Living in interesting times

[the_future_modernes]

BAHRAIN and SAUDI ARABIA

Saudi soldiers sent into Bahrain
Saudi troops and police from UAE deployed to Gulf neighbour to help protect government facilities after weeks of unrest.

Hundreds of Saudi troops have entered Bahrain to help protect government facilities there amid escalating protests against the government.

Bahrain television on Monday broadcast images of troops in armoured cars entering the Gulf state via the 26km causeway that connects the kingdom to Saudi Arabia.

The arrival of the troops follows a request to members of the Gulf Co-Operation Council (GCC) from Bahrain, whose Sunni rulers have faced weeks of protests and growing pressure from a majority Shia population to institute political reforms.

The United Arab Emirates has also sent about 500 police to Bahrain, according to Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the Emirati foreign minister.

The US, which counts both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia among its allies, has called for restraint, but has refrained from saying whether it supports the move to deploy troops.MORE

JAPAN

Teh Union of Concerned Scientists drops info on the Japanese nuclear reactor problems which got worse today with another explosion: Nuclear scare grows with an orange flash and a violent blast

Health concerns as hydrogen explosion at Fukushima 1 nuclear power station injures 11 and destroys containment building

...The day began with a fresh explosion which damaged the roof above its overheating reactor 2 on Tuesday and left steam rising from the complex, Jiji news agency said. Early reports suggested that there might have been some damage to the containment vessel after pressure dropped, but there was no immediate word of any damage to the reactor itself, the country's nuclear safety agency said.

The latest explosion came after a violent blast that destroyed most of the containment building around reactor 3 on Monday, causing debris to fall back inside and on to the structure housing the reactor. The blast was caused by a build up of hydrogen that was produced when superheated steam in the core reacted with zirconium alloy cladding that surrounds the reactor's fuel rods.MORE

Meantime, the death toll has climbed Japan death toll tops 2,400

The official death toll from the killer earthquake and tsunami that flattened much of Japan's north-east coast has passed 2,400, police said.

Japan's National Police Agency said 2,414 people are confirmed dead and 3,118 missing, with 1,885 injured in the disaster which struck on Friday afternoon.

The official toll yesterday stood at 1,647.

At least 178 Australians are still unaccounted for in the disaster-affected regions, but the figure could be far higher as consular teams work their way through lists of people who have not yet contacted their families.

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On Sunday, the police chief of Miyagi, one of the hardest-hit prefectures, said the number of deaths was expected to exceed 10,000 in his region alone.

Amid a mass rescue effort there were grim updates indicating severe loss of life along the battered east coast of Honshu island, where the monster waves destroyed or damaged more than 55,380 homes and other buildings.

More than 3,000 houses were flooded by the tsunami, while 130 houses had been burned, police said, adding there were 68 landslides.MORE

NORWAY

‘No One Is Illegal’ Campaign aims to protect Norway’s ‘paperless’ refugees

Oslo, Norway: This year for 2010 marks Norway as the highest ranked nation on the recent United Nation’s global Human Development Index (HDI), but the country is facing a human rights challenge. The November report shows that an average Norwegian can expect to live 81 years, attend school for 12.6 years, and earn $58,000 annually; but are these conditions available equally to all people, especially the women living in Norway?
Not every woman today in Norway is given the benefits of equality in Norwegian society, even though the northern state is known for its advocacy for gender equity. Current facts show that numerous immigrant refugee women are actually slipping through the cracks in Norway’s system of human rights.
“There are more than 40 million refugees globally; still the wealthiest country in the world goes catastrophic when a small fraction of them arrive,” admits Kari Helene Partapuoli, Director of The Norwegian Center against Racism and Discrimination, in a recent interview with Women News Network.MORE

BRAZIL

Female Scientists Abound in Brazil - But Not at Senior Levels

RIO DE JANEIRO, Mar 4, 2011 (IPS) - There are nearly as many female as male scientists in Brazil. But in academia or in private laboratories, women face subtle barriers to career advancement and equal salaries.

According to the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPQ), women represent 49 percent of the country's scientific researchers, up from 39 percent in 1993. But among laboratory heads, the proportion is 45 percent, and even lower in higher-level positions.

"Overall, the number of women in science is growing steadily in Brazil," Jacqueline Leta, an expert on gender in science at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), told IPS.

Citing data from the 2008 census, the study reports that there were 60,291 men and 57,662 women in laboratories in this country of 194 million people.

But the situation varies by area, said Leta, who is part of the education and management of sciences programme at the UFRJ's Institute of Medical Biochemistry.
MORE

MEXICO

Mexico’s indigenous domestics want education and human rights

San Cristóbal de las Casas – Chiapas, Mexico — As maids, cooks, nannies and housekeepers they work behind closed doors, away from the public eye; unprotected by Mexican labor laws.

