Apologies for being late, but another busy
week has left me exhausted.
For everyone’s convenience, I’ve shifted
the reminders / explanations about Sunday’s meditation-clearing
to this
post. I have a simplified blogiography of posts related to this work here,
a list of themes I have identified here,
and my changing the personality of oppressors and other world leaders post is here.
(Also, see here for some investigation
into evidence of the effectiveness of this type of work, which shows
variability [and mentions causes] and cycles in the energetic/consciousness
response … and also here is interesting.) A range of information on emotions is here,
and suggestions on how to work with emotions is here.
This
copy of a speech to one of the Parliament of World Religions also has
excellent, helpful insights on generational transmission of harm, the cost of
war, and ways to heal our hearts.
The purpose of posting these news links is
not only to inform: it is also to stimulate a connection to nonBPM units that
need to be cleared and BPM units that
need to be strengthened. That only works if you don’t let yourself be overwhelmed by this, so take it
in small chunks if you need to, but remember to actively clear and heal!
… including yourself. Also, it is absolutely VITAL that this psychic / metaphysical /
spiritual work be performed non-violently and as is for the Highest Spiritual Good – which is
part of being BPM – on all levels and in all ways. Always
remember (see here): Do you fight to change things, or to
punish? See also here,
here,
here, here,
here,
and my comments about “authentic presence”
in this post.
Also, in the same way that activists used
to argue that “the personal is political”, the energies we use and manifest in
our daily lives contribute to the larger soup of energies that influence world
events. If you want to, for example, improve the communication of nations,
improve yours. To help stop abuses of power, be always ethical in your conduct.
Want peace? Then work in an informed, understanding, intelligent and nuanced
way for peace in yourself and your life.
Finally, remember that many others are
doing this type of work – for instance, the Lucis
Trust's Triangles network (which has been running for many decades), the Correllian
Tradition's 'Spiritual
War for Peace' (begun in 2014, and the website was recently updated
to include many more activities),
the Hope, Peace, Love and Prosperity Spell
(also from the Correllian Tradition, in around 2007 or 2008), the Healing Minute started by the
late, great Harry
Edwards (held at 10Am and 10PM local time each day, and one can pay to
be officially registered. This also has been running for decades); the “Network
of Light” meditations; and also see here and here –
even commercial organisations are getting involved (for instance, see here).
No doubt there are many others, so, if you don't like what I am suggesting here, but want to be
of service, there are many other opportunities for you.
(Please
note that I now specifically have a role for (absent) healers on Saturdays, as
explained in the Psychic Weather Report posts. Anyone who wishes to be
protector has a role every day :) , including – perhaps particularly - the
first permanent issue I list below. At all times, on all levels and in ways, BOTH must ALWAYS be
BPM in the way they perform such roles.)
Now, the themes – short, medium and long term - that come
to mind for my work this week, after I review all this news, are (and no
apologies if this repeats the themes of any previous weeks – in fact, given the
size of this task, that is to be expected):
(a) based on my interpretation of information here and here with Saturn in Sagittarius contributing to finding an authentic balance (until 20th December, 2017), Uranus in Aries contributing to fresh and possibly radical starts (until some date in the Year 2018), and Pluto in Capricorn contributing to a transformation of power and business (and careers) (until some date in the Year 2024), conditions are ripe for a change for the better in world politics;(b) there is an enormous need to clear nonBPM energy – the thought forms, unattached energy and scars of the collective unconscious created by millennia of violence. This need includes rescuing those who have been trapped by that history, and healing the warped views, seemingly “inherent” biases, and other damage done by the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual violence committed on scales large and small in that timeframe;(c) viewing the overall emotional state of the world from an elemental point of view, this week we need more Æther, combined with the strength and persistence of Earth and erosive power of Water;(d) the world continues to be divided into those who believe in co-existence, and those who do not;The real dividing line is not between Christianity and Islam, Sunni and Shia, East and West. It is between people who believe in coexistence, and those who don’t.(e) there are consequences from current actions that need to be dealt with, and, since the actions were not ideal, the dealing with will most likely be, to use a euphemism, “messy”. Clearing nonBPM units will reduce that;(f) the importance and reality of the lives and souls of those who are the disempowered – the “victims” of war, poverty, and the like – MUST be acknowledged and TREASURED by the powerful, lest the world become a cheapened, sullied version of what it can and should be;(g) whilst it is easy to be welcoming of difference in easy times, the real test of one’s true commitment to eliminating discrimination, xenophobia and the fear underlying them, is when things are difficult. If you change under challenge, you are, at best, a hypocrite;(h) there comes a time when standing firm against bullies is the lesser of multiple evils – and appeasement is always a terrible risk;(i) those in power are, if there is a hint of democracy in real existence, not always as powerful as we would assume: that opens the door for real change;(j) kindness, gentleness, consideration, compassion and generosity are the sorts of virtues that rarely go astray;(k) the focus on Syria has made it a crossroads for the world’s future; Yemen and the South China Sea are also factors on this;(l) sadly, Israel has become contemptible, and must be treated as a pariah state – but, if it is destroyed, Palestinians and the world will be the greatest loser;Specific energy related suggestions are also provided below, in the Section discussing R2P recommendations for Iraq : - From an energetic point of view, based on the above and this week’s news, Iraq needs to replace its leaders with people who are genuine human beings. Those who helped put the current crop there are morally obliged to help. The main challenge will be finding such people, but ensuring such a change is peaceful is also imperative – otherwise the whole cycle will just rinse and repeat …
I also take this opportunity to repeat that it is absolutely VITAL that this psychic / metaphysical / spiritual work be performed non-violently and as is for the Highest Spiritual Good – which is part of being BPM – on all levels and in all ways. Always remember (see here): Do you fight to change things, or to punish? See also here, here, here, here, here, and my comments about “authentic presence” in this post.
