December 2016
Issue 17
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
Children of Gaza
Developing World Fund
Christmas Appeal Twenty three years since the establishment of the NIPSA Developing World Fund in June 1993 we have donated over £627,000 to selfhelp projects throughout the world. Over the years the NIPSA Developing World Fund has helped support many extremely poor and vulnerable people in the world. We have reported on two projects we are currently supporting on pages 13 and 17 of the Newsletter. Details of some of the other projects supported are included in the map on page 22 to 23 of the Newsletter. This show of solidarity is possible because of the regular contributions we receive from donors on a monthly basis through Give As You Earn (GAYE) and gift aid. To date we have 230 donors who contribute regularly to the Fund. Just think how much more we could do if more members agreed to contribute to this charitable Fund. We would like to say a big thank you to all our donors for their donations over the years. Throughout the world millions of profoundly poor people are struggling for basic subsistence. At NIPSA we believe that global poverty is a moral challenge on the same scale as the dreadful working conditions and economic exploitation that moved the pioneer trade unionists to action 200 or so years ago. We are delighted that some members share this view; we hope others will follow by making a regular donation. See the donor form on the back cover. Please support the NIPSA Developing World Fund and make a difference to the lives of profoundly poor people around the world this Christmas.
Free T Free trade deals are in the news again. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU has been held up by Belgium and Donald Trump, now President of the USA (really) has indicated that he intends to tear up the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), as soon as he gets installed in the White House and completes a garish redecoration of the Oval Office. (He’s bound to.)
Adam Smith and the Wealth of Nations
Trade agreements are not a new phenomenon of course and in many regards, modern agreements claim their lineage back to the ideas promulgated by Adam Smith in his treatise – the Wealth of Nations, first published in 1776 and in his other writings. A Moral Philosopher and Political Economist, Smith’s ideas later inspired the Manchester based Anti Corn Law League in their overturning of the Corn Laws in 1846. The Corn Laws were a protectionist measure which imposed tariffs on imported wheat and thus maintained the higher price of food in Britain. The laws were supported by the land owning aristocracy who controlled domestic food production and benefited from the absence of competition, but opposed by the many textile factory workers in Manchester, who bore the main burden of higher prices. With their emerging power, the Industrial working class were able to secure a consequential increase in wages from the Mill owners. But the additional labour costs were added to the price of finished goods for export, arguably making them less competitive. The victory over the Corn Laws heralded a new era in the British Empire, based on free trade and a laissez faire attitude to economic or other regulation. Henceforth, as Adam Smith had asserted, “the invisible hand” of the market would Ref A4_0645
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
Trade
the theory and the reality by Michael Robinson, NIPSA Global Solidarity Committee For example, it made sense that Britain would export Whiskey, which it could make well and import wine, which it could not, because of climate. This ensuing trade and the tax generated, would unlock resources beyond the mere exploitation of the natural mineral wealth and agricultural production controlled by a land owning aristocracy.
Courtesy of National Galleries Scotland via Wikipedia
However, he understood too, that without the agency of the state, rudimentary as it might have been in the 1700s, corporations would rush to merger and monopoly and maximise profit, not through efficient production in the context of competition, but by simply ensuring scarcity of supply and the fixing of prices within a cartel.
Adam Smith ensure economic equilibrium, without bothersome “interference” from the state. Margaret Thatcher is said to have kept a copy of the Wealth of Nations book in her handbag.
Manufacturers, Merchants and the Most Suspicious Attention
Alas, Adam Smith is just as misunderstood and often as misquoted as Karl Marx. He had envisaged a ‘political economy’ in which free trade between nations would offer opportunities to grow domestic economies by appropriate specialisation and division of labour in the production of manufactured goods for export, from which to fund the import of goods that could not be as affordably produced by them.
He went even further, warning that the interest of manufacturers and merchants “...in any particular branch of trade or manufactures, is always in some respects different from, and even opposite to, that of the public...The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention.” Smith envisaged the net worth of such commerce generated, being shared within the ‘Nation’ (state) for the benefit of society. Unlike Thatcher, Smith did believe that there was such a thing as “society”. He also thought the state should, amongst other things – provide public goods such as infrastructure, provide national defence and regulate banking. It was also the role of government to provide goods “of such a nature that the profit could never repay the expense to any individual” such as roads, bridges, canals, and harbours. He also supported monopoly arrangements to protect developing industries. Views expressed in this Newsletter are not, unless otherwise stated, the views of NIPSA.
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Free Trade in the Modern World
nationalised industries. The IMF is maintained in the role of overseer (or undertaker) of the necessary Alas Free Trade Agreements forged in the modern economic and political arrangements. world are framed in a different context than that of the ‘most scrupulous and suspicious attention’ Free trade in the modern context, is essentially a envisaged by Adam Smith, even though his Moral licence to roam for corporations. They can locate Philosophy and Political Economy is often cited to and relocate according the tax advantages of various jurisdictions and declare profits in jurisdictions sanctify them. different to that in which they carried out their My colleague Ian Boersma has described in the April activity. 2016 edition of the NIPSA Global Solidarity magazine, the nature and effect of the proposed Transatlantic Google’s ‘Double Irish’ being a case in point. TransferTrade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Noting the pricing within a company can ensure that a “loss” is Investor State Dispute Settlement procedures at declared, with any actual ‘surplus’ (profit) being ‘offshored’, where it will have no beneficial impact on the core of TTIP, Ian warned – any economy. The investigation into Apple (Ireland) “Corporations will also be given privileged early access by the European Commission, revealed a deliberately to proposed public policy legislation, potentially opaque and complex company structure, with leading to what some have described as a “chilling manufacturing off-shored to China, at wages and effect”, in other words governments will be reluctant conditions condemned by the International Labour to put forward legislation that large corporations are Organisation and others. The company used likely to be hostile to. ‘transfer pricing’ and tax avoidance/evasion that the EU investigation found to amount to €13bn.
