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sábado, 30 de abril de 2022
Alex Jones’s Infowars Files for Bankruptcy
Alex Jones’s Infowars Files for Bankruptcy
The conspiracy theorist and his companies are facing
lawsuits over his false claims about the Sandy Hook school shooting.
Last year, Alex Jones lost two defamation lawsuits
filed by families of Sandy Hook victims.
Derrick
Bryson Taylor
By Derrick
Bryson Taylor
April 18,
2022
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/18/us/alex-jones-infowars-bankruptcy.html?searchResultPosition=1
Three
companies affiliated with the far-right broadcaster and conspiracy theorist
Alex Jones, among them the media outlet Infowars, filed for Chapter 11
protection on Sunday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of
Texas, according to court documents.
Infowars is
facing multiple defamation lawsuits from families of victims of the 2012 Sandy
Hook school shooting, which Mr. Jones has claimed was a hoax. Two other companies
connected to Mr. Jones, IWHealth and Prison Planet TV, also filed for
bankruptcy protection on Sunday.
Last
September, Mr. Jones lost two defamation lawsuits filed in Texas by victims’
families because he failed to provide requested information to the court.
Months later, in a case representing the families of eight others killed in the
shooting, a Connecticut judge ruled that Mr. Jones was liable by default
because he had refused to turn over documents ordered by the courts, including
financial records. The rulings delivered sweeping victories to the families.
Mr. Jones
for years spread bogus theories that the shooting that killed 20 first graders
and six educators in Newtown, Conn., was part of a government-led plot to
confiscate Americans’ firearms and that the victims’ families were actors in
the scheme.
Because of
the falsehoods, families of the victims have found themselves routinely
accosted by those who believe those false claims. Among those are the parents
of Noah Pozner, who have moved nearly 10 times since the shooting, and live in
hiding.
The Sandy
Hook families maintain that Mr. Jones profited from spreading lies about their
relatives’ murders. Mr. Jones has disputed that, while for years failing to
produce sufficient records to bolster his claims.
Last month,
a Connecticut judge found the radio host in contempt for failing to sit for a
deposition and ordered that he be fined $25,000 for the first weekday he fails
to appear for testimony, with the fine rising by $25,000 every day thereafter
that he did not appear.
In trials
scheduled to begin this month in Texas, juries will determine how much Mr.
Jones must pay the families in damages. The Connecticut case is the last
scheduled trial, set to begin on Sept. 1.
In its
court filings, Infowars said that it had up to 49 creditors, as much as $50,000
in estimated assets and up to $10 million in estimated liabilities. The two
other companies said they also had up to 49 creditors, with IWHealth stating it
had up to $1 million in assets while Prison Planet TV said it had up to
$50,000.
Derrick
Bryson Taylor is a general assignment reporter. He previously worked at The New
York Post’s PageSix.com and Essence magazine.
Audição de Fernando Medina: alegada partilha de dados pessoais de activistas russos | 2021 06 24 / Russiagate: -5th July 2021 - new complaint against Lisbon city council demands reinstatement of ‘scapegoat’
Russiagate: new complaint against Lisbon city
council demands reinstatement of ‘scapegoat’
By Natasha
Donn -5th July 2021
Lisbon city
council faces millions in potential fines following the ‘Russiagate scandal’ –
the incident that highlights it has been breaking data protection rules for
potentially vulnerable citizens for years (click here).
But now there
is another ‘complaint’ against it: for essentially creating a scapegoat – and
sending him packing (click here).
The bottom
line in this story is that the buck should always stop at the top – in this
case Mayor of Lisbon City Council Fernando Medina.
But because
this is a key election year (municipal elections are ‘round the corner’,
scheduled for September 26) and because Medina intends to fight his corner
against a collective of smaller parties, the decision to fire an employee who
was only following standard practice seems to have been ‘accepted’ by the
powers that be.
Not so the
Association of Professionals for Data Protection, which has lodged a complaint
with the CNPD, (national commission for data protection) claiming the dismissal
is illegal.
President
of the association Inês Oliveira explains: “We still have some hope that it
won’t happen. We are convinced the dismissal is yet another infraction, joining
the 225 already detected by the CNPD, as it violates article 38, clause 3 of
data protection regulations which say ‘an employee cannot be sacked or
penalised for the fact of exercising his/ her duties’.
Ms Oliveria
tells Expresso that she hopes the CNPD ‘sanctions’ Lisbon City Council –
meaning slaps it with yet another fine – and then insists the man used as the
scapegoat for this shameful affair is reinstated
CNPD’s
decision is needed pronto, says Ms Oliveira, as there are now 3,620 people
responsible for data protection in Portugal who are terrified the same fate
could await them (ie the minute any new
‘scandal’ hits, they might be the ones used as patsies).
She
stresses the decision to sack Lisbon City Council’s long-term employee has been
“disastrous” for the profession as a whole which has been left “frightened to
make decisions”.
What is
perhaps most shocking in this affair is that the City Council appears not even
to have taken legal advice. The decision was simply made to ‘sack’ an employee
in the hope this would ‘satisfy’ critics.
While the
CNPD considers this latest politically red-hot complaint, it has to be stressed
that the City Council already faces many millions in fines over the scandal.
Says
Expresso, each of the 225 incidents where people’s data was erroneously passed
to 3rd parties in the context of demonstrations organised sees the council
liable for fines of between 10 and 20 million euros.
Saber estar à altura de acolher refugiados
EDITORIAL
Saber estar à altura de acolher refugiados
No início do mês, a embaixadora da Ucrânia disse que
organizações pró-russas estavam a trabalhar no acolhimento de refugiados,
recolhendo dados pessoais dos que chegam e dos que ficaram a combater. A
denúncia tinha de ter tido outro tratamento.
