Daily Archives: August 14, 2021

TikTok user claims aliens are set to arrive on earth to start intergalactic war – Edinburgh Live

Posted: August 14, 2021 at 1:25 am

Aliens are due to land on Earth to signal the start of an intergalactic war, according to a time traveller.

A TikTok user, who claims to have travelled back from the year 2714, says the world passing through the Peseid meteor shower would enable extraterrestrials to make contact.

The anonymous time traveller behind the aesthetictimewarper account insists 'something amazing' will happen on Wednesday - but it will lead to a war that begins in 2025, according to the Daily Mirror.

In the clip, the user writes: "Yes, I am a real time traveller from the year 2714. Something amazing happens on August 11, 2021.

"There will be a very large meteor shower that lasts for two weeks, it will be seen in the northern hemisphere, containing the Nozic message.

"One of the meteors will seem different than all the others, that is because it is a ship landing on Earth, starting preparations for the first Nozic War."

The TikTok-er claimed in another post that this mysterious war will begin in the year 2025.

In other posts, the TikToker has predicted Atlantis will be found in the year 2022, aliens infiltrate the world's governments in 2023, and colonisation of Mars begins in 2028.

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Scotland to host world’s largest conference on Universal Basic Income – The National

Posted: at 1:24 am

SCOTLAND is set to host the worlds largest universal basic income (UBI) conference this month.

Basic Income Network Scotland, in partnership with the University of Strathclyde, will see the 22nd Basic Income Earth Network Congress come to Glasgow from August 18-21.

The congress with an expansive programme of academic presentations, workshops, artists and activists from all over the world will welcome participants including United Nations representatives to focus on taking UBI from an idea to a reality.

UBI is currently defined as an unconditional, non-withdrawable income for every individual as a right of citizenship, with advocates including Pope Francis. A combination of factors has broadened its appeal in recent times: rising inequality, widespread economic insecurity, and the potential of labour-displacing technological change, including automation and artificial intelligence.

For several years Scotland has aimed to lead the UBI debate in the UK and at last years elections, the SNPs manifesto proposed a move to a minimum income guarantee in the current parliament to form the foundations for a basic income if Scotland chooses independence.

Ronnie Cowan MP said: This congress comes at a pivotal time when peoples livelihoods and work opportunities have been limited due to a global pandemic. A basic income could act as a safety net for those struggling to make ends meet and give them the opportunity to empower themselves and move forward.

I was delighted to learn the Basic Income Earth Network Congress for 2021 is to be held, virtually, in Glasgow as this will be a tremendous opportunity to show to the rest of the world the actions Scotland has already taken in pursuing a basic income. I believe the time for introducing a basic income is now.

A 250,000 Scottish Government-funded study led by four local authorities (Glasgow, Edinburgh, North Ayrshire and Fife) provides the basis for Scotlands headline plenary session.

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South African social movements to participate in global Festival to Fight Inequality and push for universal basic income grant – Daily Maverick

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One in five South Africans lives in extreme poverty. (Photo: Gallo Images / Ashley Vlotman)

Wafaa Abdurahman is the former project manager of Women and Environment of the Community Development Foundation, Western Cape. She worked with groups of women from communities on the Cape Flats as well as youth. She assisted CBOs and NPOs with organisational development as well as campaigns in the areas of GBVF, leadership and amplifying the voices of community women. She is the national coordinator of the Fighting Inequality Alliance South Africa (FIA SA).

The recent upheaval in South Africa has left the country reeling. In the worst unrest since the fall of apartheid, the harsh inequality that plagues the country brought about a wave of rioting and looting.

About R50-billion in damages has been estimated. The cost of human existence in this staggeringly unequal country has never before been as apparent and bleak as it is now, in the midst of a pandemic that has seen more than two million people lose jobs and 11 million living below the poverty line.

Now more than ever, South Africa need not rebuild an old system one that was never sustainable to begin with but to build a new one based on meeting the desperate need to take care of all our people.

There is also a desire for the organisations that are already mobilising communities to spread their knowledge and expertise to enable others to be part of building a better society. The Festival to Fight Inequality hosted by the Fight Inequality Alliance, which takes place from 13-14 August, aims to provide a digital space for the growing anti-inequality movement internationally to reconnect and recharge around common struggles and solutions, including the call for a universal basic income grant (Ubig).

A range of organisations from South Africa will be taking part in the festival, including #YouthArise a youth organisation that will use drama and poetry to convey their lived experiences of inequality on the lives of youth on the Cape Flats in Cape Town; the Assembly of the Unemployed a national movement of the unemployed speak about their lived experiences and why it is necessary to have the Ubig; the Makause Community Organisation of Gauteng will use drama and art to demonstrate inequality in their community through Theatre of the Oppressed; the Marikana Youth Organisation amplifying the lives of the homeless; Tshisimani launching the Pocket Queerpedia tool for activists; and the Alternative Information and Development Centre #EndAusterity campaign and the need for the BIG and to address youth unemployment.

The festival will also involve plenary sessions with activists from all over the world on issues such as from vaccine apartheid to vaccine internationalism and the pandemic of inequality.

A global mobilisation such as this festival aims to equip people with the knowledge and tools to combat the growing disparity between the rich and the poor. When people have the instruments of revolution in their hands, true change can take place and that is why festivals such as this are important for equipping activists and citizens alike with this understanding.

Reasons to fight inequality now?

In the context of a long-standing structural unemployment crisis and structural inequality, this cannot be addressed only through expanding employment. When we look closely at the glaring polarity that exists among the haves and the have-nots, its not just about economics; its about survival in a world that elevates the former and devalues the latter in ways that go far beyond income discrepancies.

This is evident in the countrywide plea to extend the Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant and enable it to be received by caregivers. Groups such as the Fight Inequality Alliance, Black Sash and the C-19 Peoples Coalition, as well as many other civil society groups and community organisers, have recognised that a universal basic income guarantee (Ubig) is not just desirable, but absolutely necessary.

South Africa was already in recession when the pandemic hit and through the governments strict lockdown the economy contracted by 7% in 2020. Unemployment hit a record high of 32.6% by the beginning of 2021. Over the past year, almost two thirds of households in South Africa reported running out of money to buy food and almost one in five went hungry.

The termination of the SRD in April left six million people without any form of income and civil society organisations had a huge hand in getting the grant reinstated. But while the pandemic had a hand in tipping the country into its current chaos, it was merely the straw that broke the camels back.

The SRD grant of a meagre R350 per month can cover only 60% of a persons minimum required food intake; that is why we call on the grant to be increased to at least R585, which is the food poverty line.

This is not the best-case scenario.

One in five South Africans lives in extreme poverty while the wealthiest 10% own more than half the national income. The poorest 40% share a paltry 7.2% of the largest income inequality observed by the UNs Human Development Index.

It is with this knowledge that a Ubig is one of the best tools available to reduce poverty, hunger and destitution in this, one of the most unequal societies and economies in the world. Organisations that have been calling for a Ubig have poured a lot of research into how we can make it possible.

For example, the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ), has published a financing option for a Ubig. Often viewed as an alternative to work, critics of a basic income guarantee say it would shrink the labour force, make people lazy and create a nanny state, meaning lower economic output and lower tax revenues to invest in the future.

However, this has been debunked tenfold. Having a Ubig would have a positive income effect on the constraints facing poor families, including uninsured risk and credit. Receiving a Ubig can help relax these constraints and help alleviate the stress of living hand to mouth.

