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PEACE & SECURITY REPORT
IPSI's Peace & Security Report (PSR) is a concise weekly e-publication intended to keep busy students, academics, advocates, and practitioners in the conflict management community briefed on pertinent global news, events, and trends.  Meticulously researched and written by IPSI, the PSR empowers us all to take a step back from our immediate deadlines each Friday and gain a greater understanding of the week's global events.

Featured Video 

"Changemakers (Peace Nerds)"

As part of the 2011 Bologna, Italy Symposium, participants could go through an optional training on documentary storyboarding and production.  Here is an example of the fun IPSI students had with their flipcams:

 

Click on the image to watch the video 

 

Africa
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: 1 dead, 2 wounded in violence in Kinshasa
One person was killed and two wounded early Tuesday morning in a clash between police and members of the opposition Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDSP). The incident occurred outside the offices of Etienne Tschisekedi, the UDSP challenger to President Kabila in November's scheduled election. The police fired shots when Tschisekedi's supporters reportedly refused to disburse; one protester was later confirmed dead. Comment: Tensions have been high in Kinshasa over the past few days. The headquarters of President Kabila's PPRD party were ransacked on Monday; Tschisekedi's offices were likewise vandalized Tuesday. The upcoming legislative and presidential elections will provide an important gauge for the political stability of the DRC, where one of Africa's most destructive wars ended in 2003. (Nord-Sud Quotidien, Reuters, BBC, AP)

KENYA: Teachers strike, public schools close
A nationwide teachers' strike left all public primary schools and almost half of public secondary schools closed on Tuesday. The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has asked the government to hire some 18,000 additional teachers for the overstretched school system where student/teacher ratios greatly exceed international standards; the government has cited a lack of funds for new teaching staff. The strike leaves over 11 million students without instructors as they prepare to take their yearly exams. Comment: Kenya garnered much praise for its introduction of free primary education in 2003 and free secondary education in 2008, which brought one million new students into the school system; however, lack of funding has prevented hiring the additional teachers necessary to cope with the influx. Analysts note how this exacerbates social divisions, as private school students, whose teachers are not members of KNUT, enjoy much smaller class sizes and individual attention. (The Standard, Reuters, AP)

SOMALIA: Famine spreads; 750,000 now at risk of starvation
On Monday the UN announced the spread of famine to the Bay region, the sixth out of Somalia's eight regions to be declared in a state of famine. The UN warned that 750,000 Somalis will face starvation over the next four months, while more than four million - more than half Somalia's total population - are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization called for $70 million in emergency aid for one million farmers and herders; the agency also predicts the famine's spread to the rest of the country by the end of the year. Comment: The famine, first declared in July, has triggered a humanitarian crisis throughout the Horn of Africa. Its spread to the Bay region, where a record 58percent of children are acutely malnourished, is particularly devastating. The Bay region is normally considered one of Somalia's most productive, responsible for approximately 80 percent of the country's sorghum harvest. (Reuters, BBC, Washington Post, UN News Centre)

Researched/Written by  Nori Kasting
Americas
CHILE: Government yields to protesters
On Saturday, leaders of the student-led education reforms met with President Pi�era for the first time. Two days earlier, the Senate Education Committee passed a bill prohibiting government funding for Chile's for-profit education institutions, a main goal of the ongoing demonstrations for public education. After three months of protests and proposal rejections, Pi�era accepted nine of the 12 requests in the petition drafted by students. He is considering changing the tax system to stimulate more funding for public education, while leaving the rest of negotiations up to the Education Minister. Comment: Disagreements still exist concerning the role of private institutions in education. This is the second time in five years that students have requested education reform from the government and met with a sitting president. Some are optimistic that the meetings will lead to reform due to members of Pi�era's own conservative political coalition questioning why the president defends regulating private education finances. Demonstrations will reportedly continue while sessions with officials take place this week. (SantiagoTimes, Bloomberg, PBS, Santiago Times)

CUBA: Church plays third party
In a call for aid on Monday, the Ladies in White, a group of female Cuban dissenters, asked the Catholic Church to intervene due to alleged government acts of harassment and violence in Havana and Santiago de Cuba against the group. The women indicated that, "those who are [targeting them] are the mobs, as well as the state security agents," although the government denies such orders. The Church remained neutral and followed up with a general statement that no defenseless person should be a victim of violence. Comment: Despite members of the group only recently being released from detention in 2003, they still march for the release of other political prisoners. The government believes the Ladies in White to be part of a U.S. campaign to destabilize the Cuban leadership. The only shared voice between them lies in the Church, urging for common ground. (Associated Press, Miami Herald, Havana Times)

PUERTO RICO: Violent deaths increase
Last weekend, 11 homicides were reported in a 24-hour span in Salinas, a municipality in southern Puerto Rico; the homicides are believed to be the result of a surge in drug-related gang violence. The crime wave is also reaching Guaynabo, where two male volleyball players from the University of Puerto Rico Mayag�ez, were innocent victims in a shooting. Comment: The surge in crime, which began earlier this summer, has confounded authorities and caused the resignation of police commissioner Jose Figueroa Sancha. As one writer says, it is cycle: extreme poverty and social inequalities increase crime, so people turn to the drug trade for economic advancement, and therefore increase crime still. (Latin American Herald Tribune, Puerto Rico Daily Sun, Claridad)

 

Researched/Written by  Laura Castelli
East Asia
CHINA: Amendment to Criminal Procedure law
The National People's Congress' draft of its new amendment to the Criminal Procedure law, which would increase the legality of forced detention of dissidents, is currently under public review. Human rights groups have indicated concern that this change will allow prolonged detainment of dissidents without filing charges and without notification to their families. Legal experts in Beijing argue that the law will provide further human rights protections to detainees and indicates a general desire in the Chinese legislature to be more humane. Comment: Some analysts believe that people's opposition to these changes shows an increased willingness to challenge the policies of the Chinese government. In the past weeks, WikiLeaks also released confidential interviews between Chinese citizens and officials from the American embassy in Beijing where some citizens indicated dissatisfaction with their country. Since the website also included the names and/or descriptions of these individuals, there is concern that they could face repercussions from authorities. (NY Times, Xinhua Net, Global Times, AFP)

MALAYSIA: Women balance tradition with need to earn additional income
On September 2, a survey by Bernama indicated that more young Malaysian mothers are turning to online businesses in order to balance the need for extra income with their domestic responsibilities. Rising debt and increased cost of living are encouraging women to seek employment, while traditional gender roles and social norms have, in some cases, have held them back. In June, the Malaysian government announced a new quota system requiring that women comprise at least 30% of the board members of Malaysian companies by 2016. Women, Family and Community Development Minister Senator Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil indicated her hope that the quota would push the percentage of women in the Malaysian workforce up from 46% last year to 55% by 2016. Comment: NGOs, including Empower and Women's Aid Organization, have also been working to increase the political participation and representation of women in Malaysia, which is currently ranked 110th globally. Since many women lack the necessary funds to run a political campaign, increased income through online business could increase political participation as well. (Bernama, New Straits Times, Malaysian Insider, NY Times)

THAILAND: Man arrested for insulting Thai king on facebook
On Tuesday, a Thai man named Surapak Puchaieseng was arrested on charges of violating the lese majeste law, which prohibits any criticism of the royal family, by posting messages and pictures on Facebook that insulted Thailand's king. On August 26, Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubanrung vowed to make internet violations of lese majeste an administration priority. He also said he would look into allegations of intimidation of the press by the red shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD). Comment: This is the first lese majeste arrest of the new administration of Thailand's first female Prime Minister, Yingluck Shinawatra. Once a lese majeste allegation is made, the police are duty bound to investigate it, and these cases are rarely dismissed. Last week, over 100 scholars from around the world signed a letter to Prime Minister Yingluck asking her to review the use of the lese majeste law. (AP, The Nation, BBC, Bangkok Post)
  

Researched/Written by   Caitlyn Davis 

Europe & Central Asia
ITALY: Nationwide strike shuts down cities
On Tuesday, thousands of workers took to the streets in a day-long strike in over 100 Italian cities protesting the government's debt crisis austerity plan. An estimated three million workers did not show up for work after the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL) called for the eight-hour strike, which disrupted transportation, factory, and government operations. Susanna Camusso, the leader of CGIL, threatened further industrial action if the austerity measures, which raise taxes and allow businesses to abandon labor contracts and fire workers more easily, were not withdrawn. Comment: The austerity measures were approved by the Italian Senate on Wednesday and are now pending final approval in parliament with voting planned for next week. The plan includes a €45.5 billion exchange to the European Central Bank for purchasing Italian bonds to maintain economic stability in the country. The European Commission believes the proposed plan would help pull the country out of crisis. (NY Times, EU Observer, BBC, Il Messaggero)

