Volume XII Issue I September 2018

Two Arrested For Poisoning of Former Russian Double Agent

InsideFocus on

Social Media Mobilization

Pages 6&7

Int’l News OPINION Diplo News Diplo News

On page 5. On page 10. On page 12.

Maduro scrambles to solve venezulean

crisis

The Unraveling of the European Union

On page 9.

A Day in the Life of Dean Bartoli

Keeping Up with the 2018 Concordia

Summit

Gabrielle GoldwormStaff Writer

Scotland Yard has identified two suspects involved in the poisoning of former Russian dou-ble agent, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury on March 4, 2018, the Times of India reports.

Skripal and his daugh-ter were found uncon-scious on a bench close to a Salisbury shopping center and spent weeks in a nearby hospital in criti-cal condition before being released in May and April, respectively. According to the Chicago Tribune, a second poisoning inci-dent that took place near Amesbury in July is be-lieved to be linked to the attack, and in both cases the victims were poisoned by the nerve agent Novi-chok.

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Super Typhoon Mangkhut Spotlights Climate Change

Judy KorenStaff Writer

On Saturday, Septem-ber 15, Super Typhoon Mangkhut, also called Ompong, slammed into the northeastern tip of the Philippines, specifical-ly on the island of Luzon.

According to Al Ja-zeera, the super typhoon, a tropical storm with winds sustaining at least 115 miles per hour, is considered the equivalent of a Category 5 Atlantic hurricane. On the Friday prior, this led the Philip-pines to declare the high-est alert level for a storm in the northern provinces of Abra, Apayao, Cagay-an, Ilocos Norte, Kalin-ga, the northern part of Isabel and the Babuyan group of islands.

CNN said that Mang-kut packed sustained 180-mile-per-hour winds, marking it the strongest storm on the planet in

mega-storms will become the new norm.

Xie Shang-Ping, an environmental scien-tist at the University of California – San Diego emphasized that “warm sea surface temperatures help intensify tropical cyc lones.” Shang-Ping continued by saying “this summer, sea surface tem-peratures have been ab-normally warm in many parts of the world, as part of the general global warming trend.”

Warming ocean tem-peratures also increase the severity of storms devel-oping over the sea. South China Morning Post added that four cyclones – which are less devas-tating in comparison to typhoons – intensified so drastically that they even-tually developed into a super typhoon; Mangkhut happened to be one of them.

Choy Chun-Wing, a

2018 thus far. The su-per typhoon made land-fall with wind speeds 75 miles per hour greater than Hurricane Florence, which ravaged the Unit-ed States east coast, at 165 miles per hour. In addition, the wind force stretched 168 miles; this is equivalent to the dis-tance from Paris, France to Brussels, Germany. At least 30 million peo-ple were expected to face tropical-force winds.

CBS News reports that the Philippines is one of the most disas-ter-prone countries. The Southeast Asian country faces up to an average of 20 typhoons annual-ly; Mangkhut is number 15 this year. Storms like typhoons and hurricanes strengthen from warm ocean water – a trend linked to climate change. South China Morning Post states scientists have once again reiterated that rising temperatures mean Continue on page 4...

United States to End Palestinian AidJackson Lied

Staff Writer

The United States, in accordance with its current administration’s policies, has begun the process to ensure Pales-tine stops receiving U.S. aid. Palestinians had pre-viously been allotted ap-proximately 200 million dollars of aid with the goal to foster cooperative programs between Pales-tinians and Israelis. Now, the Trump administration wishes to see all U.S. fi-nancial support to Pales-tine cease.

This shift in policy came about two weeks ago, and it was reported by The New York Times on Tuesday, September 14 that the U.S. Agency for International Develop-ment would stop funding programs going towards Palestinian and Israeli ci-vilian cooperation. This includes all programs that

involve Palestinian citi-zens except the programs which are on multi-year grants. However, even those programs will not likely see a renewal in their grants once they have expired.

The push to end U.S. aid to Palestine is com-ing from Jared Kushner, White House advisor and son-in-law of President Trump, and not from the individual organizations providing aid such as USAID. In fact, USAID, though it can no longer fund Palestinian civilians, is still offering aid to the programs that encourage

dialogue and cooperation between Israeli Jews and Israeli Arabs. According to The New York Times, Tim Rieser, foreign poli-cy aide to Senator Patrick Leahy said that, “essen-tially, USAID was faced with the choice of shut-ting down the program and losing the funds, or keeping something going.

Looking forward, this shift in aid will have per-sonal and political effects for the Palestinian people. Many Palestinians who worked for U.S.-funded aid programs are losing their source of income. Regarding this issue, Al

Jazeera told the story of Nermin Saydam who had recently acquired housing and now may be jobless and thousands of dollars in debt.

In addition to having personal finance effects, the cessation of aid will take a toll on hospitals serving Palestinian pa-tients. The Times of Israel cites Bassem Abu Libdeh as saying that the U.S. provided the funds to cover 40 percent of costs for six hospitals in East Jerusalem. These hospi-tals served many Palestin-ians in fields ranging from general healthcare to can-cer treatment.

The more political af-termath will be the con-tinuing retreat of hospi-tality between Palestine and the U.S. The neces-sary amiability for further discussion and diploma-cy to continue is already being hindered by the United States’ decision to

Britain Increasingly Split Over Brexit

Mia DiapolaStaff Writer

Two years after the Brexit referendum and six months until Britain is set to leave the European Union, the United King-dom is more divided over Brexit than ever. Prime Minister Theresa May spent much of the sum-mer attempting to iron out a plan to leave the EU, ultimately culminating in the Chequers plan.

Back at home, Mrs. May’s Soft Brexit plan has many opponents, including some within her own party, The Irish Times reports. While the Chequers plan is opposed by the Labour MPs and some MPs from Mrs. May’s Conservative party, they are not united in the reasons for their dissent. The Labour Party is still holding out hope on re-

maining in the EU, while some right-wing Con-servatives would prefer a hard break. The Irish Times has also reported that if Chequers is defeat-ed, May’s place as party leader will likely come into question.

Mrs. May’s Chequers plan has given rise to splits within her own cabinet. According to The Sun, disagreements over the Soft Brexit deal led to the July departures of former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, former Brexit Secretary David Davis, vice-chairs of the Conservative Party Maria Caulfield and Ben Bradley, and ministers Steve Baker and Robert Courts. Mr. Davis believes that up to 40 Tory Members of Parliament will vote against the Chequers plan, the Independent reports. Additionally, Mr. Johnson

Kushner is credited with this new shift. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

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Temperature Rises in Idlib Crisis

Sam AdamsStaff Writer

Over the past few weeks, Syrian and Rus-sian airstrikes have fallen throughout Idlib prov-ince. As residents scram-ble for cover while being cut off from the rest of the world, Turkey has be-gun to reinforce several of its military outposts along the provincial Idlib border. Several of these outposts are located along the M4 and M5 highways running from Latakia and Aleppo to the capital, Da-mascus. In response to this reinforcement, Syria

and its ally Russia have expressed dismay, BBC reports. Two Turkish out-posts, thought to be the first to come under attack, are the only outposts that have not been reinforced.

Russian and Syrian air-strikes, amid fears of rebel a ground offensive, have displaced an estimated 38,500 residents, accord-ing to the United Nations. In Idlib, Turkey has striv-en to find a diplomatic solution to this quandary, separating internationally recognized terrorists from moderate rebels. The ter-rorists, known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), are known extremists.

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The airstrikes show no sign of stopping soon. Courtesy of Wikimedia..

September 2018Page 2 International News

World Economic Forum Opens Possibilities for ASEAN GrowthTien PhanStaff Writer

On September 11, 2018, the World Eco-nomic Forum kicked off in Hanoi, Vietnam with the theme “ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolu-tion,” reported the Nhan Dan. With as much as sixty discussions being carried out by multiple involved parties, the As-sociation of South East Asia Nations (ASEAN) is “in a good position” to take advantage of this rapid change in how the global economy func-tions, according to Singa-pore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Long.

Mr. Lee believes that ASEAN’s productivi-ty rate will only increase because businesses are adapting to modern changes with a young

work force that is able to manage this transforma-tion comfortably. More-over, Channels News Asia reports that with this growth rate and solid fun-damentals, becoming the fourth largest economy in the world alongside the U.S., China, and the Eu-ropean Union is a realistic goal for ASEAN by 2030.

Additionally, World Economic Forum re-ports that leaders of the alliance cannot ignore what is happening with the U.S.-China trade wars. Though not actively in-volved in the high-tension battle between the two superpowers, South East Asian nations’ markets must choose a side for their trade partnerships.

Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, empha-sized the importance of unified prosperity; having a winner or a loser is not an option in economic

terms. As such, ASEAN members are not alone; their counterparts from China, Japan, and South Korea also recognize the trade war could lead to nowhere, and pledge to uphold openness and mu-tual interests, according to the World Economic Forum.

Devex reports that in order to improve ASE-AN itself, members’ flaws must be noted so that the group as a whole can improve an increasingly interdependent interna-tional community. The host nation, Vietnam, still has stigmas with human rights activists, as many individuals were blocked from entering the country despite receiving invita-tions to join the forum.

Notably, Amnesty In-ternational Senior Di-rector of Global Opera-tions, Minar Pimple, and Secretary General of the

International Federation of Human Rights, Deb-bie Stothard, were both denied entry into Noi Bai airport. Mr. Pimple failed to even acquire a Viet-namese visa for his at-tendance. This has raised some questions regarding fundamental courtesy and Vietnam’s legitimacy on a global scale.

Furthermore, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi took all of the responsibilities for targeting the Rohing-ya Muslim community, whose almost 700,000 individuals have been forced to flee for their lives, Devex adds. Despite her acknowledgement that the situation could have been handled with better measures, Ms. Suu Kyi states that other mi-norities are disappearing as well.

Realizing their poten-tial in coming years and also acquiescing their

flaws, ASEAN members are keen to attain more knowledge on how to live up to global expec-tations. Business Times reports that with differ-ences in economic struc-tures, there are two main traits that all members are sharing in their goal to development: pro-growth public policy and a com-petitive domestic econo-my.

To be specific, there would be no growth if there is no productivity among the workforce. Fortunately, ASEAN members’ workforce is known to be beneficial in both productivity and labor cost. Adding one of the world’s strongest technology and domestic savings to the equation, these numbers will no doubt increase along with per capita GDP. More-over, competitive dynam-ics in an outperforming

economic model is an impactful factor as well. ASEAN markets have many medium and small firms who supply for larger businesses, reports Business Times.

Nhan Dan stated that reaching this potential is possible; however, ASE-AN members need to maintain realistic gov-ernmental activities and improve infrastructure as well as skilled-intensive labor. In the words of Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnamese Acting Min-ister of Information and Communication, “We have to train people so they are adept to change, not only technological training, but soft skills too. I think the Fourth Industrial Revolution is more about a mindset revolution.”

Contact Tien at tien.phan@student.shu.edu

Ethiopia and Eritrea Make Peace After 20 Years of Conflict

Jarrett DangStaff Writer

Ethiopian Prime Min-ister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki signed a peace agreement on September 16 in Jedda, Saudi Ara-bia, solidifying new dip-lomatic ties between the two nations, reports Al Jazeera.

War broke out between the two countries in 1998, five years after Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia, over con-tested areas along the bor-der. However, the disput-ed areas ostensibly had no real value to either side; The Economist described the situation as being like “two bald men fighting over a comb.”