The governments messaging during the pandemic attempts to mask its inadequacies: telling South Africans that we are all in this together denies the fact that we have never been in this together.

Unfortunately, South Africa is deeply divided along class, race, and gender lines and the togetherness rhetoric was a thinly veiled attempt to depoliticise the crisis to a mere health crisis that required charity solutions without any perspective on the underlying structural problems that worsen the impact of the pandemic daily. It has been left to non-government and non-profit organisations to take the lead.

The bottom line is that as long as the government refuses to take action to overcome the deep-rooted inequalities in our society, we will continue to have to rely on community projects and organisational outreach for these solutions. Until we see the glaring and devastating effects of income inequality being eradicated, we can only say that 1994 did not give us freedom, equality, or justice only the right to vote. DM/MC

Its free! Register here to join thousands of activists from all over the world, connecting for two days in five languages to organise, reimagine and strategise together for a recovery from Covid-19 that supercharges the fight against inequality.

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Both Gig Workers and Freelancers enjoy the flexibility of gig work but miss employment-related benefits that would bring them better financial…

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EDMONTON, Alberta, Aug. 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Market Research firm Advanis announces the second installment of their Future of Work series, a proprietary study on the Gig Economy Worker in Canada.

Summary

Advanis' survey of 616 Canadians working in gig or freelance roles has shed some light into the profiles and needs of those working in the gig economy, in particular:

Freelancers and Gig Workers are unique in their profiles and motivations.Freelancers tend to be older (40% are 55+), college-educated (77%), with a high income (47% with $100k+), and are more likely to be working gigs out of choice (74%) rather than necessity.

I wanted to exercise my entrepreneurial spirit capabilities and have more control of my time as I was caregiving for my aging parents. - Freelancer (Canada)

Gig Workers tend to be younger (30% 18-34), often with a young family (44%), low income (38% under $50k), and no college degree (39%), and are more likely to be working gigs out of necessity (36%).

I needed more money to pay my student loans, rent, and to feed my family. - Gig Worker (Quebec, Canada)

Freelancers and Gig Workers also show differences in their individual needs for tools to perform their jobs.Their tool needs differ with Freelancers displaying the need for digital tools that help with productivity (61%), collaboration (59%), and security (48%). On the other hand, Gig Workers are putting a higher priority on bookkeeping (29%) and tax tracking services (29%).

Financial instability is one of the biggest concerns regarding gig work.Approximately half of Freelancers (49%) and Gig Workers (53%) are concerned about financial instability. Furthermore, these concerns about financial instability are mostly coming from younger, lower income individuals, who have gigs as their main source of income.

Those concerned about financial stability are more likely to be working gigs out of necessity (41%), leading to a more pessimistic view of gig work overall. This leads to them being less likely to enjoy gig work and or to cite personal fulfillment as an upside of this arrangement. They are also more likely to bring up drawbacks, such as uncertain pay, lack of security, stress, and burnout.

The uncertain income is the biggest downside, and it goes up and down with the seasons, while my bills remain consistent. - Gig Worker (ON, Canada)

Lack of financial stability is leading to a high interest in public and private products that would help bring stability and well-being to Freelancers and Gig Workers.Some of the most missed employment-related benefits coming from Freelancers and Gig Workers are:

79% of those concerned about financial instability are interested in Universal Basic Income (UBI). This program would give every adult citizen a set amount of money on a regular basis and would help settle Freelancers and Gig Workers worries about consistent income and paid time off.

76% of those concerned about financial stability are interested in a Portable Benefits Package. This would be a benefits package owned by the worker and taken to each new job they have, helping bring Freelancers and Gig Workers missed employment-related benefits like Health Insurance and a Retirement Plan.

No benefits. No healthcare. No guarantee of income - Gig Worker (ON, Canada)No Pension - you must save. - Freelancer (BC, Canada)

Difficulty meeting terms for loan applications is higher amongst those concerned about financial stability.Only 20% of Freelancers and 18% of Gig Workers have a business credit card, 7% of Freelancers and 10% of Gig Workers have a business line of credit, and 22% of Freelancers and 29% of Gig Workers do not have a source of credit at all. This inability to obtain business loans is causing workers to use their personal credit to address their business needs.

About AdvanisAdvanis is a privately owned Canadian market and social research firm founded in 1990 and known for its innovation and responsiveness. Advanis engages with key stakeholders to deliver research-based insights and advice that help our clients make sound, fact-based decisions about their most crucial marketing, business, and public policy issues. We serve clients in private and public sectors, focusing on customer experience, product design, pricing, and social research. We offer a comprehensive suite of research services (quantitative, qualitative, and analytics).

For other recent survey publications: https://www.advanis.net/self-sponsored-studiesHeadquarters: Edmonton, AlbertaOther locations: Waterloo, MontralPresident: Michael WilliamsOwnership: Privately ownedEmployees: 50 Full time

Survey MethodologyAn online survey of 616 Canadians and 621 Americans (U.S.), all adults who are currently working as a freelancer or contractor, as a gig worker or platform worker, or on a side hustle for supplementary income, was conducted by Advanis from April 26th to May 17th, 2021. Details are available upon request.

Canadian participants 329 freelancers and 287 other gig workers were recruited using our General Population Random Sample by SMS and completed the survey online. National results for freelancers are accurate to within +/- 5.4%, 19 times out of 20. National results for other gig workers are accurate to within +/- 5.8%, 19 times out of 20. Margin of error is wider among subsets of the population.

For the purpose of this survey, gig refers to work as a freelancer/contractor, as a gig worker/platform worker (e.g., Uber, TaskRabbit, Instacart), or on other side hustle for supplementary income (e.g., Etsy, EBay, sitting jobs, trades). We make a distinction between Gig Workers and Freelancers.Freelancers: those primarily working freelance professional services (e.g., graphic designer, programmer, writer); and Gig Workers: those primarily working gigs such as transportation and delivery services, sitting work, maintenance and handy work, personal assistance services, online content delivery, online or in person retail.

Advanis is a member of the Canadian Research Insights Council (CRIC) and confirms that this research fully complies with all CRIC Standards including the CRIC Public Opinion Research Standards and Disclosure Requirements.

Contact InformationAnu BhallaSVP Business Developmentanu_bhalla@advanis.net

Follow Advanis on social media:@AdvanisInsights on TwitterAdvanis on LinkedIn

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FKK: Is Germany falling out of love with nudism? – The Local Germany

Posted: at 1:23 am

Theres a bare arse peeking out of every wave, Romy Schneider is said to have remarked after a visit to the island of Sylt in 1968.

But nowadays, Freikrperkultur (FKK), or free-body culture, is less trendy than ever or at the very least, its divisive. Many Germans love to scamper about in the nude, while others turn their noses up at the idea. On top of this, the pandemic is bringing about new concerns. The Wannsee lido in Berlin, for instance, is no longer welcoming nudists, as theyre seen as posing a health risk in the pandemic.

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While many (particularly older) Germans may be used to stripping off completely at the beach, sauna and swimming pool, women going topless has sparked a fuelled a raging debate this summer and one prominent case has led to a whole movement being founded.

At the beginning of July, one woman bathing topless at the Berlin water area Plansche im Plnterwald was accosted by police and accused of indecent exposure. This led to widespread debates about equality. The water parks security had asked her to put a top on multiple times, and eventually the police were called. The authorities defended the actions of both the park supervisors and the police, but did also apologise to the woman in question, who had been sunbathing with her six-year-old son.

