigns international treaties. The administration rejected the Kyoto protocol and the comprehensive test ban treaty on nuclear disarmament. It repealed the Anti Ballistic Missile treaty and blocked efforts to strengthen the biological weapons convention.

The government continues to violate the Geneva Conventions by refusing the rights of the prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. In May 2002, the White House announced that it would unsign the Rome treaty establishing the International Criminal Court, stating that the Court would subject US nationals to a politically motivated international justice.

You can access more articles below about the US, the UN & International Law.

General Articles on US, UN and International Law
This section posts articles analyzing the trend of US unilateralism and its relation with the UN and international law.

Torture and Prison Abuse
The US government has used the "war on terrorism" as justification for torture, prison abuse, rendition and indefinite detentions at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and other US-run prisons around the world. This section contains articles on these violations of international law.

US Opposition to the International Criminal Court
This section posts information on how the United States government opposes an international court that could hold US military and political leaders to a uniform global standard of justice.

US Policy on UN Peacekeeping
This section critically analyzes the US policy on UN peacekeeping.

The UN Financial Crisis
The UN faces a continuous financial crisis because some member states do not pay their full dues. The US, the largest contributor to the UN budget, has many times withheld dues or demanded certain changes to the UN budget in exchange for payment of its assessed contributions.

This is taken from Global Policy Forum which monitors policy making at the united Nations.

Bravery and reflection ……

"I do not believe that a lasting peace is achieved by armed force but I pay tribute to their courage and thank those who played a part in my rescue,"

These were the words of Christian peace campaigner Norman Kember who was spending his first full day at home since coming back to the UK after his kidnapping ordeal in Iraq.

And yet some of the Sunday Press and a few senior military spokesmen are taking these words as ungracious. Why? Did they want over effusive praise and gratitude? What the soldiers did was brave and they were thanked both by Norman Kember and also the peace organisation he belongs to. Yet he thanked them in the context of his abhorrence at armed force. Many see the occupation of Iraq as part of the problem and not the solution – a view that is becoming increasingly obvious.

The view of the peace activists is that it is important to build bridges between Islam and Christianity and between the Arab world and the West – a task made difficult by Western power. Their links at a local level provide hope and optimism though it is fraught with danger and those like Norman Kember who embark upon it are as brave as the soldiers who rescued him.

He now wants a time to reflect over whether what he did was “foolish or rational.”  One can only wish that George Bush and Tony Blair had taken Norman Kember’s example and also reflected on whether their entry into Iraq was foolish or rational; but perhaps such reflection on their part is too much to expect.

What are the Millennium Development Goals?

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight goals to be achieved by 2015 that respond to the world's main development challenges. The MDGs are drawn from the actions and targets contained in the Millennium Declaration that was adopted by 189 nations-and signed by 147 heads of state and governments during the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000.

The 8 MDGs break down into 18 quantifiable targets that are measured by 48 indicators. Click here for a full list of Goals, Targets and Indicators

Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education

Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women

Goal 4: Reduce child mortality

Goal 5: Improve maternal health

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases

Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability

Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

The MDGs:

• synthesise, in a single package, many of the most important commitments made separately at the international conferences and summits of the 1990s;
• recognise explicitly the interdependence between growth, poverty reduction and sustainable development;
• acknowledge that development rests on the foundations of democratic governance, the rule of law, respect for human rights and peace and security;
• are based on time-bound and measurable targets accompanied by indicators for monitoring progress; and
• bring together, in the eighth Goal, the responsibilities of developing countries with those of developed countries, founded on a global partnership endorsed at the International Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey, Mexico in 2002, and again at the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development in August 2003.

Implementation of the MDGs

In 2001, in response to the world leaders' request, UN Secretary General presented the Road Map Towards the Implementation of the United Nations Millennium Declaration, an integrated and comprehensive overview of the situation, outlining potential strategies for action designed to meet the goals and commitments of the Millennium Declaration.

The road map has been followed up since then with annual reports. In 2002, the annual report focused on progress made in the prevention of armed conflict and the treatment and prevention of diseases, including HIV/AIDS and Malaria. In 2003, emphasis was placed on strategies for development and strategies for sustainable development. In 2004, it was on bridging the digital divide and curbing transnational crime. Click here to the the UN Secretary General's Reports

In 2005, the Secretary-General prepared the first comprehensive five-yearly report on progress toward achieving the MDGs The report reviews the implementation of decisions taken at the international conferences and special sessions on the least developed countries, progress on HIV/AIDS and financing for development and sustainable development.Click here for additional information on the 2005 Summit.

Click here to see progress so far.

Fair Trade Fortnight Comes To An End!

Fairtrade Fortnight 2006 revealed that sales of products with the FAIRTRADE Mark are now running at a rate of £200 million per year with 301 producer groups selling to the UK market. But it also provided an opportunity for UK consumers to learn about the farmers in some of the world’s poorest countries and get into the Fairtrade habit.

The Enfield & Barnet UNA together with the Enfield Civil Society Forum held a Fair Trade event in Oakwood in the London Borough of Enfield to mark Fair Trade fortnight! There were a number of exhibition stalls from Oxfam, Marks & Spencers and Sainsburys all displaying their fair trade products.

