Obama

As heartening as it is to have a president in the White House who sees human-caused climate change as an undeniable fact, Obama and his allies can only do so much and there are countless individuals and corporations who will drag their feet on this issue. There is a very strong possibility that too little will be done too late. Well, the too late part is hard to get around, but everything needs to be done to prevent too little from being done at this late stage of the game. 

Case in point: Dutch not-for-profit organization BankTrack launched a new report on March 30 called ‘Meek Principles for a Tough Climate.’ The report made its debut at the start of climate convention negotiations in Bonn, Germany. The report concludes that international commercial banks must all make stronger commitments to avoid financing catastrophic climate change.

The following is taken directly from the BankTrack website:

The ‘Carbon Principles’ and the ‘Climate Principles’, the only two collective climate initiatives taken so far by banks, are considered to be too focused on accommodating business as usual and therefore inadequate as a response to the urgent challenge posed by accelerating climate change.

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Today’s update of human rights events around the world.

GAZA: US Gaza Aid Tied to Recognition of Israel

Some $900 million pledged by the United States to the Palestinians will be withdrawn if the expected Palestinian Authority coalition government between Fatah and Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist, Western and Israeli diplomats said Wednesday.  Common Dreams

CANADA: Ban Bush From Canada for War Crimes

A lawyers’ group has asked the RCMP to bar former U.S. president George W. Bush from entering Canada, citing torture and war crimes committed in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.  Common Dreams

TUNISIA: Revolving Door Shows Intolerance for Dissent

The Tunisian government released a long-serving political prisoner only to re-arrest him a few weeks later solely for expressing his political views to the media, Human Rights Watch said today.  Human Rights Watch

US: Cluster Bomb Exports Banned

Legislation signed into law on March 11, 2009 by President Obama will make permanent a ban on nearly all cluster bomb exports by the United States, Human Rights Watch said today. The United States should review its stance on joining the international treaty prohibiting cluster munitions in light of this action, Human Rights Watch said.  Human Rights Watch

CHINA: Putting a Face to Internet Censorship

I wasn’t going to post again today, but I was just reading Erica’s post, and I went to Daily Kos to check out the comments. One commenter was of the opinion that free speech is just an American construct, and others responded that freedom of expression and information are acutally guaranteed in Article 19 of the UDHR and also in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, of which China is a signatory. That’s good to know, but that level of discussion can make it easy to forget about the actual human cost of governments respecting those human rights, and corporations not standing up for them.  Amnesty USA

PERU: Spying on Social Movements

Business Track, a private security firm, was engaged in spying on non-governmental organisations, environmental activists, social movements and opposition groups in Peru, sources in the police, prosecutor’s office and courts investigating the case told IPS.  IPS

ZIMBABWE: Roy Bennett walks out of prison after spending a month in jail

MDC National Treasurer and Deputy Agriculture Minister – designate, Hon. Roy Bennett who was yesterday granted a US$5 000 bail was this morning released from Mutare Prison.  This is Zimbabwe

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I will not spend a single penny for the purpose of rewarding a single Wall Street executive, but I will do whatever it takes to help the small business that can’t pay its workers or the family that has saved and still can’t get a mortgage.

President Obama, addressing a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.

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Today’s update of human rights events around the world.

COLOMBIA: Crisis means more child soldiers

Global financial turmoil could drive more children to become fighters for Colombia’s rebel groups as the country’s poorest people suffer the fallout of the economic slowdown, a U.N. agency said on Wednesday.  Colombia Reports

EGYPT: Van Spirits Away Protester, Signaling Crackdown on Criticism Over Gaza

State security came for Philip Rizk on Friday night. He had just finished a six-mile protest walk with about 15 friends to raise support for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip when he was detained for hours and then hustled into an unmarked van and driven off. He has not been seen or heard from since.  Common Dreams

UGANDA: Supreme Court Declared Mandatory Death Sentence Unconstitutional

The Supreme Court of Uganda decided on appeal1 on 21 January 2009 that mandatory death sentence is inconsistent with the Constitution and that all the laws on the statute books in Uganda that provide for this are void. According to the decision, such mandatory sentence can only be regarded as a maximum sentence.  FIDH

U.S.: How Will Obama Engage on Human Rights?

A pair of imminent decisions by the Obama administration will reveal how committed it is to engaging the world on universal human rights issues, and whether it is willing to stand up to special interests and a predictable conservative outcry in Washington. On the issue of human rights, bipartisanship will be even harder to achieve than on a domestic economic rescue package.   Common Dreams

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Today’s update of human rights events around the world.

U.S.: Judges seek massive California prisoner release

Federal judges on Monday tentatively ordered California to release tens of thousands of inmates, up to a third of all prisoners, in the next three years to stop dangerous overcrowding.  Reuters

DRC: Peace in Congo?

