Oman calls on Arabs to ease Israel's 'fears for its future'

Yahoo – AFP, April 6, 2019

Oman's minister of foreign affairs Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah (C) caused a stir in
Jordan when he told a panel that Arabs must help ease Israel's "fears for its
future' (AFP Photo/Khalil MAZRAAWI)

Suweimeh (Jordan) (AFP) - A top Omani government official on Saturday said Arabs must take initiatives to make Israel overcome "fears for its future" in the region, drawing criticism from Jordan.

The remarks by Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, the minister responsible for foreign affairs in Oman, came on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum hosted by Jordan on the shores of the Dead Sea.

"The West has offered Israel political, economic and military support and it now holds all the means of power... but despite that it fears for its future as a non-Arab country surrounded by 400 million Arabs," he said.

"I believe that we Arabs must be able to look into this issue and try to ease those fears that Israel has through initiatives and real deals between us and Israel," he told a panel discussing geopolitics.

The panel's moderator, journalist Hadley Gamble, interrupted him to ask if the best solution to the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict is "recognising Israel and its right to exist".

The minister said no.

"Not recognising, but we want them themselves to feel that there are no threats to their future."

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, whose country is the only Arab nation along with Egypt to have a peace treaty with Israel, dismissed the remarks saying "the issue is that there is an occupation" of Arab land.

"The Arab world has recognised Israel's right to exist. The Palestinians themselves recognised the Israeli right to exist... that is not the issue," Safadi told the panel.

"The issue is that there is an occupation. Is this occupation going to end or not?

Israel, Safadi said, must "withdraw from Arab lands occupied since 1967 and allow" the creation of a Palestinian state. "This is the issue," he said.

"If they (Israel) say they are not comfortable, that is not my problem," said Safadi.

"The problem is not with Arabs giving assurances... the problem is with Israel doing what is right for peace," he added.

"Israel... is not doing the right thing. Actually it is doing more of the wrong things by suffocating Palestinians," the Jordanian foreign minister said, referring to the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip.

"Gaza, is probably as you heard many times, the world's largest prison," he added.

In recent months, Israel has been courting Gulf Arab states.

In February, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met one-on-one with Bin Alawi at an international conference in Warsaw, attended by officials from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

In October last year, Netanyahu held surprise talks with Oman's Sultan Qaboos in Muscat -- raising Palestinian fears of a normalisation of ties.

Last year Bin Alawi told a regional conference in Bahrain it might be "time for Israel to be treated the same (as states in the Middle East) and also bear the same obligations".

Bahrain endorsed the remarks which at the time were said to be aimed at moving the Israeli-Palestinian "narrative from intractability to a new focus of pragmatism".

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"Peace in Israel"

The Israel Channelings (13) - Sep/Oct, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

Tel Aviv - ISRAEL (2) - Oct 8, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)
The PEACE choir - Pineal tones - Oct 10, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

The Final 2015 Kryon Tour - Oct 11, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)




"THE BRIDGE OF SWORDS"– Sep  29, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… What have we told you about the bridge? Actually, not much except that in crossing the bridge, the old energy ones were not going to like it. Old energy does not want you to escape! Old energy doesn't want you to cross the bridge because it can't cross. Did you know that? It can't cross. The old paradigms of Human nature that you've known all of these millenniums have to stay on the old side of the bridge. It cannot cross, for the bridge rejects all that is not in love, compassion and light. Those things that are dark, including Human nature of the past, will not be able to go. But the ones I speak to right now are already on the bridge. That was your design, old soul, and those are the words that are ringing in your ears to this day and the ones given at the wind of birth, that this might happen in your lifetime. So what's going to happen next?

Swords

Let us talk about the swords: When you hear the word sword, the first thing that occurs to you is battle. The Bridge of Swords is a battle and we told you that as well. Swords are metaphoric and they mean many things, so let us describe the things we mean them to say to you.