A peace agreement was signed in Algiers in late 2000 that was supposed to end hostilities, but each side remained belliger-ent. In addition to clos-ing embassies and barring flights, both nations shut their borders and camped armies on their respective sides.

ship docked in an Eritrean port for the first time in 20 years, Reuters reports. Previously existing trade routes have been reestab-lished, further increasing the prospects for greater economic integration.

According to AfricaN-ews, the peace process between Eritrea and Ethi-opia has inspired Eritrea to also seek reconcilia-tion with Djibouti, which it fought briefly in 2008 over border disagree-ments. A peaceful Ethio-pian-Eritrean relationship could also stabilize So-malia. In a 2007 analysis by Terrence Lyons pub-lished by the Council on Foreign Relations, Lyons argues that Somalian in-stability is partly the fault of the Ethiopian-Eritrean conflict, as Eritrea has al-legedly supported terror-ist organizations in Soma-lia. Increased economic and security cooperation between Horn of Africa nations could stabilize the region as a whole.

Contact Jarrett at jarrett.dang@student.shu.edu

Abiy Ahmed, elected as the Prime Minister of Ethiopia in April 2018, has made huge strides in improving ties between his country and Eritrea since assuming office. Ahmed’s government conceded the contested town of Badme as well as other disputed areas and called for Eritreans to consider bilateral peace talks. On July 9, Ahmed took a trip to the Eritre-an capital of Asmara and worked with President Afwerki to hammer out a five-point agreement that officially ended the 20-year war, reports Reuters. Since then, the border and respective embassies between Ethiopia and Er-itrea have been reopened, diplomatic telephone lines reconnected, and flights resumed, accord-ing to Al Jazeera.

Eritrea has also al-lowed Ethiopia to use some of its ports, a key factor for economic inter-ests. In fact, 95 percent of Ethiopian trade flows through Djibouti, accord-ing to Foreign Affairs. In September, an Ethiopian

Luisa ChainferberStaff Writer

Hurricane Florence has caused record-shat-tering flooding and 42 deaths, says the Guardian.

In Lumberton, North Carolina, town leaders blamed a rail company for the Hurricane Florence flooding. Local officials desired to cover a hole in the levee system with a temporary berm as Hur-ricane Florence moved closer. Yet CSX, one of the largest rail compa-nies in the United States, refused to allow anyone inside their property to build in it, reports CNBC. North Carolina state Sen-ator Danny Britt stated that CSX endangered lives and millions of dol-lars of personal property in order to protect their own interests.

Lumberton Mayor Druce Davis also reacted to CSX’s actions and reaf-firmed that only the gov-ernor could force CSX to assist the building of a permanent floodgate. Ac-cording to Davis, the rail company told city officials that anyone who attempt-ed to stem the flood from the underpass would be considered a trespasser.

According to CBS, more evacuations were requested in South Car-olina as Hurricane Flor-ence unloaded one trillion gallons of water, which raised river levels and

threatened even more destruction. In a letter, South Carolina Gover-nor Henry McMaster es-timated damages at $1.2 billion, and classified the flood as the worst disas-ter in the state’s modern history. Roughly 50,000 homes and businesses are without electricity after Florence, and more than 900,000 in three states were previously without power as well.

Although the crisis is slowly ending in Wilming-ton, the access to the city remains limited, and offi-cials requested that people who have evacuated delay their return, says CBS. As rivers were repeatedly rising back, officials also warned the population to continue on guard.

In addition, Hurricane Florence impacted ag-ricultural production in South Carolina. The State Journal has estimated that the eight counties of Pee Dee, a northern region of South Carolina, suffered $125 million in losses. On September 20, Governor Henry McMaster formal-ly solicited $1.2 billion in aid from the federal

government to assist the state with the problems created by the continued flooding.

The waters rise in riv-ers in Pee Dee, so the worst may be yet to come. The crops that suffered the most were cotton, soybeans, and peanuts. It is hard to complete a firm estimate of any crop loss. With the third crop loss in four years, many farm-ers in South Carolina are unlikely to survive with-out federal government assistance.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin-istration calculated a 70% chance that the 2018 hur-ricane season will include 10 to 16 named storms, from which five to nine are likely to become hur-ricanes. As a solution, USA Today suggested creating tax incentives and enhancement of all parties touching the en-ergy supply chain in order to encourage public-pri-vate partnerships.

Contact Luisa at luisa.chainferber@student.

shu.edu

Hurricane Florence Strikes

The two heads of state hug at a summit. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Florence was a striking sight even from space. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

September 2018Page 3International News

Two Arrested For Poisoning of Former Russian Double Agent

Continued from

page 1..A statement by UK

Prime Minister Theresa May noted that the two suspects were reported to have entered the country using Russian passports, according to the BBC. They traveled under the assumed aliases Alexan-der Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, claiming to be tourists visiting Salisbury’s “famous cathedral.” This cover story was later re-peated by the suspects in a September 12 interview with the Kremlin backed Russian news network, Russia Today, according to the Washington Post.

Although both men claim to work in sports nutrition, the police sus-pect both of being mem-bers of Russia’s mili-tary intelligence service, known commonly as GU or GRU, according to the BBC. In the interview, both men claimed to not know Skripal, where he lived, or anything else about him. The Chica-go Tribune reports that when questioned about

the British claim that the nerve agent was carried in a perfume bottle, Boshi-rov dismissed the infor-mation stating, “don’t you think it’s kind of stupid for two straight men to carry perfume for ladies?” When questioned on why the two men would spend so much time alone to-gether, Boshirov refused to answer, only saying, “let’s not breach anyone’s privacy.”

The UK’s claims about the two men’s connec-tions to the Russian gov-ernment were immediate-ly met with denial from Moscow. According to the Independent, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during an econom-ic panel that his country is aware of these men and their true identities, but that they are civilians in no way affiliated with GRU or the Russian gov-ernment at large.

During the same panel, Putin also suggested that the two men come for-ward and tell their story to the media to clear their names in the eyes of the public. Shortly after, the

interview the two men had with Russia Today aired, with mixed reac-tions from the interna-tional community.

The event and the me-dia buzz that followed has created what some news outlets are referring to as a “A Cold War-style diplo-matic crisis between Rus-sian and the West,” and hundreds of diplomats have been expelled from foreign soil on both sides, states the Times of India. The UK law enforcement officials have stated their intention to bring charges in relation to the attacks against the two suspects and to seek to circulate Interpol Red Notices. However, Russia seems unwilling to cooperate with what its media has been framing as a ‘witch hunt,’ and without some level of compromise, the investigation is likely to remain in limbo.

Contact Gabrielle at gabrille.goldworm@student.shu.edu

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HTS, formerly known as the al-Nusra Front, were part of an al-Qaeda led alliance. The group numbers between 10 and 15 thousand fighters who are almost entirely locat-ed in Idlib, according to the Wall Street Journal. In growing tension with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham are tens of thousands of Turkish-backed mod-erate rebels that active-ly seek the removal of HTS fighters. This move is virulently opposed by leadership of the group, as HTS fighters willing to negotiate removal have been arrested, the Wall Street Journal reports. In past weeks, street protests over the looming assault have forced Hayat Tahrir al-Sham to take a softer stance towards residents.

Turkey fears the Syrian government assault could trigger a new wave of up to 800,000 refugees flee-ing to its borders, further reports the BBC. With 3.5 million Syrian refugees already in its sputtering

economy, Turkish leaders and civilians alike fear the country will not be able to sustain another refu-gee wave. The Turkish military has reinforced ar-eas of the Turkish-Syrian border in efforts to deter refugees from entering the country, further re-ports the Wall Street Jour-nal.

The U.S., although hav-ing little influence in Idlib, has responded in kind to the events transpiring. The southern al-Tanf re-gion is controlled by U.S. backed rebels as well as a U.S. troop presence. Ac-cording to Newsweek, the Pentagon has organized and carried out rare, large scale military exercises with Syrian rebels “on the ground and in the air” throughout the region surrounding Al-Tanf.

Washington has claimed that the Syrian government has given the “go ahead” for the use of chemical weapons in Idlib. The U.S. government has been further reported by Newsweek to be plan-ning an attack alongside France and Britain. U.S.

Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley stated the U.S. would “consider any attack on Idlib to be a reckless escalation of the conflict.”

Humanitarian aid is seemingly in short sup-ply as the entire region prepares for the Syrian government’s moves. For the past two years, Israel has been providing aid, from cars and trucks to generators and diapers. However, due to advanc-ing Syrian government forces, the “Good Neigh-bor” command has been completed and its activi-ties will cease, according to the CBN.

With civil war nearly in the rearview mirror, Syri-an officials have recently criticized the UN inves-tigation of their possible war crimes, reports the Seattle Times. For now, Idlib awaits the decisions of Russia, Syria, and Tur-key, as another looming humanitarian crisis will surely be “destructive” for all involved parties.

Contact Sam at samuel.adams@student.shu.edu

Temperature Rises in Idlib Crisis

International Court of Justice Receives Chagos Islands CaseHarshana Ghoorhoo

Staff Writer

A case was present-ed to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague on Thursday, August 30. Mauritius, an independent island state in the Indian Ocean, is in dispute with Britain over the sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago, also commonly referred to as the Chagos Islands.

Mauritius approached the United Nations with a resolution in which they requested a legal opinion from the International Court of Justice on their sovereignty over the Cha-gos Islands, which is cur-rently an incorporated part of the British Indi-an Ocean Territory, The Telegraph affirms.

It certainly came as a blow to Britain when the resolution was successful-ly adopted on Thursday September 6, with only 15 countries voting against its adoption and the ma-jority of the European Union (EU) countries abstaining. The Telegraph further notes how this as-pect is an important ana-lytical point on how Brit-

ain is losing its allies in the EU during a critical time such as Brexit, since it was unable to gather enough rallies during the General Assembly to prevent the adoption of Mauritius’ resolution.

During the four-day hearing last week, 22 countries and the African Union made statements, of which 17 countries backed Mauritius, in-cluding India, China, and the African Union. The United States on the oth-er hand, stood firmly by Britain’s side. Diego Gar-cia, the largest island of the Archipelago, houses one of the largest Unit-ed States military bases in the world with over 4,000 troops in operation. The New York Times re-ported that United States ambassador to the Unit-ed Nations, Nikki Haley, encouraged diplomatic missions present in New York to vote against the resolution and that no form of negotiation would be carried out with Mauritius.

According to the Mau-ritian Government, the Chagos Islands is still considered as an integral part of Mauritius’ terri-

tory, but the country was ‘unlawfully’ coerced into ceding the territory to Britain right before its in-dependence from British rule in 1968.

As mentioned in The Guardian, Sir Aneerood Jugnauth, Mauritius’s de-fense minister and former prime minister, affirmed in the opening statements of the legal challenge that Mauritius was compelled to detach itself from a considerable portion of its territory on the eve of its independence during ‘secret meetings’ held with British officials. Mr. Jugnauth further men-tioned that it was a breach of U.N. resolution 1514, passed in 1960, to sepa-rate colonies before inde-pendence was granted to a country.

Statistical evidence revealed that after Mau-ritius’ independence in 1968, most of the 1500 islanders were forcibly deported from the Ar-chipelago so that it could be used for establishing a military base. Many of those deported people went to Britain and have since then been fighting the British Government to reclaim their home-

land. However, Britain

claimed that the Cha-gos Islands were a part of the agreement made with Mauritius in 1965, the New York Times highlighted. During the General Assembly, Mat-thew Rycroft, the British ambassador to the United Nations emphasized how Mauritius was told that it would be handed the Chagos Islands once they were no longer required for military purposes. However, for 50 years Britain’s administration remained stagnant over the matter.

