Myanmar: Four Democracy Activists Executed
The Myanmar government on Mon. said it had executed four prisoners, including a former politician and a veteran activist, in the nation's first use of capital punishment in decades.
A state-run news outlet said the four prisoners were killed on charges of committing "terror acts" including murder. No information about when they were executed has been released.
In Jan., all four were sentenced to death in a closed-door trial. They tried to appeal their sentences but were reportedly denied legal counsel and eventually lost.
Pro-establishment narrative
These four individuals were violent extremists who were found guilty through a fair judicial process and were punished for participating in terrorism against the state. They aided militias fighting the country's military and two of them murdered a woman just because she was supporting the government.
Establishment-critical narrative
These executions show the lengths to which the current regime will go in its attempt to return Myanmar to military rule. They know that their citizens are against this illegitimate regime, which is why the junta is seeking to execute opposition leaders and scare dissidents away. The international community must continue to take a firm stance against these atrocities.
India: Droupadi Murmu Sworn In As President
Droupadi Murmu was sworn in as India's 15th President on Mon., becoming the first tribal leader and the second woman to occupy the position. She's also the first president to have been born after India gained its independence in 1947.
Murmu, a 64-year old Santhali politician, was elected by over 4.5K state and federal legislators last week.
Results released on Thurs. confirmed what had been considered a near certainty as Murmu was backed by PM Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Pro-establishment narrative
Murmu, a Santhali woman, is the first tribal leader to become India's president. This is another historic result that clearly demonstrates the BJP's commitment to improving the representation of candidates from marginalized sectors of society.
Establishment-critical narrative
The BJP's decision to effectively appoint Murmu to this largely ceremonial post is part of a broader strategy to advance a Brahminical agenda. While being a Santhali, Murmu is also loyal to Hindu orthodoxy so her election is a kind of symbolic inclusivity that will divide groups that could take action against Hindu nationalism.
Nerd narrative
There's a 55% chance that there will be a non-BJP Prime Minister of India before 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Thailand: PM Prayuth Survives Fourth Confidence Vote
Thai PM Prayuth Chan-ocha survived a no-confidence vote on Sat., with the opposition garnering only 206 votes out of 477 members of the parliament. More than 239 votes are needed to oust a PM in Thailand.
This was the fourth time Prayuth faced a motion of no confidence since 2019 when lawmakers installed him as the national leader for a term lasting until Mar. 2023. Prayuth took office in 2014 following a coup.
He and 10 cabinet ministers were accused of mishandling the economy, failing to tackle corruption, spying on political dissidents with the Israeli-made Pegasus spyware, and legalizing cannabis without proper regulation.
Establishment-critical narrative
The Thai political establishment has proved again to be disconnected from the public by not ousting PM Prayuth. It's time to face the reality that Prayuth could be granted another term if the opposition camp doesn't focus on expanding its popularity ahead of the 2023 elections.
Pro-establishment narrative
The censure debates were tragic for Thai democracy. Not only was it based on fake news, but the opposition even resorted to using toxic rhetoric against the PM which was unacceptable. The government has taken several measures to tackle national challenges in the best interest of the Thai people.
Day 153 Roundup: Gazprom to Further Cut European Gas Supplies; Russia Indicates Intention to Overthrow Zelenskyy
Russia's state-controlled energy giant Gazprom has announced it will be cutting delivery of gas via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Europe to 33M cubic metres a day – roughly 20% of its total capacity – effective Wednesday.
The company cited technical problems with one of the engines, but Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of waging a "gas war." He said: "All this is done by Russia on purpose to make it as difficult as possible for Europeans to prepare for winter. And this is an open gas war that Russia is waging against a united Europe."
Gazprom's announcement comes as EU countries approved a weakened deal to curb their use of Russian gas on Tuesday. The EU Commission last week proposed new rules requiring each country to cut its gas use by 15% but, following resistance, the plans were diluted and now exclude a number of industries.
Anti-Russia narrative
The West must cut trade with and energy dependence on Moscow to limit Russian revenues in this escalating economic war. The Kremlin is making a myriad of excuses for their agressive actions and the decision to wage a "gas war" demands further sanctions.
Pro-Russia narrative
It's hypocritical to impose sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine, but not on the US for invading Iraq for equally unjustified reasons, or on Israel for invading and annexing Arab lands.
Nerd narrative
There's a 69% chance that Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be named Time Magazine's Person of the Year for 2022, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov Continues Africa Tour
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Uganda on Mon. as part of the third stop of his Africa tour. He was due to hold talks with Ugandan Pres. Yoweri Museveni on Tues. before heading to Ethiopia.
Earlier, Lavrov visited the Republic of Congo on the second leg of his trip to strengthen Moscow's non-Western ties. He met with Pres. Denis Sassou Nguesso as part of the first-ever visit by a Russian or Soviet FM to the country.
Lavrov reportedly reassured the Congolese leader about Russian wheat exports to the central African country. The Congolese FM Jean-Claude Gakosso welcomed the Russian-Ukrainian deal on resuming grain shipments from Ukrainian ports.
Establishment-critical narrative
While the West likes to claim that not only Washington and its closest allies, but the whole so-called "international community" has isolated Russia over the Ukraine war, the neutral stance of the vast majority of African leaders is further proof that the world's stance is not so binary. The West doesn't understand that Africa is no longer willing to support its agenda and double standards, and Russia enjoys an excellent reputation across large parts of the continent.
