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Tag: Global Capitalism

Cobalt: Mined By Children For Use In Your Favorite Gadgets’ Rechargeable Batteries

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

In recent years, activists and independent media have brought attention to “conflict minerals,” key components in technology that are often sourced from war-torn countries. And a recent report from a major human rights group sounds the alarm on a largely overlooked metal that’s being mined by thousands of children and underpaid adults in Africa.

Amnesty International issued the results of its detailed investigation into the sourcing of cobalt, a rare metal that forms a crucial ingredient of lithium-based rechargeable batteries, in a Jan. 19 report. According to the authors, more than half the world’s cobalt comes from Congo, including at least 20 percent which comes from so-called “artisanal miners” in the southern part of the country.

“These artisanal miners, referred to as ‘creuseurs’ in the DRC, mine by hand using the most basic tools to dig out rocks from tunnels deep underground,” according to the report, “This Is What We Die For.” “Artisanal miners include children as young as seven who scavenge for rocks containing cobalt in the discarded by-products of industrial mines, and who wash and sort the ore before it is sold.”

Airbnb Is Renting ‘Illegal’ And ‘Criminal’ Homes In Apartheid Israel’s Settlements

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Though the sharing economy may offer new avenues for income, it’s also contributing to an old problem: Israel’s ever-expanding, illegal occupation of Palestine.

Human rights experts widely agree that apartheid Israel’s settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territoriesviolate international law. This, it seems, is not a problem for Airbnb: The website and smartphone app which lets users rent a room in someone’s house or unused apartment, lists dozens of properties in illegal Israeli settlements.

Kate Shuttleworth and Julia Carrie Wong, writing on Jan. 13 for The Guardian, reported that the listings are “raising questions about the technology platform’s legal position in profiting from rentals on the land.”

Despite Setbacks, The Fight To Stop TPP Spills Into 2016

Posted in Archive, Journalism, and MintPress News

A new year brings new challenges and new opportunities for the international movement opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a controversial trade deal that activists say threatens to allow corporate power to overrule democracy.

Despite widespread opposition and controversy, President Barack Obama and other world leaders are expected to sign the agreement in Auckland, New Zealand, in early February, according to a Jan. 12 report from the New Zealand Herald.

Opposition to the TPP comes from many fronts. There are concerns about how the deal undermines food safety, the local food movement and consumer rights, as well as its potentially devastating effects on intellectual property laws and the price of prescription drugs.

Israel Receives $3.1B In US Aid While The Middle East’s Poor Struggle To Survive

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Every year, Israel receives billions of dollars in U.S. aid, despite the fact that its citizens enjoy a standard of living well above that of neighboring countries. And while the Middle East struggles through a historic refugee crisis, Israel is using U.S. taxpayer money to fuel its war crimes against Palestine and oppression of refugees.

The average income of Israel’s citizens is $34,990, based on 2014 data provided by the World Bank. For neighboring countries, that figure is far lower: Residents of Lebanon earn an average of $9,800 annually, followed by other Israeli neighbors including Jordan ($5,160), Egypt ($3,050), and Syria, where the average resident survived on just $1,860 in 2014, according to the World Bank’s data. For occupied Palestine, the World Bank offers a data sheet on the West Bank and Gaza, which estimates that the average resident makes $3,060 annually.

Against this backdrop of relative financial comfort for its residents, Israel received over $3.1 billion in foreign aid from the United States in 2015, the same amount received in 2014. The money goes directly to its military budget, where it fuels Israel’s war crimes against the Palestinian population, as well as its defense of its illegal occupation of the Golan Heights.

US And UK Arm Child Soldiers At World’s Largest Arms Fair In London

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Against the objections of the United Nations, this week the United States and the United Kingdom together helped arm the world’s child soldiers.

Tuesday through Friday this week, the British capital played host to the world’s largest arms fair, Defence and Security Equipment International, where global arms vendors — many from the U.S. — sell their wares to world governments seeking to upgrade their arsenals. The event was expected to draw 32,000 visitors from 60 countries, including multiple nations that make use of child soldiers in violation of international law.

According to a report from The Guardian, of the 23 nations known by the United Nations to use child soldiers, the U.K. sold arms to 19 of them during the past five years.

Boycott On Aisle Three: Avoid These 6 Products That Support Israeli Apartheid

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, which supports an end to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine, is growing fast, in part because of how easy it is for people to participate. One of the simplest ways to support BDS is by making the right choices at the grocery store.

More Americans than ever support Palestinian liberation, and the movement is spreading to a record number of college campuses. It’s becoming such a threat to Israeli imperialism that opponents are pouring millions into opposing BDS, even enlisting NBA players and Hollywood celebrities. The U.S. government is consideringlegal options to fight the movement and presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton recently declared her opposition to BDS.

However, the campaigns waged by the movement’s wealthy opponents are no match for the Internet. Several websites help consumers avoid companies and products with ties to Israeli occupation. The following list is compiled from bdslist.org, bdsmovement.net and a 2013 report from Alternet’s Alex Kane: