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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on February 19th, 2010 « Rencontre Régionale: Adaptation aux changements climatiques au Maghreb: Bilan et Perspectives » from: Prof. Dr. Med-Saïd KARROUK to African Le Comité National IGBP, et l’Université Hassan II, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines Ben M’Sick, Casablanca (Maroc) – Avec le soutien du programme ACCA du CRDI et du DFID Organisent : La « Rencontre Régionale: Adaptation aux changements climatiques au Maghreb: Le 16 et 17 mars 2010, FLSH Ben M’Sick, Casablanca Préambule : En réponse aux défis environnementaux et socio-économiques majeurs liés aux changements climatiques, placés actuellement au cœur de l’ordre du jour des grandes réunions internationales, et dans la perspective d’une contribution à l’effort mondial de sensibilisation sur les enjeux du changement du climat, que cette rencontre sur l’adaptation aux changements climatiques au Maghreb est organisée, à laquelle seront invitées des personnalités de très haut niveau et d’éminents scientifiques et experts. D’autre part, un plan d’action concret sera proposé pour la mise en place de projets prioritaires d’adaptation pour les gouvernements, les entreprises et la société civile. Ceci permettra en même temps d’imprimer une dynamique nouvelle aux actions jusqu’ici timides des pays maghrébins sur le plan international dans le domaine des changements climatiques. La diffusion de l’information recueillie durant cette conférence sera effectuée par le réseau « ClimDev » qui desserve plus de 10 000 lecteurs francophones à travers le monde. A cela s’ajoutera la publication des actes de la conférence qui seront adressés aux différents acteurs visés par la conférence : les décideurs, les scientifiques, les ONG, …etc. Objectifs de la rencontre : Cette rencontre a trois objectifs : Les axes de cette rencontre sont les suivants : Enjeux : Gravement préoccupés par la vulnérabilité des systèmes socioéconomiques et de production du Maghreb au changement climatique et aux faibles capacités de riposte de la région, les décideurs politiques ont retenu le changement climatique comme l’une des préoccupations prioritaires et ont lancé un appel de coopérations aux partenaires pour appuyer leurs pays et les communautés économiques régionales afin qu’ils puissent intégrer de façon efficace la problématique du changement climatique dans leurs plans de développement. Les négociations actuelles sur le changement climatique recherchent un nouvel élan pour l’après 2012 qui prendrait en compte les leçons du Protocole de Kyoto et la nécessaire convergence des priorités des diverses Parties. Dans cette perspective elles ont identifié quatre domaines-clés pour un dialogue de haut niveau, pour la coopération et l’action de long terme sur le changement climatique. Il s’agit : Le Maghreb se doit d’y inscrire sa spécificité et ses priorités et d’en saisir les opportunités pour son développement. La Rencontre de Casablanca s’intègre dans cet élan et souhaite participer à l’aide à la décision pour une adaptation efficace par la recherche et le renforcement des capacités vis-à-vis de ce crucial problème, celui des Changements Climatiques au Maghreb. Public cible : Comité scientifique : KARROUK Mohammed Saïd, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines Ben M’Sick, Casablanca Comité d’organisation : KARROUK Mohammed Saïd, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines Ben M’Sick, Casablanca Date-limite et directives pour soumettre des résumés : Nous voudrions inviter les participants à présenter des communications orales et des affiches basés sur les thèmes de la rencontre, liés à la région du Maghreb. Les résumés doivent être soumis avant le 31 janvier 2010 par courriel, en anglais, français ou arabe. Aide aux participants : La rencontre fournira l’aide de voyage, d’hébergement et de restauration, partielle ou totale, à un nombre limité de participants qui sont dans le besoin d’aide financière. On s’attend à ce que les participants puissent financer leurs propres dépenses et ou recevoir l’appui d’une autre organisation pour couvrir les frais. Conditions : Frais de participation : Conférences invitées : Programme Prévisionnelle : Programme : 09:00 – 09:30 *************** Directeur Exécutif du Comité National IGBP (Global Change) Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 30th, 2010 Morocco, in bold moves shows the Islamic World That It Does Not Agree With The Ahmedi-Nejad Dictum That There Was No Holocaust – But Do Arabs Note This, and can Morocco do it all by itself? Ariele Nahmias is a Jewish teacher in France and she organizes courses for French and Belgium teachers about Jewish issues. She also heads the French Desk at the International School for Holocaust Studies of the Yad Vashem. http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/educatio… Having looked up The Yad Vashem Jerusalem Quarterly Magazine of January 2010, I found on page 4 an article by Ariele Nahmias: “From Morocco to Jerusalem: First-Ever Seminar for Moroccan Educators.” The article tells about 18 teachers from Morocco that came to the Yad Vashem International School for Holocaust Studies to participate in a tailor-made seminar on Holocaust Education. This effort started when one of those teachers heard about the School’s Mario Sinai – the European Director – lecturing in Spain – and approached him to organize a special seminar for Moroccan teachers. Eventually – the group that came to Jerusalem included Berber community social activists. In Israel they met and listened among others to two Members of the Israeli Parliament (the Knesset) that originate from Morocco – Yaacov Edri of Kadima and Daniel Ben Simon from Labor – who also is a known Journalist. There are 600,000 Jews originating from Morocco living now in Israel. They came in the early 1950s – after the establishing of the State of Israel in 1948 – as there was a strong reaction against the Jewish State that was fueled by Arab Nationalists everywhere. The Moroccan Group Leader that came to Israel December 2009, is Boubaker Outaadit who said that he got interested in the Holocaust while studying German History at the University of Casablanca. Others looked at it from sociology angles. Moroccan poet Ali Khadaoui – one of the participants – already expressed his sentiments in writing and said he will continue to be involved in an effort by educators back home who “informally teach students the History of the Holocaust. ————— Short History of Morocco: Morocco´s location at the northwest corner of Africa, at the straights or the mouth of the Mediterranean opposite Spain, has attracted invading many forces and settlers. Phoenicians came to trade and settle, about that time arrived also the first Jews – that is 3,000 years ago. Then successive waves of Romans, Vandals, Visigoths, and Byzantine Greeks arrived to dominate and rule. The Arabs began bringing their civilization in the 7th century, and the Alaouite dynasty, which claims descent from the Prophet Mohamed, is ruling Morocco since 1649. The Portuguese controlled the Atlantic coast in the 15th century and the French arrived in 1830. In 1904 Morocco was divided into spheres of French and Spanish influence and a 1912 treaty established these zones as protectorates. Muhammad V was Sultan of Morocco from 1927 to 1953, exiled from 1953-55, where he was again recognized as Sultan upon his return, and was declared King from 1957 to 1961. His full name was Sidi Mohammad ben Yusef, or Son of (Sultan) Yusef, upon whose death he succeeded to the throne. Muhammad VI is the current King. He was born in 1963 and became King of Morocco in 1999 upon the death of his father King Hassan II who was King of Morocco from 1961 to 1999. Formerly Muhammad ben Al-Hassan, crown prince Sidi Muhammad, he studied at Muhammad V Univ., Rabat, where he received bachelor’s (1985) and master’s (1988) degrees in law, and at the Univ. of Nice, France, where he obtained his doctorate in law (1993). In the 1990s, as the health of his father King Hassan II declined, the crown price assumed a greater role in the government. In 1994 he was promoted to general and became coordinator of the Royal Armed Forces, and in 1998 he initiated a wide-ranging antipoverty program. He has worked toward various social and economic improvements and has established a reputation as a generally moderate monarch. In foreign policy, Morocco is officially non-aligned but generally sympathetic to the West. Its long-term goals are to strengthen its influence in the Arab world, Africa, and the Maghreb (Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco), while maintaining close ties to Europe and the United States. Its major foreign-policy problem involves its absorption of Western Sahara when Spain relinquished its claim in 1976. This claim has entailed a long and costly war against the Algeria-based Polisario Front and for many years caused the rupture of diplomatic relations with Algeria. Diplomatic relations – as well as rail links, air links, and a gas pipeline deal – are back in place and agreements to negotiate a final solution have been reached. In 1975, thousands of Moroccans crossed the border into Spanish Sahara to support Moroccan claims to the northern part of the territory. Mauritania then occupied the southern half of Spanish Sahara. After Spain pulled out, Algeria supported Spanish Saharan claims to self-determination and backed the Polisano Front guerrillas. Mauritania made peace with the insurgents in 1979, but Polisano resistance to Moroccan occupation of the north and hostility between Algeria and Morocco continue. Relations with other North African states improved significantly in the late 1980s. In May 1988 Algeria and Morocco agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations. (Diplomatic relations with Mauritania had been suspended in 1981 and resumed in April 1985). In February 1989 North African Heads of State, meeting in Marrakesh, signed a treaty establishing the Union of the Arab Maghreb. The new body, which included Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania and Tunisia, aimed to promote trade by allowing the free movement of goods, services and workers. ————— Regarding the topic of our present posting – the nature of relations the Moroccan Kings nurtured in regard to their Jewish citizens, World Jewry, and Israel let us start by noting that King Muhammad V, though bound to the Vichy French Rulers by the Protectorate agreement, made nevertheless efforts to mellow the impact of the Nazi anti-Jewish laws and now King Muhammad VI is trying to distance himself from the general anti-Israeli stands popular on the streets under most other Islamic ruling governments. In so far as the 2010 UN led International Holocaust Remembrance week, we noted the presence and good words, “Remember We Must” at the Saturday, January 23, 2010 Park East Synagogue event organized by Rabbi Arthur Schneier. Present and speaking at the luncheon were both – the Moroccan Ambassador to the UN, Mohamed Louichki, as well as Serge Berdugo who has the title of Itinerant Ambassador, and is actually also the Head of the Jewish Community and a former Minister of Tourism. Later in the week, Thursday January 28, 2010, a second event with Moroccan participation, was arranged as a UN DPI briefing to the NGOs and the UN somehow managed to avoid the much more useful potential had they arranged to have this event also broadcasted to the UN community at large. After all, the fact that Morocco is more open to the Jewish people then any other Arab or Islamic State should be taken as an example to the rest of the UN membership – an act more important then just try to enhance the image of this State with the Civil Society as represented by the NGOs. Whatever the case, our website has picked up the presentation by Itinerant Ambassador, or is it Ambassador to the Civil Society and World Jewry, with tourism implications, Mr. Serge Berdugo, at Here we will look at the second presenter – Mr. Andre Azoulay, Counsellor to His Majesty the King, who spoke via videoconference on an OECD screen, and answered questions. There were two more speakers. – both from the Jerusalem-based program of KIVUNIM – New Directions – The Institute of Experimental Learning for Israel and World Jewish Communities Studies the head of the organization, Mr. Peter Geffen, a well known educator who founded the Abraham Heschel School in New York City, and American Student Micha Stettin who dedicated himself to Middle East Studies, Hebrew and Arabic, now at Mc Gill after having spent a year in Israel with Kivunim. His presentation was dubbed as “Voices of Youth,” and this is correct in the sense that the grandchildren of the Holocaust can now start looking at the events of the 30s-40s of last century and start asking new questions. Micha’s question is – “Why did we not find anywhere in our studies what happened during the Holocaust to the Jews of Morocco?” He said that while learning about the good and the bad we must also learn about the collective identity as viewed in the Arab lands. What happened between Jews, Berbers, and Arabs in Morocco of that time – and King Muhammad V should be recognized as the right man he was. Peter Geffen created first a project under the Shoa Foundation on memories from the Holocaust, and with King Muhammad VI embarked on the Morocco project. He did not make a presentation and left the