By Jaya Ramachandran | IDN-InDepthNews Analysis
BERLIN | BRUSSELS | PARIS (IDN) – The UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris would be recorded in the annals of global negotiations if only because a block of wealthy nations responsible for contributing to global warming made a common cause with a group of developing nations suffering the dire consequences of climate change.
Von Shastri Ramachandaran*
PEKING (IDN) – Das Ende der zwangsweise durchgesetzten Ein-Kind-Politik in China erscheint als bahnbrechende Maßnahme mit großer wirtschaftlicher und politischer Tragweite. Es bleibt jedoch zu bezweifeln, ob sie tatsächlich die beabsichtigen positiven Auswirkungen auf die Wirtschaft der Volksrepublik haben wird. Die Entscheidung der Kommunistischen Partei Chinas vom 29. Oktober 2015, die bislang strikt umgesetzte Ein-Kind-Politik nach 35 Jahren abzuschaffen und jeder Familie künftig zwei Kinder zu erlauben, hat in erster Linie politische Bedeutung.
BERLIN | BRUSSELS | PARIS (IDN) – The UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris would be recorded in the annals of global negotiations if only because a block of wealthy nations responsible for contributing to global warming made a common cause with a group of developing nations suffering the dire consequences of climate change.
By Bernhard Schell | IDN-InDepthNews Analysis
AMMAN (IDN) – Amnesty International johas urged Jordan to “take immediate action” to help up to 12,000 refugees who have been denied entry to the country and are struggling to survive in desperate, freezing conditions in “no man’s land” on the Jordanian side of the border with Syria.
By Somar Wijayadasa* | IDN-InDepthNews Analyis
NEW YORK (IDN) – Almost all countries of the world commemorated the World AIDS Day on December 1 with statements that exhibit optimism that the HIV/AIDS epidemic is finally on its last leg.
Despite tremendous progress in containing the pandemic, the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimates that, in 2014, there were “over 2 million new HIV infections”.
By Robert J. Burrowes* | IDN-InDepthNews Analysis
DAYLESFORD, Victoria | Australia (IDN) – What do the Pyrenean ibex, St. Helena olive, Baiji dolphin, Liverpool pigeon, Eastern cougar, West African black rhinoceros, Formosan clouded leopard, Chinese Paddlefish, the Golden Toad and the Rockland grass skipper butterfly all have in common but which is different from the Dodo?
The answer is that these species all became extinct since the year 2000, that is, in the last fifteen years. The Dodo became extinct in 1662.
The one thing that all of these species have in common is that the cause of their extinction was human beings.
Von Jutta Wolf
BERLIN (IDN) – In Simbabwe vergewaltigte ein Mann ein neunjähriges Mädchen, das auf dem Weg zur Schule war. Die Polizei nahm den Täter fest, ließ ihn kurz darauf aber wieder frei – weil er Schmiergeld gezahlt hatte. Dieser Fall ist keine Ausnahme. In ihrem neuen Bericht ‘People and Corruption: Africa Survey 2015’ stuft die Organisation ‘Transparency International’ die Polizei und die Privatwirtschaft auf dem Kontinent als hochgradig korrupt ein. “Solche Geschichten erfahren wir jeden Tag”, heißt es in dem Report. “In vielen Ländern kann man mit Geld erreichen, dass Polizeibeamte jedes Verbrechen übersehen, so grauenvoll es auch sein mag. Es ist nur eine Frage des Preises.”
By Shastri Ramachandaran* | IDN-InDepthNews Analysis
BEIJING (IDN) – The ending of China’s one-child policy, which gained notoriety for its coercive implementation, is a landmark event of immense economic and political significance, but there are serious question marks about whether it can effectively produce the positive economic fallout that its architects expect.
The importance of the October 29 decision of the Communist Party of China (CPC) to jettison the 35-year-old draconian one-child policy in favour of a new, universal two-child norm is primarily political as underscored by the fact that the announcement was made in a communique released at the conclusion of the four-day conclave – Fifth Plenum – of the CPC’s 18th Central Committee.
The main purpose of the plenum was to finalise China’s 13th Five-Year Plan – the first since Xi Jinping became President – and map the road ahead for the world’s second largest economy, which has had to contend with a falling growth rate in the last few years. China now aims to strive for a GDP growth rate of 6.5 to 7 percent during the five years of this Plan ending in 2020.
By Jaya Ramachandran | IDN-InDepthNews Report
BERLIN | PARIS (IDN) – The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Chairperson Naoko Ishii has welcomed pledges made at the UN Climate Conference in Paris to inject more than 252 million U.S. dollars to help the most vulnerable countries address climate change and its adverse consequences.
In an unprecedented move, Premier Philippe Couillard of Québec, Canada’s largest province by area and its second-largest administrative division, has announced a contribution of 6 million Canadian dollars to the climate fund, hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) for the most vulnerable countries.
The commitment, made at the Paris COP21 climate talks, is the first-ever by a sub-national government, and brings total new financing to the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) to more than 252 million U.S. dollars.
The support for the LDCF was included in an announcement by the Québec government on December 5 of new international funding for climate cooperation.
By Fabíola Ortiz | IDN-InDepthNews Feature
PENNSYLVANIA (IDN) – A free global and interconnected citizenship might be the pathway to foster a non-violent and peaceful culture within societies. This is the main objective of a grassroots movement that advocates enhancing education, promoting universal values, interfaith dialogue and democracy.
A Turkish Muslim scholar Fethullah Gülen is the inspiration behind the movement called “Hizmet” (‘service’ in Turkish). Seen as a moderate Muslim, he emphasizes the need for interfaith dialogue, educational projects as an emancipatory tool of society to live freely and fairly, and the idea that science and religion can go hand in hand.
Over the five decades, the movement grew in Turkey and spread over 100 countries through the Turkish diaspora around the world. It is estimated that around 10 to 15% of the Turkish population is somehow engaged in this movement that has no centralized bureaucracy.
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