Author: CounterVortex

UN concerned over new fighting in Burma’s north

With international eyes on the crisis facing the Rohingya in Burma’s Rakhine State, the UN human rights rapporteur for the Southeast Asian country expressed grave concernĀ over a sharp escalation in hostilities in northern Kachin Stateā€”where peace talks with ethnic rebels haveĀ broken down.Ā Special Rapporteur Yanghee LeeĀ said she had received reports that the military had carried out aerial bombings, and used heavy weapons and artillery fire against civilian areas, forcingĀ thousands to flee their homes. “What we are seeing in Kachin State over the past few weeks is wholly unacceptable, and must stop immediately,ā€ Lee said.Ā (Photo of Kachin Independence Army fighters via WikiMedia Commons)

The Caribbean

Cuban anarchists get Havana infoshop

 ABRAA group of Cuban anarchists announced "a new phase in the process of self-emancipation," with the opening of ABRA Social Center and Libertarian Library in Havana's Vedado district. This endeavor of the Alfredo López Libertarian Workshop (an anti-authoritarian, anti-capitalist initiative launched in 2012, which forms part of the Anarchist Federation of the Caribbean and Central America), with the collaboration of allied collectives such as the Cuban Critical Observatory, seeks "to build an autonomous and sustainable space in today's Cuba."

The Andes

Fujimori to face charges over forced sterilization

Peru's top public prosecutor Luis Landa Burgos ordered that new charges be brought against ex-dictator Alberto Fujimori over the forcible sterilization of thousands of indigenous and peasant women during his time in power in the 1990s. Three of his former ministers are also to face charges, as well as his ex-health director. Landa said he has an archive of testimony from survivors including Inés Condori, an indigenous woman from Cuzco region who was the first to speak out about the forced sterilization she underwent in 1995. Fujimori, already convicted on other rights abuses and corruption charges, was released from prison following a presidential pardon in December. Landa is now evaluating the legality of the pardon in light of new criminal charges that have been brought. (Photo of sterilization survivors in community meeting from La República via CNDH)

The Andes

Peru: ex-Senderistas transferred to house arrest

Two imprisoned leaders of the Sendero Luminoso guerilla movement were released from military prison to house arrest by authorities in Peru, sparking outrage and debate in the country's media. Osmán Morote and Margot Liendo were arrested by anti-terrorist police in Lima in 1988. They completed their 25-year terms in 2013, but remained in detention as new charges were brought against them, concerning attacks in which some 150 were killed. The transfers from the detention facility at Callao Naval Base were ordered by the National Penal Chamber of Peru. Both Morote and Liendo were required to pay a bond of 10,000 soles ($3,100), and will be guarded at their homes in the Lima area by National Police agents. They have both declared a hunger strike in protest of the police presence and house arrest order, saying they should have absolute freedom after serving their terms. But President Martín Vizcarra called upon the judges to reverse their decision, and keep the pair behind bars while the new charges are pending against them. (Photo: Infobae)

The Andes

Peru: victory in protests over water price hike

All economic activities were suspended for several days in Peru's southern city of Moquegua as residents launched a civil strike to protest a planned 20% hike in water prices. The strike was relaxed when the central government sent a representative to meet with local and community leaders. Finally, the government agreed to invest more money in Moquegua's infrastructure, heading off the need for the hike. Authorities warned that the region's water system is at the brink of "collapse." But protesters pointed to the profligate use of water by the mining industry in Moquegua. Under pressure of the protests, authorities ordered the Aruntani mining company to immediately cease dumping of tailings and contaminated water in local creeks at its gold mine in Moquegua. After years of operation, the company was finally ordered to instate a water treatment program at the facility. (Photo: OEFA via Canal N)

