Ecuadoran workers accuse ‘monster’ Japanese company of exploitation

Ex-employees of a Japanese textile company in Ecuador told Tuesday of their dire living and working conditions, after the country’s constitutional court ruled the firm kept its staff in a slave-like setting.Some gave birth to children in unsanitary and overcrowded camps, while others were denied proper medical attention after work-related injuries, according to testimonies given at a news conference in Quito. Justices last week ordered the company, Furukawa, to pay $120,000 to each of the 342 victims — a total of around $41 million. It will also have to make a public apology to them. As of 2021, Furukawa’s plantations for abaca — a fine plant fiber — covered almost 23,000 hectares spread over three provinces on the Pacific coast, where the majority of the population is Black.”We have been confronting the monster that is Furukawa,” Segundo Ordonez, a 59-year-old farmer, told Tuesday’s meeting at the headquarters of Ecuador’s Ecumenical Human Rights Commission (CEDHU).He recalled a lack of medical attention on the plantations, where nine people died in work-related accidents.”A friend was cut, we were working in a downpour. That was the most anger I felt, seeing him shedding blood like an animal and nobody doing anything,” Ordonez said.Maria Guerrero recounted that her parents took her and six siblings to the Furukawa crops when she was two years old. She knew no other place for three decades and met her husband there, with whom she had seven children.”I gave birth to all my children in the company, I did not have a postpartum check-up or a medical check-up during my pregnancy. It is something I will always carry in my heart as a wound,” the 39-year-old said.Furukawa contested the constitutional court’s decision, arguing that there were inconsistencies and asking for a downward revision of the financial compensation ordered, which it deemed impossible to comply with.

ICC to wrap up war crimes trial of feared Sudan militia chiefWed, 11 Dec 2024 02:09:41 GMT

The war crimes trial of a feared Sudanese militia chief accused of rape, murder, and torture across the Darfur region of Sudan during the country’s brutal civil war wraps up this week.The International Criminal Court will hear three days of closing arguments from Wednesday in the case of Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known by …

ICC to wrap up war crimes trial of feared Sudan militia chiefWed, 11 Dec 2024 02:09:41 GMT Read More »

Global stocks mostly fall ahead of ECB, US inflation data

Global stock markets mostly retreated Tuesday as traders eyed looming US inflation data and a key European interest rate call amid global political upheaval.After winning numerous records in the weeks since the November 5 US presidential election, US stocks fell for the second straight day as analysts pointed to profit-taking.But Alphabet jumped more than five percent after Google showed off a new quantum computing chip that it described as a significant breakthrough in the field, arguing it could lead to advances in drug discovery, fusion energy and other areas.The Paris stock market retreated as French party leaders gathered at President Emmanuel Macron’s Elysee Palace office to chart a route towards a new government.The euro also fell ahead of the European Central Bank’s monetary policy meeting on Thursday. The ECB is expected to lower interest rates by 25 basis points amid weak eurozone growth.Independent analyst Andreas Lipkow said traders were taking a cautious approach ahead of the ECB meeting. The main US indexes struggled as traders eyed US consumer price inflation (CPI) data due Wednesday, which could play a role in whether the US Federal Reserve decides to cut interest rates next week.On Wall Street, “tomorrow’s CPI report is in full focus with a looming rate-decision from the Fed coming,” analyst Bret Kenwell of trading platform eToro said in a note.Following recent spending and jobs data “traders have felt even more emboldened to bet on a December rate cut, while the Fed has done little… to quiet that expectation,” he added.Earlier, stock markets weighed “concerns that China’s economic stimulus measures might not have a long-lasting effect”, noted Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.The growth plan comes as Beijing contemplates Donald Trump’s second term in the White House.The US president-elect has indicated he will reignite his hardball trade policies, fueling fears of another standoff between the economic superpowers.The Shanghai stock market ended higher but Hong Kong fell.Seoul’s Kospi index rallied more than two percent after tumbling since President Yoon Suk Yeol declared short-lived martial law on December 3.On the corporate front, shares in Stellantis rose around one percent on the Paris stock exchange after the car giant and Chinese manufacturer CATL announced plans for a $4.3-billion factory making electric-vehicle batteries in Spain.Walgreens Boots Alliance soared 17.7 percent following reports that it could be acquired by private equity firm Sycamore Partners.Boeing jumped 4.5 percent as it announced it was resuming production at two Seattle-area plants that had been shuttered for nearly three months due to a labor strike.- Key figures around 2130 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.4 percent at 44,247.83 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.3 percent at 6,034.91 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 19,687.24 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 1.1 percent at 7,394.78 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 20,329.16 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 8,280.36 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 20,311.28 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 3,422.66 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 39,367.58 (close)Seoul – Kospi: UP 2.4 percent at 2,417.84 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0529 from $1.0554 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2773 from $1.2757Dollar/yen: UP at 151.92 yen from 151.21 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 82.42 from 82.73 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.1 percent at $68.59 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $72.19 per barrelburs-jmb/nro

