International
Myanmar: Hydropower and the Cost of Life
Jun 30, 2016
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Connor Macdonald, Al Jazeera
More than 8,000 people from 23 villages were forcibly displaced by the Thein Sein government during the construction of the Upper Paunglaung Dam, which began…
Liberia: Open Letter from Goldman Prize Laureates
Jun 30, 2016
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Goldman Environmental Prize winners
A host of Goldman Environmental Prize winners sent a letter to Liberia's Forest Development Authority (FDA) expressing their concerns at the FDA's plan to legalize…
Myanmar: Seizure of Large Quantities of Illegal Timber Continues
Jun 29, 2016
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Kyaw Hsu Mon, The Irrawaddy
With a crackdown announced on the illegal timber trade—and a proposed nationwide logging ban by the end of the fiscal year in March 2017—seizures of…
Colombia: Illegal Mining, Logging and Coca Cultivation Are Ravaging Colombia’s National Parks
Jun 29, 2016
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James Bargent, Earth Island Journal
Colombia’s national parks were created as both a showcase for the country’s spectacular biodiversity and as a protected refuge for its delicate ecosystems. But in…
India: Murders, Violence on Rise as Parched Central India Battles for Water
Jun 29, 2016
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Shuriah Niazi, Thomson Reuters Foundation
As northern and central India continue to suffer thorough severe drought and oppressive heat, police in Bundelkhand and several other regions are reporting a rise…
Conflict Minerals: Agreement in Principle Announced for EU Regime on Conflict Minerals
Jun 27, 2016
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National Law Review
In a so-called “trilogue” meeting on June 16, the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, and the European Commission reached a “political” agreement on the…
Liberia:: Land Dispute Leaves Five Injured in Lofa
Jun 27, 2016
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Global News Network
Five persons have been seriously injured in a group fight as a result of a land dispute in Zorzor District, Lofa County. The incident occurred…
Uganda: Cleric Predicts “Bloody War” over Africa's Raw Resources & Scramble over Land
Jun 27, 2016
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John Muto-Ono p'Lajur, Black Star News
The Executive Director of Africa Faith and Justice Network (AFJN), Reverend Father Aniedi Okure, OP, has predicted that there will be bloody World War over…
Pakistan: Land Grabbing One of the Reasons Behind Terrorism: CM Sindh
Jun 26, 2016
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Geo TV
Chief Minister Sindh Shah was addressing a Sindh Assembly session in which he said that land grabbing is also a reason behind target killing incidents.…
Myanmar: Government Ends Dam Construction
Jun 26, 2016
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Elevan Myanmar
The government has suspended the construction of dams and mainly focused on the maintenance and the effective use of the existing ones, the state-owned newspapers quoted Dr Tun Win, deputy minister for livestock, agriculture and irrigation.
Colombia: As FARC Signs Cease-Fire, Will Colombia's Cocaine Trade Decrease?
Jun 25, 2016
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David Iaconangelo, Christian Science Monitor
FARC's leader, Timoleón Jiménez, finally signed a cease-fire pact with Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, seen as a final step before sealing a permanent peace and…
Myanmar: Mandalay Farmers Dispute Land in Protected Forest Area
Jun 24, 2016
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Kyaw Ko Ko, Myanmar Times
A group of 29 farmers whose land at the foot of Shwe Thar Lyaung Mountain in Mandalay Region was confiscated by the government in 2008…
Sri Lanka: Illegal Fishing, Land Grabbing by Outsiders Add to Tamil Fishermen's Woes
Jun 24, 2016
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P.K.Balachandran, The New Indian Express
Seven years after the end of the war the fishermen of Kokkilai in the Tamil-majority Mullaitivu district of North-East Sri Lanka are yet to enjoy…
Liberia: Pres. Sirleaf Threatened with Impeachment Again
Jun 24, 2016
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Leroy M. Sonpon III, Liberian Observer
A member of the House of Representatives, J. Gabriel Nyenkan, has threatened to impeach President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, "for criminal facilitation and her role in…
Myanmar: French Technical Assistance to Help Myanmar Provide Electricity from River Currents
Jun 24, 2016
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MIzzima
France is to provide technical assistance with sourcing an electricity supply from river currents for distribution to rural regions of Myanmar, state media reported on…
