The first asylum-seekers from a Mexican border camp that had become a symbol of Trump-era immigration restrictions entered the United States on Thursday under a new policy meant to end the hardships endured by migrants in dangerous border towns. The United Nation’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) said the initial group comprised 27 people who had been living in the makeshift camp in Matamoros opposite Brownsville, Texas. Some residents have lived there for more than a year under former President Donald Trump’s controversial Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) program requiring asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico for U.S. court hearings. The first group of 27 migrants leave their camp towards the Gateway International Bridge to be processed and seek asylum in the U.S., in Matamoros, Mexico, Feb. 25, 2021.A new process under President Joe Biden will gradually allow thousands of MPP asylum-seekers to await courts’ decisions within the United States. Some migrants last week were permitted to cross into San Ysidro, California. Francisco Gallardo, who runs a migrant shelter in Matamoros and provides humanitarian aid at the camp, welcomed the news that the process had begun in Matamoros, but said it should have come sooner. “It’s good that they are doing it, but unfortunately coming late,” he said. Freezing temperatures at the U.S.-Mexico border had made the Matamoros camp a priority, the Department of Homeland Security said on Wednesday. Migrants at the camp have struggled to ensure proper hygiene and to protect themselves from organized crime in a state that is one of the most violent in Mexico. “The camp was a space that had multiple risks for the migrants,” said Misael Hernandez, a researcher on migration issues at El Colegio de la Frontera Norte. Mexico’s migration institute did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Month: February 2021
Peru Investigates COVID-19 Vaccination Scandal
Investigations are now under way into the Peruvian coronavirus vaccination scandal, in which hundreds of people, many well-connected, were given shots although they did not participate in trials for the Sinopharm vaccine to determine its efficacy.Heath Minister Oscar Ugarte said 3,200 vaccines were given, including 1,200 that went to the Chinese Embassy. He said of the other 2,000 doses, investigators are looking into where they are and who was vaccinated.The state-run Andina news agency reported Peru’s Congress also launched a committee to investigate the scandal, amid a public uproar over how privileged people were able to jump ahead of front-line health workers for vaccinations.Fernando Carbone, the head of the commission investigating those benefiting from the shots is guaranteeing impartiality in the probe, with a threat of sanctions against those involved.Carbone spoke publicly about not being compromised after the Peruvian Medical College called for him to step aside, citing his association with former Health Minister Pilar Mazetti, who was among those improperly receiving vaccinations.Peru’s foreign minister Elizabeth Astete resigned Sunday after revealing she had received the vaccine before health care personnel.The public anger over the scandal has been exacerbated by Peru having one of the highest coronavirus tallies in Latin America, with more than 1.2 million infections and more than 44,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
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Algerian President Calls for New Elections after Dissolving Lower House of Parliament
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune announced Thursday he is dissolving the lower house of parliament, whose members have little more than a year left on their five-year terms.Tebboune said he will call for elections to build a new institution through elections that are free from money, whether corrupt or not.The president also said he will reshuffle the government within the next two days.Tebboune, a former prime minister under ousted President Adelaziz Bouteflika, was elected amid protests demanding the departure of the ruling elite.The leader of the North African nation also ordered the release of 60 members of a protest movement involved in forcing Bouteflika from office in 2019.Tebboune said the decision to disband the lower house, whose majority backed the former president, was part of reforms included in amendments to the constitution last November aimed at giving parliament more powers.Tebboune’s move also addresses his promise to voters to make reforms after succeeding Bouteflika.
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Venezuela Launches COVID-19 Vaccination Program
Venezuela began its immunization program against the COVID-19 virus by vaccinating front-line health care personnel Thursday, less than a week after receiving the first batch of 100,000 doses of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V.”Fortunately, the strategic cooperation between Russia and Venezuela has allowed us to have access to one of the best vaccines in the world, with an efficacy of 91.6%,” Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said.Venezuela participated in trials of the Sputnik V vaccine trials before signing a purchase agreement with Russia in December.The Latin American country hopes to begin vaccinating the general public in April.Health Minister Carlos Alvarado said officials aim to vaccinate 70% of the population this year in order to achieve herd immunity.Venezuela has so far confirmed more than 134,000 COVID-19 cases and 1,297 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.
