position:chairperson

Calling a coup a coup? Egypt’s African Union bid to make inroads in Sudan | MadaMasr
▻https://madamasr.com/en/2019/04/22/feature/politics/calling-a-coup-a-coup-egypts-african-union-bid-to-make-inroads-in-sudan

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While the head of the transitional military council that has ruled Sudan since ousting former President Omar al-Bashir announced a “readiness” to hand over power to a civilian government last night, negotiations to usher in the transition to civilian rule in Sudan are at a “deadlock,” sources in the opposition tell Mada Masr.

Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who sits atop the transitional council, took to television late on Sunday night to announce the military’s willingness to hand over the “reins of government” as early as tomorrow, provided that political forces reached a consensus among themselves and put forth a government they could agree upon.

Burhan’s speech was roundly rejected by leading member of the opposition Freedom and Change Coalition Wagdi Salih, who spoke at a rally in front of the military headquarters shortly after the lieutenant general’s address, announcing that the opposition would suspend talks with the military council.

“We were supposed to have a meeting with the military council yesterday to inform them of the choices for the civilian sovereign council, but the council, which is a continuation of the ruling regime, revealed its dark side. The council told us they want to discuss our proposal among another 100 proposals from political parties,” Salih told protesters.

Sunday’s televised exchange played out against the backdrop of a flurry of meetings held on Saturday, when the African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki met with the military and opposition in Khartoum.

White Finnish nationalism and racism reveal themselves on Father’s Day

Today people of all backgrounds celebrated Father’s Day in Finland. A Johannes Sipola, who is the chairperson for Lapland of the anti-immigration Perussuomalaiset (PS)* Youth, had another opinion and tweeted: “A happy Father’s day to all white fathers.”

▻http://www.migranttales.net/white-finnish-nationalism-and-racism-reveal-themselves-on-fathers-day
#Finlande #nationalisme #xénophobie #racisme

Unrelenting rise in xenophobic populism, resentment, hate speech in Europe in 2017.
▻https://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/-/unrelenting-rise-in-xenophobic-populism-resentment-hate-speech-in-europe-in-201

https://www.coe.int/documents/16695/10936098/shutterstock_229159816.jpg/1fc8f804-d578-42d7-b67e-afb2d3962a36?t=1456823356000

Read full press release: Unrelenting rise in xenophobic populism, resentment, hate speech in Europe in 2017 : ▻https://search.coe.int/directorate_of_communications/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectId=09000016808b6356

Xenophobic populism and hate speech have continued to be on the rise in 2017, with high levels of migration and challenges of integration, religious extremism, terrorist attacks and the austerity-driven socio-economic climate observed all over Europe, says the annual report of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) published today.

The populist rhetoric has blended into a hatred of non-nationals or minorities; migration and multiculturalism have continued to be presented as a threat to social cohesion and security; traditional and social media have encouraged self-segregation and further deepened social divides. Existing security concerns have been exploited to justify huge trade-offs in fundamental rights of migrants and other vulnerable groups, the report stresses.

The Chairperson of ECRI Jean-Paul Lehners said: “While acknowledging the difficulties European states encounter, we still have to encourage them to change their narrative to a more balanced and fact-based discourse that emphasises the positive contribution of well-governed migration, in particular by underlining the opportunities and resources migrants can bring.”

Managing migration while respecting human rights has remained a major challenge in many member states, according to the report. While ECRI has observed several measures to facilitate the integration of migrants, in particular in the areas of housing, education and employment, the majority of the efforts remain largely limited to migration control. This risks hindering successful integration.

’Nothing is ours anymore’: Kurds forced out of #Afrin after Turkish assault

Many who fled the violence January say their homes have been given to Arabs.
When Areen and her clan fled the Turkish assault on Afrin in January, they feared they may never return.

Six months later, the Kurdish family remain in nearby villages with other Afrin locals who left as the conquering Turks and their Arab proxies swept in, exiling nearly all its residents.

Recently, strangers from the opposite end of Syria have moved into Areen’s home and those of her family. The few relatives who have made it back for fleeting visits say the numbers of new arrivals – all Arabs – are rising each week. So too is a resentment towards the newcomers, and a fear that the steady, attritional changes may herald yet another flashpoint in the seven-year conflict.

Unscathed through much of the Syrian war, and a sanctuary for refugees, Afrin has become a focal point of a new and pivotal phase, where the ambitions of regional powers are being laid bare and a coexistence between Arabs and Kurds – delicately poised over decades – is increasingly being threatened.

The small enclave in northwestern Syria directly reflects the competing agendas of four countries, Turkey, Syria, Russia and the US – though none more so than Ankara, whose creeping influence in the war is anchored in Afrin and the fate of its peoples.

Turkey’s newfound stake has given it more control over its nearby border and leverage over its arch foe, the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK), which had used its presence in Afrin to project its influence northwards.

But the campaign to oust Kurdish militias has raised allegations that Ankara is quietly orchestrating a demographic shift, changing the balance of Afrin’s population from predominantly Kurdish to majority Arab, and – more importantly to Turkish leaders – changing the composition of its 500-mile border with Syria.

Ahead of the January assault, the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said: “We will return Afrin to its rightful owners.”

Erdoğan’s comments followed a claim by US officials that it would help transform a Kurdish militia it had raised to fight Islamic State in northeastern Syria into a more permanent border force. The announcement incensed Turkish leaders, who had long feared that Syria’s Kurds would use the chaos of war to advance their ambitions – and to move into a 60-mile area between Afrin and the Euphrates river, which was the only part of the border they didn’t inhabit.

Ankara denies it is attempting to choreograph a demographic shift in Afrin, insisting it aimed only to drive out the PKK, not unaffiliated Kurdish locals.

“The people of Afrin didn’t choose to live under the PKK,” said a senior Turkish official. “Like Isis, the PKK installed a terrorist administration there by force. Under that administration, rival Kurdish factions were silenced violently. [The military campaign] resulted in the removal of terrorists from Afrin and made it possible for the local population to govern themselves. The vast majority of the new local council consists of Kurds and the council’s chairperson is also Kurdish.”

