China Road and Bridge Corporation has not yet repaired the damage done by highway construction to the UNESCO-protected Tara River, Montenegro's environmental agency confirms. Montenegro’s Agency for Environmental Protection reported recently that China Road and Bridge Corporation, CRBC, has not yet corrected the damage done to the Tara River, part of which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which occurred during construction of the Bar-Boljare highway. A BIRN investigation showed that the Chinese company was obliged to correct the damage by July 2022. “Projected remediation measures have not yet been completed … We expect that, in the coming period, CRBC will fully realize all the obligations, otherwise we will do it ]ourselves] at the expense of the Chinese company,” the agency told BIRN. “CRBC has so far corrected the left bank of the river, rehabilitated the local macadam road, and remedied the bed of the Tara River to a length of about 500 meters,” the Agency specified. The Bar-Boljare highway represents the Montenegrin leg of a larger highway running from the Adriatic coast to the Serbian capital, Belgrade. CRBC is building the Montenegrin leg and 85 per cent of the first section is being covered by a $944 million loan from China’s Exim Bank. On July 13, 2023, the first section of the highway was officially opened, seven years after the Chinese-financed project started, driving up Montenegro’s public debt to 90.85 per cent of GDP. In June 2019, the local watchdog NGO MANS warned that the highway’s construction was devastating the Tara River, including its UNESCO-protected area, stressing that the construction of bridges and the exploitation and disposal of gravel and sand had damaged the riverbed. After the Environmental Protection Agency determined the damage, a remediation plan with CRBC was determined on August 2, 2021. But civic organisations criticized the remediation measures approved by the Agency, stating that the rehabilitation of only 500 meters of river bed was not enough because more than six kilometres of the river course has been damaged. Lazar Grdinic, from MANS, said there have been no serious efforts to rehabilitate the devastated part of the Tara riverbed and even partially restore it. “So far, there are no serious scientific studies that would give a definitive answer to the question of the extent of the devastation,” Grdinic told BIRN. The head of the local Sports Fishing Club, Momir Zivkovic, also said highway construction had destroyed both the river and its fish stock. In April 2018, the club received a concession to manage fish stocks on part of the Tara, but, due to the devastation of the river, it had demanded compensation from the Chinese company.
“In the past, dozens of fish could be caught on Tara in one day. Today, the situation with the fish stock is a catastrophic, and you can hardly meet a fisherman here, ” Zivkovic told BIRN. BIRN was not able to contact CRBC. Nicknamed the “tear of Europe”, the Tara is considered one of the most beautiful rivers on the continent, and its deep canyons are popular among river rafters. In its 2019 progress report on the country, the European Commission urged Montenegro to prevent possible environmental damage being done to the Tara in the context of the highway.
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The UN's new humanitarian coordinator, Sigrid Kaag, said Tuesday that no organization can replace or substitute the "tremendous capacity" of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
"I think you've heard the Secretary-General and other agencies, and they've been very clear. At the moment, beyond political decisions, which are GA (General Assembly) bound, there is no way any organization can replace or substitute the tremendous capacity, the fabric of UNRWA, their ability and their knowledge of the population in Gaza," Sigrid Kaag, the United Nations Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, said during a news conference following a closed session on Gaza at the UN Security Council. Some of UNRWA's staff were allegedly involved in the cross-border attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7. At least 12 countries — Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, Finland, Australia, the UK, the Netherlands, the US, France, Austria and Japan — have suspended funding for UNRWA, which was established in 1949 to help Palestinian refugees across the Middle East. UNRWA said it terminated contracts with several employees following the Israeli allegations. The main issues discussed during the UN Security Council session were supply routes to Gaza and distribution across the enclave as well as the establishment of the UN mechanism, according to Kaag. "This is not about counting trucks," she said. "This is about volume, quality, speed and continuous delivery of humanitarian and commercial goods to reach the civilians of Gaza, and the mechanism went up and running and can really help facilitate that. It helps us to track, it helps us to enhance the transparency that we know what's coming in…It helps with the verification and obviously to know if it really reached the civilian population," she added. Several aid workers with the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA helped kidnap Israelis and arm Hamas during its attack on October 7, the New York Times claimed on Sunday citing the contents of a secret Israeli government report.
