Jerusalem

Daniel Seiderman has some important comments on Jerusalem:

"93 percent of Israel - including most of West Jerusalem and the 35 percent of privately-owned land in East Jerusalem expropriated by Israel since 1967 - is categorized by Israel as 'State Land.' Only Israeli citizens and those entitled to immigrate under the Law of Return may acquire properties on this land. Palestinians of East Jerusalem, with rare exception, are in neither of these categories. So while Wiesel may purchase a home in anywhere in East or West Jerusalem, a Palestinian cannot.

"Since 1967, Israel has built more than 50,000 dwellings for Israelis in East Jerusalem, but has built fewer than 600 for Palestinians (the last was built 35 years ago). And from 1967 until today, as East Jerusalem's Palestinian population increased from 70,000 to 280,000, Israel has issued only 4,000 permits for private Palestinian construction in East Jerusalem. Barred from building legally, the Palestinians built without permits - leaving them subject to Israeli demolition of their 'illegal' homes.

"Today extreme settler groups have launched a campaign to evict Palestinian families - refugees of Israel's War of Independence - from densely-populated Palestinian neighborhoods in the heart of East Jerusalem. They are doing so based on the "right" of Jews to recover properties lost in the 1948 war. But under Israeli law Palestinians have no such right. So while Israel insists that Palestinians renounce any 'right of return' - something understood as necessary for the two-state solution - it is implementing a Jewish right of return to Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, and turning 1948 refugees into 2010 refugees."

This is a reminder that the default state of the Arab-Israeli conflict is Israeli expansion which creates "facts on the ground" designed to minimize what an Israeli government can easily withdraw from.

Islamists v. Guest Worker Cultures

Kuwaiti Islamists broke up a Sri Lankan cultural event yesterday:

"More than 5,000 Sri Lankans, including K.S.C. Dissanayake, Sri Lankan ambassador to Kuwait, had to leave the Jahra stadium after Kuwaiti Islamists invaded the field and pressed organisers to suspend the celebration and threatened to escalate the tense situation...

"The protesters said that the presence of men and women at the stadium and the playing of music on a Friday afternoon made the celebration “unacceptable” for not respecting Islamic values.

"The ambassador, seeking to end the deadlock peacefully, urged his compatriots to cancel the celebrations two hours before schedule and to vacate the premises.

"The police said that the Sri Lankans had all the necessary permits and did not break the law."

Suspending Reformist Organizations

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is legally targeting the Iranian opposition's organizational base:

"Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has aimed his strongest blow yet at his political opposition by suspending two prominent reformist factions.

If upheld by the judiciary, the April 19 suspension would mean that foes of Ahmadinejad within Iran's establishment would be able to seek power in elections only by running without an established political network. That would leave the authority in Iran firmly in the hands of hard-liners for the foreseeable future...

"The suspended reformist factions are both pillars of the establishment that in the past have propelled their members to top positions in the government, including the presidency.

"One is the Mujahedin of the Islamic Revolution, established in 1979. It evolved to become a reformist group and backed Mir Hossein Musavi, one of the key opposition candidates in last June's disputed presidential election.

"The other is the Islamic Iran Participation Front, which was formed in 1997 following the landslide election of reformist President Mohammad Khatami."

Qat in Yemen

Michael Horton takes a look at qat's role in Yemen's economy:

"While accurate economic statistics regarding qat are hard to come by, it is generally thought that the production and sale of qat accounts for 25% of the Yemeni economy; 20% of national employment is related to the production and sale of qat. A recent report produced by Yemen’s Ministry of Agriculture estimates that Yemenis spend 1.2 billion dollars on qat annually. Qat has long since replaced coffee as Yemen’s primary cash crop, the production of which has steadily declined since the 1960s (Yemen Today, November 21, 2009). In addition to declining coffee production, land where drought resistant grains and cereals were traditionally grown is increasingly being planted with qat. The Yemeni Ministry of Agriculture estimates that qat production is expanding at a rate of four to six thousand hectares every year. Yemeni farmers can make up to five times more growing qat than grains. Most of the qat trade is controlled by syndicates that buy qat from the farmers and then distribute it to a network of dealers and middlemen across the country. As a result, most of any real economic gain is limited to the few who have the means to market the qat...

"It is estimated that the average Yemeni household spends 10% to 30% of its income on qat. This would be a problem in any country, but the problem is particularly acute in Yemen, where the gross national income does not exceed $900. In a traditional society such as Yemen’s, men most often control the family’s income. Many men place more importance on the day’s qat purchase than on the needs of the family. This leads to much familial discord."

Tulip Revolution Redux

I don't follow Kyrgyz politics nearly as closely as I did several years ago, but this week's developments need acknowledging:

"April 7 became yet another day of momentous change in Kyrgyzstan. More than 70 people died during clashes with police, and roughly 1,000 were injured in anti-government protests across the country (www.diesel.elcat.kg, April 8). The scope of causalities is unprecedented in Kyrgyzstan. Spontaneous protests erupted across the country demanding the resignation of President, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who has become infamous for his corruption and authoritarianism. Opposition leaders, in turn, declared that they have formed a provisional government after seizing the government headquarters.

Bakiyev sought refuge in the southern town of Osh, after anti-government crowds flooded onto the streets in Bishkek. Through state-controlled mass media, the politician tried to spread the message that he was in full control of the government (www.akipress.kg, www.24.kg, April 7)...

"It is crucial to examine the balance of military power between the opposition and Bakiyev supporters in order to assess the possibility of repeated violent clashes and a possible eruption of civil war in the country. Bakiyev has shown that he is not intending to leave his post without trying to suppress the opposition and the crowds by force. The country’s armed forces were structured in a way to protect the regime from possible challenges."

Skalholt

This church is at Skalholt, which I believe was the site of the first bishopric in Iceland, and definitely the leading ecclesiastical center for the south beginning in the 11th century. According to tradition, Iceland's last Catholic bishop was executed here in 1550 along with two of his sons when local Protestants were trying to figure out how they could be prevented from escaping until they could be sent to Denmark, and someone suggested that, "The earth will keep them best."