SERBIA: Serbian general convicted for war crimes
On Tuesday in The Hague, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) sentenced former Yugoslav Army Chief, Momcilo Perisic, to 27 years in prison for crimes against humanity and war crimes. The verdict found that Perisic's military support directly enabled crimes committed by the Bosnian Serb forces in Bosnia and Croatia. He was also found responsible for providing military support and logistics for the rocket attacks on Zagreb in 1995. Perisic was acquitted of allegations for responsibility in influencing General Ratko Mladic during the Srebrenica massacre. Comment: Perisic was the head of the Yugoslav army from 1993 until 1998 when he was fired for criticizing the government's decision to use military force against Kosovo. Perisic's conviction was the first by the tribunal against a Serb official for crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mladic is currently on trial for his role in crimes including genocide, more specifically, the Srebrenica massacre, which killed 8,000 unarmed Muslim men and boys in 1995. (Blic, AP, BBC, Reuters)

TURKEY: Turkey expels Israeli diplomats
Turkey's government expelled Israeli Ambassador Gabby Levy from Ankara and suspended military ties on Friday after Israel refused to apologize for the deaths of nine Turkish activists during the May 2010 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. These actions followed the release of a UN report stating that Israel used unnecessary force in the raid. Turkey rejected the report and plans to appeal to the ICJ challenging the legality of Israel's blockade on Gaza. Comment: The Turkish government wants Israel to formally apologize for the raid and pay compensation to the families of those killed. The UN report concluded the flotilla acted "recklessly" by attempting to breach the naval blockade, while also claiming Israel's actions to be "a legitimate security measure in order to prevent weapons from entering Gaza by sea and its implementation complied with the requirements of international law." (UN Report, Hurriyet, Reuters, AP, BBC)
 

Researched/Written by Erin Bobst

Middle East & North Africa
BAHRAIN: Court releases medics amid hunger strike
On Wednesday, a quasi-military court released some 20 medical and paramedical staff who were on trial for their alleged roles in the February uprising. The medics, among more than 100 activists facing similar charges, had been on a hunger strike for nearly nine days. A Bahraini-funded international commission is currently investigating the events that took place during the February-March protests, and is expected to present a report on October 30 on the incidents. Comment: According to analysts, the religious divide among Bahraini people trumped the government crackdown on protesters. The majority of the Bahraini population is Shia, yet a Sunni minority rules them. The Shia medics, who are awaiting their verdict on September 29, were jailed for their roles during the protests aimed at toppling the predominantly Sunni regime. They face charges of "forcefully occupying a public facility, possessing weapons illegally, inciting for the overthrow of the political regime, seizing medical equipment, disseminating false and malicious news and statements and inciting for the hatred of a segment of the society." (Reuters, Gulfnews, BBC)

JORDAN: Man charged with "honor killing"
On Sunday, a Jordanian man was charged with killing his daughter after she gave birth to twins at a hospital near Amman. The 24-year-old woman had been a widow for four years, and her pregnancy "shocked and enraged" her father, who shot her in the head "because she did something shameful." The father could now face the death penalty after accepting the responsibility for the crime; however, Jordanian courts can "commute or reduce sentences" in the cases of "honor killings," depending on the victims' family's position. Comment: Between 15 and 20 cases of "honor killings" are reported yearly in Jordan, and in most cases the victims are women. Many human rights activists and organizations have unsuccessfully lobbied to amend "Article 340," which provides leniency towards crimes committed for honor; however, the Jordanian parliament has refused twice to make any changes to law. (AFP, As-safir Press, Adelaide Now, Herald Sun)

