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- Kerry defends US decision not to veto UN resolution against Israeli settlements
- Turkey and Russia 'agree terms of Syria ceasefire'
- Obama set to hit Russia with further sanctions before leaving office
- François Hollande pardons woman for murder of husband
- Berlin truck attack: Tunisian man detained by German prosecutors
- More than 50,000 migrants left Germany in 2016, says report
- A smooth transition? 'NOT!' Trump decries Obama's 'roadblocks' in tweets
- Amazon refuses to let police access US murder suspect's Echo recordings
- Donald Trump: I'm very strong on Israel – video
- Iraqi troops resume push to take Mosul from Isis after two-week lull
- Eyewitness: Ibi, Spain
- Toshiba shares plummet for third day running
- Head of Japan's top ad firm to quit after new recruit's death from overwork
- Rising nationalism leaves international criminal court at risk
- 1764 census reveals St Kilda residents feasted on 1,600 seabirds a day
- App designed to detect hearing loss makes a big noise in South Africa | Tom Jackson
- Colombia approves amnesty deal for thousands of Farc rebels
- Lawyer for man due to be sent to US on child sex charges calls for extradition overhaul
- 'A more dangerous long-term threat': Al-Qaida grows as Isis retreats
- Rodrigo Duterte says he once threw a suspect from helicopter
- Angela Merkel and the history book that helped inform her worldview
- The global rise of populist political movements – Project podcast
- Anger as Japanese minister visits 'war crimes' shrine after Pearl Harbor trip
- Xinjiang attack: four 'terrorists' and one bystander killed, says China
- Australian police seize more than a tonne of cocaine – video
- Madrid bans half of cars from roads to fight air pollution
- Telling porkies: German MP attacks vegetarian products with meaty names
- Benjamin Netanyahu subject of criminal investigation – report
- Netanyahu says Kerry comments 'skewed' against Israel – video
- Want to know what it's like to be a woman in a boy's club? Ask any waitress
- Inside toilets may not appeal to all Indian villagers | Letters
- John Kerry: Israel must adopt two-state solution for lasting peace – video
- Ghulam Hussain obituary
- Bahrain's allies in EU and UK urged to speak out after activist reimprisoned
- UK's key role in brokering UN resolution on Israeli settlements confirmed
- Russian divers find plane crash debris in Black Sea – video
- Russia opens inquiry into men who crushed bear to death
- Eyewitness: Chepstow, UK
- 2016: the year in viral videos
- Short story winner: a tale from Mexico on the agony of doubt | Roberto Franco-Alba
- View from the favelas: Developments in Rio masked the bleak reality | Thaís Cavalcante
- A visão das favelas: 'Nós éramos obrigados a enxergar 'a cidade maravilhosa'' | Thaís Cavalcante
- John Kerry's Middle East plan mirrors Bill Clinton's futile end-of-term attempt
| Kerry defends US decision not to veto UN resolution against Israeli settlements Posted: 28 Dec 2016 10:53 AM PST US secretary of state pushes two-state solution and criticises Netanyahu in toughest remarks on Israel by a US official in years The US secretary of state, John Kerry, has offered a blistering defence of the US decision to allow a UN resolution condemning Israeli settlements, saying if Washington had vetoed it, Israel would have been given a licence for "unfettered settlement construction" and the end of the peace process. Framing a two-state solution as "the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians", Kerry took aim at the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for building a coalition that was "the most rightwing in Israeli history, with an agenda driven by the most extreme elements". |
| Turkey and Russia 'agree terms of Syria ceasefire' Posted: 28 Dec 2016 05:42 AM PST Countries have agreed proposal that should come into force by midnight, says Turkish foreign minister Turkey and Russia have agreed on a proposal for a general ceasefire in Syria and will aim to put it into effect by midnight on Wednesday night, Turkey's foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said. Continue reading... |
| Obama set to hit Russia with further sanctions before leaving office Posted: 28 Dec 2016 06:47 PM PST Outgoing president to impose sanctions over claims – dismissed by Trump – of hacking and interference in US election The outgoing US administration is poised to hit Russia with further sanctions before Barack Obama leaves office next month, in response to allegations of Russian hacking and interference in the US electoral process. The Obama administration has had a rocky relationship with Russia and has already imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow, mainly for its actions in Ukraine. Continue reading... |
