#recruitment in agriculture January 2017

[lukeskywaker4ever]

6th King of Portugal and of the Burgundy Dynasty: King Dinis of Portugal, “The Farmer/ The Poet”

Reign: 6 February 1279 – 7 January 1325 Predecessor: Afonso III

Dinis (9 October 1261 in Lisbon – 7 January 1325 in Santarém), called the Farmer King (Rei Lavrador) and the Poet King (Rei Poeta), was King of Portugal. The eldest son of Afonso III of Portugal by his second wife, Beatrice of Castile, and grandson of king Alfonso X of Castile (known as the Wise), Dinis succeeded his father in 1279. His marriage to Isabel of Aragon, who was later canonized as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church, was arranged in 1281 when she was 10 years old.

Dinis ruled Portugal for over 46 years. He worked to reorganize his country's economy and gave an impetus to Portuguese agriculture. He expanded the planting of a large pine forest (that was almost burned out in the forests fires in 2017) near Leiria to prevent the soil degradation that threatened the region and as a source of raw materials for the construction of the royal ships. He was also known for his poetry, which constitutes an important contribution to the development of Portuguese as a literary language.

In 1290, Dinis began to pursue the systematic centralization of royal power by imposing judicial reforms, decreeing Portuguese "the official language of legal and judicial proceedings", creating the first university in Portugal, and ridding the military orders in the country of foreign influences. His policies encouraged economic development with the creation of numerous towns and trade fairs. He advanced the interests of the Portuguese merchants, and set up by mutual agreement a fund called the Bolsa de Comércio, the first documented form of marine insurance in Europe, approved on 10 May 1293. Always concerned with development of the country's infrastructure, he encouraged the discovery and exploitation of sulphur, silver, tin and iron mines and organised the export of excess production of agricultural crops, salt, and salted fish to England, Flanders, and France.

Dinis signed the first Portuguese commercial agreement with England in 1308, and secured a contract in 1317 for the services of the Genoese merchant sailor Manuel Pessanha  as hereditary admiral of his fleet, with the understanding that Pessanha and his successors should provide twenty Genoese captains to command the king's galleys, thus effectively founding the Portuguese navy.

In 1289 Dinis had signed an agreement with Pope Nicholas IV, swearing to protect the Church's interests in Portugal. When Pope Clement V allowed the annihilation of the Knights Templar throughout most of Europe on charges of heresy, Dinis was the only King who protected the Templars and a way to do so Dinis created in 1319 a Portuguese military order, the Order of Christ, for those knights who survived the purge. The new order was designed to be a continuation of the Order of the Temple. Dinis negotiated with Clement's successor, John XXII, for recognition of the new order and its right to inherit the Templar assets and property.

During Dinis' reign, Lisbon became one of Europe's centres of culture and learning. The first university in Portugal, then called the Estudo Geral (General Study), was founded with his signing of the document Scientiae thesaurus mirabilis in Leiria on 3 March 1290. Lectures in the arts, civil law, canon law, and medicine were given, and on 15 February 1309, the king granted the university a charter, the Magna Charta Privilegiorum. The university was moved between Lisbon and Coimbra several times, and finally installed permanently in Coimbra in 1537 by order of King João III.

As a devotee of the arts and sciences, Dinis studied literature and wrote several books on topics ranging from government administration to hunting, science and poetry, as well as ordering the translation of many literary works into Galician-Portuguese (Portuguese had not yet fully evolved into a distinct language), among them the works attributed to his grandfather Afonso X. He patronize troubadours, and wrote lyric poetry in the troubadour tradition himself. His best-known work is the Cantigas de Amigo, a collection of love songs as well as satirical songs, which contributed to the development of troubador poetry in the Iberian Peninsula. All told, 137 of the songs attributed to him, in the three main genres of Galician-Portuguese lyric, are preserved in the two early 16th-century manuscripts, the Cancioneiro da Biblioteca Nacional 

and the Cancioneiro da Vaticana. 

A spectacular find in 1990 by American scholar Harvey Sharrer brought to light the Pergaminho Sharrer, which contains, albeit in fragmentary form, seven cantigas d'amor by King Dinis with musical notation. These poems are found in the same order in the two previously known codices.

King Dinis was fond of hunting and in 1294 was hunting around Beja, when a bear attacked him and his horse, bringing them to the ground. It is said that he attacked the beast single-handedly and killed him with a dagger. To commemorate the incident, the king had a live bear captured and taken to his palace of Fuellas for the amusement of the gentleman and ladies of his court. 

As heir-apparent to the throne, Infante (Prince) Dinis was summoned by his father Afonso III to share governmental responsibilities. The country was again in conflict with the Catholic Church at the time, Afonso having been excommunicated in 1277, and only being absolved in 1279 when he acceded to Rome's demands on his deathbed. Consequently, the church was favorably inclined to reach an agreement with the new monarch upon his accession to the throne.

In 1284, however, Dinis emulated the example of his grandfather and father, and launched a new series of inquiries to investigate the expropriation of royal property; this was to the detriment of the church. The next year he took further steps against ecclesiastical power when he promulgated amortization laws. These prohibited the church and religious orders from buying lands, and required that they sell or forfeit any they had purchased since the start of his reign. Several years later he issued another decree forbidding them to inherit the estates of recruits to the orders.

In 1288, Dinis managed to persuade Pope Nicholas IV to issue a papal Bull that separated the Order of Santiago in Portugal from that in Castile, to which it had been subordinate. With the extinction of the Knights Templar, he was able to transfer their assets in the country to the Order of Christ, specially created for this purpose.

Dinis was essentially an administrator and not a warrior king. He went to war with the kingdom of Castile in 1295, relinquishing the villages of Serpa and Moura. In 1297, he signed the Treaty of Alcañices with Castile, which defined the current borders between the two Iberian countries, and reaffirmed Portugal's possession of the Algarve. The treaty also established an alliance of friendship and mutual defense, leading to a peace of 40 years between the two nations.

Dinis pursued his father's policies on legislation and centralization of power, and promulgated the nucleus of a Portuguese civil and criminal law code, protecting the lower classes from abuse and extortion. These edicts survived in the Livro das Leis e Posturas (Book of Laws and Postures), and the Ordenações Afonsinas (Afonsine Ordinances), proclaimed during the reign of Afonso V. These are not legislative "codes" as we understand them today, but rather compilations of laws and customary municipal law, as amended and restated by the Portuguese crown.

As king, Dinis traveled around the country to resolve various problems. He ordered the construction of numerous castles, created new towns, and granted the privileges due cities to several others. He declared in 1290 that 'the language of the people' was to become the language of the state, and officially known as Portuguese. Dinis also decreed that Portuguese replace Latin as the language of the law courts in his kingdom. His wife Isabel donated much of the large income generated by her lands and properties to charities, inspiring Dinis to help improve the life of the poor and found several social institutions.

The frequent procedural issues that arose when he issued his decrees increasingly occupied Dinis in his quest to frame the common law as being within the scope of the crown's jurisdiction, and in exercising royal power in the realm. The restrictions he placed on the actions of alvazis (local council officials), judges, as well as proctors and advocates in the courts, show that a merely nominal power of the monarchy over all the inhabitants of the kingdom, as was typical in the Middle Ages, was not compatible with his effort to assert a royal prerogative to scrutinize legal procedures, or moralize on the exercise of justice. The appointment of magistrates clearly marks the start of the process of the crown claiming territorial jurisdiction, thus expanding the royal domain, along with the growing importance of Lisbon as the nation's de facto capital. The preference for Lisbon as a venue of the royal court was accentuated during Dinis's long reign. There was as yet no official capital of the country, but Lisbon's location, as well as its advanced urban, economic and commercial development, made the city the most viable choice for a national center of administration.

Its geographical situation between the ancient divisions of the country, i.e., the north and the south, enhanced Lisbon's status as the most practical center for an emergent united Portuguese nation, the south now receiving as much royal attention as the north and becoming the residence of the monarchy. Their different characters created a realm where the two regions complemented each other. The great manors were closer together in the north, and the vast dominions conquered from the Muslims in the south, as well as the large areas of unclaimed land there, expanded the domain of the crown, and much of the territory of the extreme south came under the control of the military orders.

Denis promoted development of the rural infrastructure, earning the nickname of "the Farmer" (o Lavrador). He redistributed land, founded agricultural schools to improve farming techniques, and took a personal interest in the expansion of exports. He set up regular markets in a number of towns and regulated their activities. One of his principal achievements was to protect agricultural lands from advancing coastal sands by ordering the extension of a pine forest near Leiria. which also provided a source of raw materials for construction of a naval fleet. This forest, known as the Pinhal de Leiria (Leiria Pinewood),

Sadly it was almost in its total destroyed in the forest fires in 15th of October of 2017. 

The latter part of Dinis' generally peaceful reign was nevertheless marked by internal conflicts. The contenders were his two sons: Afonso, the legitimate heir, and Afonso Sanches, his bastard son, who quarreled frequently among themselves for royal favour. At the time of Dinis' death in 1325, he had placed Portugal on an equal footing with the other Iberian Kingdoms.

Afonso, born in Lisbon, was the rightful heir to the Portuguese throne. However, he was not Dinis' favourite son, the old king preferring Afonso Sanches, his illegitimate son by Aldonça Rodrigues Talha. The notorious rivalry between the half brothers led to civil war several times. Isabel would serve as intermediary between her husband and Afonso during the civil war of 1322–1324.

The Infante Afonso greatly resented the king, whom he accused of favoring Afonso Sanches. Dinis had little popular support in the war because of the many privileges he had granted to the nobles in the last years of his reign, while the infante had the support of the county's cities; these circumstances were rooted in the longstanding conflict between the upper and lower classes of Portuguese society. Repulsed to the town of Alenquer, which supported the Infante, Dinis was prevented from killing his son through the intervention of the Queen. As legend holds, in 1323, Isabel, mounted on a mule, positioned herself between the opposing armies on the field of the Battle of Alvalade in order to prevent the combat. Peace returned in 1324 when Afonso Sanches was sent into exile and the Infante swore loyalty to the king.

King Dinis died on 7 January 1325 at Santarém, and was buried in the Monastery of Saint Dinis in Odivelas, near Lisbon.

Afonso then became king, whereupon he exiled his rival to Castile, and stripped him of all the lands and fiefdoms bestowed by their father. From Castile, Afonso Sanches orchestrated a series of attempts to usurp the crown. After he failed several times to mount an invasion of Portugal, the brothers signed a peace treaty, arranged by Afonso IV's mother Queen Isabel.

Bearing in mind the many centuries that separate Dinis from the present, an impression of his personality can be gathered from the historical record: he was determined, even obstinate, in his attempts to systematically centralize the government and consolidate royal power. For example, he launched general inquiries (Inquirições gerais) at a remarkably accelerated pace to investigate land ownership and identify cases where abuses were committed.