Andreia Sanches
29 de Abril de
2022, 22:30
https://www.publico.pt/2022/04/29/opiniao/editorial/saber-estar-altura-acolher-refugiados-2004294
A ONU estima que,
desde o início da guerra, mais de cinco milhões de pessoas tenham fugido da
Ucrânia. Muitas viveram o inferno e deixaram no inferno pais, maridos, irmãos.
Daí a indignação suscitada pela notícia de que há refugiados ucranianos em
Portugal a serem recebidos por cidadãos russos, a quem, para receberem apoio,
têm de fornecer dados pessoais, cópias de documentos e, alegadamente,
informação sobre os familiares que deixaram para trás.
O Expresso desta
sexta-feira relatou que a Câmara de Setúbal, liderada por André Martins, do
partido Os Verdes, tem um gabinete de apoio aos refugiados onde trabalha uma
técnica russa com nacionalidade portuguesa casada com um líder da comunidade
russa em Portugal. Para além de também colaborar com a câmara e com o Alto
Comissariado para as Migrações no acolhimento de ucranianos, este cidadão com
dupla nacionalidade pertence, segundo a embaixadora da Ucrânia em Lisboa, a uma
associação que tem ligações à embaixada russa e nenhumas à Ucrânia.
No início do mês,
à CNN, a embaixadora disse que organizações pró-russas estão a trabalhar no
acolhimento de ucranianos, podendo estar a recolher dados pessoais dos que
chegam, e dos familiares que ficam no país, chamando à atenção para os riscos
para a segurança destas pessoas. Mencionou o caso de Setúbal. A suspeita tinha
de ter tido outro tratamento.
A câmara diz
agora que procurou saber junto do primeiro-ministro se o Alto Comissariado
mantinha a confiança na dita associação, mas que não teve resposta. O gabinete
de António Costa já desmentiu, diz que o que recebeu foi um protesto contra as
declarações da embaixadora que encaminhou para o Ministério dos Negócios
Estrangeiros.
Ninguém passa a
ser suspeito por ter esta ou aquela nacionalidade. Mas é fácil perceber que,
para quem foge de um país invadido, com todo o sofrimento de uma fuga em tempos
de guerra, entregar informações pessoais a alguém com ligações ao país invasor
não é aceitável. No mínimo, falta aqui bom senso. Mas pode ser mais do que
isso. Qualquer suspeita de instrumentalização do apoio tem de ser investigada
de imediato.
Nesta
sexta-feira, por fim, houve partidos a exigir explicações; o Governo pediu
informação ao Alto Comissariado; a câmara, que nada fez, retirou a funcionária
do acolhimento e pediu uma averiguação à Administração Interna.
O acolhimento de
refugiados é uma nobre missão que, felizmente, tem mobilizado o país e cidadãos
de diferentes nacionalidades. Mas exige uma enorme responsabilidade. A mínima
suspeita de violação dos direitos de quem está tão fragilizado tem de fazer
soar todos os alarmes.
Câmaras comunistas a receber ucranianos? É melhor não
Câmaras comunistas a receber ucranianos? É melhor não
Pelos pergaminhos da Rússia na guerra híbrida e pela
proximidade do PCP com os ocupantes do Kremlin, convinha levar o tema realmente
a sério.
João Miguel
Tavares
30 de Abril de
2022, 0:13
A embaixadora
ucraniana em Portugal já tinha denunciado o problema no início deste mês, em
entrevista à CNN: “Há organizações pró-russas” infiltradas no apoio aos
refugiados ucranianos que chegam a Portugal e que, através desse alegado
exercício de solidariedade, podem aproveitar para partilhar com o regime de
Putin “informação sobre os seus dados pessoais” e “dos seus familiares que
lutam no Exército ucraniano”.
A embaixadora
Inna Ohnivets disse também que na própria lista de representantes da comunidade
ucraniana em Portugal junto do Alto Comissariado para as Migrações há
infiltrações de associações pró-russas. A embaixadora refere uma associação em
particular, a Edinstvo – Associação de Imigrantes dos Países de Leste, dirigida
pelo cidadão russo Igor Khashin, que “está ligada à embaixada russa” e “não tem
nenhuma ligação com a Ucrânia”.
O jornalista
Henrique Magalhães Claudino, autor da entrevista, afirma que Khashin foi
director do Conselho de Compatriotas Russos em Portugal e que a sua associação
é reconhecida pelo Alto Comissariado como representante da Ucrânia. Há duas
semanas, o mesmo jornalista assinou uma boa investigação sobre o tema na CNN
Portugal, intitulada A teia de ligações a Putin de associações que estão a
acolher refugiados ucranianos em Portugal. Nela demonstra a ligação dessas
associações à Fundação Russkiy Mir, “criada por Vladimir Putin em 2007 para
apoiar e divulgar a cultura e a língua russa no mundo”.
Igor Khashin foi
apoiante do comunista André Martins, actual presidente da Câmara de Setúbal,
nas últimas autárquicas. Havia uma foto no Facebook que o demonstrava, mas que
foi, entretanto, apagada. Ainda pode ser encontrada através de uma pesquisa nas
imagens do Google. A associação Edinstvo, de que Khashin foi um dos
presidentes, tem um protocolo com a Câmara de Setúbal desde 2005. Embora a
câmara garanta que “Igor Khashin não é nem foi funcionário da Câmara Municipal
de Setúbal”, a embaixadora da Ucrânia afirma que “a associação está instalada
na Câmara de Setúbal”, onde “o senhor Igor Khashin” tem “um gabinete”. O mais
recente protocolo da Câmara de Setúbal com a Edinstvo tem a duração de um ano
(entre 1 de Junho de 2021 e 31 de Maio de 2022) e o valor de 29.400€. Está
assinado por Yulia Khashina, mulher de Igor Khashin.
