Struggles of the second generation

U.S.-born children of Latino immigrants fight to secure a higher foothold

By N.C. Aizenman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, December 7, 2009

Javier Saavedra slumped his burly frame into a worn, plaid couch in the cramped basement room he shares with his girlfriend and their 2-year-old daughter, his expression darkening as he ticked off all the wrong turns that had gotten them stuck below the economy's ground floor.

Raised by Mexican immigrant parents, Saavedra was a gang member by 13, a high school dropout by 16 and a father by 21. Now 23, he has been trying to turn his life around since his daughter, Julissa, was born.

But without a high school diploma, Saavedra was unable to find a job that paid enough for him and his girlfriend, Mayra Hererra, 20 and pregnant with their second child, to move out of her parents' brick home in Hyattsville.

Even the dim, wood-paneled room piled with baby toys and large plastic bags of clothing was costing them $350 a month.

"I get so upset with myself," Saavedra said. "I should have a better chance at a job [than our parents]. I want to be helping them with their bills, not them still helping me."

Millions of children of Latino immigrants are confronting the same challenge as they come of age in one of the most difficult economic climates in decades.

Whether they succeed will have consequences far beyond immigrant circles. As a result of the arrival of more than 20 million mostly Mexican and Central American newcomers in a wave that swelled in the 1970s and soared during the 1990s, the offspring of Latino immigrants now account for one of every 10 children, both in the United States and the Washington region.

Largely because of the growth of this second generation, Latino immigrants and their U.S.-born children and grandchildren will represent almost a third of the nation's working-age adults by mid-century, according to projections from U.S. Census Bureau data by Jeffrey S. Passel, a demographer with the nonpartisan Pew Hispanic Center in Washington.

Not since the last great wave of immigration to the United States around 1900 has the country's economic future been so closely entwined with the generational progress of an immigrant group. And so far, on nearly every measure, the news is troubling.

Second-generation Latinos have the highest high school dropout rate -- one in seven -- of any U.S.-born racial or ethnic group and the highest teen pregnancy rate. These Latinos also receive far fewer college degrees and make significantly less money than non-Hispanic whites and other second-generation immigrants.

Image via Wikipedia

Their struggles have fueled an outcry for stricter immigration laws, with advocates saying that the rapid increase in Latino immigrants and their children has strained the United States' resources and social fabric.

"The last 30 years of immigration have made our country more unequal, poorer than we would have been otherwise, more fractious and less cohesive," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, which favors tighter restrictions on immigration.

Supporters of Latino immigrants say that the newcomers and their children have spurred economic growth and contribute far more to society than they take from it. They also note that even a complete halt to future immigration would not change the footprint of the 15.5 million U.S.-born offspring of Latino immigrants already in the country.

Perhaps the only yardstick by which the second generation has achieved unambiguous success is the one that has stirred the most public controversy: English proficiency. Despite fears among some people that English usage is diminishing in the Latino community, census data and several studies indicate that by the second generation, nearly all Latinos are fluent in English and that by the third generation, few can even speak Spanish.

The second generation's lack of success on educational and economic fronts is largely explained by their immigrant parents' extremely low starting point. Forty percent of second-generation Latino children are born to parents who never completed high school. Only 12 percent have a parent with a college degree or higher.

Saavedra's parents, who entered the United States illegally but later obtained legal permanent residency, didn't get beyond the third grade in Mexico. They were often at a loss when it came to helping him with homework. "They didn't even know how to get you the stuff you needed" for science projects, he said.

Although adding on a year or two of education beyond high school can boost their incomes, to be truly guaranteed a middle-class lifestyle, second-generation Latinos need at least a bachelor's degree -- a feat that the last major wave of immigrants, from Eastern and Southern Europe, took three or four generations to achieve.

"The second generation is doing way better" than their parents, said Ruben Rumbaut, a professor at the University of California at Irvine and a leading scholar on second-generation Latino immigrants. "But way better can still mean they are high school dropouts with 11 years of education, as opposed to their parents, with six years. And in this economy, an 11th-grade dropout is not going to make it."

Rage and remorse

Saavedra is determined to be the exception, although he knows it won't be easy.

The sun was burning down from a late-April sky, and Saavedra's brow filled with sweat as he mixed cement with a shovel at a Northern Virginia construction site.

When he was a child, his father would sometimes take him to sites like this in hopes of motivating the boy to stay in school.

"He used to say to me, 'What do you think is heavier: the pencil or the shovel?' " Saavedra recalled.

Still, this was the first work he had gotten in a month, and he seemed eager to show his gratitude to his girlfriend's Mexican-born father for taking him along. He sprang quickly to lug the heaviest equipment and joked in Spanish with the slender immigrant working alongside him.

"Somos como 'El Gordo y La Flaca' " -- We're like 'The Fat Man and the Skinny Lady' -- said Saavedra, referring to a popular TV talk show.

Yet for all his cheer, Saavedra knew that the one-day, $12-per-hour assignment to build a trash lot behind a hotel wouldn't cover his and Herrera's $106 cellphone bill.

And even Saavedra's outfit -- sparkly stud earrings, a basketball jersey that fell to his thighs and baggy pants that ballooned around his ankles -- broadcast his gnawing sense that he didn't belong among the crew of Mexican immigrants.

Technically, he is what researchers call a "1.5-generation" immigrant, because he was born in Mexico and moved to the United States as a 4-year-old. But with no memory of living anywhere other than Maryland, Saavedra considers himself, and tries to dress like, a member of the second generation.

He hauled an 80-pound bag of cement onto his shoulder and cracked a grin that was half-smirk, half-wince.

"It's times like these," he said, "that I think, 'Oh, man! Why didn't I finish high school?' "

The short answer is that he joined a gang and was kicked out of Bladensburg High School for fighting in his sophomore year. The long answer, Saavedra said, is that he was too filled with rage to put much stock in school.

The youngest boy in a family of seven children, he said he grew up fearing his father's temper and often felt ignored by his parents. "You know, like they'd buy [my older brother] Air Jordans but say there wasn't enough to buy them for me."

School offered little solace. As his family moved around Prince George's County, Saavedra passed through five elementary schools. Each time he started a new school, he said, "people tried jumping me and saying, 'Oh, you're the new guy.' . . . The hate started building up in my heart until I just got so tired."

By the time he got to William Wirt Middle School in Riverdale, Saavedra was an eager recruit for the Latino gangs that held sway there. He soon started his own clique of the gang Sur 13, transforming himself from his family's invisible youngest son to Casper, the nickname he chose as leader of some of the toughest guys in the neighborhood.

"All my life," he said, "I've always wanted to be known for something."

Hererra, who met Saavedra at a family party and started dating him in high school, said she wished the rest of the world could see the kind, thoughtful side of his personality he reserved for her. "Towards me he'd show emotion," she said. "He was always so attentive. . . . But towards everyone else, he'd just show anger."

Although Saavedra listened respectfully to her pleas to leave the gang, he didn't start reconsidering his choices until months after he had left high school. Without a diploma, he was cycling through low-paying, occasional jobs: cleaning carpets, driving for FedEx, working construction.

Friends started getting killed, including Edward Trujillo, a gang leader whom Saavedra had looked up to as a boy. He was gunned down on a residential street in the Riverdale area.

Saavedra himself narrowly missed being shot on four occasions. And he was constantly in brawls. "Some guy would call at 2 in the morning about a fight, and he'd be off," Hererra said.

Although Saavedra was not convicted of any crimes, he was picked up multiple times on suspicion of vandalism, assault and theft. Sgt. George Norris, a member of the Prince George's police gang unit, said he made a point of pulling Saavedra over for questioning and locking him up when possible. When Saavedra moved, Norris surprised him by turning up at the new address.

