THE G-20 IN PITTSBURGH
by Tom Over 9-23-09
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On Tuesday, Sept 22, activists from Philadelphia, New York City, Pittsburgh and other cities held a mock funeral procession to demand better policies for addressing the AIDS pandemic, a day ahead of the arrival of delegates for the G-20.
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The approximately 50 participants in the New Orleans-style funeral march drew a mix of interest, irritation, and amusement from onlookers in the business district of downtown Pittsburgh.
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At the head of the funeral march where pallbearers carried a cardboard coffin, a man shouted into a microphone while someone else carried a portable amplifier, “when people with AIDS are under attack, what do we do ?” and marchers shouted in unison, “fight back!”
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Amidst the early afternoon bustle of an weekday, the demonstrators repeated this call-and-answer and similar chants as the funeral march made its way around the perimeter of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, the site of the G-20 Summit later this week.
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Erica Goldberg works with ACT UP Philadelphia. She said global health is not on the agenda of the G-20 Summit.
“One of the things that some of the G-20 nations have promised us is funding for the global fund to fight, TB, malaria, and HIV/AIDS. This is all really important, especially if we want to meet the United Nations’ Millennium goal of eradicating these diseases by 2015. As of right now, this won’t be met. We have to hold our leaders accountable. They are the ones making decisions for the poorer countries,” Goldberg said.
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She commented on the timing of the demonstration. “We wanted this to be the first thing they (the G-20 delegates) see. They’re coming here tomorrow. We’re holding them accountable. This needs to be on the agenda.”
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She said AIDS activists chose Sept 22, two days before the official start of the G-20 Summit, and one day before the arrival of the delegates, so as to not have to compete with other protests. Also, she said the AIDS activists figured there would be less of a chance of conflict with police if they staged their protest earlier in the week.
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“We hope that this will hit the papers tomorrow, that it’s the first thing they see when they walk in, that they have this on their conscience and know we’re not going away,” Goldberg said. She urges people to contact legislators about supporting the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
“President Obama, as much as I love him, went back on his promise to fulfill the funding,” Goldberg said.
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She commented on how drug companies factor into all of this. “ Medication does not need to be this expensive. They can definitely lower their prices. We have big drug interests lobbying to prevent AIDS medication from getting” to developing nations.
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Goldberg said debt cancellation for developing nations is a factor that comes into play.
“When you don’t cancel debts of nations and they have to pay back loans to the IMF and the World Bank, they won’t have the funds necessary for getting AIDS medication, or they might get the medication but can’t pay the health professional because of their debt.
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She said vested interested motivated by huge profits stand in the way of doing a better job of addressing tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV/AIDS. “We have the power, the ability, and the medication.”
World News
St. Louis -- A young man from Palestine and another from Israel riveted 400 U.S. military veterans to their seats last week in this city on the Mississippi River. What captivated the audience was their recent decision to put down the guns they’d pointed at each other for years.
The two members of Combatants For Peace addressed the mid-August national convention of Veterans For Peace, a 7,000 – member organization dedicated to abolishing war.
Yonaton Gur, a 28 year-old Israeli journalist and Tel Aviv University student spoke first.
“My grandfather commanded the Israeli Navy during the 1967 war, my father was an officer in Israeli Army Intelligence, and I grew up on a kibbutz.” But, he explained, “I also grew up in the 90’s, with a more peaceful perspective following the (1993) Oslo Accords.”
The two members of Combatants For Peace addressed the mid-August national convention of Veterans For Peace, a 7,000 – member organization dedicated to abolishing war.
Yonaton Gur, a 28 year-old Israeli journalist and Tel Aviv University student spoke first.
“My grandfather commanded the Israeli Navy during the 1967 war, my father was an officer in Israeli Army Intelligence, and I grew up on a kibbutz.” But, he explained, “I also grew up in the 90’s, with a more peaceful perspective following the (1993) Oslo Accords.”
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Thailand's coup-installed military regime has told citizens to vote "yes" for a new constitution, written while half the country is muzzled under martial law, or accept a mysterious back-up constitution which is being kept secret from the public.
In a bizarre political game of constitutional hide-and-seek, the junta refused to reveal which of Thailand's 17 previous constitutions it might use, or what amendments might be added, if a majority "no" vote on Aug. 19 thwarts their draft.
"This is ridiculous. It is a matter of national interest and concern," said Somchai Preechasilpakul, dean of Chiang Mai University's law faculty.
The coup leaders "should not be hiding anything," Mr. Somchai said on Aug. 4.
Many Thai and foreign analysts predicted a victory for the regime's "yes" campaign, after the junta mailed copies of the new, thick constitution to millions of households in this Southeast Asian Buddhist nation.
"I received one, and I started to read it, but I didn't finish," one middle-aged businesswoman, who asked not to be identified, said in an interview.
In a bizarre political game of constitutional hide-and-seek, the junta refused to reveal which of Thailand's 17 previous constitutions it might use, or what amendments might be added, if a majority "no" vote on Aug. 19 thwarts their draft.