The Arbitration Game
Concern at such provisions is far from limited to those of us in the union movement. Indeed in an article in the Economist (yes the Economist) titled “The Arbitration Game”, (11 October 2014), the author stated:
Adam Smith must be spinning in his grave.
Speak Softly and Carry a Big (Regulatory) Stick
Yet the nature of corporate power, left unchecked, “If you wanted to convince the public that international has been known for some time. Here’s what Theodore trade agreements are a way to let multinational Roosevelt, President of the USA from 1901 – 09 had corporations get rich at the expense of ordinary people, to say in an earlier era: this is what you would do; give foreign firms a special “These great corporations rarely want anything right to apply to a secret tribunal of highly paid corporate from the government except to be let alone and lawyers for compensation whenever a government to be permitted to work their will unchecked by passes a law to, say, discourage smoking, protect the the government. All that they really want is that environment or prevent a nuclear catastrophe. Yet that governmental action shall be limited. In every great is precisely what thousands of trade and investment corporation suit, the corporation lawyer will be found treaties over the past half century have done, through protesting against extension of governmental power. a process known as “investor-state dispute settlement”, Every court decision favouring a corporation takes the or ISDS.” form of declaring unconstitutional some extension of governmental power. Every corporation magnate in Bretton Woods and a Licence to Roam the country who is not dealing honestly and fairly by A number of measures were necessary to bring his fellows, asks nothing better than that.... there be the modern world to the situation of virtually stringent limitations of governmental power.” untrammelled corporate power that we now face. They are largely the result of the capture of the post EU Too? war Bretton Woods institutions – the World Bank The corporate lobby groups that dominate American and the IMF. Once Keynesian and expansionist, they politics are not the only interested parties in all have been captured by adherents of the ‘Washington this. In the EU, the European Services Forum (ESF), Consensus’ - neo-liberal dogmatists who hold that champions the same self interest. Representing the loans given by the World Bank, must be made global services companies such as Deutsche Bank conditional on requirements for the liberalisation and Microsoft, the European Commission helped to of trade, investment and the financial sector, establish the Forum in 1999, with Trade Secretary, together with the deregulation and privatisation of
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© World Economic Forum/Natalie Behring. Wikipedia. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.
Few would disagree that globalisation has its dark side. I understand the concerns of those who feel under pressure as they face the impact of growing foreign competition. But open markets and economic integration are still by far the best tool we have for increasing global economic welfare, including our own prosperity at home. But Peter, now Baron Mandelson, wasn’t just interested in the ‘invisible hand’ of the market to generate global economic welfare, there were political considerations in world trade. “This is not just about economics. It’s also about politics. Global economic welfare is an essential component of global stability. Only stable, co-operating states can manage the growing squeeze on vital resources such as energy, food and water. “
Peter Mandelson
In light of the various ‘liberal’ interventions across the world, by the USA, UK, France, NATO et al, to ensure that states are sufficiently ‘co-operative’ with the Neo-Liberal order, Mandelson’s words are quite chilling.
Leon Brittan saying at the launch meeting – “I am in your hands...I count on your support and inputs.”
Who speaks for Fair trade?
New Labour – Same Danger
The Thatcherite Leon Brittan, was followed in the post of EU Trade Secretary by Peter Mandelson. He was very much a creature of Labour B.C. (Before Corbyn). Responding to arguments from President Sarkozy in favour of a measure of ‘protectionism’ in the EU, Mandelson took to his column in the Sunday Telegraph on 6 July 2008, to declare:
The concept of fair trade does not exist in the Neo-liberal concept, so Baron Mandelson doesn’t greatly trouble us with it. With its reductionist, libertarian dogma, appropriated from Adam Smith, the Neo-Liberals hide behind Smith’s assertion that individuals pursuing their own, apparently selfish, economic interests, are nonetheless guided by the ‘invisible hand’, “to promote an end which was no part of his intention.” That end, is of course a prosperous economy for all, in case you haven’t noticed it in your life experience.
“These are not comfortable times for those committed to free trade. The rather smug and self serving justification In both Europe and the United States, there is increasing for excluding the government from the proper rhetoric about the need to protect people from change, regulation of such economic activity, is provided by some of it sincere but much of it populist and self- Adam Smith’s famous dictum – serving. “It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the In recent days there have been strong statements brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but about the Doha round of World Trade Organisation from their regard to their own interest. We address negotiations. Those negotiations, which will come to ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, a head at a ministerial meeting in the coming weeks, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of will decide whether the world enters a new era of freer their advantages.” trade, with fewer barriers between countries.....
.....But the protectionist rhetoric suggests that many Populorum Progressio and the Other do not see these benefits, and that they see global Invisible Hand economic change in zero-sum terms: if Asia rises, we There has been a moral collapse in most of the decline; what benefits are generated are captured mainstream Left parties in recent years. They by a small, rich clique; the openness boom that has have adopted electoral strategies based around sustained us for decades now threatens to eat us alive.