"I wanted him to know that wherever he went, whatever he did, I was going to be there," Norris said.

But after Saavedra decided to get free therapy from a local youth group, Norris also offered support, inviting him to speak at conferences and berating him when he showed signs of slipping back into gang life.

The hour-a-week therapy sessions helped Saavedra get more of a handle on his temper.

Perhaps most significantly, Hererra became pregnant and threatened to leave him if he didn't put the safety of their child first.

All in all, "it took him a good year to come around," she said. "He wasn't really changed until he saw the baby being born."

Progress and setbacks

Some weeks after the construction job, Saavedra lay on an operating table in Bethesda, tensing his torso as a doctor traced a laser over a tattoo of a teardrop just below his eye.

With funding from a local youth group called Identity, he had already had a number of his old gang tattoos removed, including the large, black SUR in gothic letters on his right arm, and the 13 written on his left. The teardrops would be the last to go.

"Without this on my face, I can probably get a better job," he said as he walked out of the doctor's office carrying Julissa's sippy cup in one hand and her pink diaper bag in the other. "I won't be getting pulled over for looking suspicious. People won't be thinking, 'Oh, he must've murdered someone.' "

Still, Saavedra said, he sometimes misses the status of being a gang leader. But he had recently hit on what seemed a perfect way to fill the void: a club of mostly former gang members who trick out lowrider bicycles with velvet seats, chrome wheels, twisted metal handlebars and plaques decorated with the gothic letters and fearsome imagery popular with Latino gangs.

Saavedra said he also hopes the club, called Street Nations, will offer his nephews and other young boys an alternative to joining a gang. "They like the gang lifestyle. But I be trying to tell them, 'It's not cool. If you want to be in gangs, later on you'll regret it.' "

A few days later, Saavedra took extra-small T-shirts printed with the Street Nations logo to give to his nephews at the club's first official meeting in a Riverdale park.

Hererra chuckled at the sight of the couple's youngest nephew posing for photographs next to the group's heavily tattooed, pierced older members. "Chris!" Saavedra shouted at the 8-year-old. "Stay in school and you get a bike!"

Saavedra and Hererra were trying to make their own educations a priority as well.

Despite her pregnancy, Hererra had continued to take classes toward a business degree at a Northern Virginia vocational college. Now 21, she hopes to graduate next year and get a job in human resources.

Saavedra had subscribed to an online course to work toward a high school diploma. His plan was to do a lesson a week on the computer next to his and Hererra's bed in the basement.

But Saavedra ended up whiling away his time updating the Street Nations Web site and chatting with other members on its message board -- "your Twitter," Hererra called it.

By summer's end, the online course was all but forgotten. FedEx had come through with a steady delivery job, and between the 12-hour workdays and evenings taking care of Julissa and his newborn son, Anthony Javier, so Hererra could go to class, Saavedra said, "I'm not even focused on my GED right now."

At $500 a week, his wages still aren't enough for the couple to get a place of their own. There are nights when Saavedra wonders whether they ever will.

"I try to stay positive," Saavedra said. "But sometimes inside me, I just feel like giving up and running away from this. You know, just getting lost. Honestly, sometimes that's just how I feel."

Mounting forced labour by Burmese army in Taung Oo region

Report by Nan Htoo San

Friday, 04 December 2009 08:22

The Burmese Army based in Taung Oo region is forcing many locals, including women to work against their will, locals said. Army battalions under the Military Operation Command 5 (MOC 5) based in Htan Ta Pin township, Taung Oo district have been constantly summoning locals to work since November. Locals are forced to carry rations and military equipment, which are necessary transportation for the army come winter, Taung Oo locals said. Image by Rusty Stewart via Flickr "It's happening around the mountain area in Htan Ta Pin Township called the military operation area. Locals are made to carry rations, military equipment and ammunition for battalions under the MOC 5. About 20 to 30 locals, including women, are summoned for duty at a time," a Taung Oo local Saw El War said. Some of the military camps are situated on the roadsides and vehicles are also requisitioned. Then villagers are forced to walk in front of the vehicles as landmine detectors. If the military camps are far from the main road, locals are forced to carry rations and military equipments. The Light Infantry Battalion 542 (LIB 542) based in Ka Lawme Del village under the command of MOC 5 summoned 32 women and 24 men on November 27. The infantry battalion forced them to transport army rations (rice) from Ka Lawme Del camp to Palei War camp. "There is an army camp in our village. Therefore, two villagers have to work in the camp daily. Besides, villagers are forced to carry rations, cut wood and bamboo for the camp. Villagers are treated inhumanly," a Zee Phyu Kon villager in Htan Ta Pin Township said. There are often gun battles between the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and the Burmese Army, when the latter’s troops escort the convoy transporting ration. Currently there are 78 military camps in Taung Oo district, which is under the control of KNU's brigade 2. The battalions from MOC 5 and Southern Military Command have entered the area since 2006.

Beware Social Media Snake Oil

Image via CrunchBase

Hordes of marketing "experts" are promoting the value of wikis, social networks, and blogs. All the hype may obscure the real potential of these online tools

By Stephen Baker

For business, the rising popularity of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media Web sites presents a tantalizing opportunity. As millions of people flock to these online services to chat, flirt, swap photos, and network, companies have the chance to tune in to billions of digital conversations. They can pitch a product, listen to customer feedback, or ask for ideas. If they work it right, customers might even produce companies' advertising for them and trade the ads with friends for free. Starbucks (SBUX), Dell (DELL), and Ford Motor (F) have all testified to the magic social media can create.

But the same tools carry risks. Employees encouraged to tap social networking sites can fritter away hours, or worse. They can spill company secrets or harm corporate relationships by denigrating partners. What's more, with one misstep, one clumsy entrée, companies can quickly find themselves victims of the forces they were trying to master. Thousands of bloggers attacked Motrin last year because of an advertisement from the Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) brand they found demeaning to mothers.

Over the past five years, an entire industry of consultants has arisen to help companies navigate the world of social networks, blogs, and wikis. The self-proclaimed experts range from legions of wannabes, many of them refugees from the real estate bust, to industry superstars such as Chris Brogan and Gary Vaynerchuk. They produce best-selling books and dole out advice or lead workshops at companies for thousands of dollars a day. The consultants evangelize the transformative power of social media and often cast themselves as triumphant case studies of successful networking and self-branding.

The problem, according to a growing chorus of critics, is that many would-be guides are leading clients astray. Consultants often use buzz as their dominant currency, and success is defined more often by numbers of Twitter followers, blog mentions, or YouTube (GOOG) hits than by traditional measures, such as return on investment. This approach could sour companies on social media and the rich opportunities it represents. "It's a bit of a Wild West scenario," blogs David Armano, a consultant with the Dachis Group of Austin, Tex. Without naming names, he compares some consultants to "snake oil salesmen."

Critics complain that many of the new experts have adopted an orthodoxy that provides little flexibility for differing situations—or outcomes. Their pronouncements follow a rigid gospel: Be transparent, engage with your customers, break down silos. Yet these strictures don't always make business sense. Adam Kmiec, director of interactive marketing at Marc USA in Pittsburgh, tells of a company he met with that got much of its revenue from the Defense Dept. and had allocated $4 million for social media. "What do you hope to get?" he asked them. Ultimately, the client decided the privacy-obsessed Pentagon may not be thrilled with a supplier publicizing itself through Twitter.

