Doris Matsui, Congresswoman Born in Internment Camp, Responds to Trump – The New York Times

The circumstances are different — Roosevelt rounded up citizens; Mr. Trump wants to bar Muslim visitors — but the motivation is the same, she said: “It is fear of the unknown that would drive people to fear-mongering and then outright bigotry.”Ms. Matsui’s husband, Robert T. Matsui, who spent 26 years in Congress and was succeeded by his wife after he died in 2005, was a sponsor of the 1988 redress legislation. He was 6 months old when his family was uprooted from Sacramento, limited to one suitcase a person, and shipped north to the Tule Lake segregation center on the border with Oregon, one of the 10 internment camps.As the House was about to give final approval to the apology and reparations in August 1988, Mr. Matsui said in a speech from the House floor that the acknowledgment of wrongdoing “demonstrates the true character of America in a way that the whole world can recognize.”The votes in the House and the Senate were bipartisan, though more than half of Republicans in the House and nearly half in the Senate opposed the measure, despite Reagan’s endorsement. Opponents objected to the cost and the precedent of paying reparations, and to second-guessing decades-old actions taken during wartime.The opponents included some Republicans still in Congress or prominent in national politics, among them Mitch McConnell, now the Senate majority leader; Senator John McCain of Arizona; and Gov. John R. Kasich of Ohio, who was a member of the House and is now running for president.

Source: Doris Matsui, Congresswoman Born in Internment Camp, Responds to Trump – The New York Times

#shareyourwarmth campaign launched to assist Palestinian refugees

PNN/Bethlehem

UNRWA launched its annual winter fundraising campaign titled #shareyourwarmth today to support the Agency’s winterization efforts for Palestine refugees in Syria, Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon and Jordan.

According to UNRWA’s website, the campaign, which runs from 1 December to the end of February 2016, aims to raise awareness of the dire humanitarian situation of vulnerable Palestine refugees during the winter season – particularly the families who have lost their homes or have been displaced due to conflict – and to raise US$ 2 million to help them endure the coming months.

“Palestine refugees face great uncertainty, with many of them lacking adequate shelter and struggling to meet their minimum food needs. These realities will only become more unbearable as they brace themselves for the harsh winter conditions,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl.

“Palestine refugees demonstrate remarkable courage and generosity in the face of such adversities, such as the family in Gaza who opens their door to those lacking shelter or the humanitarian worker who faces great personal risks to deliver life-saving services in Syria. But they cannot do this alone. Today, we call upon the international community to demonstrate their solidarity with Palestine refugees and support this year’s #shareyourwarmth campaign to help ensure that no one is left out in the cold.”

Donations to the campaign, which can be made at www.unrwa.org/donate, will directly support the Agency’s winterization efforts, including shelter repairs and the provision of food and cash assistance to vulnerable Palestine refugee families.

As state by UNRWA, they also invites supporters and partners to join the campaign by promoting #shareyourwarmth on their social media networks and websites.

UNRWA mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human development potential, pending a just solution to their plight. UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance.

Syria’s Most Vulnerable Live a Hard Life in Jordan’s Refugee Camps · Global Voices

I had also wondered why some families would choose to leave the established gated refugee camps set up by the Jordanian government and UNHCR, and opt to live in the informal tented settlements with barely any support. I learned that life in the gated camps wasn’t much of a life either. They were overcrowded, offered only limited job opportunities and were generally not safe. Those living in them often feel trapped, unsafe and desperate—though by moving outside the camps they were mere exchanging one set of hardships for another.As the Syrian conflict enters its fifth year, and as the situation deteriorates and becomes more desperate for Syrian refugees, their hope of returning to Syria is starting to fade. After my time among Syrians who have sought refuge in Jordan, I understood why some choose to risk everything and cross hazardous waters to find better living conditions in Europe. The driving force is job opportunities and an extra income that they could send to their relatives back in Syria, and, moreover, the hope of a securing a better future for their children.

Source: Syria’s Most Vulnerable Live a Hard Life in Jordan’s Refugee Camps · Global Voices

Israel attacks West Bank college twice in one week | The Electronic Intifada

The Israeli army attacked the Palestine Technical University in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem twice this week.Nine Palestinians were shot Thursday as Israeli soldiers tried to suppress a protest on the campus. On Monday, five students had to be hospitalized for gunshot wounds.Known as Kadoorie, the university has been subject to a series of such attacks since early October, when students began organizing marches against the Israeli occupation.Live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas have all been fired by Israel during the attacks.Twenty students have been detained so far, the International Solidarity Movement stated last week.None of the students has been released.Military campThe university is located next to the massive wall that Israel is building in the West Bank. According to the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq, Israel confiscated 200 dunums (50 acres) from Kadoorie to build the wall and another 23 dunums (5.5 acres) for a military training camp within the campus.Israel has also established a military checkpoint at the university’s entrance. The attacks have been so severe that the university has had to close on occasions.Students have also reported that Israeli soldiers have pointed their guns directly at them, giving the impression that the soldiers were about to open fire.When a number of students responded to such threatening behavior in October by throwing stones and fireworks at the military training area, the Israeli soldiers fired large quantities of tear gas into the university.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBw1rIhIC5s

Source: Israel attacks West Bank college twice in one week | The Electronic Intifada

Video: What would the U.S. look like under a Trump directive of mass deportation? Beyond scary!