| François Hollande pardons woman for murder of husband Posted: 28 Dec 2016 01:49 PM PST Jacqueline Sauvage receives presidential pardon and is released from prison in 'strong message' to domestic abuse victims A French woman who was convicted of murdering her allegedly violent husband has been freed from prison after a second intervention from the country's president. Two hours after François Hollande gave her a complete pardon, Jacqueline Sauvage, 69, was seen leaving a prison southeast of Paris after spending more than three years behind bars. Continue reading... |
| Berlin truck attack: Tunisian man detained by German prosecutors Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:27 AM PST Forty-year-old held in connection with deadly attack on Christmas market as investigators try to piece together route that took suspect Anis Amri to Milan German prosecutors have detained a Tunisian man they suspect may have been involved in last week's truck attack on a Christmas market in Berlin. The 40-year-old, who was not identified, was held during a search of his home and business, federal prosecutors said. Continue reading... |
| More than 50,000 migrants left Germany in 2016, says report Posted: 28 Dec 2016 03:14 PM PST The increased number of migrants leaving the country is believed to be a response to Germany's hardening immigration stance About 55,000 migrants who were not eligible for asylum or were refused it left Germany voluntarily between January and November 2016, up by 20,000 from the number who left voluntarily in 2015, a newspaper reported yesterday. Germany has toughened its stance in recent months, prompted by concerns about security and integration after admitting more than 1.1 million migrants since early 2015. |
| A smooth transition? 'NOT!' Trump decries Obama's 'roadblocks' in tweets Posted: 28 Dec 2016 09:49 AM PST The president-elect complained about Obama's 'inflammatory statements', but didn't specify what the US president has done or said to anger him this time The thin veneer of civility between Barack Obama and Donald Trump has a few more cracks in it, after Trump tweeted to accuse Obama of throwing up "inflammatory" roadblocks during the presidential transition of power. Doing my best to disregard the many inflammatory President O statements and roadblocks.Thought it was going to be a smooth transition - NOT! Continue reading... |
| Amazon refuses to let police access US murder suspect's Echo recordings Posted: 28 Dec 2016 02:36 AM PST Company has declined to provide audio recorded by smart speaker system at house where man died, according to a report Amazon has refused to hand over data from an Echo smart speaker to US police want to access as part of an investigation into a murder in Arkansas, according to court records seen by tech industry news site The Information. Arkansas police issued a warrant to Amazon to turn over recordings and other information associated with the device owned by James Andrew Bates. Bates has been charged with the murder of a man found dead in his hot tub in November 2015. |
| Donald Trump: I'm very strong on Israel – video Posted: 29 Dec 2016 01:25 AM PST President-elect Donald Trump says he is 'very strong on Israel' and suggests the country has been 'treated unfairly by different people'. Speaking in Palm Beach, Florida, on Wednesday, during his longest question and answer session with reporters since election day, Trump went on to discuss his business and the transition from the Obama administration to his own, prior to inauguration on 20 January. Photograph: AP/Evan Vucci
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| Iraqi troops resume push to take Mosul from Isis after two-week lull Posted: 29 Dec 2016 01:09 AM PST Elite special forces, army and federal police launch multi-pronged assault after initial advances slowed by militants' resistance Iraqi troops backed by US-led airstrikes have pushed deeper into eastern Mosul in a multi-pronged assault after a two-week lull in the operation to retake the Islamic State-held city. Elite special forces pushed into the Karama and Quds neighbourhoods, while army troops and federal police advanced into the nearby areas of Intisar, Salam and Sumor. Smoke rose across the city as explosions and machine gun fire echoed through the streets. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:55 AM PST Photographs from the Eyewitness series Continue reading... |
