[Onthebarricades] Welfare protests, Apr-Aug 2008 - benefits, pensions, prices, electricity, housing, etc
Andy
ldxar1 at tesco.net
Thu Aug 28 15:58:47 PDT 2008
ON THE BARRICADES: Global Resistance Roundup, April-August 2008
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/onthebarricades
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance/
* IRAN: Workers break power company windows over cuts
* GREECE: Protesters oppose rising prices, demand salary increases
* INDIA: Dharna at power board over cuts
* INDIA: Naxalites protest prices, blow up railway
* PAKISTAN: Protest in Karachi over water supply
* BOSNIA: War veterans protest for unpaid benefits
* SOUTH AFRICA: Cosatu demands lowering of interest rates
* SERBIA: War veterans protest for benefits, healthcare
* US: Pittsburgh protest over rise in sewer rates
* PAKISTAN: Job applicants hold impromptu demo
* SCOTLAND: Housing protesters occupy Parliament, oppose ban on student
homes
* INDIA: Ex-soldiers in protest for pensions in Bangalore, Jalandar
* INDIA: District in Kerala protests at cut in rice quota
* US: Arizona librarians protest against cuts
* PHILIPPINES: Emergency benefits denounced as "anti-worker"
* US: Protests in Seattle against foreclosures
* PAKISTAN: Demonstrations, roadblocks about power outages
* INDIA: Protests over power supply at various sites
* INDIA: Protest against hoarding
* PAKISTAN: Growers protest water shortage
* INDIA: Communists protest against water and electricity shortage in
Bihar
* INDIA: Residents protest for amenities
* US: Princeton protest over foreclosure
* NIGERIA: Residents protest power cuts
* US: Daytona presidents protest against unnecessary "safety centre"
* IRELAND: Pensioners protest
* PHILIPPINES: Lights-out protest over electricity price, tax
* CZECH REPUBLIC: Protests save culture funding
* INDIA: Protest in Kerala over water supply
* US: Pittsburgh anti-foreclosure protest
* US: Residents protest library closures
* INDIA: Hindu groups protest temple on top of gas pipe
* UK: Ninety-year-old holds protest for river defences
* INDIA: Protest for port development
* INDIA: Tamil Nadu protest to plug water leak
* US: Protest camp opposes paragliders
* UK: Protest against post office closure in Manchester
* INDIA: Protest over late arrival of milk truck
* INDIA: Residents protest about water tank delay
* PUNTLAND/SOMALIA: Refugees protest unfair food distribution
* UK: Barefoot protest to save Rochdale post office
* US: Protest over New York homelessness policies
* PHILIPPINES: Leftists stage protest for better benefits
* US: Power price increase protested
* PAKISTAN: Homeless rally in Islamabad
* US: Central Falls protest against budget cuts
* INDIA: Tamil Nadu protest over "maladministration", poor roads, sewage
* SCOTLAND: Protesters seek to save squash courts
* UK: Somerset protesters hold ancient ritual to save post office
* TAIWAN: Protest over benefits "black hole"
* US: Atlanta mayor booed over fire station closure
* INDIA: Girijans protest for facilities
* US: World Trade Center survivors protest firing of health official
* SPAIN: Residents release cockroaches to protest sanitation
* US: McCain protested over home buyout links
* INDIA: Puducherry protest for welfare, development
* INDIA: Youth forum protests to save playground
* INDIA: Nursery workers protest privatisation of child food benefit
* INDIA: Unemployed graduates protest raise in retirement age
* NIGERIA: Athletes protest lack of support
* US, CALIFORNIA: Action plan over budget crisis
* INDIA: Lantern protest over power cuts
* INDIA: Bijapur road blocks over water supply
* INDIA: Orissa protests over poverty line registration irregularities
* UK: Villagers stage midnight noise protest
* PERU: Earthquake survivors protest response a year on
* TAIWAN: Unemployed people protest
* INDIA: Flash protest over amenities
* US: Garland library closure protested
* INDIA: Protest at local kerosene shortage
* US: Luzerne County protest at house rates reassessment
* INDIA: Protest over inadequate distribution of ration cards
* TRINIDAD: Success in protest for water supply
* INDIA: Karnataka protest for free folk art
* UK: Walkers protest against post office closures
* UK: Protest over loss of gifts in company closure
http://ncr-iran.org/content/view/5471/105/
Iran: Citizens in the port city of Rig protest against power outage
Tuesday, 05 August 2008
NCRI – Citizens in the southern port city of Rig broke the windows to the
power company protesting to repeated power cut.
Angry residents caught with the scorching heat of the Persian Gulf region in
the summer, gathered outside the local power company demanding more
electricity in the day.
"Power is out most of the day. We will be back if the power cut continuous,"
said one demonstrator.
Power outage has become a major problem in the Iranian cities especially
with the summer's heat.
People in the central city of Shahinshahr were beaten and arrested over
their protest to the power outage in their area.
The State Security Forces (SSF) – mullahs' suppressive police – fired tear
gas into a crowd of local shopkeepers protesting to power outage on July 30.
Eyewitness reports from the scene indicate that some local shopkeepers were
gathered outside the governor's office carrying banners protesting to 5
hours of power outage causing their businesses huge damage.
"When SSF agents arrived, they opened fire into the crowd indiscriminately
wounding some protesters," a bystander said.
"Close to 30 people were also arrested by the SSF," she added.
A shopkeeper's wife, taking part in the gathering said, "They [police] did
not pay any attention to the age of participants and began shooting."
On July 16, the semi-official news agency Fars website devoted an entire
section to power outages in different parts of the country, including Bandar
Abbas, a port city in the south, Sistan-Baluchestan, a province in the east,
Isfahan and Shiraz in south-central Iran and Mazandaran province in the
north.
The outage is so painful that according to Fars "several lawmakers have
warned the government and the energy minister on the frequent blackouts and
power outages in the capital and many other cities and called for urgent
action due to summer."
The energy ministry has announced that as of June 21, the media will
publicize blackout timetables so that people can adjust their daily
routines.
"Total electricity production of the nationwide grid is 32,000 megawatts but
the consumption is 34,000, so the discrepancy should be removed by less
consumption," said Parviz Fattah, the energy minister.
Ahmadinejad's response to Iranian people's daily needs, as in the case of
Shahinshahr, is violent and suppressive. He has no regards for what the
ordinary citizens go throw everyday to pay for his ambitions for obtaining a
nuclear bomb under the pretext of nuclear "energy for electricity."
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/19/europe/EU-GEN-Greece-Price-Protest.php
Greece: More than 1,000 people protest rising consumer prices
The Associated Press
Published: June 19, 2008
ATHENS, Greece: Hundreds of Greeks are demonstrating in central Athens to
demand salary increases amid rising consumer prices.
Greek labor unions, consumer protection groups and a Communist-affiliated
group that organized the protests are calling for government action against
monopolies, a two-year freeze on utility charges and state aid for low
salary earners and pensioners.
They say Greek salaries are among the lowest in the European Union, while
prices for basic consumer goods exceed the EU average.
An estimated 1,300 people attended two demonstrations on Thursday.
Protesters in front of Parliament held banners reading "Raise salaries,
control prices" and "Stop cartels."
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/05/stories/2008080553060300.htm
Protest against erratic power supply
Staff Correspondent
Bijapur: Members of the Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI), staged a
dharna in front of the office of Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation
Ltd. in protest against erratic power supply in the district, here on
Monday.
The protesters said that businesses and government employees were finding it
difficult to carry out their work because of power cuts for more than six
hours.
Production in small and medium factories had come down drastically in the
past two months, they said.
Owing to good rainfall in many parts of the State, the Government had issued
orders to cancel power cuts from August 1, but the authorities in the
district had not implemented the order, they alleged.
The authorities concerned should take immediate steps to stop the power cuts
and provide electricity to people, they said. The protesters threatened that
they would intensify their agitation if the authorities concerned failed to
take immediate steps in this regard.
A memorandum addressed to Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa was submitted to
Deputy Commissioner S.M. Sonnad.
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Maoists-protest-price-hike-blow-up-railway-tracks/325764/
Maoists protest price hike, blow up railway tracks
Reuters
Posted online: Saturday , June 21, 2008 at 08:25:58
Updated: Saturday , June 21, 2008 at 08:25:58
Ranchi, June 21: Maoist rebels blew up railway tracks and tried to enforce a
strike in the eastern region ravaged by Naxalite violence to protest against
rising inflation, police said.
The day-long strike in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Bihar evoked some
response in the countryside where the Maoists wield strong influence, but
failed in urban areas.
The strike came on a day India's wholesale price index rose 11.05% in the 12
months to June 7, the highest rate in 13 years as the effects of a hike in
fuel prices hit inflation.
Rising prices are a major headache for the UPA government with less than a
year to go to elections, although protests called by the main opposition and
the Left front over fuel price hikes have now tapered off.
Police in Jharkhand said Maoist rebels blew up portions of railway tracks,
causing a goods train to derail and disrupting rail traffic.
Maoists distributed fliers asking villagers to support the strike, which
shut down shops, hit traffic and disrupted mining operations in the
mineral-rich region.
"The strike has affected life especially in the rural areas and local
businessmen downed their shutters out of fear of being attacked," a police
spokesman said from Bihar.
The Maoist rebels say they are fighting for the rights of poor peasants and
landless labourers and routinely call strikes, attack government property
and target local politicians.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described the four-decade-old Maoist
rebellion, which has killed thousands of people, as the biggest threat to
the country's internal security.
Protests over rising fuel prices also continued in the neighbouring republic
of Nepal, where student activists stoned several vehicles in the capital
Kathmandu, disrupting rush-hour traffic for a third day in a row on Friday,
police said.
Nepal raised petrol and diesel prices by about 25 percent last week,
prompting transport operators to hike fares between 25 and 35 percent for
taxis and buses.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=119253
Protest against severance of water supply Thursday, June 19, 2008
Residents of United Colony, Gutter Baghicha, staged a protest demonstration
and a sit-in on Wednesday at the Karachi Press Club (KPC) against the
Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) and the Site Town Administration for
disconnecting the water supply connection to their colony.
Addressing the protesters, Karamat Bhatti, Michael Javed, and others said
that administration was harassing the residents of their colony.
They said that their water pipeline was disconnected to supply their share
of water to marble factories of the area. They also expressed concern over
the dumping of waste from Saddar town in their colony.
They demanded that the government take notice of these issues and solve them
at the earliest.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/17/europe/EU-GEN-Bosnia-Veterans-Protest.php
Thousands of Bosnian war veterans protest over months of unpaid welfare
payments
The Associated Press
Published: June 17, 2008
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina: Several thousand unemployed Bosnian war
veterans have staged an anti-government protest in Sarajevo demanding months
of welfare payments they say have not been paid.
The protesters say they have not received three €75 (US$116) monthly
payments. The country's average monthly salary is €315 (US$486) and
unemployment is about 40 percent.
The protesters also want the Bosniak-Croat Federation's leadership to
resign. A peace agreement that ended the 1992-95 Bosnian war divided the
country into a Bosniak-Croat Federation and a Bosnian Serb mini-state.
Mehmed Sisic, the head of a war veterans association, says he hopes the
dispute would be resolved Tuesday. A government minister is quoted in a
newspaper saying new laws should ensure timely payment.
http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_Finance%20And%20Labour&set_id=1&click_id=594&art_id=nw20080613115701503C611668
Cosatu to protest against rates in July
June 13 2008 at 11:58AM
South Africa's powerful labour federation, Cosatu, will demand lower
interest rates as part of a planned protest campaign and one-day national
strike next month, it said on Friday.
Cosatu said this week it would embark on mass action from July 2, including
a national strike on July 30, to protest job losses related to the country's
power crisis. South Africa's central bank increased its key repo rate by 50
basis points on Thursday - a move Cosatu said it condemned.
"We shall definitely now be adding rising interest rates to the issues to be
raised and will be demanding lower interest rates as one of the central
demands of the campaign," Cosatu said in a statement. (Reporting by Marius
Bosch) - Reuters
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/society-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=04&dd=24&nav_id=49709
Veterans renew protest outside govt. 24 April 2008 | 12:16 | Source: B92
BELGRADE -- Around 1000 veterans of the Yugoslav wars from 90 municipalities
have gathered to protest in front of the government building.
The veterans are demanding from the authorities “the same treatment for all
veterans in exercising their rights and receiving compensation, as well as
free health care for themselves and their families."
They also seek priority in employment under equal conditions, improvement to
their social position, and the status of military pensioners, say the
protest organizers, the Serbian Veterans’ Movement.
They are calling for the government to take urgent action in meeting its
debts to homeless veterans.
http://www.b92.net//eng/news/society-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=08&dd=14&nav_id=52688
War veterans set for mass protest 14 August 2008 | 10:29 | Source: B92
BELGRADE -- War veterans from the Third Army District will hold a mass
protest today in front of the government building.
Last year's protests (Beta, archive)
They are calling for their demands to be met once and for all, namely
payment of wages owed to them dating back to the 1999 Kosovo conflict,
strike leader Dušan Nikolić told B92.
“What we’re doing should bring an end to this business that we began seven
months ago. It’s taking too long, we’re at our wit’s end, materially and in
terms of time—it’s costing us a lot of money,“ he said.
“If, by some chance, no-one wants to receive us in the government, not to
speak to us, we’ll set up tents in the park outside the government building.
We don’t want to go on the rampage, we don’t want any incidents, we just
want to exercise our rights,“ Nikolić explained.
The veterans want their wages reimbursed according to the same system
adopted for their colleagues from the Toplički district, who received EUR
2,600 on average, paid out in six equal monthly installments.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_563929.html?source=rss&feed=7
Penn Hills residents protest 20 percent sewer hike
By Tony LaRussa
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Dozens of Penn Hills residents miffed about a more than 20 percent spike in
sewage rates on first-quarter bills turned out for Monday's council meeting
to protest.
But municipal officials said raising the rates was a difficult decision that
needed to be made, and the time to raise objections was in December when the
budget was approved.
This year's budget included an increase of $1.69 per thousand gallons of
water used, which hiked rates from $8.38 per thousand gallons to $10.07 per
thousand gallons.
