Денісова: е-декларування антикорупційних активістів можуть визнати неконституційним
12/09/2018
Конституційний суд України почав провадження через електронне декларування для антикорупційних активістів, повідомила уповноважений Верховної Ради з прав людини Людмила Денісова у Facebook.
«Е-декларування антикорупційних активістів можуть визнати неконституційним. Учора надвечір я отримала ухвалу Конституційного суду України про відкриття провадження за моїм поданням. Я вважаю, що оскаржувані норми закону України «Про запобігання корупції», за які Верховна Рада проголосувала ще у березні минулого року, не відповідають основному закону», – заявила Денісова.
До Конституційного суду і раніше зверталися через електронне декларування для антикорупційних активістів: у липні з відповідним поданням зверталися народні депутати та представники «Реанімаційного пакету реформ».
13 червня прес-служба Уповноваженого Верховної Ради з прав людини повідомила, що омбудсмен Людмила Денісова направила до Конституційного Суду подання щодо визнання неконституційним електронного декларування для громадських активістів.
Читайте також: На Заході провал закону про скасування е-декларування для громадських організацій пов’язали із Порошенком
Наявність норми про електронне декларування для громадських активістів неодноразово критикували в Європейському союзі і закликали владу України дотриматися обіцянки і скасувати зобов’язання для антикорупційних активістів подавати е-декларації. А США назвали цей закон «каральним».
Українська влада обіцяла змінити норму про обов’язок подавати е-декларації, проте так цього і не зробила.
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Денісова: е-декларування антикорупційних активістів можуть визнати неконституційним
12/09/2018
Конституційний суд України почав провадження через електронне декларування для антикорупційних активістів, повідомила уповноважений Верховної Ради з прав людини Людмила Денісова у Facebook.
«Е-декларування антикорупційних активістів можуть визнати неконституційним. Учора надвечір я отримала ухвалу Конституційного суду України про відкриття провадження за моїм поданням. Я вважаю, що оскаржувані норми закону України «Про запобігання корупції», за які Верховна Рада проголосувала ще у березні минулого року, не відповідають основному закону», – заявила Денісова.
До Конституційного суду і раніше зверталися через електронне декларування для антикорупційних активістів: у липні з відповідним поданням зверталися народні депутати та представники «Реанімаційного пакету реформ».
13 червня прес-служба Уповноваженого Верховної Ради з прав людини повідомила, що омбудсмен Людмила Денісова направила до Конституційного Суду подання щодо визнання неконституційним електронного декларування для громадських активістів.
Читайте також: На Заході провал закону про скасування е-декларування для громадських організацій пов’язали із Порошенком
Наявність норми про електронне декларування для громадських активістів неодноразово критикували в Європейському союзі і закликали владу України дотриматися обіцянки і скасувати зобов’язання для антикорупційних активістів подавати е-декларації. А США назвали цей закон «каральним».
Українська влада обіцяла змінити норму про обов’язок подавати е-декларації, проте так цього і не зробила.
…
Порошенко про вирок Сущенку: «В Росії досі триває 1937 рік»
12/09/2018
«У нас триває боротьба з агресією Росії і боротьба за звільнення українських заручників Кремля»
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Порошенко про вирок Сущенку: «В Росії досі триває 1937 рік»
12/09/2018
«У нас триває боротьба з агресією Росії і боротьба за звільнення українських заручників Кремля»
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Сущенко готовий написати прохання про помилування – Фейгін
12/09/2018
Засуджений у Росії український журналіст Роман Сущенко готовий написати прохання про помилування, повідомив його захисник Марк Фейгін в ефірі телеканалу «Прямий».
«Роман готовий написати цей нещасний папірець з проханням про помилування. Неважливо, що ти напишеш, головне опинитися у Києві. Він вини як не визнавав, так і не визнає, але прохання про помилування абсолютно не означає, що ви визнаєте свою провину», – сказав Фейгін.
Верховний суд Росії 12 вересня розглянув апеляцію захисту Сущенка і визнав законним його вирок. У червні Московський міський суд засудив українського журналіста до 12 років ув’язнення за звинуваченням у шпигунстві.
Захисник Сущенка Марк Фейгін у відповідь на питання Радіо Свобода заявив, що на даний час готує скаргу до Європейського суду з прав людини.
Журналіст всі звинувачення на свою адресу відкидає.
Романа Сущенка, який із 2002 року був кореспондентом агентства «Укрінформ» у Франції, затримали у Москві співробітники ФСБ Росії 2 жовтня 2016 року. Російські спецслужби заявили, що він є кадровим «співробітником української військової розвідки» і полковником. ФСБ Росії стверджує, що Сущенко збирав відомості про російське військо.
За словами самого журналіста, в Москву він приїхав у відпустку, щоб відвідати родичів. Головне розвідувальне управління України також заперечило інформацію, про те, що Сущенко співпрацював із військовою розвідкою України.
Правозахисники називають справу проти нього політично мотивованою.
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Сущенко готовий написати прохання про помилування – Фейгін
12/09/2018
Засуджений у Росії український журналіст Роман Сущенко готовий написати прохання про помилування, повідомив його захисник Марк Фейгін в ефірі телеканалу «Прямий».
«Роман готовий написати цей нещасний папірець з проханням про помилування. Неважливо, що ти напишеш, головне опинитися у Києві. Він вини як не визнавав, так і не визнає, але прохання про помилування абсолютно не означає, що ви визнаєте свою провину», – сказав Фейгін.
Верховний суд Росії 12 вересня розглянув апеляцію захисту Сущенка і визнав законним його вирок. У червні Московський міський суд засудив українського журналіста до 12 років ув’язнення за звинуваченням у шпигунстві.
Захисник Сущенка Марк Фейгін у відповідь на питання Радіо Свобода заявив, що на даний час готує скаргу до Європейського суду з прав людини.
Журналіст всі звинувачення на свою адресу відкидає.
Романа Сущенка, який із 2002 року був кореспондентом агентства «Укрінформ» у Франції, затримали у Москві співробітники ФСБ Росії 2 жовтня 2016 року. Російські спецслужби заявили, що він є кадровим «співробітником української військової розвідки» і полковником. ФСБ Росії стверджує, що Сущенко збирав відомості про російське військо.
За словами самого журналіста, в Москву він приїхав у відпустку, щоб відвідати родичів. Головне розвідувальне управління України також заперечило інформацію, про те, що Сущенко співпрацював із військовою розвідкою України.