Syria

Podcast: from Guernica to Syria

In Episode Eight of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg notes the bitter historical irony: In April of 1937, the aerial bombardment of the Spanish town of Guernica by the Nazi Luftwaffe shocked the world. Today, what happened there is a near-daily occurrence in Syria (as well as Yemen and elsewhere around the world), and we are so inured to it that the “anti-war” people are actually on the side of the authors of aerial terror.Ā During the Spanish Civil War, the left heroically opposed Generalissimo Francisco Franco’s drive to establish a fascist dictatorship with the aid of German military intervention. Today, it cravenly abets Bashar Assad’s drive to re-establish his fascist dictatorship with the aid of Russian military intervention. Even as Russia scrambles to block any investigation into the Douma chemical attack and other war crimes in Syria, “leftists” shamefully echo Russian propaganda denying any responsibility by Assad.Ā Weinberg again urges that any legitimate anti-war position must begin with opposition to the genocidal regime of Bashar Assad, and with solidarity for the Syrian Revolution. Listen on SoundCloud.Ā (Photo of Aleppo ruins from UNHCR)

North Africa

Western Sahara headed back towards war?

The UN Security Council extended the mandate of the peacekeeping force for Western Sahara (MINURSO) through the end of October 2018, while calling for Morocco and the Polisario Front to finally negotiate an end to the decades?old conflict. Western Sahara is claimed by Morocco, while the Polisario Front seeks independence for the territory. The territory has since the 1975-1991 war that followed its independence from Spain been divided by a series of sand berms and a "buffer zone." These separate the territory's Morocco-occupied west and a Polisario-controlled eastern strip. Recent months have seen growing tension between Morocco and Polisario over the borders of the buffer zone, with Polisario seeking to expand control into contested areas. (Photo: MINURSO via Yabiladi)

Central America

Nicaragua: ‘peace pilgrimage’ after protests

Tens of thousands from across Nicaragua marched on the capital Managua, including large delegations of campesinos from the countryside, in a "pilgrimage for peace" called by Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes following days of angry protests and repression that left some 50 dead. The Catholic Church agreed to mediate a dialogue between the government and opposition over the planned reform of the social security system that set off the protests. But the "pilgrimage" struck a political tone, with marchers calling for the resignation of President Daniel Ortega. (Photo: Nuevo Diario)

The Amazon

Colombia: ‘historic’ high court ruling on Amazon

In a decision being hailed as "historic," Colombia's Supreme Court of Jutsice ruled in favor of a group of 25 young people and children who brought suit against the state to demand it take measures to assure their right to inherit a healthy environment. They asserted that their future food security and access to water is threatened by continued deforestation in the Amazon and other ecological degradation. In its ruling, the court also noted Colombia's responsibilities on a global level to halt deforestation, as carbon dioxide releases from forest loss contribute to the greenhouse effect. The youth in the case were represented by lawyers from Colombia's Environmental Justice Network. (Photo: Contagio Radio)

The Andes

Colombia: protests over ‘catastrophic’ oil spill

A state of emergency has been declared in Barrancabermeja, the oil hub on Colombia’s RĆ­o Magdalena, following a rupture on a pipeline delivering crude to the city’s refinery. The spill at the Lizama 158 well, run by parastatal Ecopetrol, contaminated local waterways that flow into the Magdalena, and which local campesino communities depend on. The affected area includes habitat for jaguars and manatees. The Fracking-Free Colombia Alliance called it a “catastrophe of unequaled magnitude” in a long history of oil spills in the area, and said the impacts could last 30 years. Colombia’s attorney general has opened an investigation to determine if there is criminal liability in the spill. (Photo: Contagio Radio)

The Andes

Colombia rebuked over continuing rural violence

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights issued a statement calling on the government of Colombia to "take urgent measures" to protect social leaders and human rights defenders in response to the wave of assassinations over recent months. The statement asserted that 22 rights defenders had been killed in Colombia in the first two months of the year, and over 100 more threatened with death. The assassinations come in an atmosphere of violence across much of the country's rural areas, with some 2,500 displaced in recent months. Despite government denials, community leaders insist resurgent paramilitary networks are behind the attacks. (Photo via Contagio Radio)