Many who remain unable to return to Afrin are unconvinced, particularly as the influx from elsewhere in Syria continues. Both exiles and newcomers confirmed to the Guardian that large numbers of those settling in Afrin came from the Damascus suburb of Ghouta, where an anti-regime opposition surrendered to Russian and Syrian forces in April, and accepted being transferred to northern Syria

Between bandits, militiamen, and wayfarers, Afrin is barely recognisable, say Kurdish locals who have made it back. “It’s not the Afrin we know,” said Areen, 34. “Too many strange faces. Businesses have been taken over by the Syrians, stores changed to Damascene names, properties gone. We feel like the Palestinians.

“The Syrian government couldn’t care less to help us reclaim our property, they won’t even help us get back into Afrin. We want to go back, we couldn’t care less if we’re governed by the Kurds or Turks or Assad, we just want our land back.”

A second Afrin exile, Salah Mohammed, 40, said: “Lands are being confiscated, farms, wheat, furniture, nothing is ours anymore; it’s us versus their guns. It’s difficult to come back, you have to prove the property is yours and get evidence and other nearly impossible papers to reclaim it.

“There is definitely a demographic change, a lot of Kurds have been forcibly displaced on the count that they’re with the PKK when in fact they weren’t. There are barely any Kurds left in Afrin, no one is helping us go back.”

Another Afrin local, Shiyar Khalil, 32, said: “When the Kurds try to get back to their house they have to jump through hoops. You cannot deny a demographic change, Kurds are not able to go back. Women are veiled, bars are closed; it’s a deliberate erasing of Kurdish culture.”

Umm Abdallah, 25, a new arrival from Ghouta said some Kurds had returned to Afrin, but anyone affiliated with Kurdish militias had been denied entry. “I’ve seen about 300 Kurds come back to Afrin with their families in the past month or so. I don’t know whose house I am living in honestly, but it’s been registered at the police station.”

She said Afrin was lawless and dangerous, with Arab militias whom Turkey had used to lead the assault now holding aegis over the town. “The Turks try to stop the looting but some militias are very malicious,” she said. “They mess with us and the Kurds, it’s not stable here.”

Both Umm Abdallah and another Ghouta resident, Abu Khaled Abbas, 23, had their homes confiscated by the Assad regime before fleeing to the north. “The Assad army stole everything, even the sinks,” said Abbas.

“These militias now are not leaving anyone alone [in Afrin], how do you think they will treat the Kurds? There are bad things happening, murder, harassment, rapes, and theft. They believe they ‘freed’ the land so they own it now.”

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$3.3 bn Disneyland-style theme park to open doors in Egypt - Egypt Independent
▻http://www.egyptindependent.com/3-3-bn-disneyland-style-theme-park-to-open-doors-in-egypt

http://www.egyptindependent.com/app/uploads/2018/02/disn.png

Après trop de guerres et trop d’argent gaspillé en projets inutiles, on décide enfin de construire l’avenir du Moyen-Orient !

Martouh Governor Alaa Abu Zeid signed on Thursday an investment contract with the Entertainment World Company, for a joint US-Saudi Arabian investment project to establish a Disneyland-style amusement park worth $3.3 billion.

The park will be built on an area of 5,080 acres in the Sidi Henaish area, in the northwestern Egyptian governorate of Matrouh.

Investment and International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr, Local Development Minister Abu Bakr al-Gendy, and Chairperson of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones Mona Zobaa attended the signing ceremony between Abu Zeid and Lisa Marie Stephen, the managing director of Entertainment World in the Middle East and Africa.

#égypte #disneyland

The Song Sisters Facts
▻http://biography.yourdictionary.com/the-song-sisters

By marrying men of political distinction and adhering to their own political pursuits, the Song sisters— who included Ailing (1890-1973), Meiling (born 1897), and Qingling (1892?-1981) Song— participated in Chinese political activities and were destined to play key roles in Chinese modern history.

Charlie Song and Guizhen Ni had three daughters and three sons, all of whom received American educations at their father’s encouragement. Though dissimilar political beliefs led the Song sisters down different paths, each exerted influence both on Chinese and international politics; indeed, Meiling’s influence in America was particularly great.

In childhood, Ailing was known as a tomboy, smart and ebullient; Qingling was thought a pretty girl, quiet and pensive; and Meiling was considered a plump child, charming and headstrong. For their early education, they all went to McTyeire, the most important foreign-style school for Chinese girls in Shanghai. In 1904, Charlie Song asked his friend William Burke, an American Methodist missionary in China, to take 14-year-old Ailing to Wesleyan College, Georgia, for her college education. Thus, Ailing embarked on an American liner with the Burke family in Shanghai, but when they reached Japan, Mrs. Burke was so ill that the family was forced to remain in Japan. Alone, Ailing sailed on for America. She reached San Francisco, to find that Chinese were restricted from coming to America and was prevented from entering the United States despite a genuine Portuguese passport. She was transferred from ship to ship for three weeks until an American missionary helped solve the problem. Finally, Ailing arrived at Georgia’s Wesleyan College and was well treated. But she never forgot her experience in San Francisco. Later, in 1906, she visited the White House with her uncle, who was a Chinese imperial education commissioner, and complained to President Theodore Roosevelt of her bitter reception in San Francisco: “America is a beautiful country,” she said, “but why do you call it a free country?” Roosevelt was reportedly so surprised by her straightforwardness that he could do little more than mutter an apology and turn away.