The dossier allegedly details Israel’s claims about 12 UNRWA employees said to have been involved in the raid. Seven were teachers with the agency and two more worked at its schools in other capacities, while the other three were a clerk, social worker, and storeroom manager. Ten of the workers were also allegedly members of Hamas, whose civilian wing remains the legally elected government of Gaza despite its classification as a terrorist group by Israel, while another was said to be affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad. A school counselor from Khan Younis supposedly worked with his son to kidnap an Israeli woman, while a social worker from Nuseirat reportedly removed a dead Israeli soldier’s body back to Gaza and helped distribute vehicles and ammunition ahead of the raid. Another three men allegedly received text messages summoning them to meeting points on October 7, with one ordered to bring rocket-propelled grenades. Two US officials told the New York Times that while they had been briefed on the Israeli allegations, they had not verified the details. Washington was nevertheless first to cut off UNRWA’s funding on Friday, followed by Canada and over half a dozen more on Saturday. Because UNRWA lacks any emergency cash reserves, it may have to curtail the vital services it provides to some 5 million Palestinians starting in February. The funding cutoff comes at a precarious time for Gaza’s residents, many of whom already face hunger and starvation. Over 85% of them have been displaced from their homes since the war began, according to the UN. Israel’s accusations came just days after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take action to prevent genocide in Gaza, including by allowing more aid deliveries to reach the territory’s besieged residents. While the ruling indicated the court found South Africa’s genocide case against Israel to have some merit, it stopped short of issuing an immediate demand for a ceasefire. Israel had been sitting on the information regarding the UNRWA workers for weeks, three unnamed diplomats told Israel Hayom on Saturday, claiming the government had kept it quiet because “there was an understanding in the Israeli political system that UNRWA must be preserved in Gaza, because it is the only functioning body in Gaza and without it, the chaos would be even greater.” However, Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Saturday called for UNRWA to be “replaced with agencies dedicated to genuine peace and development,” demanding the resignation of its director, and Israel has previously claimed the agency is a Hamas front. The UN launched a probe into the allegations, and immediately terminated staff members suspected of terrorist activity, but Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on Western nations not to penalize all relief workers indiscriminately. Egypt remains committed to the Palestinian cause and rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians, reiterated Minister of Defence and Military Production Mohamed Zaki during his meeting with UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag.
The meeting, which took place in Cairo on Wednesday, was attended by top military officials. It addressed developments in Gaza and outlined strategies for coordinating efforts to ensure a continuous flow of humanitarian assistance and relief materials to the population facing severe shortages of basic necessities due to ongoing military operations, read a statement by the Egyptian military spokesperson. "Zaki affirmed Egypt's steadfast stance in supporting the Palestinian cause in accordance with the provisions of international legitimacy," the statement noted, adding that the minister "strongly rejected any attempts to displace the Palestinian people." The defence minister expressed Egypt’s desire to coordinate with regional and international parties to effect de-escalation in Gaza and alleviate the humanitarian suffering of its residents, the statement added. Kaag hailed Egypt's efforts to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, expressing hopes that the international endeavours would result in a ceasefire. This is Kaag's first visit to the region since her appointment on 26 December 2023 under Security Council Resolution 2720, meant to facilitate, coordinate, and monitor the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. Kaag met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry on Tuesday. During their meeting, Shoukry stressed Egypt's support for Kaag’s role and efforts to facilitate her duties, including the swift launch of a UN mechanism to expedite the dispatch of humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza. Last week, the Israeli defence team speaking before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) claimed that Egypt is responsible for preventing the entry of humanitarian aid into the Strip through the Rafah border crossing. The claim was refuted by several Egyptian official statements. On Sunday, the head of Egypt’s State Information Service Diaa Rashwan stated that the major hurdle for the swift delivery of aid to Gaza over the past 100 days has been the deliberate delays imposed by Israeli authorities inspecting aid material at border crossings. Rashwan said Egypt's Rafah crossing has never been closed for a moment during the 100-day war, noting that Egypt, via several official statements, has called on Israel to stop hindering humanitarian aid under the pretext of inspection delays. Egypt’s private and public contributions comprise 82 percent of total aid delivered to Gaza, which in total has reached 9,000 aid-loaded trucks until Sunday. Since October 2023, Israel has launched a relentless military campaign on the Gaza Strip that has killed at least 24,285 Palestinians, with 61,154 reported injuries, according to the Palestinian health ministry's latest figures. Deputy Prime Minister Sigrid Kaag will be stepping down from her role in national politics. Kaag will take a new role with the United Nations as the Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, she announced on X. She informed King Willem-Alexander of her request to step down as both deputy prime minister and the minister of finance. "The King granted this resignation, on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, in the most honorable manner, while expressing gratitude for the many and important services rendered by the Minister to him and the Kingdom," said the government communications service RVD. Kaag's resignation will take effect from January 8, 2024. "Last summer, I already announced my departure from Dutch politics. This moment is coming sooner than anticipated," she said in a statement. "Peace, security, and justice have always been my driving forces," she said. "I have accepted this special assignment in the hopes of contributing to a better future." She said she was honored to be asked to take her new role by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres. The job was created by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2720. Kaag said her time on the third and fourth Cabinets of Mark Rutte have been both "special and challenging," and highlighted several points of pride. "It is good to mention that in a relatively short Cabinet period, much has been done in the field of climate, support for Ukraine, the strengthening of the European and international role of the Netherlands, purchasing power in addition to a renewed commitment to stable public finances and the reform of the European budget rules." She also noted the government's apology for the country's past ties to slavery. Kaag also thanked her Ministry of Finance staff.
