| LIFE-NET NEWS |
| by Ret Z. |
| Covering Poverty Widely in a Net of Many Voices |
| August 6, 2008 | No Profit; No Proceeds |
| Volume 12 Number 7 | All-Volunteer |
| "Give a family a fish, and they'll eat a meal; give them a Net, and they'll have fish for Life." |
| Biden (D) and Bush (R) Unite on Huge New HIV/AIDS Law |
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President Bush signed landmark legislation last Wednesday authorizing a tripling of funding to fight global HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis over the next five years. The $48-billion bill that Sen Joe Biden (D-DE) ushered through the Senate expands on the original record-setting commitment that Bush launched in 2003 to fight AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa and around the world.
Normally a critic of Bush’s foreign policies, Biden issued a statement praising the President for his efforts after attending a signing ceremony at the White House: "His decision to launch this initiative was bold and unexpected, and I believe historians may regard it as his finest hour." The current program, which expires September 30, supports anti-retroviral treatments for nearly 1.7 million people. The new legislation will support HIV/AIDS treatment for at least 3 million people, support prevention of 12 million new infections, and care for 12 million patients, including 5 million orphans and vulnerable children, according to the White House. It also repeals the legal ban on visas for infected people. "We’ve made tremendous strides, but our work is not nearly finished," Biden said. "Two million people died last year of HIV/AIDS. Over two and a half million people died of malaria and TB. That’s over 10,000 people killed per day." Source: Gannett News Service |
| North Korea on Brink of Hunger Catastrophe |
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North Korea faces its worst food crisis in a decade with millions at risk of malnutrition, the World Food Program warned last Wednesday. It said that floods and poor harvests have thrown the impoverished state back to the brink of disaster. It called for $20 million of aid to feed vulnerable groups, such as children and the elderly, until the next harvest in the autumn.
A recent study by aid agencies in North Korea showed how the population of 22 million are tightening their belts. It found that almost three-quarters of households have reduced their food intake; more malnourished children are being admitted to hospitals; and diarrhea is on the increase among under-fives because they are having to rely more on food from the wild. "Millions of vulnerable North Koreans are at risk of slipping toward precarious hunger levels," said Jean-Pierre de Margerie, the WFP's country director for North Korea. "The last time hunger was so deep and so widespread in parts of the country was in the late 1990s." North Korea has relied on foreign aid to feed its people for most of the past decade. In the past three years it has kicked out many overseas aid workers and tried to become more self-sufficient. Observers blamed the deterioration on a number of factors. "The basic problem is that even in a normal year they don't grow enough to feed themselves," said Glyn Ford, an MEP who had recently visited Pyongyang. "There are also problems of distribution and accessibility. Market reforms have created an underclass that cannot afford to buy the food they need to top up the limited amount they get from the government." The public distribution system has reduced rations to urban dwellers in recent months, while food prices have risen rapidly. According to de Margerie, rice now costs almost three times more than it did a year ago, and maize has quadrupled. Wages have remained stagnant. Source: The Guardian |
| LA Bans New Fast-Food Outlets in its South |
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A law that would bar fast-food restaurants from opening in South LA for at least a year sailed through the Los Angeles City Council on July 29. The council approved the fast-food moratorium unanimously, despite complaints from representatives of McDonald's, Carl's Jr, and other companies who said they were being unfairly targeted.