Sir Aneerood Jugn-auth mentioned to the General Assembly that handing over the Archi-pelago would not indicate

a halt to its the military operations; Mr. Jugnauth showed his support for world security and main-tained that the U.S. and Britain could retain their military bases as long as sovereignty was returned to Mauritius. An impact-ful claim made by Mr. Jug-nauth was how important it is for the Chagossians as well as Mauritian peo-ple to claim back the to-tality of their territories and be at last freed from colonization.

The Guardian notes that while no conclusive decision has yet been reached, the court will primarily consider two important factors: wheth-er Mauritius was lawfully decolonized during its in-dependence in 1968, and

whether Mauritius has the capacities to resettle the Chagossians, who were forcibly deported, back into the Chagos Islands.

It is vital to consider how Mauritius is backed by many of its continen-tal neighbours and allies, and how such an alliance strengthens diplomat-ic and foreign relations between countries. On the other side, several EU countries offered no diplomatic support to Britain, and as the latter enters its Brexit-era, this could be an indication of how isolated Britain is when addressing diplo-matic relations.

Contact Harshana at harshana.ghoorhoo@student.

shu.edu

The sovreignty of the Chagos Islands is at stake. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

September 2018Page 4 International News

North Korea Strengthens Denuclearization StanceSaveria Antonacci

Staff Writer

The prospect of de-nuclearization in North Korea may soon be more than a figment of one’s imagination. According to ABC News, President Moon Jae-in of South Korea and Supreme Lead-er Kim Jong-un of North Korea met for their third set of peace talks this year, spanning from Tues-day through Thursday.

On Thursday, Mr. Moon announced that much diplomatic progress had been made. CNN re-ports that Mr. Kim “dis-cussed specific steps” in order to begin destroying the North Korean Nucle-ar Arsenal that has para-lyzed world leaders with fear and uncertainty since the 1990s. Additionally, it was hinted that the two leaders would like to of-ficially end the armistice between their countries.

This move would allow North Korea to focus on

its economic growth and partnership building with other Asian and Europe-an countries, instead of continuing its policy of fierce militarization. Ac-cording to Reuters, this would include engaging in dialogue with coun-tries such as France, for assistance in construct-

ing a high-speed railway connecting North Korea with the rest of the pen-insula and Asia beyond. Naturally, this econom-ic growth would depend on North Korean lead-ers continuing peaceful and productive talks with both neighboring and ri-val states.

Attempts to quell ten-sions have occurred in

places other than sum-mits. As per USA Today, the first liaison office be-tween North and South Korea opened earlier this month. It is a seeming-ly fervent push towards for peaceful relations be-tween the two countries, considering this is the first official post for face-

to-face dialogue. In addition to South

Korea, the United States will also have an import-ant role in the progress of these peace talks. Ac-cording to BBC News, President Trump pre-viously met with Kim Jong-un in June of this year. At this summit, it was confirmed with a signed document that a

new relationship amongst the U.S. and North Korea would emerge. Although there were no clear-cut timelines or details given pertaining to denucle-arization, it was a step taken towards improved communication between the two countries. On top of this, North Ko-rea approved of external inspectors entering the country to confirm that missile testing sites would be demolished, according to The Washington Post.

One issue that threat-ens the prospect of de-nuclearization is the pres-ence of U.S. soldiers in South Korea. Prior to the most recent summit with North and South Ko-rea, Mr. Kim expressed discomfort with U.S. troops being stationed just beyond his country’s border. Simon Denyer of the Washington Post states that “Members of Trump’s administration are concerned that such a declaration could be used to undermine the justi-

fication for the presence of U.S. forces in South Korea, politically if not legally.”

As per Time, in July of 1953, North Korea and South Korea signed an ar-mistice to halt the Korean War, which endured for three years. Despite being located halfway around the world, the U.S. has a long history of interven-tion on the Korean Pen-insula. President Trump and his administration have the opportunity to change the hostile na-ture of relations amongst these countries. Each leader must consider the motivations for every po-litical decision. Similarly, the U.S. must soon decide if President Trump will engage in further peace talks with Kim or refuse altogether to maintain a strong presence in East-ern Asia.

Contact Saveria at saveria.antonacci@student.

shu.edu

Britain Increasingly Split Over Brexit

has become one of the most outspoken critics of Mrs. May’s proposed deal. If Mrs. May were to be ousted from 10 Downing Street, Mr. Johnson would likely be the first to throw his name into the ring for PM, The New York Times reports.

Further adding to the chaos, there have been calls for a second Brexit referendum. The Sun has reported that at the September 20 EU leaders’ meeting, held in Salzburg, Mrs. May was encouraged by Maltese and Czech leaders to hold a second Brexit referendum. This news comes in the same week that Reuters report-ed that London mayor, Sadiq Khan, is calling for a second referendum. Mr. Khan, a member of the Labour Party, has joined other members of his party in making such a demand.

While it is not an offi-cial stance on the Labour party platform, most of the support for another referendum, if Mrs. May’s negotiations with the EU fall through, comes from Jeremy Corbyn’s party. However, Mr. Corbyn

Continued from page

1..currently is not in favor of a second referendum himself. With the Labour party’s annual conference, there will be renewed pressure on Mr. Corbyn.

However, the most pressing issue may not be opposition to Chequers in the UK. Before Parlia-ment can vote on the Brexit plan, it must first be approved by the Eu-ropean Union. However, according to Business Insider, the EU has told Mrs. May her Brexit plan “will not work.”

At the September 20 meeting held to discuss the progress of Brex-it negotiations, it was unanimously agreed that allowing the UK to stay in a single market for goods would be unacceptable. Chequers likely will not even make it back to the UK for a vote. The Economist reports that Brussels believes a Brexit agreement will be finished by December. With the UK set to leave the EU on March 29, 2019, with or without a deal, there is a little time for disagree-ments.

Contact Mia at mia.diapola@student.shu.edu

Violent Clashes Erupt in Ethiopian CapitalJosh Newman

Staff Writer

On September 13, vi-olent clashes broke out between mostly youth supporters of the Oro-mo Liberation Front and opposition groups in the Ethiopian capital of Ad-dis Ababa. According to Africa News, the clashes continued into the next day with businesses in the city slowing down consid-erably due to the violence, threatening a thriving and fast growing economy.

The clashes came in the wake of the sweeping reforms put into place by the new Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, who called for peace after the clashes, saying, “We should not marginalize political parties coming from abroad,” according to The Deutsche Welle. The DW also reported that the Oromo Libera-tion Front were expected to return the weekend fol-lowing clashes after Prime Minister Abiy issued an amnesty program includ-ed in the reforms men-tioned above. The rival armed political group Pa-triotic Ginbot 7 returned earlier under the same amnesty program.

The main cause of the clashes appeared to be the

raising of OLF flags in celebration of the group’s return to Addis Ababa, something the locals did not take kindly to, con-tinued Africa News. The OLF supporters mostly came from the Oromia region, travelling through Adissu Gebaya. They were not from the capital.

The Deutsche Welle reported that the main opponent of the OLF supporters were waving the flag of the aforemen-tioned rival group, Patriot-ic Ginbot 7. These clashes come days after reduced tensions on the Ethiopi-an-Eritrean border, which allowed the exiled armed groups to return over the border with amnesty. Po-lice broke up the clashes by firing tear gas into the crowd. Some Ethiopians present reported that they heard gunshots during the clashes, continued DW News.

These violent clashes come in stark contrast to the successes seen by the Abiy administration in the first two months of his term as prime minister. According to CNN, the country has experienced incredible economic growth, about 10 percent a year for the past de-cade. CNN also reported that Abiy’s initial reforms seemed to be restoring

public trust in the gov-ernment. The first three major changes the Abiy administration made, implemented on June 5, were to lift the state of emergency that existed since the resignation of former Prime Minister Desalegn, announce plans to liberalize Ethiopia’s economy, and prepare to implement the Algiers Agreement.

However, the reduc-tion of tensions on the border between Ethiopia and Eritrea and the am-nesty that allowed violent resistance groups, for-merly classified as terror groups by the Ethiopian government, to reen-ter the country seems to threaten these advances. This setback could have devastating consequences for a country that has al-ready seen its fair share of ethnic conflict, reports Al Jazeera.

In contrast to the seemingly positive chang-es in the Ethiopian gov-ernment, New Business Ethiopia reports that in the past year, the number of internally displaced people jumped from 1.6 million to 2.8 million. This is due mainly to eth-nic conflict and natural di-sasters brought on by the annual rainy season.

The Oromo are the

largest of the 80 ethnic groups present in Ethio-pia, Deutsche Welle fur-ther reports. However, the OLF are by no means the only culprits for these displacement statistics. Importantly, the larg-est amount of refugees comes from the capital of the Somali region of Ethiopia, Jigjiga. In ad-dition, conflicts between the Guji tribe, located in the Oromia Region, and the Gedo tribe, located in the Southern region, were another major contrib-utor. These “inter-com-munal conflicts,” as News Business Ethiopia names them, resulted in one mil-lion internally displaced people earlier this year.

The new administra-tion in Ethiopia appears hopeful for a bright fu-ture for Africa’s most populated country, and many see the reforms as a step in the right direction. However, problems of the past still plague this diverse nation. Whether these clashes are a sign of future conflict or simply the growing pains of an improving nation are yet to be seen. In the mean-time, the fate of millions hangs in the balance.

Contact Josh at joshua.new-man@student.shu.edu

Continued from

page 1..scientific officer at the Hong Kong Observatory, noted that super typhoons will become more fre-quent in the close future. Chun-Wing specifically stated that “A warming climate will theoretically provide more energy to fuel storms in the future.”

This is a theory that cli-mate expert groups have reiterated worldwide. For example, the U.S. Nation-al Oceanic and Atmo-spheric Administration warned that the North Atlantic would see “an-other above normal hur-ricane season” following the deadly string of hur-ricanes that battered the Caribbean last year. As the sea warms, it will only fuel a “giant engine” that is a hurricane, typhoon or tropical cyclone.

Contact Judith at judy.koren@student.shu.edu

Super TyphoonMangkhut Spotlights

Climate Change

The Korean peninsula’s leaders appear cordial. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

International news

Axel SontgerathStaff Writer

“I already told my four employees to go find oth-er jobs,” said Marcos Viz-caino, age 55, “I’ve decided to close. There’s no need for me to keep to losing money for a third year in a row.” The car garage own-er in Venezuela’s capital of Caracas felt he had no other choice, Bloomberg News reports; the eco-nomic crisis has forced him to shut down his fam-ily business.

Vizcaino’s decision to shut down his business came from the effects of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s recent economic policy, which has raised the minimum wage in the country by 3000 percent. Put into action

on September 17, 2018, 1,800 bolivars per motnh, equivalent to about $20, were guaranteed to 7 mil-lion employees throughout Venezuela, per Bloomberg News. Intended as a polit-ical boost, the raise instead forced companies to tell workers they cannot afford to keep them.

This is just the latest policy in a four-year long economic struggle for Venezuela. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the nation’s inflation rate is expected to reach one million percent this year.

The crisis began after a 2014 crash in the price of oil. In August 2018, oil production dropped to just 1.4 million barrels per day, from a record high of 3.2 million 10 years ago. Ac-cording to Al Jazeera, this

drop is a 30-year low in the country’s oil production history, as oil production accounts for 96 percent of Venezuela’s revenue.

Citizens have experi-enced food and medicine shortages. Utilities such as electricity, water and trans-port are failing due to the lack of government funds. These critical hits to the nation’s infrastructure has Venezuelans leaving by the millions to neighboring countries, with 1.6 million people having been forced to flee since 2015, the United Nations reports, according to Al Jazeera.