In the Netherlands, Kaag's tasks as minister of finance will be handled by Rob Jetten, the current minister for climate and energy. Both Kaag and Jetten are members of political party D66. A new finance minister will be sought to serve on the current caretaker Cabinet. The United States and Taiwan are exploring ways to expand Taiwan’s participation in the United Nations system and other international forums, as well as addressing a range of global challenges, including public health, aviation safety and climate change. The most recent routine consultation between the U.S. and Taiwan took place Wednesday, days after the Chinese delegation at COP28 opposed calls to include Taiwan in the United Nations climate talks in Dubai. All participants in the latest U.S.-Taiwan talks "recognized the importance of working closely with likeminded partners who share our concerns regarding attempts to exclude Taiwan from the international community," according to the U.S. State Department in a statement. Taiwan Relations Act Senior American officials have said Washington’s "One China" policy is "distinct" from Beijing’s "One China" principle. The U.S. policy is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the Three Joint Communiques and the Six Assurances. China has objected to the Taiwan Relations Act and deemed it as invalid. The Taiwan Relations Act has stated that "nothing in this Act may be construed as a basis for supporting the exclusion or expulsion of Taiwan from continued membership in any international financial institution or any other international organization." The Chinese Communist Party has never ruled Taiwan but claims sovereignty over the island, which became home to the Chinese Nationalist government after its defeat in 1949. During the U.N. climate talks held in the United Arab Emirates, Chinese officials lodged a protest after calls to include Taiwan's participation in the climate summit by other countries. "China has noted that during the meeting a handful of countries ignore the fact that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China and make noises about the participation by the Taiwan authorities in the COP," a member of the Chinese delegation said via a translator in the plenary hall in Dubai. Wednesday, officials from the State Department and Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs discussed near-term opportunities to support Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly (WHA) and other global public health bodies, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), as well as Taiwan’s meaningful participation in other multilateral organizations. World Health Organization and International Civil Aviation Organization The Beijing government has been blocking Taiwan's representation at WHA meetings after the self-ruled democracy elected Tsai Ing-wen, a China skeptic, as president in 2016. China has also blocked Taiwan's participation in ICAO assemblies since 2013. Since the U.S. switched its diplomatic recognition from the government of Taipei to Beijing in 1979, Washington has insisted that the two sides should resolve their political disputes peacefully. Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns said "fundamental differences" over Taiwan persist in Washington’s relationship with Beijing. The top U.S. diplomat on China said the United States will continue to implement the Taiwan Relations Act and help Taiwan with its defense needs, renewing the U.S. commitment to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
In recent months, China has been increasing its military activities near the strait. The United States has voiced concerns about any Chinese interference through military coercion, as Taiwan prepares for a presidential election in January 2024. "I think what we can do is to insist that the people in Taiwan have an opportunity to vote freely on January 13," Burns told an audience during a seminar hosted by the U.S.-based Council on Foreign Relations. In Beijing, Chinese officials said the election in Taiwan "is purely China’s internal affair." "Taiwan independence" means war and "Taiwan independence" is a dead end, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a recent briefing. In a recent interview with VOA, U.S. Senior Official for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Matt Murray said, "We certainly want to make sure there are opportunities for engagement" between the U.S. and Taiwan in international economic forums, as Taiwan is one of the top trading partners and investors in the United States. Morris Chang, founder of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, represented Taiwan during the APEC summit in San Francisco in mid-November, where he held talks with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. The two discussed the U.S.-Taiwan "relationship on the economy and technology," Harris said in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter. Chang also had a pull-aside meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during the APEC meetings, according to Murray. The last U.S.-Taiwan working group meeting on international organizations took place in April. The US has cast the lone dissenting vote against a proposed UN Security Council resolution that would have demanded a humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, amid rising civilian casualties in Gaza.
