Compiled by Lydia Wong, Nila Karunakaran, Tobyn Smith, Trinity De Lima, Joey Quinn, Layla Jeeth, Mary Wahn
Edited by John Wilson, Lydia Wong, Grey Cohen, Ryan Simmons
Asia and the Pacific
An Aging Atrocity: China’s Response to its Changing Demographics
Since China’s introduction of the One-Child Policy in 1979, its fertility rate ranks among the lowest in the world at 1.175 children born per woman. The natural increase rate, which is calculated as the birth rate of the population subtracted from the death rate ppof the same population, fell by roughly 2 million in 2023. This negative population growth threatens China’s pension system, which could run out of money by 2035. To combat this, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, China’s legislature, announced plans to raise the retirement age from 60 for men, 55 for women in white-collar jobs, and 50 for women in blue-collar jobs, to 63, 58, and 55. Starting in January, the system will take 15 years to implement fully, phasing in the changes based on workers’ birthdays.
This announcement follows China’s abrupt end to foreign adoptions, another month of falling growth estimates, and fraud accusations. Chinese citizens have expressed contempt, while analysts argue that this policy shift has been long overdue. However, this change may not be enough to stop the “doom loop” that China’s aging population has initiated. Bolder solutions seem unfeasible due to China’s underfunded pension system and the expected reactions of Chinese workers, which could risk embarrassment on the international stage. The absence of financial stability has fostered a bleak economic mood across China. Seniors now forced to continue working are protesting, and younger generations, facing the future of income unpredictability, are increasingly reluctant to start families.
Central America and the Caribbean
Guatemala’s Ex-Police Chief Convicted in Switzerland for Prison Murders
On September 12th, a Geneva court sentenced former Guatemalan National Civil Police Chief, Erwin Sperisen, to 14 years in prison for complicity in the 2006 extrajudicial murder of seven prisoners at Guatemala’s El Pavon Prison. Sperisen is said to have given the orders as a part of Plan Pavo Real, which sought to reclaim control of the prison from gangs of inmates, and was part of a broader pattern of extrajudicial violence. The court’s decision comes in the wake of Guatemala’s January election, where citizens voted in President Bernardo Arevalo, hoping he will dismantle corruption and restore the people’s faith in government.
After facing accusations and threats of violence in Guatemala in 2007, Sperisen resigned and fled to Geneva, where his father was serving as Guatemala’s representative to the World Trade Organization. In 2010, the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) issued an international warrant for the ex-police chief’s arrest, but Sperisen’s dual Swiss-Guatemalan citizenship prevented extradition. He was tried instead under a law permitting Swiss courts to hear cases against their citizens for crimes committed overseas.
Sperisen was initially arrested in Geneva in 2012, and in 2014 he was sentenced to life in prison, but the verdict was successfully appealed in 2017. In 2018, the Swiss Federal Court ordered a retrial, proclaiming the use of faulty evidence in the trial. The Geneva Appeals Court passed the verdict in 2019 but reversed its decision after the European Court of Human Rights criticized the impartiality of a judge involved in the trial.
Sperisen’s conviction marks a significant step in Guatemala’s struggle against impunity and reasserts the international community's commitment to holding state officials accountable for human rights abuses. As Guatemala navigates a new political landscape under President Bernardo Arevalo, there is hope that cases like Sperisen’s will inspire deeper reform, restoring trust in the rule of law and government institutions, and promoting stable polities in the region.
Europe
EU-China Electric Car Tariff Discourse Intensifies
Following an intensive investigation into China’s production of electric cars in Europe, the European Commission accused China of “unfair subsidization, which is causing a threat of economic injury to EU BEV producers.” This investigation results from concern that Chinese car manufacturing companies are undercutting European car companies, impacting the thriving European car industry by swamping the market share. Because of these concerns, the European Commission has also threatened to impose tariffs on Chinese-produced electric cars. Given the potential for escalation, this week, China’s Commerce Minister, Wang Wentao, and the European Commission’s Trade Commissioner, Valdis Dombrovksi, held talks in Brussels. Mr. Wentao insisted, ahead of the negotiations, that they would argue their case “until the last minute.”
Neither party managed to secure a deal, but China and Europe vowed to pursue bilateral negotiations to find an eventual solution that would suit all stakeholders. As of now, the European Commission, which oversees trade for all 27 EU member states, has set preliminary tariffs of 38.1% on certain imported Chinese electric vehicles. The EU has insisted that they will formally vote on the tariffs at the end of the month.
Middle East and North Africa
Oil Tanker “Sounion” The Latest Casualty in Red Sea Shipping Lane Attacks
On August 21st, Houthi rebels attacked an oil tanker flying a Greek flag using small arms and a drone boat. A French destroyer rescued the crew of 25. Two days later on August 23th, the Houthis boarded the ship and planted explosives, causing fires. The wreck of the Sounion presented a possible ecological disaster, in which 150,000 tonnes of crude oil aboard the tanker threatened to seep into the Red Sea. To further complicate matters, Houthi patrols have prevented all salvage efforts in the weeks following the attacks. On September 17, after weeks of failed efforts, a task force escorted the still-burning oil tanker Sounion to a safe dock.
