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ladybug5
powerpoint.pptxNews Report
World News
Air pollution in Beijing, China
Pollution refers to the release of hazardous materials in the atmosphere.
Beijing is one of the highly polluted cities in the world.
This has threatened the health well-being of more than 21.5 million residents living in the city (Lee, 2017).
More than 1.1 million people die from pollution in China every year.
Beijing, China - During the cold and bitter winter season in Beijing - capital of the People's Republic of China - it is common to find people walking the streets with masks covering their faces.
Beijing suffers from serious air pollution, threatening the city's 21.5 million residents.
In 2015, more than 1.1 million people in China were estimated to have died from air pollution, making it the country with the most deaths resulting from toxic air.
A recent study by Nanjing University's School of the Environment found tiny particles in the air could be responsible for as many as 30 percent of all deaths in the country - equaling that of smoking.
There are various factors identified as causes of the poisonous pollution. Among them, coal consumption is singled out as the biggest contributor.
Because of this, the smog worsens during winter, when more coal is burned for heating purposes.
About half a billion people in mainland China are currently facing the smog after it moved in on Friday.
The Chinese government has acknowledged the air pollution issue, which has become a major crisis facing the country.
At the opening of the 19th Communist Party Congress held in October, President Xi Jinping, who solidified his position for another five years, highlighted the toxic smog in his opening speech, affirming it is his goal to eliminate it by the end of his second term in 2022.
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In order to address the issue of air pollution in Beijing, the government resolved to ban fossil fuel-powered vehicles.
These will be replaced by energy efficient and clean energy automobiles.
More stringent environmental laws are necessary to remedy the issue before it worsens further (Taylor, 2018).
In September, the Chinese government announced future plans to ban the production and sale of fossil fuel-powered vehicles, and replace them with clean energy automobiles. Beijing and neighbouring Hebei province, the most polluted regions in China, were also ordered by the government to reduce production of harmful air pollutants by 25 percent before the end of the year
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Slavery in Libya
. Libya is a major transit destination for the refugees and immigrants hoping to access Europe by sea (Pal, 2018).
African refugees and immigrants have been sold in open markets in the country.
This has captured the attention of Human Rights entities in different parts of the world.
Slavery is an inhuman act and amounts to violation of people’s rights
In recent months, it has been revealed that African migrants and refugees have been sold in open markets as slaves in Libya, and are held against their will in inhumane conditions in exchange for ransom money.
The revelations sent shock waves globally and sparked protests outside Libyan embassies across Africa and Europe.
Libya is a major transit destination for migrants and refugees hoping to reach Europe by sea.
Human trafficking networks have prospered amid lawlessness, created by the warring militias that have been fighting for control of territories since the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
According to the International Organization for Migration, there are 700,000 - 1 million migrants in Libya.
Al Jazeera gained access to two Eritrean men sold multiple times and still trapped in Libya.
Through conversations via a smuggled phone, we managed to communicate with the two Eritreans stuck in Libya. Here is a first-person account of their lives, trapped in a war zone.
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The human trafficking networks have thrived amid significant lawlessness following the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi.
The slaves are electrocuted and beaten severely (Naib, 2018).
The relevant authorities should intervene to prevent these criminal acts against humanity.
Humanitarian organizations should join suit and strive to eradicate the human trafficking cartels and their networks that have deprived many people of their rights.
ami left Eritrea when he was 15 years old. He travelled to Ethiopia and from there he made it to Sudan. From Sudan, he was smuggled into Libya via Chad, after paying smugglers $1,500.
We were lied to. They beat us with sticks and a water hose. And they electrocuted us. We told them we had no money, but that did not stop them from beating us.SAMI, 18-YEAR-OLD ERITREAN REFUGEE
On the Libyan border, he was caught and told by the Libyans he had been sold by the Chadian smugglers and needed to pay more money. "They asked me to pay $6,500 more to proceed further," he said.
