Democracy & Civics

Resistance Deepens to Afghan Poppy Spraying

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A secretive test-spraying of “harmless plastic granules” over Afghan poppy crops has revealed deepening opposition to drug- eradication efforts backed by the United States. The program, intended to gauge reactions to future spraying of real herbicide, provoked questions and outrage from local farmers all the way up to Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai, reports McClatchy Newspapers. Opium produced from Afghan poppies contributes as much as $100 million annually to the insurgent Taliban’s coffers. Eradication efforts thus far have done little to stem the harvest, and now fears are deepening over the impacts of toxic herbicides on water supplies, livestock and humans. Source:
“Outcry against poisoning Afghanistan poppies”
McClatchy Newspapers, October 26, 2007

Economy

Iran's Other Little Problem — Inflation

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Nary a word about Iranian President Ahmadinejad’s nuclear ambitions or headline-grabbing trip to the United States appeared in a recent Agence France-Presse article. Instead, the piece focused entirely on complaints about his economic stewardship, which experts say will push inflation to more than 20 percent this year. Rising costs for food and services have hit the poor hardest, prompting a leading reformist ayatollah to claim that the problem is “making the people cry out.” Opponents blame Ahmadinejad for “frittering away” abundant oil revenue on highly visible infrastructure projects, which one conservative in Parliament said has awakened “the inflation monster.” Source:
“Ahmadinejad’s economic performance under fire again – from both sides”
Agence France-Presse, October 30, 2007

Economy

Offshoring Meets "Onshoring" in the Quest for Cheap Labor

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Some major American companies like Northrop Grumman and IBM are finding they can save money by keeping their IT and customer service operations in the U.S. rather than moving them to India — a trend some experts have dubbed “onshoring,” reports the Los Angeles Times. Increasingly, companies are setting up shop in small-town America and training the local workforce — saving money for companies operating out of Silicon Valley or Los Angeles. Even Wipro Technologies, a software maker based in India, is establishing a center in Atlanta that will employ 100 people. Customer demand is also driving the trend — IBM opened a technical support center in Twin Falls, Idaho, after complaints about the language skills of employees in India. The onshoring trend has also been driven by India’s booming economy, which is making it hard for all but the largest U.S. high-tech firms to do business there, according to the Economic Times of India.

Democracy & Civics

Fakin' It: Officials Forge a Future in Iraq

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More than 900 officials in the Iraqi government, including parliamentarians, are obtaining forged degrees to continue to serve in the government and obtain higher salaries, according to Azzaman, an Iraqi news source. Azzaman quotes Abdullah al-Mawsawi, a cultural attache officer in London, saying the Iraqi Ministry of Education is aware of the problem. He says he regularly receives degrees to certify that bear stamps from universities that do not exist in the United States. The fake documents are easily obtained at a well-known public market in Iraq. Source:
“Senior officials said to have forged degrees”
Azzaman (Iraq), October 16, 2007

World

Cancer is the Latest Chechen Scourge

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Chechnya is experiencing a “cancer epidemic” never before seen in its history, according to the Institute for War & Peace Reporting. By anecdotal and official accounts, the incidence of lung, breast, thyroid and skin cancers and other disorders has risen steeply since war broke out in Chechnya. Lung cancer alone is five times higher in Chechnya than elsewhere in the North Caucasus, according to officials. No “proper” care exists for cancer patients there, so those undergoing chemotherapy must leave the republic. The epidemic’s origins are a mystery, but some suggest the stress of war could have something to do with it.

Democracy & Civics

The Child Brides of Kandahar

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Human rights activists in Afghanistan say arranged marriages involving young girls under 16 still account for half of all marriages in some parts of the country, such as in southern Kandahar province. The tradition is perpetuated by poverty and illiteracy, say activists — problems that are just as systemic. Many young brides get married without a full understanding of their wedding vows, leading to situations where they sometimes betray their husbands and suffer the consequences. In Afghanistan a woman who elopes can lose her life. Source:
“Afghanistan: Widespread child marriage blamed for domestic violence”
IRIN (United Nations), October 18, 2007

Democracy & Civics

Iran: Dissent Crackdown Deepens

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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government is in the midst of an unprecedented crackdown on civilians, criminals and dissenters. Experts suggest that the government is afraid a recent economic downturn will breed unrest across the country, and has resolved to “govern by fear.” At least 60 criminals convicted of murder, rape, drug trafficking or abduction have been convicted and hung since May, including 21 people on one day alone, reports the World Press Review. International human rights campaigners believe the trials are rigged, while the executions are carefully filmed and uploaded to the Web for all Iranians to see — some suggest as cautionary tales engineered by the state. Iranian police have also detaining about 122,000 people since April, most of them women, for flouting the Islamic dress code, according to All Headline News.

World

Girls, Pollution, Poverty: The Other Mining Disasters

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Recent stories about workers trapped in mines often overlook an array of related labor, ecological and human rights issues. Most articles never mention the biggest growing mining sector workforce: young girls. A recent report by the International Labor Organization singles out Ghana, Niger, Peru and Tanzania as places where girls are increasingly doing dangerous small-scale mining work. Underground, they are exposed to toxic dust and metals and are forced to work long hours without proper safety gear, according to the report. Pollution is also rampant.

Democracy & Civics

AIDS Bias Targets 11-Year-Old Boy

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An 11-year-old who received “regular blood transfusions” for years was diagnosed as HIV-positive, and later kicked out of a school in West Bengal 20 days after being admitted. School authorities were reluctant to enroll him, and kept him on a separate bench from the other students, who were told to “shun” him. Such discrimination is illegal, but officials have not intervened, despite efforts by local AIDS and health advocates. Source:
“HIV-positive student thrown out of Bengal school”
Indo-Asian News Service, October 12, 2007

Democracy & Civics

New Testimony in Indonesia Activist Death

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A “massive” dose of arsenic in an airline meal took the life of a prominent critic of the Indonesian government, and now may send a former airline executive to jail for decades. The Times of London reports that an off-duty Garuda Air pilot was initially convicted of the “agonizing” mid-flight death of Munir Said Thalib in 2004, who was en route to Amsterdam to present a report on military abuses in Indonesia’s Aceh and Papua provinces. The pilot made more than 40 phone calls to a director of Indonesia’s spy agency immediately prior to Thalib’s death, but was later acquitted by the Supreme Court for lack of evidence. Now, Indra Setiawan, former head of Garuda Air head, has testified that he received a letter signed by a deputy chief of Indonesian intelligence, requesting that the pilot serve as the security officer on Thalib’s last flight. Meanwhile, activists say Thalib’s wife since been targeted by death threats, and was sent a decapitated chicken along with a note not to implicate the military in her husband’s death.