Starting our 31st year of publishing the International Observer

Current Concerns

Global economy, European debts

Civil war in Syria and Yemen

Pakistani power play

Noticed and Noted

US presidential campaign

Two major candidates vie for Republican nomination: This month in the United States, former Senator Newt Gingrich (born 17 June 1943) and former Governor Mitt Romney (born 12 March 1947) appear to be the front runners for the nomination of president by the Republican Party. By 21 January, after holding party primaries in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina the nine-candidate field of October [IO 2011, p. 4950] has shrunk to five of which one (Buddy Roemer) has abandoned campaigning. The following four ended their candidacies:

· Herman Cain, suspended his campaign on 3 December;

· Ms. Michelle Bachmann, finishing last in Iowa, cancelled campaigning on 4 January;

· Jon M. Huntsman Jr., placed a distant third in New Hampshire, ended his campaign on 16 January, and endorsed Romney;

· Rick Perry, two days before the primary in South Carolina, suspended campaigning on 19 January and endorsed Gingrich.

It is noteworthy that the first three primary Republican Party elections were held in states with electorates that were not representative of the national electorate, especially in terms of size, urban areas, and minorities.

[January 2012]

Zimbabwe elections may be held next year

Although the so-called unity government survived the past year, this month it appears stymied. One reason is the absence of president and sundries ministers—all on vacation. And when the big man is not around, even his acting stand-in will not make an important decision. Likewise, the prime minister is abroad and the cabinet cannot sit. Three significant matters are pending: completion of drafting of the constitution which is expected by the end of March. Next, a referendum will be held on the constitution, probably in mid-year. Finally, election of a new Parliament. The former ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) was keen on holding it last year. Strenuous opposition from the coalition Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvangirai (MDC-T) and repeated influential counseling of the Troika of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) prevented that. ZANU is hell-bent on holding the elections this year, even before there is a new approved constitution. In its favor and an ominous development was the appointment of a new defense chief, a presidential loyalist who had called the prime minister a national security threat. His soldiers will be actively involved in the logistics of the elections by being present near or at polling places and collecting ballot boxes thus threatening the integrity of results. Yet the holding of elections this year remains doubtful as the parties are unable to agree and the Troika, especially the South African president, is insisting that free and fair elections can only be held when an independent electoral system is in place.

[January 2012]

The Kims

North Korea lost its leader on 17 December thus not only cutting short his 20-year long dictatorship but also the apprenticeship of the designated heir and son Kim Jong-un, 26 or 27. Now the supreme commander with a 70-year old general as minder is described as pudgy, awkward, and not ready according to the Frankfurter Rundschau. While not all the public outpouring of grief over the death of the “Beloved Leader” was sincere, the country was in shock and what little improvements had touched their lives, a good many people gave him credit for some betterment. It is too early to tell whether the young heir will be able to stay on top of any power struggle, take the country out of its international isolation, and drastically improve living conditions.

[December 2011]

Britain’s EU ‘cloak’

Britain’s conservative prime minister is a reluctant European like some of his predecessors but never absent when it comes to obtaining special rights from the European Union (EU) or demanding exceptions. His participation in recent summits on stabilizing the euro currency and rescuing members in debt, like Greece or Italy, earned him a temperamental reminder from the French prime minister that the UK was not a member of the Eurozone. While the government insists that it is acting on Britain’s economic problems, the leader of the opposition Labour Party sees it differently. At a party conference on 12 November, he accused the prime minister of using the EU crisis as a “cloak” while leaving jobs, homes, and businesses “in jeopardy.” He noted that “growth stalled and problems started before the Eurozone crisis escalated.”

[November 2011]