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Des psychologues ont été dépêchés à Blatten juste après l’éboulement. En quoi consiste ce soutien aussi discret qu’essentiel aux victimes? Explications de Mischa Oesch, qui compte plus d’une centaine d’interventions à son actif.

La BBC s'entretient avec la mère et le frère d'un homme recherché dans le cadre de l'exploitation illicite de mines d'or.

Kigali accuses the central African organisation Eccas of pandering to the demands of Kinshasa.

رأسمالية المحاسيب Crony Capitalismفي دمشق ما بعد الأسد: من وهم التحرير إلى إعادة إنتاج الإقصاء
(English Summary)
The fall of the Assad regime dramatically changed Syria’s landscape and sparked hopes for a future built on justice and transparency, but beneath the surface, old patterns of crony capitalism are re-emerging, threatening real reform and inclusive growth. Without transparency, independent institutions, and genuine public participation, economic opportunities remain confined to those close to power, risking a repeat of past failures despite new slogans and faces.

 

رأسمالية المحاسيب Crony Capitalismفي دمشق ما بعد الأسد: من وهم التحرير إلى إعادة إنتاج الإقصاء
(English Summary)
The fall of the Assad regime dramatically changed Syria’s landscape and sparked hopes for a future built on justice and transparency, but beneath the surface, old patterns of crony capitalism are re-emerging, threatening real reform and inclusive growth. Without transparency, independent institutions, and genuine public participation, economic opportunities remain confined to those close to power, risking a repeat of past failures despite new slogans and faces.

 

رأسمالية المحاسيب Crony Capitalismفي دمشق ما بعد الأسد: من وهم التحرير إلى إعادة إنتاج الإقصاء
(English Summary)
The fall of the Assad regime dramatically changed Syria’s landscape and sparked hopes for a future built on justice and transparency, but beneath the surface, old patterns of crony capitalism are re-emerging, threatening real reform and inclusive growth. Without transparency, independent institutions, and genuine public participation, economic opportunities remain confined to those close to power, risking a repeat of past failures despite new slogans and faces.

 

La «bleue», comme on l’appelle aussi, a réussi son retour à la liberté en 2005. Pilier du tourisme de la région, elle sera fêtée le week-end prochain.

Military police are investigating the alleged incident near the British army's training camp in Kenya.

Les pratiques du courtier valaisan Hestia doivent pousser à revoir le système des commissions, selon un expert de l’assurance.

Elsőfokú meteorológiai figyelmeztetést adott ki vasárnap (6. 8.) 11:00 órától 20:00-óráig a Szlovák Hidrometeorológiai Intézet (SHMÚ) a zivatarok kialakulásának a veszélye miatt (20-30 mm csapadék/30 perc; 65/85 km/ó-s széllökések; jégverés) az ország keleti részére (délen Rimaszombattól) vonatkozóan.

„Ukrajnának meg kell értenie, hogy a többi országnak, így Lengyelországnak és Magyarországnak meg a többi európai országnak is saját érdekeik vannak” – idézte a Vasárnap.hu a Lengyelország új elnökévé megválasztott Karol Nawrocki Mandinernek adott szombati interjúját.

Le Conseil fédéral doit présenter cette année encore un rapport apportant des pistes d’amélioration. Les polémiques surgissent partout en Suisse.

Vizhinjam Port—Inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 2 May 2025, as India’s first deep-water container transshipment hub—has been criticized for displacing fishers and disrupting the sensitive ocean biodiversity. Credit: Aishwarya Bajpai/IPS

By Aishwarya Bajpai
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India, Jun 8 2025 (IPS)

As the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) approaches, bringing renewed attention to SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and the rights of ocean-dependent communities, India’s Vizhinjam coast highlights the environmental injustice and human cost of unchecked coastal development.

Kerala’s traditional fishworkers—communities historically rooted to the sea—are now facing irreversible disruption due to the controversial Vizhinjam Port project.

Despite repeated rejections by multiple expert appraisal committees over severe environmental concerns, the Vizhinjam Port—Inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 2 May 2025, as India’s first deep-water container transshipment hub—was approved under questionable circumstances.

Experts have raised serious concerns about the compromised Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process for the Vizhinjam Port, calling it a “cut-copy-paste” job lifted from unrelated projects. The port’s viability studies were manipulated to overlook ecological threats and suppress dissenting community voices.

According to Vijayan M.J., Director of the Participatory Action Research Coalition—India, “The first viability study by Ernst & Young clearly said the port was not feasible—environmentally or economically. So did the second. But both were dismissed, and a third study was commissioned with the clear expectation that it would declare the project viable. They didn’t even put the E&Y logo on the final report—just the names of the two researchers. That tells you something.”

