This post originally appeared on my political blog at https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2021/05/on-uganda-burma-attempted-coup-in-usa_8.html.
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On Uganda this week:
- Museveni is continuing his stay in, and abuse of, power;
- a new tax on Internet use as Museveni's debt-ridden government seeks relief;
- calls for respect of media freedom;
- "lawyers acting for the victims of a wave of abductions and torture by security forces in Uganda have named senior military commanders, including the president’s son, in a complaint to the international criminal court";
- increased government secrecy using the pandemic as an excuse;
- more homophobia.
On Burma this week:
- the protests and killing continue - see here,
- a call for Australia to do more;
- half of Burma's population could wind up in poverty;
- thousands of Burmese are likely to flee to Thailand;
- the use of explosive weapons is devastating to civilians;
- temporary relief as the Australian government agrees to extend visas for students from Burma.
From the news this week:
- on the climate crisis and the environment:
an attempt to offset the highly retrograde usage tax on electric vehicles in my home state by committing to buying hundreds of EVs for government use, subsidising purchases, and continuing the spread of recharging points; since 2010 the Amazon forest has “emitted more CO2 than it absorbed”; “true to form, Scotty from marketing has given us a slogan trumpeting “technology not taxes” and not a real policy for dealing with climate change”; concerns over a planned coal mine extension's possible threat the environment; Brazil may reward deforesters; towards a meat free future; an examination of the possibility of saving Europe's forests; a warning on the risk of elevated lead levels in garden beds (use raised beds and mulching); talks on the filling of Ethiopia's controversial Nile River dam continue; - on international relations including war:
North Korea is whingeing and making threats again; Australia's concerning response to India's COVID wave may harm the Quad; Iraq will buy petroleum gas from Syria; Turkey has attacked more Kurds in Iraq; the Philippines are continuing their very belated stand off with the Chinese; the G7 has called for global solidarity against the most urgent threats; recommendations for ending the farmer-herder conflicts in Nigeria; Libya has called on Turkey to withdraw its fighters; China is continuing its economic attack on Australia; post-Brexit tensions between France and the UK over fishing rights are growing; Egypt and Turkey are looking to mend their relationship; Somalia and Kenya have restored ties;
- on the COVID-19 pandemic:
strong (and widespread) criticism of the racist ban - especially the criminalisation - on Australian citizens returning to Australia from India (other nations have banned travel of non-citizens, but no other nations has shown such a complete lack of understanding of citizenship); the economic impacts of the pandemic wave on India will affect the global economy; the CMO who asked for jail sentences for citizens trying to return to Australia from India has admitted people "could" die; African Youth are engaging in peace and security; an examination of China's political and legal responses to the pandemic; a review of the effect of the pandemic on democracy - see also here; an opinion that, despite the pandemic calamity, India's democracy is surviving; a backlash against India's authoritarian leader; a call for official leniency towards comments on social media India given the current circumstances; more calls for Australia to support the IP waiver on the COVID-19 vaccines; the challenge of "cave syndrome" to re-emergence; Scott is trying to avoid being called a moral pariah; our backward attitude towards vaccine compensation; - on genocides and other human rights issues:
"forced relocations and militarisation of border regions continue in Central Tibet"; a group of Japanese politicians has committed to continuing to support Tibet - as they are also doing for Uyghur people and those in Mongolia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan; Australia's backward stance on Palestine being in the ICC; risk of famine in Madagascar; the DR Congo has declared a 'state of siege' over worsening violence in the DRC's east; the continuing humanitarian crisis in Yemen; continued repression in Nicaragua; allegations of slavery and abuse in China's belt and road initiative; desperate situations for refugees who are not allowed to work; Germany has taken down a child abuse website; a comment on apartheid and persecution - the forgotten crimes against humanity; Ethiopia may tear itself apart on ethnic lines; talks are continuing on filling Ethiopia's controversial dam on the river Nile; human traffickers in Nigeria; right wing violence in Germany is increasing; in the upcoming UN global cybercrime treaty negotiations, governments should oppose over-broad and