News and other
matters from this week include the following
(opportunities/good news are shown in green;
comments are shown in purple; WARNING: some of these
links may contain triggers around issues such as violence, sexual assault,
discrimination, etc).
- Permanent issue: may all actual and potential BPM [1] Leaders be kept BPM safe, including keeping them undetectable to the nonBPM and keeping all their Significant Others inviolable against being used for indirect psychic attack, and may they have all the BPM opportunities and assistance (so-called “good luck”) for them to be BPM effective at influencing the world’s direction, development and unfoldment, all as is for the Highest Spiritual Good;
- Permanent issue: may all humans recognise, irrespective of the appearance of difference, the essential shared humanness of other people, the inherent resilience, the dynamic power, the strength of BPM collaboration, and the opportunities of having a diverse, inclusive and welcoming population, and may all people choose fairness, when such decisions are before them;
- Permanent issue: may all humans choose to live modestly – to forgo outdoing others, or trying to have more than they need - for the sake of an easier, more manageable life, if they cannot do it for the sake of the planet;
- With regard to democracy, freedom and governance (e.g., here and here):
the surprising effectiveness of the Australian political party known – I kid you not – as the Sex Party; why women do not go into politics; the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General has welcomed the 14th February election by the National Assembly of Haiti of a Provisional President of the Republic, which stems from the agreement signed on 6th February between Haitian stakeholders to preserve institutional continuity and further the electoral process. This provisional leadership faces a major task; the UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) has reported that the second round of presidential elections and the re-run of legislative elections took place yesterday in a calm atmosphere and without any significant incident;, but exiled former ruler Francois Bozize looms heavily; the poor state of democracy in Fiji; the complex situation facing US President Obama with regard to the US Supreme Court vacancy; Papua New Guinea is experiencing a cash flow crisis and thus trouble paying public servants, and other links from the Pacific region; discussion around lowering the voting age in Australia; an assessment of US Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on international policy matters – with a reasonable outcome; some US presidential candidates have endorsed torture; some of the warning signs of political problems in democratic governments; ways of assessing employment; US presidential candidate Crazy Don (Trump) has been criticised as un-Christian by Pope Francis; according to anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International , most NATO countries have come to grips with defence corruption on the domestic front (although several allies score poor marks), but only a tiny minority sufficiently guard against corruption in military operations for contracted and especially subcontracted services; the degeneration of health care deliver in Australia: Parts One and Two, and also here; a review of Australia’s abject failure to prepare Papua New Guinea for independence; the Mayor of the first US city to elect a Muslim-majority Council sees the city as a microcosm of “the American ideal”, rather than a microcosm of American fear; - With regard to violent extremism (aka, terrorism - e.g., Da’esh) (and, incidentally, I consider ALL people advocating hate or discrimination in
response to violent extremism to actively be doing the work of violent extremists. This PARTICULARLY includes those cretins [including in
the media, and Amnesty International] who use the acronym ISIS (see also here), which is actually the Greek name of the Egyptian Goddess Aset – and others (see also here) - and actively perpetuates the
patriarchal and sacrilegious evil that terrorists are trying to accomplish in
this world – which will be countered, in
part, by the sort of approach advocated by “Cure
Violence”,
and, in part, by addressing real and perceived disempowerment and acknowledging
the variety in what provides genuine, BPM fulfilment as a counter to fanaticism as a source of meaning. I also am
inclined, personally, to include here the last two millennia of neochristian
and colonialist social engineering, which has led to suppression of women,
child abuse, the Crusades, the Inquisition, etc, as violent extremism, but that
would take too much explaining.):
terrorist attacks have occurred in Pakistan, Pakistan (again), Pakistan (again), Turkey, Yemen, and prevention has or may have occurred in Cameroon (with Nigerian cooperation) and Nigeria (town liberated by Cameroonian troops); terrorist groups are moving south from Libya into the Sahel region of Africa; an article on terrorism, and abusive responses by security forces, spreading south in Mali; an assessment that attacks on minorities and foreigners continue to be likely in Bangladesh;
following Cameroon’s acceptance of the use of witchcraft to fight terrorism (which is significant culturally, given the enormous hatred shown towards witches there – there was apparently even a welcoming message from a Nigerian neochristian), some US witches have finally woken up and joined the struggle; an assessment of the 2016 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. intelligence community (which I still have not read); failures in Yemen have shown that establishing governance and security is crucial to countering terrorism; a reasonable – albeit simplistic - overview of the fight against terrorism; a Muslim historian’s assessment of where Da’esh does / doesn’t fit modern Islam, with a call to avoid dragging ourselves down to their level by declaring them un-Islamic, and reaffirming its commitment to its culture of pluralism instead (lots of insight in this article, but I am dubious about not declaring them un-Islamic – notwithstanding the problems created by Saudi Arabia’s Wahhabism: I’ll see how others respond to this article but, at this stage, continue in my opinion that Da’esh are not Islamic); a survey shows there is a reasonable consensus amongst Muslims (in the UK, at least) as to what is Islamic and what is not; concerns over the ethics of the United Kingdom’s anti-radicalisation programme; a criticism of a proposed school-based deradicalisation programme, which claims evidence elsewhere shows they do not work; the need for compassion when countering extremism – of all forms; US airstrikes have allegedly destroyed another half billion of terrorist money, and - allegedly – 20 kg of gold;