Thirteen member states voted in favor of the resolution, which was put forward by the United Arab Emirates on Friday in New York. The UK abstained, leaving Washington diplomatically isolated in blocking the measure. “What is the message we are sending Palestinians if we cannot unite behind a call to halt the relentless bombardment of Gaza?” Deputy UAE UN Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab asked members of the council. “Indeed, what is the message we are sending civilians across the world who may find themselves in similar situations?” The US has cast the lone dissenting vote against a proposed UN Security Council resolution that would have demanded a humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, amid rising civilian casualties in Gaza. Friday’s vote came after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked Article 99, a rarely used provision in the UN charter, to warn the Security Council of an impending “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza. He said that with the war raging on for two months and counting, the humanitarian support net in Gaza faces a “severe risk of collapse.” More than 17,000 Palestinians have been killed and 1.9 million people have been displaced since the war began in October. Hamas triggered the war by launching surprise attacks against villages in southern Israel on October 7, killing an estimated 1,200 people and taking hundreds of hostages back to Gaza. US officials have opposed a general ceasefire because it would only help Hamas retain its grip on power in Gaza. A week-long ceasefire late last month enabled the release of 110 Hamas hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinians who had been incarcerated in Israeli jails. It also bought time for aid workers to bring more humanitarian supplies into the besieged Palestinian enclave. The US mission to the UN said in a statement that it opposed the ceasefire resolution because the “rushed” proposal was “divorced from reality” and would “only plant the seeds for the next war.” Washington’s suggestions for revising the resolution were largely ignored, deputy US UN Ambassador Robert Wood said. Among other concerns, he added, the document failed to include language condemning the Hamas attacks. A Reuters journalist was killed Friday while reporting from southern Lebanon, and several others were injured, including two from the same news agency. “We are deeply saddened to learn that our videographer, Issam Abdallah, has been killed,” a Reuters spokesperson said on Friday. Abdallah was part of a Reuters crew in southern Lebanon who were providing a live signal at the time of the strike, the spokesperson said. “We are urgently seeking more information, working with authorities in the region, and supporting Issam’s family and colleagues. Our thoughts are with his family at this terrible time,” the spokesperson said in the statement. Reuters journalists Thaer Al-Sudani and Maher Nazeh also were injured and are seeking medical care, the spokesperson added. The broadcaster Al Jazeera said that two of its journalists, Karmen Jokhadar and Eli Brakhia, were injured at the same time. Agence France-Presse also reported that two of its team were injured and that the shelling took place after an attempted push into Israel from Lebanon by a Palestinian faction. The AFP named its injured crew as Christina Assi and video journalist Dylan Collins. Details of the incident were not immediately clear.
The Israeli military has carried out strikes on its border with Lebanon in response to rocket and militant attacks. The Reuters journalists are believed to have been hit by one such strike, according to Agence France-Presse and Al Jazeera. VOA could not immediately verify if that was the case. The Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan said Friday he had just learned of the attack and that Israel will "always try to mitigate and avoid civilian casualties." Saying that Israeli forces would never want to "kill or shoot any journalist that is doing the job," Erdan said: "We were in a state of war, things might happen. We regret them, we feel sorry. And we will investigate it. Right now, it's too early to call what happened." The conflict playing out in a densely packed region has already led to media casualties. At least 10 other journalists have been killed while reporting from Gaza since Israel declared war on Hamas following the militant group’s bloody incursion into southern Israel last week, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Friday the U.N. is concerned by reports of explosions in the U.N. Peacekeeping Mission area of South Lebanon and the “distressing reports” of a journalist being killed and others injured. “Journalists need to be protected and allowed to do their work,” Dujarric said. Iran informed the IAEA that it had expelled “several experienced Agency inspectors,” Grossi said in a statement on Saturday. These inspectors were involved in monitoring Tehran’s compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a 1970 agreement under which signatories without nuclear weapons agreed not to develop them. While Iran is permitted by the NPT to revoke the credentials of inspectors, Grossi called Tehran’s decision “disproportionate and unprecedented.” While Grossi did not state how many inspectors had been barred, he said that the decision affected “about one third of the core group of the Agency’s most experienced inspectors” in Iran.