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‘triangulation’, ensuring they remain close to the other competing Conservative parties, in pursuit of the chimera of the ‘middle ground’. This has squeezed out radical thinking and grass roots activism. But we are not entirely bereft of analysis on the effects of capitalism and free trade. And so we turn to Populorum Progressio (On the Development of Peoples), an Encyclical Letter of His Holiness, Pope Paul VI, promulgated on 26 March 1967. It is addressed to: “To The Bishops, Priests, Religious, The Faithful And To All Men Of Good Will.” The following paragraphs detail very prescient concerns around free trade that deserve to be shared, (with my emphasis indicated.) “56. The efforts which are being made to assist developing nations on a financial and technical basis, though considerable, would be illusory if their benefits were to be partially nullified as a consequence of the trade relations existing between rich and poor countries. The confidence of these latter would be severely shaken if they had the impression that what was being given them with one hand was being taken away with the other. 57. Of course, highly industrialized nations export for the most part manufactured goods, while countries with less developed economies have only food, fibres and other raw materials to sell. As a result of technical progress the value of manufactured goods is rapidly increasing and they can always find an adequate market. On the other hand, raw materials produced by under-developed countries are subject to wide and sudden fluctuations in price, a state of affairs far removed from the progressively increasing value of industrial products. As a result, nations whose industrialization is limited are faced with serious difficulties when they have to rely on their exports to balance their economy and to carry out their plans for development. The poor nations remain ever poor while the rich ones become still richer. 58. In other words, the rule of free trade, taken by itself, is no longer able to govern international relations. Its advantages are certainly evident when the parties involved are not affected by any excessive inequalities of economic power: it is an incentive to progress and a reward for effort. That is why industrially developed countries see in it a law of justice. But the situation is no longer the same when economic conditions differ too widely from country to country: prices which are “ freely” set in the market can produce unfair results. One must recognize that it is the fundamental principle of liberalism, as the rule for commercial exchange, which is questioned here. 59. The teaching of Leo XIII in Rerum Novarum is always valid: if the positions of the contracting parties are too unequal, the consent of the parties does not suffice to
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Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
guarantee the justice of their contract, and the rule of free agreement remains subservient to the demands of the natural law.[57] What was true of the just wage for the individual is also true of international contracts: an economy of exchange can no longer be based solely on the law of free competition, a law which, in its turn, too often creates an economic dictatorship. Freedom of trade is fair only if it is subject to the demands of social justice.
NAFTA, the US Presidential election and the Giant Vampire Squid
It is little wonder then that the ongoing NAFTA agreement and proposed CETA agreement, containing all the elements highlighted in the “Arbitration Game”, should became an issue in the US Presidential election, with Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump against and Hilary Clinton vacillating and unclear. Hilary’s problem being that her husband Bill, was a major advocate for it when he was President and Hilary was in hock to many of the corporate interests that spawned it. Not least of these was Goldman Sachs, described by journalist Matt Taibbi in Rolling Stone on 5 April 2010, as follows: “the world’s most powerful investment bank, is a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money.” In October 2013, Hilary Clinton gave a speech at a Goldman Sachs conference on “Builders and Innovators” in Arizona, for which she received her customary fee of $225,000. CNN reported that between 2013 and 2015, Hilary made 92 speeches. She made 8 speeches to big banks worth $1.8m and in a two year period collected $21.6m. Bill Clinton also presided over the deregulation of banking that Adam Smith had warned against, with his Treasury Secretary, Larry Summers’ repeal of the Glass Steagall Act of 1933, which was designed to protect banking deposits from the rampant speculation that had fed the Great Depression. Hillary’s other problem was that NAFTA is over 20 years old and its results are there for all who wish to see. They are particularly detailed in “NAFTA’s 20-Year Legacy and the Fate of the TransPacific Partnership” www.tradewatch.org February 2014 Published by Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch. Extracts from Introduction
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“This is not a story about protectionism, but about lived experience. The data show that NAFTA proponents’ projections of broad economic benefits from the deal have failed to materialize. Instead, millions have suffered job loss, wage stagnation, and economic instability from NAFTA. Scores of environmental, health and other public interest policies have been challenged. Consumer safeguards, including key food safety protections, have been rolled back. And NAFTA supporters’ warnings about the chaos that would engulf Mexico, and a new wave of migration from Mexico, if NAFTA was not implemented have indeed come to pass, but ironically because of the devastation of many Mexicans’ livelihoods occurring, in part, because NAFTA was implemented. ... NAFTA created new privileges and protections for foreign investors that incentivized the off-shoring of investment and jobs by eliminating many of the risks normally associated with moving production to lowwage countries.
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The number of illegal immigrants living in the United States has more than doubled since the implementation of NAFTA. The exporting of massive amounts of governmentsubsidized U.S. corn down into Mexico has destroyed more than a million Mexican jobs and has helped fuel the continual rise in the number of illegal immigrants coming north.”
The US Presidential Election and the glass ceiling
It is clear that in the end, the US Presidential election was determined, ironically, more than anything else, by the maxim coined by Bill Clinton in a previous contest – “It’s the economy stupid.” Hilary Clinton chose to make her campaign about individualism and identity politics based on race and gender, and set litmus tests around liberal issues, possibly even believing that we were indeed in the epoch of liberal democracy and the triumph of the market over all other forms. No room there for thought about the inevitable victims of such a system, just political tactics designed to misdirect the electorate.