Latina Lista: News from the Latino perspective Latina Lista: News from the Latino perspective – News from the Latino perspective. Video: What would the U.S. look like under a Trump directive of mass deportation? Beyond scary! by Latina Lista

LatinaLista — While the majority of voters view Donald Trump’s grossly insensitive declarations about what he will do when he is president as nada más than political rhetoric, it’s come to the point that he must be taken seriously. 

One group who wants to expose the barbaric consequences of Trump’s intention of mass deporting 11 million undocumented Latino immigrants is FWD.us, an immigration advocacy group founded by such tech elites as Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft’s Bill Gates and YAHOO! CEO Marissa Mayer.

FWD.us wanted to show everyone the reality of Trump’s threats if there was a mass deportation.

The result is an effective 2 minute 47 second film that should make everyone fear the future if Trump is in the White House.

The video is the first in a six-part series titled “11 Million Stories,” highlighting the devastating impact mass deportation would have on the US.

 

 

Tras Años De Espera, Se Publica La Lista 47 Para El Pago A Ex Braceros

Por Abel Astorga Morales
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Tras más de 3 años de espera, el pasado 7 de diciembre la Secretaría de Gobernación (SEGOB) en México, publicó la lista número 47 del Fideicomiso de Apoyo Social para Ex Trabajadores Migratorios Mexicanos, que otorga la cantidad de 38 mil pesos a los ex migrantes braceros, o sus familiares que hayan demostrado tal condición. Este dinero se entrega como compensación del despojo del Fondo de Ahorro Campesino que el mismo Estado mexicano cometió a mediados del siglo XX, al hacer perdidizo gran parte de las cantidades que por este concepto llegaron procedentes de Estados Unidos, y fueron depositadas en su momento en el Banco Nacional de Crédito Agrícola y en el del Ahorro Nacional.

Con antelación, Gerardo Cubría Bernardi, Titular del Fideicomiso, comunicó a varios líderes de las organizaciones de ex braceros que en dicha fecha sería divulgada la lista de pago con 7,033 nombres. Hasta que en 104_2852esta semana, por medio del Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF), la SEGOB dio a conocer tal disposición. Por lo que los beneficiarios tendrán 120 días naturales a partir del 7 de diciembre, para acudir a Bansefi, la entidad bancaria donde se efectuaran los pagos, y donde quienes reciban el dinero, deberán firmar el recibo donde ‘liberan al Gobierno de México y sus dependencias’ de futuras reclamaciones. Este hecho que aparentemente representa un éxito más para los ex braceros que laboraron en el agro y ferrocarriles estadounidenses entre 1942 y 1964, en realidad está lleno de claroscuros, y más bien arrastra una historia de desatenciones y obstáculos del gobierno mexicano hacia esos ex migrantes que hoy sobrepasan los 70 años de edad.

Tras la publicación de la lista, las organizaciones de ex braceros reaccionaron. Ya organizan ruedas de prensa para darlo a conocer, sentar una postura y prepararse para lo que viene: la reacción de mucha gente que al enterarse de la noticia asistirá a Bansefi y advertirá que su nombre no figura en la lista de beneficiarios. Por lo que, derivado de las inconformidades que se sobrevendrán, hacen un llamado a organizarse y encausar a la gente a luchar en favor de lo que falta: por los ex braceros vivos con hoja de pago que podrán cobrar de un fondo especial con un certificado médico, si es que no salen en la lista; por los cerca de 14,000 personas con expediente completo que no van a salir porque no alcanzo el recurso, pero sobre todo porque existe una negativa desde el Ejecutivo Federal, el poder legislativo y los partidos, para que se otorgue más dinero al Fideicomiso. Por último, manifestarse con el objetivo de que se abran dos mesas receptoras; una para resolver los 20 mil casos de expedientes incompletos; y otra para permitir que quienes aún no tienen hoja de pago, pero tienen documentación para comprobar su condición de ex migrante bracero o familiar de éste, puedan registrarse para esa retribución. En suma, la lista 47 excluye a alrededor de 33 mil personas en posibilidad de recibir el pago.