Правозахисники називають справу проти нього політично мотивованою.
…
‘Life-Threatening’ Hurricane Florence Closes In On US East Coast
12/09/2018
Emergency officials in the U.S. state of North Carolina are warning people to finish their preparations for Hurricane Florence on Wednesday before the storm arrives with life-threatening rainfall, storm surge and wind.
Florence has for several days remained a dangerous Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 220 kilometers per hour during its approach to the U.S. East Coast.
Forecasters do not expect that strength to change much before it makes landfall late Thursday or early Friday near the North Carolina-South Carolina border.
There is also particular concern about the storm lingering once it nears the coast and moves onshore, allowing it to drop torrential amounts of rain in certain parts of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. That is what happened last year with Hurricane Harvey, which brought more than 150 centimeters of rain to the Houston, Texas area.
The National Hurricane Center expects Florence’s rainfall totals to be around 40 to 60 centimeters, with some areas receiving as much as 90 centimeters of rain.
The soaked ground and fierce winds could bring down trees and power lines and knock out electricity for weeks.
President Donald Trump says his administration is “as ready as anybody has ever been,” to respond to the storm.
WATCH: Trump’s response to Florence
“Any amount of money, whatever it takes, we’re going to do it,” Trump said Tuesday as he talked about relief efforts with federal disaster officials.
The president signed emergency declarations for the Carolinas and Virginia, a move that frees up federal money and resources. And he had advice for coastal residents.
“I would say everybody should get out. It’s going to be really, really bad along the coast,” Trump said.
So far, more than one million people along the coasts of North and South Carolina and southern Virginia have fled. They have faced gas shortages at some stations, while those who have chosen to remain in the path of the storm are clearing store shelves of emergency supplies.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper had a direct message for residents who decide to stay put.
“This storm is a monster. It’s big, and it’s vicious,” he said. “The waves and wind this storm may bring is nothing like you’ve ever seen. Even if you’ve ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don’t bet your life on riding out a monster.”
Experts say this could be the strongest storm to hit the Carolina coast in more than 60 years.
Parts of the southeastern coast that are not under hurricane warnings are under tropical storm or storm surge warnings, meaning life-threatening floods are possible.
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‘Life-Threatening’ Hurricane Florence Closes In On US East Coast
12/09/2018
Emergency officials in the U.S. state of North Carolina are warning people to finish their preparations for Hurricane Florence on Wednesday before the storm arrives with life-threatening rainfall, storm surge and wind.
Florence has for several days remained a dangerous Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 220 kilometers per hour during its approach to the U.S. East Coast.
Forecasters do not expect that strength to change much before it makes landfall late Thursday or early Friday near the North Carolina-South Carolina border.
There is also particular concern about the storm lingering once it nears the coast and moves onshore, allowing it to drop torrential amounts of rain in certain parts of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. That is what happened last year with Hurricane Harvey, which brought more than 150 centimeters of rain to the Houston, Texas area.
The National Hurricane Center expects Florence’s rainfall totals to be around 40 to 60 centimeters, with some areas receiving as much as 90 centimeters of rain.
The soaked ground and fierce winds could bring down trees and power lines and knock out electricity for weeks.
President Donald Trump says his administration is “as ready as anybody has ever been,” to respond to the storm.
WATCH: Trump’s response to Florence
“Any amount of money, whatever it takes, we’re going to do it,” Trump said Tuesday as he talked about relief efforts with federal disaster officials.
The president signed emergency declarations for the Carolinas and Virginia, a move that frees up federal money and resources. And he had advice for coastal residents.
“I would say everybody should get out. It’s going to be really, really bad along the coast,” Trump said.
So far, more than one million people along the coasts of North and South Carolina and southern Virginia have fled. They have faced gas shortages at some stations, while those who have chosen to remain in the path of the storm are clearing store shelves of emergency supplies.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper had a direct message for residents who decide to stay put.
“This storm is a monster. It’s big, and it’s vicious,” he said. “The waves and wind this storm may bring is nothing like you’ve ever seen. Even if you’ve ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don’t bet your life on riding out a monster.”
Experts say this could be the strongest storm to hit the Carolina coast in more than 60 years.
Parts of the southeastern coast that are not under hurricane warnings are under tropical storm or storm surge warnings, meaning life-threatening floods are possible.
…
S. Korea Jobless Rate Hits Highest Since Global Financial Crisis
12/09/2018
South Korea’s unemployment rate hit an eight-year high in August as mandatory minimum wages rose, adding to economic policy frustrations and political challenges for President Moon Jae-in whose approval rating is now at its lowest since inauguration.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.2 percent in August from 3.8 percent in July in seasonally adjusted terms as the number of unemployed rose by 134,000 people from a year earlier.
This was the labor market’s worst performance since January 2010, when the economy was still reeling from the global financial crisis, when 10,000 jobs were lost.
Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said on Wednesday the government will need to adjust its wage policies, signaling some future soft-pedaling in the drive to raise minimum wages.
“(The government) will discuss slowing the speed of minimum wage hikes with the ruling party and the presidential office,” Kim Dong-yeon told a policy meeting in Seoul, adding he did not expect a short-term recovery in the job market.
Experts say the uproar over jobs could also cost Moon considerable political capital as he pursues closer ties with Pyongyang, as any good news from an inter-Korean summit may not be enough to offset public discontent over the lack of jobs and soaring housing prices.
More than 60 percent of respondents in a Gallup Korea survey criticized Moon’s handling of the economy, including his ‘inability to improve the livelihoods of ordinary citizens’ and ‘minimum wage increases.’
The jobs report showed the labor-intensive retail and accommodation sector, which lost 202,000 jobs in August from a year earlier, was the hardest hit.
A total 105,000 jobs were lost from manufacturing industries, the report said.
However, the agriculture, construction and transport sectors saw a rise in the number of employed, partly offsetting the rise in the number of workers laid off.
The overall number of employed people rose by just 3,000 – also the worst since January 2010.
Each month’s worsening jobs report has sparked a strong public backlash, with President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating falling below 50 percent for the first time on Sept. 7.
A weekly Gallup Korea survey released on Friday showed Moon’s support fell 4 percentage points to 49 percent, the lowest since he took office in May 2017.