Councilwoman Jan Perry, who has pushed for a moratorium for six years, said the initiative would give the city time to craft measures to lure sit-down restaurants serving healthier food to a part of the city that desperately wants more of them. "I believe this is a victory for the people of South and southeast Los Angeles, for them to have greater food options." The ban covers a 32-square-mile area for one year, with two possible six-month extensions. The area has about 500,000 residents. The law defines a fast-food restaurant as "any establishment which dispenses food for consumption on or off the premises, and which has the following characteristics: a limited menu, items prepared in advance or prepared or heated quickly, no table orders and food served in disposable wrapping or containers." A report released last year by the county public health department found that 30% of children in South LA were obese, compared with 25% of all children in the city. Still, several fast-food workers told the council that the panel was ignoring the good things their franchises accomplish. The workers argued that fast-food establishments provide residents with job opportunities and, in recent years, nutritious menu options. "McDonald's believes in healthy choices," said Don Bailey, who has owned and operated the company's restaurants in South LA for 22 years. Another foe of the measure was Madelyn Alfano, whose company, Maria's Italian Kitchen, has restaurants in Sherman Oaks, Brentwood, and other parts of the city. Alfano said the law would create new red tape and force restaurateurs to spend thousands more to start businesses. Moratoriums frequently last as long as two years at City Hall, to give planning officials enough time to craft new zoning rules. Perry said businesses can apply for a "hardship exemption" if they are intent on opening a fast-food restaurant. The councilwoman also said she expected city officials to come up with financial assistance for some restaurants. She said, "This will buy us time to aggressively market the district and show potential developers that we are not only open for business, but have some substantive incentives to make it worth their while to develop in South LA." Source: Los Angeles Times |
| Afghan Kids Allowed to Live with Incarcerated Mothers |
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A policy intended to fight child poverty and ensure child safety allows incarcerated Afghan women to live with their children while in prison. There are over 225 young children living in Afghan prisons.
There, the children are provided with food and access to some education. The policy also keeps children out of orphanages. "I was living in a tent, and I don't have that much money," said Qandy, an incarcerated mother of two. "In prison, at least my children have something to eat." Prison protects children from common retribution for their mothers' alleged offenses. Many of the incarcerated women have been accused of adultery or murder. Just for having sex outside of marriage in Afghanistan, offenders can face the death penalty or lengthy prison sentences. "Some of my enemies are even in prison, and they ask about me," said Shiringul, a mother. "If my children were in an orphanage, I would not feel that they were safe." Shaperai, another incarcerated mother, expressed concerns about her 14-year-old daughter: "If I let my daughter go to live with her uncle, he may sell her to someone. I will never let him sell her." Source: Feminist Daily Newswire |
| Amid and Despite Violence, Tribe Wants Casino |
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The Samson Cree First Nation in Hobbema (in Alberta, Canada), which has been racked with gang violence, is one step away from getting permission to build a resort-style casino. In a bid to reduce the violence, a four-month gun amnesty began on Friday. Hobbema residents can hand over their illegal or unwanted firearms and ammunition to the
Mounties from Aug 1 to Nov 30 without facing charges for possessing unregistered and unlicensed weapons.
Lynn Hutching Mah, spokeswoman for the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission, said a review of the Hobbema application is nearing completion. "We’re looking into the background of the proponents and other key persons associated with the project. So, if everything checks out, the commission would then recommend to the board, and the board would make the final decision on approving construction." If approval is given, the band is planning to use money made from gambling to fund programs that would fight drugs and gangs on the reserve. While a casino could mean more jobs and more money for the community, a University of Alberta professor warns it could also bring more social problems. Harold Wynne, who researches the effects of gambling, said, "They should realize at the outset that while there are benefits, there are absolutely going to be associated costs -- particularly with problem gambling." "The costs can be prohibitive, and can perhaps outweigh the benefits from such an adventure, as well-intentioned as it may be -- costs such as those borne by problem gamblers and problem gambling in the community. Typically, in the siting of any casino, these kinds of costs haven’t been calculated into the picture." Wynne said any community about to get a casino should put in place gambling addiction programs. Samson is hoping to gain approval ahead of a rival bid from the nearby Louis Bull Mountain First Nation, because the Alberta government will only grant one casino license for the area. Source: CBC |
| Council Tries to Protect Trailer Park Residents |
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Prompted by the recent displacement of mobile home park residents to new development, the Milpitas (CA) City Council is reviewing options to provide new protection for tenants and owners. The city's planning department has recommended approval of amendments to a 1988 ordinance that governs the conversion of mobile home parks. The council is expected to sign off on the amendments, then city planners will hold public hearings.
