Image is from this Black Agenda Report article by the Communist Party of Kenya.
In June, large anti-government protests shook Kenya. President Ruto and his parliament were attempting to pass the new Finance Bill 2024, which, among other things, would have hiked taxes on the population, with a 16% sales tax on bread and a 25% duty on cooking oil, as well as new taxes on financial transanctions and vehicle ownership. There would also have been levies on women’s sanitary products and digital goods such as phones, among other measures affecting hospitals.
Hundreds of protestors stormed the parliament building and began to tear the place apart. Shortly afterwards, on June 26th, Ruto announced that he was withdrawing the bill, calling the tens of deaths and hundreds of injuries “unfortunate”. A couple weeks later, Ruto then fired his entire cabinet (aside from his foreign minister) and communicated his wish to the nation to form a “broad-based government”. Funnily enough, in July, it was announced that the majority of positions were to be filled by members of the old cabinet, while other positions were taken by members of the opposition. This has prompted scepticism among the population, including calls to resign, but there haven’t (yet) been any major anti-government events to pressure this outcome. The Communist Party of Kenya has been working to get some of their comrades back after they were abducted by the police during the protest period, and have otherwise supported the protests against Ruto.
The measures in the bill were strongly encouraged by the IMF. Kenya’s debt is currently around $80 billion, of which about 10% is owed to China for infrastructure projects (such as a railway linking the capital, Nairobi, to the port city of Mombasa, as well as 11,000 kilometers of road throughout the country). The rest is owed to a combination of the US, IMF, World Bank, and Saudi Arabia. More than half of government revenue is going towards repaying the debt - but despite these massive payments, it has only grown. The most recent round of IMF plundering (and the impetus for current events) began in 2021, when they offered a 38-month programme to “help” Kenya, which would involve the usual warfare on the poor and the dismemberment of any useful societal institutions.
The COTW (Country of the Week) label is designed to spur discussion and debate about a specific country every week in order to help the community gain greater understanding of the domestic situation of often-understudied nations. If you’ve wanted to talk about the country or share your experiences, but have never found a relevant place to do so, now is your chance! However, don’t worry - this is still a general news megathread where you can post about ongoing events from any country.
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Israel-Palestine Conflict
Sources on the fighting in Palestine against Israel. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:
UNRWA daily-ish reports on Israel’s destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.
English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news (and has automated posting when the person running it goes to sleep).
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.
English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.
Various sources that are covering the Ukraine conflict are also covering the one in Palestine, like Rybar.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Sources:
Defense Politics Asia’s youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don’t want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it’s just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists’ side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR’s former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR’s forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster’s telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a ‘propaganda tax’, if you don’t believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:
Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.
Telegram is also used by Ukraine lol. Are they going to punish them too?
Telegram is litterally the source given in most of Danish State Broadcaster’s articles about Ukraine. It even got me into trouble with our IT-department because I clicked one of the links in the article, since apparently Telegram is mega-blacklisted on my work-computer.
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there are nanoseconds where femtoseconds happen and then there are femtoseconds were nanoseconds happen
-conversation between Vladimir Lenin and Niels Bohr - Vienna 1917
Israeli union leader says ‘country is on its way to political ruin’
Histadrut labor federation chairman Arnon Bar-David announced at a mass protest in Tel Aviv, “This afternoon, I decided to halt the Israeli economy starting tomorrow morning. Some are upset that I didn’t call for a general strike sooner, but I’m here to ensure no one is left behind. Jews don’t abandon Jews—what’s unclear about that? It’s unacceptable for our children to die in tunnels due to political considerations!”
He added: “We refuse to remain indifferent to the fact that our country has become one of abandonment! The economy has also been abandoned. As head of the Histadrut, the country is on its way to political ruin. We must stop this …coalition money is still going to unneeded ministries. Tomorrow morning, all of Israel will not go to work…including ports, factories, and offices.”
The strike will start at 06:00 local time on Monday with Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport closing also.
Perhaps the (high-powered) fascists crushing the (working-class) fascist strikers will be a bit of a wake-up call. Not going to hold my breath, though.
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US Navy sacks commanding officer of its destroyer, Yemen keeps winning.
