The Selk’nam finally claim their rights as one of Chile’s original peoples

(excerpts from The Guardian)

For thousands of years, the Selk’nam, lived in the extreme south of the American continent, the most southerly occupied part of the globe. Tierra del Fuego was their home until they were persecuted, tortured and slain by invading farmers, who rewarded anyone who killed a Selk’nam. About 5,000 Indigenous people were murdered in less than 50 years, with 100 survivors remaining, estimates indicate. On 5 September, by 117 votes in favour and one abstention, the National Congress finally recognised the Selk’nam as one of the 11 original peoples of Chile.

According to the report from the Commission for Historical Truth and the New Agreement, “between the last decades of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century, the Chilean state policy of concessions and the introduction of sheep farming produced a veritable genocide of Selk’nam families,” whose ancestral territory comprised the entire island of Tierra del Fuego.

As part of the official recognition of the Selk’nam, members of parliament regretted the role Chilean and Argentinean states played in serial massacres against Indigenous people.

“We were hunter-gatherers who lived in harmony with nature until European farmers and sheep breeders arrived.”

The land dispute is crucial to understanding how a people reach the brink of extermination. It all started with the invasion of land being legalised by the government. European farmers and sheep breeders arrived with the support of the state and gained possession of lands once inhabited by the Selk’nam. When the farmers appropriated the land, the Selk’nam hunted their sheep, incurring resentment among the settlers.

After gaining official recognition, Selk’nam people, scattered all over Chile, celebrated. However, they do not yet know what historical reparations will involve. In Argentina, Selk’nam gained recognition in 1995. And the Mapuche in Chile, for example, had part of their land returned to them. Whatever comes next, the difference is that, from now on, the Selk’nam will be heard as a people.

In Santiago, Selk’nam representative Hema’ny Molina says she is grateful that “the chamber of deputies has accepted our people as a living community of Chile. I know this is just the beginning, and there is much work ahead. But we have finally completed the most important stage for integration into the law.”

Molina, as president of the Covadonga Ona Selk’nam community, led the four-year process towards official recognition. “Now a phase is coming where, at least, legality is with us,” she says.

“We are no longer extinct in this country. We can safely say we are Selk’nam without recriminations, or anyone expelling us, or denying us representation. I am grateful to my ancestors, my family, and so many people who supported us along the way, and I am happy to bring this good news to Tierra del Fuego.”

Follow this link to read the complete story in The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/oct/03/we-are-alive-and-we-are-here-chiles-lost-tribe-celebrates-long-awaited-recognition

End of Tribal Insurgency in Assam, India

from Republic World, 28 April 2023, and EastMojo

The signing of a tripartite Memorandum of Settlement between the Centre, Assam government, and representatives of DNLA/DPSC on Thursday, is considered to be a significant milestone towards creating an insurgency-free Northeast region by 2024.

The agreement according to which over 168 cadres of DNLA have joined the mainstream by laying down their arms, proposes to end the insurgency in the Dima Hasao district of Assam. As per this agreement, Dimasa Welfare Council will be set up by the Assam government to protect, preserve and promote a social, cultural, and linguistic identity to meet political, economic and educational aspirations and will ensure speedy and focused development of the Dimasa people residing outside the jurisdiction of the Autonomous Council. The DNLA representatives have agreed to give up violence and surrender, including surrendering arms and ammunition, disbanding their armed organisation, vacating all camps occupied by the DNLA cadres and joining the mainstream. 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah lauded the agreement, saying, “This agreement marks another significant milestone towards making the Northeast insurgency-free by 2024 and fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a peaceful and prosperous Northeast… PM Modi has put forward the vision of a terror-free, violence-free, and developed Northeast before the country and the Ministry of Home Affairs is making forward strides in this direction.”

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma also hailed the tripartite agreement and said, “For the first time since Independence, Assam has become completely free from insurgency in tribal areas… With the signing of today’s Memorandum with Dimasa National Liberation Army, curtains have finally closed on armed movements in tribal areas.”

Despairing about climate change? The unstoppable growth of solar may change your mind

from The Conversation, May 11, 2023

Last year, the world built more new solar capacity than every other power source combined.

