The Speaker Editors

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Recently, in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, Mongolian herders staged a protest against forced displacement from their land due to Chinese appropriation for mining and tourism purposes, and were broken up by police. Ten protesters were arrested.

“Return our green land”, “Return our hot spring”, “Return our livelihood”, “Who is accountable for the destruction of our natural environment?” read the banners displayed by the Mongolians who protested in the capital. Another banner read, “Let our natural environment remain in pristine condition, let our water and rivers be unpolluted, let our sky be blue forever, and let our people live without any suffering!”

The herders were from Hejing County, Bayangol Prefecture, Xinjiang Autonomous Region, China. They were protesting the appropriation of their grazing lands by the Chinese government for the purposes of tourism and mining. The protesters also complained of destruction and pollution of the Mongolian lands by state-run and private industries.

“Compared to the tourism industries, mining is even more destructive to our land,” stated a communique from the region, “our land is opened up and water resources depleted.” Hejing is rich in iron, magnesium and copper. As of 2010, 28 mining licences had been issued. Another 400 target zones have been defined for prospective mineral extraction.

The displaced Mongolians were forced to give up their grazing land for such projects. According to Chinese sources, 80 percent of the houses of the herders were demolished by 2011 and road paving and other construction projects were carried out in the region. Last year, Chinese state media agency Xinjiang Daily reported that the herders had almost completed the “transition from herders to peasants” and were “living a happy life.”

According to Chinese news, the herders had been moved “in order to protect grassland”–they were moved because of the government’s development and nature conservation projects.

The herders have been protesting the appropriation of their grazing land and forced displacement for decades.

Local government authorities dispatched police to disperse the protest. Ten protesters were arrested.

“The Chinese have no idea how sacred and how valuable water is to the Mongolians,” one involved Mongolian told the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center (SMHRIC), explaining one of the concerns the Mongolians had about Chinese use of their land–water.

“Polluting water source is absolutely not permitted by the Mongolians. However, recently some Chinese tourist companies came to destroy our grazing lands and even built toilets by the upper bank of the Arshaan River to dump their filth directly into our most sacred water source.”

By James Haleavy

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US Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, spoke Wednesday about the consequences of the prolonged crisis in South Sudan, saying four million South Sudanese were at “grave risk” of malnourishment and starvation in the upcoming year.

“Not only are people dying every day in what has deteriorated into an ethnic conflict, but the country now faces a horrible famine,” stated Power. “Four million people are at grave risk of famine. And that includes 50,000 kids, who, if we can’t get this back on track, if we can’t bring peace to the country, are at risk of dying over the course of the next year because of malnourishment.”

“…In a man-made famine,” Power added.

“The fighting continues to go on. Notwithstanding the rebel leader and the president sign the pieces of paper that are put in front of them. Because the fighting continues, it makes it impossible for the humanitarian aid deliveries to go through dangerous areas…”
Power cited recent ethnic killings in South Sudan, commenting that what began as a political conflict has become an ethnic one.

The UN warned earlier this month that tens of thousands of children could die of starvation in South Sudan, adding also that disease was a further concern.

Read more: South Sudan Crisis Could Not Have Been Predicted, Says UN Envoy, Preparing Step Down From Leadership in South Sudan 

“Cholera has broken out and malaria is rampant and many children are malnourished. Millions of people need emergency health care, food, clean water, proper sanitation and shelter to make it through the year,” said Toby Lanzer, UN Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan.

In addition to starvation and disease, the prolonged crisis in South Sudan has given rise to a situation in which terrorists could flourish. The Ambassador stated, “We have seen elements from Darfur make their way into the Central African Republic, where there are reports of Boko Haram and al Shabaab taking root… That is, of course, a risk in Sudan. The connections between the government and some very unsavory terrorist actors, I think, are well-known.”

