Two men`s dreams of future energy Atom turned to nightmare of Fukushima

Text and Photography by Kiyomi Obo

A former president of Fukushima, Eisaku Satou, told to a journalist about Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident that “It is like a nightmare”. During his administration, he got a fax from the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency at the ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in 2002 that TEPCO (Tokyo Electronic Power Company) was deceiving inspection records to hide troubles and cracks of nuclear reactors for many years. More shockingly, Nuclear and Industry Safety Agency got the information from a whistle-blower in 2000, meaning the governmental watchdog hided the information for two years. It was because the Agency gave the whistleblowing to TEPCO, and TEPCO told the agency “it is not true”. Then nothing happened for two years.

Pictured: Matsutaro Shoriki                      &                        Yasuhiro Nakasone

Copyright Kiyomi Obo, Sep 19 2012

 
Former governor, Sato thinks “Fukushima accident is not natural disaster, it is man-made disaster. The government was only telling nations that “Nuclear is safe”. Even after the accident they did not fulfil accountability of the accident”.  The explanation “it is safe” is known as “myth of safety” in Japan, and dodges risks and problems of nuclear. The accident proved it is a myth. 

Tragically, it was the fourth exposure for Japan. Atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, and Daigo Fukuryū Maru, which encountered a thermonuclear test on Bikini Atoll. Japan is the only country experienced atomic bomb attacks and experienced so many exposures. 

There is a question, why Japanese government could build 54 nuclear reactors in the country experienced so many exposures, and earthquake-prone country with “myth of safety”? The story started from an incident of Daigo Fukuryū Maru in 1954, and two key persons` ambitious dreams for nuclear energy.

The third atomic bomb exposure, Daigo Fukuryū Maru and speculation of U.S.
After the Second World War, there was cold war between U.S. and Soviet Union fighting for geographical hegemony, but also for priority of nuclear technological development and creation of nuclearized military bloc. In 1953, Soviet Union succeeded a hydrogen bomb test, and U.S. found difficulties to keep priority of nuclear weapon technology. Also U.S. felt a chance of spreading nuclear weapons through Soviet Union to other communism countries. To control nuclear weapon development, then president of U.S., Dwight D. Eisenhower made a speech, “Atoms for Peace” as the same year in United Nation. It was encouraging introduction of nuclear energy to other nations to create U.S.` nuclearized military bloc. At this moment, Japan was not on the list of countries that where allowed nuclear materials and technology, because it was enemy of Second World War. 

Four months later, on 1st March 1954, a tuna fishing boat, Daigo Fukuryū Maru (Lucky Dragon 5) encountered to a secret nuclear bomb device test, U.S.` Castle Bravo, on Bikini Atoll. There were 23 crew members on the boat, and exposed from nuclear fallout. It was only nine years after the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. People witnessed on the television that how crew members` health conditions got worse day by day. Due to the continuous nuclear bomb test by U.S., radiation was founded from tuna fish, and rain.

Moreover, one of the crews, Aikichi Kuboyama died in six and half months later by acute radiation syndrome. It was a huge shock for Japanese citizens, because people did not know what really happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at that time due to information control by the government. Then, anti-nuclear weapon and anti-American movement was escalated. Mothers in Tokyo started collecting signatures to against atomic and hydrogen bombs, and one and half year later, they collected about 30million signatures, which was more than half of adult population in Japan.

 At the time, United States was considering Japan as only one anti-communism bastion in the Far East. Thus, U.S. had a fear that Japanese citizens` anti-American movement can result Japan to turn over to Soviet side. A document from Department of State is reported about the Daigo Fukuryū Maru incident as following. 

The violence of Japanese reactions to any matter relating to nuclear weapons is an element in all of our relations with Japan and raises particular problems in connection with any further U.S. tests in the pacific as well as in relation to U.S.-actions in the development of peaceful use of nuclear energy. That moment, U.S. was seeking a new policy on Japan to ease up on anti-atomic bombs and anti-American sentiment.

After the incident, an agent from U.S. called Daniel S. Watson was meeting with one executive, Hidetoshi Shibata from Yomiuri Newspaper Company at sushi restaurant in Tokyo. It was to have a connection with the chairman of the company, Taro Shoriki. Daniel S Watson later answered to an interview from Japanese national television (NHK) that “It was obvious for me, you had to have newspaper in Japan. It must to be big one. It has strong influence on the society.”

 At this meeting, Hidetoshi Shibata advised him “Japan has a proverb that poison drives out poison. Nuclear is a double-edged sword. To drive anti-atomic bomb, we should spread peaceful use of nuclear power, and give them hope.” After one month from the accident, U.S. made a nuclear research treaty with Japan to offer enriched uranium. Yomiuri Newspaper, and its television station, Nihon Television took the “Atoms for Peace” campaign under the Hidetoshi Shibata and Matsutaro Shoriki.

 Media was under the control, but also there must be some politicians promote nuclear power development at the parliament. Ironically, a politician, Yasuhiro Nakasone, passed nuclear power budget in the parliament on the next day of Daigo Fukuryū Maru incident. He was the person who promoted nuclear power policy radically in the parliament, later with Taro Shoriki who became the first head of Atomic Energy Commission of Japan.  

Japan and U.S. governments made a deal that instead of giving nuclear power technology to Japan, Japanese government promised not to pursue legal liability of Daigo Fukuryū Maru. It was only after nine months from the incident, and politically completed with a little amount of consolation payment. The payment was only less than one third of estimated total financial damage, and it was not paid other hundreds fisher men who also exposed. One of the crews, Matahichi Oishi, stated in his book “Japanese nuclear power started from here. Victims from Bikini were used as sacrifices of Japanese nuclear power”.

A dream of Matsutaro Shoriki, a microwave network 

Matsuaro Shoriki is known as “Father of nuclear” in Japan. After he resigned from police, he started Yomiuri Newspaper with small number of circulations and it grew the biggest newspaper company in the world today. His success in media business and his connections from working experience in police, grabbed attention of CIA. U.S. government gave CIA names to Yomiuri newspaper (POBULK), Nihon television (PODALTON), and Matsutaro Shoriki (PODAM). It shows how Shoriki was close and important person for U.S. He used all his connections and chances to contribute promotion of nuclear energy development. 

He had one definite dream. It was to establish a microwave network in Japan. By doing so, he can gain all broadcast and correspondence business in his hand. To do so, he had to loan 10 million dollars from U.S., approval of the loan from Japanese government, and a license for Public Telecommunication to enter the business. He made every effort to achieve it, but he realized one thing. He himself had to be the Prime Minister of Japan to realize his dream.

When he met with the American agent, Daniel S. Watson who was meeting with Shibata, Watson told him about “Atoms for Peace” and how nuclear energy can be an important power supply in such a nation poor in resources. Watson looked back when he talked about it to Shoriki, “his eyes were sparkling”. Shoriki used “Atoms for Peace” as a political card to achieve his ambitious dream. 

In 1955, he became a politician and took an important role as the first head of Atomic Energy Commission. His contribution to shifting public opinion toward pro-nuclear energy made possible to build 54 nuclear reactors in Japan. A professor from Beijing University, Naoki Yamaguchi thinks “Closed relations between industrial, bureaucrat, and academic worlds were due to oblivion of Daigo Fukuryū Maru incident, and short view of richness. The oblivion was led by the “Atoms for Peace” campaign by Yomiuri Newspaper”. 

He was already 69 years old when he became a politician, so he radically pushed forward the nuclear energy introduction. However, due to his ambition for being Prime Minister, U.S. start taking distance from him, and the ambition was failed. Abruptly, his dream of microwave network was ended with telecommunication and broadcast satellite.