| Toshiba shares plummet for third day running Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:27 AM PST Fall of 19% follows drops of 20% and 12% as concerns mount about a potential multibillion-dollar writedown Shares in Toshiba fell more than 19% on Thursday, the third day of heavy losses after the Japanese tech-to-nuclear conglomerate said earlier this week that it faced a potential multibillion-dollar writedown. The latest plunge in the shares follows a 20% drop on Wednesday and a 12% slide on Tuesday, wiping about $6.5bn (£5.3bn) from the group's stock market value this week. Continue reading... |
| Head of Japan's top ad firm to quit after new recruit's death from overwork Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:12 AM PST President of Dentsu to step down a year after Matsuri Takahashi killed herself, sparking calls for Japan to overhaul work culture The head of Japan's biggest advertising agency is to resign, as prosecutors launch an investigation into his firm for enforcing excessive overtime after an overworked employee took her own life. Tadashi Ishii, the president of Dentsu, said he would step down next month, just over a year after Matsuri Takahashi killed herself at a company dormitory in a case Japanese authorities classified as karoshi, or death from overwork. Continue reading... |
| Rising nationalism leaves international criminal court at risk Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:00 AM PST Top lawyer warns withdrawal of countries and limiting of funding threaten future of tribunal – and entire post-1945 settlement Six months after the international criminal court's new Dutch palace of justice was formally opened on windswept sand dunes beside the North Sea, a tide of nationalist sentiment is threatening to undermine the project. Three African states have begun withdrawing from its jurisdiction, raising fears that a succession of others will follow suit. Russia has removed its signature from the founding statute, the Philippines and Kenya are openly contemplating departure and key member nations – including the UK – have limited its funding. Continue reading... |
| 1764 census reveals St Kilda residents feasted on 1,600 seabirds a day Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:00 PM PST Document unearthed by archivists sheds new light on history of archipelago and the people that lived there A 250-year-old census has revealed St Kilda islanders ate more than 1,600 seabirds every day. The document is the earliest recorded list of the archipelago's population and was discovered by archivists among a hoard of clan papers. Continue reading... |
| App designed to detect hearing loss makes a big noise in South Africa | Tom Jackson Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:00 PM PST A smartphone app used to test for impaired hearing, is helping people in underserved and rural areas of South Africa to identify and treat problems Millions of South Africans suffer from debilitating hearing loss. Early screening is vital, but represents a challenge in a vast country where rural populations lack access to medical experts. A new smartphone app is attempting to address these problems by detecting hearing loss and connecting patients with experts. Continue reading... |
| Colombia approves amnesty deal for thousands of Farc rebels Posted: 28 Dec 2016 06:26 PM PST Law approved by Congress will protect those who committed minor crimes and will also apply to the military Colombia's Congress has approved an amnesty law to protect thousands of demobilising Farc guerrilla fighters from prosecution for minor crimes committed during the country's 52-year war. The law, a key part of a peace deal signed last month between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia rebels, will not include those who have committed war crimes or human rights violations. Continue reading... |
| Lawyer for man due to be sent to US on child sex charges calls for extradition overhaul Posted: 28 Dec 2016 10:43 PM PST Christopher Lobban, 58, has been in prison in Perth since 2011 on allegations he encouraged a Florida woman on a website to whip and spank teenage girls The lawyer for a Western Australian man due to be extradited to the US on child sex charges has called for an overhaul of Australia's laws, saying his client would probably die in jail if convicted. Christopher Lobban, 58, has been in Perth's Hakea remand prison since Australian federal police raided his home in July 2011 on allegations from the Polk County sheriff in Florida that he encouraged a woman on a BDSM (bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, sadism and masochism) website to whip and spank two teenage girls. The woman is alleged to have filmed the acts and sent the video to him via the website's chat room. Continue reading... |
