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Category: Democracy (Page 1 of 4)

June 6, 2024 » the 80th Anniversary of D-Day » We Shall Remember Them

2024-06-06 /

80 years ago today, 160,000 troops from Britain, Canada, USA, —along with a dozen other nations— stormed five sandy beaches along the Normandy Coast, intending to liberate France and mainland Europe from Adolf Hitler’s tyranny.

The Canadian Encyclopedia says »

Juno Beach was the Allied code name for a 10 km stretch of French coastline assaulted by Canadian soldiers on D-Day, 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. The Canadian Army’s 3rd Infantry Division and 2nd Armoured Brigade seized the beach and its seaside villages while under intense fire from German defenders — an extraordinary example of military skill, reinforced by countless acts of personal courage. The 3rd Infantry Division took heavy casualties in its first wave of attack but took control of the beach by the end of the day. More than 14,000 Canadian soldiers landed or parachuted into France on D-Day. The Royal Canadian Navy contributed 110 warships and 10,000 sailors and the RCAF contributed 15 fighter and fighter-bomber squadrons to the assault. There were 1,074 Canadian casualties, including 359 killed.

Footage of Canadians landing on Juno Beach.

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Trump – the convicted felon and presumptive GOP nominee – vows to appeal guilty verdict in rambling speech after jury finds him guilty of 34 felonies

2024-05-31 /

A Manhattan jury on May 30, 2024 found former President Donald Trump guilty of 34 felonies.

After only two-days of deliberation, a unanimous, 12-person jury in the New York case concluded that Trump was guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in an alleged scheme to cover up a hush money payment to adult film actor Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election.

While Trump is no longer legally allowed to possess firearms, and may no longer be allowed to vote, he remains the presumptive Republican nominee is still allowed to run for president of the United States.

» Mother Jones » Convicted felon rambles through greatest hits of grievances, falsehoods, and legal nonsense

» The Journal » ‘I’d like them to say, “gee, we have to have a little sorrow for this man”, because they just don’t say that about me.’

» BBC » Can Trump run for president as a convicted felon?

» The Guardian » After guilty verdict on 34 felony counts, Trump criticized the process in speech repeating falsehoods and conspiracy theories

» Globe and Mail » Trump launched into attacks on the judge in his criminal trial and continued to undermine New York’s criminal justice system Friday as he tried to repackage his conviction on 34 felony charges as fuel, not an impediment, to his latest White House bid.

» El País » Landmark ruling against Trump triggers unprecedented political earthquake

» Mother Jones » Trump loses a big battle in his lifelong war against accountability

More » Axios / NBC News / CNN / NPR / Politico

Trump is to be sentenced on July 11.

Mexico is on the verge of electing its first female president

2024-05-30 /

The Journal »

Mexico is on course to elect its first woman president this weekend, with two front-runners competing to break the highest political glass ceiling in a country with a history of gender violence and inequality.

Ruling-party candidate Claudia Sheinbaum and opposition hopeful Xochitl Galvez, both 61, have dominated the presidential race in the world’s most populous Spanish-speaking country, home to 129 million people.

The only man running, Jorge Alvarez Maynez, is trailing far behind with just days left before the vote this coming Sunday. »

Natalie Kitroeff, writing in the NY Times »

Claudia Sheinbaum’s list of accolades is long: She has a Ph.D. and a shared Nobel Peace Prize and was the first woman elected to lead Mexico City, her nation’s capital and one of the largest cities in the Western Hemisphere.

Now she has another chance to make history. Ms. Sheinbaum, 61, is the clear front-runner in the Mexican election on Sunday, putting her in position to become the country’s first female president.

But she has an image problem, and she knows it.

Many Mexicans are wondering: Can she be her own leader? Or is she a pawn of the current president? »

Also » Axios / France 24 / Al Jazeera

“Everyone is absolutely terrified” » Inside India’s secret war against its critics abroad

2024-05-24 /

Zack Beauchamp, a senior correspondent at Vox, writes »

Interviews with political figures, experts, and activists revealed a sustained campaign where Narendra Modi’s government threatens American citizens and permanent residents who dare speak out on the declining state of the country’s democracy. This campaign has not been described publicly until now because many people in the community — even prominent ones — are too afraid to talk about it.

…

Prior to last year, the idea of India killing American citizens on American soil might have sounded absurd. But in the fall of 2023, both the Canadian government and a US Justice Department indictment alleged that Indian government agents had attempted to assassinate Sikhs living in North America. While federal agents disrupted the American plot, a Canadian citizen was killed by (alleged) Indian agents. The Modi government has denied involvement in both cases, but evidence — including reporting from the Washington Post and the Intercept —suggests they were deeply involved.

U.S. House of Representatives came to a pause over remarks about Trump’s 88 felony counts

2024-05-24 /

Again, evidence that democracy is under attack from the far-right.

The House floor unexpectedly came to a standstill for more than an hour on Wednesday after Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., listed off the criminal charges against former President Donald Trump.