Last year, tenants and owners living at South Main Street Mobile Home Park had to relocate after the landowner sold it to developers. The park, which had 45 units, had been on the site since the 1950s. The Bay Area developer Trammell Crow acquired another property next to the mobile home park. It plans to build an apartment complex with 387 units. "What we're trying to do is put more teeth into our ordinance," said Felix Reliford, the city's principal housing planner. The new ordinance will give owners and tenants 60-day notice on a lease termination and provide $5,000 for housing relocation, up from $1,500. The proposed change, Reliford said, will extend housing relocation assistance not just to owners but also to tenants of a mobile home park. When South Main Street Mobile Home Park was closed late last year, city officials "saw an opportunity to update our old ordinance," Mayor Jose Esteves said. "I want to be more compassionate to tenants," Esteves said. "The matter could easily repeat because mobile home conversion is a trend." In recent years, a number of Bay Area mobile home parks populated by low-income residents and retired seniors on fixed incomes have been lost to redevelopment. Source: San Jose Mercury News |
| Charity Helps Transform Haiti Fishing Economies |
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Venturing to sea in tiny boats powered only by sails,
fishermen in the remote village of Pierre Payen on Haiti's western shore struggled for generations through stormy seas and windless days to earn their keep. Now they've been outfitted with shiny new fiberglass boats, small outboard motors, and sparkling new coolers provided by Food for the Poor, a South Florida charity. The new equipment has turned the village's economy around.
"Before, we used to make about 350 gourdes (about $9.20) a day," said Pascal Lony, 30, a leader of the local fishermen. "With the new boats and equipment, we sometimes make up to 1,500 gourdes (about $39.50) in a day. Our lives are much better now." Food for the Poor pioneered the fishing program in Jamaica several years ago. It recently expanded into Haiti, where the global food crisis has hit especially hard. "The goal of the program is to make them self-sufficient," said Clement Belizaire, who directs Food for the Poor's programs in Haiti. "It creates a pyramid effect. The fishermen catch more fish, and the ladies who sell the fish in the markets earn more. The money spreads through the whole village." The charity spends about $60,000 to outfit a village with four 25-foot fiberglass boats with outboard motors, coolers, lifejackets, and other gear. The group also provides materials for the fishermen to build sturdy cement block sheds for storing the equipment, as well as electric freezers and generators so the catch won't spoil before it can be taken to market. Despite the high cost, generous donations have helped the program expand steadily. Atlanta radio station 104.7 The FISH helped raised money for eight villages in Jamaica and also provided funds for a village in Haiti. "We're very excited about getting the new equipment," said Pierre Rene St Cyr, a fisherman in Luly, Haiti, where 104.7 The FISH is supporting the program. "It means we'll be able to go much farther out to sea and catch much bigger fish." Haitian fishermen have struggled for decades with declining catches. It's a crisis triggered by over-fishing, pollution, and sedimentation. The impoverished population uses charcoal for cooking fuel, and charcoal merchants have stripped the countryside of vegetation, triggering erosion that clouds near-shore waters and interferes with the marine life cycle. Fishermen with old boats still bag fish in large numbers, but they're tiny fish. With the new boats and outboards, the fishermen in Pierre Payen now venture several hours out to sea to deeper locations where the fish are larger. They also receive training in how to conserve the resource so that it will be self-sustaining. Source: Palm Beach Post |
| Major Child Labor Case Unfolds at Kosher Meat Plant |
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Iowa labor investigators have identified 57 under-age
workers who were employed at a kosher meatpacking plant in Postville. Iowa labor commissioner Dave Neil said
yesterday that they have asked the attorney general to
bring criminal charges against the company for child labor violations.
