News

‘Illegal’ JMPD evictions shatter Marlboro community in South Africa

Published in Thursday August 23rd, 2012 In In the media

August 22nd, 2012 Metro police in Johannesburg have cracked down on a community of shackdwellers in Marlboro, evicting residents in direct contravention of state laws. The Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) has dug in its heels and is continuing to evict residents of an informal settlement in Marlboro, despite a court ruling to the contrary. […]

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Haiti – Reconstruction : The National Palace will be demolished

Published in Thursday August 23rd, 2012 In In the media

August 22nd, 2012 The Government announced on Tuesday that the National Palace of Port-au-Prince, heavily damaged by the earthquake of January 2010 will be demolished. J/P Haitian Relief Organization (J/P HRO), the humanitarian organization established by American actor Sean Penn [Roving ambassador for Haiti] would be responsible for the demolition. This is a volunteer mission […]

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United States: UN expert calls for consultations with indigenous peoples over private land sale in Black Hills, South Dakota

Published in Thursday August 23rd, 2012 In News on the Rapporteurs

August 22nd, 2012 The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, James Anaya, urged today the United States Government and the local and state authorities in South Dakota to address concerns expressed by the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota peoples about an impending private land sale in the Black Hills region of the […]

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Istanbul Earthquake Reconstruction Feared Unsafe

Published in Tuesday August 21st, 2012 In In the media

August 20, 2012 Istanbul’s 15 million people are facing an 80 percent chance of a major earthquake in the next 30 years.  In preparation for the predicted quake, the government and local authorities have started to rebuild more than one-third of Istanbul’s structures.  But, controversy surrounds the reconstruction policy and experts worry the preparations are […]

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France must commit to ending forced evictions of Roma

Published in Tuesday August 21st, 2012 In Social movement news

August 21st, 2012 French cabinet members must take action to halt forced evictions of Roma communities and set a housing policy that respects and protects their rights, Amnesty International said ahead of a high-level ministerial meeting. The 22 August meeting called by Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault is the first of its kind since a new […]

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Transnational Land Grabs in Ghana Cause Conflicts

Published in Monday August 20th, 2012 In In the media

August 17, 2012 The recent increasing land acquisitions by transnational corporations (TNCs) is causing conflicts among farmers, pastoralists and other land users in Ghana, and have the potential of leading to the loss of arable land by smallholders, reveals a study. The study, which concentrated on the Prairie Volta Rice Limited in the North Tongu […]

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In the US, evacuations ordered; Wash. residents go home

Published in Monday August 20th, 2012 In In the media

August 19, 2012 Thunderstorms and lightning threatened fire officials’ plans to contain a large blaze in central Washington state as hundreds of Washington and California residents returned home to find out whether their homes were spared. In Idaho, authorities on Saturday issued a mandatory evacuation order for some 350 homes in the area around Featherville […]

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Landslides ‘kill more than previously thought’

Published in Friday August 17th, 2012 In In the media

August 16, 2012 Landslides kill up to 10 times more people across the world than previously thought, according to a study by a UK university. Durham University has calculated that 32,300 people died in landslides between 2004 and 2010. Earlier estimated suggested the toll was between 3,000 and 7,000 people. Weather patterns, deforestation and increasingly dense […]

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Vila Autódromo, in Rio de Janeiro, Resists With Plano Popular

Published in Friday August 17th, 2012 In In the media

With residents of several favela communities in Rio de Janeiro facing resettlement and others having already been removed from their homes to make way for 2016 Olympic infrastructure development, the longstanding community of Vila Autódromo is pushing back with their Plano Popular da Vila Autódromo.

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Guatemalan military evicts dozens squatters camp

Published in Thursday August 16th, 2012 In In the media

August 15, 2012 The Guatemalan Defense Ministry says it has evicted about 100 people from government property and has bulldozed their makeshift homes. Ministry spokesman Col. Erick Escobedo said 12 families initially “invaded” the land in January and the encampment had grown to 32 homes. Escobedo said Wednesday that the country’s National Coordinator for Disaster […]

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