FURY VS. BUZZ

Scrutiny of the hype merchants is picking up. Rob Spencer, senior research fellow for idea management at drug giant Pfizer (PFE), mingles frequently with social media vendors and consultants as he looks for ways to amplify the company's brainpower. He urges caution. "You have to tread your way carefully and have your B.S. sensors up," he says. "I call them innovation hippies. 'Here's my book for free. Won't you hire me for $500 to run some workshops?'"

Social media consultants' own promotions can collide, on occasion, with those of their customers. Take the case of James Andrews, who was working early this year at the PR firm Ketchum (OMC). As a consultant, he helped companies such as Newell Rubbermaid (NWL), Monster Worldwide (MWW), and FedEx (FDX) work out their strategies for blogs and the microblogging service Twitter. On landing in Memphis for FedEx meetings, he says he had an ugly run-in with a racist at the airport and twittered that he would "die if he had to live" in the city. The tweet produced an outpouring of blogged fury from FedEx employees and a fast apology from an embarrassed Ketchum. But for Andrews, the tweet generated buzz and may even have boosted his brand. "It helps me today," he says. "I use it as a case study. It creates authenticity." In June, Andrews left Ketchum to launch a boutique consultancy, Everywhere. He helps Macy's (M), CNN (TWX), and Jane Fonda promote their brands and monitor their audiences on Facebook, blogs, and Twitter.

Skeptics can draw from plenty of examples of social media experiments run amok. Consider Saatchi & Saatchi's ill-fated promotion for the Toyota (TM) Matrix. Targeting young men, a demographic known to resist traditional advertising, Saatchi's social media team last year created a campaign based on the pranks of the popular MTV (VIA.B) show Punk'd. According to the plan, a prospective buyer of a Matrix would single out a friend to be the target of a prank. The promise: a bit of fear, a lot of laughs, and perhaps a groundswell of free marketing across Facebook, MySpace (NWS), and Twitter.

Amber Duick, one of the targets in the short-lived campaign, says she received a series of e-mails from a fictitious British soccer hooligan named Sebastian Bowler. He said he was coming to visit her and bringing along his pit bull. He had a MySpace page where he bragged about "drinking alcohol to excess" and participating in riots. One e-mail Duick received was a fake bill for damage to a hotel room wrecked by Bowler. He had left her e-mail address, the message explained, as his contact info. Duick filed a $10 million lawsuit in October and says that to protect herself from the oncoming Bowler, she slept with a machete by her bed. "She was terrified," says her lawyer, Nicholas Tepper.

In a statement, Saatchi and Toyota wrote that they would "vigorously defend against the claim," which is "entirely without merit." They said the plaintiff had granted "her permission to receive campaign e-mails and other communications from Toyota."

CAN CHAGRIN BE GOOD?

James Cooper, Saatchi's digital creative director, says social media, by their nature, are unpredictable, which makes them an easy target for critics. "Anyone who says 'This is going to work' is either lying or deranged," he says. He compares the risk model with venture capital, where one bet out of 10 might pay off richly, while the others struggle or even bomb. And he stresses the difficulty of measuring results. "If something's got 20 million hits on YouTube, that's a good thing," he says. "But what if half the comments are negative? I don't think anyone's got a long-term case study yet."

While the marketing consultants focus on buzz and engagement, their in-house colleagues are trying to use social media to change how companies operate. The goal of Enterprise 2.0, a descendant of the "knowledge management" movement in the '90s, is to reroute the information traveling through corporations, undermining rigid hierarchies. Tools from Microsoft's (MSFT) SharePoint, IBM's (IBM) Lotus Notes, along with packages from newer companies such as Jive Software and Socialtext enable vast networks to share documents and work together on projects.

Yet the buzz around social media has led many companies to buy these systems before they're ready to put them to work. Jennifer Okimoto, associate partner at IBM Global Business Services, says many corporations took the plunge into social media and now are sitting on loads of uninstalled software. "I'm working with a company that has made huge investments" in social software, she says on a phone call from Switzerland. Yet only a small number of employees at the company use it. A Forrester Research (FORR) study shows that despite buzz around Enterprise 2.0, less than 15% of the knowledge workforce makes use of internal blogs, wikis, and other collaborative tools. "E-mail is still dominant," says Ted Schadler, author of the report.

The economic situation is heightening the focus on accountability. "Companies no longer have fluff money" to experiment with, says Mark Turrell, chief executive of Imaginatik (IMGKF), a vendor of corporate knowledge management tools. "A lot of programs you launch and get good buzz. But now it's all about outcomes."

The debates over buzz are leading to confrontations among consultants. In late October, Marc USA's Kmiec, a little-known figure in the industry, launched a blog attack against Chris Brogan, one of the towering chieftains of social media. President of consultancy New Marketing Labs, Brogan is an object of considerable envy: He boasts 110,379 followers on Twitter, has co-authored a new social media best-seller, Trust Agents, and commands top dollar on the speaking circuit.

Kmiec wrote of Brogan: "He speaks well. He presents well. Does that make him talented? Yes. Does it make him smart? Yes. Does it make him an expert? No." Kmiec asked Brogan for client case studies and metrics to prove his social media success. Responding on Kmiec's blog, Brogan dismissed the questions about his clients and social media metrics: "Is it an exacting marketing science? Not at all. Partly because it's so damned new that we're inventing the case studies while we're experimenting with what comes out of it. Are companies asking for more and more experiences with me to see if it'll work for them? Hell, yes."

DANGER OF A BACKLASH

Many argue that a fixation on hard numbers could lead companies to ignore the harder-to-quantify dividends of social media, such as trust and commitment. A Twittering employee, for example, might develop trust or goodwill among customers but have trouble putting a number on it. "There is this default assumption that return on investment is the correct measure for everything," says Susan Etlinger, senior vice-president at Horn Group, a San Francisco consultancy. "Everything needs to monetize within 12 weeks, so we can understand that we're successful. But frequently the thing they're measuring is misleading."

This can lead to confusion. The risk is that a backlash against the consultants' easy promises could reduce social media investments just as the industry takes off. Think back to the dot-com boom a decade ago. Soaring valuations were based initially on promise and hype. In early 2000, when investors started focusing on scarce profits, the market collapsed. But many companies drew the wrong conclusions. Believing the fall of a hyped market was a sign of the failed promise of the Internet, they drew back on Internet investments. This happened just as the technology was on the verge of living up to much of its promise, dominating global communications, transforming entire industries—and spawning social media.

The best way to avoid a similar backlash today is for social media's practitioners, including thousands of consultants, to shift the focus from promises to results. It may be the only way to convert the skeptics—and flush out the snake oil.

Why Dubai Matters

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Sure, it will pay a hefty price for its debt woes. But the city-state's open economy has attracted legions of foreign investors and serves as a model for its Gulf neighbors

By Stanley Reed

Dubai — After Dubai announced in late November that the state-controlled investment firm Dubai World was seeking to reschedule payments on some $26 billion of debt, global markets went into a tailspin. While foreign bourses quickly rebounded, local shares have taken a pounding, and the credibility of Dubai's leadership has suffered serious damage. Yet lost in all the drama is the fact that Dubai is an important economic experiment in a strategically vital region. The humiliating debt implosion aside, the emirate remains the most dynamic business hub in the Gulf and has become a model for its neighbors.

In a region of conservative, autocratic countries long chained to the boom-and-bust cycles of the oil industry, Dubai stands out for creating an open economy that has diversified well beyond energy. With nowhere near the oil and gas reserves of other Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, it had to. "Dubai shows that if you are part of the global economy, you do well; you don't have to have oil," says David Aaron, director of the RAND Center for Middle East Public Policy in Washington.