“At this rate, we may not see any gains in the number of employed in September or the month after that,” said Oh Suk-tae, an economist at Societe Generale.
Oh said economists at the Korea Development Institute, a state-run think tank, believed this year’s 16 percent increase in the minimum wage – the biggest jump in nearly two decades – was discouraging employers from hiring.
“The president should be held responsible for this, nothing could change the trend unless the boss changes his mind about minimum wage hikes,” Oh said.
The workforce participation rate declined slightly to 63.4 percent from 63.6 percent in July, as more jobs were lost than created, Statistics Korea data showed.
S. Korea Jobless Rate Hits Highest Since Global Financial Crisis
12/09/2018
South Korea’s unemployment rate hit an eight-year high in August as mandatory minimum wages rose, adding to economic policy frustrations and political challenges for President Moon Jae-in whose approval rating is now at its lowest since inauguration.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.2 percent in August from 3.8 percent in July in seasonally adjusted terms as the number of unemployed rose by 134,000 people from a year earlier.
This was the labor market’s worst performance since January 2010, when the economy was still reeling from the global financial crisis, when 10,000 jobs were lost.
Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said on Wednesday the government will need to adjust its wage policies, signaling some future soft-pedaling in the drive to raise minimum wages.
“(The government) will discuss slowing the speed of minimum wage hikes with the ruling party and the presidential office,” Kim Dong-yeon told a policy meeting in Seoul, adding he did not expect a short-term recovery in the job market.
Experts say the uproar over jobs could also cost Moon considerable political capital as he pursues closer ties with Pyongyang, as any good news from an inter-Korean summit may not be enough to offset public discontent over the lack of jobs and soaring housing prices.
More than 60 percent of respondents in a Gallup Korea survey criticized Moon’s handling of the economy, including his ‘inability to improve the livelihoods of ordinary citizens’ and ‘minimum wage increases.’
The jobs report showed the labor-intensive retail and accommodation sector, which lost 202,000 jobs in August from a year earlier, was the hardest hit.
A total 105,000 jobs were lost from manufacturing industries, the report said.
However, the agriculture, construction and transport sectors saw a rise in the number of employed, partly offsetting the rise in the number of workers laid off.
The overall number of employed people rose by just 3,000 – also the worst since January 2010.
Each month’s worsening jobs report has sparked a strong public backlash, with President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating falling below 50 percent for the first time on Sept. 7.
A weekly Gallup Korea survey released on Friday showed Moon’s support fell 4 percentage points to 49 percent, the lowest since he took office in May 2017.
“At this rate, we may not see any gains in the number of employed in September or the month after that,” said Oh Suk-tae, an economist at Societe Generale.
Oh said economists at the Korea Development Institute, a state-run think tank, believed this year’s 16 percent increase in the minimum wage – the biggest jump in nearly two decades – was discouraging employers from hiring.
“The president should be held responsible for this, nothing could change the trend unless the boss changes his mind about minimum wage hikes,” Oh said.
The workforce participation rate declined slightly to 63.4 percent from 63.6 percent in July, as more jobs were lost than created, Statistics Korea data showed.
Water Shortages to Cut Iraq’s Irrigated Wheat Area by Half
12/09/2018
In Iraq, a major Middle East grain buyer, will cut the irrigated area it plants with wheat by half in the 2018-2019 growing season as water shortages grip the country, a government official told Reuters.
Drought and dwindling river flows have already forced Iraq to ban farmers from planting rice and other water-intensive summer crops. Water scarcity was one of the issues galvanizing street protests in the country this year.
An investigation by Reuters in July revealed how Nineveh, Iraq’s former breadbasket, was becoming a dust bowl after drought and years of war.
This latest move is likely to significantly raise wheat imports.
Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi al-Qaisi said irrigated land grown with winter grains, namely wheat and barley, would be halved.
“The shortage of water resources, climate change and drought are the main reasons behind this decision, our expectation is the area will shrink to half,” Qaisi said in an interview.
Iraq’s agricultural plan included 1.6 million hectares of wheat last 2017-2018 season. Of those, around one million hectares were irrigated and the rest relied on rainfall.
“We expect that the irrigated wheat area falls to half of what it was last year,” Qaisi said, implying plantings of 500,000 hectares.
The cut is expected to lower the country’s wheat production by at least 20 percent, implying a significantly higher import bill Fadel al-Zubi, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization Iraq Representative said.
Iraq already has an import gap of more than one million tonnes per year, with annual demand at around 4.5 million to 5 million tons.
“Imports will go up as a result of cutting down on production and also as a result of population increase,” Zubi said but he declined to give an exact estimate for size of imports next year.
Haidar al-Abbadi, the head of Iraq’s General Union of Farmers, confirmed the cut saying water shortage was the main reason behind it.
“Irrigated wheat will reach 2 million donhums (500,000 hectares) down from around 4 million last season,” he said.
Qaisi said it was too early to tell the area of land that could be grown with wheat relying on rainfall this season but he hoped it would make up for some of the shortfall.
“We will follow a few programs to increase the crop, like raising yields and bringing Nineveh province back to more production … that can partly make up for shortfall,” he said.
But the rains failed Iraq’s Nineveh last season with the government procuring a little over 100,000 tonnes of wheat this year from a region that used to produce close to one million tons annually before Islamic State took over in 2014.
Iraq imports wheat to supply a rationing program created in 1991 to combat U.N. economic sanctions, including flour, cooking oil, rice, sugar and baby milk formula.
The trade ministry is responsible for procuring strategic commodities, including wheat, for the program.
Trade ministry officials were not immediately available for comment on a potential rise in imports.
…
Water Shortages to Cut Iraq’s Irrigated Wheat Area by Half
12/09/2018
In Iraq, a major Middle East grain buyer, will cut the irrigated area it plants with wheat by half in the 2018-2019 growing season as water shortages grip the country, a government official told Reuters.
Drought and dwindling river flows have already forced Iraq to ban farmers from planting rice and other water-intensive summer crops. Water scarcity was one of the issues galvanizing street protests in the country this year.
An investigation by Reuters in July revealed how Nineveh, Iraq’s former breadbasket, was becoming a dust bowl after drought and years of war.
This latest move is likely to significantly raise wheat imports.
Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi al-Qaisi said irrigated land grown with winter grains, namely wheat and barley, would be halved.
“The shortage of water resources, climate change and drought are the main reasons behind this decision, our expectation is the area will shrink to half,” Qaisi said in an interview.