"The investigation brings to light egregious violations of virtually every aspect of Iowa’s child labor laws," Neil said as he announced the results of a seven-month investigation at Agriprocessors, the nation’s largest kosher meat plant. In a raid in May, 389 illegal immigrant workers were detained there in the largest immigration enforcement operation ever at a single workplace. Investigators had found multiple child labor law violations for each under-age worker at the plant, said Neil. Violations included employing minors in prohibited occupations, exposing them to hazardous chemicals, and making them work with prohibited tools like knives and saws. Agriprocessors said it was "at a loss to understand" the investigation results. The company said it had cooperated with the inquiry, providing documents and opening the plant to inspectors. Kerry Koonce, a state labor department spokeswoman, said the number of under-age workers was by far the largest in an Iowa child labor case. If convicted on criminal charges, the company could be fined $500,000 to $1 million. Child labor violations are criminal misdemeanors in Iowa, carrying fines of no more than about $600. But Koonce said that each violation was a separate offense each day that it occurred. At least 24 under-age workers, as young as 13, were arrested in the May raid. Afterwards many of them said they felt they had nothing to lose in speaking out. In interviews, they said they were forced to work long hours on night shifts, sometimes up to 17 hours a day, and were not paid all of their overtime. They said they were put to work on racing production lines using knives to cut meat and poultry with little or no safety training. Elmer L, a Guatemalan who said he was 16 when he started work at the plant, said he was kicked by an Agriprocessors supervisor, causing one of his knives to cut his elbow. Most of the under-age workers said they were illegal immigrants who presented fraudulent Social Security cards or immigration visas stating they were at least 18 when they hired on at Agriprocessors. But Iowa law requires employers to make an extra effort to determine the date of birth of workers who could be minors, including asking for a birth certificate or other official proof of age, labor officials said. Source: New York Times |
| At-Risk Teens Build Houses for Aging-Out Foster Kids |
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On the West Side of Wilmington DE, participants in the
Challenge Program, which teaches construction job skills to at-risk youth and pays them a stipend of $6.50 an hour to start, are renovating a house for foster children in the same 18- to 21-year-old age range. The foster kids are about to "age out" of the state system and need a place to live until they can get their lives together.
West End Neighborhood House's Life Lines Program has already renovated five brick row houses on W 8th St in Wilmington. The houses have room for 11 foster kids. Life Lines is working with the Challenge Program to renovate the latest house on the same block, making room for three more. They call the partnership Kids Build for Kids. Future projects are possible if more funding comes through. Since 2001, about 90 foster youths have received housing through the program. The state's Division of Family Services finds homes for foster children until they reach 18, but few of them are ready at that age to begin an independent life, said Stacy Shamburger, program supervisor for Independent Living, part of Life Lines. "At 18, most teenagers are not capable of going out into the world alone. They need the extra support that they weren't given growing up, and that is the living skills. A lot of times the youth are not in a foster home long enough to catch on to the daily living skills they need to survive." The Life Lines Program starts working with foster kids at age 16, while they are still in the state system. Living in transitional housing, the kids are taught life skills. "We help them find employment, help them go to school," said Sarah Matt, who runs Life Line's transitional housing program. "We teach them how to clean, how to wash their clothes if necessary." Foster-house resident Kennika Webster said, "It's good because, at 18, you're not going to have credit, so you can't go out and get yourself an apartment." About 65 foster children exit state care each year, so the need is great, Matt said. It is costing about $243,000 to purchase, renovate, and furnish the new row house, with corporate donations helping to pay for much of that. She said that Life Lines is allowed to bill the state $45 per youth per day, although the costs of running the program are much higher. Source: Wilmington News Journal |
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| Europe's East-to-West Migration May Be Reversing |
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Ever since 2004, when the European Union suddenly grew by 10 countries, most of them in poor Eastern Europe, a debate has been raging in the UK as to whether too many immigrants have flooded into the country. Hundreds of thousands of workers, primarily from Poland, took advantage of the fact that the UK, along with Ireland and Sweden, opted to immediately open its borders to citizens of the new EU countries.