A $10 monthly surcharge was added. Customers who use 5,000 gallons of water
a month will pay an additional $18.45, or $221.40 a year. Penn Hills has
about 18,600 residential and commercial customers. There was no increase in
water rates.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=110810
Irked job aspirants erupt into impromptu protest at Civic Centre Tuesday,
May 06, 2008
Karachi
At least 15,000 people thronged to the Civic Centre on Monday, seeking jobs
in the health and education department of city district government Karachi
(CDGK). The absence of the EDO health enraged the crowd, resulting in an
impromptu protest.
These people had come over for walk-in interviews for CDGK health department
jobs announced by the Sindh government. When they were told that the EDO
health was not present, they snatched the official rifle of a security
guard, Kamal. A female security officer, Saira, was also injured in the
ensuing rumpus.
The Chief Security Officer (CSO), Tahir Jamil Durrani, meanwhile stuck to an
“official version” of events and told The News that hooligans had stormed
the Civic Centre Monday morning. They started gathering on the sixth floor
of the building around 08:45 a.m. Within 15 to 20 minutes, more than 6,000
people were present on the packed floor, leading to “a law-and-order
situation,” Durrani claimed, adding that as a result, a dispensary, some
glass doors and windows and furniture were damaged on the fifth and sixth
floors. The security staff immediately informed the CSO, and the crowed was
dispersed without any “major untoward incident,” Durrani said.
Other officials told The News that the present government had advertised
jobs for which people had rushed to the Civic Centre but returned frustrated
because no one was there to interview them.
This first-ever demonstration for jobs under the present government
materialised when job applicants found out at the last moment that the
interview date had been changed. They chanted slogans of “Jeay Bhutto” and
“Benazir zinda hai.” Durrani said that the demonstrators were calmed after a
lot of hectic efforts. He personally collected more than 8,000 applications,
and the protestors left around 03:00 p.m. A sense of insecurity and fear
prevailed among the officers and staff at the Civic Centre, however, and no
work was conducted on Monday.
Durrani also said that the EDO health had not provided him prior information
about the interviews and the security staff was taken by surprise. EDO
Health Dr A.D. Sanjnani said meanwhile, that he had informed the DCO
Karachi, Javed Hanif, about the interviews. The latter however, completely
denied it.
DCO Hanif further said that it was not humanly possible to conduct
interviews of thousands of people in a day, but promised to call both the
EDO health and the EDO education to sort the situation out.
Also surprising is the fact that the DCO Karachi, who is responsible for the
administration of the Civic Centre, was not present at the venue during the
demonstration on Monday. He said he was in a meeting with acting City Nazim
Nasreen Jalil at her office and was not aware that thousands of people were
waiting to be interviewed at the Civic Centre.
When the EDO health got to the Civic Centre later, he and his staff took
refuge in the conference room in the Nazim’s secretariat.
http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Housing-protestors-evicted-from-Scottish.4032868.jp
Housing protestors evicted from Scottish Parliament
A GROUP of protesters were today removed from the chamber of the Scottish
Parliament over a housing demo.
The group draped a makeshift banner over the side of the public gallery
demanding a financial investigation into the Glasgow Housing Association
(GHA).
Two security guards wrestled the sheet from them, before police escorted the
group of seven out of the chamber.
It came as MSPs were considering the Commonwealth Games Bill.
The business of Parliament was not interrupted by the incident.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/04/28/stories/2008042853420800.htm
Ex-servicemen stage protest
Staff Reporter
Bangalore: As many as 85 ex-servicemen staged a protest at Minsk Square here
on Sunday demanding that the Union Government resolve their long-standing
problems, including enhancement of pension.
The ex-servicemen paid homage to martyrs and said a silent prayer holding
candles before staging the protest. They said that a soldier or an officer
who has spent his entire life serving the Defence forces of the country
expects suitable pension to enable him to lead a dignified life, and that
his pension is enhanced periodically.
They said that most of the political parties include the issue of
one-rank-one pension in their manifesto but ignore it [the issue] after the
elections.
Stating that the sixth pay commission has rejected this demand, the
ex-servicemen demanded that one-rank-one-pension plea be fulfilled without
any delay.
The ex-servicemen said that the recommendations of the sixth pay commission
relating to the armed forces should be scrapped as the review by the Cabinet
Secretary was unfair.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/04/28/stories/2008042852540300.htm
Ex-Servicemen hold protest rally in Jalandhar
Separate Pay Commission for defence forces demanded
“Ex-Servicemen have no confidence in the so-called empowered committee”
Ex-Servicemen also demand “One Rank One Pension”
Jalandhar: After the opposition of the report of 6th Pay Commission by all
the three forces’ Chiefs, Ex-servicemen of Punjab on Sunday held a protest
rally here at War Memorial and demanded separate Pay Commission for the
defence forces.
“Ex-Servicemen have no confidence in the so-called empowered committee, even
if an odd person from the military is added to it. Only constitution of
separate Pay Commission can resolve the anomalies in the pay commission’s
report”, Brig K S Kahlon, president of the Ex-Servicemen Wing of ruling
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) said while addressing the protestors.
It was highly deplorable that in spite of Prime Minister’s assurance that
armed forces would be suitably compensated and even instructed to appoint a
special committee for the purpose, but on the contrary, Union Finance
Minister P Chidambram category ruled out constitution of any separate pay
commission for the defence forces.
The government must constitute either a separate pay commission or an Armed
Forces Pay Review Board (AFPRB), with a serving member each from the three
services and one retired person among others to resolve the issue once for
all, he demanded adding that the AFPRB should complete its task
expeditiously to extend the financial relief to the armed forces at the
earliest.
Pay and pension
Apart from constitution of separate pay commission, Ex-Servicemen also
demanded “One Rank One Pension”, as whenever pay and pension of service
personnel are enhanced, older pensioners are left out in the cold, Lt Gen S
S Sangra said. - PTI
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/04/28/stories/2008042852640300.htm
Protest against cut in State’s rice quota
Special Correspondent
District panchayat terms move as unfair
No justification, says district development panel
Immediate restoration of quota sought
Kozhikode: The reduction in the Centre’s rice quota meant for distribution
through ration shops in the State has been condemned by the District
panchayat and the District Development Committee.
The District panchayat at its meeting demanded immediate restoration of the
State’s share of rice from the Central pool.
District panchayat Health standing committee chairman M. Radhakrishnan, who
moved a motion raising this demand, said the slashing of the quota was
unfair as the State was promised sufficient quantities of food grain way
back in 1964 in view of the fact that large tracts of farm land had been
used for growing cash crops that fetched valuable foreign exchange for the
country.
Breaking this promise, the State’s quota has been slashed by as much as 82
per cent while the quota of States like Andhra Pradesh, which produced food
grains in excess, had been increased, the resolution said.
The District Development Committee, at its meeting on Saturday, said in a
resolution that there was no justification in reducing the quota when only
15 per cent of the requirement was produced locally.
A resolution moved by George M. Thomas on the issue pointed out that only
17,000 tonnes of rice was available for the 49.51 lakh ration-card holders
in the above poverty line (APL
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/05/14/20080514mr-librarians0515.html
Librarians protest proposed cuts again
9 comments by Ray Parker - May. 14, 2008 12:12 PM
The Arizona Republic
Mesa Public School librarians and their supporters demonstrated again
Tuesday over job cuts and what they called the "dumbing down" of services
for students.
Chants and placards welcomed passersby for an hour as 60 demonstrators
marched before the regular school board meeting at district offices near
Stapley and University drives.
The district, facing $13 million in cuts to the budget, plans to move
librarians back to the classroom and replace them with aides. The district
also plans to replace some nurses and speech experts with aides and
assistants over the next three years, saving an estimated $3 million.
Protest organizer Ann Ewbank said she and others met with board president
Rich Crandall and Superintendent Debra Duvall on Monday to voice concerns
about the new plan.
Ewbank said the new advocacy group, Fund Our Future Arizona, would propose
alternative librarian models before the next Mesa school board meeting, May
27 .
"I'm very positive about the reception from the board and the
administration," Ewbank said.
Mesa librarians and supporters first protested the cuts April 22, when they
also launched a statewide petition in support of school libraries and
information technology. They have gathered more than 1,200 signatures on the
petition, which can be found at gopetition.com/online/18626.html.
On Tuesday, protester and parent Denise Lubbock said the new librarian aides
will not be professionals and that Mesa schools will deliver "dumbed-down
services to students."
"I know they have to cut back on the budget but this will affect student
academics," she said.
School districts across Arizona have been reducing library services in order
to balance their budgets, including Creighton Elementary, Tempe Elementary,
Tempe Union High School, Paradise Valley Unified, Humboldt Unified, Tucson
Unified and Grand Canyon Unified.
"The bottom line is this is a state funding issue," Ewbank said. "We want to
work with legislators to dedicate funding specifically for school
librarians."
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20080528-139391/Western-Visayas-labor-to-protest-P15-emergency-allowance
Western Visayas labor to protest P15 emergency allowance
By Carla Gomez
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 22:55:00 05/28/2008
BACOLOD CITY, Philippines -- The labor representatives on the regional wage
board decried the granting of the P15 emergency relief allowance (ERA),
calling the move as "anti-labor" and perpetuating misery among the
workforce.
Labor representatives Wennie Sancho and Hernane Braza filed their formal
opposition to the new wage order of the Regional Tripartite Wages and
Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Western Visayas granting the P15 ERA, which
would be given to workers from June 1 to October 15 only.
"As a collective voice of labor, we vehemently oppose the issuance of Wage
Order No. 16, by not affixing our signatures as a symbol of protest to this
added form of injustice to the destitute workers. We cannot in conscience
accept a wage order that is anti-labor," Sancho said in their consolidated
workers' opposition.
Sancho urged the members of wage board who voted for the granting of the P15
ERA to start looking at wage as an instrument of progress.
Denying the workers their plea for a P50-wage increase would make the wage
board "appear as a symbol of greed of capital instead of a collegium of men
and women of wisdom," Sancho added.
Braza said the partial implementation of the previous wage order "was
immaterial" to another wage increase.
RTWPB-8 chair Aida Estabillo earlier said the Wage Order No. 15 has to be
fully implemented before they could deliberate on a new wage increase.
Wage Order No. 16, which will take effect from June 1 to October 15, will
peg the minimum wage in Region 6 from P208 to 250 per day, inclusive of the
P15 ERA. Non-agriculture and retail/service establishment workers will
receive between P240 to P250 daily while those in the agriculture sector
will receive P208 to P218.
Existing daily minimum wage rates in Western Visayas are set at P225 to 235
for non-agriculture workers, and P193 and P203 for non-plantation and
plantation agriculture workers, respectively.
Estabillo said the National Wages and Productivity Commission would have to
decide on the opposition filed by the labor sector because the wage board
could no longer revise its decision, Estabillo said.
"Majority rules but we have to respect their (labor’s) opinion," she said.
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/18783769.html
Protesters march on WaMu's Seattle headquarters
Protesters hold signs at the demonstration inside Washington Mutual's
Seattle headquarters.
Story Published: May 8, 2008 at 5:19 PM PDT
Story Updated: May 8, 2008 at 5:40 PM PDT
By KOMO Staff
SEATTLE - As curious onlookers stared, housing protesters created a scene at
Washington Mutual's headquarters in downtown Seattle.
The demonstrators, aligned with a community action group called ACORN,
claimed WaMu isn't doing enough to help cash-strapped families save their
homes.
It's a classic case of the little guy vs. corporate America.
As the protesters marched into Washington Mutual's lobby, the didn't exactly
get the red carpet treatment.
"We find out that low-income people are not welcome in your establishment,"
ACORN President John Weber Jones told Washington Mutual's senior vice
president as the group filled the lobby.
The WaMu executive senior vice president greeted the crowd and instead of
blocking the lobby, offered to meet one on one with customers who need help
with their mortages.
But ACORN's president wanted more.
"We want the same commitment that you have to do redo those loans as you
took to building the power of Washington Mutual," he told bank officials.
Washington Mutual's Reza Aghamirzadeh said, "We've been in active dialogue
with ACORN as recent as yesterday we were on the phone, and we will continue
to have a dialogue to come up with solutions."
As the demonstration continued, it drew a lot of curious stares from
onlookers. Julio Santos is one Washington Mutual customer who joined the
protest, because he's about to lose his house.
"See the thing is, our income hasn't really gone higher but everything has
gone higher," Santos said. "Seventy percent of my income is going into my
mortgage."
Santos is not alone in his predicament.
Donna Dziak of the advocacy group Solid Ground says, "What we're finding is
folks that have fairly steady employment but no safety net available to
them."
She and other experts say that homeowners should keep about three months
worth of salary in a savings account in case they are hurt or ill and can't
work.
In the meantime, the city of Seattle is working on a proposal to give some
families in need of that safety net about $5,000 to help them keep their
homes. The Seattle City Council is tsking up the issue on Monday.
And Washington Mutual did make good on their promise to take Julio Santos
and a few others at the protest upstairs to meet with their experts to see
if they can help them avoid foreclosure.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=111648
Protests against power outages, water shortage Saturday, May 10, 2008
HYDERABAD: The residents of different localities of the city here on Friday
staged demonstrations and blocked main roads of their respective areas
against the water shortage and frequent power outages.
The residents of Pinjra Poll staged a protest and blocked the road at the
Pakistan Chowk to protest power outages and raised slogans against the
Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco).
The enraged protestors complained that power supply to their locality
remained suspended for several hours during the day. Later, the protestors
also staged a protest outside the office concerned of Hesco and demanded
immediate end to load-shedding in the area.
Meanwhile, residents of Latifabad Unit-12 staged a protest against the water
shortage in their area persisting for the last few days. They blocked the
road and demanded of the authorities concerned to resolve their problem at
the earliest.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/10/stories/2008051057680600.htm
Parties protest against power cuts
Special Correspondent
VILLUPURAM: Activists of several political parties came together to stage a
demonstration at the Kottakuppam town panchayat grounds near here on Friday,
protesting frequent and unscheduled power cuts. The activists blamed the
situation on the “inefficient and indifferent officials of the Tamil Nadu
Electricity Board.”
Members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), Indian Union
Muslim League, Pattali Makkal Katchi, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, and Desiya Murpokku Dravida
Kazhagam participated.
Representatives of trading community and women’s organisations also took
part. They said that power cuts were too frequent that they had become
hamstrung to carry on the daily chores.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/28/stories/2008052851950300.htm
Residents stage protest against erratic power supply
Staff Correspondent
Demand: The residents of Virajpet and members of the town panchayat staging
a dharna in Madikeri on Tuesday.