Number one: They are indeed a weapon in a battle. There is a battle coming. "Kryon, does that mean there's going to be a war?" Potentially, yes. Right now we will tell you that the Middle East cooks itself. You've noticed, haven't you? What do you know about the Middle East, dear one? Let's start examining things for a moment. What energy did you grow up in? What was the energy of the Middle East? In the '40s, what was the energy? With the establishment of the state of Israel, you built a wall of hate, both sides. The wall was so thick that the children of both sides were taught to hate one another as soon as they were able to understand the language. They were told who their enemies were. Now, where were you then?

Some of you weren't here yet. By the time you arrived, in your youth, were you aware of the Middle East? Not particularly. "What's the hatred about?" you might ask. What if I told you it's about a family feud? Two sons of a Jewish master are involved. One founded the Arabs and one remained a Jew. They don't want to hear this, but they are all Jews. (Don't tell them this.)

If you look at the lineage, it's pretty obvious and yet it's a complete and total set-up for either solution or war. The set-up would have this world ending in a conflagration that would have been brought about by this hatred. That's in the prophecy of Nostradamus and your scripture, but it is no longer the prophecy of the planet. Yet the hatred still exists. The hatred is as great today as it was then, but where was all the terrorism 40 years ago? It was isolated.

Those in Israel and Palestine and surrounding areas took the brunt of it, but now it's seemingly everywhere - and you're worried. Why would this be? The answer is that the old energy was happy to have this hatred contained, for it would keep it going and never involve outsiders. Outsiders tend to bring unwanted light to the party. Suddenly, the whole earth is involved and can see the entire scenario before them. The old guard wants war, just like all the eons before them. The ones on the bridge are holding the light and showing the earth how to cross. Even many younger ones in Israel and Palestine and Iran are holding light! It's all around the old guard and they are furious, for they are losing the "battle of hatred." …”

Princess Rima bint Bandar: First Saudi woman ambassador

Yahoo – AFP, February 24, 2019

Princess Rima bint Bandar: First Saudi woman ambassador

Riyadh (AFP) - Princess Rima bint Bandar, Saudi Arabia's first woman ambassador, is a social campaigner on the front line of government efforts to boost the kingdom's battered international reputation despite never having worked as a diplomat.

The 43-year-old princess was named envoy to Washington on Saturday as the kingdom faces pressure from US lawmakers over last year's murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents and its bombing campaign in neighbouring Yemen.

A member of the Saudi royal family, the divorced mother-of-two is a vociferous advocate of women's rights and previously worked at the kingdom's General Sports Authority, where she led a campaign to boost sports education for girls in schools despite opposition from hardliners.

The princess has an entrepreneurial background, having once served as the chief executive of luxury lifestyle store Harvey Nichols in Riyadh, according to Saudi state media, and has actively campaigned to raise awareness about breast cancer.

She has no diplomatic experience but spent several years in the United States during her youth as the daughter of Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the Saudi ambassador to Washington from 1983 to 2005.

She received a bachelor of arts degree from Mount Vernon College at George Washington University in 1999.

A Saudi official who knows her told AFP she seems well-versed with the American political scene, as she takes on her role in Washington.

The new envoy has worked as an advisor to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has faced virulent criticism from US lawmakers over Khashoggi's murder in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate last October.

But the princess, fluent in English, has strongly defended the crown prince in international circles, describing his social reforms such as ending a ban on women drivers as "evolution, not Westernisation".

"You ask us to change, but then when we begin to exhibit change you come to us with cynicism," she said during the last World Economic Forum.

"I don't know how to explain how destructive that is when you wake up every morning and you go into the office and you're motivating people to make a change for their community... Then the article comes out and it says 'This was fabulous, but...'

"Why but? Do you say that to anyone else?"

The princess has spoken of "monumental leaps" for women's rights, but has refrained from commenting publicly on the arrest of several female activists last May and subsequent claims that some of them faced sexual abuse and torture in detention.

'The world trusts us': Vietnamese proud to host Trump-Kim summit

Yahoo – AFP, February 6, 2019

Analysts say the trip could offer the North Korean leader a model of post-war
 economic transformation under a communist state with capitalist leanings
(AFP Photo/Manan VATSYAYANA)

Vietnamese young and old expressed their delight Wednesday after hearing their country had been chosen for the second face-to-face meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The communist-run Southeast Asian country was announced during Trump's State of the Union address as the location for the high-profile summit due to take place later this month.