more problems as a result of the cretins who steal the name of Goddess Isis to use an – incorrect – acronym for a terrorist group;
while visiting Canada’s Centre for Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence, the UN Secretary-General said that, when we put human rights at the centre of our response to violent extremism, we can succeed in opening a safer and more stable future for all; a Sydney woman’s story about how she stopped her then partner going to fight for a terrorist organisation; the World Food Programme (WFP) and its partners have over the past week reached thousands of people recently displaced by the Boko Haram violence in Chad and Cameroon with life-saving food and nutrition support; - With regard to refugees: a grandmothers’ group is working for child refugees rights – and getting aggressive responses from WOMEN … one of them upset because she has been accused of being a refugee; the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that it has received reports that more than 3,000 people have been displaced in Burma’s northern Shan State in the past week; a review of responses and proposed responses to Europe’s refugee crisis, with some signs of potential hope; other people are referring to Australia’s refugee detention centres as gulags – and worse; Australian doctors may soon boycott work inside immigration detention centres in the hope it will break down the Australian government's policy of holding asylum seekers in conditions doctors describe as torturous (About time. There are times when the medical professions’ professed dedication to focusing on patient needs to the exclusion of everything else is actually HARMFUL to the patient in the long term – and the work done in refugee centres has fallen into that category for a LOOOONG time … );
- With regard to human rights and discrimination (including
associated violence / crime):
use of indigenous language to show respect; a call for human rights not to be sideline at the ASEAN conference; a call for Thai authorities to urgently investigate the violent attacks and forced evictions against indigenous Chao Lay, known as sea gypsies, in Phuket province and bring those responsible to justice;
predictable responses of male misogynists; young women are taking greater financial independence / self-reliance, noting that a partner is not an investment plan; FGM is widespread in Indonesia under the fallacy of religious obligation; Moroccan police, prosecutors, judges, and other authorities often fail to prevent domestic abuse, punish the abusers, or assist survivors - in part, that is because Moroccan laws don’t provide officials with guidance on responding effectively; sexist discrimination by doctors when women are seeking an IUD; possessive, patriarchal and sexist comments by morons criticising an ex-footballer for starting a relationship with another ex-footballer’s EX-PARTNER!; the appalling murders of women in Pakistan under the pretext of (misnamed!) “honour” killings; an excellent critique of the victim-blaming framework of psychology with reference to domestic violence, and the need to change this to a more feminist model. See also this analysis – as someone who once had an alcoholic partner (no longer!), I found the comments on the role alcohol plays – including Senator Nova Peris’ remarks – particularly interesting;
the need for protection of gender diverse people – also exemplified by a moronic state in the USA; Indonesia is now going down the same kill-LGBT-children path as Russia (you’re better than this, President Widodo!) - see also here; an article pointing out that the work being done in Australia for LGBT kids is based on evidence (listening, Messrs Putin and Widodo?); how an equal marriage debate would like if a minority neochristian group gets their way here in Australia; appalling comments by a would-be politician in the Philippines; an article on the gross police violence at the first LGBT-rights march in Sydney in 1978 - which still continues – and a call for an apology; intelligence used to be thought to be a counter to bigotry: it now seems that smarter people are just better at hiding their bigotry; signs of growing tolerance in a rural town;
there are fresh allegations that the rebel New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, is still recruiting children for use as fighters; a former member of a Philippine police task force linked to serious human rights violations has been deported by the United States, opening the door for the Philippines to address a legacy of impunity for rights abusers; a perspective on disfigurement;
the neochristian catholic church is provoking more outrage over its appalling mishandling of child abuse by priests; - With regard to crime, judicial matters and policing:
Pope Francis has urged Mexico's leaders to provide "true justice" to citizens hit by drug violence in the nation, and has also acknowledged that the neochristian catholic church needs to do more than just spout rhetoric; criticism of the ineffectiveness of sniffer dogs and the damage of invasive searches done after false positives; Australian police have confiscated drugs worth over a billion dollars, and arrested several people – and see here for another, smaller drug bust; around 1,000 convictions are made each year in Germany from the 160,000 complaints of sexual assault because of incompetently framed laws; - With regard to press aka the media, and freedom of expression (keeping in mind that claims of presenting “both sides” of a debate can be WRONG if the other side is RUBBISH –as is the case on LGBTIQ issues): the problem of male ubiquity (my phrase) in the press; a very valid criticism of some women in the media who behaved stupidly; the UN has criticised proposed new legislation in Western Australia that would severely limit the ability for people to stage protests; a call for advocates for free speech to be less one-sided and allow others to criticise them, and to be more adult in their choice of what to say; a story about a young country reporters persistence, and how that led to solving a “cold” (murder) case; an article on recent challenges to quality journalism which including an interesting fact: a Russian oligarch chose to keep a major, independent newspaper in the West going – as I point out each week, not all oligarchs are bad, and this is a timely reminder that not all Russians are bad;
- With regard to overcrowding and “modern” lifestyle issues (is YOUR smart phone free of conflict minerals? I was recently pleasantly to find IT
manufacturers now making at least some effort in this regard. Are you being duped by modern mantras?): facebook is running into more
problems over what it is and isn’t removing; French regulators have ordered facebook to curtail
its online data collection practices;
Apple is being investigated
by the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission – and Apple has now apologised
and issued a fix for the problem. Strange timing … ; an overview
of the current standoff between the FBI and Apple and sundry issues /
implications – see also here,
which has some good explanation of the significance of what the FBI is asking
for;
some high income earners see themselves as battlers; the problem of bullying by insurance companies; much needed proposals to end negative gearing are being discussed at present: one aspect not being discussed is that perhaps landlords would have the money to do maintenance if they weren’t operating at a loss; Kiribati is considering using expertise from the United Arab Emirates to raise its islands; a legal assessment of the possibility that Twitter may be providing assistance to terrorist, and plausible defences – see here, here, and here; exposure of children to lead has been linked to later violence; the problem of overhelping children with homework; rabid anti-environmental attitudes have destroyed a sound garden on a road verge area; and from the category of “science bumps into common sense”, a report that most obese Australians eat for emotional reasons; psychologists’ views on conspiracy nuts (my wording), and a mathematical test of the potential validity of their “theories”; a horse carriage operator has shown himself to be a violent, racist thug - who should be charged; a rebuttal of some moronic attacks on the mother of a child whose photo was stolen and edited horribly; the problems experienced by children of alcoholics (as an ex-partner of an alcoholic, I can attest to some of these problems); the problem of homelessness in the Northern Territory; THIS is what the human foot should look like – not the current crushed-little-toe fetish – see also here, here (I might buy some of these …); a recent furore (apparently – I don’t read the fashion pages, and have only been quoted there once * ) over ethical shops has been unpicked back to the source study, and found that shoppers who hadn’t checked ethical issues first tended to lash out at those pointed this out, as they felt bad: “in essence, the consumer is acting in self-defence so as not to view themselves as inferior to ethical consumer”. Having been on the receiving end of that in relation to smart phones, I can relate to that finding;
* An article in a Sunday paper posed the question: do women dress for the approval of men, or other women? My reply, which was used to wind up the follow up report, was that I was a woman who dressed for other women, but that was because I was a lesbian. - With regard to education: dozens of Victorian schools have abandoned religious instruction after the state government moved the controversial program out of regular class time (GOOD! It wasn’t religious instruction, it was neochristian indoctrination);
- With regard to the conflict in Afghanistan (noting that Afghanistan was once a peaceful and modern society, even allowing women in miniskirts, before the Russian invasion – see here): the number of civilian casualties in Afghanistan in 2015 (11,000) is the highest recorded, according to the latest Annual Report on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict produced by the UN Assistance Mission (UNAMA) and the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), with increased ground fighting in and around populated areas, along with suicide and other attacks in major cities, cited as the main causes – see also here, for an insightful critique of this report, including what it left out; the problem of recruiting child soldiers is continuing; a call for the Afghan government to promptly and thoroughly investigate reports that Afghan Special Forces have raided a medical clinic in Wardak province and executed two patients and an 11-year-old caregiver –noting that deliberate attacks on medical facilities and the summary killing of civilians and captured or incapacitated fighters are war crimes, and those responsible for any such war crime should be appropriately prosecuted;
- With regard to Africa, the Africa
Center for Strategic Studies (and other sources) also has:
according to the UN, a team from the Republic of Congo has arrived in the Central African Republic to investigate recent allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse against their troops, who are currently confined to barracks in Berberati. The UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) is working to ensure victims have access to appropriate and adequate help;
