Ovi magazine; Friday May 26th, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems, the thoughts, the reviews, the photos, the paintings and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Friday May 26th, 2023

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Sudan Instability Pushes Refugees to Chad by Rene Wadlow

Media attention has been largely focused on the armed conflict in the capital Khartoum between the rival generals Abdel Fattah al-Burham, Chief of the Army and Mohamed Hamdam Daglo, better known by his battle name “Hemetti”, Chief of the Rapid Support Forces.  There has been the evacuation of personnel from the diplomatic embassies and refugee flows toward Egypt and South Sudan.

The current armed conflict has also had an impact on the unstable area of Darfur, western Sudan. Officials from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that in the last couple of weeks some 60,000 persons from Darfur have crossed the frontier into Chad which lacks the resources and infrastructure to deal adequately with this refugee flow.

Darfur (meaning the home of the Fur) is an area about the size of France but with a scattered population of some six million people, divided between camel and cattle-raising groups and the settled subsistence agriculture of indigenous tribes of the area such as the Fur and the Masalites.  Darfur has been largely outside the development activities of Sudan’s governments.  It has a weak economy and a lack of social services.

Continue reading HERE!

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The Majesty Of Nature #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“Afternoon sunlight 
Streams though gaps 
In the blinds picking up 
Flecks of dust floating 
Slowly over the carpet.
The wind howls outside 
Roaring up the coast
And the roof timbers shake.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Screws & Chips #61 by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Wednesday March 22nd, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Wednesday March 22nd, 2023

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Trashing Asylum: The UK’s Illegal Migration Bill by Dr. Binoy Kampmark

He was standing before a lectern at Downing Street.  The words on the support looked eerily similar to those used by the politicians of another country.  According to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Stop the Boats was the way to go.  It harked back to the same approach used by Australia’s Tony Abbott, who won the 2013 election on precisely that platform.

The UK Illegal Migration Bill is fabulously own-goaled, bankrupt and unprincipled.  For one thing, it certainly is a labour of love in terms of the illegal, as the title suggests.  In time, the courts may well also find fault with this ghastly bit of proposed legislation, which has already sailed through two readings in the Commons and resting in the Committee stage.

On Good Morning Britain, Home Secretary Suella Braverman had to concede she was running “novel arguments” about dealing with such irregular migration, not making mention of Australia’s own novel experiment which did, and still continues, to besmirch and taint international refugee law.

In her statement on whether the bill would be consistent with the European Convention of Human Rights, enshrined by the UK Human Rights Act, Braverman was brazen to the point of being quixotic: “I am unable to make a statement that, in my view, the provisions of the Illegal Migration Bill are compatible with the Convention rights, but the Government nevertheless wishes the House to proceed with the Bill.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Classic 70’s Chick (V2) #poem by Michael Lee Johnson

“Classic 70’s chick
scent of these times
gold digger want to be.
Poet & scholar stuck on
T.S. Eliot “The Waste Land.”
She tracks down a few stray men,
prospect hunks, & greenback dreams.”

Continue reading HERE!

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AntySaurus Prick #62 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Wednesday January 25th, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Tuesday Wednesday 25th, 2023

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When Good Refugees Turn Bad by Dr. Binoy Kampmark

When the first Russian forces began entering Ukrainian territory in February 2022, the instant reaction from Europe, the UK, Canada and Australia, was one of open commitment to Ukraine’s refugees.  The relentless human trains heading westwards were initially embraced by Poles, whose history with Ukraine is, at best, tense and sketchy. 

Across Europe, walls came down in dispensation for this new type of refugee, tolerated and tolerable by the populists and the border security types, all summed up by comments from the Bulgarian Prime ministerKiril Petkov, who declared the fleeing Ukrainians “intelligent” and “educated people”.  They were certainly “Europeans” and were not like the “refugee wave we have been used to”, the sort packed with individuals with “unclear pasts [and] who could have been even terrorists.”  For a time, governments could distract attention from brutal border policies directed against swarthier irregular arrivals.

The enlarged spirit of generosity was also aided by the perpetrator of the attack:the West’s habitual bugbear, and the number of notably eastern and central European states that had anxiety aplenty about Russian territorial ambitions.  To date, estimates suggest that 7.9 million  people have fled the war, with 4.7 million registered under the European Union’s temporary-protection directive.