Now, though, the debate may be changing. Indeed, should the economic downturn prove shortlived, the UK and other Western European countries may eventually be wondering how they can attract more workers from the east. The outflow of laborers from countries like Poland may already be reversing. According to a recent survey conducted by the Public Opinion Research Center (CBOS) in Warsaw, only half as many Poles are willing to work abroad as in 2004. Furthermore, UK government statistics indicate that the numbers of work permits issued to Eastern European immigrants dropped by 10% in 2007 against 2006. In the first quarter of this year, the number of permit applicants under the UK's Worker Registration Scheme -- which was set up in 2004 to regulate the inflow of workers from the new member states -- was the lowest it has been since the first quarter of 2005. "The trend is just getting started," said Justyna Frelak of CBOS. "But it is becoming quite clear." A recent report issued by the British think tank Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) also indicates that, in addition to fewer migrants heading west for work, many of those who did pursue the promise of higher pay and plentiful work in Western European countries have now headed back home. Some 50% of those who moved to the UK from so-called "A-8 countries" -- Eastern European countries that joined the EU in 2004 -- have already returned home, the report found. "Our findings challenge the widely-held assumptions that most of those who have arrived are still here, that more will come and most will stay permanently," said Danny Sriskandarajah, who heads up migration research for the IPPR. "It is a question of when, not if the Great East European migration slows." The reversing trend is most obvious in the UK and Ireland as well as in Sweden. Those three countries were the only older EU countries -- known as the EU 15 -- which opted to open their doors immediately to new EU members. Other countries, including Germany, opted to take advantage of EU rules allowing countries to slowly open up to migrants from new members over a seven-year period. News of the slow reversal is sure to be welcome in capitals across Eastern Europe and in the Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Many countries there have experienced major labor shortages as young professionals and laborers choose higher western pay. Source: Der Spiegel |
| Tour Shows Woes of Atlantic City Housing Project |
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Warren Massey sees the reality of Stanley Holmes Village every day. As a long-time resident of this perpetually troubled housing project, he also says he knows the reality outside of the complex: No one cares. That's why Massey, a newly appointed member of the city's Housing Authority, organized a walk-through of the village early last month with hopes of conveying the deplorable living conditions to city officials and pushing them into action.
The tour, which was relatively short, consisted of walking a few blocks through the complex's courtyards. But throughout, Massy spoke to the officials in attendance with frustration. "I don't believe anyone here is on the waiting list to live here," Massey said before a collection of city councilmen, school district officials, and city activists. "If it's not good enough for you to live here, we need to fix it." Over the years, Stanley Holmes Village has become a haven of drugs and violence. Killings have brought a larger police presence to the place, which receives little attention otherwise. Even the US Postal Service suspended delivery last year after a series of shootings. They later returned with a police escort. Massey also expressed his concern that local government is ignoring the complex in an attempt to worsen conditions and allow the village to be torn down. "We're not going to let that happen," he said. "But we need you people to do something about this. This isn't just one visit and we all go home. I have all your numbers and I'll be calling you." Source: Atlantic City Press |
| Botswana Takes Aim at Upcoming Large Rise in Water Demand |
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The growth of mining around Francistown, Botswana, and the proposed Mmamabula energy project are set to cause considerable demand for water, says Ponatshego Kedikilwe, the minerals, energy and water resources minister. Speaking at the National Water Resources Management Conference last week, he said the Botswana Millennium Development Goal report of 2004 identified water scarcity as one of the issues that might present constraints given the rapid increase in domestic and industrial demand for water.
