IV520 - May 2018

IVP520 PDF magazine available to download
IVP520 PDF magazine available to download here

The racist Salvini could not have asked for a better speech writer for his upcoming electoral soundbites than the Italian president, Matterella. The latter vetoed Salvini’s choice of Savona, a Eurosceptic economist, for Minister of the Economy in the name of safeguarding Italy’s place in the European union and its adherence to its strict rules on public spending. Already we are hearing what could be very effective electioneering from Salvini or Di Maio, his Five Star Movement (M5S) coalition partner – Who rules Italy: the people who voted a Lega/M5S majority or the bureaucrats and bankers in Brussels or those Germans? Everybody expects Matterella’s new prime ministerial pick, Cottarelli, who led the austerity spending review in a previous government, to fail to win a confidence vote leading to early autumn elections.

Donald Trump’s announcement on May 8 that the U.S. is withdrawing from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or Nuclear Agreement with Iran was not a surprise. However, the full range of its ominous ramifications not only for Iran, but also the Middle East region and the world remain to be seen.

Ethan Ackelsberg makes the case, using historical and contemporary evidence, that Israel is an apartheid society, existing in defiance of international law.

As an unprecedented wave of feminist campaigns gains ground across Latin America, a dangerous backlash is afoot on various fronts.

In his article [1], which was published in Ming Pao on March 2nd, Professor Dic Lo mentions the “People’s Forum on One Belt, One Road (OBOR) and BRICS” [2] that was held in September last year. As one of the organizers of the forum, I think I should respond to his opinion.

Nigeria is experiencing a major conflict between nomadic herdsmen and indigenous farmers. In 2016, the conflict led to the death of 2,500 people, displaced 62,000 others and led to loss of US$13.7 billion in revenue. [3]

Luke Butterly reports on the work of Migrants and Ethnic Minorities for Reproductive Justice (MERJ) in organising around the upcoming Irish abortion referendum.

“If one day our nation says ‘enough,’ then we will step aside,” Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an said last week in a speech to Turkey’s Parliament. Soon after the speech, #Tamam (“Enough”) became a trending Twitter topic worldwide with over 1.5 million tweets posted by the end of that night. Social media has become the primary platform for opposition against the government in Turkey since mainstream media is almost completely controlled by the government. However, Erdo?an’s statement did not only get reactions on social media. People came together in the streets with the slogan “Enough” in Istanbul. Police attacked several of these marches. The students of Middle East Technical University in Ankara also wrote “Tamam” (“Enough”) in Devrim (“Revolution”) Stadium.

Only two and a half years ago (October 19, 2016) we were on the streets carrying out the first National Women’s Strike. That call made the unions shake: who is the subject giving that command? Who is willing to bring the country to a stop because of a young woman’s murder?