Solar is now growing much faster than any other energy technology in history. How fast? Fast enough to completely displace fossil fuels from the entire global economy before 2050.

The rise and rise of cheap solar is our best hope for rapidly mitigating climate change.

Total solar capacity tipped over 1 terawatt (1,000 gigawatts) for the first time last year. The sector is growing at around 20% a year. If this continues, we’ll hit 6 terawatts around 2031. In capacity terms, that would be larger than the combined total of coal, gas, nuclear and hydro.

By 2050, Earth will have a population of about 10 billion people. To supply everyone with enough electricity to live a good life, we’ll need about 200 billion megawatt-hours per year (equal to 200,000 terawatt-hours per year).

Let’s assume that solar does the heavy lifting for decarbonisation, completing two-thirds of the task with the remaining one-third left to wind, hydro and everything else put together. Is it possible?

Yes. If sustained, solar’s growth rate of 20% per year is easily fast enough to reach 80 terawatts of installed capacity in 2050 – enough to provide 130,000 terawatt-hours per year and (with help from wind) to entirely decarbonise an affluent world.

As well as eliminating most greenhouse emissions, we will also get rid of car exhausts, smokestacks, urban smog, coal mines, ash dumps, oil spills, oil-related warfare and gas fracking.

In Australia, 99% of new generation capacity is now solar and wind because it is cheap. To read the full article, follow this link: https://theconversation.com/despairing-about-climate-change-these-4-charts-on-the-unstoppable-growth-of-solar-may-change-your-mind-204901

$100 million to save Brazil’s Amazon rainforest

from Business Standard, May 27, 2023

Britain pledged Friday to give about USD 100 million to the Brazilian government’s fund to protect the Amazon rainforest, as the South American country beefs up protection of the environment under its new leadership.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Brazil’s President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva, who took office in January, announced the contribution to the Amazon Fund on Friday after meeting in London ahead of Saturday’s coronation of King Charles III.

The fund was launched in 2009 to fight against deforestation and build sustainable initiatives in the Brazilian rainforest, a vital natural reserve soaking up fumes from oil, natural gas and coal in South America. The committee that governs it was partially dismantled when rightist President Jair Bolsonaro took office in 2019, and rebooted by the leftist Lula this year.

“President Lula has exhibited great leadership on climate change,” Sunak said on Twitter, adding that he was pleased that Britain would contribute 80 million pounds (USD 101 million) to the fund, “so we can help stop deforestation and protect biodiversity.”

Earlier this year, U.S. President Joe Biden pledged to join Norway and Germany in resuming donations to the initiative that had been suspended during Bolsonaro’s presidency.

Kuwaiti women achieving gender equality sparks hope for Gulf countries

from Kuwait Times

Kuwaiti women have come a long way in terms of political representation in the National Assembly. Historically, women have faced significant barriers to their participation in public life, but recent efforts have led to increased female representation in Kuwait’s political field. Women in Kuwait were only granted the right to vote and hold public office in 2005. Since then, Kuwaiti women have gradually been increasing their representation in the Kuwaiti political field and proving their worth and capabilities.

Minister of Social Affairs and Women and Childhood Affairs Mai Al-Baghli highlighted the state’s empowerment of Kuwaiti women, noting Kuwait is first among Gulf states in achieving gender equality. Baghli also confirmed that Kuwait looks forward to reaching the goal of increasing women’s active participation in the state’s development plans.

In addition to providing women with the right to vote and run for office, Kuwait has implemented several measures to encourage and support women’s participation in politics. In comparison to other Gulf states, Kuwait has taken great strides in empowering women and promoting gender equality. This has been made possible by a series of important reforms and initiatives. Allowing women to earn their own money helped in eliminating traditional societal norms that restricted women’s participation in economic activities. This law has further provided opportunities for women to hold key positions in the political field as well as public and private sectors, which were previously reserved for men.

The country has become a role model, and other countries in the region can learn from Kuwait’s progressive approach. It is essential that Kuwait continues to work towards promoting gender equality and women’s rights. With the state’s direction towards equally supporting its female half of the society, achieving full gender equality may soon become a reality in the region.

