Some human rights and other news links [Note: Content Warning - reader discretion is advised!] and thoughts - Saturday 31st December, 2022

Black Lives Matter! Be Anti-Racist, Anti-Sexist, and Actively Inclusive in ALL Areas.
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Some mostly human rights (including significant, relevant links in other fields - such as geopolitics, democracy, or authoritarianism) links (note: the source of news items [but not reference links] is in brackets after each item - normal rules around abbreviations will apply, and abbreviations are listed at the end of this post; links behind hard paywalls have a [$]; also, comments by me are in purple). 

Note: CONTENT WARNING - some of this content is about upsetting, disturbing or triggering events & attitudes. Seek competent help - including professional - if you need it. Content shown in green (which may be only part of a news story) is about what is generally considered “good news”, but personal history may still make such events triggering. Reader caution is recommended.

• there is a website/database on inequality in the world, with a report stating “inequality is a political choice, not an inevitability” - Australia’s data here (found via Thomas Piketty's latests book: “A Brief History of Equality”);   “extremism experts have raised concerns about the presence of a child at a neo-Nazi event in Melbourne’s north-west, saying it indicates far-right groups are indoctrinating children with hateful ideology during vulnerable periods in their intellectual development” (TA);   in an act of staggering hypocrisy (especially given their transphobic lies) in the USA, “28 Republicans vote against [a] bill to protect child sex abuse survivors” (Huffington Post);   “the intellectual poverty of transphobes” (I agree wholeheartedly with that article) (M) - see also this, on why smart people can be stupid (Aeon);   three foreign NGOs have stopped working in Afghanistan in response to the ban imposed by the violent misogynist extremists in power there on women working (DW);   the insights of a whistleblower witness - including the pressures against telling the truth, and why she nevertheless chose to do so (TG);   how a Muslim man forgave and actively advocated for a less punitive form of justice for the racist woman who attacked and nearly killed him (TG);   “the pendulum swung against globalisation in 2022 – and that’s no bad thing” (TG);   a call for courage to honour the brave (TG);  
  
• on the CLIMATE CRISIS (noting the UNFCCC) and ENVIRONMENT (noting multiple  international agreements): 
• a warning by scientists against geoengineering (TG);   “fossil fuel interests revealed to have sponsored more than 500 Australian community organisations” (why do organisations agree to this? Don’t they know they’ll damage their reputation?) (TG);   compensation of fossils is being described as a “flashpoint” in negotiations on a temporary cap to coal prices ... (TG);   “‘seas are becoming landfills’” (TG);   “Australian quolls released into NSW wildlife sanctuary, almost 60 years after species declared extinct” (SBS);   “Namibia halts Russian uranium exploration over environmental concerns” (VoA);  
  
  
• on the COVID-19 PANDEMIC (noting WHO advice, Article 12 of the ICESCR, and public emergency provisions of the ICCPR and the ICESCR) and other health matters: 
• China - which will no longer publish this information (DW) - has had an estimated 250 million COVID cases in December - a staggering 17% of that nation’s population (CNN), and mixed reactions to the reopening of borders (DW);   “the US government may impose new COVID-19 measures on travellers to the United States from China over concerns about the "lack of transparent data" coming from Beijing” (F24), but the EU is divided on the issue (F24) and Australia won’t add any extra requirements for now (article includes one expert’s views of the whys and wherefores) (TND);   “experts warn that China's soaring Covid cases heighten [the] risk of new variants” (F24);   “UN chief issues global ‘wake-up call’ on Day of Epidemic Preparedness” (UN);   a US University has released a summary on how many lives are saved by COVID vaccinations (University of Michigan);  
  
  
• on NATURAL and OTHER DISASTERS (noting Article 1(3) of the UN Charter): 
  
