Here are some recent
editorials I wrote for The Gulf Today. (Posted for my records):
Trump, Kim should seize
peace opportunity
After a few turbulent days
of diplomatic brinkmanship that sent tensions soaring, there
is some positive news from across the Korean peninsula.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has committed to complete
denuclearisation and to a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump, as
per a statement by South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
Though Trump rattled a sabre on Thursday by cancelling the planned
June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore citing "open hostility" from
Pyongyang, fortunately, within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could
still go ahead.
The “Will they, won’t they?” question has been
answered with “Yes, they will.”
The need to protect the
momentum and seize the opportunities available to find a peaceful path forward
should never be underestimated.
What is heartening is that
the peace process has sustained, despite the on and off hiccups. Just last year, Trump and Kim were trading war
threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to
date and missiles it said were capable of reaching the US mainland.
There are still stark differences between the two sides. Washington wants
North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible
in return for sanctions and economic relief.
Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look
like and remains deeply worried that abandoning that deterrent would leave the
country vulnerable to regime change.
Scepticism reigns on
whether Kim would actually ever fully
abandon his nuclear arsenal. Moon has also indicated that North Korea is not
yet convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.
If successful, recent
efforts towards lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula would formally end one of
the world’s longest unresolved conflicts, which began in June 1950. An
armistice brought about a ceasefire in 1953, but the war never officially ended
because the parties failed to reach agreement over a peace treaty.
Discussions across the table, however heated, are any time better and
safer for humanity than firing of ballistic missiles and calling names via
social media. Direct talks between the leaders of the United States and North
Korea are crucial to resolving the crucial nuclear issue.
Sustainable peace and
denuclearisation are the ultimate goals. All
sides involved should seize the historical opportunity to settle matters
through honest and productive dialogue.
Any other path is strewn with huge risks not only for the Korean
peninsula, but the rest of the world too.
No place for hatred
in a sane society
Darkness cannot drive out
darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do
that, once stated Martin Luther King, Jr.
Unfortunately, that
virtuous message seems to have lost its way before reaching Nottingham city in
Britain.
It is appalling to note
that three out of five of Nottingham's Muslims have been victims of hate crime.
Many victims specifically cite Islamophobia and religion as the motivation
behind the offences.
As per a report in The
Independent, Citizens UK, in collaboration with academics from Nottingham Trent
University and the University of Nottingham, collected the experiences of 1,202
people in Nottingham, including the frequency, causes and locations of hate
crime.
The report, titled “Still
No Place For Hate,” found more than a third (35 per cent) of all people
surveyed in the city had experienced a hate crime, an increase of six per cent
since the last report in 2014.
“I wear the Islamic dress
and the perpetrator was shouting that I was hiding a bomb,” one respondent
said. “On another incident whilst driving in my car, a passerby was shouting and
calling me Bin Laden.”
“Regularly am followed
when I go out in a hijab and abused the whole journey back home,” a woman
reported. “Regularly get abuse online and on Facebook.”
There is no place for such
hatred in a sane society. Every person is entitled to human rights without
discrimination.
The rights to equality and
non-discrimination are cornerstones of human rights law. Yet blatant racism,
xenophobia and religious hatred continue to remain the bane of certain
societies.
It should never be
forgotten that discrimination against individuals affects the society as a
whole.
Sajid Mohammed, leader of
Citizens UK subsidiary Nottingham Citizens, has pointed out that “Everyone from
the new Home Secretary to Nottingham school girls as young as 12 have ended up
victims of hateful slurs.”
Communities can and must
change this dreadful trend. There should be zero tolerance towards hate crime.
Trust in the police will be eroded if hate crime cases are not handled with the
seriousness they deserve.
The report serves as a
perfect reminder that the authorities need to do much more to challenge hate.
Leaders should be sincere in working with the community and find ways to better
promote tolerance and respect for diversity.
They should realise that
if there is no harmony in society, they will also have to pay a price, if not
today, some day.