Follow link to read the full article: https://www.kuwaittimes.com/kuwaiti-women-play-equal-role-in-accelerating-state-development/

Opening of the Abrahamic Family House Synagogue in the UAE boosts the Jewish community

From atlanticcouncil.org

Feb. 27, 2023

With great expectations, the Abrahamic Family House, a mosque, church, and synagogue all sharing a multi-faith campus in Abu Dhabi (the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)) is about to make its worldwide debut, opening its doors to the general public on March 1. This inspiring development, which was named after Abraham—the forefather of the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—is dedicated to the pursuit of peaceful coexistence for generations to come. 

Part of that complex is the Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue, inaugurated on February 16 in a series of intimate and public gatherings with government officials, highly-reputed rabbis, and enthusiastic supporters. Mezuzahs have been hung on the venerable doorposts and, for the first time, the growing Jewish community has prayed together in unison in the first purpose-built synagogue in the Middle East outside of Israel in a hundred years.

While the synagogue is integral for the future of Jewish life in the UAE—as well as peaceful coexistence between Jews in the Arab world—it is equally important to see it in the context of what has been occurring in the Gulf state over the past many years, well before the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020.

In 1971, Sheikh Zayed al Nahyan, a leader of great vision, convened the Arabian Peninsula’s ruling families and created the UAE. The country was built upon his strong fundamental values of charity, equality, generosity, coexistence, and tolerance, and the principles of the founding father have continued to drive the country’s progress.  

In the past fifty-two years, the UAE has emerged from its humble desert beginnings into a modern, vibrant metropolis, recognized for its technology, innovation, and architecture. It has been so successful that it has attracted the world, with much of the UAE population compromising of expats representing over two hundred different languages, ethnicities, and religions. This dynamic value system and multicultural canvas create the backdrop for what has emerged more recently.

In 2018, the Dubai “secret synagogue” came to public light with an article published in Bloomberg, revealing a small, tight-knight group of about 150 expat Jews congregating in “The Villa” (the home of one of its former members). While given tacit approval to convene and pray, the Jewish community had no formal authority and kept a very low profile, with most members not revealing their religion, even to their closest colleagues.

Then, in 2019, the Emirati government proclaimed The Year of Tolerance, dedicated to coexistence and religious pluralism. The focal point of 2019 was the visit of Pope Francis—the first-ever papal trip to the Arabian Peninsula. In addition to hosting a papal mass for 135,000 worshippers, the visit included the signing of the Document of Human Fraternity between the Pope and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, which jointly declared the adoption of a mutual culture of dialogue as the pathway to respect and peace. On the heels of the visit and the signing of the document came the announcement of the building of the Abrahamic Family House. This opened the door for the Jewish community to be recognized as part of the Abrahamic family in the UAE.

The year was also commemorated by the book, Celebrating Tolerance: Religious Diversity in the United Arab Emirates—including an in-depth profile of the Jewish Community in the UAE, validating it publicly for the very first time. It was also during this year that the Jewish community made a sincere and audacious offer to dedicate a golden Torah to Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed, the now Emirati president, in honor of his late father, Sheikh Zayed. The making of the Torah and its dedication at the Royal Palace is the subject of an award-winning documentary, Amen.

While 2019 was an exemplary year for Jewish life in the UAE, there was no more transformational event than the UAE’s normalization of ties with Israel and the birth of the Abraham Accords in August 2020. Over the past two years, the Accords have yielded incredible results, including a multi-billion-dollar bilateral trade relationship, a booming tourism industry, and many innovative partnerships in technology, security, and defense. Jews from around the world have moved to the UAE to benefit from its culture and economy, its relative safety and security against antisemitism, and the presence of at least six minyans (quorums for prayer), five kosher eateries, and two nursery schools.