Dinis revealed early on his ability as an effective strategist in the pursuit of his goals, and as an innovator of proactive legislative policy. With the benefit of hindsight, it is clear that his administrative decisions were not made randomly or without consideration of his ideal of a well-governed nation. The wide range of his policies is indicated by a few examples: the concomitant creation of new towns and trade fairs, the fortification of the country's borders and the increasing dependence of the military orders on the royal power. He was recognized as an intelligent, perceptive ruler with demonstrated success, both by contemporaries and by later historians.

Dinis was not lacking in political skill. Being adroit in negotiation and a student of human nature, he knew how to go about "opposing and appeasing alternately the secular and the ecclesiastical manorial interests. He confiscated the properties of the clergy, but made the concordat [of 1289] with the Portuguese bishops; he restricted the comedoria (victuals) rights of the monasteries, but replaced those rights with a fixed annual sum of money. His actions were sufficiently [statesmanlike, and his political position was strong] enough, for him to secure the confiscation laws and check the erosion of the state patrimony". As administration of the royal properties became more efficient and he became richer, Dinis gained fame for his wealth, even being mentioned in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.

Nevertheless, Dinis is described in contemporary chronicles as a wise and able ruler. Although most of the legislative work of his reign focused on procedural juridical issues, the purpose of much of this new legislation was to avoid excessive delays and court costs and to prevent abuse by attorneys and prosecutors.The personal determination that allowed Dinis to achieve so much in the political realm could sometimes harden into obstinacy and arrogance.

An inescapable figure in the history of the Iberian Peninsula in the 13th and the beginning of the 14th centuries, Dinis was first called "father of his country" (Pai da Pátria) by the historian Duarte Nunes de Leão in 1600.

The historical sources of King Dinis's time, as well as later authors, failed to provide any detailed physical description of the monarch. The information known comes from an accidental opening of his tomb during a restoration in 1938. 

With the lid removed, a red brocade robe was seen covering the body of the King, from head to toe. This mantle was woven with gold threads. In all compliance, it had alternating strips, separated with golden threads and where they had been embroidered for the following reasons: one of the strips were embroidered with pine cones along its entire length; in the next strip they embroidered azores and in the last one they saw fleur of Liz.

With the cloak removed, the King's skeleton was visible, which was complete and covered with parched skin. He wore a very soft white wool vest over his tunic. The head rested on a pillow and was tilted as if sleeping on the left side, a position that the body slightly followed. The right arm is bent over the chest and the left arm is dropped along the body. Only the bones of the feet were separated from each other. In the jaws, the skin was slightly separated and had a long red beard. On the head the skin was not loose from the skull and had tufts of red hair.  This is a curious fact, as he was the first of the Portuguese royal line up to that time to have that hair color. This genetic trait could have been passed on the maternal side, as his uncle Fernando, called "La Cerda", or "the bristly one", had red hair as well. Dinis may have inherited the trait from Henry II of England, who was his ancestor on both the paternal and maternal sides, or even possibly from his maternal great grandmother Elisabeth of Hohenstaufen, granddaughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa ("barbarossa" means "red beard" in Italian)

It was discovered that the legend of a figure of towering height was not an accurate one as he was only about 1.65 metres (5 feet 5 inches) tall. Dinis made his last will when he was 61 and died at age 63. He apparently enjoyed excellent health throughout his life, as he traveled frequently, got involved in wars from an early age and at age 60 still hunted. He died with complete dentition, a rarity for the time, something that even today continues to be fairly unusual.

Dinis' only wife was Isabel or Elizabeth of Aragon, daughter of Peter III of Aragon. 

They married in 1288 and she bore him a son and a daughter. Like other monarchs of the time, he had several illegitimate children as well:

Infanta Constança (3 January 1290 - 18 November 1313) Queen of Castile by marriage to Fernando IV of Castile.

Infante Afonso (8 February 1291 - 28 May 1357) Succeeded him as Afonso IV, 7th King of Portugal.

By Maria Pires (?-?)

João Afonso (1280 - 1325) Lord of Lousã

By Marinha Gomes (1260 - ?)

Maria Afonso (1290 - 1340) married Juan Alfonso de la Cerda  

Maria Afonso (? - 1320) Nun at the Monastery of Odivelas

By Grácia Froes (1265 - ?)

Pedro Afonso (1287 - 1354) 3rd Count of Barcelos

By Aldonça Rodrigues Talha (1260-?)

Afonso Sanches (1289 - 1329) Lord of Albuquerque and rival of his half-brother Afonso IV

Other natural offspring

Fernão Sanches (1280 - 1329)

[thetens-blog1]

Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc Jobs Recruitment,Jan 2017

Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc Jobs Recruitment,Jan 2017

Ongoing recruitment at Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc (Lagos & Port Harcourt),January 2017 Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc was first incorporated in 1994 as a private limited liability company with an authorized and paid up Share Capital of N1,000,000 divided into 1,000,000 Ordinary Shares of N1 each. The company commenced active business operations in 1997. Its first Head Office was…

[keepingupwithlinmanuel]

Hurricane heroes step in to offer help and healing in Puerto Rico

Even as Puerto Ricans continue to rebuild after Hurricane Maria — the deadliest, most destructive, costliest storm ever to hit La Isla del Encanto —  they steady themselves for Atlantic hurricane season 2018, predicted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to be near- or above-normal this year. It’s been a year since Maria made landfall Sept. 20, 2017, leaving devastation in its wake.

In the aftermath of the natural disaster, many heroes rushed to save lives, restore power, and provide food, water and shelter on the island. Celebrities were among the first to pledge and encourage others to provide financial support, with Puerto Ricans Jennifer Lopez, Daddy Yankee, Marc Anthony and Fat Joe leading the charge. But many other humanitarians came forward in the days and weeks after Maria devastated the island.

We asked several of these altruists to reflect on the storm, their part in the response and recovery and the future of Puerto Rico. These are their stories:

The Protean Creator

Playwright, rapper, composer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda describes his visit to Puerto Rico with his family after Hurricane Maria as “surreal.”

“The destruction was far beyond comprehension,” Miranda says, “and never in my lifetime did I think I would bear witness to the aftermath of a catastrophe of this magnitude so up close.”

The Hamilton and In the Heights creator, who was born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents Luis A. Miranda Jr. and Luz Towns-Miranda was among the first to lend support to the island. To date, the Mirandas, who have made the island’s rebuilding and relief efforts a priority, have raised more than $35 million for the Unidos Disaster Relief and Recovery Program in partnership with the Hispanic Federation, a Latino nonprofit organization based in New York.

A portion of that funding came from the sales ofAlmost Like Praying, the lyrical love letter that Miranda wrote and recruited 22 artists — including Jennifer Lopez, Rita Moreno, Luis Fonsi, John Leguizamo and Anthony Ramis — to record in a span of two weeks.

The funds, Miranda says, “are being used toward creating long-term, sustainable, community-driven initiatives in multiple areas including agriculture, health, social services, energy, education, entrepreneurship and technologies.”

To say he was and continues to be moved by the strength and spirit of Puerto Ricans is an understatement. “What I remember the most, which still uplifts me, is the resilience and strength of the Puerto Rican people, who always remained optimistic and joined hands to help each other when government failed to respond fairly and proportionately,” Miranda says.

Through social media and interviews, Miranda has made clear his dissatisfaction with President Donald Trump and the federal government’s response to Puerto Rico’s crisis.

“Too little, too late. Then and now,” Miranda says. “While I am grateful for what the federal government has done, it took weeks for them to respond to the catastrophe and the response has never, to this date, matched the urgency nor the scope of what is needed for a crisis of this magnitude. Thousands of Puerto Ricans — U.S. citizens — died; thousands others have had to leave their island for places foreign to them across the U.S. mainland, and thousands more face an uncertain future on the island.”

Miranda, who says he sees his role as a megaphone for people in Puerto Rico, is not one to let up. One year after the hurricane, he says it’s important “to remind officials in Washington, D.C., that there is still so much more work to be done, and that rebuilding Puerto Rico and delivery of all aid will take years.”

Miranda is also using his voice to promote tourism to Puerto Rico by launching the “And Peggy” tour of his Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Hamilton in San Juan in January, where he will reprise his role for three weeks. The performance will undoubtedly be emotional for Miranda, who has long dreamed of taking the show to Puerto Rico. “I have never played a performance of Hamilton in which Puerto Rico hasn’t come to my mind. There are so many themes in the show that remind me of the island. Actually, there would not be a Hamilton musical if it wasn’t for Puerto Rico. It is the birthplace of my ancestors, and since I first read Chernow’s biography, I have equated Alexander Hamilton’s journey with the story of my own father, who left Puerto Rico at a young age in pursuit of the American dream.”

[worklabournewsresearch]

Ontario to Tighten Rules for Temp Agencies, Firms that Recruit Foreign Workers

"The Ontario government is set to bring in the province's strictest-ever rules for companies that recruit temporary workers, including a system for shutting down temp agencies that exploit staff. ... Senior officials with the Ministry of Labour say the plans include mandatory licensing for temporary help agencies, giving the province the power to stop firms from operating if they violate employment standards. The government will also create a dedicated team of inspectors to root out illegal treatment of workers and recover unpaid wages. The announcement ... will be the first in a series of employment-related measures from the Ford government. Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development Monte McNaughton describes the moves as 'rebalancing the scales' between vulnerable workers and big business."

"More than 2,000 temporary help agencies in Ontario place hundreds of thousands of workers in seasonal and short-term employment each year, in sectors ranging from tourism to office work to agriculture. Some temp firms — including some who recruit temporary foreign workers — have been caught failing to comply with Ontario employment law on paying workers minimum wage, overtime and vacation pay. In a Ministry of Labour enforcement campaign in 2020-21 concentrating on temp agencies supplying workers to retirement homes, farms, food processing plants and warehouses, inspectors found evidence of $3.3 million in unpaid wages."

"The measures to be unveiled by McNaughton on Monday include:

new penalties on temp firms that violate basic safety and employment standards;

new powers to force companies to repay illegal recruitment fees, including a requirement that they post a security bond;

a new vetting process that all temporary help agencies must go through before the province issues a licence to operate."