In an interview with the Miami Herald, Meganali-sis Vice President Ruben Chrino Leañez said, “the government’s inability to provide basic necessities has opened the doors to options that would have

services and procurement in the region. Venezuela’s finance ministry stated in July that it would receive $250 million from Chi-na Development Bank to boost oil production. In addition, Venezuela has previously accepted a $5 billion dollar loan from China, with the full amount yet to be received.

Another strategy the Venezuelan president has adopted is suing his neigh-bors, claiming xenophobic treatment of Venezuelan migrants and previous aid to Colombian refugees as grounds for a lawsuit, the Miami Herald reported. Maduro has been targeting Colombia, but keeping his sights on Peru and Ecua-dor as well.

Speaking at a youth rally for the ruling United So-cialist Party of Venezuela, Maduro claims he spends millions on social services for Colombians living in Venezuela, and that Co-lombians are luring away Venezuelans away from the country to destabilize his administration. The Venezuelan Observatory, a think-tank at Colom-bia’s Rosario University, has stated there were nev-er more than 3.6 million Colombians in Venezuela, which includes Venezue-

been unthinkable just a few years ago.”

On Monday, Meganalisis conducted a poll that found 84.3 percent of those sur-veyed would favor a multi-national “intervention” if it brought large amounts of food and medicine to the country. Another 20.5 percent, the equivalent of 6 million people, say they will leave Venezuela if Maduro remains in power and the economic situation does not change.

According to the Miami Herald, Maduro spent the weekend of September 15 trying to secure a $5 billion dollar emergency loan from China. In a pub-lic statement, per Reuters, Venezuela’s government sold a 9.9 percent stake in the joint-oil investment venture between the two nations, Sinovensa, of which China already holds a 40 percent stake. The statement also outlined a new “memorandum,” which was signed by both China and Venezuela, “for cooperation in Ayacucho bloc 6.” This area is locat-ed in the oil-rich Orinoco Belt, where China will drill 300 wells and extend $184 million in financing.

According to an anony-mous source from Reuters, China will handle all oil

lan-born children. Venezuela’s neighbors

are unbothered by this law-suit. Colombia reiterated this week that it “would not assign an ambassa-dor to Venezuela until the country becomes a de-mocracy again.” Ecuador’s Foreign Minister, José Va-lencia, said there was “no basis” for Venezuela’s legal threats. “What Ecuador has done, and the world is our witness, is work, col-laborate and give every-thing of itself,” Valencia told Ecuavisa television, “including during this pe-riod of financial austerity that we’re going through, Ecuador has opened its arms.”

The effects of the eco-nomic crisis in Venezuela have burdened it’s people, destroying the society and infrastructure of the once-rich South American na-tion. As Maduro attempts to hide behind scapegoats and flash loans from Chi-na, the Venezuelan people suffer. Marcos Vizcaino, the car garage owner from Caracas, now has no busi-ness and no place to go.

Contact Axel at

axel.sontgerath@student.shu.edu

September 2018Page 5

Maduro Scrambles to Solve Venezuelan Crisis

Brazilian Candidate Undergoes Surgery in Wake of Stabbing

Mark WoodStaff Writer

Amid corruption alle-gations, former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is now serving jail time and barred from running in next month’s high-ly anticipated elections. Another twist of events occurred when far right candidate, Jair Bolsonaro, was stabbed at a political rally in Juiz de Fora on September 13, 2018.

The Irish Times re-ports the attack caused internal hemorrhaging, forcing Bolsonaro to un-dergo surgery and remain hospitalized after losing 40 percent of his blood. The lone assailant, Ade-lio Bispo de Oliveria, told authorities that he was acting on “God’s orders” when he attacked the 63-year-old presidential hopeful.

The former Army Captain entered politics in the 1980s. His Social

Liberal Party (SLP) is centered around far-right politics which advocate for economic liberalism, Christian nationalism, and national conserva-tism. Bolsonaro has also captured the attention of other Brazilians on his economic liberal policies and his iron fist attitude towards crime.

A controversial figure with a sharp tongue, Bol-sonaro has been viewed by many Brazilians as a fresh face, even though he has been in politics for over 30 years. This fresh-ness is something many Brazilians desperately de-sire during this period of seemingly never-ending corruption scandals and misuse of power. No cor-ruption allegations against Bolsonaro have stuck; the Irish Times reports that Bolsonora views all cor-ruption allegations made against him as slander.

Viewed by some as similar to U.S. President Donald Trump and Phil-

ippines leader Rodrigo Duterte, for the similar-ities of their sometimes crude and misogynist comments., the SLP can-didate does not seem de-terred by either the ‘slan-der’ or by the Facebook group page, ‘Women United Against Bolson-aro,’ which was inspired by his racist, sexist, and homophobic comments and now has over 800,000 followers.

The Financial Times reported he is notably re-membered for assaulting a fellow congresswoman in 2003 over her looks. In 2007 he is quoted in Florida saying “I’m go-ing to give carte blanche to the police officers to kill.” One supporter of Bolsonaro echoes his sen-timent, reporting to The Guardian that “Public se-curity should be put first. It is an embarrassment.”

According to Al Ja-zeera, Bolsonaro’s biggest threat is Fernando Hadd-ad, the former Mayor of

São Paulo and member of the Workers Party – a party still besmirched by corruption charges against former presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff.

On September 20, 2018, an Ibope survey showed that since the at-tack the poll numbers are moving in Bolsonaro’s fa-vor; he is leading the polls with 28 percent and Bra-zilians go to the polls on October 7.

The Financial Times reports that Bolsonaro could be the first right-wing nationalist leader in Brazil since the fall of years of military rule in the 1980s. An advocate to reinstate the death penal-ty, Bolsonaro would face mounting pressure to deal with crime, corruption, wide spread poverty and revive the sluggish econ-omy.

Contact Mark at mark.wood@student.shu.edu

United States To End Palestinian Aid

Continued from page

1..acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel as well as other recent poli-cies that the Palestinians have negatively reacted to. Al Jazeera reports that Saeb Ekarat, Security General of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, said, “[Washington] had abandoned its interna-tional obligation.”

Kushner told The New York Times on Sept. 13, “Nobody is entitled to America’s foreign aid.” Neither the U.S. nor Pal-estine seems to want to budge from their respec-tive stances, despite Pres-ident Trump expressing that he is withholding aid for the purpose to bring Palestine “to the table,” reports the Times of Is-rael.

Other nations, howev-er, seem to disagree with the U.S. and its position. The United Kingdom in particular may attempt to help fill the gap that

the U.S. is now leaving behind. On the topic, Jer-emy Hunt, the U.K. for-eign secretary, was report-ed by the Financial Times as saying, “We don’t agree with the American Ad-ministration’s decision on the issue… We’ll be talking to other donors as well to see if we can make up the gap in funding to the United Nations Re-lief and Works Agency.” Then, the U.K. promptly agreed to raise its funding to UNRWA for Pales-tine refugees by 7 million pounds.

In addition, Germa-ny has agreed to increase its contributions as well. This is all in line with the criticism European pow-ers and other UN mem-bers have had for the United States’ unique pol-icy and actions towards the Israel-Palestine con-flict as a whole.

Contact Jackson at jackson.lied@student.shu.edu

Many blame Maduro for Venezuela’s current economic and humanitarian issues. Courtesy of Flickr.

september 2018Page 6 Focus On

EgyptSamuel Planck

Staff Writer

In early 2011, hun-dreds of thousands of Egyptian protesters took to the streets to demand the resignation of Pres-ident Hosni Mubarak after 30 years of an authoritarian regime. Most famously, thou-sands gathered at Tahrir Square on January 25 in a demonstration of social media mobilization the likes of which had never seen before.

The West was cau-tiously optimistic about Egypt’s future. Even President Obama issued a statement after Mubarak’s resignation, saying, “For Egyptians have made it clear that nothing less than genuine democracy will carry the day.”

While it is clear that social media use was prevalent in mobilizing the Arab Spring (the Project on Information Technology and Polit-ical Islam measured an increase of two orders of magnitude in tweets from Egypt per day in the week before Mubarak resigned), whether it was altogether positive remains up for debate.

Some claim that the greatest power of social

media during the Rev-olution was its ability to spread awareness to the outside world. As Foreign Policy report-ed in December 2011, “This year, according to Twitter, the top hashtag on the microblogging site was… #egypt, which users used to categorize tweets related to Egypt’s revolution.”

This ability to docu-ment the violence used by authoritarian regimes had never been seen be-fore. Citizens live-tweet-ed the clash for Tahrir Square on the night of February 2 into the morning of the 3rd, later compiled together into a cohesive narrative by the Guardian.

However, the MIT Technology Review eval-uated the post-revolution social media landscape, and argued that social media made it easier for revolutionary groups to fragment into echo chambers and radical factions. This ended up weakening the movement as a whole and allowing the military to enforce its power over the country.

As Wael Ghonim, one of the online figureheads of the 2011 Revolution said during a TED talk, “the same tool that unit-ed us to topple dictators

eventually tore us apart.” Anti-revolutionary groups began to use so-cial media for their own purposes as well. Five years after the first Tahrir Square protests, as the provisional government cracked down on physical protests, many took to Twitter with the hashtag #I_participated_in_Janu-ary_Revolution.

Opposition groups met them with criticism, as the Guardian reports, and protesters who were voicing their support for events five years ago were told by some Twitter and Facebook users that they should be ashamed for the years of turmoil that had followed, and that the revolution was a crime.

As analysts review the course of the revo-lution, many see social media as a crucial part. As MIT stated, “Egypt’s Supreme Council of the Armed Forces promptly opened a Facebook page and made it the exclusive outlet for its communi-qués. It had learned from Mubarak’s mistakes; it would play ball on the dissidents’ turf.”

Contact Samuel atsamuel.planck@student.shu.

edu

United StatesKaitlin Principato

Staff Writer

On December 4, 2016, 28-year-old Edgar Welch used his AR-15 to open fire at Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in Washing-ton D.C. Despite firing several rounds, no one was injured and Welch eventually surrendered to authorities. The online conspiracy theory known as “Pizzagate” inspired this violent and potential-ly lethal outburst.

What led this North Carolina man to such extreme behavior? Welch wanted to investigate the child sex-slavery ring underneath Comet Ping Pong pizzeria. A sex-slav-ery ring that did not exist.

According to Esquire, the Pizzagate scandal all began in November of 2016 when Hilary Clin-ton’s campaign manager, John Podesta, had his email hacked and leaked onto Wikileaks. One of the emails, according to The New York Times, was between Podesta and James Alefantis, the owner of D.C.’s Comet Ping Pong. The message discussed the possibility of Alefantis hosting a fundraiser for Clinton at his establishment.

Speculation and a wide

variety of interpretations of the leaked emails evolved throughout online chat rooms like 4Chan. This led some people to the conclusion that the pizzeria was ac-tually a headquarters for a child human trafficking ring led by Clinton and Podesta. Alt-right groups used this misinformation as propaganda through-out various forms of social media prior to the election.

While this conspiracy spread throughout the media, Comet Ping Pong staff received threaten-ing messages and phone calls. Photos of custom-ers’ children were also posted online and used in articles as evidence of the child-abuse ring. As threats mounted up, Ale-fantis contacted the FBI and local police in fear of the safety of his employ-ees and their families.

This theory, however, did not limit itself to the borders of the U.S. As reported by Esquire, the Turkish government became involved when pro-government twitter accounts launched a se-ries of tweets using #Piz-zagate. These accounts were harshly criticized by anti-government activists who claimed the tweets were just a distraction

to the actual child abuse scandal facing the Turk-ish president.