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Haiti Responds to US State Dept. Tweet Urging ‘Respect for Democratic Norms’
Haiti has responded to a tweet by Julie Chung, the U.S. acting assistant secretary for the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, expressing alarm at “authoritarian and undemocratic acts” by President Jovenel Moise.Chung’s tweet on Wednesday also said, “Respect for democratic norms is vital and non-negotiable.”The United States will not be silent when democratic institutions and civil society are attacked.We condemn all attempts to undermine democracy by violence, suppression of civic freedoms, or intimidation.2/3— Julie Chung (@WHAAsstSecty) February 17, 2021Haiti Ambassador to the United States Bocchit Edmond announced on Twitter early Thursday that he had a “constructive meeting” with Chung about the situation in the country.”We’re determined to create a better environment for free, fair & transparent elections under robust international observations,” Edmond tweeted.2/2) I also spoke with @WHAAsstSecty about the steps taken by the Electoral Council to prepare for the Constitutional referendum and the elections. We’re determined to create a better environment for free, fair & transparent elections under a robust international observations.— Bocchit Edmond (@BocchitEdmond) February 18, 2021Chung’s tweet also said, “The United States will not be silent when democratic institutions and civil society are attacked.” It also cited “unilateral removals and appointments of Supreme Court Justices” and attacks on the media.Addressing Chung’s concerns about attacks on the press, Edmond tweeted: “I reassured her that the Govt of Haiti has no intentions of targeting journalists.”1/2) I had a constructive meeting with @WHAAsstSecty Julie Chung about the current situation in Haiti. I reassured her that the Govt of Haiti has no intentions of targeting journalists. We are deeply devoted to respecting freedom of the Press & improve our ranking 83 on 189 PFGI.— Bocchit Edmond (@BocchitEdmond) February 18, 2021On the night of Feb. 12, President Moise tweeted that he had appointed three new Supreme Court Justices, to replace the justices he retired last week.J’ai nommé à la Cour de Cassation trois juges issus d’une liste préalablement soumise par le sénat de la République, conformément aux dispositions de l’art 175 de la Constitution.— Président Jovenel Moïse (@moisejovenel) February 13, 2021He also issued an “Arrete,” an official announcement, saying he had chosen a new secretary of state for communications, secretary of state for public security and a new delegate for the Artibonite Department.The announcements came hours after a statement by U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Michele Sison expressing concern about Moise’s unilateral moves.”What troubles us is governance by decree, governance by presidential decree that has been going on in Haiti for a period that is not normal and is ongoing,” Sison told VOA in an exclusive interview on Feb. 12.At least two journalists have died due to their interactions with law enforcement during protests so far this year. Others have been severely injured and hospitalized.Chung’s tweets about Haiti, which the U.S. Embassy in Haiti retweeted on its official Twitter account and translated into French and Creole, echo what Ambassador Sison told VOA.”Elections are essential to end the political paralysis that exists in Haiti since a long time. For more than a year,” Sison said. “Haitians should have their say, so they can realize their own vision for their country.”Laurent Weil, a country analyst for The Economist magazine’s Intelligence Unit who specializes in Latin America and the Caribbean, told VOA elections are central to an improvement in Haiti’s situation in 2021.”The best-case scenario is that you have an elected parliament. You have an elected president that takes office following this long and uncertain process,” Weil told VOA. “There is a generalized sentiment on the ground that things need to change.”
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Supporters of Hotel Rwanda Figure Denounce ‘Show Trial’
Family and supporters of Paul Rusesabagina, an activist depicted in the Oscar-nominated film Hotel Rwanda, are decrying as a sham his terrorism trial that began this week. He was one of 20 defendants appearing before a judge in a courtroom outside Kigali.“These are defendants who are on trial for their lives and possibly life imprisonment,” said Brian Endless, a professor at Loyola University-Chicago’s Political Science Department who has worked with Rusesabagina’s foundation. “Most importantly, there were no lawyers next to them to assist in their defense. Their lawyers were kept in the back of the room. And just the physical dynamics of that were, kind of, incredible to see.”Rusesabagina gained international recognition for saving hundreds of people by providing shelter in the Hotel des Mille Collines, which he managed. In the film, he is depicted helping to save mainly Tutsi people who sought refuge during the killing that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives in a 100-day period.Rusesabagina comes from a Hutu and Tutsi background. After the genocide, he adopted orphans. In 2005, U.S. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.Now, the daughters are fighting to get their adoptive father back home. Two of Rusesabagina’s daughters, as well as a team of lawyers and supporters, watched Wednesday’s proceedings livestreamed from Kigali.The man hailed as a hero for saving hundreds of lives during the 1994 Rwandan genocide stands accused of sponsoring terrorism in the country for his support of an opposition party and rebel groups. Family members and advocates claim he was effectively kidnapped in September when he boarded a private plane in Dubai on false pretenses and was flown against his will to the Rwandan capital.“I would like to insist on the fact that Rusesabagina is in Rwanda illegally,” Rusesabagina’s lawyer, Gatera Gashabana, told reporters in Rwanda. “He did not come following an extradition. He didn’t even come of his own free will. He found himself in Rwanda against his will.”During the proceedings at the Supreme Court in Kimihurura, Rusesabagina insisted the court did not have jurisdiction because he is a Belgian citizen and was unlawfully abducted. Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has defended the means used to arrest Rusesabagina.“There was no kidnap. There was not any wrongdoing in the process of his getting here,” Kagame said in state media in September 2020, when Rusesabagina was initially arrested. “He got here on the basis of what he believed and wanted to do.”Daughter of Rwandan ‘Genocide Hero’ Pleads for His ReleasePaul Rusesabagina is one of many Rwandan opposition figures to have been arrested, while others have died under mysterious circumstancesThe trial has prompted international criticism.Thirty-seven U.S. senators and representatives signed a letter to Kagame calling for Rusesabagina’s release on humanitarian grounds since he is a cancer survivor. They expressed “grave concerns” about the “extrajudicial” way he was brought to the country. The U.S. State Department also said it is closely monitoring the situation and has engaged the Rwandan government at its highest levels.