ECOCLUB Blogs™

Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Considering that not only diplomacy and international relations, but the modern human (capitalist) civilization itself, is built on lies, small and large, it takes a Hero-madman, the first  Internet Hero (although we could also add the founders of Wikipedia), Julian Assange, to reveal global hypocricy (...in installments). Wikileaks has proven that the Internet is still not controlled by the state, the superpowers and the corporates, and that people power is a match for the military-industrial complex, the war mongers. Each one of us can and should become an Assange, against violence exploitation of all types. And already wikileaks mirrors and offshoots are popping up. The incident has also proven, as if proof was needed, of the limitations and dependencies of the corporate part of the Internet, as providers were quick to shut Wikileaks down under heavy pressure from the system, as did the monopoly (another scandal) which controls credit card and online payments. Because we do need another Internet, to bring about another world.  As George Monbiot rightly points out, we need to "reclaim the cyber-commons". And we do need Heroes, besides collective action and coordination, and we are not likely to...

Last week I was invited to participate in a UNEP-sponsored ‘International Year of Biodiversity’ conference held in Athens, organized by MedSOS, a leading Greek environmental NGO, a genuine one, focusing on marine and coastal pollution.  The conference was held a few days before a new biodiversity legal framework is brought to parliament, at a time when the financial crisis which brought us the IMF is increasing development pressures for neoliberal recipes such as a controversial “fast-track” plan to facilitate large scale foreign investments and circumvent environmental legislation, local protests and other civilized niceties. The subtitle of the conference could have been: “what happens when EU subsidies, including subsidies for environmental conservation, dry out”? There were representatives from most protected area management bodies, all complaining about lack of state funding,  lack of authority to do something about issues such as illegal hunting and fishing and pollution. In private conversations one could also hear of more juicy bits, such as allegations of nepotism and mismanagement. Even this picture is an improvement from the situation under the previous conservative government, which largely ignored the issue of environmental protection in favour of unsustainable pharaonic developments. The conference was very interesting however it was mostly attended...

At a time of growing environmental and economic crisis the 'capitalist lunacy' of golf, in the words of Bernard Shaw, is becoming more evident. Ironically, in Cuba, Golf developers, encouraged by recent 'economic liberalisation' announcements are making their own plans... In his regular weekly 'Alo Presidente' TV Show, Hugo Chavez has recently hinted that some of Venezuela's golf courses would be expropriated to be used for other purposes, along with 'good land' that has been abandoned. Stating the obvious, Chavez, who has in the past called golf a 'bourgeois sport' pointed out that it was "an injustice - that someone should have the luxury of having I don't know how many hectares to play golf and drink whiskey and, next door, there's misery and children dying when there are landslides". The comment followed the landslides of October where many people died in shanty towns and is also related to Venezuela's acute housing shortage with an estimated two million homes needed. 9 golf courses, many of which in oil-producing regions catering for Venezuela’s oil elite, have been shut down in Venezuela since 2006. Ironically, in Cuba foreign developers are planning more courses,  with some of the recent economic 'liberalisation' changes being linked...

The Obama administration, may have slightly loosened the travel ban in April 2009 by allowing Cuban-Americans to travel freely to Cuba, but otherwise has made little progress in lifting or at least loosening "El Bloqueo", the 50 year old & cold war trade and travel embargo, imposed by the world's most powerful state against a small island nation. The travel ban already has plenty of holes as it is condemned at the UN each year by all the world's countries (except Israel) and is also increasingly ignored by many US citizens travelling via Canada or Mexico, or, officially under humanitarian or educational cover (a "professional research general license"). Ironically, the travel ban has affected and distorted the Cuban Tourism model, with resorts seen as a last resort after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the abrupt end of soviet aid. (on the contrary the solution in agriculture was ecological with urban organic agriculture thriving) Low-cost package tourism from Europe led to an overreliance on foreign (transnational) built and operated resorts. A similar travel ban was in place against Vietnam and Laos, now long gone, although their communist systems are not, at least nominally. Many golf courses and luxury resorts are...

A ghost is again floating over Europe, the ghost of racism! From the recent electoral far-right breakthrough (6%) in the former poster child of social democracy, Sweden to blackshirt vigilantism in the Italian South, to Vienna municipal elections, to the endless tragedy of drowned and imprisoned immigrants in the Aegean and other Mediterranean islands right next to blissfully oblivious package tourists. Based on the Greek experience since the early 1990s, when a local community suddenly receives a far greater number of economic immigrants, refugees fleeing imperialist or local wars (and soon climate refugees) that it can immediately absorb in menial jobs, agriculture, construction and industry, its fringe racist & fascist elements, seconded by arch-conservative religious elements and the tabloid press & TV, become vocal and mainstream. Once this happens, right wing parties but also social-democrats try to follow, so as not to lose votes and the whole political discourse moves to the right. Ordinary people, already exploited by capitalism, and with their own prejudices and fears can not easily resist. Imagine levels of solidarity on a crowded bus full of tired workers returning home, when 10 immigrants (or even 10 tourists) also want to get in. That said, unfortunately, racism and...

