Democracy & Civics

The Burma Backstory: How Fossil Fuels Keep the Junta in Business

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Although most of the world’s political powers, including the United States, have condemned the Myanmar junta’s crackdown on reformist protesters, the military regime’s persistent grip on power there has only been strengthened by decades of economic cooperation with the West. Here’s a roundup of Newsdesk.org’s coverage of the issue, as well as the latest articles from other regional and international news sources. In 2002, Newsdesk.org reporter Jennifer Huang broke ground with an exclusive investigative article on a series of human rights lawsuits filed against international energy corporations working in developing nations with abusive regimes. The lawsuits — which targeted a number of American oil companies, including California’s UnoCal — were filed in federal court under the Alien Tort Claims Act, an 18th century law that gives U.S. courts jurisdiction over some offenses committed overseas. Unocal was sued for its partnership with the French oil giant Total in the construction of the Yadana Pipeline, which carries millions of cubic feet of natural gas every day along a 63 kilometers route through Burma’s southern Tenasserim region.

Economy

Smuggler's Paradise for Iraqi Oil Runners

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After a revenue-sharing bill that would have opened Iraq’s oil fields to foreign investment failed in parliament, Iraq’s domestic oil industry has seen business as usual — theft, corruption and destruction of pipelines for political gain. With Basra’s oil fields and ports under the control of warring Shiite tribes, militias illegally export millions of barrels of crude to Iran by boat under the noses of Iraq’s maritime forces. On any given day, up to 300,000 barrels are smuggled into Iran, according to the Institute for War & Peace Reporting. The Iranian coast guards and the Iraqi Navy are said to be involved in the trade, but the main culprits are the main ruling parties and militias of Basra, as well as the most influential tribes. Iraqi maritime forces say they may arrest smaller smugglers but the government won’t allow them to arrest the larger gangs.

Economy

Labor Day Highlights Immigrant Dilemma

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This Labor Day, different corners of America were confronted with fallout from the debate over illegal immigration and the jobs immigrants do that support local economies. While some people call for greater restrictions on hiring, others say immigrants are a vital part of their communities. Bay Area row crop farmers are worried about losing their workers to a new policy that forces employers to fire employees if the government notifies them that their social security numbers don’t match existing records. Like other industries, farmers depend on immigrant labor to do the hard work they say no one else will do, reports the San Mateo County Times. Many workers use fraudulent Social Security numbers to collect wages, leaving farmers with a tough choice: fire their workers, some of whom have been with them for decades and live with their families, or risk federal prosecution for harboring illegal immigrants.

Economy

Slavery (and Emancipation) for the New Millennium

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Children and adults alike throughout the world are kidnapped and trafficked out of their home countries, or leave home in search of a better life only to be forced into conditions akin to slavery. In China, a major scandal erupted when the parents of 570 enslaved child workers started searching for their missing children, only to discover that they had been forced into heavy labor at brick kilns in Shanxi and Henan provinces. The culprits were more than 60 officials, including policemen and Communist Party members, reports Agence France-Presse. An op-ed in the Philippine Inquirer cites testimonial by an American medical technician working in Baghdad that he had witnessed the kidnapping and enslavement of 51 Filipinos. Roy Mayberry told a U.S. Congressional committee that the workers had been hired by the First Kuwaiti Company to work in Dubai, only to learn, once they were on the airplane, that they were going to Iraq.

Economy

Biodiesel's Mixed Blessings

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Biodiesel shows promise as an alternative fuel, but it presents substantial challenges to produce locally, efficiently, and in quantities to keep prices down and sustain a budding industry. Hawaii’s main electric companies have committed to using biodiesel in energy production by 2009, but are under pressure to make sure the soybean oil is locally grown to avoid driving clearcuts in Indonesia for soybean plantations, reports the Honolulu Star Bulletin. The Associated Press notes six organic farmers in California’s Santa Cruz county are also taking a local approach, growing mustard seed instead of soybeans to fill school buses, tractors and three local biodiesel fueling stations. Most of the soybeans would otherwise be grown in the Midwest and processed outside the state — not a very efficient use of energy. The high cost of producing and transporting biodiesel and its components remains one of the technology’s biggest problems.
Dozens of new soybean processing plants are popping up across the Midwest, and provide jobs with benefits in economically depressed areas.

Economy

Domestic Workers Abused Worldwide

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Hundreds of domestic workers commit suicide in Bahrain every year rather than return to their families in debt, according to rights groups and Western observers. The workers, mostly women from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, take out huge loans to pay their way to Bahrain, lured by the promise of good jobs and decent wage, according to Gulf News. But the jobs turn out to be lower quality, and the pay a fraction of what they expected. Broke and often abused by their employers, they cannot return home and often choose to end their lives. A report by Human Rights Watch titled “Swept Under the Rug: Abuses Against Domestic Workers Around the World” includes testimonials from hundreds of women from Asia to Africa.

Economy

Cost-Cutting Hits Fund for Nuclear and Chemical Workers

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Two federal programs for nuclear workers with cancer and other diseases are under fire for cutting costs without regard for patient needs. In Colorado, Harold Hinton is dying of lung disease contracted while producing weapons-grade uranium 308, and under a Labor Department cost-cutting measure will lose the live-in nurse his doctor recommended. A government spokesman said Hinton’s medical provider pressured the doctor into calling for 24/7 home care. Officials have paid $1.8 billion to 20,000 claimants, and thousands of other cases are still pending. Advocacy groups are pressuring Congress to speed up the process.