Madikeri: The residents of Virajpet, and members of the town panchayat led
by president Kanti Belliappa, staged a dharna at the Chamundeshwari
Electricity Supply Corporation (CESC) office here on Tuesday. They were
protesting against the erratic power supply in Virajpet town.
Kodagu district has had extended power cuts in the past eight days due to
the 33 kV substation in Virajpet being upgraded to a 66 kV substation.
Members of the panchayat alleged that the work had been launched without
providing an alternative power line to Virajpet town. The
Ramanathapuram-Ponnampet-Virajpet line has been shut down.
The members alleged that there was no coordination between Karnataka Power
Transmission Corporation Ltd. (KPTCL), which is upgrading the station, and
the CESC, which is in charge of power supply.
The residents of Virajpet have been fending for themselves as there has been
no supply of drinking water for eight days.
According to the announced schedule, power cuts were to last four hours a
day. However, often there is no power for more than 12 hours. The protesters
demanded that the Executive Engineer of CESC, Kodagu, Venugopal, be present.
K.G. Bopaiah, MLA, arrived at the spot in the morning to take stock of the
situation. Mr. Bopaiah spoke to the CESC Managing Director and the
Superintending Engineer to ascertain the situation.
“We have been suffering from power cuts for one and a half months. We met
the Deputy Commissioner who warned the CESC, but to no avail,” Ms. Belliappa
said.
Ms. Belliappa said that if the problem was not solved within two days, the
residents would not pay their electricity bills. Mr. Venugopal arrived on
the scene later.
He explained the gravity of the situation to the protesters and suggested
that the panchayat switch off the high-mast lights in the town for some
time.
Mr. Bopaiah asked the panchayat to set up a diesel generator set to tide
over the crisis. The agitation was called off later.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/21/stories/2008052151600300.htm
Protest against hoarding
Kozhikode: The workers of ‘Kerala Janapaksham’ staged a dharna, carrying
‘empty bags,’ in front of the Income Tax Office here on Tuesday in protest
against rampant hoarding that causes a rise in prices of essential
commodities. — Staff Reporter
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=114811
Growers of Manehro Canal protest against water shortage Monday, May 26, 2008
By our correspondent
NAWABSHAH: Growers cultivating their lands on the Manehro Canal on Sunday
staged a protest against the Irrigation officials for allegedly creating an
acute shortage of water in the canal.
The growers were chanting slogans against the Irrigation engineer and his
staff, accusing them of demanding bribe against their due share of the
irrigation water.
They alleged that the engineer and his staff had created artificial shortage
of canal water because the growers could not pay them rupees two lacs as
bribe money.
The growers alleged that when they approached the engineer concerned and
submitted their complaint regarding the shortage of canal water, he advised
them to first meet his front man, who, according to the growers, demanded
rupees two lac for opening the canal for eight days only.
The growers demanded of the government to resolve the water shortage issue
in the Manehro Canal.
http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php?sid=362785
Communists protest against water and electricity shortage in Bihar
ANI Saturday 24th May, 2008
Patna, May 24 : Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) activists
disrupted traffic and set up road blockages with the help of burnt tyres and
water containers in protest against the Bihar Government's inability to end
the shortage of water and electricity across the state.
Raising slogans against State Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the activists
claimed that the general public has been suffering for almost a week, and
inspite repeated written reminders, the State Administration had not budged
to rectify what was an alarming situation.
"It has been five days now since we have been suffering without water. As
far as electricity is concerned, we just get one to two hours in a day.
People here are facing a severe problem in so far as managing even a glass
of water.
We have written so many times to the administration of the Nitish Kumar
Government, but nobody is taking any action," claimed Murtaza Ali, a CPI
(ML) leader.
Summer months have always brought misery to people across the country,
particularly in Bihar. Power and water shortage hit several million
households in the months of May and June.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/05/stories/2008060552320300.htm
Residents protest for basic amenities
Special Correspondent
GULBARGA: Residents of Netaji Nagar in Dr. Navani Layout on the outskirts of
Gulbarga city on Wednesday staged a demonstration outside the administrative
office of the Gulbarga City Corporation against its “ indifferent attitude”
in providing basic amenities. The protesters, who included women, came in a
procession to the city corporation office submitted a memorandum to the
corporation authorities.
Approach road
The memorandum said there was no concrete road to Netaji Nagar from Sai
Temple. During the rainy season, people found it difficult to use the mud
road. After several requests, the corporation authorities took up work on
the approach road, but left it incomplete, it alleged.
The residents said that although some streets and approach roads to Netaji
Nagar had streetlights, not all of them were functional. Corporation
authorities should initiate steps to replace the fused tubelights, they
added.
The memorandum said Netaji Nagar had so far not been included in the
drinking water supply scheme of the city, and the people were dependent on
borewells. But water from it was not fit for consumption. They urged the
administration to ensure supply of water through tankers for the present.
http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=512588
Man pitches tent on Capitol lawn to protest veto
A Princeton man who narrowly avoided foreclosure has pitched a tent with his
four young children on the Minnesota Capitol lawn to express his
disappointment over a day-old veto.
The bill that Governor Tim Pawlenty blocked Thursday would have helped
borrowers with certain kinds of loans put off their home foreclosures. Their
lenders would have had to delay action until they proved they made a
good-faith effort to rework the loan terms.
Steve Triebernig says he faced a Monday foreclosure until he recently went
public with his hardship story. Now he's working on a new loan and expects
to be able to keep his home.
He says he's worried that others might not be as fortunate and he wants
Pawlenty to explain to him face-to-face why he opposed the bill. Sponsors
say they'll try to pass it again next year.
Pawlenty says it would have allowed the government too much interference
with existing private contracts.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200806120504.html
Nigeria: Ogoja, Okuku Residents Protest Power Outage
Leadership (Abuja)
12 June 2008
Posted to the web 12 June 2008
Edem Edem
Cross River
Ogoja and Okuku residents in Cross River State have staged peaceful
demonstration, apparently reacting to prolonged periods of living without
electricity supply from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). The
residents of the these areas while walking round some major streets vowed
that they would not pay electricity bills any longer.
The residents who reached the decision on Wednesday, June 4, sent young men
on Okada with loudspeakers to announce to those who were not in the meeting
that "no one should pay electricity bill again. Any one caught at the PHCN
office in the name of paying bill would be fined N10, 000 along with the
provision of a live goat".
According to Sebastine Unyi, the Ogoja Youths president, "It is better to
stay without electricity, after all in a month of thirty days, we cannot
boast of having electricity for six hours. Is it then not better to save the
money with which to pay PHCN and buy a generator?".
The youths who threatened to gather all electricity bills for the months of
May and burn them if PHCN went ahead to distribute them said it was
meaningless to continue to pay the bills because it "amounts to encouraging
PHCN to continue to defraud our people".
At the PHCN office Ogoja, the Business Manager, G.N Bavure, was said to have
gone to Abakaliki. A source said the fault was not that of Ogoja office of
Power Holding Company but from the national electricity distributive office
at Osogbo which has drastically reduced the amount of power supply to Ogoja.
He said Osogbo does not supply power to Abakaliki, which supplies Ogoja, and
without power supply from Abakaliki, there is nothing they can do.
He displayed a memo from the distribution centre at Osogbo dated May 4 which
called for limitation of power supply to all power stations across the
country owing to "low gas supply to all our Thermal Stations, and low water
supply level which is below 2000 level in our hydro station generators, the
system is being constantly operated at alert state. This has called for
drastic load allocation to all regions in order to sustain the system".
The source said this situation has left Ogoja station with practically no
electricity that accounts for the absence of power in the area.
http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2008/6/10/deltona_homeowners_protest_plans_for_new_safety_complex.html?refresh=1
Deltona Homeowners Protest Plans For New Safety Complex
Wednesday, June 11, 2008 1:00:29 PM
DELTONA -- City leaders said Tuesday that they wanted to build a
multimillion dollar complex that would house multiple agencies on the spot
of the existing safety complex, which only housed a fire department.
"Plus it's going to house a new law enforcement center, whether it's a
sheriff's office, or a police department," said city spokesman Lee Lopez.
However, homeowners had a problem with the concept of a new police
department because they never voted to have one.
The city has been patrolled by Volusia County Sheriff's deputies.
Homeowners said they also had a problem with emergency traffic in a
residential area, plus a new city hall, when they did not need one -- issues
they said needed to be discussed openly with voters.
"Not behind closed doors. This needs to be discussed with the people," said
Shirley Sneperger, a Deltona homeowner.
The existing city hall was dedicated March 16, 2002, making the building
just a little more than six years old.
A spokesman with the city said the new safety complex would not house a new
city hall.
Commission chambers have been doubling as the city's Emergency Operations
Center.
"That's what they're going to relocate to the new safety complex, the
Emergency Operations Center," Lopez said.
Lopez said some city offices could also possibly be moved to the new complex
eventually.
Sneperger and her neighbors planned to pack commission chambers Tuesday
night to make sure their voices were heard.
Sneperger and other homeowners passed out leaflets over the weekend to try
to get as many homeowners as they could into commission chambers for the
city's commission meeting.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0609/protest.html?rss
Protest over Bord na Móna pensions
Monday, 9 June 2008 14:35
More than 200 Bord na Móna pensioners protested at a function attended by
Taoiseach Brian Cowen in Co Offaly this morning.
They were demonstrating over a €15m deficit in the semi-State peat company's
superannuation scheme.
Mr Cowen was in Tullamore attending the 13th International Peat Congress, a
week-long event attended by 500 delegates from over 20 countries.
Advertisement
The pensioners from Offaly, Westmeath, Kildare, Laois and Longford protested
outside the Tullamore Court Hotel.
They are claiming that their pensions have lost 25% in value due to
inflation over the last six years, and Bord na Móna has failed to invest in
the scheme.
The Taoiseach said the pensioners' dispute is a matter for Bord na Móna to
resolve, but on leaving the conference he stopped and spoke to pensioners
protesting at the entrance to the hotel.
A spokesperson for the pensioners' group told RTÉ News that the Taoiseach
had promised them that he would ask officials in his department to raise the
issue with the company and try to expedite the matter.
The Managing Director of Bord na Móna, Gabriel D'Arcy, has said the company
is in the middle of reforming the two pension schemes it operates.
Mr D'Arcy said it will honour losses made in the general employee
superannuation scheme, but wants to meet with the pensioners who protested
this morning.
He said he was disappointed that the protest had taken place at an event
that was not even organised by Bord na Móna, and that the pensioners had
declined an invitation to meet with management of the company at lunchtime
today.
The pensioners said they had declined the invitation because the company had
taken 10 weeks to respond to the last piece of correspondence sent to it.
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/100130/Militants-hold-lights-out-protest-noise-barrage-in-QC
Militants hold lights out protest, noise barrage in QC
06/09/2008 | 07:32 PM
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MANILA, Philippines - Militant groups held a 30-minute lights out protest
and noise barrage Monday night to protest continued high electricity rates
and the continued imposition of value-added tax on it.
Radio dzBB's Rowena Salvacion reported that the protest started 7 p.m.
Residents along Agham Road in San Roque village in Quezon City participated
by turning off their lights and beating pots and pans.
They called for the removal of the value added tax (VAT) on power and
branded as useless the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), which was
passed in 2001.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) secretary general Renato Reyes Jr, whose
group led the event, said no amount of amendments to EPIRA can make it
useful because the VAT is always there.
Earlier, Bayan noted the "lights out" protest is the first of its kind this
year. It added it expects more widespread protests in the future.
"Organizers expect more widespread community based protests in the coming
weeks as oil, power and rice prices go up," it said. - GMANews.TV
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20080609-141727/Leftwing-groups-stage-lights-out-protest-against-EPIRA
Leftwing groups stage lights-out protest against EPIRA
By Jeannette Andrade
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:28:00 06/09/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- Militants and residents of a squatter community in
Quezon City participated in a lights-out rally to commemorate the 7th year
of the passage of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) and to
express their outrage over the high electricity rates.
At exactly 7 p.m., darkness covered households along Agham Road in Sitio San
Roque, Barangay (Village) Bagong Pag-asa in North Triangle, while members of
the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan and groups opposed to what they called
unjustified electricity rates staged a noise barrage.
The community is several meters away from the National Power Corp.
Among their demands is the removal of the 12 percent Expanded Value-Added
Tax (EVAT) on power rates charged to households and on oil.
"It has been seven years since the EPIRA was enacted into law. The promises
of lower rates have not been felt. The so-called benefits have not
materialized. Because of the EPIRA, the power sector has somehow mutated
into a complicated, profit-driven enterprise," the group BAYAN said in a
statement.
http://www.ceskenoviny.cz/news/index_view.php?id=317310
Prague to allot same sum to culture as in 2007 after protests
Prague- The Prague culture organisations that this year received less money
from the City Hall than last year will after audits get another subsidy to
reach the 2007 level, Prague Mayor Pavel Bem and councillor for culture
Milan Richter said today, after long disputes about the grant system.
The additional funding is conditioned by an economic, personnel and
organisational audit in the culture organisations that receive grants for
several years.
The city will also cancel the grant commission and will transform the
current grant system.
Bem and Richter (both Civic Democrats, ODS) also said that the
transformation of Prague theatres, that now work as subsidised
organisations, would be temporarily halted.
A number of cultural personalities criticised the grant system as well as
the transformation of municipal theatres and competitions for theatre
directors and staged demonstrations against it.
The protests by dissatisfied theatre artists culminated by the Days of
Unrest in late May.
The protesters were supported by former Czech president Vaclav Havel who
called on voters not to support the ODS, which has dominated the City Hall
for years, in the next elections.
Bem also confirmed that the City Assembly would scrap the system of
subsidies theatres receive according to the number of tickets sold.
The system, recently launched by Richter, raised massive protests of theatre
artists as it made no difference between commercial and non-profit theatres.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/08/stories/2008060855461200.htm
Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram
DCC to protest against water supply disruption
Special Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram: The District Congress Committee which met here on
Saturday decided to launch an agitation against the frequent disruption in
water supply.
DCC leaders accused the government of “abject failure to find a permanent
solution to the water crisis.”
Alternative measures
They said the administration could not come up with alternative measures
even when large parts of the city were forced to go without water for days.