Now, in 2023, the UAE owns and operates the first purpose-built synagogue in the Gulf in a hundred years. And it’s not just any synagogue: it’s the Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue, aptly named after the twelfth-century Sephardic Jewish philosopher, also commonly known as Maimonides or by the Hebrew acronym Rambam. Recognized for his scholarly teachings, Maimonides was also a highly-respected scientist, historian, and philosopher in both the Jewish and Islamic world, making him the ideal personification of what this synagogue truly represents.

First and foremost, the Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue will be the flagship center for Jewish life in Abu Dhabi, and the home away from home for the many other Jewish communities that have flourished since the Abraham Accords. It will host Jewish community events, religious services, and holiday celebrations, as well as Jewish lifecycle events, such as weddings, bar mitzvahs, and bat mitzvahs. It even has a mikvah (a Jewish ritual bath) and an on-site residence for the many rabbis and scholars in residence who are sure to travel through its doors. Before the venue even opened to the public, former assistant to US President Donald Trump, Avi Berkowitz held his wedding there on February 23.

But if the synagogue rises to the occasion of its namesake, it will be much more than the center for Jewish life. It has the potential to be something greater: a global center for pluralism, culture, education, and engagement; a center for interfaith education, research, and engagement; a center that can create links between Jewish, Arab, and Christian communities within the UAE, across Arabia, and around the world. The Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue is not just another synagogue. It’s a synagogue in the UAE, where the motto is “Impossible is possible.” It is a beacon of faith from a Muslim country demonstrating its values of peace and coexistence. It is also a beacon of light at a time when western antisemitism is at an all-time high. Perhaps, most significantly, it is a beacon of peace in the Middle East.

Trudeau apologizes to Tsilhqot’in people for 1864 hanging of B.C. chiefs

(from Ottawa Citizen)

CHILKO LAKE, B.C. — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized to the Tsilhqot’in community for the hanging of six chiefs more than 150 years ago in an emotional ceremony Friday that one chief said brought an end to a “difficult journey.”

Speaking to hundreds of the First Nation’s members in British Columbia’s central Interior, Trudeau said the colonial officials of the day erred in inviting the chiefs for peacekeeping talks where they were instead arrested, tried and hanged. He said the chiefs are fully exonerated without any wrongdoing because they were acting as one independent nation engaged in war with another when they attacked a road crew that intruded on their territory.

“Those are mistakes that our government profoundly regrets and is determined to set right. The treatment of the Tsilhqot’in chiefs represents a betrayal of trust, an injustice that you have carried for more than 150 years,” Trudeau said of the incident during the so-called Chilcotin War.

Trudeau said the federal government continues to work with the tribal council to develop a governance agreement by spring 2019.

Chief Joe Alphonse, tribal chairman of the Tsilhqot’in Nation, said the apology was significant not only because it was the first time that a prime minister visited title lands, but because it was made directly to community members.

Trudeau made a “statement of exoneration” in the House of Commons in March and agreed to visit the title lands then.

“For me as chief last March it was a very emotional journey, a spiritual one. It took its toll physically, mentally. So I’ve been through that, I’ve gone through that,” Alphonse said.

“Today it’s about our membership, and our membership all these years not believing that a prime minister would acknowledge that. So it’s a powerful day.”

Trudeau rode into the valley on a black horse, symbolizing the one the historic chiefs rode into what they believed were peace talks. The day also included a smudging ceremony and Trudeau was given a buckskin jacket matching the iconic one his father Pierre Trudeau wore.

The Tsilhqot’in have long disputed the government’s authority to execute the six chiefs as criminals, describing the confrontation as an altercation between warring nations.

When Trudeau read the statement in the Commons, members of Parliament broke into applause, prompting the Tsilhqot’in chiefs to hold up eagle feathers in salute. Trudeau told MPs the chiefs acted in accordance with their laws and traditions and that they are well regarded as heroes of their people.

 

Ethiopia approves first female Supreme Court president

(from Atlanta Black Star)

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ethiopian lawmakers have approved the country’s first female Supreme Court president. The move Thursday came just a week after lawmakers elected Ethiopia’s first female president.

