Sri Lanka’s intransigence and other news and views for Saturday 23 August

From the front page of Tuesday's Sri Lankan Daily Mirror
From the front page of Tuesday’s Sri Lankan Daily Mirror
  • Sri Lanka’s Intransigence –  New York Times editorial: “Sri Lanka’s president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, said Tuesday that his government would not cooperate with the United Nations investigation begun last month into suspected human rights abuses, including possible war crimes, committed during Sri Lanka’s civil war. Mr. Rajapaksa’s intransigence puts Sri Lanka in the company of North Korea and Syria, two countries that also barred access to United Nations human rights investigators. Mr. Rajapaksa claims Sri Lanka can handle the inquiry on its own. This is doubtful. … The safety of witnesses is a major concern. People demanding accountability for those who disappeared have faced threats and arrest. Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act is being used to detain people without trial.”
  • Nestle Nudges Its Suppliers To Improve Animal Welfare – “On Thursday, Nestle, the world’s largest food company, announced that it’s requiring all of its suppliers to eliminate tail docking as part of a new commitment to improving the welfare of the farm animals in its supply chain. It will also mandate that its 7,300 suppliers of dairy, meat, poultry and egg products end all kinds of other common farming practices — like cage systems for chickens, gestation crates for pigs and dehorning cows.”
  • Theresa May pledges new measures to tackle British jihadis – “New powers to tackle extremist groups are being looked at by the government, the home secretary has said. … ‘I am looking again at the case for new banning orders for extremist groups that fall short of the legal threshold for terrorist proscription, as well as for new civil powers to target extremists who seek to radicalise others.’
  • Solomons town first in Pacific to relocate due to climate change – “Under threat from rising sea levels and tsunamis, the authorities of a provincial capital in the Solomon Islands have decided to relocate from a small island in the first such case in the Pacific islands. Choiseul, a township of around 1,000 people on Taro Island, a coral atoll in Choiseul Bay, is less than two meters (6.6 feet) above sea level. Its vulnerability to storm surges and tsunamis caused by earthquakes is expected to be compounded in the future by rising seas. Aware of these risks, communities in Choiseul Bay consulted a team of engineers, scientists and planners, funded by the Australian government, on how best to adapt to the impact of climate change.”
  • Oceans and the climate - Davy Jones’s heat locker – “The mystery of the pause in global warming may have been solved. The answer seems to lie at the bottom of the sea.”
  • Bank Of America Settles With Feds And States For Record Amount

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