| LIFE-NET NEWS |
| by Ret Z. |
| Covering Poverty Widely in a Net of Many Voices |
| 2004 April 14 | No Profit; No Proceeds |
| Volume 7 Number 27 | All-Volunteer |
| "Give a family a fish, and they'll eat a meal; give them a Net, and they'll have fish for Life." |
| Sierra Club Wrestles With Itself Over Sprawl |
|
The current leadership battle over the 112-year-old Sierra
Club pits pro-immigration candidates against
environmentalist advocates of reduced immigration. The
Club's present heads hold a neutral position on immigration,
arguing that the effects of population growth on the
environment are minimal. Adopting a restrictionist stance
could alienate the left-leaning, pro-immigration base upon
which the Sierra Club relies for membership and funding. It
also would risk laying environmental groups open to charges
of racism. On the other hand, population control has always
been a keystone of the conservationist agenda; speaking up
for a global effort to curb population while ignoring the
issues at home muddles the message.
For many environmentalist groups, immigration is a third rail. Says a Club member on the lower-immigration side, "We have a serious conservation issue, and in the interest of political correctness our leaders refuse to deal with" it. Here's some of the data both sides are looking at:
Source: Newark Star-Ledger |
| Grabbing Land from the Poor in Bangladesh |
|
Bangladesh is one of the most crowded countries in the
world. Competition rages for land. Disputes over ownership
dominate the courts. Economics Professor Abul Barkat of
Dhaka University has calculated that at the current rate of
progress it will take 30 million years to resolve all the
cases.
"On average in each case, if I include both parties, there are 45 people," he said. "So the total number of people involved in the cases will exceed 150 million in a country of 140 million." The government owns about 10% of all land, and in rural areas it should, by law, distribute land to the poor for subsistence farming. But their tenure is being challenged by the unscrupulous, who often use a corrupt court system to pursue claims. Some base dubious cases on ancestry. Others, so-called land grabbers, produce false documents then bribe corrupt court officials to legalize their claims. Bangladesh took the international campaign group Transparency International's worst ranking for corruption on earth. The rich have little difficulty escaping justice. With so many cases crippling the courts, the government is considering new laws. Cabinet Secretary Saadat Hossain led a committee set up to investigate land grabbing. It proposed increasing the maximum penalty for those found guilty of the worst cases from 2 years in prison to 14. Confronted by this governmental expression of "determination," said Hossain, "some of the, shall I say, not-so-hardened criminals may shy away from their activities." Source: BBC |
| The Big Sweat-Box |
|
Wal-Mart brags that it saves consumers money by
forcing suppliers to cut the fluff and get competitive. For
most clock-punching employees of Wal-Mart stores,
warehouses, and suppliers, however, lower prices make a raw
deal.
The recent raid of Wal-Mart stores by federal agents netted 300 illegals employed by the cleaning companies under contract with Wal-Mart. Racketeering charges have been filed on the immigrants’ behalf against the cleaning vendors and Wal-Mart. The suit alleges that Wal-Mart managers were aware of workers’ illegal alien status and cooperated with cleaning contractors to demand extra hours without pay. Wal-Mart benefits from its lower-cost vendors, who manufacture many Wal-Mart products in Mexico, China, and Bangladesh. Laborers in these factories often work more than 80 hours a week for a few dollars a day. Most "full-time" Wal-Mart employees don’t see 40-hour weeks and, grossing $7.50 an hour on average, they barely make enough to shop at their own stores. Wal-Mart steers employees away from unions, resorting to extremes when necessary. After Wal-Mart opened its first supercenters nationwide, meat workers frustrated by low pay, lousy benefits, and abusive treatment voted themselves into the first successful union presence at Wal-Mart, which then closed all the fresh-meat departments and eliminated the jobs. Shoppers and shareholders, so far, have consented that lower prices and more stores are more important than honorable vendor and employment standards. It is inconceivable that Wal-Mart, king of counting the financial cost, is unaware of the human cost of wage levels and working conditions in its suppliers’ businesses. Wal-Mart’s power comes with responsibility to pay just wages. With hundreds of thousands of its employees below the poverty line, Wal-Mart's self-touted corporate contributions to community and charity do not suffice. Source: Sojourners |
| Subsistence Prostitution in Kathmandu Valley |
|
As the last bus leaves Ratna Park at 9pm, the street falls
silent. Only armed police and a couple of taxis break the
emptiness.