It follows the pair's historic handshake and brief declaration on denuclearisation at their inaugural meeting in Singapore in June last year.

The pick brings prestige to the former US foe-turned-ally and is symbolic for Vietnamese of a certain generation, who welcomed the move.

"Our country now has a new position and the world trusts us," Pham Van Thau, an 82-year-old communist party member, told AFP in Hanoi.

"The summit will help the world understand more about Vietnam."

The precise location for the summit -- to be held on February 27 and 28 -- has not been announced, though both the capital Hanoi and beach resort town Danang have been rumoured.

Nguyen Hong Nhung, a masters student, hoped the summit could expand her country's budding tourism industry.

"We have a chance... to show everyone that Vietnam is a beautiful country and that the Vietnamese are friendly," she said.

Analysts say the trip, which is set to be Kim's first to Vietnam, could offer the North Korean leader a model of post-war economic transformation under a communist state with capitalist leanings.

Nhung agreed: "I think North Korea now is like Vietnam before the US embargo was lifted, poor and economically limited."

On Facebook and other social media platforms, users beamed with pride at the prospect of the summit.

Commenters on one site said Kim could even take inspiration from the country's north and south reunifying after the war.

"They meet in Vietnam so that Kim can see how the two parts of a country will look like after reunification," Gia Hoang commented on otofun.net.

Vietnam is looking to follow up on its successful hosting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in 2017 and the regional World Economic Forum last year -- boosting its diplomatic gravitas on the global stage.

VIDEO: Hanoi residents react to the news that their capital city has been picked to host the second much-anticipated summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pic.twitter.com/kXFoymP2F8

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 9, 2019

Asean Committed to Greater Economic Integration

Jakarta Globe, Shoeb Kagda, June 01, 2016

More than 500 participants, including 40 government ministers, three heads of
state and two deputy heads of state and 400 chief executives are gathered for
the two-day meeting, which began in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday (01/06).
(Photo courtesy of the World Economic Forum)

Kuala Lumpur. Integration, inclusivity and reform are the key themes of the 25th meeting of the World Economic Forum on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Kuala Lumpur.

More than 500 participants, including 40 government ministers, three heads of state and two deputy heads of state and 400 chief executives are gathered for the two-day meeting, which began on Wednesday (01/06).

In opening the conference, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak noted that the global focus was now squarely on Asean as the regional grouping moved towards greater economic integration.

Collectively the 10 members of Asean have a gross domestic product of $2.3 trillion, making them the seventh-largest economy in the world. With a population of 600 million, Asean is also the world's fourth-largest consumer market.

"We know what we are and we know where we want to go, but do we have the determination to reform our economies to claim the prize?" Razak said. "The great opportunity and promise will not miraculously appear without continued efforts to reform, liberalize and integrate our economies."

He added that as a result, greater efforts needed to be undertaken by all member countries in lowering trade barriers and fostering more openness.

Razak cited the example of how Asean member states have reduced tariffs on imports to near zero but non-tariff barriers have tripled. "The AEC [Asean Economic Community] will never reach true fruition if we do not eradicate these barriers," Razak said. "In short, what is required is nothing short of a complete transformation of Asean."

Speaking on the same panel as the Malaysian prime minister, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Asean was moving from cooperation to integration but that the process would require time and effort.

Kalla added that for fuller integration, Asean member states will need to discuss standardization of regulations as well as fostering greater connectivity.

"In Indonesia, our philosophy is equity and equality and we are working very hard to create more inclusive growth," he said.

To this end, the government of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is focusing on infrastructure development, improving the agriculture sector and boosting manufacturing.

The vice president added however, that Asean needs to juggle between cooperation and competitiveness as a number of countries in the regional bloc are competing for the same investments.

"We should not allow investors to push our labor costs down and force members to compete against each other," he noted. As a possible solution, Kalla floated the idea of having coordinated minimum wages across the region.

