World

An MTV for Muslims Shuns the Dancers, Not the Controversy

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A new music video television channel in Egypt aims to strengthen Islamic values and culture among Arab youth, reports the Christian Science Monitor. 4Shbab TV calls itself “Islam’s own MTV,” and avoids the racy dancing of mainstream music videos in favor of religious and family-friendly themes. The station has been criticized for its lack of women in general, both in music videos or on game shows like “Who wants to be an Islamic pop star?” 4Shbab founder Ahmed Abu Haiba told the Monitor that women would be allowed on the network only gradually, due to their “bad reputation” as provocative dancers. Despite this, Abu Haiba said the station has been threatened by Islamists who think the whole idea is sinful and forbidden.

Environment

Global warming melts national borders

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Parts of the Swiss Alps may soon go Italian, as global warming melts the glaciers that originally defined that international border, reports New Scientist magazine. Although an Italian legislator has already proposed redrawing the dividing line, and both countries will amicably share the Matterhorn (as is currently the case), experts fear trouble may occur in other regions. Melting borders may be a flashpoint for conflict in the Himalaya Mountains, where a glacial meltdown in Kashmir could heighten tensions between India and Pakistan. In the Arctic, where the melt is opening up oil drilling and shipping possibilities, the United States, Canada and Russia are all claiming territorial rights. At the other end of the globe, Chile and Argentina may renew their battle over the Patagonia ice fields bordering both nations.

Economy

Wal-Mart Likes the Latin Flavor

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Wal-Mart plans to open new stores in nine Central and South American countries this year, reports the Latin Business Chronicle. Experts say the global recession is helping Wal-Mart make new inroads because its low prices are attractive to consumers when budgets are tight. While other companies are reporting low growth or no growth, Wal-Mart’s earnings topped $13 billion in 2008 — up 5. 2 percent over the previous year, with “strong performance” in Brazil and Mexico. This is prompting Wal-Mart to invest more of its dollars south of the border — with additional stores in Argentina, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Chile and Puerto Rico.

Economy

U.S. Business Sees Green in Cuba Thaw

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Even as President Obama’s decision to make it easier to travel to Cuba from the United States gains support among Latin American leaders, businesses of all sorts are lining up to make the most of the new policy. The Obama administration lifted restrictions in March on family travel to Cuba, allowing Americans with family in Cuba to visit once a year, stay as long as they want and spend up to $179 a day, according to news media reports. Under President Bush, family visits to Cuba had been permitted only once every three years. Meanwhile, Cuba’s Latin American and Caribbean neighbors are opening doors and advocating for their communist neighbor. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called on the United States to rethink its policy toward Cuba, the Associated Press reports.

Economy

Immigrants Sending Less Money Home

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Fewer hard-earned dollars are going to families in developing nations these days, as their immigrant relatives working abroad feel the pinch from the deepening recession. An Inter-American Development Bank study released in March showed remittances to Latin America from the United States at just over $69 billion in 2008 — nearly the same as in 2007. Yet the latest figures show as much as a 13 percent drop for some countries in January 2009, compared to the same period last year. Overall, 70 percent of Hispanic immigrants in the United States sent less money home last year, according to the Pew Hispanic Center. The Wall Street Journal reports that Bangladesh, too, had a ten percent drop in remittances between January and February.

World

A Bridge over Troubled (and Scarce) Water

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“Bridging Divides for Water” is the motto of the Fifth World Water Forum, currently taking place in Istanbul, and the biggest divide of all seems to be between those who see water as business and those for whom it is a human right. This conflict was highlighted by protesters who clashed with Turkish police, activists demanding an end to water privatization, and advocacy groups that staged their own sidebar conferences. These include the Istanbul Water Tribunal and the Alternative Water Forum, Al Jazeera reports. According to the United Nations, more than half of the planet’s six billion people don’t have adequate access to water, with climate change and population growth cited as two leading reasons why demand is outstripping water supplies. Then there is the issue of war and water.

Environment

Geo-Engineering: High Hopes, Climate Questions

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Some British scientists say “geo-engineering” is needed to counter the effects of global warming and maintain world temperatures at acceptable levels, according to a report in The Sunday Times. One proposed measure calls for massive planting of fast-growing trees, such as willows, to absorb more carbon dioxide. Another proposal would seed clouds with ocean water to form salt crystals, which would reflect more sunlight back toward the sun and away from the Earth. However, some critics say not enough is known about climate to manipulate it safely. Others argue that artificial solutions focus attention away from the real problem — the need to develop more environmentally friendly economies.

Democracy & Civics

Argentina: New Law Targets Violence Against Women

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A new law in Argentina broadens the definition of violence against women to include acts of aggression that go beyond the scope of the family setting. The legislation looks outside of the home by targeting sexual, psychological and even workplace degradation, reports Inter Press Service. Now, any act directed against a woman that causes “a loss of self-esteem” or tries to control a woman’s actions by “threats, harassment, bullying, manipulation, isolation” and more is illegal. Although the legislation looks good on the books, experts fear implementing it could be tough. Women’s advocates say the political will to overcome “machista” traditions, as well as adequate budgets for the institutions charged with enforcing the law, may be lacking.

Environment

Acid Oceans Threaten Shellfish and Much More

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Months ahead of official United Nations climate talks, scientists are meeting in Copenhagen to discuss concerns that global climate change could be worse than 2007 predictions — and could occur sooner. Among the topics at hand is new Australian research that shows carbon dioxide pollution is creating acidic oceans at a rapid pace, potentially leading to the mass extinction of deep-water species, reports Agence France-Presse. Researchers say this last occurred about 65 million years ago, when a giant release of carbon dioxide produced mass oceanic extinctions. Current evidence shows that acidity is destroying the shells of tiny organisms that help absorb enormous amounts of carbon pollution from the atmosphere. The Guardian reports that growing acidity is already placing pressure on shellfish and other marine life in the Arctic and Antarctic.

Democracy & Civics

Afghan Women in Parliament, Yet Stifled

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A new political party for women’s rights will be on the ballot in Afghanistan in the next elections. Yet the party, National Need, faces an uphill battle in a male-dominated society where religious fundamentalists and former warlords hold the power in Parliament, and snub their female peers, reports Inter Press Service. In fact, a Human Rights Watch study that found three out of five members of the Afghan Parliament have a connection to warlords or war crimes. Party leader Fatima Nazari, currently a member of Parliament, told IPS that the warlords-turned-legislators stifle female parliamentarians by ignoring them or not giving them a chance to speak. However, the Afghan constitution mandates that women hold 25 percent of the Parliamentary seats — a measure that so far has not guaranteed that women’s voices are heard.