In 1907, Qingling and Meiling followed Ailing to America. Arriving with their commissioner uncle, they had no problem entering the United States. They first stayed at Miss Clara Potwin’s private school for language improvement and then joined Ailing at Wesleyan. Meiling was only ten years old and stayed as a special student.
The First and Second Revolutiona

Ailing received her degree in 1909 and returned to Shanghai, where she took part in charity activities with her mother. With her father’s influence, she soon became secretary to Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the Chinese revolutionary leader whose principles of nationalism, democracy and popular livelihood greatly appealed to many Chinese. In October of 1911, soldiers mutinied in Wuhan, setting off the Chinese Revolution. Puyi, the last emperor of China, was overthrown and the Republic of China was established with Sun Yat-sen as the provisional president. Charlie Soong informed his daughters in America of the great news and sent them a republican flag. As recalled by her roommates, Qingling climbed up on a chair, ripped down the old imperial dragon flag, and put up the five-colored republican flag, shouting “Down with the dragon! Up with the flag of the Republic!” She wrote in an article for the Wesleyan student magazine:

One of the greatest events of the twentieth century, the greatest even since Waterloo, in the opinion of many well-known educators and politicians, is the Chinese Revolution. It is a most glorious achievement. It means the emancipation of four hundred million souls from the thralldom of an absolute monarchy, which has been in existence for over four thousand years, and under whose rule “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” have been denied.

However, the “glorious achievement” was not easily won. When Qingling finished her education in America and went back in 1913, she found China in a “Second Revolution.” Yuan Shikai, who acted as president of the new Republic, proclaimed himself emperor and began slaughtering republicans. The whole Song family fled to Japan with Sun Yat-sen as political fugitives. During their sojourn in Japan, Ailing met a young man named Xiangxi Kong (H.H. Kung) from one of the richest families in China. Kong had just finished his education in America at Oberlin and Yale and was working with the Chinese YMCA in Tokyo. Ailing soon married Kong, leaving her job as secretary to Qingling, who firmly believed in Sun Yat-sen’s revolution. Qingling fell in love with Sun Yat-sen and informed her parents of her desire to marry him. Her parents, however, objected, for Sun Yat-sen was a married man and much older than Qingling. Charlie Soong took his family back to Shanghai and confined Qingling to her room upstairs. But Qingling escaped to Japan and married Sun Yat-sen after he divorced his first wife.

Meanwhile, Meiling had transferred from Wesleyan to Massachusetts’s Wellesley College to be near her brother T.V. Song, who was studying at Harvard and could take care of her. When she heard of her parent’s reaction to Qingling’s choice of marriage, Meiling feared that she might have to accept an arranged marriage when she returned to China; thus, she hurriedly announced her engagement to a young Chinese student at Harvard. When her anxiety turned out to be unnecessary, she renounced the engagement. Meiling finished her education at Wellesley and returned to China in 1917 to become a Shanghai socialite and work for both the National Film Censorship Board and the YMCA in Shanghai.

Ailing proved more interested in business than politics. She and her husband lived in Shanghai and rapidly expanded their business in various large Chinese cities including Hongkong. A shrewd businesswoman, who usually stayed away from publicity, Ailing was often said to be the mastermind of the Song family.

Qingling continued working as Sun Yat-sen’s secretary and accompanied him on all public appearances. Though shy by nature, she was known for her strong character. After the death of Yuan Shikai, China was enveloped in the struggle of rival warlords. Qingling joined her husband in the campaigns against the warlords and encouraged women to participate in the Chinese revolution by organizing women’s training schools and associations. Unfortunately, Sun Yat-sen died in 1925 and his party, Guomindang (the Nationalist party), soon split. In the following years of struggles between different factions, Chiang Kai-shek, who attained the control of Guomindang with his military power, persecuted Guomindang leftists and Chinese Communists. Qingling was sympathetic with Guomindang leftists, whom she regarded as faithful to her husband’s principles and continued her revolutionary activities. In denouncing Chiang’s dictatorship and betrayal of Sun Yat-sen’s principles, Qingling went to Moscow in 1927, and then to Berlin, for a four year self-exile. Upon her return to China, she continued criticizing Chiang publicly.

In 1927, Chiang Kai-shek married Meiling, thereby greatly enhancing his political life because of the Song family’s wealth and connections in China and America. Whereas Qingling never approved of the marriage (believing that Chiang had not married her little sister out of love), Ailing was supportive of Chiang’s marriage to Meiling. Seeing in Chiang the future strongman of China, Ailing saw in their marriage the mutual benefits both to the Song family and to Chiang. Meiling, an energetic and charming young lady, wanted to make a contribution to China. By marrying Chiang she became the powerful woman behind the country’s strongman. Just as Qingling followed Sun Yat-sen, Meiling followed Chiang Kai-shek by plunging herself into all her husband’s public activities, and working as his interpreter and public-relation officer at home and abroad. She helped Chiang launch the New Life Movement to improve the manners and ethics of the Chinese people, and she took up public positions as the general secretary of the Chinese Red Cross and the secretary-general of the commission of aeronautical affairs, which was in charge of the building of the Chinese air force. Under her influence, Chiang was even baptized.

Meiling’s marriage to Chiang meant that the Song family was deeply involved in China’s business and financial affairs. Both Ailing’s husband Kong and her brother T.V. Song alternately served as Chiang’s finance minister and, at times, premier. In 1932, Meiling accompanied her husband on an official trip to America and Europe. When she arrived in Italy, she was given a royal reception even though she held no public titles.
The Xi-an Incident

In 1936, two Guomindang generals held Chiang Kaishek hostage in Xi-an (the Xi-an Incident) in an attempt to coerce him into fighting against the Japanese invaders, rather than continuing the civil war with Chinese Communists. When the pro-Japan clique in Chiang’s government planned to bomb Xi’an and kill Chiang in order to set up their own government, the incident immediately threw China into political crisis. In a demonstration of courage and political sophistication, Meiling persuaded the generals in Nanjing to delay their attack on Xi-an, to which she personally flew for peace negotiations. Her efforts not only helped gain the release of her husband Chiang, but also proved instrumental in a settlement involving the formation of a United Front of all Chinese factions to fight against the Japanese invaders. The peaceful solution of the Xi-an Incident was hailed as a great victory. Henry Luce, then the most powerful publisher in America and a friend to Meiling and Chiang, decided to put the couple on the cover of Time in 1938 as “Man and Wife of the Year.” In a confidential memo, Luce wrote "The most difficult problem in Sino-American publicity concerns the Soong family. They are … the head and front of a pro-American policy.