A dream of Yasuhiro Nakasone, future energy Atom 

During the war, he was in navy, and at the end of the war, he was a major of a feet. He experienced defeat of war at the forefront. Nakasone became politician, and he was invited to “International Problem Summer Seminar” at Harvard University in 1953. He was anti-communism politician. After the seminar, he visited nuclear facilities and in New York he saw new energy policy “Atoms for Peace” speech on newspapers, and thought “The age of atoms will come”. In a speech of Ibaraki nuclear station`s 50th anniversary in 2007, Nakasone also explained his feeling in New York “I thought it would be serious problem, Japan will tumble to an agrarian country (if we have no energy and scientific technology)”. Also he had a concern of Japan`s communization, due to the poverty.  

He also had another concern, the defeat of war was because of scientific technology`s backward. Moreover, Nakasone was one of military resurgence advocates. Therefore, it was necessary to promote nuclear technology research.  

However, from reflection of the war, many scientists were negative toward nuclear technology research. Thereupon, Nakasone and his comrades push nuclear budget of 235 million yen (the then general account of national budget was about 1 trillion yen) in the final stage of the budget resolution at the parliament. Later he noted the budget of 235million yen was just because of Uranium-235. The then ruling party, Jiyu-tou (Freedom Party) opposed the budget, but the party could not refuse, because it was at the final stage and they had to pass the budget at the Lower House. It was on 2nd of March 1954, only four months after the “Atoms for Peace” speech, and two weeks before Japanese nations know the Daigo Fukuryū Maru incident. 

Due to the budget, scientists started arguing how to develop nuclear research, rather than presence or absence of nuclear technology development. One month after the passage of the nuclear budget, Science Council of Japan declared “Peaceful statement of Atoms”, three principles of democratization, self-discipline, and openness to prevent military use of nuclear. Nakasone also involved to the creation of the three principles. It eased scientists to feel less guilt to involve nuclear development, and the budget attracted many scientists to the field. Later, it resulted to produce many scholars beholden to the government, and spread “myth of safety”, remaining only self-discipline, but not democratization and openness. 

After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident, Asahi Newspaper interviewed Nakasone (94) on 26 April 2011, and he stated “it was very deplorable for all the people who live on the periphery of the station. But nuclear policy should be maintained and promoted continuously”. His dream of nuclear technology development is still on the process, due to the failure of fast breeder reactor development, reuse technology of spent fuel, and waste disposal method. However, it is important to remember development of the first breeder reactor is already given up by U.S., England, Germany, and Italy. 

After the nuclear budget by Nakasone and nuclear campaign by Shoriki, there was a common view that nuclear weapon is vice, but nuclear power development is virtue.

Citizen`s anti-nuclear movements and myth of safety 

From 1960s, due to the industrial development, oil shocks, concern of CO2 emission, and development of nuclear technology escalated erection of nuclear power stations as firm national policy. But also, the 1970s was the period that environmental pollution was rising as a serious social issue, and nuclear accidents Three Mile Island in 1979 and Chernobyl in 1986 reminded the its risks. Thus protest movements were also warming up in proposed area in countryside. The oldest anti-nuclear scientific citizens` organization (instituted in 1975), Citizens` Nuclear Information Center, Baku Nishio said “it was difficult to against proliferation after a foundation of the first reactor, but except one nuclear station, there is no new nuclear station was brought into operation from 1970s due to the citizen`s movements”.

However, the government and electric companies spread money and used media campaign with pro-nuclear scholars to restrain people. Fukushima Daiichi nuclear station in Okuma-town was one of these nuclear proposed that attracted local governors as local revitalization in the beginning of 1960s without risk and safety discussion.

 The “myth of safety” was created by strong governmental propaganda as Nakasone wished and media campaign as Shoriki did, resulted fourth nuclear exposure of Fukushima. Of course it is only several causes out of hundreds, but it is how started. Two men`s ambitious dreams did not come true, but their nuclear policy and system still exist even after the nightmare of Fukushima today in Japan.

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Dance Music in the Era of Copyright Controversy

By Angus Thomas Paterson

Life after the Digital Disruption

Matt Thomas, better known to the dance music community for the past decade as King Unique, is getting stuck into a normal day’s work that is as far removed from the flights, hotels and nightclubs of a touring DJ’s lifestyle that you can get. He’s in what he describes as the “remote location” of a “dilapidated old coal mining village out in Wales”, which happens to be where his studio is located. Thomas says part of the appeal of coming out here to lay down his tracks is that he can make as much noise as he wants, and nobody complains. Surprisingly though, even though all the wider industry seems to be talking about is how you can’t make a living solely as a producer anymore, Thomas is finding himself more and more in this small Welsh town.

“The whole economic thing has hit the amount of gigs going around for everybody, so I’ve been back in the studio a lot more,” he says. “The non-stop DJ thing during 2007 and 2008 just wasn’t quite as much fun as really bedding into the studio. It feels like it’s 2001 again when we weren’t really doing any gigs, because the money in the studio was so incredible. We used to sit here and make records back to back, and doing that again, I’ve had a fantastic time.” 

Like many others in the current climate, Thomas had been frantically chasing gigs in an effort to ensure his full-time existence in dance music would remain sustainable. “Funnily enough though, relaxing here and making records… if you’re on the right label, with the right releases and the right remixes, you can actually keep the body and the soul of it together in the studio.” 

The positive story that Thomas tells is in stark contrast to the very loud message of wanton chaos we’ve been hearing from the major players in the music industry, including the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the major labels it represents, since the early days of what’s referred to as the ‘digital disruption’. It was a revolution, for better or worse, which began with the explosion in popularity of Napster’s pioneering peer-to-peer file sharing service in late 1999, popularising the notion of “sharing” MP3 files in a way that completely undermined traditional copyright laws, with no royalties paid to artists, labels or anyone else for that matter. 

There’s little doubt the industry was utterly changed in the years that followed, but the digital distribution of music was finally legitimized on a major scale when Apple’s iTunes service established a cheap and easy way for the industry to sell music to consumers. However, the debate rages on over how to tackle ongoing challenges in the era of copyright controversy, with a canyon opening between the big industry players who want to restore a copyright-protected world, and those preaching the virtues of a more open internet. 

The tension reached a boiling point in January when ACTA, the US-backed international treaty aiming for global consensus on copyright protection, was greeted with howls of derision from citizens, internet libertarians and parliaments alike. One of the main areas of contention was that ISPs would be held responsible for cracking down on piracy, potentially cutting off users who illegally share music. Protesters marched in several European capitals including London, Berlin, Helsinki, Paris and Vienna, before the bill eventually stalled in the European commission. 

Not surprisingly, the RIAA was far from happy with how things played out, with chief executive Cary Sherman throwing a blistering tantrum in the New York Times. “Policy makers had recognized that music sales in the United States are less than half of what they were in 1999, when the file-sharing site Napster emerged, and that direct employment in the industry had fallen by more than half since then, to less than 10,000.” 

Organizations like RIAA have repeatedly shown they are willing to exaggerate the economic costs and threat to jobs of piracy; but while they continue to bellow about the dark days ahead, the activity in the dance music sector tells a distinctly different story, and is much closer to the more positive account given by Thomas. 

While it took several years for the dust to settle, with many long-established labels unable to adapt to the digital era, in the years that followed, a huge range of robust independent labels demonstrated they were able to adopt new business models, plug into new distribution pipelines, taken advantage of new promotional opportunities, and otherwise leverage opportunities never available to them before; largely due to the new possibilities of the digital era.

Protecting the Future of Music 

One of the key organizations in the US working to tackle copyright issues in a different fashion is the Future of Music Coalition (FMC), a nonprofit organization with a mission statement of cultivating an industry where artists flourish, are compensated for their work, and can connect easily with fans. Casey Rae is the deputy director of the FMC, as well as a musician, sound engineer and, academic who speaks extensively on new business models for artists, and he says there is plenty that the wider industry could learn from dance music’s independents. 

“Their approach is actually very close to our own vision of what the world could be like after the digital disruption,” he says. “There would naturally be new business models that would arise, and artists and labels that can pivot quickly in this new marketplace would find success, because there’s no longer the bottlenecks and gatekeepers so common to the original industry.” 