There's no denying that the emirate overreached and will pay a hefty price. Dubai led the region in allowing outsiders to own property, opening up its real estate market to foreign investment in 2003, and created a mortgage industry to finance their purchases. But lax rules ushered in wild speculation. With real estate prices rising at a double-digit annual clip, investors made a killing buying apartments with low deposits and quickly flipping them. Then when the credit crunch came, buyers fled and developers saw their cash flow dry up. Hardest hit was Nakheel, a subsidiary of Dubai World that created the iconic palm island real estate development off the coast. It has about $8 billion in debt and $13 billion in other liabilities such as bills from suppliers, Barclays Capital (BCS) reports.

Dubai's leadership has doubtless mishandled the recent turmoil. The emirate's debt problems have been looming for at least a year, but ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has made little progress in coming to grips with the challenge. As recently as October, Dubai raised nearly $2 billion in new money through an Islamic bond issue. Asked about the emirate's ability to pay its debts, Sheikh Mohammed told reporters: "I assure you, we are all right."

Part of the problem is that while Dubai is more open than its neighbors, it's no Jeffersonian democracy. It is dominated by a handful of people, and their decision-making and finances remain opaque. The debt crisis illustrates that. Until recently, no one knew how much debt Dubai had and which state-linked companies it might back in a crunch. Just as murky was the extent to which its wealthier neighbors, chiefly Abu Dhabi, were willing to bail it out. Investors who had assumed the best got spooked when it appeared Dubai couldn't meet its obligations. "To lower the perception of risk, Dubai must become more transparent quickly," says Matthew Vogel, head of emerging markets research at Barclays Capital in London.

Hassle-Free Business Climate

Nonetheless, Dubai remains the region's nimblest competitor. It is a tolerant and comfortable base for anyone seeking a foothold in the Arab world, and today Americans, Europeans, Asians, and Middle Easterners work side-by-side in the senior ranks of its big companies. Salaries are high, and there's no personal income tax. Luxury apartment buildings abound, many of them weekend getaways for residents of neighboring states who flock to Dubai to enjoy lavish restaurants and bars often filled with available young women. Then there's all that famous froth such as the indoor ski slope, the sail-shaped Burj Al Arab hotel on the beachfront, and the world's tallest building, the soon-to-open Burj Dubai.

Beneath all the glitz, though, Dubai has become a place where serious business gets done. While the city-state has just 1.6 million residents and a gross domestic product of $80 billion, it is the business gateway for a region with a $1 trillion economy, millions of eager young consumers, and hundreds of billions of petrodollars to invest. Microsoft (MSFT), General Electric (GE), Cisco Systems (CSCO), and a host of other A-list multinationals have flocked to Dubai because of its open culture, top-notch infrastructure, and hassle-free business climate.

And virtually every leading investment bank is present in the Dubai International Financial Center, a lavish gray-granite complex with ornate fountains built on what was a desolate patch of sand just a few years ago. A big draw is the emerging market for Islamic financial services, which has become a $1 trillion business globally. "Dubai will continue to lay the foundations for sustainable growth," says Michael Geoghegan, group chief executive of HSBC, the leading lender in the United Arab Emirates with $611 million in loans out to Dubai World. "I am confident that Dubai and the U.A.E. will overcome any short-term issues they face."

Model Gulf State

Dubai's homegrown companies have made their mark, too. At the core of debt-plagued Dubai World is a first-class ports operation, and the company has vast real estate holdings and a host of other businesses that span the globe. Emirates, the airline founded by the ruling Maktoum family in 1985 with $10 million in capital, is now among the world's top 10 carriers and a major customer for both Airbus and Boeing (BA). And Dubai-based Abraaj Capital, an independent group owned by local and Saudi investors, has grown into the leading private equity firm investing in the region.

Dubai's success hasn't gone unnoticed in the neighborhood, and nearby states are following its lead. Gas-rich Qatar is promoting its own financial center. Abu Dhabi has announced an $8 billion financial-services joint venture with GE. And it's working hard to transform itself into a higher-end version of Dubai with even fancier hotels and branches of the Louvre and Guggenheim museums. Even hyperconservative Saudi Arabia has taken a leaf from Dubai's book by liberalizing its financial system to draw in Western investment banks such as Morgan Stanley (MS) and Deutsche Bank (DB).

What these countries see in Dubai is a chance to move beyond the petro-economy that has provided their wealth but does little to create jobs. The Gulf region has millions of young, underemployed people who want a better life—and who risk being drawn toward Islamist extremism if they don't get it. Some of the most talented of these have made their way to Dubai, where they find a more meritocratic culture that offers seemingly endless opportunities. "They look at this place as somewhere that allows them to do things that they can't do [at home]," says Tarik Yousef, dean of the Dubai School of Government. "It has been built out of nothing."

Hard Choices

While Dubai's neighbors want to emulate its success, that doesn't mean they won't exact a serious political toll for the recent turmoil. The U.A.E., a federation of seven city-states ruled by hereditary clans, is largely bankrolled by Abu Dhabi, but Dubai is its business center. Sheikh Mo, as Dubai's leader is popularly known, is vice-president and prime minister. Abu Dhabi's ruler, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, serves as president, and he's unlikely to simply write a check to bail out Dubai. Instead, he will probably force Sheikh Mo to make hard choices about developer Nakheel and other troubled enterprises. Some in Abu Dhabi will even want to see Dubai pay for its profligacy by turning over stakes in major assets. The two sides "will sit down and say this is sustainable, this isn't," says Hashem Montasser, Dubai-based managing director of EFG-Hermes, the leading regional investment bank. "I am sure there will be differences."

Until Dubai cleans up its act, it will be much harder to find the money needed to keep building the new highways, the public transit system, and other big infrastructure projects that have helped give it its edge. Already businesses in the emirate say it's tough to line up bank credit, and that won't ease anytime soon. "We are expecting it to be very difficult for Dubai-based entities to raise money," says Farouk Soussa, a Standard & Poor's (MHP) analyst in Dubai.

Given Sheikh Mo's missteps in the current crisis, he may find himself increasingly under the thumb of his neighbors in Abu Dhabi. It hasn't gone unnoticed that solo portraits of him on billboards in prominent locations across Dubai have been replaced by signs showing both the Dubai leader and Sheikh Khalifa.

Dubai may no longer be allowed to run an independent foreign policy. Sheikh Mo has long kept the city-state close to Iran—and tapped into its capital—while most other Gulf states see the Islamic Republic as one of their greatest enemies. And Abu Dhabi, which worries that the U.A.E. is losing its character due to excessive immigration, may push to tighten up on visas for visitors from Iran, Russia, and elsewhere. "The entire U.A.E. will gravitate toward Abu Dhabi," says Ian Bremmer, president of New York-based risk consultancy Eurasia Group. "That means Dubai will become more conservative socially and politically. Dubai's branding will be toned down."

"Don't Count Dubai Out"

That toned-down branding means the emirate will surely rein in some of its excesses. Although the skyline and palm islands won't disappear, further over-the-top development will likely be put on hold. The city-state has "realized it's no longer about building the world's tallest tower," says Saud Masud, research chief for Swiss bank UBS (UBS). "Now it's about Dubai's legacy and its long-term future." And the crisis could help spur greater transparency—admittedly the weakest part of Dubai's economic model, says David Kirsch, an analyst at Washington-based consultancy PFC Energy. "This will put more pressure on Dubai to tighten up on regulations and improve governance," Kirsch says.

It is also hard to see Dubai losing its role as the region's leading business hub. It's true that Qatar's Doha, Abu Dhabi, and even the Saudi capital, Riyadh, are scoring some successes in attracting banking and other businesses. And with greater access to capital, they'll be able to close the infrastructure gap with Dubai. But few expatriates are going to want to settle in those places, which don't really want lots of foreigners and their unfamiliar ways anyhow.