Kivunim presentation to Micha, but read a special letter from the King: “Praise be to God – May peace and blessings be upon His Prophets and Messengers.” “None of us can claim to have an understanding of the Holocaust that is-all-encompassing, absolute and without concession or compromise.” “Amnesia has no effect on my understanding of the Holocaust, or that of my people – in fact we perceive it as a wound to the collective memory, which we know is engraved in one of the most painful chapters in the collective history of mankind,” was the way the King started his message to the panel. Then he passe on to make a real complaint: “In what history or civic education textbooks used in the West is it taught that Morocco had opened its doors, as early as in 1930s, to European Jewish communities who had seen the peril looming on the horizon?” “In what institutes or intellectual forums, in Europe or the United States, is the exemplary and historic attitude of ny late grandfather – His Majesty King Muhammad V – blessed be his soul – discussed? Notwithstanding the implacable realities of the French protectorate., which severely constrained his power, His Majesty managed to oppose the enforcement of racist Vichy laws against Moroccans - citizens of Jewish faith.” The King continues beyond above admonition with an important call to reality – and asks us to look at the potential of what he is up to: “Each of you will understand that when I call for exhaustive and faithful reading of the history of this period, I do not merely do justice to actual facts, ” he said and continues – “We live in a time that is not neutral. A time in which the collective imagination of all of our societies is also fueled by the prospect of exclusion and failure when it comes to the promises of dialogue between civilizations, our cultures and our religions,” and gets to the real point in the last lines: “in its depth as much as in its tragic specificity, this duty of remembrance strongly imposes ethical, moral and political standards which will, tomorrow, be true guarantors of this peace – based on equally shared justice and dignity – and for which most Palestinians and Israelis yearn.” So, what we have here is a complaint that Europe oriented attention by the world, when dealing with the Holocaust, has forgotten (amnesia – he said) the fact that in an Arab country the Muslim ruler – at the time Sultan and later, upon full independence, King Muhammad V – his grandfather - did what he could, under Vichy France “protectorate,” to save his Jewish citizens from the worst of Nazi treatment. Then he said that the recognition that there was a history of good relationship between Jews and Muslims in Morocco – this has to become the motor for a solution of the Palestinian – Israeli fight in the Middle East. This line was seconded via videoconference by his Jewish Councellor Andre Azoulay and these statements were then the base for a lively Q&A exchange with Mr. Azoulay answering from the screen. Mr. Azoulay did not mince words when saying that while in Christian Europe barbarian Nazism was raging, it was a Muslim Sultan in Morocco who told his Vichy French “Protectors” that his Jews will not wear a yellow star – they are Moroccans like all other Moroccans. He said this was no accident nor coincidence – it was rather the recognition that the Jews were in the country had a 3,000 year history and they arrived 1,500 years before the arrival of Arab Islam. There were here many centuries of mutual respect and knowledge. He stated: “We are proud Jews and proud of Morocco being part of the Arab civilization, Muslim culture and related to Middle East cultures – we feel ourselves enriched by all these three dimensions and we feel having a special role and responsibilities – we are Jews in Morocco and as Moroccan citizens we have responsibility as Jewish activists in the Arab World. That is also why we want to emphasize the role Morocco played in the Shoa and we want to break through the amnesia on this topic. Looking back at the duality of being Jews and Moroccans, and what was achieved there during the days of the Nazis in Europe, he feels that the coexistence in Morocco brings him to the Arab cause for a logic of coexistence of living in TWO STATES IN PALESTINE AND ISRAEL – for the people there with all the measures of Human Rights and respect. WE REACT STRONGLY TO RESIST THE TRIVIALIZATION OF THE HOLOCAUST TRAGEDY – MOROCCO DOES NOT BELONG TO THE CLUB OF THE HOLOCAUST REJECTIONISTS – he said then followed up by saying that I am the only member of that Club that has Jews in an Arab country with all their rights – it is the Moroccan specificity in face of the Holocaust and this leads him to fight for the rights of the Palestinians and Israelis to live side by side. The Chairman of the Panel was UN Director for Outreach – Mr. Eric Falt. It seems that his taking over by himself as moderator of the panel was a later decision as the first announcement that reached me mentioned the introducer, Maria-Louisa Chavez, Chief, NGO Relations, Department of Public Information (DPI) as Moderator, but seemingly there was some rethinking about this allowed at DPI. Mr. Falt was obviously a more appropriate choice for an event that should have been intended for a wider audience to include even the UN itself. This became obvious at the interesting Q&A time. The background of this meeting was not presented in full by the panel. Indeed there was a history of peaceful coexistence in Morocco and high level of achievements during thousands of years, and colonial anti-Semitic policies imposed upon Moroccan Jews by the Vichy-regime of German-occupied France were opposed by the local leader of the country – the future King Muhammad V – but then, with the creation of the State of Israel, tensions in the country arouse with riots against the Jews and Moroccan Jews fleeing to France and Israel as Arab – Israeli wars broke out in the Middle East. In spite of everything, and the inter-Arab solidarity, King Muhammad V and his son Hassan II still managed to protect the remaining Jews and tried to play intermediary roles in the Arab-Israeli peace process. The present King – His Majesty King Muhammad VI faced by 2003 suicide bombing incidents against Jewish institutions in Casablanca, did indeed step out against Arab perpetrators of these crimes, and continued the historic mainly tolerant attitude towards Jews in Morocco. I visited the place that included a Jewish social club close to after it happened, with 57 members of a family of Moroccan Jews living in Israel that went to see their place of origin. We were received royally even though it was clear that there was an implied reason for that visit – the question of real estate that the family left behind when fleeing the country. Even so – I witnessed friendly encounters that included even two visits with people living then in the former Levy family owned homes. One of the Levy brothers had a grocery store and a bakery – and these business were still functioning – we were honored with freshly backed bread by the new operator who was from a family of friends of the Levys. I did not follow what happened to the potential claim – but it was obvious to me that in the context of a settlement of claims former Palestinian owners have over properties in Israel, these claims will be clearly part of the counter-claims in a balanced solution – and there is no rejection of this idea by Morocco – even though Morocco shows interest in helping find a solution for the Middle East conflict – that might mean its own financial loss of sort. Thinking of the above – the importance of this Thursday, January 28, 2010, panel at the UN International Holocaust Remembrance week, at the UN Headquarters, takes an even higher level of importance and deserved maximum visibility and exposure. Mr. Abdelkader Abbadi, originally from Tunisia, former UN official, and now a UN-DPI accredited correspondent, asked the first question, and it was about the position about Jews in the larger Arab context – the position of the Moroccan Jews in a larger reconciliation between the Muslim and Jewish Worlds. The answer was that Morocco is still playing a major role to give peace a chance. It was during the 60-80s they were the main place of contact. Mr. Azulay, from the screen, said: “We are still in total coherence in what can bring a feature of security for the State of Israel. By keeping alive the historical Moroccan legacy – the role played by the King and the message sent to the Nazi barbarity, and applying to the denial of the Holocaust in parts of the region, we are showing Morocco as it is. He added “Let me also say that when fighting for the above we also fight Islamophobia – the new anti-Semitism we see in Islamophobia. It is the same legacy that pushes us to say how Morocco can show the chance of coexistence between Muslims and Jews. A question from Mauricio of the Brazilian Mission to the UN brought from Mr. Azoulay the following answer: When I went to Brazil I feel at home. In Salvador, Bahia I saw all three cultures celebrating in one – the logic gives us strength. Yes, we had also black pages. When we think of the Inquisition of the 15th century – it killed millions of Jews. In the Arab world of that time we stood together on the page of humanity. We had the mathematicians and the philosophers together – we held them for the rest of humanity. Jews in the Arab & Muslim World is not just cosmetics. We feel enough confident, committed, powerful to share it with you first – because it is true today and centuries ago. Serge Berdugo added to this: In Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, there is a large Jewish community from Morocco since 1882. Last year we had 500 people that came to Morocco to look for roots. A question on books: Mr. Azulay said the answer is in education. We published about the Shoa in Arabic as there is enough inflammatory material in Arabic like The Protocols of Zion. In March 2009 we took the initiative to translate “The Diary of Anne Frank” and books like Hitler and the Jews. This was immediately effective. We have the books on our website and they can be freely downloaded. We find that they are printed out also in Iran. This is the first real effective answer to feed the ignorants. We have to do our best to inform the people. WE MUST GIVE A CHANCE TO THOSE THAT DO NOT KNOW – TO KNOW. It is a unique opportunity for the rest of the world and for the Muslim community to get the information. We have to mobilize NGOs, Universities, Academics, Governments, States to the realization of relations between Jews & Muslims. —— Eventually came the question I thought all the time that it will appear out there at any moment: What about Israel – why not live there Jews and Arabs as one community. Serge Berdugo answered without difficulty – IN ISRAEL THESE ARE TWO SEPARATE COMMUNITIES – IN MOROCCO WE LIVE TOGETHER. IN ISRAEL – ISRAEL MUST GET SECURITY FIRST WITHOUT THAT NOTHING WILL HAPPEN! Almost all bridges in the Middle East were made in Morocco. We have very good contacts with Palestinians & Israelis when they come to Morocco they speak to each other to find solutions. We are in the supermarket – security and realism – and we have the dreams. —— Question from a former employee of Joint in Morocco: How do you transmit your experience to others? Petter Geffen answered – About the Vichy – Morocco stands – I learned about this only 6 years ago – now I tell it to everyone. THE POWER OF MUTUAL RESPECT AND COEXISTENCE, Some people have vested interests in keeping us separate – that does not lead to change. He then told of Raphael David Almaleh who went to a village of Berbers that once had 400 Jews – Arazan – and asked children – Where was here a Synagogue? They did not know but said ask that old man at the top of the street. The 65 year old man knew – and more. He pulled out a key and took them to the Synagogue. “They left when we were children – the Rabbi gave me the key and said give it to the Jews when they come back” he said. Geffen then continued saying that the amnesia was not on purpose – it is rather a result of our Eurocentricity that caused us not to look at Africa. When we asked Mr. Azulay to get involved in our effort to bring some redress to the lost years, he had first to ask the King’s endorsement and given this endorsement helped bring it to the open. We should not go away without making this knowledge a way to lead to change. Serge Berdugo added – “we feel we have a story for the rest of the world.” Our website feels he deffinitely has a story for the UN – actually this was the novelty in this year’s Holocaust Remembrance Week of the UN. ————– Further, as our website is known for our interest in environmental issues such as the impact of burning fossil fuels on Global Warming, we could not resist to note here also that the Turkish head of the Organization of the Islamic Conference has called fot the first meeting of the OIC Executive Bureau on Environment and Climate Change for Rabat - January 18-19, 2010. This meeting was obviously not connected to the subject matter of above panel – but on a different level it surely is related nevertheless, and it is interesting that two non-oil exporters from among the Arab States, but the countries positioned at the two geographical ends of the Mediterranean divide between Europe and the main mass of the Islamic World, Morocco and Turkey – are involved in this growing -in-importance global issue.