Rebecca Jenkins from Trade Craft welcomed people there and explained the importance of fair trade and its impact on the developing world.  She gave a number of examples of good practice and welcomed the participation of the supermarkets and praised the way that they were developing a fair trade policy.

David Burrowes, the local MP as well as members of the Borough Council attended the event. All supported the aims of the fair trade movement and were committed to Enfield becoming a Fair Trade Borough. This view was supported by the two main political parties on the Council and both are working together to achieve the aims of fair trade.

Around 8,000 activities took place throughout the UK during Fairtrade Fortnight – in workplaces, clubs, universities, cafes and restaurants, shops and supermarkets, churches and other venues – to explain how a small change in shopping habits brings big changes for farmers and their communities in developing countries.

World Stop TB Day

Tomorrow is World Stop TB Day, renamed this year from the less-powerful World TB Day.

You may think that tuberculosis is a disease that has been beaten, but it has not. One person in three on the planet carries the TB bacillus, though in most people it lies dormant, waiting its chance. The opportunity often comes when the carrier is stricken with HIV/Aids; as the immune system weakens, TB emerges into terrifying activity - the victim will usually die within weeks if not treated. As a result of the continuing spread of Aids, particularly in Africa, TB is on the increase: 9 million people a year are newly infected, 2 million die. Even in this country, 7,000 cases a year are reported, though deaths are mercifully rare.

TB should not be the problem that it is. Drugs exist with 90+% cure rates, costing about US$11 for a full course. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has a  standard anti-TB strategy, known as DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment, Short course) which is working well in a steadily increasing number of countries. All that is needed is the funding, and even here there is a well-oiled mechanism, the Global Fund to Fight Aids, TB and Malaria - but, as with so many development initiatives, the Global Fund is kept starved of the money it needs to do the job. The result, with all three diseases, is millions of unnecessary deaths and - for TB particularly - the risk of multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains developing. These are a hundred times as expensive to treat, with only about a 50% cure rate, so they are effectively a death sentence in the developing world. MDR-TB is on the increase in Eastern Europe, so its arrival here is likely sooner or later.

In January the Stop TB Partnership launched a 167 page document, the Global Plan to Stop TB, while last week the WHO launched a Global Strategy to stop TB. Click here to download the Plan document, or here to see the Strategy.

Darfur still suffers

How will the new UN Human Rights Council deal with Darfur as Sudan refuses to allow a UN peacekeeping Force into the region?

The tragic problems of Darfur continue with little in the press.  What has happened to the Responsibility to Protect or must we allow Sudan to “work out its problems without foreign intervention” as President Omar al-Bashir demands.

Over a year ago Amnesty International declared that the perpetrators of the worst crimes in Sudan, including Darfur, must be prosecuted to ensure lasting peace.

After 21 years of conflicts, more than 2 million dead, 6 million forced to flee their homes, thousands of women and children abducted and/or raped and hundreds of villages destroyed and relatives still missing, not one perpetrator of war crimes or crimes against humanity is known to have been brought to justice in Sudan. 

Last year the UN Security Council authorised the International Criminal Court to investigate the situation in Darfur but the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir [BBC profile] has again said recently that his country refuses to extradite any Sudanese citizens for prosecution by the ICC [JURIST report]

A recent report in the British Medical Journal quotes the Office of UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan warning that humanitarian cooperation from the Sudanese Government had seriously declined.  Access to primary health care dropped below the emergency threshold in 2006… the risk of disease would increase, particularly malaria, diarrhoeal diseases, and measles.  Suspension of support for drinking water, sanitation, and food “would further impact upon the health and well-being of about half a million under-five children in Darfur, potentially leading to a dramatic increase in the incidence of communicable diseases and an increased morbidity rate.”

Agencies are also concerned that restricted access across large parts of Sudan are impeding immunisation campaigns against polio and measles.

Not only is the Sudanese Government accused of obstructing humanitarian efforts but it has resisted a UN force being sent to the country.  Plans by the African Union to hand over peacekeeping responsibilities to the United Nations were put on hold last week, after an intense lobbying campaign by the government of Sudan. The Sudanese government portrayed a United Nations’ handover as a colonial venture led by the United States and warned that Darfur would become a “graveyard” for foreign troops. Currently there are 7,000 African Union troops stationed there and despite the widespread view that the African Union (AU) peacekeeping force had done little to quell violence in Darfur, President Omar al-Bashir argued last week it was doing its job well and needed no outside help.

In a report from Aljazeera he said that letting non-African troops into Sudan's troubled Darfur region risks creating turmoil like that seen after the US invasion of Iraq.  "We have witnessed what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan and learned lessons that shouldn't be repeated on the African continent," Bashir told a one-day regional summit in Nairobi.

Sudan is accused by UN and US officials of arming marauding Arab militia, who have raped, killed and driven into squalid camps some 2 million villagers. Sudan denies this.
   
Bashir said the AU mission's work was a "success for Africa" and proof the continent could work out its problems without foreign intervention. 
   
The problems of Darfur take place in the context of a complex civil war involving different ethnic groups and oil (see report from Sudanwatch).