Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IPS By Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Oct 31, 2010 (IPS) – A year after its creation, a South-east Asian human rights body has earned an unflattering label – that of being a window-dressing exercise to improve the image of a region that is home to governments notorious for suppressing political [...]
Lurching from One Disaster to the Next
October 31, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IPS By Paul Weinberg TORONTO, Oct 30, 2010 (IPS) – The world is ill-prepared for the human toll from the expected increase in floods, droughts and extreme storms and hurricanes on the horizon. So say experts like Peter Walker, director of the Tufts University-based Feinstein International Center near Boston. [...]
Populist Rhetoric Stigmatizing European Muslims
October 31, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IDN By Thomas Hammarberg* IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint STRASBOURG (IDN) – European countries appear to face another crisis beyond budget deficits — the disintegration of human values. One symptom is the increasing expression of intolerance towards Muslims. The Swiss referendum banning the building of minarets was no exception: opinion polls [...]
Biodiversity Conference Gives Cause for Rejoicing
October 31, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IDN By Hiroshi Nagai* IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis TOKYO (IDN) – "If Kyoto entered history as the city where the climate accord was born, Nagoya will be remembered as the city where the biodiversity accord was born," said Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). He was [...]
MATERIALS FOR EXPLOSIVE DEVICES IN COURIER PACKAGES
October 30, 2010 By
INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR—PAPER NO. 687 Global Geopolitics & Political Economy B.RAMAN From the sketchy details available so far regarding two packages containing materials for explosive devices found on October 29,2010, on two cargo flights reportedly emanating from Yemen and bound for Chicago via Dubai and East Midlands airport in the UK, the following preliminary observations [...]
Global Recovery Suffering from Currency Chaos
October 30, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IDN IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint GENEVA (IDN) – The past few weeks have seen the emergence of global currency chaos, which is a new threat to prospects for economic recovery. In fact the situation is being depicted by the media and even by some political leaders as a ‘currency war’ [...]
LATIN AMERICA: Hunger Strikes Fuelled by Institutional Deafness
October 29, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IPS By Daniela Estrada* SANTIAGO, Oct 29, 2010 (IPS) – Protesters ranging from prisoners to government leaders have resorted to hunger strikes in Latin America in recent years to press their demands. Behind the growing use of the extreme protest measure is a lack of institutional responses, according to [...]
Slow Food Picks Up Steadily
October 29, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IPS By Claudia Ciobanu TORINO, Italy, Oct 29, 2010 (IPS) – It’s been a steady, even if slow growth for the Slow Food movement around the world. Founded 22 years ago in Italy, the Slow Food movement tackles issues as diverse as basic survival of farmers, land-grabbing, biodiversity protection, [...]
The Chinese Rare Earth Mysteries
October 29, 2010 By
Global Geopolitics & Political Economy / IDN By Jamshed Baruah IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis LONDON (IDN) – As the strategic rare earth imbroglio turns into a roller-coaster ride, amidst talk of China unleashing a war on industrial nations, hitting hard where it hurts them most, some important facts are being sacrificed at the altar of emotionally [...]