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Since September 2006, Concepción López has coordinated literacy classes and workshops for a domestic workers. A recent group of six domestic workers and their children in San Cristóbal are part of a new class. As a literacy teacher López is director of the Palenque based women’s rights organization, Ixim Antsetic, which means ‘Women of Corn’ in the native indigenous Tzolzil language.

The women in the group are united by their hardships and the trying paths that led them to domestic work. Most have been forced to begin their work at a very young age. They are united by an absence of rights and legal protections that the Mexican government does not provide to domestic workers.

Approximately 50% of the women in Chiapas are illiterate, compared to 30% of the men. Family responsibilities, young motherhood and a relentless need to work due to the hardship of life has contributed to an uphill climb for most women who desperately want an education.
“As in many Latin American countries, there are huge income disparities between rich and poor,” says a World Bank Chiapas report.MORE

LIBYA

The Women in Benghazi March 10.

TAIWAN

Taiwan: Social Media making Indigenous Voices loud and clear

Taiwan's indigenous population are often flattered by politicians as being the country's “real masters” or “original inhabitants”; they have been used to promote Taiwan tourism in television commercials around the world.
But stories about their struggle for identity, sustainability and dignity are missing from the Taiwanese public sphere, as a result of relative social and political domination by the country's Han Chinese population. Now, thanks to social media, indigenous youth are making their voices heard and reconnecting with their traditions.

“Tribal Grid”
A group of ambitious indigenous Taiwanese writers and bloggers first started a group online blog called Blogger Check-in (部落客報到) [zh] in October, 2010. In Taiwanese the word “blog” in fact translates literally to mean “tribal grid” (部落格) and the word “blogger” into “tribal people” (部落客).
Besides the blog, the group have multiple outlets to effectively spread their news, including social media such as networking site Facebook and micro-blogging site Twitter, as well as independent online media sites such as Lihpao [zh] and PNN [zh].
In the past, in order to enter mainstream society, many indigenous people preferred to register their name in Han Chinese when processing official documents, such as identity cards. However, practices such as this have only served to further marginalize ethnic minorities in Taiwan.MORE

AFGHANISTAN

Ancient Buddhas Will Not Be Rebuilt – UNESCO

UNITED NATIONS, Mar 11, 2011 (IPS) - Afghanistan's historic Bamiyan Buddhas, destroyed by the Taliban 10 years ago, will not be reconstructed despite claims the 1,500-year-old statues could be repaired, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) said Thursday.

The decision follows a two-day meeting of scientists, Afghan officials and donors in Paris last week.

While the expert panel was split on the possibility of reconstruction, UNESCO has told the Afghan government it does not support a rebuild project, citing concerns over funding priorities and authenticity.

Replicating the colossal monuments, which once stood 55 and 38 metres tall, could cost between eight and 12 million dollars. However, less than half of the original stone used to build the statues remains.

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The Bamiyan Buddhas, dating from the sixth century, were bombed in 2001 as part of the Taliban's campaign to rid Afghanistan of pre-Islamic structures.

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The decision has drawn strong criticism from Afghanistan's Hazara community, a minority ethnic group that claims a long association with the Bamiyan Valley and views the Buddha statues as a source of pride.

The international advocacy organisation Hazara People said the consensus to not rebuild was "shameful".

The group believes the decision is politically influenced and reflects the continued discrimination aganst Hazara peoples in Afghanistan.

"We are not surprised the Afghan government does not want to rebuild the Bamiyan Buddhas," a spokesperson, who did not want to be named, told IPS. "Bamiyan Buddhas are great proof that say Hazara people have been living in that area for thousands of years."

Hazaras have long faced violence in Afghanistan, suffering genocide, slavery, and forced displacement under a series of governments including the Taliban.

And while the ethnic group is predominately Muslim, their East Asian appearance bears a resemblance to monuments such as the Bamiyan Buddhas.MORE

MEXICO

Neighbors Score Victory in Mexico City Sports Stadium Fight

Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard's pet project to destroy two public parks to build a for-profit sports stadium has been halted due to public pressure form neighbors living near the construction zone, according to city officials.

Earlier this week, city Secretary for Economic Development Laura Velázquez told media outlets that the project, called the Mexico City Arena, would not be built on its planned site in the northern borough of Azcapotzalco. Neighbors who live in the area have organized a strong opposition to the construction plan, which would have handed over two large parks to the Mexican business Grupo Avalanz to build the stadium. The city official cited a “politicization between neighbors and other parties that forced the canceling of the project,” according to press reports.MORE

MAURITANIA

Mauritian Women Dreaming of Active Politics

PORT-LOUIS, Mar 11, 2011 (IPS) - "We have had enough of the training given to us in cooking, sewing and household works… We now have another dream: of participating actively in the development of our island at decision-making level," says Marie-Anne Laganne, a political trainer at Women In Politics.