aggressive cybercrime measures that threaten rights; EU pushbacks have killed 2,000 refugees; Cambodia continues to move towards a dictatorship; horrendous abuse of children at a boot camp; Zimbabwe is undermining its courts; victims of torture in Belarus have commenced legal action in Europe; as the world urges Israel to stop building illegal settlements, violence over land rights in East Jerusalem; a violent and bloody police drug raid in Brazil turned a poor suburb into a battlefield and left 25 dead; the erosion of human rights in China; consideration of the possible use of peacekeepers to prevent conflict minerals trade; widespread racist abuse in Ethiopia against Tigrayans; police in Botswana are using US and Israeli training to abuse journalists; Malawi wants to tear integrated refugees out of their communities and send them to an inadequate camp; - on democracy and governance:
continuing protests against tax changes in Colombia - and condemnation of the violent suppression of the protests; Kenyan police have attacked a journalist; continued repression in Hungary; elections in Palestine have been delayed again; the Union of Soviet Socialist Russia is using military conscription as a way of suppressing dissent; calls for an improved voting system in my home state; restraints on journalism in Pakistan; Brazil is trying to silence Indigenous critics; suppression of journalism in the Republic of Congo, east Africa, Mali, and Uganda; interesting thoughts on government debt; a warning that Australia's military needs to "move with society" to retain (I consider "regain" a more appropriate word) society's trust; a possibility of resolving the crisis in Venezuela; the economic impact of depression; work stress (including assaults, long hours and lack of breaks) is causing a mental health crisis in our ambulance service; we are following the USA by removing Israeli-made equipment over concerns data can be harvested through it - which the manufacturer strongly rejects - that have led to restrictions on US operations beside Aussie equipment; whistleblowers at a bank who were cooperating with ASIC have been exposed by a detailed breach of confidence by their lawyers; aged care workers are experiencing problems such as exhaustion and distress when can't give pain medication; Nicaragua has blocked independent observers from future elections; corruption in Gambia; calls for a single army in Sudan under civilian control; - on LGBTIQ+ matters:
"Suicide prevention groups urge cruel lawmakers to stop attacking vulnerable trans kids"; systemic transphobia in Europe; anti-LGBTIQ+ hate crimes in Germany has jumped; "claims that the Bible condemns same-sex relationships are based on misinterpretations and mistranslations, a groundbreaking theological study has found"; tokenism in Japan; - on racism:
"There’s a link between the over-policing of Indigenous kids and our people dying in custody"; a sacred women's site will be protected; racism against maids in Hong Kong; a police officer has been charged over an alleged assault on an Indigenous boy; planned changes to the NDIS are racist; Mexico has apologised to Indigenous people but still discriminates; more racism in Australian sport; investors in a mining company have given it "a slap in the face at the company's annual general meeting" voting against big bonuses for top executives to protest the destruction of sacred Aboriginal caves;
more escalation of protests into violence by racist US police; - on sexism:
the national neolib nitwits evident discomfort with an Australian of the Year who is an effective advocate against rape culture has - unlike the awards given to abusers and rape apologists - led to the dinosaurs instituting a "review" of whop is on the Council ... ; details have been revealed of decades of alleged past physical, psychological and sexual abuse of children in one particular sport; femicide in Guatemala; staggering revelations that Qld police had labelled the victims of DV as perpetrators - and of police active resistance to investigation and change - and an admission that Qld police have a major problem with DV; a very weak "apology" for "inappropriate treatment" (FFS!) of athletes who were abused and sexually assaulted; MSF "has for the first time moved to provide support for domestic violence services in Australia as demand for help triples during the pandemic"; - on ableism:
ableist resentment at a wheelchair option in a role playing game; more neolib attacks on the NDIS - see also this; the NDIA has lied about an academic by claiming she supports their bastardisation of the NDIS; - on animal rights:
- on other matters:
the manufactured addictiveness of video games and gambling; a student has eloquently outlined the long terms needs for support of communities after disasters; the "bank of parents" (who are often not heterosexual); renewed calls for certification of organic food;
"evidence shows children who are smacked are more likely to be involved in partner violence in adulthood".