“We continue to underscore that the legal process adjudicating the charges against Mr. Rusesabagina must be fair, transparent, respect the rule of law and be consistent with Rwanda’s own international human rights obligations and commitments,” Ned Price, State Department spokesperson, said during a press conference on Wednesday.Rusesabagina’s daughter Carine Kanimba said she has been receiving harassing phone calls and text messages from someone claiming to be her father’s guard in jail. He told her he wanted to help her father escape, a ploy she believes is intended to add charges to Rusesabagina or even give authorities an excuse to execute him.“We just know that this is a method that they use. And it’s very inhumane considering the condition that our family is in and the worries we have for our father,” Kanimba said. “We will get our father out of that prison legally, not through these methods.”Rusesabagina did not enter a plea during his court appearance on Wednesday. The judge is expected to rule on the question of whether the court has jurisdiction on February 26.The 66-year-old has had detractors who say his role was overblown and not entirely accurate.Phil Clark, professor of international politics at the SOAS University in London who has studied the region, said there are concerns within Rwanda of Hollywood’s depiction of Rusesabagina.“Many survivors who were inside the Hotel des Mille Collines during the genocide have come out and said that Rusesabagina, in fact, charged many of those survivors quite exorbitant fees to have safe haven within the hotel. And that Rusesabagina allegedly also handed over some Tutsi to the Hutu militias to be killed,” he told VOA via Skype after Rusesabagina was arrested.“But I think while there might be some skepticism about exactly what Rusesabagina did in 1994, I think we also have to recognize that there has been an active smear campaign against him, that in 1995 and 1996, he became increasingly vocal against Kagame’s regime.”Clark added that after Rusesabagina’s exile, and because he was a dissenting voice, Kagame initiated a government-orchestrated smear campaign against him.“There has been this government attempt to try to denigrate him as an individual as he became a much more vocal critic,” he said. “And that’s the backdrop to this current court case, that there has been a battle going on for Rusesabagina’s reputation long before he became the leader of an opposition political movement. And long before he allegedly had any connection to the rebel movements in eastern Congo.”
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Exiled in Kenya, Controversial Ugandan Activist Continues to Speak Out
As a child, Stella Nyanzi’s parents fled from then-Ugandan President Idi Amin Dada in the 1970s, forcing her to live in Kenya as a refugee for five years. Today, she finds herself in the same predicament, seeking refuge as an adult.“I’ve come full circle,” the opposition candidate told VOA from Kenya, where she is seeking political asylum. “I am fleeing from another dictator in Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, and I came with my teenage children.”Violence-marred campaignNyanzi, a government opponent, researcher and writer, fled Uganda this month after Museveni won a sixth term as president in a violence-marred campaign that has opponents contesting the results. She ran unsuccessfully for a Parliament seat and left after her partner, David Musiri, was abducted on January 20 and allegedly tortured by government forces a week after the national elections in Uganda.“His genitalia were squeezed. His body was brutalized. And by the time he was dumped from the detention facility that’s unmarked into a police station, he was unconscious,” Nyanzi told VOA.VOA reached out to Ugandan authorities for comment and did not receive a response.Roland Ebole, a regional researcher at Amnesty International, told VOA that Musiri was among numerous opposition members who were rounded up and suffered physical harm.“He claimed to [his] family he was tortured and held incommunicado for several days (no one is sure how many) before people found out where he had been sent for detention. He has not yet been released,” Ebole said in an email response to VOA.National Unity Platform party president Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, addressed the media before submitting a violations petition to the U.N. Human Rights office, in Kampala, Uganda, Feb. 17, 2021. (Halima Athumani/VOA)Election results disputedThe election results are being disputed by prominent opposition figures, including former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi, who is commonly known by his stage name, Bobi Wine.Wine has taken the case to court, saying the FILE – A demonstrator is arrested by Ugandan police officers at a protest for more food distribution by the government to people who have been struggling during the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the COVID-19, in Kampala, May 18, 2020.’Inciting violence’Police spokesman Patrick Onyango told reporters at the time that Nyanzi is “exploiting the COVID-19 situation to advance her political motives.” But that did not deter Nyanzi. She questioned how she was charged with “inciting violence” when protesters were pushing for speedy food delivery to the vulnerable.“I don’t know how a hungry woman asking for food from a government that has promised to give food to the poor — beans and maize flour — I don’t know how that is incitement to violence,” she said.Nyanzi has been celebrated for her unconventional ways of challenging authority.Award-winning poetIn 2020, she was awarded the Oxfam Novib/PEN International Award for Freedom of Expression. One of the most publicized moments etched in the memory of most who have come across her work occurred in 2019 when she was being sentenced for the poem she wrote insulting the president. She shouted profanities and flashed her breasts during a televised courtroom proceeding.Nyanzi said she does not take her freedom for granted. Despite embracing exile, for now, her intention is to continue her advocacy.“I pity those who think that by leaving the country, I have given up the liberation struggle,” she said.Using her digital platform, she said believes she will continue to have a loud megaphone and will challenge the status quo in her home country.“Anything to contribute towards the conscientization and awakening of the minds of Uganda and Ugandans, I will keep doing,” she said. “I don’t have to be in Uganda to post anything on Facebook, and my most damaging work to Yoweri Museveni has been online.”
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Afghan Government Says It Won’t Tolerate Violence After Hezb-e Islami Threats
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of Hezb–e Islami (Islamic Party), has threatened to stage a large protest to topple the Afghan government if the 2016 peace agreement that they both signed is not fully implemented. The Afghan government said security forces will not allow any group to use violence for political gains. VOA’s Hasib Maududi reports from Kabul.