• massive winter storm in the USA - see here (F24), here (CNN), here (ABC), here (DW), here (TND), here (has reached California) (TG), here (some homes encased in ice) (CNN), and here (TG) - and wouldn’t it be marvellous if other disasters in the world received the same levels of coverage;   an avalanche in Austria (TND);   continued impacts from the tropical low in the NT (ABC) & SA (TND) and - from other causes - floods in SA (TG) - see also this (TG) and floods also in the Philippines (ABC), and see also this (ABC);   drought in Kenya (UN);   a fire at an entertainment venue in Cambodia (TND) - see also this (CNN);   a warning to Australia to prepare for grassfires (TG);   a petrol tanker has exploded, killing and injuring people and damaging a hospital, in South Africa (ABC);   a bus accident in Spain (TND);   hundreds of cars have been involved in a traffic accident in China (CNN);   a light plane has crashed in the NT (TG);  
  
  
• on Rashist  Putin and his cronies’ ILLEGAL (it is contrary to Chapters VI and VII of the UN Charter  and international law [and the 1928 Pact of Paris which was successfully used in post-WW2 trials], and possibly includes conduct contrary to the "laws" of war and international humanitarian law (IHL)) INVASION of UKRAINE: 
• on military matters:   Putin is relying more on Russia’s notoriously vicious, human rights-abusing mercenaries (ABC);   an assessment of the failings of Russia’s military (DW);  
  
• on human rights in the region and globally:   “Russia used torture and threats to hunt down influential Ukrainians” (ABC);  
• inside Russia:   “how Putin's war destroyed Russia's business model” (DW);  Belarus appears to be taking a low key response to a Soviet era defensive missile veering off course when fired against another massive barrage of Russian missiles and landing in Belarus, but without the explosion causing injuries, deaths or major damage (DW);   
• internationally:   Morocco has become the first African country to provide military aid to Ukraine (Middle East Monitor);   Russia has established de facto control in the CAR using its so-called “mercenaries” (GW);   as re-insurers make losses and end reinsurance, insurers are also ending insurance cover of shipping in the war zone (TG);  
   
• on INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS (noting the UN Charter [particularly Chapters VI and VII] and numerous  international  treaties): 
• tensions continue to grow between Serbia and Kosovo (F24), with Serbia’s troops placed on combat alert (F24) and Kosovo closing its border with Serbia (F24);   tensions continue to grow between Rwanda and the eastern DRC (TEA);   an AFP journalist has witnessed thousands rallying in Azerbaijan to protest the blockade of the only land link from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia (the Lachin corridor) for nearly two weeks by Azerbaijani activists, which Armenia says is creating a humanitarian crisis (F24) - but see also this (F24);   neighbours - including at least one ally - are concerned about Japan’s move towards stronger defence (after the human rights abuses committed and devastation caused by Japan in World War (part) Two, its constitution strictly prohibited anything other than local defensive military) (DW);   in response to China’s incursions, Taiwan has extended its compulsory military service (DW);  
  
• noting particularly Chapters VI and VII of the UN Charter, the 1928 Pact of Paris used in post-WW2 trials, the "laws" of war and IHL and Article 20 of the ICCPR on WAR / CONFLICT:   South Korea has scrambled military jets against drones flown in from North Korea (ABC) and fired warning shots (F24) and sent drones into North Korea (standing up to bullies is important, but two wrongs don’t make a right) (DW);   dozens of Chinese warplanes have crossed an informal dividing line between (mainland) China and Taiwan (TG);   fears the war in Yemen will continue throughout 2023 (DW) - see also this assessment (ICG);   the conflict in eastern DRC is worsening (AP), see also this analysis (TEA) - and there are concerns a regional security force may lead to a break up of the DRC (rfi);  
   
• on CORRUPTION (noting international  agreements and monitoring), MISGOVERNANCE, MAL-/MIS-/NON-FEASANCE, MISCONDUCT and THREATS TO DEMOCRACY/FREEDOM: 
• John Howard’s ongoing, devastating legacy (Canberra Times);   the US Virgin Islands is suing a bank, accusing it “of ‘turning a blind eye’ to illegal activities committed by their client”, who has been convicted of human trafficking (TG);  
  