Lauren Peller writing for ABC News »

Rep. McGovern: “Donald Trump might want to be a king. But he is not a king. He is not a presumptive king. He’s not even a president. He’s a presumptive nominee. And I know you’re trying to do your job and follow precedent but, frankly, at some point it’s time for this body to recognize that there is no precedent for this situation. We have a presumptive nominee for president facing 88 felony counts and we are being prevented from even acknowledging it. These are not alternative facts. There are real facts. A candidate for president of the United States is on trial for sending a hush money payment to a porn star to avoid a sex scandal during his 2016 campaign, and then fraudulently disguising those payments in violation of the law. He is also charged with conspiring to overturn the election. He is also charged with stealing classified information. And a jury has already found him liable for rape in a civil court. And yet, in this Republican-controlled House, it’s okay to talk about the trial but you have to call it a sham.”

Republican Rep. Erin Houchin: “We take down his words.”

Rep. McGovern: “It’s okay to say the jury is rigged, but not that Trump should be held accountable.”

Rep. Houchin: “Mr. Speaker, I demand that his words be taken down.”

Rep. McGovern: “It’s okay to say the court is corrupt, but not Trump corrupting the rule of law.”

More » NBC / Axios / Politico

ICC seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Hamas leader Sinwar over alleged war crimes

2024-05-20 /

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Karim A.A. Khan, said on May 20, 2024 that he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the October 7 attacks on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza.

Khan said he has “reasonable grounds to believe” these five men bear “criminal responsibility” for war crimes and crimes against humanity in relation to Hamas’s October 7 attack in Israel and the war in the Gaza Strip.

The full statement of ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan KC » Applications for arrest warrants in the situation in the State of Palestine

A panel of six experts in international law – Lord Justice Fulford, Judge Theodor Meron CMG, Amal Clooney, Danny Friedman KC, Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC, and Elizabeth Wilmshurst CMG KC – authored Why we support ICC prosecutions for crimes in Israel and Gaza, published in the Financial Times. In it they state »

The attacks by Hamas in Israel on October 7 and the military response by Israeli forces in Gaza have tested the system of international law to its limits. This is why, as international lawyers, we felt compelled to assist …

In our legal report published today, we unanimously agree that the prosecutor’s work was rigorous, fair and grounded in the law and the facts. And we unanimously agree that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the suspects he identifies have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity within the jurisdiction of the ICC.

More » CNN / The Guardian / BBC / Le Monde / Euronews / Radio Free Europe / DW / France 24 / NYT / The East African / Al Jazeera / CBC

US Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. flew an upside down American flag outside his home, a MAGA symbol of insurrection, after Trump lost the 2020 election

2024-05-17 /

Jodi Kantor, writing in the NY Times »

After the 2020 presidential election, as some Trump supporters falsely claimed that President Biden had stolen the office, many of them displayed a startling symbol outside their homes, on their cars and in online posts: an upside-down American flag.

One of the homes flying an inverted flag during that time was the residence of Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., in Alexandria, Va., according to photographs and interviews with neighbors.

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China’s spy threat is growing, and the West has struggled to keep up

2024-05-17 /

Gordon Corera, writing for the BBC »

What concerns Western officials is Chinese President Xi Jinping’s determination that Beijing will shape a new international order. “Ultimately it aspires to displace the United States as the foremost power,” the chief of MI6, Sir Richard Moore, told me in a rare interview in his office for a new BBC series on China and the West.

Meanwhile » Canadian Security Intelligence Services (CSIS) director warns China can use TikTok to spy on them.

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Proteins in the blood could warn people of cancer more than seven years before it is diagnosed

2024-05-16 /

Anna Bawden, writing in The Guardian »

Scientists at the University of Oxford studied blood samples from more than 44,000 people in the UK Biobank, including over 4,900 people who subsequently had a cancer diagnosis.

They compared the proteins of people who did and did not go on to be diagnosed with cancer and identified 618 proteins linked to 19 types of cancer, including colon, lung, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and liver.

The study, funded by Cancer Research UK and published in Nature Communications, also found 107 proteins associated with cancers diagnosed more than seven years after the patient’s blood sample was collected and 182 proteins that were strongly associated with a cancer diagnosis within three years.

50 countries have confirmed they will attend the Ukraine peace conference, due to be held in Switzerland in June

2024-05-15 /

Thus far, 50 countries out 160 invited delegations have confirmed they will attend.

Swiss Broadcasting Corporation »

They include the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, Germany’s Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, the head of the Italian government, Giorgia Meloni, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron.

The Swiss foreign ministry says it is satisfied with the replies but expects more.

“The major European countries are there, but we would also like to have, as much as possible, countries from the South, because we want an open discussion on all the possibilities and reflections for peace in Ukraine. We therefore want numbers, but also North-South representativeness,” said Bideau.

Georgia approves controversial ‘foreign agent’ law – dubbed the “Russian Law” by protesters

2024-05-14 /

Rayhan Demytrie and Emily Atkinson writing for BBC News »

Under the bill – which passed its third and final reading with 84 votes against 30 on Tuesday – NGOs and independent media that receive more than 20% of their funding from foreign donors would have to register as organisations “bearing the interests of a foreign power”.