the ongoing devastating physical and psychological health conditions, poverty, and social exclusion of hundreds of women and girls raped during Kenya’s 2007-2008 post-election violence struggle, who the Kenyan government has failed to provide basic assistance and redress for; solar powered water wells are easing tensions in Kenya’s rift valley; Kenya is planning a prison for terrorists only;
Rwanda is planning on evicting (“relocating”) Burundian refugees, as Burundi feels vindicated by the USA’s concerns over Rwandan destabilisation of its neighbour; France is consulting UN Security Council members on the text of a new resolution that would strengthen international involvement in Burundi and could include "a policing element"; the East African Standby Force could join AU peacekeepers if Burundi accepts intervention; the UN wants to send independent forensics experts to Burundi to help authorities investigate allegations of mass graves; increased grenade attacks in Burundi; motorbikes have been banned in parts of Burundi to help end the violence; risks of ethnic divisions in Burundi’s opposition;
Uganda’s current President wants to create an East African Federation; an anonymous facebook poster has become the most vocal critic of the Ugandan government; the leading challenger to the incumbent Ugandan President has said he had no confidence that elections this week would be free or fair, and has accused the police of increasing violence ahead of the vote; after warnings that delays were unacceptable, polls opened late, the main opposition candidate has been arrested – again and social media networks were blocked; why second place matters; the tragedy of Darfuri refugees in Uganda;
the causes of ethnic tensions in Ethiopia;
the Mozambican police have warned the former rebel movement Renamo that it will use all means in its power to prevent them from blocking the nation’s roads;
growing political tensions in South Africa;
growing tensions and risks of violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo over oft-delayed elections; a major strike has been held;
the Liberian government has said it was seeking a prominent opposition leader for questioning after he claimed a state-sponsored "death squad" was targeting him;
ahead of presidential elections in Niger, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that the humanitarian situation in the country remains of concern;
a new opposition party in Zimbabwe which may have significant credibility and traction;
the complexities underlying the Comoros Islands’ rotating presidency system;
the political impasse in Guinea-Bissau could delay implementation of critical reforms and erode progress in the West African country’s development;
hunger season in Malawi;
China’s involvement in Africa may be continuing; - With regard to China and East and South East Asia: a call to end the Kim family’s generations of abuses in North Korea; China, which is continuing to act like the old European colonial powers, has unveiled a new missile; the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights today expressed his deep concern over the recent arrest of lawyers and the harassment and intimidation of Government critics and NGO workers in China. He said that we are seeing a very worrying pattern in China that has serious implications for civil society and the important work they do across the nation; the USA has deployed advanced fighter jets to South Korea following North Korea’s missile test (aka “satellite launch”); a US-focused review of the possibility that ASEAN could become a counter to China’s colonialist expansion;
- With regard to the Indian sub-continent, The Hindu and other sources
have:
grave concerns over imperialist behaviour of India’s government; violence in a court precinct as a student union president, charged with being an “anti-nationalist” is brought to court – see also here, here, here , and here, on growing international protests (this sort of thuggish attempt to control others’ nonviolent priorities and thinking is always unacceptable – whether it is in an Indian court, Australia’s refugee gulags, the US political arena, or the streets of 1930s Germany); a state government in India is looking to go down the US path of abusing workers and their rights, using police; a call for Indian authorities to stop charging peaceful activists with sedition for alleged anti-national speech; troops have been airlifted to the northern state of Haryana as violent protests continue; a circulated video showing people raising anti-India slogans is claimed to be false; the Supreme Court has said that it is not a place for political speeches;
moves towards segregating wastes with a proposal for selling compost may reduce waste problems in Indian cities; more than 100,000 health workers have spread out across Pakistan, stepping up a drive to eliminate the polio virus this year from one of its last bastions, despite continuing militant threats to vaccination teams;
law enforcement agencies in northern India have rescued at least 160 Nepalis trafficked across the border since two powerful earthquakes struck last year;
assessment of democratic opportunities around new constitutions for Sri Lanka and Nepal;
improvements in Sri Lanka, but a long way to go – see also here; Tamil areas in Sri Lanka have the highest poverty rates in that nation; - With regard to the conflict in Iraq (noting that Iraq was once a peaceful and prosperous society, before the USA / CIA backed revolution – see here): a summary of the military situation in Iraq; the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) has condemned the killing of one of its staff members, who was abducted in April 2015 but whose death was verified only this week. The Mission calls on the Iraqi authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice (given the scale of such incidences in Iraq, this may be difficult to achieve); fears over radioactive material stolen in Iraq from an industrial X-ray facility. This has happened previously in the USA, United Kingdom and other nations (so what is the solution?); the Iraqi government has offered to pay Kurdish salaries in northern Ira / “Iraqi Kurdistan” if it can get oil revenues, but there are doubts about their capacity to do so; despair over corruption in Iraq; an Iraqi court has sentenced 40 men to death over the massacre of hundreds of military recruits in Tikrit in 2014 (which will allow their enmity and violence to continue unchecked into their next lives – or possibly increase it);