An hour later, a group of pre-teens pops up. Flanked by a gang of pimps, the young girls stroll idly. A woman in her 30s stands nearby, taking her own chance on the night. The girls tease: "Look at her, I bet no one will take her," says one. The others laugh. A group of fully decorated gay sex workers walks by and warns the girls that the police are on the prowl. The girls shuffle off towards the overpass near Bir Hospital to hide behind the stairs. "Same old problem. Why don't they leave us alone," mutters one as a police van approaches. An increase in the influx from the districts, of people fleeing the conflict, the lack of jobs, and poverty, has led to a new surge in prostitution in Kathmandu Valley. Two months ago, the police started cracking down. So the action moved indoors, to massage parlors, cabin restaurants, and cheap lodges. At a cabin restaurant in Maiti Devi, several girls and women recount how they fled their villages fearing the Maoists who were trying to force them into military training. "My parents are still in the village, but I took the risk and came to Kathmandu, even though I know no one here," says 17-year-old Sarita Chettri from Makwanpur. Sarita is the most popular of the sex-working waitresses. Seeing her income rise, her friends have followed. The vice squad has raided the place several times, but Sarita and her friends are still in business. The manager bails them out when they get arrested since the girls are the main attraction in a restaurant that takes a 200% markup on food and drinks. Migration, prostitution, and unprotected sex are a deadly recipe in a valley already boiling with HIV -- 50% infection among injecting drug users. "But there is no alternative for the girls," says an anti-AIDS activist, "and the government is not coming up with solutions except arresting them in sweeps." Source: Nepali Times |
| Philly Public-Access TV Comes into Focus |
|
Mayor John Street laid years of delay aside when he opened a
dialogue with community groups pushing to make public-access
TV a reality in Philadelphia. A working group of city
officials and members of the nonprofit Philadelphia
Community Access Coalition may bring forth a final plan this
month. It will call for a central TV studio, equipment, and
training facilities. In another few weeks after that,
group members hope the mayor will weigh in with a decision
on whether to move forward.
About 2,000 US communities let citizens in on this powerful medium. Nearby Wayne, PA, has an exemplary public-access outlet. In Chicago, heralded as a model for its citizen-run network, programming runs around the clock on five cable channels. Civic, cultural and religious groups air their views, as do budding filmmakers and other artists. Viewers get health messages that save lives, video classes that build future moviemakers, and civic-improvement motivation that can unite a neighborhood. Philadelphia remains the only large city without public-access TV. That's an embarrassing distinction for the city that fostered the democratic institutions that uphold free speech. Source: Philadelphia Inquirer Relevant Link: Philadelphia Community Access Coalition |
| Tax Incentive Lures Employers to NJ |
|
When Gov. Jim McGreevey lowered the bar for employers to
participate in the state's business employment incentive
program, Peter Burke listened. As a principal owner of
Brandywine Senior Care, Burke moved the company's corporate
office and its 50 employees this year from Exton, PA, to
Mount Laurel, NJ. Brandywine's reward is a savings of
about $50,000 a year in state income taxes for 10 years.
Average wage for the transplanted workers is $61,000 a year, said Burke, a Jersey Shore resident. Brandywine, a privately owned network of 18 assisted living and nursing home facilities, is one of seven companies in the tri-county area to qualify for the program, best known by its acronym, BEIP (rhymes with "sweep"). "We got approval from Trenton in six weeks," said Burke. "The process went so smoothly, it didn't seem like government at all." Brandywine is the 66th company to qualify for a BEIP grant since January 2002 when McGreevey took office. The largest grant in the area -- worth an estimated $870,000 over 10 years for bringing 150 jobs to Mount Laurel -- went to American Mortgage Express Corp. "No money is given up front. After withholding taxes are paid and the new jobs are certified, we send the company a grant ranging from 50% to 80% of the taxes paid," said Nicole Ouelette, spokeswoman for the Economic Development Authority, which administers the program. From the BEIP's inception in 1996 to last year, the program reimbursed $700 million in taxes to 171 companies for bringing some 56,000 jobs to the state, according to EDA records. In September, McGreevey sweetened the pot by dropping the requirement from 75 new jobs to 25, which opened the door for companies like Brandywine. Based on a formula, Brandywine qualified for a 60% return on taxes paid on 50 employees. Beginning with a 25% grant, the state added 20% for locating in a designated Smart Growth area and 15% for locating within a half mile of bus transportation. Source: Courier-Post (Camden) |
| Malaysia Sets 5-Year Goal to Wipe Out Hardcore Poverty |
|
The Malaysian government, which has already reduced hardcore
poverty within its borders, now takes aim at eliminating
it in towns and cities within five years. It will aid the
urban poor, fishermen and farmers and give loans to single
mothers and state-land settlers who are sick.
In the general election last month, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi promised to raise the incomes of villagers by bringing small industries to the rural areas and boosting agricultural output. "We need to look at their living conditions and whether their basic needs are taken care of," he told reporters on Saturday, suggesting shelters for the poor and education for children as some of the measures that can be carried out. Datuk Seri Ong said a think tank including professionals and municipal authorities will be formed to draw up specific action plans. Barisan Nasional leaders in Johor set up a welfare foundation to help the urban poor tackle housing problems. Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin assured fishermen and farmers that they will keep receiving subsidies despite pressure from the WTO to phase them out. "Many of our farmers and fishermen are still dependent on the government," he said. "They lack the means to improve their production." Tan Sri Muhyiddin is striving to speed up the plan to start cottage industries such as bakeries and mat-weaving plants in rural villages. The Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) is setting aside RM300 million to provide loans for single mothers and sick land settlers to buy shares in cooperatives, said a Felda director. The government has already been making life better for poor Malaysians. The hardcore poverty rate dropped from 16.5% of households in 1990 to 4.5% last year. Source: Straits Times (Malaysia) |
| Marginalized in Palestine |
|
In the land of the Bible, roughly 32,000 Christian families
are stuck trying to live peacefully in ancestral homes while
their neighbors keep creating more tension and economic
pressure. Caught in the crossfire, they struggle to raise
their families and eke out a living.