Equal breasts for all

At the core of the discussion is an important question: why are naked breasts an example of this free body culture, while a cisgender mans naked chest isnt?

READ ALSO: Only in Germany: Wild boar steals laptop from naked Berlin sunbather

Under the motto equal breasts for all, a campaign has been born. It demands that women be allowed to go topless in places where men are already extended the same privilege. Proponents want to normalise breasts instead of sexualising them. Their maxim is no nipple is free until all nipples are free.

A woman was accosted by police for bathing topless at Plansche in Berlin Plnterwald, starting a new movement under the motto, Equal breasts for all. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Fabian Sommer

Further evidence for an increasing discomfort with nudity has been sourced by researchers in recent years. A joint survey with YouGov and the statistics portal Statista found recently that most adults in Germany feel uncomfortable in spaces where nakedness is permitted, for instance in saunas or nudist beaches. Only 28 percent of people reported feeling at ease, compared with 36 percent who were not comfortable.

The rest of the people surveyed either avoided such places completely, or chose not to volunteer information relating to the topic. Women felt slightly more uncomfortable, at 39 percent, compared with 34% of men. In line with the age-old clich, eastern Germans were more likely to feel comfortable in nudist settings than western Germans, at 36 percent compared with 26 percent.

No filter

The historian Heiko Stoff of Hannover Medical School, who has researched the history of naturism, considers that public debates such as about the topless woman in Berlin are ultimately not representative of broader opinion. For him, the internet is the biggest culprit in terms of instigating shame. In the selfies and full-body photographs which saturate sites like Instagram, an idealisation of thinner bodies with firm skin is dominant.

SEE ALSO: VIDEO: Why do Germans love getting naked?

Most pictures that are uploaded have been photoshopped, he said. But when were naked on the beach, we cant put our bodies through a filter. In my view, thats definitely part of the reason why so many people feel uncomfortable with nakedness nowadays.

Is Instagram responsible for the decline in popularity of FKK? Photo: picture alliance / dpa | Jens Kalaene

And even if some people feel comfortable putting their imperfect bodies on show at the beach, many still feel a certain pressure to resemble conventional beauty standards.

It doesnt take long for you to feel like a failure, or like someone who has not succeeded in making their body meet the ideal, Stoff said. That steals the joy of nakedness, and replaces it with stress and a certain competitiveness.

This competitiveness is exactly the thing that clothing usually helps to cover up.

READ ALSO: Undressing at a Berlin sauna wasnt the moment of liberation Id hoped for

Someone who is accustomed to feeling socially high-ranking because of their job or their money can have their self-image turned upside down when naked on the beach, Stoff explained. Suddenly they might feel inferior to a young proletarian who spends a lot of time doing physical labour.

Whats Germanys history with nudism?

Historically, Germany has been regarded as a cradle of naturist culture. Up until the founding of the first FKK club at the end of the 19th century in the German Empire, most of Europe had pretty much the same relationship with nakedness, said Stoff.

But the then-burgeoning naturism movement in Germany had a clear message. It was all about working systematically with the body in line with the classical Greek model, trying to translate those ideal marble bodies into a corporeal reality.

Dozens of naked bathers sit on a beach at Mggelsee in East Berlin in 1986. Photo: picture alliance / Thomas Uhlemann/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa | Thomas Uhlemann

It was a hugely flawed movement whose message was easily exploited. There was a sense within the movement that only beautiful, healthy bodies should procreate. According to Stoff, this tapped into the zeitgeist of eugenics, nationalism and so-called racial hygiene.

And there were foul consequences: parts of the Lebensreformbewegung, or life reform movement, gave rise to a fatal antisemitism. According to Stoff, some proponents of the movement taught people how to recognise Jewish people through their circumcised penises.

READ ALSO: The dos and donts of public nudity in Germany

In the 1920s, a more socialist perception of nudism arose alongside the nationalist. It was thought that the oppressed proletarian body would become aware of its enslavement in its own nakedness, said Stoff.

People wanted to set aside the old moral codes of the German Empire and embrace a joy in life. In the same decade, magazines about nudist culture sold like hotcakes in kiosks. They werent explicitly pornographic, Stoff clarifies, but often occupied grey areas in terms of legality. Most importantly, the body was now pictured romping around frivolously on the beach, far from its previous statuesque ideal.

The early FKK movement strove for a Greek ideal of physical beauty and health. Photo: picture alliance / Marcela Gutirrez/NOTIMEX/dpa | Marcela Gutirrez

During the years of Nazism, people were far less prudish than we tend to assume. Hans Surns FKK book Man and Sunlight, which teems with naked figures, was a bestseller. After 1945, fans of the nudist movement were given their own designated beaches in many places in both the West and East. From the 1960s into the 1970s, naked bathing was a trend women were expected to be at least to be topless, a huge difference to todays ideas.

With this history in mind, its easy to see how people are assuming that Germany is undergoing a progressive re-prudeification. But Stoff doubles down on his view that unrealistic body standards are the main culprit in this cultural shift. He said: The reality of their own bodies makes people feel anxious, so they choose to reject that reality. I see that as a more decisive cause of discomfort than the idea that Germans are somehow becoming more prudish, or that religious views are being rekindled.

Translated by Antonia Harrison

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The ever-growing crises that are displacing migrants from their homes – The European Sting

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(Credit: Unsplash)

This article was written by one of our guest writers, Mr. AaronGates-Lincoln, writer for Immigration News. The opinions expressed within reflect only the writers views and not The European Stings position on the issue.

The ever-growing crises that are displacing migrants from their homes are dominating the headlines in the world of immigration. The act of seeking refuge has been turned into the political zeitgeist of our time by governments who either wish to support those in need or decide to shut the gate to keep them out. However, for countries such as the UK, it is arguable that we have a duty to support individuals seeking asylum- simply for the reason that we have the capacity and resources to do so.

However, with the ongoing discussions of Priti Patels proposed Nationality and Borders Bill, it appears that the UK is choosing to not follow through with this duty.

Patels bill, which is due to undergo its second reading in the House of Commons on the 19th and 20th July 2021, has been claimed to be the key to fixing what has been described as the broken immigration system of the UK. It is already known that the current UK approach to immigration has been consistently hostile for near to a decade now, so why would Patel think adding cruel fuel to the already raging fire would be helpful?

The main features of the bill the power to send individuals seeking asylum to overseas territories for processing and an extension of Patels signature camp-style accommodation that was controversially introduced in 2020. This is compounded with the lengthening of prison sentences for entry to the UK that is deemed as illegal and a clause that redefines the offence of facilitating illegal immigration. This clause has most likely been introduced to help curb the increase in illegal Channel crossings that have dominated headlines and debate for the past several years. However, the clause is so vague, that legal experts have pointed out that even the Royal National Lifeboat Institution could be criminalised for saving the lives of Channel crossers who face situations of drowning.

Colin Yeo of Free Movement speaking on the Bill, has said that of the new legislation introduced, the majority of it will be bad for refugees and the public purse. He also believes that there is some genuine nastiness included and that the Bill will only worsen the problems with the United Kingdoms current asylum system. These thoughts were mirrored by Caroline Lucas MP, of the Green Party, as she stated, it is a mean-spirited, inhumane and possibly illegal response which will criminalise many seeking sanctuary and play into the hands of people traffickers.

