By Jan Lundius STOCKHOLM / ROME, Mar 16 2021 (IPS) – Inequality characterizes the world we live in, predisposing how we act and think. We perceive our existence as composed of dichotomies – men and women, young and old, black…
Category: Columns
Corporal punishment powered by ignorance, driven by insanity
The poor victim in this instance was Sabbir Hossain, a student of Rowjatul Uloom madrasa in Rasulbagh Majhipara area.
Post-COVID World Needs Amplified Women’s Voices in Politics
Theme ‘Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in the COVID-19 World,’ is grounded in the reality that this women’s day is unlike any other.
Women Must Continue To Claim Power & Take On Unseen Barriers
One can’t talk about power without talking about patriarchy – in which men always hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
World needs feminist leaders, not just women leaders
International Women’s Day pays tribute to the achievements of women worldwide and reminds us what still needs to be done for full gender equality.
Gender Parity – Captain for Sailing to Green, Just Recovery
The climate crisis doesn’t stop for anyone or anything, not even the pandemic that has forced billions of us to radically overhaul our lives.
Forget ILR pipedream, pray for smaller places of worship
NWDA was set up four decades ago to work only on Inter Linking of Rivers (ILR) projects, but even the first project of the grand ILR plan is yet to take off to implementation as envisaged in ILR plan.
Seven Food Justice Actions in Honor of World Justice Day
In celebration of the United Nations’ World Day of Social Justice on February 20th, Food Tank is highlighting seven ways you can fight for justice in food and agriculture.
Vaccine Imperialism Cause Death, Suffering, Delay Recovery
Vaccine developers’ refusal to share publicly funded vaccine research findings is stalling broader, affordable vaccinations which would more rapidly contain COVID-19 contagion.
My love for chuddies grows each Valentine!
For me, the Valentine Day means Chuddies gaining prominence, and that too pink chuddies. It takes me back to that day over a decade ago when unsuspecting women and men drinking at a bar in Mangalore were at the receiving end of unprovoked violence at the hands of the self-styled moral custodians of an entity called Sri Ram Sena, who had unilaterally held the poor group responsible for violating Indian values.
Bitcoin lacks a unique selling proposition
by Peter Bofinger Peter Bofinger identifies the cryptocurrency’s Achilles heel. Following the steep rise in the price of Bitcoin since autumn 2020, public interest in this cryptocurrency has been reignited. Yet the massive drop in price since its peak on…
The Arctic on the Frontlines
By Gail Whiteman LANCASTER, UK – Climate scientists have known for years that the Arctic is warming far faster than anywhere else on the planet. But even those of us who follow the Arctic closely were shocked by the changes…
COVID-19 and the Doomsday Clock
By Gro Harlem Brundtland OSLO – Last January, my fellow Elders Mary Robinson and Ban Ki-moon participated in the unveiling of the Doomsday Clock, the annual indicator of global catastrophic risk published by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. In…
A Marshall Plan for the Planet
By Paul Polman LONDON – In a year dominated by COVID-19, it’s perhaps understandable that we’ve neglected the most profound, existential crisis we face: runaway climate change. But we must quickly make up for lost time before it’s too late.
The making of a gobar country
Sudhirendar Sharma Spotting dung (gobar) in the streets reminds me of political philosopher Jeremy Waldron who said ‘things are not quite as they seem’, which provides me with an illuminating example of what the bovine of the world drops first…
The move to convict Trump may fail but, will the damage heal
Mostafa Kamal Majumder A high political drama is now on in the US Capitol Hill as Democrats in the US Senate are seeking a conviction for former President Donald Trump against his second impeachment in the House while Republicans are…
Covid-19: How Israel Manipulates Suffering of Palestinians
By Dr Ramzy Baroud Israel’s decision to exclude Palestinians from its COVID-19 vaccination campaign may have surprised many. Even by Israel’s poor humanitarian standards, denying Palestinians access to life-saving medication seems extremely callous. Amnesty International, among many organizations, condemned the…
Celebrating or cursing democracy?
This week the United States inaugurated a new President, much to the joy of many Americans, but to the utter dismay of millions of others. And the swearing in took place in a Washington, DC locked down, not by fear of a pandemic, but by fear of domestic terrorists.
Biden: The Task of a Good Loser
What for Donald Trump was an insult, for Joe Biden is an acknowledgement: the new president of the United States is the establishment in its purest form. No other similar case is remembered of having reached the presidency with better preparation.
Biden’s Challenge: Redeeming a US Role for Human Rights
Kenneth Roth After four years of a president who was indifferent and often hostile to human rights, the November 2020 election of Joe Biden to the presidency of the United States provides an opportunity for a fundamental change of course.
What saved American democracy?
by Bo Rothstein on 13th January 2021 Democracy in the United States survived last week’s assault by Donald Trump and his supporting mob. But why it survived raises questions awkward for some. Democracy is a fragile form of government. History…
Inequality Is Not Inevitable
By Joseph E. Stiglitz An insidious trend has developed over this past third of a century. A country that experienced shared growth after World War II began to tear apart, so much so that when the Great Recession hit in…
10 years since High Court outlawed corporal punishment
Some ‘teachers’ behave as if ignorance and stupidity were virtues Sir Frank Peters They say God works in many mysterious ways and the gift given by Him to the school children of Bangladesh this month (again) is NO corporal punishment.
Unhinged with 5,800 Nuclear Warheads at his Fingertips
By Bishop Bill Swing and Jonathan Granoff NEW YORK, Jan 11 2021 (IPS) – Between now and January 20, 2021, the President of the United States has almost run out of arenas in which to impose his will. His reelection…
We shall Overcome Someday
By Sharifa Chowdhury “We shall overcome, we shall overcome, We shall overcome someday, Oh! Deep in my heart, I do believe, We shall overcome someday.” Never ever I felt the relevance of the song until the present time. It was…
2021: Year of Living Dangerously?
By Jomo Kwame Sundaram KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Jan 5 2021 (IPS) – Goodbye 2020, but unfortunately, not good riddance, as we all have to live with its legacy. It has been a disastrous year for much of the world for…
Palestine—A Turning Point?
By Chandra Muzaffar An address to Pax Christi Victoria, via Zoom 18th October 2020. Before I attempt to show why Palestine is at a turning-point, let me underscore the significance of the Palestinian issue to the world. Why is the…
‘We Might Have a Covid-21 or Covid-22 Coming Our Way’
By Cristián Samper NEW YORK, (IPS) – Cristián Samper is working for the Wildlife Conservation Society, an organization that concerns itself with the health of wildlife all over the globe. And he warned –even before the Covid-19 pandemic – about…
Is Iran closer to avenging murder of its two leaders?
By Askiah Adam Brigadier General Mohsen Fakhrizadeh of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Command (IRGC) and Iran’s most important nuclear scientist was assassinated not too far from Tehran recently. Iran immediately accused Israel, an allegation confirmed by a senior Washington official…
Terrible year 2020 for Indian scribes
by Nava Thakuria Indian media fraternity is set to bid farewell to the Covid-19 pandemic year 2020 with horrible statistics of journo-killings along with some dangerous countries for working journalists in the world. The populous country lost over 50 working…