  
• on DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE (noting Article 25 of the ICCPR and monitoring  projects): 
• globally:   “‘a threat to unity’: anger over push to make Hindi national language of India ... ruling BJP accused of agenda of ‘Hindi imposition’ in a country with more than 700 languages” (TG);   “Arizona governor-elect asks court to sanction [Republican candidate] Kari Lake after [her POTUS45-style election result denialist] suit [was] dismissed” (TG);   hopes a new law will improve the situation of the press in Tanzania (Daily News Tanzania);   from the UK: “King Charles’s speech left Tories squirming: he preached the values they’ve abandoned” (TG);   a review of five key elections to occur in 2023 (TC);   “many leaving Tunisia as democracy unravels [and the] economy flounders” (All Africa);   “according to the latest UN survey ... the Arab region registered a 12 per cent unemployment rate in 2022, the highest in the world” (UN);  
  
• in Australia:   “‘morally questionable’: compliance element should be scrapped from controversial ParentsNext scheme, MPs told” (TG);   Australia’s capital (and richest) city has 38,000 people living below the poverty line (ABC);   “a cry from the regions: media dominated by billionaires and corporations is not journalism” (MW);  
  
• suppression of dissent / media in   Australia (SMH),   Algeria (VoA),   Tunisia (The North Africa Post); 
  
  
• on HUMAN RIGHTS (noting the various rights and treaties summarised here, IHL, Article 5 of the Rome Statute founding the ICC): 
• “a network of citizens is sheltering Iran’s protesters” (CNN);   more foreigners have been arrested by Iran over alleged connections to protests (TG);  
  
• discrimination against Dalit women in India even extends to schemes notionally meant to help them (TC);   the discriminatory aspects of homework (M);   a notorious misogynist has been arrested (Yahoo) over alleged rape and human trafficking (TND) (that this person is a grotesque misogynist is undoubted: the issue of guilt over the charges is separate, and even the grotesque are to be presumed innocent until proven guilty);   “how Ugandan maids are sold to wealthy Saudis on black market” (The Uganda Monitor);  
  
• human rights are at risk or abuses have also occurred in:   Burma (F24),   Mali (VoA);
  
• violence in:   Syria (ABC),   Benin and West Africa (AP),   South Sudan (R),   Nigeria (PT),   Burkina Faso (AJ),   DRC (TEA);
  
  
• noting the conventions and the Global Compact on REFUGEES:   dozens of Rohingya refugees have arrived in Indonesia after a month afloat (DW), but 180 are still missing at sea (TG) ... but were found and rescued by Indonesia (UN);  
  more refugee issues:   US-Mexico border (TG) - see also this (TG);
  
  
• noting the Yogyakarta Principles on LGBTIQ+ PEOPLE:   last years celebrity LGBTIQA+ ally of the year has cancelled a trip to Poland “after being made aware of issues “that do not align with the communities I support”” (TG);   an LGBT advocate in the USA has stated detransitioning is not a real thing (and I know of only one out of hundreds - evidence reports <1%) (Star);   in the USA, “law enforcement agencies have done little to defend LGBTQ people trying to come together in peace. In one egregious incident, sheriff’s deputies bantered and fist bumped members of the racist group as they terrorised small children” (M);   “Hawaii museum revisits history of gender-fluid healers” (Religion News Service);  
  more LGBTIQA+ issues:   Israel (TG);
  