They would also be monitored by the Justice Ministry and could be forced to share sensitive information – or face hefty fines of up to 25,000 GEL ($9,400; £7,500).

Protesters are concerned that the legislation would be used by the government to suppress its opponents. Parallels have also been drawn with an authoritarian bill which came into force in Russia in 2012, and which the Kremlin has since used to clamp down on dissidents.

Book banning is one of the first signs that a democracy is losing

2024-05-13 /

Michael Harris writing in The Tyee »

Shortly after Adolf Hitler passed legislation in 1933 that put him above the law, even if he violated the German Constitution, the National Socialists began compiling their first list of books “deserving to be burned.”

In May 1933, Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels organized a huge bonfire of books at Berlin University. The books were deemed to be “unacceptable to the party.” Students danced around the fire as they tossed books into the flames: great works by Thomas Mann and Einstein, H.G. Wells, Freud, Zola and Proust. Book burnings took place in 34 university towns and cities in Germany. The regime also raided bookstores and libraries to confiscate “un-German” material.

Women Peace Security Index for 2023

2023-10-25 /

Georgetown University’s Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) seeks to promote a more stable, peaceful, and just world by focusing on the important role women play in preventing conflict and building peace, growing economies, and addressing global threats like climate change and violent extremism.

This fourth edition of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Index ranks and scores 177 countries on women’s status. The results show that countries where women are doing well are also more peaceful, democratic, prosperous, and better
prepared to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

This year, nine of the top ten best countries to be women are European, with Scandinavian countries leading the rankings. Denmark leads the 2023 rankings, scoring more than three times higher than Afghanistan.

1 Denmark
2 Switzerland
3 Sweden
4 Finland
4 Iceland
4 Luxembourg
7 Norway
8 Austria
9 Netherlands
10 New Zealand

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The intelligence chiefs of the ‘Five Eyes’ security alliance join Dr. Condoleezza Rice on stage to discuss current threats facing democratic nations

2023-10-17 /

The Five Eyes is a coalition of five countries » Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It grew from the 1946 BRUSA agreement, shortly after the end of World War II, to share intelligence and coordinate security efforts. The five member countries have a long history of trust and cooperation, and they share a commitment to common values.

More » FBI | Toronto Star | The Guardian | Globe & Mail | CBC | ABC (Australia) | AFR

Poland shows that autocracy is not inevitable

2023-10-17 /

Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic »

After democratic coalitions failed to defeat nationalist-conservative ruling parties in Hungary last year and in Turkey last May, and after elections in Israel brought a coalition of extremists to power, plenty of people feared that democratic change in Poland, too, was impossible. Against the odds, yesterday’s election has proved them wrong.

Even if you don’t live in Poland, don’t care about Poland, and can’t find Poland on a map, take note: The victory of the Polish opposition proves that autocratic populism can be defeated, even after an unfair election. Nothing is inevitable about the rise of autocracy or the decline of democracy. Invest your time in political and civic organization if you want to create change, because sometimes it works. »

The mayor of Pontevedra, Spain is placing pedestrians first

2023-09-27 /

For decades, throngs of cars clogged the cobblestone streets of Pontevedra’s downtown, making this seaside city on Spain’s northwestern tip a hard place to live. Smog, loud noise and narrow walkways drove young families away from a region struggling with a shrinking and aging population.

Family physician turned mayor Miguel Fernandez Lores managed to halt the bleeding by closing many streets to car traffic. Now Pontevedra is a model of success in a growing global movement that’s trying to reclaim streets for pedestrians.

Bloomberg »

This Spanish Mayor Is Putting Pedestrians First

Note: Clicking the above image will load and play the video from YouTube.

Banned in Texas » The Diary of Anne Frank

2023-09-20 /

Anne Frank, a young Jewish German teenager, journaled her experiences as she and her family hid for two years in an attic during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands during World War II.

Anne and her family were apprehended in 1944, and Anne Frank died of typhus in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945.

Her diary, which was first published in 1947, has since been published in more than 70 languages, and used in schools around the world for decades to educate students on the the Holocaust.

History is repeating itself. This time the USA.

The Chron »

A Texas middle school teacher has been fired after assigning an unapproved illustrated version of Anne Frank’s Diary to her eighth grade reading class. Per a report from KFDM, a spokesperson for Hamshire-Fannett ISD, located south of Beaumont, released a statement confirming the teacher was sent home on Wednesday after reading a passage from Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation in which Frank wrote about male and female genitalia. An investigation into the incident has since ensued.

Meanwhile

The Guardian »

Ariana Grande, Guillermo del Toro, Mark Ruffalo and Amanda Gorman are among the over 175 actors, entertainers, authors, activists and others who have signed an open letter calling on Hollywood to use their influence to oppose book bans.

The letter, spearheaded by Reading Rainbow host LeVar Burton and published via the political advocacy organization MoveOn Political Action, calls out books bans in US schools as “restrictive behavior” that is “antithetical to free speech and expression”. It also emphasizes the “chilling effect” the bans, often implemented at the local level, can have “on the broader creative field”.

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