Peru’s deputy culture minister has walked out of his country’s government, as energy minister pursues profit over the rights of tribal peoples. Ivan Lanegra, who confirmed his resignation yesterday, considered his position untenable after witnessing repeated attempts by ministerial colleagues to roll back a ‘consultation law’ written to protect the rights of indigenous peoples. The [...]
Tag Archives: mining
Press Review: Lead poisoning crisis in Nigeria & 25,000 missing in Mexico
Extreme poverty pushes 4 million African children into human trafficking rings each year. But social acceptance of the practice in Benin are adding to the problem, which groups like UNICEF are desperately trying to fix. [The Guardian] An impoverish region of northern Nigeria is experiencing the “worst lead poisoning crisis in recorded history” after its [...]
Press Review: Liberia loses control of its rainforest & Africa seeks transparency to avoid corruption
Insisting on transparency is the key to helping Africans benefit from their mineral wealth. [The Economist] International logging companies control over half of Liberia’s virgin rainforest. In addition to causing extensive environmental damage, they do not pay taxes and have failed to build the infrastructure they promised. [BBC] Speaking at the World Water Week conference [...]
Press Review: Tin in smartphones comes from deadly mines & Immediate action on rising food prices
“Training courses” given to high-ranking civil servants in the UK by oil giant Shell expose the company’s elite access to Britain’s energy policy makers. [The Guardian] The deadly human costs of Indonesia’s tin mines, which supply one-third of the tin used in smartphones and other electronics. [Business Week] The World Food Bank and Oxfam ask [...]
Press Review: Emergency air drops to South Sudan & Extreme flooding in Burma
For the first time since 2009, the World Food Programme is using emergency air drops—this time to combat a major crisis in South Sudan, where one-third of the children at its overcrowded refugee camps are malnourished. [NPR] Astonishing photographs show the destruction underway in China, where coal mines and power plants are threatening the northern [...]
Press Review: De-mining Sahel farmland & Humanitarian cost of biofeul
Europe’s growing demand for biofuel is costing thousands of Guatemalans their farmland. [The Guardian] The notion of “resilience” is changing the way humanitarian and development agencies operate in crisis-stricken areas such as the Sahel. By changing key operating guidelines, agencies can be more flexible and effective. [The Economist] Handicap International is working in the Sahel [...]
Press Review: Food crisis in Yemen & Deadly protests in Peru
Unicef is asking donors to provide more aid to Yemen, which is experiencing a severe food emergency comparable to the crisis in the Sahel. [The Guardian] Peru’s president promised to end the deadly disputes between mining companies and local communities but protestors are still dying at the hands of the police and his solutions appear [...]
Press Review: Forced labor in Thailand’s fishing industry & Africa’s trade relationship with China
Mongolia’s nomadic communities have seen their wells dry up after years of low rainfall. Now mining companies are setting up business on the grasslands and competing with locals for dwindling water resources. [NPR] Thailand’s fishing industry is the major supplier of imported fish to the EU, North America, China, and Japan. And it relies on [...]
Press Review: Conflict in Eastern Congo & Lead poisoning in Nigeria
Hundreds of children have died in Nigeria from lead poisoning brought about by gold mining. Medecins Sans Frontieres is trying to convince the government to educate people about the health risks and clean up the contamination. [BBC] Despite positive changes in education, health, and standards of living for Indian women, recent reports show an increase [...]
Press Review: Shell back in court & Cuba cracks down on free speech
The Shell oil company is back in court after lawyers representing a Nigerian fishing community took legal action in the UK. The suit was filed after negotiations for compensation of damage caused by oil spills broke down. [BBC] Accounts of ethnic cleansing, mass murder, and rape are prompting comparisons to Darfur by observers in Sudan [...]
