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A major driver of the farmers’ strikes in Europe has been proposed environmental regulations, which they say will make their jobs more difficult and expensive.
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Photo: Bernat Armangue / AP
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1. European farmers and the ‘environment vs. jobs dilemma’
For months, farmers have been protesting across Europe: They’ve driven their tractors on the streets of Paris, blocked Ukrainian imports at the Poland-Ukraine border, and even sprayed manure at police in Brussels.
A major driver of the farmers’ discontent has been the European Union’s Nature Restoration plan. The plan is part of the EU’s Green Deal — an ambitious set of proposals that leaders hope will make the continent “climate-neutral” by 2050.
The farmers say that the proposed regulations would make their jobs more expensive and difficult.
Now, after a crucial vote this week, the European Union is set to approve a new version of the Nature Restoration plan, which has been greatly watered down after concessions were made to appease the farmers and the European People’s Party.
This raises the question: Do workers’ rights and environmental protections need to be at odds?
Researchers call this the “environment vs. jobs” dilemma — the perceived conflict between these two things.
One answer to this conflict is what’s known as the “just transition,” which the International Labour Organization defines as “greening the economy in a way that is as fair and inclusive as possible to everyone concerned, creating decent work opportunities and leaving no one behind.”
An example: During last year’s historic strike, the United Auto Workers forced the Big Three automakers to include employees who make EV batteries in their union contracts — a win for both workers and the environment.
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2. UN chief, world leaders call for investigation into deadly incident at Gaza aid point
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has called for an investigation into Thursday’s deadly incident where Palestinians were killed at an aid distribution site. The leaders of France, Germany, the U.K., and the EU have joined the call for an investigation.
“The desperate civilians in Gaza need urgent help, including those in the north where the U.N. has not been able to deliver aid in more than a week,” Guterres said.
Gazan authorities said that at least 112 people were killed and more than 750 were wounded in the incident, where they say Israeli tanks opened fire on a crowd rushing to pull food off an aid convoy in Gaza City.
Israeli Defense Forces say that most of the casualties were caused by trampling and fleeing aid trucks; they say they opened fire “only in face of danger when the mob moved in a manner which endangered them” and killed fewer than 10 people.
The acting director of Al-Awda Hospital, Mohammed Salha, said that of the 176 wounded brought to the facility, 142 had gunshot wounds and the other 34 displayed injuries from a stampede.
South Africa said the incident breached the provisional measures that the International Court of Justice put in place in late January, which stated that Israel must take measures to prevent genocide in Gaza and allow in humanitarian aid.
The U.S. announced on Friday that the military will begin airdropping aid into Gaza in the coming days.
Read more on Blue Marble about the ICJ’s provisional measures.
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3. Why did the Palestinian prime minister resign?
This week Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh announced that he and his council of ministers will resign from the Palestinian Authority, which has limited governance over the occupied territory of the West Bank.
The resignation comes amid declining support for the Palestinian Authority, which has been weakened by accusations of corruption, withdrawn financial aid, and the slow pace of progress toward Palestinian self-determination.
Since Hamas is not seen as a legitimate government among the international community, many nations favor the idea of the Palestinian Authority retaking control of the Gaza Strip after the Israel-Hamas war ends. Bolstering the Authority’s reputation is seen as an essential step in that process.
The Palestinian Authority was formed in 1994 as part of the Oslo Accords peace process between Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Read Blue Marble’s full explainer on the Palestinian Authority.
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In other news
- Thousands attended the heavily-policed funeral of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in Moscow on Friday. [Reuters]
- Protesters called for a boycott of Friday’s parliamentary elections in Iran, the first election there since mass demonstrations over mandatory hijabs swept the country in 2022. [The New York Times]
- On Thursday, President Hakainde Hichilema declared a national disaster in Zambia, which has gone five weeks without rain. [Al Jazeera]
- For the first time ever, Cuba has asked the U.N.’s World Food Programme for help amid worsening food shortages. [BBC]
- What, did Rihanna not perform at your wedding? India’s richest man is planning a three-day pre-wedding extravaganza for his son, which includes 1,200 invitees (that is a lot of chicken breasts) and performances by David Blaine and Riri. [Associated Press]
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Say that again
“I can’t even stand because of how tired I get, and most days I just cough and cough the entire shift,” said 29-year-old Sachin Gupta, a delivery courier in New Delhi, which has some of the worst air pollution in the world. [Rest of World]
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‘Rally after rally, we gained momentum’
How activists fought to lower the voting age in Malaysia from 21 to 18.
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What we’re listening to
Here’s a groovy little tune to help you slide into the weekend: The Movers’ “Soul Crazy” — off of a compilation of the group’s songs from 1970 to 1976.
The Movers were one of South Africa’s most successful acts of the 1970s. Their hit song “Soweto Inn,” from 1976, became inseparable from the country’s anti-apartheid student uprisings.
Recommended if you like Booker T. and the M.G.’s or, really, anything off of Memphis’ Stax label.
—Laura Adamczyk, staff writer
Thanks for reading. We’ll see you Monday.
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