As the UNCHR, the UNs refugee agency, have argued, the bill risks breaching commitments under the Refuge Convention that clearly protects the universal right to seek asylum. However, the government and Home Office has denied such claims, stating that the bill is motivated by humanitarian principles. Priti Patel has yet to distinctly lay out exactly how and where humanitarian principles apply to the bill, meanwhilst experts have explained thoroughly that bill is most likely going to put some of the worlds most vulnerable people in extremely dangerous situations.

One specific anxiety surrounding the bill, touched on by Caroline Lucas MP, is that of the risk to human trafficking for migrants. It is believed that due to the bills ignorance of the lived realities of those seeking asylum, it has misunderstood exactly how migrants become exposed to trafficking risks. In most situations, due to hostile immigration systems, individuals in need of asylum are forced to try and take unviable routes to reach their desired destination- such as dinghies or lorries across borders and Channels. It is in these dangerous situations that migrants are exploited. With Patels bill, taking these routes would result in criminalisation, pigeon-holing migrants into new, unviable routes that would often be linked to or set up by human traffickers. Therefore, the proposed aim of the bill is immediately subverted, and it acts as a catalyst for increases in the issues it is trying to fix.

Patricia Durr, CEO of ECPAT UK, has highlighted how the bill will also negatively impact on the protection and safeguarding of children. She has stated that, it will fail to protect those in need of safety, including unaccompanied children who will be at significant risk of dangerous journeys, exploitation and harm. The bill could also lead to delays in children receiving support from the immigration system and forcing children to disclose trauma as a means of proving their asylum claims. Durr argues that children must be treated as children first and foremost and our concern with this bill is that it seeks to erode hard fought for rights and protections and leaves some of the most vulnerable children at the greatest risk and holds us to a different standard of care and protection for them.

Whilst the asylum system certainly needs fixing, the cruel nature of Priti Patel is not the medicine that it so desperately needs. With it being found that 33,000 people in the UK immigration system were waiting over a year for an initial asylum claim in 2020, it is clear that reform needs to focus on improving how the system runs not trying to reduce the numbers of those entering it. The bill is a clear example of creating a new problem to avoid having to address an old one. Going forward, it is imperative for the safety of migrants entering the UK that legislation is put in place that supports entry to the UK and places migrants onto necessary immigration pathways such as indefinite leave to remain and eventually citizenship. The Nationality and Borders Bill must be stopped from being enshrined in law, and campaigning for the rights of migrants must continue to pressure ministers to reject the plans it proposes.

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The long road to gender equality at the Olympics – Aviation Analysis Wing

Posted: at 1:23 am

Whoever enters the building of the French Olympic Committee, located on Pierre de Coubertin No. 1 in Paris, will not miss the bronze statue of the Baron himself, the founder of the modern Olympic Games. She stands in the center of the hall, on a marble pedestal, whose name is written in golden letters. De Coubertin has put his hands loosely in his pocket since 1992. He wears a mask over his nose and mouth.

Since March of this year there is still a statue in the corner. It is a more modern work of art, made of painted wood, silver leaf and metal, and was made by students at a French art academy. A plaque bearing the name of Alice Milliat, to whom we owe to women the opportunity to participate in the Olympic Games. The statue is a harbinger of things to come three years later in Paris: the first fully gender equality games. Historic moment.

Because the Olympic movement goes a long way when it comes to womens equality. De Coubertin, a historian and educator, did not like womens sports not practical, not aesthetically pleasing, not interesting, not appropriate. No women participated in the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. The Greek Stamata Revithi did not leave her at that time. The day after the Olympic marathon, she ran alone on the same mens track. She did not reach the finish line, because she was stopped at the gates of the Olympic Stadium. Women would not be allowed to run a marathon until the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

In Paris (1900) women participated in the Games for the first time, but only in areas which, according to de Coubertin, would not harm their female charm; Tennis and golf. Archery, figure skating, fencing, and swimming became Olympics for a while, but they also disappeared from the program. The proportion of women at the Games in Antwerp (1920) was only 3 per cent. Meanwhile, a feminist movement was underway in France, led by Alice Millais, an avid teacher and rower.

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In 1919 she had asked the International Olympic Committee (IOC) if women could be added to the athletics program at the Games, but to no avail. Then she founded the International Womens Sports Federation (FSFI), of which she herself became its president. With this organization, she organized the first womens games in Monaco in 1921. It was a one-day event, with an Olympic-style opening ceremony. Initially, five countries participated, but the event grew into a success. In the Paris suburb of Vincennes, on August 20, 1922, 15,000 people watched women compete in all sports disciplines prohibited by the International Olympic Committee.

Milliat gained increasing influence internationally through her movement. Womens sports federations were created in Great Britain and the United States, and pressure increased on the International Olympic Committee to allow women to enter the Games. Milliat insisted that women should be allowed to compete in all areas of athletics and that there should be an equal number of women and men at the board level. The IOC was willing to consult on whether to stop calling the annual Womens Games Olympic. Milliat agreed, and at the 1928 Games in Amsterdam, women were allowed to participate in athletics and gymnastics for the first time.

Journalists used gruesome terms to describe what they saw after 800 metres. on women Chicago Tribune They were thrown to the ground completely exhausted. A journalist from the British newspaper thought it was too dangerous times. In the Pittsburgh Press They did not find it extremely helpful to see a group of women self-destruct. In the following games, the 800m was dropped, only to be added again in 1960.

At the end of the 1920s in the Netherlands, people were not waiting for the Olympic liberation movement, but under pressure from the International Olympic Committee, the athletics federation appointed a womens coach. A woman out of all people has won the only Dutch athletics medal: Lianne Jesulf, silver in the high jump.

Female participation in the games was not taken for granted in the ensuing years. At the 1932 Los Angeles Games, the Olympic Village was for men only. The women were housed in a separate hotel.

It was Fanny Blankers-Queens success story at the 1948 Games that showed women around the world that a 30-year-old mother of two can achieve great things win four gold medals and become the star of that tournament. But this does not mean that the IOC has opened all ports.

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Until 1960, for example, only women were allowed to participate in individual sports. From the 1964 Tokyo Games, contactless team sports were added the first volleyball. Twenty years later, team sports with contact were also practiced; Hockey, soccer and water polo. From that moment on, the graphs of male and female participants converge, but have not yet crossed. The most conservative sports are cycling, strength and martial arts. Weightlifting and boxing did not become Olympics until after 2000. Until 1996, the International Olympic Committee conducted gender tests that were mandatory only for women. Men are exempt from it.

Read also: Gymnast Simone Biles fights stress and critics blame her weakness

At the Games that year in Atlanta, 7,000 of the 11,000 participants were men, and 26 of the more than 200 nations did not send in women, including many Arab nations. In light of this, it is particularly remarkable that women have won two-thirds of all Dutch Olympic medals in history.

Recognizing the need to keep pace with the times, the IOC added a chapter to the Olympic Charter in which it committed to promoting and encouraging womens sports and achieving equality between men and women. The process was to be completed by 2024. The maximum number of participants was also reduced to 10,500, half of whom would have to be women within three years in Paris. Although the International Olympic Committee has indicated that this goal has been achieved in Tokyo, this is not entirely true; 48.8 percent of women and 51.2 percent of men. However, this was not true at all.

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The gap in Tokyo was partially closed by the introduction of mixed numbers. Women and men compete against each other in the same match. For example, Nigerian athlete Patience Okon George managed to run against the men in the 4x400m mixed relay race. She had entered the last lap with a big lead by her male teammate, who was running against the women, but was overtaken. It was above all a wonderful sight. The Mixed Nations Cup in Judo was one of the most exciting additions to the Olympic tournament.