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Canadian Cruise Ship Ban Flattens Alaska Tourism Prospects
Popular cruises up Canada’s scenic Pacific coast to Alaska have become the latest victim of the coronavirus pandemic, creating a new source of friction between Canada and the United States.Canada’s Transport Ministry announced last week it was extending a prohibition of passenger cruise vessels carrying more than 100 people visiting its ports through the end of February 2022, effectively canceling the 2021 Alaska cruise season and cutting off an important source of revenue to the northernmost U.S. state.The reaction from Alaska was swift and predictable. In a terse statement, the state’s two U.S. senators and sole member of the House of Representatives charged that the decision was made arbitrarily with no consultation or advance notice. The statement also said it was made with no consideration for Alaska or its economy.The cruises, which weave through a network of coastal islands amid glaciers, fjords and towering pristine forests, are highly popular. According to the Alaska Travel Industry Association, the cruises accounted for 1,331,600 or 60% of all visitors to the state in 2019.Cruise ships near downtown Juneau, Alaska, in May 2019, in this view from from Mount Juneau.Last year, the state had projected a further 5% increase in cruise passengers before all sailings were canceled. Alaska tourism has been further set back by a closing of land borders between Canada and the United States.Sarah Leonard, CEO of the Alaska Travel Industry Association, told VOA she was not surprised to see the ban on the cruises extended but had not expected it to last for so long.She called for U.S. government assistance to heavily impacted businesses and workers and suggested a temporary waiver to the Passenger Vessel Services Act that will allow cruise ships to sail from American ports, like Seattle, directly to Alaska without stopping at Canadian ports.The act, established in 1886, prohibits cruise ships from sailing directly between American ports. This means Alaska-bound cruise ships must embark from Canada or stop at a Canadian port like Vancouver.“We’ve long advocated since the beginning of the pandemic for a potential temporary waiver of that federal legislation, which would again potentially allow large ship cruise passengers or large ship cruise operations to travel to Alaska,” Leonard said.One of the major stops for the cruise ships is the small town of Skagway, Alaska, with a population of 1,000 people. Located within the so-called Inside Passage on the Alaska panhandle, it often sees upwards of 20,000 cruise visitors a day during the travel season.According to the Alaska Visitor Volume Report, more than 1 million cruise passengers visited Skagway during the summer of 2019.Skagway Mayor Andrew Cremata says cruise passengers normally account for 95% of the local economy, representing some $160 million in revenue for local businesses. He says writing a strongly worded letter to the Canadian government is not going to help Skagway.“There’s nobody living here in Skagway that isn’t feeling the effects in some way,” said Cremata, who, besides being mayor, works as a part-time tour guide during the cruise season.“I mean, there are people, you know — my wife has a full-time job still and I have a lot of work, I’m able to get online — but we were definitely impacted,” he told VOA. “Some people, if they made their primary income from tourism, you know, they’re devastated.”Like Leonard, Cremata would like to see more federal stimulus money from the U.S. government and a waiver to the Passenger Vessel Services Act.It is not only Alaska that will feel the loss of the passenger cruises. The Canadian city of Vancouver is the main starting point for most ships heading to ports of call in Alaska, with nearby Seattle providing competition.According to the Port of Vancouver, 2019 was a record-breaking year with more than 288 cruise ship visits — a 22% increase from the previous year. The season for Alaska-bound cruise ships usually runs from the beginning of April to the end of October.FILE – In this July 28, 2014, file photo, a cruise ship passenger takes photos of Alaska’s Inside Passage. The Canadian government has extended a ban on cruise ships through February 2022.Walt Judas, CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia, worries that any temporary waiver to the Passenger Vessel Services Act might become permanent, meaning potential disaster for tourism in Canada’s westernmost province.“Once you set a precedent like that, even if only on a temporary basis, who’s to stop a lobby from making that permanent? And so that would be a big concern, if you start to sail from, say, Alaska to Seattle, and vice versa, and you cut out the Canadian ports,” said Judas. “Now, you’ve lost a huge amount of business for the visitor economy. And for the economy in general. We’re talking more than $2 billion [Canadian] in economic impact.”Like many in the tourism industry, the length of the closure took Judas by surprise.He is still hoping, with enough pressure on the Canadian government and positive developments in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, that the decision might be reversed in time to salvage some part of this year’s cruise season.“We hope that we can see some progress in the months ahead and try to work with government on the criteria by which we could see a partial cruise season before the end of the year,” he said.Tourism Vancouver, the city’s convention and visitors bureau, estimates each ship’s visit brings upwards of $2.2 million in immediate spin-off benefits, including stays in local Vancouver hotels. Many visitors continue on to visit other areas in the region.To make matters worse, the Vancouver convention and conference business has virtually disappeared, furthering the economic impact of the pandemic on the local tourism industry.
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WHO Sends Ebola Vaccine to Guinea
The World Health Organization said Thursday it is sending 11,000 doses of Ebola vaccine and more than 100 experts to Guinea to address an Ebola outbreak in the West African nation.
Speaking in a virtual news conference from her headquarters in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, WHO Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti said officials are also expecting an additional 8,600 doses of vaccine from the United States, for a total of nearly 20,000 shots. She expects them to arrive by Sunday and Ebola vaccinations to begin by Monday.
