News headlines in January 2011, page 2

There are occasions where it makes sense to be on the inside, when it makes sense to 'suit up' and reach out to the captains of industry for some straight talk or, as we would say in Greenpeace, 'direct communication'. After all, there are occasions when we go to great lengths -often involving a very long rope, indeed- to get our message heard by company directors. In Davos I met over the last days with no fewer than 15 CEOs of major corporations, men -and yes they were all men- whose decisions help shape our environment and affect workers' rights and ultimately what kind of world we pass on to our children and grandchildren, writes Kumi Naidoo, Executive Director of Greenpeace International.

Mothers' milk banks that are helping reduce infant mortality in Guatemala and are starting to be set up in Africa as well form part of the numerous social technologies developed by Brazil that are driving the fast growth of its international development cooperation.

South Africa landed a coveted membership with the Brazil, Russia, India and China bloc (BRIC) by marketing itself as a gateway to Africa but analysts doubt whether this development holds real benefits for poor countries on the rest of the continent.

Egypt, now itself torn by strife, has worked since 2005 to promote the unity of Sudan, Africa's largest country that is its neighbour to the south. But after overwhelming support for independence for southern Sudan, Egyptians are now preparing to accept partition.

Billions of dollars are being made by investors in a speculative 'food bubble' that's created record food prices, starving millions and destabilising countries, experts now conclude.

A government initiative aimed at rooting out deep-seated corruption in Russia has hit a number of stumbling blocks since its implementation. According to experts, the initiative, adopted by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the beginning of his term, has been unsuccessful in combating the pervasive issue of corruption, particularly in regional administrations and offices, in this eastern European country.

A ruling by an administrative court banning female candidates for academic posts from being veiled during an admission examination has brought the headscarf back to the front of Turkish politics, and reignited tensions between secularist and religious forces.

A coalition of journalist and civic organizations is waging a campaign to rid the Taiwan media of government propaganda masquerading as news, and signs are that the campaign has taken 'the first steps' towards victory.

A long-running joke in Serbia goes that the country’s most successful export products are berries, grains, maize, and world-renowned tennis players like Novak Djokovic and Jelena Jankovic.

The city squares where protesters battled riot police for four consecutive days were unexpectedly quiet late Sunday night, as Egyptians fighting to topple the Mubarak regime returned home to defend their neighbourhoods from looters and thugs.