Air pollution
a global threat
More than 90 per cent of the global population is breathing in high
levels of pollutants, says the World Health Organization (WHO) and that is as
good as saying almost entire humanity is affected.
The implication is that
air pollution levels remain dangerously high in many parts of the world. Considering the seriousness of the subject, the
global community needs to take rapid and coordinated remedial measures.
New data from WHO shows
that 9 out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants.
Updated estimations reveal an alarming death toll of 7 million people every
year caused by ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution.
Sadly, the poorest and
most marginalised people bear the brunt of the problem.
As Dr Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO, points out, it is unacceptable that over
3 billion people – mostly women and children – are still breathing deadly smoke
every day from using polluting stoves and fuels in their homes.
Ambient air pollution
alone caused some 4.2 million deaths in 2016, while household air pollution
from cooking with polluting fuels and technologies caused an estimated 3.8
million deaths in the same period.
More than 90 per cent of
air pollution-related deaths occur in low and middle-income countries, mainly
in Asia and Africa, followed by low and middle-income countries of the Eastern
Mediterranean region, Europe and the Americas.
As per WHO officials,
ambient air pollution levels are lowest in high-income countries, particularly
in Europe, the Americas and the Western Pacific. Europe also has the highest
number of places reporting data. Unfortunately, Africa and some of the Western
Pacific have a serious lack of air pollution data.
Not all is lost, however.
The positive news is that more and more governments are committing to monitor
and reduce air pollution.
Air quality can be
improved by implementing policy measures such as banning the use of coal for
“space heating” in buildings, using clean fuels for electricity production and
improving efficiency of motor vehicle engines.
Cities like Copenhagen and
Bogotà have improved air quality by prioritising dedicated networks of urban
public transport, walking and cycling. There is a lesson for others to learn
here.
It is true that air
pollution does not recognise borders.
WHO experts have rightly
stated that improving air quality demands sustained and coordinated government
action at all levels. Countries need to work together on solutions for
sustainable transport, more efficient and renewable energy production and use
and waste management.
Protect civilians
caught in conflict
With more than 128 million
people worldwide requiring immediate humanitarian aid, mostly due to war and
violence, the international community should do more to protect civilians
caught in conflict.
As per United Nations
Secretary-General António Guterres, last year alone, more than 26,000 civilians
were killed or injured in many countries affected by conflict, including
Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo and
Iraq.
It is in this background
that the UAE’s call on the UN Security Council and Member States to join in
protecting civilians and upholding international law by focusing on prevention
to address the root causes of conflict assumes deep significance.
There is a need to
recognise that regional conflicts require regional solutions and reinvigorate
the Council to ensure that it takes both action in response to conflicts and
follows through on its existing resolutions.
As Ambassador Lana Zaki
Nusseibeh, UAE's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York,
explicitly pointed out at the Open Debate on the protection of civilians in armed
conflict, the failure of the Council to respond decisively to conflict around
the world has exacted a profound human toll.
What is called for is a
re-energised unity of purpose within the Council and renewed action to maintain
international peace and security.
With the conflict in
Syria, for example, now entering its 8th year, the world is experiencing the
challenge of multiple armed conflicts that have severe implications for
civilian communities. These conflicts have in many instances been worsened and
prolonged by the Security Council’s failure to act.
The Syrian people have
been denied humanitarian assistance for too long largely due to the inaction of
the Council to pass any resolutions or implement adopted resolutions on Syria.
The Israeli occupation
forces have been inflicting much suffering on Palestinians for decades.
Israel’s recent actions at the Gaza Fence, which include attacks on doctors and
paramedics, clearly violated the protection for medical personnel assisting
wounded civilians guaranteed under the Fourth Geneva Convention and
international law.
Ambassador Nusseibeh
rightly condemned Iran’s arming of various non-state actors in order to avoid
sovereign accountability for its actions, thereby putting the region at greater
risk.
The UN Council needs to
take bold steps towards countering the threats posed by non-state actors to
better address 21st century challenges. States such as Iran should be held
accountable for their attempts to violate international law and continued
violations of the UN Council’s resolutions.
