Inter Press Service | News and Views from the Global South

Inter Press Service | News and Views from the Global South

Slavery is Not a Thing of the Past, It Still Exists Today Affecting Millions Shannon Scribner While natural hazards like hurricanes, exacerbated by climate change, are causing people to migrate, it’s conflict, violence and persecution that have forced more than 68.5 million people from their homes today, exposing them to higher risks and increased vulnerability, especially women and ... MORE > >

“A Year of Shame” for Middle East and North Africa Tharanga Yakupitiyage Human rights violations are at an all-time high in the Middle East and North Africa, and global indifference is only making it worse. In a new report, Amnesty International reviewed the state of human rights in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and found a bleak landscape of ... MORE > >

Developing Agriprenuers to Save Nigeria’s Youth from Crime Busani Bafana When Lawrence Afere told his parents he was going into farming rather than getting a job in Nigeria’s lucrative oil and gas sector, they swore he was bewitched. “After saving to put me through the top university in Nigeria with an eye for a job in oil and gas, my parents had no explanation ... MORE > >

UN Accused of Failing to Move Aggressively Against Sexual Abuse Thalif Deen The United Nations, which prides itself with a “zero tolerance” policy on sexual exploitation and abuse, has come under relentless fire for failing to match its words with deeds—specifically in relation to some of the high-profile cases that have jolted the Organization. There have been ... MORE > >

Repression Stands in the Way of Political Solution to Crisis in Venezuela Humberto Márquez The violent repression that prevented food and medical aid from crossing into Venezuela, which left at least four people dead and 58 with gunshot wounds, has distanced solutions to what is today Latin America's biggest political crisis, although 10 countries in the hemisphere are stepping up the ... MORE > >

Accelerating the Caribbean's Climate Resilience Jewel Fraser The Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator launched last year June with the backing of Virgin’s Richard Branson has given itself five years to help the region become climate resilient. Its CEO Racquel Moses, who was appointed in January of this year, told IPS the climate smart accelerator sees ... MORE > >

Sexual Assault Survivors March to End Gender Violence in India Divya Srinivasan In an historic first, thousands of people participated in a 10,000-kilometre long Dignity March across India to raise awareness about sexual violence, bring an end to stigma faced by survivors, and highlight the barriers women and children face in accessing justice. Covering 200 districts in ... MORE > >

Hate Speech Threatens Our Humanity M. Nadarajah and Jomo Kwame Sundaram Do politicians’ words matter? Since becoming US President, Donald J Trump has dismissed his opponents and others he does not like as evil, stupid or both. He has referred to undocumented immigrants as animals, and to poor countries as shitholes. Fostering culture of hate Around the world, ... MORE > >

Does Climate Change Offer New Opportunities for Agriculture in Argentina? Daniel Gutman Climate change poses a global threat to food production, but for agriculture in Argentina it could also present new opportunities. In some areas of the country, farming conditions will improve, according to an analysis by experts of the latest climate projections. Through the "Maps of risk of ... MORE > >

Modern Day Slavery Rated World’s Largest Single Crime Industry Thalif Deen After an exhaustive study of modern day slavery, the Geneva-based International Labour Organization (ILO) concluded there are over 40 million people who are victims of slavery, including 25 million in forced labour and 15 million in forced marriages – with at least 71 percent of them comprising ... MORE > >

A Spotlight on those Suffering in Silence Tharanga Yakupitiyage While news of political scandals and tweets may inundate social media feeds, numerous humanitarian crises have slipped under the radar, leaving victims “suffering in silence.” In a new report, humanitarian organisation CARE shines a spotlight on global crises that have been neglected—a neglect ... MORE > >

Taking the Lead in Fight Against Climate Change A. D. McKenzie As the grandchild of Jamaican citizens who moved to Great Britain, Monique Taffe says she inherited a tradition of recycling and learned not to be part of the “throwaway culture”, as some environmentalists have labelled consumerist societies. “I saw how my grandmother re-used things, and that ... MORE > >

Local School Is a Model for Energy and Water in Rapa Nui Orlando Milesi A school in the capital of Easter Island (Rapa Nui, in the local indigenous tongue) gives an example of clean management with the use of solar energy, rainwater recovery and an organic vegetable garden, as well as rooms and spaces built with waste materials. Rapa Nui is a Chilean territory in ... MORE > >

The Future of Urbanism: Is the UAE Pioneering it? Rabiya Jaffery According to data from the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the Arab world is one of the most urbanised areas in the world, with more than 70 per cent of the population of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)--- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates ... MORE > >

‘No Way to Defend Ourselves Against the Onslaught of Climate Change’ Desmond Brown Two of the most prominent women in the Caribbean nation of Suriname are speaking out about developed countries that release large volumes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. First Lady Ingrid Bouterse-Waldring and Speaker of the National Assembly Jennifer Geerlings-Simons say Suriname and ... MORE > >

A World Party Roberto Savio I have been a member of the first international party: the Transnational Radical Party, founded in 1956 by Marco Pannella and Emma Bonino. Then in 1988, I was a witness of the large protest, in Berlin West, against the meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, a precursor of ... MORE > >