“This profoundly regrettable decision by Iran is another step in the wrong direction and constitutes an unnecessary blow to an already strained relationship between the IAEA and Iran,” he said. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said that it booted the inspectors in response to the Western powers using the IAEA “for their own political purposes.” This statement was an apparent reference to an announcement by France, Germany, and the UK that they would maintain sanctions on Iran over its alleged non-compliance with the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal, which offered Tehran limited sanctions relief in exchange for a pause on its uranium enrichment activities. Separately, the US, UK, and 61 other NPT signatories demanded earlier this week that Iran explain the presence of uranium traces at three undeclared nuclear sites. These traces were discovered by IAEA inspectors late last year. A report by the agency stated that some particles had been enriched to 83.3% purity, just below the 90% threshold for nuclear weapons use. Iran has repeatedly denied that it is seeking a nuclear weapon, and insists that its atomic research is strictly peaceful. Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie has quit as a special envoy for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) after two decades in the role, the United Nations said on Friday. The star of ‘Lara Croft: Tomb Raider’ and ‘Maleficent’ had been an envoy since 2012, carrying out more than 60 field missions for the agency in various parts of the world. This year, she made trips to locations including Yemen, Burkina Faso and Ukraine. Despite ending her cooperation with the UN, Jolie promised that she would keep helping displaced people in a new capacity. “I will continue to do everything in my power in the years to come to support refugees and other displaced people. After 20 years working within the UN system, I feel it is time for me to work differently, engaging directly with refugees and local organizations, and supporting their advocacy for solutions,” the actress said in a joint statement with the UN.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said the agency was grateful to the movie star for her “successful” service and “the difference she has made for refugees and people forced to flee.” “I appreciate her desire to shift her engagement and support her decision. I know the refugee cause will remain close to her heart, and I am certain she will bring the same passion and attention to a wider humanitarian portfolio,” Grandi stated. In an Instagram post on her decision, Jolie wrote that the UNHCR was “full of amazing people,” and that she still believed in many things that the United Nations does. However, the actress had recently been critical of the UN. In an article for Time magazine in June, the 47-year-old claimed that “because of the way the UN was set up, it is tipped towards the interests and voice of powerful nations at the expense of those people suffering the most from conflict and persecution whose rights and lives are not treated equally.” “We have to recognize that our systems for preventing conflict and mass human displacement, and defending human rights, are not working,” she insisted, pointing to the fact that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine had taken the number of displaced people worldwide to a record of over 100 million. An article published by the United Nations hailing the benefits of hunger has gone viral on social media today, with netizens expressing shock over the claims made in the article titled “The Benefits of World Hunger”. Written by retired Hawaiian professor George Kent, the article explains how hunger is needed to get workers for low-level manual jobs. It was published on UN Chronicle, the flagship magazine of the UN. The article argues that people work to fight hunger, and if there is no hunger, there will be nobody to do the manual jobs. Kenk shockingly says, “For those of us at the high end of the social ladder, ending hunger globally would be a disaster. If there were no hunger in the world, who would plow the fields? Who would harvest our vegetables? Who would work in the rendering plants? Who would clean our toilets? We would have to produce our own food and clean our own toilets.”
George Kent also claims that only hungry people work hard, while well-nourished people are far less willing to do such work. He termed the notion that people should be fed well to make them more productive ‘nosense’, saying that “No one works harder than hungry people.” The article caused great outrage on social media across the world, with common netizens and well-known people slamming it for glorifying hunger for the benefits of the rich. While the article has gone viral today (6th June 2022) for some reason, actually it was published more than a decade ago. The article was originally published on the UN Chronicle, the flagship magazine of the United Nations, way back in 2008 in printed form. Later the article was republished on the UN website in 2019, which has gone viral now. The same article is also available on researchgate, the repository of research papers, which says that it was written in June 2008. While the premise of the article is indeed absurd, it actually seems to be a work of satire. George Kent, who was a professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Hawaii and now a Professor Emeritus at the university, had actually written the article to claim that the rich keep the poor people hungry so that they work for the comfort of the rich. In fact, he has added in the article, “people at the high end are not rushing to solve the hunger problem. For many of us, hunger is not a problem, but an asset.” In the article, George Kent also claimed that people at the high end are not rushing to solve the hunger problem due to this reason. Although subtle, this suggests that the article was satirical in nature. While most people were outraged by the article, some people said that it was a satire. George Kent has written extensively on the issue of global hunger, including a book titled “Freedom from Want: The Human Right to Adequate Food”. Therefore it is unlikely that he will write something positive about the issue, and hence it can be said that the article is satirical. The World Economic Forum just had their Davos Agenda 2021 meeting in January. Now The Great Reset has been something talked about in detail since the pandemic started. But are we seeing The Great Reset happening right before our eyes? I think we are starting to see the slow implementation of The World Economic Forum's Great Reset right now. It's like a chess match, nothing happens right away, many moves are made before the endgame.