CBC News, October 18, 2021: "Ontario to tighten rules for temp agencies, firms that recruit foreign workers," by Mike Crawley

Unifor, October 18, 2021: Good start on temporary workers but more needed

Unifor, January 28, 2021: Letter to Temporary Help Agency Consultations re: Improving Compliance with the Employment Standards Act in the Temporary Help Sector, by Naureen Rizvi (4 pages, PDF)

Toronto Star, September 8, 2017: "Undercover in Temp Nation," by Sara Mojtehedzadeh and Brendan Kennedy

Photo Source: Mossholder, T. (2021). Strawberry Picking [Photograph]. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/Kx060cRsmt0

[orbemnews]

Blistering report alleges Chinese solar panel supply chain tainted by forced labor But new research suggests that much of that work could rely on the exploitation of the region’s Uyghur population and other ethnic and religious minorities, potentially tainting a significant portion of the global supply chain for a renewable energy source critical to combating the climate crisis. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business on the report. But asked Wednesday about allegations that forced labor in Xinjiang has tainted solar panel supply chains, Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hua Chunying called such claims “an outrageous lie.” “A few Western countries and anti-China forces went all out to hype up the so-called ‘forced labor’ in Xinjiang’s cotton-growing industry. Now they are turning to the solar energy industry. Xinjiang cotton is speckless and solar energy is clean, but those in the US and the West who are hyping up the issue have a dark and sinister intention,” she told reporters. “They are trying to fabricate lies like ‘forced labor’ to create ‘forced industrial decoupling’ and ‘forced unemployment’ in Xinjiang to suppress Chinese companies and industries to serve their malicious agenda to mess up Xinjiang and contain China.” Allegations have been raised before that forced labor in Xinjiang has been used to produce polysilicon, a key component for making solar panels. But this latest research indicates that the practice is also used in the mining and processing of quartz, the raw material at the very start of the solar panel supply chain. “The global demand for solar energy has encouraged Chinese companies to go to great lengths to make our climate responsibility as inexpensive as possible,” the report states, “but it comes at great cost to the workers who labor at the origin of the supply chain.” The report was co-authored by Laura Murphy, professor of human rights and contemporary slavery at the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University, and supply chain analyst Nyrola Elimä, who lived in the Uyghur region for 19 years. CNN previously reported on Elimä’s family’s case in Xinjiang, where her cousin has been sent to an internment camp. The report was compiled with the help of “forced labor and supply chain experts fluent in Chinese, Uyghur and English.” It cites hundreds of publicly available corporate disclosures, government statements, state media articles, social media posts, industry reports and satellite imagery, and details their investigation into more than 30 solar products companies to determine whether they may be exposed to forced labor in their supply chains. For years, the US government has claimed that up to two million Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang have been imprisoned in re-education camps. Western governments and human rights organizations have alleged that minorities in the region have been subjected to physical abuse, attempted indoctrination and forced labor. Many industries — including tech, agriculture and the hair trade — have faced claims that their supply chains are compromised. Beijing, meanwhile, has repeatedly denied human rights abuses in the region, saying its facilities there are “vocational training centers” where people learn job skills, Chinese language and laws. The report will likely draw additional scrutiny to China’s outsized role in the global solar power industry. The country has between 71% and 97% of the world’s capacity for various solar panel components, according to market research firm Bernreuter Research. Xinjiang alone produces nearly half of the world’s solar-grade polysilicon, and is home to factories for some of the industry’s biggest players. Meanwhile, many countries are betting on solar as a critical form of renewable energy as they work to transition away from more polluting power sources. Renewable energy, led by solar power, could make up 80% of the growth in electricity generation over the next decade, according to an October report from the International Energy Agency. Over the next decade, three times as much solar capacity is expected to be deployed in the United States as was installed by the end of 2020. In the European Union, power generated from renewable sources such as wind and solar surpassed that from fossil fuels for the first time last year, and solar deployment growth is expected to continue. Revelations of the industry’s alleged ties to forced labor in Xinjiang could have huge consequences for those plans. There could also be implications for consumers and corporations that want to contribute to a greener future but may be unwittingly buying products that contain components made with forced labor and from electricity produced by burning dirty coal. Solar panel companies in Xinjiang create “green energy by consuming cheap, carbon-emitting coal,” the report states. They also “sacrifice human labour conditions in the bargain,” it adds. ‘This wasn’t their way of life’ Over the past four years, the Chinese government has faced numerous allegations that it runs huge, fortified internment centers in Xinjiang. Former detainees have told CNN they experienced political indoctrination and abuse inside the camps, such as food and sleep deprivation. On January 19, the outgoing Trump administration declared the Chinese government was committing genocide in Xinjiang. Western parliaments have also passed similar motions despite opposition from their leaders. China has also been previously accused of facilitating forced labor. US Customs and Border Protection recently blocked imports of cotton, tomato and hair products made in Xinjiang over concerns about forced labor, and the United Kingdom and European Union are considering similar restrictions. The Chinese government is open about operating what it calls “surplus labor” programs, which facilitate relocations of minority workers in Xinjiang to industrial centers. By the Chinese Communist Party’s own count, such programs have systematically relocated millions of citizens from rural towns and farms in Xinjiang to factories within the region and around the country to work in labor-intensive industries. Beijing says the programs are necessary for alleviating poverty and tamping down religious extremism. But the researchers who compiled the report on solar panels said they are rooted in a darker truth. “You have to understand that there’s really rabid racism in Xinjiang,” said Murphy, of Sheffield Hallam University. “The basic premise of these poverty alleviation programs is that Uyghur people cannot get themselves out of poverty, or that they want to be impoverished because they’ve been ideologically programmed to believe it’s better.” The “labor transfer” programs also provide cheap labor to solar panel components suppliers, according to the report. Murphy and Elimä said people from small Uyghur villages are forced to move hundreds or thousands of miles to do intense manual labor in industrial centers. After being relocated to work sites, adult couples are sometimes housed in dorm-like bunks with other workers, the report states, citing state media articles about surplus labor programs. “This wasn’t their way of life before,” Elimä said. “We have our home, our garden, we’re living with our parents or sister … and now suddenly, someone is living in one city, their parents living in a nursing home, kids in a separate orphanage. What is going on here?” Uyghur and other minority workers could put themselves and their families at risk of detention in an internment camp if they turn down or leave these labor placements, according to the report. Tainted supply chains One company, Xinjiang Hoshine Silicon Industry, is presented as a “case study” in the report for the trickle-down effect of alleged forced labor on the entire solar panel supply chain. Hoshine is the world’s largest producer of metallurgical-grade silicon, a component created from mined and crushed quartz which is then sold to leading polysilicon makers. The Chinese government places “surplus” rural workers at Hoshine’s factories, the report states. It cites a Chinese state media article from 2017 in which a local government agency said its surplus labor training program could provide 5,000 workers for the company. Hoshine has also received compensation from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) — a state-run, paramilitary corporate conglomerate in the region that operates similarly to a prefectural government — for training it provided to “rural surplus laborers,” according to the report. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control last year issued sanctions against the XPCC “in connection with serious rights abuses against ethnic minorities” in Xinjiang. Government recruitment efforts on the company’s “behalf depend on coercive strategies that suggest non-voluntary labor,” the report states. Manual laborers at Hoshine’s Xinjiang facility are paid to crush silicon manually at a rate of 42 Chinese yuan (around $6.50) per ton, the report states. Hoshine’s factory is located in the Shanshan Stone Industrial Park, an industrial center located near the city of Turpan in Xinjiang. Hoshine’s factory is in the northern section of the Industrial Park, according to the report, and several miles away, the southern section the park also holds two facilities that have been identified as detention centers for the “re-education” of Uyghur people by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), which has researched alleged abuses against minorities in Xinjiang. The report states that it is not clear whether laborers at Hoshine’s factory in the park come directly from these detention facilities. Hoshine did not respond to a request for comment on the report from CNN Business. The process of purifying metallurgical-grade silicon into polysilicon requires extremely high temperatures and significant electricity consumption. This is another reason why Xinjiang — which has a large, government-subsidized coal industry — has become a solar components hub, according to the report. Because Hoshine is one of the major raw materials suppliers in the area, the report claims that components allegedly made with forced labor at the company’s facility make their way into products sold by many other solar firms. One such Hoshine customer is Daqo New Energy Corporation, a publicly traded company and the third largest polysilicon manufacturer in the world in 2020, according to Bernreuter Research. Around a third of Daqo’s raw materials are sourced from Hoshine, and 100% of its polysilicon capacity is produced in Xinjiang, the report states. Daqo’s deputy chairman has pushed back on allegations that its own Xinjiang facility employs forced labor. In response to a request for comment from the researchers, Daqo’s board secretary and investor relations manager Kevin He said in an email Daqo does not participate in state-sponsored labor transfer programs, and that only 18 of the 2,021 employees at its Xinjiang facility are ethnic minorities. But the report’s authors say that regardless of Daqo’s own practices, the company can’t vouch for its products because it buys raw materials from Hoshine. “[Daqo’s] supply chain is tainted, and nobody’s going to look away from that anymore,” Murphy said. Daqo’s He told the researchers that the company has “sent a formal statement to all of our suppliers in the Xinjiang region, clearly stating our stance of zero tolerance against forced labor, child labor, discrimination, sexual harassment, unfair and unequal treatment of employees.” All of the suppliers provided “formal written confirmation” that they do not engage in such practices, “which are also illegal in China,” He said. “There is a very clear definition of ‘forced labor,'” He added. “We believe that one should not judge if there is forced labor or not simply by if a company has engaged in a particular program or has received certain types of subsidies. There should be clear evidence of violation for such claims to be made against a particular organization or individual.” In response to questions from CNN Business, Daqo on Friday reiterated that it has informed its suppliers in Xinjiang — “including Hoshine” — of its zero tolerance policy. It added that Hoshine accounts for “approximately 30-35% of all the raw materials purchased including silicon powder and others.” Daqo has contracts to sell polysilicon to the top four global producers of solar panels — China’s LONGi Green Energy Technology, JinkoSolar Holding, Trina Solar and JA Solar — among other companies, the report found. Daqo on Friday confirmed that those are its customers. JinkoSolar is Daqo’s second largest customer, according to corporate documents cited in the report, and is one of the world’s largest producers of photovoltaic ingots, wafers and cells, products that make up solar panels (or “modules”). The company produces 42% of its ingots and wafers at its Xinjiang facility, the report states. JinkoSolar’s panels eventually make their way, via distributors, to residential, commercial and utility solar projects around the world. Its website shows the company’s solar panels, for example, in solar energy farms in California and Arizona. However, JinkoSolar’s US division noted that its products sold and installed in the United States do not include components or materials sourced from Xinjiang. JinkoSolar US has implemented measures to audit and review its supply chain “on an ongoing basis” and it has “a zero-tolerance policy for forced labor,” Ian McCaleb, a JinkoSolar US spokesperson, said in a statement to CNN Business. “Jinko has undertaken a number of steps to ensure that the U.S. supply chain will use long-term, contracted polysilicon, and ingot, wafer, cell and assembly facilities from regions where the U.S. readily accepts independent audit results, therefore, Daqo Polysilicon is not part of Jinko’s U.S. supply chain,” McCaleb said. “Jinko strongly condemns the use of forced labor and does not engage in it in its hiring practices or workplace operations.” Renewable power company sPower, which is listed as the owner of several of the solar farms using Jinko panels on JinkoSolar’s site, also reiterated that supplier qualification and traceability protocols implemented by JinkoSolar help ensure that no products sPower buys from it are jeopardized by forced labor in the supply chain. “We are committed to working with solar module manufacturers that align with our principles and ethical standards, particularly in regards to human rights,” the AES Corporation, which owns sPower, said in a statement to CNN Business. Of the other three major Daqo customers, only Trina has a manufacturing plant in Xinjiang, though it is unclear if the company participates in labor transfer programs, according to the report. And even the companies that do not have facilities in Xinjiang, such as LONGi and JA Solar, may be tainted because they source polysilicon from Daqo, which runs a factory in the region and buys raw materials from Hoshine. Trina, LONGi, JA Solar and JinkoSolar’s headquarters in China did not respond to requests for comment on the report from CNN Business. “It is unethical to continue investing there,” Elimä said. “You can’t do business with a country that has internment camps, especially when you know there is a camp in that region.” International response Solar power is central to US President Joe Biden’s plans to transition the United States to a greener energy grid. Biden’s proposed $2 trillion infrastructure package includes a provision that would require every state to generate all of its electricity from fuels that do not produce carbon emissions linked to climate change by 2035. Such a transition is expected to at least double the rate of spending on solar and wind power. Europe has similar ambitions: In its 2030 Climate Target Plan, the European Commission will aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to at least 55% below 1990 levels by relying on alternate energy sources such as solar. And China has its own net-zero carbon emissions goal of 2060. The accelerating adoption of solar raises the stakes for ensuring that the industry’s supply chain does not involve forced labor. White House climate envoy John Kerry told lawmakers Wednesday that the Biden administration is considering sanctions against China over allegations that forced labor is involved in solar panel production in Xinjiang. Congress is currently considering a bill called the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act that, if signed into law, would ban goods from Xinjiang unless the company importing them could prove that they were not made with forced labor (a slightly different version of the bill passed the House of Representatives on a bipartisan basis last fall). Since the bill’s introduction, solar trade group the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has urged US solar companies to avoid sourcing components from Xinjiang, according to John Smirnow, the association’s vice president of market strategy. “There have been concerns about forced labor tied to the solar supply chain [in Xinjiang] … it makes products from that region very high risk,” Smirnow told CNN Business. “The only way to address that risk is to show that there is no forced labor, but you need an independent, third party audit to do that, which you can’t do in the region.” The association last month released the Solar Supply Chain Traceability Protocol, a tool to help solar companies demonstrate to customers — and potentially US Customs — where the components in their goods are sourced. “We wanted to give our companies a tool to provide assurances that the goods being imported in the US don’t include inputs from the [Xinjiang] region and don’t include inputs produced with forced labor,” Smirnow said. A call to action written by the SEIA in December to “ensure that the solar supply chain is free of forced labor” has been signed by nearly 250 solar companies, including JinkoSolar’s US division, JA Solar, LONGi Solar Technology’s US division, Trina Solar’s US division and sPower. The commitments suggest “a nearly industry-wide commitment to addressing the problems,” raised in the new report. But many of the signatories “would have to make significant changes to ensure that they are not purchasing raw materials made with Xinjiang forced labor,” it states. The report is intended in part to help companies implementing the SEIA’s protocol to identify potential issues in their supply chains, the authors said. Experts say there are solar panel components suppliers outside of Xinjiang, and even outside China, that could help meet the needs of the United States and Europe, where governments and industry have expressed concerns about the use of forced labor and where there is greater political pressure to challenge Beijing. But these sources could be more expensive, given the Chinese subsidies and other benefits offered for operating in Xinjiang. Still, Xinjiang has become deeply intertwined with the global solar supply chain and fully cutting it out of the system would be difficult. Take JinkoSolar, for example — an executive from JinkoSolar’s US division sits on the board of the SEIA, which has urged American solar firms to stop buying parts from Xinjiang, and Jinko joined the United Nations Global Compact last month. But JinkoSolar still operates a factory in the region, and sources polysilicon from Daqo. In response to a request for comment about whether JinkoSolar has any plans to stop operating or sourcing components from Xinjiang, McCaleb, the JinkoSolar US spokesperson, reiterated that the supply chain for the company’s US division does not source components from Xinjiang. He added: “Jinko has a strong track record of industry-leading workplace practices, which include employment at will, universal premium pay and benefits, and scheduled leave for all employees at our factories.” As the Biden administration considers how to expand the use of green energy in the United States, the researchers and the SEIA’s Smirnow said investing in US solar panel components manufacturing could be a way to ensure that growth happens responsibly. “So long as the Chinese government is running internment camps and forced labor programs in Xinjiang, no company should have a factory or a subsidiary there,” Murphy said. “Period.” Additional reporting by Rebecca Wright, Selina Wang and Ben Westcott. Source link Orbem News #alleges #blistering #Chain #Chinese #forced #Labor #Panel #Report #solar #Supply #tainted

