News headlines in December 2016, page 6

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Dec 08 (IPS) - Instead of concerted and sustained efforts for a strong, sustained economic recovery to overcome protracted stagnation, the near policy consensus on fiscal austerity in the G7 and the G20 OECD countries, except for the US and Japan, has dragged down economic recovery in developing countries.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 08 (IPS) - The International Criminal Court (ICC) may have had a small reprieve this week from a string of African withdrawals, with Gambia's newly elected President Adama Barrow telling various media outlets that there is no need for Gambia to leave the court.

QUITO, Ecuador, Dec 08 (IPS) - No one is really prepared for an emergency until they've had to live through one. And the 16 April earthquake in Ecuador put us to the test.

NEW DELHI, Dec 07 (IPS) - Last month, Delhi Police launched a unique initiative to check spiralling crimes against women in the city, also known dubiously as the "rape capital" of India. It formed a squad of plainclothes officers called "police mitras" (friends of the police) -- comprising farmers, homemakers and former Army men -- to assist them in the prevention and detection of crime and maintenance of law and order.

ROME, Dec 06 (IPS) - Is the demise of Renzi really a local affair? There is no doubt that a referendum on a constitutional change can be a matter of confidence in him, having personalized the issue to a point that it became basically a vote on the young Prime Minister. But if you look at the sociology of the vote, you find that the No vote was again coming from the poorest parts of Italy. A case study is Milan. Voters living in the centre voted Yes, and those in the periphery voted No. Is this not similar to what has happened in Brexit and in the US elections? And Renzi fell into the same trap like Cameron, calling for a referendum on a very complex issue and putting at stake his own credibility and prestige, to be swept away by an unexpected tide of resentment. Lamented Renzi: "I had no idea I was so hated".

CALI, Colombia, Dec 06 (IPS) - A global food watchdog works around the clock to preserve crop biodiversity, with a seed bank deep in the Colombian countryside holding the largest collection of beans and cassava in the world and storing crops that could avert devastating problems.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 06 (IPS) - Europe will soon decide the future of a common but controversial dental practice: mercury in tooth fillings.

Three major European institutions, namely the European Commission, Parliament and Council, are due to meet on 6 December to discuss regulations on mercury, particularly its use in dentistry.

MANAGUA, Dec 05 (IPS) - A group of women farmers who organised to fight a centuries-old monopoly over land ownership by men are seeking plots of land to farm in order to contribute to the food security of their families and of the population at large.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 05 (IPS) - Healthy soil not only makes food more nutritious it also helps keep carbon out of the atmosphere by storing it underground.

ROME, Dec 05 (IPS) - As Human Rights Day approaches Dec. 10, it offers a moment to pause and look back at the roots of the global development process as a platform for stepping forward. On this day 30 years ago, the international community made a commitment to eliminate all obstacles to equality and inclusivity.