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 30th, 2010 From sergeberdugo@yahoo.fr The Statement by Morocco Itinerant Ambassador Serge Berdugo, a Jew of prominent standing in Morocco, to the UN International Holocaust 2010 Commemoration. The Importance of the Panel was more then anything else – towards the Islamic World of today. January 28, 2010 Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is my privilege to be part of this ceremony on the history of the Jewish Community of Morocco during the Second World War and to tell you how the European policy on Holocaust impacted the lives of this community. This presentation will illustrate and I quote His Majesty Mohammed VI: “tell the rest of the world how Arab and Islamic countries, such as mine, resisted Nazism and said “No” to the barbarity of the Nazis and to the villainous laws of the Vichy government”. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, First, let me remind you that in 1939 Morocco was under the French and Spanish protectorate. Following the defeat of France and the coming into power of the Vichy Government, the Jews were faced with a systematic ideological anti-Semitism that led to the implementation of the Vichy anti Jewish legislation in Morocco. According to the second concession, bans and quotas were not applied to the Jewish religious institutions. This concession allowed Jewish institutions including schools to function properly and to receive 80% of their funding from the State budget. Furthermore, business and handicrafts activities remained open to Jews. The anti Jewish laws had only a little impact on them. They continued to practice their religion and do business. Their children received a Jewish and secular education of good quality. Nevertheless, the minority of Jews, who embraced modernity and the European lifestyle, suffered all types of discrimination, humiliation and exactions. They were forced to live in overpopulated Mellah. They were excluded from the civil service, from the private sector (no more than 2% of Jewish doctors and lawyers) and from French schools (a maximum of 10% of Jewish students in high schools and 3% in universities). From 1940 to 1943, the life of the Jews was certainly difficult and precarious but not more than that of the Muslims, who were themselves victims of discrimination by the Europeans. Discrimination against Jews as well as Muslims included access to swimming pools, public places, theaters and stadiums. During this enduring period, no major tension existed between the Jews and Muslims. In fact, the war had a little impact on the relationship between the two communities. The opposite was true of relations with the European which were enterable to the extent that the Jews lived in a permanent fear to be humiliated and sometimes beaten by European mobs. This violence reached its climax with the French fascist group “S.O.C.” which planned a pogrom targeting Jews in Casablanca on November 15th, 1942. In these circumstances, the Jews could not rely on the French police to protect them. Fortunately, on November 8th, 1942, the landing of American forces in Casablanca prevented the implantation of such hideous action. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, It was thanks to the courage and fairness of the young Moroccan Sultan that the discriminatory laws targeting those whom the King referred to as “his loyal Jewish subjects”, were never applied in an integral and uniform way. Indeed the Presidents of the 4 most important Jewish communities were taken secretly in a covered small van, walking then through the kitchens and the offices, to be received thereafter by the Monarch in his Apartment without any Protocol present. The King said ‘I know your fears but I ask you to assure my Jewish subjects of my constant and full protection. Let them know that nothing will affect them that it did not affect first my family and myself’. Informed that the French requested an inventory of the Jewish assets, while the law concerned only the real estate, the Sultan gave then his instructions to slow down the census and abstain from transmitting the files to the French authorities. Following the landing of the US in November, 1942, and upon a request by the Sultan, my father was an eyewitness of the destruction of all the documents related to the census. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, Beyond all these clear statements and positions, in favour of his Jewish subjects, the King of Morocco undertook courageous actions. He took brave initiatives that the recent disclosures of French and British archives illustrate eloquently. Let me quote from a confidential report drawn in 1985 from the French MFA archives: Credible sources informed us that the relations between the Sultan of Morocco and the French authorities became much tenser the day the Residence put into application the decree on the “measures” against the Jews despite the strict opposition of the Sultan. The Sultan refused to make differences amongst his loyal people and he was offended to see that his authority was overtaken by the French authorities. The Sultan waited for his crowning anniversary and publicly announced that he forbade the measures against the Jews. On this occasion, the Sultan generally offered a banquet attended by the French representatives and eminent Moroccan personalities. For the first time, the Sultan invited to the banquet the representatives of the Jewish community who sat next to the French officials. He declared to the French officials, who were surprised by the presence of Jews at this meeting: “I absolutely do not agree with the new anti-Semitic laws and I refuse to associate myself with a measure I disagree with; I reiterate as I did in the past that the Jews are under my protection and I reject any distinction that should be made amongst my people”. End of quote. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, In assuming his spiritual role as “Commander of the faithful”, the King of Morocco, as descendant of the Prophet, is bound to protect Jews as much as he does Muslims. The Sultan guarantees the security and the safety of the three components of the Kingdom: Arab, Berber and Jew, who for centuries lived in Morocco in harmony and brotherhood. Today, “His Majesty the King Mohammed VI reiterated ‘His religious, historical and constitutional responsibility in the preservation of the persons, the rights and the sacred values of His subjects of Jewish confession”. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, We cannot address the issue of Holocaust in North Africa without referring to ‘forced labor camps’; these real ‘concentration camps’ created by Vichy to receive Gaullist, socialist, and communist opponents, Germans anti-Nazis, Spanish Republicans, Jewish refugees of Central Europe, Gypsies and even Muslim resistants. These camps were under the total control of the French Army. The prisoners who were at the mercy of their European Guardians experienced horrible conditions of detention. The 2000 Jews detainees representing 30% of the overall number of prisoners kept in over 30 camps. The camp of Berguent received exclusively 400 Jewish prisoners. According to testimonies made by former prisoners in these camps, collected by British Foreign Office. ‘The only signs of humanity came from Muslim guards who took risks to relieve our sufferings’. I draw your attention to the fact that as long as Moroccan Jews were enjoying the protection of the Sultan, no one was in custody in any of these camps. This dramatic episode of the war was forgotten rather than hidden. Since the publication of this book, which tackles the Holocaust in the Arab countries, the Moroccan media published long surveys and articles on this ‘Forgotten story’, thus demonstrating that in an Arab and Muslim country, such as Morocco, one could speak about the Holocaust without taboos or any temptations of delayed . This attitude of the Moroccan populations is in perfect symbiosis with the message of support addressed by King Mohammed VI to the ‘Aladin Project on the Holocaust’. In this message read by the Moroccan Minister of Religious Affairs in UNESCO in March 2009, the Monarch stated: ‘My reading and that of my people are not one of amnesia. Our reading is the one of a memorial wound which we recorded in one of the most painful chapters in the Pantheon of the World history’. The King invited also the participants: ‘to think differently about one of the most tragic and the most terrible stigmas of the Contemporary History, while nobody can pretend to make a total reading of the Holocaust, that is irrefragable and without concession nor dishonest compromise’. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, One has to draw one lesson it is the importance of a Head of State in setting the tone for recognition, respect and treatment of minority faiths within its territory. We can only hope that other Heads of State, seeking the enduring affections of their people, will come to realize that the way forward lies not in fanning the expedient fires of the moment, but in setting, as the King of Morocco does, a tone for tolerance and peaceful coexistence that will endure forever. In conclusion, I would like to stress that although life for the Jews in Morocco was not always one of “wine and roses”, it was better than what other Jews experienced in most parts of the world, particularly in Europe. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 30th, 2010 . The Best at the UN ends up reflecting also on the worst: The UN Headquarters have many people of value – of compassion and of hope for a better future – this besides of some in the bureaucracy that might be innocents with no vision, others might be plants from Member States that want no part of human rights, dignity, or even of plain truth – so be it. The good people under the leadership of Eric Falt and Kimberly Mann came up with a very interesting program that we posted earlier so people from outside the UN could know how to find their way in order to participate at these events. The list is in our following link: Later we found out that the information about these events was sent to parties outside the UN, was made available to the Press accredited to the UN, but as it turned out – from the 6 events listed by UN Outreach – only two events were printed in the Daily Journal of the UN. That journal is not made available now to NGOs – only to the diplomats – but then NGOs get their information from reading the Journal on the internet – so you can say that the UN Department of Information – the source of the Journal – even though it can contend that it made the information available to the PRESS – can in no way justify why it did not make available the information to the in-house members of the UN – except may-be say that some of those were not interested in the Holocaust as more pressing issues are at hand. But what about the educational aspects that were so important to the good people of the UN Outreach Division? The day after the main event of Wednesday, a head of an NGO Committee that is daily at the UN, asked me – how did you know about the concert? I did not see it listed anywhere. And trust me – that was neither a question of space nor of security. Then what? The UN In-House events numbered six, and participation was being granted by various sources – some of them outside the UN. Let us start with the two events that appeared continuously in the Journal announcements: These were the Wednesday January 27, 2010 event organized by the Jewish B’nai Brith International NGO in cooperation with the UN Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic. It dealt with the “Inter religious responses to the Holocaust – 65 years after liberation.” Tickets to this event were sent out by the B’nai Brith organization. There was no problem obtaining them after the appropriate phone call. The other event was on Thursday January 28, 2010 – titled “The Moroccan Jews and Their legacy of survival.” The Journal does not mention that it was organized by the Moroccan Government but directed those interested to contact the DPI/NGO section as it was booked as a regular, weekly, DPI briefing to the NGOs. When approached – the appropriate UN officials said – send us a letter on NGO letterhead. So – this event was being treated as a regular NGO event – not as the important message that the Moroccan Government intended to put forward before members of the UN, and others who actually had no knowledge that during the terrible days of the Holocaust – there was indeed one Arab King – H.M. King Muhammad V of Morocco – who told the Nazis – the Jews of Morocco are my subjects and I do not discriminate between Jews and other Moroccans. Now that was a powerful message that deserved to be heard at the UN – and if not – the organization does not deserve the funds the world sends its way. I had no doubt that I had to take a stand on this