[illionoisprelawland-blog]

Closing America’s Borders: Trump’s Temporary Suspension Of Visas

By Melisa Ilkhan, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Class of 2022

July 3, 2020

In light of the of the coronavirus pandemic, the United States has been facing an economical downturn in the increasing amount of job losses resulting in the rise of unemployment for many individuals and families. These job losses affected all groups of workers with greater effects on women, immigrants, blacks, and Hispanics. As of May 2020, the unemployment rate rose to 13.0% with over 20.5 million unemployed, which was previously at 3.8% in February 2020. This rapid increase in rates is significantly greater than it had been during the Great Recession, occurring from December 2007- June 2009, with the unemployment rate peak reaching at 10.6% in January 2010 [1].

This resulted in an executive order signed by Trump on Monday, June 22 in suspending temporary work visas including H-1B, H-2B, L-1, and J-1visas for the rest of the year to protect and preserve jobs for Americans. An anonymous senior administration official commented on the reasoning by explaining that, “the president is prioritizing getting them back into the labor supply and getting them to work and standing on their own two feet again” [2].The executive order, Proclamation 10014, focuses on protecting Americans from the threat of competition in the limited job availability as Americans can be displaced and be put at a disadvantage from foreign nationals in every job sector. Proclamation 10014 is valid until December 31, 2020, but it can be continued if the problem exists in the future[3].

As mentioned in the executive order, four visas were specified in the temporary suspension affecting the entrance for foreign nationals.The first category is theH-1B visa, which is valid for three years in the initial duration.It is for individuals that “work in a specialty occupation, engage in cooperative research and development projects administered by the U.S. Department of Defense, or are fashion models that have national or international acclaim and recognition”. The main requirement to attain this visa is a bachelor’s degree or higher that is required for the specified position and that the occupation is relevant to the field of study [4].The H-1B visa is popular among the tech, health care, and media communities searching for skilled individuals that may be hard to find in the country. The general processing time for this takes about three to six months, but it can be expediated in shortening the length to receiving a response within 15 days from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services[5].

The second category is the H-2B visa, which “allows U.S. employers or U.S. agents who meet specific regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary nonagricultural jobs.” The initial duration of stay is valid for 1 year, and it is based on these requirements that it is a one-time occurrence, a seasonal need, a peakload need, or an intermittent need. The purpose of the H-2B visa is to fill temporary works where there is lack of U.S. workers to fill in the temporary positions. The H-2B visa processes between 60 – 120 days [6]. About 40% of H-2B visas are in the landscaping and groundskeeping industries, but it also includes the forestry, amusement/recreation, hospitality, meat/fish processing, construction, and restaurant [7].

The third category of suspended visas is the J-1 visa, known as the Exchange Visitor non-immigrant visa.It is for “individuals approved to participate in work-and study-based exchange visitor programs.” The processing time varies from country to country based on the individual’s situation, and the duration time varies based on the program’s categories. The program’s categories affected in this suspension includes trainees, teachers, summer work travel programs, secondary school students, interns, camp counselors, au pairs, alien physicians, college and university students, and so forth [8].

The last-mentioned category is theL-1visas (L-1A and L-1B), which are “available for temporary intracompany transferees who work in managerial positions or have specialized knowledge.” The L-1A visa focuses on transferring individuals outside the United States who are in managerial or executive positions within the company. Whereas for the L-1B visa, it transfers individuals within the company for the need of specialized knowledge. To qualify for the L-1 visas, the individual is required to have worked one continuous year for the eligible organization within the three years before entrance into the United States [9].

While the suspension of these specified visas affects these foreign nationals, it restricts American companies in their operations in attaining and transferring employees abroad.Based on officials’ estimate, it is estimated that these suspended visas would prevent 525,000 foreigners from entering inside the United States for this end of the year. Business leaders have complained against this policy change stating that it restricts their ability to recruits workers successfully for positions that Americans may not fill or cannot perform[10]. Google, for example, commented on this policy change as skilled workers are often attained through the H-1B visa and the L-1 visa. Sundar Pichai, CEO, stated that, “Immigration has contributed immensely to America’s economic success, making it a global leader in tech, and also Google the company it is today” expressing his disappointment in Trump’s proclamation. Apple CEO’s, Tim Cook, and YouTube’s CEO, Susan Wojcicki similarly condemned this action. Besides these tech corporations, Amazon has commented stating it prevents “high skilled professionals from entering the country and contributing to America’s economic recovery puts American’s global competitiveness at risk” [11].

At this point, it is unknown whether this policy will continue in the following year which is contingent on the status of the pandemic. With the potential fear of discouraging immigration in the future while negatively affecting businesses, it will have an effect on America’s economy that has yet to be seen in the future.

