India Shuts Down Major US Charity…India’s crackdown on foreign aid will claim its most prominent casualty this month, as a Colorado-based Christian charity that is one of India’s biggest donors closes its operations here after 48 years, informing tens of thousands of children that they will no longer receive meals, medical care or tuition payments.The shutdown of the charity, Compassion International, on suspicion of engaging in religious conversion, comes as India, a rising economic power with a swelling spirit of nationalism, curtails the flow of foreign money to activities it deems “detrimental to the national interest.” More than 11,000 nongovernmental organizations have lost their licenses to accept foreign funds since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014. Major Western funders — among them George Soros’s Open Society Foundations and the National Endowment for Democracy — have been barred from transferring funds without permission from Indian security officials. (NYT http://nyti.ms/2mgp4nj)
Happy International Women’s Day…Today is International Women’s Day. The official hashtag is #BeBoldforChange. The organizers of the massive Women’s March following the US election are also billing this a “day without women” with stayaways expected across the country and world.
All-female flight crew …India’s national airline claimed to have set a new record with the first round-the-world flight staffed entirely by women. Air India said its Boeing 777 traveled from Delhi to San Francisco and back again with an all-female crew last week, the first time such a flight has circumnavigated the globe. (AFP https://yhoo.it/2mTVp6e)
Top Stories
The Kenyan government ordered striking medical staff to return to work and said it had withdrawn an offer of a 50 percent pay hike after the workers’ union became inflexible in their negotiations. (Reuters http://bit.ly/2mTWj2L)
Workers demanding better conditions and benefits have destroyed the production line of a Chinese-owned factory in Myanmar making clothes for Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz, in one of the most violent labour disputes in the country in years. (Guardian http://bit.ly/2mU4xYH)
Three years into the conflict-related crisis in Eastern Ukraine there are acute humanitarian needs, including access to shelter, work, essential services, and even food and water. (IOM http://bit.ly/2lUb5l9)
A general strike called by ethnic groups a day after police fire killed at least three protesters has shut down markets, schools and transport in much of southern Nepal on Tuesday. (AP https://yhoo.it/2mTWuLt)
Amnesty International on Tuesday renewed its call for a UN investigation into suspected chemical weapons attacks by Sudanese government forces in Darfur, saying it would be “shameful” if they were not probed. (AFP https://yhoo.it/2lU8Iic)
The head of the U.N. refugee agency says the Trump administration’s new executive order restricting access to the United States for some refugees may compound their anguish. (AP https://yhoo.it/2lU3LGf)
The European Commission is scaling up its response to the humanitarian crisis in Iraq with a new aid package in 2017 worth €42.5 million. (ECHO http://bit.ly/2mjhzgX)
Around 900 million people living in 16 countries in Asia Pacific, including some of its biggest economies, are estimated to have paid a bribe to access public services, with governments failing to stop corruption, according to a new public opinion poll from a major anti-corruption watchdog. (IPS http://bit.ly/2lUhsVq)
At least two U.S. school districts announced plans to close on Wednesday in anticipation of staff shortages for the nationwide “Day Without A Woman” strike. (Reuters https://yhoo.it/2mTVhDU)
An Afghan family of five who obtained special visas to relocate to the U.S. were detained by immigration officials when they arrived at Los Angeles International Airport on Thursday and have been in custody ever since, according to court records and their attorneys. (AP https://yhoo.it/2mTX4J2)
Opinion/Blogs
Famine warning signs were clear – so why are 20 million lives now at risk? (Guardian http://bit.ly/2lUgQiZ)
Why a Feminist Foreign Policy Is Needed More than Ever (IPS http://bit.ly/2mTFUeK)
Moving away from aid? The case of Indonesia (ODI http://bit.ly/2mTApfW)
Syrian refugee kids find joy and success in these classrooms. They are a lucky few. (PRI http://bit.ly/2lU2O0v)
AU Falling Behind On Safety (Africa in Fact http://bit.ly/2mTBoNa)
International Women’s Day: how can you support the global strike? (Guardian http://bit.ly/2n2EHyz)
Brazil’s Odebrecht corruption scandal (BBC News http://bbc.in/2mTPqP4)
Australian aid volume: an international burden-sharing perspective (DevPolicy http://bit.ly/2lUp0HM)
Ten Lessons from Africa’s Struggle for Rights and Democracy (Reinventing Peace http://bit.ly/2mUcLjo)
Trying to sway the Trump administration on climate change (Devex http://bit.ly/2lUuJxz)