While Dubai's current problems may be severe, the viability of its economic model remains sound. Demand for business services is down now, but it will surely bounce back once the credit crunch eases. "Don't count Dubai out," says Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein. "It has world-class infrastructure, a high-quality talent pool, and will continue to be an important financial center for decades to come." Singapore, which has served as an inspiration for Dubai, learned from the crash of 1997-1998 and emerged much stronger from it. Dubai, too, now has the opportunity to take lessons from its mistakes and thrive once again.

With Vivian Salama, Arif Sharif, Anthony DiPaola, Jason Kelly, Rochelle Garner, and Jonathan Keehner.

Devices to Take Textbooks Beyond Text

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By ANNE EISENBERG

NEWSPAPERS and novels are moving briskly from paper to pixels, but textbooks have yet to find the perfect electronic home. They are readable on laptops and smartphones, but the displays can be eye-taxing. Even dedicated e-readers with their crisp printlike displays can’t handle textbook staples like color illustrations or the videos and Web-linked supplements publishers increasingly supply.

Now there is a new approach that may adapt well to textbook pages: two-screen e-book readers with a traditional e-paper display on one screen and a liquid-crystal display on the other to render graphics like science animations in color.

The dual screens are linked by a central processor so that, for example, a link on the e-paper display can open on the color screen.

A two-screen device called the eDGe will be released by enTourage Systems in February for $490, said Doug Atkinson, vice president of marketing and business development for the company, based in McLean, Va.

The dual screens of the eDGe open like a book with facing pages. The e-reader screen is 9.7 inches diagonally; the color touch screen on the liquid-crystal display is 10.1 inches. The two screens interact in many ways. For instance, if the textbook on the black-and-white e-reader displays an illustration from a file that is in color, “the machine can move the illustration over to the LCD and run it there in color,” Mr. Atkinson said.

The e-reader screen is used with a stylus that can underline or highlight text, take notes in the margin, pull up a blank piece of e-paper for solving math problems, or touch a link for a video of a chemical interaction that is then displayed on the LCD screen.

The virtual keyboard is on the LCD side, as well as an audio recorder and a video camera. The device uses Google’s Android operating system, so other applications like word processing can be added, Mr. Atkinson said.

The two screens swivel, so that the LCD screen can be tucked beneath the e-reader if space is tight. Then the device can be used as a note-taking tablet, or it can be flipped over to the other side for sending e-mail.

Sarah Rotman Epps, an analyst at Forrester Research in Cambridge, Mass., said that the enTourage device was part of the next generation of e-readers, which would be hybrids. “They won’t just be a netbook or a tablet or an e-reader,” Ms. Epps said, “but a combination that will bend the categories consumers expect from electronics.”

E-textbooks have special requirements that can be addressed by hybrids like the eDGe, she explained. “The devices have to render graphics faithfully, ideally with color,” she said, “and students should have the ability to take extensive notes and share them,” as well as have access to whatever interactive elements publishers provide.

Until such features come to market, Ms. Epps said, “electronic book readers are great for reading novels, but they aren’t right for textbooks.”

Allen Weiner, a research vice president with Gartner, said that many students would simply read e-textbooks on their laptops. But even so, dual-screen devices are likely to find a place in the market, he said, provided the models have fairly large screens for both displays. “The window you need for effective video interaction doesn’t have to be giant,” Mr. Weiner said, “but it needs to be a decent size” so that readers can click on a link and find out more. In addition, students can use the hybrids to take notes and underline text directly on the screen using the stylus, something they can’t do on most laptops.

Two other new devices also use dual screens. Barnes & Noble’s new Nook e-book reader ($259) has a small LCD touch screen beneath the reading display to be used primarily for navigation. Another device not yet on the market, the Alex from Spring Design in Cupertino, Calif., has a 3.5-inch LCD for browsing the Internet and interacting with the e-reader content. Spring Design will announce pricing in January, said Eric Kmiec, the company’s vice president for sales and marketing.

“You will probably soon see combined e-reading devices with LCDs that are slightly smaller than the enTourage, but larger than the Alex,” Mr. Weiner predicted.

Electronic textbooks may one day offer a convenient way to study, said Ms. Epps, literally lightening a student’s load. That’s already happened at Catholic University of America in Washington, where Robert A. Destro, a professor of law, and his students are testing a version of the eDGe. Professor Destro has 13 textbooks on his device.

“It’s wonderful not to have to lug those books around,” he said.

Syria: End Persecution of Kurds

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(New York) - Syrian authorities should end their unlawful and unjustified practices of attacking peaceful Kurdish gatherings and detaining Kurdish political and cultural activists, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The 63-page report, "Group Denial: Repression of Kurdish Political and Cultural Rights in Syria," documents the Syrian authorities' efforts to ban and disperse gatherings calling for Kurdish minority rights or celebrating Kurdish culture, as well as the detention of leading Kurdish political activists and their ill-treatment in custody. The repression of Kurds in Syria has greatly intensified following large-scale Kurdish demonstrations in March 2004. The report is based on interviews with 30 Kurdish activists recently released from prison, as well as 15 relatives of Kurdish activists still in jail. The Syrian government refused to reply to requests for information or meetings with Human Rights Watch.

"At a time when other countries in the region, from Iraq to Turkey, are improving the treatment of their Kurdish minority, Syria remains resistant to change," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "In fact, Syria has been especially hostile to any Kurdish political or cultural expression."

Kurds, an estimated 10 percent of Syria's population of 20 million, live primarily in the country's northern and eastern regions. Human Rights Watch found that since 2005, Syrian security forces have repressed at least 14 Kurdish political and cultural public gatherings, overwhelmingly peaceful, and often resorted to violence to disperse the crowds. Not only have the security forces prevented political meetings in support of Kurds' minority rights, but also gatherings to celebrate Nowruz (the Kurdish new year) and other cultural celebrations. In at least two instances, the security services fired on the crowds and caused deaths.

"The Syrian government sees threats everywhere, even in village new year celebrations," Whitson said. "If the government wants better relations with its Kurdish minority, it should address their legitimate grievances instead of trying to silence them."

Syria has obligations under several international treaties to uphold freedom of expression and association, and the associated right to freedom of assembly. In addition, international law requires Syria to protect the identity of minorities and to guarantee them the right to participate actively in public and cultural life, including practicing their language and celebrating their culture in private and public.

Human Rights Watch also documented the arrests and trials of at least 15 prominent Syrian Kurdish political leaders since 2005. Since there is no political parties law in Syria, none of the political parties - let alone the Kurdish ones - are licensed. Accordingly, any member of a party, including all of the Kurdish parties, is vulnerable to arrest for membership in an unlicensed organization, a crime under Syria's penal code. Most recently, on November 15, 2009, the Damascus Criminal Court sentenced three leading members of the Kurdish Azadi Party, which advocates an end to discrimination against the Kurdish minority, to three years in jail for "weakening national sentiment" and "inciting sectarian or racial strife or provoking conflict between sects and various members of the nation."

Of the 30 former Kurdish detainees interviewed by Human Rights watch, 12 said that security forces tortured them. Most of those detained are referred to military courts, where they can be convicted of vaguely defined, overbroad "security charges," most typically the charge of "spreading false or exaggerated information that weakens national sentiment" or committing an act or speech that advocates "cutting off part of Syrian land to join it to another country."

A Kurdish political activist detained in October 2008 for three months at the Palestine Branch of Military Intelligence described the way the investigators treated him:

If the investigator was not convinced by what I said, the guards would take me to the "torture square," where they would make me stand on my feet for long days with my hands tied behind my back and my eyes covered with a black cloth. I was made to stand for 11 days with only brief periods of rest for 10 minutes to eat. If I would fall due to lack of sleep...they would throw cold water on me and beat me with cables. I developed many illnesses because of this torture. Tests I had done after my release showed that I had inflamed joints as well as infections in the stomach, kidneys, and chest.