According to Financial Times, critics are asking whether companies such as Facebook and Google have a responsibility to block such content. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder, has pledged to introduce tools that will make it easier to flag fake stories, while Twitter recently sus-pended several accounts belonging to members of “alt-right” groups, saying the network’s rules “prohibit targeted abuse and harassment.”

Taking on the fake news phenomenon has now proved to be a concerning factor in the upcoming evolution of technological advance-ments as it relates to our political system and the safety of the American public.

“My name has been torn to shreds,” Comet Ping Pong owner said to Reveal News. “And then... there are abso-lutely no repercussions for these people, and I wonder when they will be held accountable.”

Contact Kaitlin atkaitlin.principato@student.

shu.edu

LibyaStephanie Miller

Staff Writer

As rival factions con-tinue to decimate Libya’s capital and combatants take up assault rifles and grenade launchers, a new kind of street fighter emerges – the keyboard warrior.

Having previously played an integral role in rallying protests against the regime of former dictator Muammar Gaddafi during the 2011 Arab Spring, Facebook continues to serve as the primary social media plat-form of choice in Libya. These days, however, it serves not as an instru-ment of change, but a weapon capable of mass destruction.

Armed with a func-tioning laptop and a Wi-Fi signal, both militants and civilians take to social media to either dispel or perpetuate intelligence

and propaganda – which-ever best suits their aligned group’s agenda.

According to a report published by Amnesty International, armed militias utilize Facebook to track and dispatch of those who speak up against violent atrocities, including women’s activ-ists and journalists.

In Benghazi, former CIA asset and current warlord Khalifa Hafter orders an elite cyber-unit affiliated within his Libyan National Army to scour the site look-ing for the identities of dissenters and suspected Islamists. They also use it to mount disinformation campaigns against one another and recruit new soldiers.

The RADA Special Deterrence Force, a government-aligned militia group, specifically uses Facebook to publi-cize current events. On September 10, RADA

published photograph-ic evidence on their Facebook site of the recent suicide bombing of Libya’s National Oil Corporation. Al Jazeera would later report that the attack left at least 10 injured, several dead, and indicated that the suicide bombers’ had connec-tions to ISIL, which is slowly regaining traction in northern Libya.

Corruption also plays a role in the crisis. Due to militia commanders abusing their access to Libya’s Central Bank by buying U.S. dollars at official rates as opposed to the higher street prices, civilians often take to Facebook and begin to circulate forged documents in attempts to undermine the value of the institution.

The New York Times reported that users also post fake news or battle guidance. In one partic-ular discussion group, a

user going by the handle ‘Narjis Ly’ posted maps and coordinates to a rival group’s airbase, writing “From the traffic light at Wadi al Rabi, it is exactly 18 kilometers to the run-way, which means it can be targeted by a 130 mm artillery.”

After years of nothing but propaganda and a constant state of terror under Gaddafi, it comes as no surprise that the public has turned to so-cial media as a means of keeping up to date on the latest news.

Because of Lib-ya’s complete lack of a functioning central government, almost all of its active newspapers and television stations are connected to various mil-itant groups – the radio stations Voice of Free Libya historically aligned itself with anti-Gaddafi forces, and now publicly supports various rebel groups around the cities

of Bayda, Benghazi, and Misrata.

What media outlets are not tied to political factions are most likely run by foreign powers: the radio station Libya FM is based in Cairo, Egypt, and Libya TV is owned and operated out of Doha, Qatar.

As outlined in their Community Standards, Facebook does not allow organizations or individ-uals involved in violent or organized criminal activity to maintain active accounts. The company insists that it polices its Middle East and North African platforms with “teams of Arabic-speak-ing content reviewers” and “is developing artificial intelligence to pre-emptively remove prohibited content,” states the New York Times. However, Face-book is still under intense scrutiny for its role in the promotion of illegal arms

dealing. In an official state-

ment, former Libyan information minister Mahmud Shammam ad-dressed his country’s con-tinuing Facebook Wars, calling for an end to deliberate disinformation and the promotion of violence. Shammam dis-tributed his impassioned declaration, ironically, over Facebook.

“The most dangerous, dirty war is now being waged on social media and some other media platforms. Lying, falsi-fying, misleading and mixing facts. Electronic armies are owned by everyone, and used by everyone without excep-tion.”

Contact Srephanie atstephanie.miller@student.

shu.edu

September 2018Page 7Social Media Mobilization

MyanmarAlyssa Tolentino

Staff Writer

Once one of the least connected countries in the world, Myanmar was eager to catch up to the ever-connected, globalized world when it emerged from decades of military rule in 2011.

This eagerness, coupled with the ethnic tensions between the Buddhist Rakhine and the dominantly Muslim Rohingya, resulted in the mobilization of social media on a grand scale to spread hate speech and propagate a genocide that has taken over the narrative of Myanmar’s transition to democracy.

Before 2011, the junta of Myanmar kept its citizens as isolated from the rest of the world as possible, says the Council on Foreign Relations. According to the Inter-national Telecommu-nication Union, a UN agency, few people had telephones and only 1.1 percent of the popula-tion used the internet in 2012.

Everything changed in 2013 when a quasi-civil-

ian government oversaw the deregulation of telecommunications, says Reuters. All of a sudden, the state-owned phone company faced compe-tition from two foreign mobile-phone entrants from Norway and Qatar.

Many saw Facebook as the complete package; one can access news, vid-eos, other entertainment, and even message others all in one place. Being on Facebook became a status symbol. Even the government itself uses it to make major announce-ments.

With its increas-ing ubiquity, however, hatemongers have taken advantage of the so-cial network to spread anti-Muslim sentiments. Human rights activists from inside the country tell CNN that posts range from recirculated news articles from pro-govern-ment outlets to misrep-resented or faked pho-tos and anti-Rohingya cartoons.

Meanwhile, the Myan-mar government and mil-itary have been using the platform to present their own narrative of the Ro-hingya crisis. According

to WIRED, the office of the Commander-in-Chief posted photographs of dismembered children and dead babies, claiming they were attacked by Rohingya terrorists, to counter criticisms from Western countries.

Tensions reached a boiling point on July 2, 2014, when a mob of hundreds of angry resi-dents surrounded the Sun Teashop in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-larg-est city, when rape accusations against the teashop’s Muslim owner went viral on Facebook.

WIRED reports two casualties—one Muslim and one Buddhist—and about 20 others injured during the multi-day me-lee. Five people, including a woman who admitted she was paid to make the false rape claim, were sentenced to 21 years in prison for their roles in instigating the riots.

After the Mandalay riots, a panel discussion in Yangon, Myanmar, was arranged where Mia Garlick, Facebook’s director of policy for the Asia-Pacific region, told the audience that the company planned to

speed up translation of the site’s user guidelines and code of conduct into Burmese. According to WIRED, the Burmese language community standards did not launch until September 2015, 14 months later.

Facebook’s internal community standards enforcement guidelines defines hate speech as “violent or dehumanizing speech, statements of inferiority, or calls for exclusion or segregation” against people based on their race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, and other characteristics.

However, Reuters spoke to former content monitors who said that the rules were incon-sistent and that training instructs them to err on the side of keeping con-tent on Facebook. One former employee said, “Most of the time, you try to give the user the benefit of the doubt.”

For example, Reuters found this post in Bur-mese from August of last year: “Kill all the kalars that you see in Myanmar; none of them should be left alive.” Facebook’s translation into English

reads: “I shouldn’t have a rainbow in Myanmar.”

Many tech companies and NGOs have joined the effort in translating and monitoring posts on Facebook. In response to the flood of hate-filled posts, a group of these firms and NGOs wrote an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, condemning the “inadequate response of the Facebook team” to escalating rhetoric on the platform in Myanmar, CNN reports.

In May 2015, David Madden, founder of the tech firm Phandeeyar based in Yangon, warned Facebook executives that the company risked being a platform used to foment widespread violence, akin to the way radio broadcasts incited killings during the Rwan-dan genocide.

Under international law, incitement to geno-cide is as a crime. There have even been cases of musicians being prose-cuted in the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, like the case of Simon Bikindi, says the New York Times.

In March, the United

Nations accused Face-book of “substantively contributing” to the “lev-el of acrimony” against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. In his Senate testimony, Zuckerberg claimed that the social media site was hiring dozens more Burmese speakers to review hate speech posted in Myan-mar.

Four months after Zuckerberg’s pledge to act, Reuters uncovered hundreds of posts that call the Rohingya or oth-er Muslims dogs, mag-gots, and rapists, suggest-ing they be fed to pigs or simply exterminated. One of these showed a news article from an army-con-trolled publication about attacks on police stations by Rohingya militants. “These non-human kalar dogs, the Bengalis, are killing and destroying our land, our water, and our ethnic people. We need to destroy their race.”

Contact Alyssa atalyssa.tolentino@student.

shu.edu

SyriaNatalie Sherman

Staff Writer

In Syria, a few minutes warning can be the dif-ference between life and death. Hala Systems, the creators of Sentry, have given Syrians the gift of time.

Sentry is a system that alerts users when an airstrike is about to occur via numerous messaging services, reports The Washington Post. These alerts have saved many lives by giving Syrians the advanced warning they need to seek shelter when it spots a plane heading their way.

According to the Washington Post, Sentry has a network of plane spotters located in crucial areas nearby, such as air-strips or opposition-held territory, who can report what they are seeing in

real time. Many of the veteran spotters are able to give information on whether the planes are Russian or Syrian, and the possibility that they are carrying chemical weapons.

Acoustic sensors that can collect data on the speed an aircraft is traveling supplement the information provided by the human spotters. These are crucial in determining how much time civilians have to take cover and where volun-teer organizations, such as the white helmets, can position themselves to help as many people as possible.

During World War II, farmers in rural areas created an ad-hoc system of plane spotting. When they saw German luft-waffe planes, they called ahead to London and gave advanced warning

that allowed civilians to seek shelter ahead of a bombardment. Now, as the war in Syria draws closer to its eighth year, Hala Systems is taking the old concept of spot-ting planes and adding analytical precision to save as many lives as they can through social media.

Hala Systems’ three founders come from vastly different back-grounds, but share their desire to curb the senseless violence of the Syrian civil war. Sentry was originally the brain-child of John Jaeger, described by Wired as a “Hacker turned gov-ernment technologist.” Jaeger felt disillusioned with his work in the State Department and his own perceived inability to make any difference in the devolving situation in Syria.

Jaeger teamed up with

Dave Levin, an entrepre-neur and former employ-ee of the United Nations Global Compact to bring his idea to life. The third member of their team, who goes only by Murad for safety concerns, is a Syrian coder who saw the violence and upheaval in his country firsthand and chose to use his skills to intercede.

The three men looked to the ad hoc plane spotting that the White Helmets had started and knew they could create a larger network of spot-ters to report the move-ments of planes and save more lives through social media. With every advancement of Sentry’s technology, the Hala team hopes to increase the technology’s automat-ed capabilities in order to improve their accuracy.

In the beginning stages of Sentry, Jaeger,

Levin, and Murad often worked ninety or more hours a week. Accord-ing to Wired, Murad once worked three days without sleeping. Jaeger remarked that, “One family being saved. It was all worth it.” Sentry has gone on to save countless more lives, and Hala Sys-tems has set their sights on creating new technol-ogies in addition to im-proving Sentry itself. Air raid sirens were originally turned on manually, but Hala created technology that allowed sirens to be turned on remotely from Sentry.