"The United Front was thereafter formed and for a time it united the three Song sisters. Discarding their political differences, they worked together for Chinese liberation from Japan. The sisters made radio broadcasts to America to appeal for justice and support for China’s anti-Japanese War. Qingling also headed the China Defense League, which raised funds and solicited support all over the world. Ailing was nominated chairperson of the Association of Friends for Wounded Soldiers.
Meiling’s Appeal to United States for Support

The year 1942 saw Meiling’s return to America for medical treatment. During her stay, she was invited to the White House as a guest of President Franklin Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor. While there, she was asked by the President how she and her husband would deal with a wartime strike of coal miners, and she was said to have replied by drawing her hand silently across her throat. In February of 1943, she was invited to address the American Congress; she spoke of brave Chinese resistance against Japan and appealed to America for further support:

When Japan thrust total war on China in 1937, military experts of every nation did not give China a ghost of a chance. But, when Japan failed to bring China cringing to her knees as she vaunted, the world took solace ….Letusnot forget that during the first four and a half years of total aggression China had borne Japan’s sadistic fury unaided and alone.

Her speech was repeatedly interrupted by applause. In March, her picture again appeared on the cover of Timeas an international celebrity. She began a six-week itinerary from New York to Chicago and Los Angeles, giving speeches and attending banquets. The successful trip was arranged by Henry Luce as part of his fund-raising for United China Relief. Meiling’s charm extended past Washington to the American people, and the news media popularized her in the United States and made her known throughout the world. Indeed, her success in America had a far-reaching effect on American attitudes and policies toward China.

Soon afterward, Meiling accompanied Chiang to Cairo and attended the Cairo Conference, where territorial issues in Asia after the defeat of Japan were discussed. The Cairo Summit marked both the apex of Meiling’s political career and the beginning of the fall of Chiang’s regime. Corruption in his government ran so rampant that—despite a total sum of $3.5 billion American Lend-Lease supplies—Chiang’s own soldiers starved to death on the streets of his wartime capital Chongqing (Chungking). While China languished in poverty, the Songs kept millions of dollars in their own American accounts. In addition to the corruption, Chiang’s government lost the trust and support of the people. After the victory over Japan, Chiang began a civil war with Chinese Communists, but was defeated in battle after battle. Meiling made a last attempt to save her husband’s regime by flying to Washington in 1948 for more material support for Chiang in the civil war. Truman’s polite indifference, however, deeply disappointed her. Following this rebuff, she stayed with Ailing in New York City until after Chiang retreated to Taiwan with his Nationalist armies.

Ailing moved most of her wealth to America and left China with her husband in 1947. She stayed in New York and never returned to China. She and her family worked for Chiang’s regime by supporting the China Lobby and other public-relations activities in the United States. Whenever Meiling returned to America, she stayed with Ailing and her family. Ailing died in 1973 in New York City.
Differing Beliefs and Efforts for a Better China

Meanwhile, Qingling had remained in China, leading the China Welfare League to establish new hospitals and provide relief for wartime orphans and famine refugees. When Chinese Communists established a united government in Beijing (Peking) in 1949, Qingling was invited as a non-Communist to join the new government and was elected vice-chairperson of the People’s Republic of China. In 1951, she was awarded the Stalin International Peace Prize. While she was active in the international peace movement and Chinese state affairs in the 1950s, she never neglected her work with China Welfare and her lifelong devotion to assisting women and children. Qingling was one of the most respected women in China, who inspired many of her contemporaries as well as younger generations. She was made honorary president of the People’s Republic of China in 1981 before she died. According to her wishes, she was buried beside her parents in Shanghai.

Because of their differing political beliefs, the three Song sisters took different roads in their efforts to work for China. Qingling joined the Communist government because she believed it worked for the well-being of the ordinary Chinese. Meiling believed in restoring her husband’s government in the mainland and used her personal connections in the United States to pressure the American government in favor of her husband’s regime in Taiwan. Typical of such penetration in American politics was the China Lobby, which had a powerful sway on American policies toward Chiang’s regime in Taiwan and the Chinese Communist government in Beijing. Members of the China Lobby included senators, generals, business tycoons, and former missionaries. In 1954, Meiling traveled again to Washington in an attempt to prevent the United Nations from accepting the People’s Republic of China. After Chiang’s death and his son’s succession, Meiling lived in America for over ten years. The last remaining of three powerfully influential sisters, she now resides in Long Island, New York.
Further Reading on The Song Sisters

Eunson, Roby. The Soong Sisters. Franklin Watts, 1975.

Fairbank, John. China: A New History. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1992.

Hahn, Emily. The Soong Sisters. Greenwood Press, 1970.

Li Da. Song Meiling and Taiwan. Hongkong: Wide Angle Press, 1988.

Liu Jia-quan. Biography of Song Meiling. China Cultural Association Press, 1988.

Seagrave, Sterling. The Soong Dynasty. Harper and Row, 1985.

Sheridan, James E. China in Disintegration. The Free Press, 1975.

#Chine #USA #histoire

Touring Hyperloop One’s ever-evolving test site
▻https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/12/virgin-hyperloop-one-test-site-tour

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For the first time since May 2016, the site was opened up to a handful of journalists this week during CES. Hyperloop One was a vastly different company. Back then, it was led by original co-founders Brogan BamBrogan and Shervin Pishevar — the former quit a few months after an alleged falling out with Pishevar’s brother. The latter would depart at the tail end of 2017, forced out after becoming embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal. In their place, Richard Branson has stepped in as chairperson, rebranding the company as Virgin Hyperloop One.

#disruption #transport

Leader of Malaysia’s Anti-Corruption Movement ‘Bersih’ Arrested Under Anti-Terror Law · Global Voices
▻https://globalvoices.org/2016/11/23/leader-of-malaysias-anti-corruption-movement-bersih-arrested-under-ant

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Malaysian activists and supporters of the Bersih movement (‘Bersih’ is a Bahasa word for clean or reform) have been organizing symbolic protest actions in the last few days to demand the release of Bersih chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah.