They also protested against the alleged move by the LDF to sabotage a
decision to name the proposed International Convention Centre at Aakulam
after former President K.R. Narayanan.
The meeting decided to organise family gatherings and public meetings next
month to mobilise party machinery.
DCC president V.S. Sivakumar presided over the meeting.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08180/893285-53.stm?cmpid=localstate.xml
Group marches to protest mortgage foreclosures
Saturday, June 28, 2008
By Dan Majors, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The 40 or so protesters marching through East Liberty yesterday morning
traveled only five blocks. But they're hoping that the effort will be a step
toward stopping the foreclosures that are throwing people out of their
homes.
The Allegheny County chapter of ACORN -- the Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now -- used the case of a local family to draw
attention to the plight of people in need of mortgage relief.
ACORN members, wearing T-shirts and carrying signs, marched from the group's
headquarters on Penn Avenue to a National City bank branch on North Highland
Avenue and disrupted business there for about 10 minutes by blowing whistles
and chanting "Criminal offenders, predatory lenders."
The group peacefully dispersed when police arrived and asked the protesters
to leave. No one was arrested.
ACORN spokeswoman Jennifer England said National City bank was targeted on
behalf of the family of steelworker Shawn Abbott, who faces losing his
Ambridge home because he cannot make the escalating mortgage payments.
"When he got the loan three years ago, it was an adjustable rate mortgage
and they knew that and they were told it might go up," Ms. England said.
"But they were also told it might go down. And they expected [any change]
would be within a few percentage points."
The mortgage loan -- taken out with First Franklin Bank, which was then
owned by National City -- originally cost the Abbotts $340 a month.
"Within three years, it's over $1,200 a month, not including taxes and
fees," Ms. England said. "And he makes about $2,000 a month."
Ms. England said "because National City owned First Franklin when a lot of
these loans were made, they have an obligation to help these homeowners
renegotiate the terms of their loans so they have fair loans and don't lose
their homes."
National City employees said they could not comment on the protest.
Despite the Abbotts' failure to find a solution yesterday, Ms. England
called the protest a success because it helped spread awareness of the
problem -- and the work toward a solution.
"It's not just this family, but many families like them," she said. "These
are working people. They're not trying to get out of their loans. They have
been put in a bad situation by a bank that has behaved fairly unethically."
ACORN is a national nonprofit group that provides free counseling to low-
and moderate-income home buyers. Ms. England said the local chapter's next
effort will be a town hall meeting with Sheriff William P. Mullen at 6 p.m.
Wednesday at the Teamsters Temple at 4701 Butler St. in Lawrenceville.
"We're going to ask Sheriff Mullen to stop foreclosures for six months on
all owner-occupied homes so families have a chance to negotiate a settlement
with their bank and save their homes," Ms. England said. "It doesn't help
anybody when families are put out of their homes. It's actually bad for all
the neighborhood. When houses are foreclosed upon, all the property values
actually go down."
Ms. England said ACORN representatives would be at the meeting to take
information from homeowners seeking help with their mortgage payments.
http://www.nbc30.com/news/16751775/detail.html?rss=har&psp=news
Residents Protest Hartford Library Closures
POSTED: 5:52 pm EDT June 30, 2008
UPDATED: 6:22 pm EDT June 30, 2008
HARTFORD, Conn. -- Dozens of area residents are protesting Monday over the
library board's decision to close two Hartford Public Library branches.
A crowd outside of one library said it is outraged the library board plans
to close the Mark Twain branch and the Blue Hills branch, NBC 30 reported.
Library officials said the closures are due to an $870,000 budget gap in the
library system. The chief librarian said the closures are expected in a
matter of days.
Officials said the cost to keep the libraries running is about a $500,000.
The board chair said they had hoped to get that money from the city, but
last week the mayor encouraged the library to tap into its unrestricted
endowment or reduce programming and hours around the system.
Library officials said the endowment is restricted and that the other
options won't work.
"This neighborhood loves its library, needs its library, and we're just here
gathering because we feel that it's ours and most importantly it's necessary
for the children," said Hartford resident Susan Hood.
The Hartford Public Library is sending a letter out to the community about
the planned closures. They're also notifying the 40 workers who are expected
to be laid off because of the budget gap.
Library officials said system's adult learning program, teen services and
immigration services will also be affected.
http://www.indianmuslims.info/news/2008/jun/29/hindu_groups_protest_haj_house_construction_ghaziabad.html
Hindu groups protest Haj House construction in Ghaziabad
Submitted by Mudassir Rizwan on Sun, 06/29/2008 - 13:44.
Indian Muslim
By IANS,
Ghaziabad : At least 11 activists of the Shiv Sena and Hindu Mahasabha were
arrested here Sunday as they tried to disrupt work at the under construction
Haj House, which is proposed to be a halting place for Haj pilgrims from
Uttar Pradesh.
The foundation stone of the Haj House, to be built on the banks of Hindon
River here, was laid by then chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav March 30,
2005.
Hindu groups led by the Bharatiya Janta Party, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Shiv
Sena and Hindu Maha Sabha oppose the choice of the site saying that gas pipe
lines of public sector companies pass below it.
"Haj House would be a public place accessible to all types of people and
since gas pipe lines to the filling stations are passing through the same
place, a small spark could explode the whole thing," said Mahesh Ahuja,
organizing secretary of Shiv Sena.
The activists also alleged that the work was going on despite a Allahabad
High Court's stay order.
"When the court has stopped the construction activities then how is the work
still being allowed on the site," asked Raj Kumar Tyagi, leader of Hindu
Maha Sabha.
But the police officials said the stay order has been vacated by the high
court.
Ghaziabad Superintendent Of Police Vijay Bhushan said: "There is no stay on
the construction activities, we will not allow any one to disrupt work at
the site."
http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/general/water_cooler_moments/nonagenarians+river+protest/2301582?intcmp=rss_news_perspectives_water_cooler_moments
Nonagenarian's river protest
Print this page
Last Modified: 26 Jun 2008
Source: PA News
A 91-year-old was among flood victims who mounted a demonstration in a river
with the level down in support of demands for urban flood defences.
A year on from floods which caused £5 million damage to homes and businesses
in Pickering, North Yorkshire, pensioner Topsy Clinch, along with fellow
flood victims Gordon Clitheroe and Kath Grayston, set up a living room in
Pickering Beck.
The protest happened at 10am next to the Beck Isle Museum which was one of
100 homes and businesses devastated by flooding a year ago.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/28/stories/2008062850970300.htm
Kerala - Kozhikode
Protest over delay in port development
Staff Reporter
KOZHIKODE: The Malabar Chamber of Commerce (MCC) will hold a mass dharna at
the Beypore Port premises on June 30, to highlight the undue delay being
experienced in the development of the major port in Malabar.
K.P. Abubacker, secretary, MCC said people from all sections including trade
union and Beypore Port Development Committee will participate in the protest
programme.
The Chamber pointed out that successive governments have failed to initiate
measures for developing the port that was now in a pathetic state. Although
it was decided to appoint a consultant more than a year back to prepare the
project report for the port development scheme, it was only a few days back
that the consultant was appointed.
Three cranes in use at Beypore were more than 40 years old though the
effective usage of a crane was limited to 20 years. Of the two tugs at the
port, one was not operational. While the prescribed depth of the port
channel was 12 metres, in Beypore it was only three metres deep.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/06/28/stories/2008062858470300.htm
Tamil Nadu - Tuticorin
Novel protest to draw attention
Staff Reporter
Tuticorin: Members of the Democratic Youth Federation of India staged a
novel demonstration here on Friday. They had asked the municipal
administration to plug a leak in the drinking water pipe line at Thimmayar
Colony a few days ago. Owing to the leak, water had been stagnating on the
road and caused hardship to residents.
Though they lodged a complaint with the officials concerned many times,
their grievance remained unanswered.
The DYFI men washed clothes in the stagnant water to register their protest.
M. S. Muthu, district secretary, led the agitation.
http://www.kirotv.com/news/16674872/detail.html?rss=sea&psp=news
Neighbors Set Up Camp To Protest Paragliders
Some neighbors along Issaquah-Hobart Road staged a protest of sorts Friday
night against paragliders who they say are taking over a county park and
making traffic conditions dangerous.
For years, local paragliders have launched from Tiger Mountain and have
landed at a county park just below. The group set up lawn chairs and tables
to prove a point and they said about the impact paragliders have on the
park.
"It looks like they've taken it over and it’s hard for anybody else to use
the park," said demonstrator Leeanna Hayes.
Hayes' big concern is parking and congestion. There aren’t many spaces in
the lot, so people often park along Issaquah-Hobart Road and Hayes said that
creates dangerous conditions. As part of her demonstration, Hayes parked six
of her family's cars in the lot.
Marc Chirico is a leader in the paragliding community and runs an outfitting
company. He said paragliders act as stewards of the park by providing port
potties and a dumpster and taking out the trash. Chirico said paragliders
are also concerned about parking and even asked no parking signs to be put
up to make the road safer.
Chirico guesses half of the cars here are usually hikers, especially earlier
in the day.
“I would suggest that the majority of the public usage is hikers,” said
Chirico.
King County Parks Director Kevin Brown said he hadn't heard about the
complaints from neighbors until the last couple of days. He said the county
has a longstanding good relationship with the paragliders and that there are
thousands of acres of public land around here for all kinds of uses.
Hayes has no relation to the Hayes Nursery near the park.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/community/s/1055135_protest_against_po_closure?rss=yes
Protest against P.O. closure
Don Frame
23/ 6/2008
A MASSIVE campaign has been launched to try and save a local post office in
Levenshulme from closure.
The post office in Barlow Road has been earmarked for closure under
government plans to axe 67 of 380 branches in Greater Manchester, Cheshire
and Derbyshire.
Residents turned out with banners and placards at the weekend to stage a
demonstration outside the premises and vowed to fight on until the very end.
A petition has been raised which has already been signed by more than 700
local people, and Liberal Democrats on Manchester City Council have pledged
their support to the cause.
Pat Walsh 46, a spokesman for Friends of Levenshulme said: "People are
furious that the post office has been targeted for closure.
"It is a local facility, and it is going to be incredibly difficult for
older and disabled people, if it does shut. The nearest alternative
according to the post office itself is 15 minutes away, which is too far to
walk for many people, and there is no direct bus route."
He said: "I'm incredibly angry at what is being proposed - particularly when
it has just been revealed that the head of the Post Office is now being paid
£3 million for running the business..
"This is just part of the decline of local mail services. We are down to one
postal delivery a day, which can come at any time, and it can never even be
guaranteed to arrive the next day.
"Local post offices deal with a whole host of services on which local people
rely. A lot more money should be invested in the service, rather than
closing them down."
Residents are planning to tackle local Labour MP Gerald Kaufman about the
plan next weekend, and his spokesman Julie Reid, who was at the demo said:
"He's furious about it, and plans to give his full support to the residents'
case."
Local Liberal Democrat councillor Charles Glover said: "This is an
incredibly well-used business dealing with in excess of 1,000 transactions
per week.
"It serves around 21,000 people in the community, and new housing is
underway which will bring it even more custom. It's madness to close it."
Bitter end
He said: "We have written to around 3000 homes in the area about the plans,
and we are determined to fight until the bitter end."
Pensioners Dorothy Trail and Nancy Smith, both 79, have been using the
Barlow Road Post Office for decades and say they can't imagine life without
it.
Dorothy, who was born a few hundred yards away, and has lived in the
community all her life, said: "We feel absolutely devastated.
"We wouldn't be able to use the nearest alternative post office on
Levenshulme Road, because it's too far away. They say it's just over half a
mile, but that must be as the crow flies."
Nancy, who has mobility problems and walks with a stick, said: "We use the
Post Office for so many different reasons, and it will leave a huge gap if
it closes.
"It's not just the business side of things however. The post office is the
hub of the community where people naturally meet and have a chat about
what's going on."
Nasreen Choudhary, a trainee counter clerk at the post office said: "It
would be a real shame if it closed. Older people in particular love coming
here, and we provide a vital service.
"We talk to a lot of elderly people who have been coming here for years and
years. They depend on us, and would find it difficult to find the same
facilities elsewhere."
The planned 67 Post Office closures include 11 in Stockport, eight in
Oldham, five in Manchester, seven in Bolton, five in Bury, seven in
Rochdale, three in Salford, six in Tameside, three in Trafford and one in
Wigan.
Two weeks ago Greater Manchester's four Liberal Democrat MP's launched a
petition outside Spring Gardens Post Office in the city centre - Mark Hunter
(Cheadle), John Leech (Withington), Paul Rowen (Rochdale) and Andrew Stunell
(Hazel Grove.)
Manchester council says it recognises the vital role played by local post
offices as supported by research it commissioned from the New Economics
Foundation.
A spokesman said: "The report demonstrated the social and economic
contribution which urban post offices make. It provided robust evidence that
showed the significant knock-on impacts of closures for local businesses,
schools, community groups, the local economy and for local people -
particularly the most vulnerable.
"The loss of a post office can trigger a downward cycle in urban areas. The
danger is that when amenities like the post office or banking facilities
disappear from a community, the financially mobile are more likely to leave,
leaving higher concentrations of deprivations, which can in turn lead to
further loss of amenities."
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/07/stories/2008070759050400.htm
Tamil Nadu
Pallavaram residents protest late arrival of Aavin milk truck
Special Correspondent
TAMBARAM: Sore over the delay in the arrival of trucks bringing Aavin milk
packets, residents of Pallavaram staged a protest blocking the vehicle on
Sunday morning.
The truck carrying milk normally reaches the distribution point on Dargah
Road at 5 a.m. everyday. Residents complained that it had been regularly
coming late by more than an hour.
When the vehicle arrived at 7 a.m. on Sunday, the residents blocked its way
it and refused to buy the milk packets as a mark of protest. Senior
officials from Aavin and the Police Department intervened and dispersed the
residents. The Aavin officials said the vehicle reached the distribution
point in Pallavaram late on two occasions last week owing to the problems
created by diesel shortage across the city.