In addition to prevent-ing thousands of casu-alties, Sentry has given civilians stuck in the middle of the violence a fighting chance. As John Jaeger told Telegraph, “For a long time, people were living in a constant state of terror, too scared

to even leave their house in case of an air strike. Obviously it can’t totally remove that fear, but it can make life that bit more bearable.”

Sentry also gives civilians caught in the crossfire the opportunity to become spotters. The Washington Post reports that the spotters view their often dangerous job as a, “rare chance for ac-tion in the face of over-whelming atrocity.” For Syrians who have had all semblance of normalcy stripped from their lives in the past seven years, Sentry provides a chance to regain some control and regain a feeling of safety lost in the midst of war and chaos.

Contact Natalie atnatalie.sherman@student.

shu.edu

September 2018Page 8 Opinion

Why Pluto Is Not A PlanetAdam Varoqua

Staff Writer

The day that will always live in infamy: August 26, 2006. It was not the day that an unfavorable pol-itician took office, nor was it that of an interna-tional humanitarian crisis. It was the day that Pluto was downgraded from a planet to a dwarf planet, lowering the number of planets in the Solar Sys-tem from nine to eight.

As BBC reported, the International Astronom-ical Union (IAU) met in August to discuss the criteria on what should constitute as a planet. What spurred this was the discovery of Kuiper Belt Objects (KBO) that had similar masses in compar-ison to Pluto.

A professor from the California Institute of Technology, Dr. Mike Brown, led a team of re-searchers that helped to discover one of these ob-jects, Eris. Based on his and others’ findings, the members of the assembly voted on three points to label an object as a planet. The IAU describes that Pluto qualifies in the first two categories; being that it is a celestial body that orbits the sun and that it has a round shape.

The last point, how-ever, that it has essen-tially sent away other ob-jects around its area or achieved “gravitational dominance” as the BBC reported, is a qualification

that Pluto does not fulfill. Since Dr. Brown’s discov-ery led to Pluto’s down-grading, he has enthusias-tically called himself the “man who killed Pluto.”

Had the guideline been made with only the first two points, the results would have been drastic as Professor Iwan Williams, the IAU’s president of planetary systems science, remarked, “By the end of the decade, we would have had 100 planets, and I think people would have said ‘my goodness, what a mess they made back in 2006.’”

The new guidelines properly classified Pluto as a dwarf planet along with the rest of KBO in the area, like Eres or Sed-na. Many scientists and scientific organizations concur on this fact. Un-fortunately, there have been scores of people arguing the opposite posi-tion, that Pluto is indeed a planet. The debate rag-es on despite the fact that this decision was made years ago. An article from Space.com quoted Alan

Stern, a planetary scien-tist who disagrees with the IAU saying, “if you take the IAU’s definition strictly, no object in the solar system is a planet.” Stern further remarked that, “no object in the solar system has entirely cleared its zone.” If we take his line of logic, we would have to re-classify nearly all KBO discov-ered, meaning we would have hundreds of planets. This is not the right move to take, nor does it bear out the facts.

Science changes, not on the whims of opinions or feelings, but on facts and evidence that support new findings. The fact of the matter is that Pluto does not meet the scien-tifically agreed upon crite-ria of the IAU that deter-mines what is a planet. As the astrophysicist Neil de-Grasse Tyson said, “The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it.”

Contact Adam at adam.varoqua@student.shu.edu

Mark GormanStaff Writer

Anti-Semitism is a powerful word, and with good reason. Howev-er, such powerful words should only be used when applicable, or else they lose that power.

On the other hand, it seems that this potential overuse does not bother Benjamin Netanyahu or his supporters. Any Goo-gle search of the Boy-cott, Divestment, Sanc-tions movement (BDS) on Google, a movement aimed at boycotting any businesses associated with Israel, will get you many opinion pieces on how they are anti-Semit-ic and that people should not support them. This brings up the question of whether supporting Pal-estine in and of itself is anti-Semitism.

Is supporting Palestine inherently an anti-Semit-ic act? In short, no. Ac-cording to Nazir Harb Michel, a sociolinguist at Georgetown University, anti-Semitism is a certain perception of Jews, often expressed as hatred to-ward Jews, the Huffington Post reports. Yet time and again, people like Rus-sell Brand, Mark Ruffalo, John Stewart, and Bernie Sanders are accused of ei-ther anti-Semitism or be-ing a self-hating Jew, just for voicing support for Palestine.

Similarly, organizations like BDS are often la-

belled anti-Semitic by Is-rael and its allies. Is BDS anti-Semitic though? Still no; BDS’ goals are not inherently anti-Semitic. While there is no doubt that there are people who support BDS who are also anti-Semitic, that does not make the movement itself anti-Semitic.

Besides the fact that the Israeli government calls all of their politi-cal enemies anti-Semites with little regard for the truth, Israel itself is back-ing anti-Semitic groups. According to the Wash-ington Post, Netanyahu signed a deal with Poland that absolved Poland of any Polish support for the Nazis and the Holocaust, despite the evidence of both passive and active collaboration.

Furthermore, Mr. Netanyahu supported a propaganda campaign created by Viktor Orban, the leader of Hungary, to attack George Soros, a Jewish Philanthropist and Holocaust survivor, which was rife with an-ti-Semitic attacks directed at Mr. Soros by Mr. Or-ban’s campaign.

Mr. Netanyahu has also blamed the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin Al-Husseini, for the Ho-locaust. Mr. Al-Husseini was a Palestinian who supported Arab national-ism and was an Anti-Sem-ite who certainly support-ed the Holocaust. This statement is problematic because it backs the false narrative that Hitler did

not want to kill Jews, just move them out of the na-tion, and that the Holo-caust was encouraged by Palestinians by refusing to accept Jewish refugees and pushing for extermi-nation.

So what purpose does this all serve? It seems to be an effort to undermine any potential support for Palestine. By calling any group that supports Pal-estine anti-Semitic, Mr. Netanyahu’s government isolates Palestine inter-nationally and hurts their ability to help the cause.

According to the New York Times, by sup-porting Mr. Orban, they stunt the amount of aid Mr. Soros can give hu-manitarian and pro-de-mocracy groups both in Israel and internationally, which could undermine Netanyahu’s control and would oppose the nation-alistic right-wing Israel that he supports.

By supporting groups like Azov’s Battalion, they can keep larger powers from intervening in Israe-li politics. Finally, by sup-porting Poland and blam-ing the Holocaust not on Nazis but on Palestinians, Netanyahu can justify al-lying with nations whose ruling parties might have ties to neo-Nazi groups.

Contact Mark at mark.gorman@student.shu.edu

The Weaponization of “Anti-Semitism”

Pluto’s status has been hotly debated. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

EU’s New Copyright Directive Threatens Freedom of SpeechIsha AyeshaStaff Writer

Earlier this month, the European Parliament approved a new directive on digital copyright, ac-cording to EUR Lex. The legislation essentially tries to initiate copyright laws that will force social me-dia and news platforms to take drastic measures while sharing others’ con-tent. The European Union (EU) believes that the Di-rective will hence protect the rights and interests of publishers.

While some agree with the EU on this stance and campaign for the small-er journalists who should receive better pay, critics call the policy a disastrous process that may reduce, if not end, usage of sharing

platforms. They especial-ly target Article 11 of the Directive, claiming it is un-democratic.

Article 11 aims to im-plement “Link Taxes” in social media networks, search engines, blogs, and websites, which would mean that these sites must obtain a license before link-ing to any news source. If enforced, ‘Link Taxes’ can offer these news publish-ers to charge websites like Facebook or Google to link their materials.

However, this Article fails to clarify the degree of copyright that these sites are supposed to ob-tain. The vagueness of the definition of a “link” leaves much up for interpretation. The particulars of a decent explanation are hence left upon the EU.

Additionally, when

Facebook or Google hy-perlinks to any news web-site or blog, they are get-ting free advertisement and promotion. If Article 11 passes, Facebook and Google may be less in-clined to purchase the links.

This will mean that publications who can af-ford to offer low prices to these bigger platforms can perform well, but smaller publications who cannot do the same will be the only ones to suffer.

On a similar note, as Futurism, writes, “The EU justifies these chang-es by claiming it wants to protect content creators in Europe from being taken advantage of by large cor-porations, such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter.”

However, according to a letter penned by World Wide Web inventor Tim

Berners-Lee and Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales, far from only affecting large American internet platforms, the burden of Article 11 will fall most heavily on their competi-tors, including European startups and SMEs.

This Article does not actually protect the rights of the original content cre-ators, the journalists. Julia Reda, an German member of the European Parlia-ment, justifies that jour-nalists are not being pro-tected when she notes that, “copyright protects cre-ativity… This law does not establish a new copyright in that sense (belonging to an author), but a ‘neighbor-ing right’ (belonging to the publisher).”

On the other hand, Article 13 will try to bring in Censorship Machines,

which will filter all content on sites like Facebook and YouTube to stop copyright infringing materials from being uploaded. If web-sites fail to comply, they subject themselves to the legal complications that come with hosting copy-right infringing content on their sites.

This means that if up-loaded content were not verified for copyrighting by the site, it would probably be taken down. However, complications arise in the process of checking copy-rights since the verification process breaches an indi-vidual’s freedom of speech.

The directive expects all platforms to obtain li-censes for any copyrighted works in the entire world; however, even a mammoth like YouTube is not able to follow through with these

standards due to the large volume of content.

These websites would need to comb through any and all uploaded content, which is expensive and counts as an invasion of privacy. Just imagine wait-ing 33 hours for Instagram to check for copyright in-fringement when trying to upload a picture. Yes, it would be that bad.

In conclusion, EU’s Copyright Directive Policy is not only infringing free-dom of speech, it is also redundant and ineffective. All that can be hoped for now is that the final vote in January 2019 is not in its favor or the Internet could become a lot more compli-cated than it already is.

Contact Isha at isha.ayesha@student.shu.

edu

September 2018Page 9Opinion

Justifying the U.S.’ UNRWA Withdrawal Catherine Doolan

Staff Writer

On August 31, the United States announced that it will no longer con-tribute to the United Na-tions Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which garnered strong condem-nation from critics.

The United Nations General Assembly had noble intentions when cre-ating the agency following the Arab-Israeli Conflict of 1948. However, over the years, UNRWA has adopt-ed a flawed and unsustain-able operating procedure, which has been ineffec-tive in helping suffering Palestinians and has been plagued by politicization. This concerning combina-tion of factors clearly justi-fies the Trump Administra-tion’s decision.

In his first address to the UN General Assem-bly in September 2017, President Donald Trump pointed out how the U.S. has led the world in its humanitarian assistance, but noted how the UN and its agencies have often become more concerned

with bureaucracy instead of delivering results. The Trump Administration has used this skeptical ap-proach in evaluating the United States’ role as the UN’s largest contributor and formerly as the largest contributor to UNRWA.

UNRWA has contro-versially redefined what constitutes a Palestin-ian refugee several times, which consequently en-larged the pool of entitled beneficiaries, all to the frustration of UNRWA’s donors. According to Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the American Center for Law & Justice, UNRWA has expanded eligibility to include all descendants of Palestinian refugee males, including legally adopted children regardless of their citizenship. This contra-dicts widely accepted legal definitions employed by the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) and by U.S. ref-ugee law, which state that definitive refugee status can “only be extended to a spouse of minor child of a refugee and an alien who has been firmly resettled in not eligible to maintain ref-

ugee status.” Beyond expanding

unsustainable eligibility requirements, UNRWA has failed in carrying out its main purpose. Despite being a refugee agency, the UNRWA has not success-fully resettled any Palestin-ian refugees. UNHCR and other agencies have reset-tled thousands, but do not have the authority to assist Palestinian refugees since they are already under the scope of UNRWA. De-spite resettling no one, the Abba Eban Institute at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) reports to that they estimate that the UNRWA spends four times as much on each refugee compared to UNHCR’s spending per refugee.