| 'A more dangerous long-term threat': Al-Qaida grows as Isis retreats Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:00 PM PST Group has been seeking to build support across Islamic world – from south Asia to Africa – through outreach instead of fear When three al-Qaida veterans were killed in Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan in October, it barely created a ripple. So dominant has Isis become in the realm of jihadist lore, that you could be forgiven for thinking that its precursor has been relegated to a mere footnote. You'd be wrong. Those three deaths, all in US airstrikes, paradoxically hint at a resurgence of al-Qaida, at a time when Isis is in retreat in Iraq, Syria and Libya. Quietly, and more through soft power rather than harsh atrocity, al-Qaida is trying to mount a revival. Continue reading... |
| Rodrigo Duterte says he once threw a suspect from helicopter Posted: 28 Dec 2016 10:40 PM PST Philippines president threatens to jettison corrupt officials – 'I have done this before,' he says in speech to typhoon victims President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines has threatened corrupt government officials with the prospect of being thrown out of a helicopter, warning he has done it himself before. The former prosecutor said he once hurled a Chinese man suspected of rape and murder out of a helicopter. Continue reading... |
| Angela Merkel and the history book that helped inform her worldview Posted: 28 Dec 2016 10:00 PM PST Jürgen Osterhammel's The Transformation of the World left its mark on the German chancellor, judging by her recent decisions While she was recuperating from a skiing accident in 2013, Angela Merkel picked up a 1,500-page tome on the 19th century by the historian Jürgen Osterhammel called The Transformation of the World. The book left an impression. A few months later she invited Osterhammel to her 60th birthday party, not just to celebrate but to give an hour-long lecture. The theme was "history and time", and those familiar with Osterhammel's work detect his influence in Merkel's worldview, particularly where he covers globalisation, migration and technology. Continue reading... |
| The global rise of populist political movements – Project podcast Posted: 28 Dec 2016 09:22 PM PST Guardian editors and correspondents discuss the wave of populism in 2016 that handed triumphs to politicians including Donald Trump, Nigel Farage and the Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte. If their simple and seductive policies do not work, will they fall out of favour? Or will other aspiring leaders resort to even more extreme versions of the same methods to get elected? Continue reading... |
| Anger as Japanese minister visits 'war crimes' shrine after Pearl Harbor trip Posted: 28 Dec 2016 08:48 PM PST South Korea protests as Tomomi Inada, Japan's defence minister, pays homage at Yasukuni memorial where those honoured include leaders of wartime atrocities Japan's defence minister, Tomomi Inada, has provoked anger in South Korea following a visit to a controversial war shrine in Tokyo, a day after she accompanied the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, on his reconciliatory trip to Pearl Harbor. South Korea's foreign ministry denounced as "deplorable" Inada's visit to Yasukuni, a site it said "beautifies past colonial invasions and invasive war and honours war criminals". |
| Xinjiang attack: four 'terrorists' and one bystander killed, says China Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 PM PST Assailants shot dead after driving up to regional Communist party headquarters and setting off bomb, according to official media, in flare-up in Uighur region Attackers drove a car into a government building in China's restive far western region of Xinjiang on Wednesday and set off explosives, killing one person while all four of the assailants were shot dead, the regional government said. Hundreds of people have been killed in recent years in resource-rich Xinjiang, on the borders of central Asia, in violence between the Muslim Uighur people who call the region home and Han Chinese who are China's ethnic majority. Continue reading... |
| Australian police seize more than a tonne of cocaine – video Posted: 28 Dec 2016 06:29 PM PST An alleged international crime syndicate attempting to import $360m of cocaine into Australia has been smashed by police raids over Christmas. Australian federal police and NSW police say they have charged 15 men allegedly involved in the drug smuggling ring, and seized about 500 kilograms of cocaine in New South Wales and a further 600 kilograms in Tahiti, bound for Australia Continue reading... |