Meaza Ashenafi, a prominent law practitioner in Ethiopia, assumed the top job at the Supreme Court after she was unanimously approved by lawmakers for the post following her appointment by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

After her appointment, Meaza told the state affiliated Fana Broadcasting she had worked all her life to bring justice and fairness. “This appointment will help me to achieve more and I believe that I will succeed in doing it,” she stated.

Meaza is credited with founding the popular Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association. She has also worked with the U.N., help establish an all-female bank and served as a judge at the country’s High Court.

“I am struggling with my tears now. She is a force to reckon with. She is the embodiment of authenticity, firmness and strength,” said Hewan Solomon, Co-Founder of a women’s right initiative called Siiqqee Scholars, following the new appointment. “I know what the future holds for women and girls across the nation. Looking forward for a just and fair Ethiopia.”

In war-torn South Sudan, a youth rugby league for peace

(from The News Tribune)

JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN 

Clutching the ball with both hands, Gloria Nene charges past opponents and proudly scores a try. The 11-year-old girl traded in Boro Boro, South Sudan’s equivalent of dodgeball, for rugby a few months ago and already has decided she wants to go pro.

“It’s good to play. If you’re outside doing nothing you might fight with friends and you won’t get to know each other,” she said.

Civil war-torn South Sudan this year launched its first rugby league since it won independence from Sudan in 2011, finding in the rough-and-tumble sport a way to promote peace.

More than 200 children between 5 and 13 have signed up for the South Sudan Rugby Club’s weekly practices run by volunteers, many of whom learned to play as refugees in neighboring countries. More than 50 of those who have enrolled are girls.

“Sports does not discriminate, it speaks one language,” head coach Abraham Riak told The Associated Press.

The club is an inclusive alternative to the more popular but often overcrowded soccer, where young people are sometimes turned away, he said.

The rugby league also teaches life lessons such as how to communicate without fighting.

“What we are trying to do with the rugby, besides grow participation in the sport, is provide these young people with the tools to be the change makers in their communities,” said Gemma Robson, a British expatriate who is a volunteer coach.

On a recent morning in the capital, Juba, giddy children waited to receive their training jerseys as cows grazed on the makeshift field. After the practice more than a dozen children from the neighborhood shyly approached and asked how they can join.

The league’s founders are looking for sponsors and hope that rugby will become a national sport so it can benefit from state funding. But South Sudan’s government already struggles to support existing teams including ones for soccer, basketball and handball, said Josseline Samson Apaya, acting director general for sports in the ministry of sports, culture and youth.

She said more investment would greatly contribute to the country’s transition to peace after more than five years of civil war.

“Sports is good for any nation, for reconciliation to forget about what happened,” she said.

At least one man who played in the U.S. is pushing for more investment in sports back home. The 39-year-old Denay J. Chagor, who played basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers, is now the chairman of South Sudan’s United Movement opposition party. He attributes many of his leadership skills to his time on the court and says sports can foster peace.

“I know that if that is championed through the government and if this is encouraged it can help the young people come together and work together and live together again,” he said.

Kuwaiti women gain full political rights

(from The Gulf Today)

KUWAIT: After a decades-long strife by women’s rights campaigners for full suffrage, Kuwait has granted women their full political and constitutional rights, making way for them to vote, run for elections and assume leadership positions.

Women in Kuwait have proven their worth through their leading role in driving the country’s overall development march, across all domains, including public works, social services, economy and politics. Kuwaiti women would not have achieved this success without a number of factors, including the country’s legislative and social systems that provided them with many opportunities to occupy the highest local and regional positions, not to mention the role of men in supporting them to obtain their rights, especially their political ones.

Despite facing difficulties and challenges, the successes of Kuwaiti women have enabled them to assume a leading role across the Gulf where they have managed to as occupy many key positions.

Kuwaiti women were not only interested in gaining their political rights, but they have also been keen to obtain their economic, cultural and social rights, as granted by the 1962 constitution and the “Rights of Motherhood and Childhood” in Article 9, as well as their protection from violence by the “Personal Status Law,” and their right to run for elections and vote in civil societies and cooperative organisations.

Women in Kuwait have occupied many leading positions, including ministers, deputy ministers, university directors and ambassadresses, and were elected as members to the National Assembly.