Health officials in Guinea declared an epidemic Sunday after three cases were detected in Gouécké, a rural community in N’Zerekore prefecture. At least one victim there has died. It is the first Ebola outbreak in Guinea since 2016 when a large one was brought under control.
Moeti said the WHO released $1.25 million to support the response in Guinea and to show its “readiness” in the neighboring countries of Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Senegal and Sierra Leone. She said the epicenter of the outbreak was in the border area, so the entire sub-region is on high alert.
Meanwhile, the WHO said there four confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including two deaths. The agency has around 20 experts supporting national and provincial health authorities in the DRC.
The United Nations announced it is releasing $15 million from its emergency relief fund to help fight the outbreaks in both Guinea and the DRC.
Ebola is an acute severe viral illness and is extremely lethal. It is characterized by sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache, nausea and sore throat. This can be followed by vomiting, diarrhea, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding.
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Hotel Rwanda Figure Appears in Court as Supporters Denounce ‘Show Trial’
Paul Rusesabagina, a humanitarian and activist who is depicted in the Oscar-nominated film Hotel Rwanda, appeared in court Wednesday, accused of supporting rebel groups. His family and human rights groups say he was kidnapped by the Rwandan government and they are demanding his immediate release. VOA’s Salem Solomon has the story.Produced by: Jon Spier and Salem Solomon
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NATO Defers on Afghanistan Pullout, Calls on Taliban to Negotiate in ‘Good Faith’
NATO defense ministers wrapped up a two-day, virtual meeting Thursday, refusing to commit to a deadline to withdraw forces from Afghanistan by May 1, as required by last year’s agreement between the United States and the Taliban.Instead, the alliance called upon the Taliban to negotiate in “good faith” and said NATO members would continue to consult about possible next steps, holding out hope talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government may be able to produce a lasting peace.“We are faced with the many dilemmas and there are no easy options,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters, saying no decision has been made.“If we stay beyond the first of May, we risk more violence, we risk more attacks against our own troops, and we risk, of course, also to be part of a continued presence in Afghanistan that will be difficult,” he said. “But if we leave, then we also risk that the gains we have made are lost and that Afghanistan again could become a safe haven for international terrorists.” Stoltenberg also warned the Taliban against launching their traditional spring offensive, which usually begins sometime in March, after the top U.S. general in Afghanistan indicated preparations for the military campaign may be under way.“Any increase in violence will undermine the peace efforts,” he said. “We are actually expecting the opposite. We are, we are expecting that the Taliban reduces violence and by that demonstrating faith in the peace negotiations.” General Scott Miller, the head of U.S. forces and the NATO-led noncombat Resolute Support mission, told the Reuters news agency this week that despite the May 1 deadline, Taliban violence has been “much higher than historical norms.”“It just doesn’t create the conditions to move forward in what is hopefully a historic turning point for Afghanistan,” Miller said. Taliban, Russian claimsDespite such concerns, Taliban officials, in recent days, have publicly argued that they have fulfilled terms of the February 2020 deal with the United States.In an open letter posted online earlier this week, top Taliban negotiator Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar urged the U.S. “to remain committed to the full implementation” of the February 2020 deal. Taliban Urges US Public to Demand Early Pullout From AfghanistanBiden administration is reviewing whether the Taliban is honoring its commitments before deciding to withdraw remaining 2,500 US troopsRussia, on Wednesday, backed the Taliban’s claims.“The Taliban adhere to the agreement almost flawlessly — not a single American soldier has died since the agreement was signed — which cannot be said about the Americans,” Russia’s presidential envoy to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, was quoted as saying by the state-owned Sputnik News Agency.Russia Alleges US, Not Taliban, Breaching Afghan Peace DealRussia’s presidential envoy to Afghanistan spoke ahead of Wednesday’s NATO conference aimed at determining whether to meet a May 1 deadline agreed to with the Taliban for the withdrawal of US and allied troops from AfghanistanHowever, Stoltenberg Thursday said NATO forces have been closely monitoring conditions on the ground in Afghanistan, indicating the Taliban’s compliance with the terms of the agreement are in doubt.”The Taliban needs to negotiate in good faith. Violence has to be reduced. And the Taliban has to stop cooperating with international terrorist groups that are planning terrorist attacks on our own countries, on allied countries,” he said. “This has been conveyed many times.”U.S. drawdownThere are about 10,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan, including 2,500 from the United States — down sharply from the 100,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan a decade ago.But the prospect of a complete withdrawal has raised concerns by some Afghan officials, something that has not gone unnoticed by U.S. officials.In a statement following the NATO ministerial Thursday, the Pentagon said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “reassured allies that the U.S. would not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan.”