Related Article:

"The Timing of the Great Shift" – Mar 21, 2009 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… Human Nature is Changing

There's a new concept afoot, a change in Human nature. We've spoken about this before. How many of you studied European history? And in school, did your mind fill up with all of the dates you had to memorize? Who conquered whom and when? Over and over and over, every single country had their turn conquering another country. Borders moved constantly. As far back as you want to go, that's what Humans did. They separated, gathered, and conquered. But as little as 50 years ago, it all stopped.

We've said this before. Fifty years ago, a seed, an idea, was planted at the end of World War II. "Let's put these European countries together," they said. "Let's even drop the borders and eventually give them one currency." Do this and they'll never war again, they predicted, for countries with common economic sources don't go to war! And that's exactly what's happened. Did it work? It's fairly fresh, but their money is threatening to take over the strength of your money, did you notice? It's worth more than yours. They still struggle to make it work and balance it. But then again, you do the same in the United States, always fine tuning the unity.

South America is considering the same thing right now. The seeds are being planted in Brazil. Within a generation, they would love to see the borders dropped and one currency. Can they do it? Perhaps. Perhaps it will take longer. Why do it? Because they see the European Union with the strongest currency on Earth. We've said this before. Here is a prediction: Perhaps not in your time, but there'll come a day when there are only five currencies in the world, because continents will start understanding that unification creates peace and prosperity. Separation creates chaos. What a concept. …”

IMF's Plan B for stalled reform

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2015-04-28

IMF vice president Zhu Min speaks at the Summer Davos Forum in
Tianjin, September 2014. (File photo/CNS)

The International Monetary Fund's plan to sidestep the United States in its reform to increase the influence of developing countries is set to make China the country with the third-largest voting power in the organization, according to Shanghai's China Business News.

IMF deputy managing director Zhu Min stated after the 2015 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the IMF April 20 that the fund had already adopted a Plan B, since it can no longer wait for US congressional approval for its proposed reforms.

The reform, which is aimed at giving more voting power to emerging economies, was passed by IMF member countries in 2010, but requires Congress's approval because the plan involves funding changes.

Currently, the US has 17.9% of the total voting share and is the only member that enjoys the right to veto, while half of the voting rights are controlled by developed countries.

Under the proposal, China is set to see its voting share rise from 3.994% to 6.390%, while the US will have 16.75% and Japan will have 6.98%, according to the report.

Despite the support of President Barack Obama, the Republican-controlled Congress has been blocking the IMF reform proposal, said Ou Yongming, a researcher at Renmin University of China in Beijing.

Ou said the proposal is unlikely to be passed before a Republican wins the White House or the Democrats regain control of Congress.

According to Qiao Yide, vice chairman and secretary-general of the Shanghai Development Research Foundation, IMF chief Christine Lagarde hinted at two possible options for the so-called Plan B during a recent visit to China.

To get around the required US approval, the IMF might decide to not double the total quota — the principal source of the fund's financial resources — and just move 6% in quota share from European countries to developing countries, Qiao said.

The other option Lagarde divulged, according to Qiao, involves an ad hoc increase that will allow developing countries to see a bump in their quotas without affecting the US quota.

"The U.S. will not abandon the IMF, which is a multilateral organization. But what is worth noting is that the US will not change the status quo unless the country faces great pressure," Qiao said.

If the IMF reforms fail to go through, it will spur other countries' efforts to establish another multilateral organization outside the fund, such as the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Qiao added.

President Joko Widodo, center, chats with Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, as

 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, looks on at the opening of the

60th Asian-African Conference in Jakarta on Wednesday. (AACC2015/Prasetyo Utomo)

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Chinese president calls for 'new regional order' at Asian forum

Chinese President Xi Jinping has opened a regional economic forum by calling for more cooperation among Asian nations. He urged Asia to build "a community of common destiny."

Deutsche Welle, 28 March 2015

 Chinese President Xi Jinping REUTERS/Kyodo News/Parker Song/Pool

In his keynote address at the Boao Forum on Hainan island in southern China, Xi stressed the need for Asian nations to join forces to increase regional and world prosperity.