________________________________________________________________

[1] Kochhar, R. (2020, June 11). Unemployment Rose Higher in Three Months of COVID-19 Than It Did in Two Years of the Great Recession. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/06/11/unemployment-rose-higher-in-three-months-of-covid-19-than-it-did-in-two-years-of-the-great-recession/

[2] Ordoñez, F. (2020, June 20). Trump Freezes Green Cards, Many Work Visas Until End of Year. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.npr.org/2020/06/20/881245867/trump-expected-to-suspend-h-1b-other-visas-until-end-of-year

[3]The White House. (2020, June 22). Proclamation Suspending Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-suspending-entry-aliens-present-risk-u-s-labor-market-following-coronavirus-outbreak/

[4] U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. (n.d.). H-1 Visas for Temporary Workers. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://my.uscis.gov/exploremyoptions/h1_visas_for_temporary_workers

[5] Sanchez, R., & O’Brien, S. (2017, March04). Whatto Know About the H-1B Visa Program. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/04/us/h1b-visa-explainer/index.html

[6] U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. (n.d.). H-2B Temporary Non-Agricultural Workers. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-workers/h-2b-temporary-non-agricultural-workers

[7] National Immigration Forum. (2018, June 25). Fact Sheet: H-2B Visas. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://immigrationforum.org/article/fact-sheet-h-2b-visas/

[8] U.S. Department of State. (n.d.). J-1 Visa Basics. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://j1visa.state.gov/basics/

[9] U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. (n.d.). L Visas (L-1A and L-1B) for Temporary Workers. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://my.uscis.gov/exploremyoptions/l_visas_l_1a_and_l_1b_for_temporary_workers

[10] Shear, M., &Jordan, M. (2020, June 22). Trump Suspends Visas Allowing Hundreds of Thousands of Foreigners to Work in the U.S. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/22/us/politics/trump-h1b-work-visas.html

[11] Shead, S. (2020, June 23). Google, Apple, Amazon and Tesla Slam Trump’s Immigration Crackdown. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/23/google-amazon-tesla-trump-immigration.html

[bananaipindia]

Fitbit and Garmin to be investigated for alleged patent violation, Tata’s patent application on water purifier rejected and more patent news

New Post has been published on https://www.bananaip.com/ip-news-center/fitbit-and-garmin-to-be-investigated-for-alleged-patent-violation-tatas-patent-application-on-water-purifier-rejected-and-more-patent-news/

Fitbit and Garmin to be investigated for alleged patent violation, Tata’s patent application on water purifier rejected and more patent news

In this week’s Patent News – Indian Patent Office invites Applications for National IP Awards 2020; RGNIIPM concludes Training Program of 181 newly recruited Examiners of Patents and Designs; Hindustan Unilever scores a victory in water wars with Tata; Volterra LLC files patent infringement suit against Monolithic Power Systems; Sonos files lawsuit against Google Inc. for patent infringement; Illumina files patent infringement suit against BGI in Sweden and U.K; Alibaba tightens anti-counterfeiting and IPR protection; CNIPA publishes revised Patent Examiners Guidelines; European Commission publishes report on Protection and Enforcement of IPR in third countries; EPO and other representatives hold meeting to implement Unitary Patent package; USITC launches investigation against Fitbit and Garmin for suspected patent violation.

India Patent News

Indian Patent Office invites Applications for National IP Awards 2020

The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks has invited the submission of Applications for its annual National IP Awards ceremony to be held later this year. The awards will be presented to top achievers comprising of individual persons, institutions, organizations and enterprises for their contributions in the field of Patents, Designs, Trademarks and Geographical Indications, Startups, MSME’s and Enforcement of IPR’s. In addition to this, three WIPO Awards will be presented by the Organization under the WIPO Awards Program, on the same day. The National IP Awards ceremony will be held in New Delhi, on the occasion of World IP Day, on 26th April 2020.

The ten categories under which the awards shall be presented include:

1.      Top Individual for Patents & Commercialization

2.      Top Indian Academic institution for Patents & Commercialization

3.      Top R & D institution/organisation for Patents & Commercialization

4.      Top Public Limited Company / Private Limited Company for Patents & Commercialization in India

5.      Top Indian Private Company (MSME) for Patents & Commercialization

6.      Top Start-up for IP and Commercialization

7.      Top Indian Company /Organization for Designs

8.      Top Indian Company for creating Brand in India and abroad

9.      Top Individual / organization for Best facilitation of Registration of GI and Promotion of Registered GI in India

10.  Best Police Unit (District / zone in a commissionarate) for enforcement of IP in the Country

The last date for submission of the applications is 7th February 2020. For more information, you may click here to access the official notification.

RGNIIPM concludes Training Program of 181 newly recruited Examiners of Patents and Designs

The Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Intellectual Property Management (RGNIIPM) recently concluded the training program for 181 newly recruited Examiners of Patents and Designs, at Nagpur. The six-month training program was exclusively held for Group ‘A’ officers who are now expected to begin discharging their respective duties as Examiners in the Indian Patent Offices located in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. Mr. Hoshiar Singh, ITS, Registrar of Copyright & Head, Indian Patent Office Delhi attended the Valedictory program as the Chief Guest. Dr. Pankaj Borkar, Head of RGNIIPM, delivered the welcome address and also congratulated all the Trainee Examiners on completing the program.

Patent Disputes/ Infringements/ Settlements/ Licensing

Hindustan Unilever scores a victory in water wars with Tata

It appears that Hindustan Unilever had a great start to the New Year after the Indian Patent Office, on January 2nd 2020, rejected a patent application filed by the Tata group relating to water purifying technology. The patent application numbered 1572/MUM/2008 and titled “A Water Purifier” was jointly filed by TATA CHEMICALS LTD. and TATA CONSULTANCY SERVICES LTD. in 2008 and was opposed by HUL way back in 2011. After hearing both the parties in the matter, the Controller in his decision of 2nd January held that the Claims laid down in the specification lacked inventive step and the invention was obvious to a person skilled in the art.

In 2012, Tata Chemicals was successful at the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) in revoking one of HUL’s patents related to water purifiers and purification technology.

Volterra LLC files patent infringement suit against Monolithic Power Systems

Volterra Semiconductor LLC, a subsidiary of Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. has instituted a lawsuit against Monolithic Power Systems in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. According to suit, the MPS DC-to-DC Power Converter products of Monolithic infringe three of Volterra’s patents, namely – U.S.6,362,986, U.S 7,525,408 and U.S 7,772,955. The company is seeking damages and has also requested the court to grant an injunction.

Sonos files lawsuit against Google Inc. for patent infringement

Audio speaker manufacturer, Sonos has instituted a suit in the United States District Court, District of California, against Google Inc. for alleged patent infringement. According to Sonos, Google has infringed about one hundred patents however the company has only instituted a lawsuit concerning five of its patents. The suit was instituted by Sonos on 7th January 2020. The company has asked for a trial by jury and is seeking damages as well as an injunction. According to Reports, the company also intends to sue Amazon for infringement, however, the company could only afford to institute a lawsuit against only one tech giant due to economic concerns.

Illumina files patent infringement suit against BGI in Sweden and U.K

Illumina Inc., an American company engaged in offering sequencing and array-based solutions of genetic variation in the fields of cancer research and agriculture, has instituted a suit for patent infringement against MGI Tech Co. Ltd., and Latvia MGI Tech SIA, a subsidiary of BGI Group. Illumina has instituted the lawsuit in two jurisdictions, namely, Sweden and U.K. In the U.K, the suit has been filed in the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, Patents Court and in Sweden, the company has instituted the suit in the Patent and Market Court. The four patents at issue, i.e., EP 1 530 578 B1, EP 1 828 412 B2, EP 2 021 415 B1, and EP 3 002 289 B1, protect Illumina’s proprietary sequencing-by-synthesis chemistry. Similar lawsuits are pending in Demark, Turkey, U.S.A, Germany and Switzerland.

International Patent News

Alibaba tightens anti-counterfeiting and IPR protection

According to a recent Anti-Counterfeiting Report released by Alibaba, China’s e-commerce giant, the company has been making efforts to tighten its anti-counterfeiting and IPR protection. Alibaba has reportedly developed over 10 anti-counterfeiting technology like sampling and fake product screening models to combat the problem. The Report says that in 2017, Alibaba established an Anti-Counterfeiting Alliance, currently, a total of 170 brands from over 17 different countries have joined the alliance.

The Anti-Counterfeiting Report is published by the company every year and this is the company’s 5th Report.

CNIPA publishes revised Patent Examiners Guidelines

The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), formerly known as State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), recently published the revised Patent Examiners Guidelines. The Guidelines will come into effect from 1st February 2020. The Guidelines throw light on emerging areas like Blockchain, Big Data, AI and Internet +. The method of application, analysis of claims and content are available in Chinese language only. According to the analysis of the Guidelines by the European Patent Office (EPO), the rules characterize the exact opposite of what is currently followed in the U.S.A.

European Commission publishes report on Protection and Enforcement of IPR in third countries

As a part of the efforts of the European Commission to strengthen the protection and enforcement of IPR in third countries, the European Commission has published a Report on Protection and Enforcement of IPR in third countries. The Report, which is published biennially, was published on 8th January 2020, this year.The objective of the Report is to essentially identify third countries in which the state of IPR protection and enforcement is expected to generate a high level of economic harm to EU interests. The Report also consists of an updated list of “priority countries” that have been recognized as a cause of concern. According to the latest Report, the list of priority countries are as follows –

Priority 1: China Priority 2: India, Indonesia, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine Priority 3: Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Malaysia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Thailand

While China continues to maintain its position as Priority 1 country, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia are this year’s new entrants as Priority 3 countries. Additionally, the Report places India as a Priority 2 country due to systematic problems in the area of IP protection and enforcement. The Report also says that Priority 2 Countries have made no progress or only limited progress in addressing issues especially relating to enforcement when compared to the previous report.

You may click here to access the Report

Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_12

EPO and other representatives hold meeting to implement Unitary Patent package

The President of the European Patent Office (EPO), António Campinos, the Chair and members of the executive group of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Preparatory Committee and the Chair of the Unitary Patent Select Committee met on 10th January 2020 to make preparations for the implementation of the Unitary Patent package. The meeting was held after a complaint was lodged with the German Federal Constitutional Court by an individual against German ratification of the UPC Agreement where the Judge had indicated that Court would render its decision in the first quarter of 2020. According the official notification on the EPO website, the EPO is prepared to register its first Unitary Patent. The notification also adds that until the Phase of Provisional Applications begins, some essential steps cannot be taken to establish the UPC.

A Unitary Patent is a patent granted by the EPO for which a unitary effect can be obtained from the EPO for the territory of the participating EU Member States. The UPC will be an international court with jurisdiction for patents granted by the EPO.

Source: https://www.epo.org/news-issues/news/2020/20200110.html

USITC launches investigation against Fitbit and Garmin for suspected patent violation

The U.S International Trade Commission (USITC) has announced that the Commission is in the process of launching an investigation into wearable monitoring device manufacturers, Fitbit and Garmin after being prompted by Philips. The complaint was filed by Philips on 10th December 2019 with the USITC. In the complaint, the company has asserted the infringement of four patents – U.S. Patent No. 7,845,228; U.S. Patent No. 9,820,698; U.S. Patent No. 9,717,464; and U.S. Patent No. 9,961,186. Philips had asked the agency to conduct an investigation and issue a limited exclusion order as well as cease and desist orders.

You may click here to access the as-filed complaint.

Compiled by Vibha Amarnath

About BIP’s Patent Attorneys

The patent news bulletin is brought to you by the patent division of BananaIP Counsels, a top patent and IP firm in India. Led by Senior Partners, Somashekar Ramakrishna, Nitin Nair and Vinita Radhakrishnan, BIP’s Patent Attorneys are among the leading patent practitioners in the country. They work with clients such as Mahindra and Mahindra, Samsung, HCL, Eureka Forbes, to name a few. The patent attorneys at BIP have strong technical and legal expertise in areas such as IT/Software, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Electronics and Telecommunication, Mechanical, Automotive, Green Energy, Traditional Medicine and Bio/Pharma domains. The firm is a first choice for clients looking for support in patent filing, prosecution, management and strategy in India, and across the world.