issue – and I did. ——— The other four events of the week, none of them listed in the Journal, included two quentesential exhibits organized by Non-Governmental factors outside the UN. On Monday, January 25, 2010, there was a show of hope – it was actually called “Generations: Survival and Legacy of Hope,” for which entrance was obtained from the Shoa Foundation Institute in Los Angeles. This organization, funded initially by Mr. Steven Spielberg from Schindler’s list funds, has documented on video the stories of survivors and their descendants. Two families were present at the showing of material. Despite the terrible material it is the hope that shows through in the success of having picked up their lives again – this is what gives a reason for having hope in institutions that were established under the “Never Again” logo. This event – paired up with the following day opening – together form the raison d’etre for the UN institution – but you would not know this from the way the UN kept these two events of its Journal. On Tuesday. January 26, 2010, the Exhibit – “Architecture of Murder: Auschwitz-Birkenau,” for which entrance was obtained from the Yad Vashem – Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority. At this event participated also the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, The Israeli Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Yuli-Yoel Edelstein, and US Ambassador Rick Barton. ——– The other two events that were not listed in the Journal are: - The main Holocaust Memorial Ceremony and Concert in the General Assembly Hall for which one needed special tickets – so it was clearly a more controlled participation, and that was the event that the lady I mentioned earlier asked me about as she would have wanted to come had she known about it. - The Thursday January 28, 2010 screening of the film “Defiance” that was co-sponsored by the Permanent Mission of the US and had present the lady that wrote the book, Nehama Tec, and her son who made the movie. The great thing about this movie is that it depicts the true story of the Bielski brothers – a story of Jewish fighters in the forests of Belarus – as the UN release says correctly – it depicts “the struggle of a group of brave Jews who fought against overwhelming odds thus providing a sharp contrast to the countless WWII movies that portray Jews just as victims.” The two Bielski Brigades – the one under one brother that fought with the Russian partisans, and the other – under another brother that guarded the Jewish families in the forest. When the two groups fought together – they turned around the Nazi effort to clear the forest. 1200 people survived thanks to the Bielskis’ leadership. Two of the three Bielskis survived and eventually owned a small trucking business in the US. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 30th, 2010 On November 1, 2005, SIXTY YEARS SINCE THE END OF WORLD WAR II, THE LIBERATION OF THE AUSCHWITZ EXTERMINATION CAMP BY THE SOVIET ARMY, AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UN, finally, the UN that in major part came about because of the fact that the world realized that walking in the ashes caused by anti-Semitism and other isms, is not the will of the human race; the UN was created to learn from that experience – but did it? It took 60 years, the creation of the State of Israel, the travails of Zionism is Racism abomination, and one strong Ambassador of humanity to the organization – US Professor/ Senator/Ambassador Moynihan, to start to beat the anti-Semitic UN steel into compliance. ————— UN Designates International Holocaust day This is the first time ever that a resolution introduced by Israel has been adopted by the UN General Assembly. Some not inconsiderable distance has been traveled from the infamous “Zionism is Racism” resolution to this resolution. At least, the world can be united in condemning genocide, even if “Zionists” propose the initiative. The vision of Austria and Germany co-sponsoring and approving of such a resolution is certainly heartening to the surviving victims of Nazi persecution, to the Jews, gypsies and others whose families died in the Holocaust and to the state of Israel. What public activities will mark Holocaust day in Iran, where President Ahmedinejad has called for a world without Zionism and America? In Syria, a book about the Blood Libel (the accusation that Jews kill Christian children in order to use their blood for baking Matzot) was written by the former minister of Defense. Syria also made notable contributions to the history of racial persecution in its treatment of the Kurds. Will Syria mark this day in sympathy with the victims, or will they celebrate it by showing, perhaps, a screening of Lenni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will? Will this day become an occasion for so-called “anti-Zionists” to trot out Holocaust denial and accusations that Israel is committing a Holocaust against the Palestinians, or that the Zionists collaborated with the Nazis? Will the world again stand aside at the next genocide, as it did in Rwanda, and as it did for a very long time in Darfur, and as it continues to do in Tibet? In the discussion, each state was quick to accuse others of genocide, but unwilling to accept responsibility for crimes of their own states and governments. The Venezuelans spoke about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Chinese alluded to Japanese crimes. The Ukrainians alluded to Soviet crimes. The discussion would have more meaning if the Americans had spoken about Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Chinese had spoken about their activities in Tibet, the Japanese had spoken the rape of Mongolia and the Turks had spoken of the Armenian genocide. The implementation of the resolution will be of more consequence than the paper or the words themselves, and the reality of the actions of states will be more important than either. The proliferation of vile Web sites and articles about the “Holocaust Myth,” claiming the Holocaust never happened and is yet another Jewish plot, points up the urgent need for this day of remembrance. Alert readers of what was said that say will note some bitter ironies in the remarks of representatives of some states, whose people and governments were active collaborators or passive accessories in the crime of the Holocaust. The date – January 27 – was picked as that was the date the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination machine was closed by the Soviet army. http://www.zionism-israel.com/news/holocaust_day.htm The first commemoration was held at the UN in 2006 and this year we have thus the fifth such event – or actually a series of events, that traditionally start on the Saturday before the actual date with a ceremony at the Park East Synagogue located on Manhattan’s East Side – Midtown. The list of this year’s events at the UN, as provided to parties outside the UN – and published on our website is: But besides the UN itself, the fact that the UN has thrown the light upon the Holocaust atrocities, and the world’s need to remember these atrocities by having an International day of Remembrance, it is now that even in unexpected places in the civilized world, we find events being organized for the purpose of remembering and of learning from that experience. We thought thus to mention here one such event in a place we hardly expected to find it – the main Carnival city of the North-East of Brazil – Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. We will be reporting on this year’s week-long series in several postings that will involve also other related events – for now we will put up the clear Jewish angle to the comemoration – as it reflected in the Park East Sybagogue events and in the political official presentation at the UN main event of January 27, 2010 REMARKS AT PARK EAST SYNAGOGUE IN MEMORY OF THE VICTIMS OF THE HOLOCAUST by H.E. Srgjan Kerim President of the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly. Park East Synagogue Rabbi Schneier, I am very grateful to Rabbi Schneier for inviting me to the Park East I am sure that you are all very proud of Rabbi Schneier for his It was only five years ago that I had my first opportunity to attend Nowhere in the world is it possible I’ve always believed Park East Beit Knesset, I wish there would not have been such an occasion for me to address Unfortunately, we are still facing some lonely, desperate attempts to We gather here today to remember and pay homage to those who lost The liberation of the Nazi concentration camps over 60 years ago Elie Wiesel – Nobel Laureate, a Holocaust survivor and champion of “Let us remember, let us remember the heroes of Warsaw, the martyrs of We must also remember to pay tribute to those who survived and bravely I know that some of you are with us today. Not only have you survived, but you have rebuilt communities all over The recognition of this day of Holocaust remembrance by the Dear Friends, Remembering is an ethical act; it has ethical value in itself. Remembrance is also a means through which we can understand ourselves: I am reminded of my father and his family. During the Second World War At the age of twenty my father and Isac subsequently joined the Isac Sion subsequently went on to become Vice-governor of the Central My father and many others like him served the Jewish people in their “All that is needed for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” When I had my first opportunity, in some small way, to redress the And, in honour of the Jewish community, my country will soon complete Looking back at the turbulent history of the Balkan region there are We must remember that every religion and culture must be tolerant of Furthermore, intolerance of other religions or cultures is often a Dear Friends and members of Park East Beit Knesset, The United Nations was founded on the ashes of the Holocaust, when the That these atrocities occurred is not necessarily the failure of the Even while we gather here, there are places – like Darfur – where For the dignity of all humanity, we must strengthen our ability – our Indeed, terrorism, violence, rape, murder, poverty and discrimination Despite the tragic failures of the international community to prevent In 2005, the General Assembly passed a resolution that included the In fact all of us here today can add our voice, with the United Rabbi Schneier offers us an example of what we can do. He has been a In 2003 we jointly organized the first ever South East European In this spirit, and as we have just celebrated the life of the great “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere….. Whatever Dear Friends, On the occasion of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of Together, it is our common challenge to eliminate all distorted We can achieve this by promoting intercultural dialogue and But we must also move from words to action, from principled intentions Members of Park East Beit Knesset, Let me wish all of you and the wider community peace, health and prosperity. Let all our thoughts honour the victims of the Holocaust, and let us In order to do so, it is not enough to reiterate solemn gestures; we Thank you. Shalom. ————– But that was the last President of the UN General Assembly to be welcome to speak before a Jewish Audience – in those 5 years. Before him were: Mr. Jan Eliasson of Sweden #60, and Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa of Bahrain #61. Now it is UNGA’s 64th session: On 10 June 2009, Ali Abdussalam Treki of Libya was elected by acclamation at a plenary meeting of the 192-member body of the United Nations General Assembly. Treki assumed office as president of the 64th session on 15 September 2009, But in 2009, The Park East Congregation had the honor to host the UN —————- Remarks at Holocaust Remembrance Day Ceremony at the Park East Synagogue: Thank you very much, Rabbi [Arthur] Schneier, for that kind introduction. I especially appreciate you for calling me a mensch. With apologies to To all, I wish you Shabat Shalom. Excellencies, distinguished Ambassadors to the United Nations, Ladies and Gentlemen, Today we mark the International Day of Commemoration honoring victims As you know, my friend, the late Tom Lantos, died shortly after last I can only imagine what he endured. Yet I, too, have witnessed man’s The UN helped South Korea to recover. Like Tom Lantos, like many of Today, the UN is on the cusp of a great transition. Never have global Yes, the UN has its imperfections. It’s not perfect. Because of this, We are here to mark the Holocaust. Like you, the United Nations is Precisely two years ago, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution With you, I stand in saying: never again. Never. When I paid tribute Memory speaks. That is why it must be preserved and passed to future Our Holocaust Outreach Program sponsors exhibits, workshops and panel When President