Rae says the powerful thing about the independent sector is its ability to curate catalogs. “People can buy by brand, particularly within genre subsets. There’s a trust there that exists, and major labels are naturally going to have trouble with this in the new environment, because nobody buys something because it is on Universal. In fact, the majors actually earned themselves a negative reputation among consumers and fans, based on how they reacted to the shift, and the breakdown of their control over the traditional music distribution pipeline.” 

The FMC preaches open consultation across the industry, though it’s also critical of the RIAA and the major labels’ reactionary approach. “Historically, they’ve been resistant to changes that would make the digital marketplace run more smoothly, and allow more consumers to participate in legitimate access to music. I don’t think there has been any particularly avant-garde thinking coming from the major labels. It’s like the last season of The Sopranos, you have a bunch of aging wise guys and the turf is getting smaller and smaller. It’s just sad.” 

Rae asserts that in many ways, everybody is on more or less the same playing field now. “Even the biggest major label has to essentially work the same tools to some extent as an independent label, or even a non-affiliated artist. We’ve seen this tremendous flattening, in terms of access to audiences, and that is a very empowering thing for a lot of artists and independent labels.”
 

The Power of Independents

In the fragmented and sonically diverse world of club music, there are independent labels serving a widespread range of subcultures, each of them often connecting to a completely different and authentic audience.  That said, across the board, one of its big independent success stories is Anjunabeats, the label owned and A&R’ed by London DJ trio Above & Beyond, who were ranked last year in the top 5 of the world’s most successful club performer’s in DJ Mag’s influential ‘Top 100’ poll. 

Anjunabeats specializes in cutting-edge music for the trance community, a sound characterized by its euphoric melodies and driving, room-filling energy. In 2005 Anjunadeep was born into a sub-label that runs concurrent with Anjunabeats, which itself developed into a hugely respected vehicle for the deeper, more groove-focused sounds of progressive and underground house. 

Anjunabeats finds itself in an intriguing position, as it was established in early 2000, when physical distribution was the norm. The label was there to witness all the changes, and not only survived to tell the tale, but also thrived. Label manager Allan McGrath is responsible for coordinating and promoting its weekly releases, from a combined roster of more than 50 artists across the two labels, and he says there’s a positive story to tell. 

Responding to Thomas’s tales of making a living largely from recorded income, McGrath says there are several artists across the Anjunabeats and Anjunadeep labels who have also chosen to focus their energies mostly on studio work. “They’re definitely in a much better place to do that if they’re with an established brand who can push the release in a certain way, and ensure that if the quality of the music is strong, then it will reach its full potential, rather than being lost on a smaller label, not being promoted properly or finding the audience that it deserves.” 

However, it’s still far from the norm, and McGrath says most artists interested in a long term career would have to strongly consider the opportunities offered by live performances. “I would say definitely the model has undoubtedly, inevitably and probably irredeemably changed, to the point where live income needs to be the end game for 80 percent of artists in electronic music.” 

Does he see it as a negative development? “Not personally, and not necessarily,” he says. However, there’s room to lament how quickly the business model has been shaken down. “You could argue that for a very long time, the value placed on music was unfeasible and excessive, especially in certain parts of the market,” he says. “But it’s a shame things have moved with such swiftness, and often without any kind of safety net or precautions, towards a model where music has lost its value. I do think it’s a shame music is viewed as ‘free’ by a lot of people.” 

In the face of a decline in the value that consumers attach to music, Anjunabeats have adapted in a number of ways. McGrath says the market for physical products hasn’t completely vanished, though it has changed significantly. “It needs a lot of care and attention, so it looks like something you’d want to have on your mantelpiece or in your record collection. But there’s still a lot of people making high-quality, beautifully designed physical products.” 

Looking to the digital realm, Apple’s iTunes platform remains the platform of choice for the industry’s major labels, and McGrath confirms it’s also a crucial tool for taking Anjunabeats to a wider audience, with the independents often showcased alongside the major label heavies. “It’s got a very editorial based storefront, and you can often find yourself on the homepage alongside artists like Adele, or whichever other commercial artist is being played heavily that week.” 

There’s been concerns expressed over Apple gaining a chokehold on the industry; but dance music’s independents have leapfrogged this threat via several specialist digital platforms, the most important of which is Beatport, a site so ubiquitous its sales charts have become the de factoBillboard Hot 100 for dance music. It’s a quick, easy and cheap way for fans to purchase new music, and allows the labels plenty of flexibility in areas like price points and sound quality. 

“For a label often putting out one or two releases a week, that’s predominantly club music and in a DJ environment, Beatport is of massive importance to us,” McGrath says. “Seeing as DJ sets are where our music tends to live, whether in a club or on the radio.”
Otherwise, McGrath says their own online shopfront is a hugely important vehicle for selling music to their fans. “It’s an amazing way of building a very close and lasting connection with our most loyal and dedicated. You can offer them the product first, they’re getting it from the heart of the label, and that’s what they’ve pledged their support to.”
 

Cultivating Cultural Capital 

Maintaining the connection between artists and their fans is of crucial importance to Ajunabeats, and it’s the focus of a number of ongoing marketing activities. The weekly Trance Around the World radio show represents the starting point for much of this; the radio show/podcast can be an effective tactic for many independent artists and labels, allowing them to speak directly with fans and showcase their music, though Trance Around the World would have to be one of the most successful. Currently, the show is syndicated across 237 FM radio stations worldwide, with an estimated listenership of 30 million. 

Hosted by rotating members of the Above & Beyond trio every week, it often represents the first time the label’s music is unveiled to fans. Several years ago, Anjunabeats took the step of giving away the show as a free download via the podcast format in iTunes. Currently it’s ranked in the top 5 of the most popular music podcasts across the USA, Australia, and much of Europe. 

Though the whole industry hasn’t come around to the idea of giving away music for free as a promotional tactic, though McGrath validates it as a legitimate sales driver. “Whenever your music goes out there, you hope listeners will form a certain connection with it, and come back and buy it at a later date. Fans become part of the Anjuna family, and want to own a part of it.” 

The show represents the launching point for an array of other promotional activities and revenue streams. Social networking has been widely recognized as opening up a swathe of new ways that artists can connect with their fans, and unsurprisingly, Anjunabeats makes heavy use of Facebook and Twitter. Anjunabeats has nearly 100,000 likes on its Facebook page, with Above & Beyond close to a million, and they’re maintained as a place of ongoing activity, reflective of the fact that a constant presence is necessary to hold fans’ attention. 

The label’s biggest annual campaign sees an extended 8-hour episode of Trance Around The Worldbroadcast live from an international venue, to an audience of tens of millions; the 350th episode at the Hollywood Palladium saw the associated #TATW350 Twitter hashtag become the highest trending topic on the platform, while the 400th episode in Beirut in November last year saturated saw Twitter so heavily that #TATW400 was eventually removed several hours in. 

All of this results in increased attention and sales for the label’s weekly single releases, and regular long-player albums, including Above & Beyond’s heavily promoted Group Therapy album from last year, and the annual Anjunabeats and Anjunabeats Worldwide compilations that showcase the label’s music in a mix CD format. In addition, there’s an array of branded merchandise that includes t-shirts, jumpers, posters, sweatbands and more. 

However, as a reflection of McGrath’s assertion that live income is vital in the current climate, Above & Beyond and the rest of the label’s roster are often relentlessly touring the globe. Trance Around The World means Anjunabeats’ reach knows no global boundaries; last year Above & Beyond played more 140 shows across 40 different countries, typically with several other artists from the label in tow as support acts, and many of these shows took the form of one of their own branded Group Therapy events in support of the new album. 

On top of this, Anjunabeats hosts branded Group Therapy stages at some of the world’s most successful festivals, including Tomorrowland in Belgium, Dance Valley in Holland, and Electric Zoo in New York, which sees them playing to crowds upwards of tens of thousands. Touring opportunities for the label’s other artists have also proved exhaustive, with one of the label’s star producers Mat Zo currently underway on a 30-date tour of the USA, for example. 