NAFTA allowed foreign investors to directly challenge before foreign tribunals domestic policies and actions, demanding government compensation for policies that they claimed undermined their expected future Hilary’s ‘victory’ party was to be held in a massive hall profits. “ with a symbolic glass ceiling, representing, (to her least) the most important issue in politics in the Bernie Sanders on Bill Clinton and NAFTA at USA – the prospect of a female President. But the As early as 1997, Bernie Sanders said of Bill Clinton – dispossessed victims of the Neo-Liberal economic “His support for the North American Free Trade policies followed by successive governments, Agreement (NAFTA) was a sell out to corporate America. many living in trailer parks and tent cities like that Pure and simple, it was a disaster for the working people outside Detroit, weren’t immediately preoccupied of this country...” about glass ceilings. And Bernie Sanders, who did “The function of trade agreements like NAFTA is to make care about their circumstances, was robbed of it easier for American companies to move abroad, and his moment by the internal machinations of the to force our workers to compete against desperate Democratic National Convention and the “invisible people in the third world.” (Source: “Outsider in the hand” of the corporate power he railed against. House” 17 June 1997.)
Post election we now learn from the psephologists, that Bernie Sanders would have won states lost by Further extracts from “NAFTA’s 20 year Hilary under the USA’s electoral college system, where the Democratic and Independent voters legacy” simply couldn’t bring themselves to vote for her and “More than 845,000 American workers have been officially remained at home or switched to Trump. certified for Trade Adjustment Assistance because So now we have as US President - Donald Trump, a they lost their jobs due to imports from Mexico or Canada candidate sufficiently aware of the feelings of the or because their factories were relocated to those nations. American working class, to harness their anger, Overall, it is estimated that NAFTA has cost us well over incoherent although some of it might be, to his a million jobs. advantage. How that plays out and how it affects U.S. manufacturers pay Mexican workers just a little the ongoing Free Trade negotiations between the over a dollar an hour to do jobs that American workers USA and EU, will be rather important and more than a little interesting. used to do.
Climate change by Jane Scott, NIPSA Global Solidarity Committee
I’m guilty of not really thinking about this subject until I attended the ICTU Global Solidarity summer school this year and sat through a presentation on the subject of climate change which totally changed my thinking. I didn’t realise the huge impact that this has on our lives and with small measures we can assist in the change.
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What is Climate Change?
Climate change refers to changes in the earth’s climate over the last hundred years. Some of these changes have natural causes but the effect of manmade greenhouse gas emissions is responsible for recent upward shifts in the global temperature. Climate change can cause extreme weather conditions, including hotter summers and colder winters. The UK 21 Century Climate Change Scenarios (UKCIPO8) provides information on the current and future trends of the climate in the United Kingdom.
Causes of Climate Change
Climate change has several causes, including:
Increased Levels of Greenhouse Gases Natural gases, including atmospheric water vapour, methane and carbon dioxide, act as an insulating blanket for the earth by retaining heat from the sun which keeps the earth warm. This is known as ‘the greenhouse effect’, and the gases that cause it are known as ‘greenhouse gases’. Without these gases, the earth would be much colder than it is. Increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere cause global temperatures to rise. This is known as ‘global warming’. Since the industrial revolution, emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels, have increased sharply. There is overwhelming scientific evidence that points to human activities, such as the continued burning of fossil fuels, as being mainly responsible for the current increased levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Global warming caused by human activity is sometimes referred to as ‘anthropogenic global warming’ or ‘AGW’.
Human Activities The reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) highlight how human activities have affected global temperature in the past 50 years. An overwhelming majority (97%) of climate scientists now accept these findings. Here are some key human activities that contribute to climate change.
●● Burning of fossil (mineral) fuels This tops the list of human activities that contribute to increased levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Fossil fuels such as petroleum, natural gas (e.g. methane) and coal constitute major energy sources for industries,
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transport and heating in our homes. It is estimated that burning of fuels world-wide produces around 21.3 billion tons (21.3 gigatons) of carbon dioxide every year. Part of the carbon dioxide released when fossil fuels are burned is absorbed naturally by plants and oceans, but the rest gets caught up in the atmosphere and causes global warming.
●● Poor use of land Poor land use is directly linked to climate change partly because, when soil and vegetation are lost, more carbon dioxide is released into atmosphere and less can be absorbed, which results in further global warming. Examples of poor use of land include urban sprawl (uncontrolled urban development), destruction of forests and excessive farming.
●● Waste disposal If waste is not properly treated or disposed of, it produces greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide. These gases contribute to global warming. Disposal of waste by landfill is a key source of man-made methane emissions in the atmosphere. This is one reason why it is so important to reduce waste or recycle it.
●● Cooling units and aerosol sprays When the use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) in aerosol sprays and as coolants in fridges, freezers and air conditioners was phased out in order to prevent ozone layer depletion, CFCs and HCFCs were replaced with hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The use of HFCs is restricted in the UK as they also contribute to global warming.
Solar and Orbital Variations
Changes in solar energy can affect global temperature. Thousands of years ago, global temperature changes were driven by solar and orbital variations. The Royal Society, the National Academy of Science in the UK and the Commonwealth confirms that solar activity contributed to changes in global temperature in the early 20th century. However, satellite measurements show that there has been little change in solar activity during the last 30 years to warrant recent global warming. Rather, the evidence points to man-made greenhouse gas emissions as the primary driver of recent increases in temperature. However, many in the scientific community agree that it is important to acknowledge
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
the roles that the sun and orbital variations play in the global climate.
