Further to the Pressenza report on Mohammed Yunus call to the West to help make the clothes industry safer after nearly 1200 died in the collapse of a factory building, an international agreement has been signed by several companies to ensure fire regulations, health and safety monitoring, better salaries and working conditions as well as unionisation. Labour groups have drawn up an industry-wide agreement ...

A number of British overseas territories that function as Tax Havens have agreed to a higher level of transparency opening their books to the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. “In a statement, the [UK] Treasury said that Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos Islands have agreed to much greater levels of transparency of bank accounts held in those jurisdiction ...

By Marta Molina April 29, 2013 To commit an act of civil disobedience requires one to let go of their fear, understand their enemy and their enemy’s power. It must be rooted in good strategy and be supported by an organized group. But most importantly, the action must help to build alternatives to the power structures it confronts. This type of action is exactly what 38-year-old Enric Durán, a Catalán from ...

Corruption is a problem in developing countries because poverty creates unbearable living conditions and early death. Money, for many, is survival and the moral problem of stealing (corruption being one form) may fade into the background. Corruption in the developed world has a different face. It is not a matter of survival. It is only a matter of greed. And the corruption takes forms which are "legal" and ...

Metaphors don’t come more satirical than this. The weather refuses to let Spring arrive, with the coldest Easter in living memory. The Chancellor chose April 1st, aka April’s Fool day, to effect the most draconian cuts to benefits and services yet, and news from the rest of Europe anticipates more of the same: austerity followed by more crisis followed by more austerity (for the poor, that is, with record t ...

Knowing what we eat has become something which is every day more difficult. The recent food scandal where horse meat was detected in beef highlights this clearly. Cannelloni from La Cocinera, burgers from Eroski, ravioli and tortellini from Buitoni, and Ikea meatballs are some of the products that have been withdrawn from the market. It is clear that we don’t have any idea of what we are putting in our mout ...

A retired Spanish couple has committed suicide after receiving an order to evict their home on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca due to unpaid debts. Authorities said the 68-year-old man and the 67-year-old woman, who took an overdose of prescription drugs on Tuesday in their home, stated in a suicide note that they have killed themselves because they were unable to pay their debts and were soon going to ...

No doubt. We are in the hands of thieves. The Barcenas, Pallerols, Crespo, Nóos and Mercurio cases, added to the Gürtel case, Millet, Champion, Pretoria and many others, show that those who have been giving us lessons of austerity have been benefitting: not only the bankers and businessmen but also, when the cameras have not focussed on them, the politicians, who have filled their pockets in order to live i ...

On February 1st the Chilean humanist Thomas Hirsch took part in the International Conference for Peace that took place at Munich, called "Non violent ways of regime change." We publish here the transcript of his words: "The name proposed for this conference is already arguable. Firstly, as a reflection rather than a criticism, if I am asked to talk about nonviolent regime change is because the basic assumpt ...

“French military and Malian government forces are restricting access to conflict areas for members of the media, making covering the situation a major challenge” By Peter Townson*, 23/01/2013 - As violence continues in Mali, the national and international media are finding it increasingly difficult to provide quality coverage of the situation. The primary reason behind the challenges is the fact that journa ...