  
• noting ICERD and DRIP on RACISM:   “Bendigo Health’s Aboriginal mental health clinician calls for more funding as program helps heal wounds” (ABC);   “Peru lawmakers propose bill to strip Indigenous people of protections ... proposal to dismantle existing reserves for ‘uncontacted’ Indigenous groups quietly pushed amid ongoing political chaos” (TG);   violent protests (DW) have started in France following an attack by a “pathological” (TG) xenophobe (ABC) that echoes (UN) past unsolved - widely considered to be from Türkiye - attacks on Kurds in France ;   Indigenous Pacific Islanders want their ancestors remains returned (ABC);   a magnificent diagram from @clinpsych_ind (Twitter; Instagram) on what anti-racism really is (a supplemental comment to that from a source I trust and respect is those who own the organisation’s power, status and privilege also need to undertake to act with humility and fairness in the pursuit of social justice)) (social media);   “Northern Territory takes key step towards Treaty” (NIT);  
  more racism issues:   Australia’s public service (TG),   sport (M);
  
  
• noting CEDAW on SEXISM:    more misogyny from the rabidly bigotted violent extremists in power in Afghanistan (SBS) - which the UN has asked be reversed (TG), and Afghani women are resisting (ABC);   the annual peak of domestic violence murders of women in December has reached an all time high this year (TG);   a rape victim has been punished by further, ongoing rape (TG);  
  more sexism issues:   Australia (WA Today),   Russia (M);
  
  
• noting Articles 2 (1) (also noting this, this, this, and this), 3, 7, 14 (see here and here), 15, 16, and 26 of the ICCPR,   Articles 3, 5 (a), and 6 (see here and here) of the ICERD,   Articles 2, 12 (2), 37, 39, and 40 of the CRC,   Articles 5, 12, 13, and 14 of the CRPD,   and   Articles 1 - 2, 7 (2), 8 (2) (c), 9 - 10, 12 (2), 20 (2), 27, and 40 of the DRIP on the JUDICIARY / JUSTICE SYSTEM:   “eight common myths about Australian law” (TG);   “Queensland accused of ‘kneejerk’ response in announcing new penalties for young offenders” (TG) - but see also “youth crime victims speak out amid calls for victims' minister in wake of Emma Lovell's stabbing in North Lakes” (ABC) (IMO, that harder on crime never works is a fact - but so too is the genuine fear, distress, and sense of being ignored of the victims. My home state has created a Commissioner to address the latter, as well as taking some steps to address the cause);   
  
  
• noting Article 6 (1) of the ICCPR,   Article 11 of the ICESCR,   Article 5 (e) (iii) (see here and here) of the ICERD,   Article 14 (2) (h) of the CEDAW,   Article 27 (3) of the CRC,   Article 28 of the CRPD,   and   Article 20 of the DRIP on FOOD, CLOTHING, and HOUSING:    the exorbitant price of houses in Australia could drop (TG);  
  

(Should you elect to write to your elected representatives or others on these matters, it may be useful to familiarise yourself with the links shown in blue - or to at least refer to them. Don't forget to CHECK whether your nation has RATIFIED the treaty concerned.)

