Here are your top stories for Friday, July 8th: Details emerge of Dallas gunman; Obama says Americans are ‘horrified’ over news; 37 are dead after an attack at an Iraqi Shiite shrine; An international barbershop harmony competition is underway.
Timeline: Snapshot July 08, 2016
Perspective: Intersections Of History, Geography, And Human Rights
Is there any historical evidence that supports China’s claim to the South China Sea? Would it make any difference? The Chinese leadership has historically shown beliggerence toward its neighbors. The annexing of Tibet, and later Hong Kong and Macau, has met with annual protests and resentment of Chinese officials.
Filipinos are already becoming ready for whatever insults the Chinese come up with. The Filipinos may also be confident – justified or not – that there is a U.N. and an alliance of countries that are eager to see the Philippines win.
Poster For You
The Arab Spring of five years ago was seen as a massive movement of residents and citizens of many countries that demanded policy changes. All countries have had their hiccups. But Tunisia seems to have pierced through obstacles. While Egypt is still coming to terms with its successes and failures.
In all regions there are needs for growth. And in all regions, apparently there are strong-willed people who unite for the betterment of their countries and their lives.
China’s Choices In Upcoming Tribunal Ruling RE: The South China Sea
VOA News
Filipino students protest recent island-building and militarization by China in the South China Sea
The Permanent Court of Arbitration will rule next Tuesday in the case brought by the Philippines over Beijing’s land reclamation activities and claims in the South China Sea. China is boycotting the case in The Hague-based court, saying the court has no jurisdiction to rule on what it calls its sovereign territory.
China says it will not accept the verdict.
This past week, China has been conducting military exercises, which are scheduled to conclude July 11, a day before the court announces its ruling. John Blaxland, senior fellow at the Australian National University’s Strategic and Defense Studies Center, says the timing of China’s actions is not coincidental.
“The … military exercise is planned to be completed the day before the ruling, and … the Chinese press has come out particularly stridently and frequently in the last few days [and] been very critical of the Permanent Court of Arbitration,” Blaxland said.
Beijing maintains that the best way to settle the dispute is bilateral talks, something that newly elected Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte hinted may be possible, depending on the outcome of the court’s ruling.
Many analysts predict the Permanent Court of Arbitration will rule in favor of the Philippines. China, through previous statements, has signaled it will ignore any ruling against them and continue to assert its sovereignty. Which raises the question, “What will Beijing do?” Read More
Tunisia: 5 Years After Arab Spring – Signs Of Progress
VOA News
Tunisia During 2011 Protests
TUNIS, TUNISIA—
Sayida Ounissi watched Tunisia’s 2011 revolution unfold as a political refugee in France.
Fares Said was a university student, pelting rocks at police.
Businesswoman Wided Bouchamaoui helped save her country from a new political crisis, while Slah Allani’s textile industry collapsed under the hard economic times.
If Tunisia’s uprising helped to ignite widespread popular revolts that have changed the face of the Arab world, it has also fundamentally reshaped the lives of its citizens.
These four Tunisians illustrate just how radical the changes are. Today, one is a member of parliament, one is a budding playwright, one is a Nobel laureate and one is investing in Tunisia’s heritage.
“I’m full of hope actually,” said Ounissi, 29, now a rising star in the moderate Islamist Ennahdha party, when asked about her nation’s sizable problems, including a struggling economy, soaring unemployment and rising radicalism.
“Things are going slowly, that’s definitely true,” she added. “It’s not easy to see where we’re going, but we definitely have a road map.”
Ounissi didn’t feel that way growing up in exile. Like many Islamists, her family fled the dictatorship of former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and settled in France. Read More
President El-Sissi Turns to Military to Rebuild Egypt
VOA News
Under Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi the military has overseen reconstruction projects
During two years in office, Egypt’s general-turned-president Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has sought to impose a military-style discipline to end years of turmoil and has turned to the armed forces to help rebuild the deeply damaged economy to a degree unseen in more than 50 years.
The military has taken the lead in carrying out a string of major projects, from building roads and overseeing housing construction to providing cheap food to the public. That has provided a needed bit of stimulus and helped keep Egyptians going in hard times. But the flip side has been a heavy emphasis on secrecy, leaving observers unsure how el-Sissi plans to tackle an economy struggling under high inflation, unemployment and a tumbling currency.
El-Sissi has frequently sought to impose secrecy on politicians over issues that usually would be open for public discussion. In June, he said some of his planned projects cannot be announced, without explanation.
When his electricity minister said on live TV in May that the Aswan Dam was taken off the electricity grid temporarily, el-Sissi angrily cut him off, saying, “Let us not talk about these details.” When his oil minister, again on live television, showed a map of a proposed oil pipeline during a power point presentation, el-Sissi ordered the slide removed.
One of his most controversial decisions, to surrender two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, was taken behind closed doors – intentionally, el-Sissi said, to prevent media attention. The move sparked a rare burst of street protests and angry criticism. In a televised meeting with politicians and editors, el-Sissi defended the decision and demanded no one discuss the subject again. He brusquely shut down one lawmaker who attempted to speak to him, saying “Excuse me, I did not give anyone permission to speak.” Read More
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