Eastern Congo, long the heart of the bloodiest killing on planet earth since World War II, seems to be turning a corner. The most powerful rebel commander has been captured and the Rwandan military is engaged in joint operations with the Congolese military. It appears that directionally, the events of the past few weeks augur well for regional peace and prosperity.  NY Times/Kristof

U.S.: Obama Backs Off a Reversal on Secrets

In a closely watched case involving rendition and torture, a lawyer for the Obama administration seemed to surprise a panel of federal appeals judges on Monday by pressing ahead with an argument for preserving state secrets originally developed by the Bush administration.  NY Times

SRI LANKA:  Government Targets Media Under Civil War Cover

Sri Lanka’s ruling establishment has become increasingly intolerant towards the island country’s independent media, even as President Mahinda Rajapakse’s government steps up its military offensive against separatist Tamil militants in the north.  IPS

PRC: China submits rights record to UN

China has submitted its first report on its human rights record for review by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.  BBC

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Today’s update of human rights events around the world.

US: Advocacy Groups Fear New Wave of Homeless

Homeless advocates in the United States say if the new Congress and the Barack Obama administration do nothing, many more low-income people already teetering on the brink could end up living on the streets over the next two years.  IPS

UZBEKISTAN: Abducted Refugee on Trial

An Uzbek refugee who was abducted last year in Kyrgyzstan is now believed to be on trial in Uzbekistan, Human Rights Watch said today. Haiatjon Juraboev is among more than a dozen refugees forcibly returned to Uzbekistan from Kyrgyzstan since 2005.  Human Rights Watch

GAZA: Israel Defends Gazan Deaths

The Israeli military has defended the actions of its troops in an incident last month that resulted in the deaths of three daughters of a Palestinian doctor in Gaza.  Common Dreams

WEST AFRICA: Female Genital Mutilation Knows No Borders

Laws against female genital mutilation are driving the practice underground and across borders, says UNIFEM. A study released in 2008 looked at the flow of girls traveling to be excised between Burkina Faso and its neighbours Mali, Niger, Ghana and Cote d’ Ivoire. Except Mali, all four countries in the study have laws against female genital mutilation (FGM), although enforcement varies widely.  IPS

MALAYSIA: Custodial Death Revives Calls For Police Reforms

The death of a youth in police custody and the torture of another in a police lockup, in recent weeks, have shocked Malaysians and revived calls for an oversight body – proposed in 2006 by a royal commission but unimplemented because of opposition from senior officers in the command.  IPS

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The “Man on the Street” Talks About the Bailout Bill

Our homeless reporter Sam – the “Man on the Street” – talks about President Obama’s Economic Stimulus Plan and why Congressional Republicans are selling the American people short by opposing the bill before Congress.

What do you think?

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This is the third and final installment in a three-part series on the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) published on Global Investment Watch.

Corporate Propaganda in the Information Age

One of the great benefits of the Internet is that it is the ultimate equalizer against corporate misinformation. It allows citizen activists and public interest groups to quickly and cost-effectively counteract right-wing propaganda. While companies shell out gobs of money to glitzy public relations firms to produce misleading TV infomercials and radio ads these days, organizers in the progressive community are reaching millions of citizens every day by tapping away on their keyboards and posting low-cost videos on You Tube – in real time, no delay. With these new, more flexible methods of communication comes the potential to dramatically increase the power of the message and saturate the marketplace of ideas and opinion building.

Corporations and their misinformation peddlers have a real problem right now. Traditional forms of media – daily newspapers, weekly magazines, television and radio – no longer reach audiences once their exclusive domain. Today, a myriad of communication channels have opened up for organizers and policy advocates, making it far easier to interact with a much larger audience on a global scale. Internet-based tools for successful communication have radically changed the playing field for progressive groups, enhancing the effectiveness of campaigns in dramatic ways. The fight over the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) – legislation that would enhance the nation’s middle class at the cost of the corporate elite – is a case in point.

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The daily update of human rights events around the world.

Lifting of ‘Gag Rule’ Helps Restart Much-Needed Health Services in Africa

Aid workers and experts say President Barack Obama’s decision to allow aid money to flow again to international groups that offer abortion counseling will help restart programs desperately needed in Africa, the continent hardest hit by a so-called “gag rule.”  Common Dreams

US Turned Blind Eye to Somalia Abuses: Rights Group

The United States has turned a blind eye to abuses by its allies in Somalia and worsened the situation there by reducing a complex conflict to a front in its “war on terror,” a leading human rights group said.  Common Dreams

Colombia rebels hand over captives

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have handed over four hostages to a humanitarian delegation in the southern jungle region.  Al Jazeera

Deaths as Sri Lanka hospital bombed

At least 13 people have been killed after a hospital in northern Sri Lanka was hit in three artillery attacks, United Nations officials have said.  Al Jazeera

Israeli warplanes bomb in Gaza after mortar attacks

Israeli aircraft bombed Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, the Islamist group said, after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert vowed a “disproportionate” response to mortar fire that injured three Israelis.  Reuters

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