- With regard to the Libyan civil war: Libya's UN-backed presidential council has announced the formation of a revised national unity government, with the internationally recognised parliament to vote on the line-up – which vote has now been delayed; the USA has attacked and killed dozens of terrorists (it claims) in western Libya – whose neighbours have been taking precautions against such an event (what now? Will that trigger the warned off escalation?); an attempt to reintegrate Libya’s militia fighters by “moving the young men away from the guns rather than moving the guns away from the young men”;
- With regard to the Russia (see also Syria): an assessment of Mr Putin (which I must add to my changing the personality of oppressors post); Tsar Putin is testing the boundaries / resolve of NATO nations - again; a review of Russia’s recent military actions;
- With regard to Sudan and South Sudan: a transitional government of national unity will be formed this week, although one party is afraid to travel for security reasons; the UN Secretary-General has condemned the violence in the UNMISS Protection of Civilians site in Malakal, in South Sudan, which has led to the deaths of at least seven internally displaced persons and injuries to approximately 40 others - so far. A couple of days later, the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) reported that the situation was calm, but it remains concerned by the occurrence of such clashes. The clashes between Shilluk and Dinka youths were further compounded by shooting coming from outside - reportedly from armed men wearing SPLA uniforms;
- with regard to the conflict in Syria: Turkey has attacked Kurds in Syria, may increase support for rebels who also fight Kurds, and is continuing to make noises about a ground war “with Saudi Arabia” against terrorists. A few days later, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that his nation would not allow the Syrian town of Azaz to “fall to Kurdish fighters” - as Ankara faced renewed international calls to end its bombardment of Kurdish-held territory (sounds like Grand Sultan Erdogan is going to do the same as Tsar Putin, and use this as an excuse to not only attack terrorists, but also wipe out people they don’t like – just like the old Russian Tsars); the UN has said that 50 people were killed in attacks on at least three medical facilities including a children's hospital in northern Syria, with one medical charity saying it appeared they had been deliberately attacked by Russian or government jets; the UN Special Envoy for Syria has met with the Syrian Foreign Minister to discuss the need for unhindered humanitarian access to all besieged areas, regardless of which party is besieging them (from UN Daily Briefing); US President Obama has phoned Russian President Putin to “urge” Russia to stop bombing rebels; in an act of sophistry, the term “cessation of hostilities”, which allegedly does not require verification and monitoring, is being bandied about instead of “ceasefire” – but neither mean anything without verification and monitoring; a critique of Iran’s strategy in Syria; criticism of the Russian views on Aleppo as “false and distorting”, and suggestions for the USA; a call for the USA to become actively engaged in Syria; the expected Russian quagmire in Syria has not eventuated (yet?) - but see here, for a more sceptical assessment; Russia has claimed it has not committed war crimes, and has warned Assad over his vow to retake all of Syria that he must cooperate with their peace initiatives; Syrian Kurds continue to make gains in the north, thanks to both the USA (initially) and more recently Russia – and to Turkey’s growing animosity; a Saudi call for Iran to get out of Syria; UN and Syrian Arab Red Crescent operations are underway to deliver life-saving humanitarian assistance to over 100,000 people (UN daily briefing), but more help is needed (UN daily briefing); an assessment of what may happen in Syria over the next year militarily and diplomatically; Western powers have rejected a Russian bid at the United Nations to halt Turkey's military actions in Syria, as France warned of a "dangerous escalation" in the nearly five-year conflict; Saudi Arabia has said the rebels in Syria should be armed with anti-aircraft missiles, which could change the scene there as they did in Afghanistan in the 1980s (this worked in the rugged terrain of Afghanistan, where the mujahedeen could hide from retaliation: how would it be in the rugged but much flatter terrain of Syria? Would the ruins of bombed out cities be adequate protection against the inevitable retaliation, or would Assad/Putin’s retaliation be just to adopt carpet bombing? Also, given the numbers of planes involved, there would have to be a massive number of missiles – and what would happen to the US-led campaign? The logistics and communications of this in the wreck that is Syria would be immense! I’m actually surprised that it has been so long for someone to suggest this: it might have made a difference before Russia became involved, but now … ); civilians in the besieged eastern province of Deir Ezzor face a humanitarian disaster "much worse than the world imagines" as they grapple with a double siege from terrorists on one side, and the Syrian army and bombing from Russian and US-led coalition jets on the other; Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister doesn’t think World War Three will start in Syria … however, the dangers of a war between Turkey and Russia are rising;