“And he made clear that he is committed to consulting with allies and partners throughout this process,” it said.In a call Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken likewise sought to assure Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that Washington does not intend to leave Afghanistan in turmoil.”The secretary reiterated America’s commitment to support the peace process, aiming for a just and durable political settlement and permanent and comprehensive cease-fire,” the State Department said in a readout of the call on Thursday.Sediq Sediqqi, a former Afghan presidential spokesman and now the deputy minister of interior affairs, tweeted Thursday that NATO’s refusal to withdraw early, in accordance with Taliban demands, was a “significant step.”“It means that the Taliban can not [sic] get away with the violence,” Sediqi wrote. “It means the game has rules. It means no more concessions will be awarded.”It is a significant decision and a major step. It means that the Taliban can not get away with the violence. It means the game has rules. It means no more concessions will be awarded. Taliban must adhere to a real peace process that will end their violence and terrorism. https://t.co/pmdqL4xNWy— Sediq Sediqqi (@SediqSediqqi) February 18, 2021Negotiating in good faithDespite cautious optimism by NATO and Afghan officials to the U.S. approach, there is also more reason to worry, with many pointing to a growing collection of intelligence that raises doubts about the Taliban’s desire to live up to the agreement with the U.S. and about its intentions regarding ongoing talks with the Afghan government.“The Taliban views the negotiations with the Afghan Islamic Republic negotiating team as necessary to ensure U.S. forces leave Afghanistan,” U.S. Defense Department Acting Inspector General Sean O’Donnell wrote in a report released Wednesday, citing U.S. defense intelligence.O’Donnell additionally accused the Taliban of negotiating in bad faith, writing its commanders are “employing violence across the country in a strategic effort to increase its leverage.”The intelligence has some former officials and experts questioning whether the U.S.-Taliban deal can be saved.“I do not think it can be fixed. I think we need to go back to square one,” Ryan Crocker, who served as U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan under former President Barack Obama, told VOA’s Afghan service.“It’s absolutely critical that the message be: we will stay as long as it takes,” Crocker added. “We need to see, the world needs to see, the Afghan people above all need to see, and be part of a relatively, reasonably stable, reasonably secure country.”Bradley Bowman, with Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said that the increased violence alone, should be cause for concern.“I think it just makes the case that if this is how they’re behaving when they’re supposedly on their best behavior, just imagine how they’re going to behave once all the American troops are gone, or how and when NATO is gone,” he said. VOA’s Afghan Service contributed to this report; Ayaz Gul contributed from Islamabad.
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Fallout Mounts From Canada Canceling Alaska Cruise Season Due to Pandemic
Canada’s cancellation of the 2021 Alaska cruise ship season due to the coronavirus pandemic has angered the U.S. state’s politicians and rattled the tourism industry in both countries. Those on the ground in both Alaska and the Canadian province of British Columbia are dealing with the fallout.Citing continuing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian Transportation Ministry has extended the prohibition of any passenger cruise vessels carrying over 100 people between Canada and Alaska. The order extends through February 2022.
In a terse statement, Alaska’s U.S. congressional delegation complained that the decision was made arbitrarily by Canada with no consultation or advance notice. The statement, from the two U.S. senators and the state’s only representative, also says it was made without any consideration for Alaska or the state’s economy. FILE – The Grand Princess cruise ship in Gastineau Channel in Juneau, Alaska, May 30, 2018.According to the Alaska Travel Industry Association, in 2019 the state welcomed more than 1.3 million visitors who arrived on cruise ships, comprising 60 percent of the state’s summer visitors.
The association’s CEO, Sarah Leonard, is urging a temporary waiver to the U.S. Passenger Vessel Services Act to allow cruise ships to sail from American ports, like Seattle, directly to Alaska. Adopted in 1886, the act still prohibits cruise ships from sailing directly between American ports, forcing Alaska-bound vessels to either start from or stop in Canada. “We’ve long advocated since the beginning of the pandemic for a potential temporary waiver of that federal legislation, which would again potentially allow large ship cruise passengers or large ship cruise operations to travel to Alaska,” she said.
Vancouver, British Columbia, is the principal starting point for most cruise ships heading to ports of call in Alaska, with nearby Seattle providing competition. According to the Port of Vancouver, 2019 was a record-breaking year with more than 288 cruise ship visits, a 22 percent increase from the previous year.
Walt Judas is the CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia.He is concerned a temporary waiver to the Passenger Vessel Services Act might become permanent to the detriment of British Columbia’s tourism industry. “Once you set a precedent like that, even if only on a temporary basis, who’s to stop a lobby from making that permanent? And so that would be a big concern, if you start to sail from, say, Alaska to Seattle, and vice versa, and you cut out the Canadian ports. Now, you’ve lost a huge amount of business for the visitor economy. And for the economy. In general, we’re talking more than $2 billion [Canadian] in economic impact,” said Judas.
The Vancouver Convention and Visitors Bureau estimates each ship’s visit brings at least $2.2 million in economic benefits, including Vancouver hotel bookings before and after cruises. FILE – The Carnival Spirit cruise ship sits docked at Canada Place as a seabus (R) commuter boat makes its way across the inner harbor in Vancouver, British Columbia, Sept.17, 2008.
Judas is still hoping, with enough pressure on the Canadian government and positive development in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, that there might be a way to salvage at least a portion of the cruise ship season this year.
