Monthly Archives: July 2008
Tuesday Morning Coffee
>>Serbia – The wartime leader of the Bosnian Serbs, Radovan Karadzic, who is wanted for genocide and crimes against humanity, was arrested in a Belgrade suburb yesterday (the Guardian has his rap sheet). On the run since 1996, Karadzic had been practicing alternative medicine in the open under an elaborate disguise. He had been under surveillance for a week after a tip from a “foreign intelligence agency.” He will be taken the the UN war crimes court in the Hague. Karadzic’s arrest was one of the preconditions for Serbian advancement toward EU membership.
>>Zimbabwe – Zimbabwe’s ruling party and two factions of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change begin negotiations today in Pretoria on a power-sharing deal. All parties signed a memorandum of understanding yesterday that committed them to two weeks of talks. It was the first time that Tsvangirai and Mugabe had met face-to-face in a decade. The NY Times thinks more pressure need be put on China, Russia, and South Africa by President Bush.
>>China – Two public buses exploded yesterday morning in Kunming, killing at least two. It is not yet known whether the perpetrators are foreign or domestic. Many residents received a text message prior to the blasts warning them off public buses.
99 Problems–But Carbon Neutrality Ain’t One
Via the UN News Center, Jay-Z is headlining the HoveFestival in Norway — a concert that has signed onto the United Nations Environmental Program’s Climate Neutral Network. What does this mean? UNEP explains:
Morten Sandberg, the festival’s organizer, said that the carbon footprint of the 2007 festival accounted for just over 1,300 tons. This was calculated among others by the use of a specially developed online carbon calculator and in close cooperation with CO2-emissions data experts. This year’s carbon footprint is now being quality checked, and we are eager to see the difference and analyze this further in order to learn more about how we can continuously reduce our impact on the climate.Participants, including staff and acts, where invited to pay by SMS or credit card for their individual carbon footprint caused by their travel to the festival and during the event’s operations.
The funds are being used to support a methane-into-electricity project on a landfill in China approved by the United Nations as a Clean Development Mechanism project.
Other energy saving measures at the Hovefestival included solar charging points for mobile phones, electric golf carts for on site travelling, and LED lighting systems powered by wind and solar power.
In addition to Hovefestival, a Norwegian Jazz and Blues festival which kicks off today–Canal Street--is also climate neutral. How green are your music habits? Take the Grist Quiz and you’ll be entered to win tickets to Bumbershoot in Seattle.
Security Council to Discuss Abkhazia and South Ossetia — Again
Another attempt to negotiate this enduring regional conflict…
After Russia’s admission on July 10 that its military aircraft had flown through Georgian airspace, a livid Georgia requested a Security Council meeting with the participation of its representative. This followed a number of explosions in the breakaway region of Abkhazia, which killed, among three others, a staff member of the UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG). In addition to calling for today’s meeting, Georgia has responded by bulking up its military, adding 5,000 soldiers and increasing its annual military spending by more than a quarter.
Seeking to calm the increasingly volatile tension in the region, Germany’s foreign minister, working with the so-called “Group of Friends” (which also includes the U.S., U.K., France, Russia,and Croatia met with the leaders of Georgia, Abkhazia, and Russia over the past week. Security Council Report describes the prospects for the peace deal that he has proposed to the various sides [note: Sukhumi = Abkhazia and Tbilisi = Georgia...good old synecdoche in the South Caucusus].
The three-phase peace plan envisages a first phase of confidence-building measures, including an end to violence and the return of Georgian refugees to Abkhazia; a second phase of reconstruction; and a final stage focusing on defining the status of Abkhazia. While the proposal is still being refined, initial reactions from Russia and Abkhazia have not been encouraging. Sukhumi called the plan “unacceptable” as Abkhazia is not open to discussing its status and indicated that talks are only possible with Tbilisi if it signs a treaty on non-use of force and withdraws its troops from the upper Kodori Gorge. Tbilisi has said it will not renounce the use of force. Russia appears sceptical of a plan that suggests the return of Georgian refugees to Abkhazia before the situation calms down.
This closed-door session thus looks likely to end, unfortunately, much like the last one — with little real action taken. When one of the parties to the dispute also happens to be a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, progress will be difficult at best.
(Flags of Georgia, Abkhazia, and Russia, respectively.)
UN Plaza: The ICC Action Against Bashir
In this edition of UN Plaza, Matthew Lee and I debate the merits of the International Criminal Court taking action against the president of Sudan, Omar el Bashir.
Netroots Nation: Change Congress
UofC law professor Lawrence Lessig gave one of his trademark presentations as the keynote today. Lessig is launching a new initiative aimed at reducing the “distorting influence of money in Washington.”
This is a similar presentation he gave at UCSB in April. Interesting bit on climate change about 20:30 in.
Netroots Nation: Change Congress
UofC law professor Lawrence Lessig gave one of his trademark presentations as the keynote today. Lessig is launching a new initiative aimed at reducing the “distorting influence of money in Washington.”
This is a similar presentation he gave at UCSB in April. Interesting bit on climate change about 20:30 in.
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The SC; HRC; DPRK; South Sudan
The SC: The Security Council today held its last consultations under the Council Presidency of ROK. Tomorrow, Russia will take over the rotating Presidency of the Security Council for March under Ambassador Vitaly Churkin.
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The SG; Mali; Middle East; Palestine
The SG: At the Fifth Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilizations in Vienna, Austria today, the SG emphasized the role of youth in ensuring a “prosperous, equitable and peaceful future.”
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The SG; DRC; HRC; Palestinian Prisoner
The SG: In Ethiopia over the weekend, the SG is now in the United Arab Emirates. Today he met with Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, where the two discussed developments in the region, including Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan, and in the Middle East Peace Process.
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