Saturday, June 08, 2019
South Wales Branch Meeting (10/6)
Unitarian Church,
High Street,
Swansea SA1 1NZ
The
Socialist Party is not sitting back waiting for everybody to suddenly
want socialism. We are actively working to help such a majority
desire develop as soon as possible. It is part of the process of the
development of socialist ideas which at the moment largely involves
talking, writing and meetings but, later, when there are many more of
us practical plans will no doubt be drawn up, for instance stopping
world hunger, restoring the balance between human society and nature,
solving the housing problem for implementation after the winning of
control of political power via the ballot box.
The
Left are not a part of the opposition to capitalism. On the contrary
they advocate merely a variation to its form (that is the
state-capitalist one) in which the wages system, buying and selling,
police, armies and so on will continue to exist. They peddle the
illusion that it is in our class interest. Do not be fooled by their
use of the words “socialism” and “communism” or by their use
of Marxist terminology. The test to use is a simple one—will the
successful outcome of their policies result in the abolition of class
exploitation and its replacement by a world-wide system of common
ownership and free access by all to the wealth produced? Clearly the
left-wing do not work for this end as an immediate practical
possibility.
Many
sincere and well meaning people vent their anger with the system by
actively taking part in left-wing activity. It will not remove the
cause of working class misery, rather it will confuse the issue which
workers everywhere should have always before them—capitalism or
socialism? Confusion gives rise to
frustration and often to apathy which is a barrier to the democratic
class conscious political action which must be undertaken if we are
to liberate ourselves. We
do expect workers to give up their support for organisations which
simply tinker with the problems of class society. Sticking plaster
solutions must be abandoned if we are to free ourselves by capturing
control of the State.
The
Socialist Party claims that the majority of the working class are
capable of understanding socialism. This being so we are often asked
the question, why then, are there not many more socialists? At
present the vast majority of workers mistakenly can only see the
solution to their problems in reforming capitalism in one way or
another. Capitalism itself is not questioned, it is only the patching
up of its effects that is attempted. From our point of view, one of
trying to make socialist ideas known, the problem is not one of
understanding, but of communication. Today information is mainly
passed on by the mass media to which the Socialist Party is virtually
denied access. What is seen and heard in the mass media is the misuse
of the word 'socialism'. This means that we are called upon to spend
a lot of time in explaining what socialism is not, that socialism
does not yet exist anywhere. What is important about the mass media
is not so much that they create attitudes and values but that they
continue to reinforce existing ones. Socialist ideas are not
propagated in a vacuum but within capitalist society, meeting all the
obstacles and prejudice of capitalist ideology. A great deal of
expense and time is spent perpetuating attitudes which maintain the
capitalist system. Marx wrote, and it still applies today, that “The
prevailing ideas in society are the ideas of the ruling class.”
To
those who say “Yes socialism is a good idea, but you will never get
the majority of people to understand it,” we ask: If you can
understand socialism, why not then the majority of people? Members of
the Socialist Party are no more or less intelligent than most other
people. What we say is that if you think socialism is such a good
idea why not find out more about it? Then join with us in helping to
explain it to fellow workers so at least they may have the
opportunity of deciding for themselves.
Socialism
is not an ideal. It is based on the sound facts of the way human
society evolves, and the way capitalism works. We are not asking for
a change of heart — we are asking for the conversion of the means
of production from private or state ownership to common ownership.
This is not an ideal but a practical and material demand. The
material conditions for socialism have long been in existence. All
that is needed is for the majority of the working class to realise
their common interest in abolishing capitalism.
Friday, June 07, 2019
The Venezuelan Refugee Rise
More than 4 million Venezuelans have now fled economic and humanitarian chaos in what the UN’s refugee agency called a “staggering” exodus that has swelled by 1 million people since last November alone.
The number of Venezuelan migrants and refugees stood at about 695,000 at the end of 2015, the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Friday. Three and a half years later – with Venezuela immersed in a seemingly intractable social and political crisis – that number has “skyrocketed” to more than 4 million, the groups said.
About half of that total have sought shelter in two South American countries – Colombia and Peru – which host about 1.3 million and 768,000 respectively. Many others have made for Chile (288,000), Ecuador (263,000), Brazil (168,000) and Argentina (130,000). The humanitarian groups said “significant” numbers were also heading to the Caribbean, Central America and Mexico. Venezuelan activists and officials in Mexico estimate the exile community there has grown to about 40,000 in recent years. A growing number are also heading to the United States, with nearly 30,000 Venezuelans applying for asylum there last year. That meant Venezuela had overtaken China to become the number one country of origin for those claiming asylum on arrival or shortly after. Despite Donald Trump’s outspoken hostility towards Maduro, his administration has resisted calls to grant Venezuelan migrants protection under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programme, which allows people from countries suffering conflict or natural disaster to remain in the US.
Eduardo Stein, the special representative for Venezuelan refugees and migrants for UNHCR and the IOM, said the “alarming” rise in their numbers underlined an urgent need to support those countries grappling with Venezuela’s historic exodus.
“Latin American and Caribbean countries are doing their part to respond to this unprecedented crisis but they cannot be expected to continue doing it without international help,” Stein said.
Bunk Medicine Exposed
Before the US measles vaccination program began in 1963 – the disease caused untold human suffering. Up to 4 million Americans contracted it each year, of whom almost 50,000 were hospitalized and 500 died annually.
In a statement that the “FDA has warned about the use of products labeled as homeopathic because of concerns that they have not been shown to offer clinical benefits in treating serious and/or life-threatening medical conditions, and that they also may cause serious harm.” The FDA added: “It deeply concerns us when we see preventable diseases such as measles – a life-threatening infection we thought we had eliminated in the US in 2000 – now making a tragic comeback and threatening our communities, despite having a vaccine available that is safe and highly effective. A factor contributing to the measles outbreak is inaccurate and misleading information about vaccines rather than the reliance on accurate, scientific-based information.”
An unwillingness by parents to have their children vaccinated that was recently listed by the World Health Organization as one of the top 10 threats to global health.
200 homeopaths in the US are practicing a controversial “therapy” known as Cease that falsely asserts that it has the power to treat and even cure autism. The acronym stands for Complete Elimination of Autistic Spectrum Expression.
The “therapy” relies in part on administering high doses of vitamin C. Advocates falsely say it repairs the harm caused by vaccination – a double untruth as most vaccines are safe and there is no link between vaccines and autism, a condition for which there is no cure.
250 homeopaths, some of whom also practice Cease, are promoting “homeoprophylaxis” that advertises itself as an “immunological education program”. More than 2,000 American children have been put on the program which claims to build natural immunity against infectious diseases, though there is no scientific evidence that it works.
Parents who opt to follow Cease or homeoprophylaxis are exposing their children, as well as others around them, to life-threatening illness. The implicit message behind both therapies is that vaccines are harmful and should be avoided.
The spread of such ideas, amplified through the proliferation of anti-vaxxer theories on social media, has begun to have a profound impact on public health in the US. Last month the number of measles cases reached a 25-year peak. 1,001 individual cases of measles have been confirmed in more than 20 states this year alone.
“These measles outbreaks were both predicted and predictable as the anti-vaccine movement starts to affect public health in this country,” said Peter Hotez, professor and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine. “This is just the beginning – it is a harbinger of a new normal in America.” Hotez, who has an autistic daughter and who has written a book debunking the false link between vaccines and autism, said of the claims propagated by homeoprophylaxis and Cease: “There are no alternatives to vaccination against measles and there is no cure to autism – so it’s all made up.”
America's Climate Crises
1) Greenhouse gas emissions
The US is still the world’s second biggest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions, having been overtaken by China more than a decade ago. In per capita terms, however, the US far outstrips China, though it comes below some Middle Eastern states with tiny populations and vast fossil fuel industries. While carbon emissions have been falling, in part because of the switch from coal to gas, Climate Tracker estimates that the US will fail to meet its carbon reduction targets set by Barack Obama, to cut emissions by 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2025.
2) Fracking
The US is now one of the world’s biggest gas producers, thanks to fracking, and about half of its oil now comes from the production method, which requires the blasting of dense shale rock with water, sand and chemicals to release the tiny bubbles of fossil fuel trapped inside. This boom has come at a cost, as the vast water requirements are draining some areas dry, and pollutants found near fracking sites include heavy metals, chemicals that disrupt hormones, and particulates. The effects range from memory, learning and IQ deficits to behavioural problems. Leaks of “fugitive” methane are an additional contributor to climate change.