Iraq’s agricultural plan included 1.6 million hectares of wheat last 2017-2018 season. Of those, around one million hectares were irrigated and the rest relied on rainfall.
“We expect that the irrigated wheat area falls to half of what it was last year,” Qaisi said, implying plantings of 500,000 hectares.
The cut is expected to lower the country’s wheat production by at least 20 percent, implying a significantly higher import bill Fadel al-Zubi, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization Iraq Representative said.
Iraq already has an import gap of more than one million tonnes per year, with annual demand at around 4.5 million to 5 million tons.
“Imports will go up as a result of cutting down on production and also as a result of population increase,” Zubi said but he declined to give an exact estimate for size of imports next year.
Haidar al-Abbadi, the head of Iraq’s General Union of Farmers, confirmed the cut saying water shortage was the main reason behind it.
“Irrigated wheat will reach 2 million donhums (500,000 hectares) down from around 4 million last season,” he said.
Qaisi said it was too early to tell the area of land that could be grown with wheat relying on rainfall this season but he hoped it would make up for some of the shortfall.
“We will follow a few programs to increase the crop, like raising yields and bringing Nineveh province back to more production … that can partly make up for shortfall,” he said.
But the rains failed Iraq’s Nineveh last season with the government procuring a little over 100,000 tonnes of wheat this year from a region that used to produce close to one million tons annually before Islamic State took over in 2014.
Iraq imports wheat to supply a rationing program created in 1991 to combat U.N. economic sanctions, including flour, cooking oil, rice, sugar and baby milk formula.
The trade ministry is responsible for procuring strategic commodities, including wheat, for the program.
Trade ministry officials were not immediately available for comment on a potential rise in imports.
…
Jimmy Carter: To Beat Trump, Democrats Cannot Scare Off Moderates
12/09/2018
Former President Jimmy Carter sees little hope for the U.S. to change its human rights and environmental policies as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, but he has a warning for his fellow Democrats looking to oust the current administration: Don’t go too far to the left.
“Independents need to know they can invest their vote in the Democratic Party,” Carter said Tuesday during his annual report at his post-presidential center and library in Atlanta, where he offered caution about the political consequences should Democrats “move to a very liberal program, like universal health care.”
That’s delicate — and, Carter admitted, even contradictory — advice coming from the 93-year-old former president, and it underscores the complicated political calculations for Democrats as they prepare for the November midterms and look ahead to the 2020 presidential election.
“Rosie and I voted for Bernie Sanders in the past,” Carter noted.
He was referring to his wife, Rosalynn, and their support for the Vermont senator, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, over establishment favorite Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary. At another point, he pointed to California’s environmental policies — limits on carbon emissions, stiffer fuel-efficiency standards — as the model for combating climate change.
Still, Carter stressed, Democrats nationally must “appeal to independents” who are souring on the current administration.
Trump’s job approval rating, according to Gallup, has dipped to 40 percent, mostly because of declining support among independents.
Carter alluded to arguments from self-identified progressives that Democrats will sacrifice votes on the left if they don’t embrace the liberal base: “I don’t think any Democrat is going to vote against a Democratic nominee,” and he insisted that he’s not asking the left to sacrifice its goals, only to see that winning elections is necessary to accomplish any of them.
There is some historical irony in Carter’s analysis. He came to the White House in 1976 from the moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and he clashed with party liberals, drawing a spirited primary challenge in 1980 from Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy. Carter prevailed, but he was wounded, abandoned by Kennedy’s most liberal supporters and unable to win over independents who helped deliver a landslide for Republican Ronald Reagan.
Carter’s latest handicapping comes near the conclusion of a midterm primary season that has seen Democratic primary voters move the party to the left.
In some states and districts, that means nominating full-throated advocates of single-payer health care, a $15 minimum wage and abolishing or at least overhauling the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. In other races, it means nominees who back more cautious moves to the left, such as background checks before certain gun purchases, a “public option” health insurance plan to compete alongside private insurance policies, step raises for the minimum wage and an immigration overhaul that offers legal status to some immigrants in the country illegally.
Carter did not delve into those distinctions, instead offering a sweeping condemnation of his latest successor to remind Democrats of the stakes.
He denounced the administration’s latest environmental policy proposal to make it easier for energy companies to release methane gas that contributes to climate change. He singled out Trump’s policy of separating immigrant families at the border, including those seeking asylum.
“America is inherently committed to human rights, and I think in the future we will let that prevail,” Carter said, “but for the next two years, I can’t predict the imprisoned children are going to be any better off — unfortunately.”
Carter has previously criticized Trump for his repeated falsehoods, and he’s chided Trump for his hardline support for Israel over Palestinians. Yet Carter has found common ground with Trump on other foreign policy fronts, and did so again Tuesday.
While avoiding any mention of the special counsel’s investigation into whether Trump’s presidential campaign coordinated with Russia in the 2016 U.S. election, Carter said he has engaged for years with Russian President Vladimir Putin concerning the ongoing Syrian civil war.
“I have his email address,” Carter said, adding that he and Putin share the same Russian river as their favorite spot for salmon fishing. That friendship, Carter said, means when Russia and other nations hold multilateral talks about the Syrian conflict, “Quite often they invite the Carter Center. … They do not invite the U.S. government.”
Carter also praised Trump for meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Carter repeated his frustrations with the last Democratic president, Barack Obama, for not engaging more directly with the insular Asian nation. Carter said he’s not sure Trump has made real progress yet with North Korea, but he endorsed calls for the U.S. to formally declare an end to the Korean War and normalize relations with Pyongyang.
“Let them be part of the community of nations,” he said. “I think that would be enough in itself to bring an end to the nuclear program in North Korea.”
…
Jimmy Carter: To Beat Trump, Democrats Cannot Scare Off Moderates
12/09/2018
Former President Jimmy Carter sees little hope for the U.S. to change its human rights and environmental policies as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, but he has a warning for his fellow Democrats looking to oust the current administration: Don’t go too far to the left.
“Independents need to know they can invest their vote in the Democratic Party,” Carter said Tuesday during his annual report at his post-presidential center and library in Atlanta, where he offered caution about the political consequences should Democrats “move to a very liberal program, like universal health care.”
That’s delicate — and, Carter admitted, even contradictory — advice coming from the 93-year-old former president, and it underscores the complicated political calculations for Democrats as they prepare for the November midterms and look ahead to the 2020 presidential election.