Ahmadinejad of Iran declared that Israel should We at the United Nations stand for human rights. We stand for democracy and the rule of law. By working for economic We have a new instrument in our hands. It is called the Responsibility Yes, it is difficult in practice. But I assure you. This is a major My friends, Today is not simply a time for remembering. The Holocaust has lessons My job can sometimes be terribly painful. I see unbelievable hardship, I am just back from the region. I went to push for a cease-fire. More, The recurring violence between Palestinians and Israelis is a mark of I saw first-hand what most people saw on television. I met a child and In Gaza, I saw the most appalling devastation. I saw the UN compound, I said to all I met, on both sides: This must stop. I left the region more determined than ever to work toward a world No one sees this more clearly than your own Rabbi Schneier. He has You all know him as the founder and president of the Appeal for He knows first-hand that no one man or nation has all the answers. He So, let us be frank. We must recognize the limits of power and Tom Lantos was fond of saying that even the littlest actions, the As we remember the victims of the Holocaust, let us reaffirm our faith Thank you very much. —————– On January 23, 2010, before a full house at Park East Synagogue, the The remarks were: http://www.newyorkun.diplo.de/Vertretung… At the Park East Service this year, a further Honored Guest was Rabbi Ricardo Di Segni, the Chief Rabbi of Rome, who has been visited at his Synagogue by the Pope, also as part of this year’s Holocaust Remembrance. Also present were Ambassador Thomas Mayr-Harting of Austria, Ambassador Peter Wittig of Germany, Ambassador Gerard Araud of France, Ambassador Anastassis Mitsialis of Greece, Ambassador Marta Horvathne Fekzi of Hungary, H.E. Most Reverend Celestino Migliore the Permanent Representative of the Vatican, Ambassador Yukio Takasu of Japan, Ambassador Cesare Maria Ragaglini of Italy, Ambassador Mohamed Loulichki of Morocco, Ambassador Jim McLay of New Zealand, Ambassador Andrzey Towpik of Poland, Ambassador Juan Antonio Yanez-Barnuevo of Spain, Ambassador Rayko S. Raytchev of Bulgaria, Ambassador Kim Won-soo, from the UN Secretary General’s Office, and about further twenty top Diplomatic Representatives. But I must remark that from all the Islamic and African Countries only Morocco was present – and from the newly emerging States only Brazil and China were present. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 30th, 2010 From: Shehnaz <peaceingardens@comcast.net> Exhibition Opening Jan. 30 Sat through June 6 2010! The Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers will be showcasing its first Arab artist on January 30, 2010. We are proud to be Lalla Essaydi is a talented photographer, who deconstructs the Oriental European paintings from the 19th century and ***************************************************************************************************************************** ZIMMERLI ART MUSEUM AT RUTGERS PRESENTS LARGE-SCALE COLOR PHOTOGRAPHS BY THE MOROCCAN-BORN ARTIST LALLA ESSAYDI New Brunswick, NJ — The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers features the latest body of work by the New York-based, Moroccan-born artist Lalla Essaydi in Les Femmes du Maroc from January 30 to June 6, 2010. Seventeen large-format color photographs will portray Moroccan women in tableaux based on famous examples of 19th-century European and American Orientalist paintings and covered in Arabic calligraphic script. A selection of Orientalist works from the museum’s extensive collections of European graphic art will also be on display to provide a cultural context for Essaydi’s work. ABOUT THE ARTIST: The photographer, painter, and installation artist Lalla Essaydi was raised in Morocco and lived in Saudi Arabia before studying at the L’Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and completing her MFA at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/TUFTS University, in Boston, MA (2003). Her work is represented in private and public collections around the world, including the Louvre Museum, Paris; the British National Museum, London; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Art Institute of Chicago. Lalla Essaydi is represented by Edwynn Houk Gallery in New York City, and Howard Yezerski Gallery in Boston. Each photograph is the culmination of careful staging. Essaydi arranged the models, all female friends and acquaintances, in poses based on Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres’s The Grand Odalisque (1814), Jean-Léon Gérôme’s The Slave Market (1867), Eugene Delacroix’s Women of Algiers (1834) and other well-known paintings. She removed the male figures and all color and decorative details, draping the women in white. She then painstakingly inscribed every surface (animate and inanimate) with text lifted straight from her diary, rendered in formal Arabic calligraphy and applied with henna. The combination of calligraphy and henna is provocative. (Until very recently in the Middle East, calligraphy was an art form practiced exclusively by men for the transcription of sacred texts, while henna is traditionally a woman’s art that marks ritual moments in female life.) The resulting chromogenic prints are nearly life-sized, in dimensions as large as 6 by 7.8 feet. Zimmerli Art Museum: The Zimmerli is midway between New York City and Philadelphia and a short walk from the New Jersey Transit station in New Brunswick. For directions, please follow this link: http://search.rutgers.edu/buildings.html… Link to the Zimmerli exhibition page: http://www.zimmerlimuseum.rutgers.edu//e… Shehnaz Abdeljaber _______________________________________________ Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 27th, 2010 Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the Turkish Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), called for an Islamic Executive Bureau of Environment and a common OIC position on climate change, and led the organization to a meeting in Rabat, Morocco, Jamuary 18-19, 2010, chaired by Saudi Arabia’s Prince Turki. The First Meeting of the Islamic Executive Bureau of Environment was held at the ISESCO Headquarters in Rabat on 18-19 January 2010. The meeting was chaired by H.R.H. Prince Turki bin Nasser bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, General President of Meteorology and Environment Protection, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Secretary General called upon the Member States to evolve a common OIC position on the climate change to safeguard their interests in the multilateral negotiations in the lead up to Mexico round. In the area of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the Secretary General also proposed to establish a carbon dioxide exchange scheme to contribute to the reduction of carbon emission. The OIC Secretary General assured the Islamic Executive Bureau for Environment, its Chair and the Secretariat of his resolve to work in unison to combat environmental challenges and securing the planet for the future generations. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on January 25th, 2010 www.SustainabiliTank.info has backed this concept from its start. We ————
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on August 28th, 2009 Date: 27-Aug-09
RABAT – A 400 billion euro ($774 billion) plan to power Europe with Sahara sunlight is gaining momentum, even as critics see high risks in a large corporate project using young technology in north African countries with weak rule of law. Desertec, as the initiative is called, would be the world’s most ambitious solar power project. Fields of mirrors in the desert would gather solar rays to boil water, turning turbines to electrify a new carbon-free network linking Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Its supporters, a dozen finance and industrial firms mostly from Germany, say it will keep Europe at the forefront of the fight against climate change and help North African and European economies to grow within greenhouse gas emission limits. Others warn of numerous pitfalls, including Maghreb politics, Saharan sandstorms and the risk to desert populations if their water is diverted to clean dust off solar mirrors. They say the concentrated solar power (CSP) technology behind Desertec involves greater costs and risks than the fast-growing patchwork of smaller-scale photovoltaic cell installations that generate most of Europe’s solar energy today. Desertec’s founders are lured by the fact that more energy falls on the world’s deserts in six hours than the world consumes in a year. “The Sahara offers every advantage you want — proximity to Europe, virtually no population and more intense sunlight,” said George Joffe, a research fellow and Maghreb expert at Cambridge University, who is not affiliated to the plan. “It would be mad to pass up this opportunity.” Proposed by the Club of Rome, an international group of experts that suggests solutions to global problems, Desertec became an industrial project last month when reinsurer Munich Re hosted its launch at its headquarters in the Bavarian capital. “We have a special relationship with climate change: it affects our core business, the insurance of weather-related natural catastrophes, which count among the most expensive losses we have to bear,” said Peter Hoeppe, Head of Munich Re’s Geo Risk Research department. EMISSIONS GOALS Many European governments aim to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Desertec’s backers say it would also be a positive gesture from the developed world to countries of the Middle East and North Africa, which stand to suffer most from the more frequent droughts and desertification blamed on global warming. They have yet to draw up a business plan or specify how it will be funded but hope to recruit shareholders and partner companies from a variety of countries. Desertec officials say the Sahara could one day deliver 15 percent of Europe’s electricity, but expect the plan to advance in small stages with completion not before 2050. Supporters of more established solar energy technology, such as photovoltaic cells, argue decentralized generation will prove more popular as falling prices make the heavy infrastructure needed for CSP unviable. They also think European governments, which already accept the risk of importing energy from north African countries such as Algeria, would given the choice opt for the security of producing renewable energy within their own borders. “Sahara power for northern Europe is a mirage,” said Hermann Scheer, a member of Germany’s parliament and head of the European Association for Renewable Energy. “Those behind the project know themselves that nothing will ever come out of this,” said Scheer, an architect of renewable energy policy in Germany, which included a strong emphasis on photovoltaic technology. Scheer said the costs of Desertec were being downplayed artificially and its technical capabilities over-estimated. “EVERYONE LOVES IT” Desertec would need 20 or more efficient, direct-current cables each costing up to $1 billion to transmit electricity north beneath the Mediterranean. CSP installations placed in the Sahara generate around 30 percent more power per area than in southern Spain, according to Morocco’s renewable energy agency CDER. “Desertec can help reduce emissions in Europe and foster economic and social development in northern Africa, so everyone loves this project,” said Santiago Siage, head of Desertec consortium member Abengoa Solar. Abengoa is developing installations combining CSP with combined-cycle gas power generation in Morocco and Algeria. Southern countries that import most of their energy like Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan would also benefit from Desertec. Morocco buys in 96 percent of its energy and subsidizes fuel to make it more affordable for the poor, a massive drain on state resources that could be used to fight poverty and bring services to isolated rural areas. The Moroccan government says Desertec could solve Morocco’s energy dependency and leave plenty of power for Europe. “Morocco doesn’t have even 1 percent of Europe’s energy consumption, so let’s be realistic,” said Said Mouline, the head of Morocco’s renewable energy agency. “We would be generating enough power for us, and for export, for the next 100 years.” EXPLOITATION? Among hazards facing the scheme are the fact that Desertec would need tight coordination between governments to succeed, yet Maghreb states have tried and failed for two decades to integrate their economies and deepen political ties. The border between Morocco and Algeria is shut and relations are poisoned by a disagreement over the Western Sahara. Morocco says it has already identified sites to place the curved solar mirrors, not deep in the Sahara but in populated areas just north of the desert to ensure a supply of water to clean mirrors and cool turbines. Algeria has the biggest chunk of desert and private Algerian firm Cevital has signed up for Desertec, but Africa’s second-largest country is isolated and struggling to reform a Soviet-style economy after a brutal civil conflict in the 1990s. The government has tightened terms on inward investment and says it will only work with Desertec if it allows partnerships between Algerian and foreign firms and a transfer of technology. “If these conditions are not met, we are not interested,” said Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil. “We don’t want foreign companies exploiting solar energy from our land.” Analysts play down the risk to Desertec’s infrastructure posed by Al Qaeda-aligned rebels based in Algeria, saying investment risks pose a far bigger problem. “There is the risk of expropriation of assets, reneging on license agreements, corruption and bureaucratic red tape which could stop things getting off the ground,” said Henry Wilkinson of Janusian Security Risk Management. Wolfram Lacher of Control Risks consultancy agreed: security risks can be managed, but the project could become entangled in broader talks between the EU and north Africa on energy, investment and trade. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on August 27th, 2009 Date: 27-Aug-09