"Facing the fast-changing regional and international landscapes, we must see the whole picture, follow the trends of our times and build a new regional order that is more favorable to Asia and the world," he told the hundreds of regional leaders at the China-hosted gathering, which has taken place annually since 2002.

He said that by improving trade and transport links in the region, "we can turn the seas of Asia into seas of peace and cooperation."

Xi also called on the world's nations to support Beijing's ideas for a new development bank that some see as a potential rival to the Western-dominated International Monetary Fund and World Bank and the Japanese-dominated Asian Development Bank.

Seeking to allay such fears, the Chinese president said his country would promote "coordinated development between the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and multilateral financial institutions such as the Asian Development Bank and World Bank."

The AIIB is due to be set up later this year, with March 31 the deadline for countries to apply to join as founding members.

Chinese economy 'healthy'

At the same time, Xi emphasized that the Chinese economy was running as planned despite annual economic growth having sunk to about 7 percent, the lowest in 20 years.

"This new normal of the Chinese economy will continue to bring more opportunities for trade growth and development for the countries of Asia and beyond," he said, adding that China was now aiming for increased quality and efficiency as opposed to rapid growth in its economy.

He also announced more than $500 billion (459 billion euros) in Chinese investment abroad, saying that China's size gave it "more responsibility for world peace and development."

'Silk Road'

A focus of discussions at the forum is likely to be China's proposed "Silk Road economic belt" initiatives aimed at facilitating regional trade through cooperation on railways, roads, energy and information technology, the state-run China Daily newspaper said.

China is currently seeking to extend its influence in the region in a bid seen as a challenge to the previous dominance of the United States.

Leaders of Austria, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Armenia and Zambia were all expected to attend the forum, which its founders hope will become an Asian version of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

tj/sms (AP, dpa)

Xi Jinping, right, meets President Joko Widodo of Indonesia at the

Great Hall of the People in Beijing, March 26. (Photo/Xinhua)

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Beijing pledges constructive role in resolving Ukraine crisis

Want China Times, Xinhua 2015-01-22

Li Keqiang, right, and Petro Poroshenko shake hands in Davos, Jan. 21. (Photo/Xinhua)

Premier Li Keqiang of China told President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine on Wednesday that Beijing stands for a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and will continue to play an active and constructive role in such efforts.

China adheres to an objective and just stand on the Ukraine issue, said Li when meeting with the Ukrainian leader on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos at a Swiss ski resort.

It is the common aspiration of people across the world for peace while against war, for development while against poverty, and for cooperation while against confrontation, he said.

As the international situation is experiencing profound changes, said the Chinese premier, the international system and order are going through deep adjustment.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, China and Ukraine have respected and treated each other equally, and their cooperation has achieved fruitful results, said Li.

China will always respect the national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine and support the Eastern European nation to adopt a path of development in accordance with its national conditions, he added.

China, he said, will continue to carry out pragmatic cooperation with the Ukrainian side on the basis of win-win and mutual benefit.

For his part, Poroshenko said his government attaches great importance to its relations with China and is willing to maintain cooperation with the Asian country.

The Ukrainian side, he said, hopes that China would play a more active role in the political settlement of the Ukraine issue.

Li arrived on Tuesday for the WEF annual meeting and a working visit to Switzerland.

Nearly US$300m in fines just the start for China's anti-monopoly work

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2014-10-26

Qualcomm's company logo. (File photo/CFP)

From Microsoft to Qualcomm, Audi to Mercedes Benz, China's anti-monopoly moves have issued penalties worth nearly 1.8 billion yuan (US$294 million) so far this year, while calls for ensuring fair competition in the market are getting stronger and stronger, the Beijing-based Economic Information Daily reports.

The next stage of the anti-monopoly campaign will focus on breaking administrative monopolies, including manipulating administrative power to exclude competition and local protectionism. Experts expect a more fair and orderly market environment in China in the future, following the implementation of the anti-monopoly law.

