Tag Archive for "peace"
Belgium 7th on the List… Yahoo! Wait. Where is America? Hugh?
Reporters Without Borders recently published their Press Freedom Index for 2008. I saw a report the other day on al-Jazeera’s English news station. The results of the list — which I recall seeing several years ago with the same reaction — are surprising. Most notable is how low the US is on the list, with most of Europe coming in before it. The report on the Index’s website says:
Two aspects stand out in the index, which covers the 12 months to 1 September 2008. One is Europe’s preeminence. Aside from New Zealand and Canada, the first 20 positions are held by European countries. The other is the very respectable ranking achieved by certain Central American and Caribbean countries.
In addition to the above, I selected a few of the countries that I thought stood out.
- 1 Iceland
- 7 Belgium
- 13 Canada
- 20 Germany
- 25 United Kingdom
- 35 France
- 36 Bosnia and Herzegovina
- 41 United States of America
- 46 Israel (Israeli territory)
- 92 Congo
- 103 Turkey
- 119 United States of America (extra-territorial)
- 132 Malaysia
- 146 Egypt
- 151 Zimbabwe
- 156 Afghanistan
- 161 Saudi Arabia
- 166 Iran
- 172 North Korea
You can read how the statistics were compiled here. You can also get the full report here. What do yo think? Are you as surprised as I was?
Peace Rejected - Abbas holds his ground
I’m not sure what to make of this exactly. Ehud Olmert’s latest “peace” plan is seen as insufficient and does not provide for a Palestinian state that is both contiguous and governed from Jerusalem. Up until now, I didn’t think Abbas really cared about these things.
Actually, Olmert (and his plan) is a joke. In it, he is proposes that he keeps some Palestinian lands in exchange for some inhabitable desert land. I suppose Olmert never learned to play fair as a kid. Abbas is clear: “The Palestinian side will only accept a Palestinian state with territorial continuity, with holy Jerusalem as its capital, without settlements, and on the June 4, 1967 boundaries.” And his demand is a just one.
When did Abbas get a spine?