Administratively, the committee also wanted it to be a better reflection of the zeitgeist, with a larger number of UN member states. Until 1981, a woman was never a member of the International Olympic Committee. The proportion of female IOC members has risen from 21 to 37.5 percent in the past two years. Women occupy 48 percent of IOC committees. That was 20 percent a few years ago. For the first time, the Tokyo Athletes Committee includes more women than men; 11 in 6. The highest position, the president of the International Olympic Committee, on the other hand, has never been held by a woman. One of the four vice presidents is Aruban Nicole Hoevertsz, who was elected in Tokyo.

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Games are likely not at all gender equality. Although the International Olympic Committee required all countries to designate a male and female flag bearer at the opening ceremony, countries such as Oman, Djibouti and Ethiopia refused to do so. It remained without consequences. This does not mean that the IOC has no influence. Prior to London 2012, the committee threatened to exclude Saudi Arabia from participating if it did not authorize a woman. The country succumbed to pressure and appointed a judoka and an athlete. Nine years later, that number is still low.

Gender equality in games became a vital issue earlier this year when Yoshiro Mori, 83, the head of the organization in Tokyo, said women have long meetings, which is annoying. When that became known, he had to resign. In a country where womens rights are under pressure. Japan has been at the bottom 120 of 156 countries in the World Economic Forums Global Gender Gap Index for years. But when the world watches the games, things are a little different.

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Two weeks ago, there was an uproar when Norwegian beach volleyball players decided to play their Olympic bronze in shorts instead of a bikini bottom. The union thought this was inappropriate and imposed a fine of 1,500 euros on the duo. German players were allowed to wear long clothing during the games, in place of traditional clothing. Women twice earned equal standing in the games.

It should all lead to the first gender equality games in history, in Paris three years ago. But host country France still has a lot of work to do. Of all the countries in the world, they scored the worst in five matches between 2000 and 2016 in the distribution of gold medals between men and women the Netherlands was the best. French men have become Olympic champions more than twice as often as French women. In other words: the sporting state that is least liberal is the one that organizes the most liberal games. If that doesnt change before 2024, it could have medal-level consequences. To prevent this, France needs to train more women. It would have sounded like music in Alice Millais ears.

In collaboration with Jurryt van de Vooren

A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of August 9, 2021

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In its first Bahamas test, Indiana makes a resounding statement – Inside the Hall

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NASSAU PARADISE ISLAND, The Bahamas Its not fair to draw full-blown conclusions after one exhibition game, but the also fact remains that Indiana dominated BC Mega, a top-tier Serbian professional team, from start to finish on Friday night in a decisive 79-66 victory, making for an emphatic start to Mike Woodsons tenure at IU.

For 40 minutes, Indiana was everything that they werent last season. The offense was loose, especially in transition, where, one at one point, forward Trayce Jackson-Davis led a break and kicked it out to Jordan Geronimo, who knocked down a 3-pointer. Indiana played with significantly more energy than BC Mega. In a postgame Tweet, Miller Kopp made an accurate summation of the evening: fun.

Indiana dominated most statistical categories. Despite playing without their two true centers Michael Durr and Logan Duncomb, the Hoosiers outrebounded BC Mega 39-36. They had 13 steals to BC Megas three. They had 18 second-chance points to Megas six. Despite shooting nine percent worse from the field than Mega, the Hoosiers made up with it on the offensive glass, grabbing 17 to Megas eight.

I was so anxious, I know the staff was too, just to see how much they retained over the two months that weve been working together, Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said after the game. Thats where my drive was today, trying to push them to see if they are doing the things that were asked of them these last two months on the defensive end and on the offensive end. I thought they responded really well.

There were many questions about how all of these pieces would fit together. Five new players arrived, along with a seismic shift in playing style, one that was predicated on shooting and playmaking, areas where Indiana struggled last season.

At first glance, the varying additions and moving pieces seem to be meshing well. Northwestern transfer Miller Kopp, who scored 14 points, including three makes from deep, was a steady veteran presence. Freshman Tamar Bates added another 14 off of the bench. Trayce Jackson-Davis was the anchor, leading the way with 21. UT-Martin transfer Parker Stewart and Rob Phinisee had stout defensive moments.

The one out, four in offense looked dynamic, a stark contrast to last season. The offense essentially looked like this: nearly constant movement, off and on-ball screens, players crisscrossing on the baseline and dribble handoffs with an intent to get downhill quickly.

On multiple occasions, there were well-executed pick and rolls by Phinisee or Xavier Johnson, lobbing a dime to Jackson-Davis. Much of the movement started with pounding the ball inside to Jackson-Davis or Race Thompson, where shooters would be spread around them. In the first half, Jackson-Davis drew the defense in and then kicked it out to Phinisee who swung to Trey Galloway, who knocked down a three.

If I saw the double come, I did a really good job of having doubles come at me and dribbling and resetting, Jackson-Davis said. If they stay, then (Im) kicking it out to my teammates for an open shot.

Bates was a spark off of the bench. In the first half, shortly after checking in, he hit a floater in the lane. Then Race Thompson drew in the defense and kicked out to Bates, who knocked down a three from the top of the key. There was an especially notable play later in the first half, where Bates plucked a BC Mega pass out of the air, took it the length of the court and made an athletic play to scoop it in.

Hes not scared of the moment, Woodson said. Thats why I liked him when I was watching a game film on him. And hes got a lot of room for growth.

After a relatively quiet first half, Johnson showed his creativity, dropping in two baskets and dishing out two assists in a matter of a few minutes to start the second half. Later, he tried to dunk on 6-foot-10 Borisa Simanic and nearly pulled it off, but was blocked and went crashing onto the floor.

Somewhat under that radar was the play of Geronimo, who led Indiana with 10 rebounds and was a huge reason for Indianas advantage on the glass. During a possession in the second half, he grabbed two consecutive offensive rebounds, keeping Indianas possession alive. His development and confidence from last season was evident.

Were hungry, Geronimo said. When youre hungry, you have an extra edge to go after the ball.

On the defensive side, Indianas rotations were sound and its communication seemed to be fluid. Stewart, whos regarded more as a shooter, quickly created havoc on the defensive end. In the first few minutes of the game, he drew a charge and forced a turnover. In a first impression, he seems to fit the effective three-and-D mold.

Ive learned this a long time ago from Coach Knight: defense wins games, Woodson said. If we can put ourselves in a position to defend every night, I know that well be in every game.

To be clear: by no means did Indiana play perfectly. At one point, Bates dribbled the ball out of bounds off of his leg. One of Geronimos threes hit the backboard before anything else. There were some errant passes. The Hoosiers only shot 12-of-20 from the free-throw line and 30-of-70 from the field.

And as good as Indiana looked, BC Mega didnt look anywhere near like a top-tier Serbian professional team. Projected 2022 lottery pick Nikola Jovic attempted just one shot in 23 minutes, a combination of Indianas defense, but also him just not playing to his potential. Mega gave away an unnatural 27 turnovers. They largely looked sluggish.

Plus, after all, this was an exhibition game, and just one game at that. The next test comes Sunday, where BC Mega will surely come determined to prove themselves. But Friday certainly gave a glimpse of Indianas potential and along with it, a promising start to a new era.