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Spain Hopes to Capitalize on Fresh US Approach to Venezuela
The arrival of U.S. President Joe Biden in the White House has ushered in hopes for a new approach towards one of the thorniest foreign policy questions – how to restore democracy in Venezuela. As the U.S seeks to rebuild ties with European allies that became distanced during the presidency of Donald Trump, analysts say Venezuela will be one of many tests of this new relationship.In Madrid, the left-wing government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has cheered Biden and what it hopes will be his fresh approach to relations with a region that both nations consider their backyard. Because of its historical ties to Latin America, Spain has been at the forefront of European efforts to negotiate with the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in order to push for democratic change. During the Trump era, talk in Washington of using military clashed with the EU strategy of seeking to force change through sanctions while maintaining a peaceful dialogue with both the Maduro government and opposition groups. FILE – Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez embraces a person after participating in a popular consultation launched by opposition leader Juan Guaido to decline Venezuela’s Dec. 6 parliamentary election, in Bogota, Colombia Dec. 12, 2020.White House press secretary Jen Psaki recently laid out the new U.S. government’s approach to the political crisis in Venezuela.The Biden administration “will focus on addressing the humanitarian situation, providing support to Venezuelan people and reinvigorating multilateral diplomacy to press for a democratic outcome and pursue individuals involved in corruption, human rights abuses,” she said.Worsening political situationIn Venezuela, meanwhile, the political situation worsened at the end of 2020 after legislative elections in December were criticized by the opposition and the EU as lacking legitimacy. Venezuela is mired in a deep institutional crisis. The Maduro government exercises power without international credibility but faces a divided opposition which has no clear road map for how to wrestle control of the nation. The economic situation for 30 million Venezuelans is even more volatile, with many barely able to cover basic needs such as food, health and access to public services. The International Monetary Fund expects inflation to rise by 6,500% this year. Despite the growing convergence on policy, Washington and its European allies disagree on how to deal with the Venezuelan opposition. Unlike the U.S., Brussels has refused to recognize Juan Guiadó as the de-facto president of Venezuela. Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya said this week the EU supported the Venezuelan opposition movement and called for a “humanitarian response” as well as a “dialogue between all political forces and social actors” within the country. However, she said that the opposition movement must seek more “unity and strength.” In a signal that Madrid aligns itself with Biden’s foreign policy, Gonzalez Laya added: “I listened carefully to the statements of the U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, where he clearly explained that the strategy followed in recent years had not worked and that it and that it was necessary to work with all U.S. allies to promote a change in Venezuela and that is where Spain will be of course.” FILE – Secretary of State Antony Blinken.The decision not to recognize Guaidó as interim president angered some elements of the Venezuelan opposition. Isadora Zubillaga, deputy foreign minister in Guaido’s interim government, described the EU’s position as “muddled” in a Politico article. Sanctions may become aligned Analysts said that while Biden has indicated he wants to pursue a peaceful resolution of the Venezuelan situation, he remains committed to sanctions. Carlos Malamud, an analyst who specializes in Latin America at the Real Elcano Institute, a Madrid think tank, believes the U.S. sanctions policy towards Venezuela will change. “I think they may become more aligned towards the European Union which maintains committed to collective sanctions,” he told VOA in an interview.The sanctions blacklist on Venezuela may be expanded, the EU said recently, warning Maduro against further crackdowns on the opposition. Brussels placed an arms embargo on Venezuela, froze certain assets and imposed a travel ban on 36 people aligned to the Maduro government. Geoff Ramsey, director for Venezuela at WOLA: Advocacy for Human Rights in the Americas, expects Biden to use a “carrot and the stick” strategy with Maduro’s government. “Moving forward, it’s very likely we’ll see a clearer emphasis on negotiations leading to free and fair elections,” he told VOA. “None of this means Biden will let up the pressure. The president has been quite clear that he sees sanctions as a valid tool for free, fair and credible elections in Venezuela and is not going to lift U.S. sanctions with nothing in exchange.”
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New Allegations on France’s Role in Rwanda Genocide Put Pressure on Fact-Finding Commission
Two years ago, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a fact-finding commission of historians to shed full light on a less glorious past: notably France’s role in Rwanda’s 1994 genocide.
Now, with the Duclert Commission expected to present its conclusions in a matter of weeks, new findings suggest the country did more than commit “errors” nearly three decades ago, as one former French leader once said.
Extracts from French Foreign Ministry cables at that time, recently published by investigative website Mediapart and Agence France-Presse, appear to show Paris was aware genocide suspects were hiding in a French-army-controlled “safe-zone” in Rwanda following the slaughter—and did nothing to arrest them. Instead, the ministry instructed its envoy to Rwanda, Yannick Gerard, to request their departure from the area.
The allegations have sparked sharp debate, even outrage, in recent days. But they are simply the latest to trickle out from interviews and archives from former President Francois Mitterrand’s government at the time—documents that nonetheless remain largely inaccessible except to a handful of scholars. Together, they add pressure on the Duclert Commission for a comprehensive and transparent accounting of France’s role across the horrific arc of the genocide that killed more than 800,000 people.
“For us, it’s an extra element that confirms what we’ve denounced for years,” said Thomas Borrel, a spokesman for Survie (Survival), a victims’ rights association that won access to the Mitterrand archives last year. “We hope this new discovery will prevent any kind of conclusion in the [Duclert] report that seeks to legitimize French action at the time.”
Macron, for his part, has promised an honest accounting by the commission—whose report is due in early April.
“We owe it to ourselves to look at our past in its entirety, without any desire to conceal or self-flagellate,” he said in a November interview with The Africa Report.