Though if all of this appears lucrative, McGrath is also careful to emphasize that none of these opportunities comes easy for independent labels. “Gone are the days where you could just sign an artist with a bit of talent, build his name up a bit and put out a piece of vinyl with his name on it while he’s peaking, and then watch the cash roll in.” 

Artists need to work harder to promote themselves, and this puts an otherwise talented artist, who might be less than social media savvy, at a distinct disadvantage. “Is it a good thing they’re lost or ignored because they don’t have enough Facebook followers, or they don’t want to tour, even though their music might be the best anyone has ever heard? I’m not entirely sure; but it’s kind of the way things are.” 

These are the pros and cons of a restructured industry, and it again emphasizes the important role an independent label can play. “As a label, you need to learn to play that as best you can, and I guess that is one of the reasons why people do come to us.”
 

Listening to the Future 

If dance music’s independents have proved adept at responding to shifting ground, all signs indicate they’ll need to continue to do so, as the industry framework continues to rapidly evolve. Producer Matt Thomas says he’s witnessed dramatic changes in just the past few years alone, when it comes to the value attached to artistic output. 

“It’s reflective of the whole Facebook culture, that steady stream of activity running past your eyes all the time,” he says. “If you have a YouTube link, there’s no need to own 90 per cent of the music you’re hearing. There used to be a paradigm where you could make a fantastic tune, and rest on the laurels of that for a while. These days though, records have their day really quickly. There’s a living to be made in the studio, but you had better be prolific.” 

Rae from FMC says the industry is still looking for a long-term solution in the digital era. His organization has championed industry-wide consultation that would see the traditionally underrepresented independent stakeholders given a louder voice, to help negotiate a policy solution to adjust business models and copyright laws to make more sense in the new environment. His central criticism of ACTA is that it was drawn up in the dark with a lack of transparency, with the likes of the RIAA allowed a disproportionate influence. 

It’s part of a overall story of the larger end of town effectively trying to hit the net really hard with a big hammer. “The traditional industry trade organizations and lobby groups will put tons of cash and capital into trying to get the law to bend their way. This can have adverse repercussions on freedom of expression as well as development of future business models.”
The FMC asserts that at the end of the day, the ultimate goal should be to ensure artists are worth investing in. “As we rise from the ashes of Music Industry 1.0, it’ll have to be more artist centric. That’s the only way it’ll be sustainable. I sometimes question the real motives of the traditional players, because I don’t think they’re necessarily aligned with the artists at this point.” 

“Again, to champion the independent sector, I feel I can paint with a broad brush and say historically they’ve been more supportive of artists, because they’re closer to the ground.”

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A new Human Right

By Belinda Grasnick

Water is a crucial resource for human life. As drinking water, it provides the essential foundation for life, and used for sanitation, it can prevent diseases and supports development. Because of its important functions for humanity, the need for an international recognition of a right to water is being emphasized by different  actors at the global and the local level. Nonetheless, the global community still has to find a solution how to guarantee the access to water for everyone.

Photography by Samir Marun

At the press conference of the sixth World Water Forum in Marseille this year, member of the French Académie de l'Eau and of the European Environment Council Henri Smets expressed his optimism concerning the implementation of a right to water. “It is the only new human right in fifty years”, he explained. “It is extraordinary. We needed an enthusiastic movement in all countries, and now the enthusiasm has been strong enough in order to recognize the right to water unanimously in the Human Rights Committee.”

Since 1997, the World Water Forum assembles politicians and experts in the field every three years and thus puts water governance as an issue on the global agenda. In March 2012, the World Water Council held the conference in Marseille. The President of the World Water Council Loïc Fauchon sheds more light on the choice of the underlying theme of this year's conference, “Time for solutions”, by highlighting the necessity to include all kinds of different stakeholders. “Year after year, the response to water and sanitation issues has become increasingly of a political order”, he says. “But we need to go further since, beyond words and declarations, what our planet needs is concrete and credible actions.”

The Need for Water

Being able to access water is an important factor for the comfort of every individual. According to the World Water Assessment Programme, each person needs twenty to fifty litres of water a day to ensure their basic needs. Water is not merely essential to life, but it also makes human existence liveable by enhancing personal well-being as well as familial and social relations. “Lack of water supply and sanitation produces infectious diseases and reduces life expectancy in the majority of countries in sub-Saharan Africa today”, says Benedito Braga, Vice-President of the World Water Council. Thus, a fair water distribution has to be an integral part of the development process in all countries.

Besides its importance in private households, water is crucial to agriculture and industry. Different economic sectors compete for our finite freshwater resources, because they are essential to food production, energy markets and health care. For this reason, it is important to find a way how to treat the remaining resources sustainably and to give households priority in the network of water distribution at the same time.

However, the fact that water resources are not equally distributed in the world makes assuring a universal access to water an even more difficult task. While certain regions, like Europe, have regular rainfall, other parts of the world are struggling with more irregular precipitation, causing both droughts and flooding. “This situation will become more complex if one considers that critical hydrological events will tend to be even more intense under the threat of climate change”, underlines Benedito Braga. In other words, the unequal distribution of water will be exacerbated by even less predictable natural phenomena. In combination with a lack of efficient distribution and storage systems, this irregularity poses a problem to providing especially the poorest regions of the world with safe water sources.

In order to find a global solution for water access, the need for a more equal water distribution has been addressed by global governance bodies in the last decades. Target 7.C of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) seeks to halve the proportion of the international population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. In this context, distribution systems are to be built and improved. The Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, put in place by the World Health Organization and UNICEF, controls the realization of this target. According to their report, the MDG has been met early with regards to drinking water, as 83 per cent of the global population had access to improved drinking water sources already in 2002; in 2012, the number mounted to 89 per cent. At the same time, the MDG target for the access to sanitation is still far from met.

Implementing the Right to Water

The inclusion of an increased access to in the MDGs has not been the only step undertaken by international bodies in order to assure an equal distribution of water. Certain rights included in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), such as the right to life, and the rights to health, food, housing and an adequate standard of living, imply the need for water. In order to assure these rights, a safe access to water is required. Being part of the International Bill of Human Rights, the ICESCR is a multilateral bill that has been adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1966. It is a binding agreement: all states that have ratified the bill are bound to apply it.

Nonetheless, the idea of a separate, explicit right to water has been pushed forward and was finally included in the General Comment Number 15 (GC15) to the ICESCR in 2002. The GC15 reads that “the human right to water entitles everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses. An adequate amount of safe water is necessary to prevent death from dehydration, reduce the risk of water-related disease and provide for consumption, cooking, personal and domestic hygienic requirements.”

The GC15 is intended to elaborate on the articles of the covenant. “However, this addition to the ICESCR is not agreed to by all the states that are bound by the covenant itself”, emphasizes Andrew Allan, lecturer in National Water Law at the University of Dundee and expert in International Water Law. In this way, the addition to the covenant putting forward the idea of a human right to water is not binding for all United Nation members. Nonetheless, some countries have introduced the right to water in their national constitutions until today – among them Ecuador, Ethiopia, France and South Africa.

A Cape of Good Hope

Photography by Samir Marun

Having included a universal right to water in their new constitution of 1996, the Republic of South Africa gave momentum to the debate about a human right to water. “Everyone has a right to have access to sufficient food and water”, is the exact wording of section 27 of the South African Bill of Rights.

Following the inclusion of the right to water in the Bill of Rights, South Africa had to create a fitting legal framework to accomplish a universal access to water. The White Paper on Water Supply and Sanitation from 1994 called for the supply of the country's poor with free safe water and for a maximum distance of 200 metres from any household to a water source by 2008. The basic level of service was set to 25 litres per person per day by the South African government. The policy for the provision of free basic water thus stipulated that every poor household would receive 6,000 litres of water every month free of charge.

