THE WORLD

Image: Tuvalu Airport and Lagoon. Credit: M

The Latest IPCC Report: No Good News for Pacific Islands Countries

Viewpoint by Volker Boege

This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission.

QUEENSLAND, Australia (IDN) — The latest IPCC report on Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability shows that the effects of climate change are more severe than previously thought, that the situation will deteriorate globally faster than expected if no decisive action is taken now, and it highlights that low-lying island nations and islands will be hardest hit and be faced with truly existential threats. This is bad news, particularly for the Pacific Island Countries (PICs).

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 17 May 2022

Photo: Fiji Indians have made a significant contribution to the economy of Fiji. Pictured here are some Fiji Indian women with Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama. Source: Stuff, NZ

Fiji: Recognising Sufferings of Indentured Labourers

By Ravindra Singh Prasad

SUVA (IDN) — Every year on May 14 Fiji’s Indian community mark the day when the first shipment of their ancestors came here as indentured labourers to work in British sugarcane plantations established in their Pacific Ocean colony.

Girmitiya is how they came to be known over time—the name derived from the term Girmit, a corruption of the English word, agreement.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 17 May 2022

Security Council to Hold Emergency Session on World Food Security

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The United States, which is holding the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council this month, has summoned an “emergency session” of the Council on May 19 to focus largely on world food security in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken told reporters May 15 the United States and Western allies are coming together to address “some of the broader consequences that are flowing from Russia’s aggression, primarily the global food shortages and rising food prices”.

: Thalif Deen; UN INSIDER; 17 May 2022

A Schoolgirl Is Latest Victim of Nigerian Religious Strife

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — Religious conflicts have escalated dramatically in recent years. Throughout the 1950-1996 periods, these conflicts constituted 33% to 47% of all conflicts.

Few continents are exempt from this picture of faith-based conflict and today Nigerians are grappling with a troubling theological issue following the stoning death of a Christian college student, allegedly for committing blasphemy on a social media site.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 16 May 2022

Photo: Indigenous communities in South Africa sue, protest off-shore oil and gas exploration. Source: MONGABAY

Big Oil and Gold Miners Get The ‘Unwelcome Mat’ From African Grassroots Groups

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — Oil companies and gold mines in Africa are facing increasingly fierce challenges from grassroots community organizations trying to address serious climate concerns.

Shell Oil, to give an example, was hit with legal challenges as both the company and individual Board members faced opposition from Friends of the Earth.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 16 May 2022

Commonwealth Joins the UN in Combating Corruption in Africa

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW l KIGALI (IDN) — The 12th Regional Conference of Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Commonwealth Africa convened in Kigali, Rwanda, from May 3-7 under the theme: ‘Combating Corruption for Good Governance and Sustainable Development in Africa’.

The Conference was jointly organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Government of Rwanda and brought together members of the Association of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Commonwealth Africa, senior government officials, relevant international organisations, policymakers, and development partners to address key priorities toward the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 16.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 15 May 2022

Photo: Nepal’s reliance on India for electricity has continued even as the country has been exploring options to export power to the southern neighbour. Source: The Kathmandu Post

Nepal Hammered by One of the Worst Power Crises in India

By Lekhanath Pandey

This article was issued by NewsClick, and is being republished courtesy of that independent media organization in India.

KATHMANDU (IDN) — Nepal's industrial sector has been hit hard by power cuts in recent weeks, with many small, medium as well as large firms forced to shut down operations due to a lack of electricity.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; South Asia; 14 May 2022

Photo: In January 2021, India's wheat exports were worth $80 million, which reached $304 million in January 2022. India's exports increased by a whopping 387 per cent in April-Jun 2022 YoY. Source: BusinessToday.in

India Explains Decision to Curb Wheat Exports

By Jutta Wolf

BERLIN | NEW DELHI (IDN) — In the wake of Russia blocking Ukraine’s exports, on May 13 India decided to restrict wheat exports. Explaining the decision, the Government’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) said the export curb will control food prices, and strengthen the food security of India and countries facing a deficit.

: Jutta Wolf; THE WORLD; South Asia; 14 May 2022

Photo: Bongbong Marcos presidential campaign in Makati. CC BY-SA 4.0

Philippines: Marcos Win Exposes Weakness of Democratic Processes

By Kalinga Seneviratne

SYDNEY (IDN) — The landslide victory in the May 9 presidential polls in the Philippines by Ferdinand Marcos jr the son of the former dictator of the same name who was forced to flee the country with his family (that includes his young son) in 1986 by a “peoples’ power” revolution throws another spanner into the adage that democracy gives people a voice to choose people to serve them and the nation.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 14 May 2022

Photo: The British destroyer HMS Coventry (D118) underway in the Atlantic Ocean, circa in 1981. In the background is the U.S. Navy frigate USS Bagley (FF-1069). Wikimedia Commons.

Malvinas, Falklands and the Lines on the Map for the United Kingdom

Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. and Jainendra Karn

Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. is an ex-diplomat & ALCAP’s Special Adviser for Asia & Africa and Jainendra Karn is a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of IDN-InDepth News.

NEW DELHI (IDN) — A recent Tweet by Piers Morgan about the impending and inevitable collapse of the United Kingdom reminded one of the Twitter post made in February 2022 titled “Will British brinkmanship result in Argentina getting Malvinas (Falklands) back in 2023-24?.”