RABAT – A 400 billion euro ($774 billion) plan to power Europe with Sahara sunlight is gaining momentum, even as critics see high risks in a large corporate project using young technology in north African countries with weak rule of law. Desertec, as the initiative is called, would be the world’s most ambitious solar power project. Fields of mirrors in the desert would gather solar rays to boil water, turning turbines to electrify a new carbon-free network linking Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Its supporters, a dozen finance and industrial firms mostly from Germany, say it will keep Europe at the forefront of the fight against climate change and help North African and European economies to grow within greenhouse gas emission limits. Others warn of numerous pitfalls, including Maghreb politics, Saharan sandstorms and the risk to desert populations if their water is diverted to clean dust off solar mirrors. They say the concentrated solar power (CSP) technology behind Desertec involves greater costs and risks than the fast-growing patchwork of smaller-scale photovoltaic cell installations that generate most of Europe’s solar energy today. Desertec’s founders are lured by the fact that more energy falls on the world’s deserts in six hours than the world consumes in a year. “The Sahara offers every advantage you want — proximity to Europe, virtually no population and more intense sunlight,” said George Joffe, a research fellow and Maghreb expert at Cambridge University, who is not affiliated to the plan. “It would be mad to pass up this opportunity.” Proposed by the Club of Rome, an international group of experts that suggests solutions to global problems, Desertec became an industrial project last month when reinsurer Munich Re hosted its launch at its headquarters in the Bavarian capital. “We have a special relationship with climate change: it affects our core business, the insurance of weather-related natural catastrophes, which count among the most expensive losses we have to bear,” said Peter Hoeppe, Head of Munich Re’s Geo Risk Research department. EMISSIONS GOALS Many European governments aim to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Desertec’s backers say it would also be a positive gesture from the developed world to countries of the Middle East and North Africa, which stand to suffer most from the more frequent droughts and desertification blamed on global warming. They have yet to draw up a business plan or specify how it will be funded but hope to recruit shareholders and partner companies from a variety of countries. Desertec officials say the Sahara could one day deliver 15 percent of Europe’s electricity, but expect the plan to advance in small stages with completion not before 2050. Supporters of more established solar energy technology, such as photovoltaic cells, argue decentralized generation will prove more popular as falling prices make the heavy infrastructure needed for CSP unviable. They also think European governments, which already accept the risk of importing energy from north African countries such as Algeria, would given the choice opt for the security of producing renewable energy within their own borders. “Sahara power for northern Europe is a mirage,” said Hermann Scheer, a member of Germany’s parliament and head of the European Association for Renewable Energy. “Those behind the project know themselves that nothing will ever come out of this,” said Scheer, an architect of renewable energy policy in Germany, which included a strong emphasis on photovoltaic technology. Scheer said the costs of Desertec were being downplayed artificially and its technical capabilities over-estimated. “EVERYONE LOVES IT” Desertec would need 20 or more efficient, direct-current cables each costing up to $1 billion to transmit electricity north beneath the Mediterranean. CSP installations placed in the Sahara generate around 30 percent more power per area than in southern Spain, according to Morocco’s renewable energy agency CDER. “Desertec can help reduce emissions in Europe and foster economic and social development in northern Africa, so everyone loves this project,” said Santiago Siage, head of Desertec consortium member Abengoa Solar. Abengoa is developing installations combining CSP with combined-cycle gas power generation in Morocco and Algeria. Southern countries that import most of their energy like Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan would also benefit from Desertec. Morocco buys in 96 percent of its energy and subsidizes fuel to make it more affordable for the poor, a massive drain on state resources that could be used to fight poverty and bring services to isolated rural areas. The Moroccan government says Desertec could solve Morocco’s energy dependency and leave plenty of power for Europe. “Morocco doesn’t have even 1 percent of Europe’s energy consumption, so let’s be realistic,” said Said Mouline, the head of Morocco’s renewable energy agency. “We would be generating enough power for us, and for export, for the next 100 years.” EXPLOITATION? Among hazards facing the scheme are the fact that Desertec would need tight coordination between governments to succeed, yet Maghreb states have tried and failed for two decades to integrate their economies and deepen political ties. The border between Morocco and Algeria is shut and relations are poisoned by a disagreement over the Western Sahara. Morocco says it has already identified sites to place the curved solar mirrors, not deep in the Sahara but in populated areas just north of the desert to ensure a supply of water to clean mirrors and cool turbines. Algeria has the biggest chunk of desert and private Algerian firm Cevital has signed up for Desertec, but Africa’s second-largest country is isolated and struggling to reform a Soviet-style economy after a brutal civil conflict in the 1990s. The government has tightened terms on inward investment and says it will only work with Desertec if it allows partnerships between Algerian and foreign firms and a transfer of technology. “If these conditions are not met, we are not interested,” said Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil. “We don’t want foreign companies exploiting solar energy from our land.” Analysts play down the risk to Desertec’s infrastructure posed by Al Qaeda-aligned rebels based in Algeria, saying investment risks pose a far bigger problem. “There is the risk of expropriation of assets, reneging on license agreements, corruption and bureaucratic red tape which could stop things getting off the ground,” said Henry Wilkinson of Janusian Security Risk Management. Wolfram Lacher of Control Risks consultancy agreed: security risks can be managed, but the project could become entangled in broader talks between the EU and north Africa on energy, investment and trade. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on July 29th, 2009 OBAMA BEGINS PRESSURING ARAB LEADERS ON DEAL WITH ISRAEL BY NATHAN GUTTMAN Freezing the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank was once seen as a unilateral Israeli obligation. But the Obama administration is now treating this as part of a package that will require concessions from Arab states as well. An intensified and more public focus on this idea appears to be one of the byproducts of U.S. President Barack Obama’s July 13 pledge to American Jewish communal representatives to address perceptions that he is pressuring only Israel. So far, the Arabs have been resistant. Still, in the wake of Obama’s White House meeting with the Jewish delegation, Israeli, American and Arab leaders have, to varying degrees, shifted their rhetoric in ways that reflect acceptance of a new principle of reciprocity. “The Americans now understand that if they get anything from us on the settlement issue, it will only be in the broader context of some kind of Arab return,” said an Israeli diplomat, echoing other similar comments from Israeli officials recently. The official added that talks between U.S. Mideast envoy George Mitchell and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have focused on components of a two-sided deal that will include both a settlement freeze and reciprocal steps by Arab countries. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appeared to confirm this in a policy speech two days after Obama’s White House meeting with the Jewish representatives. “Progress toward peace cannot be the responsibility of the United States – or Israel – alone,” Clinton told the Council on Foreign Relations. “Arab states have a responsibility to support the Palestinian Authority with words and deeds, to take steps to improve relations with Israel and to prepare their publics to embrace peace and accept Israel’s place in the region.” A U.S. State Department official told the Forward that steps by the Arab parties were fundamental to Mitchell’s mission. “Special envoy Mitchell continues to engage in constructive conversations with all parties, including Israel, the Palestinians and the Arab states, on steps they could take to help create a climate in which to re-launch negotiations,” he said. At least some Arab parties to the peace process also now appear to accept this. “The price we pay will depend on what kind of a deal we get on the settlement issue,” said an Arab diplomat in response to questions about Israel’s stand. “In return for a symbolic compromise on the settlements, some Arab states will be willing to pay with some symbolic gestures.” But so far, the Obama administration appears stymied in its efforts to obtain a commitment to new concessions toward Israel by Arab states, even in the event of an Israeli commitment – nonexistent up to now, even conditionally – to a settlement freeze. The administration has been frustrated in particular in its quest for flexibility from Saudi Arabia. According to experts and diplomats, tensions between Washington and Riyadh were building even prior to Obama’s meeting with Jewish leaders, as a result of a June 3 meeting between Obama and King Abdullah in the Saudi capital. The meeting ended with a clear disagreement over the issue of Israel. “Why should the king of Saudi Arabia, who is the leader of the Muslim world and the imam of his Muslim community, give something of this nature to the Israelis for free?” asked Jamal Khashoggi, editor-in-chief of the Saudi daily newspaper Al-Watan. “This is a new idea that was probably developed by Israel’s friends in Washington.” Khashoggi said the Saudi monarch believes his 2002 peace initiative, supported by the entire Arab League, already offered concessions and showed the kingdom’s wish for peace. Israel never responded to the Saudi initiative. But in her speech to the Council on Foreign Relations, Clinton said that embracing the 2002 Arab peace plan is not enough, and that concrete initial steps are needed now. The initiative, which Obama has cited as a helpful basis for discussion, commits the Arab world to an official peace agreement with Israel and normalized relations with it if Israel withdraws to its pre-1967 borders, accepts the establishment of a Palestinian state and resolves the issue of Palestinian refugees in accordance with United Nations resolutions. Those U.N. resolutions, however, appear to require the refugees’ return to homes in present-day Israel, constituting one of Israel’s principal objections to the proposal. America’s request for signs of normalization with Israel is now focused on symbolic steps. According to Arab and American diplomatic sources, Washington is now