Democracy & Civics

Pinochet's Ghost Still Haunts Chile

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General Augusto Pinochet is dead, but Chile continues to wrestle with the legacy of his 17 years of brutal military rule. Under the leadership of President Michelle Bachelet, who was herself jailed and tortured by the Pinochet regime, the elected government of Chile has launched a campaign to commemorate the Pinochet years with museums and the preservation of historic sites. Minister of National Properties Romy Schmidt told McClatchy Newspapers: “Our plan would involve practically all the police stations and military regiments in the country, which could get uncomfortable. But that would be a meaningful step because it would show the whole government was involved in the abuses.” The military and police forces are deeply implicated in investigations into human rights abuses under the old regime.

Democracy & Civics

A Toilet for Thai Transsexuals

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A secondary school in northeast Thailand recently built a toilet solely for its transsexual student population. According to the Telegraph, the Kampang School built the toilet for the 200 self-declared transsexuals — students with male anatomy but decidedly feminine characteristics. “These students want to be able to go in peace without fear of being watched, laughed at or groped,” school director Sitisak Sumontha told the newspaper. Thailand is famously accepting of sexual minorities, including transvestites, cross-dressers and people born with both male and female characteristics. Kampang School follows in the footsteps of a Chiang Mai technical college, who, in 2003, built a “Pink Lotus Bathroom” for its transgender students.

Democracy & Civics

Argentina: Saving the Family Farm

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A coalition of farm worker organizations, small farmers and native communities has rallied together in Argentina to focus attention on the government’s land-holding laws and local food policies. According to the Latin America Press, the National Campesino Front (FNC) was created in April to advocate for government policies that favor indigenous and farm communities over multinational corporations. At issue is the purchase of Argentinean land by corporations that cut down millions of acres of native forest in order to cultivate genetically modified soy — most of which is exported as animal feed. The country is now the world’s second-largest producer of biotech soy. Critics say that the policies that came with the push for soy have resulted in farmers being “kicked off” their land — and call for policies that support biodiversity, resource conservation and land reform.

Environment

It Takes a Tree to Save a Village

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A plan to replenish the forests of the West African nation of Burkina Faso is at odds with the development of farms and villages, Inter Press Service reports. The government wants to plant nine million trees to replace disappearing forests in the sub-Sahara region — but almost two-thirds of the country’s forests, about 110,000 hectares annually, are cleared for farming, according to official estimates. Burkina environmental minister Salifou Sawadogo told IPS that cities and villages have grown within forested regions, creating tension between environmental and economic needs. However, Moustapha Sarr, a park director in the capital Ouagadougou, said that local communities aren’t consulted in reforestation plans. Indeed, a plan to move over 20,000 people during reforestation was put on hold, even as the government acknowledges the depth of the problem:
“As it stands, the gap between what we take and the forests’ capacity to regenerate themselves is significant,” Sarr told the wire service.

Democracy & Civics

On the Run: Accused Balkan War Criminals Remain at Large

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A former Serbian leader accused of the massacre of thousands of Muslims in the mid-1990s has been apprehended, but several other accused war criminals remain at large. Radovan Karadzic’s arrest Monday leaves Bosnian army chief Ratko Mladic and the former president of Croatia’s Krajina province, Goran Hadzic, wanted for crimes related to the Balkans’ civil wars. Observers are saying Karadzic’s arrest will give new life to the hunt for Mladic, who is believed to have assumed a different identity and is living in Serbia, reported The Guardian. “There have been no sightings in the past five years or more,” a Serbian official said. “But obviously there is more optimism now that Mladic will be caught.

Public Health

Europe: Birthrate Down, Maternity Wards Packed

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While much has been made in recent years over declining birthrates in Europe and other parts of the industrialized world, some Western countries’ are having difficulty providing adequate health care for the births they do have. Britain’s maternity services are so bad they endanger the lives of mothers and babies, according to a report released this week by the nation’s Healthcare Commission. The Independent reports that the study was the largest of its kind ever conducted in Britain, and involved all 150 maternity hospitals in England. “I don’t ever again want to be reading another report into high death rates at a maternity unit,” Sir Ian Kennedy, chairman of the commission, told the newspaper. One of the key problems cited by the report was a lack of midwives to help busy doctors and nurses — a shortage that was noted in a separate report earlier this year.

World

Memories of Old Japan Stir Island Dispute

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A new school curriculum in Japan is opening old wounds for its neighbors. South Korea has recalled its ambassador to protest a government educational guideline that considers two contested islands to be Japanese territory. The islands, referred to as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan, have been under South Korean control since 1953, according to the Korea Herald. The newspaper reports that Japan’s new guidelines also target four islands currently claimed by Russia. The new guidelines are set to take affect in April 2012, and recommends stating in both instances that the Korean and Russian claims are in dispute.

World

U.S. Fourth Fleet Returns, Heads South

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Some Latin American nations are wondering if the return of the U.S. Navy’s Fourth Fleet to their coastlines signals the return of “gunboat diplomacy” as well, Agence France-Presse reports. Representatives of Argentine president Cristina Kirchner have raised the question with visiting U.S. officials during a recent economic summit. The fleet, which dates from World War II, was reactivated on July 1 after being mothballed for 58 years. The Navy maintains the fleet is not equipped for offensive maneuvers: It would be used only for humanitarian assistance and preventing drug traffic, and will respect national sovereignty. However, left-leaning governments in Bolivia, Venezuela and Cuba believe the United States is using the fleet to flex its military muscle and for surveillance and intelligence operations.

Democracy & Civics

Zimbabwe Troubles May Bust Borders

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Zimbabwe’s controversial re-election of President Robert Mugabe is bringing new pressure on South Africa to resolve the conflict, and raising military tensions with neighboring Botswana. Leaders of the G-8 and several African nations scolded South African Prime Minister Thabo Mbeki at a meeting in Japan Tuesday, saying his efforts to mediate Zimbabwe’s political crisis are not working, the Mail & Guardian of South Africa reports. With violence against the Zimbabwean opposition escalating, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are pushing for harsher sanctions. However, some African leaders, including Mbeki, warned against sanctions they said could potentially destabilize Zimbabwe, resulting in civil war. At a press conference during the G-8 summit, Tanzanian president and African Union chairman Jakaya Kikwete and President Bush agreed to an additional meeting on the subject in August.

Economy

Immigration: Filipinos in EU Spotlight

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A new European Union mandate to expel illegal Filipino immigrants does not mean a crackdown is imminent, an EU delegate told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Ambassador Alistair MacDonald said the policy merely sets standards for those who overstay their visa, regardless of circumstances. He also noted that each of the EU’s 27 member nations would still have autonomy to enforce its own immigration laws. The Commission on Filipinos Overseas estimates that 954,000 Filipinos live on the continent — of those 285,000 are permanent residents, 556,00 are temporary and the rest are undocumented. MacDonald said that Filipinos account for 5 percent of the population in Europe, and only 655 were deported in the last three years.