“Rosie and I voted for Bernie Sanders in the past,” Carter noted.
He was referring to his wife, Rosalynn, and their support for the Vermont senator, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, over establishment favorite Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary. At another point, he pointed to California’s environmental policies — limits on carbon emissions, stiffer fuel-efficiency standards — as the model for combating climate change.
Still, Carter stressed, Democrats nationally must “appeal to independents” who are souring on the current administration.
Trump’s job approval rating, according to Gallup, has dipped to 40 percent, mostly because of declining support among independents.
Carter alluded to arguments from self-identified progressives that Democrats will sacrifice votes on the left if they don’t embrace the liberal base: “I don’t think any Democrat is going to vote against a Democratic nominee,” and he insisted that he’s not asking the left to sacrifice its goals, only to see that winning elections is necessary to accomplish any of them.
There is some historical irony in Carter’s analysis. He came to the White House in 1976 from the moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and he clashed with party liberals, drawing a spirited primary challenge in 1980 from Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy. Carter prevailed, but he was wounded, abandoned by Kennedy’s most liberal supporters and unable to win over independents who helped deliver a landslide for Republican Ronald Reagan.
Carter’s latest handicapping comes near the conclusion of a midterm primary season that has seen Democratic primary voters move the party to the left.
In some states and districts, that means nominating full-throated advocates of single-payer health care, a $15 minimum wage and abolishing or at least overhauling the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. In other races, it means nominees who back more cautious moves to the left, such as background checks before certain gun purchases, a “public option” health insurance plan to compete alongside private insurance policies, step raises for the minimum wage and an immigration overhaul that offers legal status to some immigrants in the country illegally.
Carter did not delve into those distinctions, instead offering a sweeping condemnation of his latest successor to remind Democrats of the stakes.
He denounced the administration’s latest environmental policy proposal to make it easier for energy companies to release methane gas that contributes to climate change. He singled out Trump’s policy of separating immigrant families at the border, including those seeking asylum.
“America is inherently committed to human rights, and I think in the future we will let that prevail,” Carter said, “but for the next two years, I can’t predict the imprisoned children are going to be any better off — unfortunately.”
Carter has previously criticized Trump for his repeated falsehoods, and he’s chided Trump for his hardline support for Israel over Palestinians. Yet Carter has found common ground with Trump on other foreign policy fronts, and did so again Tuesday.
While avoiding any mention of the special counsel’s investigation into whether Trump’s presidential campaign coordinated with Russia in the 2016 U.S. election, Carter said he has engaged for years with Russian President Vladimir Putin concerning the ongoing Syrian civil war.
“I have his email address,” Carter said, adding that he and Putin share the same Russian river as their favorite spot for salmon fishing. That friendship, Carter said, means when Russia and other nations hold multilateral talks about the Syrian conflict, “Quite often they invite the Carter Center. … They do not invite the U.S. government.”
Carter also praised Trump for meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Carter repeated his frustrations with the last Democratic president, Barack Obama, for not engaging more directly with the insular Asian nation. Carter said he’s not sure Trump has made real progress yet with North Korea, but he endorsed calls for the U.S. to formally declare an end to the Korean War and normalize relations with Pyongyang.
“Let them be part of the community of nations,” he said. “I think that would be enough in itself to bring an end to the nuclear program in North Korea.”
…
In Posh Bangkok Neighborhood, Residents Trade Energy with Blockchain
12/09/2018
Residents in a Bangkok neighborhood are trying out a renewable energy trading platform that allows them to buy and sell electricity between themselves, signaling the growing popularity of such systems as solar panels get cheaper.
The pilot project in the center of Thailand’s capital is among the world’s largest peer-to-peer renewable energy trading platforms using blockchain, according to the firms involved.
The system has a total generating capacity of 635 KW that can be traded via Bangkok city’s electricity grid between a mall, a school, a dental hospital and an apartment complex.
Commercial operations will begin next month, said David Martin, managing director of Power Ledger, an Australian firm that develops technology for the energy industry and is a partner in the project.
“By enabling trade in renewable energy, the community meets its own energy demands, leading to lower bills for buyers, better prices for sellers, and a smaller carbon footprint for all,” he said.
“It will encourage more consumers to make the switch to renewable energy, as the cost can be offset by selling excess energy to neighbors,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Neighborhoods from New York to Melbourne are upending the way power is produced and sold, with solar panels, mini grids and smart meters that can measure when energy is consumed rather than overall consumption.
The World Energy Council predicts that such decentralized energy will grow to about a fourth of the market in 2025 from 5 percent today.
Helping it along is blockchain, the distributed ledger technology that underpins bitcoin currency, which offers a transparent way to handle complex transactions between users, producers, and even traders and utilities.
Blockchain also saves individuals the drudgery of switching between sending power and receiving it, said Martin.
For the pilot in Bangkok’s upmarket Sukhumvit neighborhood, electricity generated by each of the four locations will be initially used within that building. Excess energy can be sold to the others through the trading system.
If there is a surplus from all four, it will be sold to the local energy storage system, and to the grid in the future, said Gloyta Nathalang, a spokeswoman for Thai renewable energy firm BCPG, which installed the meters and solar panels.
Thailand is Southeast Asia’s leading developer of renewable energy, and aims to have it account for 30 percent of final energy consumption by 2036.
The energy ministry has encouraged community renewable energy projects to reduce fossil fuel usage, and the regulator is drafting new rules to permit the trade of energy.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Electricity Authority forecasts “peer-to-peer energy trading to become mainstream for power generation in the long run,” a spokesman told reporters.
BCPG, in partnership with the Thai real estate developer Sansiri, plans to roll out similar energy trading systems with solar panels and blockchain for a total capacity of 2 MW by 2021, said Gloyta.
“There are opportunities everywhere – not just in cities, but also in islands and remote areas where electricity supply is a challenge,” she said.
…
In Posh Bangkok Neighborhood, Residents Trade Energy with Blockchain
12/09/2018
Residents in a Bangkok neighborhood are trying out a renewable energy trading platform that allows them to buy and sell electricity between themselves, signaling the growing popularity of such systems as solar panels get cheaper.
The pilot project in the center of Thailand’s capital is among the world’s largest peer-to-peer renewable energy trading platforms using blockchain, according to the firms involved.