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The Wall #prose by George Cassidy Payne

“I loved you, the way jewels are left unclaimed on the ocean floor. I loved you forevermore, and I knew all along that such a place does not exist. I loved you, the way a pike devours a frog when it is not watching, you know how fast they can get out of the way. I loved you night and day”

Continue reading HERE

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Mika Toxica #46 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Monday November 28th, 2022

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Monday November 28th, 2022

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War-related Famine: Action Needed by Rene Wadlow

In a 11 November 2022 presentation to the Paris Peace Forum, David Beasley, Director of the United Nations World Food Programme warned that there are real dangers of famine in countries currently in armed conflict or which have been in armed conflict in recent years such as Afghanistan.  He mentioned in particular Somalia where the conflicts have not received the media attention they deserved.  (1)

He also mentioned the situation in South Sudan, in Ethiopia, in the countries of the Sahel, and in Yemen.  In each of these countries, the agricultural infrastructure has been sharply damaged.  Infrastructure rebuilding, the creation of water wells, the redevelopment of livestock, the establishment of functioning markets would take a great deal of effort even if peace is restored.  These conflicts have led to migration, especially of men which has further weakened the agricultural potential.  In many of the African countries he mentioned, there is also the impact of climate change and a reduction of rainfall.  The war in Ukraine has also had a negative impact on food supplies and on food prices.

Continue reading HERE!

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The Killing Fields #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“The guards
And the barking dogs,
And the tears trickling 
Down stained cheeks 
In haunted silence 
Under grey northern skies,
And the blood that soaked 
The earth.”

Continue reading HERE

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AntySaurus Prick #52 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Monday June 20th, 2022 – World Refugee Day

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Monday June 20th, 2022 – World Refugee Day

World Refugee Day is an international day organised every year on 20 June by the United Nations. It is designed to celebrate and honour refugees from around the world. The day was first established on 20 June 2001, in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. The event aims to recognise the strength of the refugees who have fled the conflict and persecution of their country in hope of finding sanctuary and living a better life. World Refugee Day builds the concept of understanding for their plight which shows one’s resilience and courage in the rebuilding of their future.

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World Refugee Day by Rene Wadlow

20 June is the UN-designated World Refugee Day marking the signing in 1951 of the Convention on Refugees. The condition of refugees and migrants has become a “hot” political issue in many countries, and the policies of many governments have been very inadequate to meet the challenges.  The UN-led World Humanitarian Summit held in Istanbul, Turkey 23-24 May, 2016 called for efforts to prevent and resolve conflicts by “courageous leadership, acting early, investing in stability, and ensuring broad participation by affected people and other stakeholders.”

If there were more courageous political leadership, we might not have the scope and intensity of the problems that we now face.  Care for refugees is the area in which there is the closest cooperation between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the UN system. As one historian of the work of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has written “ No element has been more vital to the successful conduct of the programmes of the UNHCR than the close partnership between UNHCR and the non-governmental organizations.”

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Forgiven sins #poem & #painting by Amir Khatib

“I reveal to you a great secret;
When I took you to the garden,
It wasn’t my intention to harvest the wet as I promised you,
The nightingales and wasps have preceded me,
But to eat the red Cham berries,
your lips are stained,”

Continue reading HERE!

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Ma-Siri & Alexa #34 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Thursday June 16th, 2022 – International Day of the African Child

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Thursday June 16th, 2022 – International Day of the African Child

The Day of the African Child has been celebrated on June 16 every year since 1991, when it was first initiated by the OAU Organisation of African Unity. It honors those who participated in the Soweto Uprising in 1976 on that day. It also raises awareness of the continuing need for improvement of the education provided to African children. In Soweto, South Africa, on June 16, 1976, about ten thousand black school children marched in a column more than half a mile long, protesting the poor quality of their education and demanding their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young students were shot, the most famous of which being Hector Pieterson. More than a hundred people were killed in the protests of the following two weeks, and more than a thousand were injured.

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Fighting the First UK-Rwandan Refugee Flight by Dr. Binoy Kampmark

June 10 bore witness to a valiant effort on the part of refugee groups and a trade union to stop what promises to be the first journey of many as part of the UK-Rwanda plan.  Their attempt to seek an injunction failed to convince the High Court.  Next Tuesday, the first flight from the UK to Rwanda filled with asylum seekers will, unless the Court of Appeal rules otherwise, take off.  Some 31 people of Iraqi and Syrian background have been told they will be on board with one-way tickets.

The UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership, hammered out by the Home Secretary Priti Patel and her counterparts in Kigali, has one central purpose: to deter the arrival of asylum seekers by boat across the English Channel.  Its genesis lies in a range of sources, none more insidious than the Australian model of offshore processing.  At its core is a rejection of international refugee law and its obligations.  In its place is the sentiment of convenience, callousness and cruel stinginess.

