News headlines in January 2014, page 3

RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan 28 (IPS) - Nearly every day, violence breaks out in a Brazilian prison. In January the focus has been on the northeastern state of Maranhão, where orders issued from behind bars wreaked havoc in the streets of its capital city, illustrating the scope of national prison anarchy.

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (IPS) - Advocacy groups and some legislators are calling on the U.S. government to mandate an increase in corporate supply chain transparency, with the aim of cutting down on the estimated 14,000 to 17,000 people trafficked into the United States each year and the tens of millions enslaved globally.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jan 28 (IPS) - Despite having an abundance of wind and sunshine, Caribbean countries have found that going green is requiring significant shifts in policy, and most importantly, significant financing.

MÁLAGA, Spain, Jan 28 (IPS) - Before sunrise, a Moroccan woman waits her turn at the pedestrian border control separating her country from the Spanish city of Melilla. Hours later she crosses over, takes up an 80-kilo bundle of merchandise and carries it back to her country, for a payment of less than six dollars.

ADDIS ABABA, Jan 28 (IPS) - The issue of peace and security, particularly in South Sudan and the Central African Republic, are expected dominate the discussions at the African Union's (AU) semi-annual summit being held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, this week.

BANGKOK, Jan 28 (IPS) - Supaa Prordeengam, a 48-year-old businesswoman, came to take part in the anti-government rallies that have been continuing in the Thai capital for nearly three months now. But disturbed by the sexist speeches emanating from the protest platforms, she said, "We need to be critical, not invade women's rights."

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (IPS) - Development activists and rights watchdogs are applauding a surprise strengthening of environmental and human rights policies governing U.S. development funding and overseas financial assistance.

MASOPANE, South Africa, Jan 27 (IPS) - On a family farm tucked between the rolling hills of Masopane, 40 km outside of South Africa's capital, Pretoria, 35-year-old Sophie Mabhena is dreaming big about her crop of genetically modified (GM) maize.

MANILA, Jan 27 (IPS) - After two decades of aggressively privatising its public services, the Philippines is beginning to realise the cost of mindless market reforms.

KFAR QARA’, Northern Israel, Jan 27 (IPS) - Welcome to Bridge Over the Wadi primary school, one of five bi-national schools under the ‘Hand-in-Hand' initiative of the Centre of Jewish-Arab Education in Israel. The centre strives to bring children from both communities to learn together in Hebrew and Arabic in the hope that they'll bridge the divide between the two peoples.