| Madrid bans half of cars from roads to fight air pollution Posted: 28 Dec 2016 05:15 PM PST Odd- and even-numbered vehicles will swap use of roads in Spanish capital until smog eases Madrid has ordered half of most private cars off the roads on Thursday to tackle worsening air pollution, a first in Spain. The restrictions will operate between 6.30am and 9pm and will be re-evaluated daily depending on pollution levels. The city council said in a statement: "vehicles with even-number registration plates will be allowed to drive around on even-number days and cars with odd-number registration plates on odd-number days". Continue reading... |
| Telling porkies: German MP attacks vegetarian products with meaty names Posted: 28 Dec 2016 05:00 PM PST Agriculture minister Christian Schmidt calls for ban on labels like 'vegan curry sausage' that he says are 'misleading and unsettling' for consumers Germany's agriculture minister has called for a ban on names such as "vegetarian schnitzel" for meat-substitute products, which he said were misleading consumers. Among the "wurst" offenders is "vegan curry sausage", a meat-free version of a heavily spiced pork dish born of post-second world war necessity and now considered a delicacy in Berlin — though largely unknown outside Germany. Continue reading... |
| Benjamin Netanyahu subject of criminal investigation – report Posted: 28 Dec 2016 01:40 PM PST Attorney general orders investigation into two unspecified matters involving prime minister, Israeli television station says Israel's attorney general has ordered police to open a criminal investigation into two unspecified matters involving the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's Channel 10 television has said. A spokeswoman for Israel's justice ministry declined to respond to the report. Netanyahu has in the past denied wrongdoing in the purchase of submarines from Germany, where media have reported a potential conflict of interest involving his lawyer. Continue reading... |
| Netanyahu says Kerry comments 'skewed' against Israel – video Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:46 AM PST Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, condemned a speech by US secretary of state John Kerry, saying it paid lip service to the 'campaign of terrorism that has been waged by the Palestinians'. Netanyahu spoke at a news conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday after Kerry rejected criticism that the recent US vote in the United Nations Security Council abandons Israel, as some Israeli leaders have charged Continue reading... |
| Want to know what it's like to be a woman in a boy's club? Ask any waitress Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:00 AM PST Too often, bosses side with chefs as front-of-house staff are easier to replace and are lower in the hospitality hierarchy At law school, lecturers love to remind their students that they will be entering a boys' club. In parliament, it's the same story: watch five minutes of question time and you'll see it. So maybe we shouldn't have been so shocked last year when Caroline Tan brought the "boys' club" of the medical profession to everyone's attention. Or this year, when Erin Riley experienced backlash after calling out sexism in sport. Yet another conglomerate of educated, middle-class white men were forming a boys' club, to the detriment of women. Where else are women being repeatedly pushed around and pushed away in their workplace? The answer is close to home for anyone who's bought a coffee or beer, or eaten at a restaurant. Hospitality is one of the worst boys' clubs of all. Continue reading... |
| Inside toilets may not appeal to all Indian villagers | Letters Posted: 28 Dec 2016 10:39 AM PST As an anthropologist working on rural life in India, I find describing public defecation as "ingrained in India's rural culture" an oversimplification of a complex problem of social life in country areas (Delhi council to shame people into using toilets, 21 December). It is true that cities such as Delhi have experienced an influx of migrants from the countryside, but one cannot dismiss rural habits quite so simply. My research has shown that rural folks have not taken up the government's idea of building modern enclosed toilets in their villages because the old practice of open defecation was to avoid carrying back the smell inside their house, which modern enclosed toilets do not allow. Continue reading... |
