Blogs

Dorothy Stang, murdered American nun (archive)

Seeing him waving the "V' for victory sign yesterday, and hearing him thank divine justice for his acquittal on appeal after initially being convicted and sentenced to 30 years, rancher Vitalmiro de Moura Bastos, or "Bida" reminded me of the killers of civil rights workers in the South who smirked when were absolved for their crimes. But, this is the Amazon, not the South, and it´s 2008. And, the murder Bida was absolved of was that of an American nun, Dorothy Stang, rather than a Black youth who dared to assert his rights.

India campaigner Ann-Kathrin Schneider brought to my attention this great video about dam-development in India:

Fernando Lugo, new Paraguayan president (Antônio Cruz, ABr)

The victory by Fernando Lugo last Sunday in Paraguay´s presidential elections has sent ripples through the energy ministries of Brazil and Argentina, based upon his assertion that the Itaipu and Yacyretá Dam treaties must be re-negotiated to guarantee a fair deal for his country.

There was a time when Brazil´s groundbreaking environmental laws, based upon its
constitution (article 225) which guarantees its citizens the right to a healthy environment were considered a global model. Not anymore.

A new report shows that investment in wind and solar energy surpassed support for large hydro projects in 2007. The World Bank has missed the trend on emerging renewable technologies, and continues to focus its support on large dams.

The ancient town of Hasankeyf will be flooded by the Ilisu Dam (peevishsoul)

Governments and financial institutions have come under increasing pressure not to fund environmentally and socially destructive projects. In the case of the Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline, the Nam Theun 2 Dam in Laos and the Ilisu Dam in Turkey, the World Bank and Western governments have resorted to approving financial support under strict conditions. This approach has so far not worked because funders were not serious about enforcing their conditions. The Ilisu Dam is now facing a crunch. It may salvage the remaining credibility of Western donors – or drown it out completely. (Updated)

April Fools!

The Teesta Youth Parliament asked participants to raise their voices in protest of the continuing dam projects in the Teesta Basin at an event held on March 28th at the National Press Club in Dhaka. Supporters of their cause were asked to send letters of solidarity to the Youth Parliament at angikarbd [at] yahoo [dot] com.

News item: "The legendary American musician Bob Dylan went bicycle riding disguised as a woman at Punta del Este, Uruguay, where he closed out his Latin America tour."