Ora, é
precisamente Igor Khashin e Yulia Khashina que agora aparecem na notícia que
fez a manchete do último Expresso: Ucranianos recebidos em Câmara da CDU por
russos pró-Putin. Assinado pelo jornalista Vítor Matos, o artigo informa que:
1) Yulia é funcionária da autarquia setubalense, onde foi “admitida como
jurista” em Dezembro; 2) a câmara atendeu 160 refugiados no último mês; 3)
Yulia e Igor ajudaram a traduzir conversas e documentos; 4) um vereador do PS
considera haver “falta de sensibilidade”, perguntas inconvenientes e muitos
refugiados que “não estão a dirigir-se ao gabinete porque têm medo” (a Câmara
de Setúbal desmente).
Infelizmente,
vivemos num país que envia nomes, moradas e contactos de manifestantes
anti-Putin para a embaixada russa. Mas até por esse lamentável historial, pelos
pergaminhos da Rússia na guerra híbrida e pela proximidade do PCP com os
ocupantes do Kremlin, convinha levar o tema realmente a sério – e colocar uma
pergunta que tem tanto de desagradável como de inevitável: podemos confiar em
câmaras comunistas para receber refugiados da Ucrânia? Pelo que se está a ver
em Setúbal, a resposta é não.
O autor é
colunista do PÚBLICO
SEF suspende ligações a associação pró-Putin
GUERRA NA UCRÂNIA
SEF suspende ligações a associação pró-Putin
Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras decidiu abrir um
inquérito interno para aferir que perguntas foram feitas aos refugiados
ucranianos recebidos em Setúbal. Presidente da Associação dos Ucranianos em
Portugal não ficou convencido com explicações dadas pelo autarca de Setúbal em
Assembleia Municipal.
José Volta e
Pinto e Francisco Alves Rito
29 de Abril de
2022, 22:27
O Serviço de
Estrangeiros e Fronteiras (SEF) decidiu esta sexta-feira suspender quaisquer
solicitações efectuadas a pessoas ligadas à Associação dos Emigrantes de Leste
(Edintsvo), na sequência das alegações de que refugiados ucranianos foram
recebidos por russos apoiantes de Vladimir Putin.
A suspensão das
solicitações, disse o SEF ao PÚBLICO, não tem por base suspeitas ou
irregularidades detectadas pelo serviço. Devido à situação na Câmara Municipal
de Setúbal denunciada esta sexta-feira, foi decidida a abertura de um inquérito
interno para “aferir que perguntas foram feitas” aos refugiados ucranianos
recebidos em Setúbal e se alguma das questões ou procedimentos está “fora dos
processos do SEF”.
Até que seja
esclarecida a situação, a direcção nacional “determinou hoje que as
solicitações efectuadas a pessoas ligadas a essa associação fossem suspensas” –
até porque “há outras alternativas” a que o SEF pode recorrer para os serviços
prestados pela associação Edintsvo, com quem “não tem qualquer protocolo
assinado”, sublinha num esclarecimento por escrito.
Na mesma nota, a
entidade reconhece que foi solicitada “pontualmente, pela Delegação de Setúbal
do SEF”, a colaboração para serviços de tradução de uma cidadã, ucraniana com
nacionalidade portuguesa, que pertence à associação – Yulia Khashin,
funcionária do município desde Dezembro.
O Serviço de
Estrangeiros e Fronteiras explica que esta colaboração foi através de “trabalho
voluntário” e refere ainda que o presidente da associação Edintsvo e marido de
Yulia, Igor Kashin, “não prestou qualquer colaboração ao SEF”.
Associação dos
Ucranianos critica explicações do autarca de Setúbal
O presidente da
Associação dos Ucranianos em Portugal não ficou satisfeito com as explicações
que o presidente da Câmara de Setúbal deu esta sexta-feira sobre o acolhimento
de refugiados por russos alegadamente pró-Putin.
“É inaceitável
que os ucranianos que fogem da guerra e venham para Portugal – e foram bem
recebidos pelos portugueses – sejam recebidos por organizações que sempre
fizeram parte da propaganda russa”, disse Pavlo Sadokha que esteve ao início da
noite na Assembleia Municipal de Setúbal para falar no período de intervenções
do público.
“Esta guerra não
começou agora. Os preparativos para a matança de ucranianos começaram há muito
tempo. Nós alertámos o Alto Comissariado [para as Migrações] para a existência
de associações que têm ligação à Rússia e que fazem parte da ideologia do
fascismo russo de matar ucranianos”, acrescentou o responsável ucraniano.
Para Pavlo
Sadokha, quando “Putin fala em desnazificar a Ucrânia significa que eles querem
que os ucranianos desapareçam deste mundo, e não só na Ucrânia mas também na
diáspora”.
O responsável
concluiu que casos como o de Setúbal são “perigosos para os ucranianos e suas
famílias”, que se trata de uma situação “inaceitável num país democrático” e
que “tem de ser parada”.
Na resposta, o
presidente da Câmara de Setúbal disse que a autarquia actuou com “boa-fé e
transparência” no acolhimento de refugiados da guerra da Ucrânia e não tem
“razão nenhuma” para identificar a associação Edinstvo como uma organização
pró-Putin.
Esta sexta-feira, o gabinete de António Costa confirmou
ter recebido uma carta do autarca mas negou que lhe tenham sido solicitadas
informações sobre a Edintsvo. Já a autarquia não quis comentar a “troca de
correspondência oficial”
“Pedimos a esta
associação para fazer a tradução, no âmbito de uma relação antiga. Não temos
nenhuma informação, ao longo de todos estes anos, que tenha havido algum
problema. É verdade que recorremos a esta associação para os serviços de
tradução”, disse.
Sobre a
digitalização de documentos dos refugiados ucranianos, o autarca comunista
garantiu que “a recepção é feita cumprindo o protocolo, as regras que nos foram
trazidas pelas entidades competentes”, apontando o Serviço de Estrangeiros e
Fronteiras (SEF) e o Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional (IEFP).