Maria Chin was arrested last November 18, a day before Bersih was scheduled to hold massive rallies across the country to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is facing numerous corruption scandals. Bersih succeeded in peacefully mobilizing more than 10,000 people on November 19.

#malaisie #corruption

À propos de Walid Phares, « membre de l’équipe de politique étrangère de Trump », et son passé (passif) au sein des Forces libanaises

Février 2007 : Walid Phares and the Lebanese Forces
▻http://angryarab.blogspot.fr/2007/02/walid-phares-and-lebanese-forces.html

I am aware that Phares now likes to deny his past role with the Lebanese Forces (the right-wing, sectarian Christian militia that—among other war crimes—perpetrated the Sabra and Shatila massacres). Somebody yesterday posted a comment challenging my statement about Phares and his association with the Lebanese Forces. These are only two of many newspaper clips that I have in which his affiliation is clearly noted. In the top one, (As-Safir, 12/6/1987), it said that "Member of the Command Council of the Lebanese Forces, [and] head of the Lebanese Immigration Apparatus in the Lebanese Forces, Walid Phares, lectured on “the Role of Free Christianity in Lebanon and the Middle East.” In the lecture, he also “criticized the mechanism of the development of Lebanse Christian resistance over 12 years.” In the second one above, (As-Safir, 27/8/1991), Phares was identified as the “vice-chair” of the Extraordinary Emergency Committee for the Lebanese Front (the political leadership committee of the Lebanese Forces) (the chairperson was Etienne Saqr (who founded the Guardians of the Cedar, which during the civil war raised the slogan “Kill a Palestinian and you Shall enter heaven,” and he now resides in Israel). And it has to be said that his rise in the Lebanese Forces took place at a time when it was aligned with the regime of... Saddam Husayn.

Octobre 2014 : Walid Phares : his true story and role in the Lebanese Forces militia
▻http://angryarab.blogspot.fr/2014/10/walid-phares-his-true-story-and-role-in.html

American right-wing Lebanese, Walid Phares, was a Middle East adviser to Mitt Romney. At that time, some media pointed out to his past role in the leadership of the Lebanese militia, Lebanese Forces. He has been maintaining that the person with that name in the Lebanese Forces is not his, and that the name are similar. Of course, I have said repeatedly that this claim of his is a flat-out lie. I was looking into my archives yesterday, and stumbled upon this Zionist publication from 1992, in which he tells his life story. By the way, not the notion that he was kidnapped by the Lebanese Phalanges militia because he called openly for an alliance with Israel is another flat-out lie because the Phalanges were also aligned with Israel. But I guess that in speaking to the Zionist publication he felt the need to appear as a brave Zionist in Lebanon.

Walid Pharès : « Trump va s’asseoir avec Poutine, mais il ne se laissera pas faire »
▻http://www.lefigaro.fr/elections-americaines/2016/11/07/01040-20161107ARTFIG00348-trump-va-s-asseoir-avec-poutine-mais-il-ne-se-lai

La première fois que le professeur Walid Pharès a rencontré Donald Trump, c’était au quartier général du milliardaire sur la 5e Avenue, au sommet de sa fameuse tour. « Il m’avait vu sur Fox News », raconte ce politologue d’origine libanaise, chrétien maronite et spécialiste du Moyen-Orient. « Je le vois assis à son bureau. Je lance des idées et il me bombarde de questions. Il va droit au but, dans un style très business, très concret. » Pharès découvre un homme passionné par les cartes et la géopolitique. « Cela lui vient sans doute de sa carrière de magnat de l’immobilier, dit-il. Il est sensible à la géographie du terrain comme élément du rapport de force. »

Signalé par Sean Lee sur Twitter :
▻https://twitter.com/humanprovince/status/796322025967063040

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I give you Trump’s Middle East advisor.

In the wake of “El Niño massacre”, Green Revolution a failure, Filipino farmers still hungry
▻https://www.grain.org/bulletin_board/entries/5419-in-the-wake-of-el-nino-massacre-green-revolution-a-failure-filipino-farm

On IRRI’s 56th anniversary, farmer-scientist group MASIPAG called on the institution to immediately shut down its operations in the Philippines as it failed miserably to address the impacts of climate change resulting to deeper hunger and poverty. Last Friday, farmers coming from North Cotabato and nearby provinces in Mindanao held a barricade in Kidapawan City to call for rice subsidy as most of the farms were affected by the drought brought about by #El_Nino. Instead of addressing the farmers concerns, the protest was met by gunfire, with three farmers confirmed dead and scores of farmers, and possibly women and children, wounded.

“IRRI for 56 years fave failed the Filipinos! For many decades it has lured the farmers in using modern but high-input rice varieties that will supposedly ease the hunger of farmers. It did not even contented itself with its first Green Revolution, it is now promoting a Second Green Revolution purpotedly to address the effects of climate change on rice. But none of these grandiose projects has really lifted the lives and livelihood of the farmers. The Filipino farmers are still among the poorest and hungry among Asia” said Dr Chito Medina, national Coordinator of farmer-scientist group MASIPAG.

MASIPAG calls for the immediate closure of IRRI stating that the first Green Revolution wreaked havoc among the Filipino farmers. Thru the Green Revolution, farmers incurred huge amouts of debts as IRRI shifted the farmers sustainable agriculture practices into dependency to expensive external inputs such as modern seeds and chemical fertilizers. The small farmers were left behind, as huge agrochemical TNCs and local businessmen gained and reaped the profit from the sale of seeds and other off-farm inputs such as chemical fertilizers and pesticides. With the Green Revolution, the farmers became entrapped with the high-cost and chemical-intensive agriculture system made worse by the abuse of loan sharks and huge rice cartels. In the end, the farmers who have been feeding the nation are food and financially poor.