asking for the reopening of commercial interest offices of Oman, Qatar and Morocco in Israel and for permission for Israeli commercial airliners to fly over Gulf states, shortening flights from Israel to East Asia by several hours. Public overtures, such as a handshake with Israeli leaders, or providing tourist visas to Israelis seeking to visit Arab countries, are not on the table now, said an Arab diplomat with close knowledge of the talks. The diplomat stressed that such public gestures are viewed as being at the top of the scale of normalization and therefore will be kept for the final phase of the peace process. “The Arab consensus is that normalization is the last card they have to play,” the diplomat said. Prior to the emerging emphasis on reciprocity, Israel’s obligation to freeze the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank was understood to be an independent requirement of the so-called road map for Middle East peace. The 2002 road map, forged by the Bush administration with international partners, required Israel to “immediately” dismantle settlement outposts that even Israel classifies as unauthorized, and to freeze all settlement activity, including natural growth. The road map also requires the Palestinians to take concrete steps to halt terrorism and violence. But this, too, appears as an independent obligation, untied to any action by Israel. The new Sadat: The most significant sign thus far of Arab willingness to adopt America’s call for normalization has come from the small Gulf kingdom of Bahrain. In a July 16 op-ed published in The Washington Post, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa, the Bahraini crown prince, called on Arab countries to reach out and communicate with Israel. “Essentially, we have not done a good enough job demonstrating to Israelis how our initiative can form part of a peace between equals in a troubled land holy to three great faiths,” Khalifa wrote. He went on to criticize Arabs who wish to perpetuate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so that Palestinian victims “can be manipulated as proxies.” The Bahraini leader also urged Arabs not to waste more time in waiting for Israelis to take the first step, calling this approach “small-minded.” Samuel Lewis, a former American ambassador to Israel who was directly involved in the Israeli-Egyptian peace talks in the late 1970s, equated Khalifa’s article to peace gestures made by Egyptian president Anwar Sadat before signing the treaty with Israel 30 years ago. “This is exactly the kind of message that an Arab leader gives both to the United States while at the same time aiming at other Arab leaders,” Lewis said in a July 17 conference call organized by Israel Policy Forum. Experts argue that the roots of the disagreement with Saudi Arabia, considered a linchpin for progress, go deeper. Jon Alterman, director of the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said the Saudis are disappointed with many aspects of Obama’s policy: His drive for ending America’s dependency on foreign oil, the decision not to appoint a close confidant as ambassador to Saudi Arabia and choosing the route of diplomatic engagement with Iran. “There is a Saudi feeling that this administration does not recognize the importance of Saudi Arabia and does not appreciate them,” Alterman said. ————— further, Daniel Levy, Director, Middle East Task Force, New America Foundation and Senior Fellow, Prospects for Peace Initiative, The Century Foundation, informs us of a recent debate on the Economist’s website. The motion in question was: “This house believes that Barak Obama’s America is now an honest broker between Israel and the Arabs.” The content can be found at: http://www.economist.com/debate/overview… Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 16th, 2008 From: messouli at gmail.com The University of Marrakech and its partners (DMN, CDRT, START, OSS), with the support of the Climate Change and Adaptation in Africa program (CCAA), announce a two day international workshop to be held on 25 and 26 of November 2008 in Marrakech. The title of the conference is ” Climate change in the Maghreb: thresholds and limits to adaptation The overall objective of this conference is to consider strategies for adapting to climate change, in particular to explore the potential barriers to adaptation that may limit the ability of societies in the Maghreb countries to adapt to climate change and to identify opportunities for overcoming these barriers Deadline for Submission of Abstracts is 10 October 2008. to register, please go to this link at your soonest convenience and discover other information on the workshop: Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 14th, 2008 Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008, The Japan Times online. Regarding The Trips to Libya – “Oily Moves to Compensate” by Gwynne Dyer from London. Libya was the diplomatic crossroads of the planet last weekend: Condoleezza Rice made the first visit by a U.S. secretary of State in 55 years (to discuss a murky deal involving payments to American victims of terrorist attacks allegedly sponsored by Libya); radical Bolivian President Evo Morales showed up (to beg for money or cheap oil); and Italy’s Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi arrived to promise Libya $5 billion in compensation for the brutalities of Italian colonial rule. Details of the deal have been left vague, and nobody will say where the money for the Libyan victims of U.S. airstrikes is coming from. If it is coming from the U.S. government, that would be an interesting precedent. But everybody knows what is really at play here.
Gadhafi’s key move was to dismantle his fantasy “nuclear weapons program” — he never really had more than bits and pieces — in 2003. This let President George W. Bush claim that his “war on terror” was scaring the bad guys into behaving better, so the mood music improved immediately. Even before that, Libya sent a couple of low-level intelligence agents to face an international court over the Lockerbie bombing (one was acquitted, one was convicted, and the Libyan regime was scarcely mentioned).
The history behind Silvio Berlusconi’s deal with Gadhafi is much clearer, and so are the motives behind it. Italy conquered Libya, formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, in 1911, and ruled it until 1943. Tens of thousands of Libyans who resisted were killed, many more had their land confiscated and given to Italian settlers, and the country was run for Italy’s benefit, not that of its own people. Italy owes — but why is it paying now, half a century later? The answer is partly oil — a quarter of Italy’s oil and a third of its gas come from Libya — but also illegal immigrants. Italy is the destination for a growing stream of economic migrants from Africa who use Libya as a jumping-off place for their trip across the Mediterranean, and Berlusconi needs Gadhafi’s cooperation to stem the flow. So Libya gets $5 billion of Italian money to compensate for all the wrongs of the colonial era (and Italy’s compensation will come later, in apparently unrelated deals).
But the victims’ heirs shouldn’t spend their money until they actually have it in their hands, and they shouldn’t hold their breaths while waiting. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 7th, 2008 From: liasieghart at hotmail.com
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on August 22nd, 2008 From: cseipt at agu.org
It has come to the attention of the Executive Committee of the African Climate Change Fellowship Program (ACCFP) that Moroccan citizens have been excluded from Program participation via the requirement that eligible applicants be citizens of member states of the African Union. We apologize for this oversight and assure you that the exclusion was unintentional. We would like to amend this requirement so that our intentions are clear: Participation in the African Climate Change Fellowship Program is open to citizens of all African nations. It is important to note that the citizenship requirement is one of four general requirements that all applicants must meet to be eligible for a Fellowship award. In addition to being a citizen of an African nation, all applicants must also meet the following general eligibility criteria: The ACCFP aims to support African professionals, researchers and graduate students to undertake activities that will enhance their capacities for advancing and applying knowledge for climate change adaptation in Africa. The Program is jointly administered by the global change SysTem for Analysis, Research and Training (START), the Institute of Resource Assessment (IRA) of the University of Dar es Salaam and the African Academy of Sciences (AAS), with financial support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID). If you have questions about the Program, please contact the Pan-African START Secretariat at pass at ira.udsm.ac.tz. We thank you for your continued interest in the ACCFP and for your understanding in this matter. Again, we apologize for this oversight and any confusion that it has caused. Please help us to spread the word about this exciting opportunity to other colleagues and friends. Forward this email to qualified individuals that might be interested to apply! Best, Clark Seipt Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on August 6th, 2008 Libya Preaches to Durban II on Racism Against Maids, as Qaddafi Jr. Arrested for Beating Maids The Incident The conflict began after Hannibal, the youngest son of Libyan dictator Col. Muammar Qaddafi, and his wife Aline were arrested by Geneva police in their luxury hotel, which is situated next to the UN human rights office. Two of their servants, a Moroccan man and a Tunisian woman, had complained of being beaten with a belt and coat hanger, causing hotel staff to call in the authorities. (The desert despot’s 32-year-old son has a long record of violent run-ins with the law across European capitals.) The couple were charged with assault. Hannibal spent two evenings in detention while his wife, who came to Geneva to give birth, was transferred to a maternity unit. Released on $500,000 bail, they flew back to Libya escorted by doctors from Geneva’s main hospital. Retaliation was swift. Aisha Qadaffi, sister of the accused, warned that her country would respond on the principle of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” The Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution halted all oil shipments to the Helvetic confederation. Swiss companies in Libya, including Nestlé, were shut down or padlocked, and diplomats sent packing. Two Swiss nationals were seized as hostages. “Spontaneous” demonstrations against the Swiss aggressor erupted in the capital. The outrage has ebbed, but the crisis remains. Today’s Tribune de Geneve reports that Foreign Minster Micheline Calmy-Rey may head on a special mission to Libya. Which bring us to the irony of it all. Of all Western democracies, the current Swiss government must be the last to ever have imagined being targeted by mad Middle East dictators, who have always felt so at home at Geneva’s hotels, boutiques and banks — so much so, that their spoiled progeny jet over to have their babies born there. Some say Foreign Minister Calmy-Rey stumbled in her early handling of the current crisis. No wonder. She must have been in a state of shock. After all, was it not she who, to seal a $28 billion gas deal, recently visited with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, at a time when no other self-respecting democratic leader would do the same? Did she not go the extra mile to pose smilingly with the world’s most dangerous fomentor of racist hatred, even donning the Islamic headscarf, for added measure? Did she not keep silent over the brutal human rights situation in Iran, despite being asked to speak out by Shirin Ebadi, the renowned women’s rights advocate? But it’s more. The current Swiss government has always profited from special ties with Qaddafi – the extent to which the current episode has highlighted as never before. It turns out that half of Switzerland’s oil comes from Libya. That Libyan company Tamoil owns one of Switzerland’s two oil refineries and runs 320 filling stations in the country. The Libyans also threatened to withdraw their assets from Swiss banks. And how much is that? Some $6 billion. But it’s more, more than just oil, investments and trade. It’s political and moral support. In the past year, Calmy-Rey and her diplomats worldwide waged a massive campaign to elect her Geneva friend Jean Ziegler — the 1989 co-founder of the “Muammar Qaddafi Human Rights Prize” — as a senior adviser to the UN Human Rights Council. When the vote was won, Swiss UN ambassador Blaise Godet literally embraced his colleague from Cuba’s Castro regime, Ziegler’s other favorite government, thereby revealing another unholy alliance.