In 1998, the National Water Act was adopted in order to reform laws relating to water sources. The Act sought to ensure the development, conservation, management and control of national water resources. Equitable access to water was to be promoted and racial and gender discrimination abolished. An efficient, sustainable and beneficial use of water in the public interest was targeted, so that social and economic development could be promoted, and aquatic and associated ecosystems and their biological diversity were protected.

The ambitious targets laid down in the different legal acts rise to the suspicion that they could not be met easily. Perhaps not surprisingly, the implementation of the right to water led to an important trial that made its way up to the Constitutional Court of South Africa. In 2009, the Mazibuko case questioned the realization of the right to water in the urban area of Soweto in Johannesburg. The governmental project included the improvement of water pipelines in the area and the installation of pre-paid meters to charge households as soon as they exceeded the monthly limit of 6,000 litres. Especially the use of such meters was considered highly discriminatory, because households were obliged to get their water on credit, and especially because the 6,000 litre limit per household did not take large families with many children into account.

After the objection was sustained by both the South Gauteng High Court and the Supreme Court of Appeal, the accusation was taken to the Constitutional Court. Finally, the Constitutional Court concluded that the progressive realization of the Free Basic Water is a reasonable policy in order to achieve a universal access to water. Furthermore, the final judgement announced that it is within the sovereignty of the government to define the basic water supply. Hence, the 25 litres determined by the South African government were accepted as the right measure for sufficient water supply.

Achieving the Goal

The South African case illustrates the difficulties in fairly distributing the given water resources and thus in translating the legal project of guaranteeing a right to water into practice. Implementing a human right to water is an ambitious project, but as long as it is not followed by concrete, effective actions, it will not result in providing the world's population with sufficient water. Some experts suggest that the right to water is in fact not the right approach to assuring access to water for everyone. “The basic question is how to get fresh water to everyone. One suggested solution is the human right to water. Is this the right answer? Many think so, but I am less sure”, says Andrew Allan.

Alain Mathys, Program Manager for development and institutional relations at the French utility company Suez Environment, is even clearer in his evaluation of the international approach to a right to water: “All these forums on the right to access to water are gathering the same kind of people repeating the same messages for years. They work mainly for themselves.” The experts are pointing out that political orders as the only measures will not contribute to an improvement of the world's water distribution.

The credibility of a human right to water is also reduced by the implementation of such a right in some countries. “In my view, the presence of a right to water in a constitution is often inversely proportional to that country's ability to implement it”, states Andrew Allan. That is to say, even if Ethiopia passes a law about the right to water, this does not mean that the access to water can actually be guaranteed to the population.

In the end, it is true that everyone in the world should have access to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses. This target, however, might not be achieved by merely introducing a legal project. It requires actions from stakeholders that represent governments, the private sector and civil society. Different regions need different approaches, and the global community should turn their attention to fitting strategies for each region. Most importantly, the focus of providing access to water, no matter how it is achieved, should be on clean and safe water sources. Building improved distribution networks, as it is currently targeted by the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, does not signify that these sources are sufficient to provide healthy drinking water and sanitation. The main goal of a universal access to water should, however, be to secure health and comfort, and in this way to foster development.

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No new technology, but a new era. 

By Claudia Wohlsperger

For 50 years, hydraulic fracturing has been a technique to reach hard-to-get oils and gas from the ground in Germany. For 50 years, not so much attention has been paid to the practice. But now, it seems that a turning point had been reached. 

Paul Bludau is protesting against hydraulic fracturing. He is a pensioner, and together with other members of his action group, he goes to markets, to talk to people, to inform them. “We’re making games and so on, hand out flyers, discuss,” he says. Perhaps a reason for the growing discomfort of so many people with hydraulic fracturing has something to do with ‘Gasland’, an American documentary. The film shows grave environmental damages, gas leaking from faucets and contaminated ground water that can be linked to this fracking. Earthquakes and radioactive flowback water have been reported. For ExxonMobil and the German Ministry of the Environment, this news is the main cause of the protest. But did it only take a movie to stir up German action groups? There are other factors involved, explaining why fracking has only become ‘popular’ now. 

Hydraulic Fracturing – how does it work?  

Hydraulic Fracturing describes a technology that enables the breaking up of tight stone formations in depth of one to five kilometers under the ground. A mix of water, sand and different chemicals (so-called additives) are pumped into a borehole with great pressure, causing the stone at the end of the borehole to fracture. Natural gas, captured in the stone, is thereby released and can flow out of the borehole, which then functions as a well. For every drill, 250.000 to 5.000.000 liters of fresh water are used. As a comparison, an Olympic swimming pool keeps 2.500.000 liters of water.

With this fracking, gasses like tight and shale gas are produced. Tight gas is enclosed in rock layers with low permeability; it’s hard to reach because the rock locks it in. This gas has been produced in northern Germany since 1968. Shale gas is locked in shale formations, which inhibit clay minerals. In Germany, shale gas production has not taken place yet. 

Natural gas has been an important energy source for Germany for years and will remain to be relevant during the Energy Turn: it is cleaner than coal and safer than nuclear energy. Greater energy efficiency in Germany has lead to a decrease of the total amount of natural gas. But its percentage used for the production of electricity and as fuel is rising, which has a balancing effect. Since 2002, natural gas is at around 22% of Germany’s primary energy consumption. More and more, Germany is utilizing its own resources. According to Arbeitsgemeinschaft Energiebilanzen e. V., a consortium working on German energy statistics, 14 percent of the natural gas used in Germany is also produced there. In 2010, it was 10 percent. 

Shale Gas: new potentials, new threats

Until now, companies have only produced tight gas in Germany, but this is changing. The International Energy Agency estimates Germany’s shale gas resources at 230 billion cubic meters. That is 230.000.000.000 cubic meters of natural gas that can only be reached with hydraulic fracturing. 

There are differences between the production of tight gas and shale gas, but the German environmental protection agency Umweltbundesamt (UBA) and ExxonMobil disagree on what they are: “For tight gas, you need less pressure and water than with shale gas”, says Bernd Kirschbaum from the UBA. This would make shale gas production potentially more harmful, ‘wasting’ valuable water and perhaps causing more earthquakes. Dr. Ritva Westendorf-Lahouse, ExxonMobil spokeswoman in Germany, emphasises another aspect: “We expect to need a smaller percentage of additives than with tight gas production. While tight gas deposits require 2-5% chemical additives, we expect to need less than 0,5% for shale gas deposits. Compared to other industries, the water consumption of natural gas production is rather low. Power generation from coal requires much more water.” This information is not conflicting; Shale gas might require fewer chemicals but more pressure. It can still be more harmful to produce than tight gas. This is no comfort for residents close to drilling sites.

But shale gas sites are not tapped yet. Mr. Kirschbaum points out: “Companies have marked out claims. But the Federal Mining Act has two different authorizations for exploration and extraction. So far, the energy companies only have exploring permissions.” For Kirschbaum, this is good news, especially because many of these permissions haven’t been used yet. 

Big Players versus the People

In the last few years, it seems that Wintershall (a BASF daughter), ExxonMobil and RWE Dea have split up northwest Germany amongst each other to explore its shale gas potential. In return, 16 action groups were formed to fight them: because exploration requires drilling and sometimes even fracking. It comes surprising then, when Dr. Westendorf-Lahouse says, “The first frac in Germany that ExxonMobil was involved with was in 1968.” But drilling so far has taken place in Lower Saxony – the new protest groups are largely from North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW).

Some action groups have formed because they have made negative experiences in the past – for example high benzene and mercury levels in their groundwaters or small earthquakes. But most, like Stefan Henrichs’ Bürgerinitiative “Gegen Gasbohren” (action group against gas drilling) Drensteinfurt, have formed precautionally: “We had test drills in 1995, but not since. We formed this group when plans for Nordwalde, Borken and Drensteinfurt got public,” he says. That was in November 2010. So far, nothing has happened. 

