via epiccarnival.com
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Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
BBC NEWS | South Asia | Leak reveals India Maoist threat
BBC News, Delhi
The rebels are fighting for communist rule in several Indian statesThe Indian government has obtained a leaked report that reveals the strategy of the country's Maoist insurgents.
The report is formulated by the group's top policy-making body, the politburo.
It calls for attacks on Indian security forces and efforts to stop multi-national corporations from taking over mines in central and eastern India.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh says the insurgency is the single biggest threat to India's security. Maoist violence affects a third of all districts.
Last week, Mr Singh said India was losing the battle against the rebels.
The Maoists say they are fighting for the rights of the poor. They operate in a large swathe of territory across central India, and in some areas have almost replaced the local government.
More than 6,000 people have been killed during their 20-year fight for a communist state.
'Bitter' fight
Calling upon Maoist cadres to mobilise and carry out "tactical" operations against India's security forces, the 20-page document says that Mr Singh's government is preparing to destroy their resistance.
Accusing the government of linking up with the "imperialist" United States, the Maoist report asks cadres to meticulously plan attacks against symbols of government and to "seize" political power.
Warning its cadres against becoming complacent, the politburo says that India is getting assistance from America and that it should learn from the failure of the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) in Sri Lanka.
It says the LTTE's failure to understand the changing tactics of the security forces eventually led to their defeat.
Maoists argue that big industrial houses, like India's Tata Group, are helped by the government in their attempts to wrest control of mines in eastern India.
The insurgents are calling upon the tribal population to participate in an armed struggle.
Maoist fighters are urged to tell local people that the Singh government wants to subdue them, destroy their culture and loot resources.
"This time the fight will be more long drawn and more bitter than the one against the British imperialist armies," the document says.
Bomb-making
Speaking at recent meetings on internal security India's Home Minister P Chidambaram said Maoists had improved their military and operational tactics.
Besides targeting the police, alleged police informers and so-called class enemies, the rebels are "laying greater emphasis on attacking economic and development infrastructure such as roads, bridges, railways, power and telecommunication networks," he said.
He also warned that the Maoists were making and deploying increasingly sophisticated bombs.
A senior official told the BBC that Mr Chidambaram has been trying to impress upon state governments that they should not take the threat posed by Maoists lightly.
He wants state governments to simplify procedures and increase the recruitment of security forces and use federal funds to buy weapons.
But, as a recent review by the home ministry showed, most states have been slow in understanding the seriousness of the situation.
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Friday, September 18, 2009
Right, Right Time: The Summer Records Story: CBC Radio
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Right Right Time: The Summer Records Story
Posted by Li Robbins on Sep- 6-09 at 03:00 AMComments1Recommend8
When Pitchfork wrote that in the 1960s an incredible reggae scene began developing in Toronto it seemed "almost like the premise of some odd SCTV bit," it kind of exposed their ignorance of immigration in this country. But they meant well, so we forgive them. And they did go on to acknowledge how great the music that came out of that scene was.
Today, no SCTV quips -- just a celebration of the music that Jamaican immigrants to Toronto created back then. Right Right Time: The Summer Records Story is a special radio show about the guy who preserved some of that music, Jerry Brown, with his label Summer Records.
Right Right: The Summer Records Story is produced by someone who is an essential part of our own Radio 2 website team -- Ian Cauthery. (Multi talented -- a web guy, artist, writer, music aficionado.) Through today's show, Ian and host Shaun Dhani explore the rise (and fall) of Jerry Brown's studio out in Malton, Ont. (Yes, Pitchfork, admittedly that seems a slightly unlikely spot for great reggae.) The studio was visited by many reggae legends in its time, including Jackie Mittoo, Noel Ellis, Johnnie Osbourne, Stranger Cole, Leroy Sibbles, and Carl Dawkins.
via cbc.ca
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Thursday, September 17, 2009
Health Canada apologizes for body bags
Dr. David Butler-Jones says the timing of the body bag shipments was regrettable. (CBC)
Health Canada has apologized for sending more than two dozen body bags to a Manitoba First Nation in preparation for a possible swine flu outbreak.