| John Kerry: Israel must adopt two-state solution for lasting peace – video Posted: 28 Dec 2016 09:22 AM PST The US secretary of state delivered a farewell speech to outline his proposals for a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians, in which he said a two-state solution was the only way to achieve lasting peace. Kerry's speech on Wednesday comes days after the US refused to veto a United Nations security council resolution that called Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem a violation of international law Continue reading... |
| Posted: 28 Dec 2016 08:47 AM PST When the partition of India and Pakistan began in 1947, my father, Ghulam Hussain, who has died aged 81, joined the Muslim exodus from Bombay (now Mumbai) in a perilous journey to the north. As part of the largest single migration of peoples in history, on his hazardous journey he witnessed many atrocities and deaths. He told me that a single handful of raw beans between himself and three other villagers was all there was to stave off starvation travelling on the back of a truck from Rawalpindi to Peshawar. Born in the north-west frontier province near the hill cantonment of Cherat, a sanatorium for British troops, my father was one of the seven children of Sheraz Khan, a contractor supplying food and materials to the army, and Mareeb Bibi. From the age of seven he transported goods from village to village, and had no formal education, but he later gained some literacy, and in adulthood acquired some English. Continue reading... |
| Bahrain's allies in EU and UK urged to speak out after activist reimprisoned Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:55 AM PST Nabeel Rajab, who was detained in June over tweets criticising Yemen war and allegations of torture, released on bail but ordered back into custody hours later Human rights groups in Bahrain have urged the country's allies in the EU and the UK to "speak out before it's too late", after the prominent activist Nabeel Rajab was released on bail following several months of pre-trial detainment only to be reimprisoned hours afterwards. Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, the director of advocacy of the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, said: "Bahrain plays with [Rajab's] life despite his deteriorating health condition and UN calls for his unconditional release. The latest judicial harassment exposes Bahrain's mockery of justice. Bahrain's allies in the EU & UK must speak out before it's too late." |
| UK's key role in brokering UN resolution on Israeli settlements confirmed Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:01 AM PST Confirmation that Britain helped draft resolution in secret puts UK on collision course with Israel – and at odds with Donald Trump Britain played a key behind-the-scenes role in brokering the UN resolution condemning Israel for violating international law with its policy of building settlements on occupied Palestinian territory, it has been confirmed. The UK helped draft some of the key wording to ensure it met US concerns. The UK role, first highlighted by Israeli diplomatic sources, leaves the UK on a collision course not just with Israel, but at odds with Donald Trump, the US president-elect and a strong opponent of the UN resolution, the first to be passed that is critical of Israel for seven years. Continue reading... |
| Russian divers find plane crash debris in Black Sea – video Posted: 28 Dec 2016 06:27 AM PST Russian divers scouring the Black Sea find debris from Sunday's plane crash, which killed all 92 people on board. The Tu-154 crashed into the water early Sunday two minutes after taking off in good weather from the city of Sochi. Rescue officials say the debris found on Wednesday may point them to the exact crash site Russian plane crash investigators recover first black box Continue reading... |
| Russia opens inquiry into men who crushed bear to death Posted: 28 Dec 2016 03:57 AM PST Investigation comes after video was posted on YouTube showing men running over bear with off-road vehicles A criminal investigation has been opened into a group of men who filmed themselves killing a bear in Siberia by running over it with off-road vehicles. A video posted on YouTube on Monday and apparently filmed on a mobile phone showed a brown bear being crushed to death in the snow by two heavy duty trucks, of the kind used by oil and mining workers. The video has since been removed. |
| Posted: 28 Dec 2016 02:26 AM PST Photographs from the Eyewitness series Continue reading... |
| 2016: the year in viral videos Posted: 28 Dec 2016 02:00 AM PST 2016 has been quite a year... not least for its viral videos and social media challenges. Here we look back at celebrities doing carpool karaoke and the mannequin challenge. What a year it has been for Chewbacca Mom, and who can forget Ed Balls dancing Gangnam style?