“O presidente da
associação [Igor Khashin] deu apoio nos primeiros dias, e tem dado apoio ao SEF
e a outras entidades, no mesmo sentido, de facilitar a relação entre os
cidadãos e as entidades”, disse André Martins.
O autarca de
Setúbal sublinhou ainda que o município já pediu ao Ministério da Administração
Interna (MAI) que abra um inquérito ao caso. “Pedimos ao MAI para avaliar todo
o registo – porque há um registo completo das mais de 200 pessoas que foram
registadas -, porque o MAI é que tem essas competências e nós [Câmara
Municipal] não temos essa capacidade”, referiu.
Esta sexta-feira,
o gabinete de António Costa confirmou ter recebido uma carta do autarca mas negou
que lhe tenham sido solicitadas informações sobre a Edintsvo. Já a autarquia
não quis comentar a “troca de correspondência oficial” e escusou-se a comentar
o desmentido do Governo.
Funcionária
retirada do serviço
Relativamente a
Yulia Khashin, que é funcionária do município e estava a trabalhar no gabinete
de acolhimento de refugiados, André Martins disse que “é uma cidadã que está em
Setúbal há 20 anos”, que foi contratada através de um concurso público, e que as
suas funções eram fazer traduções.
O autarca
explicou que o município retirou a funcionária desse serviço para que “não
fosse molestada” pelo que, neste momento, o gabinete está a funcionar “com dois
funcionários que não sabem falar a língua”.
Questionado pelo
PÚBLICO, no final da resposta do autarca, o presidente da associação dos
ucranianos disse “não ter ficado satisfeito com as explicações”. Pavlo Sadokha
afirma não compreender como é que as autoridades em Portugal não têm
conhecimento das ligações de Igor Khashin ao regime de Putin.
O PSD, pela voz
do deputado municipal Rui Lamy, pediu a André Martins para renunciar ao cargo
de presidente da Câmara Municipal, considerando que o autarca comunista deixou
de ter condições para continuar a desempenhar as funções para que foi eleito há
seis meses.
O autarca eleito
pela CDU não chegou a responder ao PSD porque abandonou a reunião da assembleia
municipal pouco depois do início devido a “outro compromisso”.
The Courage Required to Confront Inflation
OPINION
THE EDITORIAL BOARD
The Courage Required to Confront Inflation
April 29,
2022
Credit...Illustration
by Rebecca Chew/The New York Times; photograph by Burazin, via Getty Images
By The
Editorial Board
The
editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by
expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate
from the newsroom.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/29/opinion/inflation-interest-rates.html
Jerome
Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, has often expressed admiration for
the resolve exhibited by one of his predecessors, Paul Volcker, who was willing
to crash the economy in the early 1980s to drive down inflation.
Inflation
in the United States is now higher than at any time since Mr. Volcker’s
recession, and Mr. Powell faces growing calls for the Fed to emulate that
resolute performance and do whatever is necessary to control inflation, even if
it hurts economic growth.
The present
moment requires a different kind of courage. Instead of reprising Mr. Volcker’s
shock-and-awe tactics, the Fed needs to pursue a more measured approach, one
that would bring inflation under control without sending the economy into a
deep recession. There is a risk that by forgoing stronger measures now, the Fed
will ultimately have to impose greater pain. But there are also good reasons to
think that the Fed can succeed — not least because of the enduring legacy of
Mr. Volcker’s achievement.
The Fed
already has begun to shut down the stimulus campaign that it launched in the
spring of 2020 to limit the economic impact of the pandemic. The central bank
raised its benchmark interest rate at its recent policymaking meeting, in
March, by a quarter percentage point to a range between 0.25 points and 0.5
points. It is widely expected to accelerate this process by announcing on
Wednesday an unusual half-point increase in the benchmark rate, and by
announcing that it will begin to reduce the bond holdings that it amassed to
further suppress borrowing costs.
It is time
to raise rates. The economy has rebounded as Covid-19 has loosened its grip.
Notwithstanding the quirky weakness of reported growth in the first quarter of
2022, inflation is now the primary economic problem confronting the United States.
Prices are outpacing wage growth for most Americans, eroding their living
standards, and higher rates will help to slow rising prices.
The Fed’s
benchmark rate would need to rise to somewhere between 2 percent and 3 percent
to reach a level at which it is neither stimulating nor restraining growth.
Some Fed officials and outside economists have argued for additional half-point
moves in the coming months. Some already are convinced the Fed will need to
raise rates well above that neutral level to break inflation. Under Mr.
Volcker, the rate hit 20 percent. Mr. Powell, to his credit, has maintained a
more measured tone. He said recently it was time for the Fed to move “a little
more quickly.”
One reason
to go slowly is that it takes time to judge the impact of changes in Fed
policy. Merely by signaling that it plans to raise rates, the Fed already has
initiated a significant reaction in financial markets. Average interest rates
on home mortgages, for example, have climbed sharply. The monthly mortgage payment
required to buy a median-price home has increased to $1,690 from less than
$1,165 a year ago, according to Roberto Perli, the head of global policy
research at the investment bank Piper Sandler.
Another
reason for caution: Economists continue to debate the causes of the current
inflation.
Some place
the blame primarily on the pandemic, which has caused sharp reductions in the
availability of services and goods, driving up prices. With new vehicles in
short supply, for example, used vehicle prices rose by more than 50 percent
through January. More recently, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has disrupted
global markets for energy and wheat, driving up the prices of gasoline and food
in many parts of the world.
Others,
however, regard the federal government’s response to the pandemic as the key
factor. On top of the Fed’s efforts to lower borrowing costs, Congress
distributed trillions of dollars in aid. Despite widespread job losses, the
average household had more money to spend, creating more demand for goods and
services.
Here’s why
the difference matters: The central bank’s decision to raise interest rates can
curb demand; supply shortages, on the other hand, are best endured patiently.