Nearly US$400 million has already gone to assist the world’s youngest country. The US ambassador commented that the numbers at risk of starvation would be “a lot worse” without this investment, and noted that the US has contributed a lot relative to other countries, despite the many pressing global issues currently taking place.

“We want to focus intrinsically… on the welfare of the population in South Sudan… but also in Darfur and in Sudan, where the killing and the airstrikes and the use of food as a weapon of war are also continued.”

The UN has appealed for more than $1 billion to help South Sudan, and is currently going nation-to-nation to appeal for contributions.

By Day Blakely Donaldson

UN

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At the site of one of British Columbia’s worst environmental disasters, the Cariboo Regional District has declared a state of local emergency. In order to access additional capacity needed to protect property and infrastructure from the Mount Polley tailings pond breach, the district made the declaration Wednesday, expanding governmental provisions from the complete water ban that was issued Monday.

“The potential long-term impact to waterways, the watershed and roads is huge,” said Chairman of the Cariboo Regional District Al Richmond.

The Mount Polley Mine tailings pond collapsed Monday near Williams Lake, central British Columbia. Millions of cubic meters of waste water and debris flooded into the Cariboo river system.

Read more: Water Ban Announced Near Williams Lake, Canada: Tailings Pond Breached

A complete water ban was announced Monday morning, and included all consumption and recreational use. The ban extended to the entire Quesnel and Cariboo river systems.

The waste spilled into Quesnel Lake, one of BCs largest clean lakes, and Polley Lake. Approximately 10 million cubic meters of water and 4.5 million cubic meters of debris were lost. Water continued to spill out of the pond Wednesday, although the pond was nearly empty.

Responders have been working around the clock to close the dam and secure debris areas, but due to the region’s locality and sparse population, quickly addressing a large environmental disaster such as the spill has proven a challenge.

The Cariboo Regional District (CRD) declared a state of local emergency Wednesday. The district, working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Emergency Management BC, Central Cariboo Search and Rescue, Mount Polley, Interior Health and other associated agencies, is formulating a plan to deal with the disaster.

“The local state of emergency was declared to ensure the CRD has the power to take any remedial actions that may become necessary,” the CRD stated.

Immediate actions include bringing in barges to break up the debris before it hits the shore. There is concern that if the wind picks up, islands of debris dislodged by the massive water flow could be blown against the shore, damaging structures. There is also concern that the Quesnel Bridge–a wooden structure and the towns main access route–could be damaged by the debris.

There is also concern that the salmon run, which will begin soon, will be harmed. There have been reports and photos published of fish floating and being washed up on shore.

A chief concern is the quality of the water that left the tailings pond. The exact composition of the water is not currently known, although Polley Mine’s head official, Brian Kynoch, stated that the water was “very close to drinking water.” BC’s Environment Ministry is currently conducting an analysis. The results of the water tests will be known late Wednesday or Thursday.

Among the elements and chemicals expected to be found in large quantities are nickel, lead, copper and arsenic. Around 400,000 kilograms of arsenic were dumped into the pond in 2013, but Kynoch said that arsenic levels were one-fifth drinking water quality. There have also been reports that a large amount of phosphorous was in the water–the element found in fertilizers blamed for massive algae blooms making news in Ohio and other areas.

“I apologize for what happened,” stated Kynoch at a community meeting Tuesday. “If you had asked me two weeks ago if that could happen, I would have said it couldn’t happen, so I know that for our company it’s going to take a long time to earn the community’s trust back.”

A view of a creek affected by the breach

By Day Blakely Donaldson

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The Hindu nationalist party, Shiv Sena, has published claims that rape accusations are being used as political weapons to destroy careers overnight. The comments came in response to recent rape allegations filed against an Indian police officer who is currently under police protection due to death threats.

“After he has served for so many years in the police force, one model now charges DIG [deputy inspector general] Sunil Paraskar with rape and in one night he becomes a villain,” the party stated. “Such accusations have become good weapons to seek personal revenge.