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

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Kallon: Peaceful Co-existence Will Address Humanitarian Crisis in North-east – THISDAY Newspapers

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In this interview with Ugo Aliogo, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Mr. Edward Kallon, speaks on the humanitarian crisis in the North-east, UN reforms in Nigeria, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other issues. Excerpts:

What are the major reforms of the United Nations in Nigeria and how have these reforms impacted the countrys development indices?The Secretary Generals Reform Agenda is being implemented on the basis of three interlinked tracks: a. Repositioning of the United Nations Development System aimed at improving the overall UN approach to 2030 Agenda through a reinvigorated resident coordinator system, a new generation of UN Country Teams and restructuring of regional assets; b. Break existing silos and allow for an integrated whole-of-pillar approach to peace and security, through enhanced focus prevention and peace sustainment (Human Rights, Humanitarian, Development and Peace Nexus), and c. Paradigm shift in the management of the Secretariat through decentralization, delegation and simplification to enhance effectiveness, while strengthening accountability.

In Nigeria, the Resident Coordinator (RC) position was officially delinked from the UNDP Resident Representative function at the beginning of 2019, thus creating an impartial, independent and empowered RC as the official Representative of the Secretary-General in the country.

Earlier in 2018, the UN System in Nigeria developed the $4.3 billion United Nations Sustainable Partnership and Development Framework (UNSDPF) 2018 -2022 which outlines the strategic direction and results expected from the cooperation between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the UN System in Nigeria. The UNSDPF 2018-2022 serves as the collective support and response of the UN System to the national development initiatives of the government regarding the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Africa Union Agenda 2063 and other internationally agreed declarations.

The UNSDPF 2018-2022 reflects Nigerias changing economic, social and environmental conditions and is designed as a strategic framework to assist and address Nigerias developmental and humanitarian challenges, leveraging on UN leadership, comparative advantages, and capacity assessment. The UNSPDF 2018 -2022 is also the basis for the country programme documents and presence of the 19 resident and four non-resident UN entities with the host country programmes in Nigeria.

Impacting development indices in Nigeria requires a whole-of-government and a whole-of-society approach. It requires that we use the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework to develop social contracts that promote action from all stakeholders including youth, civil society, academia, media, the private sector, trade unions and other stakeholders.

The SDGs will also need to be localised. This will require that there is a transition in policies, budget implementation (not just allocations), institutions and regulatory frameworks. At the higher levels, it will be necessary that both the Federal and State governments galvanise the political will and set priorities to secure the requisite resources and develop smarter development solutions to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs.Over the next decade, Nigeria will require additional resources anywhere between $161 to 357 billion to achieve SDG targets. As a middle-income country, between 50-60 percent of the financing needs is expected to be covered by the government. The challenge is that over the last couple of years, the total consolidated budget (both federal and state) was only about $54 billion. The capacity of the Nigerian government to increase investment and spur post COVID 19 recovery and job creation are severely restricted. Furthermore, debt accumulation is not an option and it is, therefore, necessary that the government does everything possible to facilitate enhanced private capital investment.

What are the obstacles to reforms for the United Nations in Nigeria?Almost all UN entities have a special mandate that is United Nations International Childrens Emergency Fund (UNICEF) on children, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on climatology and World Health Organisation (WHO) on health. With these reforms, we still need to work through the differences in agency systems in order to promote joint working among them and to develop joint programming initiatives (Deliver as One). We still need to develop a more systematic approach to our partnership with Government, bilateral donors and IFIs. The skillsets for such an approach are not yet fully developed. We are also yet to develop a Nigeria funding compact with our donors. This is a critical foundation for all other areas and it is still the most challenging.

As a system, we are proud that we now have a Management Accountability Framework (MAP) to provide guidance on the overall direction, accountabilities and oversight to take forward our collective responsibility to make the United Nations fit for purpose to support the 2030 Agenda. The MAF provides a consistent approach that remains faithful to the letter and spirit of the GA resolution on the repositioning of the UN Development System.

Is the UN doing enough to support Nigeria in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?The United Nations Sustainable Development Partnership Framework (UNSDPF) is the UNs partnership with the government of Nigeria on our partnership to support Nigeria in meeting the SDG goals. The current partnership runs until 2022 and a new framework is currently being developed to support Nigeria. This support cuts across many areas from health and vaccinations, education, social protection, environmental issues on desertification and the cleanup in the Niger Delta, support to the National Bureau of Statistics on data collection, and support to State governments in using the SDG framework in the development plans, among others. Financing remains a key challenge and the UN is supporting Nigeria in developing an Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) which should help identify options and potential areas for action. Most recently the UN has supported in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in testing, vaccinations, and risk communication, with over $70 million mobilised and spent. The UN continues to stand ready to support Nigeria.

How will you measure Nigerias commitment to achieving the SDG goals and where are we in comparison to other countries?Nigeria remains committed to meeting the SDGs goals and that commitment is clear as Nigeria was one of the first countries to adopt the SDGs. The effort of Nigeria also goes back to the commitment to meeting the previous MDGs. The commitment is also clear as the SDGs have been a key part of the national development planning process. At the sub-national level, many States are now incorporating the SDGs into their plans. The available data however suggests that accelerated efforts are required if Nigeria is to meet the goals by 2030. Even though there are improvements across many fronts the improvements in many cases are not fast enough. The Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, and the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs continue to champion the SDGs and remain key coordinators.

In 2019, the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated that without additional spending, there would be less than 50% progress toward all SDGs and even with increased investment from the public and private sectors, many SDGs would not be met. Therefore, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, a business-as-usual approach to financing development appeared insufficient to attain national development priorities and SDG targets.

Now, the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 has compounded the problem, marked by the decline of government revenues and development financing as well as worsening socio-economic indicators. Poverty and hunger remain high and the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to disrupt any progress.

In the areas of education, health, and access to basic services some progress has been made but will need to be accelerated significantly to meet the targets for 2030. For instance, the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to push over 7 million more Nigerians into poverty in 2020, with the poverty rate projected to rise from 40.1% (82.9 million) in 2019 to 42.5% (90.2 million people) in 2020 and 42.9% (95.7 million people) in 2022.

One area that has seen a setback is in gender equality, where cases of gender-based violence have risen since the pandemic. Significant challenges also remain in financing the SDGs, as government revenue is constrained and many being left behind in private financing of some SDGs.It is important to note the internal variation within Nigeria with some regions, particularly in the North West and North East lagging behind and in need of renewed efforts. The UN continues to support the government in a broad set of areas to help her goal of meeting the SDGs. Nigerias commitment to those goals is clear and the UN is ready to continue supporting Nigeria.

The humanitarian crisis in the North-east remains a major crisis that seems to hinder achievement of the desired success. What do you think is responsible for this?The crisis in North-east Nigeria is a complex emergency and presents an intricate web of issues that require the collective efforts of different actors in the search for a durable solution.The humanitarian crisis in the BAY Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States is very dynamic and remains one of the largest in the world today. At the peak of the crisis in 2017, over 2.2 million people were displaced in the BAY states and 303,963 Nigerian refugees were in neighbouring countries Cameroon (115,695), Chad (16,294) and Niger (171,974). Currently, there are an estimated 1.9 million people displaced in the worst-affected BAY States.

Over 80 per cent of them are in Borno State and many live in dire conditions with four out of five IDPs living in overcrowded camps. In addition, an estimated 1.6million displaced people have returned to relatively safe areas in BAY States with limited basic services and livelihood opportunities.

Over $3.2 billion has been mobilized for the humanitarian response in the north from 2017 to 2020, providing life-saving assistance to over 5.5 million people annually. This is thanks to advocacy at the highest level by the Government, the ERC and IASC at the Oslo Conferences in 2017 and 2019, and the mission of the UNSC to the Lake Chad Basin and endorsement of the UNSCR 2439. These efforts contributed to raising international awareness of the impact of the Boko Haram insurgency in the Lake Chad Basin and mobilisation of donor interest.