The Fed’s decision in the week ahead won’t ease them.
Lingering
questions about the health of the economy provide another reason for the Fed to
move cautiously.
A goal of
the Fed’s stimulus campaign was to return the economy to full employment,
meaning that those who wanted work would be able to find it. By one popular
measure, the unemployment rate, which sits at the low level of 3.6 percent, the
Fed has succeeded, prompting some to question the need for continued stimulus.
But the government’s definition of unemployment is narrow. It includes only
people actively seeking work, while many Americans remain on the sidelines.
About 1.6 million fewer people are working now compared with early 2020.
In the
1970s, workers successfully demanded wage increases to compensate for expected
increases in prices, while employers raised prices to cover the expected cost
of higher wages. This dynamic, which economists call a wage-price spiral, can
be dangerously self-perpetuating.
But in the
intervening decades, American workers have suffered a significant loss in
bargaining power. While many businesses say they are struggling to find enough
workers, that has not translated into real wage gains for employees. Business
are raising prices much faster than they are raising wages, allowing them to
reap record profits. While inflation is up by 8.5 percent over the past year,
wages for private-sector workers are up by just 5 percent. In other words,
there is no evidence the United States is entering a wage-price spiral.
Finally,
Mr. Powell can afford to move more cautiously because Mr. Volcker and his
successors convinced the American public and global investors that the Fed is
committed to controlling inflation.
Mr. Volcker
once told an interviewer that he wore a path in his rug by pacing back and
forth, wondering whether the pain he was imposing would accomplish that goal.
It was a victory won at a high cost. Moving too quickly to confront inflation,
or raising rates too high, would squander it.
China counts the cost of its zero-Covid policy
China counts the cost of its zero-Covid policy
Beijing ought to swallow its pride and approve foreign
mRNA vaccines
THE
EDITORIAL BOARDA
https://www.ft.com/content/61b49ff5-edb6-4d6d-94db-e7b65a065301
Dozens of
cities in China are in full or partial lockdown in response to the spread of
Covid-19 cases, meaning that a population roughly the size of the US has been
stuck at home for several weeks, often with limited access to food and medical
care.
Among those
cities in lockdown, Shanghai has received the most attention. Deservedly so.
Although the city relaxed quarantine rules somewhat this week, about 4.5mn
people remain confined to their homes and roughly 7.9mn are permitted to leave
their homes but must remain within their neighbourhoods.
Food
distribution has broken down in some parts of the city, leaving some residents
to go hungry as piles of rotting produce are left in the street. The anguish of
many people cooped up in their apartments and getting by on scant rations has
been caught in videos shared widely on social media.
But the
crisis in Shanghai and other cities is not only humanitarian. It is most
starkly an economic problem and, to an extent, a political issue too. The IMF
has cut its GDP growth forecast from 4.8 per cent to 4.4 per cent for the full
year — a particularly sharp contraction from the 8.1 per cent posted last year,
hurting both China and the global economy.
The crunch
looks set to be particularly pronounced in April. Ting Lu, China chief
economist at Nomura, predicts that GDP growth in the second quarter of this
year will slump to 1.8 per cent, down from the actual 4.8 per cent seen in the
first quarter.
The reasons
behind the slump reveal deeper faultlines. One source of weakness is the severe
contraction in the country’s huge property market, which has relinquished a
longstanding role as a dynamo for broader prosperity. Enough real estate to
house an estimated 90mn people now stands empty.
Nevertheless,
the biggest drag on GDP growth is political. Beijing is steadfastly sticking to
its zero-Covid policy. The full and partial lockdowns in cities across the
country are playing havoc with demand for housing, durable consumer items and
capital goods as incomes fall and uncertainties rise. The sheer logistical
challenge of getting goods from A to B is acting as a big drag.
As China’s
population of 1.4bn people contends with their third year of Covid, many have
drained their savings to a level at which they are obliged to reduce spending.
All of this
throws an unsparing light on to Beijing’s Covid strategy. National pride has
prevented China from approving foreign mRNA vaccines for use among its people,
leaving them to take the less effective vaccines developed by domestic
companies.
This has
meant that despite an impressive vaccination rate (88 per cent of people have
had two jabs), the elderly in particular are still thought to be at real risk
from coronavirus.
It is true
that Beijing has been urging the development of homegrown mRNA vaccines — two
of which have now entered clinical trials — but China needs to act now with
dispatch. It should swallow its pride and approve mass imports of foreign mRNA
vaccines immediately, thus allowing it to chart a way out of its draconian
zero-Covid policy and relax lockdowns that are imposing an enormous economic
and psychological toll.
The urgency
of this task cannot be underestimated. China’s zero-Covid policy had largely
kept the virus’s spread in check until the highly infectious Omicron variant
emerged. Beijing now has a stark choice: start a mass vaccination programme
using foreign mRNA vaccines or sustain the ruinous economic and social costs of
continued lockdowns.
Frontex Involved in Illegal Pushbacks of Hundreds of Refugees
Classified Database
Frontex Involved in Illegal Pushbacks of Hundreds
of Refugees
An extended investigation over the course of several
months reveals how deeply the EU's border agency, Frontex, is involved in the
Greek refugee pushback campaign. The illegal acts are registered and concealed
in a classified database.
By Giorgos
Christides und Steffen Lüdke
28.04.2022, 20.55 Uhr
Amjad Naim
had almost reached Samos when the men wearing the balaclavas arrived. It was
May 13, 2020, and Naim was sitting in an unstable rubber dinghy. The Palestinian
had been on his way to Greece together with nearly 30 other refugees. He could
already see the coast, he would later recall by telephone. In just a few
meters, his journey would be complete.
Naim heard
the noise of a helicopter overhead. Then a large boat approached. Naim
remembers the Greek flag on the ship and the dinghies. He says the hooded men
then attacked.
