'A crisis for human rights': new index reveals global fall in basic justice | Inequality | The Guardian

'A crisis for human rights': new index reveals global fall in basic justice | Inequality | The Guardian

 crisis for human rights': new index reveals global fall in basic justice

More than 70 of 113 countries surveyed for latest Rule of Law Index report their fundamental human rights are being eroded

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Will Bordell and Jon Robins

Wed 31 Jan 2018 10.00 GMT

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Fundamental human rights are reported to have diminished in almost two-thirds of the 113 countries surveyed for the 2018 Rule of Law Index, amid concerns over a worldwide surge in authoritarian nationalism and a retreat from international legal obligations.

“All signs point to a crisis not just for human rights, but for the human rights movement,” said Professor Samuel Moyn of Yale University. “Within many nations, these fundamental rights are falling prey to the backlash against a globalising economy in which the rich are winning. But human rights movements have not historically set out to name or shame inequality.”

Michael Franti & Spearhead - Good to Be Alive Today (Acoustic Remix)

VW condemned for testing diesel fumes on humans and monkeys | Business | The Guardian

VW condemned for testing diesel fumes on humans and monkeys | Business | The Guardian

VW condemned for testing diesel fumes on humans and monkeys

Experiments involved monkeys and humans breathing in exhaust fumes for hours at a time

Kate Connolly in Berlin

Mon 29 Jan 2018 15.21 GMTLast modified on Mon 29 Jan 2018 22.01 GMT

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Volkswagen, the world’s biggest carmaker, is under fire globally from politicians and environmentalists following revelations it helped to fund experiments in which monkeys and humans breathed in car fumes for hours at a time.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, said there was an urgent need for the company to reveal the true extent of the experiments, which were commissioned by the European Research Group of Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT), a body funded by Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW.

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“These tests on monkeys or even on humans are not ethically justifiable in any shape or form,” her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said on Monday. “The indignation of many people is absolutely understandable.”

VW is already under heavy scrutiny over its role in the “dieselgate” scandal, in which the carmaker manipulated tests on about 11m cars worldwide to make it appear they met air emissions tests, when in reality they exceeded them many times over when used on the road.

The company said on Monday a small internal group had mistakenly pushed for the tests to be carried out and that they did not reflect VW’s ethos. But industry observers said VW’s excuses held little water, as the experiments had been well-documented and the results presented to managers at BMW, Daimler and VW, all of whom belonged to the EUGT, a car lobby group, which has since been disbanded.

100 women on 100 years of voting | Politics | The Guardian

100 women on 100 years of voting | Politics | The Guardian

The Observer

Sun 28 Jan 2018 09.00 GMTLast modified on Sun 28 Jan 2018 20.20 GMT

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When the first British women gained the right to vote, the celebrations were muted. The Great War was still raging in February 1918, and the suffragette movement itself had splintered over whether to pause its campaign during the hostilities. “The pageantry and rejoicing… which in prewar days would have greeted the victory, were absent when it came,” reflected Sylvia Pankhurst in her 1931 book The Suffragette Movement. “The sorrows of the world conflict precluded jubilations.”

15 years after the invasion of Iraq, and now largely out of the glare of the media, US and UK oil corporations start to flaunt the spoils of imperial conquest.

15 years after the invasion of Iraq, and now largely out of the glare of the media, US and UK oil corporations start to flaunt the spoils of imperial conquest.

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BY RORY ON JANUARY 10, 2018IRAQ

After 15 years of repudiating claims that the invasion of Iraq was only initiated to seize Iraqi resources, large oil corporations fronted by former architects of the war who vacated to the private sector are flagrantly advertising their contracts for exploration and production of Iraqi oil fields to potential investors.

The British oil and gas company BP won the contract to operate the Rumaila Oil Field back in 2009, and now proudly boast of its new drilling capabilities on Twitter. Rumaila is simply huge; by some measures it is the third largest reserve of crude oil on the planet, and is currently extracting 100 million dollars worth of oil every day – enough to cover the annual health budget of Iraq under the wartime rule of the US coalition every five days.

One of the board members of BP at present is Sir John Sawers, the former Chief of MI6 from 2009 to 2014 who acted as UK special representative to Iraq during the occupation. He cashed in a few favours and joined BP as an Independent Non-Executive Director in 2015, one year after he departed MI6 and two years after BP had been handed a licence to exploit one of the most valuable pools of liquid gold on the planet. There was seemingly no regulatory oversight of this very British oligarchy.

Capture the flag. Bank Lombard Street exit. Meeting from seven pm this evening!

 Capture the flag. Bank Lombard Street exit. Meeting from seven pm this evening!

Paris on high alert as river Seine continues to rise | World news | The Guardian

Paris on high alert as river Seine continues to rise | World news | The Guardian

More than 650 people evacuated from homes as forecasters warn of more rain next week

Agence-France Presse in Paris

Sat 27 Jan 2018 09.59 GMTLast modified on Sat 27 Jan 2018 13.18 GMT

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Paris remains on high alert as the swollen river Seine continues to rise, with forecasters saying water levels could stay high next week, especially if France has more rain.

Leaks started to appear in some basements on Friday, while some residents on the city’s outskirts were forced to travel by boat through waterlogged streets.

The Louvre, Musée d’Orsay and Orangerie museums were on high alert, with the lower level of the Louvre’s Islamic arts wing closed to visitors.

It's when, not if: but will Paris be ready for the flood of the century?

 

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A health centre in the north-western suburbs, where 86 patients were receiving care, had to be evacuated on Friday. Across the Paris region, more than 650 people have been evacuated from their homes, according to police.

The Vigicrues flooding agency reduced its peak predictions for the river in the capital, saying it would top out at 5.8-6 metres (19-20ft) between Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, compared with 6.2 metres previously. However, that would still bring the Seine 4-5 metres above its normal height, causing problems for commuters and people living near its banks.