YEMEN: Economic crisis meets relief from Oman
On Wednesday, the Omani Charitable Organization (OCO) dispatched the first shipment of humanitarian assistance to Yemen to relieve 21,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) at refugee camps in the southern governorates of Abyan, Lahj, and Aden. The humanitarian aid included an estimated 1,058 tons of medicines, medical supplies, food, and nutritional goods on board several planes. Comment: Internal conflicts across the country are resulting in a soaring number of IDPs. Economic indicators suggest that Yemen, the poorest Arab country, is experiencing a rapidly deteriorating economic situation. Inflation has risen to 35 percent, while 60 percent of Yemen's population is under the poverty line, living on an income of $1-2 per person per day. According to some analysts, if the situation continues to spiral, Yemen's economy would collapse and starvation could hit rural areas. UNICEF ranks Yemen among countries with the highest malnutrition rates. (Felix News, Yemen Online, Oman Tribune, Gulfnews, Aljazeera)
 

Researched/Written by Ibrahim Al-Hajjri

South Asia
BANGLADESH / INDIA: Indian PM visits Bangladesh
Indian Prime Minister Singh concluded a two-day visit to neighboring Bangladesh on Tuesday, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 12 years, where the two countries signed an agreement resolving the three decade-long border issue. The newly demarcated border will grant Indian citizenship to 20,000 people living in 51 Bangladeshi enclaves spread across 7,000 acres in Indian territory and Bangladeshi citizenship to 31,000 people living in 111 Indian enclaves across 17,000 acres in Bangladesh territory. The two countries agreed to cooperate on trade and energy; no agreements were made on crucial water sharing and transit issues. Comment: Commentators state that relations between the two countries are at their strongest since 1971 when India helped Bangladesh gain independence from West Pakistan. Relations have been uneasy recently due to disputes over water sharing, secessionist movements, and border skirmishes. (Associated Press, BBC, Indian Express, UPI)

INDIA: Blast outside Delhi High Court kills 11
On Wednesday, a powerful 2kg bomb exploded outside the New Delhi High Court, roughly a mile away from the Indian Parliament, killing 11 and wounding over 70; Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami (HuJI), an al-Qaeda affiliated group based in Pakistan and Bangladesh, claimed responsibility for the attack. In an email to India's National Intelligence Agency, the group warned of more attacks until the death sentence on Afzal Guru, convicted for the 2001 Parliament attack, is repealed. HuJI has carried out several attacks in India over the past decade. Comment: A low-intensity bomb exploded outside the Delhi High Court in May, but no one was injured. Wednesday's attacks occurred despite the city's high alert status while the Parliament is in session. Critics pointed to the inability of the security forces to provide adequate safety. (Daily Bhaskar, DNA, Indian Express, Reuters)

NEPAL: Maoists hand over control of arms cache
Last Friday, officials stated that the former Maoists rebels handed over their arms cache to the multi-party Special Committee overseeing the peace process. The Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) Chairman Prachanda said the move was in line with the five-point proposal and commitment by the party's Standing Committee; however, some hardline leaders within the UCPN-M opposed the party's decision with Senior Vice-President Mohan Baidya calling the move "suicidal." Comment: The handing over of the 3,400 weapons, stored in large metal containers across seven camps, is seen as a positive step towards the country's stalled peace process; however, there is fear of growing opposition from hardline factions within the party. Approximately 16,000 people died in Nepal's decade-long civil war that started in 1996. (Himalayan Times, PTI, Reuters)

PAKISTAN: Militants demand swap deal for release of kidnapped teenagers
On Tuesday, the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) demanded the release of an unspecified number of TTP prisoners currently being held in Pakistani jails in exchange for the release of 30 kidnapped teenagers belonging to the Pashtun Mamoun tribe. The TTP also demanded an end to the Mamoun tribal elders' support for offensives against them. A tribal jirga (council) is currently holding talks with the militants to secure the release of the boys. Comment: The TTP abducted 40 young tribesmen hailing from the Bajaur region last week after the boys accidentally crossed over the porous border into Afghanistan. They later released 10 who were under the age of 10. The Mamoun tribe is opposed to the Taliban, and al-Qaeda and has raised its own militia to fight them. (Dawn, Guardian, Pakistan Tribune)
 

Researched/Written by   Megha Swamy

September 9, 2011
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Africa
Americas
East Asia
Europe & Central Asia
Middle East & N. Africa
South Asia

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