Dirty oil, dirty money…time to rethink our drilling madness?
From DemocraticUnderground.com
I’ve not been writing much lately — too busy with other work. But a number of articles and reports have caught my attention.
Of course, mainstream reporting on oil is generally all good news. It’s the second golden age of oil! Drill, drill, drill. Oil and gas prices will drop! We will become energy independent! Oil and gas will transform economies! Investors will see great returns!
It’s all so wonderful that you can almost forget about climate change and corruption and the fact that we’re really not seeing oil money transform economies in a positive way. Not yet, at least. Oil is bringing in money and raising GDP, but that hardly means life on the ground is getting any better for the average citizen. And, as recent reports from Ghana suggest, oil there is boosting inflation and putting downward pressure on the cedi — hardly a benefit for the people.
Rigged?
Rigged? The Scramble for Africa’s Oil, Gas and Minerals. That’s the title of a new report out from Global Witness, the U.K. based anti-corruption campaigner.
The timing of the report’s publication – a call for increased transparency across the oil and gas industry – could not be better. At this moment, the oil industry is putting heavy pressure on the United States S.E.C. to weaken the parts of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform that require S.E.C. listed corporations to disclose their payments to foreign governments.
President of Equatorial Guinea new chairman of African Union
News flash: Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo is the new chairman of the African Union.
I’m reprinting a brief article from the Pan African news agency, PANAPRESS. Referring to Tunisia and Egypt, the article’s author asserts that this unfortunate choice ignores the “deep aspirations” of the African peoples for liberty and human rights. Indeed.
Human rights body faults choice of Nguema as AU chairman
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) – An African rights body Sunday expressed indignation after Equatorial Guinea President Theodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo assumed the Chairmanship of the African Union (AU) at the 16th ordinary summit of the continental organisation.
The African Rally of the Defence of Human Rights, known by its acronym as RADDHO, claimed that the choice of Nguema Mbasogo “will seriously damage the image of the African continent and the debate planned by the AU on democratic values will lack credibility.”
Known internationally as a dictator, RADDHO said, UNESCO was obliged to reject the prize offered by Nguema to that organisation, mainly because of “the catastrophic human rights record of Equatorial Guinea”.
According to the rights body, Equatorial Guinea is notorious for its systematic torture of political opponents and violation of human rights, with the opposition completely muzzled. Also, it neither has independent media nor space for civil society organisations.