This weekly patent news bulletin is a part of their pro bono work, and is aimed at spreading patent awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.

If you have any questions, or need any clarifications, please feel free to write to contact@bananaip.com

Disclaimer: Kindly note that the news bulletin has been put together from different sources, primary and secondary, and BananaIP’s reporters may not have verified all the news published in the bulletin. You may write to contact@bananaip.com for corrections and take down.

[upshotre]

Independence Day Speech by President Buhari on occasion of 59th anniversary of Nigeria

Dear Compatriots, 1st October each year is an opportunity for us to reflect and thank God for his endless blessings on our country. It is also a time for us, collectively, to: Remember the sacrifices made by our Founders and great leaders past; by soldiers, by distinguished public servants; by traditional leaders, by our workers ---- sacrifices on which Nigeria has been built over the 59 years since Independence in 1960; and Rededicate ourselves to attaining the goals which we have set for ourselves: a united, prosperous and purposeful nation in the face of 21st century opportunities and challenges. In the past four years, the majority of Nigerians have committed to Change for the Better. Indeed, this Administration was re-elected by Nigerians on a mandate to deliver positive and enduring Change – through maintaining our National Security; restoring sustainable and inclusive Economic Growth and Development; and fighting Corruption against all internal and external threats. This Change can only be delivered if we are united in purpose, as individuals and as a nation. We must all remain committed to achieving this positive and enduring Change. As I stated four years ago, “Change does not just happen… We must change our lawless habits, our attitude to public office and public trust… simply put, to bring about change, we must change ourselves by being law-abiding citizens.” SECURITY: Good Governance and Economic Development cannot be sustained without an enabling environment of peace and security. In the last four years, we have combatted the terrorist scourge of Boko Haram. We owe a debt of gratitude to our gallant men and women in arms, through whose efforts we have been able to achieve the present results. We are also grateful to our neighbours and allies – within the region and across the world – who have supported us on this front. The capacity of our armed forces to defend our territorial integrity continues to be enhanced by the acquisition of military hardware as well as continued improvements in the working conditions of our service men and women. The Ministry of Police Affairs has been resuscitated to oversee the development and implementation of strategies to enhance internal security. My recent assent to the Nigerian Police Trust Fund (Establishment) Act has created a legal framework to support our Police with increased fiscal resources to enhance their law enforcement capabilities. These initiatives are being complemented by the ongoing recruitment of 10,000 constables into the Nigeria Police Force. This clearly demonstrates our commitment to arrest the incidence of armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes across our nation. We remain equally resolute in our efforts to combat militant attacks on our oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta and accelerate the Ogoni Clean-up to address long-standing environmental challenges in that region. The recent redeployment of the Niger Delta Development Commission from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, to the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs underscores our commitment to enhance the living standards of our communities in the Niger Delta, through coordinated and appropriate programmes. Our attention is increasingly being focused on cyber-crimes and the abuse of technology through hate speech and other divisive material being propagated on social media. Whilst we uphold the Constitutional rights of our people to freedom of expression and association, where the purported exercise of these rights infringes on the rights of other citizens or threatens to undermine our National Security, we will take firm and decisive action. In this regard, I reiterate my call for all to exercise restraint, tolerance and mutual respect in airing their grievances and frustrations. Whilst the ongoing national discourse on various political and religious issues is healthy and welcome, we must not forget the lessons of our past – lessons that are most relevant on a day such as this. . The path of hatred and distrust only leads to hostility and destruction. I believe that the vast majority of Nigerians would rather tread the path of peace and prosperity, as we continue to uphold and cherish our unity. ACCELERATING SUSTAINABLE AND INCLUSIVE ECONOMY GROWTH This Administration inherited a skewed economy, where the Oil Sector comprised only 8% of Gross Domestic Product but contributed 70% of government revenue and 90% foreign exchange earnings over the years. Past periods of relatively high economic growth were driven by our reliance on Oil Sector revenues to finance our demand for imported goods and services. Regrettably, previous governments abandoned the residual Investment-driven Non-Oil Sector, which constituted 40% of Gross Domestic Product and comprised agriculture, livestock, agro-processing, arts, entertainment, mining and manufacturing activities that provide millions of jobs for able-bodied Nigerians and utilize locally available raw materials and labour for production. To address this imbalance, our commitment to achieving economic diversification has been at the heart of our economic strategies under the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, which I launched on the 5th of April, 2017. This medium-term development plan charted the trajectory for our economy to exit from recession and return to the path of sustainable, diversified and inclusive growth for Nigerians. Pursuant to these reforms, the economy has recovered and we have had 9 successive quarters of growth since our exit from recession. The exchange rate in the last 3 years has remained stable, with robust reserves of US$42.5 billion, up from US$23 billion in October 2016. Learning from the mistakes of the past, this Administration is committed to responsibly managing our oil wealth endowments. We will continue to prudently save our oil income and invest more in the non-oil job-creating sectors. In this regard, we are significantly increasing investments in critical infrastructure. Last year, capital releases only commenced with the approval of the Budget in June 2018. However, as at 20th June this year, up to N1.74 trillion had been released for capital projects in the 2018 fiscal year. Implementation of the 2019 Capital Budget, which was only approved in June 2019, will be accelerated to ensure that critical priority projects are completed or substantially addressed. The Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning has been directed to release N600 billion for Capital Expenditure in the next 3 months.   To maximise impact, we shall continue to increasingly welcome and encourage private capital for infrastructural development through Public Private Partnerships. Through the Road Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme, which I initiated in January this year, we are giving incentives to private sector inflow of over N205 billion in 19 Nigerian roads and bridges of 794.4km across in 11 States of the Federation. As we push to diversify the economy, we still remain focused on optimizing the revenues generated from the oil and gas sector. We will, working with the Legislature, soon pass the Petroleum Industry Bill and amendments to the Deep Offshore Act and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act into law, to ensure Government obtains a fair share of oil revenues, whilst encouraging private sector investment. We will also continue our fight against illegal bunkering of crude oil and the smuggling of refined petroleum products across our borders, including the diligent prosecution and conviction of offenders found guilty of these acts. Whilst Nigeria remains committed to free and fair continental and international trade, we will not hesitate to take all necessary steps to tackle illegal smuggling, transshipment and other predatory trade practices that destroy jobs in our country. We are resolute in reforming the power sector. In August this year, we launched the Presidential Power Initiative to modernize the National Grid in 3 phases: starting from 5 Gigawatts to 7 Gigawatts, then to 11 Gigawatts by 2023, and finally 25 Gigawatts afterwards. This programme, in partnership with the German Government and Siemens, will provide end-to-end electrification solutions that will resolve our transmission and distribution challenges. The programme will also look to localize the development and assembly of smart meters as well as the operations and maintenance capabilities of transmission and distribution infrastructure. I am pleased with the improved inter-agency collaboration between the Ministry of Power and the regulators in the banking and power sectors to ensure that electricity sales, billings and collections are automated and become cashless. These initiatives are important to ensure that the technical and collection losses in the sector are substantially reduced. I remain confident that Nigerians will have affordable and uninterrupted electricity supply in the not too distant future. Our efforts to improve the power sector will complement other infrastructure investments projects under the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund, which is investing in the Mambilla Power Plant project, as well as key economic road infrastructure such as the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Second Niger Bridge and Abuja-Kano Expressway. The first set of these projects remain on track to be completed by 2022. Our journey to food security and self-sufficiency is well underway. We have made remarkable progress in almost all segments of the agriculture value chain, from fertilizers to rice, to animal feed production. We shall sustain these policies to ensure additional investments are channeled, thereby creating more jobs in the sector. We must not go back to the days of importing food and thereby exporting jobs. Our commitment to achieving macroeconomic stability and economic diversification, has been underscored by the merger of the Ministry of Finance with the Ministry of Budget and National Planning. This combined Ministry has the important mandate to enhance the management of domestic and global fiscal risks; coordinate policies with the trade and monetary authorities; raise and deploy revenues to fund budgeted expenditure; and integrate annual budgets and medium-term fiscal strategies. With this, our revenue-generating and reporting agencies will come under much greater scrutiny, going forward, as the new performance management framework will reward exceptional revenue performance, while severe consequences will attend failures to achieve agreed revenue targets. I recently constituted an Economic Advisory Council to advise me on inclusive and sustainable macroeconomic, fiscal and monetary policies. This independent body will work with relevant Cabinet members and the heads of key monetary, fiscal and trade agencies to ensure we remain on track as we strive for collective prosperity. However, we are also committed to ensure that the inconvenience associated with any painful policy adjustments, is moderated, such that the poor and the vulnerable, who are most at risk, do not bear the brunt. Our ongoing N500 billion Special Intervention Programme continues to target these vulnerable groups, through the Home-grown School Feeding Programme, Government Economic Empowerment Programme, N-Power Job Creation Programme, loans for traders and artisans, Conditional Cash Transfers to the poorest families and social housing scheme. To institutionalize these impactful programmes, we created the Ministry for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development which shall consolidate and build on our achievements to date. To the beneficiaries of these programmes, I want to reassure you that our commitment to social inclusion will only increase. Our population growth rate remains amongst the highest in the world, presenting both challenges as well as opportunities. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that we provide adequate resources to meet the basic needs of our teeming youth. Accordingly, we shall continue to invest in education, health, water and sanitation, as well as food security, to ensure that their basic needs are met, while providing them with every opportunity to live peaceful, prosperous and productive lives. FIGHTING CORRUPTION AND RESTORING GOOD GOVERNANCE: On fighting corruption, our institutional reforms to enforce the Treasury Single Account policy, introduce the Whistle-blowers’ Initiative, expand the coverage of the Integrated Payroll Personnel and Information System as well as the Government Integrated Management Information System have saved billions of Naira over the last four years, and deterred the rampant theft and mismanagement of public funds that have plagued our public service.   The Ministry of Justice, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission will continue to address this menace. We are determined to ensure that transparency and good governance are institutionalized in public service.   We must commit to installing a culture of Good Governance in all we do. This Administration has fought against corruption, by investigating and prosecuting those accused of embezzlement and the misuse of public resources. We have empowered teams of prosecutors, assembled detailed databases of evidence, traced the proceeds of crimes and accelerated the recovery of stolen funds.   Furthermore, we partnered with our friends abroad to combat tax evasion, smuggling, terrorism and illicit financial flows. In June 2018, I assented to the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, to provide a domestic legal framework for obtaining international assistance in criminal matters. This measure has already strengthened our law enforcement agencies in obtaining evidence, investigating suspects and facilitating the recovery, forfeiture and confiscation of property implicated as proceeds of crime. An example is the US$300 million recently identified as part of the Abacha money-laundering case, working closely with the Government of the United States of America. The Federal Ministry of Justice is working with the US Department of Justice to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding to expedite the repatriation of these funds. The P & ID Arbitral Award has underscored the manner in which significant economic damage has been caused by the past activities of a few corrupt and unpatriotic Nigerians. The policies that we are putting in place today are to ensure such criminal and unpatriotic acts do not go without consequences. Our renewed partnership with the 9th National Assembly will facilitate the swift passage of enabling laws that will institutionalize these anti-corruption efforts in our criminal justice system. In this connection, I call upon our States to intensify their own efforts to instill greater fiscal transparency and accountability. And to ensure greater fiscal efficiency and optimum use of our very scarce resources. The blight of Corruption is fighting back. Nevertheless, this is a battle that we shall see through and this is a war, which we shall win by the Grace of God. I will also call upon all Nigerians, from every walk of life, to combat Corruption at every turn. By choosing to question and confront corrupt practices, by reporting unethical practices or through whistleblowing. Together, we can overcome corruption and will no longer be a country defined by corruption. Fellow Nigerians, let me reiterate my call for unity across our dear nation. Nigeria will emerge from our present challenges stronger and more resilient than ever – but only if all of us join hands to entrench Good Governance, foster Inclusive Economic Development, and defend and protect our Nation from all those who would wish us ill. I thank you most sincerely and wish you a Happy Independence Anniversary. May God bless you all, and may He continue to bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Read the full article