Furthermore, UNR-WA has been plagued by politicization, particular-ly bias against Israel. UN Watch has accused UN-RWA teachers of having connections to Hamas and promoting violent rhetoric in Palestinian classrooms. The Gatestone Institute also reported terrorist ac-tivity in UNRWA camps in Lebanon. Without proper investigation or acknowl-

edgement of these prob-lems by the UN occurring in UNRWA camps and programs, one cannot blame the U.S. and other concerned donor states.

The U.S. cancelling its UNRWA contributions does not equate to aban-doning support for all Pal-estinian refugees. Accord-ing to the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem, the United States Agency for International Develop-ment has provided $5.2 billion dollars in develop-ment and humanitarian as-sistance since 1994.

From 2012 to 2016, the U.S. provided $1.7 bil-

lion to Palestinians to im-prove infrastructure, wa-ter, sanitation, education, healthcare, governance, and private enterprise. The August 31 press re-lease regarding the UN-RWA stated that it would “intensify dialogue with the United Nations, host governments, and interna-tional stakeholders about new models and new ap-proaches.” Direct bilateral assistance from the United States will continue and could even increase in the future given the withdrawal from the UNRWA.

The U.S. exercised its sovereign right to with-

draw from UNRWA given the circumstances and can pursue its own bilateral hu-manitarian assistance plans for Palestine. Hopefully, the U.S.’ criticism and voic-ing of concern regarding UN bodies and agencies, demonstrated by its with-drawal from UNRWA and UNESCO, will help bring light to the great need of reform necessary for these bodies to function more ef-fectively and fairly.

Contact Catherine at catherine.doolan@student.

shu.edu

The Unraveling of the European UnionNathaniel Purtell

Staff Writer

On Wednesday, Sep-tember 5, lawmakers from across the European Union voted in Strasbourg to invoke Article 7 of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty against the government of Hungary, reports DW News. Article 7 allows for the potential suspension of voting rights based on a violation of fundamen-tal rights outlined in the European Convention on Human Rights and other “general principals.”

However, the move would require a quali-fied majority, which it cannot gain because of the solidarity of Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. The EU voted to invoke the same Arti-cle 7 proceedings against Poland last December in response to the rise of the POL Law and Justice Party, and changes to the constitutional court, re-ports Euronews.

It would be remiss not to mention the air of German and French arro-gance that pervades the political domineering of

Eastern Europe. While the EU was

busy trying to put out endless small fires – its banking, unemployment, and migration crises – Eurosceptic discontent was building among the working poor across Eu-rope, reports Newsweek. Brexit was a harbinger of the tide that is still rising.

Neoliberals praised the defeat of Le Pen in France’s presidential elec-tion, suggesting it signaled the end of the nationalist surge. Such a judgment seems naïve now. Gone is the general sense of opti-mism about the future as the average European cit-izen has grown to distrust the EU more than before.

Though largely sym-bolic, the move under-lies a larger political bat-tle within the European Union, one that has re-vealed the fragility of the liberal world order that so many have taken for granted. In Europe, a split between larger EU members, such as France and Germany, and small-er states, such as Hunga-ry, Poland, and the Czech Republic, is growing.

Perhaps this is under-

standable given the medi-ocre governance that has ineffectively managed the bloc’s issues. Unemploy-ment and underemploy-ment, especially among youth, remains endemic.

The newly formed Frontex border agency, which promised to make Europe’s borders more secure, has done a poor job at best to stem migra-tion. At worst, Frontex can be called complicit in facilitating migration. Increasingly, small states feel that giants among the union, such as Germa-ny and France, are using their economic prowess to strong-arm smaller states into their political vision for the EU.

The migration crisis represents only the latest battlefront of the culture war among EU members. Two vastly different vi-sions for the EU conflict with each other. States such as Hungary and Po-land are willing to forego cosmopolitan neoliberal multiculturalism in favor of initiatives such as in-creasing birth rates and reducing migration, as the Hungarian Free Press re-ports.

Though the vote does very little in actual-ity, it poses the threat of passing on the animus of the current culture war into other EU affairs. Moderate and liberal EU lawmakers can no longer afford to ignore the de-mands of their nationalist right counterparts. Na-tionalist right and pop-ulist movements have made inroads in nearly every EU country, and even have the majority in the EU countries of Italy, Austria, and Poland among others.

Sweden and Germa-ny, countries that were once considered bastions of liberal ideals, have

significant portions of their populace voting for right-wing parties. If the recent migration summit holds any representative value, the nationalists of Europe will have increas-ing power and influence within the bloc, reports the Guardian. EU Parlia-mentary elections in May 2019 will only solidify the nationalist right’s grip on political influence.

The EU remains at a serious crossroads in its development as one of the world’s most power-ful political bodies. Tradi-tional liberal voting blocs can no longer take their unchallenged power as a given. The EU can no

longer afford to ignore the sentiments of its na-tionalist strains and its working-class constitu-ency. If it does, anti-EU sentiment will continue to grow, threatening the stability and prosperity of the economic region. Ar-ticle 7 represents a small, symbolic battle of the larger political conflict. Time will see if enough is done to satisfy disenfran-chised Europeans or if the EU will punt its prob-lems into the future once again.

Contact Nathaniel at nathaniel.purtell@

student.shu.edu

The UNRWA funds several schools in the Palestinian region. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

The EU finds itself at an ideological crossroads. Courtesy of Unsplash.

Diplomacy NewsA Day in the Life of Dean Andrea Bartoli

Axel SontgerathStaff Writer

When you walk in the white and green corri-dors of McQuaid Hall, the home of Seton Hall’s School of Diplomacy and International Relations, you can’t help but feel right at home. You find yourself in a friendly atmosphere with welcoming faces every-where you turn. And at the helm of this school is Dean Andrea Bartoli.

Dean Bartoli has been part of the School of Di-plomacy and International Relations for five years, and graciously agreed to sit down and run through his typical day as well as his backstory before making it to Seton Hall University.

Back in 1992, Dean Bartoli came to the United States as an Italian im-migrant. “I didn’t speak English then,” he states, “I learned English at Queen’s Public Library.” He went on to work at Columbia University as an administra-tive aide in the Italian Acad-emy for Advanced Studies. He began teaching there

and found the Center for International Conflict-Res-olution.

From Columbia Uni-versity he moved on to George Mason University’s School for Conflict-Anal-ysis and Resolution, where he became Dean. “I was already a dean when I came here, but I was actually cer-tified before coming to the United States. I was 35 at the time and the President of an Italian health care district, taking care of the health services for around 147,000 people. So, I was used to large organizations, and the manner in which you run them.”

Dean Bartoli was ex-tremely experienced when he came here to the U.S, but the language barrier was a difficult task to over-come: “when I came here I had to start all over.”

When asked about the transition into American culture, he responded, “the transition is still occurring every day. But I remember very vividly there was an instance when I was first teaching at Columbia Uni-versity, giving a lecture, and a student raised his hand. I

was completely flabbergast-ed at this. It was so differ-ent from Italy, where the students and the teachers were much more distant.” Stating, “the transition for me was brutal because it wasn’t only a transition in language, it was a transition in culture and customs.”

In his opinion, this “American” way of teach-ing is “superior” because it “allows for both the teacher and the student to learn from each other.” This is a common theme in Dean Bartoli’s approach with his role in the School of Diplomacy.

We then went on to discuss what he wanted to

help the Diplo school do. “I definitely want to help the Diplo School lead.” Dean Bartoli has always stood by a strong theme of leadership for his endeavors at the School of Diploma-cy and plans on continuing to do so. “Leadership has to do with understanding yourself and understanding the environment around you. True leadership is un-derstanding how yourself and your environment can move forward together for the good of all.” Dean Bar-toli stressed the importance of engaging with each other and that leadership is not just “ordering people around. I want to offer

myself as well – as a sound board, as a supporter, as a cheerleader even,” he stat-ed, “I tell students that if they are ever here to make sure to stop by and chat with me about how they are doing.” This friendly and energetic atmosphere is what Dean Bartoli and the faculty seem to thrive on, as he wants the school to feel “at ease” with one other.

“Take yourself seriously. Take your language serious-ly. Especially take the time to meet real people and engage yourself.” These are the words Dean Bartoli had for incoming students as well as new students to the School. “It is very difficult to take yourself seriously if you are not in a challenging environment, if you do not do things you have never done before.” He stressed the importance of chal-lenging oneself to move further and further forward on path one’s to success. “To be clear, I don’t mean taking yourself seriously with an air of pomposity, I mean to really have clear idea of what you want to accomplish and always pushing yourself to see

what more you can do.”“I wake up at 6:30am

every day, make a simple breakfast, read my news-paper (very important) and do my prayers. Then I go and start my day at Seton Hall.” Dean Bartoli has a simple and efficient routine that allows him a fresh start to every day. “I have a lot of meetings as a Dean. Because of this, I like to keep them fresh, different, and challenging in a good way. Myself and the faculty always gather around the idea of what the School of Diplomacy could be and should be. You don’t have a good School of Diplomacy if you don’t put your heart and soul in it day in and day out.” This is the common theme within his daily rou-tine. He lives and breathes the School of Diplomacy, making sure to consecrate his day to pushing it in the right direction.

Contact Axel at axel.sontgerath@student.

shu.edu

September 2018Page 10

This publication is made possible through the generosity of the Constance J. Milstein, Esq., Endowed Fund.

The views expressed in The Diplomatic Envoy are those of the writers and are not intended to represent the views of the School of Diplomacy, Seton Hall

University, or the CJM Fund.

For more information on sources, go to TheDiplomaticEnvoy.com.

CONTRIBUTORS

Adam VaroquaAlyssa Tolentino

Ariana KeshishianAxel Sontgerath

Catherine DoolanGabrielle GoldwormHarshana Ghoorhoo

Ian MurphyIsha AyeshaJackson LiedJacob Abel

Jarrett DangJoshua Newman

Judy KorenKaitlin Principato

Lizi KimeridzeLuisa Chainferber

Mark GormanMark WoodMia Diapola

Natalie ShermanNathaniel Purtell

Samuel AdamsSamuel Planck

Saveria AntonacciStephanie Miller

Tien Phan

FELIPE BUENOEditor-in-Chief

DANNY D’AMICOInternational News Editor

ANDREA BERMANOpinion Editor

EVA RIANLayout Editor

MARIAH McCLOSKEYManaging Editor

ANDREW WILSONAssociate Editor

KEAGAN INGERSOLLWeb Editor

DR. COURTNEY SMITHFaculty Adviser

Dean Bartoli has been at SHU since 2013. Courtesy of SHU.

September 2018Page 11Diplomacy News

A Letter from the Diplomacy SenatorJacob AbelStaff Writer

To my fellow Diplos,Firstly, I wanted to

take a moment to intro-duce myself. My name is Jacob Abel and I serve as the Senate Speaker and Diplomacy Senator in the Student Govern-ment Association (SGA). Along with Alyssa Futa, I represent the School of Diplomacy in the student senate.

Our goal is to hear your concerns, wheth-er they are regarding the School of Diplomacy or the campus as a whole. We take our positions very seriously and are al-

ways looking for feedback on how we can improve or better represent you. I am listing our emails be-low in the event that any of you want to voice any concerns our simply learn more about SGA:

Jacob.abel@student.shu.eduAlyssa.futa@student.shu.edu Alyssa and I hope to

hold a few events over the course of our term where we can connect with our constituents in person. This will most likely be through the Diplomacy Town Halls. Additionally, at least one of us will be at every DULCE meeting.