"This is ridiculous. It is a matter of national interest and concern," said Somchai Preechasilpakul, dean of Chiang Mai University's law faculty.
The coup leaders "should not be hiding anything," Mr. Somchai said on Aug. 4.
Many Thai and foreign analysts predicted a victory for the regime's "yes" campaign, after the junta mailed copies of the new, thick constitution to millions of households in this Southeast Asian Buddhist nation.
"I received one, and I started to read it, but I didn't finish," one middle-aged businesswoman, who asked not to be identified, said in an interview.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- The British Ambassador to Thailand and Laos, David Fall, ended his career as a diplomat by giving a wildly hilarious, shockingly blunt, comedy performance of taboo jokes about Scotsmen using condoms, trigger-happy Americans, and sexual double entendres involving British, Turkish and French officials.
Nearly 200 people, including diplomats, businessmen, journalists and others enthusiastically cheered and applauded every punch line Mr. Fall delivered during his 40-minute speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand.
His appearance on Tuesday (July 24) night was titled, "Released into the community: His Excellency David Fall, on the verge of parole, reflects on 36 years as a British diplomat."
Pacing his lines like a professional stand-up comedian, and frequently stressing accents to emphasize foreign voices, Mr. Fall began by warning:
Nearly 200 people, including diplomats, businessmen, journalists and others enthusiastically cheered and applauded every punch line Mr. Fall delivered during his 40-minute speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand.
His appearance on Tuesday (July 24) night was titled, "Released into the community: His Excellency David Fall, on the verge of parole, reflects on 36 years as a British diplomat."
Pacing his lines like a professional stand-up comedian, and frequently stressing accents to emphasize foreign voices, Mr. Fall began by warning:
In these trying times of wars, famines and all sort of manmade disasters, I
strongly believe that we ought to confront our popular apathy and the
abundant arrogance of our business, political, religious and military
leaders. It is time for some serious introspection; without it we 'the
common people', will continue to be duped into the simplistic media view of
the world, that of the good and the bad.
Everyday I wonder what atrocity I am going to be enlightened with when I turn on the television set, Google the news or access the newspapers and magazines. Every time I wonder what messaging I am going to hear from leaders and experts, what angle they are going to take, either to justify one atrocity or to prepare us for another.
Why people are not taking to the streets, why we are not having collective global strikes, boycotting our bankers or rejecting the payment of our taxes.
Dramatic as this may sound, I cannot help but wonder if we are witnessing the disintegration of our 'civilized society' beneath the challenges permeating our world.
Everyday I wonder what atrocity I am going to be enlightened with when I turn on the television set, Google the news or access the newspapers and magazines. Every time I wonder what messaging I am going to hear from leaders and experts, what angle they are going to take, either to justify one atrocity or to prepare us for another.
Why people are not taking to the streets, why we are not having collective global strikes, boycotting our bankers or rejecting the payment of our taxes.
Dramatic as this may sound, I cannot help but wonder if we are witnessing the disintegration of our 'civilized society' beneath the challenges permeating our world.
On the outskirts of Guatemala City the body of an 18-year-old woman of indigenous ethnicity was recently discovered by her frantic parents who had been searching long and hard. Forensic evidence showed that she had been repeatedly raped and tortured and that her head had been severed from her body with a blunt knife while she was still alive.
This killing was more than just a passing aberration. Nightmarish crimes against women have been occurring with horrifying frequency in Guatemala. In the last seven years, over 3,200 Guatemalan women have been abducted and murdered, with many of them raped, tortured, and mutilated in the doing. The number of victims has shown a striking increase in the last few years with some six hundred murdered in 2006 alone.
The victims often are from low-income families deracinated from their rural homesteads during the civil war and forced to crowd into Guatemala City and other urban areas in search of work.
This killing was more than just a passing aberration. Nightmarish crimes against women have been occurring with horrifying frequency in Guatemala. In the last seven years, over 3,200 Guatemalan women have been abducted and murdered, with many of them raped, tortured, and mutilated in the doing. The number of victims has shown a striking increase in the last few years with some six hundred murdered in 2006 alone.
The victims often are from low-income families deracinated from their rural homesteads during the civil war and forced to crowd into Guatemala City and other urban areas in search of work.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Defending Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge leaders at an international tribunal may include arguing about genocide and the lack of a "smoking gun," despite the deaths of up to three million Cambodians, according to U.N. Principal Defender Rupert Skilbeck.
"One of the big questions will be whether, what happened in Cambodia, was genocide or not," Mr. Skilbeck said in an interview.
"There is a very strong legal argument to say that genocide is when you kill people because of their ethnicity, whereas the vast majority of the [Khmer Rouge] purges were not for ethnic reasons, but were for political reasons. So genocide may not be possible" as a successful prosecution charge.
Mr. Skilbeck heads the Defense Support Section of the tribunal, which is officially called the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC).