“Cases of charging [prominent] men with molestation and rape in to create hype is on a rise now. It has almost become a fashion,” continued the statement.

Paraskar was accused of rape and molestation during a three-month period by a model.

In the wake of a gang rape that lead to the death of a Delhi student two years ago, India toughened its rape and sexual assault laws, which, Shiv Sena claimed, were being abused. The party stated that rape accusations had now become “fashionable.”

Suspicions that the new, tougher laws were being abused have existed for a while, but recently statistical evidence has been found to support the claim.

Since the December 16, 2012, gang rape, the acquittal rate for rape cases has shot up from 46 in the first part of 2013 to 75 percent, and is currently around 70 percent.

“It’s sad but true,” said one of the prosecutors on the Nirbhaya trial, A T Ansari. “Registration of false cases is rampant and hence, the alarming acquittal rate. The new law is being misused because of the widened definition of rape.

“This is an unfortunate trend. In many cases, women come up with the plea that they had registered the case out of anger and due to misunderstanding.”

Another senior prosecutor commented on the matter, “In around 90% of acquittal cases, the victim turns hostile. Mostly, it turns out to be a case of a relationship gone bad. The sex is consensual but the victim claims that the consent was given on account of promise of marriage.”

Other cases involve extortion, property disputes, extra-marital affairs, and recovery of dues.

Senior Advocate Aman Lekhi offered a possible explanation for the trend. “The courts generally don’t use this discretion because they don’t want genuine victims to be wary of approaching courts for justice.”

By James Haleavy

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In an attempt to stem the current land grabbing spree taking place in Sierra Leone, citizens of the capital city, Freetown, have issued the Freetown Declaration. The Declaration stated that despite the benefit of increased investment in the country, there was an urgent need to protect the land rights of rural residents, who were being hurt by the land grab.

The Declaration recognized the “mass influx of various Foreign Direct Investors” who have invested in Sierra Leone over the past 10 years. The investors have acquired large tracts of forest, mining and arable land.

The problem, as addressed in the Declaration, is that the rising demand for land to undertake foreign investment has been accompanied by “a disproportionate dividend” for rural residents, “most of whom have been dispossessed of land which has had very negative implications for their livelihood and invariably leading to an infringement of fundamental rights…”

While recognizing the benefits Sierra Leone received from foreign investment, the citizens resolved that there was an urgent need “to recognise and respect all legitimate tenure right holders and their rights owing to the very little community involvement in land acquisition.” Food security and livelihood were at issue, the Declaration noted.

The citizens called an acknowledgement of the environmental degradation that was taking place in communities where mining and agri-business were located. They also called for legal changes, including the insertion of humane and non-discriminatory clauses in relevant laws.

The landgrabbing problem in Sierra Leone was recently commented on publicly by the Director of Criminal Services in Sierra Leone Police, Assistant Inspector General Morie Lengor, who said that much violence was attached to the issue, making it a serious security threat and concern.

The Freetown Declaration was issued at the Atlantic Hall in Freetown late last month.

By Day Blakely Donaldson

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The imam of Xinjiang’s largest mosque, located in Kashgar, was killed Wednesday, and shortly afterwards police shot dead two suspects in the murder, who, according to the police, “resisted arrest with knives and axes.”

The suspects had been located shortly after the murder, according to police, who said the men had been “influenced by religious extremism.”

The suspects, according to Chinese state media agency Xinhua, had planned to “do something big” to boost their influence in the region.

The imam, Jume Tahir, was appointed to the position of imam of the mosque by China’s ruling Communist Party.

There have been reports that the imam was unpopular for praising Chinese policies while preaching.

Xinjiang is composed of 43.3 percent Uyghur, 41 percent Han Chinese, 8.3 percent Kazakh, 5 percent Hui and small numbers of other ethnic groups. Han have been migrating to Xinjiang on a large scale in recent years, and tensions have been rising between the local Uyghurs and their Chinese rulers.

By Day Blakely Donaldson