The world has been paying close to attention to how China has been managing monopolies since the campaign started in 2013. The first stage targeted monopoly agreements (vertical monopoly), the concentration of undertakings that restrict competition (horizontal monopoly) and the abuse of a dominant market position.

The vertical monopoly refers to upstream and downstream operators in the same industry having reached agreements to exclude or restrict competition. For example, in the auto market, car suppliers have issued policies or notices to restrict and define the minimum resale price, as well having fixed the resale price and taken other unilateral measures.

Horizontal monopoly refers to agreements reached among competitors, a tactic much harder to detect and break. Enterprises in the same industry may agree to jointly set prices through meetings and regional alliances.

Targets of fines include Japanese car parts enterprises, which got slammed with 1.24 billion yuan (US$202 million) in August, and fines on Zhejiang's insurers for 110 million yuan (US$18 million) in September.

Chen Fengying, director of the Institute of World Economic Studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, expects the nation's anti-monopoly investigations to deepen further, expanding to wider ranges and gaining more authority.

Since China's implementation involves foreign multinational companies, some foreign media have raised queries over its fairness. Premier Li Keqiang at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this year replied that among the companies being investigated for anti-monopoly, foreign enterprises accounted for only 10%, a number he described as fair. China's implementation of anti-monopoly probes will make China further expand its openings, allowing more foreign funds and foreign products willing to enter the nation.

Anti-monopoly probes follow international standards, aiming to ensure fair competition in the market and upgrade economic efficiency, said an expert.

World Economic Forum Gives SBY Global Statesmanship Award

Jakarta Globe, May 23, 2014

Indonesia's outgoing president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been
honored by the World Economic Forum. (Reuters Photo/Toru Hanai)

Manila. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was awarded the Global Statesmanship Award on Friday at the 23rd World Economic Forum on East Asia for his achievements during his time in office.

He was the third recipient of the award since the WEF was established in 1971. The two other recipients were Felipe Calderon in 2012, when he was president of Mexico, and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2010, when he was president of Brazil.

“I stand before you now with a sense of pride for what Indonesia has become today,” said Yudhoyono, whose second five-year term ends in October. “In a world marked by political turbulence, economic uncertainty, and strategic tensions, Indonesia does have a good story to tell.

“We have achieved that critical point of no return in our democratic development. We have proved to ourselves and to the world that we do not have to choose between democracy and development, and that indeed we can have both political freedom and high economic growth at the same time.”

On Thursday, Yudhonoyo reiterated that the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) could reach its development agenda to double the region’s combined gross domestic product to around $4.4 trillion by 2030. With millions of poor people across the region, Asean could also try to reduce the region’s poverty rate to 9.3 percent in the same time frame, he said. World Bank data show 43.3 percent of Indonesia’s population lived on less than $2 a day in 2011, compared to 52.7 percent in 2009.

“But as an optimist, I do see the glass as half full,” Yudhoyono said on Thursday. “I believe our generation is now endowed with the resources and knowhow to beat age-old problems of poverty, deprivation and conflict.”

Indonesia has embarked on a plan to support economic growth, aid the poor, promote jobs and protect the environment, he said.

“The overall purpose is to attain sustainable growth with equity,” Yudhoyono said on Thursday. “By pursuing this strategy over the past 10 years, we have been able to stimulate growth, reduce inequity and alleviate people from poverty.”

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was presented the award at a launch sponsored by the Lippo Group, which is the parent company of the Jakarta Globe.

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Iran's women see no progress under Rouhani

Deutsche Welle, 13 March 2014

Women's rights groups were hoping that the status quo of oppression and discrimination against women in Iran would ease under President Hassan Rouhani. But any improvement for women has been minimal.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton's talks with human rights activists during her recent visit to Iran has sparked ongoing protests this week by hardliners in front of the Austrian Embassy in Tehran, which had arranged the meeting between Ashton and a small group of female human rights activists on International Women's Day.

The government of President Hassan Rouhani distanced itself from the meeting, with foreign ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham saying it didn't "help relations between Iran and Europe." Judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani called Ashton's meeting "contrary to the security and interests of the country."