Paul Bludau’s interest group Märkischer Kreis has similar intentions. “Here in Sauerland, we get drinking water from our own wells. And the federal government, the Christian Democrats (CDU), they’re very hesitant. The local [NRW] governments, they’re on our side, you know!” Bludau is frustrated. Mining was responsibility of the states until the 1980’s. Now, it would be the federal government’s task to change the law, enabling environmental reviews and restrictions even for exploration. “It’s the lobby; the lobby and the federal CDU that block a change of the law,” claims Bludau, “but the opposition is growing!”

The Federal Mining Act: an old Law in the way

This Federal Mining Act is a center of attention in many action groups. Bludau believes “the primary concern is that the Mining Act has to change. It is 180 years old, that’s unbelievable. In the 1980’s they changed it, but they only transformed it from state law to federal law. The law itself almost didn’t change.” This is problematic, because the Mining Act entails that as long as less than 500.000 cubic meters of gas are produced per day, no environmental review is necessary. “Once this is changed, everything would be okay. Then nothing can happen,” Bludau believes. Bernd Kirschbaum is of a similar opinion: “We [the Umweltbundesamt] cannot support hydraulic fracturing at this point, we simply don’t know enough about it.” But because the Mining Act is still in place and reviews are unavailable, exploration can continue. 

Lutz Keppner from the Federal Ministry for the Environment explains, “A change for the environmental review policy in the Mining Act is justified and necessary.” But his ministry is not in charge – it is the Ministry for the Economy. 

After the Frac comes the Flowback 

The companies assure that groundwater holding layers are safe, because thick concrete tubes lock off the borehole from chemicals and gasses. Also, the frac takes place far below these layers. 

But many action groups are outraged about these claims: higher levels of benzene were measured in their drinking water. The crux about hydraulic fracturing is not only the chemicals used for the process – but what happens with them afterwards. A large part of the fracking fluid is pumped back up, but a rest remains inside the borehole. Through the cracks, chemicals and natural gas could move into more permeable layers and into the groundwater.  

The part that is pumped back up and led to storage through a conduit system cannot be recycled or used again. On its website, RWE Dea published a press release on the 7th of June, 2012, stating: “A small amount of processed water leaked out of the conduit system in Becklingen Z1”, further information could not yet be provided. News like these is one of the reasons why the image of hydraulic fracturing is turning negative. 

ExxonMobil is doing its best to reconcile. The multinational’s German website offers a detailed description of every fracking fluid used – and they try to take the scary out of the chemical terms. As an example: Tetramethylammonium chloride is used in fracking fluid – and hair shampoo. Nevertheless, two skulls serve as a warning, and rather than feeling comforted, it leaves you worried about the shampoo you use. But they also state to have the goal to find non-toxic alternatives in the course of this year – putting them a step ahead of impartial institutions that are currently working on environmental impact studies. 

Company wisdom and the impartial research

And indeed, it seems that the energy companies have the biggest say and the greatest knowledge. Other than official environmental agencies, they have more information about what is going on and how to improve it. “In principle, the technology used in the USA and in Germany is the same, but German engineers refined the machineries for the conditions of our sites. Every frac is being planned and simulated individually. And the implementation takes place under German environmental and security standards, which are exemplary for the world,” states Dr. Westendorf-Lahouse. 

But for the UBA this is not enough. For years, no studies have been conducted about the environmental impacts of fracking. “We need a way to control how long the subterranean cracks are, and how companies deal with the flowback,” demands Bernd Kirschbaum. There is no information available regarding gas in groundwaters; not on the long-term effects of the chemicals in the ground, or how earthquakes can be avoided. According to Dr. Westendorf-Lahouse, the damages that were reported in the USA cannot be linked to hydraulic fracturing. But impartial studies are desperately needed to confirm this. 

Scientific Studies catching up slowly

And these studies are on their way. “A study on behalf of the Ministery of the Environment is meant to answer open questions about the risks of Fracking. The results will be presented this summer,” says Keppner. “Only when all knowledge gaps are eliminated, when there is clarity about the risks and all details are on the table, there will be decisions about further steps – possibly also the adaption of federal regulations.” This does not sound very promising, and it happens late. But activist Paul Bludau seems content anyways: “That something is happening at all is great. The pressure from below has achieved this. That’s why our outreach work is so important!” 

The Federal Institute for Earth Sciences and Resources is working on a study since 2011 to research the actual potential of German gas resources, and results are expected by 2015. Keppner adds a suggestion: “As long as there are knowledge gaps, we advise the states to avoid permissions for exploration.” But companies like ExxonMobil and Wintershall were faster. It will be left to see if these studies will be able to loosen the grip of the energy giants over German gas potentials. 

The current debate about hydraulic fracturing is comprehensible and important, even if it may have started delayed. Public action groups have concerned themselves with an important task: creating pressure from below to force change. Stefan Henrichs, Paul Bludau and their private initiatives have been successful so far: In many places, test drills were averted, postponed until more scientific knowledge is available. The UBA and government agencies have taken the hint and are currently conducting studies that will perhaps lead to the awaited changes to the Federal Mining Act, enforcing a requirement for environmental reviews. 

The big players, ExxonMobil, Wintershall, and RWE Dea, are forced to disclose more and more information and to improve their processes; the people are holding them accountable.

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Stealing from the Poor?

“We have set the records straight! Any vessle that wants to fish on our waters must do so through the right channel and comply to the laws of Sierra Leone”. Salieu Sankoh – National Project Coordinator, WARFP-SL

by Alinah O. Bockarie

The coastline is lined up with various sizes of fishing boats. People from neighbouring villages have come; some to buy and some to sell their goods. I see varieties of fish; tilapia, herring, mackrel, baracuda in different sizes, lying in the sand as fishermen bargain with the women fishmonger who have come to purchase them. This is what this little fishing village of Mania in Bonthe District used to look like. The economy thrived and businesses flourished. I visited Mania village again in 2010 on what I once knew as a market day. I was surprised to find just few boats and this time with little or no catch at all. There were a handful of people around but it was not as lively as it was when I first visited. I wondered why there was just little catch. Have the fishes migrated to a place where they would not be caught? I was unsure of what was going on but one thing I observed was that the fishermen do not look so happy and they wore sad faces. 

Curious to find answers to the questions playing up in my mind, I approached Kabba Kain a local fisherman and asked him why was there such little catch. What he explaind to me was shocking and I had to confirm from other fishermen in the area. They all told me the same story. The fishermen complained that some foreign trawlers always come to fish where they have cast their nets. That, was not only destroying their nets but preventing them from having good catch. They also complained that because catch is poor, business dwindles. For communities like Mania, fishing is the only source of livelihood. If foreign trawlers are creating tension on the local fishers, should the authorites then not pay attention to the issue? 

Fishing in Sierra Leone 

Sierra Leone has plentiful natural resources and its productive coastal waters are an invaluable source of food and employment for its people. It has a coastline that is fed by a number of rivers and abundant rainfall which in turn provide some elements for a productive marine fisheries. The fisheries sector has been contributing immensely to the country’s economic development. According to the Minister of Fisheries Dr. Soccoh Kabia, the fisheries sector is contributing about 10% to the country’s GDP. The West Africa Regional Fisheries Project (WARFP) of the Ministry of Fisheries, states that the fisheries sector is providing employment for an estimated 100,000 persons directly and, indirectly for about 500,000 persons. This represents 10% of the country's population. Information from the same source states that the coastal areas; Bonthe, Shenge, Tombo to name a few, are made up mostly of fishing population, and about 25% of the male population of working age is involved in part-time or full-time fishing. 

As a consequence of the civil war, the government lacked capacity to monitor and control its coastal waters. Foreign illegal fishing vessels have multiplied, plundering the rich waters of Sierra Leone. “It is estimated that the country is now losing almost $29 million every year to illegal fishing operators - a potential developmental income that local communities and the government cannot afford to lose. What is even more annoying is the fact that the country does not benefit anything out of its own resources.” complains Victor Kargbo, Fishing Protection Officer of the Ministry of Fisheries. 

