|
We elected a new president in East Timor – Hi (again), José Ramos-Horta
|
|
The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, has a ‘new’ President, and his name is José Ramos-Horta. I wrote ‘new’ because he’s not really new as he was President of East Timor before (2007-2012).
Refresher: East Timor is an island country in Southeast Asia. Dili is its capital. Portugal colonized it for more than 300 years (until 1975). Nine days later, Indonesia was like, ‘nope, it’s ours’ until 1999 (supported and armed by the United States). Over 100,000 East Timorese died during that time. The country became fully independent on May 20, 2002 (next month, it’s turning 20!).
Why this matters: East Timor is Southeast Asia’s youngest country, and one of the least-known and least developed countries in the world. 1.3 million people live here, and 42% of them live ‘below the poverty line’. In 2019, the average age was 17.5 years.
Tell me more about Ramos-Horta
This 73-year-old Capricorn is a pretty huge deal in East Timor, and not new to the politics game. He literally came out of retirement for this new job. Besides as President, Ramos-Horta has also been (the country’s first) Minister of Foreign Affairs (2002-2006) and Prime Minister (2006-2007). In 1996, along with Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, he received a Nobel Peace Prize for working “towards a just and peaceful situation to the conflict in East Timor” during the Indonesian invasion – even though, of his eleven brothers and sisters, four were killed by the Indonesian military. ‘Mahatma Ghandi is my greatest hero,’ he once said in an interview.
But why come out of retirement for this?
‘Francisco Guterres violated the constitution. I have to come back,’ he (kind of) said. ‘And if I win, I will dissolve parliament.’ His topics of interest are more health care for moms and kids, helping the poor get richer, and creating jobs, jobs, jobs.
Fun fact: The name ‘East Timor’ is a tautological toponym, meaning ‘timor’ is Malay for ‘east’ and ‘east’ means, well, ‘east’. So, East Timor actually means East East.
In pop culture: East Timor has been in movies and music you probably already know. For example, Oscar Isaac played Ramos-Horta in the 2009 film Balibo (about the Balibo Five journalists and the events preceding the Indonesian occupation of East Timor). Shakira also wrote a song about East Timor, ‘Timor’ (also in Decolonize Weekly).
|
|
|
We mourn the death of Mbodazwe Banajo “Elvis” Nyathi in South Africa – he was a migrant worker from Zimbabwe
|
|
On April 6, a group of about 30 people brutally beat and burnt to death Mbodazwe Banajo “Elvis” Nyathi in front of his wife Nomsa Tshuma in Diepsloot, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Wait, what?!
Yeah, it is as bad as it sounds. The group was going around the township, asking migrants to provide proof of their documents that permit them to be in South Africa legally. Nyathi, a migrant worker, didn’t have any. His memorial service was held on April 14.
Why this matters: Migrants in South Africa are having a really hard time. Xenophobia (fear and hatred of strangers or foreigners) has been on the rise, and so-called vigilante groups, too. The latter take up arms and go around beating foreigners whom they blame for the high rates of unemployment, crime and other social problems in the country (it is not true).
Tell me more about Nyathi
He was a 43-year-old father of four. He had come from Zimbabwe, for work. “Elvis was a man of peace, just a simple guy who lived a simple life, believing in working hard to provide for his family. We are sad that he was killed because they thought he was a criminal. That hurts us more than anything. He was a gardener.”
He was a gardener?
Yes, twice a week. He was making R200 (around 13€) a day. He wanted to build a house for their four children back home in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second biggest city. His wife Tshuma has since left Diepsloot, fearing for her safety and that the mob might come back for her.
What now?
Since April 6, at least 127 people were arrested, most of them undocumented people. No arrests have been made in Nyathi’s murder.
What can migrants do?
Not much. The organizations migrants form have very little influence and there is no strong mainstream campaign committed to protecting their lives and livelihoods.
Dive deeper: Diversify your list of ‘cool people I’d like to have met in history’ and add Gabriel Hertis to it; a man from Rwanda who dedicated his life to fighting for the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in South Africa. He died last year.
|
|
|
We also mourn the death of Debanhi Escobar – one of the latest victims of violence against women in Mexico
|
|
On April 9, 18-year-old Debanhi Escobar (this is her) disappeared in Monterrey, Mexico. Her dead body was found last Friday (Spanish) inside a 4-meter deep water tank near a pool of a roadside motel somewhere near the city in the state of Nuevo Léon.
Why this matters: In Mexico, around 7 women are killed every day. About 1,600 women have been reported missing so far this year alone. A lot of them disappear in the state of Nueva Léon (not exclusively). One of the reasons, according to government critics, is an inefficient police force that tends to blame the victims.
What happened to her?