Oceanic Circulation
The current climate change debate also explores the impact that oceans and seas may have on climate change. For example, the jury is out on whether abrupt future changes in ocean currents can cause fundamental changes to the climate like what happened in the past, when ice sheets melted over North America and Europe in the ice age. These questions are important as oceans and seas are key elements in the world’s climate system. They have the capacity to carry a large amount of heat that can radically affect global climatic conditions. On the other hand, the increase in greenhouse gases especially carbon dioxide also have an impact on seas and oceans. Recent studies show that the increased levels in atmospheric carbon dioxide are “causing the world’s oceans to become more acidic.
Volcanic Eruptions
Volcanic eruptions may only last a few days, but they may affect the climate for a much longer period of time. This is due to the large amounts of gas (mainly sulphur dioxide) and ash that are released when a volcano erupts. These emissions can linger in the atmosphere for several years and affect the amount of solar energy reaching the earth. Scientific studies show that an individual volcanic eruption can lower temperatures and cause global cooling with its effects lasting for years. The impacts of volcanic eruptions on the global climate were observed in the aftermath of the Mount Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines in 1991. Although large scale volcanic eruptions have been infrequent recently, current research continues to explore the impact that large scale volcanic eruptions may have on the climate in the future Some of the above will be relevant in our lives and there are others we can do very little about to help but we should make every effort to do our bit if even only switching from using aerosols to roll on deodorants.
of these reserves will have to sacrifice trillions of dollars in profits. The fossil fuel companies and their investors, who are counting on these profits, have a huge vested interest in blocking meaningful climate action and, as we have seen so far, the power to do so
●● Rising temperatures Futures studies show that global temperatures may rise by the end of the 21st century to between 1.1 and 6.4 degrees Celsius above 1990 levels, if concrete steps are not taken to tackle increased levels of man-made greenhouse gas emissions.
●● Health issues Climate change has impacts on our health. For example, increased flooding events may cause water borne infectious diseases while a rise in heatwaves can cause deaths among the old and very young. The heatwave in 2003 is estimated to have caused over 2,000 extra deaths in England and Wales and 35,000 deaths in other parts of Europe like Italy, Spain and France.
●● Water and food scarcity Climate change is also likely to affect global water availability in the future. Higher temperatures and changes in rainfall patterns will affect global water supplies. This will have a knock-on effect on global food supplies as there may be less water available for agricultural purposes. This scenario is already being played out in water-stressed parts of Africa, Asia and Australasia.
●● Extreme weather conditions Climate change can increase the frequency of heatwaves, floods and droughts around the world. In various reports, Nature, the international weekly journal of science, notes that recent summers in Europe have become increasingly hotter. It attributes the changes in weather conditions to high levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. It forecasts that Europe (including the UK) may experience even hotter summers in the future.
Many surveys have taken place over the years and So what can we do to assist in the reduction here are some of the facts behind the surveys of our personal CO2 emissions? Here are some ●● According to the analysis of the Carbon Tracker recommendations for you to think about and they Initiative, between now and 2050, we need to may even save you money. It is our responsibility to leave at least two-thirds of proven fossil fuel reduce our carbon footprint. reserves in the ground in order to keep global For more information visit the Energy Saving Trust warming below the widely accepted threshold website: www.energysavingtrust.org.uk of two degrees Celsius. If this occurs, owners
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Act Now At home Replace conventional light bulbs with energysaving bulbs. Low-energy light bulbs last up to 12 times longer than conventional ones. It is estimated that the use of one of these low energy bulbs can help save each UK house £9 and 40kg of CO2 emissions a year.
Don’t leave appliances on standby The standby function in most appliances uses about 10-60 per cent of the energy that is needed to power an appliance when in use. You save energy and reduce household emissions when you switch off from the socket.
Home insulation Double-glazed windows help to cut down heat loss and result in energy savings. Also as a cost-saving measure, you can invest in draught excluders for your doors and windows. Investing in loft insulation and cavity wall insulation will help to cut heat loss from your home and reduce your energy bills.
Recycle and compost more These measures help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions produced from landfill waste. Find out from your local authority what recycling and composting facilities are in place if kerbside collections are not provided. You can also request a full list of items that can be recycled.
Central heating/hot water boiler checks and replacement
technologies like solar panels, wind turbines and wood-fuelled heating systems (also called ‘biomass systems’) you can generate your own energy and heat and significantly reduce your carbon footprint.
Shop online Eat less meat and dairy products The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimates that livestock production (rearing animals for food) is responsible for 14.5 per cent of man-made global greenhouse gas emissions. The majority of emissions from this sector are from raising cattle for beef and from dairy farms. The Meat Free Monday campaign aims to raise awareness of the environmental and health benefits of reducing meat and dairy consumption, by encouraging people and restaurants to have at least one meat-free day a week.
On the move ●● Walk, cycle or use public transport for journeys that don’t need a car. ●● Take part in a car-sharing arrangement, especially during peak traffic times. ●● Consider replacing your car with an electric or hybrid car. ●● If you have a petrol or diesel engine car, try and fill up during the cooler hours of the day and keep your fuel-tank lid tightly sealed. This helps to reduce emissions caused by evaporation.
●● Accelerate gradually instead of over-revving. Old conventional boilers waste about 40% of their Use cruise control when on the motorway. heat and need to be serviced regularly. If you can, ●● Do regular engine tuning and car maintenance, consider replacing your old boiler for one of the e.g. change your oil filters regularly and repair newer energy-efficient condenser boilers which any fuel leak. should be fitted by a gas installer registered with the Gas Safe Register. By each person doing their bit we may be able to save our earth for our future generations to live in. Generate your own electricity and heat You should try to watch Naomi Kleins film titled “This The burning of fossil fuels such as coal and gas to Changes Everything” it will convert you into making produce mains electricity and heat is a major source changes. Also watch the nipsa global solidarity page of greenhouse gas emissions. By installing renewable for updates and more information on the subject.