“Erosion of rice genetic diversity was drastic, with rice varieties in Philippines totaling to more than 4,000 were wiped-out and replaced by a few high-input varieties with narrow genetic bases. Rice varieties that have been part of the Filipino culture, whose traits that we as a country may benefit in this worsening climate, are now secured and controlled by IRRI. They are the ones who are profiting and gaining from our rice varieties” said Carlito Seguiro, MASIPAG’s Chairperson and farmer-leader in the province of Negros.

#Philippines #riz #brevet #semence #agrochimie #pauvreté #faim #révolution_verte

OSCE chairperson calls for organization of local elections acceptable to both Donbas, Kyiv
▻http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukraine/osce-chairperson-calls-for-organization-of-local-elections-acceptable-to-b

OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ivica Dacic calls for a political settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

(intégralité de la brève, comme souvent le titre en dit plus : acceptable to both…)

Il faut dire l’actuel président de l’OSCE est le ministre des Affaires étrangères serbe…

#5_Questions_for_a_Filmmaker … #Taghreed_Elsanhouri
▻http://africasacountry.com/5-questions-for-a-filmmaker-taghreed-elsanhouri

Taghreed Elsanhouri directed the first Sudanese #FILM to be screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, “All about Darfur,” in 2005. That same year the film also won the Chairperson’s Prize at the Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF). Her other credits include ‘Sudanna al Habib’ (2012) and ‘Mother Unknown‘ (2009). This interview is the second […]

#Sudan

Not quite spring, but not nothing
▻http://africasacountry.com/not-quite-spring-but-not-nothing

Today, Monday, August 19, 2013, #Phumzile_Mlambo-Ngcuka, who was the first woman to serve as Deputy President of South Africa (2005-2009), took the oath of office as Executive Director of UN Women. Then Over the weekend, #Joyce_Banda, first woman President of Malawi, was sworn in as Chairperson of the Southern African Development Community, or SADC (at the same time that #H.E_Robert_Gabriel_Mugabe was sworn in as Deputy Chair). #Stergomena_Tax had been Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of (...)

#POLITICS

:

Seikh Hasina - The Modern Pathfounder Of Fascism & Re-inventor Of 2nd BAKSAL

Incidents :-
1)Biswajit’s murder
The tragic killing of Bishwajit at the hands of BCL hooligans in front of a senior police official on the 9th December blockade in Dhaka has shocked us greatly. From the newspaper reports
we came to learn that Bishwajit, a poor tailor, was a resident of Old Dhaka who had no link with any political party at all. As seen in the video footage of different TV channels, the on-duty police official along with his sub-ordinates were enjoying (!) how a hartal supporter (?) was being punished by the student wing of the ruling party.

2) arrest of mirza fakhrul islam alamgir

Dhaka, Dec 10, (bdnews24.com)— Police on Monday evening arrested BNP Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir hours after he was named in a case over vandalism on the road during the road blockade programme of the BNP-led 18-Party Alliance on Sunday.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police spokesperson Masudur Rahman said the BNP leader was arrested in the Naya Paltan in connection with the case filed on Sunday night over vandalising of a vehicle.

bdnews24.com Chief Political Correspondent Sumon Mahmud reported Alamgir was picked up by plainclothes policemen from near the BNP’s central office around 6:15pm.

Fakhrul was taken away in a microbus, he said.

BNP leaders Sadeque Hossain Khoka and its Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi were with Fakhrul at the time of arrest.

Fakhrul was on his way to attend the meeting between visiting US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert O Blake and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia in the evening.

“Mirza Fakhrul was surrounded by plainclothes policemen as soon as he came out of BNP’s central office. At that moment, he asked (police) not to touch him. He was forced to board a microbus nearby amid altercations. Then that (the microbus) left the area fast,” said Mahmud.

The BNP in an instant press conference condemned the arrest of their spokesperson. Khoka and another Joint Secretary General Amanullah Aman were present during the press briefing.

BNP leaders threatened nonstop tougher agitation programmes if their colleague was not released soon.

“We want to make it clear to the government that tougher programme will be enforced if our Acting Secretary General is not released immediately. The agitation cannot be stopped by arresting him,” Rizvi said at the press briefing.

Aman renewed the same demand and reiterated the same threat.

The BNP leaders believe the arrest was meant to obstruct the Tuesday shutdown.

The arrest came the day before the 18-Party Alliance enforcing its countrywide daylong shutdown announced following a violent road blockade on Sunday.

Asked whether any agitation programme will follow the arrest of their leader, Aman said the decision will be taken after discussions with their Chairperson.

A Dhaka City Corporation driver named ’Alamgir’ and over 200 others late night on Sunday for vandalising a City Corporation vehicle during road blockade.

In the afternoon on Monday, Fakhrul said the government will not succeed in subduing opposition’s agitation by making attacks and filing cases.

He said the case will be faced both legally and politically.

“The government filed the case intentionally against our Acting Secretary General. The people of the country know a national leader cannot set on fire a city corporation vehicle meant to carry waste,” Rizvi said during the press briefing.

At the beginning of this year, Fakhrul was jailed for arson during another shutdown enforced by the opposition but later he obtained bail.

The opposition programmes are to press the demand for reinstating the caretaker government provision to oversee the next parliamentary election.

AARP and AARP Foundation Fraudulent Profile of Director Barbara O’Connor of California Emerging Technology Fund (TLR Note:AARP, CETF, McPeak, English, O’Connor, Lucas and others mislead by intentionally withholding O’Connor part of Lucas Public Affairs)

AARP Home » Foundation » About Us »Barbara O’Connor
Barbara O’Connor
AARP Affiliated Foundation board member

from: AARP Foundation | June 6, 2012

Barbara O’Connor, Ph.D., of Sacramento, Calif., was elected to the AARP Board in 2010. She serves on the Audit and Finance Committee and is on the Insurance Trust.

She is a former professor of communication studies and director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media, California State University, Sacramento. Previously, she was assistant director of debate, University of Southern California, a summer debate instructor, Georgetown University, and a design consultant, Cablevision Systems, New Jersey. She has been chairperson and founding board member of the Alliance for Public Technology; a board member and officer, California Emerging Technology Fund; a member of the Bellcore Advisory Board; and a member of the Federal Communication Commission’s Network Reliability Council. She chaired the California Educational Technology Commission, the California Public Broadcasting Commission, the CEO Task Force on Digital Literacy and the International Council on Information Communication Technology.