Continue reading HERE!

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Sorrows #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“I became an eagle,
And I carried bundles
Of sorrows on my wings,
And I soared into the sky”

Continue reading HERE!

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Worming #38 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Tuesday March 8th, 2022 – International Women’s Day

 

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Tuesday March 8th, 2022 – International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men. In ancient Greece, Lysistrata initiated a sexual strike against men in order to end war; during the French Revolution, Parisian women calling for “liberty, equality, fraternity” marched on Versailles to demand women’s suffrage.

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The Ukraine War and the “Good” Refugee by Dr. Binoy Kampmark

In the history of accepting refugees, countries have shown more than an erratic streak. Universal human characteristics have often been overlooked in favour of the particular: race, cultural habits, religion. Even immigration nations, such as the United States and Australia, have had their xenophobic twists and turns on the issue of who to accept, be they victims of pogroms, war crimes, genocide, or famine.

The Russian attack on Ukraine has already produced refugees in the hundreds of thousands. By March 2, with the war one week old, 874,000 people were estimated to have left Ukraine. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that up to four million may leave, while the European Union adds a further three million to the figure.

This is already producing a growing capital of hypocrisy on the part of receiving states who have shown deep reluctance in accepting refugees of other backgrounds from other conflicts. Tellingly, some of these conflicts have also been the noxious fruit of campaigns or interventions waged by Western states.

Continue reading HERE!

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Solidly So #poem by Saloni Kaul

“All through life we’re riddled with extremes keen
Like towering highs and touching rock bottom
That render complicated thriving in between
If we take them to heart, like birthdays, eggs rotten.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Sceptic feathers #030 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamida

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Ovi magazine; Saturday January 15th, 2022

 

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Saturday January 15th, 2022 – National Bagel Day

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Closing schools and bulldozing Rohingya shops are cruel and bad policies by Dr. Habib Siddiqui

Bangladesh hosts over 1.1 million Rohingyas who fled neighboring Myanmar during a genocidal campaign by the security forces in 2017. Most of them live in and around Kutupalong and Nayapara refugee camps in the Cox’s Bazar region – which have grown to become the largest and most densely populated camps in the world. Conditions in the camps are challenging and local infrastructure and services have been stretched to their limits. The United Nations has described the Rohingya as “the most persecuted minority in the world.”

The Government of Bangladesh has been praised by the international community for taking in the refugees. On December 19, 2021, Tom Andrews, Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, at the end of his first official visit to the Bangladesh said, “Bangladesh saved untold numbers of lives when it opened its arms and hearts to Rohingya people who survived these most unspeakable of horrors inflicted on them by the Myanmar military.”

“All who value human rights owe Bangladesh a debt of gratitude”, he added. He acknowledged that the responsibility to resolve the emergency rests upon Myanmar.

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Rains #poem by Jan Sand

“There are rains that drag fog skirts
Across the country-side in stealthy hiss,
That, gently, in determination
Dampens down the grass with sodden kiss
Of sky to earth as caring as a mother
Calms her resting child.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Stringfellow Barr; Joining the Human Race by Rene Wadlow

Stringfellow Barr, whose birth anniversary we mark on 15 January, was a historian, largely of the classic Greek and Roman Empire period and an active world citizen.  He served as president of the Foundation for World Government from its start in 1948 to its closing in 1958.  He was president of St. John’s College in Annopolis, Maryland (also home of the U.S. navel academy which turns out sailors). The aim of St. John’s under Stringfellow Barr was to turn out well-read liberals who would have studied a common set of “Great Book” starting with the Greeks such as Plato.  The Great Books approach to learning developed community reading circles across the USA, very popular in the 1950s.

Stringfellow Barr had the good luck or a sense of the right timing to publish a short 36-page booklet Let’s Join the Human Race in 1950. (1)  In his 30 January 1949  Inaugural Address on becoming President of the U.S.A. Harry Truman set out four policy ideas which he numbered as Point One to Point Four.  Point Four  was really an afterthought as some mention of foreign policy was needed for balance.  Point Four was “a bold new program for making the benefits of our scientific advances and industrial progress available for the improvement and growth of underdeveloped areas.”

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Screws & Chips #022 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Together #4

We protect the hunted!
An Ovi Magazine ‘Awareness’ Campaign

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“No one puts their children in a boat unless the water is safer than the land.” – Warsan Shire