[thetens-blog1]

UN Women Job in Abuja for a Communications Officer,January 2017

UN Women Job in Abuja for a Communications Officer,January 2017

UN Women Job in Abuja for a Communications Officer,January 2017 UN Women – In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. In doing so, UN Member States took an historic step in accelerating the Organization’s goals on gender equality and the empowerment of women. The creation of UN Women came about as…

[californiaprelawland]

HUMAN TRAFFICKING: THE DARK SIDE OF THE GOLDEN STATE

By Devapriya Roy, University of California Davis Class of 2022

January 23, 2019

Over the years, human trafficking,the modern-day equivalent of slavery has become  one of the most lucrative criminal industries in the world. The International Labor Organization estimated that traffickers make over $150 billion per year[1]. In fact, the transnational crime is second in illicit profits only to drug trafficking[2]. Each year millions of men, women and children are trafficked around the globe. In the United States, California leads the way with a total of 7,922 victims reported since 2007 [3]. Due its large international borders, the Golden state remains a prime location for human trafficking[2].

The federally-backed National Human Trafficking Hotline has been operating since December 2007 and has had a total of 7,497 cases reported to them from California alone. In 2012, 1,651 calls were placed to the hotline, and 493 cases were reported. In 2014,3,538 calls and 923 cases. These numbers saw a steady increase over the years, most recently in 2018, with a total of 1,758 calls made to the hotline, and 760 cases reported [4]. Since the establishment of the National Human Trafficking hotline, reported trafficking has jumped an unprecedented 842 percent on a national scale [5]. Even with these high numbers, human trafficking remains largely underreported,as victims are often fearful of law enforcement and feel powerless to fight against their situation.

Sex trafficking is the most common out of reported cases.In 2018,572 cases were reported involving sexual exploitation.Labor trafficking came second at 72 cases, unspecified trafficking accounted for 62 and a combination of sex and labor for the remaining 54 cases. Sex trafficking mainly supplied illegal spa businesses and hotels, or residence based commercial sex and escort services. Labor trafficking was used mainly to supply domestic work, traveling sales crews, agriculture or food services industries, and other small businesses [3].

Female victims accounted for 654 out of 760 reported cases, males for 78 and gender minorities for nine this past year in California. 463 of these cases were adults, while minors constituted 224. 132 were U.S. Citizens and 97 were foreign nationals [3].Despite the variety of backgrounds and origins, most victims are targeted because they are in particularly vulnerable situation. The most common situation involves young girls manipulated by male traffickers,who then recruit them into the sex trade [6].

This data on human trafficking has been accumulated by Polaris, a leading anti-trafficking organization. They created the National Human Trafficking Hotline to provide an avenue for victims and survivors. The hotline is toll-free and available 24/7 in over 200 languages. They are also available via email and even provide an online tip reporting form.Funded by the U.S. department of Health and Human Services and various other donors, this project is comprehensive in its mission to reacclimate survivors into society and provide services to aid in their recovery [4].

Polaris has also released multiple editions of its Comprehensive Model State Law in order to provide a clear legal framework that can aid States in creating policies that fight against human trafficking. In addition, Polaris separates states into one of four tiers, with Tier 1 being the best. This is done by tracking whether each state’s laws satisfy the ten categories that are essential in combatting trafficking. The categories include: “providing a safe harbor to minor victims of trafficking , victim assistance plans or services, a civil remedy for human trafficking victims” just to name a few [1].

California was ranked Tier 1 in the most recent rankings which were released in 2014 [7]. This means that there is a solid legal foundation in place to eventually lead to the eradication of human trafficking, now it is a matter of taking careful and calculated steps to ensure these laws are implemented.

________________________________________________________________

[1]Policy & Legislation, Polaris Project, 2019

[2] What is Human Trafficking?, Department of Homeland Security, 2018

[3] 2017 Human Trafficking Statistics, Human Trafficking Search, 2018

[4] Human Trafficking Hotline, Polaris, June 30, 2018

[5] Human, sex trafficking up 842%, to California leads, Washington Examiner, March 14, 2018

[6] How U.S. Citizens Become Human Trafficking Victims, Psychology Today, Nov. 03, 2016

[7] 2014 State Ratings on Human Trafficking Laws, Polaris, 2014

Photo Credit: Lembagai KITA

[newstfionline]

Hope. Concern. Resignation. Afghans have mixed feelings about the possibility of more U.S. troops

By Sultan Faizy and Shashank Bengali, Los Angeles Times, May 15, 2017

President Trump is expected to decide this month whether to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan, where a strengthening Taliban insurgency threatens the 15-year war effort.

Pentagon officials are drawing up plans to add 3,000 to 5,000 personnel to the U.S.-led NATO training mission, arguing that the additional troops could work more closely with Afghan soldiers and police, who are suffering heavy casualties, and force the Taliban to the negotiating table.

Trump has rarely spoken about the Afghan conflict, the longest in U.S. history, but a massive bombing that targeted Islamic State last month signaled that the White House has given military commanders broader authority to use force.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his top lieutenants also support a U.S. troop increase as violence has increased--and the Taliban has grabbed control of roughly 40% of the country--since Afghan forces took responsibility for security in January 2015.

About 9,800 U.S. troops are in Afghanistan, the fewest since the months immediately after the 2001 American-led invasion. President Obama increased the U.S. troop presence to nearly 100,000 before beginning a phased withdrawal in 2012.

The American personnel are focused on training and advising Afghan security forces, although U.S. troops are increasingly being drawn into direct combat against the Taliban and Islamic State loyalists.

For Afghans who have endured nearly four straight decades of conflict, the prospect of additional U.S. troops is deeply controversial. Some view it as a much-needed lifeline for a flailing government; others worry it will add fuel to the insurgency and extend a war that has already killed more than 30,000 civilians.

Here is a sampling of their views:

Ahmad Shaheer, a social activist in Kabul, the capital, said more troops won’t necessarily mean greater security. Afghanistan, he said, once had 10 times the current number of U.S. troops and much more international military equipment--and they did not bring peace.

Shaheer also believes that Afghanistan’s economic struggles and persistent unemployment help the insurgency recruit jobless young Afghans to its cause.

“A solid improvement [in security] depends on extensive action in in different fields, such as making Afghanistan self-sufficient economically and militarily,” Shaheer said.

“With more troops, the number of terrorists would also increase. And I’m afraid that the war won’t end if the U.S. sees adding troops or focusing on counter-terrorism as the only solutions.”

Retired Gen. Atiqullah Amarkhail, a Kabul-based military analyst, said Afghanistan’s 350,000 soldiers and police remain dependent on U.S. funding. Since October 2001, the United States has spent more than $66 billion to train, supply and equip Afghan forces.

There are pluses and minuses to the prospect of a few thousand more U.S. troops, he said.

“It’s good for the Afghan security forces to get more support,” Amarkhail said. But the benefits could be limited because of the resilience of the Taliban and allied insurgents.

“Terrorist groups would actively take different measures to cope with the bigger challenge,” Amarkhail said.

Since U.S.-led NATO forces departed a military base in the eastern province of Ghazni in 2014, Lt. Sediq Serat said, Afghan soldiers have faced a shortage of ammunition, delays in repairing vehicles and transferring wounded soldiers, and more corruption.

“Our international advisors were taking immediate action to solve our problems,” Serat said by phone from Ghazni. “They were writing down our essential needs when they visited our camps and bases and telling their commanders, and we were getting quick results.”

Serat said that his unit was still relying on the weapons, artillery, ammunition and training that the NATO forces left behind in 2014.

“I wish the [troop] increase would be 10 times more than the number that is being considered,” he said.

Fariha Khoshiwal, an agriculture student at Kabul University, said more U.S. troops will only prolong the conflict that has raged for two-thirds of her young life.

“Whenever the decision to send more international troops comes out, the Taliban intensify their attacks,” said Khoshiwal, 22. “In any military operation by the Afghan security forces or U.S. troops, or in terrorist attacks by the Taliban or Islamic State, it is mostly civilians who suffer casualties.

“We want an end to this war, not an increase of troops.”

Law student Fazel Nazim said more troops won’t help Afghanistan without a coherent strategy for ending the war.

“We don’t have a clear definition of the enemy,” said the 25-year-old Nazim as he left classes. “Sometimes our politicians call the Taliban brothers, some others call them enemies. Even the international community doesn’t have a single definition for the Taliban: Sometimes they put their names on a blacklist and target them everywhere, but at the same time they allow them to open an office abroad.”

Nazim was referring to the establishment of a Taliban political office in 2013 in the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar, which was supposed to facilitate the insurgents’ entry into peace talks. But hopes for negotiations between the Taliban and the Kabul government have dimmed as violence worsens.

“In such a scenario, the increase of troops will not have any positive effects because we had [many] times more troops in the past,” Nazim said.

Rafiullah Kaleem, a reporter for an Arabic-language news channel, said more international troops won’t help address what he believes is the greatest challenge facing Afghan forces: corruption.

He said top officials continue to enrich themselves with logistical contracts and appoint the relatives of former warlords to key positions, bypassing career professionals.