Analysts say this type of backlash from the conservative camp was to be expected.

"These women have been a thorn in the side of the regime," Faraz Sanei, Iran researcher with Human Rights Watch's Middle East and North Africa division, told DW. "They haven't shut up when the authorities wanted them to and they continue to do their work."

The women Ashton met with included well-known activist Narges Mohammadi, vice president of the Defenders of Human Rights Center headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. Also present in the meeting was Gohar Eshghi, the mother of Iranian blogger Sattar Beheshti who died in jail a few days after he was arrested in 2012 over a blog critical of the government. "Gohar Eshghi continues to actively pursue clarification of her son's death, as she feels she has nothing to lose," Sanei said.

An uphill battle for women's rights

Ashton discussed Iran's nuclear program
 and ties between the country and the
EU with Rouhani

Rouhani had pledged during his election campaign that the discrimination between men and women would be eliminated in all social arenas in his administration. He has in fact appointed a few women to key positions, such as Afkham at the Foreign Affairs Ministry or the vice president for legal affairs.

But a new report presented by UN chief Ban Ki-moon earlier this week showed that Iran was doing too little to improve its human rights record. There have been more executions, higher detentions of regime opponents and greater discrimination against women. Numerous women's rights defenders are being threatened, sentenced or imprisoned in Iran.

"Human rights defenders and women's rights activists continue to face arrest and persecution," the report of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights in Iran said. "Women are subject to discrimination, entrenched both in law and in practice." The report, which is to be presented to the UN Human Rights Council on March 26, has been condemned by Iranian officials.

The progress being made on the nuclear dispute gives the impression of improving relations between Iran and the western world. There have been hopes that the more open the political climate in Iran becomes, the more active Iran's civil society - including women's participation in it - will become. But, perhaps hesitant to antagonize powerful hardliners, Rouhani has not made the significant reforms that moderate voters had hoped for.

"Rouhani has talked a good talk on what he feels women's role in civil society should be," Sanei said. "But he is not going to put himself out on a limb. He is merely nibbling at the periphery."

Taking advantage of female brain power

There are several examples of discriminatory laws mentioned in the UN report. The revised Islamic Penal Code, which came into force in June 2013, says that women's testimony in a court of law is half that of a man's, and a woman's life half that of a man's. The Civil Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran provides for the marriage of girls at age 13.

The majority of university graduates
in Iran are women

Nonetheless, Rouhani has at least publicly made some statements on women's rights and has said he wanted a politically more open Iran. And, for the first time in five years, a permit was issued in Tehran allowing people to celebrate International Women's Day.

There have been smaller pockets of progress for women, for example initiatives to promote jobs for women in government and the private sector for the high numbers of extremely well-educated women in the country. It is precisely educated women who are hardest hit by the laws stifling women's rights.

"There is a huge disconnect between these laws and reality," Sanei said. "The majority of graduates from universities around the country are women. So this relatively educated pool of women comes out [after graduation] and faces all these barriers and restrictions in society."

The Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum in 2013 ranked Iran at 130 out of 136 countries, down three places from last year. According to the report, Iran has the lowest female representation in the labor forces and the lowest estimated female income in the region.

"Countries and companies can be competitive only if they develop, attract and retain the best talent, both male and female," the executive chairman of the World Economic Forum Klaus Schwab writes in the preface to the Gender Gap Report. The loosening of sanctions as a result of progress in the nuclear conflict with Iran will result in the economy picking up speed. But without the female workforce, Iran will not be able to reach its full potential.

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Park pushes the dream of Korean reunification

Deutsche Welle, 24 January 2014

South Korean president describes a single Korea as a jackpot for the whole of northeast Asia. Polls suggest the majority of South Koreans support the concept, but there are deep concerns over the cost of reunification.

Speaking in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, on the fringe of the annual World Economic Forum, South Korean President Park Geun-hye told reporters on Wednesday that the melding of North and South Korea into a single nation would prove to be a blessing for both. She said it would also bring peace and prosperity across the region.