Nothin But NET
True to my word, I have refrained from posting on this site for the duration of my paternity leave, as I refuse to post here unless I can count it as work. Anyway, kid is doing great, but it does take a toll to be alone with him for n entire day while he is learning to walk. The amount of times I have had to catch something falling on his head is incredible, especially considering that I child-proofed our place when our daughter was born.
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I’ve been using ChatGPT to create comments that sound extremely liberal but with a strong pro-Palestine spin. It’s really effective for discussions you would otherwise never have, either because you would be banned in no time for answering truthfully or because it’s just too much work. Also, I don’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing. You know, in Austria, you’ll be called antisemitic if you don’t literally kiss a picture of Netanyahu to prove otherwise.
How about an example or two?
The comments where in german, but i translated them with chatgpt:
It is true that Israel cites the release of hostages and the fight against Hamas as its goals. However, the nature of the military operations results in a high number of civilian casualties, which cannot be ignored. Even if Hamas positions are located in civilian areas, this does not absolve Israel of the responsibility to minimize civilian casualties as much as possible. A strategy that repeatedly leads to thousands of innocent deaths remains problematic and must be critically examined to ensure that human rights are respected.
The notion that the current IDF attacks are solely about hostage rescues is misleading. Historical examples, such as the application of the Hannibal Directive, show that the IDF has been willing to accept civilian casualties in such situations. In October 2023, not only were vehicles entering Gaza reportedly targeted, but also houses in Israeli kibbutzim where hostages were located. These tactics suggest that the IDF’s main objectives are retaliation and the killing of Hamas fighters and Palestinian civilians. Such measures indicate that military objectives and retaliation are often prioritized over the lives of Israeli civilians (Source: Research by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz).
The necessity of ceasefires to allow for polio vaccinations for children in Gaza highlights the desperate situation of the civilian population. It is shocking that such pauses need to be negotiated to provide basic medical care. These conditions are not only a humanitarian crisis but also a flagrant violation of human rights. The military blockade and ongoing attacks are dramatically worsening the living conditions of people in Gaza, violating their right to health and dignity. Instead of turning Gaza into a permanent war zone, the international community should insist that the rights of the civilian population be respected and protected.
I would never write like that or read much that is written in that style, but as I mentioned, it was extremely effective. It really tilted every discussion I joined a little more in the pro-Palestine direction, and it received a lot of likes, upvotes, or whatever they call it on every other social platform (which made my comments overshadow the hasbarabots) . I know the comments sound basic, but in austria you will literally be charged with antisemtism If you mention that Israel is a settler-colony.
These are great. Perfectly tailored to libs while making sure to say the things that need to be said.
What are some example prompts you’ve used?
I provided the narrative just in one or two senteces because you can’t trust ChatGPT with that, as it is inherently a lib bot, and then wrote that it should, however, sound factual and appeasing without changing the message.
Daniel Ortega (Nicaragua) has worsened relations with Brazil and Colombia, some drama:
Daniel Ortega, President of Nicaragua, said that the Brazilian government, led by President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva, repeating what the Yankees (US Goverment) say. The movement makes the rupture between Brazil and Nicaragua more evident. He also accused Lula’s goverment of being corrupt, talking about the Lava Jato Operation (Car Wash Operation).
Ortega accuses Lula of being Pro-US and corrupt by using the same argument the US and Far-Right people use to attack Lula? The Car Wash Operation Judge had literally connections with the CIA. lol.
Ortega also described the Bolivarians’ “struggle” as “the fight between David and Goliath.”. Saying that Brazil is attacking Venezuela.
Quoting Ortega, Lula said that not attending an event is not a reason for retaliation. At the beginning of August, Nicaragua announced the expulsion of the then Brazilian ambassador to the country, Breno Dias da Costa, after he failed to attend the 45th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution.
Still on the subject of Nicaragua, the Brazilian president made a comparison and said that it would be the same as Brazil expelling ambassadors who didn’t attend the September 7th celebrations.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has responded to Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, who called him “Arrastado” a way of saying obedient to the United States. Petro said: “I do not drag (In spanish: Arrastro) the human rights of my people through the mud, And I do not betray my former comrades of war and revolution.” Gustavo Petro is a former guerrilla fighter.
No idea why Ortega got so pissed at Brazil for mediating the Nicaragua-Vatican diplomatic crisis. I know there are a bunch of far-right pro-somoza Catholic priests there, but removing most religious protections and attacking the Catholic Church seems like a bad idea when you consider there are a bunch of pro-sandinista catholics, besides probably being unpopular to attack the religion most people follow there.