However, the newspaper noted, “the sociologist categorically refuses to comment on the current crisis between Switzerland and Libya.” Nor did Ziegler ever say a word — or lift a finger – over all the years that the Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian doctor were cruelly held hostage in Libyan jails. Durban II: Libya Pledges to Confront “New Form of Racism Related to Maids” Perhaps the greatest unspoken irony is that of Libya’s role. The country currently chairs the planning of the April 2009 Durban Review Conference, the UN’s next world conference against racism and intolerance. In advance of an African preparatory session later this month, Libya has just submitted a UN questionnaire on its policies and practices. Here we learn that the sixth principle of Qaddafi’s Green Charter “defines Libya’s society of non-discrimination.” And that the penal code “does not discriminate between local or foreign workers in Libya.” And that Article 420 prohibits “all forms of slavery” and “forced labor.” Finally, “Libya does not only not practice racism but we combat the practice of regimes against the African people.” How? By confronting — get this — a “new form of racism related to house helpers (maids).” No less. Yes, over the next year the world shall look to the Guide of the Revolution to guide us all on how to treat foreigners, how to practice tolerance, and — as its most shining example — how to treat house helpers and maids. Meanwhile, in Libya, the mother of the abused Moroccan servant has been thrown into jail, and his brother forced into hiding. Eventually, a deal will be struck, Calmy-Rey will kowtow before Qaddafi, the criminal case will be closed. Hannibal will then be free to return to his beloved Lake Geneva playground. As Libya’s leading expert on how to address what it calls a new form of racism — how to treat house helpers — why not have Hannibal Qaddafi take the place of the current Libyan represenative and personally head the UN’s Durban II process? More than anyone, he will appreciate the job’s diplomatic immunity. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on July 24th, 2008 Solar power from Saharan sun could provide Europe’s electricity, says EU.
Alok Jha, science correspondent
A tiny rectangle superimposed on the vast expanse of the Sahara captures the seductive appeal of the audacious plan to cut Europe’s carbon emissions by harnessing the fierce power of the desert sun. Dwarfed by any of the north African nations, it represents an area slightly smaller than Wales but scientists claimed yesterday it could one day generate enough solar energy to supply all of Europe with clean electricity. Speaking at the Euroscience Open Forum in Barcelona, Arnulf Jaeger-Walden of the European commission’s Institute for Energy, said it would require the capture of just 0.3% of the light falling on the Sahara and Middle East deserts to meet all of Europe’s energy needs. The scientists are calling for the creation of a series of huge solar farms – producing electricity either through photovoltaic cells, or by concentrating the sun’s heat to boil water and drive turbines – as part of a plan to share Europe’s renewable energy resources across the continent. A new supergrid, transmitting electricity along high voltage direct current cables would allow countries such as the UK and Denmark ultimately to export wind energy at times of surplus supply, as well as import from other green sources such as geothermal power in Iceland. Energy losses on DC lines are far lower than on the traditional AC ones, which make transmission of energy over long distances uneconomic. The grid proposal, which has won political support from both Nicholas Sarkozy and Gordon Brown, answers the perennial criticism that renewable power will never be economic because the weather is not sufficiently predictable. Its supporters argue that even if the wind is not blowing hard enough in the North Sea, it will be blowing somewhere else in Europe, or the sun will be shining on a solar farm somewhere. Scientists argue that harnessing the Sahara would be particularly effective because the sunlight in this area is more intense: solar photovoltaic (PV) panels in northern Africa could generate up to three times the electricity compared with similar panels in northern Europe. Much of the cost would come in developing the public grid networks of connecting countries in the southern Mediterranean, which do not currently have the spare capacity to carry the electricity that the north African solar farms could generate. Even if high voltage cables between North Africa and Italy would be built or the existing cable between Morocco and Spain would be used, the infrastructure of the transfer countries such as Italy and Spain or Greece or Turkey also needs a major re-structuring, according to Jaeger-Walden. Southern Mediterranean countries including Portugal and Spain have already invested heavily in solar energy and Algeria has begun work on a vast combined solar and natural gas plant which will begin producing energy in 2010. Algeria aims to export 6,000 megawatts of solar-generated power to Europe by 2020. Scientists working on the project admit that it would take many years and huge investment to generate enough solar energy from north Africa to power Europe but envisage that by 2050 it could produce 100 GW, more than the combined electricity output from all sources in the UK, with an investment of around €450bn. Doug Parr, Greenpeace UK’s chief scientist, welcomed the proposals: “Assuming it’s cost-effective, a largescale renewable energy grid is just the kind of innovation we need if we’re going to beat climate change.” Jaeger-Walden also believes that scaling up solar PV by having large solar farms could help bring its cost down for consumers. “The biggest PV system at the moment is installed in Leipzig and the price of the installation is €3.25 per watt,” he said. “If we could realise that in the Mediterranean, for example in southern Italy, this would correspond to electricity prices in the range of 15 cents per kWh, something below what the average consumer is paying.” The vision for the renewable energy grid comes as the commission’s joint research centre (JRC) published its strategic energy technology plan, highlighting solar PV as one of eight technologies that need to be championed for the short- to medium-term future. “It recognises something extraordinary – if we don’t put together resources and findings across Europe and we let go the several sectors of energy, we will never reach these targets,” said Giovanni de Santi, director of the JRC, also speaking in Barcelona. The JRC plan includes fuel cells and hydrogen, clean coal, second generation biofuels, nuclear fusion, wind, nuclear fission and smart grids. De Santi said it was designed to help Europe to meet its commitments to reduce overall energy consumption by 20% by 2020, while reducing CO ² emissions by 20% in the same time and increasing to 20% the proportion of energy generated from renewable sources. Backstory High voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission lines are seen as the most efficient way to move electricity over long distances without incurring the losses experienced in alternating current (AC) power lines. HVDC cables can carry more power for the same thickness of cable compared with AC lines but are only suited to long distance transmission as they require expensive devices to convert the electricity, usually generated as AC, into DC. Modern HVDC cables can keep energy losses down to around 3% per 1,000km. HVDC can also be used to transfer electricity between different countries that might use AC at differing frequencies. HVDC cables can also be used to synchronise AC produced by renewable energy sources. ———————- Other topics noted as Environment in The Guardian: Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on June 28th, 2008 From: rcervigni at worldbank.org We are pleased to announce the launch of the World Bank web site on climate change in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). The site contains information on ongoing and planned World Bank activities aimed at helping MENA countries enhance their resilience to Climate Change, and move to a low carbon development path. The URL for the site is: http://www.worldbank.org/mena/climatecha… Raffaello Cervigni Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on June 23rd, 2008 Algeria unimpressed by Sarkozy’s Med union as per http://www.theparliament.com/press-revie… French prime minister François Fillon has failed to convince Algerian leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika to take part in the inaugural meeting of the union for the Mediterranean during a visit to the country, Le Monde reports. Libyan president Muammar Gadaffi is the only African leader who has so far declined to attend, calling the idea an “affront” to the southern nations. Permalink |
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Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on May 26th, 2008 EYE ON THE UN: For Immediate Release – May 26, 2008 – The US Memorial Day. Contact: Anne Bayefsky UN Racism Conference to be held in Geneva April 20-24, 2009 – Ironically over Holocaust Remembrance Day. May 26, 2008 The next UN racism conference – known as Durban II or the Durban Review Conference – will be held on UN premises in Geneva from April 20-24, 2009, a UN preparatory committee decided today. Anne Bayefsky, editor of EYEontheUN.org, said “holding the meeting at a UN venue on European soil will essentially guarantee funding from the UN regular budget for the conference, and that the European Union will fully participate and not follow boycott plans of Canada, the United States and Israel.” Jews all over the world will be remembering the 6 million murdered in the worst instance of racism and xenophobia in human history. At the same time, the United Nations will be discussing whether the Jewish state, created in the wake of the Holocaust and standing as a bulwark to ensure it is never repeated, should be demonized as the worst practitioner of racism and xenophobia among nations today.” Durban II is intended to promote the implementation of the 2001 Durban Declaration, which singled out only Israel and labeled Palestinians as victims of Israeli racism. ————- For once South Africa showed the courage to stand up and be counted among the Nations – the rest of Africa – we must note – is nothing but a rug at the feet of the Islamic world – Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibuti, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, Marocco … all countries were black Africans suffer from the Egyptian led OIC intrusions on their continent. The UN is just a conduit for making the world pay the bill. Permalink |
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