Jueves, 13 de agosto de 2020 (Continuación)

The Blue Nile river passes through the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) near Guba in Ethiopia. Photo by EDUARDO SOTERAS/AFP via Getty Images.

MundoOriente Próximo, , , ,

Ongoing talks between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan attempting to find a diplomatic and peaceful solution to the dispute over the Blue Nile Basin offer a unique opportunity for trans-boundary cooperation and have huge significance for a region dealing with multiple complex issues.

With trust clearly at a premium, the continuation of talks demonstrates good faith, but there is an urgent need to strengthen negotiations through all available diplomatic channels. The African Union (AU) is well-placed to continue mediating, but sustained high-level engagement is also needed from regional and international partners such as the EU and US, as well as multilateral support in terms of both financial and technical resources.…  Seguir leyendo »

Police cordoned off the headquarters of the tabloid Apple Daily after Mr. Lai’s arrest. Credit Getty Images

MundoAsia,

Ever since a new round of pro-democracy protests broke out in Hong Kong last year, journalists from both local and global media have exposed how freedoms are shrinking, human rights are deteriorating and police brutality is worsening in the city.

Now, with new sweeping powers under the national security law that China promulgated for Hong Kong on June 30, the news media themselves are in the Chinese government’s cross hairs.

The publisher Jimmy Lai, whose media company puts out the popular tabloid Apple Daily, has long been one of Beijing’s most vocal critics in Hong Kong. Mr. Lai was arrested on Monday morning under the recent law, for allegedly colluding with foreign forces.…  Seguir leyendo »

Demonstrators dressed as aliens during a protest against the Israeli government near the prime minister’s residence on Aug. 8. Credit Guy Prives/Getty Images

MundoOriente Próximo

Just when Israeli democracy most needed saviors, they materialized.

No one saw where they came from. They just appeared amid the thousands of horn-blowing, pot-banging protesters in Jerusalem: seven caped superheroes in matching pink spandex, striking Superman poses and going through coordinated dance moves as they advanced toward the protest’s focal point at the official residence of the man known here as the “crime minister.” One superhero with a megaphone led her comrades in a chant about “hope” and “democracy,” and everyone cheered, but I couldn’t hear much more because of the guy next to me and his accordion.

The protests growing since early summer outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem on Balfour Street, and smaller demonstrations across the country, have given Israel’s battered moderate camp an outlet for its political energies and grievances — an outlet outside Parliament, that is, where its representatives are hapless, impotent and divided.…  Seguir leyendo »

Una foto del fotorreportero Rubén Espinosa en una marcha contra la violencia contra los comunicadores en Ciudad de México en 2018. Credit Yuri Cortez/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

MundoAmérica, ,

El 31 de julio hace cinco años fueron asesinadas cinco personas en Ciudad de México. Entre ellas el fotorreportero Rubén Espinosa y la defensora de derechos humanos Nadia Vera. Ambos habían llegado a la ciudad huyendo de amenazas del gobierno de Javier Duarte en Veracruz. Los mataron en un departamento en la colonia Narvarte.

Desde entonces y al igual que en varios casos de periodistas y activistas asesinados en México, el Estado promovió una verdad oficial: “No fue un ataque contra Rubén”, dijo el entonces procurador de Ciudad de México Rodolfo Ríos Garza unos días después del crimen. Aquí hay un patrón que se repite: cuando matan a un periodista en el país —antes de investigar— el gobierno se encarga de explicar a la opinión pública que no hubo relación entre el crimen y el oficio periodístico.…  Seguir leyendo »