(For more testimonials, see below)

Harassment of these activists continues even after their release; security forces continue to call them in for interrogation and frequently bar them from traveling outside the country.

The European Union and the United States have been eager to engage with Syria recently. Human Rights Watch urged these governments to communicate their strong disapproval of Syria's treatment of its Kurdish minority and to emphasize that further progress in their relations with Syria will depend on concrete improvements in Syria's human rights situation.

"Ignoring the treatment of Kurds in Syria will not make the problem go away." Whitson said. "The international community has played an important role in improving the treatment of Kurds in Iraq and Turkey and it needs to do the same for Syria's Kurds."

Human Rights Watch called on the Syrian government to:

• Free people being detained for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression, association, or assembly;
• Amend or abolish the vague security provisions under the Syrian penal code that unlawfully restrict free speech;
• Investigate officials alleged to have tortured or mistreated detainees;
• Enact a law recognizing the right of political parties to organize, and establish an independent electoral commission to register new political parties; and
• Form a commission to address the grievances of the Kurdish minority in Syria.

Accounts from "Group Denial":

A participant in a musical event to celebrate women's role in society organized on March 9, 2009 by a Kurdish party in the town of Qamishli described how the security forces dispersed the crowd:

Fifteen minutes after the celebrations had started, the security forces circled the room. They were carrying guns and sticks, and they scared the women and children. They quickly confiscated the [sound system] speakers and the chairs.

An activist who was at a private home attending a talk on the history of the Kurds described the arrest of participants by Military Intelligence on January 29, 2007:

We were 12 people gathered at Yasha's house to attend a cultural talk on Kurds. Suddenly, members of Aleppo's Military Intelligence came in and took all of us to their branch. They kept us for 10 days in Aleppo, and then they transferred us to the Palestine Branch [of Military Intelligence] in Damascus. They released seven of us and kept five in

detention. The five had confessed that they were members in the Yekiti Party.

A member of the Kurdish Future Movement, a political party, described his arrest while he was waiting to board a bus:

The civilian police detained me in the town of `Amuda and immediately transferred me to Political Security in al-Hasakeh. They charged me with belonging to the Kurdish Future Movement. They interrogated me for 12 days. During the investigation I was deprived of everything. Their questions focused on the political program of the party, its internal rules, my role in the party, especially after they had kidnapped Mr. Mesh`al Temmo, the official spokesperson for the party. After the interrogation they referred me on September 1 to a military judge in Qamishli, who ordered my detention for belonging to an unlicensed political party and inciting sectarian strife.

A member of the PYD party, a Kurdish political party, described the torture he endured while detained by Political Security in `Ain `Arab in May 2006:

They tortured me physically and emotionally. The physical torture began from the moment I arrived at the branch. The officer who heads the branch beat me personally. His men tied my legs to a Russian rifle, and the officer beat me on my feet with a whip. The beating covered various parts of my body. He would insult and threaten me and insult the Kurds. He found a notebook in my pocket where I had written the name of the town by its Kurdish name, Kobani, which the regime had changed to `Ain `Arab, so he hit me with more than 100 lashes saying, "Damn you and damn Kobani. Why don't you write `Ain `Arab?" The torture lasted for almost six hours of on-off beatings.

Indonesia: Timber Corruption’s High Costs

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(Jakarta) - Corruption in Indonesia's lucrative forestry industry costs the government US$2 billion annually, detracting from the resources available to meet its obligations on economic and social rights, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Inadequate oversight and conflicts of interest also raise a red flag over whether Indonesia can be a reliable carbon-trading partner. Carbon trading schemes are likely to be an important topic at the United Nation's Climate Change Conference, which begins December 7, 2009, in Copenhagen.

The 75-page report, "Wild Money: The Human Rights Consequences of Illegal Logging and Corruption in Indonesia's Forestry Sector," found that more than half of all Indonesian timber from 2003 through 2006 was logged illegally, with no taxes paid. Unreported subsidies to the forestry industry, including government use of artificially low timber market prices and currency exchange rates, and tax evasion by exporters using a scam known as "transfer pricing," exacerbated the losses. Using industry methods, including detailed comparisons between Indonesia's timber consumption and legal wood supply, the report concluded that in 2006 the total loss to Indonesia's national purse was $2 billion.

Recent challenges to the country's Anti-Corruption Commission (Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi, KPK), including an alleged conspiracy by police and prosecutors to discredit the commission as it began looking into possible police corruption, exemplify the harmful effects of corruption on the country's governance, Human Rights Watch said.

"Widespread corruption in the forest industry is the dirty secret no one wants to talk about," said Joe Saunders, deputy program director at Human Rights Watch. "But until the lack of oversight and conflicts of interest are taken seriously, pouring more money into the leaky system from carbon trading is likely to make the problem worse, not better."

Some reduction in revenue loss has been reported since 2006, attributed to a dramatic increase in plantation timber production, doubling in a single year. But the area of established plantation required to produce the high volumes of timber reported call these new numbers into question, the report says.

The domestic impacts of corruption and revenue loss, especially on the nation's rural poor, are significant, Human Rights Watch said. Indonesia is a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the key international treaty under which it has agreed to use maximum available resources to ensure its citizens enjoy their rights to such services as health, education, and housing. Yet, the scale of lost revenue to corruption demonstrates Indonesia is in violation of these obligations.

The roughly $2 billion in annual lost revenue is equal to the country's entire spending on health at national, provincial, and district levels combined. The annual loss is also equal to the amount that the World Bank estimates would be sufficient to provide a package of basic health care benefits to 100 million of the nation's poorest citizens for almost two years. Indonesia has among the lowest per capita health spending in the region, even compared with countries of much lower per capita GDP.

"It's a particularly cruel irony that in many of the rural areas that generate the country's forestry income, basic health care services are among the worst in the country," Saunders said. "People who live next door to the very forests being ravaged to line officials' pockets must travel huge distances to reach the nearest doctor."

Indonesia has one of the largest areas of forest in the world, but also one of the highest deforestation rates. Reported exports from its lucrative timber industry were worth $6.6 billion in 2007, second only to Brazil and more than all African and Central American nations combined.

The individuals who profit the most from illegal logging and the associated corruption are rarely held accountable, the report found, in part because of corruption in law enforcement and the judiciary. Bribes go to the police to manipulate evidence or even to sell seized illicit timber back to illegal loggers; to prosecutors to manipulate indictments (sometimes deliberately using a charge for which the evidence is weak); and to judges for favorable rulings.

Forestry Ministry officials have taken steps to improve timber reporting and tracking systems, the report says, but they have to contend not only with shady dealings in the private sector but with entrenched interests within their own ministry. Reporting of timber production and revenue collection is compromised by conflicts of interest within the forest agencies and unclear jurisdictions between central and local forest authorities. Bribes to officials in exchange for allowing logging without, or in violation of, proper permits create a powerful incentive to neglect accurate data keeping or to fail to make regular reports to the central ministry.

While the government of President President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has taken steps to combat corruption, there is strong resistance from some high-level officials. Increasing tensions between the Anti-Corruption Commission (KPK) and police and prosecutors led to the arrest and removal of two of the commissioners after the police accused them of extortion and abuse of authority.

In November, a presidential fact-finding team found insufficient evidence for the charges against the commissioners and recommended they be dropped, although it is not clear if the commissioners will be returned to their posts. The team further recommended a full investigation into corruption in the judiciary to eradicate "case brokers" inside the judiciary and police who act as go-betweens to deliver bribes, and a full inquiry into abuse of authority by the police, with sanctions for officers responsible for wrongdoing in the arrests of the anti-corruption commissioners.

