Politics

Far from being keen on the obituary sections covering most of the communicative space in the media sphere, I think it is essential to throw light on the root causes from which most criminal activities come from today. This is precisely what the following note, published here in full, is dealing with.

Hong Kong residents originally from the Indian sub-continent gathered on Sunday past to support Anna Hazare and the actions surrounding the Jan Lokpal Bill, for the fourth week in a row. The event took place at the India Club, Jordan, Hong Kong. The initiators were the volunteer international wing of India Against Corruption (IAC).

With just 48 hours to the start of a nationwide strike, the number of participants called for by labour unions, students federations, and environmental and human rights organisations continues to increase. The mobilisation is supported by more than 80 social organisations, besides a number of opposing parties, said Arturo Martinez, president of the United Labour Federation.

India’s prime minister appealed Monday for a more reasoned approach to combating corruption, as huge crowds turned out to support a hunger-striking activist on the seventh day of his anti-corruption fast.

The Philippines on Monday offered Muslim rebels waging a decades-long insurgency the prospect of autonomy, but warned they must first lay down their arms and a peace pact was likely years away. The offer was contained in government proposals for peace with the 12,000-strong Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) at the start of three days of talks in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Indian activist Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption hunger strike drew thousands of supporters to central New Delhi on Saturday as his populist campaign sought to face down the government. The 74-year-old spoke briefly to the crowds from a high podium before he reclined on cushions to be feted with speeches, chanting and live music during the second day of his public fast.

The People’s Party of Palestine (PPP) organized a march in Nablus yesterday, calling for a boycott Israeli goods to show solidarity with the people of Gaza.

The European Revolution news portal has published a summary of what’s been taking place in Spain for the last three months where people haven’t been so mobilized for generations. “Yet what is certain is that new and powerful social movement has been born here in Spain and it will continue.”

What does the police killing of a homeless man in San Francisco have to do with the Arab Spring uprisings from Tunisia to Syria? The attempt to suppress the protests that followed. In our digitally networked world, the ability to communicate is increasingly viewed as a basic right. Open communication fuels revolutions—it can take down dictators.

Without decent roads people cannot go about daily life with ease, children cannot get to schools easily and farmers cannot get their crops to market. Also, vehicles quickly deteriorate and break down and the cumulative effect is one of dis-communication, heavy costs for repairs on local economies already under stress and a disabling of people’s lives generally.