Source: ►http://www.aarp.org/aarp-foundation/about-us/info-06-2012/barbara-oconnor-board-member.html

AARP Leadership Profile:

Life Perspectives

"I grew up in West Texas, raised by a single mother. I was a first-generation college graduate. So I’ve lived through lots of what our members are living through.

"Communications and politics have really been my longstanding interests, including technology access and equity, disabled rights, communication strategies and social movement building. I have a political background, and I started a public radio station in Sacramento and ran it for a while. We now have six radio stations there, the Capital Public Radio Network.

"I have taught mostly technology policy and technology evolution — the hardware stuff. I also teach political communications and the impact of messaging on social movement formation.

"I was fortunate enough to go to the Annenberg School at the University of Southern California, which is very geeky, so I was able to keep up with technology as it evolved. I chaired the California Public Broadcasting Commission, and I’m now an officer and director of the California Emerging Technology Fund.

“AARP provides me an opportunity to do tele-health, to deal with issues of getting the 50-plus generation online. I get to help people who are unemployed at 50, using the Web. So being part of the AARP board is really a wonderful synergy of my interests and the organization’s interests….”

"It’s getting more and more difficult to find a center in American politics. Part of it is the media’s fault. The news hole, in both broadcast and in print, has really been reduced. The downsizing and the mergers and acquisitions that have gone on in the media world have really done a disservice to public policy discussion. It’s made the media more event- and scandal-chasing — the lowest common denominator.

"In political campaigns, it’s 30-second spots. So it’s no surprise that the public has fatigue about dealing with politicians. Every poll in America shows that they are held in very low esteem.

"We can’t return to retail politics because we have the technology and everyone is used to using it. But longer formats, discussions, call-ins, coherent talk would be welcome. Certainly, AARP’s members would welcome that to address their concerns about big things such as Social Security.

"AARP is nonpartisan, and ours is a trusted voice. We have to provide the voice of reason in these debates, so that it’s not a partisan political discussion, but really a rational, practical discussion.

"People really do care about the issues that we work on. They’re central to their lives. We have to find a coherent solution to intractable problems.

"We need to be very heavily data-driven. I think we do that, by the way. I think staff and our board are the best. And our volunteers are terrific. So I’m optimistic, actually.

"A big part of our job as board members is to listen. You don’t let your own biases govern what you do. I have to listen to what the data says and to what members are telling me.

“So if you’re data-driven and you really do listen to the members tell you what their issues are — and we have very good organs of information that help us with that, by the way, in the organization — then you can find consensus.”

Expertise

Politics, communications, debate, telecommunications policy, digital divide, senior health, tele-health, digital literacy, education technology.

Education

Ph.D., communications, University of Southern California, Annenberg School of Communications; M.A., communications, California State University, Northridge; B.A., communications, California State University, Northridge; A.A., history, Los Angeles Valley College.

Experience

Currently, professor of communication and director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media, California State University, Sacramento. Previously, assistant director of debate, University of Southern California; summer debate instructor, Georgetown University; design consultant, Cablevision Systems, New Jersey.

Volunteer experience

Boards: Serves on AARP Board’s Audit and Finance Committee and the AARP Insurance Trust. Formerly, chairperson and founding board member, The Alliance for Public Technology; board member and officer, California Emerging Technology Fund; member, Bellcore Advisory Board.

Other: Formerly, presidential debate judge, Washington Bureau, Associated Press; chair and commission member, California Public Broadcasting Commission (governor’s appointee); commission member, Federal Communication Commission, Network Reliability Council; chair, California Educational technology commission; chair, CEO Task Force on Digital Literacy; chair, International Council on Information Communication Technology; among many others.

Honors

Received a Lifetime Community Service Award, an outstanding teaching award, and the Alumni Association’s Distinguished Professor Award from California State University, Sacramento. Received a Technology Pioneer Award from the Alliance for Public Technology; a Technology Leadership Award from Computer Using Educators. Named among 50 for the Future by Newsweek magazine.

Source: ►http://www.aarp.org/about-aarp/leadership/info-2010/barbara_oconnor.html

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Lucas Public Affairs is a California-based strategic consulting, public relations, and communications firm. Located in Sacramento, C.A., Lucas Public Affairs was founded in 2006 by Donna Lucas, who is the firm’s CEO and President. The firm’s clients come from a myriad of industries including energy, sports and entertainment, transportation, natural resources, health care, business and finance, tourism and education.[2] The firm also offers services in the following practice areas: Strategic Communications, Crisis Communications, Issue & Reputation Management, Government Relations, Media, and Social Media

Source: ►http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucas_Public_Affairs

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June 15, 2011
Barbara O’Connor joins Lucas Public Affairs as senior counsel

Barbara O’Connor, a longtime Sacramento college professor and expert in political communications, has joined Lucas Public Affairs, the firm announced today.

O’Connor will provide strategic guidance for the Sacramento-based public relations firm, which serves clients in the fields of energy, sports, entertainment, insurance, local government, education, health care and other fields. Her title will be senior counsel.

“Barbara’s ongoing relationships with the California press corps, academic community, and national and statewide opinion leaders and policymakers make her a major asset to our team,” said Donna Lucas, president and chief executive officer, in a written statement.

O’Connor also released a statement, saying, “I’m excited about partnering with everyone at Lucas Public Affairs. The issues are interesting and challenging. I’m looking forward to adding to the mix. I know I’m going to learn a lot.”

Source: ►http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2011/06/barbara-oconnor-joins-lucas-pu.html

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SACRAMENTO, CA - Lucas Public Affairs, one of California’s top strategic communications firms, today announced the addition of Dr. Barbara O’Connor, Emeritus Professor at Sacramento State University, to its growing team.