"I think unification would be a great benefit for neighboring countries," Park said, indicating that it would trigger massive foreign investment in North Korea, major infrastructure projects and have a dramatic economic knock-one effect in China, Russia, Japan and beyond.

"As unification can provide the northeast Asia region with a fresh growth engine, I think it will be a jackpot not only for South Korea, but also for all neighboring countries," she added.

Promises and dreams

The vast majority of South Koreans agree with her, although their reasons are more varied than simply an economic boom. Many have relatives stuck in the North that they have never been able to meet since the Korean War ended in 1953 in a stalemate at the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone.

Kim Jong Un has reportedly replaced
 nearly half of the most important officials,
cadres and officers since he took power

Others simply want to stop living in the shadow of North Korea's bellicose warnings of invasion, nuclear attack or artillery bombardment of civilian areas.

In a poll conducted by the Hyundai Research Institute in November, 78 percent of South Koreans said they were in favor of the reunification of the peninsula, with the highest support rate amongst the elderly. More than 84 percent of people aged 50 or older want to see the nation as one.

But the promises of a politician, the dreams of a populace and the reality are not always easy to reconcile.

"Park has been making these comments in Europe and there are plenty of people who seem to believe that it will be as easy as she says, but they don't know the situation here in Korea," Daniel Pinkston, a North Korea analyst with The International Crisis Group in Seoul, told DW. "I sincerely hope that I am wrong because there is no doubt that a reunified Korea would be beneficial to regional and world peace, and there would be huge economic pluses. But there are all sorts of problems with this scenario," he added.

Brake on reunification

The first problem that Pinkston believes will put an immediate brake on the rush towards reunification is the simple fact that Kim Jong-un appears to have effectively consolidated his power in North Korea, removing those who posed a threat to his regime, shunting old guard generals and functionaries out to pasture and bringing in people who are loyal to him and him alone.

"I don't see the military turning on Kim and there is no chance of a revolution, so what is going to topple this regime?" he asked. "I just don't see it going away anytime soon."

And even should the political situation be ripe for change, many in the South would baulk at the estimated cost of reunification to the national economy. In 2013, Seoul's Ministry of Strategy and Finance estimated that fusing the two countries would cost 80 billion dollars a year for a decade. Others have suggested an even higher burden, with The Wall Street Journal suggesting that the final tally might nudge 5 trillion dollars over a period of 30 years.

Much of the outlays would have to go on rebuilding the infrastructure of the North, as well as introducing the basics that people in the South take for granted, such as hospitals and education facilities.

There is, of course, a precedent that economists can turn to for a yardstick of the cost. German reunification had cost an estimated 1.9 trillion dollars by 2009, although experts also point out that East Germany was in a far more advanced social and industrial state when the Berlin Wall came down than North Korea finds itself in today.

China will have a say

And while President Park seems to assume that a future single Korea will be on the South's terms, China might dispute that position. Many believe North Korea is essentially a client state of Beijing, which finds it convenient to have a buffer on its northeast border that keeps capitalist South Korea and the United States military presence at arms' length.

The last thing that Beijing wants on the Tumen River border is a united, capitalist Korea that has the military backing of the US.

Joe Biden's Asia tour last month was overshadowed by regional tensions

And, inevitably, North Korea is going to want to have a say on how a unified nation will look in the future. And Pyongyang's vision is exceedingly different to that of Park's.

"It is typical that they assume they will take over North Korea by force," said Kim Myong-chol, executive director of The Centre for North Korea-US Peace, and an unofficial spokesman for the regime in North Korea.

"Park's comments have no merit and her ideas have no chance of success," he told DW.

"But we do agree that there will be reunification within two years," he added. "We expect to have a two-system formula in place in that time, with North Korea exerting ultimate leadership."

The experts said that by that time, the US and South Korea would both bow to North Korea's military and economic superiority. "The recent discovery of vast deposits of scarce natural resources, including rare earth minerals, gives North Korea a virtual monopoly on the sector. The US, Europe and Japan will have to ask North Korea for cooperation and aid," he said.