"This is a critical juncture," Saunders said. "If Indonesia can curb the corruption, it can be a global forestry leader. As it is, a lot of trees and a lot of money are going missing and the country's poor are bearing the brunt of the losses."

Human Rights Watch called on prosecutors to use the strong sanctions available in anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws to reduce forestry corruption. The Forestry Ministry should create a mandatory revenue tracking and auditing system for all Indonesian timber from harvest to point of export to ensure legality, and allow for independent oversight.

Indonesia's trading partners should also ensure that they are not complicit in logging corruption. Consumer countries should enact laws to prohibit trafficking in these illicit products, as the US did recently by amending its Lacey Act. The EU should immediately pass pending legislation that would require a certification of legality for wood products to enter European markets, Human Rights Watch said.

"It will take strong action at the top levels of Indonesia's government and international trading partners to halt the corruption in the timber industry," Saunders said. "The stakes are huge for the country's ability to improve living standards for its citizens and its standing in the world."

Afghanistan: No Shortcuts to Security

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Obama Should Commit to Long-Term Strategy for Civilian Protection

December 1, 2009

(Washington, DC) - US President Barack Obama's new Afghanistan plan needs to strengthen civilian protection through ending the impunity and warlordism that have fuelled the insurgency, Human Rights Watch said today.

There is no magic number of US troops that will bring security to Afghanistan," said Rachel Reid, Afghanistan researcher for Human Rights Watch. "What matters is what the troops are there to do, and how they can enhance a long-term strategy to improve Afghans' human rights."

Human Rights Watch said that the recent focus of the US government on corruption and rule of law in Afghanistan is long overdue, and will require sustained institutional reform. Improving governance and rule of law depends upon a clear strategy for combating corruption, removing warlords, and holding rights violators accountable.

"If the US wants Afghans to have a government they can believe in, there needs to be effective mechanisms for bringing human rights abusers to justice," said Reid.

Human Rights Watch said plans to focus on building the capacity of the Afghan army and police are encouraging, but pointed out that expansion ambitions need to be restricted to a force that is sustainably sized with sufficient training to ensure basic rights protections. The police should be capable of fighting crime as well as providing security against insurgents.

Human Rights Watch expressed concern regarding the US military's interest in increasing use of tribal militias through the Afghan Public Protection Force and the Community Defense Initiative. Previous attempts to foster such auxiliary forces in Afghanistan have shown that they can increase insecurity and human rights abuses if recruits have little training, vague rules of engagement, and a weak chain of command.

In November the US Congress agreed to allow the US military to use unspecified sums from a 2010 $1.2 billion fund for "reintegration" programs with insurgent factions, without identifying who or how such programs will be implemented.

A poorly implemented program using large sums of cash to buy the short-term allegiance of fighters has the potential to add to the corruption and empowerment of malign actors," said Reid. "Improving security, governance, and the rule of law will take time - there are no shortcuts."

US: Remote Detainee Lockups Hinder Justice

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Transfers of Detained Immigrants Interfere with Lawyer Access and Right to Challenge Deportation

December 2, 2009

(Washington, DC) - The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency's increasing practice of transferring immigrants facing deportation to detention centers far away from their homes severely curtails their ability to challenge their deportation, Human Rights Watch says in a report released today. The agency made 1.4 million detainee transfers in the decade from 1999 through 2008, the report says.

The 88-page report, "Locked Up Far Away: The Transfer of Immigrants to Remote Detention Centers in the United States," presents new data analyzed for Human Rights Watch by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) of Syracuse University. The data show that 53 percent of the 1.4 million transfers have taken place since 2006, and most occur between state and local jails that contract with the agency, known as ICE, to provide detention bed space. The report's findings are based on the new data and interviews with officials, immigration lawyers, detainees, and their family members.

"ICE is increasingly subjecting detainees to a chaotic game of musical chairs," said Alison Parker, deputy US director for Human Rights Watch and author of the report. "And it's a game with dire consequences since it may keep them from finding an attorney or presenting evidence in their defense."

Many immigrants are first arrested and detained in major cities like Los Angeles or Philadelphia, places where immigrants have lived for decades and where their family members, employers, and attorneys also live. Days or months later, with no notice, many of these immigrants are loaded onto planes for transport to detention centers in remote corners of states such as Texas, California, and Louisiana (the three states most likely to receive transfers), the report found.

The detained immigrants have the right, under both US and international human rights law, to be represented in deportation hearings by an attorney of their choice and to present evidence in their defense. But once they are transferred, immigrants are often so far away from their lawyers, evidence, and witnesses that their ability to defend themselves in deportation proceedings is severely curtailed, the report found.

"Immigrant detainees should not be treated like so many boxes of goods - shipped to the most convenient place for ICE to store them," Parker said. "We are especially concerned that the transferred detainees may find that their chances of successfully fighting deportation or gaining asylum from persecution have just evaporated."

The federal Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (which covers Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas) has jurisdiction over the largest number of the transferred detainees. Those transfers are of particular concern, Human Rights Watch said, because that court is widely known for decisions that are hostile to non-citizens and because the states within its jurisdiction collectively have the lowest ratio of immigration attorneys to immigration detainees in the country.

Human Rights Watch acknowledged that some detainee transfers are inevitable, but said that ICE and Congress should use reasonable and rights-protective checks on detainee transfers as the best state criminal justice systems do. The report recommends concrete steps to help create such a system.

Although ICE has recently announced plans to revamp its detention system, which may provide an opening for reforms, the agency previously has rejected recommendations to place enforceable constraints on its transfer power.

Human Rights Watch's report is being released on the same day (December 2) as the Constitution Project's "Recommendations for Reforming our Immigration Detention System and Promoting Access to Counsel in Immigration Proceedings," finding that immigration detention is overused and immigrant detainees experience problems in accessing counsel and providing recommendations for reform. Also on December 2, the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse will release detailed facility level data on detainee transfers.

***

Testimony from detainees, family members, and attorneys about transfers:

"The transfers are devastating, absolutely devastating. [Detainees] are loaded onto a plane in the middle of the night. They have no idea where they are, no idea what [US] state they are in. I cannot overemphasize the psychological trauma to these people. What it does to their family members cannot be fully captured either. I have taken calls from seriously hysterical family members - incredibly traumatized people - sobbing on the phone, crying out, ‘I don't know where my son or husband is!'" - Rebecca Schreve, immigration attorney, El Paso, Texas, January 29, 2009.

"In New York when I was detained, I was about to get an attorney through one of the churches, but that went away once they sent me here to New Mexico.... All my evidence and stuff that I need is right there in New York. I've been trying to get all my case information from New York ... writing to ICE to get my records. But they won't give me my records; they haven't given me nothing. I'm just representing myself with no evidence to present." - Kevin H. (pseudonym), Otero County Processing Center, Chaparral, New Mexico, February 11, 2009.

"I have never represented someone who has not been in more than three detention facilities. Could be El Paso, Texas, a facility in Arizona, or they send people to Hawaii .... I have been practicing immigration law for more than a decade. Never once have I been notified of [my client's] transfer. Never." - Holly Cooper, immigration attorney and clinical professor of law, University of California Davis School of Law, Davis, California, January 27, 2009.