A London-based criminal lawyer, Mr. Skilbeck was previously Defense Advisor for the Special Court for Sierra Leone, and head of the Criminal Defense Section for the War Crimes Chamber in Sarajevo.
"One of the big questions will be whether, what happened in Cambodia, was genocide or not," Mr. Skilbeck said in an interview.
"There is a very strong legal argument to say that genocide is when you kill people because of their ethnicity, whereas the vast majority of the [Khmer Rouge] purges were not for ethnic reasons, but were for political reasons. So genocide may not be possible" as a successful prosecution charge.
Mr. Skilbeck heads the Defense Support Section of the tribunal, which is officially called the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC).
A London-based criminal lawyer, Mr. Skilbeck was previously Defense Advisor for the Special Court for Sierra Leone, and head of the Criminal Defense Section for the War Crimes Chamber in Sarajevo.
When Hamas members were elected as the majority bloc of the Palestinian Legislative Council, and as it became apparent that a US-led international embargo would be an adjoining price to that victory, I contacted many intellectuals and writers in Palestine, mostly those who often positioned themselves as part of the Palestinian Left. I asked them to solidify behind the collective choice of the Palestinian people and to shield Palestinian democracy at any cost.
Nearly asphyxiated by the fetid stench wafting from the mendacious corporate media pundits I've been profiling, I decided to ascend from the intellectual sewer into which I had crawled in order to observe them in their natural habitat. At last some detoxified air! It was an incredible boost to my faltering faith in humanity when I recently had the privilege to conduct a cyber-interview with Tony Sutton, the editor and publisher of ColdType, an online journal which presents "Writing Worth Reading from around the World."
As you will discover, Tony and his marvelous publication are two of the best kept secrets we political educators and agitators for social justice have in our arsenal. Domiciled in the Great White North, Tony publishes one of the finest radical journals in existence.
In terms of content, contributing writers, and presentation, ColdType's quality is unparalleled.
Judge for yourself:
http://www.coldtype.net/
As you will discover, Tony and his marvelous publication are two of the best kept secrets we political educators and agitators for social justice have in our arsenal. Domiciled in the Great White North, Tony publishes one of the finest radical journals in existence.
In terms of content, contributing writers, and presentation, ColdType's quality is unparalleled.
Judge for yourself:
http://www.coldtype.net/
Washington, DC – In the aftermath of the government of Sudan’s announcement that it would accept the latest plan for deployment of the African Union (AU)-United Nations (UN) hybrid peacekeeping force, Africa Action urged that the plan be put on a fast-track and implementation begin immediately. Today, the UN Security Council will discuss the plan for international peacekeepers in Darfur. Africa Action stressed that the U.S. and other Security Council members must ensure that no more delays be allowed to prevent the immediate provision of a protection force for at-risk civilians and humanitarian aid workers.
This deployment of 17,000 to 19,000 troops would mark the third and final phase of the hybrid peacekeeping force first proposed in November 2006. While Sudan stated in April 2007 that it would accept a second phase or “heavy support package” of 3,000 UN personnel, that phase has yet to deploy in any substantial way.
This deployment of 17,000 to 19,000 troops would mark the third and final phase of the hybrid peacekeeping force first proposed in November 2006. While Sudan stated in April 2007 that it would accept a second phase or “heavy support package” of 3,000 UN personnel, that phase has yet to deploy in any substantial way.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- After a U.S. Justice Department undercover agent displayed a Stinger air-to-surface missile in a bugged Hilton Hotel room in Sacramento, California, paranoia began to spread.
A mysterious woman named Lisa -- "last name unknown" -- was allegedly tasked to find out who the man with the Stinger really was, and if a gang of desperate Americans in California, and ethnic Hmong from Laos, was about to be busted.
The furtive Americans and Hmong allegedly boasted that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency "was standing by and ready to roll" to ensure success for their clumsy coup attempt in Laos.
They didn't realize their California restaurant meetings, anxious telephone conversations, and hurried chats in urban parking lots would appear in a 90-page affidavit on June 4 by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Weapons and ammunition, bought for 100,000 U.S. dollars, were to be smuggled into Bangkok next Tuesday (June 12), followed by delivery of at least two Stinger missiles designed to shoot down aircraft, the ATF affidavit said.
A mysterious woman named Lisa -- "last name unknown" -- was allegedly tasked to find out who the man with the Stinger really was, and if a gang of desperate Americans in California, and ethnic Hmong from Laos, was about to be busted.
The furtive Americans and Hmong allegedly boasted that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency "was standing by and ready to roll" to ensure success for their clumsy coup attempt in Laos.
They didn't realize their California restaurant meetings, anxious telephone conversations, and hurried chats in urban parking lots would appear in a 90-page affidavit on June 4 by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Weapons and ammunition, bought for 100,000 U.S. dollars, were to be smuggled into Bangkok next Tuesday (June 12), followed by delivery of at least two Stinger missiles designed to shoot down aircraft, the ATF affidavit said.