Abbreviations:   Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project - ACLED;   Aeon Magazine - Aeon;   Africa Centre for Strategic Studies - ACSS;   Africa News - AN;   Al Jazeera - AJ;   Amnesty International - AI;   Associated Press - AP;   Australian Associated Press - AAP;   Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC;   Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility - ACCR;   Australian Independent Media Network - AIMN;   Australian Unions - AU;   Barrons;   Bellingcat (B);   Bloomberg - BB;   Brisbane Times - BT;   British Broadcasting Commission - BBC;   Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists - BAS;   Cable News Network - CNN;   Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - CBC;   Centre for Strategic and International Studies - CSIS;   Climate Change News - CCN;   Committee to Protect Journalists - CPJ;   Context - CT;   the (US) Council on Foreign Relations (CFR);   Crikey - C [$];   Dabanga Sudan - DS;   Deutsche Welle - DW;   European Union - EU;   Forbes - F;   Foreign Policy - FP;   France 24 - F24;   Freedom House - FH;   Genocide Watch - GW;   Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect - GCR2P;   Globe Echo - GE;   HumAngle - HmA;   Human Rights Law Centre - HRLC;   Human Rights Watch - HRW;   Independent Australia - IA;   International Crisis Group - ICG;   Just Equal - JE;   Lawfare Blog - LFB;   Lowy Institute - The Interpreter - Lowy;   Mail & Guardian - MG;   mainstream media - MSM;   Medium - M;   Michael West (news media platform) - MW;   Minority Rights Group - MRG;   Mirage News - MN;   Nation Africa - NA;   National Indigenous Television - NITV;   National Indigenous Times - NIT;   New York Times - NYT [$];   News24;   North Africa Post - NAP;   Openly - Op;   Out in Perth - OiP;   Pearls and Irritations - PnI;   Political Violence at a Glance - PVG;   Politico - P;   Premium Times Nigeria - PT;   Q News - QN;   Quartz - Q;   Radio France International - rfi;   Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE);   Reuters - R;   Robert Reich - RR;   (Bruce) Schneier - Sch;   Special Broadcasting Service - SBS;   Star Observer - Star;   Sudan Tribune - ST;   Sydney Morning Herald - SMH;   The Age - TA;   The Big Smoke (TBS);   The East African - TEA;   The Guardian - TG;   The (Nigerian) Guardian - TG-N;   The Monthly - TM;   The National Tribune - tNT;   The New Daily - TND;   The Saturday Paper - TSP;   The Sentry - TS;   The Shot - TS;   Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA;   United Nations - UN;   Voice of America - VoA;   Wall Street Journal - WSJ [$];   War on the Rocks - WotR;   Washington Post - WP [$];   Wikipedia - WP;   Yahoo News - Yahoo; YouTube - YT.   

Note: news sources are never perfectly accurate or good - for instance, some have been transphobic (which is why I may, for instance, cancel email subscriptions), but may be good in other areas (e.g., racism) - and attributes may vary depending on region. I do NOT provide an unqualified endorsement of ANY of the media sources I use.

Finally, remember: in general, we need to be more human being rather than human doing.

Bob Hawke: a re-thinking

To begin with, you can find some official commentaries on Bob Hawke at the links in Note 1 below.

Back in the 80s, I voted for the ALP because I liked their policies - and that has generally been my principle throughout life: vote for policies, not personalities unless there are aspects of the latter which impede the ability to govern (such as being beholden to foreign powers, elites, etc). The US-style rubbish we’ve started following in recent decades is, in my opinion, a sign of weak-mindedness on the part of voters, incompetence of the part of journalists, and lack of courage/self belief in ourselves as Australians - a reinvention of the notorious Australian cultural cringe which started to die out in the 70s. 

Voting Fraser out from the position of Prime Minister in 1983 was a bonus - but then, that is largely because of the backward policies he was pushing: if that personality had been pushing progressive policies, and could be trusted to those policies, I would have considered voting for him. 

As far as how Fraser and Hawke were as human beings, neither appealed to me - Hawke’s drinking, evident-even-then womanising, and “matey-ness” didn’t cut it with me, as I received far too much discrimination and abuse from Australians who were proud of being "ocker" yobs, and Fraser was ruthless to the point of underhanded. 

(I also didn’t like Keating’s arrogance or potty mouth [he was like a schoolyard bully with a University vocabulary] either, but Keating did deliver the apology.)

There were quite a few things that the Hawke government - and it was a government, where Ministers were also seen to be making valuable contributions - did that I approved of and still do. Examples of that (see here) include Medicare, environmental protections, taking action against gender discrimination, and adopting a consensus approach to industrial matters - more on that shortly. 

I also considered the Hawke Governments foreign policy  actions (e.g., supporting APEC, supporting Chinese students here after the Tiananmen Square massacre) to be reasonable (and I always thought Gareth Evans was and still is excellent on foreign affairs and human rights).

On the other hand, I considered some of the economic changes were bad (e.g., floating the dollar, and unrestrained & too rapid opening of the economy, and HECS - which was always clearly going to be the wedge opening the door to more fees) - and I still do, around four decades later, although others aimed at addressing poverty were and still are good, and I approved of actions to improve our sovereignty, consider Treaty, and multiculturalism. 

