The Domino Effect

Pro-democracy Algerians plan to take to the streets in protest.

Read the full article:

http://su.pr/16qLQh

Freedom of Speech

Remember the protests in London at the time of the G20 meeting of world leaders (April 2009)? In a word: Controversial. The Royal Bank of Scotland became the symbolic target of Anti-Capitalist demonstraters. What started off as a peaceful demonstration escalated into sporadic outbursts of violence as protestors were angered by police tactics. There was a growing sense of frustration amongst those fenced in to a particular area, and as some threw plastic bottles in retaliation, the police force pushed back against the crowd aggressively.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwuUuj-lCz4&feature=related

A multitude of video recordings give evidence of officers' unacceptable use of force, including an attack that caused the death of Ian Thompson; posing serious questions toward police conduct. One's right to protest is central to any democratic society. Much of the freedom we take for granted was obtained by those prepared to take to the streets in protest. In fact the Human Rights Act entitles us to do so. The increased threat of terrorism and anti-social behaviour, in recent years, has led to new legislation wherein the police are given wider powers to control and restrict the actions of protestors.

The main police watchdog has warned against aggressive tactics, reviewing protocol and thereby the service's approach to public order policing since the G20 protests. The report argues that there is an "absence of clear standards on when to use force, inconsistent tactics and lack of up-to-date training" (Financial times).

Reform does seem underway as a result of this report. Meredydd Hughes, chief constable of South yorkshire police and a spokesperson for ACPO (association of chief police officers), stated that they "intend to make guidelines a public document and ensure the British reputation for fair and open policing is reinvigorated by the response to this report" (Financial Times). Emphasizing the concept that it is not only one's right, but one's obligation to question generally accepted government policy. That any one person can make a difference.

And so it should be.

Tedtalks: Ideas worth spreading

If you have ten minutes this video clip is really worth a look. My sister sent me the link this morning and it certainly qualifies as "food for thought". Journalist Andrew Mwenda has spent his career fighting for free speech and economic empowerment throughout Africa and here delivers a poignant and provocative critique of Western Aid in Africa, in particular the effects of Aid on the development process.

Whilst the video clip may be slightly outdated (2007), the topic at hand is ever-relevant; which in itself is rather disturbing. Uganda continues to receive Aid, which in turn continues to be distributed in the most corrupt of means. In the last 50 years, Africa has received over 600bn dollars, where has it all gone?

Mwenda highlights the necessary challenge of shifting from a poverty reduction agenda to one of wealth creation i.e. by supporting both domestic/foreign investment in Africa as well as research institutions rather than charitable donations for temporary food relief and health care. "Rather than sitting with Ugandan entrepreneurs, Ghanaian businessmen and South African enterprising leaders, our governments find it more productive to talk to the IMF and the World Bank. (...) Aid tends to accentuate ethnic tensions as every single ethnic group now begins struggling to enter the state in order to get access to the Foreign Aid pie".

My favourite part of the speech was towards the end, broaching the subject of Bono and all his charitable work. Well this was a critique by all means. I understand the trend of celebrities promoting charitable organizations to raise awareness etc, but Mwenda certainly put these contributions into perspective:

"A recent government of Uganda study found that there are 3,000 four-wheel drive motor vehicles at the Ministry of Health headquarters. Uganda has 961 sub-counties, each of them with a dispensary, none of which has an ambulance. So the four-wheel drive vehicles at the headquarters drive the ministers, the permanent secretaries, the bureaucrats and the National Aid bureaucrats who work on the Aid projects, while the poor die without ambulances & medicine" (Andrew Mwenda 2007).

What do you think?