In The News

Editorial: Remember SARS as More than a Disease

July 10, 2003
China should not remember SARS as a period of panic or as evidence of weaknesses and failings in the Chinese government, this editorial in an official Chinese paper says. Rather, the rapid defeat of the disease should evince the dedication, energy, and lightning speed of China's "efficient and centralized command team." The editorial downplays the secrecy that allowed SARS to...

Poorest of the Poor May be Halved in a Decade, UN Predicts

Terri Judd July 9, 2003
According to the recently released United Nations Development Program Report, reducing worldwide poverty can only be achieved by a global effort that addresses the un-abating HIV/AIDS epidemic, persistent civil war, accelerating rates of environmental degradation, limited integration in the global capitalist economy and deficiencies in human and social sector development. The report identifies...

A Rich Nation, a Poor Continent

Jeffrey D. Sachs July 9, 2003
The cure for Africa’s ills is the one thing the continent lacks: money. According to Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Africa’s health care problems could be effectively combated with an annual infusion of $25 billion dollars from the developed world, including $8 billion from the US. By bolstering the continent’s nearly non-existent health care programs,...

Indonesian Muslims Can Consume GMO Foods

July 7, 2003
Muslims in Indonesia are now free to consume genetically modified organism (GMO) foods. Though there has been no official statement, the highest Indonesian Muslim body authorized to approve and make religious rulings on processed foods distributed within the country, the Ulemas Council (MUI), has implicitly approved the products by not issuing a fatwa (legal advice). Without a fatwa, Muslims...

India Fosters Growing 'Medical Tourism' Sector

Ray Marcelo July 2, 2003
India is hoping to expand its tourist industry – to include visitors with heart conditions and cataracts. Indeed, medical tourism, where foreigners travel abroad in search of low cost, world-class medical treatment, is gaining popularity in countries like India. The field has such lucrative potential that Indian finance minister Jaswant Singh called for India to become a “global health...

Free Press Essential for Hong Kong's Success

Zhiwu Chen July 2, 2003
In the largest demonstration since Hong Kong passed over to Chinese control in 1997, hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the street on July 1. While the protesters are against a planned anti-subversion law, the issue at stake is more than simply free speech - it is also about the continued economic prosperity of Hong Kong. Over the last few decades, Hong Kong has transformed itself into...

Controlling the Flow

Gamal Nkrumah June 27, 2003
In the same week that European Union (EU) leaders met in Thessaloniki, Greece to discuss migration issues, a vessel carrying African migrants trying to enter Europe sank off the coast of Tunisia, killing some 70 people. This was one of the many vessels operated by illegal immigrant-trafficking gangs in Northern Africa who carry Africans to Mediterranean coastlines. Ironically, top on the agenda...