Excluded Headlines: Senegal celebrates anti-establishment election, climate fasting relay continues in India ...
Stay up to date on the global news stories the US- and Eurocentric media overlook, with author and journalist, Tamara Pearson.
In this week’s Global South news:
Three weeks of climate fasting in India continue - Sonam Wangchuk has ended his climate fast after three weeks, passing the baton on to others in a relay fast that will continue until their demands are met. Some 6,000 people had also joined him in a one-day fast. Thousands more, pictured below, are participating in sit-in protests. The climate fasters want their region of the Himalayas and cultures there to be protected. Source, source.
Philippines joins biggest case vs climate change - The Philippine government has spoken out in support of Pacific island nations in their bid to get an International Court of Justice ruling that would provide a legal framework to compel the biggest polluters to pay those suffering from the adverse effects of climate change. Activist and analyst Reihana Mohideen notes however, the hypocrisy, as the country also supports “more coal, the Kaliwa dam, big infrastructure, and militarization and war in the region.” Source, source.
Opposition win in Senegal election - Bassirou Diomaye Faye won the March 24 election with 54.2% of the vote. At 44, he is the country's youngest-ever president. The election took place following bouts of protests that were met with severe state repression and violence and the imprisonment of another opposition leader, Ousmane Sonko. Then Faye was also imprisoned for criticising the repression against Sonko. Faye has promised to restore the republic’s institutions, renegotiate mining and energy contracts, and work towards monetary reform. People celebrated after the victory, seeing it as a rejection of the previous repressive government and as a call for radical change. Source, source, source.
Thailand’s lower house passes same-sex marriage bill - Thailand will likely become the first country in South East Asia to legalise same-sex marriage after its house of representatives approved a marriage equality bill with 399 in favour and just 10 voting against. Now just the senate and king are required to approve the law. Source, source.
India to implement living wage - The Indian government wants to change the minimum wage for a living wage by next year. The living wage means having enough income to meet basic needs like housing, healthcare, and food, and would be higher than the minimum wage. Enforcing wages is difficult in India, where many people work informally, but this living wage would be applied to all states. Source.
5.2 million livestock die in Mongolian extreme winter - Children are also missing school in the country as temperatures drop to as low as -50 °C (-58°F). Source, source.
Morocco, Jordan protest for four days straight for Gaza - On Wednesday, Jordanian security forces attacked and arrested scores of protesters when they tried to reach the Israeli embassy. See this video of a huge night-time protest in Amman. Source.
Useful reads:
West Papua: The Torture Mode Of Governance
Sri Lanka: Govt-IMF Reach Agreement but Basic Question Remains
Report on how the Pentagon trained various coup leaders in Africa
'A criminal economy' How US arms fuel deadly gang violence in Haiti
Guatemala gold mine sparks environmental concerns (video)
The men are gone but the patriarchy remains - The struggles of women left behind in Syria