In Venezuela, lots of commotion surrounding the arrest of journalist Carmela Longo, who worked for 2 decades at the (firmly pro-govt) newspaper Últimas Noticias, covering night life and social activities. She’s reportedly been charged with terrorism and inciting hatred. Plenty of voices in her defense, alleging that this is a (very serious) misunderstanding
Seems like they got the wrong person with a similar name?
Sorry what does the Vatican have to do with this? I assumed Ortega was attacking their positions on the vz election
I remember that during the 2021 Nicaraguan elections, some Catholic priests and some Catholic radio stations promoted a right-wing candidate and criticized the government. Ortega was furious about this, because they were using the immunity that religious institutions have to attack the government. He arrested these priests.
The Vatican didn’t like seeing its priests imprisoned, so Pope Francis called Lula da Silva, a head of state with whom he is close, and asked him to help mediate the release of these priests. It seems that some things happened, the Brazilian diplomat didn’t go or didn’t want to visit the Revolution Day March, and this angered Daniel Ortega. He expelled the Brazilian diplomat, and Lula expelled the Nicaraguan diplomat.
Now, Daniel Ortega is attacking Lula, Petro and AMLO because they didn’t immediately recognize Maduro’s re-election, which is dishonest, considering that AMLO is already dealing with the US and Canada interfering in his government. And Lula and Petro have to calculate the political costs of recognizing Maduro, since their government depends on the support of liberal parties and liberal voters, most of whom don’t like Maduro. So Petro and Lula are just waiting for the Venezuelan Right-Wing to fuck up, for the media in those countries to forget about it, to recognize Maduro’s reelection.
What’s more, Nicaragua is literally irrelevant to Colombia or Brazil. This is a really stupid move by Ortega to further isolate himself from Latin America’s three largest economies under left-wing control. And it’s really hypocritical of him to say shit like that when he spent most of his government recognizing Taiwan and having US advisors inside the Nicaraguan army. Only recently have relations between the US and Nicaragua worsened. And he used literally false accusations that were mostly fabricated by the CIA to attack Lula and accuse him of corruption. It’s as if Lula said that Ortega was a rapist because he had been accused by the US of having done SA with his daughter-in-law.
I hope that relations between these countries normalize soon. But it was a really stupid and unnecessary move by Daniel Ortega. I honestly have no idea what he thought it would get him. Even Maduro didn’t say anything bad about Lula or Petro, nor did he accuse them of being US puppets.
I’m surprised Ortega has lasted as long as he has. Maybe I need to educate myself on the Nicaraguan revolution, but the history in my lifetime has been less than stellar
He was President from 1985 - 1990, then after an agreement between Nicaragua and the US, the sandinistas agreed to step down and let an anti-Somoza liberal be elected, but Ortega remained active inside the army and quite influential. Then after that he was finally elected again in 2007 - Present Day.
After the 2021, and thanks to Biden out of nowhere attacking and sanctioning Nicaragua, they decided to ban all right-wing and anti-sandinista center-left parties since the US broke their own agreement that they made during the 1990’s. I believe Ortega was also a member of the 1979 - 1985 revolutionary junta that basically had everyone that hated Somoza, a lot of liberals, communists, catholics and some anti-Somoza conservatives.
Half a million Israelis are protesting the war in Gaza
It’s because they want the hostages back then pick the war up after
Every settler has a particle
150,000 dead Palestinians: I sleep
6 dead hostages: Real shit!?
I knew it. The CIA wants telegram to be banned because they can’t control what’s shown. Also signal is CIA confirmed.
Also it’s fascinating they blamed Russia for the far right riots in the UK when clearly Israel was responsible
Also signal is CIA confirmed
EXPLAIN
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thought this is interesting. you can see who the petite bourgeoisie prefers
Disabled ppl donating to Trump (or Biden for that matter but why Trump)
wow it came as a complete surprise that Keir Starmer wants to employ austerity measures
Who would’ve taught, that Keir Starmer (of all people!), the person who waged war on social democrats, is a Thatcherite? wow
“We are taking the tough decisions now so we can fix the foundations and deliver on the mandate of change we were elected on to rebuild Britain.”
Remind me quick, what kind of economic policies they used after WW2 to literally rebuild Britain?
Kid Starver
That’s good shit
