News headlines in May 2013, page 22

BANGKOK, May 07 (IPS) - In the hustle and bustle of Thailand's capital, Bangkok, a small learning centre located in the Bang Bon district is helping children hailing mostly from the war-torn provinces of Myanmar (Burma) gain access to a basic education.

GENEVA, May 07 (IPS) - Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, a human rights lawyer and the general secretary of the global rights network World YWCA, knows what it is like to struggle against poverty and violence: she herself comes from a poor family in Magaya village in Murewa district, which lies northeast of Zimbabwe's capital Harare.

JOHANNESBURG, May 07 (IPS) - As the African Union celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, it is still younger and less integrated than the 56-year-old body that is now the European Union, and, according to politicians and diplomats, has a big advantage over the Europeans as it charts its own path of integration.

WASHINGTON, May 07 (IPS) - The Oslo peace process has failed and Europe must take stronger leadership in the Middle East, according to a distinguished group of former European leaders that is pushing for a stronger and more independent European stance on the Israeli occupation.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 07 (IPS) - Another week of international climate negotiations ended in Bonn, Germany last Friday, but there was little mid-level bureaucrats could do when world leaders remain in thrall to the fossil fuel industry, say environmentalists.

WASHINGTON, May 06 (IPS) - Advocates for the African diaspora in the United States have stepped up a campaign to urge the U.S. Congress not to end a longstanding visa programme aimed at boosting immigration from "underrepresented countries".

BUENOS AIRES, May 06 (IPS) - Despite the enormous distance between the two countries, Argentina has become an increasingly frequent destination for migrants from the Dominican Republic, especially women, who are vulnerable to falling prey to sexual exploitation networks.

UNITED NATIONS, May 06 (IPS) - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is one of the most vociferous advocates of a world free of nuclear weapons.

REYKJAVIK, May 06 (IPS) - With an unprecedented number of political parties contesting Iceland's latest elections, Icelanders are discovering that if they are passionate about a particular issue, they need simply to find like-minded people and establish a political party.

ROME, May 06 (IPS) - The European Union (EU) has asked its citizens to brace for further economic misery. In a report on European economic prospects released on May 3, the European Commission said that further deterioration is expected to last at least until 2015. But, as every such report says, things will then get better.