Myanmar: NLD Hand Back 232 Acres Confiscated Farmlands – Rightful Owners Not Happy
Jun 23, 2016
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Nan Wai Phyo Zar, Karen News
Villagers in Karen State are less than ecstatic that more than 232 acres of farmland, confiscated by the Burma Army and other government officials will…
Liberia: EPA Consults on Oil and Gas Exploration in Margibi
Jun 23, 2016
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New Dawn
The Environmental Protection Agency or EPA has conducted Stakeholders’ Consultation in Marshall City, Margibi County on Block LB-13 for offshore Oil and Gas exploration between…
Water Wars: 1 Dead, 24 Injured in Guna and Ashok Nagar
Jun 23, 2016
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Desh Deepl, Times of India
A water-related row — ownership of a tube-well took an ugly turn when a man clubbed to death his elder brother in Guna district. The…
Israel/Palestine: Israel Blames Palestinians for Water Shortages in West Bank
Jun 23, 2016
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RT
Israeli authorities blame Palestinians’ unwillingness to upgrade aging infrastructure as the primary reason for increased water shortages in the West Bank. Palestinians accuse their neighbors…
The Top-Secret Cold War Plan to Keep Soviet Hands off Middle Eastern Oil
Jun 23, 2016
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Steve Everly, Politico
On a cool summer day in London in 1951, an American CIA officer told three British oil executives about a top-secret U.S. government plan. The…
Afghanistan: Afghan Women Take on Farming
Jun 23, 2016
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Arzo Mohammadai, Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Agriculture, a central pillar of Afghanistan’s economy, has traditionally been dominated by men. Women are sometimes recruited to work the fields or tend livestock, but…
Myanmar: The Opium Bulbs of Myanmar: Drug Crop or Lifeline for Poor Farmers?
Jun 22, 2016
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Paul Vrieze, Guardian
The trade in opium and its derivative heroin is controlled by many rebel groups and pro-government militias who use it to fund a long-running civil…
Myanmar: Myitsone Developer Releases Excerpts of Contract Agreement
Jun 22, 2016
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Ye Mon, Myanmar Times
Amid continued lobbying from China to restart the controversial Myitsone dam, the development company behind the project released excerpts of the contract agreement over the…
China/South China Sea: The Fishing Community at the Centre of China’s Maritime Conflict
Jun 22, 2016
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Suruchi Mazumdar, The Wire
In the controversial waters of the South China Sea, China’s modest fishermen double as Beijing’s foot soldiers, advancing the country’s sovereignty claims and economic rights.…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Kurds and Iran Eye an Oil Deal
Jun 22, 2016
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Mohammed A. Salih and Mustafa Naser, Al Jazeera
Iran and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have hammered out the technical details of a plan to build a pipeline that could transfer as much as…
Timor-Leste: Timor-Leste’s Non-Oil Economy Must Look to Tourism
Jun 22, 2016
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Susan Marx, Asia Foundation
Despite Timor-Leste’s obvious allure and ongoing economic improvements, it remains a heavily oil-dependent country – the second highest in the world behind South Sudan –…
DRC: Rebels, Army Seen Profiting from Congo Gold Despite Controls
Jun 21, 2016
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Bloomberg, Thomas Wilson
International regulations aimed at curbing the trade in so-called conflict minerals have failed to stop rebel groups and elements of the army in eastern Democratic…
Myanmar: Suu Kyi Faces Dilemma over Controversial Dam Project
Jun 20, 2016
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Sebastian Strangio, Nikkei Asian Review
Since its suspension five years ago, the $3.6 billion Myitsone hydropower project has come to symbolize the bad old days in Myanmar.
Myanmar: Burmese Jade Mining Film Scoops Awards at Rangoon Festival
Jun 20, 2016
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San Yamin Aung, The Irrawaddy
A documentary about the deadly jade mining industry in Hpakant, Kachin State—where landslides have killed scores of small-scale miners over the last year—won two out…
Myanmar: Jade Miners’ Hopes of Fortune Often Become Tragedy of Addiction
Jun 20, 2016
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Htet Khaung Linn, Myanmar Now
An estimated 300,000 migrant workers have come from across Myanmar to scavenge through mining waste in the hope of finding jade stone. Daily income levels…