And early on Sunday morning, the regular truck carrying the milk packets to
Pallavaram broke down. They had to arrange a spare vehicle and hence the
delay, the officials said. A total of 900 litres of Aavin milk were brought
back without being distributed to the residents, they said.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/08/stories/2008070853030300.htm
Delay in project
Residents of Hulikeri village in Dharwad taluk staged another demonstration
in Dharwad on Monday protesting against the delay in the development of
Indiramma Tank in the village, which could irrigate around seven to eight
adjacent villages. They also said that they had been deprived of the
benefits of the debt waiver scheme of the Central Government and demanded
that appropriate amendments in the guidelines of the scheme so that they got
relief.
BPL cards
The main issue for the protest by Republic Party of India (RPI) was the
delay in the issue of BPL ration cards. Led by president of the women’s wing
of city unit of the party, the protestors complained that the delay was
causing hardships to the public, especially the poor and demanded issue of
BPL cards at the earliest. After staging a demonstration before the Deputy
Commissioner’s office, they submitted a memorandum addressed to the Chief
Minister.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/08/stories/2008070851130300.htm
Andhra Pradesh - Kadapa
CPI protest
KADAPA: CPI activists on Monday besieged the Municipal Corporation office
demanding Indiramma scheme benefit for the deserving poor.
—Staff Reporter
http://allafrica.com/stories/200807080015.html
Somalia: IDPs Stage Protest in Puntland
Garowe Online (Garowe)
7 July 2008
Posted to the web 8 July 2008
Hundreds of protestors gathered in front of the main government building in
the port city of Bossaso, in northern Somalia' s region of Puntland, Radio
Garowe reported Monday.
The protestors were mostly composed of internally displaced peoples who fled
war in south Somalia.
One of the protest organizers said they were demonstrating against food aid
that was "distributed unfairly" and also against hyperinflation, which he
accused the Puntland government of involvement.
The demonstrators marched in front of the money changer offices in Bossaso,
where local police fired gunshots in the air and dispersed the crowd.
There were reports of some arrests.
Meanwhile, Puntland President Mohamud "Adde" Muse arrived in the city of
Galkayo, the capital of Mudug region and Puntland's southernmost town.
The Puntland leader was welcomed by Galkayo regional and city officials, as
well as local supporters. He reportedly held private meetings with local
officials and traditional elders, with the talks centered on improving
security.
President Muse's trip to Galkayo was not previously announced, with insiders
suggesting the visit was hidden for security-related reasons.
In recent weeks, there have been deadly car bombings and assassinations in
Galkayo, prompting city officials to enact a nighttime curfew last week.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1056490_barefoot_post_office_protest?rss=yes
Barefoot post office protest
3/ 7/2008
CAMPAIGNERS are to go barefoot in a bid to save their post office - with a
protest march through the pain barrier.
The demonstrators are trying to highlight the suffering they say the closure
of Buersil Post Office in Rochdale will inflict on its elderly customers.
The office is one of 67 in Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire earmarked for
closure by the government.
Marchers will discard their shoes and socks tomorrow for their walk from the
Buersil office to the nearest alternative branch, more than a mile away.
Organisers say they are expecting a big turnout after more than 150 people
packed a public meeting on the issue.
They will hear an update on the campaign from postmaster Jay Patel.
Jay hit the headlines in 2006 alongside his father Kantilal, 64, after the
pair tackled gunmen during a raid at their now-threatened business.
He said: "The reason for walking barefooted is to reflect the hardship that
many of my elderly customers will have to go through to get to the nearest
alternative, which is at Lowerplace, on Oldham Road.
"This will be a peaceful march - and we'll toe the legal line. If we close,
then it will be another nail in the coffin of vital community services."
The march is being backed by the town's MP, Paul Rowen, who has written to
the Post Office asking for `clarification' over their reasons for closure.
Mr Rowen said: "Petitions are coming in every day and we appreciate the
support that we are receiving. Many of our most vulnerable residents will
experience particular hardship with these suggested closures.
"That is why this march is an extremely imaginative idea and will give
participants some idea of the problems faced by customers."
The march, which starts at 1pm tomorrow, comes on the same day a government
minister faces a grilling over the planned closures.
Oldham East and Saddleworth MP Phil Woolas will face a question-and-answer
session at Lees Library - a stone's throw from the village's threatened post
office.
His constituency is home to eight post offices earmarked for closure.
But the minister, whose brother runs a post office in Cumbria, says he is to
create a dossier of evidence in a bid to save some of them.
http://www.workers.org/2008/us/homeless_0710/
LGBT & straight protest NY mayor’s homeless policies
Published Jul 2, 2008 10:09 PM
Members of Picture the Homeless and the Radical Homosexual Agenda joined
forces on June 24 for a protest at the Gracie Mansion where billionaire
Mayor Michael Bloomberg was hosting a dinner and reception in honor of LGBT
Pride Month. The date of the event was the fourth anniversary of Bloomberg’s
Five-Year Plan on Homelessness. Protesters chanted, “Homeless people,
straight and gay, we need housing right away!”
An e-mail from the Radical Homosexual Agenda posted on progressive LGBT
listserve describes Bloomberg’s program: “In 2004, he had promised that his
policies of privatization would drastically reduce homelessness in New York
City within five years. But on this, the four-year mark of his program, the
number of homeless people remains extremely high.... In fact, shelters are
so full—approximately 34,000 people a night at last count—they’re turning
people away....
“Mayor Bloomberg could learn a lot from Picture the Homeless if he sat down
to talk with them. Recently, PTH worked with Manhattan Borough President
Scott Stringer to conduct a survey of the city—they found that there are
more than enough empty buildings to house each and every homeless person in
New York. PTH advocates not only opening these buildings for housing, but
also shifting Department of Homeless Service budgets from shelters to rent
assistance.”
Despite the event being billed as an LGBT pride reception, RHA reports their
queer delegates were turned away from Gracie Mansion when they attempted to
attend the dinner. They urge people to get involved by visiting
www.picturethehomeless.org or www.homelessyouthservices.org, a Web site
listing services for homeless LGBT youth.
—LeiLani Dowell
Articles copyright 1995-2008 Workers World. Verbatim copying and
distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without
royalty provided this notice is preserved.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20080718-149224/Militants-stage-protest-at-SSS-in-Quezon-City
Militants stage protest at SSS in Quezon City
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 11:40:00 07/18/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- Militants protested in front of the Social Security
System building in Quezon City Friday against the government’s national
social welfare program for the poor, a radio report said.
The activists managed to vandalize the walls of the SSS building before they
could be stopped by security, footage on ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo showed.
They also protested the takeover of Commission on Higher Education chairman
Romulo Neri as head of SSS in August.
Neri, who was former socioeconomic planning secretary of the National
Economic Development Authority, has been criticized for refusing to
implicate President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the allegedly anomalous
national broadband network (NBN) agreement forged with a Chinese
telecommunications firm.
Neri’s move to SSS has been opposed by various sectors.
http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa080718_wz_weatherfordpower.69fa97c1.html
Weatherford residents protest power price surge
01:27 PM CDT on Friday, July 18, 2008
By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA-TV
Video
WEATHERFORD — Residents of Weatherford are up-in-arms about the high price
of power from their city-owned utility company.
Rates went up 40 percent after the city switched to electricity generated by
natural gas. Weatherford Electric blames power cost adjustment charges,
which are necessary to cover the cost of buying natural gas and other fuels.
Angry citizens crowded a meeting of the Weatherford Utility Board at City
Hall Friday afternoon to ask questions and to file complaints.
Many are now facing tough decisions about how to allocate their paycheck for
the necessities of life: groceries, medicine and power.
"If I'm in a two-income family, and I'm worried about being able to pay my
electric bill, what about the disabled who are on a fixed income?" asked
Weatheford Electric customer Paige Grassman, whose bill went up $250 in a
single month.
"I didn't see Social Security giving anybody a raise this month," Grassman
said. "What about the elderly people who are already choosing between
medicine and electricity as it is now? What are they going to do?"
http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=125084
Homeless people stage protest rally Saturday, July 19, 2008
Noor Aftab
Islamabad
A large number of homeless people held a protest rally here Friday with an
aim to highlight their plight and sufferings and press the government to
take immediate steps to help them lead an honourable life.
The participants of the rally including women, children, and even
handicapped and ailing people were carrying placards and banners inscribed
with their demand for a respectable living. They also chanted slogans for
early implementation of the scheme announced by the prime minister to allot
a plot to every homeless person in the country.
Former federal minister Julius Salik led the protest rally that started from
Rawalpindi-Islamabad Press Club (Camp Office) and culminated at the Melody
Chowk where speakers addressed the gathering.
J. Salik while speaking on the occasion said he has been struggling for the
cause of shelterless people and marginalised segments of the society in
order to prevent them from taking extreme steps like committing suicides and
selling their children and even their kidneys to make their both ends meet.
Condemning the attitude of the bureaucrats and politicians he said these
people were living a luxurious life in their palaces and bungalows and the
poor people who despite paying taxes were left with no option but to suffer
each and every moment of their life.
He alleged that the aid provided by foreign donors were usually spent in the
schemes that could benefit the elite segments but the poor masses were
yearning for flour, ghee and electricity.
“Hundreds of thousands of people were compelled to live in inhuman and
shameful conditions as they lacked the basic human facilities like clean
drinking water, electricity, sanitation and sewerage,” he said.
J. Salik expressed his disappointment over the non-representation of
minorities in the Parliament which has been a source of serious concern and
resentment amongst the minority groups.
http://www.beloblog.com/ProJo_Blogs/newsblog/archives/2008/07/rally_planned_t.html
July 1, 2008
Rally in Central Falls planned to protest budget cuts
CENTRAL FALLS -- Several community groups will gather in Central Falls this
afternoon to protest millions of dollars in budget cuts that take effect
today, the first day of the state's fiscal year.
The rally, which is being organized by the Rhode Island Coalition for the
Homeless, starts at 2 p.m. Speakers will include adults slated to lose
health care coverage, welfare recipients who will be subject to tighten time
limits, and representatives from nonprofit groups whose state funding was
cut in half in the state budget approved by the General Assembly and signed
by the governor late last month.
Seeking to close a $425-million budget deficit, lawmakers cut in half state
funding for programs such as Meals on Wheels, the Rhode Island Community
Food Bank and the Crossroads homeless shelter.
-- Steve Peoples, Journal State House Bureau
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/02/stories/2008070250750300.htm
Tamil Nadu
AIADMK protests ‘maladministration’
Staff Reporter
Says local body has failed to provide basic amenities
Photo: N. Bashkaran
United: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam activists staging a
demonstration in front of the Krishnagiri Municipality on Tuesday. –
Krishnagiri: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) staged a
demonstration on Gandhi Road here on Tuesday in protest against the
“maladminstration of Krishnagiri Municipality.” M. Thambidurai, MLA, led the
demonstration. He alleged that the local body had failed to implement
development works and it was evident from the battered roads and overflowing
drainages within the municipal limits. The municipal authorities were
deliberately creating problems in wards from which AIADMK councillors were
elected.District secretary Thennarasu was among those who were present.
http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Squash-courts-will-go-warn.4288099.jp
Squash courts will go warn protesters
SAVE Meadowbank campaigners warn that the squash courts at the city's sports
facility will be lost when the current centre is demolished.
They claim thousands of people will disagree with the city council's plans
not to include squash courts in the new "mini-Meadowbank".
Save Meadowbank spokesman Kevin Connor said: "Squash is not part of the
council's plan for mini-Meadowbank.
"It's one of many sports the council has decided not to provide. Thousands
of people disagree with this council vision.
"We call on the council to listen to what their citizens are telling them
and retain the entire Meadowbank site for sports use."
Mark Wishart, who has been playing squash for two decades says there are not
enough courts at the centre as it is.
He added: "When I asked what other council courts are available I was
directed to Craiglockhart.
"But they told me their courts are now closed and are expected to remain so
for at least a year.
"Two squash courts for a city the size of Edinburgh is simply ridiculous."
The Save Meadowbank campaign, which was formed in March last year, was set
up to oppose plans to demolish the current stadium and sell off land to
private developers.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/video/2008/jul/15/mangelwurzels.protest?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
Ancient chant sung to save post office
Somerset villagers carrying mangelwurzel lanterns visited No 10 Downing
Street to protest against the closure of rural post offices
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/07/18/2003417786
‘Youth Anti-Debt Alliance’ protests bill
By Loa Iok-Sin
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Jul 18, 2008, Page 3
Various civic groups forming the “Youth Anti-Debt Alliance” voiced their
concern yesterday, claiming that the new labor insurance system may cause a
“financial black hole” and damage their right to collect payments when they
retire.
Under the new system, the monthly labor insurance premium will be raised
year by year from 7.5 percent of an employee’s monthly salary to 13 percent.
The insurance payment collection mechanism will also change from a single
lump sum payment to a series of monthly payments after retirement at the age
of 65.
“The new plan means that the younger you are, the more you have to pay,”
Vincent Chou (周榆修), chairman of the Taiwan Young Democratic Union, told a
news conference at the legislature.
“For example, I was born in the 1970s, I started working at 25, and when I
reach my legal retirement age of 65, I will have paid NT$1.46 million
[US$48,000],” he said. “Under the same set of circumstances, someone who is
born in the 1980s will have paid NT$1.69 million, while my son, who is only
13 months old, will be paying a total of NT$1.83 million.”
However, there is no guarantee that an insured individual will be able to
collect the payment after he or she retires.
“Under the old labor insurance plan which allows someone to collect a
one-time payment after he or she retires, someone who makes NT$30,000
[US$990] per month will be collecting a total of NT$1.4 million,” said Lee
Huai-jen (李懷仁), a spokesman for the anti-debt alliance.
“However, under the new system which allows one to collect the payment
monthly, the longer you live, the more you would collect,” he said. “So for
one who makes NT$30,000 a month, retires at 65 and lives until 78 — the
average life expectancy — he or she will be collecting a total of around
NT$2 million instead.”
Lee said that a “financial black hole” would thus be created.
The group’s worries are not baseless.
The Council of Labor Affairs admitted that, under the new plan, the labor
insurance program may be broke within 19 years.
“What we need is inside-out labor insurance reform,” said Huang Yi-ling
(黃怡翎), a member of the alliance. “Under the new plan, we don’t see any
economic security for our old age.”
Taiwan Labor Front (TLF), on the other hand, yesterday praised the adoption
of the new labor insurance pension system.