Las inconformidades de las organizaciones de ex braceros no son casuales, y más bien están fundadas en una larga cadena de obstáculos que a lo largo de los años el gobierno federal ha establecido con objeto de mermar esta indemnización. Tengamos en cuenta que la ley del Fideicomiso fue publicada en el DOF desde el 25 de mayo de 2005 durante el mandato de Vicente Fox, y los primeros pagos empezaron desde el año 2006. Este programa social, que se planteó como plazo liquidar el pago a todos los beneficiarios registrados en el año 2012, no sólo no cumplió ese objetivo, sino que al finalizar este año 2015, seguirá sin lograr lo planteado. El Poder Legislativo ha obrado en este favor, pues desde que el Partido Revolucionario Institucional regresó al ejecutivo, en los años 2012, 2013 y 2014 no se destinó recurso económico alguno para el Fideicomiso de Apoyo Social, en el Presupuesto de Egresos de la Federación. Se sabe además, que aunque no se autorizaron recursos desde el año 2012, desde el gobierno de Felipe Calderón existe un remanente de $451’225,017.41 millones de pesos que desde entonces han generado intereses; y con la lista 47 se estarían pagando alrededor de 267’264,000 millones de pesos, entonces:

¿Cuántos millones se sumarían si tomamos en cuenta los intereses en más de 3 años? ¿Cuál sería el destino del dinero faltante?
A lo anterior habremos de sumar que, en realidad fueron alrededor de 2 millones los braceros contratados al menos una vez, y en los últimos años se estimaba que más de 500 mil seguían vivos, esto significa que el gobierno sigue excluyendo a más de la mitad de los ex migrantes vivos del apoyo económico de los 38 mil pesos. El Centro de Estudios de Finanzas Públicas dependiente de la Cámara de Diputados, apuntó que existen aún 3 millones 233 mil 755 ex braceros o beneficiarios, en posibilidad de reclamar el pago. Es decir, hasta el año 2015 el Fideicomiso benefició a no más del 6 por ciento del total. ¿La justicia requerida por los ex braceros y sus familiares ha sido realmente conseguida?, ¿Las autoridades han hecho todo lo posible por subsanar en la medida de lo posible este fraude económico de mediados del siglo XX? Por todo lo que comentamos hasta ahora, la respuesta parece muy clara.

Por lo anterior, y con objeto de que, los pocos que resultaron beneficiados en esta ocasión no se queden sin acceder al pago, la SEGOB dispuso números de atención para los beneficiarios (01 800 2722376 de lada nacional o el 51 28 00 00 extensiones 38147, 38901, 38071, 38151 y 38142 para el Distrito Federal, y el correo electrónico: bracero@segob.gob.mx; o acudir a las diversas oficinas de la SEGOB en toda la república mexicana). Que la mayoría de estas 7,033 personas en lista obtengan ese recurso económico, será una forma de seguir subsanando el fraude de los años cuarenta, no obstante como antes se sugirió: ni todos los susceptibles de ser resarcidos fueron tomados en cuenta en esta ocasión; ni el Apoyo Social mismo, representa un programa que realmente redima el actuar furtivo y falto de ética del gobierno mexicano; por lo que la postergación de esta deuda histórica seguirá, y su justa resolución se vislumbra complicada.

Former Chilean soldier charged with murder after stunning radio confession

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Guillermo Reyes Rammsy, 62, admitted on live radio phone-in on Wednesday to participating in executions of 18 opponents of late dictator Augusto Pinochet

A former conscript in the Chilean army has been charged with murder after confessing on a live radio phone-in to participating in the deaths of 18 opponents of the late military dictator Augusto Pinochet.

Guillermo Reyes Rammsy, 62, was arrested on Friday and charged over the 1973 murders of Freddy Taberna Gallegos and German Palomino Lamas, members of Chile’s Socialist Party.

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Easy Access To Firearms, Main Cause Of Shootings In The U.S. | La Prensa San Diego

According to a new study made public by the U.S. Mass Shooting Tracker, there have been three hundred and fifty-five shootings in the U.S., most of them in public spaces. The last fifteen years have seen the worst massacres in the country’s history. Most of them have been perpetrated by teenagers, for reasons never to be known, but easy access to firearms in the U.S. has been the common denominator leading to these events.Fifteen thousand people are killed by firearms annually in the United States; according to statistics, eighty-eight percent of its population owns a gun or some other firearm, and political analysts believe that gun ownership has become a part of U.S. culture. The ensuing political debate has come to the point that President Barack Obama has spoken in favor of amending laws the law in order to keep these tragedies – such as the one in San Bernardino, which took place at a rehabilitation center last Wednesday, December 2nd, when a young Pakistani couple ended the life of fourteen people, and left over two dozens more injured – from happening again.

Source: Easy Access To Firearms, Main Cause Of Shootings In The U.S. | La Prensa San Diego