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Politics and Disability in Ethiopia by Neil Alldred, Disability Aid Abroad
Participants at the September Workshop in Adama, Ethiopia The NIPSA-funded project to help Ethiopian trade unions develop their skills and expertise in the area of disability rights is really taking off now. And Ethiopia certainly needs a little solidarity from friends outside. In October, the Government of Ethiopia imposed a state of emergency on the country – banning the use of certain social media sites, banning access to some foreign TV channels and even forbidding foreign diplomats from travelling more than 25 miles outside the capital, Addis Ababa. The travel ban on diplomats was lifted in early November, after much protest and huge pressure from foreign donor nations, but there is still a ban on anybody visiting factories, farms or government institutions between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following day. The situation is serious in the country, following riots and civil protest, especially in the two main areas inhabited by the Oromo and Amhara ethnic groups (who make up over 60% of the population), and after the deaths of between 400 and 500 people over the summer months as ordinary people protested government
policies, decisions and perceived inaction. And in politically delicate situations, trade unions usually need all the help they can get. That is why the NIPSA project to help defend and promote the rights of workers with disabilities is proving really helpful in strengthening the overall status and capacity of the trade union movement in Ethiopia. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has singled out NIPSA for special praise, arguing that a Training Workshop for senior officials across the trade union movement in Ethiopia is particularly welcome at this time. After a brief visit to Addis back in June, Disability Aid Abroad (DAA) agreed final preparations for a Workshop, which successfully took place in mid September – 21st to 23rd, in Dire International Hotel, Adama, about 50 miles from Addis Ababa, the capital. Two of our colleagues from other African countries expertly facilitated the event: Mr Vincent Kaduma from Tanzania and Mr. Yazidi Baligasima from
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A shot of the participants - we are still working on the gender balance! Uganda. (And you thought ‘Alldred’ was a difficult name!!) Vincent has a life-long disability himself and has helped us with training events in his home country previously, whilst Yazidi has considerable stature in the trade union movement across East Africa for his expertise on disability rights issues.
and they were really helpful in ensuring that some very senior figures in the country’s trade union movement attended the Workshop and learned of the increasingly important area of disability rights. There were senior members of CETU’s regional structures – from 5 of the country’s main regions – as The Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions (CETU) well as important figures from the major trade union is our operational partner for this important project, federations (of which there are 9 in Ethiopia). The Food, Beverage and Allied Trade Union; the National Banking Trade Union; Transport and Communication Workers; Tourism, Hotels and General Service Workers; Energy, Chemical and Mine Workers; Textile, Leather and Garment Workers; Commerce, Printing and Technical Workers; Farm, Plantation, Fishery and Agro-forestry Workers – every major branch was represented at a really high level.
Our good friend Mr Mesay, Project Coordinator for the Disability Champions work of CETU
When we reported the outcome of the Workshop to our friends in the ILO Geneva Office, they were really excited. In their view, disability rights awareness is not widespread in many African countries and the project’s very professional efforts to help Ethiopian trade unions get to grips with not just the theory but the practicalities of implementing those rights in specific workplaces and industries was seen as a great contribution. That individual trade union federations now have the all-important buy-in from their most senior staff is a huge bonus for future disability rights work in Ethiopia.
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
Among the 22 recommendations from September Workshop are the following:
the
●● holding Training of Trainers’ Workshops for the overall Confederation; ●● training Disability Champions in each of the 9 Federations, to address their specific needs and circumstances; ●● establishing Committees for Workers with Disabilities at CETU and Federation levels; ●● conducting a survey on the extent of employee-related disabilities; ●● incorporating disability rights in Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs); and ●● forging alliances with disability rights activist groups and organisations for mutual support, lobbying and advocacy, and the sharing or best practice. NIPSA and DAA have now established credibility with Ethiopia’s trade union movement on a national level – and there are one or two important Government/ Party people in key positions within CETU, thus giving us added legitimacy within Government. We have also generated interest within ILO, who have seen the Disability Champions model established
Poster acknowledging the vital support of NIPSA already in Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania and are now interested in joining with DAA in writing a Training of Trainers Manual for Disability Rights work across Africa. The very successful Workshop in Adama in September has been brilliant in paving the way for a much more thorough embedding of disability rights activism across trade unions the length and breadth of Ethiopia. So 2017 (or 2009 in Ethiopia’s own calendar!) promised to be a good year for workers with disabilities, even if the national context is sombre. NIPSA’s great work internationally, through its Global Solidarity Committee, is making really important progress – quietly, diligently, effectively – and demonstrating ever so clearly what solidarity is all about. As they say in Ethiopia, “Amasaginallehu!” – or “Thank you!”.