TLF secretary-general Son Yu-lian (孫友聯) said in a statement that he believed
a pension system, rather than a one-time insurance payment collection “could
better take care of laborers’ life in retirement,” while also pointing out
some ideas for improvement.
“We expect that further amendments will require all workers — regardless of
occupation — to be included in the labor insurance pension system,” he said.
“And the options laborers have vis-a-vis the labor pension and the national
pension systems must be explained to them so that they can make an informed
decision,” Son said.
http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/07/14/atlanta_fire_station_protest.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13
Mayor booed as Atlanta's oldest fire station is closed
By ERIC STIRGUS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/14/08
It was supposed to be a solemn ceremony to say farewell to Atlanta's oldest
fire station.
Instead, it was overshadowed by a verbal confrontation between Mayor Shirley
Franklin and about a dozen demonstrators who did not want Fire Station 7
closed.
"This is wrong!" the protesters chanted, prompting the mayor to stop her
remarks.
"This is the best we can do under a bizarre set of circumstances," Franklin
said amid boos and name-calling.
At one point, Franklin left the podium and confronted the protesters, who
peppered the mayor with questions about why she was closing the station,
located in the West End neighborhood.
One man holding an infant yelled that the city was endangering area
children, insisting response times to fires will slow.
"We're not proud right now," said community activist Deborah Scott, taking a
page from Franklin's campaign slogan "If you make me mayor, I'll make you
proud."
"I'm not proud of the way you are behaving," the mayor replied as about
three dozen firefighters and paramedics watched.
Franklin announced Friday that she was closing the fire station as part of a
plan to plug a $14.6 million budget gap. The mayor also laid off 78 city
workers and left vacant 112 positions, including 53 for sworn police
officers.
In all, the cuts totaled $21.6 million, which is $7 million more than the
City Council recommended the mayor trim from the city's $583 million budget
for the fiscal year that started July 1.
Council members, such as Ceasar Mitchell, said Monday that Franklin should
have considered employee buyouts and eliminating more vacant positions
instead of the job cuts. The mayor says the council "punted" the task of
making the cuts to her and insists her budget-balancing plan of raising
property taxes would have avoided the job cuts. Franklin laid off 441 city
workers and eliminated 788 vacancies earlier this year to help fill
Atlanta's $140 million projected budget shortfall.
Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran reiterated Monday that response times would not
slow in the West End, noting there are four fire stations within three miles
of Fire Station 7. The chief said he recommended closing the station after a
response time analysis showed it could best withstand being shuttered.
Cochran said the city may reopen the station if and when Atlanta's budget
situation improves. The firefighters who worked there were transferred to
other stations.
Community leaders and residents eulogized the cream-colored, two-story
building as the place they visited to get blood-pressure screenings or
learned how to install child-safety seats. They had recently begun an effort
to raise money to fix the station house, with its ceiling cracks and worn
furniture.
Merry Ford, who works at the nearby West End Medical Clinic, stood among the
crowd Monday, worrying if it will take paramedics longer to get to the
patients they treat.
"It's not minutes that count," she said. "It's seconds."
Amid the shouting, the firefighters said goodbye to the station. They read a
eulogy about the lives they saved and the difficulty of leaving. They
prayed, recited the pledge of allegiance climbed into their trucks and then
drove away to waves from the crowd.
http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/07/24/fire_station_rally.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13
Protesters will demand that fire station re-open
By KEN SUGIURA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/24/08
Leaders in the Summerhill neighborhood near Turner Field will hold a rally
tonight (Thursday July 24) to call for the re-opening of Fire Station 7 in
the West End. The rally will be at 5 p.m. in front of the Ormond Street home
of Summerhill activist Mattie Jackson, whose home burned down last Friday.
Atlanta's oldest fire house was closed earlier this month to help the city
meet its $14.6 million budget shortfall. Douglas Dean, president of the
Summerhill Neighborhood Development Corporation, said he is calling on Mayor
Shirley Franklin and the City Council to work to restore police and fire
department funding that has been cut to meet the budget.
Atlanta Fire Department investigators said that the fire, which started at a
house under construction next to Jackson's and damaged a total of five
houses, was started by arson. Jackson, 86, had lived in the home for 42
years.
Said Gary Lamb, a neighbor of Jackson's, "7" would have gotten here a lot
quicker."
The fire department said that fire engines were dispatched at 5:26 and
reached the scene at 5:30.
A fund to assist Jackson has been set up. Donors can go to any Bank of
America branch and can make contributions to the Mattie A. Jackson
Contribution Fund. A bank spokeswoman said that donors must also specify
that the fund is based in Georgia.
Said Dean, “White and black, rich and poor, people are coming from
everywhere†to help Jackson.
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/16881305/detail.html?rss=atl&psp=news
Atlanta Mayor In Loud Shouting Match With Fire Station Protesters
Mayor Tells Angry Crowd: 'You've Never Seen The Philadelphia Side Of Me'
POSTED: 5:24 pm EDT July 14, 2008
UPDATED: 6:41 pm EDT July 14, 2008
ATLANTA -- Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin was less than a minute into her
speech at the official closing ceremony of one of the city’s oldest fire
stations when she was booed and shouted down by protesters.
“I decided it was important for me to come as the mayor of this city to add
my thanks to those who have served at station number seven,” said Atlanta
Mayor Shirley Franklin.
One protester yelled “What about the children?” while others chanted “Save
Number Seven.”
Many protesters believe closing the station, located on Whitehall Street in
southwest Atlanta, will put residents at risk and possibly create a delayed
response time for emergencies.
“Now you know what’s going to happen, these ladies and gentlemen have never
seen the Philadelphia side of me; I’m going to come over there and have the
conversation,” said Franklin to the crowd of angry protesters.
WATCH: Atlanta Mayor Goes Head To Head With Angry Crowd
But the crowd wasn’t in a mood to talk.
“Why fire station seven; why this community?” said a protester. “This is
wrong!”
“The easy thing for me to do was not to come. I chose to come because I
understand your frustration. I am disappointed we don’t have all the funds
we need too,” said Franklin.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/15/stories/2008071551990300.htm
Andhra Pradesh
Protest rally by Girijans
CHITTOOR: Members of the District Girijan Association took out a rally here
on Monday in protest against the indifferent attitude of the government in
providing basic facilities in their villages.
The members sought street lights, drinking water and roads besides
sanctioning house site pattas and construction of houses.
They later submitted a memorandum to district Collector M. Ravi Chandra, who
promised to look into their demands.- Correspondent
http://en.epochtimes.com/news/8-7-9/73172.html
World Trade Center Crowd Protest Firing of 9/11 Official
By Shaoshao Chen
Epoch Times New York StaffJul 09, 2008
Congressman Jerrold Nadler at a press conference in New York. Congressman
Nadler spoke out against the departure of John Howard, director of the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. (The Epoch Times)
NEW YORK�A group of sick and injured World Trade Center responders, members
of Congress, and the governor are up in arms over the departure of a
federally appointed bureaucrat.
As the final date for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH) Director John Howard's departure draws near, the chorus of
voices calling for his reappointment is growing.
At the heart of the controversy is the shock over Howard's departure after
six years of serving as the director of NIOSH. He has been lauded for his
federally funded health plans for workers claiming to suffer illness after
the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center site.
Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) gathered at the site of the
World Trade Centers on July 8 to demand the return of Howard, whose current
term is set to end on July 14.
"One of the few Administration officials working on 9/11 health issues has
been fired," said Nadler.
Howard's policies have been known to clash with the Bush administration's
worker's health plan. The conflict is rumored to be a main reason for his
sudden departure, and inquiries have been made by organizations such as the
American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) over the issue.
"Dr. John Howard has been instrumental in unleashing a wealth of talent at
NIOSH and helping bring together the research and educational resources of
NIOSH," wrote the ASSE in a statement. "We do not know why such a highly
competent leader and administrator of an agency�should not be reappointed."
In the press conference at the WTC site, both Nadler and Maloney raised
similar questions and lambasted the Bush administration's role in
terminating Howard's position.
"The Bush Administration�and in particular the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention�has made a grave mistake in its decision not to reappoint Dr.
Howard," said Nadler, who accuses the president of refusing to take action
in health issues involving 9/11 initial responders.
In a separate letter written on Tuesday to the Secretary of U.S. Department
of Health and Services, New York senators Charles Schumer and Hillary
Clinton raised similar questions.
"Failing to maintain [Howard's] leadership at NIOSH will unnecessarily
jeopardize the currently existing 9/11 health programs," stated the letter.
In a public statement announcing Howard's departure as director, CDC
director Julie Gerberding said there will be a temporary replacement until a
new director is located. The statement however, fails to offer any further
explanation.
Advocates for 9/11 health plans fear that Howard's departure may jeopardize
future funding for treatment of sick workers.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20080710/113709905.html
Protesters unleash cockroaches on local authorities in Madrid
18:16|10/ 07/ 2008
MADRID, July 10 (RIA Novosti) - Residents of a low-rent district in southern
Madrid have released cockroaches near a local government building to protest
against poor sanitation, Spain's ABC paper reported on its website Thursday.
Dozens of residents from the Orcasitas district held a march to protest
against the inaction of local authorities, who have failed to improve
sanitation in the district. The residents say the area is swamped by
cockroaches and rodents.
The paper said most protestors had brought containers of cockroaches and let
the insects go near the municipal building when officials came out for
talks.
The Orcasitas district developed in the late 1950s and was first inhabited
by poor people, who had relocated from southern Spain in search of jobs. The
district has also become home to impoverished Latin Americans and North
Americans in the past few years.
Neighborhood associations have been active in the district since the 1960s.
They have been pressurizing the local administration to improve living
standards.
http://interestalert.com/story/07110004aaa03356.prn/siteia/POLITICS/politics.html
Activists Converge on McCain HQ to Protest Campaign's Ties to Buyout
Industry
Protest Part of Global Day of Action to Take Back the Economy
ARLINGTON, Va., July 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Activists concerned about
the ties between Sen. John McCain and the private equity buyout industry
will converge on his northern Virginia headquarters Thursday, July 17, at 11
a.m.
Protestors, noting that Sen. McCain's self-proclaimed favorite band is Abba,
plan on serenading the campaign staff with the Loophole King, a parody of
Abba's classic hit the Dancing Queen. An SEIU online video promoting the day
of action and featuring Godzilla taking on McCain for his links to the
industry can be viewed at www.July17action.org.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/31/stories/2008073153290300.htm
Other States - Puducherry
NCP to stage protest
PUDUCHERRY: President of the Puducherry unit of the Nationalist Congress
Party on Wednesday said that the party activists would hold street-corner
meetings from August 5 to 8 in protest against the government’s “failure” to
implement welfare and development schemes.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/30/stories/2008073060470500.htm
Tamil Nadu - Chennai
Youth Forum holds protest meeting
Staff Reporter
CHENNAI: The Kotturpuram Youth Forum organised a meeting recently to protest
the Chennai Corporation’s proposal to convert the Corporation playground
located on Kotturpuram Gardens 1st Cross Street, Kotturpuram, into a park.
The members of the forum said that the playground popularly called the ‘ABCD
Park’ is the only space available for the children and youth to play in the
locality and wanted the civic agency to abandon the plan. R. Ganesh Krish,
secretary of the forum, said that the children in Kotturpuram Gardens, which
consists of five streets, have only one playground and the move to develop a
park did not make sense, as the locality already has a few parks.
The members of the forum alleged that the civic agency had not been coming
out with details of what it proposed to do about the indoor stadium, which
was closed for the public in 2006. When the residents enquired with the
civic agency about the reason for closing down the indoor stadium, equipped
with a badminton court, the authorities said that the badminton court was to
be renovated. But suddenly the authorities announced that a portion of the
stadium was allotted to women’s self- help group in the locality, the forum
alleged.
The indoor stadium constructed at the cost of Rs. 40 lakh from MP’s Local
Area Development Fund and inaugurated by the then Mayor, M.K. Stalin, in
2001 needs to be renovated, the forum members said.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/30/stories/2008073054970800.htm
Karnataka - Bangalore
Anganwadi workers stage protest
Staff Repoter
BANGALORE: Over 100 anganwadi workers staged a protest in front of Mahatma
Gandhi statue here urging the Government to withdraw its decision on
privatising distribution of food under the Integrated Child Development
Scheme (ICDS).
Speaking to The Hindu, the president of the Karnataka State Samyuktha
Anganwadi Workers’ Association, K. Somashekhar, said that anganwadi workers
were poorly paid. He said a monthly honorarium of only Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 500
are given to an anganwadi worker and her assistant, respectively.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/30/stories/2008073053450300.htm
Karnataka
Unemployed graduates to stage protests
Staff Correspondent
DAVANGERE: The Unemployed Graduates’ Forum has decided to stage protests
across the State against the “ill-conceived” move to increase the retirement
age of State government employees to 60.
Members of the forum condemned the decision at a meeting held on the ITI
college campus here on Monday.
Instead of opening up job avenues, Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa had taken
a step that was detrimental to the interests of unemployed graduates. It had
dashed their hopes of getting employment, the forum members said. The
decision had also created panic among college students,the forum members
said.
Some members of the forum said that they had thought they would get
employment when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government had come to
power. The forum demanded that the Government withdraw its decision and
retain the retirement age of government employees at 58.
The forum said that it will launch an agitation if the Government failed to
withdraw the decision in 10 days.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200807250317.html
Nigeria: Athletes Protest Minister's Action
Vanguard (Lagos)
25 July 2008
Posted to the web 25 July 2008
Onochie Anibeze
Lagos
Beijing bound Olympic Athletes yesterday marched to the Sports ministry to
protest to sports Minister Abdulrahaman Gimba over some of his actions. It
was a mild protest that could be likened to a plea as the athletes were
guided out of the premises and prevented from going violent.
They were enraged that they were still in Nigeria wasting when they should
have been intensifying training. They also grumbled over their allowances
which had not been paid and the general attitude of the minister towards
their Olympic campaign.
The minister had drastically reduced the number of the contingent to the
Games in keeping with his plan which is to ensure Nigeria does not make the
Olympics a jamboree.
He was actually indifferent to Nigeria's participation and made such
representation to the Presidency. However, the Federal Government ruled that
Nigeria must participate but added that a bogus representation was not
necessary.
And Gimba is ensuring that. But when he reduced the number of doctors for
the entire Nigerian contingent to three and said that foreign doctors could
be hired on arrival in China, the athletes felt that it was time to talk to
him themselves after it appeared the position of his directors was ignored.