The Great Reset that was proposed by the World Economic Forum is looking to forgive all the world's debt and has us live by the slogan, "You'll Own Nothing, And You Will Be Happy". Now first and foremost, we are starting to see a slow implementation of a universal basic income. It was actually what the World Economic Forum talked about and advocate for in the Davos agenda 2021 meeting that happened a few weeks back. Starting with the continual stimulus packages that we have received in the past few months to help stimulate the economy, seems like a slow inoculation into government dependency. Since we can't work where are we going to get our money from? Secondly, The Great Reset talks about how having ALL of our debts forgiven. Well who's going to buy them? The Federal Reserve? Sure, but with the sale of debt, comes the control of the debt. And whoever controls debt, controls YOU! The great reset is all about debt forgiveness but then we won't be able to own anything ever again......and we will be happy about it. I'm not completely convinced that the World Economic Forum is looking to do this for the good of the people. They literally said, "You'll Own Nothing and Be Happy" about it. Would you like to NOT own your home, car, business? I sure would like to own all of the things I've worked very hard for and I can speak on behalf of most people who own those things. Lastly, the Davos agenda 2021 got into cryptocurrency. Currently crypto is decentralized and lacks certain regulation from major regulatory bodies. That is a beautiful thing, but the World Economic Forum has already spoke about crypto in their Davos agenda 2021 meeting that happened a few weeks back. With the Great Reset, the fiat currency will crash because of the reckless printing from The Federal Reserve. So expect to see heavy regulation and government intervention with crypto. There is a very worrying trend that has been accelerated under the veil of fear and confusion, and that trend has been drastically intensified…
The corona crisis has already taken a very high toll and caused deep damage in our societies and our economies, the extent of which is yet to become apparent. We have seen its impact on productivity, on unemployment, on social cohesion and on political division. However, there is another very worrying trend that has been accelerated under the veil of fear and confusion that the pandemic has spread. The war on cash, that was already underway for almost a decade, has been drastically intensified over the last few months. The “problem” Over the last years, and as the war on cash escalated, we’ve gotten used to hear certain arguments or “reasons” on why we should all abandon paper money and move en masse to an exclusively digital economy. These talking points have been repeated over and over, in most western economies and by countless institutional figures. “Cash is used by terrorists, money launderers and criminals” is arguably the most oft-repeated one, as it’s been widely employed in most debates about the digital transition. Just a couple of years ago, it was also used by Mario Draghi, to support the decision to scrap the 500 euro note. We didn’t get any specific information or data about how many terrorists were actually using this high-denomination note, but we do know a lot of law-abiding citizens were using it to save, as did small business owners for their operational liquidity needs. Now, however, the corona crisis has introduced a whole new direction of anti-cash rhetoric and fresh arguments in favor of a digital economy. Even in the early stages of the pandemic, when essentially nothing was concretely known about the virus itself or its transmission, the seeds of new fears were already planted by sensational media reports and fear-mongering political and institutional figures. The insidious idea that “you can catch Covid through cash” might have been prematurely spread, but it did stick in most people’s minds. This is, of course, understandable, given the extremely high levels of uncertainty and anxiety in the general public. Wanting to eliminate potential threats was a natural instinct and so was the urge to take back at least some control over our lives, after they’d been suddenly thrown into utter chaos in the wake of the global economic freeze. Another factor that concretely helped the shift away from physical cash was an entirely practical one. Given the lockdown measures and the new “social distancing” directives that were enforced all over the world, it became difficult to use cash, even if you really wanted to, or had no other means of transaction, as is the case for billions of people. With physical stores being forced to shut down and with more and more online shops offering contactless delivery (either as a choice or as a service requirement), the need for cash very quickly gave way to digital payments. For most of us, who have access to online banking, cards or other digital payment services, this introduced no real inconvenience and we probably didn’t even give it a second thought. However, for many of our fellow citizens it was a serious impediment, which in some cases blocked their access to basic goods and essential supplies. Contrary to the glowing promises of the digital economy, of financial inclusion and convenience, the fact remains that there are still millions of people who simply do not have access to this brave new world. According to figures by the World Bank, globally there are 2.5 billion people with no bank account, with a high concentration in the developing world. In the West too, however, there is a very large part of the population that is unbanked and/or has no access to digital solutions, while the elderly are also to a very large extent “locked out” of the digital economy. For all these millions of people, cash is the only way to save, to transact and to cover their basic needs. The “solution” With cash being presented not just as a danger to society and to national security, but also as a direct health hazard due to the coronavirus, the push towards digital alternatives has been massively reinforced over the last few months. Both international organizations and individual governments have actively participated and encouraged this push, some through public guidance statements and others through the blunt enforcement of direct rules and measures that leave no real room for their citizens to make their own choices. The CDC in its official guidance to retail workers recommenced that they “encourage customers to use touchless payment options”, while