"Ever since they sent him there [to New Mexico], it's been a nightmare. My mother has blood pressure problems, and her pressure goes up and down like crazy now because of worrying about him and stuff. [His wife] has been terrified. She cries every night. And his baby asks for him, asks for "Papa." He kisses his photo. He starts crying as soon as he hears his father's voice on the phone even though he is only one.... Last week [my brother] called to say he can't do it anymore. He's going to sign the paper agreeing to his deportation." - Georgina V. (pseudonym), sister of detainee, Brooklyn, New York, January 23, 2008.

A detainee who was transferred 1,400 miles away to a detention facility in Texas after a few weeks in a detention center in southern California said that the difference for him was "like the difference between heaven and earth. At least in California I had a better chance. I could hire a[n] attorney to represent me. Now, here, I have no chance other than what the grace of God gives me." - Michael M. (pseudonym), Pearsall Detention Center, Pearsall, Texas, April 25, 2008.

A legal permanent resident originally from the Dominican Republic, who had been living in Philadelphia but was transferred to Texas said, "I had to call to try to get the police records myself. It took a lot of time. The judge got mad that I kept asking for more time. But eventually they arrived. I tried to put on the case myself. I lost." - Miguel A. (pseudonym), Port Isabel Service Processing Center, Los Fresnos, Texas, April 23, 2008.

Burma's 2010 election: New version of Diarchy

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by Dr. Tint Swe


Mizzima News - To answer the frequently asked query - is democracy possible in Burma - is yes. But what democracy is the following question. The officially dubbed “disciplined democracy” is coming soon if everything goes smoothly. Thesaurus plainly tells that disciplined means restricted or closely controlled.

For external observers, an election can be seen as a routine and standard practice in democracy and would perfectly remark that a democrat can’t reject holding of an election. As the government in exile follows the policy and position of the National League for Democracy (NLD) as far as possible, (NCGUB) has neither endorsed nor rejected the 2010 election at this stage.

Not only foreigners but also the people of Burma are divided while commenting on the controversial 2010 election. It is normal that different people have different views on different issues. However the forthcoming election in Burma is abnormal because when it comes to Burma not everything is normal. Look at the election held in 1990, the freely and fairly held election did not lead to formation of a democratic government. It has been 19 years and 6 months and has not materialized. Bluntly speaking supporting an abnormal one is something like marrying a mad fiancée.

There may be people, who think that they are being defeated by the military, and prefer to go along with the military. Some may perceive the election after over 20 years of military rule, as an opening that may give rise to non-military people to play a role.

Optimistically yes. But objectively that election is something like the TV shows. The Parliament after (2010) election would resemble a wrestling match fought in a cage. The iron cage is the 2008 constitution. You can’t come out of the locked doors. Even if you win the match you can’t get the due prize like in the Spiderman movie. Meanwhile Spiderman’s uncle can be shot dead.

New version of Diarchy

The people of India and Burma have experience of Diarchy of British colony. Diarchy is one of the oldest types of government known from ancient Sparta, Rome, and Carthage. Also in 20^th century, the system signified as a breakthrough and was the prototype of India’s full provincial autonomy and then independence. So Indian people had to wait for 28 years while Burmese people for (1948 – 1923) = 25 years. I don’t think the people of Burma of today are supposed to wait for such a long period as they are almost ready for democracy by having had a successful election exercise in 1990, the esteemed leaders who have vision for the future. This is 21st century and no colony at all.

During the Diarchy years the British Governor took 21% of Assembly seats, appointed selected ministries and shared with Burmese, Anglo-Burmese and Indians there. The same will be applied in the Nargis Constitution of 2008. The Chief of the Army will take 25% of the seats, appoint Ministers of Defence, Security/Home affairs and Border affairs, and then in the Parliament will be cronies, and like-minded representatives. So the 5^th step of the roadmap should preferably be called “disciplined diarchy”.

The following categories will favour the 2010 election.

• Those who readily want to collaborate with the military regime such as members of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) and members of Union Solidarity Association (USDA) and business cronies


• Those who have no attachment and or no fondness to the 1990 election


• Those who contested and lost in the 1990 election


• Those who are being expelled from the NLD and those who are discredited by the student groups


• Those who are too young and awfully immature


• The opportunists

Why is the 2010 election to be held?

The stakeholders of the Union of Burma precisely highlighted that the country’s problems are twofold: (1) lack of democracy and (2) the question of rights of ethnic minorities. The international community, including the United Nations acknowledged and supported both issues.

Correspondingly the military regime has taken two big steps.

1. The answer to ethnic issues is ceasefire agreement formulated in 1992. Most of the armed ethnic groups reached ceasefire contracts. Years later most of them are not satisfied. Now they are forced to transform to “border guards”, which have no political role.


2. The response to the democracy question is holding an election to be held in 2010. Some of us want to go along. The same conspiracy will follow for the legislators of (2010) election. Maybe a few years later they will become “assembly guards”, who can’t do any politics.

The non-NLD persons and groups have liberty to agree or disagree with NLD’s declaration in April this year. Whatever the justification to support or to participate in the 2010 election the military junta will be happy about it. But emotional observation is not to be concerned. Politically, all have to recollect the people’s determination expressed in the 1990 election. They voted for the NLD because they realized the need to be unified to bring down the Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP), which had ruled for 26 years. Here again, unity of consciousness is crucial to prevent the perpetual rule of the army. If we are divided and some of us are going along with the deceitful plan of the regime, we are finished.

It is sad that some intellectuals are not intelligent as the people on the street. I am confident the people’s intellect will prevail.

Rangoon shops lose customers due to license order

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by Mizzima News

Friday, 04 December 2009 19:51

New Delhi (Mizzima) - Teashops, restaurants and beauty parlours in Rangoon have started removing television sets from their shops as the Video Association has ordered that those using TV in the shops would have to have a license by paying 45,000 Kyat (US$ 45). According to several shop owners, the new rule was circulated by the Video Association ordering teashops, restaurants and beauty parlours that use television or videos to attract customers, to apply for license within a week. “Normally we use TV or video in our shop, and our family also watches. But since last month we were given a notice asking us to apply for a license. Since we are not using it for commercial purposes, we shifted our TV in to our house from the shop,” a teashop owner in Latha Township of Rangoon told Mizzima. Similarly, a teashop owner in Insein Township said, most shops on the street have removed their TV sets as they do not want to apply for a license. “We do not want to pay for the license, so we removed our TV from the shop,” he added. In Burma, where people often spend their leisure time in teashops and restaurants, many shop owners have a TV set to lure them in and entertain their customers with movies and TV programmes. Besides, with most people unable to afford a TV set, customers often visit teashops in order to watch TV programmes including international football matches. Video license is normally applicable for commercial video parlours. But the new order since the beginning of August requires teashops, restaurants and beauty parlours to apply for license. The order, read out to Mizzima by a shop owner over telephone, states that owners in three categories of shops should apply for video license within a week, and in case of failing to obtain it, the shop owners could be charged under the Television and Video Act resulting in a three year prison term or a fine of Kyat 100,000 (US$ 1000) or both. A teashop owner in Tharmwe Township said since he removed his TV set from the shop, he had lost customers and business has been plummeting. “Earlier, we use to attract customers by showing videos or TV programmes. But after the order, since we have not been making good profit, I do not want to spend money on the license. But since then sales have dropped with fewer customers,” the shop owner added. While most shops do not want to apply for the license and have removed their TV sets, a few, however, have applied for a license. A teashop owner in Bahan Township told Mizzima that she had applied for the license by paying 45,000 Kyat. “I did it as they ordered it,” she added. While licenses for TV, Satellites TV and radio have to be applied for at the Post and Telecommunication Ministry, video screening license applications are made at the Myanmar Movies Association office in Bahan Township. The video association, a department under the Myanmar Movie Association, has its branch offices in all the 44 townships of Rangoon. Editing by Ye Yint Aung