The system has a total generating capacity of 635 KW that can be traded via Bangkok city’s electricity grid between a mall, a school, a dental hospital and an apartment complex.
Commercial operations will begin next month, said David Martin, managing director of Power Ledger, an Australian firm that develops technology for the energy industry and is a partner in the project.
“By enabling trade in renewable energy, the community meets its own energy demands, leading to lower bills for buyers, better prices for sellers, and a smaller carbon footprint for all,” he said.
“It will encourage more consumers to make the switch to renewable energy, as the cost can be offset by selling excess energy to neighbors,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Neighborhoods from New York to Melbourne are upending the way power is produced and sold, with solar panels, mini grids and smart meters that can measure when energy is consumed rather than overall consumption.
The World Energy Council predicts that such decentralized energy will grow to about a fourth of the market in 2025 from 5 percent today.
Helping it along is blockchain, the distributed ledger technology that underpins bitcoin currency, which offers a transparent way to handle complex transactions between users, producers, and even traders and utilities.
Blockchain also saves individuals the drudgery of switching between sending power and receiving it, said Martin.
For the pilot in Bangkok’s upmarket Sukhumvit neighborhood, electricity generated by each of the four locations will be initially used within that building. Excess energy can be sold to the others through the trading system.
If there is a surplus from all four, it will be sold to the local energy storage system, and to the grid in the future, said Gloyta Nathalang, a spokeswoman for Thai renewable energy firm BCPG, which installed the meters and solar panels.
Thailand is Southeast Asia’s leading developer of renewable energy, and aims to have it account for 30 percent of final energy consumption by 2036.
The energy ministry has encouraged community renewable energy projects to reduce fossil fuel usage, and the regulator is drafting new rules to permit the trade of energy.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Electricity Authority forecasts “peer-to-peer energy trading to become mainstream for power generation in the long run,” a spokesman told reporters.
BCPG, in partnership with the Thai real estate developer Sansiri, plans to roll out similar energy trading systems with solar panels and blockchain for a total capacity of 2 MW by 2021, said Gloyta.
“There are opportunities everywhere – not just in cities, but also in islands and remote areas where electricity supply is a challenge,” she said.
…
New Hampshire Swing District a Fresh Test for Women’s Rise in US
11/09/2018
New Hampshire voters headed to the polls on Tuesday to pick candidates for a congressional seat that in this decade has flipped four times between the two major parties — and the same two people — in the latest test of the rising
appeal of women nominees.
Eleven Democrats, including three women, and six Republican men are seeking the seat that will open when Democratic U.S. Representative Carol Shea-Porter retires in January. Democrats can ill-afford to lose the spot as they head into November’s election looking to gain 23 seats needed to take a majority in the House of Representatives and serve as a check on Republican
President Donald Trump’s agenda.
The Democratic front-runners are former Obama administration official and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Maura Sullivan and Chris Pappas, a member of the state’s executive council, according to polls and political analysts.
Recent victories by women Democrats in U.S. nominating primaries, including last week’s win by Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley over a 10-term incumbent, may give the edge to Sullivan, said Dante Scala, a professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire.
“Democratic women are angry,” Scala said. “Sullivan is a good candidate who fits the national mood among Democrats.”
Sullivan is the fund-raising leader, having taken in $1.8 million, more than twice her nearest rival’s total.
However, Pappas has the endorsement of three of the four members of the state’s all-female congressional delegation, and Sullivan has been attacked for having only recently moved to the state. Jeanne Shaheen, one of the state’s two Democratic senators, defeated former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown in 2014, in part with attacks on his having been a resident of the
state for only a short time.
Pappas has previously served in the New Hampshire legislature and co-owns a restaurant that is a popular stopping point for presidential hopefuls ahead of the state’s first-in-the-nation nominating primary.
Women candidates in both parties have dominated key races in a year with record numbers of women seeking office.
The leading Republicans in the New Hampshire race are state Senator Andy Sanborn and former South Hampton police chief Eddie Edwards. Each has been endorsed by a Trump proxy, with former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski backing Sanborn and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani behind Edwards.
The district has a history of going against the party that holds the White House. Shea-Porter won in a Democratic wave in 2006 due to voter dissatisfaction with Republican President George W. Bush. She has since traded the seat with Republican Frank Guinta, first elected in 2010 in response to anger at Democratic President Barack Obama. Shea-Porter regained the seat from Guinta in 2016.
Another Democratic candidate is Levi Sanders, son of U.S. Senator and failed 2016 White House candidate Bernie Sanders, who has endorsed dozens of candidates around the United States but thus far has not backed his son, who is seen as a long-shot.
Voters will also pick Republican challengers to U.S. Representative Annie Kuster and Democratic challengers to Governor Chris Sununu.
This week will set the final congressional match-ups ahead of the Nov. 6 general election, with Rhode Island set to vote on Wednesday. New York voters, who have already picked nominees for Congress, on Thursday pick candidates for governor and other state races.
…
New Hampshire Swing District a Fresh Test for Women’s Rise in US
11/09/2018
New Hampshire voters headed to the polls on Tuesday to pick candidates for a congressional seat that in this decade has flipped four times between the two major parties — and the same two people — in the latest test of the rising
appeal of women nominees.
Eleven Democrats, including three women, and six Republican men are seeking the seat that will open when Democratic U.S. Representative Carol Shea-Porter retires in January. Democrats can ill-afford to lose the spot as they head into November’s election looking to gain 23 seats needed to take a majority in the House of Representatives and serve as a check on Republican
President Donald Trump’s agenda.
The Democratic front-runners are former Obama administration official and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Maura Sullivan and Chris Pappas, a member of the state’s executive council, according to polls and political analysts.
Recent victories by women Democrats in U.S. nominating primaries, including last week’s win by Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley over a 10-term incumbent, may give the edge to Sullivan, said Dante Scala, a professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire.
“Democratic women are angry,” Scala said. “Sullivan is a good candidate who fits the national mood among Democrats.”
Sullivan is the fund-raising leader, having taken in $1.8 million, more than twice her nearest rival’s total.
However, Pappas has the endorsement of three of the four members of the state’s all-female congressional delegation, and Sullivan has been attacked for having only recently moved to the state. Jeanne Shaheen, one of the state’s two Democratic senators, defeated former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown in 2014, in part with attacks on his having been a resident of the
state for only a short time.