We encourage ev-ery one of you to attend

the DULCE meetings, as this is one of the most effective ways to share your concerns with us, as well as with Dean An-drea Bartoli. The month-ly DULCE meetings are unique to the School of Diplomacy, as the other schools on campus do not usually offer the op-portunity to have person-al conversations with the Dean, especially meetings regarding any issues the students see fit.

Additionally, if there is ever any problems with technology or curriculum, I would encourage you to reach out to the SGA. Re-gardless of whether your concern pertains to the Diplomacy School or not,

we are here to help. Please contact our Academic Af-fairs committee for these needs. (Academic Affairs Committee Chair- emma.murphy@student.shu.edu).

If you do become involved in any of our great Diplomacy Clubs, I would encourage you to utilize the resources that SGA offers especially our finance committee.

If you are trying to grow your club or organi-zation, the Finance Com-mittee can be a great way to get any supplementary funding. Whether it be for an event your club is trying to have, or a trip you are organizing, please feel free to speak with the Finance Committee for anything your club needs.

(Finance Committee Chair - Ronald.babiak@student.shu.edu)

I also wanted to take this opportunity to men-tion some of the things the SGA is developing this year.

As a whole, the or-ganization is working on promoting diversity around campus and on creating more transpar-

ency at every levels of the university. Last year the student senate passed a piece of legislation that required all senators to attend at least two club meetings a month of clubs that they normally would not attend.

As an organization we hope that this will give our senators a new per-spective and a view of the concerns of other stu-dents that they would not normally have.

Additionally, our President Rishi Shah is currently in the process of developing a Presi-dential Cabinet. The goal of the cabinet is to give students, from all walks of life around campus, direct access to the high-est-ranking officials in SGA, and to the faculty and the school adminis-tration.

We hope that the Presidential Cabinet will help bring more aware-ness to issues regarding diversity and transpar-ency. More importantly though, we envision the Cabinet as being a policy making tool where the feedback we get from

students can be used to shape policy decisions of student government, as well as the school admin-istration.

Walking around campus, I hear students around talking about the various changes they want to see at Seton Hall. This is encouraging; howev-er, the key to making any changes is the level of stu-dent involvement and the ability for communication between the students and the administration.

I got involved in SGA because my passion is to represent the interests of people around me. Being able to represent so many talented and driven peo-ple has been a great expe-rience and has helped me grow tremendously. We will be in touch through-out the year to inform you of events and initia-tives SGA will be holding and working on.

Sincerely Yours,Jacob Abel Class of 2020

Senator Jacob Abel wish the best for all of SHU’s diplomacy students. Courtesy of Jacob Abel.

2018-2019 Freshman Corner

Ariana KeshishianStaff Writer

Seton Hall consists of many different individu-als from various places, backgrounds, and up-bringings. For freshmen, college is something new and exciting, filled with so many firsts. It can be particularly intimidating to some; however, Seton Hall University as well as its community has tried its best to ensure that ev-ery freshmen feels wel-come here on its campus.

One particular indi-

vidual who has felt this embracement and com-fort from of Seton Hall is freshman Joseph MacK-enna.

In high school, Joseph was very involved in mul-tiple student organiza-tions, as he put it, “some would say too involved.” Joseph also served as the officer of a political or-ganization that assisted in encouraging younger stu-dents to become involved in the political process.

Since he has been on campus, Joseph has im-mersed himself into the community by joining the

Student Government As-sociation, Mock Trial, and Model UN. When speak-ing with Joseph, it is clear to see he has that he ad-justed well to the environ-ment here at Seton Hall; but how?

When asked why he choose Seton Hall rather than another university, Joseph responded with two answers: atmosphere and academics. He fell in love with the atmosphere of the campus along with its wonderful faculty. He says that it made him feel at ease, “it was the peo-ple and the faculty at the

School of Diplomacy” with which he truly made a connection.

Since coming here, Jo-seph has felt nothing but a sense of community. The actual experiences and skills that the School of Diplomacy and its faculty have been able to pass on and give to him, along with his peers, is unparalleled. Within only a few weeks of arriving on campus, Joseph feels comfortable enough to approach any faculty member with any ques-tions he may have.

Along with being in

the Diplomacy program, Joseph is also in the Hon-ors program. In regards to the curriculum, Joseph has found both the con-tent and the conversa-tions that stemmed from the coursework scintillat-ing.

“One late night we were discussing and de-bating some of the texts we’d learned,” Joseph re-counted. “We got to see a side of each other we wouldn’t have otherwise.”

Joseph really believes that the program has not only helped him grow academically, but also so-cially. Along with making friends in the multiple clubs that he is involved in, he has also made close friends within the Honors Program through projects and class discussions. The professors also keep the class engaged and make it interesting, which is im-portant and rare in 8 am lectures.

After a long first week of running from one class to another, Joseph decid-

ed to use his first weekend as a way to explore the campus further and found a perfect little space for himself by discovering the Jubilee Balcony. For Joseph, it is the best place to do homework and re-lax after a stressful day. “Being up there makes you forget that you’re at school for a bit,” he said.

As a freshman, you are never entirely sure of what you want to do for the rest of your life; how-ever, you do have an idea. Joseph stated that he used to be very adamant about joining the FBI and spe-cializing in intelligence, but after exposing him-self to all the different opportunities Seton Hall has to offer, it has opened his eyes a bit as to what else there is.

Contact Ariana at ariana.keshishian@student.

shu.edu

Seton Hall presents a unique opportunity to all its Diplomacy students to explore a new career and interests. Courtesy of SHU.

September 2018Page 12Diplomacy News

Keeping Up with the 2018 Concordia Summit

Ian MurphyStaff Writer

Concordia is an annual summit based on the con-vergence and sharing of ideas between the public and private sector. Started in 2011 as a non-profit and strictly nonpartisan orga-nization, Concordia has hosted professionals, pro-fessors, business leaders, and even heads of state from around the world. This eclectic and inclusive approach to global issues directly emanates from Concordia’s co-founders, Matthew Swift (Chairman,

CEO) and Nicholas M. Logothetis (Co-founder, Chairman of the Board).

According to their website, they share a vast array of interests ranging from international affairs and journalism to entre-preneurship, advocacy, and collaboration. The same energy and curiosity found in the annual sum-mit creates an atmosphere where Seton Hall students can thrive.

The setup of the con-ference is simple and fast paced. Guest speakers ei-ther present or hold con-secutive moderated ses-sions while refreshments

await the attendees just outside. A common area for all fosters networking and discussions stemming from the sessions.

While Concordia may seem off the beaten path for the typical undergrad-uate, the summit takes advantage of its proxim-ity to the United Nations building – convening at the Grand Hyatt – as well as the timing of the UN General Assembly. Thus Concordia has been able to attract more heads of state, policy advisors, and advocates to its stage than it likely otherwise would have. Big names such as

Ivanka Trump, Robert Lighthizer, President Ivan Marquez of Colombia, Dr. Ian Bremmer, and Jen-nifer Lawrence attracted several students from the School of Diplomacy to this year’s event.

Diplomacy major Dan Virok (class of 2021) expressed his feelings af-ter the two-day summit, “From Concordia I gained a new understanding of the current state of the world as well as a deeper appreciation for interna-tional relations. I learned about the great struggles taking place and the way

Several students from Seton Hall’s School of Diplomacy attended the Concordia Summit. Photo Courtesy of Eva Rian.

the international commu-nity is working together to solve them.”

Themes at the con-ference closely echo those found within the UN community and the Sus-tainable Development Goals. Various speakers discussed how the public sector, private sector, and even private citizens can tip the scale in favor of a more sustainable future, where we pursue income and gender equality as well as fight against corruption.

Professionals attend-ing the conference and even some speakers were open to network with stu-

dents. This opportunity provided stimulating con-versations for students to learn about the workings of the world from pro-fessionals themselves, and receive advice on how to pursue an intended (or newly discovered) career path. The only limit is how many business cards you can carry.

Contact Ian at ian.murphy@student.shu.

edu

Students networked behind the scenes. Photo Courtesy of Eva Rian.

Internship Spotlight: Lizi KimeridzeLizi Kimeridze

Staff Writer

Getting an internship is one of the most im-portant starting points a student can take towards developing skills for a fu-ture job. It is important to apply for internships that target the area that you are most interested in, as it will help you to decide whether the direction you are planning to go is the right fit for you.

Before applying for internships in the U.S., I chose to intern in the country of Georgia, where I live. I decided to try my luck and I ap-plied for an internship at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia. The process of applying pro-ceeded without any com-plications, and fortunately I did not have to wait for long as I got contacted after a week for an inter-view.

A few days after my interview, I received an acceptance letter, which to my utmost pleasure informed me that I had

been placed in the U.S. department. Unlike other interns who got placed in many different depart-ments, I have lived in the U.S. and had better ex-perience and knowledge with the culture, political events, and governmental system of the country.

One of the most im-portant things I learned over the summer was to understand the value of good and important in-formation. I learned how to filter out this infor-mation from long arti-cles and journals. Almost every single day I had to search for important and recent news in the politi-cal world.

I was asked to write an abstract for the head of our press depart-ment so he could have as much information as possible before going to meetings, summits, and conferences. I had never thought about how hard it is to find trustworthy and reliable sources for news nowadays until that.

After my supervi-sors were convinced that I was quite good at col-

lecting and distinguish-ing useful information, they assigned me to pre-pare presentations about Georgian goods and re-search the resources of the country that could be interesting for foreign in-vestors.

In the beginning, all the interns would be as-signed to a specific topic; at the end of the week, we all had to present it to our supervisors and the head of our department. They would ask us ques-tions and test our knowl-edge and skills of how well we would be able to convince them to invest. After some the other in-terns and I were trained and prepared, a few of us were chosen to go to one of the conferences. We were allowed to present for investors from neigh-boring countries, like Tur-key, Armenia, and Azer-baijan.

It was very stressful and one of the most task-ing responsibilities I have been assigned to handle. Whatever the outcome, it would affect my repu-tation and capacity in my

internship, and the Min-istry of Foreign Affairs could lose potential inves-tors.

This opportunity helped me to develop the skills to present to big audiences, learn how to notice small details, and be more perceptive of people’s wants and needs. This in turn made it easier to understand how to be more assertive and confi-dent in everything I do.

The last few days of my internship were the best of the whole sum-mer because I was cho-sen to assist the Deputy Minister. I observed how he prepared speeches for upcoming meetings and the NATO summit that took place in Brussels, Belgium.

The experience of working with Deputy Minister introduced me to the hardships and the amount of responsibility people with higher power have. I learned how com-plicated their work is be-cause I got the privilege to attend meetings with foreign ambassadors and the permanent represen-

tative of NATO to Geor-gia, which allowed me to learn about different work ethics and cultures.

Working for the gov-ernment is not easy as it seems on paper. Although that paper states the start and the end of working hours, you will most-ly never be able to leave work on time. I had to stay three or four hours late daily, and I never no-ticed or complained, be-cause time went by so fast in the chaotic but system-atic work.

This internship has introduced me to, as one could say, “what goes on behind closed doors.” Of

course I did not have ac-cess to confidential doc-uments or meetings, but now I have a clear image of what it is like to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and to meet some of the most influential people in political world. This internship has made me appreciate the value of hard work, especially when it concerns my pas-sions.

Contact Lizi at lizi.kimeridze@student.shu.

edu

Lizi had a unique opportunity with the Ministry. Courtesy of Wikimedia.