a report by the Word Bank highlighted the need to adopt cashless payments for the sake of “social protection”. The UAE Central Bank encouraged the use of online banking and digital payments “as a measure to protect the health and safety of UAE residents”, and the Bank of England has acknowledged that banknotes can hold “bacteria and viruses” and recommended that people wash their hands after handling money. In March, a report from Reuters revealed that the U.S. Federal Reserve was quarantining dollars that it repatriated from Asia and so did South Korea’s central bank, while banks in China were forced by the government to disinfect bills and keep them in a safe for up to 14 days, before putting them in circulation. A highlight, however, came in May, when the World Economic Forum published an article in its “Global Agenda” strongly supporting the mass adoption of digital payments, for the sake of public health. In it, the authors argue that “contactless digital payments at the point of sale, such as facial recognition, Quick Response (QR) codes or near-field communications (NFC), can make it less likely for the virus to spread to others through cash exchanges.” They also applauded the efforts of China in digitalizing payments and appeared to hold the country and its measures as a model to be emulated: “China’s path to enabling digital payments should provide some lessons to other countries eager to follow suit.” Since a number of Western governments may indeed be “eager to follow suit”, let us take a closer look at this bright example and examine what it really entails. Fiat money 2.0 The digitalization drive in all aspects of the Chinese state, society and economy is nothing new and it certainly predated the emergence of Covid-19. The country’s infamous “social rating system” has made headlines years ago and the government’s eagerness to use technology, the internet and all sorts of digital systems to track its citizens’ behaviors and affiliations has long attracted International criticism and widespread condemnation by human rights organizations, privacy advocates and free speech supporters. Now, however, the state has been given a reason to accelerate its efforts in the mass adoption of digital payments and the abandonment of cash. To a large extent, this digitalization of payments task was much easier in China, as digital payments there are already very widespread in the population. More than 80% of consumers already used mobile payments in 2019, according to management consultancy Bain, a sharp contrast with the US that had adoption rates of less than 10%. So, as the population has already accepted a new way of payment, the new initiative sought to dominate the means of payment too. Thus, a new “digital yuan” was introduced. This new fiat currency, that has been in development for over 5 years, was rolled out in April in four Chinese cities with a plan for national adoption soon, so that it eventually replaces the physical legal tender. This so-called Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) will be put into circulation through China’s big four state banks and citizens will be able to receive and use it by downloading an electronic wallet application authorized by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), which will be linked to their bank account. On the surface, it appears to work just like the old currency. It is issued and backed by the PBOC, it’s valued the same as the physical banknotes and, thanks to partnerships with Alipay and WeChat Pay, that control 80% of the country’s payment market, it will be used to get paid by anyone and to pay for anything. In fact, some public servant salaries and state subsidies are already being paid out in this new digital yuan, arriving in their intended recipients’ digital wallets. According to China’s state media People’s Daily, the new currency is meant to simplify domestic transactions and trade, but it will also facilitate and ease cross border transactions. The implication there is clear: It is yet another attempt to challenge the global dominance of the USD, after the Belt and Road initiative failed to really move the needle as the Chinese state had hoped. The strategy of spending of huge amounts of Chinese money abroad did provide some leverage over developing countries, but it didn’t come anywhere near “dethroning” the Dollar and internationalizing the Renminbi. Perhaps, this initiative will fare better, especially as it now has the “first-mover” advantage. Entering this “digital fiat” arena first is hugely important and the timing of the currency’s launch was no coincidence. The development and the rollout plan were significantly accelerated following Facebook’s announcement of the Libra, as the Chinese state wouldn’t have the private tech giant beat them to the punch. In fact, the digital yuan resembles the Libra in many ways. Most importantly, neither of them is a cryptocurrency, which is decentralized by design and allows for peer to peer transactions without the need of an intermediary or third party. In this case, the issuer is the third party and all transactions go through a very centralized system that controls and has access to all the data. In another non-coincidence just a few years back, China’s government banned initial coin offerings and placed great burdens on cryptocurrencies and crypto-investors making it very hard to operate in the country, thereby dismantling the threat of potential competition from the private sector and clearing the way for its own digital coin. Linda Kim SINGAPORE, August 15 -- The outside world can do little to assure the future of freedom in Hong Kong beyond making the case that preserving the principles of liberty are at stake. Nevertheless, the plight of that territory’s more than 7 million souls can teach us an important lesson about what China has in mind for the rest of the world. It is not good. For starters, the continuing protests speak volumes about China’s commitment to “one country, two systems.” When the British transferred sovereignty over Hong Kong to China in 1997, Beijing agreed to this arrangement. It guaranteed that Hong Kong would be allowed to maintain its own governance and economic system. The Hong Kong system—one of great economic freedom—has produced tremendous economic success. But economic freedom is no more popular than political freedom among the Chinese Communist Party. And in recent years, Chinese authorities have been encroaching on the rights supposedly guaranteed to the people of Hong Kong under the “one country, two