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E-NEWS BULLETIN 1 December 2017 Links to present possibilities

SOUTH AFRICA

Destruction of the Highveld

highveld For decades, the residents of Mpumalanga’s Highveld – which has eMalahleni, the “place of coal” at its dirty core – have been “subjected to horrific pollution” and have had to “carry the burden” of South Africa’s coal-based electricity and industrial systems. iol.co.za/saturday-star/


#NotOurLeaders: Democratic Alliance fails to develop a sexual harassment policy for their public representatives

edmund-van-vuurenIn May 2017 a 26-year old worker in the DA offices laid a sexual harassment complaint against Edmund van Vuuren, the DA’s Chief Whip in the Eastern Cape Legislature. During a telephone call van Vuuren made a number of inappropriate comments to the recently-married woman, including offering to stand in for her husband “if necessary.” dullahomarinstitute.org.za/

mncedisi maphisa
#NotOurLeaders: Inkatha Freedom Party flouts its own constitution by failing to act against member charged with sexual offenses

Mcedisi Maphisa, a representative of the IFP and the Deputy Mayor of AbaQulusi has been charged with sexual assault, indecent exposure of genitals and compelling a person to witness masturbation. dullahomarinstitute.org.za/


Damning report reveals Department of Water and Sanitation in crisis, and SA’s water security under serious threat

The South African Water Caucus launched a report (607KB pdf) this week which exposes the dysfunction and institutional paralysis in the Department of Water and Sanitation. It paints a particularly bleak picture for SA’s water institutions and hence water security. wwmp.org.za/

Water scandal in Cape Town- all for privatization and pure greed

The agricultural sector uses 59% of water and households only 12%; yet the DA-led province and City of Cape Town have concentrated most of their efforts to save water, on the households. docs.google.com/


hlaudiMultichoice scandal is posing painful questions about a corrupt nexus – Naspers must answer them

Already on the defensive for evidence that it had been subsidising the highly-partisan ANN7, this latest story exposed the relationship between Multichoice, the Zuma government, the SABC and the Guptas. It offered the first coherent explanation of why Muthambi and the SABC had broken with ANC policy and backed Multichoice. dailymaverick.co.za/


nucwosaHealth care workers fight for recognition by department

More than 50 health care workers from different areas of the Eastern Cape marched from Bhisho stadium to the offices of the Department of Health to demand that their union, the National Union of Care Workers of South Africa (NUCWOSA), be recognised. groundup.org.za/


SAFTU condemns Zuma’s austerity plansaftu

President Jacob Zuma wants a committee to show him progress this week on plans to cut government spending by R25bn and raise taxes by up to R15bn, following the latest ratings downgrade to junk status by Standard & Poor’s on Friday.” This opening paragraph in a report by Fin24 sums up just how hollow Jacob Zuma’s talk about ‘radical economic transformation’ really is. saftu.org.za/

waspAre the Coloureds marginalized?

Despite the fact that the protests in coloured townships are fuelled fundamentally by the same class issues as in black communities, the political narrative is dominated by race. The feeling is widespread in coloured communities that whereas under apartheid they were not “white enough,” under democracy they are not “black enough”. workerssocialistparty.co.za/

INTERNATIONAL

libyaLibya “Chose” Freedom, Now It Has Slavery

With the revelation that people are being sold as slaves in Libya, the cataclysmic disaster to befall the country has been compounded to the point where it is hard to conceive of it ever being able to recover. counterpunch.org/


IMF lays down the law for Zimbabwe post-Mugabe

Even before Emmerson Mnangagwa was inaugurated as president Friday, the International Monetary Fund issued a list of demands post-Mugabe Zimbabwe must meet before being reconsidered for financial aid packages. wsws.org/

PALESTINE

israel-palestine

Democrats Join Republicans In Bill Criminalizing Speech Critical Of Israel

Dbds demoemocratic Party representatives are backing a legislative bill that would make it a felony for Americans to support the international boycott against Israel, commonly known as BDS. Anyone guilty of violating the prohibitions will face a minimum civil penalty of $250,000 and a maximum criminal penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison. huffingtonpost.com/


The Shocking Alliance Between Zionism and Anti-Semitism

zionismAlong with his vitriolic anti-Muslim politics, Gorka’s full-throated support for Israeli settler colonialism has earned him the abiding friendship of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political network. For them, the rest — especially his membership in an organization that assisted in the extermination of Jews — is commentary. truthdig.com/

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NEW FORMS OF LABOUR

Tech capitalists won’t fix the world’s problems – their unionised workforce mightzuckerberg

De-industrialisation and the Reagan-Thatcher years made trade unions seem like a 20th-century artefact. But evidence of a revival in workplace organising can be found in one of the most modern corners of the global economy: the US technology sector. theguardian.com/


Reporter goes undercover at Amazon warehouse amazon workerwhere ‘staff are just cattle to serve robots’

A reporter who spent five weeks at Amazon’s huge warehouse has revealed its human staff are ‘reduced to livestock’. He claims ambulances are regularly called and workers face the sack if they fail to pack at least two items per minute. cornwalllive.com/


fbk evictionFacebook Founder’s Favor Comes With Complications

In East Palo Alto, which is just blocks from Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., no C.E.O. and company have come to embody the anxieties of the modern tech boom more than Mr. Zuckerberg and Facebook. nytimes.com/


NEW TECHNOLOGY

google appsStaggering Variety of Clandestine Trackers Found In Popular Android Apps

Researchers have documented the proliferation of tracking software on smartphones, finding that weather, flashlight, ride-sharing, and dating apps, among others, are infested with dozens of different types of trackers collecting vast amounts of information to better target advertising. theintercept.com/


brain boardSilicon Valley wants access to your brain

Soon, speaking and typing may be old-fashioned forms of communication. The new wave of Silicon Valley products will use your brain as the interface. global.ilmanifesto.it/


net neutralityFrom an Open Internet, Back to the Dark Ages

In China and other autocratic regimes, leaders have simply bent the internet to their will, censoring content that threatens their rule. But in the “democratic” west, it is being done differently. The state does not have to interfere directly – it outsources its dirty work to corporations. counterpunch.org/


Tim Berners-Lee on the future of the web: ‘The system is failing’

tim berners leeThe inventor of the world wide web remains an optimist but sees a ‘nasty wind’ blowing amid concerns over advertising, net neutrality and fake news. theguardian.com/technology/


Tech’s Tax Paradise

Uber, Apple, and Facebook are still evading U.S. taxes on an epic scale, according to a trove of leaked financial documents called the Paradise Papers. sfweekly.com/

GENDER

Before European Christians Forced Gender Roles, Native Americans Acknowledged 5 Genders

not pocahontasIn Native American societies, individuals were esteemed for their commitments to the tribe, as opposed to for manliness or gentility. Guardians did not dole out sexual orientation parts to youngsters either, and even kids’ attire had a tendency to be impartial. There were no thoughts or beliefs about how a man ought to love… nativeamericannpeoples.com/

PRAXIS

What makes me tired when organising with middle class comrades

greenham common 1980Romanticising certain aspects of working class culture is tiring, when growing up with zero money and zero financial stability is the least romantic thing ever. Similarly fetishising poverty, as if it’s a game or adventure, is an insult to folk who have no choice. theguardian.com/