CPIML Liberation is deeply grieved by the news of death and destruction caused by a powerful earthquake in Eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday morning. According to reports, more than 1000 people have been killed in the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that struck near the city of Khost.

A hacker has exposed a trove of police files relating to China’s “re-education camps” for Uyghur people. These files conclusively disprove China’s attempts to showcase the camps to journalists as mere “re-education camps”. The files show thousands of haunting photos of incarcerated Uyghurs, including those of elderly people and children, whose crimes include “studying Quran with grandmother”, “growing beard” and so on. The youngest prisoner is a 15-year-old girl.

Last year, in 2021, the Latin American country of Colombia witnessed wave of mass uprising against the right-wing government of Iván Duque. The Duque government, riding on neoliberal policies, had introduced a series of anti-people measures including cuts in social security and privatization of healthcare. The brutal state repression against the striking workers, students, and indigenous population in April-June 2021 led to the death of over 80 people, and around 2000 arbitrary detentions.  

The island nation of Sri Lanka is swept by a relentless wave of people’s anger. Faced with the most severe economic crisis since its independence, Sri Lanka is witnessing a complete shortage of all essential commodities. Long queues for essential items have become the everyday reality for people in Sri Lanka, so has the mass mobilization by the people against those responsible for the current crisis.

The result of the May 8 presidential elections in the Philippines was an unimaginable tragedy for many who survived the decade long brutal dictatorship regime of Ferdinand Marcos (Marcos Sr). Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr or simply known as Marcos Jr, son of Marcos Sr managed to win the elections by securing nearly 30 million votes in his favor. He received backing from the outgoing authoritarian regime of Rodrigo Duterte through his daughter Sara Duterte who has been elected as the vice president.

The recent presidential elections in France witnessing the+7 re-election of Emmanuel Macron of La République En Marche (Republic Forward) defeating far-right Marine Le Pen of the National Rally. Macron received 58.6% of the votes while Le Pen grabbed 41.4% votes during the second round of the elections held on April 24.

Liberation talked to Nicolas Jaoul, a researcher based in France regarding the presidential elections and its implications.

An ASEAN Defense Senior Officials' Meeting (ADSOM) took place on May 17 at the Cambodian Defense Ministry in Phnom Penh, to pave the way for the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) in Phnom Penh next month which the Myanmar junta Defence Minister is also expected to attend in person. The meeting, attended by Myanmar junta representative Zaw Zaw Soe discussed and decided in principle on the request for ASEAN-India Maritime Exercises to celebrate the 30th anniversary of ASEAN-India ties.

Former US President George Bush, speaking at an event at the George W Bush Presidential Center that examined the future of American elections, made a Freudian slip of the tongue. He said, “[The] decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq… I mean, of Ukraine.” What followed this gaffe, however, was even more significant.

The ouster of Imran Khan in Pakistan has once again plunged the country into political crisis that threatens to further aggravate its economic woes. Thousands of Pakistanis have taken to the streets both inside Pakistan and across the world to oppose the deposition of Imran Khan and demanding fresh elections. The finger of accusation is directly towards the Pakistani establishment, especially towards the Army.

In our earlier commentaries and statements, we have covered some of the recent background to Putin’s imperialist invasion of Ukraine. We have considered the post-Cold War geopolitics of the region. We have criticised the Modi government’s refusal to clearly condemn the invasion, as well as to effectively plan the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine, and noted the affinity between the far-right expansionist visions of Putin and of Hindu supremacists.