systems” agreement. Matters came to a head this April, when the Hong Kong government, under heavy pressure from Beijing, introduced legislation that would allow people accused of crimes against mainland China to be extradited. The proposal set off alarms among residents who know well that the mainland’s thoroughly politicized legal system is not to be trusted. Fear that Beijing would quickly weaponize the proposed law to target democracy activists and journalists sparked massive protests. Efforts to suppress the demonstrations have only ignited more public demonstrations. The protests also tell us a lot about mainland China. There is one strain of thought that Beijing, while quite happy to bully Hong Kong, would not be so rash as to put down the protests with harsh military action. That kind of response repulsed the world when the Soviets did it, ultimately leading to the break-up of the USSR. Yet many observers fear that Beijing will step in and crack down on the demonstrators. After all, they note, the USSR’s demise didn’t stop the People’s Army from rolling tanks into Tienanmen Square. There is no question that Beijing is waging a war on nerves. Last month, it assembled troops and equipment along the border with Hong Kong. It’s also begun airing footage of troops training for suppressing riots in urban settings. This all speaks volumes about the callous cynicism with which the Chinese government treats its own people. The Hong Kong police are already doing Beijing’s dirty work for them (helped, to be fair, by protesters and agitators who have crossed the line and become violent or destructive). As long as “pro-democracy” demonstrations don’t spread to the mainland cities, Beijing might not be too concerned to see Hong Kong’s stature as a stable and dependable place to do business diminished. Hong Kong just doesn’t mean near as much to the Chinese economy as it did 20 years ago. Besides, the Chinese would rather see investment flow to mainland cities like Guangzhou and Shanghai that are more firmly under the regime’s control. As for the welfare and future of the people of Hong Kong, that is the last thing Beijing cares about. Most mainland Chinese seem indifferent about the protests. Many are jealous of the privileges long enjoyed by the people of Hong Kong. Rather than press for similar freedoms, they are happy to see the islanders brought down a notch. This is yet more evidence that the hope that opening up China to the world would encourage Beijing to integrate smoothly into an equitable and liberal rules-based order is little more than magical thinking. Finally, there are lessons for the rest of us. China’s encroachment on Hong Kong represents yet another in a long string of promises broken by the communist regime. It has violated its commitments to U.N. Convention on the Law Seas, violated U.N. sanctions (which it voted for) against North Korea, and delivered debt and corruption, rather than the promised prosperity, through its vaunted Belt and Road economic “initiative.” In sum, Beijing has a well-deserved rep for playing fast and loose with the rules as it tries to bully its way to the top—and its actions with Hong Kong only reinforce that reputation. Nothing reflects the contemptuous attitude of the Chinese more than their prosperous propaganda claim that the Hong Kong demonstrations were engineered by the CIA. They know no right-thinking person in the world would believe this, but they don’t care. They know that the people of China will accept this explanation (after all, they’ll hear no other), and that’s all they want. China is acting like a global bully. Like most bullies, it will continue to do so until the world stops tolerating Beijing’s intolerable behavior. Hong Kong is a warning to the world. The world should take notice! Linda Kim SEOUL, August 10 -- North Korea has fired two unidentified projectiles into the sea off eastern coast on Saturday, Yonhap news agency reported citing South Korea's military. South Korea's defense ministry said it is closely following the developments. No further details are available at this point. On August 6, North Korea launched new guided missiles under the supervision of leader Kim Jong-un. The two missiles flew around 450 km and struck targets in the Sea of Japan. After test launches, Kim Jong-un said that this was "a warning over joint military drills" held by South Korea and the United States. On August 5, the United States and South Korea started joint military drills. According to preliminary reports, the military exercise will last until August 20. "This is a serious issue for the international community," Japanese Senior Vice Defense Minister Kenji Harada told reporters after the launches. North Korea's missile launch would constitute a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions banning the country from using ballistic technology. South Korean military officials and the defense minister held an emergency meeting after the latest launches and took them to be another warning against a South Korea-U.S. joint military drill that started from Monday and runs through late this month. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said Wednesday that its launches a day earlier were a "warning" to the United States and South Korea over their ongoing joint military exercises. U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday he received a "beautiful" letter from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in which he said he does not like conducting the short-range ballistic missile tests North Korea has been doing in recent weeks but justified the move as a response to the U.S.-South Korea drills. The U.S. president said on Aug. 1 he was not worried about the missiles being tested by the North, calling them "very standard," short-range devices. "Short-range missiles, we never made an agreement on that. I have no problem. We'll see what happens," Trump told reporters after North Korea carried out a series of missile launches. South Korean and U.S authorities are currently working on identifying the exact type of the projectiles, said the JCS, while warning that additional launches are highly likely as North Korea is now conducting summer military drills. The Japanese government said Saturday that it has not confirmed any ballistic missiles flying into Japan's exclusive economic zone and that the projectiles posed no immediate security threat. Even so, "we will strengthen our air and missile defense capabilities," Harada said. |
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