The Political Needle Bends to the Left in Latin America

FOUR emblematic coups have been now substantially reversed: Chile (1973), Peru (1992), Honduras (2009), and Bolivia (2019). Each of these coups were driven by political forces of the hard right backed by the military and by the United States government. Left-leaning governments will all be in power after March 2022, when Gabriel Boric of the Apreubo Dignidad (Approve Dignity) alliance will be sworn in as president of Chile. In January 2022, Xiomara Castro will be the president of Honduras, and in Bolivia and Peru, President Luis Arce and President Pedro Castillo are already in office.

KARNATAKA: Bommai joins Yogi in the ‘Anti-Conversion’ Crusade!

IN Hindi movies, the powerful antagonist stops the marriage saying, “Ye shaadi nahi ho sakti!” This scene would highlight the complete disregard of individual choice and autonomy, the fact that the wedding has already been organised, guests present and all parties being willing participants.

WB: Farce in the Name of Elections

THE farcical election to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has once again exposed the kind of ‘democracy’ being practised in West Bengal. On the day of voting on December 19, TMC gangs captured hundreds of booths and much of the voting process was hijacked. Hoodlums were mobilised from outside the city and entire localities were prevented from reaching to polling booths.The results exposed wide-open this bulldozing of democratic rights of the people. In 34 wards, TMC candidates got more than 80 per cent votes. In another 44 wards, TMC got 70 to 80 per cent votes.

HP: DSMM Holds Seminar on Dalit Issues

HIMACHAL PRADESHDSMM Holds Seminar on Dalit IssuesAshish Kumar A STATE level seminar on dalit issues was held on December 12 in Kali Bari Hall, Shimla by DSMM. This seminar was attended by over 300 delegates from 11 districts. The keynote address was given by Subhashini Ali, vice president of DSMM.Subhashini in her speech said that Himachal is second in the country in dalit population with over 26 per cent. She said dalit atrocities in the state are incessantly continuing.

AP: Padyatra Culminates in a Mass Dharna

THE farmers must launch a united and determined fight against the government’s farm policies which are against farmers. The recent victory of the farmers in Delhi should serve as an inspiration to all the fighting people, said AIKS joint secretary, Vijoo Krishnan on December 18, at Anantapuramu. He was addressing the participants of the Rythu Coolie Rakshana Padayatra, which culminated in a dharna staged outside the district collector’s office.

On Raising Marrying Age for Women

THE central government is set to introduce a bill to raise the marriageable age for women to 21 years. Given its majority in parliament, this bill will probably become law. Yet there are so many important issues that require deeper consideration that the better course would be for the government to refer the bill to the relevant standing committee, instead of pushing it through.A woman is considered an adult at the age of 18. All laws that apply to adult citizens, including criminal laws, will apply to a woman at the age of 18. She is held responsible for the actions she takes.

Karnataka Bill: Attack on Religious Minorities

THE Karnataka anti-conversion bill passed by the legislative assembly is a direct attack on the rights of religious minorities and religious freedom.

December 3 Disability Day: Realise Realities; Assert Rights

Declared by the United Nations, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities has been celebrated on December 3, each year, since 1992INDIA has a disabled population of 2.68 crore, as identified by the 2011 census. Fourteen additional conditions were recognised in the 2016 Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RPD Act) as against only seven recognised earlier. However, age-related disability is not counted for.

The Week in Parliament

AS part of the discussion on climate change in the Lok Sabha this week, CPI(M) MP from Tamil Nadu, P R Natarajan asked, “Europe and North America got jolted out of their slumber on climate change impacts. When will the Modi government wake up?” He said that the union government has taken absolutely no measures to build resilience to climate change impacts in the country while making odd gestures to satisfy international interlocutors at climate summits regarding emission reductions.

US Inflation and India’s Economic Recovery

THE very day, December 11, when the Indian finance ministry spuriously claimed a robust recovery in the post-pandemic Indian economy, newspapers carried news of an acceleration in the US inflation rate. The inflation rate in November 2021 over November of the preceding year had been 6.8 per cent in the US, which was higher than the corresponding rate in any month over the previous 40 years; in particular, petrol prices had increased in November 2021 by 58 per cent, which was the highest for any month since 1980.

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