Breaking the Coast: Ecological Damage and Fisher Exclusion

In spite of these warnings, the Vizhinjam Port project moved forward in a coastal region already burdened by extensive human intervention. As of 2022, Kerala’s 590-kilometer coastline hosted a major port at Kochi and intermediate ports in Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha, Kozhikode, and Thalassery. The shoreline was further segmented by 25 fishing harbors, multiple breakwaters, and 106 groynes. Nearly 310 kilometers of this coastline had already been transformed into artificial stretches.

These cumulative constructions had already disrupted the natural rhythms of the coast, causing severe erosion in some areas and sediment build-up in others—ultimately leading to the loss of accessible beaches. To mitigate these impacts, the state installed additional seawalls and groynes, which only further interfered with the marine ecosystem and traditional fishing practices.

For Kerala’s fishworkers, this pattern of exclusion and ecological damage is not new.

The situation intensified with the onset of Vizhinjam Port’s construction, when hundreds of local fishers were abruptly informed that they could no longer fish near their home shores due to the imposition of shipping lanes and designated no-fishing zones.

This pattern of exclusion deepened when the state government handed over large portions of the Thiruvananthapuram coast, including Vizhinjam, to the Adani Group.

Amid rising protests in places like Perumathura and Muthalappozhi—where heavy siltation and repeated fisher deaths had triggered alarm—the government assured that Adani’s involvement would provide solutions, including constructing embankments and regularly dredging the estuary to keep it navigable. However, these promises quickly fell apart.

As Vipin Das, a fishworker from Kerala, recalls, “Adani took over the entire beach and built an office complex. Now, even stepping onto the shore requires his office’s permission.”

According to local accounts, the company’s first move was to dismantle the southern embankment to allow barge access to the port. This action disrupted natural sediment flows and caused a severe blockage of the estuary. “When floodwaters began threatening nearby homes, a JCB was rushed in to reopen the embankment—but it was already too late,” Vipin adds. “Adani’s entry didn’t solve anything—it only worsened the crisis and destroyed our coastline.”

From Biodiversity Hotspot to Danger Zone

Once a biodiversity hotspot, Vizhinjam’s marine ecosystem boasted 12 reef systems and one of the world’s 20 rare ‘wedge banks’—a critical oceanic zone near Kanyakumari where hundreds of fish species fed and reproduced. Fishers remember it as a “harbor of procreation,” teeming with over 200 varieties of fish and more than 60 aquatic species.

However, intense dredging, altered wave patterns, and ongoing port operations have severely damaged this fragile marine ecosystem. In 2020, Kerala recorded a 15 percent decline in fish catch, and the numbers have continued to fall in the years since—threatening both biodiversity and the livelihoods that depend on it.

The state’s response has been displacement disguised as compensation, offering ₹10 lakh (USD 12,000) as a one-time payment to those willing to leave their homes instead of addressing systemic erosion and disaster risks, said Vijayan.

The situation further took a catastrophic turn on May 24, 2025, when a massive shipwreck occurred off the Vizhinjam coast.

While authorities framed it as an isolated incident, environmentalists and coastal communities argue it was a disaster waiting to happen—fueled by years of unregulated dredging and reckless port expansion.

“The sea is poisoned; people are saying not to eat fish,” shared Vipin. “But it’s not just rumors—there are chemicals, plastics, and fuel. And we, who had nothing to do with this, are the first to suffer.”

With livelihoods already battered by monsoon storms and port restrictions, fishers now face public panic, polluted waters, and a poisoned food chain. “This isn’t just an accident—it’s a man-made disaster,” Vipin added. “The state must act swiftly to hold the company accountable and compensate the coastal communities who are paying the highest price.”

However, earlier this year Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd. told the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre that  “Environment Clearance accorded to Vizhinjam Port has stood the test of legal scrutiny, having gone through litigation before the National Green Tribunal, New Delhi.”

It continued, “The Port operations and fishing/ancillary activities coexist all over the world and both activities are continuing as per the rules and regulations prevailing in the democratic country of India. It may also be noted that Vizhinjam port construction has been carried out with best practices, including stakeholder engagement, taking the community into confidence.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Airlangga did not disclose any agreements that would be part of the deal

A Szlovák Hidrometeorológiai Intézet (SHMÚ) előrejelzése szerint meleg, felhős/borús időjárás várható vasárnap (6. 8.). Délen és keleten eleinte felszakadozhat a felhőzet. Nyugat felől fokozatosan sok helyen záporok vagy esők kerekedhetnek. Keleten helyenként akár heves zivatarok is előfordulhatnak.

Italy is holding a citizenship referendum and it's proving so divisive that some, including the prime minister, are boycotting it.

Italy is holding a citizenship referendum and it's proving so divisive that some, including the prime minister, are boycotting it.

Italy is holding a citizenship referendum and it's proving so divisive that some, including the prime minister, are boycotting it.

Les autorités promettent de reconstruire le village. Problème, il compte 64% de résidences secondaires, alors que seuls 20% sont autorisés par la loi.