Après avoir réuni les partis, Macron veut nommer un Premier ministre “dans les 48 heures”

Emmanuel Macron a annoncé mardi aux chefs des partis politiques réunis à l’Elysée vouloir nommer “dans les 48 heures” un nouveau Premier ministre qui sera ensuite chargé de négocier a minima un accord pour éviter la censure, arrachant quelques timides avancées.Le chef de l’Etat a débattu pendant plus de deux heures et demie, dans le jardin d’hiver, avec toutes les formations à l’exception du Rassemblement national et de La France insoumise.Lors de cette rencontre collégiale inédite depuis le début de la crise politique déclenchée par la dissolution de l’Assemblée nationale, il a souligné “sa volonté de ne pas dissoudre” à nouveau d’ici la fin de son mandat en 2027, selon son entourage.Il a aussi relevé “une unanimité des forces politiques pour ne plus dépendre du Rassemblement national”, tandis que seuls le centre et la droite en ont dit autant pour LFI.S’il a pu constater l’absence d’appétit pour un “gouvernement d’union nationale”, le président espère avoir trouvé une forme de consensus vers un accord de non-censure qui permettrait au futur gouvernement de survivre plus longtemps que celui, éphémère, de Michel Barnier.- Ni 49.3 ni censure -“Les choses ont plutôt avancé” sur un “échange de bons procédés”, a déclaré à la sortie le patron du Parti socialiste Olivier Faure. L’idée serait selon lui que “le gouvernement renonce au 49.3”, outil constitutionnel pour passer en force à l’Assemblée nationale, “en échange de quoi les oppositions renonceraient à une motion de censure”, comme celle qui a fait tomber l’exécutif la semaine dernière pour la première fois depuis 1962.De quoi faire dire à François Bayrou, le président du MoDem, l’un des favoris pour Matignon, que la rencontre avait été “positive de manière inespérée”. Le maire de Pau a évoqué “un accord de coopération démocratique” et proposé de temporiser sur les “questions qui fâchent”, comme les retraites et l’immigration.Le chef des députés Droite républicaine Laurent Wauquiez a lui aussi dit espérer un “accord pour au moins ne pas faire tomber un gouvernement”, tout en excluant un “contrat de gouvernement avec des gens avec lesquels on ne partage pas les mêmes valeurs”.Mais la cheffe des Ecologistes Marine Tondelier a tempéré cet optimisme en déplorant que le camp présidentiel ne soit, lui, prêt à “aucun compromis, aucune concession”.Et, en réalité, personne ne s’est prononcé mardi sur sa possible participation, ou son éventuel soutien plus ou moins tacite, au futur gouvernement.- “Attendre de voir” -“On va attendre de voir” qui Emmanuel Macron va nommer à Matignon, a expliqué Marine Tondelier, à l’unisson des autres dirigeants.Le président a promis un choix d’ici jeudi. Un de ses proches alliés a même évoqué une nomination mercredi soir.Charge ensuite à ce Premier ministre, dont l’identité reste inconnue, de discuter “du fond” avec les forces politiques avant de former un gouvernement, selon l’entourage présidentiel.”Personne à ce stade n’a jeté d’oukase sur le sujet de la non-censure” du futur exécutif, “donc ça ouvre effectivement les possibilités”, a assuré un conseiller du chef de l’Etat.Cette rencontre à huis clos, sans collaborateurs, des communistes à la droite en passant par les socialistes, les écologistes et le camp macroniste visait avant tout à conclure un “contrat de méthode”, selon les stratèges élyséens.Reste à savoir si le début d’entente fragile esquissé mardi survivra à la nomination du locataire de Matignon.La gauche revendique un Premier ministre de gauche qui soit “ouvert aux compromis”, a martelé Olivier Faure. Pas question de participer “à un gouvernement +d’intérêt général+ avec LR ou des macronistes ou je ne sais qui”, a aussi prévenu Marine Tondelier.Mais dans le camp présidentiel, plusieurs cadres assuraient ces derniers jours qu’Emmanuel Macron n’avait pas l’intention de cohabiter avec une personnalité de gauche qui pourrait revenir par exemple sur sa réforme des retraites ou augmenter les impôts.Les noms qui circulent émanent du bloc central, comme celui de François Bayrou, de nouveau reçu mardi matin à l’Elysée. Les ministres macronistes Sébastien Lecornu ou Catherine Vautrin sont aussi cités, tout comme l’ex-ministre Jean-Yves Le Drian, qui a décliné selon des sources macronistes, ou des responsables de droite comme le maire de Troyes François Baroin.- Division à gauche -En attendant, Michel Barnier présidera mercredi matin un dernier Conseil des ministres pour présenter le projet de “loi spéciale” sur le budget qui permettra notamment à l’Etat de lever l’impôt à partir du 1er janvier, dans l’attente d’un budget pour 2025. Ce texte, dont l’adoption ne fait guère de doute, sera examiné lundi à l’Assemblée.Pour l’heure, ces consultations ont accentué la division à gauche.”La politique de la chaise vide est une forme d’affaiblissement de la gauche”, a commenté le Premier secrétaire du PS pour justifier sa présence à l’Elysée et déplorer l’absence des Insoumis.Le coordinateur de LFI Manuel Bompard a lui appelé le reste du NFP “à ne pas céder aux sirènes”. Et le leader insoumis Jean-Luc Mélenchon a mis en garde depuis Redon, en Bretagne: “Qui pense pouvoir gagner un seul siège sans nous?”.Non convié, le RN de Marine Le Pen se félicite de voir Emmanuel Macron lui donner “la médaille de l’opposition”, fustigeant des “agapes pour se partager les postes”.sac-far-ama-fff/sde/swi