He said also that Botswana was a drought-prone country with limited water resources and potential sites for water resources development. The situation was worsened by low rainfall, limited groundwater recharge, and very high evaporation rates. However, he said his ministry was doing all it could to cope through a number of initiatives aimed at improving water supply for the country's current needs. He said these included the development of dams and wellfields to add to existing resources. He said Dikgatlhong Dam, which would impound 400 million cubic meters, would cost more than P1.2 billion, while the Water Transfer portion would cost some P4 billion. The reviewed Lotsane Dam project on the other hand would impound 50 million cubic meters while the Thune Dam project should impound 90 million cubic meters. He expressed happiness that 52 villages in the North East and parts of the Central District would enjoy potable water from the Ntimbale Dam and the Maitengwe Wellfields next week. He said the country's Millennium Development Goals aspired, among other things, to develop surface and ground water resources and sanitation facilities to meet demands and increase efforts to search for more efficient water-use and -management technologies. He further said his ministry had started continuously coordinating with other ministries on water supply challenges, and that technocrats from several ministries were now required to meet regularly to produce reports on short, medium and long-term programs to meet water supply requirements nationally. "My ministry has also insisted that emergency water supplies to all villages experiencing water supply shortages should be addressed forthwith. The question of lack of financial resources should not arise in this regard." Source: Botswana Press Agency |
| High School Students Sample College Life by Living It |
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Ron Anderson, a 16-year-old Glassboro High School student, never really thought much about going to college. But now that he spent about five weeks attending classes at Rowan University, he's thinking twice. Ron is one of more than 240 students from Glassboro, Camden, Bridgeton, Millville, and Vineland who are spending their summer at the university's Glassboro campus, living the college life.
The program, called Creating Higher Aspirations and Motivations Project (CHAMP) is designed to improve the students' performance in school and prepare them for college. They go to math and English SAT prep classes. They eat lunch in the student center. And just like regular college students they spend time hanging around the lounges, talking with friends in between classes. "I like it," said Ron, as he sat with a group of newfound friends in Robinson Hall last week. "I'm headed to college. I really plan on it now, not so much before." The six-week long program allows students to explore classes such as English, mathematics, computer literacy, engineering, environmental science, music and dance. It's offered to students in grades 7 through 12, with about 30 upper high school students staying in the dorms overnight during the program. Tia Drew, a 16-year-old at Vineland High School, said this is her fourth year at CHAMP. "I like the people," Tia said. "It's a lot of fun. It's something to do during the summer." But it's not just about passing the time with the various outings the groups go on, such as canoeing excursions, camping trips, and visits to other colleges. "This has helped me a lot more with preparing for the SATs." CHAMP director Winona Wigfall of Camden, who once was a student at CHAMP, said they try to encourage students to not only stay in school and do well there, but also to go on to college. "We have a lot of students who return," Wigfall said, adding that some who come back after high school become counselors or even teach some of the courses at Rowan. "You just get rewarded when you see these kids succeed and actually want to come back." Source: Gloucester County Times |
| Officials Leave Church-Sheltered Illegal Immigrants Alone |
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Everyone knows where Flor Crisostomo lives, even the federal immigration officials who have ordered her deported to Mexico. The reason they haven't detained her is her address -- Adalberto United Methodist Church.
Another woman famously took refuge in that church as she championed immigration reform, and at least 13 other illegal immigrants are doing the same at churches around the US. So far, they have little to fear. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have arrested illegal immigrants by the hundreds in raids at factories, restaurants, malls, farms, and meat packing plants, but they have handled cases involving churches delicately. "Our agency takes enforcement actions when we deem it appropriate," said Julie Myers, assistant secretary of homeland security for ICE. "I am personally not aware of an instance when ICE has gone into a church. That being said, if there was a particular, extremely egregious, ax murderer or something else, that's not to say we would not enforce the law at that time." Avoiding churches is unofficial policy for federal immigration officials, according to Doris Meissner, a former commissioner at the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the agency that oversaw immigration until the Department of Homeland Security was formed in 2003. Since the 1970s the unwritten rule has been "no churches, no playgrounds, no schools," said Meissner, now a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute in Washington. Critics say making exceptions for churches, where immigrants openly -- and in Crisostomo's case, very publicly -- defy deportation, makes the agency look lax. "These are people who deliberately violated the law," said Dave Gorak, executive director of the Midwest Coalition to Reduce Immigration. "We can't even enforce the laws without being criticized as Gestapo.'' Meissner said it wouldn't make sense for the agency to devote resources to arrest the relatively small number of people in sanctuary. "An agency like ICE has far more work than it can possibly ever do," Meissner said. "You want to use those resources to thwart -- as much as possible -- egregious criminal behavior. A single person in a church doesn't really measure very high on a list." Source: Haitian Times |
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