3) Fossil fuel exploration
Not content with the US’s existing conventional oil reserves, and the expansion of the oil and gas industries through fracking, the US fossil fuel industry is seeking new grounds for exploration – among them, the pristine Alaskan wilderness. Drilling in the Alaskan wildlife reserve is a key Trump policy.
4) Fuel efficiency standards
The Trump administration has moved to loosen regulations on fuel efficiency for cars and vans, which were already less stringent than in many other countries. Opponents fear this will increase greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.
5) International cooperation
6) Climate denial
With the president claiming climate change to be a “Chinese hoax”, it is perhaps not surprising that the US has some of the highest rates of climate denial in the world, according to polling by YouGov in collaboration with the Guardian. Despite this, a sizeable majority of the US public – nearly six in 10 people – still agree with the science on climate change, and support action to stave off the worst consequences.
7) Water
Despite Trump’s claim to Morgan that “we want the best water, the cleanest water – it’s crystal clean, has to be crystal clean clear”, his recent actions on water have been an attempt to roll back decades of progress on cleaning up the US water supply. Last December, he announced plans to undo or weaken federal rules that protect millions of acres of wetlands and thousands of miles of streams from pesticide run-off and other pollutants.
8) Air
By rolling back Obama-era measures intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, the Trump administration is also threatening to increase air pollution, as coal-fired power stations will be able to spew out toxins once more, according to 14 states who last year opposed the Environmental Protection Agency’s plans. This is in contrast with China and India, cited by Trump – along with Russia – as having polluted air. Those nations are trying to clean up their pollution with stricter limits on what power plants and other industries can produce.
Only Sheep Need Leaders
Many
SPGBers who have engaged with a member from one of the many left-wing
groups often get asked, “So, who’s in change of the SPGB?”
“In
charge?”
“Your
leader. Who’s your leader?”
“The
Socialist Party has no leaders. We are a party of equals who arrive
at decisions through a structure which elects delegates to administer
party affairs on behalf of the membership. But no leaders in the
sense that someone sits on high issuing instructions, deciding on
policy on behalf of a passive membership.”
“So
who makes the decisions?”
“No
one person – all decisions are reached democratically. We elect an
Executive Committee and General Secretary each year, but these have
no powers or authority that marks them out from other members. They
are simply ordinary members who have been delegated to manage the
affairs of the Party, in the interests of the entire membership.
Other than that, the party meets twice yearly for conferences and
branches send delegates to contribute to whatever debate there is and
to vote on behalf of their branches”
“But
you must have someone in charge. What about the really big
decisions?”
“What
can one person do that could not be done far more efficiently by the
entire membership deciding together? Surely, many minds weighing up a
problem is a better way to come up with the best answer than one
person alone. We all understand the tasks at hand and what is
expected of a member. We all share the same stance on capitalism and
how it must be abolished. The really big decisions, you mention,
would be those pertaining to party policy or changes of rule and in
these instances we decide by a poll of the entire party – one
member having one vote and each member being allowed the same chance
of input into any ongoing debate. Do you need someone telling you
what to do, what to think. Is the membership of your party so
incompetent, so distrustful of their own powers of reasoning that
they need a leader to think on their behalf? It just seems to be to
be a foolish way to run a supposed revolutionary organisation. And it
seems that your organisation does have a leadership making the big
decisions otherwise you would not have raised the issue.”
Such conversations are not unique and many questioners cannot come to terms with the idea of a revolutionary political organisation having no leadership. Query their assumptions on leadership and it becomes clear they believe a popular myth, that dates back thousands of years and which echoes around the globe; and it is that wherever humans congregate, wherever they settle, wherever they organise, a certain group of people will be exclusively marked out to be the leaders; that we would be unable to look after ourselves without such leaders. The origin of this myth, regardless of the societal organisation it has taken root in, has been the existence of private property in the means of living.
With
the beginning of private property and class society and the
concentration of the ownership of wealth into fewer hands, certain
groups found themselves in a privileged position by virtue of their
ownership of the wealth they had seized. They found they had command
over others. They could deprive others of the means of living –
food, water, shelter, the necessities of life - and thus were in a
position to get others to do their bidding. In short, they realised
they could control the entire village or city or country. They had
power to choose who lived and who died.
The leaders looked around and saw the threat posed by other leaders, who might usurp their power, envied the scarce resources they controlled, the power they too had, and so declared war on them, sending their followers against the armies of other leaders. The victors became even greater leaders and acquired a wider following.