- with regard to Turkey: anti-mining protests in southern Turkey have turned violent; a statement of the obvious: Turkey’s Western Allies will NOT join its wars on the Kurds;
- with regard to the conflicts in Ukraine, particularly in the east: an assessment of the situations in Ukraine, and what could happen this year; humanitarian organizations in Ukraine together with the Government have appealed for $298 million to help 2.5 million of the most vulnerable people in the country in 2016; an early election is looking increasingly likely;
- With regard to West Asia / the Middle East,
the Middle
East Eye and other sources have:
the violence is continuing in Israel and Palestine – see, for instance, here, here (alleged torture and death of a Hamas detainee); British councils, the NHS and publicly funded universities face "severe penalties" if they institute boycotts of "unethical" companies or Israeli goods under controversial new rules to be outlined by the government and criticised as an attack on local democracy; apartheid South Africa fell apart only when the economic cost of maintaining apartheid became too great a cost to bear: BDS is argued to be the equivalent for Israel; the jailing of a former Israeli Prime Minister is claimed to be just the “tip of the iceberg” with regard to corruption; a smartphone app is being used by Palestinians to reduce the disruption caused by Israeli security checks; a critique of Israeli thinking and actions regarding threats; the serious risks for businesses active in Israeli occupied Palestinian land; the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory has called on Israel to halt demolitions in the occupied West Bank immediately and to respect international law; the UN Secretary-General has condemned the statement by Hassan Nasrallah threatening to target Israeli civilians with Hezbollah’s rocket arsenal, and reminded all parties to refrain from any rhetoric or act which could exacerbate tensions and present a risk to stability across the Blue Line; the problem of Palestinian disunity;
Saudi Arabia has launched large, month-long, multi-national military exercises; Saudi Arabia has halted a $3 billion programme for military supplies to Lebanon, allegedly in protest against Hezbollah, the militant group fighting in support of Syria's President al-Assad, but it is facing a budget deficit as a result of its war in Yemen;
Bahraini authorities have arrested four foreigners, including journalists, during protests marking the fifth anniversary of a Shia-led uprising in the kingdom, as the authorities continue to compound, rather than address, people's grievances;
the risk dual citizens face in Iran; supporters of Rouhani are feeling let down over the failure to deliver on reform;
the former prime minister of Qatar will not face trial for the alleged torture of a British citizen after the London High Court on Monday awarded him immunity from prosecution;
escalating tensions between doctors and the government in Egypt over an attack by police on two doctors; a call for Egyptian authorities to revoke an order that would shut down the most prominent institution in Egypt providing regular medical services and counselling to victims of police torture and other violence; prosecutions for blasphemy have increased since Mubarek was deposed, and have reached a new peak under al-Sisi; an Egyptian court that must have been presided over by lunatics has sentenced a four year old child to life imprisonment for murder; hundreds of Egyptians have protested the killing of a taxi driver by police (killing? or murder?); - With regard to the war in Yemen: the World Food Programme (WFP) has successfully delivered food for 18,000 people inside an area undergoing heavy fighting in the central Yemeni city of Taiz where residents are in desperate need of external food assistance; cluster munitions continue to be a problem; the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator has briefed the Security Council, and said that the conflict in Yemen continues to kill and maim civilians, causing immeasurable suffering, while destroying livelihoods, homes, communities and essential civilian infrastructure. Since March 2015, more than 35,000 casualties, including over 6,000 deaths, have been reported by health facilities across the country; the UN Special Advisers to the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide and on the Responsibility to Protect have expressed concern at the heavy toll on civilians of the conflict in Yemen; Saudi Arabia has blocked UN aid from reaching Yemen over UN communications equipment; an article on the Yemenis fighting Houthi aggression; the humanitarian community in Yemen has launched an appeal for $1.8 billion to provide critical and life-saving assistance to 13.6 million people who have been affected by the escalation in conflict across the country;
- With regard to natural and other catastrophes: another article on the drought in Somalia; the oil price fall has led to a health crisis in Angola; El Niño has peaked, but will continue to cause havoc for some time;
- With regard to peace and/or spirituality generally:
I wish to check out this healing modality at some stage: here and here. It has had some promising interim results for me; a brilliant article on the (lack of) water in Australia;