"Dr. O’Connor will be serving as senior counsel to the firm, offering her experience and expertise on some of the firm’s top clients.

A nationally recognized expert in the field of political communications, Dr. O’Connor will provide strategic guidance on some of the most complex issues that Lucas Public Affairs’ clients face.

“I am thrilled that Barbara is joining our team. She is results-based and has a respected reputation – qualities that make her a perfect addition to the firm,” said Donna Lucas, CEO and President of Lucas Public Affairs. “Her years of experience and knowledge of California and her continued role in providing strategic counsel to many national organizations and media outlets will be of tremendous value as we help our clients navigate through challenges and achieve their business goals.”

O’Connor — formerly a professor at Sacramento State University and director of the university’s Institute for the Study of Politics and Media — has over 43 years of experience teaching and in research.

Besides Sacramento State, she has taught at Georgetown and USC where she was the assistant director of debate. She currently sits on the National Board of the American Association of Retired Persons. O’Connor has previously served as a consultant to McClatchy Newspapers, the Boston Globe Media Properties, the Tribune Company, the Washington Bureau of the Associated Press, the California Legislature, the United States Congress and the Federal Communications Commission.

“I’m excited about partnering with everyone at Lucas Public Affairs. The issues are interesting and challenging,” O’Connor said. “I’m looking forward to adding to the mix. I know I’m going to learn a lot.”

“Barbara’s ongoing relationships with the California press corps, academic community and national and statewide opinion leaders and policymakers make her a major asset to our team,” said Lucas.

Last year, the firm announced the promotions of Justin Knighten, Rachel Huberman and Annie Han and the addition of seasoned media strategist Beth Willon.

Led by Lucas, founder of the firm and one of the nation’s foremost public affairs strategists, Lucas Public Affairs’ existing team includes: public affairs experts Julie Marengo, Senior Vice President, and Jessica Spitz Biller, Vice President—who together have a combined 30+ years of experience managing complex and multi-faceted communications programs for a host of clients and issues; Beth Willon, Senior Account Supervisor & Media Specialist; Justin Knighten, Account Executive; Emilie Cameron, Account Coordinator; Rachel Huberman, Account Coordinator; and Annie Han, Executive Assistant.

Source: ►http://www.lucaspublicaffairs.com/lpa/index.cfm/news/dr-barbara-oe28099connor-joins-lucas-public-affairs

Read more here: ►http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2011/06/barbara-oconnor-joins-lucas-pu.html#storylink=cpy

Bottled Water Giant #Nestlé Censors Critical Documentary | Common Dreams
►http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/10/17-3

Pressure from bottled-water giant Nestlé Waters #Canada bullied a Canadian city into cancelling a screening of “Tapped,” an award-winning documentary critical of the buying and selling of clean drinking water as a commodity.

Bottles are seen on a production line on July 19, 2010 in Vittel, at the mineral water bottling plant of Nestlé Waters Supply Company. (Photo: Jean-Christophe Verhaegen, AFP/Getty Images.) Water activist Maude Barlow, chairperson of the Council of Canadians, planned to attend Monday’s screening of “Tapped” in Guelph, Ontario, but discovered that the event had been cancelled after Nestlé’s director of corporate affairs expressed “disappointment” that the city was a co-sponsor of the screening. Nestlé questioned efforts by the city “to position itself as a business-friendly place to invest.”

Barlow called Nestle’s letter “bullying,” and said in a radio interview Monday, “It really does matter who is going to make decisions around access to water in the future. Is it going to be a handful of corporations? Is it going to be service utilities? Is it going to be bottled water companies? Is it going to be water traders? Or is it going to be democratically-elected governments looking after water on behalf of their people?”

...

On Monday, Tapped was screened at the University of Guelph before more than 350 people, according to Calzavara — far more than were originally expected before the controversy.

#censure #eau

#Ebola: The fatal costs of a slow response
►http://www.monitor.co.ug/artsculture/Reviews/Ebola++The+fatal+costs+of+a+slow+response/-/691232/1469922/-/5j3uft/-/index.html?

One month after the death of the first Ebola victim at Kagadi Hospital – an infant whose family would lose nine members in all – the country’s hub for containing the deadly virus is still struggling to cope.

“The facilities are not okay,” says Steven Byaruhanga, the chairperson of the district Ebola taskforce. “The incinerators we don’t have… electricity is on and off, the pump for water is not functioning, the sewer system is also broken down, there’s so many problems.”

Patients at the hospital reportedly rioted on Tuesday, protesting the lack of food and clean water, while vehicles provided by the Ministry of Health sat idle for lack of fuel.

“There are so many cases reported but we could not move because there was no fuel,” Byaruhanga said.

#ouganda #santé

A group of expat Syrian businessmen announced in Qatar on Wednesday the creation of a $300 million (239 million euro) fund to support the rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad.

Mustafa Sabbagh, chairperson of the newly created Syrian Business Forum, said “the businessmen of Syria... offer their full and clear support to the revolution against [Assad’s] dictatorial regime.”

Businessman Khaled Khouja told a news conference the SBF would offer the rebel Free Syrian Army “medical equipment and technological materiel to facilitate its communications in Syria.”

To read more: ►http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=406256#ixzz1x2rNbM10

AFRICA: More Dangerous to Be a Woman than a Soldier - IPS ipsnews.net
►http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=105310

A resolution to foster women’s political participation in the domain of peacekeeping and conflict management was accepted on Friday at the 2011 Women’s Platform for Action in Africa (WPAA).

Under the auspices of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP), the WPAA meeting emphasised the urgent need for better female representation at national levels, where women can actively take part in decisions to prevent war and mediate conflict.

Marie Louise Baricako, the Chairperson of the Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS), an international non- governmental organisation working on issues of gender, peace and development, said that the problem of rape and sexual violence being used as a weapon remains a neglected topic.

“It goes unpunished, and unrecognised. The perpetrators remain free, bringing in a new culture of rape and sexual violence; the Pan-African Parliament must do something about this,” she said.

#femmes #violences_sexuelles #conflits_armée #Afrique