Naim says
the men shot into the water, struck the boat with a hook and destroyed the
engine, stopping the vessel. Only then, he says, did they take the refugees on
board. Naim was crying, he hid his mobile phone in his underpants.
The next
images that exist of Naim document a crime. Naim filmed for 55 seconds. The
images show him and the other refugees on two inflatable life rafts being
abandoned at sea by the Greek Coast Guard. The square platform they are sitting
on is a wobbly rubber life raft without a motor.
A Greek
Panther Coast Guard ship, 18 meters long, pulls the life raft toward Turkey.
Another ship accompanies the boat on its mission. The video also shows water
seeping into Naim’s raft.
Then, as
can be seen in the video, the Greek Coast Guard unties the rope, leaving the
refugees to their fates in the middle of the Aegean. It would be several hours
before the Turkish Coast Guard rescued the frightened and thirsty refugees.
What Amjad
Naim filmed that morning is what human rights activist call a pushback:
Asylum-seekers are abandoned at sea at the European Union’s external border,
outside Greek territorial waters. That way, they can’t apply for asylum in the
EU. Such operations are illegal and violate international, European and Greek
law. The Greek Coast Guard has been systematically carrying out these pushbacks
since March 2020, with the help of the EU’s Frontex border protection agency.
Over the
past two years, DER SPIEGEL has gathered solid evidence of these legal
violations. Naim’s case shows that German Federal Police officers in the
Frontex mission are also involved in the pushbacks. Frontex officials find the
boats and then leave it to the Greeks to conduct the pushback.
The Joint
Operations Reporting Application (JORA) database hosted on Frontex's servers is
used to record events at the EU's external borders. The contents of the
database are classified, only European border guards have access to the data.
An entry also exists for the incident involving Naim.
"Prevention
of Departure"
The entry
states that a German helicopter as well as a patrol boat from the Federal
Police on Frontex duty spotted the refugee boat that day in Turkish waters. The
German police then reported it to the joint control center in Piraeus, and the
Greeks in turn informed the Turkish Coast Guard. And that was it. Allegedly.
The
incident is registered as "prevention of departure" in the Frontex
database. The term is actually only supposed to be used when the Turkish Coast
Guard stops refugee boats in Turkish waters. But that isn’t what happened. Naim
had clearly been in Greek waters, and he should have been permitted to apply
for asylum in that country.
There is no
mention in the database of the arrival and attack by the Greek border guards in
the immediate vicinity of Samos, the unstable life rafts or the pushback, all
of which are clearly captured on video. The description of the incident is
clearly false.
DER
SPIEGEL, together with Lighthouse Reports, the Swiss media outlets SRF and
Republik and the French newspaper Le Monde spent months researching Frontex’s
involvement in the Greek pushbacks. Following a request under the European
Freedom of Information Act, the researchers succeeded in gaining access to the
internal Frontex database and matching entries with photos and videos of
pushback operations. The research reveals the full extent of Frontex support
for Greek pushbacks in the Aegean Sea for the first time.
The
research shows that Frontex was involved in the illegal pushbacks of at least
957 refugees between March 2020 and September 2021. In 22 of these cases, the
availability of open source intelligence like photos of the refugees in Greek
life rafts, make it possible to define them as pushbacks without any doubt. The
true number of pushbacks conducted with Frontex assistance is likely even
higher.
The
reporting also shows that these pushbacks are neatly recorded in the database,
but always with the false, inconspicuous term "prevention of
departure." In other words, the JORA database is being fudged. The
database of one of Europe’s biggest agencies, originally intended to provide an
accurate picture of the situation at EU borders, has instead become a tool for
covering up the Greek pushbacks as well as the complicity of an EU agency.
Those Who
Make It To Land Have To Hide
The coast
of Lesbos is located only a few kilometers away from Turkey. During the wave of
refugees to Europe in 2015, helpers here greeted refugees with thermal
blankets. They were heartbreaking scenes. Many of the people who helped still
talk about it today, and they were proud to be a part of European hospitality
towards those in need. Today, when refugees come to Lesbos, they have to hide
on the coast. They all know what they might face if members of the Greek Coast
Guard catch them.
On May 28,
2021, a large group of nearly 50 people made it to the island. Photos show how
the frightened people hid in the bushes. "We are in the forest. We need
your help," they wrote to the NGO Aegean Boat Report, which often keeps in
touch with asylum-seekers who dare to make the Aegean crossing. Two of them
were sick, the refugees wrote. The location they shared via WhatsApp showed
them as being not far from Mytilene, the island's capital. "We're afraid,"
they wrote. But only a few hours later, some members of the group found
themselves back on the water, abandoned on one of the Greek Coast Guard’s life
rafts. In the photo, several people can be clearly discerned who had
demonstrably been on land before. Only 17 people made it past the Greek police
into the refugee camp, where they were allowed to apply for asylum.
The Frontex
database also whitewashes this pushback. The database entry states that Frontex
had been involved in the incident, with the corresponding checkmark set. It
lists 32 refugees at 1 p.m., with the Turkish coastal town of Çeşme listed as
the location. Once again, it is labelled as a case of "prevention of
departure." Yet no one had prevented the refugees’ departure. They had all
made it to Lesbos unscathed.
There don’t appear to be any pushbacks in the Frontex
database, refugees turn back voluntarily with their boats or are at least
intercepted without the intervention of the Greek Coast Guard. It’s like
peering into an alternative reality.
The JORA
database has more than 1 million rows and 137 columns. It was set up as a
record of the work performed by Frontex. Each entry shows how important the
border protection force is and how well the millions in taxpayer money are
invested. The entries in the database are first made by Greek officials and
then checked several times. After that, they are sent to Frontex headquarters
in Warsaw, where officials validate the entries. If they are wrong or
inconsistent, they have to be corrected – at least in theory. In practice,
however, it appears that they are simply rubber stamped. That includes two
instances where it was proven that refugees had already reached Greek islands.