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said strains between Russia and the West have pushed the world "into a new cold war" – in other words, Russia is acting like a New Soviet Empire; a “backgrounder” on NATO, which includes a prediction from 1994 that expansion eastwards could create a “neo-imperialistic Russia” (their terms, not mine); an annual security conference has ended with doubt over peace in Syria, a clearly resurgent and confident Russia, and a sense of the USA as being irrelevant and not providing sought after leadership; Cuba has, in an exercise of responsibility, cooperation, transparency and sensitivity, returned to the United States an inert Hellfire missile that had been wrongly shipped to Havana in June 2014; at a Security Council meeting on the UN Charter, the Secretary-General said that the past year saw important steps to uphold the values and advance the vision set out in the Charter of the United Nations, but it was one of the most troubled and turbulent years in recent history, with civil wars ravaging Syria and Yemen and violent extremism spreading. He noted the importance of Article 99 (allowing the Secretary-General to bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security) of the Charter, and hoped that consideration of such issues will be driven by the Charter, not by geo-political rivalries or other external dynamics. When a Member State uses an overly broad definition of terrorism to monopolize power at the risk of long-term stability, he added, that would seem to merit the Council’s attention, as would massive loss of life and cross-border flows of people; a risk of sanctions and protests if Latvia bans the Russian language; the massive carbon footprint of war; the UN and the Government of Colombia have launched a new Multi Partner Trust fund to respond to stabilisation and peacebuilding needs; at the meeting of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the Secretary-General commended the community for its solidarity with helping people in need, including its contributions to Haiti, regional cooperation on humanitarian crises and generosity in offering to host thousands of Syrian refugees;
- the Deputy Secretary-General today delivered a key-note address on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) high-level meeting in Paris, and called for OECD countries to play a key role in building a close partnership with developing countries in achieving the 2030 Agenda;
- a new study by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which measures the direct impact of bees on crop yields, shows that for smallholdings, pollination was the agricultural input that contributed the greatest to yields, beyond other management practices’
From other sites (note that
articles from these sites may have already been provided):
- the Global
Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
(R2P) also has:
an occasional report, aiming to give background, offer analysis, track international response and suggest necessary action, for five nations in immediate crisis (“mass atrocities are occurring and urgent action is needed”: Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, and Burma/Myanmar), one nation at imminent risk (“the situation is reaching a critical threshold and the risk of mass atrocity crimes occurring in the immediate future is very high if effective preventive action is not taken”: Lake Chad Basin, Burundi, and the Central African Republic), and five nations for which there is serious concern (“significant risk of occurrence, or recurrence, of mass atrocity crimes within the foreseeable future if effective action is not taken”: South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya);
Recommended actionsfrom the occasional report for the nation of Iraq, where the actions of a terrorist group who have declared a so-called “caliphate” has created a dire security situation with sectarian violence and gross human rights abuses. 7,000 civilians were killed in 2015 (over 500 in December), and 10 million people need assistance. The terrorist group poses an existential threat to ethnic and religious minorities, who face the risk of further mass atrocities, poses a direct threat to members of the majority Shia community, and has capitalised on disaffection in the Sunni group – particularly under former President Nouri al-Maliki:
- the international community should continue to support the Iraqi government to combat the terrorist threat to vulnerable populations, especially religious and ethnic minorities, and ensure the Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish forces strictly and consistently comply with their obligations under international human rights law;
- all members of the international anti-terrorist coalition must abide by International Humanitarian Law and avoid civilian casualties;
- the Kurdistan Regional Government is also in need of international support to defend vulnerable populations from ongoingterrorist attacks;
- while confronting terrorist groups, the government must protect civilians and address the underlying sources of conflict between Sunnis, Shias and Kurds in Iraq, and must ACTIVELY prevent reprisals against Sunni civilians by the Iraqi Security Forces and Shia militias;
- displaced populations require urgent humanitarian assistance;
- From an energetic point of view, based on the above and this week’s news, Iraq needs to replace its leaders with people who are genuine human beings. Those who helped put the current crop there are morally obliged to help. The main challenge will be finding such people, but ensuring such a change is peaceful is also imperative – otherwise the whole cycle will just rinse and repeat …
and from a range of other sites:
- a conference has showed the decline in Australian international aid;
- some common sense about bushfires and non-flammable housing (roll on my non-flammable dome house, and more reinforced concrete housing);
Regular sources include the Daily Briefings
of the United
Nations, Human Rights Watch, the Global Centre
for the Responsibility to Protect, “War
on the Rocks”, the Early
Warning Project blog, the Justice in Conflict blog, the Political Violence at a Glance blog, the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, the International Crisis Group, the Middle East Eye, The Hindu, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the BBC, Spiegel International, The Conversation, John Menadue’s blog, Wikipedia’s current events portal,
Wendell Williams’ blog, George Monbiot’s website, the Campaign Against Arms Trade, the “Cure
Violence” blog, the Inter Press Service Agency (IPS), and
others.
No signature block this week owing to the length of the
post.)