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| Short story winner: a tale from Mexico on the agony of doubt | Roberto Franco-Alba Posted: 29 Dec 2016 01:00 AM PST As part of its 50th anniversary celebrations, the UK's Institute of Development Studies held a short story competition for members and research partners, to encourage fiction writing on development. We publish the three winning entries First prize: Choosing the Sea by Roberto Franco-Alba By four o'clock, when I first left my room, my belly hurt a lot. In the living room as in the rest of the house, everything was in silence and the kitchen, which usually smelled like soup and burnt corn, was cold and dusty; the wind seeped through the open window and made the curtains sway. I opened the cupboard's wooden door and took the biscuit tin. When I shook it, the crumbs made the bottom tinkle. I turned back to the shelves with the cartons and the herb jars and dusted off the boxes with my hand. I found a packet with crackers in the corner and a bottle of mayo in the fridge, and then ran back to my room. As I didn't want to think, I spent my time sleeping, day and night in my pyjamas, with a pillow on my head so I didn't see the light. I also felt less hungry that way. When I got tired of sleeping I tried to read but I couldn't, so I took my old Discman and a noisy album and listened to it until my ears hurt. The silence was dreadful because it made me remember. I am no whiner, but I didn't want to remember, I hoped that I could open my eyes and things would be over. I wanted to … Continue reading... |
| View from the favelas: Developments in Rio masked the bleak reality | Thaís Cavalcante Posted: 28 Dec 2016 03:31 AM PST In her diary entry from Maré after the Olympics in Rio, Thaís Cavalcante reports on improvements that have stalled since the city left the global spotlight The impact of the Olympic Games on the lives of residents of the 16 favelas of the Maré complex has passed, but it has left its mark. The same goes for those who visited the city of Rio de Janeiro and came across shocking everyday scenes that are hard to forget. The past few months have flown by and little by little things are falling back into place – the TV programmes, the traffic and the city spaces have returned to normal, after we were forced to look at the false "marvellous city" that was being sold to the rest of the world. I saw this as a process of change – but one of deterioration instead of the growth we were promised. Like a mask for the rest of the world to see. What the Games brought to the city in concrete terms mainly involves public transport and security. After all, if a government wants to be remembered, it's smarter to build new things instead of developing what already exists. Related: Rio Olympics: view from the favelas – 'The segregation of Rio is notorious' Continue reading... |
| A visão das favelas: 'Nós éramos obrigados a enxergar 'a cidade maravilhosa'' | Thaís Cavalcante Posted: 28 Dec 2016 03:30 AM PST No nosso diário da vida na Maré, Thaís Cavalcante diz que os moradores de favelas merecem representantes no poder que tenham vivência na realidade O impacto dos Jogos Olímpicos na vida dos moradores das 16 favelas da Maré passou, mas deixou uma marca. Assim como pra quem visitou a cidade do Rio de Janeiro e se deparou com situações marcantes no dia a dia difíceis de esquecer. Os últimos meses passaram rápido e colocaram aos poucos a programação de TV, o trânsito e os espaços da cidade no lugar, pois antes, nós éramos obrigados a enxergar "a cidade maravilhosa" dentro do falso contexto mostrado para o exterior. Vi como um processo de mudança que decaiu ao invés de crescer, como foi prometido. Como um disfarce para o mundo. O que os Jogos trouxeram de concreto para a cidade envolve principalmente o transporte público e a segurança pública. Afinal, para o governo ser lembrado, mais inteligente construir coisas do que desenvolver o que já existe. Related: Jogos Olímpicos do Rio: A vista das favelas – 'O silêncio, às vezes, não significa paz' Continue reading... |
| John Kerry's Middle East plan mirrors Bill Clinton's futile end-of-term attempt Posted: 28 Dec 2016 04:12 PM PST It is a reflection of the paralysis and steady demise of the peace process over the ensuing 16 years that Kerry's principles closely resemble Clinton's parameters John Kerry is not the first US statesman to lay out a Middle East peace plan just as he is about to leave office. In December 2000, Bill Clinton presented a set of parameters for a two-state solution, covering the same set of daunting issues: Jerusalem, the right of return (or not) of Palestinian refugees, territorial exchange on the basis of the 1967 ceasefire line and Israeli security. Continue reading... |
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