Pappas has previously served in the New Hampshire legislature and co-owns a restaurant that is a popular stopping point for presidential hopefuls ahead of the state’s first-in-the-nation nominating primary.
Women candidates in both parties have dominated key races in a year with record numbers of women seeking office.
The leading Republicans in the New Hampshire race are state Senator Andy Sanborn and former South Hampton police chief Eddie Edwards. Each has been endorsed by a Trump proxy, with former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski backing Sanborn and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani behind Edwards.
The district has a history of going against the party that holds the White House. Shea-Porter won in a Democratic wave in 2006 due to voter dissatisfaction with Republican President George W. Bush. She has since traded the seat with Republican Frank Guinta, first elected in 2010 in response to anger at Democratic President Barack Obama. Shea-Porter regained the seat from Guinta in 2016.
Another Democratic candidate is Levi Sanders, son of U.S. Senator and failed 2016 White House candidate Bernie Sanders, who has endorsed dozens of candidates around the United States but thus far has not backed his son, who is seen as a long-shot.
Voters will also pick Republican challengers to U.S. Representative Annie Kuster and Democratic challengers to Governor Chris Sununu.
This week will set the final congressional match-ups ahead of the Nov. 6 general election, with Rhode Island set to vote on Wednesday. New York voters, who have already picked nominees for Congress, on Thursday pick candidates for governor and other state races.
…
9/11 Attacks Remembered at Pentagon, New York, Pennsylvania
11/09/2018
Ceremonies were held Tuesday at the Pentagon outside Washington, in New York City and in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to mark the 17th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States that killed almost 3,000 people. VOA’s Jeff Custer reports.
…
9/11 Attacks Remembered at Pentagon, New York, Pennsylvania
11/09/2018
Ceremonies were held Tuesday at the Pentagon outside Washington, in New York City and in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to mark the 17th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States that killed almost 3,000 people. VOA’s Jeff Custer reports.
…
Курт Волкер виступить на Ялтинській щорічній зустрічі у Києві
11/09/2018
Спеціальний представник Сполучених Штатів з питань України Курт Волкер повідомив, що планує виступити на щорічному форумі «Ялтинська економічна стратегія».
За словами Волкера, його зустрічі в Києві будуть присвячені пошуку шляхів відновлення миру в Україні.
15-та щорічна зустріч Ялтинської Європейської Стратегії (YES) відбудеться в Києві 13-15 вересня 2018 року. Очікують, що на ній зберуться понад 600 політиків, бізнесменів, громадських активістів та експертів із 28 країн.
…
Ireland Says Trump Visit Postponed
11/09/2018
U.S. President Donald Trump will not visit Ireland next month as planned, according to officials in Dublin.
The visit has been postponed for “scheduling reasons,” the Irish government announced on Tuesday.
However, following the Irish government’s announcement, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement: “We are still finalizing whether Ireland will be a stop on that trip,” noting the president still is set to be in be in Paris on November 11 to participate in a ceremony commemorating the 100th anniversary of the World War I armistice.
Cancellation of the Irish leg, which had been slated for November 12, was first reported by the Independent newspaper in Dublin and public broadcaster RTE.
The Ireland stop was intended “to renew the deep and historic ties between our two nations,” as the White House put it in an August 31 announcement about the trip.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar visited Trump at the White House in March.
Speaking on RTE radio on September 2, Varadkar acknowledged being surprised the U.S. president was planning to visit in November, despite an open invitation to Trump to visit at any time, saying: “It came a little bit out of the blue.”
Trump had been scheduled to spend a day in Dublin before traveling to Doonbeg on the Atlantic coast in County Clare where he owns a golf course.
“The development will come as a massive relief” to the Irish government, according to the Independent newspaper, which termed Trump’s trip controversial with plans by the Labor and Green parties to protest the U.S. president’s visit.
Prior to word of the cancelation, the leader of the centrist Fianna Fail party, Micheál Martin, said Trump’s visit would be “an opportunity to talk to him and articulate our position on a range of issues that we’re not currently happy with.”
There are still two other announced international destinations on the president’s November travel schedule: the G-20 Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a meeting in Colombia with President Ivan Duque to discuss “opportunities for even greater collaboration on security, counter narcotics, and regional affairs,” according to the White House.
Trump, in November, is to skip attending in Singapore the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and the East Asia Summit, as well as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Papua New Guinea.
The president is dispatching Vice President Mike Pence to attend those meetings.
Ireland Says Trump Visit Postponed
11/09/2018
U.S. President Donald Trump will not visit Ireland next month as planned, according to officials in Dublin.
The visit has been postponed for “scheduling reasons,” the Irish government announced on Tuesday.
However, following the Irish government’s announcement, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement: “We are still finalizing whether Ireland will be a stop on that trip,” noting the president still is set to be in be in Paris on November 11 to participate in a ceremony commemorating the 100th anniversary of the World War I armistice.
Cancellation of the Irish leg, which had been slated for November 12, was first reported by the Independent newspaper in Dublin and public broadcaster RTE.
The Ireland stop was intended “to renew the deep and historic ties between our two nations,” as the White House put it in an August 31 announcement about the trip.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar visited Trump at the White House in March.
Speaking on RTE radio on September 2, Varadkar acknowledged being surprised the U.S. president was planning to visit in November, despite an open invitation to Trump to visit at any time, saying: “It came a little bit out of the blue.”
Trump had been scheduled to spend a day in Dublin before traveling to Doonbeg on the Atlantic coast in County Clare where he owns a golf course.
“The development will come as a massive relief” to the Irish government, according to the Independent newspaper, which termed Trump’s trip controversial with plans by the Labor and Green parties to protest the U.S. president’s visit.
Prior to word of the cancelation, the leader of the centrist Fianna Fail party, Micheál Martin, said Trump’s visit would be “an opportunity to talk to him and articulate our position on a range of issues that we’re not currently happy with.”
There are still two other announced international destinations on the president’s November travel schedule: the G-20 Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a meeting in Colombia with President Ivan Duque to discuss “opportunities for even greater collaboration on security, counter narcotics, and regional affairs,” according to the White House.
Trump, in November, is to skip attending in Singapore the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and the East Asia Summit, as well as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Papua New Guinea.
The president is dispatching Vice President Mike Pence to attend those meetings.
