2019
February
12
Tuesday

Monitor Daily Podcast

February 12, 2019
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Peter Ford
International News editor

Interpol’s reputation has taken a drubbing in recent months. Its president disappeared last November, only to turn up in jail in his native China accused of corruption. And then a top Russian security official came close to replacing him, which would have raised further doubts about the neutrality of the international police network.

But today there was some good news on the “wanted man” front. Hakeem al-Araibi, a dissident Bahraini soccer player, returned to his home in Australia, where he is a refugee, after nearly three months as a prisoner in Thailand, where he had gone on honeymoon.

The Bahraini government had used Interpol to issue an international “red notice” demanding his arrest and extradition. Several other authoritarian governments are notorious for hounding dissidents through Interpol in this way – among them Russia, Turkey, China, and Venezuela.

This time, though, Mr. al-Araibi’s friends and family organized a campaign to free him that went viral around the world. In the face of international outrage, Bahrain withdrew the extradition request it had lodged with Thailand.

Interpol says it tries to weed out illegitimate red notices that are issued for political purposes, but it doesn’t always succeed. Hakeem al-Araibi’s case shows that a public outcry can set international affairs on a truer path. And it should prompt Interpol to redouble its efforts to thwart those governments who would abuse it.

Here are our five stories for today. 


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Today’s stories

And why we wrote them

Does President Trump want anything from the United Nations? Judging from the slow pace at which the administration is moving to replace Ambassador Nikki Haley, experts say, not much.

Ann Hermes/Staff
An affordable family housing complex that opened in 2015 is one of a number of such builds in San Francisco. Gov. Gavin Newsom has pledged to create 3.5 million new housing units by 2025.

California sees a chance to solve its housing shortage, in the form of a $21 billion surplus, resolve from the new governor, and tech and foundation money. Can a regional approach to problem-solving overcome NIMBYism?

The Chat

Karen Norris/Staff

And now – Brexit. I am British, I’m an international affairs specialist, and I live in the European Union. But I have no clearer an idea than any of our readers or listeners how – or even if – Britain will leave the European Union in six weeks’ time. So I talked to a fellow British Monitor correspondent in search of clarity. Did I end up any the wiser? You can find out by reading the full transcript of our conversation (select “deep read,” below).

Jacob Turcotte and Rebecca Asoulin/Staff, Photos by AP

Monitor Breakfast

The Democratic senator from the critical battleground state of Ohio would focus his campaign on the concerns of working people – and says his rumpled authenticity is a plus in the industrial Midwest. He plans to make a decision in March.

Courtesy of Zach Skiles
Zach Skiles hugs his support dog, Rosie. She is also a training dog at a rescue facility in Walnut Creek, Calif., where she helps veterans learn how to work with service dogs.

After a combat deployment in Iraq, Zach Skiles faced mental trauma when he returned home. Now he draws on his experience to help fellow veterans struggling with the aftermath of war.


The Monitor's View

AP
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in cross the border line at the border village of Panmunjom in Demilitarized Zone last April.

One way to end the nuclear-tipped military tension on the Korean Peninsula, according to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, is to think ceaselessly about small steps toward peace. He calls this turning snowballs into a snowman. That’s good advice as President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un prepare to meet for their second summit on Feb. 27-28. 

The summit, which is being held in Vietnam, comes with low expectations that Mr. Kim is ready to take concrete steps toward giving up his nuclear weapons or missiles. This is the conclusion of Mr. Trump’s own intelligence chiefs. Kim may make some concessions, as he did in last June’s meeting in Singapore. But North Korea has a long record of retreating or cheating on nuclear agreements.

Mr. Moon suggests creating a mood for peace as much as the means for peace. Threats by the US or offering economic incentives to the North can only go so far. What’s needed is a virtuous circle of trust, starting with the two Koreas. After all, it is their unresolved war from the early 1950s that must first be officially ended.

An emerging trust between the two Koreas began in July 2017, when Moon offered to hold talks soon after becoming president. At the time, the North was busy testing atomic weapons and new missiles while Mr. Trump was making threats. In December, Moon suggested the two countries field a joint team for the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. Kim jumped on the idea and thus began an unprecedented era of warming cross-border relations. The opening then led to Trump agreeing to the June summit with Kim.

Last year, while Kim and Trump met once, Kim and Moon met three times. The two have reduced tensions in the demilitarized zone, through such actions as removing some guard posts and land mines. In August, many Korean families split by the long divide were able to meet. This week, a group of about 250 South Korean religious and civic leaders visited the North. And this Friday, the two Koreas are expected to submit a joint bid to the International Olympic Committee to co-host the 2032 Summer Games.

Inter-Korea reconciliation, says Moon, is now the “driving force” behind international efforts to denuclearize North Korea. Or as a former US negotiator with North Korea, Christopher Hill, put it, “I think the game has changed somewhat under Moon Jae-in.”

Moon is not expected to be at the coming talks in Hanoi. But his peace moves may very well influence the negotiations. They could be the snowballs in the room.


A Christian Science Perspective

About this feature

Each weekday, the Monitor includes one clearly labeled religious article offering spiritual insight on contemporary issues, including the news. The publication – in its various forms – is produced for anyone who cares about the progress of the human endeavor around the world and seeks news reported with compassion, intelligence, and an essentially constructive lens. For many, that caring has religious roots. For many, it does not. The Monitor has always embraced both audiences. The Monitor is owned by a church – The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston – whose founder was concerned with both the state of the world and the quality of available news.

Years of unsuccessfully searching for affordable housing closer to her job left today’s contributor discouraged. But considering a more spiritual view of home shifted her outlook completely, and soon she found a flat that met her needs beautifully.


A message of love

Marco Trovati/AP
The Swiss team celebrates winning the gold medal at the Alpine World Ski Championships in Are, Sweden, Feb. 12. The event will reportedly fall short of its target of being 100 percent fossil fuel-free, but organizers expect to reach a figure of 70 percent by using alternative fuels.
( The illustrations in today’s Monitor Daily are by Jacob Turcotte and Karen Norris. )

A look ahead

Come back tomorrow. We’re working on a story about the rising activism of big US outdoor brands. Can an industry that has traditionally put profit first show moral leadership?

More issues

2019
February
12
Tuesday

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