‘We don’t know how the body got to the motel,’ said the police. ‘We do know, however, that she was returning from a house party on the day she disappeared. We also know that her friends sent her home with a driver who dropped her on the edge of a federal highway. We know this because the driver took her very last photo.’ (As a woman, I felt anxious just looking at it.)
But how did she die?
The government is claiming that she fell into the water tank at the motel by accident. Not many people believe this to be true.
What do others think happened?
Her dad, Mario Escobar, for example, believes that the driver sexually assaulted her, and said that is what made her want to get out of the car in the middle of a highway. He also doesn’t believe that her death was an accident. He gave a now-viral interview to news reporters outside the motel, saying: “Mi hija está muerta, estoy molesto y no sé qué hacer. (English: My daugther is dead, I’m upset and I don’t know what to do.)” And he added (Spanish), ‘Now I hope that he [the driver] will be judged by society since authorities told me there is no crime to prosecute.’
What does the government say?
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said, “I want to send a hug and my condolences to the young woman’s family” and that the discovery “shouldn’t worry” Mexicans because it “happens everywhere.” Escobar was the 20th woman to be reported missing in only four weeks in Nuevo León. People living there (basically) say, ‘Something just doesn’t add up. And we don’t know why the police aren't doing their best to find out why.’
Zoom out: Femicide, meaning the intentional murder of women because they are women, is a global problem (There, Obrador is right.) How big of a problem, you might ask? The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's (UNODC) most recent global report on homicide was published in July 2019, presenting data from 2017. That year, 87,000 women around the world were intentionally killed; more than half of them (50,000) by their exes or family members.
|
|
|
OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT FIND INTERESTING
|
|
|
First, the bad news
Libya: A boat carrying migrants and refugees crashed off the coast of Sabratha, Libya. At least six people died. 29 people are missing.
Turkey: The country, once again, launched a military offensive against the PKK (Kurdish guerilla fighters) in Bashûr (Kurdish name)/northern Iraq because it fears Kurds’ political self-determination. Ironically, it did so with the financial support of other Kurdish leaders, the Kurdistan Regional Government of Bashûr. No civilian casualties have been recorded so far. Turkey is also occupying and attacking Rojava (Kurdish name)/northeastern Syria.
Singapore: Bridget Lew Tan died last week. She was a famous migrant workers' rights advocate and the founder of the Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics (HOME).
South Africa: Flood killed at least 440 people in KwaZulu-Natal. Thousands are now homeless.
Somalia: Six people are killed and seven others injured by an al-Shabaab bombing at a restaurant in Lido Beach, Mogadishu.
Nigeria: Boko Haram killed twelve people in the town of Geidam, Yobe State. They also destroyed several buildings, including a school.
The kind-of-neutral
El Salvador: Nayib Bukele (the country's president) said that 12,169 gang members have been arrested (Spanish) since the state of emergency on March 27.
Argentina: Thousands of farmers protest against President Alberto Fernández's new export taxes on farm goods. "It’s rope that is being used to choke us," protesters say.
Iran: The Iranian Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade banned (Farsi) the import of iPhones.
And now, the good news
China: Chinese astronauts Ye Guangfu, Wang Yaping and Zhai Zhigang of the Shenzhou 13 spacecraft landed successfully in Inner Mongolia after spending 183 days in space. During the spaceflight, Wang Yaping became the first Chinese woman to perform a spacewalk.
Ecuador: Gasteranthus extinctus, an orange wild flower that is a member of the Gesneriaceae family, was rediscovered in Ecuador. We all believed it had disappeared off the face of the Earth for 36 years.
Jamaica: The numbers are in: Never were so few people unemployed. Ever. In the history of Jamaica.
France: Racist and superduper ultranationalist Marine le Pen lost the presidential elections. It’s her second time losing. Haha.
Slovenia: A liberal party won the parliamentary election, meaning Bye, Bye, Bye to populist Prime Minister Janez Janša who had been pushing the small country to the right while in office.
Malaysia: 528 Rohingya refugees fled an immigration detention centre in Penang State. Unfortunately, right after, six people died after colliding with motorcyclists while crossing a road.
Yemen: The Houthi movement signed an agreement to stop using child soldiers.
Spain: The country made it illegal for ‘pro-lifers’ to harass women (Spanish) outside of abortion clinics.
European Union: There’s a new law that holds big tech giants like Meta, Google and Twitter accountable for illegal content on their platforms.
|
|
New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern traveled to Japan last week. It was her first trip outside the country in two years.
Two huge, really sad-looking kiwifruit mascots, dancing to sorrowful music, helped welcome her.
You are not allowed to miss this video.
|
|
That's it from me for this week. If you want to stay connected on social media, follow me on Twitter or on Instagram.
Bye,
Sham
|
|
|
|