World stock markets diverge as rate calls loom

Global stock markets diverged Tuesday as traders eyed looming US inflation data and a key European interest rate call amid global political upheaval.Commodity markets were steadier after oil and gold won strong support Monday owing to uncertainty over Syria’s impact on the wider crude-rich Middle East.The Paris stock market retreated as French party leaders gathered at President Emmanuel Macron’s Elysee Palace office to chart a route towards a new government.The euro also fell ahead of the European Central Bank’s monetary policy meeting on Thursday when it is expected to lower interest rates by 25 basis points amid weak eurozone growth.Independent analyst Andreas Lipkow said traders were taking a cautious approach ahead of the ECB meeting. The main US indexes marked time as traders eyed US consumer price inflation (CPI) data due out on Wednesday, which could play a role in whether or not the US Federal Reserve decides to cut interest rates next week.On Wall Street, “tomorrow’s CPI report is in full focus with a looming rate-decision from the Fed coming,” analyst Bret Kenwell of trading platform eToro said in a note.Following recent spending and jobs data “traders have felt even more emboldened to bet on a December rate cut, while the Fed has done little… to quiet that expectation,” he added.US inflation has remained stuck around three percent, however, higher than the Fed’s two percent target.”The Fed is likely to cut interest rates by 25 basis points regardless of the inflation reading, though a hotter-than-expected print could certainly raise some questions,” said Matthew Weller, Global Head of Research at FOREX.com and City Index.The markets are expecting a headline 2.6 percent annual inflation rate and 3.3 percent in “core” inflation which excludes highly variable food and energy prices.Earlier, stock markets struggled “amid concerns that China’s economic stimulus measures might not have a long-lasting effect”, noted Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.The growth plan comes as Beijing contemplates Donald Trump’s second term in the White House.The US president-elect has indicated he will reignite his hardball trade policies, fuelling fears of another standoff between the economic superpowers.The Shanghai stock market ended higher but Hong Kong fell.Seoul’s Kospi index rallied more than two percent after tumbling since President Yoon Suk Yeol declared short-lived martial law on December 3.On the corporate front, shares in Stellantis rose around one percent on the Paris stock exchange after the car giant and Chinese manufacturer CATL announced plans for a $4.3-billion factory making electric-vehicle batteries in Spain.Shares in Ashtead slumped 13 percent in London after the industrial-equipment hire group warned over profits and said it plans to switch its main stock listing to key market the United States.- Key figures around 1630 GMT -New York – Dow: UP less than 0.1 percent at 44,442.29 pointsNew York – S&P 500: FLAT at 6,053.62New York – Nasdaq Composite: FLAT at 19,744.54Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 1.1 percent at 7,394.78 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 20,329.16 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 8,280.36 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 20,311.28 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 3,422.66 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 39,367.58 (close)Seoul – Kospi: UP 2.4 percent at 2,417.84 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0509 from $1.0555 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2749 from $1.2746Dollar/yen: UP at 152.03 yen from 151.21 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 82.43 from 82.78 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $68.98 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $71.05 per barrelburs-rl/sbk