  UNWTO has issued a press release release today assuming on the one hand - on behalf of Tourism - a 5% responsibility of global carbon emissions and on the other "cautioning" against 'mitigation' measures for air passenger transport 'taken in isolation' so as 'not to harm' developing countries and 'small island developing states' dependent on tourism. Hostage to its powerful membership, as the only UN body with multinationals as voting members, UNWTO fails to evaluate what sort of 'development' path the current capitalist tourism model offers to these states,  any "development" will do...(similar to "tourism creates jobs" or the "we employ locals"). But it seems small island states are also being used as hostages by the powerful airline lobby, so that the oligopoly of airlines and aircraft manufacturers can avoid green taxes in perpetuity. The rest of us can happily pay VAT and subsidise new airports, fuel etc.

A great video showing that research is a lot more fun for both whales and humans when combined with respect and tourism. Not for fine sushi purveyors and other delicacy enthusiasts or for those who would like us swallow that they 'need' to kill whales in order to "research" them. Featuring dwarf minke whales at the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland and Alastair Birtles, a marine biologist in the Tourism Department, who has been studying them for the past 15 years, during their annual migration from/to the Antarctic, when they are in playful mode and hence friendly and curious towards people, doing a bit of human-watching. A limited number of swim with whales operators based in Port Douglas and Cairns, have been licensed by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority  on the understanding that sightings will be reported and form part of a monitoring program with the cooperation of James Cook University. The impact of such tourism on whale behaviour and migration should of course also be closely monitored to avoid love overdoses on both sides... More details at http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/corp_site/key_issues/tourism/recreation/around_whales_and_dolphins Meanwhile, on 6 September the verdict is expected on two Japanese anti-whaling activists, Junichi and Toru who in 2008 exposed...

This year in some European countries with large Muslim populations, such as Belgium, France and Spain (where the proposal was narrowly defeated on Tuesday), there were proposals for a total ban on face veils (niqab / burqa) in public places. The Left, progressive and open minded people seem split on the issue, trying to defend both multiculturalism and personal freedoms. There is evidence that the niqab tradition long preceded Islam. On the other hand, moslem countries like Tunisia also ban the niqab. Also consider that "the extremist imams ... are the products of the Islamic fundamentalism that proliferated under the patronage of the grand anti-communist alliance of the past century, comprising western powers and Saudi fundamentalism, generously funded by petrodollars. "  Source: http://www.bmsd.org.uk/articles.asp?id=12 Is it the state's (i.e. the majority's) job to tell people ( i.e. the minority) how to dress, or is it a case of protecting the individual rights of the second (and third) generation of immigrants? The funny way of looking at it:http://www.dailysquib.co.uk/?c=117&a=2377 and http://www.dailysquib.co.uk/?c=117&a=2370

In today's Avgi newspaper, the president of the Greek Federation of Catering & Tourist Industry Employees (POEE-YTE) Leonidas Karathanassis, blasts the growing exploitation of tourism student trainees by large hotels and the displacement of hotel workers. According to Mr Karathanassis, the phenomenon first started in 2000 when some large hotels in northern Greece struck direct agreements with foreign tourism schools. He alleges that today mainly through the intermediation of specialist 'trainee agents', many of the trainees are not really tourism (or any other sort of) students, they have to work long hours, live in below-ground dormitories or even store-rooms 'like animals', without insurance, with a meagre Euros 500 half of which goes back to the agency! The union representative called on the government to investigate this illegal and abusive practice and to set maximum limits of 10% for trainees, compared to the current 50% which is the case in hundreds of greek hotels. 

   Two 'Na’vi' from 'planet Pandora' landed in London today to participate in multinational mining company Vedanta Resources’ Annual General Meeting.  The happening was part of a colourful demonstration against the miners, over their controversial plan to extract bauxite (Ed. surely unobtainium?) from Niyam Penu (Niyamgiri Hill) the sacred mountain of India’s Dongria Kondh tribe, that they worship as creator and sustainer, in the Indian state of Orissa. Monty Python star and travel writer Michael Palin  expressed his support to the 3 year campaign, supported by Survival International and Amnesty Int. saying he had  "seen the forces of money and power ... arrayed against a people who have occupied their land for thousands of years, who husband the forest sustainably and make no great demands on the state or the government." India’s Environment and Forests Ministry is currently investigating the Dongria’s claim to the forest while Odisha state is conducting a separate probe. Yesterday Vedanta dismissed as "incorrect" an Amnesty International report citing human rights abuses and environmental damages by the company. In May 2009 Amnesty had written to the Indian authorities requesting that the clearance for the mine be withdrawn "until all necessary measures are taken to ensure that the...