After thousands of years the myth still prevails and leaders still abound. Indeed, they are the greatest defenders of the leadership myth. They are still powerful, still wealthy and will still urge their followers go to war to further their interests. Millions idolise them, look up to them, pay homage to them, sing songs about them, sculpt their images in stone and marble and bronze, and will happily die on their behalf if asked to do so.
Of course the leaders that exist now are not the leaders that existed during the days of slavery or feudalism or when capitalism was first brought screaming into the world. The leaders then were emperors and kings and queens, generals and great landowners. Today’s leaders, though powerful, are not as powerful as the class whose interests they represent – namely the capitalist class. Today’s leaders, the world’s political leaders and their governments, serve as the executive for the capitalist class and it is the capitalist class who has the real power. It is they, like the kings and emperors of old, who control the necessaries of life, deciding who lives and dies and it is in their interests that governments will wage war and decide upon whichever piece of legislation is necessary to protect the wealth of the capitalists.
Across the world, billions still support leaders and aspiring leaders. They will argue and fight and campaign for whichever leader they think can best manage the affairs of the capitalists – though few see things in this light. Billions invest a lot of trust in leaders and are content with a set up that allows them to vote for a leader every few years, satisfied this is democracy at work. A minority – socialists – urge the followers of the leaders to think for themselves and to imagine a better world without leaders, but their efforts bring mostly derision.
The philosophy of leadership has had a bad influence on workers. Not only does it incline them to mental laziness as they distance themselves from the important issues of the day, delegating problems to others for solution, it also numbs the critical faculties, so much so that when modern-day leaders fail to deliver what they promise, it is they and not the political and economic system that is seen to be at fault. After all, leaders do not control capitalism – it controls them – so their hands are really tied. Apathy, disenchantment, frustration and mistrust ensue, and this is often reflected at election time with a bigger proportion of the vote going to the abstentionsits, who refuse to exercise their right to vote. Many workers often switch off and turn away from politics, convinced anyone standing for election is a two-faced, self-seeking scoundrel. All of which is even more exasperating for the socialist contesting an election and standing in opposition to the defenders of capitalism, who is tarred with the same brush as that used to blacken the mainstream politician, and thought of as peddling the same wares.
This is a great sadness. The working class have been led and betrayed and disillusioned for so long that they have become apathetic. Moreover they have lost all sight of their own collective strength. Workers still look up to their betters though, and will support royalty, wave the flag of their masters when asked to do so and argue over which politician will make the best leader and agree with their leaders that the leaders of other countries need to be overthrown. Workers are constantly being urged to obey and follow orders, to trust the advice of others who know better how they should organise their lives, to mistrust their own intelligence and to look with suspicion on anyone who challenges the status quo, particularly those who urge them to think for themselves.
This is a great step for many people – thinking for themselves. Perhaps that first liberating wiggle from the strait-jacket of subservience that binds the working class, is when workers look around and realise it is not leaders who run the world, but they themselves, the everyday people on the streets, in the offices and factories, the people next door. Yes, that subservient, exploited majority run the world from top to bottom.
It is we, the working class, who plough he fields and plant the plantations. It is we who dig the mines and fish the oceans, who build the factories, ships and planes the ports and airports. It is we who dig the tunnels, who build the roads, the railways and bridges, the schools, universities and hospitals, the palaces and mansions. It is we, the working class, who produce everything society needs to function from a pin to an oil rig, providing humanity with all the services it needs. It is we who fix and mend and invent, who produce the fine music and art that so many of our class are deprived the enjoyment of. All of this is carried out by an exploited majority, who thinks it is not capable of taking care of its own affairs, whose only input into the democratic process is to be allow to place an ‘X’ – the mark of an illiterate – on a ballot paper every four or five years. Everything we see around us is the product of workers applying their physical and mental abilities in order that human needs, real and imaginary, are satisfied – not thanks to leaders, but in spite of them.
Look at how far science and technology has advanced in the last 100 years! Look at the inventions that have benefited humanity. How many were dreamed up by leaders? How many dreamed up by politicians? Isn’t it the case that inventions are the mind-work of ordinary people, thinking up faster and more efficient ways to complete a difficult, dangerous or time consuming task, improving on techniques they were taught by others who had, themselves, improved on them previously?