"We regret the alarm that this incident has caused," said a statement issued late Thursday afternoon. "It is important to remember that our nurses are focused entirely on providing primary health-care services under often-trying circumstances."
But the apology only cites the bags sent to the Wasagamack First Nation. Manitoba First Nations chiefs said the bags — which arrived this week with a shipment of hand sanitizers and face masks — also arrived in God's River First Nation.
Earlier Thursday afternoon, Jim Wolfe, director of First Nations and Inuit Health for Manitoba, issued his own apology and took the blame.
He said his department regrets the alarm the shipment has caused in those communities, which were hard hit by the H1N1 flu virus in the spring. Wolfe said the apology goes out to all First Nations in the country, not just those who received the bags.
He said their remote geography was part of the reason he asked nursing stations in those communities to stock up for the winter.
Grand Chief David Harper is calling for Jim Wolfe to resign. (CBC)
Usually, shipments deliver enough supplies to nursing stations to last for six weeks, he said, adding that this time they shipped a lot more.
Wolfe also said up to 200 body bags were sent to isolated northern reserves. Wasagamack Chief Jerry Knott said his community's nursing station received about 30 of them.
"Given the unknown events that we may facing in the fall, we asked our nursing stations to stock up for three to four months. And unfortunately in this case we overestimated our requirements and that unfortunately caused the alarm we are seeing now," Wolfe said.
"Some of these communities are unreachable by road, water or air during the winter months. In other words, they wouldn't be able to bring these supplies into some of these communities, should they become necessary," Wolfe added.
However, most of the communities are accessible year-round by air in good weather.
Wolfe's apology isn't enough for some native leaders, who are calling for him to resign.
"We find Jim Wolfe has demonstrated incompetence in handling of the H1N1 pandemic in the MKO First Nations," said David Harper, Grand Chief of the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO), an organization that represents most First Nations communities in northern Manitoba.
Body bags were sent to some Manitoba First Nations communities this week along with flu preparation kits. (CBC)
Harper also said he is not satisfied with an apology from a bureaucrat and is demanding federal Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq deliver the apology personally.
"We will accept an apology only by the minister responsible for our well being," he said.
Canada's chief public health officer Dr. David Butler-Jones said Thursday the bags are among the routine materials normally sent to those communities by Health Canada. It's just regrettable they showed up with the flu kits, he said.
"Really, body bags in this context are not necessarily related to the pandemic. Body bags may be part of the supplies of different nursing stations normally," said Butler-Jones, who is in Winnipeg for meetings with Canada's provincial and federal health ministers.
"But for this pandemic, normal supplies should be more than enough because we are not seeing a drastic increase in mortality. It really is unfortunate that these were seen as coming together."
Although officials do not expect a lot of deaths, it's important to plan for the worst-case scenario in a potential flu pandemic, said Butler-Jones, who once had an undertaker as part of a pandemic planning committee.
Wasagamack Chief Jerry Knott shows reporters in Winnipeg the body bags sent to his community. (CBC)
"We were even looking at where would a temporary morgue be: Would you take the skating rink?" he said.
Manitoba First Nations chiefs said the bags have sent a chilling message to First Nations communities.
"It's frightening our people. It's frightening me as leader. It's frightening me as a grandfather, father, and that's not what we want," said Grand Chief Ron Evans. "[Health Canada officials] have to understand that. We care for our people, love our families, children, grandchildren, and we want to make sure when a pandemic hits, there's medicine for them and people to look after them.
"That's all we want. That's all we're asking for."
Other First Nations leaders said the shipment leaves them feeling rejected by the federal government.
"Is the body bags a statement from Canada that we as First Nations are on our own?" Knott asked.
He flew to Winnipeg with the bags on Wednesday and took them to the Health Canada building on York Avenue.
The office was closed at the time, so he stacked the bags on the doorstep and marked them "Return to Sender."
via cbc.ca
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