News headlines in 2020, page 14

COLOMBO, Nov 13 (IPS) - What has happened to the Republican Party? Picking Donald Trump in 2016 as the Republican candidate, giving him victory in primary after primary and later tolerating his idiosyncrasies and unpredictably dangerous behaviour and policy decisions were bad enough however much one tries to digest them as vagaries of the democratic tradition.

DELHI, India, Nov 13 (IPS) - Back in May 2019, we were visiting a large garment factory in Arsikere, Karnataka, when we asked some of the workers, "What would you do if you got Saturdays off?" Their responses to this simple question summed up their priorities. A majority said they would spend time with family or friends and take care of their children. Many said they would use this time to relax or do household chores. Only a few said they'd look for additional pay.

BANGKOK, Thailand, Nov 13 (IPS) - Fifteen countries will sign a mega-trade deal at the ASEAN conference this weekend imposing secretive restrictions on how governments help workers through the pandemic, trade union leaders and parliamentarians have warned.

MANILA, Nov 13 (IPS) - Development banks have repeatedly looked the other way and been complicit in the human rights violations of corporations and governments they work with. They support activities where armed forces push forward large infrastructure and extractives projects on traditional lands without the participation and consent of Indigenous Peoples.

This week, 450 public development banks from around the world met for the Finance in Common Summit at the Paris Peace Forum. They gathered to discuss how they can direct their combined investments of over USD 2 trillion - 10% of total investments in the world - "to support the transformation or the global economy" and "build new forms of prosperity that take care of people and the planet."

NOIDA, India, Nov 13 (IPS) - "My daughter is eight years old. In May 2017, I had her ‘Khatna,' her circumcision, done. I had taken her to a traditional cutter. Once back home I made her sleep on the bed. After some time, around 4:00 p.m. I took her to the bathroom, she was bleeding as if she had started her menses. It seemed like she was urinating blood. By 6:00 p.m. my daughter had been bleeding so heavily, the blood had soaked three bed sheets and I was very worried.  And my daughter was quiet and she also kept asking me if she will be fine." Excerpt from:  How I got her from the hands of death: WeSpeakOut study2018

Nov 12 (IPS) - An anecdote tells, never sufficiently confirmed, that in the hardest moments of the Second World War when Stalin was dictating his orders of battle to his subordinates, he was told that perhaps it would be advisable to consult with the Pope. The Soviet dictator replied: "And how many armored divisions does the Pope have?"

PERTH, Australia, Nov 12 (IPS) - This was the year that Vietnam was poised to make progress on its rise as a regional leader. Under the auspices of Vietnam's ASEAN chairmanship, a breakthrough in global trade has been achieved despite rising protectionism and a global pandemic.

Nov 12 (IPS) - The ability of Zimbabwean families to take care of children has been compromised by a collapsing economy, compounded by COVID-19. About 4.3 million people in rural communities, including children, are food insecure this year. The World Food Programme indicates that at least 60% of the population of Zimbabwe need food aid.

LONDON, Nov 12 (IPS) - As if four decades of war were not enough, then came the pandemic.

For each of the past five years, Afghanistan has been identified by the United Nations as the world's deadliest country for children and, despite progress made in peace talks between the government and the Taliban, child and youth casualties from the ongoing conflict continue to mount in 2020.

ROME, Nov 11 (IPS) - Now it is clear that Joe Biden is the new president of the United States. It is unlikely that Donald Trump's legal manoeuvring will change the election results, as when a conservative Supreme Court in 2000 decided in favour of George Bush over Al Gore, who lost by 535 votes.