Following the outbreak of war in Gaza on October 7th, 2023, the Houthi rebels have routinely attacked vessels in the Red Sea, vowing to continue attacks until the end of the war in Gaza. In a similar incident to the Sounion, the oil tanker HMS Rubymar sunk in the ocean after a series of Houthi attacks. Following weeks of rescue negotiations, the Combined Task Force (CTF) deemed salvage efforts too dangerous. Houthi rebels have attempted over 150 similar attacks since last October. The violence has forced many vessels to choose alternative routes, which can be dangerous. On August 28, the MSC Antonia lost 46 containers overboard due to extreme weather conditions on the South African coast, becoming the third incident of its kind in 2024. Houthi attacks continue to impact global shipping. The Cape of Good Hope saw a 75% increase in traffic as compared to the previous year, while traffic in the Suez Canal decreased by 50%. Violence in the Red Sea has forced vessels to travel other, possibly dangerous routes. Those that choose to brave the channel risk attacks from Houthi rebels, and salvage efforts to mitigate wrecks in the area have met limited success.
North America
Death of Georgia Woman Sparks Political Response over Maternal Mortality and Abortion Bans
This past week, ProPublica released a report detailing the events leading up to the death of Georgia woman Amber Nicole Thurman in 2022. The news of Thurman’s death has sparked controversy over state abortion laws and maternal mortality rates. ProPublica reported that Thurman experienced complications after taking abortion pills, from which she then went to a Georgia hospital for treatment. Doctors operated on her much after she arrived for treatment, but she died following a dilation and curettage procedure to remove fetal tissue from her uterus. ProPublica points to the Georgia abortion ban, which prohibits abortions once a pregnancy reaches the 6-week mark, to explain why Thurman’s doctors were hesitant to initially perform the operation. Similar abortion laws banning procedures at the 6-week mark have also been passed in states like Florida and South Carolina.
Abortion accessibility in the United States largely differs from other countries around the world. The Council on Foreign Relations reports that between 1994 and 2023, at least 60 countries have actually increased access to abortion. Meanwhile the United States, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Poland have decreased access. This could speak to the move towards the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which outlines the goal to have universal access to reproductive medical services by the year 2030.
South America
Claims of Presidential Election Fraud Emerge in Venezuela
On September 7, 2024, President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela’s United Socialist Party (PSUV) declared victory in the recent election. After his supposed victory, claims of fraud arose. María Corina Machado, the leader of Maduro’s opposition party contested his triumph and announced that Maduro’s running mate, Edmundo Gonzalez, decisively won. Though the opposition party has provided 30% of voting tallies as of now, Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, controlled by Maduro loyalists, did not report any results. Edmundo Gonzalez recently fled to Spain for asylum after coercion and threats from Maduro’s government which diminished the confidence of Gonzalez’s supporters.
The reaction to this conflict varied from state to state. The United States condemned the election through the placement of sanctions on 16 officials that are closely aligned with Maduro. The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) stated that it is “targeting key officials involved in Maduro’s fraudulent and illegitimate claims of victory and his brutal crackdown on free expression following the election, as the overwhelming majority of Venezuelans call for change.” Other countries such as Chile and Costa Rica also stated their opposition to the results of the election. However, Cuba’s President Miguel Díaz-Canel congratulated Maduro’s success and stated that Cuba will continue to “stand by the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution”. The Bolivarian Revolution was started by Venezuela’s late President Hugo Chavez who served in office from 1999 to 2013. The Revolution is largely influential to PSUV policies through its promotion of nationalistic and anti-imperial ideologies, and state-led economic model.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Central African Mpox Outbreak Worsens
Cases of monkeypox (mpox) in Central Africa continue to rise, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Burundi reporting a collective 1,205 confirmed cases in the past four weeks. Congo remains the hardest hit, with nearly 5,400 confirmed cases in 2024 alone, while Burundi faces a troubling surge. Overall, there are currently 6,201 confirmed cases and 32 deaths in 15 countries across Africa this year.
So far, the international response to mpox focuses primarily on the diagnosis and surveillance of the virus. However, a much larger response is necessary to curb the spread, especially given the already strained health systems in countries like Burundi. The African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 10 million doses are required across the continent to properly address the outbreak, with the DRC needing the most. However, the DRC’s struggle with mpox grows despite the international support it received in the form of 250,000 vaccine doses. Civil conflict forces civilians to flee their homes and move to refugee camps or nearby towns, where the virus spreads more easily. Local health facilities are treating up to four times their patient capacity.
On August 14, the WHO declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The announcement came after the emergence of a new strain of mpox, clade Ib. This variant is more transmissible, spreading largely through physical contact in densely populated areas and leading to a higher fatality rate. The current situation is reminiscent of the 2022 mpox outbreak, when the virus spread to Europe and North America and lasted about a year.
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