Pro-establishment narrative
Indeed, it isn't all that accurate to speak of Russia's international isolation, and that is precisely why the West should focus on long-term strategies to detach Africa from Moscow's sphere of influence. In addition to sanctions against Russia, the West should simultaneously invest economically and politically in African countries, since this would not only strengthen the rules-based world order but also help to curb Russian and Chinese influence.
Japan Executes Akihabara Mass Murderer
Tomohiro Kato, who was convicted of stabbing seven people to death in a Tokyo attack in Jun. 2008, has been executed, according to Japanese media.
Justice Minister Yohihisa Furukawa stated the decision was finalized through "sufficient deliberation in court."
Kato, 39, was hung in the Tokyo Detention Centre. He previously lost a challenge in 2015 to commute the sentence in Japan's top court.
Pro-establishment narrative
Despite international criticism over the use of capital punishment, this heinous attack was the worst seen in seven years in Japan and the Japanese public overwhelmingly supports the death penalty. The Japanese government should continue to maintain its right to employ the strongest form of deterrence possible.
Establishment-critical narrative
The death penalty is cruel and often involves prolonged sentences and day-to-day fears of execution as the actual execution date is often not revealed until that morning. Such mental torture doesn't allow the possibility of rehabilitation or mistakes to be reversed. There is a reason why Japan is in the global minority regarding capital punishment. This must change.
European Commission Approves Monkeypox Vaccine
On Mon., the European Commission approved the Danish company Bavarian Nordic's smallpox vaccine for use against monkeypox.
Already approved for use against monkeypox in the US and Canada, the vaccine Imvanex can now be marketed in all 27 EU member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.
The Commission's approval came after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) offered a positive assessment for monkeypox use last week. Imvanex was originally approved for use against smallpox in 2013.
Narrative A
Governments worldwide have dropped the ball regarding this outbreak. Countries like the US, where vaccines were already available, have allowed monkeypox patients to go weeks without a diagnosis or treatment, which is why we've seen growing cases and even deaths among vulnerable populations.
Narrative B
While vaccine approval is good news, most people can naturally recover from monkeypox and don't face significant life-threatening risks from contracting the virus. For the time being, at least, we should be focused on distributing the shot to those who are immunocompromised and most vulnerable.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that at least 203K human infections of monkeypox will be estimated to have occurred before 2023 worldwide, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
US Inflation: Fed Announces Another Rate Hike
On Wed., the Federal Reserve (Fed) announced a second consecutive 0.75-point hike in its benchmark interest rate in a historic attempt to fight rampant inflation.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell suggested after the announcement that an additional 75-basis point hike may be possible in the future, depending on forthcoming economic data.
This marks the fourth rate hike this year and follows June's 0.75-point increase.
Establishment-critical narrative
The Federal Reserve is slowing inflation, but at the risk of inducing a recession. The central bank waited too long to start cooling inflation and is now overcompensating, which runs the risk of slowing the economy so much that it shrinks.
Pro-establishment narrative
The process of bringing down inflation is unpopular and pain-inducing, but necessary. There is broad consensus among Fed bankers and economists that it's time to increase quantitative tightening to rein in inflation; this was the right move.
Nerd narrative
There is a 6% chance that the first United States recession before 2032 will lead to depression, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Indiana Legislature Calls Special Session to Discuss Abortion Laws
Indiana legislators called a special session on Mon. to consider a near-total ban on abortion. This could make Indiana the first state in the US to pass an abortion ban since the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
If passed, the bill would allocate $45M to pregnant women and women who've recently given birth, covering families with children under four years old and a $5M tax credit increase for adoptive families.
A separate bill proposed would direct $58M toward services for pregnant women, including $30M for pregnancy-related Medicaid for low-income families.
Democratic narrative
Democrats are fighting against the anti-abortion onslaught Republicans are waging. The proposed bills, even with their exemptions, will only lead to an increase in maternal health issues and even deaths among the poorest and most vulnerable.
Republican narrative
Indiana Republicans are doing what a strong and morally responsible government should do - they're fighting to protect the health of the unborn and mothers. This is a step in the right direction to creating a healthy and safe state.
Nerd narrative
There's a 6% chance that abortion will be banned nationally in the United States before 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Tory Leadership Battle: Debate Presenter Faints, Truss Pulls Ahead of Sunak
A UK Conservative Party Leadership debate between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak was cut short on Tues. when Kate McCann, the debate's presenter, fainted live on-air. It was later confirmed that she wasn't hurt.
Before the incident, the candidates faced scrutiny over a failing NHS and an intensifying cost-of-living crisis. Sunak pledged to introduce a £12B tax to fund social care as PM, with Truss saying a tax would be "morally wrong" as people are struggling.
The second debate between the two also touched on China and PRC-owned companies such as TikTok, with Sunak calling for a clampdown on Confucius Institutes in the UK and Truss accusing Sunak of only being a recent convert to fighting Chinese companies.
Left narrative
The only real winner of these debates is the Labour Party. Such ferocious and ad hominem attacks - such as the attention drawn to multimillionaire Sunak's exclusive education - are making the Tories look more divided than ever. Only Keir Starmer can solve the current problems of tax, social care, and public spending.
Right narrative
So-called "blue-on-blue" attacks are not harming the Conservative Party. On the contrary, these debates are an organized and democratic way of demonstrating that the party has a broad appeal, with diverse political philosophies that strengthen its governance. Labour should regret ever having forced Johnson down.
Nerd narrative
There is a 30% chance that Rishi Sunak will win the UK Conservative Party leadership election, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
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