The
official version given in these cases is always the same. The wording is
identical: They state that refugees had been discovered either by Frontex or
Greek forces. And that headquarters in Piraeus had informed the sea rescue
control center in Ankara. After that, a ship from the Turkish Coast Guard came
and "took over responsibility of the incident." There don’t appear to
be any pushbacks in the Frontex database, refugees turn back voluntarily with
their boats or are at least intercepted without the intervention of the Greek
Coast Guard. It’s a glimpse into an alternative reality.
Officials
certainly have an appropriate category available to them in the JORA database:
"illegal border crossing." According to the research, however, they
only use this category in the few cases where asylum-seekers are registered in
a Greek refugee camp and are allowed to apply for asylum. In pushback cases,
they cover up the fact that these refugees had already crossed the border, so
they won’t have to explain themselves later.
Insufficient
Oversight
Even the
people who are tasked with oversight at Frontex took notice that the
information in the database was at times wrong. In two incidents, the Frontex
Management Board found that they had been registered in JORA as
"prevention of departure" incidents, even though the refugees had
already made it to Greek waters. That was "inconsistent," the Frontex
management board noted at the time in its report, which DER SPIEGEL has
obtained. The agency’s fundamental rights officer also called the
classification "questionable." But no one was apparently interested
in taking a closer look.
When
contacted by DER SPIEGEL for comment, Frontex said it is not in a position to
comment on individual cases and specific operational details for its ongoing
and past operations. The agency says that it has no power to investigate
actions of the national authorities, and that it is under Greek command in the
Aegean Sea. The German Federal Police say they are not aware of having been
involved in any incident that may have been given the false "prevention of
departure" classification. Meanwhile, the Greek Coast Guard stressed that
pushbacks were not part of its operational plan. It added that all complaints
would be investigated by the relevant Greek authorities.
Behind
closed doors, however, some border guards admit that the database is
systematically whitewashed. Two Frontex officials and a member of the Greek
Coast Guard, both of whom asked not to be named, told DER SPEIGEL that illegal
pushbacks are routinely registered as "prevention of departure"
incidents. "Why don’t they call it pushbacks and get it over with?"
the Coast Guard member asked.
Pressure
Mounting on Frontex Chief
The person
responsible for the fact that Greek pushbacks are being covered up at Frontex
is Fabrice Leggeri. The 54-year-old Frenchman has been executive director of
the EU agency since 2015 and has bestowed the agency with new powers during his
tenure. Its budget has grown enormously under his leadership to its current
level of 758 million euros. The question is how Frontex is supposed to wield
its power: Is the agency supposed to assist illegal operations at Europe's
external borders – or is it supposed to investigate and prevent such crimes, as
is stipulated in the EU agency’s statutes?
Greece is
one of Leggeri’s most important partners. Almost no other region plays host to
as many Frontex officers, a testament to the fact that the country is one of
the important migration routes to the EU. Leggeri gets on very well with the
conservative Greek government, and at conferences, he can be seen joking with
Notis Mitarachi, Greece’s migration minister. Mitarachi, a hardliner,
symbolizes the Greek pushback campaign like nobody else. In late January,
Mitarachi gave the Frontex chief an award for his efforts. Thanks to Leggeri’s
support, he said, the number of refugee arrivals in Greece is lower than it has
been in years.
Leggeri has
been under pressure for months as a result of the reporting conducted by DER
SPIEGEL and its partners. To this day, Leggeri has not acknowledged that
pushbacks are taking place in the Aegean Sea. In response, the European
Parliament set up a permanent review committee and froze 12 percent of
Frontex’s budget. For the first time, a pushback victim has now moved forward
to sue the agency. And on May 15, Swiss citizens will even vote in a referendum
on whether they want to continue contributing to the agency’s increased budget.
The pushbacks have become a major topic of discussion in that campaign. The
agency’s reputation has taken a significant hit.
But
Leggeri’s biggest problem is OLAF, the EU’s anti-fraud agency. Investigators
with that agency intervene whenever EU rules have been broken by officials, and
they began looking into Frontex following the revelations published by DER
SPIEGEL. In a recent investigative report, they lodged serious allegations
against three leading Frontex officials, likely including Leggeri. According to
the report, the officials covered up pushbacks and violated EU regulations. The
more than 200-page report is still classified, with only the agency’s
management board and those accused of misdeeds allowed to see it. The
investigative report apparently has made Frontex so uncomfortable that the
agency has forbidden OLAF investigators from handing it over to the European
Parliament.
Leggeri’s
concerns are understandable. OLAF searched his office as well as that of his
closest confidant, Thibauld de la Haye Jousselin. And the anti-fraud investigators
continue to investigate. They have already announced two further reports. Even
if Leggeri were to manage to remain in office for the time being, his days as
the agency’s head are likely numbered.
The latest
revelations could further exacerbate Leggeri’s already delicate situation. Some
222 of the entries in the JORA database up to September of last year are listed
as "prevention of departure" incidents. Many of them are likely
pushbacks.
Leggeri
himself could easily have noticed that his own database was being fudged. In
several pushback cases in which Leggeri had to testify in the European
Parliament or in front of the Frontex Management Board, the description
provided in the JORA database obviously had nothing to do with reality. But it
appears that he wasn't bothered.
With
additional reporting by Htet Aung, Bashar Deeb, Emmanuel Freudenthal, Gabriele
Gatti and Francesca Pierigh
Russia faces threat of sanctions on nuclear power industry as Germany backs uranium ban
Russia faces threat of sanctions on nuclear power
industry as Germany backs uranium ban
Move would hit the supply of uranium to the EU’s
Russian-built reactors, as well as new nuclear projects.