Like his recent predecessors, Macron has sought to mend long-fraught ties with Kigali over Paris’ role in the mass slaughter, inviting his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame to visit the French capital in 2018.FILE – Names of victims of one of many Rwanda genocide massacres are seen on panels at the Bisesero Genocide Memorial in Bisesero, western Rwanda, Dec. 2, 2020.France also championed the successful but controversial nomination of Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo to head the Paris-based International Organization of la Francophonie, although Kigali has long pivoted toward English and Mushikiwabo’s mastery of French reportedly was shaky.
“What we fear is closer diplomatic ties between Paris and Kigali to the detriment of the truth,” said Borrel of the Survie group, about his fears the Duclert Commission report will whitewash its findings.
Borrel points to the departure of one commission member late last year, after her allegedly favorable take on France’s military role during the genocide was reported in the press.
The French Foreign Ministry cables offer a different take on events.
They were disclosed by another Survie member, researcher Francois Graner, who was granted access to the Mitterrand archives. The instructions from Paris were signed by Bernard Emie, a former diplomatic adviser who now heads France’s DGSE secret service.
They are part of a raft of allegations trickling out over the years of what France knew—and what it did—not only during, but also before and after the genocide. Others include reports the country delivered weapons to Rwanda’s government before the slaughter, which largely targeted Tutsis and moderate Hutus, and provided visas to alleged genocide perpetrators afterwards.
They underscore a once-close relationship between Paris and the Hutu-dominated government of the time, which analysts say was forged in a bid to maintain French influence in the country.
France has never apologized for any role in the genocide, but in 2010, former President Nicolas Sarkozy recognized “errors.”
Recent years have seen a number of arrests of genocide suspects in France, including last May, when French police nabbed the alleged genocide “financier” Felicien Kabuga, who had been hiding outside Paris for years.
But several dozen suspects remain at large, or have yet to be brought to trial, says Alain Gauthier, who heads a genocide survivors’ group with his Rwandan wife.
“We continue to denounce the slowness of the French justice system, we find it insupportable,” Gauthier said. “Some people being pursued are in their ‘80s, and they may die before being brought to justice.”
But Gauthier says he will keep an open mind when it comes to the Duclert Commission and its forthcoming report.
“Let it do its work and we’ll see what comes out of it,” he said. “If it doesn’t produce what we hope, we’ll say so.”
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Pakistan Declares Trio of Missing K2 Climbers Dead
Officials and families Thursday pronounced dead three climbers nearly two weeks after the men disappeared during their ascent of Pakistan’s K2, the world’s second-highest peak at 8,611 meters.
Iceland’s John Snorri, Chile’s Juan Pablo Mohr, and their Pakistani partner, Muhammad Ali Sadpara, had lost contact with base camp on February 5 during their attempt to conquer what is known as the “Savage Mountain.”Our press release this morning ❤https://t.co/O4wdasluHrpic.twitter.com/cgd6FDHjQ6— John Snorri (@john_snorri) February 18, 2021
An unprecedented search-and-rescue mission was immediately undertaken, involving Pakistani military aircraft and high-altitude climbers, in coordination with Icelandic and Chilean authorities. The effort to trace the missing climbers failed.
Raja Nasir Ali Khan, minister for tourism in Pakistan’s scenic Gilgit-Baltistan, where K2 is located, told reporters that experts concluded that a human being cannot survive for that long in such harsh weather.
“That’s why we are announcing that they are no more,” Khan said, adding that the search for bodies would continue.
A representative for Snorri and Mohr at the news conference read a statement on behalf of their families, saying all the three men were “strong mountaineers” and determined to make history by standing on top of K2 this winter.
“My family have lost a kind father and the Pakistani nation has lost a great, brave and experienced mountaineer,” said Sajid Ali Sadpara, son of the deceased Pakistani mountaineer.
The latest deaths bring to five the number of climbers killed during K2 winter expedition this year.
FILE – Porters set up tents at the Concordia camping site in front of K2 summit in the Karakoram range of Pakistan’s northern Gilgit region, Aug. 14, 2019.Bulgarian alpinist Atanas Skatov died earlier this month on K2. A renowned Spanish climber, Sergi Mingote, fell to his death last month while descending the mountain.
“Very sad moment. We lost our friends, 5 strong climbers, during K2 winter expedition 2021, especially Muhammad Ali Sadpara our national hero,” said Karrar Haidri, a spokesman for the private Alpine Club of Pakistan, which promotes mountaineering in the country.
Last month, a 10-member team of Nepali climbers made history when they became the first to conquer K2 in winter. Nirmal “Nims” Purja, Dawa Tenji Sherpa (team MG), Mingma G, Dawa Temba Sherpa and Pem Chiri Sherpa, Mingma David Sherpa, Mingma Tenzi Sherpa, Nimsdai Purja and Gelje Sherpa are seen before the winter attack on K2, Pakistan, Jan. 5, 2021.
The peak, located in the Karakoram range along the Chinese border, was the last of the world’s 14 tallest mountains higher than 8,000 meters to be climbed in winter.
K2 is about 200 meters shorter than Nepal’s Mount Everest, which is the world’s tallest peak and part of the Himalayan range.
International climbers, however, describe K2 as “technically hardest” and challenging because summit winds reach hurricane force and still-air temperatures are well below -65 degrees Celsius (-85 Fahrenheit).
Since 1954, up to 86 climbers have died in their attempt to scale K2.
While more than 6,500 people have climbed Everest, only 337 have conquered K2 to date.
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