The humanitarian communities in Nigeria, including the Government, International NON-Governmental Organisations (INGOs), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the UN have done very good work over the years in alleviating human suffering, averting a famine in 2017, and bringing hope to millions of people affected by the conflict. This is despite the conflict being a complex and challenging counter-insurgency ecosystem with regional implications for the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin.However, 8.7 million people in the BAY states need humanitarian assistance in 2021 and a total requirement of $1 billion. The ongoing conflict continues to be the main driver of humanitarian needs in North-east Nigeria.

What is the role of the UN in supporting the resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), providing psycho-socio support and source of livelihood for them?The ongoing conflict is resulting in a serious protection crisis with continued violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, violations of the rights of children, abduction, rape, arbitrary killings, gender-based violence, and the collapse of traditional coping mechanisms. About 80 per cent of people in need of humanitarian assistance across the Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states are women and children. Women and children are disproportionately aected by the COVID-19 pandemic and gender inequalities have been reinforced over the past few months. From global best practices, there are no humanitarian solutions to humanitarian problems.

The only solution to the crisis in North-east Nigeria is peace. We must therefore have a shared understanding of the risk and vulnerability that prioritise prevention always, development wherever possible, and humanitarian action when necessary. This approach should also be supported by the right kind of financing, drawing from diverse funding sources to ensure that the required resources are mobilized.

From our analysis, a three-pronged approach is required to find a durable solution to the crisis in North-east Nigeria, an approach that requires the engagement of a diverse range of actors based on their comparative advantages: Continuation of the counter-insurgency effort of the NAF and the counter-terrorism effort by the MNJTF. This however needs to be complemented with dialogue and a peacebuilding process to achieve peace. Continuation of life-saving assistance in pockets of acute humanitarian needs, built around a resilience-based approach to support the affected population cope with the impact of the crisis, recover from it and engage in transformative change. Address the root causes of the crisis due to prolonged development deficit, multidimensional poverty, governance and human rights deficits and climate vulnerabilities.

What do you think is responsible for the widespread insecurity challenges facing the country, especially in the north-east; what is the solution, and what is the role of the UN to support Nigeria in this fight?From the UNs long experience of international development and promoting peaceful solutions across the world, we have found that there is no peace without development and there is no development without peace.There are a number of key underlying factors driving insecurity in the region, which remains a complex and challenging situations, including: Youth unemployment and youth underemployment: These issues have only increased since the advent of COVID-19 which has caused unprecedented socioeconomic difficulties globally. With youth unemployment at 42% and not enough jobs being created, the economy needs about five million new jobs every year to keep up with the number of people entering the labour market. Unequal development: Across regions and across the nation, there are disparities in levels of development and access to opportunities, which further increases inequalities. Proliferation of small arms: Nigeria accounts for 70% of the 500m illegal arms in West Africa, many of which are in the hands of non-state actors rights across the country.

The UN system in Nigeria is involved in a number of efforts and initiatives to address these key underlying issues and the UN, of course, continues to support the Government of Nigeria in its development aspirations as we work together towards achieving the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. The UN is currently investing in local peace architecture and cross-border issues and early warning systems.

Furthermore, UN also invests in border governance and regional security through Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Africa Unity (AU), and Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). We are working to bridge the humanitarian-peace-development nexus in the North-East through the development of a durable solution framework. UN agencies are closely involved in recent initiatives like Generation Unlimited and the Nigeria Jubilee Fellowship Programme which aims to reach millions of unemployed and underemployed youth. We have high hopes that these efforts will lead to transformational change in Nigeria for the Nigerian people and bring about the peace and development that they deserve.

What is the relationship between development and humanitarian challenges?Addressing complex emergencies requires appropriate locally-constructed and context-specific initiatives to simultaneouslyaddress the duality of the key problems we encounter: Reduce needs, risks and vulnerabilities of the affected populations; Build resilience at the individual, household, community and institutional levels.At the core of strengthening the coherence between humanitarian, development and peace is reducing peoples needs, risk and vulnerabilities, supporting prevention efforts and thus, shifting from delivering humanitarian assistance to ending needs. This is critical to reducing the humanitarian caseloads and ensuring that we meet our collective pledge to leave no one behind.

Do you think Nigeria is winning the war in the humanitarian crisis facing the nation, if not can you identify the gaps and opportunities for adjustment?The humanitarian crisis in the states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY), in North east Nigeria, remains one of the largest in the world today. The conflict is a protracted one that is in its 12th year and over 37,000 people have been killed. At the peak of the crisis in 2017, over 2.2 million people were displaced in the BAY states.

The humanitarian communities in Nigeria, including INGOs, civil society, UN and the government, have done very good work over the years since gaining access to the region in 2016. The humanitarian community has helped in alleviating human suffering, averting a famine in 2017, and bringing hope to millions of people affected by the conflict. This is despite it being in a complex and challenging counter-insurgency eco-system with a regional implication for the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin. Over $3.2 billion has been mobilized for the humanitarian response in the north from 2017 to 2020, providing life-saving assistance to over 5.5 million people annually.

The only solution to the crisis in northeast Nigeria is peace. We must continue to prioritize prevention always, development where feasible, and humanitarian assistance when needed. There are no humanitarian solutions to humanitarian problems.

How would you assess government interventions in the fight to eradicate the COVID-19 pandemic. Do you think the strategies are good enough to win the fight or there is need to re-strategise?The COVID-19 pandemic has been an x-ray that has revealed fractures in the fragile skeleton of the societies we have built. We must work together to turn the impact of COVID-19 into a generational opportunity to build back better a more equal and sustainable world.

What has been the support of the UN in complementing governments effort in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic?The One UN COVID-19 Response and Basket Fund has been very successful in supporting the COVID-19 Presidential Task Force and mobilized over $ 73 million. The UN Basket Fund procured 40 percent of the medical supplies to respond to the COVID 19 Pandemic and distributed to all states by the Nigeria Centre for Disease(NCDC). The key achievements of the One UN Response and Basket Fund include: Procurement of 10,839,000 (PPES) comprising of 459,783 test kits (Cobas, Thermofisher and molecular test kits, 50 ventilators, oxygen concentrators. Resuscitator, Swab collection and extraction kits, Gowns, gloves, and facemask. 40 percent of the total medical supplies and equipment for the response were funded from the Basket Fund. Support to State level COVID 19 response. Digital surveillance outbreak response management and analysis system, data transmission to States, distribution of revised home-based care guidelines and training of health care workers on case management and infection prevention control. Risk communication and community engagement through public awareness campaigns, Television, radio, social media that reached over 84 million people across 17 States to increase awareness of preventive and protective measures among Nigerians.

An allocation of 13.65 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine has been approved by COVAX facility for Nigeria, of which the first batch of 3.92 million doses was received on March 2 2021. All 36 dtates and the federal Capital Territory (FCT) have started vaccination since mid-March and as of May, 19 a total of 1.84 million people, which is about 92 per cent of the first dose target, have been vaccinated in the country.

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Kallon: Peaceful Co-existence Will Address Humanitarian Crisis in North-east - THISDAY Newspapers

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Why only radical social transformation can avert a climate catastrophe The video stream was grainy, the – New Statesman

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The video stream was grainy, the makeshift banners wonky, the two men on camera were not named and they were reading their speeches off paper, one of them not very fluently. Various other bigwigs then appeared on screen to congratulate all concerned, and then, 29 minutes in, they switched to Powerpoint and the screen went black.

