Excluded Headlines: Call for global protests against corporate water plundering, Pakistan economic crisis..
Stay up to date on the global news stories the US- and Eurocentric media overlooks, with journalist and author, Tamara Pearson.
In this week’s Global South news that has been excluded or downplayed by the mainstream media:
Mexico: Activists and Indigenous communities call for global protests against corporate water plundering - More than 500 people from 18 states around Mexico, representing 125 movements, organisations and Indigenous communities, met in Santiago de Mexquititlan, Queretaro, on the weekend. The Assembly for Water and For Life brought together groups that are resisting transnationals stealing water for their production, while leaving locals without. Activists called for a global day of action against the corporate plundering of water for March 22, World Water Day. Actions will be held around Mexico, particularly protesting how companies like Nestlé, Danone, Coca Cola, and mega developers are taking water for goods like soft drinks and bottled water, while small farms and Indigenous lands dry out. Source: Covered directly, source.
Pakistan: After catastrophic floods, IMF forces govt to further strangle the poor - After floods in the second half of last year killed nearly 2,000 people and left over 2 million homeless, Pakistan is still struggling. The floods were caused by extreme heat and climate change, but Pakistan’s ongoing poverty is complex and dates back to British imperialism in the area. Now, some of the biggest companies in Pakistan have shut down due to lack of raw materials and/or foreign exchange. Inflation is at its highest in fifty years, and a lack of foreign reserves means the country can’t import goods. And on Monday, the country was forced to pass IMF measures in order to access a loan, which include increasing the goods tax. That will affect the poorest consumers the most. Activists want military expenditures to be cut, land reform, and taxing of mega developers instead. Source, source, source, source, source, source.
Peru: Protestors could face longer time in prison - Unelected Peruvian president Dina Boluarte is seeking to modify the country’s penal code so that people detained during the ongoing protests will face longer prison sentences. Supposed crimes committed during a state of emergency will bring harsher penalties. Source.
Sudan: US, Europe ignore local wishes and meet with military junta - In December, Sudan’s military junta and a coalition of right wing parties signed a Framework Agreement to share power. However, activists said recently the coalition doesn’t have any kind of mandate and they have been protesting the military rule since it took power in a coup in 2021. Still, envoys from the US, UK, and Europe meet with the signees of the Framework earlier this month, while Resistance Committees protested outside. In 2022, over 418,000 people were displaced in Sudan as a result of conflict, flooding, and fires. An ongoing military government will only worsen the levels of conflict and violence. Source, source.
Mauritania: Massive protest after police kill activist - Earlier this month human rights activist Souvi Ould Jibril Ould Cheine was detained by police, then later died. A close friend and activist said his body bore signs of torture. Following days of mass protests, on 20 February a Public Prosecutor’s Office announced eight people, including senior police, would be charged. Source.