They did so yesterday and pleaded that the minister see reason to reverse
his decision on their medical team. They appreciated the fact that the
minister did not come from a sports background and must not been properly
advised.
"We are freer with our own doctors. It may not even be cheaper to hire
foreign doctor there if the idea is to cut costs," one athlete said. Another
said that "hiring a doctor who may not know the medical history of the
athletes may not be good especially when we are not talking about emergency
cases," another said. One official simply said there were security
implications that the minister might not have known.
The minister was also indifferent to sports associations traveling out for
qualifying events. He probably was not told that different sports had to
qualify for the Olympics so funding them was difficult. But there are
sources that insist that the minister was just being prudent with financial
allocations aside the fact that they did receive money in time to ensure
adequate preparation for the Games.
The minister was said to be reviewing his position on the medical doctors at
press time.
At the time other countries are concentrating on training and putting final
touches to their strategies, Nigeria is still debating who goes to the games
or not. Opening ceremony is on August 8 but the football event starts 24
hours before this show that promises to be a world spectacle.
http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=45366
Protesters Carry Message to Lawmakers' Doors
Posted By: Will Frampton 1 month ago
FAIR OAKS, CA - Becca Gonzales is tired of reading about state budget issues
in the papers, waiting for something to happen. That's why she went door to
door, talking to whoever would listen.
In the Curragh Downs neighborhood off Hazel Avenue, she and seven others
gave out fliers, hoping to persuade action from residents there to help push
lawmakers to action.
"Unless (people are) confronted more, they're not really forced to think
about it," said Gonzales.
Her group's message hopes to motivate Californians to action and not just
think about the budget crisis, but do something. The group recommends
contacting a state representative; telling them to mix budget cuts with more
taxes, so that schools and health care can be saved.
The fliers had the numbers and addresses for Sen. Dave Cox and Assemblyman
Roger Niello. And it was no coincidence that both politicians live in the
neighborhood.
"We just happen to be ... at Assemblyman Roger Niello's house," said
Gonzales with a grin as she approached the property with her flier.
The modest protest was preceded by a bigger one several hours earlier. At
the State Capitol, hundreds of state workers protested Gov. Schwarzenegger's
plan to cut their pay to the minimum, thereby urging a resolution on the
budget. Democrat Don Perata called it an act of war, while State Controller
John Chiang said he would not authorize the proposed cuts.
Lawmakers weren't at the capitol Thursday. The body has adjourned for July
recess.
In Fair Oaks, Gonzales said she doesn't think there's time to wait on
lawmakers. She and her group believe ordinary taxpayers need to help push
the issue before it's too late.
"If we pass a budget that only focuses on cuts, then it's really going to
hurt our school children. It's really going to hurt our seniors," Gonzales
said.
http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php?sid=386989
Trinamool takes out lantern rallies to protest power cuts
IANS Sunday 27th July, 2008
Holding aloft lanterns and candles, Trinamool Congress activists hit the
streets here Sunday, protesting against the frequent power cuts in West
Bengal.
'We decided to take out lantern rallies in and around Kolkata to protest
against the ruling Left Front's failure to provide the people with even a
basic necessity like electricity,' senior Trinamool leader Madan Mitra, who
led the rally, told IANS.
'The rallies are being organised by local party leaders to create awareness
among people about the state of affairs under the Left Front's misrule. We
will also organise a central rally here Monday,' Mitra said.
After incessant downpour and inundation in some West Bengal districts, the
state is now reeling under severe power shortage with wet and poor quality
coal impacting power generation at thermal power stations.
The supply of coal has also drastically fallen forcing the power companies
to resort to phased power cuts to spread the shortage evenly.
'There will be around 45 rallies across Kolkata Sunday. Our party supremo
Mamata Banerjee could also lead tomorrow's (Monday) central rally from the
city hub - Esplanade. Many people from Kolkata's adjoining districts will
also participate in the rally,' he said.
'We're carrying lanterns, candles and posters with us in the rally to
project the dismal power situation in the state. The protest programme
against power cuts will continue for next three days across West Bengal,'
Mitra said.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/27/stories/2008072751200300.htm
Karnataka - Bijapur
Protest
BIJAPUR: The residents of Chalukya Nagar staged “rasta roko” at Solhapur
road to protest against irregular supply of drinking water here on Saturday.
The protesters burnt tyres on the roads and raised slogans against the City
Municipal Authorities (CMC). They alleged that water has not been supplied
to their area since 10 days and the authorities concerned have not responded
to their pleas. They demanded that CMC commissioner Shrikant Kattimani come
to the spot and take steps in this regard. Mr. Kattimani, who visited the
spot, assured the agitators that steps would be taken to improve drinking
water supply.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/22/stories/2008072257640300.htm
Other States - Orissa
NCP protests against BPL card ‘irregularities’
Correspondent
Collector assures action against erring officials
CUTTACK: The Cuttack unit of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) took the
district police administration unaware on Monday when over hundreds of party
activists stormed into the district Collector’s office in the morning
protesting against what they called “irregularities” in the BPL card
distribution in the district.
Led by the city unit leader Suvendu Mohanty, the NCP activists had gathered
at the Collectorate to gherao the Collector. But soon the activists pushed
their way into the Collector’s cabin putting the local police in an
embarrassing position.
The newly appointed Collector Kishore Kumar Mohanty who took charge only on
Sunday, however, welcomed a delegate of the party for a discussion.
The party alleged that BPL card distribution in the entire district has been
stopped since January 2004.
During this period at least more than 40,000 families have been registered
under below poverty line (BPL) but they have not received the BPL cards,
allege Mohanty.
The city NCP corporator Sheshadev Nanda participating in the discussion told
the Collector that the public distribution system (PDS) in the city has gone
wayward.
The residents are getting the PDS items regularly whereas the poor slum
dwellers are deprived of any poverty alleviation programme for lack of BPL
card, he added.
While only some 17,000 persons were identified to be under below poverty
line in January 2004, the number increased to some 55,000 by the end of
2004.
But since then there has been no survey in the city and the poor people
continue to suffer, the NCP leaders alleged.
The Collector however, taking note of all the allegations of the NCP leaders
assured that there would be no further deviation of BPL card distribution.
He also asserted that if any irregularities come to the notice of the
district administration, they would soon be rectified by initiating action
against the erring official.
http://www.eadt.co.uk/content/eadt/news/story.aspx?brand=EADOnline&category=News&tBrand=EADOnline&tCategory=News&itemid=IPED24%20Jul%202008%2000%3A23%3A42%3A773
Villagers' midnight protest over noise
24 July 2008 | 08:00
LAURENCE CAWLEY
RESIDENTS in a row of cottages who staged a midnight blockade after claiming
their lives were being ruined by a new farming operation may have won a
partial victory.
Families living in Broom Hill, Fakenham Magna, near Bury St Edmunds, say a
good night's sleep became an impossibility after a chicken rearing unit for
more than 30,000 birds was set up just yards from their homes on the edge of
the village.
The protesters claimed that lorries arrived throughout the early hours of
the morning and the noise from their engines, a forklift truck and thousands
of chickens meant sleep was hard to find.
Teacher Stuart Fidler was one of those who decided on direct action after
frequent attempts to reduce the racket - that often went on from 1am to
5am - failed.
Mr Fidler, who lives in an end of terrace cottage with his wife Esther, the
clerk to Fakenham Magna Parish Council, and their two daughters aged six and
four, said: “We were at the end of our tether - we had gone nights with
being woken up by the noise.
“We had tried contacting the farmer and Euston Estates who own the land but
with no success. We felt there was no other choice but to take positive
direct action."
The angry residents set up a human barrier to prevent the lorries going onto
the site which now has 30 giant chicken arks on it - each one holding 1,200
young birds.
“My wife and I are both local and my family have been involved in farming
around here for generations so it is not as if we are townies who move to
the country and then complain." added 34-year-old Mr Fidler.
“But the arrival of the chickens nearly drove us to tears - we were
exhausted because it became impossible to sleep while they were operating.”
Mr Fidler, who's family background is in farming, said that following the
early-hours-of-the-morning protest the families had now spoken to the tenant
farmer, Harry Irwin, who had said it was necessary to collect the birds in
the early hours of the morning to fit in with schedules at the processing
factories.
However he did say that he would try and arrange for the collections to take
place earlier in the day if possible,
A spokesman for the Duke of Grafton's Euston estate that owns the land
declined to comment yesterday and it was not possible to contact Mr Irwin,
who comes from Saxilby, Lincolnshire.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2008/08/2008815201817738527.html
Peru earthquake survivors protest
Thousands of Peruvians remain in
temporary shelters [Reuters]
Hundreds of Peruvians have protested against what they say is a poor
response to a massive earthquake that killed more than 500 people a year
ago.
Residents of Pisco, Ica and Chincha, the three cities hit hardest by the
earthquake, held strikes and demonstrations on Friday to demand faster and
more efficient reconstruction.
The quake destroyed more than 40,000 homes on the southern coast and many
residents are are still living in temporary shelters.
Alan Garcia, the Peruvian president, said his government invested $382
million in reconstruction, but only 850 homes have been rebuilt, according
to Romulo Triveno, president of Ica province.
"Alan is a liar!" protesters shouted while banging pots and pans in Pisco,
the hardest-hit city, 250km south of Lima.
They have complained that millions of dollars in reconstruction funds have
never reached them, saying they have been diverted or gone missing.
'Unfair' criticism
Jose Navarro, 29, brought flowers to the graves of his daughter and wife,
who was eight months pregnant when the quake struck.
"What can you do? You have to face reality." he said. "It's hard, but with
the support of everyone, I have to move forward."
Garcia, whose free market policies have left him unpopular with the
electorate, said on Tuesday Peruvians were being "unfair" in their
criticisms of his response to the earthquake.
He also said people were being too demanding."It's okay to ask for help, but
don't exaggerate."
Garcia also challenged anyone to provide evidence to back up allegations of
corruption in the earthquake budget.
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/08/11/2003420028
Jobless protesters appeal to Ma
NOT WORKING: A crowd of demonstrators called on the president to make good
on his campaign vow to extend the period an unemployed person is eligible
for benefits
By Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Aug 11, 2008, Page 2
A group of protesters and their children holding images of President Ma
Ying-jeou and signs gather in front of the presidential office in Taipei
yesterday to protest rising unemployment rates. The placards read
"Sympathize with People's Suffering" and "Refuse Unemployment." The
unemployment rate rose to 3.95 percent in June from 3.84 percent in May as
the number of first-time jobseekers increased, government statistics showed.
PHOTO: AFP
Dozens of unemployed people and their children staged a demonstration on
Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office yesterday, urging
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and his administration to help the jobless find
employment.
“Being jobless is not just a problem for the unemployed worker, it also
affects their circle of friends and their families,” Hsiao Chung-han (蕭忠漢)
of the Association for Rights of the Unemployed told the demonstrators, many
of whom held placards showing images of Ma above the words “feel the pain of
the people.”
Huang Yao-hung (黃耀宏), 58, was one of the protesters.
Huang, from Taichung, used to work for a machinery manufacturer, but lost
his job when the company moved its factory to China several years ago.
“Now I only work low-paying part-time jobs, but I have five kids to feed —
all college students,” Huang said, adding that he needed to spend more than
NT$100,000 on tuition fees for his children twice a year.
“All I want is for the government to help me find a stable job,” he said.
Another protester, Liao Mei-jung (廖美蓉), whose husband was laid off when
Chunghwa Telecom was privatized several years ago, agreed.
“Social welfare resources should be spent on taking care of those who can’t
work,” Liao said. “Since we’re still capable of working, providing job
opportunities for us should be the priority.”
Aside from economic pressure, she said, “the psychological pressure [of
being jobless] is the most troubling.”
In addition to offering help with finding stable employment, the
demonstrators said the president should fulfill his campaign promise of
extending the period of time an unemployed person is eligible to receive
unemployment benefits from six months to one year.
They urged Ma to set up an unemployment rights commission under the
Presidential Office “to periodically check employment promotion policies,”
Hsiao said.
The demonstrators’ request to meet officials from the Presidential Office
was not met yesterday as it was a weekend day.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/25/stories/2008082557920200.htm
Tamil Nadu
Selaiyur residents resort to protest
Special Correspondent
TAMBARAM: A few hundred residents of Selaiyur near Tambaram staged a flash
protest on Sunday evening against the pathetic state of amenities in their
locality, including the discharge of sewage in the open by apartment
complexes, encroachments on a road that was 100-foot wide and poor road
conditions.
Pointing out to the stagnation of sewage on either sides of the 100 feet
Road in Sriram Nagar, residents of Ward No. 19 of Tambaram Municipality said
that they had appealed to the government machinery at various levels but
none of their demands was met. Fed up with the response of government
agencies, they resorted to the protest said Usha Nandini, a resident.
Builders of the apartment complexes ought to have made provisions for proper
collection and disposal of sewage, Sriram Nagar residents said, calling for
a swift response from the Tambaram Municipality.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/garland/stories/DN-garbudgetfolo_23met.ART0.East.Edition1.4d971c3.html
Garland residents protest proposal to close library branch
12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, August 23, 2008
By FRANK TREJO / The Dallas Morning News
ftrejo at dallasnews.com
The proposed closing of a Garland library branch and "mothballing" of two
fire engines have drawn impassioned pleas from residents who say such
services helped the city land a spot in a recent CNN/Money magazine list of
100 best places to live.
MIKE STONE/Special Contributor
Santiago Rodriguez (left), 14, and Deion Richardson, 12, spend time at the
Ridgewood Branch Library, which may close to help cover a $5 million budget
shortfall.
Council members say they will listen to all arguments as they put together
the 2008-09 budget, but faced with a $5 million shortfall, options are
limited.
The proposed budget is $590.3 million, including $133.1 million for the
general fund.
It includes a 1.1-cent tax hike for debt service. That would bring the
city's tax rate to 69.96 cents per $100 of property value.
At Tuesday's first public hearing on the budget, about two dozen supporters
wearing red T-shirts crowded into the council chambers to plead their case
for keeping the Ridgewood Branch Library.
"It's time to actually raise our taxes a little bit," said Alan Smith, who
said his family often uses the branch. "We're willing to pay a penny or more
to keep the library open."