IUU fishing - the issue 

As defined in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Illegal Unreported and Unregulated or IUU fishing means “fishing activities which are illegal, unreported or unregulated". The convention further clarifies how fishing can be illegal, unreported and unregulated and maintained that IUU fishing is a crime and authorizes sanctions against  any country or company that engages in the act – the basis for detering and preventing IUU fishing by means of international law. 

IUU fishing has been identified as a serious global problem; one of the main impediments to the achievement of sustainable world fisheries. According to Illegal-fishing.info, IUU fishing is worth between $10bn and $23.5bn per year, representing a major loss of revenue, particularly to some of the poorest countries in the world where dependency on fisheries for food, livelihoods and revenues is high. IUU fishing respects neither national boundaries nor international attempts to manage high seas resources. It thrives where governance is weak and where countries fail to meet their international responsibilities. It puts unsustainable pressure on fish stocks, marine wildlife and habitats, subverts labour standards and distorts markets. 

Now, to curb this global problem, the UNCLOS has put forward certain regulations to prevent, deter and elliminate IUU fishing. According to articles 44 and 45 of the Law of the Sea, member states shall impose sanctions ranging from suspention of authority to fish, withdrawal of fishing rights to confiscation of illegal fishing gears, catches or fisheries products of any fishing vessle conducting IUU fishing activities on their waters. 

IUU Fishing - a crime

Sierra Leone's coastlines is occupied by numerous fishing communities where the people's only source of livelihood is fishing. Through such economic activities, parents are able to school their children and take care of their homes. As a consequence of the civil war, the governments have fragile administrative capacity, weak regulations and corrupt officials who would do anything to survive the harsh conditions of the country. Cound not a situation like this attract illegal fishing vessles? 

The Sierra Leone Fisheries law do not permit any fishing vessle to fish within 35 Nortical Miles of the Inshore Exclusion Zone or IEZ. It also forbids vessles to fish on its waters without permit or flags of convenience. However, due to lack of monitoring capacity, the ministry could not detect fishing vessles that violate this policy. 

A video documentary by Aljazeera's Juliana Ruhfus in collaboration with Environmental Justice Foundation in October 2011 showed how fishing vessles from Asia and other parts of Europe [Ocean 3 and Sea Queen] fish illegally in the IEZ in Sierra Leone. These fishing vessles turn off the vessle's monitoring system so they could not be detected, paint the vessle black, obscure the identity of the vessle, are without Flags of Conveinence and fish in unauthorized locations. Could these be the very ones the fishermen complained about? 

According to the UNCLOS article 3(f), a vessle is said to be illegal when it “falsifies or conceals its markings, identity or registration [...]”. This is exactly how foreign vessles violate the laws and exploit the country's waters, taking away the fisheries products without the knowledge of authorities. But how do the vessles come to fish on the waters illegally? 

Efforts to prevent IUU fishing 

IUU fishing occurs in virtually all captured fisheries ranging from fisheries under national jurisdiction to high seas fisheries. It weakens the ability of the fisheries sector to meet national and global economic, social and environmental objectives and threatens the livelihoods of people who depend on fishing. However, given the importance of developing countries in the international fish trade, measures to reduce IUU fishing will fail if developing countries are not active participants in the fight to ensure legal and sustainable fishing practices. 

According to chapter 4 of the UNCLOS, regional fisheries management organizations, with the active support of the community have established an array of measures designed to counteract IUU fishing. One such organization is the West Africa Regional Fisheris Project for Sierra Leone which is implemented by the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources. This $28 million project is funded by the International Development Association and Global Environmental Facility of the World Bank. It is established to strengthen the capacity of the country to manage its fish industry by reducing IUU fishing and adding local value to fish products across the country. 

Fighting IUU Fishing in Sierra Leone 

Satellite technology and automated information system is one way to provide adequate monitoring of the waters. “It has been quite challenging to effectively monitor and control the waters in the past, but now we can tell who is at sea through our satellite monitoring technology” said Dr. Salieu Sankoh, Project Coordinator of the West Africa Fisheries Project in Freetown. With this type of radar technology, a vessel can be detected at 35 nortical miles of the coastal waters and with patrol boats, ministry authorities can surveillance the waters and arrest any illegal vessle. 

Victor Cole Country Representative for EJF Sierra Leone recommends creating a regular monitoring and control task force for all coastal waters in the country. “If we have a regular patrol team, illegal vessles will be afraid of being caught and that would scare them away” he says. “Since we began to patrol the sherbro waters regularly and provide evidence to the ministry, most of the trawlers have fled for fear of being arrested”. 

Another effort to control illegal fishing is to engage community participation. In doing this, WARFP has established community management fisheries committees for four Marine Protected Areas MPAs within local fishing communities along the coastlines. These committees are responsible to control all fishing activities in their areas and report any illegal fishing to the ministry which then makes the arrests. “The community management committees have been very cooperative and our fishing businesses are returning to normal” reported Mary Walters a senior fishmonger in the sherbro island. 

More support comes from other partners and stakeholders. For example, the Environmental Justice Foundation EJF is working directly with fishing communities in Shenge in the Sherbro Island of Bonthe to promote community surveillance. The US Naval command and the Joint Maritime Committee are both working together to monitor and control the waters to curb not just illegal fishing but transnational organized crime such as drug and human trafficking. Furthermore, the Food and Agricultural Organization FAO is also giving logistical support and training to the ministry and as recent as April 2012, the ministry's joint operation's committee at Murray Town received 6 computers and 4 printers as support from FAO says Handel Mac-Williams, Communication Officer FAO. 

The Future – what now 

Arresting illegal fishing vessles involves legal support. So far, the ministry has made 8 arrests between 2011 and early 2012; most recent a French Vessle “TV Sterenn” which was fined $703 thousand. According to Dr. Sankoh, 80% of the arrests made are from trawlers fishing within the IEZ. The revenue generated in the form of fines is about $1 million and according to Dr. Sankoh, these monies are paid into the country's consolidated fund. 

The ministry's effort to control the waters is not unconnected with challenges. There are other areas to strengthen in order to put a final hold on this problem. The ministry still needs more patrol boats, total control over the entire fishing industry and better conditions of service for personnel to prevent professional malpractices. Furthermore, the government needs strong collaborative support from other states within the UN and the EU to end this problem. 

When Dr. Soccoh Kabia made his Keynote address at the international forum for IUU fishing in London, he said the ministry generated over $3 million in total revenue. Yet the ministry lacks patrol boats? Is the ministry not supposed to use the revenue it generates for its operational benefits? I think it is time the ministry became more responsible and decides how the revenue it generates is used to foster a smooth operation.

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Lithuania: same face, changing masks

by Aistė Valiauskaitė 

Imagine 2.5 million people (1 million of them were Lithuanians) holding hands and  making human chain for 600 km across 3 countries. This happened August 23, 1989, in  Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. This event, called The Baltic Way, has become the symbol of  solidarity and patriotism. January 13, 1991, after almost a year of the independence of Lithuania, thousands of  unarmed people went to protect the key places of the country, when Soviet Military tried to take over Lithuania again. were killed fighting for their homeland. 2001-2011, more than 400 thousand Lithuanians have emigrated and today, 70 % are ready to emigrate. 

Foreign treasures 

“Every day I get involved in life in the UK more and more and this weakens the link  to Lithuania. Also, nobody is waiting for me there”, says Vitalijus, 24, who moved to London last summer. Vitalijus has graduated from college in Lithuania with BA in Business Administration. He did not see any perspectives in homeland, thus left the country and now is working as a  salesman. The more important thing for him is possibility to follow his passion in the free time. Almost every weekend he and his friends travel to different part of the UK to look for  underground treasures with metal detectors and later sell them. The main goal of Vitalijus is  to start digging business in London, which would make it easier to ride a hobby. Vitalijus is  sure that he could not do it in Lithuania: “Current government is corrupted and there are little  possibilities to start a business. You must have connections and money.” 

