The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
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On Thursday, America's Justice Department publicized detailed memos describing brutal interrogation techniques used by the Central Intelligence Agency (C.I.A.). Meanwhile, President Obama said that C.I.A. operatives involved in the torture would not be prosecuted. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann, well known for his candid and stinging commentary, is among many Americans taking issue with Obama's decision. While acknowledging that the act of publicly releasing the torture memos is important for...
Speaking at a roundtable discussion last month on the topic "Challenging Militarism: Feminist Activism and Scholarship", Professor Fumi Olonisakin Director of the Conflict, Security and Development Group at Kings College, London, argued that global security changes brought about by 9/11, ended the process of post-Cold War demilitarization in Africa and "arrested" security sector reform, threatening democracy and civil society's calls for change on the continent....
Yoni Goodman, director of animation for the Academy Award-nominated film Waltz with Bashir, collaborated with Open Society Institute grantee Gisha to create a powerful animated film about how the Gaza Strip’s 1.5 million residents experience living in a "closed zone." Despite declarations that it has "disengaged" from the Gaza Strip, Israel maintains control of the strip’s overland border crossings, territorial waters, and air space. This includes substantial,...
The G20 was not about bringing about the 'new world order' touted by Britain's Gordon Brown. It was an attempt to maintain the 'old world order', contends Leo Panitch, Professor of political science at York University and author of "The American Empire and the Political Economy of Global Finance." In his view, the G20 countries have come together with an agreement around a bunch of rhetoric and some "not insignificant measures." The rhetoric is that they are united...
This week's G20 meeting in London is meant to be about finding solutions for the global financial crisis. One concrete decision has already been made, i.e., that finance for the IMF has to be increased to help bail out countries affected by the global financial crisis. Al Jazeera examines Turkey as a case study to assess the impact of the IMF. Turkey has been in talks with the IMF for a $10bn loan since May last year, when a previous loan expired. Negotiations reached a stalemate in January...
There's been an outcry in America about the financial rescue plan unveiled by the Obama administration under the leadership of Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner. The Obama administration plans to buy up $2 trillion in toxic financial assets. The plan is being denounced by economists in the mainstream press, as well as commentators in the alternative media. Pepe Escobar also provides excellent commentary of Geithner's PPPIP (Public-Private Partnership Investment Programme), which he refers...