In spite of all this, there are some who recognise all of this – they like to call themselves “socialists” – yet still maintain that workers need to be led, that workers are not capable of thinking for themselves and deciding what is in their own best interests, and that workers can only ever achieve a ‘trade union consciousness’, pursuing minor objectives, and that they must be led by a vanguard of professional revolutionaries - a chosen few, blessed with a unique knowledge - to the promised land. Such people could be found trying to establish socialism in the Russia of 1917, by force, and in a country upon which capitalism had hardly impinged and thus defying the very historical laws they themselves claimed to have knowledge of. Their descendants can still be found today in numerous left wing organisations, ever ready to lead the way – to confusion.
These Leninists and Trotskyists believe it possible to establish socialism in one country. They claim that socialism can come about by violent revolution. They even urge workers to campaign for myriad reforms, whilst ironically holding to the view that these same workers can only attain trade union consciousness. They claim to be the most ardent followers of Marx and Engels and are wont to bludgeon their opponents with quotes from the bearded duo themselves. However, they tend to pick and choose whichever quote best serves their ‘revolutionary’ philosophy and will most certainly not be found citing a circular letter from Marx to the leaders of the German Socialist Workers Party back in 1879:“When the International was formed, we expressly formulated the battle cry ‘the emancipation of the working class must be achieved by the working class itself.’ We cannot therefore cooperate with people who openly state that the workers are too uneducated to emancipate themselves and must be freed from above by philosophical leaders.”
Neither will they point their listeners to a passage written by Engels in the 1895 Introduction to Marx’s Class Struggles in France:
“The time is past for revolutions carried through by small minorities at the head of unconscious masses. When it gets to be a matter of the complete transformation of the social organisation, the masses themselves must participate, must understand what is at stake and why they must act. But so the masses may understand what is to be done, long and persistent work is required.”
And so to with Clause 5 of the Socialist Party’s Declaration of Principles – “That this emancipation must be the work of the working class itself” – a statement socialists take seriously, and based on the realisation that socialism can only be established by a majority of the world’s people when they understand what socialism means, when they are prepared unite and work together and without leaders to further their class interests.
The Socialist Party says no more than before you can have socialism you need a majority of workers with a revolutionary class consciousness to help establish it – this entails no more than workers understanding the nature of the system that exploits them, that capitalism is not the “end of history”, as some of its apologists would assert, and that another world is possible if we organise consciously and democratically to help bring it into being.
Give us a million rifles and they will be totally useless. But give us the minds of a million workers who have at last pulled away the veil of deceit capitalism cloaks itself in and we will be on our way. A socialist revolution will never be won on the barricades, as some on the Left believe, where workers squat like fugitives, the sights of their AK-47s pointed in all directions, Molotov cocktails at the ready, red flags waving high and the leaders in some far off hide away directing the struggle. The battle against capitalism is to be fought on the battlefield of ideas. It is thus important that our case against capitalism must be watertight and that the workers who will establish socialism know exactly what is at stake. It is we, the working class, the exploited global majority who must work together, freely and consciously, and without leaders, to establish socialism.
Only sheep need leaders. If you want to be sheep, then prepare to be fleeced.
John Bisset
Adapted from here
Ignoring Tragedies
Climate-related
displacement and food insecurity is not a future possibility, but it
is already happening and it’s only projected to worsen without
urgent action in coming years.
“UNHCR
and humanitarian partners fear that severe climatic conditions
combined with armed conflict and protracted displacement could push
the country into a far bigger humanitarian emergency,” said UNHCR
spokesperson Babar Baloch. “People who are already displaced
because of conflict and violence are also affected by the drought, at
times disproportionally,” Baloch added.
As
a result of below average rains and a worsening drought, an estimated
5.4 million people are likely to be food insecure by September in
many parts of the Horn of Africa nation. Of those, over two million
will be in severe conditions and in need of immediate emergency
assistance.
The
drought has also forced nearly 50,000 people to flee their homes in
search of food, water, and aid. More than 7,000 were displaced last
month alone.
According
to UNHCR, weather-related hazards such as storms, droughts, and
wildfires displaced 16.1 million people in 2018. Climate-related
crises are only expected to occur with greater frequency across the
world. UNHCR called on more
international action to prevent climate-related disasters, increase
efforts to strengthen resilience, and protect those already affected
by climate change.