No wonder they're uprooting themselves out of their homeland at an alarming rate. If this flow doesn't slow, there will be little Christian representation in the Holy Land, where extremism now flourishes. Fifty years ago Christians in the Holy Land made up 25% of the population. Today they are less than 2%, or 160,000 people. In 1940, Jerusalem had 45,000 Christians. Today, less than 8,000. In 1969, Christians comprised 80% of the population of Bethlehem. Today, less than 10%. In 1970, there were 60,000 Christians in Ramallah. Today, less than 6,000. The Christian Foundation for the Holy Land (CFHL) was created to stem the flight of local Christian families of both Arab and Jewish ethnicity. While an abundance of organizations represent and serve the Jewish and Muslim populations, few organizations assist Christian families. Hence, CFHL focuses on members of the marginalized Christian community to keep them from leaving. CFHL believes that Christian witness and presence are vital for the Holy Land's future. Source: Christian Foundation for the Holy Land |
| Life-Net News Extras |
| Bhil Kids Saved from Parasites |
|
Operation Blessing’s center in India recently held a medical clinic in the Rajasthan area. While providing basic care to the Bhil people, the team also faced medical problems not often seen in the developed world -- worms.
The Bhil people live in small huts scattered in remote villages and on rocky hill slopes throughout India. Villages grow maize and make it into bread without oil and salt. Along with this bread, most of what they eat is made up of vegetables cooked with ginger, chilies and garlic. Every family uses bows, arrows and swords to hunt and protect themselves. It’s common for them to practice witchcraft as well as worship spirits of the dead and community gods. Motorized transportation, electricity, drinking water, hospitals and schools are almost nonexistent. Their language, Bhil, has no written form, making them even more segregated from the outside world. It’s no different in the remote Bhil village of Goika. The people have experienced terrible malnutrition. A lack of knowledge about basic health and hygiene practices has had devastating effects. A large number of children and adults suffer from scabies, worms, malaria and typhoid. During the medical mission, Deepak, 7, and Nahata, 3, were carried into the clinic by their parents. Both children were totally covered, so people couldn't see them. When the doctor removed the sheet he was shocked to see only skin and bones. Deepak and Nahata looked like babies, and both had hard times breathing. The doctor taught these poor children’s parents the importance of eating nutritious food and taking vitamins. Parents also got de-worming pills for the children. An additional 18 children were also given de-worming tablets and will receive the second of two doses in six months. Little ones growing up in Goika play in areas where there is no such thing as controlled sanitation. Every day they are exposed to parasites when drinking water from contaminated sources. It’s normal for them to experience stomach problems stemming from worms. Through Operation Blessing's partnership with King Benevolent Fund, it’s possible to eradicate worms from a child’s body with 1 pill every 6 months for just 10 cents a year. The next time a dime catches your eye, remember it has the power to change a life. Source: Operation Blessing |
| Waterfront South Fight Escalates |
|
Turning up the heat on Camden's state-appointed economic czar, Camden City Council on April 8 hired an attorney to represent it in a showdown with Melvin R. "Randy" Primas Jr. before a Superior Court judge. The move is part of a power struggle ignited between Primas and Council over redevelopment of the blighted Waterfront South neighborhood.
Council has supported representatives of the Waterfront South community who opposed approval of a neighborhood redevelopment plan backed by Primas that they feared would isolate and eventually destroy their neighborhood, which is pockmarked by numerous environmentally contaminated areas. The plan called for more industrial development along with new housing, but residents feared their homes would be demolished to make way for an industrial park. Though Primas, a former Camden mayor, has softened his opposition to housing in the neighborhood, City Council rejected the Primas-backed plan, saying it was obsolete and that Primas could not be trusted. Primas said he needed the plan to continue the city's revitalization and immediately notified Council that he would take the issue before a special arbitrator as provided for stalemates under Camden's five-year state-enacted recovery act. Though no date has yet been set for the arbitration hearing, City Council unanimously approved the hiring of civil-rights lawyer Andrew Dwyer of the Newark firm of Dwyer & Dunnigan L.L.C. to challenge Primas. Dwyer has been a labor and employment lawyer representing unions and employees since 1996. Council also defied Primas that day by passing a resolution encouraging the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to support residential use of the Gallagher and Litca environmental-remediation site in Waterfront South. Primas' redevelopment plan would prohibit such use for that area. Source: Philadelphia Inquirer |
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