So, from my perspective, Hawke is a mixed bag of good, bad, and neutral. 

Now we come to what I didn’t know at the time - or didn’t give enough weight to, if I had come across it: 

Bob Hawke was a US lackey 

That is mentioned in the Wikipedia article, at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bob_Hawke&oldid=1128295473#Informer_for_the_United_States, and I am also reading about it in Chapter Six of John  Pilger’s book “A  Secret  Country” (which I bought because of Chapter Five, which alleges that the Dismissal was actually a US coup - and presents sufficient evidence for that view to require genuine consideration, IMO). On top of that, an article was published recently on this, at https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/the-secret-life-of-bob-hawke-us-informant,15262 - and it is reading the latter which spurred this post. 

So, let me summarise what these sources are reporting: 

• While at the ACTU, Hawke effectively spied for the USA, and was exposed to US economic and other views, including through paid-for-trips to the USA; 
• Hawke was going to split away from the ALP and create a party, but didn’t proceed with that because of the Dismissal; 
• Hawke stopped a national strike to protest against the Dismissal (given the apparent potential for violence, at that time I approved of that - now, I don’t); 
• the consensus (Accord) that I favoured at the time now is considered by some to have been the start of the undermining of Australian wages as a share of the overall economy; 
• Hawke’s connections to the US appear to have gone beyond spying to, at times, actively being a lackey - or agent, if you prefer that term.
  

I am staggered - and, frankly, appalled. I am still reeling a little, so I am still thinking through the evidence presented and formulating my position on what I have read, but ... at this stage:

• I consider the information presented by John Pilger that the Dismissal was a US (non-military) coup to be possible, and I am erring towards likely - especially as the USA “has form” with such abhorrent behaviour; 
• the information on Hawke being a US spy to be true and being a US lackey to be probable; which leads to ... 
  
• Whitlam remains a hero of mine, Keating looks better than he did at the time, and Hawke has now wound up on the history manure pile beside the manure pile that Kerr, Thatcher, Pinochet, Somoza, and other  US  puppet leaders and  states are on (together with Reagan, Nixon, Bush, Bush, and #45 - who came to power because of the harms of the casually implemented globalisation/neoliberalism that Hawke and Keating started here).
  

OK, so I was not aware of all this in 1983. Would I have changed my vote if I had known that Hawke was beholden to a foreign government? 

No. 

As I wrote above, the ALP had policies I favoured, and I considered (and still do) the conservative party’s policies presented for the 1983 election (and many since then) to be dangerous and damaging. I already knew enough of Hawke as a person to know he was someone I wouldn’t want to socialise with - this whole matter shows the compromises voters sometimes have to make ... but more information at that time would have allowed voters to better weigh their options. And the ALP didn’t need to be led by Hawke to win - when Bill Hayden was deposed by Hawke as leader of the ALP, a famous comment then or soon after was that a drover’s dog could have led the party to power. 

Also, Fraser was equally beholden - to elites who were aligned with a different foreign power (the UK).

So, if this knowledge had been available, it is likely, IMO, that the ALP would still have won, albeit possibly under Bill Hayden’s leadership, but the government would have been different - still progressive, but perhaps less ambitious, especially economically, and certainly better aligned with traditional ALP values.

But still better than a Fraser-led government. 

 

Notes 

• https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bob_Hawke&oldid=1128295473#Prime_Minister_of_Australia_(1983%E2%80%931991); 
• https://www.nma.gov.au/explore/features/prime-ministers/bob-hawke; 
• https://apm-origin.moadoph.gov.au/prime-ministers/bob-hawke; 
• https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hawke_government&oldid=1126758165.
  

 

Possible flaws 

Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider:

• there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend to Brendan  Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”; 
  
• I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
  

 

If you appreciated this post, please consider promoting it - there are some links below.

Finally, remember: we need to be more human being rather than human doing.