BY BARBARA
MOENS, ZIA WEISE, AMERICA HERNANDEZ AND LEONIE KIJEWSKI
April 29,
2022 7:45 pm
Germany has
thrown its weight behind demands to sanction uranium imports from Russia and
other parts of Vladimir Putin's civil nuclear industry in retaliation for his
invasion of Ukraine, five EU diplomats told POLITICO.
Such a move
could hit the supply of uranium that fuels the bloc’s Russian-built power
reactors, as well as new nuclear projects managed by Russia's Rosatom Western
Europe subsidiary, based in Paris.
Four of the
diplomats said sanctioning Russia's nuclear industry was discussed in a meeting
with EU ambassadors and the Commission earlier this week, with Poland and the
Baltic countries leading the calls to act.
"Germany’s
ambassador on Wednesday announced Berlin’s new position, saying they are not
only OK with oil sanctions, but they actively support an oil phaseout, rather
than just a price cap, and a ban on Russian uranium," one EU diplomat
said.
The fact
that Germany, the EU's economic powerhouse, is now on board makes the move
significantly more likely. A wide range of MEPs have also asked for nuclear to
be included in EU sanctions.
“It is
important for the Germans, Austrians and others that the EU reduces its energy
dependency on Russia across the board. This includes banning imports of Russian
nuclear fuels as well. For them it is a bit of a no-brainer,” an EU diplomat
said.
The
European Commission is working on proposals for a sixth package of sanctions
against Russia, including potentially measures targeting oil. Details are
expected to be discussed with EU countries in the coming days as European
governments seek to intensify pressure on Putin by cutting off the revenues
from energy exports that finance his invasion of Ukraine.
It is not
yet clear how soon sanctions on nuclear imports to the EU could be imposed.
But any
move against Russia's nuclear industry would not be pain free for Europeans.
The EU imports almost all of its uranium from outside the bloc. About 20
percent comes from Russia, making it the second-biggest supplier to the EU
after Niger.
Sanctioning
Rosatom’s Paris-based subsidiary is expected to be an especially sensitive
question for newly re-elected French President Emmanuel Macron. France has a
large nuclear power sector and collaborates closely with Rosatom on several
projects via the partially-state-owned EDF.
“Some
countries ... have worries over nuclear
safety,” said one senior EU diplomat. “You would need certain safeguards. But
there are certainly things that you can sanction that are not directly linked
to nuclear cooperation.”
German-Franco
splits
The
discussion lays bare a political fault line between the governments in Berlin
and Paris, the two big players within the bloc. Germany is a fierce opponent of
nuclear energy, and is aiming to shut down its remaining nuclear power plants
by the end of this year.
Berlin
isn’t content with switching off its own reactors but has sought to dissuade
other European countries from investing in nuclear. Most recently, Germany
criticized Belgium’s decision to delay its phaseout plans by a decade.
France, on
the other hand, gets more than 70 percent of its electricity from nuclear power
plants and is planning to build even more reactors. Macron has said nuclear
will play a key role in reducing the country’s emissions, as it’s a low-carbon
source of power, and in reinforcing the EU's energy independence. He wants to
build 14 new reactors by 2050, while continuing to develop renewables. The
country is also the only EU member to maintain a nuclear weapons program.
Yet, France
doesn’t rely on Russia for its uranium imports, as it mainly gets its fuel from
Kazakhstan and Niger.
French
energy giant EDF, which operates the country’s nuclear power plants, said it
“is closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine and its consequences on the
energy markets.” It added that “to ensure continuity and security of supply”
the company has long-term contracts “that are diversified in terms of origins
and suppliers.”
French
nuclear fuel supplier Orano said that it “has suspended all new shipments of
nuclear materials to and from Russia” since the end of February, and pointed
out that it has “very limited activities” in Russia, which represents less than
0.1 percent of its orders.
While
Germany has warned a gas embargo would mean economic ruin, France has shown
itself open to sanctioning Russian fossil fuels.
Running
empty
However,
the strongest resistance might not come from France, but from Eastern Europe.
For
Russian-made nuclear reactors in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Finland,
Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia, there is no authorized nuclear fuel alternative
to Russian supply. While Slovakia, for example, has said it has enough nuclear
fuel to last through the end of 2023, a ban on Russian imports could be a
problem down the road.
“This is
very concerning as we are 100 percent dependent on Russian nuclear fuel
deliveries from the company TVEL,” said Karol Galek, Slovakia’s state secretary
for energy in the Ministry of Finance.
There have
been talks between those five EU countries and American supplier Westinghouse
about manufacturing a replacement fuel for those Russian reactors, Galek added.
“It seems that it could work, should work — but in two years, because there is
no immediate option. So this is the problem," he said.
Short-term
alternatives would come with a high price attached, said Mark Hibbs, a
Germany-based senior fellow at Carnegie’s nuclear policy program. Rumors of
nuclear sanctions — the U.S., for example, has also been mulling measures
against Rosatom — have already driven up uranium prices.
"We've
been seeing spot uranium selling at nearly $60 per pound, so if Europeans want
to replace the 20 percent of their Russian supply with others — Kazakhstan,
Canada, Australia, for example — they can do it, but it would cost them a
premium," Hibbs said. "Spot uranium they bought for future nuclear
fuel back in 2017 would have cost about $20 per pound and in 2020 it would have
cost about $30 per pound."
Moscow
doesn’t make much money from exporting nuclear fuel. But targeting the larger
infrastructure business which includes building reactors in the EU would
deliver a major financial hit to the Kremlin war machine.
“We hope
that Rosatom will be under sanctions and we hope that Rosatom business here in
Europe should be stopped with sanctions, because they have more than 25
different projects in Europe," said Ukraine’s Deputy Energy Minister
Yaroslav Demchenkov.
France
could be "more active" on this agenda, Demchenkov added. "It’s a
huge amount of money.”
Jacopo
Barigazzi, Jakob Hanke Vela and Louise Guillot contributed reporting.
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