Mr Fantahun, Disability Rights Officer for the ILO Country Office of Ethiopia
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Gaza Meet the children we are supporting in Gaza
by Stephen McCloskey, Director, Centre for Global Education
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Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
In January 2016, 400 children aged 7-13 years were enrolled on to a new two year project in the Gaza Strip funded by the NIPSA Developing World Fund. The project is jointly managed by the Centre for Global Education in Belfast and our partner in Gaza, the Canaan Institute, a dynamic Palestinian non-governmental organisation highly experienced in education, facilitation and capacity-building. The aim of the project is to provide psycho-social support to children suffering the acute effects of trauma caused by three wars in Gaza since 2008 and the grinding poverty created by a ten year Israeli siege. The project also supplements the children’s education because, like most young people in Gaza, they can only attend school for half a day because of a chronic shortage of school buildings. The project is delivered through four community centres in Gaza: the Never Stop Dreaming Center in Khan Yunis (southern Gaza); the Heker El Jame Youth Association, Deir el Balah (central Gaza); the Rural Family Development Association in Moghraga, a village 10 km south of Gaza City; and the Palestinian Women’s Development Society, Bureij, a refugee camp in central Gaza.
Children in Conflict
The programme was designed in response to the impact of conflict and poverty on Gaza’s children. The most recent Israeli operation in Gaza, 2014’s Operation ‘Protective Edge’, resulted in the highest number of Palestinian civilian casualties than in any year since 1967. 547 children were killed from a total of 1,462 civilian deaths and ‘nearly 68 percent of the children killed by Israeli forces were 12 years old or younger’. According to Unicef, 370,000 were left in need of ‘psycho-social aid’. In the midst of the conflict in August 2014, Unicef’s field officer, Pernilla Ironside, said: ‘There isn’t a single family in Gaza who hasn’t experienced personally death, injury, the loss of their home, extensive damage, displacement’. The Israeli casualties in the same conflict totalled 67 soldiers and six civilians. The infrastructural damage in Gaza caused by ‘Protective Edge’ included 18,000 housing units partially or completely destroyed and 73 medical facilities and several ambulances damaged. The UN reported that 22 schools were completely destroyed and 118
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Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
schools damaged by the conflict which has exacerbated a crisis in education in Gaza. In 2012, the United Nations published a report titled Gaza in 2020: A Liveable Place? which argued that 250 additional schools were needed to address the present shortfall and accommodate a rising population predicted to increase to 2.1 million from the present 1.8 million by 2020. With the number of school buildings depleted further by ‘Protective Edge’, the education system is under unprecedented strain. 90 percent of schools in Gaza had to double shift – house two separate school populations in the same building every day – before ‘Protective Edge’ so schools will now be under even greater pressure to accommodate rising pupil numbers.
Psycho-Social Support
The problems created by the creaking infrastructure of the education system are compounded by the psychological effects of war and poverty on children. A ten year-old child in Gaza has suffered three major Israeli military engagements since 2008 and nearly ten years of an Israeli siege. In commenting on the multiple effects of war on Gaza’s children, Pernilla Ironside said: “The impact has truly been vast, both at a very physical level, in terms of casualties, injuries, the infrastructure that’s been damaged, but also importantly, emotionally and psychologically in terms of the destabilizing impact that not knowing, not truly feeling like there is anywhere safe to go in Gaza”. The psychological effects of conflict on children manifest themselves in many ways including fear, tension, aggression, becoming withdrawn and silent, difficulties in concentrating in school, and increasing isolation from family and friends. These psychological problems are also related to the ‘pressure cooker’ environment of households under severe economic pressure. Gaza has the highest unemployment rate in the world because of the Israeli siege which has reduced to a trickle the territory’s imports and exports. Entire communities have become dependent on food aid from
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the United Nations and suffer the extremities of privation that are entirely preventable if the blockade was lifted and Palestinians enabled to trade normally and build their economy. The explicit aim of the blockade was made clear by Dov Weisglass, an advisor to former prime minister Ehud Olmert, when he said ‘The idea is to put the Palestinians on a diet, but not to make them die of hunger’. The poverty experienced in Gaza is not the work of a natural disaster – a flood, drought, famine, earthquake or tsunami – but the result of a carefully calculated policy designed to make life untenable in Gaza. A ‘Red Lines’ document disclosed in 2012 showed that this policy included calculating the minimum number of calories needed by Gaza’s population to avoid malnutrition. Amnesty International is among many international human rights organisations that have deemed the blockade illegal under international law calling for it to be lifted without delay. In 2015, Amnesty said: ‘Gaza’s suffering is unacceptable and must end now. Israel has an obligation to end its collective punishment of Gaza’s civilian population, and completely lifting the blockade is the right thing to do’.
Education and Psycho-Social Support
The NIPSA supported programme in Gaza is helping communities deal with the effects of the siege by providing a structured and safe play and learning environment for children who are under the care of well-trained facilitators. The programme has four stages of delivery with the first involving the enrolment of 100 children aged 7-13 in each of the four designated communities. Each community promotes the programme and recruits the children through liaison with local schools which can help identify those young people most in need of psycho-social support and supplementary education activities. The second stage involves the recruitment of facilitators from the staff of each community centre to work with the children. The facilitators are trained in active learning methodologies, implementing workplans, organizing field trips and providing individual and group activities focused on key aspects of the school curriculum including Arabic, English, Health and Science, and Mathematics. The third stage involves the delivery of the training and play activities with the children including arts and crafts, puppet theatre, Dabka (traditional song and dance), storytelling, embroidery, role play and more
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
formal curriculum-based work. The methodology for delivery divides the children into four groups of 25 according to their age. One group is taken in the morning and another in the afternoon. Each group attends their community centre three times a week in the morning or afternoon when they are not at school. An experienced psychotherapist visits each centre on a weekly basis throughout the project to provide one-to-one counselling to children exhibiting the severest forms of trauma and in greatest need of support. Also, a total of twelve sessions are held for the children’s families in each centre to provide guidance on extending psycho-social support into the household. Parents are often unsure how to provide the best possible support to their children or, indeed, how to recognize the symptoms of trauma. These workshops guide families on the best form of parental support for their children and are widely taken-up in each community. The fourth stage of delivery involves the organization of a ‘Celebration Day’ in each centre to acknowledge and share the many achievements of the children during the first year of the project. The Celebration Day puts on display the arts and crafts created by the children together with examples of the school curriculum work undertaken through the project in a range of subject areas. The children perform role plays, puppet theatre, song and dance in arrangements created in partnership with their facilitators. The staff and Board of Governors of each centre attend the Celebration Day with the children’s families and create a vibrant event that strengthens the confidence of the children which will grow stronger as the project moves into its second year. The Canaan Institute recognizes the importance of monitoring and evaluation and conducts a thorough assessment of the project activities through consultation with the children, facilitators, centre managers and parents. The outcomes of these consultations will help to inform delivery of the programme in year two. The project has a significant impact on the children at multiple levels. It enhances their academic learning, strengthens their team ethos through group activities, enables them to have fun in a safe and structured play environment, and affords them opportunities for psycho-social support. These activities are made possible through the generosity of NIPSA members and both the Centre for Global Education and Canaan Institute deeply appreciate this support of our work
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NIPSA Developing World Where the money goes.