He adds another reason for leaving – the ratio between prices and salaries is unreasonable. “Sooner or later life in Lithuania will change, but I will be too old to care”, says Vitalijus. He is one of statistical emigrants “The portrait of typical Lithuanian emigrant is 20-29 year old, mostly single and leaving for the United Kingdom. Ireland, Germany and  Scandinavian countries are also among popular choices.”, said the Deputy of Director General  of Statistics Lithuania Dalia Ambrozaitienė in her report. 

Lithuania is the leading country in net emigration in European Union. According to  official statistics, the country has lost around 400 thousand people in a decade because of emigration. Statistics Lithuania has stated that in one decade (from 2001 to 2011) citizens‘number has decreased in 13 %. Reasons for leaving are mostly economic. As Ambrozaitienė says, “Comparing to other EU countries, we are third in the unemployment. Unemployment rates are only higher in  Spain and Latvia”. She adds that only Bulgarians and Romanians earn less than Lithuanians.

Emigration leads Lithuania to even deeper decline. As it is said in the study, written by  Civil Society Institute in 2005, about the reasons of emigration from Lithuania, country loses  the money that it has invested in the education of the person, country also loses specialists, demographic conditions are getting worse”. Even if people emigrate for a short time, social  security insurance financing is decreasing.

Another negative factor is lack of specialists. We could think that if more people are  leaving, there are more places for others to work, but actually emigration causes brain drain. “If we are not capable of stopping emigration with some social and economic means, and we  are not able to compensate for specialists who emigrate, we will have to bring professionals  from other countries. This will cause new cultural and political problems”, as it is stated in  Civil Society Institute report.

The head of Budget and Finance commitee office of Seimas of the Republic of  Lithuania Gediminas Morkūnas says that social problems are the sore points of emigration. He thinks that Lithuanians made the decision to join the EU too fast as, in his believes, the  country was not ready for the change in 2004. 

Not all bad 

In 2011 only, 54 thousand has left the country. “Delightful thing is increasing immigration. We can see that in 2011 almost 16 thousands came back to Lithuania, 14 thousands of them are Lithuanians. This is very nice. We hope that it will continue that way.”, says Ambrozaitienė. According to Lithuanian bank balance data, almost 5 % of Lithuania‘s GDP came  from transferred money from foreign countries. That made up more than 4 billion litas (more than 1,15 bilion euros).

“I believe that young people are interested in studying and working abroad because of  different culture. Why not? The mobility is increasing, thus leaving is not that negative. I think that young people use opportunities to see how life works elsewhere in the world. They  will come back later”, believes Ambrozaitienė. 

Morkūnas believes that transferred money come back to the country in other ways.“As emigrants send money to their family, these families require less from the government”,  he says. He gives The Jew Diaspora as an example. Morkūnas thinks that if Lithuanians are as united as Jews and would do a lot for their country while in emigration, Lithuania could be even wealthier. The question is if emigrants will transfer that much money in the future. Moreover, he says if people would not have left during crisis, the unemployment in the country would be at least double at the moment. By leaving, emigrants have partly saved the country from deeper crisis. 

The value of values 

Justinas is 24, he has finished his BA studies in Lithuania, took a gap year and now he is planning to leave to study MA in a foreign country. He simply feels bored in this home country. “I cannot imagine not having any links to Lithuania, my family is here. However, I  do not feel any connection so Lithuania as geographical place. I do not approve of what neo-nazis say that we must not leave what our brothers Lithuanians have created with their own blood”, Justinas says. 

He adds: “I know that in the age of Enlightment word “patriot” meant being faithful to  your home country. Now here has a very radical-right meaning “chauvinist”, I do not want to be called that. Also patriotism here only applies to the ethnic majority, you cannot be considered patriot if you are a Jew, Polish or gay. You cannot be cosmopolitan in Lithuania”- Justinas believes that there is very interesting situation in Lithuania as his generation 90 had to create values and mentality from scratch and others who lived in Soviet Union all their 91 lives had to start changing them 20 years ago.

The dean of faculty of Communication of Vilnius University Andrius Vaišnys does not think that Lithuanians succeeded in changing anything: “I believe we still have Soviet mentality with negative, awry, artificial and untruthful adaptation for situation. In theory, Lithuania is democratic, but the feeling is different. All the decisions are determined as 96 arrangements. Demagogy is in the political and academic areas. Values are only the shield where other things are hidden” . 

Independence = poverty? 

What brought to think about the decline of values were the results of the research about emigration. People asked to choose between independence of the state and economic  welfare. 70 % chose the latter. Ignas Zokas, director of public opinion research company, which has conducted the research says: “People want to live well today and have normal living conditions. I think, this shows one of the reasons of emigration that first of all a person wants to create welfare for oneself and the family”. As he explained, it was not clarified what the terms independence of the state and economic welfare mean, because the company was only looking for an overview of the situation.

The question itself is stated strangely – if economic wellness and state independence are given as opposition, it means that being independent equals being poor. “I think that question like that would not be asked if we had any values”, says Vaišnys. In his opinion, people who were patriots 20 years ago did not succeed in placing their belief into actions. Government was not in control of the situation but people believed that they were, so Lithuanians started taking loans, buying obligations and now are in debt. There were tons of businesses which fooled the society, as well as, new control sector, which did not protect the society. “This has happened during the first year of our Independence and it still is the same”, says Vaišnys.

Judicial cases are only distrained and delayed. In Vaišnys opinion, the best proof of it is that Lithuania did not manage to investigate the case of January 13, when Soviet forces tried to occupy the country after its Independence has been restored. “This means that the country does not have any self – respect and all the government does is talk about it”, explains Vaišnys. 

Leaving without identity  

58 % would like to keep Lithuanian identity alive in the foreign country, even less percent of that is youth. Vaišnys explains this phenomenon: “Young people leave not because of economy or because they enjoy picking strawberries abroad, or for better education. Reasons are hidden in human relations”. He says that students in university are very passive, there are only few persons who suggest ideas and are involved in university life. “Student has to say that university is me. I feel that attitude very rarely”, says Vaišnys. He believes it is again because of the lack of values.

Students see other problems in Lithuanian study system. Jovaras, 23, has dropped out  of university in Lithuania and moved to the UK to study BA in communications there. “I left because I was disappointed and I believe that I will have more possibilities after studies abroad”, he says. Jovaras thinks that the most important difference is how lectures treat students – abroad they are equal, in Lithuania professors feel that they have much more authority. Also, in his opinion, study programmes in Lithuania are old fashioned, “everything  is about 5 years late, that is horrible, especially in the field of communications”. Jovaras is not involved in any Lithuanian community in the foreign country, but he reads news, listens to radio podcasts from this motherland daily. He is absolutely sure that he will come back to live in Lithuania as it is the only place he can imagine himself and he loves the country very much.

If the current emigration tendencies continue, by 2050, there will be only 2 million Lithuanians left (now there are 3 million). However, the greater problem might be the values and Lithuanian identity. If the country has 2 millions of people without some strong common values, it does not make sense to call them nation even if they all live in the same geographical place. However, values have to be built overtime, it is possible that 22 years of Independence is not enough to built a stable country from what was left by 5 decades of occupation. Everybody keeps repeating the phrase “only time will show what is going to happen”, but at this stage it may be the only option.

Some decades ago Lithuania was absolutely changed by Soviet Union. Mentality of Soviet man is still quite alive in the minds of Lithuanians. From 2 decades ago the country had to start changing to completely different direction – to the West. Lithuania is caught in between West and East – cannot get further from the East and still cannot reach the West. And Lithuanians try to hurry up and by leaving to the Western countries and if they come back, they might bring a bit of the West back home. 

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