"We were lied to. They beat us with sticks and a water hose. And they electrocuted us. We told them we had no money, but that did not stop them from beating us.
My mother had to sell our home in Eritrea and other assets we had and was also forced to borrow money from family and friends abroad for my trip.
Physical and mental torture
They then took us to the town of the Libyan Bani Walid, where we were held in an illegal detention centre. They gave us one piece of bread a day. We endured physical torture but the mental torture was worse. Our captors would systematically choose people unable to pay to set an example.
My friend died in front of me after he was electrocuted. He came with me and we survived the journey through the desert only for him to die as a slave in captivity.SAMI, 18-YEAR-OLD ERITREAN REFUGEE
They would hang them upside down and beat them. They would electrocute their nipples and waterboard them. They would pour hot oil on them and burn them. We saw people dying while being tortured. My friend died in front of me after he was electrocuted. He came with me and we survived the journey through the desert only for him to die as a slave in captivity. Watching others being tortured made people call anyone they could for them to send money by any means. They made us call while being tortured.
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America’s Foreign Policy
Just a year into his Presidency, Trump has expressed increased interest on Korea’s missile and nuclear programs.
Trump’s unconventional approach to foreign policy has sent jitters to different countries that depend on the United States in one way or another.
Trump has threatened to withdraw American troops from the country until the Korean President Kim Jong accepts to pay more.
He has also threatened to outlaw the bilateral free trade agreement of 2011 on the basis that it is unfair to the United States (Kim, 2018).
A year into his presidency, Donald Trump has made the Korean Peninsula, in particular North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile programmes, one of his top foreign policy priorities.
His unconventional approach and startling remarks towards not only North Korea, but also the decades-long alliance with South Korea has rattled many in the region.
During his election campaign, he expressed his willingness to accept North Korean leader Kim Jong- un's visit to the US, and hold direct talks with him over hamburgers, instead of a state dinner.
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No country can stand on its own.
Countries will retaliate and fight their course in equal measure.
America should focus on building diplomatic relations with Korea other than destroying the relationship that has lasted for decades to establish and cultivate.
Trump will serve his term and go but America will remain forever.
In the meantime, he stoked fears in South Korea by repeatedly expressing his strong dissatisfaction over the burden of sharing the costs of US military forces stationed in South Korea, even suggesting the withdrawal of American troops, unless Seoul would pay more.
At the same time, he threatened to discard a 2011 bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) claiming that the trade deal was unfair to the US, pointing to a huge trade deficit, especially, in the car and steel sectors.
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References
Lee , S.J. (2017). China’s Killer Smog Rolls in. Aljazeera. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/12/china-deadly-smog-rolls-171223082432453.html
Taylor, G. (2018). Evolution's Edge: The Coming Collapse and Transformation of Our World. New York: SAGE
Naib, F. (2018). Slavery in Libya: Life inside a Container. Aljazeera. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/slavery-libya-life-container-180121084314393.html
Pal, G. (2018). Libya's Destiny: Sways Between Arab Springs and Pendulum Springs. Sudbury, MA: Springer.
Kim, M. (2018). One year of Trump: Fears on the Korean Peninsula? Aljazeera. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/blogs/asia/2018/01/year-trump-fears-korean-peninsula-180119153618331.html
In recent months, it has been revealed that African migrants and refugees have been sold in open markets as slaves in Libya, and are held against their will in inhumane conditions in exchange for ransom money.
The revelations sent shock waves globally and sparked protests outside Libyan embassies across Africa and Europe.
Libya is a major transit destination for migrants and refugees hoping to reach Europe by sea.
Human trafficking networks have prospered amid lawlessness, created by the warring militias that have been fighting for control of territories since the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
According to the International Organization for Migration, there are 700,000 - 1 million migrants in Libya.
Al Jazeera gained access to two Eritrean men sold multiple times and still trapped in Libya.
Through conversations via a smuggled phone, we managed to communicate with the two Eritreans stuck in Libya. Here is a first-person account of their lives, trapped in a war zone.
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