“What’s keeping Afghanistan from victory is corruption. The priority should be to focus on the main threats that come from inside and support initiatives that are helping to fight corruption--and most importantly the culture of impunity, which is inherited from four decades of civil war,” Kaleem said.

Shafiq Ghafari, a Kabul taxi driver, said Afghanistan felt more secure when there were more U.S. troops.

“Although 5,000 [more troops] is not a big number, that could make a significant change in security, it would have some impact,” Ghafari said as he drove through the city in his lovingly maintained Toyota hatchback.

If he were defense minister, Ghafari would spread additional U.S. forces across each of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces.

“I think about 500 troops should be placed in each province to directly launch ground operations, because Afghan forces have been suffering heavy casualties since U.S. troops withdrew from the battlefield,” he said.

Shabeer Ahmad Ibrahimi, a university lecturer in Islamic law, said the war can be resolved only by Afghans, not international forces.

Since a deployment of more than 100,000 foreign troops couldn’t bring peace, the 33-year-old Ibrahimi said, Afghanistan should hold a grand jirga, or conference, of representatives of the government, militant factions and ethnic groups to arrive at a peaceful settlement.

“The situation in Afghanistan has no military solution,” he said.

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Corporations like PepsiCo will never be 'woke,' but here's how they can be better

On the spectrum of wokeness, American multinational soda corporations tend to land somewhere near dead last — and good ol' PepsiCo just took a giant nosedive toward the bottom.

The company incited well-deserved social media outrage after its ad, featuring Kendall Jenner pacifying a bunch of cops with a can of Pepsi, went viral Tuesday. Viewers accused the company of appropriating the Black Lives Matter movement to sell its sugary soda, instead of doing what socially conscious consumers have been begging food and beverage corporations to do forever: use their power for social good.

SEE ALSO: What actual activists have to say about that terrible Pepsi ad

To be fair, Pepsi has made tangible efforts in recent years to be socially responsible — at least more than you'd expect from a company that markets soda and orange dust. And there's no way for any corporation to ever be fully "woke" when its ultimate responsibility is to its shareholders, not society. 

But that's no excuse for taking advantage of a growing social movement for a viral marketing campaign. Even though the company later pulled the ad and apologized, its behavior was part of a larger pattern: companies often co-opt social causes to promote their brands, without ever addressing the roots of the injustices themselves. 

If I had carried Pepsi I guess I never would've gotten arrested. Who knew?

— deray mckesson (@deray) April 5, 2017

PepsiCo can't attach itself to a social movement like Black Lives Matter, which explicitly rejects capitalism, without completely embarrassing itself. Chester Cheetah will never be Che Guevara.

But there are things big corporations like Pepsi can do to actually support social justice efforts in the future.

1. Support company unionization efforts and offer a living wage

You'd be hard-pressed to find any major corporation behind a unionization or living wage campaign. Still, paying people enough so they can live — hence the term "living wage" — is, by definition, almost always the moral choice. 

Some corporations have even voluntarily surpassed federal and state laws and offered their lowest paid staff a living wage. Aetna, for example, announced in January 2015 that they'd raise all of the wages of their lowest paid workers to $16 per hour.

Other companies should take note: If you want to do good, start with your own employees.

2. Examine the company's historical relationship with communities of color

In the 1940s, when Coca-Cola and many other brands aggressively marketed their products to white consumers, PepsiCo chose instead to focus on a neglected market: the black community. The relationship lasted for decades, but it's obviously complicated. PepsiCo was tapping into a community that other companies simply wouldn't acknowledge, yet selling them a product that didn't exactly promote public health — which many called exploitative.

Fast forward to 2013, when a report from the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University found that black youth — who disproportionately live with diabetes, obesity, and other negative health issues — were twice as likely to to view ads for sugary drinks like Pepsi than white youth.

Corporations need to be exceptionally sensitive in how they advertise to marginalized communities. Their marketing should be responsible, catering to diverse communities across race and nationality without exploiting them. 

3. Recruit more women and people of color for management positions

As a woman of color, PepsiCo's CEO and Chairman Indra Nooyi is pretty unique in her field. A survey conducted by professional services firm Grant Thornton found that women make up just 25 percent of senior executives worldwide. Meanwhile, less than 3 percent of board directors at Fortune 500 companies are black, Asian or Latina women. 

Promoting women — and specifically women of color — to management positions may not solve larger structural inequalities, but it can inspire social change on a micro level. A 2016 study by Peterson Institute for International Economics found that companies with female leadership were actually more profitable than those who lacked it.

4. Use foundation money to support a wide variety of nonprofits

.@pepsi, I'm assuming you'll be using the money you make to support @ACLU, @PPact, #CampaignZero + other social change. That's all I got.

— Brittany Packnett (@MsPackyetti) April 4, 2017

PepsiCo has donated more than $900 million to charity since 2005, according to the corporation. It supports a broad range of causes, including access to clean water, sustainable agriculture, and empowerment programs for women and young girls.

As much as PepsiCo gives — and fairly generously, Inside Philanthropy reports — it often directs its donations to large, well-established NGOs like the Red Cross and Save the Children. Lesser known grassroots and community-based nonprofits, like Water.org, are reportedly less likely to receive funding.

With the kind of reach and pocketbook these corporations have, supporting small and impactful organizations could make a huge difference.

5. Be transparent about manufacturing

Image: J. Harpaz/AP/REX/Shutterstock

An Oxfam report recently gave PepsiCo a score of 49 percent on its sustainability report card, slightly less than its rival Coca-Cola (which scored 57 percent) but more than other similarly sized companies.

The organization credited Pepsi's "zero tolerance" commitment to land grabs, but said the company falls short in its support of women and local farmers. According to the report, Pepsi didn't appear to have a system for identifying countries where the most basic labor rights were at risk. 

Consumers have a right to know if their junk food was responsibly produced, as depressing as that undoubtedly feels to read. 

6. Don't be a jerk

The next time you're thinking of appropriating a major social justice movement to help market your #brand, take a minute. Ask yourself what you're doing and if it'll get you in trouble, and not just because you're worried about your stock price.

Corporations will never be "woke" — but they still have a responsibility to care.

WATCH: Across the globe, protesters hit the streets one day after Trump's inauguration

[sawasawa1977-blog]

IITA Project Technician I Job Vacancy in Nigeria 2017

IITA Project Technician I Job Vacancy in Nigeria 2017

Project Technician I at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Nigeria 2017

  Career recruitment for Project Technician in Ibadan Jan 2017

  Job position at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

  IITA is one of the worlds leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Its award-winning research-for-development…

[mainafelix2007-blog]

IITA Job Opportunities in Nigeria Jan 2017

IITA Job Opportunities in Nigeria Jan 2017

Current Jobs at The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Nigeria Jan 2017

Career recruitment at International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Nigeria

IITA Recent Job position Jan 2017

IITA is one of the world’s leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Its award-winning research-for-development (R4D) approach…

[thetens-blog1]

Spark & Light Nigeria Limited Job Vacancies in Lagos,January 2017

Spark & Light Nigeria Limited Job Vacancies in Lagos,January 2017

Spark & Light Nigeria Limited Job Vacancies in Lagos,January 2017 Spark & Light Nigeria Limited is a wholly indigenous company providing specialized engineering, environmental management care and protection, oil and gas services, construction and other interrelated and integrated sectors of service provision in Nigeria.We are duly registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission of Nigeria (CAC)…

[cougcareers]

Environmental Science Majors, Science Majors, Great Temporary Job Opportunity!

Type of Majors Seeking: Any Major, Environmental Science or General Science majors Preferred 

Job/Internship Title: Natural Resource Technician 2

Employer/Company Name: The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

Job Location: Pasco, WA

Job Type: Full-time

Time Length: Temporary Summer/Fall

Start Date: April

End Date: January

Compensation: $2,431.00 - $3,140.00 Monthly

Summary of Position: The Department of Fish and Wildlife is recruiting to fill one full time, career seasonal, Natural Resource Technician 2 position located in the Wildlife Program, Region 3. The duty station for this position is located at 2620 N Commercial Ave, Pasco, WA 99301.  The employment period is a ten (10) month Career Seasonal position scheduled for April through January (annually).This position in the Wildlife Program is supervised by two different supervisors as work duties change seasonally. From April 1-July 31, the selected candidate will assist with land management activities on the Sunnyside/Snake River Wildlife Area including weed suppression and wildlife habitat enhancement. From August 1-January 31, duties will support the Private Land Access Program by enhancing and maintaining private lands for public hunting.

Job Duties:   

Post signs throughout Region 3 using 4x4 truck, ATVs, t-posts, drill motors, and post pounders in order to clearly mark private lands enrolled in WDFW access program. Install and maintain hunting access points and kiosks. Distribute and collect Register to Hunt and Hunt by Written Permission slips. Enter data and assist with maintaining database of private land access use. GPS the boundaries of private lands enrolled in the access program and map creation.

Build and maintain positive relationships with new private landowner cooperators. Assess migratory bird use of agricultural fields to determine high priority areas for gaining hunter access. Contact landowners in person and by phone to determine interest in WDFW's voluntary hunter access project. Maintain professional and positive communications with land owners.

Contact landowners to promote habitat improvement projects. Communicate the specific requirements and potential benefits of these programs to landowners. Transport and set up traps for capturing wildlife.

Maintain bait at waterfowl and dove trapping stations; Assist with the trapping and handling of wildlife

Transport and release pen raised Pheasants to various release sites throughout the region.

Assist with annual deer surveys and other survey work as needed.

Assess land condition and apply appropriate weed suppression efforts (chemical, mechanical, or biological) to control spread of noxious weeds.

Assist with habitat plantings as directed.

Assist with monitoring and management of wildlife area wetlands.

Maintain and safely operate equipment and tools.

Maintain wildlife area facilities and inform Wildlife Area Manager of needs.

Maintain wildlife area sign postings and replace old/missing signs when needed.

Maintain wildlife area access sites.

Develop relationships with local school science/biology programs to promote outreach and education.

Work with volunteers on habitat improvement projects.

Represent the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife in a professional manner. Have professional and respectful dialog with other agencies and/or civilians.

Minimum Qualifications: 

High school graduation or GED and three months of natural resource related labor experience

Preferred Qualifications:  

Prefer three (3) years of experience as a Habitat Technician, Scientific Technician or equivalent similar technician in wildlife field.

Experience interacting with farmers, ranchers, and hunters.

Experience gaining access to private lands for hunting.

Experience operating in the field with minimal supervision.

Knowledge of migratory waterfowl foraging patterns, especially in the Columbia Basin.

Knowledge of WDFW public access programs, preferably in WDFW region 3.

Ability to accurately mix and apply pesticides according to label directions.

To Apply:  Apply online HERE

Closing Date: March 7, 2017 at 11:59 p.m.