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The Hindu
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Shooting the messenger
On July 1, the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, released a report detailing the companies that benefited from Israel's invasion of Gaza. The Italian legal expert blamed some 48 firms — many of them American — for partaking in what she called an 'economy of genocide' and warned that they risked complicity in war crimes by using the territories of Gaza and the occupied West Bank as a testing ground for new technology. Ultimately, she called upon these companies to stop doing business with Israel and sought to bring them to trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). A week later on July 9, the U.S., a staunch Israel ally, sanctioned Ms. Albanese, with the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, accusing her of spreading 'unabashed anti-Semitism' and undertaking a 'campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel'. Israel, which had already banned the lawyer from the country following a March 2024 report that blamed it of genocide in Gaza, has rejected the latest report as 'groundless'. Special Rapporteurs are independent investigators employed by the UN to examine specific issues. They do not fall under the jurisdiction of the UN Secretary-General but come within the ambit of the UN Human Rights Council. The U.S., by virtue of not being a signatory of the Rome Statute of 1998 that established the ICC in 2002, and having quit the UN Human Rights Council since Donald Trump's return to office earlier this year, holds little sway over Special Rapporteurs and ICC judges. This leaves sanctions as the primary response for unfavourable decisions directed at the country. The curbs on Ms. Albanese would prevent her and family members from travelling to the U.S. and freeze any assets in the country. The measures should hardly come as a surprise for the lawyer. From ICC's Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan to the four judges who issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for 'crimes against humanity' in Gaza, sanctions have been Donald Trump's preferred tool to counter moves deemed damaging towards his country and its ally. Albanese's fight Since taking up the job in 2022, Ms. Albanese has been vocal about Israeli occupation and the plight of Palestinians in Gaza. She has pressured other countries to sanction Israel, denounced the U.S. President's plan to 'take over' Gaza, encouraged ICC action against the Israeli Prime Minister and even condemned Italy, Greece and France for letting Mr. Netanyahu use their airspace on his way to Washington earlier this week. Many times, this outspoken nature has provided fodder for her critics, who flagged her 2014 remark about a 'Jewish lobby' in Washington that influences the U.S. government's decisions. In her latest endeavour, Ms. Albanese has named companies ranging from arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin to tech giants Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, and Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc., for helping track Gazans. Part of the list are firms such as Caterpillar, HD Hyundai and Volvo that provide equipment used to bulldoze houses in Gaza. Rental portals and Airbnb are named for aiding illegal settlements. A Chinese agricultural company, as well as French bank BNP Paribas and the U.K.'s Barclays also find mention among others. Tying them together are the world's two biggest asset management firms, BlackRock and Vanguard — both U.S.-based firms that have invested in multiple companies on her list. She argues in her report that corporate firms are bound to ensure rights are not violated through direct action or business partnerships. Thus, Ms. Albanese may be trying to recreate the clamour that was raised when private companies were engaged in trade with the apartheid regime in South Africa. Whether the report creates sufficient noise to reach the customer's ear and make a difference will only be revealed over time. Nevertheless, Ms. Albanese has brushed aside the sanctions, saying, 'the powerful punishing those who speak for the powerless, it is not a sign of strength, but of guilt.' Much like the British punk-rock duo Bob Vylan, whose chants of 'Death to IDF' at the Glastonbury Music festival last month sparked backlash from Western governments, Ms. Albanese, too, in her reaction, refused to divert attraction from the crisis at hand, saying 'All eyes must remain on Gaza, where children are dying of starvation in their mothers' arms, while their fathers and siblings are bombed into pieces while searching for food'.
Al Jazeera
05-02-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Following Trump, Argentina withdraws from World Health Organization
Argentina has declared it will withdraw from the World Health Organization, further imperilling an international agency charged with coordinating public health responses. The announcement on Wednesday echoes a similar move last month from the United States. Far-right administrations currently govern both countries, and President Javier Milei of Argentina has a close relationship with his US counterpart, Donald Trump. The two leaders have each criticised the World Health Organization for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. A United Nations agency, the organisation cannot mandate governments to follow its guidance, but it does offer research and recommendations for how countries might collaborate to address public health crises like pandemics. Still, on Wednesday, Milei blamed the World Health Organization for its advice about physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. 'That is why we have decided to leave such a nefarious organization that was the executing arm of what was the greatest experiment in social control in history,' Milei wrote on social media. He punctuated his message with a campaign slogan: 'LONG LIVE FREEDOM, DAMN IT.' Milei was elected in 2023 amid spiralling inflation in Argentina. A dark horse in the race, he ran on a platform of slashing government expenses with his signature 'chainsaw' approach. He has described himself as an 'anarcho-capitalist'. But while month-to-month inflation has stabilised under his leadership, Argentina's poverty rate has climbed to upwards of 50 percent. Critics have blasted his administration for cutting key public services over the past year that might have help address this crisis, including funding for soup kitchens that provide food for the poor. Argentina contributes approximately $8.257m to the World Health Organization, as of 2024. In an official government news release, however, Milei's administration accused the organisation of heightening Argentina's economic crisis. 'Quarantines caused one of the greatest economic catastrophes in world history,' the official statement read. It alleged that self-distancing models ran afoul of the Rome Statute of 1998, which establishes the International Criminal Court's jurisdiction over key international crimes, like genocide and crimes against humanity. The WHO's guidance about self-isolating, Milei's government argued, was itself a crime against humanity. 'In our country, the WHO supported a government that left children out of school, hundreds of thousands of workers without income, led businesses and SMEs [small- and medium-sized enterprises] to bankruptcy, and still cost us 130,000 lives,' its statement said. Milei's government also questioned the integrity of the World Health Organization's research. 'Today the evidence indicates that the WHO's recipes do not work because they are the result of political influence, not based on science,' the statement said. The heated rhetoric was a reflection of Trump's similar order on January 20. Hours after he was inaugurated into a second term as US president, Trump signed an executive order rescinding US funding from the World Health Organization, alleging a 'mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic'. Trump also accused the agency of an 'inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states'. The US is the single biggest contributor to the World Health Organization's budget, responsible for 14.4 percent of its budget or close to $1bn. Its withdrawal is expected to cause cost-cutting — and potential rollbacks of services.