The
world’s 10 most under reported displacement crises— which have
rendered millions of people homeless– have continued to worsen due
either to political neglect, a shortage of funds or lack of media
attention, according to a new report released by the Norwegian
Refugee Council (NRC).
NRC
Secretary-General Jan Egeland says humanitarian assistance should be
given based on needs– and needs alone. However, every day millions
of displaced people are neglected because they have been struck by
the wrong crisis and the dollars have dried up.
The
countries faced with displacement crises last year were largely in
Africa, with Cameroon heading the list, followed by the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic, Burundi, Mali,
Libya and Ethiopia. The remaining three, according to the NRC, were
Ukraine, Venezuela and Palestine.
Singling
out Cameroon, Egeland said the international community is asleep at
the wheel when it comes to the crisis in Cameroon. Brutal killings,
burned-down villages and massive displacement have been met with
deafening silence. He said conflict has so far uprooted half a
million people in South-West and North-West Cameroon. Hundreds of
villages have been set ablaze. Hospitals have been attacked. Health
workers fear being abducted or killed. Over 780,000 children have
seen their schools close and thousands of people, currently hiding in
the bushes, have received no humanitarian relief. Still there has
been no major mediation efforts, no large relief programmes, minimal
media interest and too little pressure on parties to stop attacking
civilians. According to NRC, the crisis in Cameroon has its root in
the country’s troubled colonial history. After World War One, the
former German colony was split between a French and British mandate.
The country has now both English and French as official languages,
but people in the English-speaking parts have been feeling
increasingly marginalized, NRC said. And in 2016, civilians took to
the streets, and a heavy crackdown by security forces led to
widespread violence and the formation of armed opposition groups.
“This
culture of paralysis by the international community has to end. Every
day the conflict is allowed to continue, bitterness is building and
the region edges closer towards full-blown war,” said Egeland, who
recently visited the central African country. “This
depressing list must serve as a wake-up call for all of us. Only by
drawing attention to these crises, learning about them and placing
them high on the international agenda, can we achieve much needed
change,” Egeland said.
NRC’s
Tiril Skarstein told IPS: “We believe that the international
community is not doing enough to solve these crises. The lack of
political will to find solutions to these crises is often a result of
lack of geopolitical interests in the area.”
However,
he pointed out, there are also some countries on the list where
several world powers have competing interests, leading to a deadlock
and a lack of political solutions for people on the ground,–like
for example in Palestine and Ukraine. Asked if the shortfall in
funding is due to neglect on the part of Western donors or domestic
economic and financial constraints within donor nations, he said
humanitarian assistance should be given based on needs alone. Still,
it is easier to attract humanitarian funding to some crises than
others. Often, “ we see a close link between the amount of media
attention a crisis receives and the amount of humanitarian funding.
Some of the crises at the neglected crises list were less than 40
percent funded last year.”
Last year, only about 60 percent of the total humanitarian appeals by
UN and partner organizations were funded.
“This
means that we need all donors to increase their humanitarian support
so that we can meet the actual humanitarian needs, and we also need
new donors, including several emerging economies, to step up.”
Asked
why these crises were affecting mostly African nations, compared to
Asian and Latin American nations, Skarstein told IPS “unfortunately,
the crises on the African continent seldom make media headlines or
reach foreign policy agendas before it is too late.” The lack of
funding and political attention has devastating consequences for the
civilians who receive neither protection against attacks, nor the
necessary relief when they have had to flee their homes in search of
safety, he argued. Most of those who flee head towards neighboring
countries or are displaced within their own country. “However, the
fact that most of these people do not turn up at our doorsteps here
in Europe, for example, does not remove our responsibility to act,”
he noted.
Dr
Martin Scott, from the University of East Anglia, UK, and lead author
of a recent report into The
State of Humanitarian Journalism, told IPS although reports like
this are an important first step in raising the profile of these
crises – but it is not enough to simply lament the lack of
coverage.
“What’s
needed is a clear-headed assessment of why these displacement crises
receive so little coverage. Partly, it’s a reflection of the broken
business models of most international journalism – which means news
outlets often struggle to provide consistent coverage of real public
value,” he argued. But it is also a reflection of the political
priorities of powerful countries – which news outlets often
reflect, Dr Scott added. These reports, he pointed out, also draw
attention to what’s not working, in general, within international
journalism.
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