It could have been the declaration of a military coup in some far distant country, with the production values of 20 years ago. Or an Open University seminar from the 1970s. In fact, it was the press conference to launch the IPCCs Sixth Assessment Report on the science behind climate change.

Antnio Guterres, the secretary-general of the United Nations, summed its contents up succinctly: Code red for humanity.Global surface temperature is now 1.09 degrees higher than in the back half of the 19th century. The past five years have been the hottest on record. Heatwaves, extreme rainfall events, droughts and cyclones are multiplying and human activity is to blame.

In all scenarios, even ones that include global cooperation and rapid carbon reduction, we could reach the tipping point of 1.5 degrees above the pre-industrial average before 2040 not 2050 as previously predicted. In the worst scenarios, the global temperature will reach 2.5 degrees by mid-century and 4.4 degrees by 2100.

But in its shambolic presentation, the IPCCs press conference on 9 August demonstrated the strategic problem. The science is clear and urgent. Yet important segments of the electorate, in all countries, do not care. No government in the world has a plan to decarbonise its economy. As a result, the socio-economic scenarios that climate scientists are working with are out of joint with reality.

The five Shared Socio-Economic Pathways (SSPs) used by climate modellers to predict the future temperature of the earth were first publishedin 2013. They are, in summary: (SSP1) the world goes smoothly, collaboratively and enthusiastically green and more socially just; (SSP2) the same but too slowly; (SSP3) the world system breaks up into competing regional powers, with each country prioritising its own growth and energy security; (SSP4) global inequality dominates, with high social unrest and poor progress on decarbonisation in the developing world; (SSP5) hyper-neoliberalism, where we just burn carbon and rely on the market, and economic development, to curb population growth and (eventually) find a geo-engineering solution for the burning planet.

The bad news is that under even the most benign scenario, we still hit 1.5 degrees by 2040. The worse news is that all these models now look unrealistic. What we are going to get, unless something changes radically, is a mixture of the bad bits of SSP3, SSP4 and SSP5: a fragmented global system, with high inequality, regional rivalry and social unrest with transnational institutions powerless and the financial elite still dreaming that technology will save us.

Even if, as the IPCC predicts, we get approximately constant, and not rising, carbon emissions out to 2070, this is a dire prospect. I dont know what the climate results for this combined model look like, but my guess is they would be worse than anything the IPCC has predicted.

What do we do? Between now and the COP26 conference in November, were going to get a case study in what not to do.Boris Johnson has put Alok Sharma in charge of Britains international diplomacy to secure a new carbon emission reduction deal. In 24 votes in the House of Commons on climate related matters, Sharma has not supported measures to reduce carbon emissions 17 times.

Sharma knows, as does the rest of the Tory government, that there is no way the Conservatives will be able to sell to their loyal voters the radical measures needed for Britain to decarbonise its energy, housing and transport systems by 2050.

This is a problem for Labour, too. Labour went into the 2019 election with the most detailed and radical decarbonisation plan ever presented by a mainstream political party. It called for a green industrial revolution and pledged to put the UK on track for net-zero-carbon energy system within the 2030s and go faster if credible pathways can be found [and] deliver nearly 90 per cent of electricity and 50 per cent of heat from renewable and low-carbon sources by 2030.

That would mean borrowing 250bn over ten years, to build vast new offshore wind and solar facilities, to insulate every home and transform home heating systems, to electrify all transport and to manage the entire energy system centrally.

Labour bombed. The scale of the borrowing and spending needed, and the radical changes in behaviour that will have to go alongside them, were beyond the imaginations of people on the doorstep.I remember an elderly ex-car worker in Birmingham screaming at me that Jeremy Corbyn will destroy the economy.

In a way, I now think the Labour canvassers of 2019 are among the luckiest people on earth: we have glimpsed whats going to happen when people are confronted with the scale of the economic changes needed to meet the demands of the climate crisis. It will terrify them above all because they know that, under free-market capitalism, the only people who ever lose out when things change is themselves.

So the Sixth Assessment leaves global politics at a crossroads. You can see where conservatism is going ideologically from the insistent calls for adaptation over mitigation. Were an advanced country, with high technological expertise. We can adapt to rising sea levels and sudden floods. The unspoken coda is that were going to have to sink refugee boats in the channel, as the Global South, which cannot adapt to desertification and floods, implodes.

It is certain that, as electorates get confronted with the point-blank choices, ecofascism will rise. In their book White Skin, Black Fuel (2021), the Swedish academic Andreas Malm and the Zetkin Collective make a compelling case that the carbon-burning heat engine and the racist colonial empire are the two dynamos of capitalism, and predict that race hatred, and genocidal solutions, will proliferate as climate chaos increases. "The far right, they point out, has not figured in any climate models. Variables of whiteness and race and nationalism have not been included.

In my forthcoming book How To Stop Fascism, I trace the far rights progression from outright climate science denial towards acceptance of the science, alongside the solutions proposed by the Finnish "ecofascist" Pentti Linkola depopulate the earth and, in the name of defending nature, let large parts ofhumanity in the Global South die.

[See also:IPCC climate report: the arrival of the natural disaster movie age?]

Faced with this, the left needs something more effective than what Corbynism offered and there are only two realistic choices.

The first is what Malm calls eco-Leninism: the adoption of harsh programmes of economictransformation, akin to the War Communism of 1919-21 in Russia, using a draconian state. In this Leninist model, you reject all timetables that rely on the consciousness and spontaneity of the masses: you seize power (somehow) and you use it to force the pace of change.

I think we should reject Climate Bolshevism for the same reasons that we should reject Leninism: it didnt work. After just three years of War Communism, the Bolsheviks had to lead an organised retreat back to market socialism, only by now they had destroyed all vestiges of workers' democracy and spontaneous self-organisation.

The second option, if we are to avoid the inexorable collapse, is what Ive been calling for since 2015: a revolutionary reformism. The only political vehicle that is going to be able to enact a programme similar to the one Labour offered in 2019 is the Labour Party. The only state thats going to execute that programme is the existing state, albeit reformed for the task and minus numerous placemen for the fossil fuel industry.

The actual battle, then, lies within the existing system, the existing parties and the existing state. We are losing it, up to now, because nobody within the political class Corbyn included placed climate at the centre of everything else, and made a convincing case for urgency and priority. Having now borrowed and spent more than 300bn on Covid-19 mitigation in a single year, dwarfing the sum proposed by Labour to mitigate climate, maybe there's a chance of resetting the frame.

From Berlin to Brighton, what matters most in the run-up to COP26 is whether social-democrats and the larger Green parties get this. Once they do, they still face the task of selling radical social transformation to a sceptical elderly electorate, and to recalcitrant trade unions.

Keir Starmer has committed Labour to doing the bulk of decarbonisation before 2030. Given that, the next election there is no way Labour can avoid leading, once again, with a radical climate offer.

The task is to persuade and mobilise: to persuade people stuck in conversations about potholes and anti-social behaviour to see the disaster rushing towards them. To mobilise those who already understand to actually vote.

There is no guarantee of success but that's the challenge laid down by the IPCC report.

[See also:The US produces the same carbon emissions as 89 countries in the Global South]

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Why only radical social transformation can avert a climate catastrophe The video stream was grainy, the - New Statesman

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