The Mauritian NGO has struggled over the past few years to have as many women possible enter into active politics. It trains 25 women every week in different regions of Mauritius with the hope that they’ll be able to secure tickets to stand for the local elections due later this year.

Women’s participation at decision-making level represents a major challenge in this Indian Ocean island. Though well-represented as voters and activists on the ground, very few women stand as candidates in an election, be it local or national. There has been a worrying decline in the numbers of women in parliament from 17.1 percent in 2005 to 16.6 percent in the 2010 elections. At the local level, only 5.9 percent of councillors are women.

Mauritius is among the few Southern African Development Community countries yet to sign the 2008 Protocol on Gender and Development, which, amongst other goals, calls for 50/50 representation of women in all areas of decision-making by 2015. Government argues that it cannot sign because the island’s constitution does not allow for positive discrimination. MORE

ARGENTINA

'The Sky Is My Laboratory':Marcela Valente* interviews Argentine astronomer GLORIA DUBNER

BUENOS AIRES, Mar 3, 2011 (IPS) - When it comes to breaking through the glass ceiling, astronomers are among the most determined of female professionals. And they have high aspirations. "The sky is my laboratory," Argentine astrophysicist Gloria Dubner told IPS.

"Gazing at the sky still fills me with awe," said Dubner, director of the Institute of Astronomy and Space Physics at the University of Buenos Aires and a member of the Women in Astronomy Working Group of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), where 85 percent of the members are men.

The working group was founded to bring greater visibility to women astronomers in the IAU, establish strategies to help women attain true equality as research astronomers, and combat stereotypes and misconceptions that discourage girls and women from studying sciences.

In 2009 they launched the "She Is an Astronomer" programme that recommends visits by women astronomers to schools and other activities to encourage girls to enter the field.

In this interview in her office, the 60-year-old Dubner said the proportion of women in astronomy is not necessarily linked to a country's level of development.

A mere 5.5 percent of IAU members in Japan are women, and only nine percent are women in Germany, 12 percent in Canada, and 14 percent in the United States. On the other hand, the proportion stands at 36 percent in Argentina, 26 percent in Venezuela, 22 percent in Brazil, 17 percent in Mexico, and 16 percent in Chile. MORE

INDIA

2010 but still interesting:
INDIA One Woman’s Entrepreneurial Venture Now Employs Thousands

SRINAGAR, May 13, 2010 (IPS) - Shameema Wani, 40, never imagined a simple venture, begun from scratch, would grow into the 2,000-strong business enterprise, employing mainly women, that it is today in this capital city of India’s disputed Jammu and Kashmir state.

When her husband had an accident in1990, leaving him incapacitated for gainful work, Wani figured it was time to put her college education to good use by setting up a small business.

Misery pushed her, says the mother of two, aged 18 and 15, to go into a male-dominated commercial arena if only to support her family.

Using what little was left of her family’s resources after her husband’s costly treatment, she bought a sack of ‘pashmina’ from Leh – capital of the Himalayan kingdom in Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir – to make shawls.

Pashmina – an indigenous word for ‘cashmere’ – is a type of fine cashmere wool used to make the world-famous shawls known by the same name. The wool specifically comes from ‘changthangi’ or ‘pashmina’ goat, which is indigenous to the Himalayas in Ladakh region in the disputed state.

Almost two decades on, the college dropout’s initial foray into business has grown into a major enterprise that provides livelihood for thousands of women in her village and elsewhere in the Indian state. MORE

Precarious, flexible labour and the sex work connexion

Watch the good video from the Guardian below about precarious work. In my talks about migrants who sell sex I always refer to Manuel Castells’s idea of flexible labour: changes in how business are run that mean bosses move businesses looking for cheaper ways to produce and workers travel to find jobs and switch fields, learning new skills, rather than try to maintain a single career path. Precarious labour refers to a wide gamut of working situations that lack security: freelance workers who live on earnings from more than one job, temporary workers, day labourers, subcontractors and so on. Precarity means you can be let go from your job with no notice, you receive no benefits, employers take no responsibility for keeping you safe or healthy, you move on when a job doesn’t work out. It means you don’t have a union or maybe even the right to organise.

Selling sex is often a variation of this, a way to make money that can be performed just about anywhere if the worker manages to figure out what the local customs are. Selling sex is a form of precarious labour when workers are not doing it legally and possibly not residing legally somewhere. All people who sell sex in unregulated situations, and many who sell in regulated situations, migrants and not, share precarious conditions and belong to what Guy Standing is calling the precariat (a word based on the old idea of the proletariat).

This is the way that sex work is like other jobsMORE

USA

Hindu anger at yoga studios