Сестра Сенцова розповіла, що він написав у заповіті
11/09/2018
«Він склав заповіт на ім’я своєї подруги, соратниці. Вона з Криму»
…
Координатор ОБСЄ Фріш зміг відвідати менше половини українських полонених в ОРДЛО – Геращенко
11/09/2018
Бойовики допустили координатора від ОБСЄ Тоні Фріша менше ніж до половини українських військових, утримуваних у в’язницях на окупованій території Донбасу, з наданого українською стороною списку, повідомила перший віце-спікер Верховної Ради, представник гуманітарної групи на переговорах у Мінську Ірина Геращенко у Facebook.
«За попередньою інформацією, на окупованих територіях посол Т.Фріш зміг зустрітися лише з кількома військовими з того першочергового списку, який ми подали з вимогою відвідати і підтримати наших хлопців», – написала Геращенко.
З позитивів вона відзначила, що представнику ОБСЄ вперше за ці роки дали можливість поспілкуватися з утримуваними українцями віч-на-віч, без присутності тюремників і представників окремих районів Донецької та Луганської областей (ОРДЛО).
«Негатив й те, що найбільше тривожить: допустили Фріша менш ніж до половини із нашого списку (точну інформацію щодо прізвищ матимемо пізніше), особливо тривожна ситуація з окупованим Луганськом, там кілька українських військових – у повній ізоляції. Це ще раз наводить на думку, що їх катують, тому й ховають», – написала І.Геращенко.
Крім того, за її словами, українська сторона просила Тоні Фріша домогтися від окупаційної влади Донецької та Луганської областей забезпечення «права на дзвінок і листи незаконно утримуваним».
«Чи є результати – будемо знати вже скоро», – повідомила вона.
Координатор гуманітарної підгрупи Тристоронньої контактної групи, посол ОБСЄ Тоні Фріш відвідує лінію зіткнення на Донбасі 6-12 вересня, повідомляла прес-служба ОБСЄ. Він зустрінеться з утримуваними особами і подивиться на те, в яких умовах їх утримують, йдеться в повідомленні.
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25 червня голова СБУ Василь Грицак заявляв, що підтримувані Росією бойовики утримують на Донбасі 113 українців.
…
Indonesia Battles Currency Woes
11/09/2018
Policymakers in Indonesia are grappling to deal with a weakened currency, the rupiah, which was valued at just 14,930 per U.S. dollar last week — its lowest point since the 1998 Asian financial crisis. But unlike 20 years ago, when economic turmoil led to major political upheaval in Indonesia, most observers say that Southeast Asia’s largest economy is now far better positioned to endure a poorly performing currency.
The United States Federal Reserve’s planned interest rate hikes have impacted emerging markets worldwide as investors sell assets in countries such as Indonesia in favor of American ones. The Argentine peso and Turkish lira both crashed in late August, crises that sent major shockwaves across developing economies. President Donald Trump’s trade war with Beijing has also seen a devaluation of the Chinese yuan.
These external factors have badly hit the Indonesian rupiah, already one of the weakest currencies in Asia. According to Bloomberg, the rupiah has lost around 9 percent of its value against the greenback during 2018. Like Turkey and Argentina, Indonesia also has a so-called “twin” deficit, meaning it is running both fiscal and current account deficits.
“Indonesia obviously is one of the frontline currencies alongside the Indian rupee and the Philippine peso, these are the three currencies most battered among the regional pack… in the latest turmoil,” said Prakash Sakpal, an economist from ING in Singapore.
Stronger 20 years on
In the late 1990s, the collapse of the rupiah exacerbated a severe economic crisis, which led to the fall of Indonesia’s longtime dictator Suharto.
“We know what we face with the rupiah is a really, really important problem,” the head of Research at the Jakarta-based brokerage and investment management firm Ekuator, David Setyanto, told VOA. “But if you compare with Turkey or Argentina, we are not the same with them because our fundamental economics are much stronger than these two countries.”
Dr. Tommy Soesmanto, an economics lecturer at Griffith University, told VOA that “Indonesians should not be overly concerned with the current situation,” as the economy is in a far stronger position than in 1998. During the Asian Financial Crisis, the rupiah fell from 3000 against the US dollar to 15,000 — a depreciation of some 500 percent from which it never recovered, hovering at around 10,000 per dollar in subsequent years.
Indonesia’s credit rating is now Triple B as opposed to 1998 when it was “considered junk”, Soesmanto said, while the country now has net capital inflow compared with “severe” capital outflow in 1998. Bank Indonesia holds foreign reserves worth some $118 billion compared with just $24 billion back then, allowing it greater leverage to finance debts and imports.
Charu Chanana, Deputy Head of Asia Research at Continuum Economics in Singapore, agreed. “We believe Indonesia is much stronger today fundamentally when compared to 1998,” she wrote in an email. “However, as external headwinds persist, we believe Indonesia’s currency will remain in the firing line due to a weak external position and high foreign exposure in the stock and bond markets.”
“I think it’s a little bit overblown,” said Sakpal of ING when asked about the severity of the currency crisis, noting that “economic fundamentals for most of the regional economies are still solid.”
“In Indonesia, growth has accelerated in the second quarter to 5.3 percent, which was the fastest in many quarters… all the recent turmoil is driven by external factors,” he said.
Unite for the rupiah
Bank Indonesia, the central bank, has responded aggressively to the latest currency problems by raising interest rates four times since May. For months it has also sold foreign currency and bought sovereign bonds in a bid to stabilize the currency.
The government, meanwhile, has now imposed higher import taxes of up to 10 percent on some 1000 consumer goods, including cosmetics and luxury cars.
“This is a good chance for local producers to penetrate our own domestic market that is usually filled with imported goods,” Indonesia’s Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said last week.
The weak rupiah is likely to hit Indonesia’s manufacturing sector hardest, and accordingly, the government has imposed lower tax hikes of 2.5 percent on imported raw materials. The energy and resources ministry also announced it would delay $25 billion worth of power projects, aimed at producing an additional 35 gigawatts of electricity, which is expected to save $8 to $10 billion in import costs.
“We can come together for the success of the #AsianGames2018,” read a Facebook post from the Finance Ministry last week, accompanied by infographics urging Indonesians to buy local products, reduce their consumption of imports, change U.S. dollars for rupiah, travel within Indonesia and invest locally. “We can also #BersatuUntukRupiah [unite for the rupiah].”