Ireland Funding for the translation of ICTU’s “Corporate Social Responsibility: A Guide for Trade Unionists” into Indonesian. Supporting women and people with disabilities in Tanzania through the provision of sewing machines and other tools.
Guatemala Improved the health and well being of the people and communities through direct care, water and sanitation and the building of an appropriate health infrastructure.
Belize Assisting in the reactivation of the United Banners Banana Workers Union. Honduras Helping women workers in sweatshops fight for their basic human rights. Improving the social and economic wellbeing of banana and tropical fruit workers. Nigeria Helping to improve the living standards of rural women.
Nicaragua Supporting training on labour rights; education on gender and health issues; alternative income generation courses for banana workers. Provision of housing for trade union activists. Costa Rica Promoting and defending labour rights of migrant workers Provision of housing for trade union activists. Colombia Rehabilitating trade union victims of torture. Providing new homes to 42 families. Provision of housing for trade union activists. Providing legal assistance and support to trade unionists and trade unions.
South Sudan Funding of a water and sanitation programme.
Ecuador Provision of housing for trade union activists.
Uganda Increasing the living standards of communities through development of agricultural and livestock projects, health education and training. Rwanda Socio-Economic support for domestic labourers and street children. Supporting rural development in Cyeru village. Zambia Provided funds to build a permanent school building for under-privileged children.
Malawi Songani Community Orphan Care Group helps children orphaned by the HIV/A Funding an anti-privatisation of Water Boards Campaign. Providing sustainable farming training and environmental protection for poor
Promoting Solidarity, Equality and Social Justice
Fund
AIDS pandemic.
r communities.
If we have funds we can rely on, we know we can do more. Please help us change the lives of people in the World’s poorest communities with a regular gift today.
Gaza Psycho-Social Support to Children China Funding the production of a guide on workers rights.
Egypt Upholding quarry workers’ rights
Indonesia Funding of a facilitator, educational materials and management support costs for children’s education in five villages in Java.
Ethiopia Providing a sustainable community-based health service. Kenya Supporting local communities in learning new trades in order to enhance their prospects of long-term food provision. Publication of a ‘Guide to Workers Rights’ for the Kenya Shoe and Leather Workers Union.
Bangladesh Providing rehabilitation, training and counselling to disabled people in Dhaka. India Building of a house in the Kusht Leprosy Colony. Supporting an environmental project in West Bengal
Tanzania Supporting education reform and debt relief programme. Supporting the Plantation and Agricultural Workers Union Aids/ HIV education project. Increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities
Developing World Fund
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Developing World Fund How can you help? Sign up to receive regular information
Would you like to sign up to receive regular information about the work of the Global Solidarity Committee and its many campaigns to strengthen justice, peace, equality and freedom throughout the world? If so send your details to Geraldine Alexander at geraldine.alexander@nipsa.org.uk or by post at the address below.
Donating NIPSA’s Developing World Fund was set up in June 1993 and aims to relieve in any part of the world persons suffering from poverty, sickness or distress, to advance for the public benefit the education of the inhabitants of impoverished countries so that their conditions of life may be improved. Projects supported by the Fund must be sustainable. Details of some of the projects supported by the Fund can be found on the NIPSA website at: www.nipsa.org.uk/globalsolidarity
The Fund is unique because 100% of all money contributed by members goes directly towards the specific self-help projects. No money goes towards administration costs. If you would like more information about the Fund please contact your Branch Secretary or NIPSA Headquarters. We encourage members to donate regularly by either taking out a covenant or authorising a Give-As-YouEarn (GAYE) payroll deduction. If you would like to contribute to NIPSA’s Developing World Fund please complete the form below and forward it to NIPSA Headquarters.
Developing World Fund Payroll Donation Form Developing World Fund
I would like to donate to the NIPSA Developing World Fund, direct from my salary the following amounts per month
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or alternatively you may indicate your own amount per week
£
per month
Minimum donation £1.30. Cost in take home pay £1.00
You can make a one-off donation to the Fund either by cheque made payable to NIPSA Developing World Fund or by bank transfer to: Account Name: NIPSA Developing World Fund Account Number: 54000548 Sort Code: 608301 Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms
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Return to: Developing World Fund, NIPSA, 54 Wellington Park, Belfast. BT9 6DP