Peace & Justice

Photo: US Democrats—Senators Markey and Khanna—and introduce "ICBM" Act: Invest in Cures Before Missiles. Credit: UNFOLD ZERO | PNND.

Plea for Diverting Funds from Nuclear Weapons to Combating COVID-19

By Jamshed Baruah

GENEVA (IDN) — The Nobel laureate International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a coalition of non-governmental organizations promoting adherence to and implementation of the United Nations nuclear weapon ban treaty, has been pleading for divestment in nuclear weapons. "The imminent entry-into-force of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) allows for a unique opportunity to hit the nuclear weapons producers where it hurts—their wallets," an ICAN campaign says.

: Jamshed Baruah; ARMAMENTS; Nuclear Weapons; 14 April 2021

Photo: A monument in memory of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda is unveiled at the United Nations in Geneva (file). UN Photo / Violaine Martin.

UN Chief Calls for Reflecting on Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — In a message marking the grim anniversary of the 1994 genocide of Tutsi in Rwanda, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned of the rise of extremist groups and the inflammatory rhetoric that produced horrific consequences.

“Everyone must take a hard look at today’s world and ensure that we heed the lessons of 27 years ago,” the UN chief declared. “While the technology used by extremists is evolving, their vile messages and rhetoric remain the same.”

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Photo: Benin's presidential election kicked off on April 11. Credit: Seraphin Zounyekpe/Xinhua

Key Opposition Leaders Disqualified, Exiled or Under Investigation In Benin’s Presidential Poll

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore…and then run?”

Those were the prophetic words of poet Langston Hughes but they could also explain the rising frustration in an African election season where hopes for a democratic change are deferred and the incumbent holds on to power year after year after year.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Photo: The new EMOWAA draws inspiration from its historical architectural typologies and establishes its own courtyard in the form of a public garden. Credit: EMOWAA Museum.

Discussion About the Repatriation of Nigeria’s ‘Benin Bronzes’ Looted by British Soldiers

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — The Church of England is joining a handful of museums, universities, and private owners exploring the repatriation to Nigeria of thousands of brass plaques, wooden and ivory sculptures known as the Benin Bronzes looted by British soldiers in the waning days of the colonial era.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 April 2021

Of Human Family, Culture of Peace & Sustainable Development

By Ramu Damodaran

The writer is Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) hosted in the Department of Global Communications. This OpEd was first published in #WhyWeCare on April 8.

NEW YORK (IDN | UNAI) — We left last week with Bob Marley in our ear, his quest to consummate the end of physical slavery with liberation from its mental forms. Barely had our column been uploaded when I learned of the superstar’s family’s decision to reissue, in honour of UNICEF, his emblematic “One Love” remastered for our age of the pandemic.

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 11 April 2021

Photo: Sudanese protestors gather in front of government buildings in Khartoum to celebrate the final signing of the Draft Constitutional Declaration between military and civil representatives in August 2019. VOA-Public Domain.

Two Years On, Sudan's Political Transition Remains Extremely Volatile

By Philipp Jahn and Gerrit Kurtz*

This article was first published in the Journal of the International Politics and Society, issued by the German Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung’s Brussels office.

KHARTOUM (IDN) — April 11, 2019 was a day of great emotion in Khartoum. At noon, the then-Vice President Ibn Auf announced the arrest of President Omar al-Bashir. The residents of Khartoum celebrated the end of his 30-year rule by holding a sit-in in front of the military headquarters. In the evening, however, the mood shifted when the putschist military council announced two years of military rule.

: Europe Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 10 April 2021

The Audacity of Anarchy in President Buhari's Nigeria

Viewpoint by Azu Ishiekwene

The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Interview magazine based in Abuja, Nigeria.

ABUJA (IDN) — There was a BBC News story in February that caught me between laughter and bemusement. The news channel reported, in very strong language matched only by the alarming reactions of the persons interviewed, a spate of stabbings across parts of south London that left at least one dead.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 09 April 2021

Photo: Sri Lankan boat intercepted by India.

Taking Lessons from LTTE New Narco-Terrorism Network Takes Shape in South Asia

By Sugeeswara Senadhira

The writer is Director (International Media), Presidential Secretariat, Colombo.

COLOMBO (IDN) — Indian security officials believe the interception of a Sri Lankan boat carrying 300 kilograms of heroin, five AK-47 guns and ammunition off the coast of Vizhinjam in Kerala in South India on March 25 points to a network of narco-terrorism with strong links to a group in Sri Lanka. The Indian officials told the Media the network of narco-terrorism has created sleeper cells in Sri Lanka and other neighbouring countries, and exports drugs to foment trouble. They added that the drug income is then used to fund illegal activities, including extremist activities.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; South Asia; 08 April 2021

Image: Ecological economics views the economy as a subset of the larger ecological environment. Source: ResearchGate

ECOLOGY & ECONOMICS: Humanity Has Reached A Critical Decade

Viewpoint by John Scales Avery*

COPENHAGEN (IDN) — A new report, published on March 14, 2021 in the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences' journal Ambio [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13280-021-01544-8] points out that humanity is hurtling towards destruction unless we have the collective wisdom to change course quickly.

The article was written as part of the preparation of a meeting of Nobel Prize winners to discuss the state of the planet. The virtual meeting will be held on April 26-28, 2021.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 07 April 2021

The West Should Declare It Has No Strategic Interest in Israel

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Yesterday morning [April 5] I watched on BBC News the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, walking into the courtroom where he is to be tried for corruption. He is impossible to read—his mask makes it even more difficult. In repose his intentions and personality are inscrutable.

On the most important political issue of all—whether to support a two-state solution—sometimes he has said he is for it, but now he says he doesn’t. He prefers, it seems, to keep to the status quo, which means expanding Jewish settlements on Arab Palestinian land and refusing any political life to the occupied Palestinians. But we don’t really know what his inner thoughts are.