Mr. Smith and others said the Ridgewood branch is truly a neighborhood
library that is well-used, especially by low- and moderate-income families.
"My biggest concern is that it is in an area where a lot of low-income
people live, and many of them really don't have transportation, so it is
very convenient for people to walk to the library," Mr. Smith said.
Kymberlaine Banks said she wants to see the branch remain open because
libraries are places where residents can really see their tax dollars at
work.
"It breaks my heart that there's a library that is being closed. It's
shameful," Ms. Banks said.
City Council member John Willis said he recognizes that closing Ridgewood is
a difficult decision.
"I love books, and I love libraries," Mr. Willis said. "But I have a
responsibility to consider decisions that are in the best interest of all
Garland taxpayers."
The Ridgewood branch, at West Kingsley Road and South First Street, is the
smallest of Garland's five libraries at about 6,000 square feet. The 1964
building originally housed a bank but became a library branch in 1974.
Claire Bausch, director of the library system, said last fiscal year it
served 75,181 visitors, averaging 295 per day. A total of 95,382 books or
items of media were checked out during that time.
Mr. Willis and others noted that closing Ridgewood has been part of a
10-year plan adopted in 2006 for the Nicholson Memorial Library system. He
said the building needs repairs and renovation and questioned whether it is
wise to spend close to $1 million to make those improvements.
Council member Laura Perkins Cox agreed.
"In spending taxpayer dollars we need to make sure we're spending them
wisely," Ms. Cox said. "I just continue to study the financial realities of
the continued operation and renovation of the Ridgewood branch."
A second public hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
Meanwhile some residents and fire department employees have voiced concern
about a budget proposal to take two fire engines out of service. City
officials noted that almost 80 percent of the calls the fire department
responds to are for emergency medical care and that three additional
ambulances are being put into service.
Some residents and fire department employees questioned whether safety might
be compromised.
Chad Purcell, president of the Garland Firefighters Association, said that
by removing two engines from service, the city will essentially leave itself
without backup engines that could respond if others are already on calls.
"We feel like it's a gamble," Mr. Purcell said. "It's a fire safety issue
not only for residents but for us."
He acknowledged that a majority of the department's calls are for medical
service.
"But we can respond to an EMS call with a fire truck and stabilize a person
while waiting for an ambulance," Mr. Purcell said. "It's hard to put out
fires with ambulances."
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/21/stories/2008082158790300.htm
Tamil Nadu
Residents protest
Residents of Alandur staged a protest in front of a fair price shop in their
locality, alleging inadequate supply of kerosene. .
When residents and municipal councillors checked a container transporting
kerosene to the ration shop on Wednesday, they found the vehicle carrying
only 3,600 litres against the stipulated 4,000 litres. They sought action
against staff of the fair price shop and the agency supplying kerosene.
http://www.wnep.com/global/story.asp?s=8859447
Reassessment Protest in Luzerne County
Posted: Aug 18, 2008 08:38 PM
Last Updated: Aug 18, 2008 11:27 PM
Reassessment Protest in Luzerne County - 7 p.m.
Reassessment Protest in Luzerne County - 5 p.m.
By Julie Sidoni
More than 100 angry taxpayers gathered in front of Luzerne County courthouse
to voice their displeasure of the county's reassessment of property values.
The reassessment mess in Luzerne County boiled over Monday as commissioners
argued with each other and residents protested by the hundreds outside the
courthouse.
Protestors in front of a giant, pink blow-up pig did what they could to let
the Luzerne County commissioners know just where they stand on the
reassessment issue.
With sheriff's deputies on guard, members of the crowd brought their
homemade signs and their enthusiasm to loudly protest.
The county has been taking a look at property values for the first time
since 1965 and many homeowners aren't too happy with the results.
At one point, Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla attempted to address the crowd.
"You never called me back, Maryanne," called one protestor.
"Look, I just want to thank you all for coming. I respect your," Petrilla
tried to respond but was drowned out by the booing crowd.
What they wanted was for Commissioner Petrilla or Commissioner Steve Urban
to second a motion made by Commissioner Greg Skrepenak during the public
work session.
He wants to halt the implementation of the reassessment process, saying now,
when the price of just about everything is up, is not the right time.
"People today, in a recession, are being asked to do more with less, and on
top of it, now they have to bear the burden of reassessment. I think it's
the county's time to provide a little hope for these people," Skrepenak
said. "I am a commissioner. I am entitled to ask for things to go on the
agenda. I'm entitled to call for things to the floor if so needed. If the
other commissioners disagree or disagree with me, that's their prerogative.
That's what they got elected to do."
Clearly the crowd was there to support that message but Petrilla accused
Skrepenak of just playing politics and said after the $9 million the
taxpayers have already spent on the process, it's only fair to wait till the
October 31 deadline to make any decisions.
"I've said all along, if those corrections can't be made by then, I'll be
the first one to make a motion to delay it," Petrilla said. "I've got an
obligation to the taxpayers. People are threatening me, screaming at me,
saying I'll never get reelected. I don't base my decisions on the
opportunity to get reelected. I base my decisions on what's best for the
taxpayers and that's what I'm going to continue to do."
The actual commissioners meeting will be held Wednesday, and reassessment is
likely to be a hot topic. The meeting is expected to be held at Luzerne
County Community College because officials think so many people will attend.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/22/stories/2008082252340300.htm
Karnataka - Shimoga
Congress workers stage protest
Special Correspondent
Ensure that all eligible families are given ration cards, Government urged
IN PROTEST: Congress workers staging a demonstration in Shimoga on Thursday
in support of their demands.
SHIMOGA: Congress workers staged a demonstration here on Thursday in support
of their demands, including distribution of nearly two lakh ration cards in
the district.
The party workers staged a dharna on the premises of the Deputy Commissioner’s
office and presented the memorandum to the Shimoga district administration
urging the Government to concede their demands immediately.
In the memorandum, they have urged the Government to see that all the
eligible families were given ration cards under the public distribution
system.
Objection
They also took objection to the collection of Rs. 45 each from the below
poverty line families for photos to be used for the ration cards by holding
a photo session at the hobli level.
They said that the cost could be reduced drastically if the photos were
taken at the village level.
Expressing anguish over the tardy implementation of the flood relief
measures, the demonstrators said that the recent incessant rain had left a
large number of families homeless apart from causing heavy damage to the
standing crops.
The Congress workers suggested that a comprehensive survey be taken up on
the extent of the damage and loss caused by the floods and demanded that at
least Rs. 50 crore be released to take up relief work in an effective
manner.
The demonstrators said that the Government should make arrangements for the
distribution of seeds and chemical fertilizers to enable farmers to take up
alternative cultivation as they had suffered loss due to rain.
They warned that they would intensify their protest if the Government did
not fulfil their demands within 10 days.
Former Minister Kagodu Thimmappa, president of the District Congress
Committee R. Prasannakumar, president of the District Youth Congress
Committee S. Ravikumar, president of the District Congress Women’s Wing
Shashikala Chandrasekhar and president of the district unit of the National
Students’ Union of India Devendrappa and councillors belonging to the party
led the demonstration.
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_news?id=161365657
Protest pays off
Barrackpore residents to get water twice a week
Keino Swamber South Bureau
Tuesday, August 19th 2008
WE WANT IT!: A youngster displays a placard as Barrackpore residents protest
outside WASA's office at Mon Chagrin Street, San Fernando, yesterday. The
residents were calling for a regular supply of pipe-borne water. -Photo:
KRISHNA MAHARAJ
OROPOUCHE East Member of Parliament, Roodal Moonilal, yesterday described as
"a tragedy", women and children having to leave Barrackpore in his
constituency to travel to San Fernando to protest for a regular supply of
water.
But it has paid off. He said yesterday, the villagers scored a victory when
they managed to get officials of the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) to
commit to providing them with water on Mondays and Thursdays.
The protesters, mainly from Lower Barrackpore and Monkey Town, gathered in
front of WASA's south office on Mon Chagrin Street, San Fernando.
"We are a banana republic," Moonilal said.
"It is sad to say that in a country that aspires to developed country status
by 2020, you have a situation where these people are begging, not for water
every day and not for water 24 hours a day, but for water once or twice per
week."
He said there were cases in which people had not received water for "two to
three weeks" and that had caused "enormous distress and hardship and
inconvenience".
Moonilal added: "In the context of a possible dengue outbreak, we don't have
water to clean and wash down premises. There were a lot of women there
complaining that they could not bathe their babies and cook and wash and so
on."
He said he wrote several letters to WASA but nothing was done to ease the
plight of those affected.
The commitment by WASA to provide two days of pipe-borne water every week
came after a meeting with Anand Jaggernath -acting manager of the South
office.
The villagers without access to a pipe-borne supply have also been promised
an increased truck-borne supply.
In release issued late yesterday, WASA said it had to repair a 16-inch main
on Cottage Road, Barrackpore, on August 14. The main, it added, had been
damaged during works being carried out by the Housing development
Corporation there.
This work caused an interruption in the water supply to the Barrackpore,
Monkey Town and Congo Hill, which are served by the Navet Water Treatment
Plant. WASA noted, however, that due to the increase in demand for water,
improvements are being made to the Navet Trunk Main and are expected to take
some 18 months.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/17/stories/2008081753110300.htm
Karnataka
Vibrant protest
— Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy
Plea: Yakshagana artistes staging a demonstration in front of Ravindra
Kalakshetra in Bangalore on Saturday. They have urged the Government to let
out the kalakshetra for performances of the folk art free of cost or at
nominal rates.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/7547225.stm
Thursday, 7 August 2008 15:06 UK
Walkers protest over post offices
The post office is a focal point, say residents at Talwrn, Anglesey
Public protests have been sparked by plans to close Welsh post offices.
The latest demonstrations come as the Welsh Assembly Government announced
its intention to reinstate a post office development fund.
On Anglesey, Plaid Cymru campaigner Dylan Rees has begun a walk around the
island visiting seven threatened sites.
Meanwhile, in Ceredigion, residents staged a three mile (4.8km) walk from
Pontsian near Llandysul to the next nearest branch.
In the past year, nearly 200 Welsh branches have been earmarked for closure
or replacement by mobile services.
The Pontsian branch is expected to shut in around three weeks, and about 30
people joined in the march, including the Ceredigion MP Mark Williams.
Local county councillor Peter Davies said: ""We want the Pontsian branch to
stay open.
"In the short-term the closure should be deferred because Penrhiwllan post
office currently doesn't have a postmaster.
"We have every justification to keep Pontsian open."
If the post office closes then the shop will inevitably follow and the heart
of the community will disappear
Dylan Rees
In July it was announced that 52 branches across north Wales would shut,
with another 14 replaced by "outreach services", including visiting mobile
post offices.
On Thursday, more than 30 residents of the Anglesey village of Talwrn, near
Llangefni, protested outside their branch, with a live band.
Village shop
It was also the starting point for a walk to other threatened branches on
Anglesey by the Plaid Cymru prospective parliamentary candidate Dylan Rees.
"By going on this march I am hoping to raise island-wide support for the
campaign to keep our post offices open," said Mr Rees.
"In many of the communities that I will be visiting the post office is also
part of the only village shop.
"If the post office closes then the shop will inevitably follow and the
heart of the community will disappear."
The closures across Wales are part of the Post Office's "network change"
plan which will see 2,500 branches shut across the UK.
However, the organisation insists that when the programme is completed, 99%
of the UK population will still live within three miles of a branch, and 90%
still within a mile of their post office.
'Essential service'
The assembly government's post office development fund offers cash help to
ensure branches in deprived or isolated communities can remain viable.
The original fund was closed in 2004, but will now be re-opened at the start
of 2009, after a three month consultation period.
Deputy Regeneration Minister Leighton Andrews said: "We want to see post
offices thrive so that they can continue to provide an essential service in
the communities they serve.
"To help achieve this we need to help individual sub-postmasters and
sub-postmistresses have sustainable and viable businesses in the future.
"The proposals I have set out today will help us to realise this aim. I look
forward to seeing the responses to the consultation and launching the new
fund in January."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/aug/06/planningyourwedding.consumeraffairs1?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
Wrapit couples to stage HSBC protest
Hilary Osborne and agencies
guardian.co.uk,
Wednesday August 06 2008 11:02 BST
Article history
Couples who lost their wedding presents when online gift service Wrapit went
into administration are planning to demonstrate outside the head office of
HSBC this afternoon.
The gift list firm closed on Monday after it failed to find a rescue deal,
leaving up to 2,000 couples without presents that had been paid for by their
wedding guests.
In a letter to customers, Wrapit's managing director, Peter Gelardi, blamed
HSBC for withholding credit card and debit card income and claimed it would
be cheaper for the bank to buy the outstanding gifts than to refund guests.
He said that while refunds to up to 100,000 guests would cost the bank £4m,
supplying the gifts would cost £3m.
Couples who had already been discussing delays to gift deliveries on
internet forums have arranged to protest outside the bank's Canary Wharf
headquarters from 4pm this afternoon.
Michael O'Sullivan, who organised the march, said he had only received 10%
of his gifts since he got married 10 months ago.
O'Sullivan, 33, from Kennington, south London, said: "This is not a blame
game. All we want is for HSBC to facilitate the delivery of our presents.
"We believe this would be easily achieved and could actually be cheaper than
organising refunds. The deliveries could be organised at cost price and
would be a huge publicity coup for them. It could save them money as well."
The protestors plan to hand in a petition calling for HSBC to offer
customers the option to receive gifts instead of a refund.
In a Facebook page set up to organise the march, O'Sullivan calls on
protestors to wear their wedding dress or suit and bring an empty
gift-wrapped box.
He says couples that cannot attend should send friends or family instead. So
far, 31 people have stated on the page that they intend to protest.
"We're going to remind [HSBC] that there is more than just numbers involved
and that they have an opportunity to do the right thing and help everybody
including themselves," said O'Sullivan.
A spokesman for HSBC said the bank was working with the administrators KPMG
to agree a way forward, but refuted Wrapit's claims that it had precipitated
the company's closure.
"HSBC's view is that this should never have happened, and had the directors
acted sooner to address their financial difficulties and appointed
administrators when HSBC recommended, it may not have [happened]," he said.
"HSBC fully appreciates how Wrapit's customers feel about this issue and
understands their distress and concern that a resolution be found quickly."
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